Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in urban soils of Beijing: status, sources, distribution and potential risk

We studied the source, concentration, spatial distribution and health risk of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in urban soils of Beijing. The total mass concentration of 16 PAHs ranged from 93 to 13 141 μg kg⁻¹ with a mean of 1228 μg kg⁻¹. The contour map of soil PAH concentrations showed that the industrial zone, the historical Hutong district and the university district of Beijing have significantly higher concentrations than those in remainder of the city. The results of sources identification suggested that the primary sources of PAHs were vehicle exhaust and coal combustion and the secondary source was the atmospheric deposition of long-range transported PAHs. The incremental lifetime cancer risks (ILCRs) of exposing to PAHs in the urban soils of Beijing for adult were 1.77 × 10⁻⁶ and 2.48 × 10⁻⁵, respectively under normal and extreme conditions. For child, they were 8.87 × 10⁻⁷ and 6.72 × 10⁻⁶, respectively under normal and extreme conditions.     

Evaluation of the economic and environmental impact of converting cropland to forest: a case study in Dunhua county, China

The Sloping Land Conversion Program (also known as "Grain for Green" or the Upland Conversion Program) for converting cropland to forest is one of China's most ambitious environmental initiatives, and is one of the world's largest land-conservation programs with a budget of RMB 337 billion (over US$ 40 billion). Although environmental impacts have played a vital role in the general reasoning and argumentation for forest plantations, environmental impact analyses have often received less attention than economic analyses in the planning of plantation forestry projects. The overall goal of this paper is to evaluate the program's environmental impact considering the farmer's interests and the potential social benefits due to carbon sequestration in different scenarios based on household and field survey data in Dunhua County. Our findings are that: (1) in many cases, the program did not give adequate consideration to land productivity and environmental heterogeneity when selecting plots; (2) more than half of the reforestation plots were on flat cropland (slopes of less than 5 degrees ); (3) in five of the eight townships, net incomes on reforested land were substantially above or below previous crop incomes, raising questions about the efficiency of the allocation of compensation to farmers participating in the program; (4) the potential carbon co-benefit increased the NPV of the program by 5954-7009 RMB/ha. In conclusion, we recommend that more attention should be paid to the quality of reforestation programs rather than just their scale and note that consideration of potential carbon sequestration co-benefits enhances the benefits of cropland conversion programs.     

Stormwater runoff quality from different surfaces in an urban catchment in Beijing, China

Urban stormwater runoff quality, widely investigated around the world, has been monitored less in Beijing, China, which impedes the municipal government to use best management practices to protect surface water. In this study, rainwater and stormwater runoff samples from roofs, roads, and a lawn on the campus of the Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences (RCEES) (Beijing, China) and from a ring road, with heavy traffic, have been sampled and analyzed for 31 storm events from June 2004 to August 2005. Total suspended solids (TSS), chemical oxygen demand (COD), 5-day biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5), total nitrogen, and total phosphorus concentrations in rainwater and runoff ranged over 2 or more orders of magnitude, meaning that the highest concentration of a certain pollutant did not always occur in a certain kind of runoff. Runoff contained significantly higher concentrations of pollutants than rainwater. On the campus of RCEES, TSS and total phosphorus in runoff samples from the lawn and roads were significantly higher than those from roofs, while the COD, BOD5, and total nitrogen concentrations were not significantly different in runoff among surfaces. Compared with runoff from the roads on campus, runoff from the ring road contained more COD and total nitrogen, but less TSS, BOD5, and total phosphorus. All pollutants measured in runoff from roofs on campus and from the ring road showed a peak concentration in starting runoff, which then decreased sharply. The peak concentrations of COD, BOD5, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus in the roof runoff increased with the increase in time of the antecedent dry period. Thus, urban stormwater pollution control, especially for first-flush control, is of great importance for the full use of rainwater and prevention of water pollution.     

改良型A2／O-MBR工艺的反硝化除磷性能研究

重点考察了-种改良型膜生物反应器（A2／O—MBR）的脱氮除磷性能。该工艺主要特点在于对膜池硝化回流液进行了固液分离，并将上清液和浓缩污泥分别回流至缺氧池和厌氧池，这种改进提高了系统对氮、磷的同步去除效率。实验结果表明，在水力停留时间（HRT）为12h，污泥龄（SRT）为30d，混合液回流比为200％的运行条件下，进水COD、NH4＋-N、TN和TP平均浓度分别为（225±38）、（24．8±3．9）、（26．7±2．9）和（2．90±0．53）mg／L时，增加膜池硝化回流液固液分离装置前后，系统对COD和NH4＋-N的去除都维持在较高水平，而系统对TN和TP的去除效果显著提高，出水TN和TP平均浓度分别由（14．9±3．3）mg／L和（1．95±0．72）mg／L下降到（9．4±1．9）mg／L和（0．91±0．38）mg／L，表明增加膜池硝化回流液固液分离装置显著改善了A2／O-MBR系统的脱氮除磷效果。反硝化除磷活性实验结果进一步表明，改进后系统中反硝化除磷活性占总除磷活性的比例由51．5％上升至61．7％，说明增加膜池硝化回流液固液分离装置强化了系统的反硝化除磷性能。     

Simulation of phytoremediation of a TNT-contaminated soil using the CTSPAC model

Knowledge of water movement in the plant-xylem system and contaminant bioavailability in the soil environment is crucial to evaluate the success of phytoremediation practices. This study investigated the removal of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) from a contaminated sandy soil by a single poplar (Populus fastigiata) tree through the examinations of temporal variations of xylem water potential, root water uptake, and soil TNT bioavailability. A mathematical model, CTSPAC (Coupled Transport of water, heat, and solutes in the Soil-Plant-Atmosphere Continuum), was modified for the purpose of this study. The model was calibrated using laboratory measurements before its application. Our simulations show that the xylem water potential was high in the roots and low in the leaves with a potential head difference of 3.55 cm H2O, which created a driving force for water flow and chemical transport upward from the roots through the stem to the leaves. The daily average root water uptake rate was 25 cm3 h(-1) when an equilibrium condition was reached after 24 h. Our simulations further reveal that no TNT was found in the stem and leaves and only about 1% of total TNT mass was observed in the roots due to the rapid biodegradation and transformation of TNT into its daughter products. About 13% of the soil TNT was removed by the poplar tree, resulting mainly from root uptake since TNT is a recalcitrant compound. In general, the soil TNT bioavailability decreased with time due to the depletion of soil solution TNT by the poplar tree. A constant bioavailability (i.e., 3.1 x 10(-6)) was obtained in 14 d in which the soil TNT concentration was about 10 mg L(-1). Our study suggests that CTSPAC is a useful model to simulate phytoremediation of TNT-contaminated sites.     

THREE‐DIMENSIONAL KRIGING ANALYSIS OF SEDIMENT MERCURY DISTRIBUTION: A CASE STUDY1

ABSTRACT: This study presents an application of a three‐dimensional kriging technique to estimate spatial distribution of total mercury (Hg) in the Cedar‐Ortega Rivers watershed located in the lower St. Johns River basin, Florida. The kriging procedures, including preliminary data analysis, structural data analysis and the log kriging estimation, are presented. Results show watershed wide Hg contamination of river sediment to a depth of 1.0 m. A three‐dimensional plot of Hg against the Florida Sediment Assessment Guidelines (i.e., the probable effect level or PEL) demonstrates that the Cedar River is more contaminated with Hg than the rest of the watershed. The maximum sediment depth with Hg concentrations above PEL value (0.696 mg/kg) is 1.5 m. Hg concentrations at or above this level could pose a significant hazard to aquatic organisms. Analysis of the spatial distribution of Hg in the watershed finds multiple input sources. This study suggests that there is a need to identify the major sources of Hg in the watershed, and to determine the pathways that allow Hg to enter the river.     

Plug-in electric vehicles in China and the USA: a technology and market comparison

Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change - As the top two plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) markets in the world, China and the United States of  America (USA) have developed...     

尖峰岭自然保护区土壤微生物群落特征

土壤微生物群落特征对于明确不同环境中微生物群落的作用具有重要意义,但对微生物群落的定量研究一直是该领域的研究难点.目前,以群落水平碳源利用类型为基础的Biolog方法为土壤微生物群落特征定量研究提供了一种简便的方法,并迅速得到了广泛的应用,但Biolog试验过程中获得的数据量十分庞大,因此如何合理的处理、选择最能代表土壤微生物特征的数据进行比较分析是Biolog方法成功运用的关键.文章依据目前最常用的两种Biolog数据处理方法,提出了一种改进的数据处理方法,并以海南岛尖峰岭自然保护区四种受不同程度人类干扰形成的植被类型的土壤微生物群落为研究对象,着重探讨了改进方法与已有方法对土壤微生物群落特征研究结果的差异.研究结果表明:不同植被类型土壤微生物利用单一碳源能力的大小顺序为:山地雨林原始林>天然次生林>人工混交林>皆伐迹地.尖峰岭地区植被破坏后,自然恢复形成的天然次生林土壤微生物群落与原始林最接近.与受干扰较多的人工林相比,自然恢复更能有效改善土壤的微生物结构和功能.比较不同数据处理方法的分析结果证明,改进的数据处理方法可以有效克服已有方法的不足,提高对研究对象土壤微生物群落差异的解释能力.     

珠江三角洲城市群大气微生物与环境相关性

运用生态学的方法,结合实地调查与数理统计分析,对珠江三角洲城市群的大气微生物与环境的相关性问题进行探讨,拟为珠江三角洲城市环境污染的综合防治和卫生防疫工作提供依据,研究结果表明.(1)珠江三角洲城市群中广州和东莞的大气微生物含量较高,其中细菌比真菌含量高;室内较室外,无绿化地较有绿化地的大气微生物含量高,在全年中,春、夏季节的大气微生物含量相对较高.(2)大气风速、湿度、气温、可吸入颗粒、总悬浮颗粒、人口流动,绿化状况等环境因子与大气微生物真菌、细菌的平均含量有较明显的相关关系,大气微生物含量与气象因子多数呈正或负的线性关系.相关分析的计算结果为:真菌、细菌平均含量在春、夏、秋、冬四个季度中与大气温度、湿度、风速大多数地区相关程度比较高,其值R在0.583～0.988之间,真菌、细菌与可吸人颗粒数和总悬浮颗粒数,R值分别为为0.525,0.388和0.081,-0.044.一元线性回归分析和多元线性回归分析计算结果为:大气微生物含量与气象因子有明显的正或负的线性关系.真菌、细菌的平均含量与温度、湿度、风速一元线性回归模型的置信水平较高,其p值大多在0.019～0.483之间,T值在0.001～0.246之间;多元线性回归模型的置信水平也较高,其P值大多数在0.083～0.220之间,T值在0.026～0.132之间;排序值显示:温度、风速变化是大气微生物含量高低影响重要性最大的环境因子.(3)统计数据比较分析表明:大气微生物含量与人口密集状况、人口流动大小和绿化状况好坏也有较明显的相关性,火车站,汽车客运站售票厅,人口流量大,绿化无,大气微生物(真菌细菌)平均含量高;而人口流量相对较少,但车流量大,有一定的绿化带的道路大气微生物平均含量较低;环境条件、绿化较好的公园绿地大气微生物含量低,车流、人流多,绿化少的地段、商业中心大气微生物含量较高.