环保组织推动金融机构改革环境政策

20世纪80年代初期,世界银行的很多文件都是保密的,不仅NGO无法获得这些文件,甚至学界、一些国家的议会都没有办法获得这些文件。世界银行给出的理由是:作为一个国际机构,他们要和各国政府进行谈判,谈判     

Open-plan office noise: Cognitive performance and restoration

The aim of the present study was to investigate cognitive, emotional, and physiological effects of two open-plan office noise conditions (high noise: 51 LAeq and low noise: 39 LAeq) during work in a simulated open-plan office, followed by four restoration conditions (river movie with sound, only river sound, silence, and office noise) after the work period. Students (N = 47) went through one practice session and two experimental sessions, one each with the low and high noise conditions. In each experimental session they worked for 2 h with tasks involving basic working memory processes. We also took physiological measures of stress (cortisol and catecholamines) and self-reports of mood and fatigue. Analyses indicate that the participants remembered fewer words, rated themselves as more tired, and were less motivated with work in noise compared to low noise. In the restoration phase the participants who saw a nature movie (including river sounds) rated themselves as having more energy after the restoration period in comparison with both the participants who listened to noise and river sounds. Remaining in office noise during the restoration phase also affected motivation more negatively than listening to river sounds or watching the nature movie. The findings bear on the appropriateness of open-plan office designs and the possibilities for restoration available in office settings.     

GIV Noroviruses in Wastewaters and in Stool Specimens from Hospitalized Patients

Noroviruses (NoVs) are important human pathogens associated with foodborne and waterborne gastroenteritis. These viruses are genetically highly heterogeneous, with more than forty genotypes within three genogroups (GI, GII, and GIV) identified in humans. However, the vast majority of human infections are associated with variants of a unique genotype, GII.4. Aside from these NoV strains of epidemiological relevance, NoV strains of genogroup GIV (Alphatron-like) are reported in a sporadic fashion and their overall prevalence in the community is unknown and this likely reflects the lack of specific diagnostic tools. We analyzed raw sewages collected from 32 wastewater treatment plants distributed throughout Italy (307 samples) and stool specimens collected from hospitalized patients with clinical signs of diarrhea of unknown etiology (285 samples). By using specific qualitative and quantitative RT-PCR assays, 21.8 % of the sewage samples and 3.2 % of the stool specimens tested positive for GIV NoVs. The number of genome copies in fecal samples ranged from 5.08 × 10⁴ to 1.73× 10⁶/g of feces. Sequence analysis showed limited genetic variability in human GIV viruses. The presence of GIV NoV both in sewage and in clinical samples confirms that not only GI and GII NoVs but also GIV strains are circulating in humans. Monitoring of GIV NoV is recommended in order to understand the dynamics of circulation in human populations, environmental contamination, and potential health risks.     

Does road salting induce or ameliorate DOC mobilisation from roadside soils to surface waters in the long term?

Soils down slope of roads have been affected over decades by road salting in the UK uplands. Salt additions to fresh soil facilitate dispersal of organic matter so there is a potential risk of release of DON and DOC to nearby rivers where these run parallel to roads. Over time, however, salting enhances soil pH of naturally acid soils, and thus organic matter degradation through to CO2, thereby, lowering soil organic matter content. In addition any relatively labile organic matter may have already been dispersed. Thus, it is hypothesised that enhanced DOC mobilisation should only be a potential problem if soils not previously exposed to salt become heavily exposed in the future. This paper combines data from field observations and laboratory simulations to elucidate mechanisms controlling organic matter mobilisation processes to determine what controls spatial and temporal trends in DOC concentrations in soil solutions down slope of roads. Organic matter solubilisation is dependent on the degree of road salt exposure soils have had. The laboratory experiment provided evidence that there are two competing effects upon which solubilisation is dependent (a) pH suppression and (b) sodium dispersion. Other organic matter solubility models, if correct, link quite well with the authors "when it's gone, it's gone" hypothesis.     

An integrated assessment of long-term changes in the hydrology of three lowland rivers in eastern England

The flow records of the Rivers Bure, Nar and Wensum in eastern England have been examined with the aim of identifying long-term changes in flow behaviour relating to variations in rainfall amount, land use, land drainage intensity and water resources use. In the study area, and since 1931, there is no evidence of long-term change in rainfall amount or distribution, on either an annual or seasonal basis. Despite changes in water resources use and catchment characteristics since the beginning of the century, such as the ending of water milling and increased land drainage and arable farming, rainfall-runoff modelling over the period 1964-1992 showed that the relationship between rainfall and runoff has remained essentially unchanged in the three study rivers. A catchment resource model used to 'naturalise' the historic flow records for the period 1971-1992 to account for the net effect of water supply abstractions and discharges revealed that mean river flows have been altered by surface water and groundwater abstractions, although the average losses to mean weekly flows due to net abstractions for all water uses was no greater than 3%. Greater losses occurred during drought periods as a result of increased consumptive use of water for spray irrigation and amounted to a maximum loss of 24% in the Nar catchment. In lowland areas such as eastern England that are prone to summer dry weather and periodic drought conditions, an integrated approach to river basin management, as advocated by the EU Framework Directive, is recommended for future management of surface and groundwater resources for public water supplies, river regulation purposes and industrial and agricultural demands.     

Degradation of 4-fluorobiphenyl in soil investigated by 19F NMR spectroscopy and 14C radiolabelling analysis

The incubation of the model pollutant [U-14C]'-4-fluorobiphenyl (4FBP) in soil, in the presence and absence of biphenyl (a co-substrate), was carried out in order to study the qualitative disposition and fate of the compound using 14C-HPLC and 19F NMR spectroscopy. Components accounted for using the radiolabel were volatilization, CO2 evolution, organic solvent extractable and bound residue. Quantitative analysis of these data gave a complete mass balance. After sample preparation. 14C-HPLC was used to establish the number of 4FBP related components present in the organic solvent extract. 19F NMR was also used to quantify the organic extracts and to identify the components of the extract. Both approaches showed that the composition of the solvent extractable fractions comprised only parent compound with no metabolites present. As the 14C radiolabel was found to be incorporated into the soil organic matter this indicates that metabolites were being generated, but were highly transitory as incorporation into the SOM was rapid. The inclusion of the co-substrate biphenyl was to increase the overall rate of degradation of 4FBP in soil. The kinetics of disappearance of parent from the soil using the data obtained were investigated from both techniques. This is the first report describing the degradation of a fluorinated biphenyl in soil.