A new conceptual model for quantifying transboundary contribution of atmospheric pollutants in the East Asian Pacific rim region

Transboundary transport of air pollution is a serious environmental concern as pollutant affects both human health and the environment. Many numerical approaches have been utilized to quantify the amounts of pollutants transported to receptor regions, based on emission inventories from possible source regions. However, sparse temporal–spatial observational data and uncertainty in emission inventories might make the transboundary transport contribution difficult to estimate. This study presents a conceptual quantitative approach that uses transport pathway classification in combination with curve fitting models to simulate an air pollutant concentration baseline for pollution background concentrations. This approach is used to investigate the transboundary transport contribution of atmospheric pollutants to a metropolitan area in the East Asian Pacific rim region. Trajectory analysis categorized pollution sources for the study area into three regions: East Asia, Southeast Asia, and Taiwan cities. The occurrence frequency and transboundary contribution results suggest the predominant source region is the East Asian continent. This study also presents an application to evaluate heavy pollution cases for health concerns. This new baseline construction model provides a useful tool for the study of the contribution of transboundary pollution delivered to receptors, especially for areas deficient in emission inventories and regulatory monitoring data for harmful air pollutants.     

The earth system: regional–global linkages

Understanding the earth system requires that the two-way linkages between regions and the global system be well understood and predictable. Most studies of global change are undertaken thematically across limited disciplinary boundaries; few are attempted holistically across many disciplines within regions. The regional approach offers many advantages. Here a variety of linkages associated with the regions of Southern Africa, South Asia, East Asia and Southeast Asia are presented to illustrate the power of a regional approach to earth system science. Major findings include the extent to which long-range transport of aerosols and nutrients affect terrestrial and marine ecosystem functioning in and around southern Africa. Aerosol transport, and the development of a regional haze layer, over South Asia are shown to alter significantly the radiative forcing of change in the atmosphere over the region. Changes in land cover and use over East Asia over along period of time are shown to have affected the strength of the monsoon circulation significantly. Finally, rampant economic development and globalization in Southeast Asia are demonstrated to have been a significant driver of regional change. Electronic Publication     

Radionuclide transfer from soil to fruit

The available literature on the transfer of radionuclides from soil to fruit has been reviewed with the aim of identifying the main variables and processes affecting the behaviour of radionuclides in fruit plants. Where available, data for transfer of radionuclides from soil to other components of fruit plant have also been collected, to help in understanding the processes of translocation and storage in perennial plants. Soil-to-fruit transfer factors were derived from agricultural ecosystems, both from temperate and subtropical or tropical zones. Aggregated transfer factors have also been collected from natural or semi-natural ecosystems. The data concern numerous fruits and various radionuclides. Soil-to-fruit transfer is nuclide specific. The variability for a given radionuclide is first of all ascribable to the different properties of soils. Fruit plant species are very heterogeneous, varying from woody trees and shrubs to herbaceous plants. In temperate areas the soil-to-fruit transfer is higher in woody trees for caesium and in shrubs for strontium. Significant differences between the values obtained in temperate and subtropical and tropical regions do not necessarily imply that they are ascribable to climate. Transfer factors for caesium are higher in subtropical and tropical fruits, while those for strontium, as well as for plutonium and americium, in the same fruits, are lower; these results can be interpreted taking into account different soil characteristics.     

Can the byssus of green-lipped mussel Perna viridis (Linnaeus) from the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia be a biomonitoring organ for Cd,Pb and Zn? Field and laboratory studies

Concentrations of cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) in total soft tissues (ST) and byssus (BYS) of the green-lipped mussel Perna viridis from 11 different geographical locations off the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia were determined. The metal concentrations distributed between the BYS and ST were compared. The results of this study indicated that higher levels of Cd (1.31 microg/g), Pb (38.49 microg/g) and Zn (206.52 microg/g) were accumulated in the BYS than in the total ST (Cd: 0.29 microg/g; Pb: 8.27 microg/g; Zn: 102.6 microg/g). Semi-static and short period controlled laboratory experiments were also conducted for the accumulation and depuration of Cd, Pb and Zn in the total ST and BYS of P. viridis. The ratios (BYS/ST) for Pb and Cd from the laboratory experiments showed that the total ST accumulated more metals than the BYS. Therefore, these laboratory results disagreed with those found for the field samples. However, the laboratory results for the Zn ratio (BYS/ST) agreed with those of the field samples. It was evident that when compared to the ST, the BYS was a more sensitive biomonitoring organ for Zn while it could be a complementary organ for Cd and Pb in the total ST. Since total ST of P. viridis had been reported to have regulative mechanism for Zn, its BYS can be used as a biomonitoring organ for the identification of coastal areas exposed to Zn pollution.     

Correlations between speciation of Cd,Cu, Pb And Zn in sediment and their concentrations in total soft tissue of green-lipped mussel Perna viridis from the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia

Total concentrations and speciation of cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) in surface sediment samples were correlated with the respective metal measured in the total soft tissue of the green-lipped mussel Perna viridis, collected from water off the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The aim of this study is to relate the possible differences in the accumulation patterns of the heavy metals in P. viridis to those in the surface sediment. The sequential extraction technique was employed to fractionate the sediment into 'freely leachable and exchangeable' (EFLE), 'acid-reducible,' 'oxidisable-organic' and 'resistant' fractions. The results showed that significant (P<.05) correlations were observed between Cd in P. viridis and Cd in the sediment (EFLE fraction and total Cd), Cu in P viridis and Cu in the sediment (EFLE and 'acid-reducible' fractions and total Cu) and Pb in P viridis and Pb in the sediment ('oxidisable-organic' fraction and total Pb). No significant correlation (P > .05) was found between Zn in P viridis and all the sediment geochemical fractions of Zn and total Zn in the sediment. This indicated that Zn was possibly regulated from the soft tissue of P. viridis. The present results supported the use of P viridis as a suitable biomonitoring agent for Cd, Cu and Pb.     

Allozyme polymorphisms and heavy metal levels in the green-lipped mussel Perna viridis (Linnaeus) collected from contaminated and uncontaminated sites in Malaysia

It has been widely reported that heavy metal contamination in coastal waters can modify the allozyme profiles of marine organisms. Previous studies have recorded elevated metal concentrations in sediments and mussel tissues off Peninsular Malaysia. In the present study, horizontal starch gel electrophoresis was carried out to estimate the levels of allelic variation of the green-lipped mussel, Perna viridis, collected from one contaminated and three relatively uncontaminated sites off Peninsular Malaysia. Fourteen polymorphic loci were observed. In addition, the concentrations of cadmium, copper, lead, mercury and zinc were determined in the sediments and in the soft tissues of the mussels. Mussels from contaminated site, evidenced by high metal pollution indices (MPI) of the sediment and the mussel tissues, showed the highest percentage of polymorphic loci (78.6%), while those collected from the uncontaminated sites had lower MPI of the sediment and mussel tissue, and exhibited lower percentages of polymorphic loci (35.7-57.1%). The population from the contaminated site showed the highest excess of heterozygosity (0.289) when compared to that of the populations from the three uncontaminated sites (0.108-0.149). Allozyme frequencies at the phosphoglucomutase (PGM; E.C. 2.7.5.1) locus also differed between the contaminated and uncontaminated populations. Previous studies have shown that exposure to heavy metals can select or counter-select for particular alleles at this locus. The present results suggest that allozyme polymorphism in P. viridis is a potential biomonitoring tool for heavy metal contamination but further validation is required.     

“一带一路”国家天然气投资绩效评价及其改进路径

运用超效率数据包络分析(SE-DEA)方法,综合考虑目标国资源现状、政治因素、经济技术、社会条件、市场体制和国际合作情况,构建天然气投资绩效评价线性规划模型,并以2003—2013年中国对"一带一路"国家的天然气投资绩效均值进行聚类,结合规模报酬和投入要素的影子价格分析,提出目标国天然气投资绩效改进路径。结果显示:(1)中国对中亚及北亚、东南亚和南亚的天然气投资普遍处于中高效区,对独联体、中东欧洲和西亚北非地区的天然气投资普遍处于中低效区。(2)高效区国家自2012年起投资绩效处于规模报酬不变阶段,技术水平和国家经济对天然气贸易的依赖程度是影响投资绩效的关键因素。(3)中效区国家投资绩效大多处于规模报酬递增阶段,从2013年起总储量、人文地理和与中国油气合作状况成为影响中效区投资绩效的关键因素。(4)低效区国家投资绩效处于规模报酬递增阶段,国家经济对天然气贸易的依赖程度和技术水平要素是影响低效区投资绩效的关键因素;此外,对于处于低效区的中亚国家资源现状是影响投资绩效的另一关键因素,政治因素则是中东欧洲和独联体国家的关键因素,东南亚和南亚地区的投资关键因素则包含社会条件。这意味着,中国要提高在"一带一路"区域的天然气投资绩效,就要针对不同地区投资现状制定改进策略。对于高效区和低效区的中亚国家,未来中国要加强同目标国政府间的沟通,达成"以技术换气条款";对中效区和低效区的中东欧洲、独联体国家可采用与油气企业合作方式降低合作风险;对低效区的东南亚和南亚国家,可签订天然气长期贸易合同。     

Relationship between air pollution and daily mortality in a subtropical city: Taipei, Taiwan

Air pollution has been associated with daily mortality in numerous studies over the past decade. However most of these studies were conducted in the United States and Europe with relatively few done in Asia. In the current study, the association between ambient air pollution and daily mortality in Taipei, Taiwan's largest city which has a subtropical climate was undertaken, for the period 1994-1998 using a case-crossover analysis. This design is an alternative to Poisson time series regression for studying the short-term adverse health effects of air pollution. The air pollutants examined included particulate matter (PM(10)), sulfur dioxide (SO(2)), ozone (O(3)), nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)), and carbon monoxide (CO). The largest observed effect, which was without statistical significance, was seen for NO(2) and CO levels on deaths due to respiratory diseases (ORs=1.013 and 1.014, respectively). The well established link between air pollution levels and daily mortality may not be as strong in cities in subtropical areas, although other factors such as differences in pollutant mix or the underlying health of the population may explain the lack of a strong association in this study. Further studies of this type in cities with varying climates and cultures are needed.     

Trends in landings of fish species potentially affected by climate change in Portuguese fisheries

Fisheries are an important source of food, with a high economic value and social significance. The present worrying situation of the world fisheries is the result of the interaction between different factors (e.g. climatic variations, natural oscillations, technological innovation), but the greatest challenges are overfishing and climate change. The species richness of the Portuguese coast is generally higher than that found in northern Europe and similar to that of the Mediterranean, since many species have their southern or northern distribution limits along the Portuguese coast. The zoogeographic importance of this latitudinal area has long been recognized, representing the transition between north-eastern Atlantic warm-temperate and cold-temperate regions, which makes the Portuguese coast an area of great sensitivity to the detection of climate change. Official landing data for commercial species that have the Portuguese coast as their distribution limit were analysed together with sea surface temperature for the period of 1927–2011. In general, landings of species with affinity for temperate waters presented a decreasing trend, whereas species with affinity for subtropical/tropical waters showed an increasing trend. These variations were associated with variation in temperature: lower landings of temperate species occurred mainly in warm years, whereas landings of subtropical/tropical species presented an opposite trend, with higher landings in warm years. Preparing for the impacts of climate change is crucial for the sustainability of fisheries. Management should take into consideration information about environmental factors that affect species distribution and abundance.     

Mineral composition of assimilative organs of conifers after reduction of atmospheric pollution in the Kola Peninsula

An analysis has been made of changes in the mineral composition of conifer needles in northern taiga forests after reduction of emissions from the Severonickel Copper-Nickel Smelter Complex in the city of Monchegorsk, the most powerful source of air pollution in Northern Europe. The data obtained in permanent monitoring plots in 1991, 1993, 2000, and 2007 have been compared. The results provide evidence for reduction in the concentrations of heavy metals (Cu, Ni, Fe) and sulfur in the needles of spruce and pine trees in areas with different levels of air pollution. However, mineral nutrition of conifers has not been optimized. The plants are insufficiently supplied with nutrient elements such as P, Mg, Mn, and Zn. The contents of these and other elements essential for the normal functioning of needles (in particular, Ca, K, and P) continue to decrease, especially in pollution-induced sparse spruce forests. The most significant alterations of nutrient regime have been revealed in the Siberian spruce.     

Climate-induced changes in fish landings of different fleet components of Portuguese fisheries

For each Portuguese fleet component, landings of biogeographic groups of fish species were compared for the period of 1993–2009. Wide-distribution species were the most abundant in landings, but have shown a decreasing trend. Temperate species had higher landings in trawl fisheries, whereas subtropical species were most abundant and exhibiting an increasing trend in landings of multi-gear fisheries. A latitudinal gradient was observed, with landings of temperate species being more important in the North-western coast than in the South-western and South coasts. Although trawl fisheries were relatively more important in the North-western coast, there has been a recent increase in the relative importance of multi-gear fisheries and of subtropical species in this area. The increasing relative importance of subtropical species in Portuguese fisheries along with the fact that landings of subtropical species were higher in multi-gear fisheries could indicate an easier adaptation of Portuguese multi-gear fisheries to the effects of climate change. However, as multi-gear fisheries include a wide range of gears, techniques and target-species, they may not all respond in the same manner to changes in fish species’ distribution. Among multi-gear fisheries, trammel nets catch a wider variety of species and a wider size range than gill nets or longlines; thus, trammel net fishers can adapt to changes in abundance of the main target species more readily than those using more species- and size-specific gears. Therefore, trammel net fisheries could more easily adapt to the effects of climate change on fish distribution than gill net or longline fisheries.     

Tourism and CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> emissions nexus in Southeast Asia: new evidence from panel estimation

The past decade has seen the rapid development of the tourist industry in Southeast Asia. There is increasing concern that tourism is highly affecting CO₂ emissions, but the nature of the relationship is still unclear. The main target of this paper is to investigate the existence of a linear and/or nonlinear relationship between tourism and CO₂ emissions in the five most important countries located in Southeast Asia, using the panel cointegration and pooled mean group techniques. The results indicate that tourism and CO₂ emissions are cointegrated, implying that tourism affects CO₂ emissions in the long run. Our findings support the nonlinear relationship between tourism and emissions as well as economic activities and CO₂ emissions. Accordingly, an inverted U-shaped relationship exists between tourism and emissions confirming the existence of an Environmental Kuznets Curve in the Southeast Asian tourism industry. Furthermore, the empirical results show that economic activities and energy consumption greatly increase emissions.     

三峡库区面源污染现状与对策研究

三峡库区生态环境脆弱，坡耕地垂直分布明显，耕地利用方式不合理，库区耕地环境质量较差。水土流失严重。库区沿江工厂星落棋布，落后的生产工艺和小规模生产，使大量废水没经处理直接排放到库区各大河流。虽然目前长江流域水体的自净作用能将污水稀释，但随着三峡大坝的正式蓄水，部分区域水体污染将不可避免。通过对库区部分区域水体近几年的连续监测，水体总P、非离子氨、CODcr等指标有恶化趋势。库区土壤重金属监测结果表明，土壤重金属Cd、As含量明显增加，并且远大于当地土壤背景值。库区农畜产品蔬菜、茶叶、鱼Pb、Cd超标较严重。土壤N、P流失率较高。有效防止库区面源污染的对策一方面是控制工业点源、线源污染造成的面源污染．另一方面是控制农业自身造成的面源污染。主要措施有：加强库区环境管理和环保宣传力度；建立沿江生物隔离带；加强土地管理，加大农业工程投入，合理利用土地；大力提倡水土保持耕作法；扩大森林覆盖率，建立坡地立体复合农业生态系统：建立面源污染预警系统。     

Soil and soil environmental quality monitoring in China: A review

Over the past few decades, numerous concerns have been raised in China over the issue of environmental sustainability. Various soil survey and monitoring programs have been carried out in China to study soil quality, and to provide a scientific basis for environment policy making. This paper provides an overview of past and current soil quality surveys and monitoring activities in China. This paper includes a summary of concerns over background concentrations of elements in soil, and soil environmental standards and guidelines in China. Levels of pollution in urban soil, agricultural soil, and soil in mining and smelting areas were compared using the concentrations and pollution indexes. In addition to soil surveys, soil monitoring is essential to study the data and to examine the effects of contaminants in soils. However, the current soil quality monitoring system was insufficient to accurately determine the soil quality status of soils across China. For accurate soil monitoring in China, it will be necessary to set up routine monitoring systems at various scales (national, provincial, and local scales), taking into consideration monitoring indicators and quality assurance. This is currently an important priority for the environmental protection administration of China.     

Projected burden of disease for Salmonella infection due to increased temperature in Australian temperate and subtropical regions

ObjectiveThis study aimed to project the future disability burden of Salmonella infection associated with increased temperature in future in temperate and subtropical regions of Australia in order to provide recommendations for public health policy to respond to climate change.MethodsYears Lost due to Disabilities (YLDs) were used as the measure of the burden of disease in this study. Regions in temperate and subtropical Australia were selected for this study. Future temperature change scenarios in the study were based on Australian projections, developed by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO). YLDs for Salmonella infection in 2000 were calculated as the baseline data. YLDs for Salmonella infection in 2030 and 2050 under future temperature change scenarios were projected based on the quantitative relationship between temperature and disease examined in previously published regression models. Future demographic change was also considered in this analysis.ResultsCompared with the YLDs in 2000, increasing temperature and demographic changes may lead to a 9%–48% increase in the YLDs for Salmonella infection by 2030 and a 31%–87% increase by 2050 in the temperate region, and a 51%–100% increase by 2030 and an 87%–143% increase by 2050 in the subtropical region, if other factors remain constant.ConclusionTemperature-related health burden of Salmonella infection in Australia may increase in the future due to change in climate and demography in the absence of effective public health interventions. Relevant public health strategies should be developed at an early stage to prevent and reduce the health burden of climate change.     

Smoke-haze pollution: a review of the 1997 episode in Southeast Asia

In the second half of 1997, large areas in Southeast Asia were severely affected by a smoke-haze pollution episode caused by the emissions of an estimated 45,600 km² of vegetation that burnt on the Indonesian islands Kalimantan and Sumatra. To document the impacts of these fires on air quality, data for total suspended particulate matter (TSP) and for particulate matter below or equal to 10 microns in diameter (PM₁₀) from selected sites in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore are analysed in this paper. These data are supplemented by meteorological data, satellite images and a summary of related research. TSP was above 2,000 μg m^–3 for several days in Indonesian locations close to the most extensive fire activity. In Malaysia and Singapore, ambient particle concentrations increased to several times their average September levels. Characteristically for emissions from vegetation burning, the additional atmospheric particle loading during the smoke-haze episode was predominantly due to an increase of the fraction below or equal to 2.5 microns in diameter (PM_2.5). Due to the dominance of respirable particles (PM_2.5) in the smoke-haze, air quality reporting based on TSP or PM₁₀ may be inadequate to assess the health risk. Upgrading of PM_2.5 monitoring facilities is therefore needed. Reducing the probability of similar smoke-haze events in future would require appropriate fire use and smoke management strategies. Electronic Publication     

Polybrominated diphenyl ether in the East Asian environment: a critical review

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) have been extensively used as flame retardants in consumer goods. Sufficient evidence shows that PBDEs have been rapidly accumulating in the environment worldwide. In Asia, deca-bromodiphenyl ether has been produced and used in large quantities, while penta-BDE has largely ceased in the mid-1990s. This paper summarizes and critically reviews the status of PBDE pollution in East Asia, with emphases on the comparisons with Europe and North America and the interpretation of the differences. In general, the concentrations of PBDEs in atmosphere, sludge, human and biological samples of East Asia are comparable to or lower than those in Europe and North America. However, in the sediments of waters near densely populated and heavily industrialized areas, PBDE levels are among the highest ever reported in the literature. In Japan and China, concentrations of PBDEs in sediment cores showed an increasing trend for the past 20-30 years. Also, PBDEs levels in human breast milk in Japan increased about 10-fold in the past 20 years. The presence of PBDEs in fur seal has increased about 150-fold in 1994 than that in 1972. Regional and inter-continental transport cannot be confirmed due to insufficient information. However, the detection of a number of PBDE congeners in a pristine lake on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau may be an evidence of their long-range transport.     

1998年长江大洪水与大气环流和海温异常分析

概述了引起１９９８年长江大洪水的雨情,从天气气候角度分析了１９９８年长江流域降水异常偏多的原因。指出了最直接的原因是副高移动的反常,特别７月１５日以后副高突然南撤南海季风爆发晚,南亚和东亚季风强度偏弱、夏季赤道辐合带偏弱热带地区台风生成少、生成时间晚,     

武汉20世纪90年代暴雨异常的物理环境变化背景探讨

根据武汉1951－2000年50年暴雨日数资料，应用Mann-Kendall统计方法对暴雨邓列进行年限突变检验。揭示出武汉暴雨在1979年发生突变，20世纪80年代后暴雨出现频数明显上升，强度增大，90年代达到最大，同时指出武汉20世纪90年代暴雨日数和暴雨量异常的显著特征，着重从西太平洋副热带高压，阻塞高压，太平洋海温等重要物理环境因子的突变出发，探讨造成20世纪90年代武汉暴雨异常的物理变化背景，结果表明，在武汉暴雨异常多的90年代与暴雨异常少的70年代，所对应的大气，海洋环境背景显著不同，90年代北半球500hPa月平均高度场是处于几十年中正异常最大的阶段，西太平洋副热带高压持续偏南，偏强，西伸脊点偏西，东亚中高纬度环流异常，维持稳定的阻塞高压形势，赤道东太平洋海温（SST）出现最大正距平，为近50年来的异常增温时期，厄尔尼诺（ENSO）事件发生频繁。     

The State of the Mammal Community of Boreal Forest Ecosystems in the Vicinity of a Nickel-Smelting Plant

The effect of industrial air pollution on natural small mammal populations has been studied in the northern taiga subzone of the boreal forest zone. The results of long-term monitoring have been used to demonstrate the possibility of predicting changes in the main population and community characteristics of the animal species studied as dependent on the degree of anthropogenic impact.