Historical and geographical aspects of the increasing perfluorooctanoate and perfluorooctane sulfonate contamination in human serum in Japan

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) have recently received attention due to their widespread contamination in the environment, as well as in wildlife and humans. We measured the PFOS and PFOA concentrations in historically recorded human serum samples at an age range between 20 and 59 years collected in Kyoto, 20 persons per each time point (n=100), and also the PFOS and PFOA concentrations in human serum samples at an age range between 20 and 59 years from 10 locations throughout Japan (n=200). The historical samples collected from 1983 to 1999 demonstrated that the PFOA concentrations in males and females from Kyoto have increased 4.4-fold and 4.3-fold at a rate of increase of 0.49 ng/ml/year and 0.42 ng/ml/year, respectively. In contrast, serum concentrations of PFOS reached a plateau in the late 1980s. There are also regional differences in both the PFOS and PFOA serum concentrations. The concentrations in serum [geometric mean (geometric standard deviation)] (ng/ml) in 2003-2004 ranged from 7.6(1.6) in the town of Matsuoka in Fukui prefecture to 27.8(1.6) in Kyoto city, and ranged from 2.3(1.5) in Matsuoka to 14.5(1.3) in Osaka city for PFOS and PFOA, respectively.     

日本污水脱氮除磷深度处理工艺分析

为提高进入琵琶湖水体水质和有效恢复并保持琵琶湖流域水生态环境,日本滋贺县10家下水道污水处理厂全部采用脱氮除磷深度处理工艺。湖南中部净化中心目前规模为26.85万t/d,采用缺氧-好氧循环硝化/反硝化(AO)、厌氧-缺氧-好氧(AAO)和多段进水多级缺氧-好氧硝化/反硝化(SMAO)3种深度处理工艺。AAO工艺是国内城镇污水处理厂广泛采用的二级生化工艺,AO、SMAO工艺在国内还没有应用实例。AO、AAO工艺采用内循环硝化/反硝化反应脱氮,SMAO工艺采用无内循环的多段进水多级硝化/反硝化反应脱氮。AO、SMAO工艺采用化学方式除磷,PAC添加浓度约50mg/L。AAO工艺采用化学和生物组合方式除磷,PAC添加浓度降低到约30 mg/L。AO、AAO工艺出水BOD、CODMn、SS、TN和TP均值分别约为0.9 mg/L、5.2 mg/L、1 mg/L、6.5 mg/L和0.06 mg/L,相应的去除率约为99.5%、94.2%、99.5%、78.0%和98.1%。SMAO工艺出水TN约为2.5 mg/L,TN去除率提高到91.6%,其他指标和AO、AAO工艺基本相同。     

日本污水处理厂的监测探讨

探讨了日本滋贺县湖南中部净化中心化验室水质分析管理、在线仪表管理、监测数据分析利用和相关监测试验.介绍了化验室水质分析项目,常用水质分析仪器的维护管理,工艺在线仪表监测管理,以及常用在线仪表的维护管理等内容.揭示了溶解氧、氧化还原电位、五日生化需氧量污泥负荷、污泥龄、好氧污泥龄和PAC添加量等监测数据的综合分析利用有助于提高脱氮除磷效率和节约运行成本.指出相关监测试验是提升运行管理水平的重要手段.     

Fitness of occupational exposure data to inverse Gaussian distribution

Short-term exposure datasets of 10 workers exposed to organic solvents and daily average exposure datasets of seven workers exposed to cobalt and organic solvents were analyzed in order to clarify whether these exposure data fit an inverse Gaussian distribution. The goodness-of-fit test showed that time-weighted average (TWA) values with averaging times of 30 min, 60 min and 8 hours can be described by an inverse Gaussian distribution, but not those with averaging times of 7.5 min and 15 min.     

Responses of fish assemblage structures to sandy beach types in Kyushu Island, southern Japan

To determine differences in fish assemblage structures between beach morphodynamic types on an exposed sandy shore, three beach types (reflective, intermediate, and dissipative) were sampled at Fukiagehama Beach, Kyushu Island, southern Japan, in May, August, and November 2006 and 2007. Distinct differences in physical conditions and the amount of major prey invertebrates, such as copepods, mysids, and amphipods, were recognized between the three beach types. The reflective beach was characterized mainly by turbulent swashes, coarse sediment, and a low abundance of major prey invertebrates. In contrast, the dissipative beach was characterized mostly by benign swashes, fine sediment, and a high abundance of prey invertebrates. The intermediate beach tended toward an intermediate condition between the reflective and dissipative beaches. The fish assemblage structures also differed clearly between the three beach types, with species and individual numbers being greatest on the dissipative beach and lowest on the reflective beach. A similarity index indicated differences in species composition of the assemblages between the beach types. Such differences arose primarily from the differential distributions of two dominant trophic groups, zooplankton (mostly copepods) and epibenthic crustacean (mainly mysids and amphipods) feeders, between the beach types, both groups tending to increase in species and individual numbers from the reflective beach to the dissipative beach. In addition, the mean standard length of all fish collected in each month tended to decrease toward the dissipative beach. These results suggested that beach types strongly influence sandy beach fish assemblage structures.     

Organic pollutants in paper-recycling process water discharge areas: first detection and emission in aquatic environment

In this study, eight compounds have been identified and quantified from the samples collected from paper-recycling process water discharge areas. In particular, five aryl hydrocarbons, including a novel chlorinated aryl ether, were identified for the first time as environmental pollutants. In the effluent stream, concentration levels of up to 1600 microg L(-1) and 190 microg g(-1) were detected in the surface water and surface sediment, respectively. The results of this study have raised concerns regarding the organic chemicals used in thermal paper and the environmental consequences of their release.     

Large-scale evaluation of the current level of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in breast milk from 13 regions of Japan

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were measured in 2004 in 105 breast milk samples collected from 13 regions of Japan (Hokkaido, Akita, Miyagi, Tokyo, Gifu, Fukui, Kyoto, Hyogo, Wakayama, Shimane, Yamaguchi, Kochi and Okinawa). Six congeners (BDE-28, BDE-47, BDE-99, BDE-100, BDE-153 and BDE-154) were determined by gas chromatography /mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Total PBDE levels ranged from 0.01 to 23.0 ng/g lipid (geometric mean (GM), 1.34 ng/g lipid). BDE-47 (GM, 0.66 ng/g lipid, 59% of sigmaPBDE) was the most abundant congener present in breast milk and was detected in 99% of the samples. Total PBDE levels were higher in northern Japan than in other regions. We analyzed the effects of occupation, age, smoking status, alcohol consumption and number of deliveries on total PBDE levels. None of these factors were significantly associated with the level of PBDEs. The present study revealed that the current level of exposure to PBDEs in Japan is lower than that in the USA or Sweden. GMs (ng/g lipid) (GSD, geometric standard deviation) and medians (ng/g lipid) of PBDE levels in each district are as follows: Hokkaido 2.70 (1.70), 2.74; Akita 4.49 (2.19), 5.44; Miyagi 1.77 (4.37), 1.11; Tokyo 1.39 (2.09), 1.63, Gifu 2.83 (4.79), 2.23; Fukui 1.05 (2.34), 1.18; Kyoto 1.31 (2.95), 1.33; Hyogo 1.02 (2.69), 0.88; Wakayama 1.33 (3.80), 1.70; Shimane 0.83 (2.51), 0.66; Yamaguchi 1.74 (2.82), 1.76; Kochi 0.50 (2.69), 0.74 and Okinawa 1.91 (2.75), 1.22. This is the first large-scale study of current PBDE levels in breast milk in Japan.