Recent socio-economic changes in relation to environmental quality of the Pearl River delta

Due to the favorable weather, abundant water resources and fertile soil, the area has been known as the homeland for crops and fish. However, being one of the most developed regions in China, the environmental quality of the Pearl River delta has deteriorated due to recent socio-economic changes during the past two decades. The drivers are industrialization and economic growth, population growth and agricultural development; and the pressures are water pollution which include nutrients and suspended solids, pesticides, other persistent toxic substances (PAHs and PCBs) and oil. These have imposed various impacts such as eutrophication, formation of red tides and biomagnification of organic contaminants through food chains. In response to these, regulatory measures have been established by the Environmental Protection Bureau of Guangdong Province, joining forces with environmental protection authorities in all urban cities and most counties, in addition to the Hong Kong Environmental Protection Department, to control pollution in order to prevent further environmental deterioration and economic loss. The present paper is an attempt by following the DPSIR approach promoted by the OECD in the early 1990s and further developed by IGBP LOICZ to review the environmental quality of Pearl River with emphasis on water quality and the impact of rapid socio-economic changes.     

The Use of Natural Taraxacum officinale Wigg. Populations for Assessing the State of Technogenically Disturbed Areas

Russian Journal of Ecology -     

Arsenic geochemistry and health

Arsenic occurs naturally in the earth's crust and is widely distributed in the environment. Natural mineralization and activities of microorganisms enhance arsenic mobilization in the environment but human intervention has exacerbated arsenic contamination. Although arsenic is useful for industrial, agricultural, medicinal and other purposes, it exerts a toxic effect in a variety of organisms, including humans. Arsenic exposure may not only affect and disable organs of the body, especially the skin, but may also interfere with the proper functioning of the immune system. This paper, therefore, generally highlights the toxic effects of arsenic as well as its mobilization in the natural environment and possible controls. It also briefly attempts to outline the impact of arsenic on the immune system, whose alteration could lead to viral/bacterial infections.     

Carbon Emission from the Surface of Coarse Woody Debris in Korean Pine Forests of Southern Primorye

Carbon dioxide fluxes from the surface of coarse woody debris (CWD) have been measured in Korean pine forests of the southern Sikhote-Alin mountain range. The seasonal dynamics of oxidative conversion of CWD carbon have been evaluated, and average values of the CO₂ emission rate have been determined for CWD fragments of three tree species at different stages of decomposition. The degree of decomposition is an important factor of spatial variation in CO₂ emission rate, and temporal variation in this parameter is adequately described by an exponential function of both CWD temperature and air temperature (R² = 0.65–0.75).     

The Clean Development Mechanism and Sustainable Development in China''''s Electricity Sector

1 INTRODUCTIONEnergy and environmental issues in China have receivedsignificant attention in both the peer-reviewed literatureand in international energy and environmental policymaking in the last number of years. China's coal dominatedenergy consumption results in significant regional pollutionproblems, most notably acid rain that affects nearly 1/3rdof China's landmass and air pollution that plagues manyof its major cities. China now ranks as the top emitterof sulphur dioxide (SO2) pol…     

The use of ultra filtration in trace metal speciation studies in sea water

During this work, size fractionation technique "ultra filtration" is used in speciation studies of trace elements in the coastal sea water. Filtration is the most commonly used method to fractionate trace metal species, but often only "dissolved" and "particulate" fraction. The purpose of the present study is to determine colloidal and suspended particulate concentrations of Fe, Zn, Cu, Ni, and Mn in sea water. Suspended particulate matter were separated in three different size groups namely (>2.7 microm, <2.7->0.45 microm and <0.45->0.22 microm) by suction filtration using cellulose acetate and nitrate filter membranes. Thereafter to concentrate the solution with colloidal particle <0.22 microm-1.1 nm (0.5 k Nominal Molecular Weight cut-off Limit {NMWL}), the solution obtained from filtration through <0.22 microm, is sequentially passed through the ultra-filtration membranes having pore diameters of 14 nm (300 k NMWL), 3.1 nm (50 k NMWL), 2.2 nm (30 k NMWL), 1.6 nm (10 k NMWL) and 1.1 nm (0.5 k NMWL) by using Stirred Ultra-filtration Cells, operating in concentration mode. The concentration of Fe, Zn, Cu, Ni, and Mn were measured in suspended and dissolved fraction by ion chromatography, ICP-AES and Atomic Absorption Spectrometer. The salinity of the solution in various dissolved fractions of sequential filtration varies between 30.89-34.22 parts per thousand. The maximum concentrations of colloidal Zn, Cu, Ni and Mn in dissolved fraction were in <2.2->1.6 nm fraction. In case of Fe, colloidal fractions <2.2->1.6 nm and <1.6-<1.1 nm shows higher concentration. The concentration of Zn, Cu, Ni and Mn increase with decrease in size in suspended particulate matter, while the reverse is observed in case of Fe. This size separation data that specifies the partitioning of metals between dissolved and suspended solid phases is necessary for developing physically based models of metal transport in aquatic system.     

A pilot survey of blood lead levels in various types of workers in the United Arab Emirates.

The aim of the present study is to determine the effect of blood lead on the health of industrial workers in United Arab Emirates (UAE). This is a cross-sectional pilot survey of blood lead levels (BLL) of 100 industrial workers (exposed) and 100 non-industrial workers (nonexposed), matched for age, sex and nationality selected from Al-Ain, Abu-Dhabi Emirate. Industrial workers had significantly higher mean of BLL (77.5+/-42.8 microg/dl and median 80.9 microg/dl) than non-industrial workers (19.8+/-12.3 microg/dl and median 11.0 microg/dl). In the present study, reported symptoms among industrial workers were strongly associated with BLL nausea/vomiting, muscular symptoms, dizziness, fatigue, irritability, memory disturbances, insomnia and allergic conjuctivitis, rhinitis and dermatitis. Furthermore, the present study revealed that industrial workers had higher prevalence of respiratory symptoms for phlegm, shortness of breath and diagnosed asthma. In conclusion, this study determined that occurrence of certain symptoms might be associated with lead exposure among industrial workers.     

Thallium: a review of public health and environmental concerns

Thallium (Tl) is a rare but widely dispersed element. All forms of thallium are soluble enough to be toxic to living organisms. Thallium is more toxic to humans than mercury, cadmium, lead, copper or zinc and has been responsible for many accidental, occupational, deliberate, and therapeutic poisonings since its discovery in 1861. Its chemical behavior resembles the heavy metals (lead, gold and silver) on the one hand and the alkali metals (K, Rb, Cs) on the other. It occurs almost exclusively in natural waters as monovalent thallous cation. The solubility of thallous compounds is relatively high so that monovalent thallium is readily transported through aqueous routes into the environment. Tl can be transferred from soils to crops readily and accrues in food crops. The fascinating chemistry and high toxicity potential make thallium and its compounds of particular scientific interest and environmental concern. Thallium was detected in base-metal mining effluents. The conventional removal of heavy metals from wastewater has little effect on thallium. In this review, various treatment options and removal technologies are enumerated in order to protect the environment from thallium toxicity.     

Infrastructure development through PPPs in India: criteria for sustainability assessment

Public private partnerships (PPPs) allow the Indian Government to leverage private capital for meeting the widening demand-supply gap in the provision of infrastructure services. The private sector, however, prefers to limit the participation to financially attractive projects only, thereby resulting in patterns of infrastructure creation impeding the progress towards sustainable development. In order to promote sustainable development, the PPP procurement process should focus on incentivising the private sector for sustainable infrastructure development rather than concentrating on ensuring financial sustainability only. This paper discusses the principles-based PPP-specific framework that has been developed to facilitate assessment of PPP projects' progress towards sustainable development. The framework development was based on a holistic approach to sustainability assessment and subsequently validated through questionnaire survey with key stakeholders in the Indian PPP programme. This framework will provide the decision makers with appropriate decision aid for integration of sustainable development principles in the PPP procurement process.