Social Dimensions of Urban Flood Experience,Exposure, and Concern

With growing urban populations and climate change, urban flooding is an important global issue, even in dryland regions. Flood risk assessments are usually used to identify vulnerable locations and populations, flooding experience patterns, or levels of concern about flooding, but rarely are all of these approaches combined. Furthermore, the social dynamics of flood concerns, exposure, and experience are underexplored. We combined geographic and survey data on household‐level measures of flood experience, concern, and exposure in Utah's urbanizing Wasatch Front. We asked: (1) Are socially vulnerable groups more likely to be exposed to flood risk? (2) How common are flooding experiences among urban residents, and how are these experiences related to sociodemographic characteristics and exposure? and (3) How concerned are urban residents about flooding, and does concern vary by exposure, flood experience, and sociodemographic characteristics? Although floodplain residents were more likely to be White and have higher incomes, respondents who were of a racial/ethnic minority, were older, had less education, and were living in floodplains were more likely to report flood experiences and concern about flooding. Flood risk management approaches need to address social as well as physical sources of vulnerability to floods and recognize social sources of variation in flood experiences and concern.     

Development and testing of a micro wind tunnel for on-site wind erosion simulations

Wind erosion processes affect soil surfaces across all land uses worldwide. Understanding the spatial and temporal scales of wind erosion is a challenging undertaking because these processes are diverse and highly variable. Wind tunnels provide a useful tool as they can be used to simulate erosion at small spatial scales. Portable wind tunnels are particularly valued because erosion can be simulated on undisturbed soil surfaces in the field. There has been a long history of use of large portable wind tunnels, with consensus that these wind erosion simulation tools can meet real world aerodynamic criteria. However, one consequence of striving to meet aerodynamic reality is that the size of the tunnels has increased, making them logistically difficult to work with in the field and resulting in a tendency to homogenise naturally complex soil surfaces. This homogenisation is at odds with an increasing awareness of the importance that small scale processes have in wind erosion. To address these logistical and surface homogenisation issues we present here the development and testing of a micro wind tunnel (MWT) designed to simulate wind erosion processes at high spatial resolution. The MWT is a duct-type design—0.05 m tall 0.1 m wide and with a 1.0 m working section. The tunnel uses a centrifugal motor to suck air through a flow‐conditioning section, over the working section and then through a sediment collection trap. Simulated wind velocities range from 5 to 18 m s^?1, with high reproducibility. Wind speeds are laterally uniform and values of u _* at the tunnel bed (calculated by measuring the pressure gradients within the MWT) are comparable with those of larger tunnels in which logarithmic profiles can be developed. Saltation sediment can be added. The tunnel can be deployed by a single person and operated on slopes ranging from 0 to 10°. Evidence is presented here that the MWT provides new and useful understanding of the erodibility of rangelands, claypans and ore stockpiles.     

Modification of evaluation method for auto-assessment and electronic submission by businesses

SUMMARY

This paper describes the evolution of an evaluation method developed initially to assess progress towards sustainable development for various land use activities in Costa Rica. Since that time, the method has been expanded to apply to all types of business activities in any location, and refined so that a numerical score can be provided for each attribute. These scores can then be presented graphically in four categories. The method has since been tested on a variety of businesses and is being refined for electronic submission and display of the results. The benefits of this approach, as well as its shortcomings and some of the problems resolved, are presented.     

Removal of Iron and Copper Ions from the Liquid Phase by Modified Polymeric Membranes

Preparation of polymeric membranes based on cellulose acetate and modified by adding different amounts of a pore generating agent, which was polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), is presented and potential application of the membranes obtained for the removal of iron and copper ions from liquid phase is examined. Addition of various amounts of PVP has an impact on the physical (porosity, equilibrium water content and permeability) and chemical (content of the surface oxygen group, pH) properties of the membranes obtained. Filtration of iron and cupper solution leads to significant changes in the total content of surface oxygen groups, however the acidic oxygen groups remain dominant. With the content of PVP increasing within a certain range, the membrane permeability is improved. The membranes obtained show higher efficiency in removal of Fe³⁺ than Cu²⁺ ions, but with increasing content of PVP the efficiency in iron ions removal decreases and the total filtration resistance decreases after filtration of iron ions solutions.     

Genotoxic potential of diesel exhaust particles from the combustion of first- and second-generation biodiesel fuels—the FuelHealth project

Epidemiological data indicate that exposure to diesel exhaust particles (DEPs) from traffic emissions is associated with higher risk of morbidity and mortality related to cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases, accelerated progression of atherosclerotic plaques, and possible lung cancer. While the impact of DEPs from combustion of fossil diesel fuel on human health has been extensively studied, current knowledge of DEPs from combustion of biofuels provides limited and inconsistent information about its mutagenicity and genotoxicity, as well as possible adverse health risks. The objective of the present work was to compare the genotoxicity of DEPs from combustion of two first-generation fuels, 7% fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) (B7) and 20% FAME (B20), and a second-generation 20% FAME/hydrotreated vegetable oil (SHB: synthetic hydrocarbon biofuel) fuel. Our results revealed that particulate engine emissions from each type of biodiesel fuel induced genotoxic effects in BEAS-2B and A549 cells, manifested as the increased levels of single-strand breaks, the increased frequencies of micronuclei, or the deregulated expression of genes involved in DNA damage signaling pathways. We also found that none of the tested DEPs showed the induction of oxidative DNA damage and the gamma-H2AX-detectable double-strand breaks. The most pronounced differences concerning the tested particles were observed for the induction of single-strand breaks, with the greatest genotoxicity being associated with the B7-derived DEPs. The differences in other effects between DEPs from the different biodiesel blend percentage and biodiesel feedstock were also observed, but the magnitude of these variations was limited.     

Remediation capacity of Cd and Pb ions by mycelia of Imleria badia,Laetiporus sulphureus,and Agaricus bisporus in vitro cultures

The goal of this study was to evaluate cadmium and lead accumulation ability of in vitro cultures biomass containing selected edible mushroom species derived from the environment (Laetiporus sulphureus, Imleria badia) and those of commercial origin (Agaricus bisporus). Atomic absorption spectrometry was used to evaluate the content of Cd(II) and Pb(II) on the medium supplemented with Cd(II) or Pb(II), each of them at the same concentration of 5·10^?5 M. The highest concentration of Cd(II) ions was determined in the biomass from L. sulphureus in vitro cultures, while the highest concentration of Pb(II) ions was found in the biomass from A. bisporus in vitro cultures. The greatest Cd(II) and Pb(II) accumulation ability in mycelium per dry weight was shown for L. sulphureus. Among the test species, biomass of A. bisporus showed the lowest ability for the bioaccumulation of Cd(II); however, comparable ability for the remediation of Pb(II) was provided by the biomasses from A. bisporus and I. badia in vitro cultures. The results confirm the possibility of using these mushroom species for remediation and indicate the relationship between bioaccumulation of heavy metals and the test species.     

Water-smart growth planning: linking water and land in the arid urbanizing American West

Linking water and land is essential in planning for the future of the western United States. We propose the concept of ‘water-smart growth’ and explore its implications through incorporating water considerations into the SLEUTH land-use model. The urban growth trajectory in Cache County, Utah, is modeled from 2007 to 2030 under four different scenarios: current trend; smart growth; water-smart growth with moderate implementation; and water-smart growth with full implementation. Comparisons of simulation results illustrate the extent and ways in which water-smart growth would alter current established land-use growth patterns. The approach represents an initial step to better integrate land and water in urban growth modeling and planning. This study's purposes are to provide improved understanding and representation of linkages between water and land in urbanizing environments, offer insights from a set of modeled options, and demonstrate the significance of integrating land and water in planning practices.     

Progress Toward Delisting a Great Lakes Area of Concern: The Role of Integrated Research and Monitoring in the Hamilton Harbour Remedial Action Plan

The goal of restoring environmental health and qualities to Hamilton Harbour Great Lakes Area of Concern, an embayment at the western end of Lake Ontario, is considered to be achievable by the year 2015. Restoring Hamilton Harbour is a dynamic process that relies heavily on research and monitoring to direct remediation efforts. Three principle means of coordinating this research and monitoring include: research and monitoring workshops; a monitoring catalogue outlining both government and nongovernment initiatives; and an annual report written by a local community group. These tools increase the effectiveness of remedial actions by: (i) improving stakeholders' ability to track trends; (ii) allowing program decision-makers to utilize adaptive management techniques to continuously modify programs based on new results; (iii) integrating interdisciplinary fields, and (iv) increasing accountability. This paper describes in detail these tools used for coordinating research and monitoring in implementing the Remedial Action Plan of the Hamilton Harbour Great Lakes Area of Concern, along with lessons learned to assist other implementers who are considering similar programs.     

Investigation of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs in fish from the southern Baltic Sea during the 2002–2006 period

Concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (dl-PCBs) in the southern Baltic herring (Clupea harengus), sprat (Sprattus sprattus), and salmon (Salmo salar) are reported.The significant interspecies and season-specific differences in PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs concentrations were observed. The contribution of dl-PCBs to the total toxicity equivalents (TEQs) ranged between 50% and 70%, dependently on fish species. In all samples, concentrations of PCDF were higher in comparison with that of PCDD.The permissible limits of the content of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs (8 pg g⁻¹ fresh weight for the sum of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs, and 4 pg g⁻¹ fresh weight for the PCDD/Fs) were exceeded mainly in salmon samples (in 80% of salmon samples studied). The elevated levels of PCDD/F and dl-PCB were observed only in two of seventy two herring samples, and in ten of 62 sprat samples.The multiple regression analysis revealed that fish lipid content, and concentration of PCB 153, used simultaneously, might be useful in the prediction of TEQ values of fish samples. These two variables explained more than 80% of total variance. For all fish species studied, the correlation coefficients obtained with the multiple regression analysis were higher than that obtained with the regression analysis involving total TEQ values, and only one independent variable: fish lipid content.     

Evaluating the conservation impact of Antarctica's protected areas

Antarctic specially protected areas (ASPAs) are a key regulatory mechanism for protecting Antarctic environmental values. Previous evaluations of the effectiveness of the ASPA system focused on its representativeness and design characteristics, presenting a compelling rationale for its systematic revision. Upgrading the system could increase the representation of values within ASPAs, but representation alone does not guarantee the avoided loss or improvement of those values. Identifying factors that influence the effectiveness of ASPAs would inform the design and management of an ASPA system with the greatest capacity to deliver its intended conservation outcomes. To facilitate evaluations of ASPA effectiveness, we devised a research and policy agenda that includes articulating a theory of change for what outcomes ASPAs generate and how; building evaluation principles into ASPA design and designation processes; employing complementary approaches to evaluate multiple dimensions of effectiveness; and extending evaluation findings to identify and exploit drivers of positive conservation impact. Implementing these approaches will enhance the efficacy of ASPAs as a management tool, potentially leading to improved outcomes for Antarctic natural values in an era of rapid global change. Evaluación del impacto de conservación de las áreas protegidas de la Antártida