Neighborhood quality in environmentally stressed areas of Accra, Ghana: a comparison with US counterparts

A sample of 873 residents of Accra, Ghana, stratified by type of neighborhood was gathered in order to measure the association of poor neighborhood quality with neighborhood problems and residents' personal characteristics. Strong associations were found with poor schools, physical blight, rowdy and criminal behavior, ethnic differences, and environmental problems. In addition, poor neighborhood quality was strongly associated with mistrust of authority and a feeling of a lack of control over neighborhood activities. Respondents identified road, street, drainage, sewage, and other infrastructure deficiencies as priorities to address, even though these were not prominent discriminators of neighborhood quality ratings. Many of these findings are common to counterparts in the US, but some findings appear to reflect cultural and differences in urbanization.     

Adaptive management of marine mega-fauna in a changing climate

Management of marine mega-fauna in a changing climate is constrained by a series of uncertainties, often related to climate change projections, ecological responses, and the effectiveness of strategies in alleviating climate change impacts. Uncertainties can be reduced over time through adaptive management. Adaptive management is a framework for resource conservation that promotes iterative learning-based decision making. To successfully implement the adaptive management cycle, different steps (planning, designing, learning and adjusting) need to be systematically implemented to inform earlier steps in an iterative way. Despite the critical role that adaptive management is likely to play in addressing the impacts of climate change on marine mega-fauna few managers have successfully implemented an adaptive management approach. We discuss the approaches necessary to implement each step of an adaptive management cycle to manage marine mega-fauna in a changing climate, highlighting the steps that require further attention to fully implement the process. Examples of sharks and rays (Selachimorpha and Batoidea) on the Great Barrier Reef and little penguins, Eudyptula minor, in south-eastern Australia are used as case studies. We found that successful implementation of the full adaptive management cycle to marine mega-fauna needs managers and researchers to: (1) obtain a better understanding of the capacity of species to adapt to climate change to inform the planning step; (2) identify strategies to directly address impacts in the marine environment to inform the designing step; and (3) develop systematic evaluation and monitoring programs to inform the learning step. Further, legislation needs to flexible to allow for management to respond.     

Family Support Inventory for Workers: A new measure of perceived social support from family members

A measure of family social support for workers was developed, and initial investigations of its psychometric characteristics were conducted. Data from several samples endorse the internal consistency of the support dimensions of emotional sustenance and instrumental assistance, and confirmatory factor analysis findings reinforce the bidimensional structure of the instrument. Lack of a relationship with social desirability, correlations with life and job satisfactions, and gender differences in perceived instrumental assistance afford preliminary validity evidence. Exploratory multiple regression analyses revealed significant three-way interactions suggesting that the level of emotional sustenance from family members may be important to job satisfaction for employed women. Furthermore, empirical evidence was generated to assess the viability of the instrument relative to other existing measures of social support. Results supported convergent, discriminant, and nomological validity.     

Quaternized agricultural by-products as anion exchange resins

The objectives of this study were the chemical modification of readily available, low-cost agricultural by-products to anion exchange resins and the selection of the best modified by-product for further use in anion removal. Resins were prepared through the quaternization of a series of 12 agricultural by-products with N-(3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyl) trimethylammonium chloride (CHMAC). Phosphate ion adsorption assays were conducted at pH 7 in order to compare adsorption properties among the by-products. Quaternized corn stover showed the highest phosphorus adsorption at 0.66 mmole/g. Since corn stover exhibited the best uptake of phosphate ion, it was compared to a commercially available, cellulose-based anion exchange resin. Additionally, adsorption capacities of quaternized corn stover for arsenate, chromate, and selenate were evaluated and adsorption efficiencies were determined in simulated wastewater samples. Our results indicate that modified corn stover demonstrates good adsorption uptake for arsenate and selenate and especially for chromate.     

Molecular analysis of carbon dioxide adsorption processes on steel slag oxides

This review presents a summary of the main interactions that occur during the carbon dioxide (CO₂) adsorption at the surface of steel slags with basic (CaO, MgO), amphoteric (Al₂O₃, Cr₂O₃, TiO₂, MnO, iron oxides) and acidic (SiO₂) oxides. The high content of metal oxides in steel slags gives them a great potential to adsorb CO₂, reaching a saturation value of about 0.25 kg of CO₂/kg of slag. CO₂ is physisorbed and chemisorbed on the most of metal oxide types. Generally, the CO₂ physisorption on the basic and amphoteric metal oxides involves an electrostatic interaction between the CO₂ and the cation from the oxides while the CO₂ chemisorption rather implicates the basic sites that acts as the electron donor, and which are associated with O^2? ions localized at surface defects. These interactions result in the formation of carbonates (monodentates or unidentates and bidentates). The affinity of oxides for the CO₂ and the carbonate formation principally depend of the strength and number of basic sites at their surface and varies as following: basic oxides > amphoteric oxides > acidic oxides. The basic metal oxides generally represent the best electron donors and thus the best CO₂ adsorbents due to the high basicity and their great number of reaction sites. Hence, it appears that the surface structure of basic and amphoteric metal oxides which may favour their interaction with the CO₂, as well as their basicity is the determinant factor contributing to the formation of carbonate species. The molecular analysis of CO₂ adsorption on steel slag metal oxides will provide useful data to identify rate-controlling mechanisms and should be considered for the development of new effective methods for the capture of atmospheric CO₂ emissions released from industries.     

Measurement of organic contaminants and biological effects in Scottish waters between 1999 and 2005

Concentrations of organic contaminants were determined in sediment and fish collected annually at six sites around Scotland between 1999 and 2005, as part of the UK National Marine Monitoring Programme. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and chlorobiphenyls (CBs) were measured in sediment, while CBs and ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activities were measured in the fish. Highest PAH concentrations in sediment were found at sites where higher coastal influences would be expected (e.g., Clyde and Solway) and four of the six sites gave PAH concentrations above OSPAR background assessment concentrations (BACs). A significant downward trend in the median total PAH concentrations, normalised to total organic carbon (TOC), was found at one of the six sites (Minches). The PAH profiles at all sites were consistent over the 6 year period, indicating that the sites are relatively stable and PAH sources are not changing. There was an indication of a greater petrogenic input on the west coast, with sediment from the Clyde, Solway and Minches having a greater proportion of 2- and 3-ring PAHs and a lower proportion of 5-ring PAHs. CB concentrations at all sites were low compared with UK estuarine sites and similar to sediment from more remote areas: however, BACs were exceeded. No significant trends were detected in either the sediment CB concentrations or patterns at any of the six sites. CB concentrations were significantly higher in fish liver collected from the Clyde. Concentrations at the other five sites were low, with the majority of samples having concentrations for the ICES7 CBs of <500 microg kg(-1) lipid weight. However, individual CB concentrations were still above the BACs. Hepatic EROD activities were measured in male plaice from 2002-2005 and were generally low (<10 pmol min(-1) mg protein(-1)). No temporal trends were detected in either CB concentrations or the EROD activity.     

Determination of chlorinated paraffins in sediments from the Firth of Clyde by gas chromatography with electron capture negative ionisation mass spectrometry and carbon skeleton analysis by gas chromatography with flame ionisation detection

Short chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) are a group of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) of increasing concern, but are to date not widely investigated in the environment, largely due to the challenges involved in their quantification. Here, SCCPs were quantified in marine sediments from the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, by gas chromatography with electron capture negative ionisation mass spectrometry (GC-ECNIMS) and through carbon skeleton analysis by gas chromatography with flame ionisation detection (GC-FID), and the analytical challenges encountered are discussed. Concentrations in the sediments ranged from 0.4 to 69 μg kg⁻¹ when determined by GC-ECNIMS, and from 5.6 to 379 μg kg⁻¹ when determined by GC-FID. For 8 out of 11 samples, analysis by GC-FID gave higher results than analysis by GC-ECNIMS. Unexpected aspects of the analysis, such as the presence of high concentrations of longer chain chlorinated paraffins in the samples, are also presented.     

An assessment of persistent organic pollutants in Scottish coastal and offshore marine environments

Concentrations of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were determined in sediment and biota (fish liver) from around Scotland. The concentrations were investigated using assessment criteria developed by OSPAR and ICES. Organic contaminant concentrations, PAHs, PCBs and PBDEs in sediment, and PCBs and PBDEs in fish liver, were significantly higher in the Clyde compared to all other sea areas. This is mainly due to historic industrial inputs. Highest PCB and PAH concentrations were found in the strata furthest up the Clyde estuary, with concentrations of POPs in these strata being at levels such that there is an unacceptable risk of chronic effects occurring in marine species. Furthermore, for PAHs in Clyde sediment there was a significant negative gradient going from north to south towards the open sea. PAH and PCB concentrations in sediment and biota in all other Scottish sea areas (except for PCBs in sediment from East Scotland) were unlikely to give rise to pollution effects, being below relevant assessment criteria. Although no assessment criteria are available for PBDEs, the concentrations observed in Scottish sediments were low with all congeners below the limit of detection (LoD; 0.03 μg kg(-1) dry weight) in 140 out of a total of 307 samples analysed. Where PBDEs were detected, the dominant congeners were BDE47 and BDE99. PBDEs were detected in fish livers, although concentrations were less than 150 μg kg(-1) lipid weight in all sea areas except the Clyde where concentrations ranged between 8.9 and 2202 μg kg(-1) lipid weight. Few trends were detected in contaminant concentrations in biota or sediment at any Scottish site with more than five years data. Downward trends were detected in PAHs in sediment from the Clyde, Irish Sea and Minches and Malin Sea and PCBs in fish liver from the Moray Firth. Rules were developed for the aggregation of the contaminant data across a sea area. An overall assessment for each sea area was then assigned, looking at the frequency of sites or strata within each sea area that were above or below the relevant assessment criteria. Overall the status of the various sea areas, with respect to the assessed POPs, can be considered to be acceptable in that they were below concentrations likely to result in chronic effects for all sea areas except the Clyde.     

Secular and Faith-based Organisations as Reliable Information Sources for Residents of Environmentally Stressed Neighbourhoods

A sample of 873 residents of Accra, Ghana, and 504 residents of the state of New Jersey, USA, stratified by type of neighbourhood was gathered in order to determine the sources of information residents rely on for accurate information about their neighbourhoods. In both countries residents relied most heavily on personal contacts, television and radio, and much less on community organisations. Residents who rely on many sources for reliable information tend to have lived in their neighbourhood for a long time and to be more engaged in neighbourhood activities than those who reach out to fewer sources. Those who rely on secular community organisations tend to mistrust science, experts and local officials. Those who rely on faith-based organisations are much more trusting of local officials but are even less trusting of science and experts than their counterparts. The implications of these results for building and sustaining community organisations are discussed.