Bereavement and mourning after a shipping disaster: The case for intervention

This paper describes the help given by the social services department of a shipping company to bereaved families following a shipping disaster. In the absence of clear, factual and prompt information from an authoritative source, there is a tendency for bereaved individuals to deny their loss and thereby delay the process of mourning and eventual recovery. Appropriate intervention and support can help to overcome this tendency as was seen in the Madasa case.     

A model for positive environmental control

In the control of pollution, two apparently important facts are often negelected: (1) removal of a particular pollutant from a particular source and location may merely result in transforming it into a pollutant, or pollutants of different forms, in other locations; (2) the activity of pollution control itself requires inputs, the production of which may generate additional pollutants. In order to achieve positive environmental control, these two facts must be considered in selecting control processes and in determining optimum control standards. It is necessary that an integrated approach to pollution control be taken, making allowances for ecological inter-relations. As practiced today, pollution control is handled as separate problems of disposing gas, liquid and solid wastes. This paper proposes a model for evaluating the total environmental impact of a pollution control process or method. Theoretical criteria for determining an optimum control level with or without resource constraint are also derived.     

Water and soil pollution by Spent lubricating oils

This paper shows that spent lubricating oils from automobile engines generate carboxylic acids on environmental exposure. Samples of exposed oils, isolated from polluted river water and shore muds obtained from various locations, showed a direct proportionality between carboxylic acid content and time of exposure. Carboxylic acids were isolated by solvent extraction and studied by infrared spectroscopy.     

Alteration in Rhizosphere Soil Properties of Afforested <Emphasis Type="Italic">Rhamnus lycioides</Emphasis> Seedlings in Short-Term Response to Mycorrhizal Inoculation with <Emphasis Type="Italic">Glomus intraradices</Emphasis> and Organic Amendment

The reestablisment of autochthonous plant species is an essential strategy for recovering degraded areas under semiarid conditions. A field experiment was carried out to assess the short-term effect of two reafforestation methods involving mycorrhizal inoculation and compost addition on soil quality parameters and Rhamnus lycioides seedling growth. The nutrient content (NPK) and enzymatic activities (dehydrogenase, urease, protease-BAA, acid phosphatase and β-glucosidase) increased and bulk density decreased in the rhizosphere soil with the organic amendment. Biomass C of rhizosphere soil increased by at least 240% with respect to the control soil after mycorrhizal inoculation and the combination of compost addition + mycorrhizal inoculation. Both mycorrhizal inoculation and composted organic residue addition increased R. lycioides seedling growth in the same proportion. In the short term, we conclude that the application of both reafforestation methods not only enhances the establishment of R. lycioides seedlings, but also improves soil quality.     

Implications of Land Use Changes on Carbon Dynamics and Sequestration—Evaluation from Forestry Datasets, India

Forests and soils are a major sink of carbon, and land use changes can affect the magnitude of above ground and below ground carbon stores and the net flux of carbon between the land and the atmosphere. Studies on methods for examining the future consequences of changes in patterns of land use change and carbon flux gains importance, as they provide different options for CO₂ mitigation strategies. In this study, a simulation approach combining Markov chain processes and carbon pools for forests and soils has been implemented to study the carbon flows over a period of time. Markov chains have been computed by converting the land use change and forestry data of India from 1997 to 1999 into a matrix of conditional probabilities reflecting the changes from one class at time t to another class time t+1. Results from Markov modeling suggested Indian forests as a potential sink for 0.94 Gt carbon, with an increase in dense forest area of about 75.93 Mha and decrease of about 3.4 Mha and 5.0 Mha in open and scrub forests, if similar land use changes that occurred during 1997–1999 would continue. The limiting probabilities suggested 34.27 percent as dense forest, 6.90 as open forest, 0.4 percent mangrove forest, 0.1 percent scrub and 58 percent as non-forest area. Although Indian forests are found to be a potential carbon sink, analysis of results from transition probabilities for different years till 2050 suggests that, the forests will continue to be a source of about 20.59 MtC to the atmosphere. The implications of these results in the context of increasing anthropogenic pressure on open and scrub forests and their contribution to carbon source from land use change and forestry sector are discussed. Some of the mitigation aspects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from land use change and forestry sector in India are also reviewed in the study.     

People's Perception About Participatory Developmental Programs: Lessons from the Mountain Risk Engineering Program in the Indian Central Himalaya

The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) is suffering from environmental degradation due to population pressure and infra-structural needs. This is coupled with a natural setting, which creates problems of accelerated soil erosion and mass wasting. In view of these environmental difficulties and the growing concern for effective restoration, there has become an urgent need for multi-disciplinary coordinated improvement schemes. The mitigation of risk arising from hazardous mass wasting processes, through a careful and systematic approach, has helped in the development of the concept of Mountain Risk Engineering (MRE). The MRE practices involve an integrated approach to solving the infra-structural engineering problems of hilly and mountainous areas through environmentally conscious cost-effective and site-specific designs. However, the role of people's participation is extremely crucial for the success of such programs. This paper analyzes the perception of the local people about the approaches adopted in MRE participatory developmental programs and throws light on the intricacies of peoples' participation.     

Developmental Processes, Changing Lifestyle and Traditional Wisdom: Analyses from Western Himalaya

Traditional knowledge and practices are important in prudent resource use and biodiversity conservation. The implications of modernization and changing lifestyle are discussed in the context of agriculture and resource use, the two sectors in which maximum modernization has occurred. The information was gathered through observations and structured interviews over three years (July 1996 to July 1999) of field work in the western Himalaya. It was observed that forest based subsistence agriculture has given way to the market dependant cash crop cultivation. That apart from loss of genetic diversity, has also resulted in the degradation of forests. The use of wild plants in the day-to-day activities has also declined and dependence on high value market products has increased. Currently, wild plants are used only if no other cheap substitute is available in the market or if the use is economically beneficial to the people. Thus, the knowledge gathered through ages of experience is eroding because of the activities geared for short-term economic benefits which, in long run, may not be sustainable.     

Occurence and Distribution of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Ankara Precipitation

Urban atmospheric environment contains many trace organic pollutants that are related to the incomplete fuel combustion in domestic heating, industrial plants and automobile traffic. Removal of these pollutants from the atmosphere takes place through wet and dry deposition as well as chemical transformations. In this study, concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in wet deposition samples were determined at an urban site of Turkey. Wet and dry deposition samples were collected using Andersen Rain Sampler. The sampler was modified accordingly for the collection of organic pollutants. Collected samples were preconcentrated by using solid phase extraction (SPE) disks and consecutively analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). Among the 13 compounds quantified in this study, anthracene, fluoranthene, and pyrene were found more frequently and at elevated concentrations (202, 271 and 260 ng L^-1 mean concentrations, respectively).Concentrations of PAHs were found to be high in winter period.     

The Role of Soil Organic Carbon in Maintaining Surface Elevation in Rapidly Subsiding U.S. Gulf of Mexico Coastal Marshes

Subsidence is a primary factor governing marsh deterioration in Mississippi River deltaic plain coastal marshes. Marsh surface-water level relationships are maintained primarily through soil organic matter accumulation and inorganic sediment input. In this study we examined the role of soil organic matter accumulation in maintaining marsh elevation in a brackish Spartina patens marsh. Measured rates of soil organic accumulation were compared to plant biomass production and soil respiration (carbon dioxide and methane emission) at the study sites. The study demonstrated the importance of plant biomass production to soil organic carbon accumulation in maintaining viable Spartina patens marshes in sediment-deficient coastal environments. The role of Mississippi River freshwater reintroduction in maintaining conditions for organic accretion is discussed.