Laboratory investigation of three distinct emissions monitors for hydrochloric acid

The measurement of hydrochloric acid (HCl) on a continuous basis in coal-fired plants is expected to become more important if HCl standards become implemented as part of the Federal Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) standards that are under consideration. For this study, the operational performance of three methods/instruments, including tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS), cavity ring down spectroscopy (CRDS), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, were evaluated over a range of real-world operating environments. Evaluations were done over an HCl concentration range of 0–25 ppmv and temperatures of 25, 100, and 185 °C. The average differences with respect to temperature were 3.0% for the TDL for values over 2.0 ppmv and 6.9% of all concentrations, 3.3% for the CRDS, and 4.5% for the FTIR. Interference tests for H₂O, SO₂, and CO, CO₂, and NO for a range of concentrations typical of flue gases from coal-fired power plants did not show any strong interferences. The possible exception was an interference from H₂O with the FTIR. The instrument average precision over the entire range was 4.4% for the TDL with better precision seen for concentrations levels of 2.0 ppmv and above, 2.5% for the CRDS, and 3.5% for the FTIR. The minimum detection limits were all on the order of 0.25 ppmv, or less, utilizing the TDL values with a 5-m path. Zero drift was found to be 1.48% for the TDL, 0.88% for the CRDS, and 1.28% for the FTIR.

Implications: This study provides an evaluation of the operational performance of three methods/instruments, including TDL absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS), cavity ring down spectroscopy (CRDS), and FTIR spectroscopy, for the measurement of hydrochloric acid (HCl) over a range of real-world operating environments. The results showed good instrument accuracy as a function of temperature and no strong interferences for flue gases typical to coal-fired power plants. The results show that these instruments would be viable for the measurement of HCl in coal-fired plants if HCl standards become implemented as part of the Federal Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) standards that are under consideration.     

A pipeline of tweets: environmental movements’ use of Twitter in response to the Keystone XL pipeline

Social movements often amalgamate otherwise diffuse public political interests. In recent years, social media use has allowed both groups and individuals to engage with political issues both online and offline. How do organizations use Twitter to mobilize networked publics? To what extent do groups promote both ‘connective action’ online and traditional activism offline? How do their strategies differ according to whether they seek to promote or combat the status quo? And how do they balance encouraging and reinforcing individualized expression through group messaging? The ways pro-Keystone XL pipeline and anti-Keystone XL groups differed in their Keystone-related action on Twitter from January 2010 until October 2014 are analyzed. Boolean searching and Natural Language processing are used to analyze more than three million tweets. The results demonstrate that the frames within Twitter conversations have significant implications for how communities understand, develop, and mobilize around environmental issues.     

Assessing the vulnerability of rare plants using climate change velocity,habitat connectivity,and dispersal ability: a case study in Alberta,Canada

Climate change generally requires species to migrate northward or to higher elevation to maintain constant climate conditions, but migration requirement and migration capacity of individual species can vary greatly. Individual populations of species occupy different positions in the landscape that determine their required range shift to maintain similar climate, and likewise the migration capacity depends on habitat connectivity. Here, we demonstrate an approach to quantifying species vulnerabilities to climate change for 419 rare vascular plants in Alberta, Canada, based on a multivariate velocity of climate change metric, local habitat fragmentation, and migration capacity. Climate change velocities indicated that future migration requirements ranged from 1 to 5 km/year in topographically complex landscapes, such as the Alberta Foothills and Rocky Mountains. In contrast, migration requirements to maintain constant climate in relatively flat Boreal Plains, Parkland, and Grassland ranged from 4 to 8 km/year. Habitat fragmentation was also highest in these flat regions, particularly the Parkland Natural Region. Of the 419 rare vascular plants assessed, 36 were globally threatened (G1–G3 ranking). Three globally threatened species were ranked as extremely vulnerable and five species as highly vulnerable to the interactions among climate change velocity, habitat fragmentation, and migration capacity. Incorporating dispersal characteristics and habitat fragmentation with local patterns in climate change velocity improves the assessment of climate change threats to species and may be applied to guide monitoring efforts or conservation actions.     

The ecology of the red fox (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Vulpes vulpes</Emphasis> L.) in the middle Lena River basin

The population of foxes in the central regions of Yakutia has grown by a factor of four to five during the period from 2000 to 2011–2012, following an increase in the abundance of voles from the genus Microtus. A total of 130 carcasses of foxes taken in 2007–2012 have been examined. Age- and sex-related variation in morphological features has been described. The demographic structure of the population has been studied by estimating animal age from annual layers in the recording structures. Changes in female fertility and involvement in reproduction depending on age and feeding conditions have been analyzed. Changes in the composition of fox diet caused by long-term population depression in the mountain hare and their effect on the dynamics of fox abundance have been revealed. Age- and sex-related characteristics of the condition factor in foxes and sex-related differences in their dietary preferences have been demonstrated.     

Characteristics of soil nematode communities under conditions of woody plant introduction

Nematode communities in the rooted soil layer under the crowns of introduced tree species on Valaam Island (Republic of Karelia) have been studied by conventional nematological methods to evaluate their taxonomic diversity, population density, and eco-trophic structure. On the whole, 49 nematode genera have been recorded, with their total abundance varying from 1209 to 2548 ind./100 g soil. The abundance and proportion of plant parasites in the soil nematode assemblage have proved to be higher under introduced trees, compared to natural forest biocenoses.     

Fluctuating asymmetry of rodent cranial structures in an industrial pollution gradient

Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) of the mandible shape has been analyzed in bank voles from the zones affected by pollution from three copper smelters in the Urals. It has been shown that there is the necessity for a detailed analysis of the material, since the level of FA may depend on population parameters. Regardless of the pollution level, FA of the mandible region including the lower part of the mandibular body, ramus and processes is higher than in the diastema region. A gradient effect of toxic exposure on FA has been revealed: an increase in its level under increasing technogenic impact is clearly manifested along local pollution gradients.     

Framing for resilience through social learning: impacts of environmental stewardship on youth in post-disturbance communities

Civic ecology practices, such as community gardening and citizen-led urban reforestation and wetland restoration, provide opportunities for social learning. Because social learning is an important component of community resilience, we suggest that civic ecology practices can be a strategy for responding to and mitigating environmental disturbances in an era threatened by climate change. Despite the links between civic ecology, social learning and community resilience, empirical research that systematically considers these connections is limited. This study addresses this gap by introducing ‘frames’ as an approach to considering social learning outcomes and process. More specifically, we provide a model for investigating the role civic ecology education programs play in shaping youths’ capacity to understand and respond to environmental disturbance. We used participant observation and cognitive mapping to assess social learning among three youth restoration programs working in the wake of Hurricane Sandy in New York, NY, and after the 2013 floods in Boulder, CO. In all three programs, youth demonstrated social learning and cognitive change by shifting their emphasis from the impacts of disturbance towards a solutions-based framing that focused on community, action, and mitigation. However, the depth of these changes was not uniform across all programs, suggesting that variations in program length, community context, social identity, and opportunities for self-defined action may shape overall impacts of programs and youth capacity for future action.     

Extending the environmental risk assessment for oseltamivir (Tamiflu®) under pandemic use conditions to the coastal marine compartment

In case of an avian-influenza-derived human flu pandemic, an inordinately high use of medicines over several weeks is predicted, in particular for the recommended influenza antiviral oseltamivir (Tamiflu). While the risk of oseltamivir to sewage works and freshwater bodies has already been assessed, the fact that a large percentage of the human population worldwide lives relatively close to the sea raises concern for its environmental compatibility in coastal marine waters. The potential risk of high oseltamivir use to the marine compartment is assessed in this publication, based on the 2003 European Community Technical Guidance Document (TGD) for risk assessment. Subchronic embryo–larval ecotoxicity tests with three marine invertebrates (Pomatoceros triqueter, Annelida; Mytilus edulis, Mollusca; Paracentrotus lividus, Echinodermata) and chronic growth inhibition tests with two different groups of marine microalgae (Isochrysis galbana, Haptophyta; Skeletonema costatum, Heterokontophyta) were performed with the active substance oseltamivir carboxylic acid to derive a dependable marine predicted no-effect concentration (PNEC). This was compared to a predicted environmental concentration (PEC) for oseltamivir in coastal waters, based on the worst-case freshwater PEC. The PEC/PNEC risk characterisation ratio for the marine compartment is well below 1, which in the terminology of the TGD signifies no immediate concern. Further, while oseltamivir may be persistent (P), it is not bioaccumulative (B) nor highly ecotoxic (T) and therefore not a PBT substance. In conclusion, even a high pandemic use of oseltamivir would not lead to a significant risk for the marine compartment, in confirmation of the risk assessment for sewage works and freshwaters.     

Brominated flame retardants and organochlorines in the European environment using great tit eggs as a biomonitoring tool

Large-scale studies are essential to assess the emission patterns and spatial distribution of organohalogenated pollutants (OHPs) in the environment. Bird eggs have several advantages compared to other environmental media which have previously been used to map the distribution of OHPs. In this study, large-scale geographical variation in the occurrence of OHPs, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), was investigated throughout Europe using eggs of a terrestrial residential passerine species, the great tit (Parus major). Great tit eggs from 22 sampling sites, involving urban, rural and remote areas, in 14 European countries were collected and analysed (5-8 eggs per sampling site). The environmentally most important congeners/compounds of the analysed pollutants were detectable in all sampling locations. For PCBs, PBDEs and OCPs, no clear geographical contamination pattern was found. Sum PCB levels ranged from 143 ng/g lipid weight (lw) to 3660 ng/g lw. As expected, PCB concentrations were significantly higher in the sampled urban compared to the remote locations. However, the urban locations did not show significantly higher concentrations compared to the rural locations. Sum PBDEs ranged from 4.0 ng/g lw to 136 ng/g lw. PBDEs were significantly higher in the urbanized sampling locations compared to the other locations. The significant, positive correlation between PCB and PBDE concentrations suggests similar spatial exposure and/or mechanisms of accumulation. Significantly higher levels of OCPs (sum OCPs ranging from 191 ng/g lw to 7830 ng/g lw) were detected in rural sampling locations. Contamination profiles of PCBs, PBDEs and OCPs differed also among the sampling locations, which may be due to local usage and contamination sources. The higher variance among sampling locations for the PCBs and OCPs, suggests that local contamination sources are more important for the PCBs and OCPs compared to the PBDEs. To our knowledge, this is the first study in which bird eggs were used as a monitoring tool for OHPs on such a large geographical scale.     

Estimating human exposure to transport noise in central Dublin, Ireland

This paper reports on research conducted to determine estimates of the extent of environmental noise exposure from road transport on residents and workers in central Dublin, Ireland. The Harmonoise calculation method is used to calculate noise values for the study area while a Geographical Information System (GIS) is utilised as a platform upon which levels of noise exposure are estimated. Residential exposure is determined for L(den) and L(night) while worker exposure is determined for L(den). In order to analyse the potential of traffic management as a noise abatement measure, traffic was redirected from the main residential areas to alternative road links and the revised exposure levels were determined. The results show that the extent of noise exposure in Dublin is considerable, and in relative terms, it is worse for the night-time period. In addition, the results suggest also that traffic management measures have the potential to lead to significant reductions in the level of noise exposure provided that careful consideration is given to the impact of traffic flows on residential populations.