Experimental and modeling study of de novo formation of PCDD/PCDF on MSW fly ash

The effect of sulfur dioxide （SO2） on the formation of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins （PCDDs） and polychlorinated dibenzofurans （PCDFs） has been studied in an entrained-flow reactor （EFR） under simulated waste combustion conditions. A chlorination model based on conditional probability was employed to evaluate the homologue patterns of PCDDs and PCDFs. Results revealed that the presence of SO2 did not alter the formation pathway although SO2 suppressed PCDD/F formation. The prediction model of PCDF showed good agreement with the experimental data （R--0.95）, whereas the prediction for PCDDs did not correlate well with the experimental data. This may be explained because potential chlorination pathways play a significant role in PCDF formation, whereas PCDDs are mainly formed through condensation reactions. Furthermore, the result indicated that the steric hindrance during formation has more effects on PCDD than on PCDF due to the symmetric molecular structures of PCDDs.     

Using Genetic Profiles of African Forest Elephants to Infer Population Structure,Movements, and Habitat Use in a Conservation and Development Landscape in Gabon

Conservation of wide‐ranging species, such as the African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis), depends on fully protected areas and multiple‐use areas (MUA) that provide habitat connectivity. In the Gamba Complex of Protected Areas in Gabon, which includes 2 national parks separated by a MUA containing energy and forestry concessions, we studied forest elephants to evaluate the importance of the MUA to wide‐ranging species. We extracted DNA from elephant dung samples and used genetic information to identify over 500 individuals in the MUA and the parks. We then examined patterns of nuclear microsatellites and mitochondrial control‐region sequences to infer population structure, movement patterns, and habitat use by age and sex. Population structure was weak but significant, and differentiation was more pronounced during the wet season. Within the MUA, males were more strongly associated with open habitats, such as wetlands and savannas, than females during the dry season. Many of the movements detected within and between seasons involved the wetlands and bordering lagoons. Our results suggest that the MUA provides year‐round habitat for some elephants and additional habitat for others whose primary range is in the parks. With the continuing loss of roadless wilderness areas in Central Africa, well‐managed MUAs will likely be important to the conservation of wide‐ranging species. Utilización de Perfiles Genéticos de Elefantes Africanos para Inferir su Estructura Poblacional, Movimientos y Uso del Hábitat en un Paisaje con Conservación y Desarrollo en Gabón Resumenfgs     

Achieving Open Access to Conservation Science

Conservation science is a crisis discipline in which the results of scientific enquiry must be made available quickly to those implementing management. We assessed the extent to which scientific research published since the year 2000 in 20 conservation science journals is publicly available. Of the 19,207 papers published, 1,667 (8.68%) are freely downloadable from an official repository. Moreover, only 938 papers (4.88%) meet the standard definition of open access in which material can be freely reused providing attribution to the authors is given. This compares poorly with a comparable set of 20 evolutionary biology journals, where 31.93% of papers are freely downloadable and 7.49% are open access. Seventeen of the 20 conservation journals offer an open access option, but fewer than 5% of the papers are available through open access. The cost of accessing the full body of conservation science runs into tens of thousands of dollars per year for institutional subscribers, and many conservation practitioners cannot access pay‐per‐view science through their workplace. However, important initiatives such as Research4Life are making science available to organizations in developing countries. We urge authors of conservation science to pay for open access on a per‐article basis or to choose publication in open access journals, taking care to ensure the license allows reuse for any purpose providing attribution is given. Currently, it would cost $51 million to make all conservation science published since 2000 freely available by paying the open access fees currently levied to authors. Publishers of conservation journals might consider more cost effective models for open access and conservation‐oriented organizations running journals could consider a broader range of options for open access to nonmembers such as sponsorship of open access via membership fees. Obtención de Acceso Abierto a la Ciencia de la Conservación     

Lomborg and the Litany of Biodiversity Crisis: What the Peer-Reviewed Literature Says

Abstract:  Lomborg's (2001) book has generated passionate discussion about the state of the global environment. We performed a bibliometric evaluation of the peer-reviewed primary scientific literature to determine whether there is any consistent evidence that "things are getting better." The global literature primarily reported negative impacts on biodiversity caused by human actions, although Europe appeared to be doing better than the rest of the world. These results cannot be explained by publication bias alone because rejection rates of papers indicating improvements in the environment would have to be unrealistically high to change our results. There were nonrandom distributions of papers showing environmental recovery in developed countries and for ecosystems not strongly subjected to conservation-development conflicts. Although the literature did not paint a picture of universal gloom, the empirical evidence clearly showed growing environmental crises.     

生物炭添加对两种类型土壤DOC淋失影响

生物炭能增加土壤碳库贮量,对全球碳的生物地球化学循环和缓解全球气候变化起到不可忽视的作用。可溶性有机碳(DOC)是土壤碳库中十分重要的组分,研究生物炭对DOC淋失影响对深入了解生物炭对土壤有机碳循环具有重要意义。本文以新疆和河南两种土壤为对象,通过室内土柱淋滤试验研究生物炭添加对不同类型土壤中溶解性有机碳(DOC)淋失影响以及添加不同生物炭对同种土壤淋滤液中DOC淋失影响特征。结果表明,新疆和河南土壤淋滤液DOC浓度和淋失量随着生物炭添加比例增加(1%,5%,10%)而减少。与玉米秸秆和锯末混合物为原料制成生物炭相比,玉米秸秆生物炭能显著降低新疆土壤淋滤液中DOC浓度。     

Integrated Monitoring and Information Systems for Managing Aquatic Invasive Species in a Changing Climate

Abstract:  Changes in temperature, precipitation, and other climatic drivers and sea-level rise will affect populations of existing native and non-native aquatic species and the vulnerability of aquatic environments to new invasions. Monitoring surveys provide the foundation for assessing the combined effects of climate change and invasions by providing baseline biotic and environmental conditions, although the utility of a survey depends on whether the results are quantitative or qualitative, and other design considerations. The results from a variety of monitoring programs in the United States are available in integrated biological information systems, although many include only non-native species, not native species. Besides including natives, we suggest these systems could be improved through the development of standardized methods that capture habitat and physiological requirements and link regional and national biological databases into distributed Web portals that allow drawing information from multiple sources. Combining the outputs from these biological information systems with environmental data would allow the development of ecological-niche models that predict the potential distribution or abundance of native and non-native species on the basis of current environmental conditions. Environmental projections from climate models can be used in these niche models to project changes in species distributions or abundances under altered climatic conditions and to identify potential high-risk invaders. There are, however, a number of challenges, such as uncertainties associated with projections from climate and niche models and difficulty in integrating data with different temporal and spatial granularity. Even with these uncertainties, integration of biological and environmental information systems, niche models, and climate projections would improve management of aquatic ecosystems under the dual threats of biotic invasions and climate change.     

The Role of Botanic Gardens in the Science and Practice of Ecological Restoration

Abstract: Many of the skills and resources associated with botanic gardens and arboreta, including plant taxonomy, horticulture, and seed bank management, are fundamental to ecological restoration efforts, yet few of the world's botanic gardens are involved in the science or practice of restoration. Thus, we examined the potential role of botanic gardens in these emerging fields. We believe a reorientation of certain existing institutional strengths, such as plant‐based research and knowledge transfer, would enable many more botanic gardens worldwide to provide effective science‐based support to restoration efforts. We recommend botanic gardens widen research to include ecosystems as well as species, increase involvement in practical restoration projects and training practitioners, and serve as information hubs for data archiving and exchange.     

孕期低剂量镉暴露对不同性别胎鼠肝脏发育的影响及其分子调控机制的研究

为探究镉对胎儿肝脏发育的毒性作用.拟选用15只性成熟的8周龄的雌性C57BL/6小鼠,与雄鼠交配见栓后,于妊娠第7.5 d(Embryonic 7.5,E7.5)时,随机分为3组(每组5只),分别通过饮用水暴露法饲喂0、20和40 mg·L^-1的氯化镉溶液,并于E14.5 d时收集各组小鼠的胎儿肝脏等组织.通过Ki67和TUNEL染色方法探究镉对不同性别胎鼠肝脏的增殖功能和凋亡功能的影响,并通过PCR芯片筛查和实时定量PCR方法检测镉处理组的雌性和雄性胎鼠肝脏中与细胞增殖和凋亡功能相关基因的表达变化.此外,我们还将通过石墨炉火焰原子吸收技术对镉处理组的雌性和雄性胎鼠的镉含量进行检测.结果显示:孕期低剂量镉暴露对胎儿体重、胎肝重量和肝脏指数均无显著性影响.在本实验条件下,镉对胎鼠肝脏的凋亡功能无显著性影响,但对增殖功能具有抑制作用,且该抑制作用具有雌性依赖性的特征.镉特异性诱导雌性胎鼠肝脏中NF1等多个细胞增殖功能相关基因以及TGF-β1信号通路分子的表达失衡;但对雄性胎鼠肝脏中相关基因的表达水平无显著性影响.镉在雌性胎儿组织中的积累量显著高于雄性胎儿组织.综上所述,孕期低剂量镉暴露特异性抑制雌性胎儿肝脏的细胞增殖功能,并诱导雌性胎儿肝脏中NF1等多个增殖功能相关基因以及TGF-β1信号通路分子的表达失衡,该性别依赖性的抑制作用可能与镉在雌性胎儿中相对较高的积累量相关.     

Strategies for Emission Reduction of Air Pollutants Produced from a Chemical Plant

Various air pollution control (APC) techniques were employed in order to reduce emissions of air pollutants produced from chemical plants, which have many different chemical production facilities. For an emission reduction of acid gases, this study employed a method to improve solubility of pollutants by decreasing the operating temperature of the scrubbers, increasing the surface area for effective contact of gas and liquid, and modifying processes in the acid scrubbers. To reduce emission of both amines and acid gases, pollutant gas components were first separated, then condensation and/or acid scrubbing, depending on the chemical and physical properties of pollutant components, were used. To reduce emission of solvents, condensation and activated carbon adsorption were employed. To reduce emission of a mixture gases containing acid gases and solvents, the mixed gases were passed into the first condenser, the acid scrubber, the second condenser, and the activated carbon adsorption tower in sequence. As a strategy to reduce emission of pollutants at the source, this study also employed the simple pollution prevention concept of modification of the previously operating APC control device. Finally, air emissions of pollutants produced from the chemical plants were much more reduced by applying proper APC methods, depending upon the types (physical or chemical properties) and the specific emission situations of pollutants.