Delimitation of arsenic-contaminated groundwater using risk-based indicator approaches around blackfoot disease hyperendemic areas of southern Taiwan

This work determined scopes of arsenic(As)-contaminated groundwater using risk-based indicator classification approaches in blackfoot disease hyperendemic areas of southern Taiwan. Indicator kriging was first used to establish a conditional cumulative distribution function at each cell. Three approaches--the p-quantile estimate, the E-type estimate and the minimization of the expected loss--were then adopted to delimit contaminated regions for a regulated standard of As concentrations in groundwater. According to a risk assessment model established in our previous research, the standard was set to 250 microg/l for aquacultural use, corresponding to the 77.1th percentile of observed concentrations. Misclassification risks and uncertainty were examined for the classification approaches. The analyzed results reveal that contaminated areas are the largest using the 0.771-quantile estimate, whereas they are the smallest using the minimization of the expected loss. Proportions of credible polluted areas with low risks to false positives maintain a constant, 12.9-13.2%, for the classification approaches. To reduce a great impact on human health, As-polluted groundwater should be strictly prohibited to cultivate fish in credible polluted zones and monitored persistently in polluted zones with high risks to false positives.     

江苏省突发性环境污染事故应急监测支持系统建设框架

阐述了江苏省突发性环境污染事故应急监测支持系统的建设原则、总体目标和建设内容。提出突发性环境污染事故应急监测支持系统建设的总体目标是 :建立突发性环境污染事故的应急监测风险源动态档案 ,建立应急监测的组织保障系统和应急监测的技术支持系统     

The U.S.-China Supply Competition for Rare Earth Elements: a Dynamic Game View

Environmental Modeling & Assessment - Rare earth elements govern today’s high-tech world and are deemed to be essential for the attainment of sustainable development goals. Since the...     

Social goals and the valuation of natural capital

Valuation ultimately refers to the contribution of an item to meeting a specific goal or objective. Conventional economic valuation is based on the goal of allocative efficiency. But other social goals may be equally, if not more, important. For example, the goals of social fairness and ecological sustainability have been identified as being at least of the samelevel of importance as allocative efficiency. This paper looks atthe role of social goals in determining the basis for valuation ofnatural capital and ecosystem services, and sketches the characteristics of a system of valuation that would give equal weight to all three of the major social goals mentioned above. It also places these goals within a more comprehensive conceptualmodel of the economy and its relationship to the ecological lifesupport system in which it is embedded.     

Combinatorial optimization of elk habitat effectiveness and timber harvest volume

Forest resource planning processes in the western United States have been placing an increasing emphasis on wildlife and fish habitat goals. With this in mind, we developed a method that incorporates a Habitat Effectiveness Index (HEI) for Roosevelt elk (Cervus elaphus roosevelti) into the objective function of a mathematical forest planning model. In addition, a commodity production goal is proposed (maximum timber production), and the habitat and commodity production goals are allowed to act as goals in a multi-objective goal programming planning problem. A heuristic programming technique (tabu search) is used to develop feasible solutions to the resulting non-linear, integer programming problem. Using a hypothetical example, we illustrate results of five scenarios, where the emphasis of the achievement of one or both goals is altered. The main contribution of this approach is the ability to measure and evaluate the trade-offs among achieving a certain level of a complex wildlife goal and achieving commodity production goals. These trade-offs are measured using a flexible model, allowing planners to formulate non-linear spatial goals as objectives of a problem, rather than forcing them to rely on posterior evaluations of the suitability of management plans to goals such as elk HEI.     

制订我国污染场地土壤风险筛选值的几点建议

近年来,我国大中城市陆续开展污染企业搬迁,环境管理上要求对搬迁场地进行商业开发前必须开展场地环境调查、风险评估和修复,客观上要求有一套场地环境评价标准和污染土壤修复标准.针对目前国内污染场地标准缺失及盲目引用国外相关筛选值出现的误区,分析了美国、荷兰和英国土壤筛选值差异的主要原因,为合理借鉴国外土壤筛选值及其制定方法学...     

Human Risk Assessment for Heavy Metals and as Contamination in the Abandoned Metal Mine Areas, Korea

Cleanup goals for the contaminated sites are established on the basis of risk assessments and rely on the estimated toxicity of the chemicals of concern (COC). Toxicity estimates are based on bioavailability causing risk of adverse health effects on humans. In this study, bioavailability of As, Cu, Pb and Zn in soil was determined by SBET (Simple Bioavailability Extraction Test), and chemical analysis for groundwater and stream water collected from the abandoned mine areas (Dukeum, Dongil, Dongjung, Myungbong and Songchun mine areas) was conducted. High values of cancer risk for As (1.16×10⁻⁵) were detected through soil ingestion pathways in the Songchun mine area and assessed through water exposure pathways in the all mines except Dukeum. The hazard index value for As in the Songchun mine area (3.625) exceeded 1.0. The results indicated that the ingestion of As-contaminated soil and water by local inhabitants can pose a potential health threat in these mine areas.     

Regulation of pesticide discharge into surface and groundwater under uncertainty: A model for environmental risk‐profitability tradeoffs and policy selection

The presence of contaminants in environmental media as well as the desire to maintain a high level of economic activity has led to an important and difficult decision‐making problem for both public policy decision makers and the general public. In one sense, all of the interested parties are likely to be concerned about the potential health risks posed by the presence of contaminants in environmental media and the need to design/implement policies for their mitigation and/or removal. At the same time, however, there also appear to be concerns about the cost of these policies. These costs could be measured in terms of the potential losses in economic activity that are likely to occur when a policy is adopted. The policy can be selected from a range of alternatives, with the choice being driven in part by the stakeholders represented in the policy decision problem. In this case, two general goals might be considered: minimizing environmental risk and minimizing the economic impact of the policy considered. These two objectives are likely to be viewed as conflicting goals, and the nature of the tradeoffs between them must be taken into account in the policy selection process. This paper presents the development of a zero–one weighted goal programming model that can be used to select a preferred policy that minimizes surface and groundwater contamination as well as the economic costs of environmental policy selection. A safety rule model is developed first and then extended to the zero–one weighted goal programming formulation. The stochastic aspects of these structures are emphasized throughout. The paper also addresses a number of issues related to implementation of the model.     

The role of SEA in integrating and balancing high policy objectives in European cohesion funding programmes

Funding programmes for European cohesion policy are a crucial tool to support the sustainability goals of the European Union and national policies of its member states. All these funding programmes require a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to enhance sustainable development. This article compares five first SEA applications at cohesion policy level to discuss challenges, limitations and benefits of this instrument. In order to support the SEA-process a “Handbook on SEA for Cohesion Policy 2007–13” (GRDP 2006) was developed. The paper examines the special requirements and challenges at the programme level given the special conditions for stakeholder involvement, integration of SEA in the programme development process and strategies to cope with uncertainties to ensure real compatibility with policy goals. Using action research and in-depth interviews with SEA planners and programme managers enabled us to analyse the suitability of the methodology proposed by the handbook. The results show that some recommendations of the handbook should be changed in order to increase the transparency and to enhance the standard and comparability of the SEA-documents.Overall the SEA proved to be a rather successful tool for the integration of sustainability goals at the EU and national policy levels. Its particular strengths emerged as the process makes uncertainties visible and leads to possible redefinitions while maintaining actual policy goals.     

Principles for the monitoring and evaluation of wetland extent,condition and function in Australia

The monitoring of resource condition is receiving renewed attention across several levels of government in Australia. This interest is linked to substantial investment in environmental remediation and aquatic ecosystem restoration in particular. In this context, it is timely to consider principles which ought to guide the development and implementation of monitoring programmes for wetland ecosystems. A framework is established which places monitoring in the context of the strategic adaptive management of wetlands. This framework requires there has to be clear goals for the extent and condition of the resource, with these goals being defined within thresholds of acceptable variability. Qualitative and, where possible, quantitative conceptual models linking management interventions to management goals should be the basis of indicator selection and assessment. The intensity of sampling ought to be informed by pilot surveys of statistical power in relation to the thresholds of acceptable variability identified within the management plan.     

南方某河流型饮用水源地重金属健康风险评估

对南方某河流型饮用水源地水中重金属含量进行调查研究,并应用美国环保局推荐的健康风险评价模型对其进行健康风险评价。结果表明,该饮用水源地水中重金属类污染物健康风险值相对较低,其中重金属类致癌污染物的健康风险均值大小顺序为CrAsCd,其值分别为8.19×10-6、2.11×10-6、1.59×10-7a-1,Cr、As的风险值高于瑞典、荷兰、英国推荐的最大可接受水平(1×10-6a-1),而低于国际(ICRP)与美国环保局的健康风险可接受水平(5×10-5a-1和1×10-4a-1),成为该饮用水源地的主要致癌污染因子。重金属类非致癌污染物的健康风险均值大小顺序为CuNiZn,其值分别为1.95×10-10、1.19×10-10、5.73×10-12a-1,均远远低于致癌污染物的健康风险值。     

Heavy metal concentrations in particle size fractions from street dust of Murcia (Spain) as the basis for risk assessment

Street dust has been sampled from six different types of land use of the city of Murcia (Spain). The samples were fractionated into eleven particle size fractions (<2, 2-10, 10-20, 20-50, 50-75, 75-106, 106-150, 150-180, 180-425, 425-850 μm and 850-2000 μm) and analyzed for Pb, Cu, Zn and Cd. The concentrations of these four potentially toxic metals were assessed, as well as the effect of particle size on their distribution. A severe enrichment of all metals was observed for all land-uses (industrial, suburban, urban and highways), with the concentration of all metals affected by the type of land-use. Coarse and fine particles in all cases showed concentrations of metals higher than those found in undisturbed areas. However, the results indicated a preferential partitioning of metals in fine particle size fractions in all cases, following a logarithmic distribution. The accumulation in the fine fractions was higher when the metals had an anthropogenic origin. The strong overrepresentation of metals in particles <10 μm indicates that if the finest fractions are removed by a vacuum-assisted dry sweeper or a regenerative-air sweeper the risk of metal dispersion and its consequent risk for humans will be highly reduced. Therefore, we recommend that risk assessment programs include monitoring of metal concentrations in dust where each land-use is separately evaluated. The finest particle fractions should be examined explicitly in order to apply the most efficient measures for reducing the risk of inhalation and ingestion of dust for humans and risk for the environment.     

农药企业搬迁土地挥发性有机物风险评价

对常州某农药生产场地土壤中挥发性有机物(VOCs)污染状况以及健康风险和生态风险进行了调查评价。结果表明,该场地土壤中挥发性有机物污染以苯系物和卤代烃为主。苯系物质量浓度为0~56.6 mg/kg,卤代烃质量浓度为0~1.14 mg/kg。健康风险评价结果均在可接受范围内,而生态风险评价显示生产车间内的土壤VOCs生态风险较大,存在着对生物的危害。     

The relevance of speciation in the remediation of soils and sediments contaminated by metallic elements--an overview and examples from Central Scotland, UK

The environmental impact of metallic contaminants in soils and sediments is dependent both on the chemical speciation of the metal and the response of the matrix to biological and physicochemical conditions. These factors are responsible for the mobilisation of the metal from the solid into the aquatic phase and hence transport within the immediate vicinity, impacting on the rate of dispersal, dilution, uptake and transfer into living systems. The impact of changing environmental conditions on the contaminant inventory can be to enhance or moderate these phenomena, with subsequent consequences for the broader risk assessment of the contaminants. Remediation of metallic contaminants can only be brought about by their removal from the site or by establishing conditions which favour their retention in the solid phase. A wide range of in situ and ex situ approaches are available and a summary overview is presented. The examples show assessment at both the field and laboratory scale and demonstrate an equally wide range of success in achieving remediation targets. This can be attributed to limitations in ensuring that the desired conditions for the initial removal or immobilisation process are met and maintained over a suitable period of time. Three areas are reviewed which include: the transport and release of metallic contaminants in estuarine sediments and the assessment of their potential to impact on biota; terrestrial contamination systems involving the release of chromium from waste ore contaminating urban environments; the response of metal-contaminated wastes to changing environmental conditions and the impact of natural bioremediation. The focus of the discussion is to highlight the generation of reliable speciation information and the problems associated with impact and risk assessment. Particular issues of concern are the laboratory to field scale evaluation of contaminant behaviour and the approach used to assess the reliability of remediation options. In conclusion, part of a recent initiative in risk assessment and the development of pilot scale experimental systems to study long-term behaviour are addressed as future goals to fill gaps in current research.     

Using Compliance Analysis for PPP to bridge the gap between SEA and EIA: Lessons from the Turcot Interchange reconstruction in Montréal,Québec

There is increasing concern about the disjunct between the intent of higher level government goals and actual projects “on the ground” in Canada. Although strategic environmental assessment (SEA) and a wide variety of plans, policies and programmes (PPP) contain and promote goals that envision a movement towards social, economic and environmental sustainability, these goals are not necessarily upheld by large-scale projects and their environmental impact assessments (EIAs). This disconnect is often illustrated through anecdotal observations. However, to be able to overcome this disjunct it is imperative to come to a clearer understanding of the degree of sustainability or unsustainability of large-scale developments and the way in which they “measure up” in terms of the goals when compared to alternative options.This article proposes a Compliance Analysis method for investigating the level of harmonization between SEA, PPP and proposed projects and their possible alternatives (CAPPP). This method is quantified through a Likert scale which allows for comparison of alternatives for decision making and analytical purposes. The 2009 proposal for the Turcot Exchange redevelopment in Montréal, Québec, put forward by the Ministry of Transport of Québec (MTQ), as well as two alternative proposals, were utilized as a case study to clearly demonstrate the CAPPP methodology and its applicability.The approved plan for the Turcot redevelopment proposed by MTQ was found to be in poor compliance with the majority of the 178 goals in the six sectors that were examined (air quality, climate change, health, noise, socioeconomic, transport), while alternative proposals were found to be in greater accordance with the intentions of governmental SEA and PPP.Synthesis and applications: The CAPPP methodology is a versatile “watchdog” tool for the examination of the level of compliance between stated goals for regions, industrial sectors, or governments and the EIAs of concrete projects “on the ground”. CAPPP can be used as a tool for comparative analysis in decision-making situations at various scales. CAPPP is a fairly straight-forward method that can be used by policy makers, EIA experts, and members of the general public alike.     

Biocomplementation of SVE to achieve clean-up goals in soils contaminated with toluene and xylene

Soil vapor extraction (SVE) and bioremediation (BR) are two of the most common soil remediation technologies. Their application is widespread; however, both present limitations, namely related to the efficiencies of SVE on organic soils and to the remediation times of some BR processes. This work aimed to study the combination of these two technologies in order to verify the achievement of the legal clean-up goals in soil remediation projects involving seven different simulated soils separately contaminated with toluene and xylene. The remediations consisted of the application of SVE followed by biostimulation. The results show that the combination of these two technologies is effective and manages to achieve the clean-up goals imposed by the Spanish Legislation. Under the experimental conditions used in this work, SVE is sufficient for the remediation of soils, contaminated separately with toluene and xylene, with organic matter contents (OMC) below 4 %. In soils with higher OMC, the use of BR, as a complementary technology, and when the concentration of contaminant in the gas phase of the soil reaches values near 1 mg/L, allows the achievement of the clean-up goals. The OMC was a key parameter because it hindered SVE due to adsorption phenomena but enhanced the BR process because it acted as a microorganism and nutrient source.     

POP exposure from fish liver consumption and risk of cancer--the Norwegian Women and Cancer Study

The aim of the study was to investigate the hypothesis that consumption of fish liver increases cancer risk in humans due to increased intake of persistent organic pollutants (POPs). This study is based on data from the Norwegian Women and Cancer Study (NOWAC). The study has a prospective cohort design with questionnaire data from 64 285 randomly selected Norwegian women (aged 40-70 at baseline) and linkage to the Norwegian Cancer Registry. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to calculate risk ratios associated with consumption of fish liver and total cancer and cancer in breast, uterus, and colon. Fish liver consumption was, after adjusting for known risk factors, associated with a significant reduced risk for total cancer (RR = 0.92, 95% CI: 0.85, 0.99), and non-significant reduced risk for breast cancer (RR = 0.90, 95% CI: 0.78, 1.04), and colon cancer (RR = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.63, 1.07). Relative risk for uterus cancer was 0.82 (95% CI: 0.61-1.12). No significant dose-response effect was found for frequency of fish liver consumption (when divided into three intake groups) and total cancer, nor for any of the other cancer sites.We have concluded that in Norwegian women, fish liver consumption was not associated with an increased cancer risk in breast, uterus, or colon. In contrast, a decreased risk for total cancer was found.     

Quantifying impact reduction due to avoidance,minimization and restoration for a natural gas pipeline in the Peruvian Andes

We present monitoring methods and quantitative biodiversity data to document components of the mitigation hierarchy. We estimated avoidance, minimization, restoration and impact reduction in quality hectares for the 25 m wide right of way of a 408 km natural gas buried pipeline that crosses 14 Ecological Landscape Units (ELUs) in the tropical Andes of Peru. We found that applying the mitigation hierarchy as part of a comprehensive biodiversity action plan substantially reduced impacts on biodiversity in all habitats studied. Avoidance and right of way minimization contributed to significant impact reduction. We quantified impact reduction during construction and operation on the right of way of the pipeline over a five-year period and found that restoration was the greatest contributor to reducing impacts. We documented that most ELUs have a positive restoration trajectory. We also documented how monitoring over large scale spatial scales, in combination with site-specific monitoring, generated data for management to determine restoration priorities and impact mitigation. A biodiversity action plan that incorporated the mitigation hierarchy and a science-based biodiversity monitoring and assessment program contributed to biodiversity management of the project and played an important role in minimizing and managing impacts.     

经济开发区危险废物排放权交易模

简要介绍污染物排放权交易制度的理论基础,根据经济开发区自身特点,提出其在危险废物减量化管理中运用的新思路,并通过数学模型,以控制总量、分配决定因子等为制约条件,发展了一套针对经济开发区危险废弃物排放权交易系统的计算方法。     

TCLP法对天津市农田重金属生态风险评价

TCLP法是用缓冲剂提取重金属的一种方法,该法评价重金属生态风险在美国已开展多年。利用TCLP法对天津市某农田土壤重金属进行生态风险评价,结果表明,在采集的23个样品中有效态铜、铅、锌、镉的含量范围为1.13~5.26、2.11~5.22、2.60~30.6、1.09×10-3~77.9×10-3mg/kg,普遍低于铜、铅、锌、镉在土壤中的总量(22.1~66.8、21.2~50.6、56.8~445、0.04~0.20 mg/kg)。镉的TCLP有效态与总量的差别最大。锌、铅存在轻微污染,污染率分别为21.7%、4.3%。