Public perception of air pollution sources across Europe

Air pollution is one of the primary concerns of our society for its effect on human health and the environment. Among the policy measures that can be put in place to limit air pollutant emissions, end-of-pipe technologies and/or regulatory instruments may be implemented through legislative acts. Also, equally important are behavioural measures, requiring citizens’ active involvement. The success of any measure to limit pollutant emissions requires the acceptance by the citizens that, in turn, implies a correct perception of the main pollutant emission drivers. We present here the comparison between the public perception of air pollution sources and the real-world situation through a survey carried out in seven European countries and involving 16 101 respondents. Our study shows a dramatic underestimation of the contribution of the agri-food sector to air pollution. This result is common to all respondents in the seven countries examined and only to a small extent depends on gender, age and socio-economic status of the respondents.     

Using hydrochemical signatures to characterize the long-period evolution of groundwater information in the Dagu River Basin,China

• The long-period groundwater evolution was identified by hydrochemical signatures. • The dominant processes in the groundwater evolution were verified. • Groundwater quality in the coastal areas was susceptible to deterioration due to SI. • Groundwater contamination arose from fertilizer, livestock manure & domestic sewage. The evolution of hydrochemical compositions influenced by long-period interactions between groundwater and the geo-environment is a fundamental issue for exploring groundwater quality and vulnerability. This study systematically investigated the hydrochemical processes and anthropogenic interference occurring in the river basin by bivariate plots, Gibbs diagrams, saturation index, and the major ions ratios. Apparent changes in groundwater hydrochemistry have been observed in the study area, illustrating the origins of major ions are affected by various internal and external factors. Results highlighted that TDS varied from freshwater to brackish water, ranging between 187.90 and 2294.81 mg/L. Ca²⁺ and HCO₃⁻ are the dominant ions in the studied samples. The results gained by Gibbs diagrams, bivariate plots, saturation index, and the major ions ratios demonstrated that minerals dissolution/precipitation, cation exchange, and human inputs play crucial roles in the unconfined aquifers. Moreover, the overuse of nitrogen fertilizer, livestock manure, and industrial/domestic sewage led to nitrate and nitrite contamination and brought significant challenges to the surrounding hydrogeo-environment. The present study could make an unambiguous identification of natural processes and anthropogenic interventions influencing groundwater hydrochemistry’s long-period evolution and create a preliminary strategy for groundwater resources management.     

高氯酸铁可见分光光度法测定水中叠氮化物研究

基于Fe~(3+)显色技术,建立了测定地表水、地下水、生活污水和工业废水中叠氮化物的高氯酸铁分光光度法。研究结果表明:N_3~-与Fe~(3+)反应生成的棕红色络合物的特征吸收峰为454 nm;氨基磺酸铵可有效掩蔽NO_2~-的干扰,蒸馏能消除色度、CN~-、SCN~-硫化物等对测定的影响;当取样体积为150 mL、蒸馏定容体积为100 mL、使用10 mm比色皿时,方法检出限为0.08 mg/L(以N_3~-计),测定下限为0.32 mg/L;平均回收率为88.0%~104%,相对标准偏差(n=6)为0.3%～5.6%。对实际工业废水样品进行了测定,结果为1.37 mg/L。该方法准确度高、精密度好、操作简单,能够满足水污染物排放标准中叠氮化物的测定要求。     

Institutional quality,financial development and sustainable economic growth among lower income countries

This article postulates strong endogenous relationships in lower income countries between institutional quality, financial development and sustained economic growth. These associations were investigated using the vector-error correction model (VECM) and Granger causality method for a sample of 79 countries from 2005 to 2022. The findings show that (1) these variables reinforce each other in the short run. (2) In the long run, both institutional quality and financial development can fuel economic growth. (3) The positive effect of institutional quality on economic growth is greater than that of financial development. Policy implications of these findings are that careful attention should be paid to co-development policies to enhance the institutional quality and the financial system in these economies. Policies should also consider economic growth strategies to enable sustainable economic growth rates.     

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.     

Investigation of long-term river water quality variations using different urbanization indices and assessment of common scientific perspectives of urbanization on water quality

This study investigated the water quality variation spanning 30 years (1986–2017) in 16 catchments of Hong Kong against different urbanization indices, namely, built area fraction; population; and product of population and built area fraction. Pearson correlations of three different periods of time (1988–1990, 1998–2000, and 2015–2017) indicated that water quality trends were dependent on the urbanization index. Total solids, nitrite-nitrogen, total phosphorus, electrical conductivity, dissolved oxygen, and flow rate had significant deteriorative trends (Pearson r > 0.5 and p < 0.05) with population and product of built area and population. Results also interpreted that built area fraction and product of built area and population were the worst and best indices that represented urbanization and/or its impacts, respectively. Mann-Kendall test for the entire 30 year period showed that water quality had improved with time with respect to certain water quality parameters (e.g., dissolved oxygen, ammoniacal nitrogen and total suspended solids). The results portrayed that although the urbanization of catchments had increased with time, the river water quality with respect to many parameters showed signs of improvement and the legislative measures implemented seemed to be effective in controlling pollution.     

Spatial analysis of resources and environmental carrying capacity in Iran

Urbanization and mass movement of the population from rural areas and small cities to megacities have led to environmental, economic, and social problems in Iran. In dealing with these challenges, assessing resource and environmental carrying capacity (RECC) is considered an effective method to leverage space and capital to achieve sustainable development. This study aimed to rank the provincial RECC in Iran. Toward this purpose, environmental indices were generated from remotely sensed and statistical census data. Then, the provinces were scored in terms of environmental, economic, and infrastructural carrying capacities, and RECC using the mean variance analysis method. Results demonstrated that in most areas, there is no relationship between economic and infrastructural capacities and development. Statistically, a correlation coefficient of −0.53 between economic and environmental carrying capacities indicated excessive use of environmental capacities. Moreover, the spatial distribution pattern of environmental, economic, and infrastructural carrying capacity was entirely heterogeneous between the provinces; there was a northeast–southwest pattern in terms of infrastructural capacity and an economic pattern from north to south. The distribution pattern of RECC is most consistent with the environmental capacity, pointing at the high weight of the indicators of the RECC model. In conclusion, this research offers a new vision for policymakers and provides a theoretical and applicable framework for implementing sustainable strategies in land-use planning. It is recommended that the RECC concept and tools can be used not only for planning but also for measuring the efficiency of spatial development programs and establishing land balances in the region.     

液液萃取-气相色谱/串联质谱法测定水中五氯酚及其钠盐

采用液液萃取处理水样,用气相色谱-串联质谱法测定样品中五氯酚及其钠盐,通过优化测定条件,使方法在1.00μg/L~500μg/L范围内线性良好。检出限和定量限分别为1.00μg/L和5.00μg/L,空白水样五氯酚钠3个质量浓度水平的加标回收率为89.8%~98.4%,5次平行试验测定结果的RSD为5.5%~10.7%。     

Temporal trends in agricultural water use and the relationships to hydroclimatic factors in the High Plains aquifer region

The High Plains aquifer (HPA) is the primary water source for agricultural irrigation in the US Great Plains. The water levels in many locations of the aquifer have declined steadily over the past several decades because the rate of water withdrawals exceeds recharge, which has been a serious concern to the water resources management in the region. We evaluated temporal trends and variations in agricultural water use and hydroclimatic variables including precipitation, air temperature, reference evapotranspiration, runoff, groundwater level, and terrestrial water storage across the HPA region for different periods from 1985 to 2020 at the grid, county, or region scale. The results showed that water withdrawals decreased from 21.3 km³/year in 1985 to 18.2 km³/year in 2015, while irrigated croplands increased from 71,928 km² in 1985 to 78,464 km² in 2015 in the entire HPA. The hydroclimatic time-series showed wetting trends in most of the northern HPA, but drying and warming trends in the southern region from 1985 to 2020. The groundwater level time-series indicated flat trends in the north, but significant declining in the central and southern HPA. Trends in irrigation water withdrawals and irrigation area across the HPA were controlled by the advancement of irrigation systems and technologies and the management of sustainable water use, but also were affected by dynamical changes in the hydroclimatic conditions.     

基于环境监测实验室的高校实验室安全准入制度信息系统功能优化研究

梳理了高校实验室环境-安全-健康准入制度包含的管理内容,从人员管理、设备管理、试剂管理、实验环境管理角度进行了分析。根据现有实验室安全信息化系统运行情况,探讨了将实验室安全信息化系统与实验室信息化系统、设备管理信息化系统进行数据融合和功能优化的要点,重点分析了设备采购及管理系统、实验室安全教育与考试系统、实验室安全检查系统、试剂管理平台、实验室门禁管理系统在功能上的内在关联,从而通过试剂管理平台、实验室门禁控制系统、设备采购系统实现实验室环境-安全-健康准入制度的强制执行。研究发现,高校与环境监测实验室、院系实验室安全管理部门联合促进实验室安全信息化系统、实验室信息化系统、设备管理信息化系统的数据共享与功能升级,可以丰富实验室安全准入制度的内涵和管理手段,加强实验室安全准入制度的强制执行力,提高实验室安全管理效率。