Improving artificial forest biomass estimates using afforestation age information from time series Landsat stacks

China maintains the largest artificial forest area in the world. Studying the dynamic variation of forest biomass and carbon stock is important to the sustainable use of forest resources and understanding of the artificial forest carbon budget in China. In this study, we investigated the potential of Landsat time series stacks for aboveground biomass (AGB) estimation in Yulin District, a key region of the Three-North Shelter region of China. Firstly, the afforestation age was successfully retrieved from the Landsat time series stacks in the last 40 years (from 1974 to 2013) and shown to be consistent with the surveyed tree ages, with a root-mean-square error (RMSE) value of 4.32 years and a determination coefficient (R ²) of 0.824. Then, the AGB regression models were successfully developed by integrating vegetation indices and tree age. The simple ratio vegetation index (SR) is the best candidate of the commonly used vegetation indices for estimating forest AGB, and the forest AGB model was significantly improved using the combination of SR and tree age, with R ² values from 0.50 to 0.727. Finally, the forest AGB images were mapped at eight epochs from 1985 to 2013 using SR and afforestation age. The total forest AGB in seven counties of Yulin District increased by 20.8 G kg, from 5.8 G kg in 1986 to 26.6 G kg in 2013, a total increase of 360 %. For the persistent forest area since 1974, the forest AGB density increased from 15.72 t/ha in 1986 to 44.53 t/ha in 2013, with an annual rate of about 0.98 t/ha. For the artificial forest planted after 1974, the AGB density increased about 1.03 t/ha a year from 1974 to 2013. The results present a noticeable carbon increment for the planted artificial forest in Yulin District over the last four decades.     

Characteristics and assessment of phthalate esters in urban dusts in Guangzhou city, China

Phthalate esters (PAEs) were examined in indoor and outdoor dust samples from the subtropical city of Guangzhou, China. The ∑(16)PAEs concentrations ranged from 121 to 3,223 μg g(-1) dust, with the median concentration of 840 μg g(-1) dust. Significantly higher concentrations of PAEs in dust samples were found in offices where electrical and electronic devices, carpet pads, and office furniture were widely used. Of the 16 PAEs, diisobutyl phthalate (DiBP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP), and di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) dominated the PAEs in indoor and outdoor dust samples, and accounted for >96.8% and >93.1% of the ∑(16)PAEs concentrations, respectively. The median daily inhalation exposure of ∑(16)PAEs were 3.53 and 0.247 μg kg(-1) body weight day(-1), and at the 95(th) percentile were 7.62 and 0.530 μg kg(-1) body weight day(-1), up on the measured concentrations and estimated dust ingestion rates, respectively, for toddles and adults. The ubiquitous distribution of PAEs as noted in this study suggests the need for detailed assessment of PAEs concentrations using more sites and to further investigate the factors influencing PAEs exposure in China.     

Fraction characteristics of rare earth elements in the surface sediment of Bohai Bay, North China

Surface sediment samples were collected at 27 stations of Bohai Bay, North China. Sequential extractions were carried out in this study. REE were leached out from four labile fractions: Exchangeable (L1), bound to carbonates (L2), bound to Fe–Mn oxides (L3), bound to organic matter (L4), and the remainder was residual (R5). The total contents of REE fluctuate slightly in Bohai Bay, and are mainly concentrated in the middle region, showing relatively higher levels in the north than that in the south of Bohai Bay. Percentages of L1, L2, L3, L4, and R5 for REE suggest that the residual fraction accounts for the major component of REE, whereas Fe–Mn oxides also play important roles in combining labile REE. As the REE complex is not stabilized, the competition of complex could induce dissociation of the complex and redistribution of the REE in various environments. According to REE patterns and Y/Ho ratios of samples, REE are not anthropogenic or oceanic sources but riverine input, whereas suitable environment varieties can slightly affect the patterns and fractionations of REE. As powerful tracers for the variable of environment, higher anomaly of Eu and Ce in southern regions indicates a greater reduction in the condition of surface sediment in the south than that in the north of Bohai Bay.     

Chlorinated and brominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in surface sediment from Taihu Lake, China

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PBDD/Fs) in surface sediment samples from Taihu Lake--an important water supply of the Yangtze River Delta, China--were investigated in the present study. Concentrations of PCDD/Fs ranged from 0.91 to 4.8 pg TEQ g(-1) dw (mean: 2.9 pg TEQ g(-1) dw, TEQ: Toxic Equivalent), which were all higher than the threshold effect level established by interim sediment quality guidelines in Canada (0.85 pg TEQ g(-1) dw). The levels of PBDD/Fs ranged from 0.16 to 1.6 pg TEQ g(-1) dw (mean: 0.52 pg TEQ g(-1) dw) and accounted for 5-33% (mean: 14%) of the total PCDD/Fs and PBDD/Fs TEQ. Comparatively, the abundance of sedimentary PCDD/Fs in the three regions (Meiliang Bay, Gonghu Bay, and Xukou Bay) showed a decreasing trend from the inflow region to the outflow region, while no significant difference was observed among their 2,3,7,8-PBDD/Fs levels, which suggested that the sources of PCDD/Fs and PBDD/Fs differed in this area. Principal component analysis suggested that the historical production/usage of pentachlorophenol and sodium pentachlorophenate was the dominant source of PCDD/Fs in the sediment of these regions. Although the specific sources of PBDD/Fs in the sediment of Taihu Lake were unclear, it was suspected to be due to atmospheric deposition; however, an additional study is needed to confirm this.     

颗粒物对污染源COD水质在线监测仪比对监测的影响

污水中的颗粒物是COD在线监测仪在比对监测时出现较大误差的原因之一,就颗粒物对COD在线监测仪是否产生影响以及影响效果进行了实验研究。研究结果表明,COD在线监测仪的预处理系统去除颗粒物会带来比对监测的误差,并且随着颗粒物浓度增加,误差增大;预处理系统过滤器尺寸也会对比对监测的误差产生影响,针对同一浓度水样,孔径越大误差越小,针对同一孔径过滤器则水样浓度越高误差越小。     

污染源水质COD在线仪器比对监测

比较了几种现场应用较多的水质COD在线监测分析与实验室分析方法在原理、方法等方面的主要差异,针对比对过程中存在的实际问题,提出了在样品采集、仪器原理选择、仪器定期校正等方面做好水质COD在线监测比对实验工作的建议。     

太湖蓝藻水华时空分布与预警监测响应的分析

选择2007和2008年200幅EOS/MODIS太湖蓝藻监测遥感影像,统计分析了梅梁湾、竺山湾宜兴段、贡湖湾、东太湖胥口湾和湖州方向湖体蓝藻水华爆发的空间和时间分布规律。并在得出全太湖蓝藻水华空间和时间分布规律的基础上,从环境监测部门蓝藻预警监测工作的实际出发,将蓝藻水华预警监测的响应划分为常规监测和应急监测,提出了具体的监测要求,为环太湖地区的相关部门更好地开展蓝藻预警监测工作提供了科学依据。     

环境空气中汞的直接测定方法研究与应用

研究了环境空气中汞浓度的直接测定方法。利用金汞齐富集－便携式测汞仪对环境空气中的汞进行直接测定,具有简便、快捷、不使用化学试剂的优点。经测试,该方法在0～180 ng／m^3范围内具有良好的线性关系,最低检出浓度为5 ng／m^3。     

磁性分散固相萃取气相色谱法测定地表水中有机磷化合物

应用磁性分散固相萃取技术对环境水体中有机磷化合物进行萃取测定,并对萃取剂的用量、萃取时间、解吸溶剂、盐度等实验影响因素进行了优化。在优化条件下,有机磷的回收率为80.1%~93.1%,相对标准偏差为4.6%~5.9%,检出限为0.000 2~0.000 4 mg/L。与传统的液液萃取及固相萃取相比,该磁性分散固相萃取方法操作更为简单、迅速,有机溶剂消耗量很少,方法环保。能很好的满足环境水体中有机磷化合物的测定。