Environmental threats to buried archaeological remains

The last century's environmental pollution has created health problems, acidification of ground and lakes, and serious damage to our cultural heritage. Outdoor monuments suffer from this pollution, but so do buried archaeological remains. However, research on the deterioration of archaeological artifacts underground has so far been limited, and it is important to draw attention to this neglected field. This article presents results obtained at the Swedish National Heritage Board on the degradation of archaeological objects of bronze and iron and of bones from prehistoric graves, materials of which seem to be most affected by pollutants. The investigation methods, which were employed, are described. Other relevant studies are briefly reviewed. It is obvious that the deterioration rate of archaeological artifacts, especially of inorganic materials, has accelerated in recent years, and that this increased deterioration to a large part can be attributed to anthropogenic pollution. Regions that might be endangered are exemplified.     

应用化学提取法评价大气颗粒物中重金属的生物有效性

以广州市楼顶降尘为研究对象,在分析其粒度分布和重金属总量的基础上,采用单一化学提取法(DWLP、TCLP)和多级化学提取法(SEP)研究了大气颗粒物中4种重金属元素的生物有效性.结果表明:样品中96%以上颗粒小于100 μm,其中10 μm和2.5 μm以下颗粒分别占33%和11%.大气颗粒物中重金属含量很高,Cu、Pb、Zn和Cd的平均含量分别为362.43、1 033.81、830.32和5.80 mg/kg,是广东省环境土壤背景值的17～64倍.单一提取法中,TCLP的提取效率明显高于DWLP,表明pH值是影响大气颗粒物中重金属释放的主要因素.SEP法结果显示,Zn和Cd的生物可利用态比例远高于Cu和Pb.经DWLP和TCLP法提取后,颗粒物中重金属的总含量有不同程度的降低,生物可利用态所占比例明显增加.通过综合分析,发现SEP比其他两种方法更适用于评价大气颗粒物中重金属的生物有效性.     

The combination of chemical,structural, and functional indicators to evaluate the anthropogenic impacts on agricultural stream ecosystems

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Freshwater contamination by pesticides in agricultural landscapes is of increasing concern worldwide, with strong pesticide impacts on biodiversity,...     

Quantifying anthropogenic threats to orchids using the IUCN Red List

Orchids are diverse, occur in a wide range of habitats and dominate threatened species lists, but which orchids are threatened, where and by what? Using the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List, we assessed the range and diversity of threats to orchids globally including identifying four threat syndromes: (1) terrestrial orchids in forests that are endemic to a country and threatened by illegal collecting; (2) orchids threatened by climate change, pollution, transportation and disturbance/development for tourism, and recreation activities, often in East Asia; (3) epiphytic orchids in Sub-Saharan Africa including Madagascar with diverse threats; and (4) South and Southeast Asia orchids threatened by land clearing for shifting agriculture. Despite limitations in the Red List data, the results highlight how conservation efforts can focus on clusters of co-occurring threats in regions while remaining aware of the trifecta of broad threats from plant collecting, land clearing and climate change.     

Combining polar organic chemical integrative samplers (POCIS) with toxicity testing to evaluate pesticide mixture effects on natural phototrophic biofilms

Polar organic chemical integrative samplers (POCIS) are valuable tools in passive sampling methods for monitoring polar organic pesticides in freshwaters. Pesticides extracted from the environment using such methods can be used to toxicity tests. This study evaluated the acute effects of POCIS extracts on natural phototrophic biofilm communities. Our results demonstrate an effect of POCIS pesticide mixtures on chlorophyll a fluorescence, photosynthetic efficiency and community structure. Nevertheless, the range of biofilm responses differs according to origin of the biofilms tested, revealing spatial variations in the sensitivity of natural communities in the studied stream. Combining passive sampler extracts with community-level toxicity tests offers promising perspectives for ecological risk assessment.     

Strategies to evaluate biodegradability: application to chlorinated herbicides

The biodegradability of nitrochlorinated (diuron and atrazine) and chlorophenoxy herbicides (2,4-D and MCPA) has been studied through several bioassays using different testing times and biomass/substrate ratios. A fast biodegradability test using unacclimated activated sludge yielded no biodegradation of the herbicides in 24 h. The inherent biodegradability test gave degradation percentages of around 20–30 % for the nitrochlorinated herbicides and almost complete removal of the chlorophenoxy compounds. Long-term biodegradability assays were performed using sequencing batch reactor (SBR) and sequencing batch membrane bioreactor (SB-MBR). Fixed concentrations of each herbicide below the corresponding EC₅₀ value for activated sludge were used (30 mg L^?1 for diuron and atrazine and 50 mg L^?1 for 2,4-D and MCPA). No signs of herbicide degradation appeared before 35 days in the case of diuron and atrazine and 21 days for 2,4-D, whereas MCPA was partially degraded since the early stages. Around 25–36 % degradation of the nitrochlorinated herbicides and 53–77 % of the chlorophenoxy ones was achieved after 180 and 135 days, respectively, in SBR, whereas complete disappearance of 2,4-D was reached after 80 days in SB-MBR.     

Offshore windmill farms: threats to or possibilities for the marine environment

A massive development of offshore windmill farms has been planned along the European coastline. This raises important questions about the possible effects on the marine environment. Effects during the construction period may be minimized to a negligible impact if care is taken to avoid areas containing rare habitats or species. Disturbance caused by noise, vibrations, and electromagnetic fields during windmill operation may, with present knowledge, be considered to be of minor importance to the marine environment. The reef effect (i.e. addition of a hard substratum), is believed to cause the largest impact on the marine environment and at different scales: the micro scale, which involves material, texture, and heterogeneity of the foundation material; the meso scale, which involves the revetments and scour protection; and the macro scale, which encompasses the level of the entire windmill farm. Effects on these scales are discussed in relation to results obtained from natural habitats, artificial reefs, and other man-made constructions at sea.     

Combining modelling tools to evaluate a goose management scheme

Many goose species feed on agricultural land, and with growing goose numbers, conflicts with agriculture are increasing. One possible solution is to designate refuge areas where farmers are paid to leave geese undisturbed. Here, we present a generic modelling tool that can be used to designate the best locations for refuges and to gauge the area needed to accommodate the geese. With a species distribution model, locations are ranked according to goose suitability. The size of the area to be designated as refuge can be chosen by including more or less suitable locations. A resource depletion model is then used to estimate whether enough resources are available within the designated refuge to accommodate all geese, taking into account the dynamics of food resources, including depletion by geese. We illustrate this with the management scheme for pink-footed goose Anser brachyrhynchus implemented in Norway. Here, all geese can be accommodated, but damage levels appear to depend on weather, land use and refuge size.     

Laboratory models to evaluate phytotoxicity of sulphadimethoxine on terrestrial plants

Antimicrobial drugs soil contamination is a possible side effect of spreading animal wastes from intensive farming on arable land: waste often contain persistent drugs (like sulphonamides) that pollute soil. In laboratory tests different crop plants and weeds demonstrated, on both synthetic medium and soil, toxicity and sulphadimethoxine bioaccumulation. These data suggest potential adverse implications for organisms higher up the food net, including humans. The increasingly used technique of'soil top dressing will impose the monitoring of antimicrobial contamination in arable lands and their crops, to protect natural ecosystems and consumer. A possible tool for this monitoring is the use of weeds that can constitute a “mesh” where antimicrobial contamination can be detected.     

Pilot on-site tests to evaluate the permeability of infiltration gutters.

This study assessed the performance and developed a simple approach for estimating infiltration capacity of two infiltration gutters by using on-site tests. Permeable-brick and redbrick infiltration gutters were constructed on-site. Water infiltrated from the surfaces of two vertical sides (NFS-2S), bottom (NFS-B), and three faces (NFS-3S) of two gutters were measured under nonflowing and steady-state conditions. Tests results from NFS-2S and NFS-3S indicate that the permeability and water depth for both gutters are linearly dependent on each other. Experimental results also indicate that, when the bottom of the gutter is clogged, the permeable-brick gutter still retains approximately 93 and 79% for redbrick gutter of their infiltration capacity for NFS-3S. On the whole, permeable-brick gutter has an advantage over redbrick gutter in stormwater infiltration. Based on these results, the permeability for different water depths and widths of these two gutters can be obtained.     

A method to evaluate effects of toxic chemicals on fish growth

An automated, flow-through method has been developed to evaluate effects of toxic chemicals on the growth rate of juvenile rainbow trout. After 28 days exposure of fish to 3,4-dichloroaniline (DCA) their growth rate was affected by DCA concentrations of 39 to 210 μg 1-1 and there was a clear relationship between dose and response.     

Petroleum and hazardous chemical spills in Newark Bay, New Jersey, USA from 1982 to 1991

Newark Bay, New Jersey, is particularly vulnerable to ecological damage from petroleum and chemical spills, as a result of the enclosed nature and shallow depth of the bay, the high frequency of shipping traffic, and the numerous chemical and petroleum transfer terminals located alongs its shores. To evaluate the potential impacts to the natural resources of this coastal estuarine ecosystem, chemical and petroleum accidents reported to the US Coast Guard (USCG) between 1982 and 1991 were compiled to determine the frequency and volume of these incidents in Newark Bay and in each of its major tributaries. Records obtained from the USCG National Response Center's computerized database indicated that more than 1453 accidental incidents, resulting in the release of more than 18 million US gallons of hazardous materials and petroleum products, occurred throughout Newark Bay during this period of time. The bulk of the materials released to the aquatic environment consisted of petroleum products, specifically No. 6 Fuel Oil (103 spills, 12 829 272 US gal) and gasoline (207 spills, 48 816 US gal). The majority of the reported incidents occurred in the Arthur Kill and its tributaries, as well as in the Kill Van Kull and the Passaic River. The results of this study indicated that the accidental discharge of petroleum and hazardous chemicals represents a significant source of chemical pollution in Newark Bay. Based on the frequency of spills and the volume of materials released to the aquatic environment, it is likely that these events are having a deleterious effect on the Newark Bay ecosystem.     

In situ assays with tropical cladocerans to evaluate edge-of-field pesticide runoff toxicity

Tropical regions’ economy is usually based on agriculture, which involves an intensive use, and even frequent overuse, of pesticides. Nevertheless, not much research has been done on the impact of pesticides on tropical aquatic ecosystems, which are often contaminated by runoff-related pesticide inputs due to unpredictable and torrential rainfalls. This study aimed to: (i) adapt and evaluate a short-term sublethal in situ assay using post-exposure feeding as an endpoint, to the tropical cladoceran species Diaphanosoma brachyurum (collected at the Pedra do Cavalo dam in the Paraguaçu River basin, Bahia, Brazil), and, (ii) assess the role of the standard species Daphnia magna as an adequate laboratory surrogate. Lethal and sublethal (post-exposure feeding) responses were assessed for the two species. To evaluate these responses under environmentally realistic exposure conditions, a runoff event was simulated in an agricultural area previously contaminated with different deltamethrin concentrations. The resultant runoff water was used to set up microcosms with different dilutions, simulating the entrance of runoff water in an adjacent lentic system. An in situ assay with D. brachyurum was performed inside the microcosms, allowing to discriminate the effects due to deltamethrin from those due to other potential stressors associated with the experimental design (e.g. organism handling, load of suspended particles, microcosm design). Water samples were collected from microcosms to conduct a laboratory assay with D. magna. The in situ methodologies revealed to be suitable to conduct assays with D. brachyurum under tropical conditions, since all exposed organisms were successfully retrieved from the chambers. Furthermore, none of the potential stressors associated with the experimental design influenced the daphnids’ performance. The tropical cladoceran species, exposed under more realistic conditions, revealed to be more sensitive than the laboratory standard species: lethal effects were only observed for D. brachyurum and sublethal effects were noticed at a lower deltamethrin concentration for this species than for D. magna.     

Using a photochemical air quality model to evaluate emissions and simulate concentrations

The air-quality modelling system was conducted to evaluate emissions inventory and simulate air concentration over Thailand. The coupling model of the Regional Atmospheric Modelling System (RAMS) and the models-3 Community Multi-scale Air Quality (CMAQ) was applied to simulate the concentration distributions of gaseous pollutants (i.e., NO_x, SO₂ and CO) over the Central and Eastern regions of Thailand. CMAQ was run for a summertime episode in a sub-grid scale. Simulated air concentrations were then compared with monitoring data. The evaluating results between modelling simulation and monitoring observation show a good agreement within a factor of 2.0 and relevant trend line, representing the acceptable level of emissions and concentration. This coupling model can be applied to support emission control strategies and clean air acts.     

Use of Project MOHAVE perfluorocarbon tracer data to evaluate source and receptor models

Project MOHAVE was a major monitoring, modeling, and data analysis study whose objectives included the estimation of the contributions of the Mohave Power Project (MPP) and other sources to visibility impairment in the southwestern United States, in particular at Grand Canyon National Park. A major element of Project MOHAVE was the release of perfluorocarbon tracers at MPP and other locations during 50-day summer and 30-day winter intensive study periods. Tracer data (from about 30 locations) were sequestered until several source and receptor models were used to predict tracer concentrations. None of the models was successful in predicting the tracer concentrations; squared correlation coefficients between predicted and measured tracer were all less than 0.2, and most were less than 0.1.