A multi-variate methodology for analyzing pre-existing lake water quality data

Environmental agencies are given the task of monitoring water quality in rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water, for the purpose of comparing the results with regulatory standards. Monitoring follows requirements set by regulations, and data are collected in a systematic way for the intended purpose. Monitoring enables agencies to determine whether water bodies are polluted. Much effort is spent per monitoring event, resulting in hundreds of data points typically used solely for comparison with regulatory standards and then stored for little further use. This paper devises a data analysis methodology that can make use of the pre-existing datasets to extract more useful information on water quality trends, without new sample collection and analysis. In this paper, measured lake water quality data are subjected to statistical analyses including Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to deduce changes in water quality spatially and temporally over several years. It was found that the lake as a whole changed temporally by season, rather than spatially. Storm events caused the greatest shifts in water quality, though the shifts were fairly consistent across sampling stations. This methodology can be applied to similar datasets, especially with the recent emphasis by the U.S. EPA on protection of lakes as water sources. Water quality managers using these techniques may be able to lower their monitoring costs by eliminating redundant water quality parameters found in this analysis.     

固定源排污许可证监测管理制度研究

依靠排污许可证管理,固定源执行由行业排放标准为主正逐步过渡到"国家行业排放标准——单一源排放标准"双层排放标准,并以执行更全面和精准的单一源排放标准为主,对应的监测要求及考核方式更加多样化。对监测管理制度进行设计,明确固定源制定自行监测方案和守法监测的主体责任,厘清许可证核发部门、属地监测、执法部门的监管职责。系统设计"固定源制定并提交自行监测方案-核发部门审核-方案纳入排污许可证中成为规定-依规定自行监测和记录-固定源提交执行报告-监管部门审计式审核-执法监测和执法检查"的全过程管理机制,设计标准化的监管计划程序落实证后监管与执法监测,明晰监管部门的有限责任。     

环境空气质量国家标准的演变与比较

环境空气质量标准是进行环境空气质量监测、评价和管理的重要规范。研究了环境空气质量国家标准的形成、现状与发展,重点分析了环境空气质量标准的演变内容和背景依据及新标准与典型发达国家或组织标准的差异。结果表明,环境空气质量国家标准的污染物项目、标准形式不断更新完善,浓度阈值更加严格,标准修订的依据和程序更加科学完善。虽然在某些方面仍与其他发达国家标准有一定差距,但总体来说,新标准的建立以及实施有助于我国建立更加完善的环境空气质量管理体系。     

Ozone Exposures and Implications for Vegetation in Rural Areas of the Central Appalachian Mountains, U.S.A.

The United States is making the transition from the 1979 1 hr maximum ozone standard to the newly adopted 8 hr ozone standard (3 yr average of the 4th highest maximum 8 hr ozone concentration). Consequently, we analyzed and compared ozone concentrations under both standards from a variety of monitoring sites throughout the central Appalachian region of Kentucky (KY), West Virginia (WV), and Virginia (VA). Data from 1988-1999 were used to determine how ozone exposure between the two metrics compared for remote sites. Most sites exceeded the 1 hr standard in 1988-1990 due to the 3 yr averaging and multiple high ozone concentrations that occurred over the region in 1988. All sites were in compliance with the 1 hr standard every year after 1991. It was much more common for the ozone exposure to exceed the 8 hr standard, particularly from 1997-1999. Many sites showed exceedences beginning in 1995; Big Meadows (VA) exceeded the 8 hr standard all years except 1994 and 1996. Response of vegetation to ozone in these areas was determined using the combination of W126 values (sigmoidally weighted exposure index), the number of hours that average concentrations > or = 0.10 ppm (N100), and the presence of moderate or more extreme droughts. In general, W126 and N100 values suggested that negative vegetation growth responses over most of the 12 yr would have been minimal for most sites, even for those exceeding ozone standards. Drought-induced stomatal closures would have overridden more extreme negative growth responses at all but the Big Meadows site in 1988.     

What Forces Dictate the Design of Pollution Monitoring Networks?

The US Environmental Protection Agency maintains networks of pollution monitors for two basic purposes: to check and enforce the attainment of national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) and to provide useful data for studying pollution and its effects. These purposes imply conflicting criteria for the locations of a limited number of monitors. To check the attainment of standards, monitors are placed where pollution levels are highest. Monitors are not required where standards have always been met and there are no new pollution sources. To provide useful data for studying pollution and its effects, monitors would be placed to observe outcomes under a variety of pollution levels. This study asks the following questions. What factors affect when a monitor is retired from the network? What drives the decision to add a new site? What causes year-to-year changes in the number of monitors? We tackle these questions with a particular focus on the role of regulatory compliance and pollution levels in the context of monitors for tropospheric ozone (O₃). Using a panel dataset of monitors in the contiguous US spanning the years 1993 to 2011, we find that the peak O₃ readings in the prior period are significantly associated with the regulator’s decision of whether to add or to drop a monitor in the following period. While compliance with the NAAQS for O₃ is not consistently associated with network composition, compliance with the PM_2.5 NAAQS does appear to affect changes to the network.     

Water quality monitoring in Washington's Timber/Fish/Wildlife program

The Timber, Fish, and Wildlife program (TFW) in Washington is a consensus approach to implementing reforms in forest practice regulations involving industrial timberland owners, state agencies, environmental groups, Indian tribes, and non-industrial forest landowners. A cooperative monitoring and research effort (CMER) has been included as a part of this program. Technical projects undertaken by CMER are overseen by a series of steering committees, one of which is the Water Quality Steering Committee. Projects currently being addressed by the Water Quality Steering Committee include: forestry impacts on water temperature, water quality impacts from forestry derived sediment, use of bio-indicators to assess the water quality impacts of forest practices, and the effect of forest chemical applications on water quality. A close link between the research efforts in TFW and the procedure for implementing regulatory change has greatly improved the responsiveness of the rule making process to new information. Results from the water temperature and forest chemical work is currently being incorporated into the forest practice regulations.     

Evaluating the effectiveness of integrating the environmental impact assessment and mine closure planning processes

Integration of environmental assessment tools has long been promoted as best practice with the potential to bring environmental benefits. In this research, we set out to evaluate the effectiveness of integration of environmental impact assessment (EIA) and mine closure planning using a simple effectiveness criteria framework, applied to current regulatory provisions and practices in Western Australia. The effectiveness criteria for the integration of EIA and mine closure planning, compiled from existing reviews of integration and effectiveness concepts in the impact assessment literature, considers procedural, transactive, substantive effectiveness and overall process legitimacy. Data analysis consisted of a literature review, examination of regulatory and guidance material and interviews with 12 experienced EIA and/or mine closure practitioners with an industry or regulatory focus. The results provide strong, positive examples of procedural, transactive and substantive effectiveness due to the integrated framework. These include behavioural changes, improved knowledge and learning and better provision for closure at an early stage of mine planning. A trajectory of improvement was noted by everybody interviewed. However, a key driver for effectiveness is the enthusiasm of key facilitations, and tension exists due to the different motivations of the two lead regulatory agencies which poses a challenge for the integrated framework. While it can reasonably be argued that the effectiveness of early mine closure planning cannot yet be realised, due to a paucity of completely closed mines in Australia this study nevertheless demonstrates clear benefits and opportunities result from early stage integration of EIA with mine closure planning.     

Monitoring Air Quality in Mountains: Designing an Effective Network

A quantitatively robust yet parsimonious air-quality monitoring network in mountainous regions requires special attention to relevant spatial and temporal scales of measurement and inference. The design of monitoring networks should focus on the objectives required by public agencies, namely: 1) determine if some threshold has been exceeded (e.g., for regulatory purposes), and 2) identify spatial patterns and temporal trends (e.g., to protect natural resources). A short-term, multi-scale assessment to quantify spatial variability in air quality is a valuable asset in designing a network, in conjunction with an evaluation of existing data and simulation-model output. A recent assessment in Washington state (USA) quantified spatial variability in tropospheric ozone distribution ranging from a single watershed to the western third of the state. Spatial and temporal coherence in ozone exposure modified by predictable elevational relationships ( 1.3 ppbv ozone per 100 m elevation gain) extends from urban areas to the crest of the Cascade Range. This suggests that a sparse network of permanent analyzers is sufficient at all spatial scales, with the option of periodic intensive measurements to validate network design. It is imperative that agencies cooperate in the design of monitoring networks in mountainous regions to optimize data collection and financial efficiencies.     

Macroinvertebrate Regionalisation for use in the Management of Aquatic Ecosystems in Victoria, Australia

The development of a broader, more holistic approach to aquaticecosystem management has been called for in recent years. Physical and chemical objectives alone are no longer consideredsufficient for the protection of aquatic ecosystems and shouldbe supplemented with biological objectives. The ubiquitousand sedentary nature of macroinvertebrates, combined with theirmeasurable response to environmental conditions, favour their use as important indicators in environmental policies. To establish biological objectives, there is a need for a regionalframework to limit the variability between ecosystems. Past studies have demonstrated that an a posteriori regionalisationapproach may be more useful than an a priori approach in explaining single component (e.g. macroinvertebrates) patternsacross ecosystems. This is particularly important as aquaticresource management agencies often focus on one or twocomponents of the ecosystem to assess environmental health. This study uses an a posteriori method to delineate and describebiological regions based on edge and riffle macroinvertebrate data. The regionalisation will provide a framework for settingbiological objectives, based on the range of reference conditionsmeasured within each separate region. The objectives will includeregional checklists for taxa and biotic indices. Predictive modelling in the style of RIVPACS or AUSRIVAS will also be usedwithin each region to develop objectives, incorporating local, regional and systematic features as predictor variables.     

A Procedure for NEPA Assessment of Selenium Hazards Associated With Mining

This paper gives step-by-step instructions for assessing aquatic selenium hazards associated with mining. The procedure was developed to provide the U.S. Forest Service with a proactive capability for determining the risk of selenium pollution when it reviews mine permit applications in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The procedural framework is constructed in a decision-tree format in order to guide users through the various steps, provide a logical sequence for completing individual tasks, and identify key decision points. There are five major components designed to gather information on operational parameters of the proposed mine as well as key aspects of the physical, chemical, and biological environment surrounding it — geological assessment, mine operation assessment, hydrological assessment, biological assessment, and hazard assessment. Validation tests conducted at three mines where selenium pollution has occurred confirmed that the procedure will accurately predict ecological risks. In each case, it correctly identified and quantified selenium hazard, and indicated the steps needed to reduce this hazard to an acceptable level. By utilizing the procedure, NEPA workers can be confident in their ability to understand the risk of aquatic selenium pollution and take appropriate action. Although the procedure was developed for the Forest Service it should also be useful to other federal land management agencies that conduct NEPA assessments, as well as regulatory agencies responsible for issuing coal mining permits under the authority of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) and associated Section 401 water quality certification under the Clean Water Act. Mining companies will also benefit from the application of this procedure because priority selenium sources can be identified in relation to specific mine operating parameters. The procedure will reveal the point(s) at which there is a need to modify operating conditions to meet environmental quality goals. By recognizing concerns early in the NEPA process, it may be possible for a mining company to match operational parameters with environmental requirements, thereby increasing the likelihood that the permit application will be approved.     

Southern California's marine monitoring system ten years after the National Research Council evaluation

In 1990, the National Research Council (NRC) published two in-depth assessments of marine environmental monitoring effectiveness. The first of these, Managing Troubled Waters: The Role of Marine Environmental Monitoring, provided a national perspective and the second, Monitoring Southern California's Coastal Waters, examined the specifics of monitoring design and implementation in a densely populated, highly urbanized coastal region. The reports include explicit recommendations about the need for greater regionalization of monitoring efforts, supported by greater standardization of field, laboratory, and data analysis methods. They also identified the need for centralized data management and for greater flexibility in the language of standard discharge permits, flexibility that would permit discharge agencies to more readily participate in regional monitoring and research programs. Other recommendations identified a need for EPA and NOAA to focus on creating a national monitoring program structured as a network of coordinated local and regional efforts. Finally, the NRC emphasized the need for better reporting and for periodic review of monitoring's relevance to management concerns. In this paper, we use southern California as a test case to assess progress made in implementing the NRC's recommendations. We review progress made on each recommendation and discuss the features of the regulatory and management climate that contributed to or impeded this progress. We also consider whether, and to what extent, the NRC's recommendations remain relevant in the present context.     

液液萃取-气相色谱法测定饮用水中硝基苯类化合物

采用液液萃取－气相色谱法测定饮用水中10种硝基苯类化合物,通过萃取条件优化试验,选择正己烷为萃取剂,使目标物在0μg／L～38.5μg／L之间线性良好,检出限为0.002μg／L ～0．005μg／L。实际饮用水样的加标回收率为80.8％～104％,RSD＜3％。用该方法测定桂林市4个水厂饮用水,结果硝基苯、间－二硝基苯、2,4－二硝基氯苯未检出,其余7种硝基苯类化合物虽有检出,但检出值均低于标准规定的限值。     

The attractive concept of simplicity in environmental impact assessment: Perceptions of outcomes in southeastern Brazil

Pressures are mounting for the simplification of environmental impact assessment (EIA). This phenomenon is drawing increasing scholarly attention, but studies have not gone far beyond speculating what could happen as a result of recently implemented or proposed regulatory changes. This paper takes a more longitudinal look at simplified EIAs. The main objective was to analyze the perceived outcomes of a number of simplified EIA processes, using Brazil as the empirical context. More specifically, this paper aimed at understanding: 1) how simplified EIAs have been conceptualized and implemented in southeastern Brazil; and 2) how developers and civil servants in that region perceive the outcomes of simplified EIAs. This study adopted a sequential mixed method research approach. Data was collected through literature reviews, 261 telephone-based interviews and 10 face-to-face interviews. Degrees of EIA simplification can vary significantly within and across jurisdictions. In any case, simplification is often framed as a win-win solution to EIA ineffectiveness, through which regulatory and procedural changes are made to ease the process, while, at the same time, maintaining or providing better environmental protection. This approach is more frequently applied to potentially low-impact processes. Chi-square tests of the data collected through telephone interviews in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais indicated that developers tend to perceive EIA processes as difficult and slow regardless of how simplified it is. Most civil servants, who were directly involved in the implementation of simplified EIAs in state environmental agencies, argued that simplified EIAs are driven mostly by environmental agencies, as these institutions have long been unable to cope with an ever-increasing load of license applications. Policy outcomes of simplified EIAs in the territory are not sufficiently monitored by state agencies. Civil servants revealed concerns about the potential long term effects of EIA simplification on the ground, as they have had limited resources for audits and inspections.     

The political economy of EIA in Guangzhou

Using Guangzhou (Canton) as an example, this article examines major political economy problems regarding environmental impact assessment (EIA) in China: (1) difficulties for regulatory agencies to impose EIA procedures and requirements on projects that are sponsored or supported by other government agencies; (2) a lack of strong political constituencies that support environmental protection efforts; and (3) conflicts of interest created by regulatory agencies that attempt to finance their operations through providing services to the regulated for fees.     

Some statistical considerations in the assessment of compliance

Compliance with criteria limiting the discharge of pollutants or standards of water quality in the reveiving water body are assessed by monitoring. In order to set limits or standards, the features of the discharge or the water body to be monitored must be characterized. This generally involves the fitting of a probability distribution to historical data or data from preliminary sampling and the choice of a statistic for the limit or standard. Monitoring data collected to assess compliance are assumed to follow data will help to ensure that the assumption is met. Statistical methods which either assume a distribution for the quality variable or involve a transformation to a binary variable are compared. The validity of the underlying assumptions in the application of the methods to water or effluent quality data is discussed.     

土壤环境质量新标准评价应用误区探讨

探讨了2个土壤环境质量新标准在评价应用时,可能存在对新标准适用范围理解有误、将土壤污染风险分类误用为土壤环境质量类别划分、过于追求单次监测达标或超标评价等误区,建议对与新标准有关的评价方法应进行相应修订.     

Health-related aerosol measurement: a review of existing sampling criteria and proposals for new ones

Interest in particle size-selective sampling for aerosols in working and ambient living environments began in the early 1900s when it became apparent that the penetration into-and deposition in-the respiratory tract of aerosol-exposed humans of inhaled particles was dependent on particle size. Coarse particles tended to be filtered out during inhalation and in the upper parts of the respiratory tract, so only progressively smaller particles penetrated down to the deep regions of the lung. Over time, following experimental studies with 'breathing' mannequins in wind tunnels and with human volunteer subjects in the laboratory, a clear picture has emerged of the physical, physiological and anatomical factors that control the extent to which particles may or may not reach certain parts of the respiratory tract. Such understanding has increasingly been the subject of discussions about aerosol standards, in particular the criteria by which exposure might be defined in relation to given classes of aerosol-related health effect-and in to turn aerosol monitoring. The ultimate goal has been to develop a set of criteria by which exposure standards are scientifically relevant to the health effects in question. This paper reviews the scientific basis for such criteria. It discusses the criteria that have already been widely discussed and so are either being applied or are on the threshold of practical application in standards. It also discusses how new advanced knowledge may allow us to extend the list of particle size-selective criteria to fractions that have not yet been widely discussed but which may be of importance in the future.     

Construction of a chemical ranking system of soil pollution substances for screening of priority soil contaminants in Korea

The Korean government recently proposed expanding the number of soil-quality standards to 30 by 2015. The objectives of our study were to construct a reasonable protocol for screening priority soil contaminants for inclusion in the planned soil quality standard expansion. The chemical ranking system of soil pollution substances (CROSS) was first developed to serve as an analytical tool in chemical scoring and ranking of possible soil pollution substances. CROSS incorporates important parameters commonly used in several previous chemical ranking and scoring systems and the new soil pollution parameters. CROSS uses soil-related parameters in its algorithm, including information related to the soil environment, such as soil ecotoxicological data, the soil toxic release inventory (TRI), and soil partitioning coefficients. Soil TRI and monitoring data were incorporated as local specific parameters. In addition, CROSS scores the transportability of chemicals in soil because soil contamination may result in groundwater contamination. Dermal toxicity was used in CROSS only to consider contact with soil. CROSS uses a certainty score to incorporate data uncertainty. CROSS scores the importance of each candidate substance and assigns rankings on the basis of total scores. Cadmium was the most highly ranked. Generally, metals were ranked higher than other substances. Pentachlorophenol, phenol, dieldrin, and methyl tert-butyl ether were ranked the highest among chlorinated compounds, aromatic compounds, pesticides, and others, respectively. The priority substance list generated from CROSS will be used in selecting substances for possible inclusion in the Korean soil quality standard expansion; it will also provide important information for designing a soil-environment management scheme.     

学习三个新环境噪声标准的体会

《声环境质量标准》、《工业企业厂界环境噪声排放标准》、《社会生活环境噪声排放标准》颁布执行是我国声环境保护工作上的一件大事。它完善了我国环境噪声标准体系,扩大了标准的适用范围,明确了标准的适用对象,理顺了相关标准之间的关系,同时对相关噪声监测方法进行了优化与完善。