A Framework for Risk Characterization of Environmental Pollutants

Risk characterization is defined by both the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the U.S. EPA as the estimation of human health risk due to harmful (i.e., toxic or carcinogenic) substances or organisms. Risk characterization studies are accomplished by integrating quantitative exposure estimates and dose-response relationships with the qualitative results of hazard identification.

A Risk Characterization Framework has been developed to encourage a systematic approach for analysis and presentation of risk estimates. This methodology subdivides the four common components of the risk assessment process into ten elements. Each of these elements is based on a term in a predictive risk equation. The equation allows independent computations of exposure, dose, lifetime individual risk, and risk to affected populations. All key assumptions in the predictive risk equation can be explicitly shown. This is important to understand the basis and inherent uncertainties of the risk estimation process.

The systematic treatment of each of the ten elements in this framework aids in the difficult job of comparing risk estimates by different researchers using different methodologies. The Risk Characterization Framework has been applied to various indoor and outdoor air pollutants of a carcinogenic nature. With further development, it also promises to be applicable to noncarcinogenic effects.     

Performance of Wet Scrubbers on Liquid and Solid Particulate Matter

A general discussion of packed scrubbers for particle collection is presented. Data on liquid entrainment separation, ammonium chloride fume collection, and clay particle collection are given.     

Management of the Panzootic White‐Nose Syndrome through Culling of Bats

Abstract: The probability of persistence of many species of hibernating bats in the United States is greatly reduced by an emerging infectious disease, white‐nose syndrome (WNS). In the United States WNS is rapidly spreading and is associated with a psychrophilic fungus, Geomyces destructans. WNS has caused massive mortality of bats that hibernate. Efforts to control the disease have been ineffective. The culling of bats in hibernacula has been proposed as a way to break the transmission cycle or slow the spread of WNS. We formulated a disease model to examine the efficacy of culling to abate WNS in bat populations. We based the model dynamics on disease transmission in maternity roosts, swarms, and hibernacula, which are the arenas of contact among bats. Our simulations indicated culling will not control WNS in bats primarily because contact rates are high among colonial bats, contact occurs in multiple arenas, and periodic movement between arenas occurs. In general, culling is ineffective in the control of animal diseases in the wild.     

Global scale emission and distribution of sea-spray aerosol: Sea-salt and organic enrichment

The chemical composition of marine aerosols as a function of their size is an important parameter for the evaluation of their impact on the global climate system. In this work we model fine particle organic matter emitted by sea spray processes and its influence on the aerosol chemical properties at the global scale using the off-line global Chemistry-Transport Model TM5. TM5 is coupled to a microphysical aerosol dynamics model providing size resolved information on particle masses and numbers. The mass of the emitted sea spray particles is partitioned between water insoluble organic matter (WIOM) and sea salt components in the accumulation mode using a function that relates the emitted organic fraction to the surface ocean chlorophyll-a concentrations. The global emission in the sub-micron size range of organic matter by sea spray process is 8.2 Tg yr^?1, compared to 24 Tg fine yr^?1 sea-salt emissions. When the marine sources are included, the concentrations of modelled primary particulate organic matter (POM) increase mainly over the oceans. The model predictions of WIOM and sea salt are evaluated against measurements carried out at Mace Head (Northern Hemisphere) and Amsterdam Island (Southern Hemisphere), showing that in clean marine conditions WIOM marine emissions contribute significantly to POM values.     

Modeling the heat transfer in acetylene cylinders during and after the exposure to fire

In this paper two different approaches for predicting the heating-up of an acetylene cylinder involved in a fire and the afterward cooling with water are presented. In the simulations polynomial functions were used to describe the temperature dependency of the thermal properties of the cylinder interior, which is a complex system composed by a solid porous material, a solvent (typically acetone) and acetylene dissolved in it. Model equations covered heat conduction in the cylinder interior and at its walls. In the first approach the cylinder surroundings were simulated as a further domain constituted by CO₂, during the fire exposure, and for water, during the cooling. In this domain the coupled heat transfer (convection and conduction) and the momentum equation (Navier–Stokes) were solved. In the second approach no further domain was considered but boundary conditions were set directly on the cylinder walls. Results of the calculations performed with both approaches are presented. This work could prove helpful in predicting to which extent the interior of an acetylene cylinder exposed to fire reaches temperatures capable of initiating the decomposition of acetylene and to determine how long a water cooling should be applied, so that the system is brought again under non-critical conditions.     

Uptake of cadmium into cells in culture∗

Cadmium has been recognized as pollutant of the environment for many years and numerous studies on its toxic effects have been carried out. Little, however, is known about its metabolic behaviour e.g. why the metal is accumulated so extremely rapidly into the organs of men and animals. Since the study of the individual metabolic steps is very difficult in vivo cell cultures may be used to obtain first indications of what happens in the whole animal.

We used CHO cells in monolayer culture to study the conditions under which the uptake of cadmium occurs. From serumfree medium the metal is accumulated rapidly in the cells. The uptake is inhibited very strongly by the presence of serum or albumin. Accumulation occurs against a concentration gradient and is dependent on the incubation temperature. Below 10°C no cadmium uptake is seen. Several substances which are known to affect cell metabolism have been used to influence cadmium accumulation. Neither inhibitors of energy production nor microtubule or microfilament disruptors showed any substantial effect. In contrast SH‐group blocking agents markedly reduced cadmium uptake.

The results show that cadmium uptake does not occur by passive diffusion but by some active mechanism.     

Chemical fluxes in time through forest ecosystems in the UK - Soil response to pollution recovery

Long term trend analysis of bulk precipitation, throughfall and soil solution elemental fluxes from 12 years monitoring at 10 ICP Level II forest sites in the UK reveal coherent national chemical trends indicating recovery from sulphur deposition and acidification. Soil solution pH increased and sulphate and aluminium decreased at most sites. Trends in nitrogen were variable and dependant on its form. Dissolved organic nitrogen increased in bulk precipitation, throughfall and soil solution at most sites. Nitrate in soil solution declined at sites receiving high nitrogen deposition. Increase in soil dissolved organic carbon was detected - a response to pollution recovery, changes in soil temperature and/or increased microbial activity. An increase of sodium and chloride was evident - a possible result of more frequent storm events at exposed sites. The intensive and integrated nature of monitoring enables the relationships between climate/pollutant exposure and chemical/biological response in forestry to be explored.     

Understanding the Lessons and Limitations of Conservation and Development

Abstract: The lack of concrete instances in which conservation and development have been successfully merged has strengthened arguments for strict exclusionist conservation policies. Research has focused more on social cooperation and conflict of different management regimes and less on how these factors actually affect the natural environments they seek to conserve. Consequently, it is still unknown which strategies yield better conservation outcomes? We conducted a meta‐analysis of 116 published case studies on common resource management regimes from Africa, south and central America, and southern and Southeast Asia. Using ranked sociodemographic, political, and ecological data, we analyzed the effect of land tenure, population size, social heterogeneity, as well as internally devised resource‐management rules and regulations (institutions) on conservation outcome. Although land tenure, population size, and social heterogeneity did not significantly affect conservation outcome, institutions were positively associated with better conservation outcomes. There was also a significant interaction effect between population size and institutions, which implies complex relationships between population size and conservation outcome. Our results suggest that communities managing a common resource can play a significant role in conservation and that institutions lead to management regimes with lower environmental impacts.