Long-term pollution by chlordecone of tropical volcanic soils in the French West Indies: A simple leaching model accounts for current residue

Chlordecone was applied between 1972 and 1993 in banana fields of the French West Indies. This resulted in long-term pollution of soils and contamination of waters, aquatic biota, and crops. To assess pollution level and duration according to soil type, WISORCH, a leaching model based on first-order desorption kinetics, was developed and run. Its input parameters are soil organic carbon content (SOC) and SOC/water partitioning coefficient (K_oc). It accounts for current chlordecone soil contents and drainage water concentrations. The model was valid for andosol, which indicates that neither physico-chemical nor microbial degradation occurred. Dilution by previous deep tillages makes soil scrapping unrealistic. Lixiviation appeared the main way to reduce pollution. Besides the SOC and rainfall increases, K_oc increased from nitisol to ferralsol and then andosol while lixiviation efficiency decreased. Consequently, pollution is bound to last for several decades for nitisol, centuries for ferralsol, and half a millennium for andosol.     

Numerical simulation of an array of fences in Saemangeum reclaimed land

This paper discusses about the quantitative effect of windbreak fences on wind velocity in the reclaimed land at Saemangeum in South Korea. Windbreak fences were constructed in the reclaimed land to reduce the wind velocity to prevent the generation and diffusion of dust. However, up to this time, no in-depth studies were conducted to quantitatively measure the effect of the windbreak fences on wind velocity thus an optimum windbreak structure is not yet determined. Using CFD simulations, the effects of fence porosity, fence height, and the distance between the adjacent fences were investigated. A wind tunnel experiment was initially conducted and data gathered were used to develop the CFD models. From the experiments and CFD simulations, the overall percentage difference of the measured velocities was 7.20% which is generally acceptable to establishing the reliability of the CFD models. The reduction effect on wind velocity was measured in between the adjacent fences up to a height of 0.6 m from the ground surface. In terms of porosity ( = 0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6), 0.2 was found to be the optimum value. Conversely, the effect of fence height (0.6, 0.8 and 1.0 m) showed no significant difference; therefore, 0.6 m height is recommended. In addition, the reduction effect of distance between the adjacent fences (2, 4 and 6 m) on wind velocity having a 0.2 porosity has decreased to about 75% regardless of the distance. In the case of the reclaimed land in Saemangeum, a decrease of 75% can prevent the generation and diffusion of dusts. However, the source of dusts is very large. Therefore, constructing an array of windbreak with 6 m distance between them is deemed necessary.     

浸提分离法提取皂素清洁工艺研究

提出一种通过溶剂提取将游离皂苷与淀粉、纤维等成分分离,从源头上减少用水量、耗酸量和污染物排放量的皂素清洁生产工艺。首先对溶剂提取条件进行优化,得出最佳工艺条件为：90%（体积比）乙醇溶液,料液比1∶7,沸腾回流提取3 h,重复提取3次。然后通过气质联用（GC/MS）分析了皂素废水的有机物组成。研究结果表明,清洁工艺皂素产率为1.51%（降低3.82%）,用酸量比传统工艺减少了71%,头道液COD浓度降低了46%,每100 g原料排放的COD总量下降了84%;皂素废水的有机物污染物主要为糠醛及其衍生物,清洁工艺废水的有机物含量更低,更易降解。     

垃圾填埋场微生物气溶胶粒径分布研究

为了了解垃圾填埋场微生物气溶胶粒径分布规律,在北京市某垃圾卫生填埋场填埋区、渗滤液处理区、生活区分别选定监测点,利用安德森六级微生物采样器,对填埋场空气微生物进行了系统的定点取样、测定和分析。研究结果表明,空气细菌粒径分布均为第Ⅰ级(>8.2 μm)最高,填埋区空气细菌粒径呈偏态分布,渗滤液处理区、生活区分别在第Ⅳ级和第Ⅲ级出现第2个峰值。携带细菌的可吸入微粒在渗滤液处理区比例最大。空气真菌与放线菌均在第Ⅳ级分布最高,携带真菌和放线菌的可吸入粒子的比例显著大于细菌(P<0.05)。填埋区不同作业时段空气微生物粒径在各级分布比例基本一致。填埋区细菌气溶胶中值直径为5.7 μm,渗滤液处理区为3.7 μm,生活区为5.3 μm,显著大于真菌气溶胶和放线菌气溶胶的中值直径(P<0.05)。     

Comparing the impacts of hiking, skiing and horse riding on trail and vegetation in different types of forest

Nature-based tourism in protected areas has increased and diversified dramatically during the last decades. Different recreational activities have a range of impacts on natural environments. This paper reports results from a comparison of the impacts of hiking, cross-country skiing and horse riding on trail characteristics and vegetation in northern Finland. Widths and depths of existing trails, and vegetation on trails and in the neighbouring forests were monitored in two research sites during 2001 and 2002. Trail characteristics and vegetation were clearly related to the recreational activity, research site and forest type. Horse trails were as deep as hiking trails, even though the annual number of users was 150-fold higher on the hiking trails. Simultaneously, cross-country skiing had the least effect on trails due to the protective snow cover during winter. Hiking trail plots had little or no vegetation cover, horse riding trail plots had lower vegetation cover than forest plots, while skiing had no impact on total vegetation cover. On the other hand, on horse riding trails there were more forbs and grasses, many of which did not grow naturally in the forest. These species that were limited to riding trails may change the structure of adjacent plant communities in the long run. Therefore, the type of activities undertaken and the sensitivity of habitats to these activities should be a major consideration in the planning and management of nature-based tourism. Establishment of artificial structures, such as stairs, duckboards and trail cover, or complete closure of the site, may be the only way to protect the most sensitive or deteriorated sites.     

Diversity of Soil Nematodes in Areas Polluted with Heavy Metals and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Lanzhou,China

This study investigated the soil nematode community structure along the Yellow River in the Lanzhou area of China, and analyzed the impact of heavy metals (Cd, Pb, Cr, Cu, and Zn) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) on the nematode community. Soil samples from five locations (named A–E), which were chosen for soil analysis, showed significant differences in their heavy metal content (p < 0.01), as well as in the variety of nematodes (up to 41 genera) and families (up to 20) that were present. The different samples also differed significantly in the total PAH content (p < 0.05), as well as the six types of PAH present. Sites A–C showed the most severe contamination with heavy metals and PAHs; these sites had the lowest abundance of fungivores and omnivore/predators, but the proportion of bacteriovores was the highest (p < 0.05). Site E, in contrast, showed only minor pollution with heavy metals and PAHs, and it contained the highest abundance of plant parasites (p < 0.05). Several nematode ecological indicators were found to correlate with concentration of soil pollutants at all the sites tested: the maturity index (MI, in addition to plant parasites), plant parasite index (PPI), ΣMI (including all the soil nematodes), Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H′′), and Wasilewska index (WI). Disturbance to the soil environment was more severe when MI, ΣMI, and H′ values were lower. The results of the study show that the abundance and structure of the soil nematode communities in the sampling locations were strongly influenced by levels of heavy metals and PAHs in the soil. They also show that the diversity index H′ and the maturity index can be valuable tools for assessing the impact of pollutants on nematodes.     

春季健康养生之道

春季是生发的季节,天气由寒转暖,自然界各种生物萌生发育,弃故从新。中医认为,受四季之气影响,人体的气血阴阳会随之发生变化。春季阳气始生,气血渐趋于表,毛孔初开,血气稍减,所以有“困”的感觉。夏季阳气流溢,气血通达于表,毛孔开,汗大泄,所以常有“昏昏欲睡”的感觉。而秋季阳气始衰,阴气始生,气血渐趋于里,但充而不实,所以仍有“乏”的感觉。     

China's Total Emission Control Policy:a Critical Review

As part of a comprehensive environmental management system, many countries establish emission control targets for mass emissions of a pollutant. Such targets are often the key objective of an environmental policy, such as an emission trading program. In China, however, it is more than just an objective of one particular policy; it has become a concept that has influenced many national environmental policies and activities. The objective of this article is to review the implementation of the total emission c...     

Relationship between the riverine nitrate–nitrogen concentration and the land use in the Teshio River watershed, North Japan

The present research investigated the relationship between nitrate–nitrogen (NO₃–N) in river water and the land use/land cover (hereafter, land use) in the Teshio River watershed located in northern Hokkaido island to understand the effect of human activities such as agriculture, forestry, industry, and urbanization in the drainage basin on the river ecosystem quality and services. River water was sampled at nine points seasonally during a 2-year period and the nutrients concentration was measured. Land use profiles were estimated at two spatial scales, riparian and sub-catchment, for each sampling station. The spatial pattern of water quality in the Teshio River showed increased NO₃–N levels associated with agriculture and urban expansion, and forest reduction in the watershed. Land use at the riparian scale closely reflected that at the sub-catchment scale, which masked the unique riparian buffer effect on the river water condition. The increased agricultural and reduced forest area in the riparian zone, especially in the upper middle reach, could be a possible reason for a decline of ecosystem service for the provisioning of clean water and habitat for aquatic organisms. Measures towards sustainable and more nature-friendly agricultural management are necessary in the area to protect the Teshio River ecosystem and its ecosystem services.     

A new approach to quantify the degradation kinetics of linuron with UV, ozonation and UV/O3 processes

The degradation of linuron, one of phenylurea herbicides, was investigated for its reaction kinetics by different treatment processes including ultraviolet irradiation (UV), ozonation (O₃), and UV/O₃. The decay rate of linuron by UV/O₃ process was found to be around 3.5 times and 2.5 times faster than sole-UV and ozone-alone, respectively. Experimental results also indicate overall rate constants increased exponentially with pH above 9.0 while the increase of rate constants with pH below 9 is insignificant in O₃ system. All dominant parameters involved in the three processes were determined in the assistant of proposed linear models in this study. The approach was found useful in predicting the process performances through the quantification of quantum yield (rate constant for the formation of free radical HOO⁻ from ozone decomposition at high pH), rate constant of linuron with ozone (k_O3,LNR), rate constant of linuron with hydroxyl radical (k_OH,LNR), and α (the ratio of the production rate of OH and the decay rate of ozone in UV/O₃ system).