Elemental carbon (EC) particles have been found in the lungs of dolphins. The question arose as to whether these particles originated over land or water. This project determined the amount of EC particulate found in terrestrial air. Portions of paniculate filters and associated data collected during the period from January 1990 through December 1991 were provided by the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation. Using reflectance spectroscopy and laboratory-generated standards, atmospheric concentrations of EC and TSP were determined. This paper addresses the data from those counties which surround Tampa Bay. In the spring of 1992, a television news station reported that researchers at Mote Marine Institute had found black carbon particulates in the lungs of dolphins (reported as “...dolphins with Black Lung Disease..."). The dolphins were found in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida.1 In discussions with a principal investigator of the dolphin study, the question arose as to whether these particulates came from urban or marine sources. No comprehensive investigation of soot concentrations in the air over Florida had been made. This study reports the elemental carbon (EC) content of urban particulate matter in the Tampa Bay region, where the affected dolphins were discovered between 1988 and 1990 (Sarasota County). This is the first step toward answering whether urban concentrations of EC were sufficient to contribute measurably to the EC found in the marine environment. Future efforts will address marine concentrations and sources of EC. Elemental carbon, commonly termed “soot,” is a product of incomplete combustion. Common urban sources of EC in particulate matter include both mobile sources (diesel-powered buses, cars, and trucks) and point sources (incinerators, power plants and home heating units). The State of Florida operates environmental monitoring stations in selected municipalities around the state. At these stations, which were sited according to EPA requirements2, Total Suspended Particulate (TSP) samples were collected using the accepted methods.3 These samples were suitable for EC analysis. Samples collected in the Tampa Bay region in 199b and 1991 were analyzed for EC content using reflectance spectroscopy. EC concentrations were calculated in micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m3). 相似文献
Safety at sea is a serious issue for the commercial fishing industry. Injury and fatality rates are between 25 and 40 times the national average in many European counties, Australia and the USA. A 50-item safety culture questionnaire was developed, using items from published research combined with some original items. The questionnaire was distributed to fishermen who completed the responses. A total of 209 questionnaires were collected. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) revealed nine factors, all with a Cronbach’s Alpha higher than 0.68. The factors were tested using ANOVA, t-tests, correlations and regression analysis.The findings indicate significant differences between age groups, vessel types, occupations, and whether or not a close family member is a fisherman. It was also found that the safety attitude of management had a strong influence on a company’s safety policy. Fishermen who had sought medical attention during the preceding year as a result of an accident showed a significantly less positive attitude to rules and regulations and had a less positive safety attitude in general. Fishermen who had been involved in a serious accident/incident showed a significantly more positive attitude to rules and regulations. 相似文献
Whilst the existence of global climate change is no longer seriously contested and most governments are seeking to adopt appropriate responses, the rate of engagement with these measures is slow. Top-down policies and reliance on market mechanisms are failing to produce the reductions in energy demand and shifts away from fossil fuel reliance that are required. This paper outlines an example of a research programme that seeks to deliver more rapid change. It focuses on the potential for carbon emission reduction in a deprived community in South Yorkshire, UK, and reports on an approach that could be replicated elsewhere. The method includes estimation of baseline energy demand, energy efficiency potential and renewable energy resource assessment as a precursor to action. An innovative community-based energy service company is described and the benefits of a community-based bottom-up approach to carbon reduction are outlined. 相似文献
Abstract: Increases in timber demand and urban development in the Atlantic Coastal Plain over the past decade have motivated studies on the hydrology, water quality, and sustainable management of coastal plain watersheds. However, studies on baseline water budgets are limited for the low‐lying, forested watersheds of the Atlantic Coastal Plain. The purpose of this study was to document the hydrology and a method to quantify the water budget of a first‐order forested watershed, WS80, located within the USDA Forest Service Santee Experimental Forest northeast of Charleston, South Carolina. Annual Rainfall for the 2003 and 2004 periods were 1,671 mm (300 mm above normal) and 962 mm (over 400 mm below normal), respectively. Runoff coefficients (outflow as a fraction of total rainfall) for the 2003 and 2004 periods were 0.47 and 0.08, respectively, indicating a wide variability of outflows as affected by antecedent conditions. A spreadsheet‐based Thornthwaite monthly water balance model was tested on WS80 using three different potential evapotranspiration estimators [Hamon, Thornthwaite, and Penman‐Monteith (P‐M)]. The Hamon and P‐M‐based methods performed reasonably well with average absolute monthly deviations of 12.6 and 13.9 mm, respectively, between the measured and predicted outflows. Estimated closure errors were all within 9% for the 2003, 2004, and seasonal water budgets. These results may have implications on forest management practices and provide necessary baseline or reference information for Atlantic Coastal Plain watersheds. 相似文献
Problem: Although there has been considerable interest in safety culture and safety climate in many industries, little attention has been given to safety culture in one of the world's riskiest industries, shipping. Method: Using both self developed items and items from published research on safety culture, safety climate, and quality and management style, a 40-item safety culture questionnaire was developed. The questionnaire was distributed in a self-administered form to sailors onboard 20 vessels and to officers attending a seminar in Manila. A total of 349 questionnaires were collected (total response rate, 60%). Results, discussion and impact on industry: Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed 11 factors when the Kaiser eigenvalue rule was used and four factors when the scree test criterion was used. The factor structure in the material confirmed structures found in other industries. The relative importance of the factors from the factor analysis on “level of safety” measures was tested by canonical correlation analysis and regression analysis. The results confirmed previous research and showed that the most important factors were influential across industries. To determine weather differences existed between nationalities, occupations, and vessels the factors from the PCA was subjected to Multiple Discriminant Analysis. Significant differences between occupations, nations, and vessels were found on one or more of the factors from the PCA. 相似文献
This paper explains one way in which New Zealand’s free-market reforms have adversely affected its environment. Liberalisation of New Zealand’s economy has radically changed the determinants of agricultural export success, largely due to the elimination of subsidies to domestic producers, and of tariffs on imports. In this exposed agricultural milieu, the dairy industry has thrived; cow numbers have increased by over 50%, with commensurate increases in herd and farm sizes. With this rapid expansion has come increasing pollution of New Zealand’s waterways. New Zealand’s Resource Management Act 1991 is potentially capable of controlling these adverse effects; however, its implementation was slow and piecemeal throughout the 1990s. So, at the same time as production and pollution from dairy farming expanded, the efficacy of environmental policy was limited. The resulting implementation gap has put at risk the ‘clean and green’ image that is an important component of New Zealand’s agricultural export success.Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue. 相似文献