Long-term Trends in Surface Water Quality of Five Lakes in Japan

Since 1983, the Ministry of the Environment of Japan has conducted nation-wide acid deposition surveys. To investigate the effects of acid deposition on surface water, we used the nonparametric Mann–Kendall test to find temporal trends in pH, alkalinity, and electrical conductivity (EC) in more than 10 years of data collected from five lakes and their catchments (Lake Kuttara: northernmost; Lake Kamakita: near Tokyo; Lake Ijira: central; Lake Banryu: western; and Lake Unagiike: southernmost). The pH of Lake Ijira water has declined slightly since the mid-1990s, corresponding with the downward trends seen in the pH and alkalinity of the river water flowing into the lake. There were significant upward trends in the EC of both the lake and stream water; the same trends were also found for concentrations. These trends show evidence of acidification due to atmospheric deposition, and this is the first such finding in Japan based on significant long-term trends. Lake Ijira is located about 40 km north of the Chukyo industrial area near Nagoya. The annual depositions of H⁺, nss-, and in Lake Ijira were among the highest of all deposition monitoring sites, suggesting that this is the main cause of the significant acidification observed in Lake Ijira. No significant trends suggesting acidification were observed in any of the other lake catchments in spite of the significant upward trends in EC. Upward trends in pH and alkalinity at Lake Banryu and upward trends in alkalinity at Lake Kamakita were detected, but no change in pH or alkalinity at Lake Kuttara and Lake Unagiike was observed.     

Importance of the Japanese anchovy (Engraulis japonicus) to breeding rhinoceros auklets (Cerorhinca monocerata) on Teuri Island, Sea of Japan

Temporal variation in the diet and chick growth of rhinoceros auklets (Cerorhinca monocerata), on Teuri Island, Sea of Japan, was studied to understand how local marine environmental changes affect the reproduction of this piscivorous seabird. The food delivered by parents to chicks was sampled every 1-2 weeks from late May to July, 1994-1998. Overall, the diet of nestling rhinoceros auklets consisted of (by mass) 61% Japanese anchovy (Engraulis japonicus), 18% Japanese sand lance (Ammodytes personatus), 18% Japan Sea greenling (Pleurogrammus azonus), 2% other fish and 1% squid. Among years, the contribution of anchovy ranged from 16% to 93%. Once anchovy occurred in the diet, it dominated (80% on average) thereafter. Accordingly, when anchovy appeared in the diet early in the chick-rearing season (1994, 1998), the contribution of anchovy overall was large. The first appearance of anchovy in the diet of auklets late in the summer of 1997 was possibly related to negatively anomalous sea-surface temperature. Food loads composed of anchovy (34.0 g) were heavier than those of sand lance (22.5 g) and greenling (28.5 g). The energy density of anchovies also was higher: 6.3 kJ g^-1 wet mass compared to 0+ greenling (4.78 kJ g^-1) and 0+ sand lance (3.78 kJ g^-1). Thus, a high proportion of anchovy in the diet resulted in high food load mass, high daily growth rates of chicks and high fledging success. This study highlighted the importance of the time of arrival of migratory high-lipid prey, which is influenced by local oceanographic conditions, to the reproductive performance of a piscivorous seabird.     

Behavior of dialifor,dimethoate, and methidathion in artificially fortified grape juice processed into wine

Abstract

Dialifor and methidathion were added to diluted “Zinfandel”; grape concentrate at 25 ppm and dimethoate at 1.0 and 25 ppm prior to fermentation with Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The finished wine 56 days later contained 10% (2.5 ppm) of the dialifor, 46% (12 ppm) of the methidathion and 85% (21 and 0.98 ppm) of the dimethoate added to the grape must. Residues in wine stored at 24°C dissipated by hydrolysis; half‐lives in wine were 7 days for dialifor and methidathion and 30 days for dimethoate. Residues were unchanged in wine in frozen storage for one year. Analysis of seven commercial wines for dimethoate indicated less than 0.03 ppm dimethoate was present; identity could not be confirmed by thin‐layer chromatography at this level.     

Waste prevention for sustainable resource and waste management

Although the 2Rs (reduce and reuse) are considered high-priority approaches, there has not been enough quantitative research on effective 2R management. The purpose of this paper is to provide information obtained through the International Workshop in Kyoto, Japan, on 11–13 November 2015, which included invited experts and researchers in several countries who were in charge of 3R policies, and an additional review of 245 previous studies. It was found that, regarding policy development, the decoupling between environmental pressures and economy growth was recognized as an essential step towards a sustainable society. 3R and resource management policies, including waste prevention, will play a crucial role. Approaches using material/substance flow analyses have become sophisticated enough to describe the fate of resources and/or hazardous substances based on human activity and the environment, including the final sink. Life-cycle assessment has also been developed to evaluate waste prevention activities. Regarding target products for waste prevention, food loss is one of the waste fractions with the highest priority because its countermeasures have significant upstream and downstream effects. Persistent organic pollutants and hazardous compounds should also be taken into account in the situation where recycling activities are globally widespread for the promotion of a material-cycling society.     

Knowledge-based Journalism in Science and Environmental Reporting: Opportunities and Obstacles

Recent calls for knowledge-based journalism advocate a new level of formal knowledge in news reporting to meet the professional challenges caused by rapid change in the news industry. Scientifically knowledgeable journalism has the potential to redefine the existing science–media relationship. However, the audience for such journalism is unclear, nor is it known how this new journalism would function within rapidly changing newsroom practices. Implementing knowledge-based journalism requires theory-based propositions to show the actual benefits of improved scientific understanding for news consumers and an understanding, from research into professional cultures, of why new practices in journalism are adopted or abandoned. This paper develops that theoretical basis by examining knowledge-based journalism’s potential and some of the intellectual and institutional barriers to it.     

Two clinal trends in male-male aggressiveness in a subsocial spider mite (Schizotetranychus miscanthi)

We studied the correlation between male-male aggressive behavior of the spider mite, Schizotetranychus miscanthi and winter coldness, a factor hypothesized to correlate with the degree of relatedness of the interacting males through the frequent occurrence of mother-son mating in the spring. Thirty-one samples from various populations throughout Japan were added to previous data. A cluster analysis revealed two clinal trends for male-male aggression in S. miscanthi in regions of light or no snowfall. The two clines may represent a dimorphism within the species, each having a similar clinal trend within Japan. Further support for the hypothesis that male overwintering survival affects male-male aggressiveness came from a comparison between regions of heavy snowfall and those of light or no snowfall. In regions with heavy snow insulation, overwintering survival may not be as high as in other areas, and there was no correlation between male aggressiveness and the minimum winter temperature. However, there was a significant correlation in regions of light snow. Received: 26 May 1998 / Received in revised form: 16 December 1998 / Accepted: 30 December 1998     

Comparison of air pollutant emissions among mega-cities

Ambient measurements of hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides from three mega-cities (Beijing, Mexico City, Tokyo) are compared with similar measurements from US cities in the mid-1980s and the early 2000s. The common hydrocarbon pattern seen in all data sets suggests that emissions associated with gasoline-fueled vehicles dominate in all of these cities. This commonality suggests that it will be efficient and, ultimately, cost effective to proceed with vehicular emission controls in most emerging mega-cities, while proceeding with development of more locally appropriate air quality control strategies through emissions inventory development and ambient air monitoring. Over the three decades covered by the US data sets, the hydrocarbon emissions decreased by a significant factor (something like an order of magnitude), which is greater than suggested by emission inventories, particularly the EDGAR international inventory. The ambient hydrocarbon and CO concentrations reported for the three non-US mega-cities are higher than present US ambient concentrations, but lower than those observed in the 1980s in the US. The one exception to the preceding statement is the high concentrations of CO observed in Beijing, which apparently have a large regional contribution.     

Human exposure to PCBs, PBDEs and HBCDs in Ghana: Temporal variation, sources of exposure and estimation of daily intakes by infants

Human exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs) such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs) was evaluated in Ghana using breast milk samples collected in 2004 and 2009. Mean levels and ranges of PBDEs (4.5; 0.86-18 ng/g lw) and PCBs (62; 15-160 ng/g lw) observed in the present study were unexpectedly high, in spite of the fact that Ghana is a non-industrialized country when compared with many of the Asian and European countries. Significant increases were found in the concentrations of PCBs and PBDEs over the years, while no significant increase was observed for HBCDs. Estimated hazard quotient (HQ) showed that all the mothers had HQ values exceeding the threshold of 1 for PCBs, indicating potential health risk for their children. PCBs in dirty oils and obsolete equipment should be of concern as potential sources in Ghana, and e-waste recycling with little or no experience in safe handling could be a threat to this sub-region noted for unregulated disposal of e-waste. The results may point towards an increase in trends in human milk in Ghana, especially in the larger cities but further analysis would be required to confirm this upward trend in levels. This is the first study to report BFRs in human breast milk from Africa, and undoubtedly from Ghana.     

Occurrence and profiles of organic sun-blocking agents in surface waters and sediments in Japanese rivers and lakes

Sun-blocking agents including eight UV filters (UVF) and 10 UV light stabilizers (UVLS) were measured in water and sediment collected from 22 rivers, four sewage treatment plant effluents (STPE) and three lakes in Japan. Total sun blocking agents levels ranged from N.D. to 4928 ng/L and from 2.0 to 3422 μg/kg dry wt in surface water and in sediment, respectively. Benzyl salicylate, benzophenone-3, 2-ethyl hexyl-4-methoxycinnamte (EHMC) and octyl salicylate were dominant in surface water receiving wastewater effluents and STPE, although UV-328, benzophenone and EHMC were dominant in other surface water except background sites. Three UVF and nine UVLS were observed from all sediment and their compositions showed similar patterns with UV-328 and UV-234 as the most prevalent compounds. Homosalate, octocrylene, UV-326, UV-327, UV-328 and UV-234 were significantly correlated with Galaxolide^® in sediments. Concentrations of UV-327 and UV-328 also had strong correlation between those of UV-326 in sediment.