Adsorption and biodegradation of three selected endocrine disrupting chemicals in river-based artificial groundwater recharge with reclaimed municipal wastewater

Endocrine disrupting chemical(EDC) pollution in river-based artificial groundwater recharge using reclaimed municipal wastewater poses a potential threat to groundwater-based drinking water supplies in Beijing, China. Lab-scale leaching column experiments simulating recharge were conducted to study the adsorption, biodegradation, and transport characteristics of three selected EDCs: 17β-estradiol(E2), 17α-ethinylestradiol(EE2) and bisphenol A(BPA). The three recharge columns were operated under the conditions of continual sterilization recharge(CSR), continual recharge(CR), and wetting and drying alternative recharge(WDAR). The results showed that the attenuation effect of the EDCs was in the order of WDAR CR CSR system and E2 EE2 BPA, which followed first-order kinetics. The EDC attenuation rate constants were 0.0783, 0.0505, and 0.0479 m-1 for E2, EE2 and BPA in the CR system, respectively. The removal rates of E2, EE2, and BPA in the CR system were 98%, 96% and 92%, which mainly depended on biodegradation and were affected by water temperature.In the CR system, the concentrations of BPA, EE2, and E2 in soil were 4, 6 and 10 times higher than in the WDAR system, respectively. According to the DGGE fingerprints, the bacterial community in the bottom layer was more diverse than in the upper layer, which was related to the EDC concentrations in the water-soil system. The dominant group was found to be proteobacteria, including Betaproteobacteria and Alphaproteobacteria, suggesting that these microbes might play an important role in EDC degradation.     

萍乡市土壤中重金属离子含量、空间分布及其变化趋势研究

以江西省萍乡地区土壤为研究对象,分析研究了萍乡市土壤中重金属离子的含量及空间分布特征,并初步估算了重金属离子累积现速率和加速度.结果表明:萍乡市土壤整体环境质量较好,但随着社会经济的快速发展,工农业生产等人为活动对土壤的影响越来越大.从空间分布来看,在全市5个县区布置的52个采样点中,共有24个测点的重金属离子含量超标.其中上栗县有10个测点的重金属离子含量超标,明显多于其他县区,出现了与其他县区不同的污染特征.     

Leaching-induced migration and compositional form change of Cu,Zn, and Cd from sludge to loess

Land utilization of sewage sludge has become one of the major issues in environmental mitigation in China. This is particularly important in the Loess Plateau of Northwest China. Sludge enriched with organic matter and nutrients might effectively help to resolve the problems of silty loess soils as evidenced by porosity defect, structural alterations and absence of fertility. After sludge flows into the loess, irrigation water contains heavy metals that leach and migrate into sludge and consequently related human health risks may occur that raise concerns; and this situation needs to be rectified. The characteristics of the vertical migration and composition form change of Cu, Zn, and Cd from composted sludge to loess, and corresponding influencing factors, were investigated by performing a soil column simulation test under the leaching treatment of a one-year irrigation water capacity. Results demonstrated that: (1) composted sludge significantly improved loess fertility, and irrigation leaching transported only a small quantity of organic matter in sludge in the plough layer; (2) although some of the Cu, Zn, and Cd in composted sludge migrated to and concentrated in the middle and upper layers of the soil column during leaching, these metals were mostly retained in the plough layer; and (3) after the leaching treatment of the one-year irrigation water capacity, the compositions of Cu, Zn, and Cd (particularly Cu and Zn) in both plough layer and loess began to stabilize with low concentrations in the exudate. These findings confirmed the applicability of composted sludge in loess regions. This study provided a new insight into the sludge reuse in alkaline soils in arid and semi-arid region.     

An integrated fuzzy-stochastic modeling approach for risk assessment of groundwater contamination

An integrated fuzzy-stochastic risk assessment (IFSRA) approach was developed in this study to systematically quantify both probabilistic and fuzzy uncertainties associated with site conditions, environmental guidelines, and health impact criteria. The contaminant concentrations in groundwater predicted from a numerical model were associated with probabilistic uncertainties due to the randomness in modeling input parameters, while the consequences of contaminant concentrations violating relevant environmental quality guidelines and health evaluation criteria were linked with fuzzy uncertainties. The contaminant of interest in this study was xylene. The environmental quality guideline was divided into three different strictness categories: "loose", "medium" and "strict". The environmental-guideline-based risk (ER) and health risk (HR) due to xylene ingestion were systematically examined to obtain the general risk levels through a fuzzy rule base. The ER and HR risk levels were divided into five categories of "low", "low-to-medium", "medium", "medium-to-high" and "high", respectively. The general risk levels included six categories ranging from "low" to "very high". The fuzzy membership functions of the related fuzzy events and the fuzzy rule base were established based on a questionnaire survey. Thus the IFSRA integrated fuzzy logic, expert involvement, and stochastic simulation within a general framework. The robustness of the modeling processes was enhanced through the effective reflection of the two types of uncertainties as compared with the conventional risk assessment approaches. The developed IFSRA was applied to a petroleum-contaminated groundwater system in western Canada. Three scenarios with different environmental quality guidelines were analyzed, and reasonable results were obtained. The risk assessment approach developed in this study offers a unique tool for systematically quantifying various uncertainties in contaminated site management, and it also provides more realistic support for remediation-related decisions.     

Ambient volatile organic compounds at a receptor site in the Pearl River Delta region: Variations, source apportionment and effects on ozone formation

We present the continuously measurements of volatile organic compounds（VOCs） at a receptor site（Wan Qing Sha, WQS） in the Pearl River Delta（PRD） region from September to November of 2017. The average mixing ratios of total VOCs（TVOCs） was 36.3 ± 27.9 ppbv with the dominant contribution from alkanes（55.5%）, followed by aromatics（33.3%）. The diurnal variation of TVOCs showed a strong photochemical consumption during daytime,resulting in the formation of ozone（O₃）. Five VOC sources were ...     

Precise and Economical Dredging Model of Sediments and Its Field Application: Case Study of a River Heavily Polluted by Organic Matter,Nitrogen, and Phosphorus

Environmental dredging is an efficient means to counteract the eutrophication of water bodies caused by endogenous release of nitrogen and/or phosphorus from polluted sediments. The huge operational cost and subsequent disposal cost of the dredged polluted sediments, as well as the adverse effect on the benthic environment caused by excessive dredging, make the currently adopted dredging methods unfavorable. Precise dredging, i.e., determining the dredging depth based on the pollution level, not only significantly decreases the costs but also leaves a uniform favorable environment for benthos. However, there is still no feasible process to make this promising method executable. Taking a river heavily polluted by organic compounds as an example, we proposed an executable precise dredging process, including sediment survey, model establishment, data interpolation, and calculation of dredging amount. Compared with the traditional dredging method, the precise one would save 16 to 45 % of cost according to different pollutant removal demands. This precise dredging method was adopted by the National Water Project of China to treat the endogenous pollution of Nanfei River in 2010. This research provides a universal scientific and engineering basis for sediment dredging projects.     

新疆哈密马庄山金矿区次火山岩及其地球化学特征

马庄山金矿区位于星星峡一卡瓦布拉克地块、古生代岛弧东段北侧活动大陆边缘，有多种火山宕、次火山岩和侵入岩，而与金矿成矿关系最为密切的是海西中、晚期次火山岩。该矿区次火山岩有花岗闪长斑岩、石英斑岩、花岗斑岩、隐爆角砾岩（简称花岗质岩）和辉绿岩。因此，在区域地质背景和矿区地质特征分析基础上，着重对次火山岩及其地球化学特征进行系统研究，结果认为．该矿区花岗质岩为高硅富钾贫铝钙碱性同熔（1）型花岗岩类，岩浆源区来自中下地壳；辉绿岩则为富钠碱性正常型基性岩类，岩浆源区来自下地壳。前者含Co、Pb、Zn、Sn、As、Bi、W、Mo、An、Ag、Tc等元素较高，有重要找矿前景；后者含Ba、Pb、Zn、Tl、As、Bi、Au、Ag、Tc等元素较高，也可为成矿提供物源。这些认识，对该区次火山岩特征、性质、成矿关系和构造背景，以及进一步找矿都有重要理论和实践指导意义。     

创建人与自然和谐的城市

6月3日,国家环保模范城市市长峰会在人民大会堂隆重召开,中共中央政治局委员、国务院副总理曾培炎出席并作了重要讲话。本刊在此全文刊登讲话内容,以指导新时期的环境保护工作。