Potential Interference Bias in Ozone Standard Compliance Monitoring

Abstract

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has established a federal reference method (FRM) for ozone (O₃) and allowed for designation of federal equivalent methods (FEMs). However, the ethylene‐chemiluminescence FRM for O₃ has been replaced by the UV photometric FEM by most state and local monitoring agencies because of its relative ease of operation. Accumulating evidence indicates that the FEM is prone to bias under the hot, humid, and stagnant conditions conducive to high O₃ formation. This bias may lead to overreporting hourly O₃ concentrations by as much as 20–40 ppb. Measurement bias is caused by contamination of the O₃ scrubber, a problem that is not detected by dry air calibration. An adequate wet test has not been codified, although a procedure has been proposed for agency consideration. This paper includes documentation of laboratory tests quantifying specific interferant responses, collocated ambient FRM/FEM monitoring results, and smog chamber comparisons of the FRM and FEMs with alternative scrubber designs. As the numbers of reports on monitor interferences have grown, interested parties have called for agency recognition and correction of these biases.     

SWOT Analysis and Challenges of Nile Basin Initiative：An Integrated Water Resource Management Perspective

River Nile is one of the longest transboundery rivers and it is shared and used by Burundi,Democratic Republic of Congo,Egypt,Ethiopia,Eritrea,Kenya,Rwanda,Sudan,Tanzania and Uganda.As of today,the Nile is a crucial resource for the economic development of the Nile Basin countries and a vital source of livelihood for 160 million inhabitants as well as 300 million people living in the 10 riparian countries.The Nile Basin Initiative(NBI) is one of the international cooperative river basin management program and regional partnership where all the Nile Basin countries except Eritrea unite to pursue long-term sustainable development,improved land use practices and management.This review therefore focused on the challenges not faced on NBI in terms of integrated use of the river and conducted analysis of strengths,weaknesses,opportunities and threats(SWOT) based on secondary data.The result of the review revealed that for decades,the Nile Basin people have been facing many complex environmental,social,economic and political challenges that have made it difficult for the proper management and sustainability of Nile water.The initiative provides training to develop skills in government ministries,non-governmental organizations and local communities in each country.It is also working to raise awareness of critical environmental issues by strengthening networks of environmental education practitioners;developing curriculum in the education sector.The challenges of NBI include the involvement and funding of World Bank,lack of sufficient staff,procedural and policies conflicts,lack of coordination and linkage with other regional institutions and lack of recognition as river basin organization.Considering the complex nature of the project,it is recommended that the NBI should come up with a strong multi-disciplinary monitoring and evaluation team to follow up all implemented projects.The NBI should carry out participatory land use planning in communities along the river basin.Moreover,livelihood analysis should be carried out especially in communities along the Nile to come up with poverty eradication projects which are socially acceptable,applicable,economically viable and affordable.     

Soil pollution in day-care centers and playgrounds in Norway: national action plan for mapping and remediation

Systematic geochemical mapping based on sampling and analysis of surface soils (0–2 cm) has been carried out in several Norwegian cities. The soils in the oldest parts of the cities are contaminated with metals (especially Pb) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). Due to the fact that children are often in contact with surface soil, it was realized that special focus had to be directed towards soils in day-care centers and playgrounds. The first mapping and remedy program was initiated in Trondheim in 1996. Here, the importance of copper–chromium–arsenic (CCA)-pressure-impregnated wood in playing equipment as a pollution source for soils was documented, and a process was started with the aim to ban this product. Soils from day-care centers in the inner city of Bergen were polluted to a degree that required remediation in 45% out of 87 centers, mainly due to high concentrations of Pb and benzo(a)pyrene. In Oslo, 38% of 700 day-care centers needed remediation due to soil pollution by Pb, BaP, Cd, Hg, Ni and PCB. Removal of CCA-impregnated wood was necessary in more than half of the day-care centers The Norwegian parliament has decided to investigate all outdoor playing areas in day-care centers, playgrounds and schoolyards in Norway, starting in 2007 with day-care centers in the ten largest cities and five most important industrial areas. The Norwegian Institute of Public Health has developed quality criteria for soils in day-care centers and playgrounds for As, Cd, Cr⁶⁺, Hg, Ni, Pb, zinc, PAH_sum16, benzo(a)pyrene, and PCB_sum7. The Geological Survey of Norway has developed guidance for mapping of soil pollution (sampling, chemical analysis and reporting) in day-care centers. Especially the sampling strategy has been developed in the period 1996–2007, and the preferred sampling strategy is to collect at least 10 samples of surface soil (0–2 cm) from (1) “original soil” on the site, (2) artificial man-made “hills”, and (3) soils used for growing vegetables. A total number of 2,000 day-care-centres are to be investigated, and necessary remediation should be completed before the end of 2010.     

Anatomic correlates of ultrasonographic prenatal diagnosis

In utero sonographic diagnoses from forty-five malformed infants were correlated with their autopsy findings. Fifty-two malformations were diagnosed prenatally in 42 of the patients but 90 additional malformations were not. Nine sonographically diagnosed abnormalities were not confirmed at autopsy. Factors compromising sonographic diagnosis included: limited examinations, small fetal size, timing of examination, oligohydramnios, fetal position, nature of the malformation and unfamiliarity of the ultrasonographer with specific malformation syndromes. In vitro ultrasonography is an invaluable tool of diagnosing congenital malformations but has limitations.     

Brominated aromatics from combustion

The production of brominated aromatics from combustion was shown to be influenced by the operating conditions. Brominated aromatics also showed high yields compared to their chlorinated analogues.     

The gloomy greenhouse: Should the world phase out fossil fuels?

In 1988 the Toronto World Conference on the Changing Atmosphere called for a reduction of CO₂ emissions of the industrialized countries by approximately 20% by the year 2005 as compared with 1988. A stabilization of CO₂ concentrations would require an eventual emissions reduction of more than 50% of present levels. Model runs were performed with the Dutch Integrated Model for the Assessment of the Greenhouse Effect (IMAGE) to put these figures into perspective. It was found that the suggested emissions reduction levels could indeed be adequate to prevent global temperature change from moving beyond past climate experience. However, this would only be the case when these reduced levels of emissions were achieved at a global scale and maximum emission control for the other greenhouse gases was implemented. A delayed response analysis shows that the policies of the coming decades are crucial for the eventual control of the greenhouse effect.     

Anaerobic Biodegradation of Blends Based on Polyvinyl Alcohol

The presented work deals with blends composed of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and biopolymers (protein hydrolysate, starch, lignin). PVA does not belong to biologically inert plastics but its degradation rate (particularly under anaerobic conditions) is low. A potential solution to the issue problem lies in preparation of blends with readily degradable substrates. We studied degradation of blow-molded films made of commercial PVA and mentioned biopolymers in an aqueous anaerobic environment employing inoculation with digested activated sludge from the municipal wastewater treatment plant. Films prepared in the first experimental series were to be used for comparing biodegradation of blends modified with native or plasticized starch; in this case effect of plasticization was not proved. The degree of PVA degradation after modification with native or plasticized starch increases in a striking and practically same manner already at a starch level as low as approximately 5 wt.%. Films of the second experimental series were prepared as additionally modified with protein hydrolysate and lignin. Only lignin-modified samples exhibited a somewhat lower degree of biodegradation but regarding the measure of lignin present in blend this circumstance is not essential. Level of biodegradation with all discussed films differed only slightly—within range of experimental error.     

Vigilance in wild Thomas's langurs (Presbytis thomasi ): the importance of infanticide risk

This study examines vigilance as a behavioural indicator of the importance of infanticide risk by comparing the infanticide avoidance hypothesis with the predation avoidance and mate defence hypotheses for wild Thomas's langurs (Presbytis thomasi) in Sumatra. We found that all individuals were more vigilant in situations of high predation risk, i.e. lower in the trees and in the absence of neighbours. Females were also more vigilant on the periphery of the group. However, there were variations in vigilance levels that could not be accounted for by the predation avoidance hypothesis. Males without infants showed higher levels of vigilance in areas of home range overlap than in non-overlap areas during the early phase of their tenure, strongly suggesting mate defence. In these areas of home range overlap where Thomas's langur groups can interact, males may attack females and infants, and so the infanticide risk for males and females with infants is likely to be high in these areas. Only females with infants, but not males with infants or females without infants, showed higher vigilance levels in overlap areas than in non-overlap areas; in addition, in overlap areas, females with an infant were more vigilant than females without an infant, while this was not the case in non-overlap areas. Both females and males with infants were more vigilant high in the trees than at medium heights in overlap areas but not elsewhere. These findings can only be explained by the infanticide avoidance hypothesis. In contrast to predator attacks, infanticidal male attacks come from high in the canopy, and only occur in overlap areas. There was a significant sex difference in vigilance, but males were only more vigilant than females without an infant, and not more vigilant than females with an infant. We conclude that vigilance varied mainly in relation to the risk of predation and infanticide. Mate competition only played a role for males during the early phase of their tenure. Predation risk seems to offer the best explanation for vigilance for all individuals in the absence of infants. Both predation risk and infanticide risk played a role for females and males with infants. Received: 4 April 1998 / Accepted after revision: 6 September 1998     

Fungal bioremediation of the creosote-contaminated soil: influence of Pleurotus ostreatus and Irpex lacteus on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons removal and soil microbial community composition in the laboratory-scale study

The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of selected basidiomycetes in the removing of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) from the creosote-contaminated soil. Fungi Pleurotus ostreatus and Irpex lacteus were supplemented with creosote-contaminated (50-200 mg kg(-1) PAH) soil originating from a wood-preserving plant and incubated at 15 °C for 120 d. Either fungus degraded PAH with 4-6 aromatic rings more efficiently than the microbial community present initially in the soil. PAH removal was higher in P. ostreatus treatments (55-67%) than in I. lacteus treatments (27-36%) in general. P. ostreatus (respectively, I. lacteus) removed 86-96% (47-59%) of 2-rings PAH, 63-72% (33-45%) of 3-rings PAH, 32-49% (9-14%) of 4-rings PAH and 31-38% (11-13%) of 5-6-rings PAH. MIS (Microbial Identification System) Sherlock analysis of the bacterial community determined the presence of dominant Gram-negative bacteria (G-) Pseudomonas in the inoculated soil before the application of fungi. Complex soil microbial community was characterized by phospholipid fatty acids analysis followed by GC-MS/MS. Either fungus induced the decrease of bacterial biomass (G- bacteria in particular), but the soil microbial community was influenced by P. ostreatus in a different way than by I. lacteus. The bacterial community was stressed more by the presence of I. lacteus than P. ostreatus (as proved by the ratio of the fungal/bacterial markers and by the ratio of trans/cis mono-unsaturated fatty acids). Moreover, P. ostreatus stimulated the growth of Gram-positive bacteria (G+), especially actinobacteria and these results indicate the potential of the positive synergistic interaction of this fungus and actinobacteria in creosote biodegradation.     

An architectural model of spring wheat: Evaluation of the effects of population density and shading on model parameterization and performance

ADELwheat is an architectural model that describes development of wheat in 3D. This paper analyzes the robustness of the parameterization of ADELwheat for spring wheat cultivars in relation to plant population density and shading. The model was evaluated using data from two spring wheat experiments with three plant population densities and two light regimes. Model validation was done at two levels of aggregation: (a) by comparing parameterization functions used as well as parameter values to the data (leaf and tiller appearance, leaf number, blade dimensions, sheath length, internode length) and (b) by comparing ground cover (GC) and leaf area index (LAI) of simulated virtual wheat plots with GC and LAI calculated from data. A sensitivity analysis was performed by modulating parameters defining leaf blade dimensions and leaf or tiller appearance rate.In contrast to population density, shading generally increased phyllochron and delayed tiller appearance. Both at the level of the organ and at the level of the canopy the model performed satisfactorily. Parameterization functions in the model that had been established previously applied to independent data for different conditions; GC and LAI were simulated adequately at three population densities. Sensitivity analysis revealed that calibration of phyllochron and blade area needs to be accurate to prevent disproportional deviations in output.The robustness of the model parameterization and the simulation performance confirmed that the model is a complete architectural model for aboveground development of spring wheat. It can be used in studies that require simulation of spring wheat structure, such as studies on plant–insect interaction, remote sensing, and light interception.