Anthropogenic pollution of watersheds significantly threatens aquatic ecosystems, biodiversity, and human health. The present review examines the primary sources of contamination in river catchments, including industrial effluents, agricultural runoff, and urban wastewater discharge. The presence of pollutants degrades water quality, disrupting aquatic habitats and leading to adverse outcomes, including biodiversity loss, eutrophication, and declining fish populations. It also focuses on strategic mitigation approaches, including implementing stricter waste management regulations, adopting sustainable agricultural practices, improving wastewater treatment infrastructure, and public education initiatives. The article summarizes several biotechnological techniques developed to decrease the impact of farming activities on water quality. It also emphasises directions that could be followed concerning specific water chemical indicators, such as the residual quantity of heavy metals. Emphasis is placed on the need for integrated policy frameworks and cross-sector collaboration to safeguard freshwater systems and ensure long-term environmental sustainability.

In contrast to rapeseed oil, pumpkin seed oil has yet to be well investigated in terms of oleogelation, and, to the best of our knowledge, no study related to the use of ethylcellulose (EC) in the structuring of this oil has been identified in the current scientific literature. Therefore, the present study evaluated several oleogels formulated with EC as the oleogelator in different concentrations of 7% (OG7) and 9% (OG9), based on cold-pressed pumpkin seed oil (PO) and refined rapeseed oil (RO), as well as on mixtures of the two oils in different combinations: PO:RO (3:1) (PRO) and PO:RO (1:1) (RPO). Physicochemical properties such as visual appearance, gel formation time (GFT), oil-binding capacity (OBC), oxidative and thermal stability, and textural characteristics were analyzed. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey’s honestly significant difference (HSD) were used in the statistical analysis of the data, with a significance level of p < 0.05. EC proved to be an effective structuring agent of the mentioned edible oils; the type of oils and the concentration of oleogelator significantly influenced the characteristics of the obtained oleogels. The 9% EC oleogels exhibited a more rigid structure, with a higher OBC and a reduced GFT. Pumpkin seed oil led to more stable oleogels, while the mixture of pumpkin seed oil with rapeseed oil caused a significant reduction in their mechanical properties and decreased the OBC. After 14 days of storage, all oleogels demonstrated proper oxidative stability within the bounds set by international regulations for edible fats, regardless of the kind of oil and EC concentration. All of the oleogels showed a higher oxidative stability than the oils utilized in their formulation; however, those prepared with cold-pressed pumpkin seed oil indicated a lower level of lipid oxidation among all oleogels. The P-OG9 and PR-OG9 oleogels, which mainly included PO and contained 9% EC, demonstrated the optimum levels of quality in texture, GFT, OBC, and oxidative stability.

Growing water scarcity, climate change, and increasingly stringent environmental regulations have intensified the need for advanced wastewater treatment technologies capable of removing emerging contaminants and enabling safe water reuse. This review provides an integrated assessment of recent trends in membrane bioreactors (MBRs) and advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), including their role in hybrid treatment systems, with emphasis on contaminant removal efficiency, energy demand, operational complexity, and transformation product formation. In parallel, an exploratory statistical analysis of EUROSTAT indicators—population connected to wastewater treatment plants, Water Exploitation Index (WEI), freshwater availability, and sludge production—was conducted to examine relationships between treatment infrastructure and pressures on water resources across Europe. Correlation and principal component analyses reveal weak to moderate and predominantly indirect relationships between infrastructure expansion and water stress, highlighting that connectivity alone does not reduce resource pressure in the absence of water reuse and advanced treatment. The combined technological and statistical evidence demonstrates that reuse-oriented MBR–AOP systems are critical for improving effluent quality, mitigating emerging pollutant risks, and supporting circular, climate-resilient water management strategies under European policy frameworks.

Agricultural waste management is a strategic priority for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and transitioning to a circular bioeconomy. The thermochemical conversion of residual biomass into biochar offers a dual solution: waste recovery and the production of high-value functional materials. This narrative review summarizes the relationships among the composition of agricultural biomass, the conversion process parameters, and the structural properties of biochar, highlighting advanced modification strategies: controlled pyrolysis, physical and chemical activation, surface functionalization, and hybrid composite formation. Fundamental adsorption mechanisms, redox processes, and photocatalytic behavior are discussed, with a focus on applications in water treatment (heavy metals, dyes, emerging contaminants). The article proposes an integrative structure–property–performance framework and explores emerging concepts such as sequential use and post-use valorization of saturated biochar. Challenges related to reproducibility, industrial scaling, life cycle assessment, and carbon accounting are analyzed. Finally, a SWOT analysis is presented that highlights the potential of modified biochar as a strategic material in the circular economy.

In this current research, various amino acids (lysine, betaine, and cysteine) and peptides (oxidised or reduced glutathione) were considered as potential environmentally friendly alternatives to wool bleaching. A greener methodology was also applied to dyeing. Different agro-wastes (red cabbage, peppercorns, and red and yellow onion peels) served as raw pigment materials. The process’s efficiency was characterised by the whiteness degree, colour strength, and fastness to accelerated washing and perspiration. A higher whiteness index value was observed in the cysteine-based formulations. The onion peel exhibited significant tinctorial properties due to the presence of some natural mordants. All the proposed treatments were designed with a primary focus on environmental sustainability. These treatments offer a sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional bleaching and dyeing methods for wool. They reduce costs and energy consumption while creating added value by valorising waste.

Riverbank height plays a potentially important role in hydrological dynamics and pollutant transport, yet its influence on long-term water quality trends remains insufficiently documented. This study explores possible relationships between riverbank height variations and the Global Pollution Index ($I_{GP}^{*}$) in the Timiș River, Romania, over eleven (11) years (2013–2023). A dataset of 17 physicochemical parameters—including BOD₅, COD-Cr, dissolved oxygen, nutrients (N and P species), heavy metals (As, Cr, Cu, and Zn), detergents, and phenols—was used to tentatively assess ecological status. The results suggest that, despite a maximum riverbank elevation change of ~11 cm between 2020 and 2025, $I_{GP}^{*}$ values remained within a relatively narrow range (1.98–2.56, mean 2.19), pointing to persistent but moderate anthropogenic pressure. The highest index value (2.56, in 2016) coincided with a transient pollution event, whereas subsequent years stabilized around 2.0–2.3, which may reflect chronic diffuse pollution. Correlation analysis revealed strong associations between BOD₅ and conductivity (r = 0.76, linked to organic loads), COD-Cr and heavy metals (r = 0.79, suggestive of industrial influence), and total nitrogen and nitrate (r = 0.97, related to agricultural inputs), appear to outline distinct source-related signatures. This study offers preliminary evidence that even modest riverbank fluctuations may influence hydrodynamics and the fate of pollutants, while basin-scale water quality seems to remain largely governed by diffuse pollution sources. By integrating long-term geomorphological monitoring with multi-parameter water quality data into a composite index ($I_{GP}^{*}$), our work sketches a potentially innovative framework for diagnosing pollution drivers. The findings underscore the importance of incorporating riverbank morphology into EU Water Framework Directive monitoring, alongside GIS, IoT, and machine learning tools, could contribute to more adaptive river basin management.