地方利益相关者对作为水管理交流工具的模型生成数据的接受:伦讷河研究

本研究的目标是增加关于模型生成数据被用作水质管理的交流工具时,地方利益相关者接受该数据的知识.研究地区选在瑞典西南部的伦讷(R(o)nne(a))河流域.结果表明,模型生成数据起到了联合因素的作用.同时,利益相关者与提供的数据有关,主要问题为未考虑到的污染源、测定污染时缺乏信任、自然变化和延迟效应的影响的不确定性.确定了4组影响利益相关者接受模型生成数据的因素对其实际应用的信心,对所涉及的参与人员或对话资料提供者(如专家、决策者、媒体)的信心,参与者的社会特征(如年龄和职业),和数据的交流方式(如交流的语气、小组的构成、持续时间、对话的地理尺度).对给定的模型生成数据实际应用的公平性的感知,也是接受与否的一个重要因素.     

退化的半干旱农业生态系统土壤碳的积累--危险和潜力

<京都议定书>意味着新的可能性:人类将把生物圈作为碳库进行管理.无论从环境还是社会经济的观点来看,把农业生态系统作为碳库是最合适可行的.非洲地区退化的生态系统显著受益于土地管理的改善(碳积累计划的一部分).在非洲有大面积的这样的农业生态系统,对它们的恢复是一个亟待解决的问题.我们同意UNEP的观点:<气候变化公约>、<联合国防治沙漠化公约>以及<联合国生物多样性公约>相互之间将会产生潜在而重要的促进作用.我们调查了苏丹半干旱农业生态系统土壤碳含量增加的潜力,发现延长休耕期将使土壤碳增加,而农业边缘区转变成牧场后碳储量将在100年内恢复到天然萨王纳的80%.碳增汇带来的经济收益将会对这些农业生态系统的家庭经济产生显著的贡献.     

How effective are River Basin Management Plans in reaching the nutrient load reduction targets?

Riverine nutrient loads are among the major causes of eutrophication of the Baltic Sea. This study applied the Soil & Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) in three catchments flowing to the Baltic Sea, namely Vantaanjoki (Finland), Fyrisån (Sweden), and Słupia (Poland), to simulate the effectiveness of nutrient control measures included in the EU’s Water Framework Directive River Basin Management Plans (RBMPs). Moreover, we identified similar, coastal, middle-sized catchments to which conclusions from this study could be applicable. The first modelling scenario based on extrapolation of the existing trends affected the modelled nutrient loads by less than 5%. In the second scenario, measures included in RBMPs showed variable effectiveness, ranging from negligible for Słupia to 28% total P load reduction in Vantaanjoki. Adding spatially targeted measures to RBMPs (third scenario) would considerably improve their effectiveness in all three catchments for both total N and P, suggesting a need to adopt targeting more widely in the Baltic Sea countries.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s13280-020-01393-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Innovative aspects of environmental chemistry and technology regarding air,water, and soil pollution

Environmental Science and Pollution Research -     

Soil contamination in Colombian playgrounds: effects of vehicles,construction, and traffic

The presence of potentially hazardous elements (PHEs) in playground soils is generally associated with anthropogenic sources such as vehicle traffic, industries, construction sites, and biomass burning. Studies indicate that PHEs are harmful to human health and may even be carcinogenic. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the physicochemical, morphological, and mineralogical properties of soil samples from three public playgrounds located in the cities of Bogota, Medellin, and Barranquilla. Besides, the possible impacts caused by the aerodynamics of particles in Colombian cities were verified. The morphology, composition, and structure of the nanoparticles (NPs) (< 100 nm) present in these soils were evaluated by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) equipped with high-precision field emission (FE) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). Soil samples were predominantly feldspar, quartz, and, to a lesser extent, clay minerals, carbonates, and hematites. The average content of PHEs was anthropogenically enriched in relation to the upper continental crust. As and Sn showed a large spatial variation, indicating the influence of local sources, such as vehicle traffic and industries. There is an inverse relationship between the total concentrations of some elements and their leachable fractions. The accumulation of traffic-derived PHEs has a negative impact on human health and the environment, which is alarming, especially for elements such as Pb, Sb, or As. Therefore, the presence of PHEs should receive greater attention from public health professionals, and limits should be set and exposures controlled. This study includes the construction of a baseline that provides basic information on pollution, its sources, and exposure routes for humans in the vicinity of Colombia’s major cities, characterized by their increasing urbanization and industrialization.

     

Mesoscale Air Pollution Transport in the Chicago Lake Breeze

A two-day field program in Chicago studied mesoscale pollution transport during typical lake breezes. Streamlines calculated from serial pibal data suggest that a nearly closed circulation cell traps pollutants emitted near a shore line. Optically tracked tetroons confirm the helical trajectory of air within the lake breeze regime. Pollutants released within the inflow layer move inland, rise in a narrow zone of updrafts (100 cm/sec) at the lake breeze front, advect lakeward in the return flow layer aloft, and then subside back down into the inflow layer. Pollution then fumigates back to the surface as the air returns inland a second time causing concentrations higher than would otherwise be expected. Spectral aerosol measurements (0.5-3.0 and 7.0-9.0 micrometer size ranges) made by an instrumented aircraft reveal a marked particle size sorting.     

Sugarcane vinasse: Environmental implications of its use

The inadequate and indiscriminate disposal of sugarcane vinasse in soils and water bodies has received much attention since decades ago, due to environmental problems associated to this practice. Vinasse is the final by-product of the biomass distillation, mainly for the production of ethanol, from sugar crops (beet and sugarcane), starch crops (corn, wheat, rice, and cassava), or cellulosic material (harvesting crop residues, sugarcane bagasse, and wood). Because of the large quantities of vinasse produced, alternative treatments and uses have been developed, such as recycling of vinasse in fermentation, fertirrigation, concentration by evaporation, and yeast and energy production. This review was aimed at examining the available data on the subject as a contribution to update the information on sugarcane vinasse, from its characteristics and chemical composition to alternatives uses in Brazil: fertirrigation, concentration by evaporation, energy production; the effects on soil physical, chemical and biological properties; its influence on seed germination, its use as biostimulant and environmental contaminant. The low pH, electric conductivity, and chemical elements present in sugarcane vinasse may cause changes in the chemical and physical–chemical properties of soils, rivers, and lakes with frequent discharges over a long period of time, and also have adverse effects on agricultural soils and biota in general. Thus, new studies and green methods need to be developed aiming at sugarcane vinasse recycling and disposal.     

Animal Agriculture: Symbiosis, Culture, or Ethical Conflict?

Several writers on animal ethics defend the abolition of most or all animal agriculture, which they consider an unethical exploitation of sentient non-human animals. However, animal agriculture can also be seen as a co-evolution over thousands of years, that has affected biology and behavior on the one hand, and quality of life of humans and domestic animals on the other. Furthermore, animals are important in sustainable agriculture. They can increase efficiency by their ability to transform materials unsuitable for human consumption and by grazing areas that would be difficult to harvest otherwise. Grazing of natural pastures is essential for the pastoral landscape, an important habitat for wild flora and fauna and much valued by humans for its aesthetic value. Thus it seems that the environment gains substantially when animals are included in sustainable agricultural systems. But what about the animals themselves? Objections against animal agriculture often refer to the disrespect for animals’ lives, integrity, and welfare in present intensive animal production systems. Of the three issues at stake, neither integrity nor animal welfare need in principle be violated in carefully designed animal husbandry systems. The main ethical conflict seems to lie in the killing of animals, which is inevitable if the system is to deliver animal products. In this paper, we present the benefits and costs to humans and animals of including animals in sustainable agriculture, and discuss how to address some of the ethical issues involved.