An input-output balance study for PCBs in humans

Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) input-output balance studies were performed on five male volunteers, aged between 24 and 30, for periods of 8-14 days in 1998. Dietary exposure was quantified by the duplicate meals method and varied between 220 and 460 ng of sigmaPCB (sum of 20 congeners) per day for each of the five individuals over the study period. Dietary intake was dominated by congeners 118, 138, 153 and 180. Average faecal outputs for the five volunteers were 50-290 ng of sigmaPCB (sum of 20 congeners) per day for each of the five individuals over the same period and was dominated by the same four congeners. Whilst the total PCB fluxes were therefore into the body (i.e., accumulation), important differences were noted for different individual congeners. PCBs 44, 47, 49, 52, 60, 66, 101, 105, 110, 118, 149, 151 and 183 all showed net absorption for all five volunteers. Some congeners showed a net absorption in some of the individuals but net excretion in others, as seen by other workers. These congeners (PCBs 138, 153, 180, 187 and 194) are all higher chlorinated congeners and lack meta-para-vicinal hydrogen atoms. There were differences in the net absorption/excretion between individuals, which appeared to be a function of body fat index (BFI). The volunteers with the lowest BFIs showed net excretion for the greatest number of congeners, whilst the individual with the highest BFI was a net absorber of all the congeners studied. The problems in determining and interpreting absorption efficiency values for use in quantitative exposure assessments are discussed. Various factors that influence net absorption of PCBs and other persistent organic pollutants are identified. These include compound properties (including susceptibility to metabolism), the individual's fat status and balance, exposure history and diet.     

长江经济带城市黑臭水体空间分布格局及影响因子

满足人民群众对优美生态环境的需要是建设美丽中国的核心要务,而城市黑臭水体是危害城市居民生产生活和身心健康的重要污染源。该研究以长江经济带城市黑臭水体为研究对象,综合运用GIS技术与地理探测器方法,识别其空间特征及分布规律,探究不同因子对黑臭水体空间格局的影响差异并提出整治建议。研究表明:(1)长江经济带城市黑臭水体空间分布呈凝聚型分布,且空间分异较为明显。核密度表现为多单核中心独立、次级中心带状及零星分布特征。(2)黑臭水体重心位置处在湖北和湖南省中部城市区域,其系统具有明显无标度区,分形特征显著,空间结构复杂性强。(3)不同类型黑臭水体均属正值空间相关性,呈"上游冷、中下游热"的冷热点区差异格局。(4)空间结构的地理探测影响因素在全域范围内贡献力不明显,分区影响因子匹配凸出。工业废水排放量、居民生活用水量、排水管道长度等是显著影响因素。建议应从严守生态规矩、建立黑臭水体治理体制机制、完善识别评定技术标准体系、创新实践整治、丰富理论研究等方面推进城市黑臭水体治理和消除。     

东北农牧交错带典型区土地利用变化及其生态效应

东北农牧交错带是典型的生态环境脆弱区，具有敏感性强、退化趋势明显等生态脆弱性特征。本文利用1986、2002年两期TM/ETM影像，揭示了吉林西部16年来土地利用／覆被的时空变化规律，并依据Costanza R．等人对全球生态系统服务价值的评估方法。分析了土地利用变化对区域生态系统服务价值的影响。结果表明：16年来，吉林西部土地利用／覆被发生了剧烈变化。耕地、盐碱地面积大幅度增加，草地、水域和湿地的面积大幅度减少，区域生态系统服务功能出现明显的衰退。生态系统服务价值显著地减少。吉林西部生态系统服务价值由1986年的767．1亿元／a下降到2002年的624．1亿元／a，减少幅度达18．6％，年均递减速率达1．6％。16年来该区域生态环境恶化和以经济利益为目的的土地利用结构调整，给区域生态系统服务功能和可持续发展能力带来巨大负面影响。     

贵州省三岔河流域水化学特征及其控制因素

对乌江源区三岔河流域枯水期和丰水期河水样品离子浓度及组成特征分析表明,河水主要的阴阳离子分别是HCO_3~–和Ca~(2+),分别占到总阴离子量的55%和总阳离子量的70%,与喀斯特地区流域相似。主要离子的时空分布的对比分析表明,Ca~(2+)、Mg~(2+)、Na~+、HCO_3~–、Cl~–枯水期浓度略高于丰水期,而K+、SO_4~(2–)、NO_3~–两期浓度变化相对较小;空间分布的多样化,反映了不同小流域在地质背景、生态环境、人为活动等方面的差异对河水离子的影响。通过Gibbs图分析表明,研究区河水水化学主要受到岩石风化的影响,通过阴阳离子三角图分析表明,研究区河水水化学主要受到碳酸岩盐的影响,并且硫酸广泛参与到岩石风化中,人为活动对流域水化学组成也有一定影响。     

基于SD和CLUE-S模型的区域土地利用变化对土壤有机碳储量影响研究

土地利用/土地覆被变化改变土壤呼吸条件,进而对土壤有机碳储量变化产生影响,而土壤有机碳储量则是影响农业可持续发展和全球碳平衡领域的重要因素。以上海市崇明岛为例,运用系统动力学模型(System Dynamics Model)预测2020、2030年土地利用需求变化,结合CLUE-S模型(Conversion of Land Use and its Effects at Small region extent Model)得出各种用地类型的空间分布,并引用碳密度法估算三种发展幕景下土地利用变化对土壤有机碳储量的影响。结果表明:2030年三种发展幕景土壤有机碳储量分别为:低速发展幕景为3 093.03×106kg,惯性发展幕景为3 079.47×106kg,高速发展幕景为3 059.81×106kg;研究期内土壤有机碳储量呈现缓慢下降趋势,但人类活动对其扰动较小;SD和CLUE-S耦合模型可以从时间和空间两方面对土壤有机碳储量进行模拟,具有可行性;建议通过加强城镇用地集约利用、农田保护、林地建设来减少人为活动对土壤有机碳储量的影响。     

湖北省生态足迹和生态承载力时空动态研究

研究湖北省内部可持续发展的趋势,以2005年、2010年、2013年统计数据为基础,应用生态足迹分析法核算湖北省17个市(州、林区)在三个时间节点的生态足迹与生态承载力,对各地区生态足迹和生态盈亏状况从时间和空间上进行动态研究。研究结果表明:湖北省17个市(州、林区)的总生态足迹和人均生态足迹呈迅速增长趋势,其中中部地区增长最快;2005年生态赤字最为严重的地区集中于以武汉为代表的中东部,2013年生态赤字最为严重的地区集中于中西部,生态赤字空间分布的重心逐渐由东部向西部转移;6种生态生产性土地增长速度由快到慢依次是建筑用地、化石能源、草地、水域、林地和耕地,其中潜江、恩施、天门、仙桃、黄冈等地建筑用地生态足迹增速最快,十堰、鄂州、黄石、荆州、荆门等地则是水域生态足迹增速最快,草地、水域、化石能源用地和耕地的生态足迹增长共同决定各地区人均生态足迹的变化趋势。     

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.     

Heterogeneous uptake of octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4) and decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) onto mineral dust aerosol under variable RH conditions

We have carried out kinetic studies to characterize the heterogeneous decay of octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D₄) and decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D₅) in the presence of representative mineral dust aerosol in order to obtain a better understanding of the atmospheric fate of these siloxanes. The heterogeneous chemistry of D₄ and D₅ with various mineral dusts was studied in an environmental aerosol reaction chamber using FTIR absorption spectroscopy to monitor the reaction. The apparent heterogeneous uptake coefficient, γ_app, for D₄ and D₅ with various mineral dusts was measured under dry conditions and as a function of relative humidity (RH). In addition, the effect of initial D₄ and D₅ concentration on the rate and yield of the reaction was examined. The uptake coefficient, γ_app, for D₄ and D₅ was similar for the most reactive aerosols tested, with kaolinite ≈hematite > silica. Limited uptake onto carbon black and calcite surfaces was observed for either siloxane. Reaction with hematite and kaolinite resulted in multilayer coverages, suggesting extensive polymerization of D₄ and D₅ on the aerosol surface.     

Atmospheric nitrogen deposition in south-east Scotland: Quantification of the organic nitrogen fraction in wet,dry and bulk deposition

Water soluble organic nitrogen (WSON) compounds are ubiquitous in precipitation and in the planetary boundary layer, and therefore are a potential source of bioavailable reactive nitrogen. This paper examines weekly rain data over a period of 22 months from June 2005 to March 2007 collected in 2 types of rain collector (bulk deposition and “dry + wet” deposition) located in a semi-rural area 15 km southwest of Edinburgh, UK (N55°51′44″, W3°12′19″). Bulk deposition collectors are denoted in this paper as “standard rain gauges”, and they are the design used in the UK national network for monitoring precipitation composition. “Dry + wet” deposition collectors are flushing rain gauges and they are equipped with a rain detector (conductivity array), a spray nozzle, a 2-way valve and two independent bottles to collect funnel washings (dry deposition) and true wet deposition. On average, for the 27 weekly samples with 3 valid replicates for the 2 types of collectors, dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) represented 23% of the total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) in bulk deposition. Dry deposition of particles and gas on the funnel surface, rather than rain, contributed over half of all N-containing species (inorganic and organic). Some discrepancies were found between bulk rain gauges and flushing rain gauges, for deposition of both TDN and DON, suggesting biological conversion and loss of inorganic N in the flushing samplers.     

Long-Term Changes in Game Species Over a Long Period of Transformation in the Iberian Mediterranean Landscape

Agricultural change has transformed large areas of traditional farming landscapes, leading to important changes in the species community assemblages in most European countries. We suspect that the drastic changes in land-use that have occurred in Andalusia (southern Spain) over recent decades, may have affected the distribution and abundance of game species in this region. This article compares the distribution of the main game species in Andalusia during the 1960s and 1990s, using data from maps available from the Mainland Spanish Fish, Game and National Parks Service and from recent datasets on hunting yield distributions, respectively. Big-game and small-game species were significantly segregated in southern Spain during the 1990s, as two clearly independent chorotypes (groups of species whose abundances are similarly distributed) were obtained from the classification analysis. In contrast, big-game and small-game species were not significantly segregated several decades ago, when there was only one chorotype consisting of small-game species and wild boar. The other three ungulates did not constitute a significant chorotype, as they showed positive correlations with some species in the group mentioned above. These changes seem to be a consequence of the transformations that have occurred in the Iberian Mediterranean landscape over the last few decades. The abandoning of traditional activities, and the consequent formation of dense scrubland and woodland, has led to an expansion of big-game species, and a decrease of small-game species in mountain areas. Moreover, agricultural intensification has apparently depleted small-game species populations in some agricultural areas. On the other hand, the increasingly intensive hunting management could be artificially boosting this segregation between small-game and big-game species. Our results suggest that the conservation and regeneration of traditional agricultural landscapes (like those predominating in the 1960s) should be a priority for the conservation of small-game species.