How do long-term development and periodical changes of river-floodplain systems affect the fate of contaminants? Results from European rivers

In many densely populated areas, riverine floodplains have been strongly impacted and degraded by river channelization and flood protection dikes. Floodplains act as buffers for flood water and as filters for nutrients and pollutants carried with river water and sediment from upstream source areas. Based on results of the EU-funded “AquaTerra” project (2004-2009), we analyze changes in the dynamics of European river-floodplain systems over different temporal scales and assess their effects on contaminant behaviour and ecosystem functioning. We find that human-induced changes in the hydrologic regime of rivers have direct and severe consequences on nutrient cycling and contaminant retention in adjacent floodplains. We point out the complex interactions of contaminants with nutrient availability and other physico-chemical characteristics (pH, organic matter) in determining ecotoxicity and habitat quality, and draw conclusions for improved floodplain management.     

Results and evaluation of the first study of organochlorine contaminants (PCDDs, PCDFs, PCBs and DDTs), heavy metals and metalloids in birds from Baja California, México

Organochlorine compounds (OCs) including polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), dibenzofurans (PCDFs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethylene (p-p'-DDE), heavy metals (Pb, Cd, Zn, Cu), and arsenic were measured in house sparrows (Passer domesticus) and common ground doves (Columbina passerina) from Baja California Sur, México. Concentrations of PCDD/Fs were low, with 21 pg/g for house sparrows, and 7.7 pg/g for common ground doves. Non-ortho-PCB concentrations in house sparrow and common ground doves were 58 and 254 pg/g, respectively, and are within the highest concentrations reported in species that are in the low levels of food webs. The major differences in organochlorine levels between species were found for ortho-PCBs and DDTs. ortho-PCB levels were higher in the seedeater species, whereas DDT levels were higher in the omnivorous species. Heavy metal levels were far below those associated with negative effects.     

Organochlorine compounds,nitro musks and perfluorinated substances in breast milk – Results from Bavarian Monitoring of Breast Milk 2007/8

The aim of the Bavarian Monitoring of Breast Milk (BAMBI) project was to examine 10 organochlorine pesticides (OPs), 3 nitro musks, 6 indicator polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), 7 polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), 10 polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), 12 dioxin-like PCBs (dl-PCBs) and several perfluorinated alkyl compounds in breast milk samples. A total of 516 breast milk samples were collected from seven regions in Bavaria and were analyzed by means of GC/ECD, GC/HRMS, and LC/MS-MS.     

Inventory of aerosol and sulphur dioxide emissions from India: I—Fossil fuel combustion

A comprehensive, spatially resolved (0.25°×0.25°) fossil fuel consumption database and emissions inventory was constructed, for India, for the first time. Emissions of sulphur dioxide and aerosol chemical constituents were estimated for 1996–1997 and extrapolated to the Indian Ocean Experiment (INDOEX) study period (1998–1999). District level consumption of coal/lignite, petroleum and natural gas in power plants, industrial, transportation and domestic sectors was 9411 PJ, with major contributions from coal (54%) followed by diesel (18%). Emission factors for various pollutants were derived using India specific fuel characteristics and information on combustion/air pollution control technologies for the power and industrial sectors. Domestic and transportation emission factors, appropriate for Indian source characteristics, were compiled from literature. SO₂ emissions from fossil fuel combustion for 1996–1997 were 4.0 Tg SO₂ yr⁻¹, with 756 large point sources (e.g. utilities, iron and steel, fertilisers, cement, refineries and petrochemicals and non-ferrous metals), accounting for 62%. PM_2.5 emitted was 0.5 and 2.0 Tg yr⁻¹ for the 100% and the 50% control scenario, respectively, applied to coal burning in the power and industrial sectors. Coal combustion was the major source of PM_2.5 (92%) primarily consisting of fly ash, accounting for 98% of the “inorganic fraction” emissions (difference between PM_2.5 and black carbon+organic matter) of 1.6 Tg yr⁻¹. Black carbon emissions were estimated at 0.1 Tg yr⁻¹, with 58% from diesel transport, and organic matter emissions at 0.3 Tg yr⁻¹, with 48% from brick-kilns. Fossil fuel consumption and emissions peaked at the large point industrial sources and 22 cities, with elevated area fluxes in northern and western India. The spatial resolution of this inventory makes it suitable for regional-scale aerosol-climate studies. These results are compared to previous studies and differences discussed. Measurements of emission factors for Indian sources are needed to further refine these estimates.     

Managing Manure from China’s Pigs and Poultry: The Influence of Ecological Rationality

We have investigated manure management practices at three farm scales in Chinese pig and poultry production. The concept of ecological rationality was employed to explore empirically how environmental concerns drive adoption of environmental-friendly manure management technologies at different farm scales. The more developed Rudong County in Jiangsu Province and the less developed Zhongjiang County in Sichuan Province were chosen as cases for study of 258 animal breeders. On the contrary to our hypothesis, medium-scale farmers were not always found to be laggards in adoption of manure management technologies. Government ecological rationality played a key role to induce environmental-friendly technology adoption on its own, but also in cooperation with ecologically rational individual or network drivers. Authorities no longer applied their efforts in a conventional command-and-control way, but more in the form of incentives, stimulation, and information to farmers. Individual farmers in general showed low environmental responsibility in relation to manure handling.     

Light Scattering Characteristics of Aerosols at Ambient and as a Function of Relative Humidity: Part II—A Comparison of Measured Scattering and Aerosol Concentrations Using Statistical Models

ABSTRACT

The eastern United States national parks experience some of the worst visibility conditions in the nation. To study these conditions, the Southeastern Aerosol and Visibility Study (SEAVS) was undertaken to characterize the size-dependent composition, thermodynamic properties, and optical characteristics of the ambient atmospheric particles. It is a cooperative three-year study that is sponsored by the National Park Service and the Electric Power Research Institute and its member utilities. The field portion of the study was carried out from July 15 to August 25, 1995.

The study design, instrumental configuration, and estimation of aerosol types from particle measurements is presented in a companion paper. In the companion paper, we compare measurements of scattering at ambient conditions and as functions of relative humidity to theoretical predictions of scattering. In this paper, we make similar comparisons, but using statistical techniques. Statistically derived specific scattering associated with sulfates suggest that a reasonable estimate of sulfate scattering can be arrived at by assuming nominal dry specific scattering and treating the aerosols as an external mixture with ammoniation of sulfate accounted for and by the use of Tang's growth curves to predict water absorption. However, the regressions suggest that the sulfate scattering may be underestimated by about 10%. Regression coefficients on organics, to within the statistical uncertainty of the model, suggest that a reasonable estimate of organic scattering is about 4.0 m²/g.

A new analysis technique is presented, which does not rely on comparing measured to model estimates of scattering to evoke an understanding of ambient aerosol growth properties, but rather relies on measurements of scattering as a function of relative humidity to develop actual estimates of f(RH) curves. The estimates of the study average f(RH) curve for sulfates compares favorably with the theoretical f(RH) curve for ammonium bisulfate, which is in turn consistent with the study average sulfate am-moniation corresponding to a molar ratio of NH₄/SO₄ of approximately one. The f(RH) curve for organics is not significantly different from one, suggesting that organics are weakly to nonhygroscopic.     

Allergy from perspective of environmental pollution effects: from an aspect of atopic dermatitis,immune system,and atmospheric hazards—a narrative review of current evidences

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Environmental pollution has become more diversified in recent years as technologies for urbanization is increasingly more advanced. Several...     

Wet deposition of mercury in the U.S. and Canada, 1996–2005: Results and analysis of the NADP mercury deposition network (MDN)

One of the most critical measurements needed to understand the biogeochemical cycle of mercury, and to verify atmospheric models, is the rate of mercury wet-deposition. The Mercury Deposition Network (MDN) operates sites across North America to monitor total mercury in wet-deposition. MDN's primary goal is to provide both spatial and temporal continental-scale observations of mercury wet-deposition fluxes to support researchers, modelers, policy-makers and the public interest. MDN represents the only continental-scale mercury deposition database with a >10-year record of continuous values. This study provides analysis and interpretation of MDN observations at 10 years (1996–2005) with an emphasis on investigating whether rigorous, statistically-significant temporal trends and spatial patterns were present and where they occurred. Wet deposition of mercury ranges from more than 25 μg m^?2 yr in south Florida to less than 3 μg m^?2 yr in northern California. Volume-weighted total mercury concentrations are statistically different between defined regions overall (Southeast ≈ Midwest > Ohio River > Northeast), with the highest in Florida, Minnesota, and several Southwest locations (10–16 ng L^?1). Total mercury wet-deposition is significantly different between defined regions (Southeast > Ohio River > Midwest > Northeast). Mercury deposition is strongly seasonal in eastern North America. The average mercury concentration is about two times higher in summer than in winter, and the average deposition is approximately more than three times greater in summer than in winter. Forty-eight sites with validated datasets of five years or more were tested for trends using the non-parametric seasonal Kendall trend test. Significant decreasing mercury wet-deposition concentration trends were found at about half of the sites, particularly across Pennsylvania and extending up through the Northeast.     

Sustainability or collapse: what can we learn from integrating the history of humans and the rest of nature?

Understanding the history of how humans have interacted with the rest of nature can help clarify the options for managing our increasingly interconnected global system. Simple, deterministic relationships between environmental stress and social change are inadequate. Extreme drought, for instance, triggered both social collapse and ingenious management of water through irrigation. Human responses to change, in turn, feed into climate and ecological systems, producing a complex web of multidirectional connections in time and space. Integrated records of the co-evolving human-environment system over millennia are needed to provide a basis for a deeper understanding of the present and for forecasting the future. This requires the major task of assembling and integrating regional and global historical, archaeological, and paleoenvironmental records. Humans cannot predict the future. But, if we can adequately understand the past, we can use that understanding to influence our decisions and to create a better, more sustainable and desirable future.     

Light Scattering Characteristics of Aerosols as a Function of Relative Humidity: Part I—A Comparison of Measured Scattering and Aerosol Concentrations Using the Theoretical Models

ABSTRACT

The Southeastern Aerosol and Visibility Study (SEAVS) was undertaken to characterize the size-dependent composition, thermodynamic properties, and optical characteristics of the ambient atmospheric particles in the southeastern United States. The field portion of the study was carried out from July 15 to August 25, 1995.

As part of the study a relative humidity controlled inlet was built to raise or lower the relative humidity to predetermined levels before the aerosol was passed into an integrating nephelometer or particle-sizing device. Five other integrating nephelometers were operated in various configurations, two of which were fitted with a 2.5 μm inlet. Fine particle (<2.5 μm) samplers were operated to measure concentrations of sulfate, nitrate, and ammonium ions, organic and elemental carbon, and fine soil. Mass size distributions were measured with an eight-stage, single orifice cascade impactor.     

Mercury in sediment and fish communities of Lake Vänern, Sweden: recovery from contamination

The past effluents of mercury (Hg) into Lake V?nern were considerable. The consequences of, and recovery from these have been monitored through continuous measurements of mercury in sediment and fish. Mercury levels in lake sediments in the vicinity of the main source of mercury, a chloralkali plant on the northern shore, have only decreased by slightly more than a half since the mid-1970s, despite a radical decrease in effluents from the source, already during the 1960s. The mercury levels in pike (Esox lucius) have decreased to a similar extent during this time period. They are now about 30% higher in the worst affected parts of the lake compared to the least affected parts. Lower levels have been measured in perch (Perca fluviatilis) and salmonoid fish in the lake. Despite the increased presence of mercury in the sediment of Lake V?nern, the mercury levels in the fish of the lake are relatively low compared to fish in lakes situated in the same region, but not affected by any local mercury effluents. As calculated, the total fish biomass of L. V?nern holds less than 1000th of the amount of mercury contained in the upper, biologically active layers of the bottom sediment of the lake. This demonstrates the potential influence of various environmental factors and motivates continued monitoring of mercury levels in the lake in the future.     

Opportunities for Increasing Resilience and Sustainability of Urban Social–Ecological Systems: Insights from the URBES and the Cities and Biodiversity Outlook Projects

Urban futures that are more resilient and sustainable require an integrated social–ecological system approach to urban policymaking, planning, management, and governance. In this article, we introduce the Urban Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (URBES) and the Cities and Biodiversity Outlook (CBO) Projects as new social–ecological contributions to research and practice on emerging urban resilience and ecosystem services. We provide an overview of the projects and present global urbanization trends and their effects on ecosystems and biodiversity, as a context for new knowledge generated in the URBES case-study cities, including Berlin, New York, Rotterdam, Barcelona, and Stockholm. The cities represent contrasting urbanization trends and examples of emerging science–policy linkages for improving urban landscapes for human health and well-being. In addition, we highlight 10 key messages of the global CBO assessment as a knowledge platform for urban leaders to incorporate state-of-the-art science on URBES into decision-making for sustainable and resilient urban development.     

Development and evaluation of air pollution–linked quality of life (AP-QOL) questionnaire: insight from two different cohorts

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - In this study, the air pollution–related quality of life (AP-QOL) questionnaire was carried out in two geographically and economically different...     

Farmers’ perception and adaptations to climate change: findings from three agro-ecological zones of Punjab,Pakistan

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The main objective of this study was to capture farmers’ perceptions and adaptations to climate change in agriculture sector. Along with this,...     

Benefits and costs of campaign-style environmental implementation: evidence from China’s central environmental protection inspection system

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Campaign-style environmental implementation (CEI) is widely exerted in environmental protection, while its benefits and costs are controversial. We...     

Greenhouse gas emissions from penguin guanos and ornithogenic soils in coastal Antarctica: Effects of freezing–thawing cycles

In coastal Antarctica, freezing and thawing influence many physical, chemical and biological processes for ice-free tundra ecosystems, including the production of greenhouse gases (GHGs). In this study, penguin guanos and ornithogenic soil cores were collected from four penguin colonies and one seal colony in coastal Antarctica, and experimentally subjected to three freezing–thawing cycles (FTCs) under ambient air and under N₂. We investigated the effects of FTCs on the emissions of three GHGs including nitrous oxide (N₂O), carbon dioxide (CO₂) and methane (CH₄). The GHG emission rates were extremely low in frozen penguin guanos or ornithogenic soils. However, there was a fast increase in the emission rates of three GHGs following thawing. During FTCs, cumulative N₂O emissions from ornithogenic soils were greatly higher than those from penguin guanos under ambient air or under N₂. The highest N₂O cumulative emission of 138.24 μg N₂O–N kg^?1 was observed from seal colony soils. Cumulative CO₂ and CH₄ emissions from penguin guanos were one to three orders of magnitude higher than those from ornithogenic soils. The highest cumulative CO₂ (433.0 mgCO₂–C kg^?1) and CH₄ (2.9 mgCH₄–C kg^?1) emissions occurred in emperor penguin guanos. Penguin guano was a stronger emitter for CH₄ and CO₂ while ornithogenic soil was a stronger emitter for N₂O during FTCs. CO₂ and CH₄ fluxes had a correlation with total organic carbon (TOC) and soil/guano moisture (M_c) in penguin guanos and ornithogenic soils. The specific CO₂–C production rate (CO₂–C/TOC) indicated that the bioavailability of TOC was markedly larger in penguin guanos than in ornithogenic soils during FTCs. This study showed that FTC-released organic C and N from sea animal excreta may play a significant role in FTC-related GHG emissions, which may account for a large proportion of annual fluxes from tundra ecosystems in coastal Antarctica.     

Deposition and regional distribution of HCHs and p,p′-DDX in the western and southern Tibetan Plateau: records from a lake sediment core and the surface soils

Tibetan Plateau is the world’s highest plateau, which provides a unique location for the investigation of global fractionation of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). In this study, deposition and regional distribution of HCHs and p,p′-DDX in the western and southern Tibetan Plateau were investigated by the records from a sediment core of Lake Zige Tangco and 24 surface soils. Concentration of ΣHCHs in the surface soils of the western Tibetan Plateau was much higher than that of the southern part. Maximum fluxes of α-, β-, and δ-HCH in the sediment core were 9.0, 222, and 21 pg cm^?2 year^?1, respectively, which appeared in the mid-1960s. Significant correlations were observed between concentrations of α- and β-HCH in both the surface soils and the sediment core. Concentrations of both α- and β-HCH increased with the inverse of the average annual temperature of these sites. γ-HCH became the dominant isomer of HCHs after the late 1970s, and reached the maximum flux of 160 pg cm^?2 year^?1 in the early 1990s. There were no significant correlations between concentrations of γ-HCH and the other isomers in both the surface soils and the sediment core. The results suggested that there was input of Lindane at scattered sites in this area. In contrast to ΣHCHs, concentration of Σp,p′-DDX in the surface soils of the southern part was much higher than that of the western part. Maximum flux of Σp,p′-DDX was 44 pg cm^?2 year^?1, which appeared in the mid-1960s. Local emission of p,p′-DDT was found at scattered sites. This study provides novel data and knowledge for the OCPs in the western and southern Tibetan Plateau, which will help understand the global fractionation of OCPs in remote alpine regions.     

Remobilization of metals from slag and polluted sediments (case study: the canal of the Deûle River, northern France)

The anthropogenic impact on the environment in the last century has proven to be very negative due to the fast development of industry. A typical example is the De?le River in northern France, one of the most polluted sites in this region. The concentrations of Pb, Cd, Zn and Cu in river sediments are 300, 800, 50 and 15 times higher, respectively, than the background values. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the capacity of already polluted sediments to capture metals released from industrial wastes (slag). As it were, in spite of the high metal pollution level, sediments have still shown the ability to adsorb metals released from slag under the conditions provided. Their efficiency in "cleaning up" some of the metals (e.g. Pb) seems to be additionally enhanced in anoxic conditions. This study provided some additional information on the importance of sediments as a pollutant sink.     

A review of plant–pharmaceutical interactions: from uptake and effects in crop plants to phytoremediation in constructed wetlands

Pharmaceuticals are commonly found both in the aquatic and the agricultural environments as a consequence of the human activities and associated discharge of wastewater effluents to the environment. The utilization of treated effluent for crop irrigation, along with land application of manure and biosolids, accelerates the introduction of these compounds into arable lands and crops. Despite the low concentrations of pharmaceuticals usually found, the continuous introduction into the environment from different pathways makes them ‘pseudo-persistent’. Several reviews have been published regarding the potential impact of veterinary and human pharmaceuticals on arable land. However, plant uptake as well as phytotoxicity data are scarcely studied. Simultaneously, phytoremediation as a tool for pharmaceutical removal from soils, sediments and water is starting to be researched, with promising results. This review gives an in-depth overview of the phytotoxicity of pharmaceuticals, their uptake and their removal by plants. The aim of the current work was to map the present knowledge concerning pharmaceutical interactions with plants in terms of uptake and the use of plant-based systems for phytoremediation purposes.