Consumer's attitude,socio-demographic variables and willingness to purchase green housing in Israel

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Green construction is a construction method that utilizes resources such as energy, water and soil more efficiently, maintaining low...     

Climatic risks and impacts in South Asia: extremes of water scarcity and excess

Regional Environmental Change - This paper reviews the current knowledge of climatic risks and impacts in South Asia associated with anthropogenic warming levels of 1.5–4 °C...     

Status of ecotourism in Nepal: a case of Bhadaure-Tamagi village of Panchase area

Environment, Development and Sustainability - This study was conducted with an aim to assess the status of ecotourism in terms of tourism demand, tourist characteristics, and strength,...     

Land cover change explains the increasing discharge of the Paraná River

Regional Environmental Change - Over the past 40 years, the discharge in South America’s Paraná River basin has increased despite no evidence of significant rainfall increases...     

Diversity and Ecological Features of Phylogenetic Lineages of Tinder Fungus in the Urals

Russian Journal of Ecology - Absract—Phylogenetic analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of ribosomal DNA isolated from 51 basidiocarps of tinder fungus shows that this...     

Recognizing loss of open forest ecosystems by tree densification and land use intensification in the Midwestern USA

Regional Environmental Change - Forests and grasslands have changed during the past 200 years in the eastern USA, and it is now possible to quantify loss and conversion of vegetation cover...     

Energy profiles of an agricultural frontier: the American Great Plains, 1860–2000

Regional Environmental Change - Agro-ecosystem energy profiles reveal energy flows into, within, and out of US Great Plains farm communities across 140 years. This study evaluates external...     

Model-based assessment of groundwater vulnerability for the Dalyan Region of southwestern Mediterranean Turkey

Regional Environmental Change - The Dalyan Region that drains into a complex lagoon system is located on the Mediterranean Sea coast of southwest Turkey. There are no large streams in the...     

Urinary polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon metabolites as biomarkers of exposure to traffic-emitted pollutants

1-Nitro-pyrene has been considered a compound specific to diesel combustion emission, while 1- and 2-nitro-napthalene are mainly produced through photochemical conversion of naphthalene released to the atmosphere. Metabolites of these compounds may serve as biomarkers of exposure to traffic related pollutants. We collected urine samples from 111 healthy and non-smoking subjects within (i.e., during the Beijing Olympics) and outside (i.e., before and after the Olympics) a traffic control regime to improve Beijing's air quality. Urines were analyzed for the sum of 1&2-amino-naphthalene (metabolites of 1- and 2-nitro-naphthalene) and 1-amino-pyrene (a metabolite of 1-nitro-pyrene), using an HPLC-fluorescence method. Within the same time periods, PM_2.5 mass and constituents were measured, including elemental carbon, sulfate, nitrate, PAHs, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, ozone, and particle number concentrations. The associations between the urinary metabolites and air pollutants were analyzed using linear mixed-effects models. From the pre- to during-Olympic period, 1&2-amino-naphthalene and 1-hydroxy-pyrene decreased by 23% (p = 0.066) and 16% (p = 0.049), respectively, while there was no change in 1-amino-pyrene (2% increase, p = 0.892). From during- to post-Olympic period, 1&2-amino-naphthalene, 1-amino-pyrene and 1-hydroxy-pyrene concentrations increased by 26% (p = 0.441), 37% (p = 0.355), and 3% (p = 0.868), respectively. Furthermore, 1&2-amino-naphthalene and 1-hydroxy-pyrene were associated with traffic related pollutants in a similar lag pattern. 1-amino-pyrene was associated more strongly with diesel combustion products (e.g. PN and elemental carbon) and not affected by season. Time-lag analyses indicate strongest/largest associations occurred 24–72 h following exposure. 1&2-amino-naphthalene and 1-hydroxy-pyrene can be used as a biomarker of exposure to general vehicle-emitted pollutants. More data are needed to confirm 1-amino-pyrene as a biomarker of exposure to diesel combustion emissions. Controlling creatinine as an independent variable in the models will provide a moderate adjusting effect on the biomarker analysis.     

Concentrations of cyclic volatile methylsiloxanes in European cosmetics and personal care products: Prerequisite for human and environmental exposure assessment

Low molecular weight cyclic volatile methylsiloxanes (cVMSs) are widely employed as emollients and carrier solvents in personal care formulations in order to acquire desired performance benefits owing to their distinctive physicochemical properties. Under current European legislation cosmetic ingredients such as cVMSs are required to be labeled on the product package only qualitatively, while for the assessment of environmental and consumer exposure quantitative information is needed. The aim of this study was therefore to measure concentrations of three cVMSs, namely octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4), decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) and dodecamethylcyclohexasiloxane (D6) in 51 cosmetics and personal care products (C&PCPs) that are currently available on the European market. The list of selected articles comprised a variety of hair and sun care products, skin creams and lotions, deodorants including antiperspirants, liquid foundations and a toothpaste. The target compounds were extracted from the products with different organic solvents dependent on the product matrix, followed by gas chromatography analysis with flame ionization detection (GC–FID). D5 was the predominant cVMS with the highest mean and median concentrations in all the C&PCP categories. The median concentrations of D5, D6 and D4 were 142, 2.3 and 0.053 mg/g in deodorants/antiperspirants (n = 11); 44.6, 30.0 mg/g and below the limit of quantification (< LOQ; LOQ for D4 = 0.00071 mg/g) in cosmetics (n = 5); 8.4, 0.32 mg/g and < LOQ in skin care (n = 16); 9.6, 0.18 and 0.0055 mg/g in hair care (n = 10); and, 34.8, 0.53 and 0.0085 mg/g in sun care (n = 8) products, respectively. The calculated median aggregate daily dermal exposure to D4 and D5 from multiple C&PCPs was approximately 100 times lower than the current NOAEL derived from chronic inhalation rat studies.     

Body burden of metals and persistent organic pollutants among Inuit in the Canadian Arctic

Inuit living in the Arctic are exposed to elevated levels of environmental contaminants primarily due to long-range atmospheric transport. Blood sampling and contaminant biomonitoring was conducted as part of the International Polar Year Inuit Health Survey in 2007-2008. The body burden of metals (e.g. Cd, Pb) and persistent organic pollutants (e.g. PCBs, DDT & DDE, toxaphene, chlordane, PBDEs) were measured for Inuit participants (n = 2172) from 36 communities in Nunavut, Nunatsiavut, and the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, in Canada. The geometric mean of blood concentrations for Cd, Pb, PCBs, DDE & DDT, toxaphene, and chlordane were higher than those in the Canadian general population. A total of 9% of study participants exceeded the intervention guideline of 100 μg L^− 1 for Pb, 11% of participants exceeded the trigger guideline of 5 μg L^− 1 for Cd, and 1% exceeded the intervention guideline of 100 μg L^− 1 for PCBs. Also, 3% of women of child-bearing age exceeded blood Pb of 100 μg L^− 1 while 28% of women of child-bearing age exceeded 5 μg L^− 1 of PCBs. This work showed that most Inuit Health Survey participants were below blood contaminant guidelines set by Health Canada but that metal and POP body burdens commonly exceed exposures observed in the general population of Canada.     

Bioaccumulation of Ra by plants growing in fresh water ecosystem around the uranium industry at Jaduguda, India

A field study has been conducted to evaluate the ²²⁶Ra bioaccumulation among aquatic plants growing in the stream/river adjoining the uranium mining and ore-processing complex at Jaduguda, India. Two types of plant group have been investigated namely free floating algal species submerged into water and plants rooted in stream & riverbed. The highest ²²⁶Ra activity concentration (9850 Bq kg⁻¹) was found in filamentous algae growing in the residual water of tailings pond. The concentration ratios of ²²⁶Ra in filamentous algae (activity concentration of ²²⁶Ra in plant Bq kg⁻¹ fresh weight/activity concentration of ²²⁶Ra in water Bq l⁻¹) widely varied i.e. from 1.1 × 10³ to 8.6 × 10⁴. Other aquatic plants were also showing wide variability in the ²²⁶Ra activity concentration. The ln-transformed filamentous algae ²²⁶Ra activity concentration was significantly correlated with that of ln-transformed water concentration (r = 0.89, p < 0.001). There was no correlation between the activity concentrations of ²²⁶Ra in stream/riverbed rooted plants and the substrate. For this group, correlation between ²²⁶Ra activity concentration and Mn, Fe, Cu concentration in plants were statistically significant.     

Loss and damage related to climate change: connotations and response mechanism

Global mitigative and adaptive efforts have not been able to effectively address the adverse impacts caused by climate change. Therefore, a direct solution is needed to address the significant resulting loss and damage (L&D). During the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Doha in 2012, the issue of responding to L&D arising from climate change gained sudden traction and became one of the key issues that affected the outcome of the convention. In this paper, a study on the definition and connotations of L&D arising from climate change was conducted, together with an analysis of its relationship with related concepts, namely impacts, vulnerability, and risks. This led to the proposal of an L&D conceptual model that is more comprehensive, with the recognition of the need to address the issue through effective supplementation of existing mitigative and adaptive efforts. A systematic elaboration of an L&D response mechanism was made based on politics, law, and the market, leading to a preliminary presentation of a possible format for an L&D mechanism. Potential academic research directions for L&D were also proposed that could serve as references for the establishment of international and national L&D response mechanisms and related research.     

Prenatal exposure to perfluorinated compounds affects thyroid hormone levels in newborn girls

Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) are ubiquitous in the environment and have been detected in humans and wildlife. Exposure to PFCs has decreased in the United States recently, while exposure to PFCs continues in Asian countries, which represents a public health concern. Various mechanisms by which PFCs affect fetal growth have been proposed, such as activation of peroxisome proliferators, disruption of thyroid hormones and changes in lipid metabolism. However, the overall evidence for an association with thyroid hormones is not strong. Therefore, we examined the effect of various prenatal PFCs on cord blood thyroid hormones: triiodothyronine (T3), thyroxine (T4), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels, and explored the endocrine disrupting effect of these PFCs on thyroid hormone levels in children according to gender. Two hundred and seventy-nine study participants were selected from among the enrolled participants in the Ewha Birth & Growth Retrospective Cohort, a retrospective birth cohort study conducted at Ewha Womans University Hospital, Seoul, Korea between 2006 and 2010. A generalized linear model was constructed to explore the association of PFCs and thyroid hormones. Further, an analysis stratified by gender was conducted. Our study shows that cord blood perfluoro n-pentanoic acid (PFPeA) was positively associated with cord blood T4 (p = 0.01) level. Gender-specific analysis showed that prenatal PFCs: PFPeA and Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) exposure significantly increased T4 (p < 0.01) and T3 (p = 0.03), respectively, while perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA) decreased TSH (p = 0.04) concentration in newborn girls. Thus, prenatal PFC exposure may disrupt thyroid hormone homeostasis. Thyroid hormones play a crucial role in fetal development and may have gender specific action. Hence, these results are of utmost importance in high-risk groups, such as pregnant women and children.     

Exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals among residents of a rural vegetarian/vegan community

Background & AimsEndocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are increasingly thought to be involved in the rising prevalence of disorders such as obesity, diabetes, and some hormone-dependent cancers. Several lines of evidence have indicated that vegetarian and vegan diets may offer some protection from such diseases. We hypothesized that exposure to selected EDCs among residents of the unique vegetarian/vegan community of Amirim would be lower than what has recently been reported for the omnivorous population in the first Israel Biomonitoring Study (IBMS).MethodsWe studied 42 Amirim residents (29 vegetarians/13 vegans; 24 women/18men, aged 50.7 ± 13.7 y). Subjects answered detailed lifestyle, and multipass, memory-based 24-hr dietary recall questionnaires. Concentrations of bisphenol A (BPA), 11 phthalate metabolites, and the isoflavone phytoestrogens (genistein and daidzein) were determined by GC or LC tandem mass-spectrometry on a spot urine sample. The results were compared to those obtained following the same methodology in the Jewish subgroup of the IBMS (n = 184).ResultsWhile a vegetarian/vegan nutritional pattern had no effect on exposure to BPA, it seemed to confer a modest protection (~ 21%) from exposure to high molecular weight phthalates. Furthermore, the summed metabolites of the high molecular weight phthalate DiNP were 36% lower in vegans compared to vegetarians (P < 0.05). In contrast, Amirim residents exhibited a level of exposure to isoflavone phytoestrogens about an order of magnitude higher than in the IBMS (P < 0.001).ConclusionsIn Israel, a country whose inhabitants demonstrate exposure to EDCs comparable to that of the US and Canada, a voluntary lifestyle of vegetarianism and preference for organic food has a modest, but possibly valuable, impact on exposure to phthalates, while it is associated with a very steep increase in the exposure to phytoestrogens. Major reduction in exposure to EDCs will require regulatory actions.     

Back-extrapolated and year-specific NO2 land use regression models for Great Britain - Do they yield different exposure assessment?

Robust methods to estimate historic population air pollution exposures are important tools for epidemiological studies evaluating long-term health effects. We developed land use regression (LUR) models for NO₂ exposure in Great Britain for 1991 and explored whether the choice of year-specific or back-extrapolated LUR yields 1) similar LUR variables and model performance, and 2) similar national and regional address-level and small-area concentrations. We constructed two LUR models for 1991using NO₂ concentrations from the diffusion tube monitoring network, one using 75% of all available measurement sites (that over-represent industrial areas), and the other using 75% of a subset of sites proportionate to population by region to study the effects of monitoring site selection bias. We compared, using the remaining (hold-out) 25% of monitoring sites, the performance of the two 1991 models with back-extrapolation of a previously published 2009 model, developed using NO₂ concentrations from automatic chemiluminescence monitoring sites and predictor variables from 2006/2007. The 2009 model was back-extrapolated to 1991 using the same predictors (1990 & 1995) used to develop 1991 models. The 1991 models included industrial land use variables, not present for 2009. The hold-out performance of 1991 models (mean-squared-error-based-R²: 0.62–0.64) was up to 8% higher and ~ 1 μg/m³ lower in root mean squared error than the back-extrapolated 2009 model, with best performance from the subset of sites representing population exposures. Year-specific and back-extrapolated exposures for residential addresses (n = 1.338,399) and small areas (n = 10.518) were very highly linearly correlated for Great Britain (r > 0.83). This study suggests that year-specific model for 1991 and back-extrapolation of the 2009 LUR yield similar exposure assessment.     

Human dietary intake of organohalogen contaminants at e-waste recycling sites in Eastern China

This study reports concentrations and human dietary intake of hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) as well as selected “novel” brominated flame retardants (NBFRs) and organochlorine pesticides, in ten staple food categories. Samples were sourced from areas in Taizhou City, eastern China, where rudimentary recycling and disposal of e-waste is commonplace, as well as from nearby non-e-waste impacted control areas. In most instances, concentrations in foods from e-waste recycling areas exceeded those from control locations. Concentrations of 2-ethylhexyl-2,3,4,5-tetrabromobenzoate (EH-TBB) and bis-(2-ethylhexyl)-3,4,5,6-tetrabromophthalate (BEH-TBP) in samples from e-waste sites were 3.09–62.2 ng/g and 0.81–16.3 ng/g lipid weight (lw), respectively; exceeding consistently those in foods acquired from control sites by an order of magnitude in many cases. In contrast, while concentrations of HBCD in some foods from e-waste impacted areas exceed those from control locations; concentrations in pork, shrimp, and duck liver are higher in control samples. This highlights the potential significance of non-e-waste sources of HBCD (e.g. building insulation foam) in our study areas. While concentrations of DDT in all foods examined except pork were higher in e-waste impacted samples than controls; our exposure estimates were well below the provisional tolerable daily intake of 0.01 mg/kg bw/day derived by the Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Pesticide Residues. Concentrations of ΣPCBs resulted in exposures (650 and 2340 ng/kg bw/day for adults and children respectively) that exceed substantially the Minimal Risk Levels (MRLs) for ΣPCBs of 20 ng/kg bw/day derived by the Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry. Moreover, when expressed in terms of dioxin-like toxicity equivalency based on the four dioxin-like PCBs monitored in this study (DL-PCBs) (PCB-105, 118, 156, and 167); concentrations in e-waste impacted foods exceed limits set by the European Union in 6 of the 8 food groups studied and result in dietary exposures for children (10.2 pg TEQ/kg bw/day) that exceed the WHO tolerable daily intake of 1–4 pg TEQ/kg bw/day.     

Construction and demolition waste generation in cities in India: an integrated approach

ABSTRACT

This paper quantifies construction and demolition waste (C&DW) generation rate in Indian cities using bottom-up material flow analysis approach. A dynamic model was applied to different classes of cities in India to investigate how C&DW generation rate varies across different classes of cities. The data on construction and demolition activities in different classes of cities were estimated from information reported in secondary literature. The results show that urban areas in India generated over 150 million tonnes of C&DW in 2016, and almost 50% of waste was generated in small to medium towns. The paper concludes with discussion on opportunities for recycling of C&DW and closing the material loops in Indian cities.     

A forecast analysis on world population and urbanization process

The continuous growth of world population and the intensification of urbanization process create a challenge to environment quality and sustainable development around the world. In this paper I tried to conduct a forecast analysis of near-future urbanization related population growth worldwide, based on recent demographic trends. Such an analysis can provide important insights into the prospects for changes in the size and composition of world population and in urbanization process. Optimal polynomial functions were used to fit historical trajectories of population dynamics, and the detailed forecasts of the population mainly over the period 2010–2030 were conducted and analyzed. If the past pattern continues, world total population would increase to 7.94–8.33 billion in 2030 and the annual growth is expected to continually decline in the forecast period. Global total population would stop increasing during the period 2050–2060 and would not exceed 9.5 billion in the future. The total population of Africa, Asia, Oceania, South America, North & Central America would separately increase to 1.35–1.41, 4.86–5.65, 0.04–0.05, 0.44–0.45, and 0.71–0.72 billion in 2030. Europe’s total population is forecast to decline to 0.64–0.67 billion in 2030. World’s rural population is expected to grow to the maximum during the period 2015–2020 and would greatly decline after that period. Global rural population would reach 3.12–3.41 billion in 2030. Rural population in Asia and Africa is estimated to increase and achieve the maximum around 2025 and decline thereafter. For other regions, the rural population would continually decline in the forecast period. Urban population in the world would continually grow and reach 4.72–5.00 billion in 2030, an increase of 48.6–57.8%. However the annual growth of urban population is expected to increase to the maximum (6.86 million/year) during the period 2020–2025 and then decline in the following years. Urban population is projected to continually grow in all regions excepting Europe. Europe’s urban population is expected to decline in the period 2010–2030. Urbanization process worldwide, represented by the ratio urban population versus total population (RUT) and the ratio rural population versus urban population, is expected to continue during the period 2010–2030. The RUT of the world is projected to reach 0.5 before 2010 and would continue to increase in the forecast period. Global RUT is estimated to reach 0.56 in 2030. However, the regional patterns of urbanization process would be diverse. Europe’s RUT is estimated to continually decline in the forecast period and reach 0.68 in 2030. The RUT for Africa and Caribbean would continually increase before 2030, while the RUTs for Asia and South America are estimated to achieve their maximums around 2025 and decline in the following years. Oceania and North & Central America would thoroughly realize urbanization (≈1) during the periods 2020–2025 and 2025–2030. The expansion of world population and urbanization will continually exert a stronger stress to environment quality and sustainable development in a near future. However we may expect this situation would start to change from mid-21st century after total population has achieved its maximum. Readers should send their comments on this paper to BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

Audiences for Science Communication in the United States

ABSTRACT

The US National Science Foundation collects biennial data on views about science and technology (S&T). Analyses have typically focused on the degree to which demographics, knowledge, and attitudes predict S&T support or views about specific technologies or issues. Published efforts do not appear to have focused on identifying latent classes within the data. Initial analyses using latent profile analysis suggests that Americans can be categorized into six substantive audience groups when it comes to views about S&T. These groups vary by demographics, including scientific background and ideology, as well as in views about S&T. Post hoc analyses explore how “class-focused” analyses may provide additional insight beyond what can be obtained from “variable-focused” analyses.