Five-wheel framework for system-based monitoring of heavy metal pollution in rivers

Sectorial approach for monitoring heavy metal pollution in rivers has failed to report realistic pollution status and associated ecological and human health risks. The increasing spread of heavy metals from different sources and emerging risks to human and environmental health call for reexamining heavy metal pollution monitoring frameworks. Also, the sources, spread, and load of heavy metals in the environment have changed significantly over time, requiring consequent modification in the monitoring frameworks. Therefore, studies on heavy metal monitoring in rivers conducted in the last decade were evaluated for experimental designs, research frameworks, and data presentations. Most studies (∼99%) (i) lacked inclusiveness of all environmental compartments; (ii) focused on “one pollutant – one/two compartment” or sometimes “one pollutant – one compartment – one effect” approach; and (iii) remained “data-rich but information poor.” An ecological approach with integrative system thinking is proposed to develop a holistic approach for monitoring river pollution. It is visualized that heavy metal monitoring, risk analyses, and water management must incorporate tracking pollutants in different environmental compartments of a river (water, sediment, and floodplain/bank soil) and consider correlating it with riverbank land use. The systems-based pollution monitoring and assessment studies will reveal the critical factors that drive heavy metals pollutant movement in ecosystems and associated potential risks to the environment, wildlife, and humans. Also, water quality and pollution indexing tools would help better communicate complex pollution data and associated risks among all stakeholders. Therefore, integrating systems approaches in scientific- and policy-based tools would help sustainably manage the health of rivers, wildlife, and humans.     

Hydrochemistry of drinking water sources and water purifiers in relation to epidemiological study in Hisar,North-West India

The concern related to the drinking of reverse osmosis (RO) water containing low levels of minerals is growing day by day. This study involves the analysis of water samples from various drinking water sources in a rural site, Mirchpur village, an Indus Valley civilization site (grid location: 29° 18′ 42.3″ N, 76° 10′ 33.0″ E) of Hisar, India, along with the health survey of human subjects. The hydrochemistry of water collected from hand pumps, river canals, tube wells, submersibles, and the RO systems installed in various homes was explored for pH, EC, TH, TDS, turbidity, cations (Na⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺), anions (CO₃²⁻, HCO₃⁻, Cl⁻, SO₄²⁻, NO₃⁻, F⁻), and elements (Fe, Pb, Se) employing the ion chromatography, flame photometry, and ICP-AES techniques. Lead (Pb) and Selenium (Se) were detected in trace amounts (0.30–2.6 μg L⁻¹; 0.10–4.1 μg L⁻¹, respectively) in all the samples, including the samples collected from RO purifiers, but Iron (Fe) was not detected in RO samples even in trace amounts. The F-levels in hand pump water (HPW) and submersible water (SW) (1.9  and 1.7 mg L⁻¹, respectively) and TDS levels in SW (3048 mg L⁻¹) were found to be above WHO and BIS safe limits. TDS levels in the river canal (900 mg L⁻¹), tube well (1104 mg L⁻¹), hand pump (1170 mg L⁻¹), and submersible samples (3048 mg L⁻¹) were found significantly higher as compared to the RO personal water (ROPW; 216 mg L⁻¹) and RO supply water (ROSW; 90 mg L⁻¹). The collected epidemiological data reveals that 21%, 19%, 13%, and 12% of natives reported skin, kidney, hair fall, liver, and stomach issues, respectively, suspecting the crucial role of high TDS and fluoride levels in the area. This study also provides a comparison between the quality of RO and the direct supply water, along with correlation matrices for different parameters, which gives a rationale for the limitations of drinking direct supply water without any purification and RO water containing low mineral content.     

A scoping review of post-disaster social support investigations conducted after disasters that struck the Australia and Oceania continent

This scoping review provides a summary of research findings on social support dynamics in the wake of disasters that occurred on the continent of Australia and Oceania between 1983 and 2013. Forty-one studies, quantitative and qualitative, were summarised, investigating different facets of post-disaster supportive interactions. All inquiries assessed disasters resulting from natural hazards, with the majority of them conducted following events in Australia and New Zealand. The review revealed similar patterns of post-disaster social support dynamics that routinely unfold after disastrous incidents all over the world. Consistent with the disaster mental health literature, the documentation of social support mobilisation and social support deterioration processes was common. Salutary direct effects of supportive behaviours on post-disaster psychological distress were also highly evident. Most studies, however, posed research questions or hypotheses that lacked empirical or theoretical grounding. In conclusion, the review offers several recommendations on how to advance research on post-disaster social support.     

A comparative study of vocational education and occupational safety and health training in China and the UK

In order to enhance Chinese workers’ occupational safety awareness, it is essential to learn from developed countries’ experiences. This article investigates thoroughly occupational safety and health (OSH) in China and the UK; moreover, the article performs a comparison of Chinese and British OSH training-related laws, regulations and education system. The following conclusions are drawn: China’s work safety continues to improve, but there is still a large gap compared with the UK. In China a relatively complete vocational education and training (VET) system has been established. However, there exist some defects in OSH. In the UK, the employer will not only pay attention to employees’ physiological health, but also to their mental health. The UK’s VET is characterized by classification and grading management, which helps integrate OSH into the whole education system. China can learn from the UK in the development of policies, VET and OSH training.     

矿井热宽温度环境人体热健康分区热调节模型*

为评价矿井热环境中工人职业健康安全状况，提出矿井热宽温度环境人体热健康状态的基本特征与生理要求，分析热宽温度环境人体分区热调节规律与热健康状态的对应关系。基于生物控制论的观点，提出热宽温度范围内不同热应力作用下人体分区热调节机制，建立人体分区热调节模型。结果表明:模型能实现对环境热应力作用下人体物理热平衡状态与生理状态的参数化描述，揭示多因素作用下人体热健康状态的热应力边界与变化规律。分区热调节模型提供了人体热健康状态定量模拟平台，通过参数调整可使模型适应研究需求，模型为井下热环境工人职业健康安全状况分析与评价提供了可参考的思路与方法。     

沼泽湿地水生无脊椎动物完整性指数构建与健康评价

依据2017年5、7、9月对三江平原19处沼泽湿地(参照湿地6处,受损湿地13处)的水生无脊椎动物采样结果,应用生物完整性理论和方法,构建水生无脊椎动物完整性指数,评价三江平原沼泽湿地健康状况。通过对27个候选指标的分布范围、判别能力和相关性分析,筛选出总分类单元数、扁卷螺科百分比、龙虱科百分比、刮食者百分比4个指标构成水生无脊椎动物完整性指数核心指标。采用比值法计算各指标参数值,将各参数值加和得到水生无脊椎动物完整性指数值。根据参照湿地水生无脊椎动物完整性指数值的25%分位数值确定评价标准,对小于25%分位数的值进行三等分,确定三江平原沼泽湿地健康评价标准:≥2.58,无干扰;1.72～2.58,轻度干扰;0.86～1.72,中度干扰;0～0.86,重度干扰。结果表明:所调查的三江平原沼泽湿地有78.95%受到不同程度的干扰(其中47.37%受到了中重度干扰),21.05%属于无干扰。     

我国污染场地土壤石油烃环境质量标准体系的现状与趋势

石油烃污染场地已经成为国内外重点关注的工业污染场地类型之一。国内基于人体健康风险的污染场地管理模式及分层次评估方法已经展现雏形,为风险管理者提供了基于人体健康的土壤石油烃风险筛选值和管制值,也为污染场地的防治与修复工作提供了决策支持。在前人研究的基础上,梳理了国内土壤环境质量标准体系的建立与发展历程,分析了石油烃类污染物检测方法的现状与未来发展趋势,并着重对比与分析了各标准制订的石油烃及其指示化合物的风险评估筛选值。目前面临的关键问题:①完善石油烃监测指标体系及分析方法是精准获得风险评估结果的前提。现有石油烃馏分指标划分较为宽泛,有必要参考国外先进标准体系,逐渐完善石油烃馏分指标划分及其配套的定量分析方法。②新颁布的国家建设用地土壤污染风险管控标准在前期场地调查中具有一定的普遍适用性,但是考虑到地域建筑物参数、人群暴露参数等的差异性,在后期场地调查中还需要因地制宜地制定适合污染场地的具体修复目标值,并针对关键性参数作定量化解析。     

Hurricane Harvey and Greater Houston households: comparing pre-event preparedness with post-event health effects,event exposures,and recovery

Most disaster studies rely on convenience sampling and ‘after-only’ designs to assess impacts. This paper, focusing on Hurricane Harvey (2017) and leveraging a pre-/post-event sample of Greater Houston households (n=71) in the United States, establishes baselines for disaster preparedness and home structure flood hazard mitigation, explores household-level ramifications, and examines how preparedness and mitigation relate to health effects, event exposures, and recovery. Between 70 and 80 per cent of participants instituted preparedness measures. Mitigation actions varied: six per cent had interior drainage systems and 83 per cent had elevated indoor heating/cooling components. Sixty per cent reported home damage. One-half highlighted allergies and two-thirds indicated some level of post-traumatic stress (PTS). Three-quarters worried about family members/friends. The results of generalised linear models revealed that greater pre- event mitigation was associated with fewer physical health problems and adverse experiences, lower PTS, and faster recovery. The study design exposed the broad benefits of home structure flood hazard mitigation for households after Harvey.     

A hybrid decision-making approach based on FCM and MOORA for occupational health and safety risk analysis

IntroductionWith the development of industries and increased diversity of their associated hazards, the importance of identifying these hazards and controlling the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) risks has also dramatically augmented. Currently, there is a serious need for a risk management system to identify and prioritize risks with the aim of providing corrective/preventive measures to minimize the negative consequences of OHS risks. In fact, this system can help the protection of employees’ health and reduction of organizational costs. Method: The present study proposes a hybrid decision-making approach based on the Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA), Fuzzy Cognitive Map (FCM), and Multi-Objective Optimization on the basis of Ratio Analysis (MOORA) for assessing and prioritizing OHS risks. After identifying the risks and determining the values of the risk assessment criteria via the FMEA technique, the attempt is made to determine the weights of criteria based on their causal relationships through FCM and the hybrid learning algorithm. Then, the risk prioritization is carried out using the MOORA method based on the decision matrix (the output of the FMEA) and the weights of the criteria (the output of the FCM). Results: The results from the implementation of the proposed approach in a manufacturing company reveal that the score at issue can overcome some of the drawbacks of the traditional Risk Priority Number (RPN) in the conventional FMEA, including lack of assignment the different relative importance to the assessment criteria, inability to take into account other important management criteria, lack of consideration of causal relationships among criteria, and high dependence of the prioritization on the experts’ opinions, which finally provides a full and distinct risk prioritization.     

Evaluation of give kids a boost: A school-based program to increase booster seat use among urban children in economically disadvantaged areas

Objective: This study evaluated the effectiveness of a series of 1-year multifaceted school-based programs aimed at increasing booster seat use among urban children 4–7 years of age in economically disadvantaged areas.

Methods: During 4 consecutive school years, 2011–2015, the Give Kids a Boost (GKB) program was implemented in a total of 8 schools with similar demographics in Dallas County. Observational surveys were conducted at project schools before project implementation (P₀), 1–4 weeks after the completion of project implementation (P₁), and 4–5 months later (P₂). Changes in booster seat use for the 3 time periods were compared for the 8 project and 14 comparison schools that received no intervention using a nonrandomized trial process.

The intervention included (1) train-the-trainer sessions with teachers and parents; (2) presentations about booster seat safety; (3) tailored communication to parents; (4) distribution of fact sheets/resources; (5) walk-around education; and (6) booster seat inspections.

The association between the GKB intervention and proper booster seat use was determined initially using univariate analysis. The association was also estimated using a generalized linear mixed model predicting a binomial outcome (booster seat use) for those aged 4 to 7 years, adjusted for child-level variables (age, sex, race/ethnicity) and car-level variables (vehicle type). The model incorporated the effects of clustering by site and by collection date to account for the possibility of repeated sampling.

Results: In the 8 project schools, booster seat use for children 4–7 years of age increased an average of 20.9 percentage points between P₀ and P₁ (P₀ = 4.8%, P₁ = 25.7%; odds ratio [OR] = 6.9; 95% confidence interval [CI], 5.5, 8.7; P < .001) and remained at that level in the P₂ time period (P₂ = 25.7%; P < .001, for P₀ vs. P₂) in the univariate analysis. The 14 comparison schools had minimal change in booster seat use. The multivariable model showed that children at the project schools were significantly more likely to be properly restrained in a booster seat after the intervention (OR = 2.7; 95% CI, 2.2, 3.3) compared to the P₀ time period and compared to the comparison schools.

Conclusion: Despite study limitations, the GKB program was positively associated with an increase in proper booster seat use for children 4–7 years of age in school settings among diverse populations in economically disadvantaged areas. These increases persisted into the following school year in a majority of the project schools. The GKB model may be a replicable strategy to increase booster seat use among school-age children in similar urban settings.