Increasing wildfire activity has led to complex ecosystem consequences, with direct effects on the subsystems that affect the presence and movement of water. Although studies have investigated the cascading effects of wildfires on the water balance, our understanding of broad-scale groundwater modifications post fire remains unclear. This review aims to elucidate fire-induced shifts in the water balance, their causal factors, and their potential effects on groundwater recharge. By scrutinizing prior research examples that modeled post-fire recharge scenarios, the review highlights persistent knowledge gaps. The challenge of quantifying and integrating fire-induced alterations in precipitation, wind, and land temperature patterns into recharge projection models is specifically addressed. Despite these gaps, post-fire values of hydrologically meaningful parameters such as leaf area index (LAI), curve number (CN), and near-surface saturated hydraulic conductivity (K_ST) have been identified. Simulating post-fire recharge via the extrapolation of these values requires the consideration of site-specific conditions, vegetation recovery, and ash removal. It frequently results in a reduced interception and increased surface runoff, while evapotranspiration remains dependent on site-specific factors and often dictates groundwater recharge estimates. Although post-fire recharge simulations are inherently complex and imprecise, their growing application can guide land-use alterations and support policy implementation that considers fire-induced water availability changes.

Manganese is the Earth’s crust’s third most abundant transition metal. Decades of increased mining activities worldwide have inevitably led to the release of large amounts of this metal into the environment, specifically in water resources. Up to a certain level, manganese acts as an essential micronutrient to maintain health and support the growth and development of microorganisms, plants, and animals, while above a specific limit, manganese can cause toxicity in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. There are conventional ways to remove manganese from water, such as chemical precipitation, sorption, and biological methods. However, other treatments have yet to be studied much, such as reverse osmosis (RO), which has demonstrated its effectiveness in the removal of heavy metals and could be a suitable alternative for manganese removal if its energy consumption is reduced. This research presents mathematical and statistical modeling of the behavior of a system in laboratory-scale RO. The principal finding was that it is possible to remove Mn using the RO operated with low pressures without decreasing the sustainable removal efficiency. Reducing the operating costs of RO opens the possibility of implementing RO in different contexts where there are problems with water contamination and economic limitations.

Achieving sustainability in life involves increasing efforts to recover resources. This research proposes the recovery of Zn from the Milluni lagoons, an important water supply for Bolivia, where high concentrations of Zn have been identified that exceed permitted limits, exposing a risk to health and ecosystems. The application of reverse osmosis (RO), operated with low pressures, is proposed as a first stage for the concentration of Zn and subsequent recovery of this metal through chemical precipitation. The aim was to maintain the separation efficiency of the RO operated at low pressures without presenting operational problems. As a result, 98.83% metal concentration was achieved with a laboratory-scale pilot system. The above means an important potential for large-scale Zn concentration, apart from orienting the RO toward sustainability by working with low pressures that reduce energy costs during its operation. This study can be used as a valuable reference for the advancement of sustainable technologies in the field of water treatment that simultaneously allow the recovery of resources to promote a circular economy. Finally, this study exposes an alternative for regions with heavy metal water contamination in Bolivia and worldwide.

The accelerated deterioration of water quality in the city of Tarija, Bolivia, has caused several water sources in the Municipality of Tarija to be discontinued due to the presence of toxic contaminants. The current water purification systems that are used in Tarija do not guarantee the elimination of heavy metals; in addition, political and social interest conflicts are a serious problem in the execution of projects and new public investment alternatives, with these being the main problems found in the sector. Reverse osmosis (RO) water purification technologies are one of the most effective contemporary alternatives for the elimination of contaminants in water, such as heavy metals; however, their application and implementation in countries with little or no experience in this type of technology require acceptance and knowledge on behalf of the interested parties. Political and social conflicts between interested parties generate scenarios that affect hydrological planning. Analysis of the actors in the urban and municipal sphere of the city of Tarija, Bolivia, provides a case study for adequate water governance and enabled us to come to a consensus for the implementation of RO. The results show 23 fundamental actors in water management in the Municipality of Tarija, with local actors being those with the greatest influence and power in decision-making. Our analysis of social networks showed an important polarization in the power of decision makers, with municipalities and legislative entities being those that decide on public investments. The interested parties showed considerable interest in the application of RO as a technology that can provide definitive, short-term solutions to the problems of water stress and the water crisis in the Municipality of Tarija and its application in small towns with a high level of social and environmental vulnerability.

Ciencas Exactas e Ingenierías (CICEI) Cochabamba is one of the cities with the worst air quality in Latin America. Suspended particulate matter is one of the main pollutants. This is associated with various characteristics present in the city, with the primary cause of pollution being automotive transport. Recently, the presence of microplastic-like particles (MP-like) in the air of Cochabamba was demonstrated. This contaminant is of interest due to its possible impact on people and ecosystems. Particles with an aerodynamic diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers in the air are important due to their ability to penetrate the respiratory system, longer suspension time, and transportation over long distances. This study determined the influence of different natural and anthropogenic factors on MP-like concentrations in the city's air. Statistical and correlation tools were employed, using MPlike monitoring data from various points in the city. The results show that most of the factors have a significant effect or trends on MP-like concentrations. However, the factor with the greatest influence on air MP-like concentrations is automotive transport, indicating that areas with high vehicular traffic have higher MP-like concentrations.