How does eliminating mercury from artisanal and small-scale gold mining lead to achieving sustainable development goals?

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the principal anthropogenic activity that globally contributes to overloading our environment with mercury. Although the Minamata Convention, led by the United Nations, is a crucial instrument to eliminate its use progressively, novel approaches to accelerate this difficult transition are welcome. This article proposes a framework for policy-making or improvement, fostering the enforcement of mercury elimination through the lens of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), focusing on the excluded artisanal and small-scale gold miners and their dependents. We move forward with a literature review of the Artisanal and Small Mining topic, taking each SDG as a unit of analysis. Understanding the problem as a puzzle of four sets of pieces, namely: (1) social, (2) environmental, (3) economic, and (4) institutional, the paper offers potential opportunities for the decision-makers and practitioners to accelerate the substitution of this heavy metal and develop sustainable futures for the ASGM communities. We conclude by proposing a pragmatic framework that synthesizes the means, actions, and ends to accelerate a sustainable transition.     

Auxinic herbicides induce oxidative stress on Cnesterodon decemmaculatus (Pisces: Poeciliidae)

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Pesticides might increase the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Dicamba (DIC) and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) are auxinic...     

Boosting freshwater fish conservation with high-resolution distribution mapping across a large territory

The lack of high-resolution distribution maps for freshwater species across large extents fundamentally challenges biodiversity conservation worldwide. We devised a simple framework to delineate the distributions of freshwater fishes in a high-resolution drainage map based on stacked species distribution models and expert information. We applied this framework to the entire Chinese freshwater fish fauna (>1600 species) to examine high-resolution biodiversity patterns and reveal potential conflicts between freshwater biodiversity and anthropogenic disturbances. The correlations between spatial patterns of biodiversity facets (species richness, endemicity, and phylogenetic diversity) were all significant (r = 0.43–0.98, p < 0.001). Areas with high values of different biodiversity facets overlapped with anthropogenic disturbances. Existing protected areas (PAs), covering 22% of China's territory, protected 25–29% of fish habitats, 16–23% of species, and 30–31% of priority conservation areas. Moreover, 6–21% of the species were completely unprotected. These results suggest the need for extending the network of PAs to ensure the conservation of China's freshwater fishes and the goods and services they provide. Specifically, middle to low reaches of large rivers and their associated lakes from northeast to southwest China hosted the most diverse species assemblages and thus should be the target of future expansions of the network of PAs. More generally, our framework, which can be used to draw high-resolution freshwater biodiversity maps combining species occurrence data and expert knowledge on species distribution, provides an efficient way to design PAs regardless of the ecosystem, taxonomic group, or region considered.     

Enhancing the adsorption function of biochar by mechanochemical graphitization for organic pollutant removal

• Mechanochemical treatment reduced the calcination temperature for biochar synthesis. • Biochar is converted to graphite after mechanochemical treatment. • Biochar was reduced to nanoscale after mechanochemical treatment. Biochar (BC) has been extensively studied as adsorbent for the treatment of water pollution. Despite the distinct advantages, the high calcination temperature and low adsorption capacity of pristine BC limit its practical applications. Most of the former studies focused on the structure and/or surface modification to improve the adsorption capacity of BC. However, the harsh experiment conditions involved in the biochar modification limited the application in industrial level. Herein, we introduced mechanical treatment into BC preparation to reduce the calcination temperature and improve the adsorption capacity simultaneously. The results indicated that the calcination temperature was reduced and the adsorption capacity of the treated BC was improved after mechanochemical treatment. Characterization of the samples disclosed that BCs were graphitized with the particle size reduced to nanoscale after treatment. Adsorption tests indicated that the mechanochemically treated BCs showed much better removal performance of organic contaminants than that of pristine BCs. For instance, among four pristine BCs (BC600, BC700, BC800, and BC900), only BC900 has strong adsorption capacity for MB, while BC600 has low adsorption capacity (1.2 mg/g). By comparison, the adsorption capacity of MB increased greatly to 173.96 mg/g by BC600-500/1 (treated at 500 r/min for 1 hour). To optimize the mechanochemical treatment, the effects of rotation speed and agitation duration were also investigated.     

连续长坡路段组合线形与驾驶员瞳孔大小关系的试验分析

为了研究连续长坡路段道路线形与驾驶员瞳孔大小的关系,提高连续长坡路段行车的安全性,通过实车试验,利用眼动仪、GPS等设备采集驾驶员在某连续长坡路段上行车时的实时瞳孔直径和车速等数据,定量分析后建立了驾驶员瞳孔大小变化百分比(APCPS)与坡度、角度变化率(CCR)之间的关系模型。结果表明:在连续长坡路段上、下坡方向行车时,驾驶员的APCPS与坡度存在二次函数关系,上坡方向的APCPS随坡度增加而增加,下坡方向的APCPS随坡度增加先减小后增大;APCPS与CCR存在三次函数关系,上、下坡方向的APCPS随CCR增加均先减小然后增大后再减小;坡度与平面线形综合作用时,上、下坡方向的APCPS呈现相似的变化规律。     

pH对铝盐絮凝剂形态分布与混凝除氟性能的影响

对比研究了AlC13和3种不同碱化度的聚合氯化铝(PACl)在不同pH与投量下除氟效果,并对不同形态铝盐除氟机理进行了初步探讨.结果表明,pH对絮凝剂水解后铝形态分布及其除氟效果有重要影响.pH 5 ～6时,Al3+和Al2、Al3等低聚态铝为AlCl3主要形态,且AlCl3更易水解生成可将溶解态氟转化为颗粒态氟的Al(OH)3,从而较PACl具有更佳除氟效果.pH ＞7时,PACl较AlCl3具有更佳除氟效果,且增大PACl碱化度可促进氟的去除,这主要是由于具有较高Al13含量的PACl更容易与电负性F-结合所致;且絮凝剂混凝除氟絮体ζ电位越高,越利于F-在絮体表面吸附.     

江苏省环境监测质量管理的探索与实践

针对目前交界断面水质监测与空气自动监测站质量管理工作中存在的质控难点,介绍了江苏省的解决办法。通过统一技术细节、联合监测及强化监测人员持证上岗自认定考核等手段,解决了交界断面水质监测技术纠纷;通过设立省级质管站、进行可信度评估等措施,强化空气自动监测站的质量管理。     

蒽醌修饰石墨毡电极预处理头孢合成废水

以钛涂钌电极为阳极、自制蒽醌修饰石墨毡电极为阴极,对头孢合成废水(COD=25 000~30 000 mg/L、ρ(NH3-N)=850~1 300 mg/L、色度为2 300~2 680度)进行了电化学氧化预处理,优化了电解条件,并对电化学体系的动力学和稳定性进行了分析。实验结果表明:蒽醌的存在可改善电化学氧化降解效果;在电解时间50 min、电流密度0.14 A/cm2、Na2SO4浓度0.1 mol/L、极板间距2 cm、初始废水p H 7.0的条件下,废水的COD、色度、NH3-N的去除率分别可达45.3%,66.9%,33.6%;BOD5/COD由处理前的0.27增至0.40,可生化性得到改善;COD、色度、NH3-N的电化学氧化降解过程均近似符合一级动力学方程;且该电化学体系的应用稳定性良好。     

羟胺强化Fenton反应降解水中氯酚

针对传统Fenton体系Fe（Ⅲ）累积和pH适用范围过窄等缺点，采用羟胺（HA）强化的HA-Fenton体系，以对氯苯酚（4-CP）为目标污染物进行降解实验，考察了Fe（Ⅱ）投加量、H2O2投加量、HA投加量和溶液pH等工艺条件对4-CP去除率的影响。实验结果表明：HA-Fenton体系适用于酸性和弱酸性条件，最佳pH范围为3.0~4.0；在溶液pH为3.0、Fe（Ⅱ）投加量为5.0 μmol/L、H2O2投加量为0.4 mmol/L、HA投加量为0.20 mmol/L的最适条件下，反应10 min， 4-CP去除率达64.25 %。     

Energy flows in the coffee plantations of Costa Rica: from traditional to modern systems (1935–2010)

Regional Environmental Change - This article addresses energy flows in the coffee agro-ecosystems of Costa Rica within the context of the socio-ecological transition, between 1935 and 2010,...