城市生活垃圾处理方式生命周期评价的比较研究

生命周期评价理论与方法作为一种量化环境影响的工具,在诸多领域中得到了广泛的应用。在垃圾处理领域,生命周期评价最早在20世纪90年代得到应用。生命周期评价与城市生活垃圾处理的有效结合,将促进城市生活垃圾的减量化、资源化、无害化目标的实现。总结了生命周期评价理论与方法在城市生活垃圾处理中的应用现状。对国内不同城市生活垃圾处理方式环境影响因子进行比较分析,诸如全球变暖潜力、酸化潜力和富营养化潜力等因子。针对其目标范围定义、数据收集、评价方法的选择、结果解释及工艺改进等方面指出了目前研究的局限性和不足。并对未来城市生活垃圾处理生命周期评价的发展方向进行展望。     

The need for spatially explicit quantification of benefits in invasive‐species management

Worldwide, invasive species are a leading driver of environmental change across terrestrial, marine, and freshwater environments and cost billions of dollars annually in ecological damages and economic losses. Resources limit invasive‐species control, and planning processes are needed to identify cost‐effective solutions. Thus, studies are increasingly considering spatially variable natural and socioeconomic assets (e.g., species persistence, recreational fishing) when planning the allocation of actions for invasive‐species management. There is a need to improve understanding of how such assets are considered in invasive‐species management. We reviewed over 1600 studies focused on management of invasive species, including flora and fauna. Eighty‐four of these studies were included in our final analysis because they focused on the prioritization of actions for invasive species management. Forty‐five percent (n = 38) of these studies were based on spatial optimization methods, and 35% (n = 13) accounted for spatially variable assets. Across all 84 optimization studies considered, 27% (n = 23) explicitly accounted for spatially variable assets. Based on our findings, we further explored the potential costs and benefits to invasive species management when spatially variable assets are explicitly considered or not. To include spatially variable assets in decision‐making processes that guide invasive‐species management there is a need to quantify environmental responses to invasive species and to enhance understanding of potential impacts of invasive species on different natural or socioeconomic assets. We suggest these gaps could be filled by systematic reviews, quantifying invasive species impacts on native species at different periods, and broadening sources and enhancing sharing of knowledge.     

Computational investigation of the effects of knee airbag design on the interaction with occupant lower extremity in frontal and oblique impacts

Objective: The lower extremity of the occupant represents the most frequently injured body region in motor vehicle crashes. Knee airbags (KABs) have been implemented as a potential countermeasure to reduce lower extremity injuries. Despite the increasing prevalence of KABs in vehicles, the biomechanical interaction of the human lower extremity with the KAB has not been well characterized. This study uses computational models of the human body and KABs to explore how KAB design may influence the impact response of the occupant's lower extremities.

Methods: The analysis was conducted using a 50th percentile male occupant human body model with deployed KABs in a simplified vehicle interior. The 2 common KAB design types, bottom-deploy KAB (BKAB) and rear-deploy KAB (RKAB), were both included. A state-of-the-art airbag modeling technique, the corpuscular particle method, was adopted to represent the deployment dynamics of the unfolding airbags. Validation of the environment model was performed based on previously reported test results. The kinematic responses of the occupant lower extremities were compared under both KAB designs, 2 seating configurations (in-position and out-of-position), and 3 loading conditions (static, frontal, and oblique impacts). A linear statistical model was used to assess factor significance considering the impact responses of the occupant lower extremities.

Results: The presence of a KAB had a significant influence on the lower extremity kinematics compared to no KAB (P <.05) by providing early restraint and distributing contact force on the legs during airbag deployment. For in-position occupants, the KAB generally tended to decrease tibia loadings. The RKAB led to greater lateral motion of the legs compared to the BKAB, resulting in higher lateral displacement at the knee joint and abduction angle change (51.2 ± 21.7 mm and 15° ± 6.0°) over the dynamic loading conditions. Change in the seating position led to a significant difference in occupant kinematic and kinetic parameters (P <.05). For the out-of-position (forward-seated) occupant, the earlier contact between the lower extremity and the deploying KAB resulted in 28.4° ± 5.8° greater abduction, regardless of crash scenarios. Both KAB types reduced the axial force in the femur relative to no KAB. Overall, the out-of-position occupant sustained a raised axial force and bending moment of the tibia by 0.8 ± 0.2 kN and 21.1 ± 8.7 Nm regardless of restraint use.

Conclusions: The current study provided a preliminary computational examination on KAB designs based on a limited set of configurations in an idealized vehicle interior. Results suggested that the BKAB tended to provide more coverage and less leg abduction compared to the RKAB in oblique impact and/or the selected out-of-position scenario. An out-of-position occupant was associated with larger abduction and lower extremity loads over all occupant configurations. Further investigations are recommended to obtain a full understanding of the KAB performance in a more realistic vehicle environment.     

Aquatic Plant and Dissolved Oxygen Changes in a Reference‐Condition Prairie Stream Subjected to Experimental Nutrient Enrichments

Effects of controlled nutrient additions on a prairie stream were studied using a before‐after‐control‐impact paired design. The site is in a reference condition with low soluble nitrate (NO₃) and phosphate (soluble reactive phosphorus [SRP]) in summer (3 μg NO₃‐N/L, 4 μg SRP/L). Nutrients were added to two reaches over the growing season at two levels (Low Dose — 39 μg NO₃‐N/L and 4.4 SRP/L; High Dose — 119 μg NO₃‐N/L and 15.6 μg SRP/L). Continuously measured dissolved oxygen (DO) and changes in aquatic flora were compared to an upstream Control. Enrichment led microalgae and filamentous algae to increase in density, areal coverage, and thickness, and the magnitude of the changes were largely concordant with dosing (more in the High Dose); algal growth also suppressed macrophytes in the High Dose. Enrichment caused significant increases in diel DO swings whose magnitudes were consistent with dosing level. In the High Dose, benthic algae flourished in the growing season and then senesced en masse in fall. The decomposing algae led DO to crash (ca. 0 mg/L on the bottom), but DO impacts were out‐of‐sync with peak algal growth and photosynthesis, which occurred weeks earlier. This finding provides a plausible explanation as to why high DO delta in streams impacts aquatic life even when concurrently measured DO is not low. When DO crashed, DO was longitudinally patchy, some areas having low DO near the bottom, others near saturation. Geomorphology and exposure to wind may have caused this pattern.     

Is a voluntary approach an effective environmental policy instrument?: A case for environmental management systems

Using Japanese facility-level data from an OECD survey, we estimate the effects of implementation of ISO14001 and publication of environmental reports on the facilities’ environmental performance. While most previous studies focused on an index of emissions toxicity, this study examines three areas of impacts, none of which have been explored in the literature: natural resource use, solid waste generation, and wastewater effluent. The study is also unique in that the effectiveness of ISO14001 is considered in relation to environmental regulations. Our findings are summarized as follows. First, both ISO14001 and report publication help reduce all three impacts; the former appears more effective in all areas except wastewater. Second, environmental regulations do not weaken the effect of ISO14001. Third, assistance programs offered by local governments—a voluntary approach—promote facilities’ adoption of ISO14001. These findings suggest that governments can use command-and-control and voluntary approaches concurrently.     

Sensitivity of stand dynamics to grazing in mixed Pinus sylvestris and Quercus pubescens forests: A modelling study

Only recently, studies of forest succession have started to include the effects of browsing by wild or domestic ungulates. We aim to contribute to this topic by analysing the influence of goat grazing on the long-term coexistence of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and pubescent oak (Quercus pubescens Willd.) in the low-elevation forests of an inner-Alpine dry valley. The forest gap model ForClim was first adapted to these site conditions by examining the site-dependent sensitivity of the model with regard to the species-specific parameterisation of the drought tolerance as well as the light demand of establishing and adult trees. In a second step, the behaviour of the model was investigated with respect to different grazing intensities and species-specific browsing susceptibilities. The last step was the application of a grazing scenario based on forest history, with 150 years of heavy browsing (by goats) at the beginning of the simulated forest succession, followed by less intensive grazing pressure.     

旅游环境影响研究进展与启示

旅游环境影响是旅游环境和旅游影响研究中的重要内容,可为旅游区环境资源保护与管理提供基本依据,对生态旅游及可持续旅游的发展具有重要意义。为探讨旅游环境影响研究中存在的问题及发展方向,在参阅大量研究文献的基础上,从研究进程、研究内容、研究方法和研究结果等方面论述了国外旅游环境影响研究进展,对国内旅游环境影响研究按时间进展进行了评述。从旅游环境影响发展及研究现状来看,丰富和深化研究内容、扩展研究尺度、改进研究方法与技术,加强应用性研究等将是未来一定时期内旅游环境影响研究的主题;国内旅游环境影响研究应在借鉴国外先进研究方法与研究成果的基础上,结合国内实际,扩展研究领域,改进研究方法、加强实证研究和管理应用研究。     

气温变化对西南山区流域森林水文效应影响的模拟

为了揭示气温变化对西南山区流域森林水文效应的影响,用生物物理/动态植被模型SSiB4/TRIFFID与流域地形指数水文模型TOPMODEL的耦合模型SSiB4T/TRIFFID模拟了西南山区长江上游梭磨河流域森林水文效应对气温变化的响应,分析了气温变化对植被不同演替阶段的流域总径流和总蒸发以及冠层截流蒸发、植被蒸腾和土壤蒸发的影响。结果表明,（1）梭磨河流域森林（常绿针叶林）蒸腾与草和灌木差异小,森林蒸腾潜热比草和灌木仅高1~4 W.m-2,森林冠层截留蒸发高于草和灌木,但土壤蒸发明显低于草和灌木覆盖,森林覆盖流域总蒸发低于草和灌木覆盖甚至低于裸土蒸发,因此增加了流域总径流量,但森林增加径流的作用随土壤蒸发的减小而减小。（2）气温减小1℃将通过减小森林冠层截留蒸发和蒸腾而使森林增加流域总径流量的作用增加;相反,气温增加将增加森林冠层截留蒸发和蒸腾而使森林增加总径流量的作用减小。（3）当温度增加4℃,由于森林总蒸发较草和灌木明显增加,对于较高的土壤蒸发,森林增加总径流量的作用已不明显;对于较低的土壤蒸发,森林减小了流域总径流量。     

施用高效氮肥对农田N2O的减排效果及经济效益分析

收集高效氮肥N2O排放资料,利用整合分析法分析高效氮肥对N2O的减排效果.稳定性氮肥排放的N2O是普通肥料的0.66倍,减排效果显著;包膜缓释氮肥N2O排放量为普通氮肥的0.95倍,无显著减排效果.若将全国范围的普通氮肥替换为稳定性氮肥、且用N量不变时,稳定性氮肥在中国农田的N2O减排潜力均值为1.03×108 kgN/a,碳排放交易收入为16.86亿元/a;根据现有市场上稳定性氮肥的价格,每亩地每季补贴4.9元,碳排放交易收入和稳定性氮肥成本增加量相抵.由于稳定性氮肥能有效提高N利用率,保证农作物吸N总量不变时减少用N量,稳定性肥料N利用率提高8个百分点时,N2O减排经济效益(即碳排放交易收入-稳定性氮肥成本增加量)为94亿元/a.     

城市生活垃圾填埋场的物质存量特征及其环境影响:以粤港澳大湾区为例

填埋场中的生活垃圾成分复杂,即使在封场后其存量垃圾仍将持续产生温室气体、恶臭、地下水污染等环境问题,是城市生态环境修复的重点领域之一.生活垃圾填埋场物质存量、组成成分和理化特征是掌握其潜在环境影响的关键.但是目前关于填埋场物质存量及其环境影响的研究还不多见.本研究以我国城市化程度最高、人口最为密集的粤港澳大湾区城市群为例,基于国内外报道的科技信息和统计数据,对11个城市的生活垃圾产生量、处理量、组成成分、填埋场存量及关键元素碳存量进行分析.结果表明:①粤港澳大湾区2017年生活垃圾产生量为26. 4 Tg,平均每年增长0. 8 Tg,其中卫生填埋处置占58. 9%;②总生活垃圾填埋处置量为230. 1 Tg,其中食物、塑料和纸类垃圾的累计填埋处置量最多,分别为109. 6、38. 9和29. 6 Tg;③2001～2017年,大湾区城市生活垃圾填埋场总碳输入量为50. 0 Tg,通过填埋气排放的碳为7. 1 Tg,通过渗滤液排放的碳为1. 5 Tg,累积碳存量为41. 4 Tg.本研究可为研究城市生活垃圾填埋场的环境影响提供基础数据,为大湾区城市生态环境修复提供科学依据.