Assessment of 316(b) impacts on Ohio River fish populations

Cooling water intake systems have the potential to adversely impact aquatic organisms though entrainment and impingement (impacts referenced under 316(b) of the Clean Water Act), yet the loss of individual fish does not necessarily mean that a population will suffer a significant decrease in number. The results of utility sponsored studies on Ohio River fish populations provide strong evidence of positive changes in the fishery due to water quality improvements. Despite these improvements, a simulation is needed to determine if a reduction in 316(b) fish losses would result in higher or similar fish population levels. Electrofishing data collected at seven power plant locations from 1981 to 1998 will be used for the population assessments. Potential 316(b) impacts on Ohio River fish populations will be modeled using site specific 316(b) data and a Leslie matrix model. The theoretical maximum population for various fish species, with and without 316(b) impacts, will be compared and the probabilistic risk that fish populations will fall below the threshold for species survival will be assessed. Historically, EPA has allowed 316(b) to be implemented on a case-by-case basis, however, the utilities believe that the first step in assessing potential adverse environmental impacts is to assess the condition of the affected fish populations.     

Impacts of power-plant cooling systems on estuarine fish populations: the Hudson River after 25 years

In the early 1970s, impacts of power-plant cooling systems on fish populations were a major source of controversy. The most thoroughly studied and controversial power plants were the Indian Point, Bowline, and Roseton generating stations on the Hudson River. The assessments performed for these three plants were unique in employing river-wide sampling data and mathematical models designed to predict the effects of cooling-water withdrawals on the short- and long-term abundance of striped bass and other important fish populations. A Settlement Agreement in 1981 led to the establishment of a long-term monitoring program that continues to generate valuable information concerning the impacts of power-plant cooling systems on estuarine ecosystems. This paper evaluates the results generated by the past quarter century of Hudson River, with the objective of evaluating the utility of the information for future 316(b) assessments. Specific recommendations are made concerning: (1) methods for quantitative assessment of cooling-system impacts at new vs operating facilities; (2) research that would improve the efficiency and accuracy of assessments; and (3) the need to integrate cooling system impact studies into a general framework for management of aquatic ecosystems.     

Estimating the abundance and egg production of spawning winter flounder (Pseudopleuronectes americanus) in the Niantic River,CT for use in the assessment of impact at Millstone Nuclear Power Station

The winter flounder is a coastal flatfish with spawning populations associated with specific estuaries or coastal areas. Because of its stock structure, this species is susceptible to localized impacts, including power plant entrainment of larvae. Winter flounder rank second in fish larvae entrained at the Millstone Nuclear Power Station (MNPS), located on Long Island Sound in Waterford, CT, USA. Because of its importance to the state’s fisheries, the population spawning in the nearby Niantic River was selected for impact assessment studies in the early 1970s. Northeast Utilities has consistently monitored annual abundance of adult spawners, characterizing relative abundance by trawl catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) and absolute abundance using mark and recapture data with the Jolly model for demographically open populations. Trends in these two independent but highly correlated indices provide short-term assessments of winter flounder abundance. Abundance of winter flounder peaked in the early 1980s, but as fishing mortality increased to high levels in the late 1980s, their numbers declined thereafter and presently are very low. Information on sex ratio, length-frequency distribution, and spawning condition allow for calculation of annual egg production using a length-fecundity relationship. This forms the basis for estimating production loss due to larval entrainment, which is used as input to a long-term assessment model of power plant impact, discussed in an accompanying paper (Lorda et al., 2000: Lorda, E., Danila, D.J., Miller, J.D., 2000. Application of a population dynamics model to the probabilistic assessment of CWIS effects of Millstone Nuclear Power Station (Waterford, CT) on a nearby winter flounder spawning stock. Environmental Science & Policy 3, S471–S481).     

A perspective on power generation impacts and compensation in fish populations

Renewed interest in the topic of compensation in fish populations has been stimulated by new EPA 316(b) regulations relating to entrainment and impingement looming on the horizon. The purpose of this paper is to revisit the topic of population compensation for fish populations in the context of assessing power generation impacts. I define compensation as the net population-level outcome of changes in growth, survival, and reproduction at the individual fish level that offsets decreases or increases in population density. Potential mechanisms of compensation have been well document in laboratory and field experiments. The process underlying all these mechanisms is that changes in population density can change per capita availability of essential resources such as food and space. The state of science in this area is constrained both retrospectively and prospectively by five technical stumbling blocks. Technological advances have improved our ability to bound the phenotypic plasticity of a species and to assess the potential effects of power generation impacts through a combination of monitoring, special studies, and simulation modeling. Four generalizations concerning compensation are mentioned. Progress has been made over the past three decades, but this topic remains scientifically challenging and politically controversial.     

Historical overview of the efficacy of two decades of power plant fisheries impact assessment activities in Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay is world renowned as an estuary that historically yielded large harvests of a wide variety of fish and shellfish species. Thirteen power plants are located on the mainstem of the Bay and its tributaries in Maryland, drawing out of and discharging into the Bay eight billion gallons per day of the Bay’s waters for cooling purposes. Maryland DNR’s Power Plant Research Program (PPRP) has, since 1974, funded a wide variety of fisheries assessment, entrainment and impingement studies. PPRP’s Potomac River Fisheries Program (PRFP) encompassed multi-year, statistically rigorous, quantitative studies of all life stages of striped bass, from egg to adult, together with estuarine hydrodynamics modeling and water quality assessments, all yielding data integrated to project potential entrainment impacts from a proposed nuclear power plant. PPRP and utility-sponsored monitoring programs at BGE’s Calvert Cliffs NPP, PEPCO’s Chalk Point SES and DP&L’s Vienna SES, as well as other generating facilities throughout the state have provided comprehensive data on impingement, entrainment and receiving water populations of all life stages of potentially impacted resource species. These studies have resulted in unusually complete and long term data sets being available for impact assessment applications, and provide a basis for confirming and validating impact assessment findings and conclusions based on much shorter time series. The state/federal Chesapeake Bay Program has extensively characterized the status and trends of all important resource species in the Bay. We compare and contrast impact conclusions and projections from studies conducted in the 1970s and 1980s with current data and information on the status of and trends in affected fish stocks in Chesapeake Bay. We use that comparison to establish the role that power plant impacts play as factors driving changes in species abundance over time. These comparisons and contrasts between historical and current data and information also illustrate and confirm the methodologies that have proven to be most and least useful for assessing entrainment and impingement impacts.     

Linkages between fishery habitat quality,stressors, and fishery populations

Increasing human population densities and development along the coasts of the United States pose a threat to fish populations through alteration of their habitats due to modification of upland watersheds, increased inputs of nutrient and domestic and agricultural chemicals, and direct habitat replacement or destruction. Injuries to these habitats will in turn affect populations of marine and estuarine organisms. To effectively evaluate the impacts of human activities on essential fish habitat we propose a framework to assess the linkages between fishery habitat alteration and modification and fishery production and community structure in coastal environments. Inherent natural variability makes it difficult to detect changes to the population or community. Therefore, we target structural and functional components of fish habitat as assessment endpoints, rather than the fish populations that utilize those habitats.     

Cleaner production in Danish fish processing – experiences,status and possible future strategies

Danish fish processing industry has been one of the pioneers regarding implementation of cleaner production and environmental management systems. This article describes the experiences with cleaner production (CP) among leading Danish industries producing pickled herring and canned mackerel. The article emphasizes two case studies of ‘first mover’ companies, but data from other ‘proactive’ companies are also included.The article provides an overview of different types of CP solutions, improvement potentials, synergistic effects and possible trade-offs. The development of the applied solutions from the late 1980s until today are analysed and recommendations to future strategies at company level and policy level are provided.It is concluded that significant environmental improvements have been obtained for the analysed companies – especially concerning reductions in water consumption, wastewater emissions, and utilisation of fish ‘waste’ for valuable by-products. Still, more focus could be placed on the reduction of energy consumption, change of packaging types, and environmental impacts in other stages of the products life cycle.Authorities and companies have mainly focused on on-site reductions of wastewater emissions, but life cycle assessments show that more attention should be given to the reductions of environmental impacts in other parts of the product chain, e.g. fishing operations and transport as well.     

直接空冷机组火电厂的噪声控制及评价方法探讨

做为火电厂环境影响评价的重点之一,如何才能使环评提出的噪声控制措施更合理,如何才能更科学地评价火电厂噪声对周围环境的影响,尤其是采用直接空冷机组的火电厂,是一个实际工作中常遇到的问题。本文根据近几年从事火电厂环评工作经验,对直接空冷机组噪声控制和环境影响评价方法进行了讨论。     

新建核电站风险信息沟通实证研究

随着我国近年核电产业的迅速扩张,核风险管理已成为社会各界关注甚至争议的热点.核风险沟通是核突发事件预防、应对及恢复的关键要素,对核风险管理具有重要的影响.然而,对如何与核电站周边风险群体进行有效沟通还知之甚少.为弥补这个缺憾,作者走访了山东海阳在建核电站相关管理人员并对周边常住居民进行问卷调查,以了解他们对核电发展的态度.文章描述了风险沟通的基本框架,意识到公众信任和信息公开的重要性.结果发现我国核能发展决策是由政府部门、核能企业和科研院所组成的"铁三角"主导的,受访者获取核信息的最主要途径是媒体,相对于其它渠道,超过51%的公众更相信政府发布的信息,更多受访者不愿意接受核风险和反对在当地建设核电站.最后提出了有效风险沟通的基本原则.研究结论对未来核电风险管理具有重要指导意义,也对利益相关方具有参考价值.     

Wisconsin Electric’s experience with fish impingement and entrainment studies

Since 1975, Wisconsin Electric has conducted impingement studies at seven steam electric, once-through cooling-equipped power plants, as well as at one closed-cycle cooling system-equipped plant. Entrainment studies were also conducted at all seven once-through cooling-equipped plants. All eight plants are located on the Great Lakes or on major tributaries to them. Two of the eight plants have since been retired, while portions of two remaining multi-unit plants have been retired.As part of the study reports ultimately filed with the state agencies overseeing the studies, companies were also required to provide information on: intake design, capacity, and operation; whether biocides were used at the plants to control biofouling; and what ice control measures were employed during the winter season. Companies were also asked to provide brief assessments of available intake design alternatives that could be reasonably expected to reduce entrainment or impingement, as well as order of magnitude cost estimates for retrofiting plants with feasible alternative technologies.The studies concluded that since the vast majority of fish impinged during the 1975–1976 period were alewife and rainbow smelt (the then most abundant species in Lakes Michigan and Superior) and since the historic commercial harvests of these two species greatly exceeded annual impingement estimates, the impact of these incremental losses to lake-wide populations was inconsequential. With respect to the entrainment results, the studies detected few fish eggs or larvae that were not alewife or smelt.As a consequence of these findings, the company did not believe that any structural modifications to the intakes were necessary, since any one of the feasible alternatives would have been very costly. The state agencies concurred with these findings.     

Predicting fish population dynamics: compensation and the importance of site-specific considerations

The magnitude of the compensatory response inherent to fish population seems to be questioned with each new generation of scientists and regulators. The major reason for this is the demand by some that compensation be completely understood at the process level before compensation can be factored into population predictions. We first discuss several lines of evidence for the existence of compensation, and the reasons why compensation is so difficult to measure at the process level. We then offer life history theory as a general framework for improving our understanding of the likely magnitude of compensation in fish population dynamics. We use detailed, individual-based models and field data for yellow perch-walleye, striped bass, and a lake community to illustrate the complexity of compensation, and to show that predictions for a particular population require site-specific information. Analyses show that the life stage and magnitude of density-dependence can vary for different populations of the same species, and that population responses can depend on the arrangement of the food web. We must stop reinventing the density-dependence wheel; too many resources (both natural and monetary) are at stake. We suggest using three approaches for addressing the compensation issue: (1) life history theory for providing a sound basis for qualitatively understanding fish population dynamics and the magnitude of compensation; (2) age- and stage-structured matrix models for screening-level analyses to identify populations that may be at unacceptable risks of decline and therefore require additional analyses; and (3) individual-based models for better understanding the complexities of compensation at the process level and for impact assessment of at-risk, well-studied populations.     

A comparative review of entrainment survival studies at power plants in estuarine environments

Steam-electric power plants drawing cooling water from surface waters entrain a variety of plankton and weak-swimming nekton. These small organisms pass through the intake screens and are carried along with the cooling water through the plant and are subjected to thermal, physical, and chemical (biocide) stresses. In once-through cooling systems, entrained organisms are returned to the source water body, where they are subjected to rapidly decreasing temperatures as cooling waters are mixed into receiving waters. With 4316(b) of the Clean Water Act as the impetus, studies were conducted at many power plants to quantify the number of entrained organisms. Early studies focused on simple abundance, and assumed total mortality. By the late 1970s and early 1980s, advances in sampling technology demonstrated that many entrained organisms survived. Continuing refinement of sampling techniques revealed impressive survival statistics for many species (>90% in some cases), with concomitant reductions in perceived impacts. This paper reviews state-of-the-art sampling methods and results of field entrainment studies at seven power plants. This review demonstrates that high entrainment survival of a variety of aquatic organisms does, in fact, occur and specifies the plant-operating and environmental conditions under which high survival occurs.     

Analysis of risk trade-off relationships between organic solvents and aqueous agents: case study of metal cleaning processes

When substance substitution is implemented to reduce the target risk of production processes, countervailing risks may occur. The goal of this study is to analyze the risk trade-off relationships between organic solvents and aqueous agents in the case study of metal cleaning processes. Global environmental impacts and local risks were evaluated for the eight scenarios by life cycle and risk assessments, respectively. The results show that the contribution of the processes using chlorinated solvents to photochemical ozone creation, human toxicity, ozone depletion, and ecotoxicity was larger than processes using aqueous detergents, while the contribution of aqueous processes to eutrophication was larger than chlorinated processes. Neighbors’ health risk around a cleaning site using chlorinated solvents was sufficiently small in all scenarios, whereas ecological risk due to surfactants which are contained in aqueous detergents and emitted to the local aquatic environment should be reduced. Cleansing agents and process facilities should be selected on the basis of the comprehensive analysis of risk trade-off relationships for feasible and cleaner production.     

Potential of surplus biomass gasifier based power generation: A case study of an Indian state Rajasthan

Facing the finiteness of fossil fuels and its associated environmental problems, new prospects to cover energy demand are urgently required. Energy from surplus biomass can support an essential contribution to a sustainable energy generation. This paper deals with a case study of surplus biomass available in the Indian state Rajasthan. About 1275 MW electrical power is possible to generate through biomass gasifier based power generation plant through surplus biomass available in Rajasthan. About 1656 tonnes of CO₂ can be saved annually by installation of 1 MW biomass gasifier based power plant. The techno economic parameter like net present worth, cost benefit ratio and pay back period are also carried out for this route of power generation and these are about 1.18 million US$, 1.42 and 8 years and 2 months respectively.     

Transport of fish from Norway: energy analysis using industrial ecology as the framework

In this article, industrial ecology is used as a framework for analysing transport energy and its implication for products. The importance of the energy use for transport in a natural resource production system is analysed. By using fish as a case study, it is shown that the amount of energy for transport is highly dependent on the transport mode used. When applying industrial ecology principles for making assessments of the environmental impacts of products, the whole product chain is examined. This is an extended life-cycle approach, which also includes the transport of the finished products from the exporter to the importing country. This last part of the transport chain can be extremely energy demanding, as is shown for the case of fish transport. This finding has implications for the products, and for the form in which the products should be transported. Increasing the energy efficiency of production systems is an important industrial ecology principle, and must be taken into consideration when analysing product chains. A revision of today's practice of transporting large quantities of fresh whole fish by transcontinental airliners is bound to be necessary. This is a consequence of the demands for increased energy efficiency of tomorrow's industrial production systems.     

油田生产设施环境安全距离理论与估算方法初探

石油生产会带来各种不利的环境影响,甚至造成许多重大安全隐患,并由此对区域生态环境构成严重威胁.对此笔者提出环境安全距离概念及其理论模型,并结合油田主要生产设施的环境影响分析,给出了油田生产过程中气体污染物排放、噪声污染、井喷、管线泄漏和火灾爆炸的环境安全距离估算方法,从而为减轻油田生产的潜在环境影响和损害,解决城市规划建设与油田已建设施之间的矛盾和确保油田生产的环境安全提供科学依据和管理对策.     

Global environmental assessments: Impact mechanisms

Many impacts of Global Environmental Assessment (GEA) processes on policy processes, and the mechanisms underlying these impacts, remain underappreciated. In this research, we focus on the 5th Global Environment Outlook and the Working Group III contribution to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Based on the perception of GEA process participants, we describe the mechanisms through which assessments create or alter interpersonal interactions which can affect the dissemination of ideas. In particular, we find that GEAs can contribute to framing international coordinative discourses in intergovernmental negotiations. This can be achieved by widening, improving and/or maintaining the active participation of policy actors in the discussions of global environmental risks and by creating the scientific foundations for intergovernmental negotiations. GEAs can also contribute to national coordinative discourses by facilitating reflexive learning amongst participants, empowering them to diffuse and translate global information, and by providing methodological guidance. They can contribute to national communicative discourses by reviving interest and awareness of the urgency to address environmental problems. In this way they provide powerful arguments for governmental societal actors to challenge or strengthen existing national coordinative discourses. Finally, GEAs can improve scientific discourses worldwide by enhancing the capacity of individual researchers to produce and communicate relevant research insights. This is achieved by participating in a learning exercise with an extended community of peers and policy actors. This article is part of a special issue on solution-oriented global environmental assessments.     

Endosulfan is toxic to the reproductive health of male freshwater fish, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cyprinion watsoni</Emphasis>

Endosulfan is an organochlorine pesticide that is toxic to aquatic life. Endosulfan might hamper the reproductive health of indigenous fish in agricultural areas of Pakistan where this pesticide is sprayed widely. The aim of the current study is to investigate the toxic effects of endosulfan on selected reproductive parameters of male freshwater fish, Cyprinion watsoni. Two concentrations of endosulfan (0.5 and 1 ppb for 30 days exposure) were tested for their effects on body weight, body length, and testicular weight, length, and width. Testicular testosterone was assayed from tissue extracts using enzyme immunoassay (EIA). A significant increase in the mortality rate was observed in both treated groups during both spawning and quiescent seasons. The overall behavior of fish in the aquarium was normal in all control and treated groups. However, the treated fish exhibited anxiety after treatment with endosulfan. The body weight and length, and testicular weight, length and width were not significantly different to the control group. The testicular testosterone concentrations were significantly lower in both endosulfan-treated groups compared to the control. The decrease was dose-dependent, with a significant difference between the two treated groups. The histomorphological results demonstrated various testicular alterations in the treated groups. These alterations included an increase in interlobular areas and clumping patterns in spermatocytes/spermatids. Because spermatids eventually differentiate into sperms, their low count will directly result in lower sperm count. Taken together, these results suggest that endosulfan is a toxicant that at least disturbs testosterone levels (possibly others) and negatively impacts the reproductive health of male freshwater fish.     

Occupational health and safety and environmental management systems

Integration of occupational health and safety matters into environmental management systems can bring many benefits to industrial companies. They can avoid duplicated measures and find optimal solutions, because the principles of prevention are similar in environmental protection and safety management. However, the methods currently used in environmental management and engineering such as life-cycle assessments, best available technology reports, and the models of industrial production can hinder this integration, because they take into account occupational risks only to a limited extent. People can also consider occupational safety risks more easily than environmental risks as a natural part of their work. This can lead to the situation where occupational risks are underestimated.     

Complementary effect of natural and sexual selection against immigrants maintains differentiation between locally adapted fish

Adaptation to ecologically heterogeneous environments can drive speciation. But what mechanisms maintain reproductive isolation among locally adapted populations? Using poeciliid fishes in a system with naturally occurring toxic hydrogen sulfide, we show that (a) fish from non-sulfidic sites (Poecilia mexicana) show high mortality (95 %) after 24 h when exposed to the toxicant, while locally adapted fish from sulfidic sites (Poecilia sulphuraria) experience low mortality (13 %) when transferred to non-sulfidic water. (b) Mate choice tests revealed that P. mexicana females exhibit a preference for conspecific males in non-sulfidic water, but not in sulfidic water, whereas P. sulphuraria females never showed a preference. Increased costs of mate choice in sulfidic, hypoxic water, and the lack of selection for reinforcement due to the low survival of P. mexicana may explain the absence of a preference in P. sulphuraria females. Taken together, our study may be the first to demonstrate independent—but complementary—effects of natural and sexual selection against immigrants maintaining differentiation between locally adapted fish populations.