Household ecological footprinting using a new diary-based data-gathering approach

Although the household level is recognized as a potentially important area for the application of ecological footprint (EF) analysis, almost no work has been reported in the academic literature on EF analysis at this level. This paper describes the application of a new, diary-based data acquisition methodology used in a component approach to estimate the EF of a small number of households in Aberdeen, Scotland. Feedback from householders indicated that the diary proved useful in educating participants about their environmental impacts and made EF findings convincing. The methodology was, however, time consuming for both participants and researchers, and it is concluded that future household level applications of EF analysis might combine a simplified diary with other forms of data acquisition. Findings also suggest that the presentation of EF results alone is unlikely to promote more environmentally conscious attitudes amongst householders unless specific EF components are identified for the householder to act upon.     

The role of digital data entry in participatory environmental monitoring

Many argue that monitoring conducted exclusively by scientists is insufficient to address ongoing environmental challenges. One solution entails the use of mobile digital devices in participatory monitoring (PM) programs. But how digital data entry affects programs with varying levels of stakeholder participation, from nonscientists collecting field data to nonscientists administering every step of a monitoring program, remains unclear. We reviewed the successes, in terms of management interventions and sustainability, of 107 monitoring programs described in the literature (hereafter programs) and compared these with case studies from our PM experiences in Australia, Canada, Ethiopia, Ghana, Greenland, and Vietnam (hereafter cases). Our literature review showed that participatory programs were less likely to use digital devices, and 2 of our 3 more participatory cases were also slow to adopt digital data entry. Programs that were participatory and used digital devices were more likely to report management actions, which was consistent with cases in Ethiopia, Greenland, and Australia. Programs engaging volunteers were more frequently reported as ongoing, but those involving digital data entry were less often sustained when data collectors were volunteers. For the Vietnamese and Canadian cases, sustainability was undermined by a mismatch in stakeholder objectives. In the Ghanaian case, complex field protocols diminished monitoring sustainability. Innovative technologies attract interest, but the foundation of effective participatory adaptive monitoring depends more on collaboratively defined questions, objectives, conceptual models, and monitoring approaches. When this foundation is built through effective partnerships, digital data entry can enable the collection of more data of higher quality. Without this foundation, or when implemented ineffectively or unnecessarily, digital data entry can be an additional expense that distracts from core monitoring objectives and undermines project sustainability. The appropriate role of digital data entry in PM likely depends more on the context in which it is used and less on the technology itself.     

Inter- and intra-species variation in acute zinc tolerance of field-collected cladoceran populations

Acute zinc toxicity was assessed for 10 freshwater cladoceran species collected in six different ecosystems across Europe and for two standard laboratory-reared species (Daphnia magna and Ceriodaphnia dubia). The collected organisms belonged to five different genera: Daphnia (subgenus Daphnia and Ctenodaphnia), Ceriodaphnia, Simocephalus, Acroperus and Chydorus. The 48-h EC50 of the field-collected organisms tested in standard laboratory water ranged from 375+/-141 to 4314+/-1513 microg Znl(-1). The laboratory clone of D. magna was less sensitive than the majority of the field-collected species, while our laboratory Ceriodaphnia dubia was the second most sensitive. Considerable inter-species variation was found within the genus of Ceriodaphnia (factor 6) and within the genus Daphnia (factor 8). Among the different (sub)genera tested, Chydorus and Ctenodaphnia were significantly more tolerant than the others (up to a factor 3 difference). A significant positive relationship (r2=0.67, p<0.05) between the mean cladoceran 48-h EC50 and the ambient zinc concentration of the different aquatic systems was demonstrated, suggesting a role of acclimation and/or adaptation. No significant correlation between the acute zinc tolerance and the length of the organisms was found.     

The study of age influence on human bone lead metabolism by using a simplified model and X-ray fluorescence data

Long term lead metabolism in the human body has never been fully understood due to the lack of human data in this area. The technological improvement of bone lead measurement systems has made bone lead data of substantial populations available. In this study, a set of X-ray fluorescence bone lead data was used to test Leggett's lead metabolism model (R. W. Leggett, Environ. Health Perspect., 1993a, 101, 598-616), especially the model of metabolism in bone. The data set includes the bone lead concentration of 539 occupationally exposed workers, of whom 327 were measured twice in five years. The bone lead concentrations of both cortical bone (tibia) and trabecular bone (calcaneus) were obtained by Cd-109 gamma-ray induced XRF measurement. The histories of blood lead concentration for these workers were used to regulate the input file of the model. The results show that the bone lead concentrations predicted by Leggett's model greatly underestimate the measured values, especially for older workers. This data set was then organized into five age groups. A new simplified model was applied to estimate the lead transfer rates between blood and lead compartments for these age groups. The original transfer rates and the new transfer rates are compared, and the differences are discussed. When the transfer rates derived from measured bone lead data were put into the input file of the model to replace the existing parameters, the predicted values were much closer to the measured values for both cortical bone and trabecular bone.     

Organic contaminants in the Firth of Clyde following the cessation of sewage sludge dumping

To assess contaminant concentrations in the Firth of Clyde in relation to the former sewage sludge dump site at Garroch Head, and investigate any temporal changes, fish have been sampled annually since 1992 and sediment since 1999. In addition, a further four locations in the Clyde (Holy Loch, Hunterston, Skelmorlie and Irvine Bay) have been sampled for fish and sediment since 1999. Chlorobiphenyls (CBs) were measured in fish samples and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and CBs in sediment. Since sampling was initiated the concentration for the summation operatorICES7 CBs in fish liver has been consistently >500 microg kg(-1) lipid weight at Garroch Head and the other Clyde sites and lower at the reference sites (Pladda, Colonsay, Broad Bay). Although the lowest CB concentrations of the eleven year period in plaice liver from Garroch Head were found in 2002, CB concentrations were found not to have decreased significantly since sewage sludge dumping ceased in 1998. However, a change in CB profile was observed with fish liver collected between 1992 and 1998 from Garroch Head showing a lower proportion of the less chlorinated CBs compared to the 1999-2002 liver samples. Highest CB and PAH concentrations in sediment were found at Garroch Head and Holy Loch with concentrations at these sites being significantly higher than at all other sites.     

Sedentary or mobile? Variability in space and depth use of an exploited coral reef fish

Movement of fishes defines the distribution and abundance of populations and occurs on a range of spatial and temporal scales. To successfully parameterise assessments and design management strategies for exploited fish populations, knowledge and consideration of their movement patterns are essential. Since the efficacy of management approaches vary depending on the sedentary or mobile nature of the target species, presence, space use and depth utilisation were examined to understand the movement patterns of redthroat emperor Lethrinus miniatus. Sixty individuals were monitored for up to 12 months in an acoustic array comprising three coral reefs, and variation in space use and movement patterns was observed among 26 individuals. Half of the individuals were recorded only in proximity of one receiver along the reef edge, while the other half were detected at multiple receivers and used horizontal areas of approximately 4 km². Periods of non-detection and lower detection frequency at night (χ ₁ ²  = 342.157, P < 0.001) indicated individuals may move away from the monitored reef edge to the adjacent sandy habitat, but most movements outside the array remain unknown. Long-distance movement was recorded for one individual, recaptured ~160 km from the release location. Generally, no trends in depth use were apparent, L. miniatus inhabited a variety of depths, which were not related to individual size or time of day, yet some effect of month was evident. Variation in movement among adult L. miniatus indicates that while some individuals undergo broader-scale movement, spatial closures that cover individual reefs (>4 km²) could provide protection from fishing for the proportion of the population that displayed high site fidelity and moderate-sized activity spaces (over a period of up to 12 months).     

Surface geophysical exploration: developing noninvasive tools to monitor past leaks around Hanford’s tank farms

A characterization program has been developed at Hanford to image past leaks in and around the underground storage tank facilities. The program is based on electrical resistivity, a geophysical technique that maps the distribution of electrical properties of the subsurface. The method was shown to be immediately successful in open areas devoid of underground metallic infrastructure, due to the large contrast in material properties between the highly saline waste and the dry sandy host environment. The results in these areas, confirmed by a limited number of boreholes, demonstrate a tendency for the lateral extent of the underground waste plume to remain within the approximate footprint of the disposal facility. In infrastructure-rich areas, such as tank farms, the conventional application of electrical resistivity using small point-source surface electrodes initially presented a challenge for the resistivity method. The method was then adapted to directly use the buried infrastructure, specifically the steel-cased wells that surround the tanks, as “long” electrodes for both transmission of electrical current and measurements of voltage. Overcoming the drawbacks of the long electrode method has been the focus of our work over the past 7 years. The drawbacks include low vertical resolution and limited lateral coverage. The lateral coverage issue has been improved by supplementing the long electrodes with surface electrodes in areas devoid of infrastructure. The vertical resolution has been increased by developing borehole electrode arrays that can fit within the small-diameter drive casing of a direct push rig. The evolution of the program has led to some exceptional advances in the application of geophysical methods, including logistical deployment of the technology in hazardous areas, development of parallel processing resistivity inversion algorithms, and adapting the processing tools to accommodate electrodes of all shapes and locations. The program is accompanied by a full set of quality assurance procedures that cover the layout of sensors, measurement strategies, and software enhancements while insuring the integrity of stored data. The data have been shown to be useful in identifying previously unknown contaminant sources and defining the footprint of precipitation recharge barriers to retard the movement of existing contamination.     

Interpretation of roadside PM10 monitoring data from Sunderland,United Kingdom

Roadside PM₁₀ has been monitored by Partisol® at three sitesin Sunderland between August 1997 and February 1998. The sites chosen were an inner city kerbside site; a roadside site adjacentto a dual carriageway on the outskirts of Sunderland with an openaspect; and a rural site.The results indicate that there is a seasonal variation in the relationship between the sites in terms of monitored PM₁₀.In the winter there is a poor correlation between the sites whereas in the summer significant correlations are obtained. Of the sites monitored PM₁₀ is consistently highest at the inner city roadside site. During the summer, exceedances of theU.K. 50 g m^-3 standard (DETR, 2000) are associated with conditions suitable for the build-up of photochemical pollutionhowever during the winter period exceedances are recorded duringa variety of weather conditions.At the dual carriageway site PM_2.5 has also been recorded and contributions to measured PM₁₀ are 77% in summer and68% in winter. The results illustrate a number of inconsistencies between this study utilising the Partisol® andothers reporting results where PM₁₀ has been monitored by TEOM®.