Associations between soil lead concentrations and populations by race/ethnicity and income-to-poverty ratio in urban and rural areas

Lead (Pb) is a well-studied environmental contaminant that has many negative health effects, especially for children. Both racial/ethnic and income disparities have been documented with respect to exposure to Pb in soils. The objectives of this study were to assess whether soil Pb concentrations in rural and urban areas of South Carolina USA, previously identified as having clusters of intellectual disabilities (ID) in children, were positively associated with populations of minority and low-income individuals and children (≤6 years of age). Surface soils from two rural and two urban areas with identified clusters of ID were analyzed for Pb and concentrations were spatially interpolated using inverse distance weighted analysis. Population race/ethnicity and income-to-poverty ratio (ITPR) from United States Census 2000 block group data were aerially interpolated by block group within each area. Urban areas had significantly higher concentrations of Pb than rural areas. Significant positive associations between black, non-Hispanic Latino, individuals and children ≤6 years of age and mean estimated Pb concentrations were observed in both urban (r = 0.38, p = 0.0007) and rural (r = 0.53, p = 0.04) areas. Significant positive associations also were observed between individuals and children with an ITPR < 1.00 and Pb concentrations, though primarily in urban areas. Racial/ethnic minorities and low ITPR individuals, including children, may be at elevated risk for exposure to Pb in soils.     

Physicochemical properties of non-living water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) and lesser duckweed (Lemna minor) and their influence on the As(V) adsorption processes

Eichhornia crassipes (Ec) and Lemna minor (Lm) are aquatic plants. They are considered as weeds of the water and approach being a scourge in many parts of the world, choking waterways and hindering transport upon them. At the same time they are known to readily remove heavy metal ions from water. This paper considers the use of non-living plants as novel and inexpensive biosorbent for the removal of As(V) from watersheds. In the first place they were conditioned and characterised to determine their physicochemical and surface properties and in the second place their adsorption properties for As(V) from aqueous solution were evaluated considering the toxicity of this metalloid in the environment. It describes the methodology to prepare the non-living biomasses; the physicochemical characterisation by SEM, XRD, FTIR, TGA analyses and surface characterisation of Ec and Lm by specific surface, hydration kinetic, point of zero charge determination by mass titration, active site density and XPS analysis are described. Both studied biomasses were found to be potential bio-sorbents for arsenic ions from aqueous solution. According to their efficiency to remove arsenic, they can be used in a very low cost metalloid ions removal system.     

Environmental and energy-related challenges to sustainable tourism in the United States and China

This article examines the relationship between tourism, energy, and environment. This article approaches tourism as a complex adaptive system composed of consumers, transportation providers, travel intermediaries, and destinations composed of multiple tourism-related companies and other stakeholder groups. Environmental and energy-related challenges of components to the system are examined as well as various units – the system as a whole, enterprises and individuals – within the system. A total of 92 peer-reviewed articles were studied that address ‘energy’ and ‘tourism’ published between 1974 and 2011. Also addressed are the impacts of social and cultural differences between the United States and China concerning responses to environmental and energy-related challenges. This article concludes with recommendations for addressing the challenges associated with such challenges, including building system capacity, technology development and adoption, support of individual behavior change, increasing understanding of the trade-offs and interactions within the system, and adoption of multidisciplinary approaches to these challenges within the tourism system.     

Space-time stick-breaking processes for small area disease cluster estimation

We propose a space-time stick-breaking process for the disease cluster estimation. The dependencies for spatial and temporal effects are introduced by using space-time covariate dependent kernel stick-breaking processes. We compared this model with the space-time standard random effect model by checking each model’s ability in terms of cluster detection of various shapes and sizes. This comparison was made for simulated data where the true risks were known. For the simulated data, we have observed that space-time stick-breaking process performs better in detecting medium- and high-risk clusters. For the real data, county specific low birth weight incidences for the state of South Carolina for the years 1997–2007, we have illustrated how the proposed model can be used to find grouping of counties of higher incidence rate.     

外源渗透保护剂对活性污泥耐盐能力的影响

高盐分是导致很多工业废水生物处理效率下降的主要因素之一。探讨在生物处理系统中添加渗透保护剂提高活性污泥耐盐能力的可行性。结果表明:添加海藻糖、谷氨酸、甜菜碱和钾离子能提供有效的渗透保护作用,减轻盐分对污泥降解活性的抑制,其中以甜菜碱的渗透保护效果最好。对于未经盐分驯化的非耐盐污泥,当NaCl质量分数为3%时,添加20 mg/L的甜菜碱可使其耗氧速率从9.5 mg/h提高到29.5 mg/h;对于经过盐分驯化的耐盐污泥,当NaCl质量分数为6%时,添加50 mg/L的甜菜碱可使其耗氧速率从10.5 mg/h提高到24.9 mg/h。当生物处理系统受到瞬时盐分冲击时,活性污泥中的微生物细胞可以快速吸收添加的甜菜碱而平衡外界渗透压,从而缩短活性污泥对高盐环境的适应期,减轻盐分对活性污泥的毒害。     

典型全氟辛烷磺酸盐(PFOS)替代品对土壤跳虫的生态毒性

利用土壤模式动物白符跳(Folsomia candida),评价4种PFOS替代产品,包括50%的全氟丁基有机铵盐阳离子表面活性剂(简称表面活性剂)、用调聚法合成的三防织物整理剂(含固率23.7%,简称织物三防整理剂)、用电解氟化法合成的C4织物及C6织物三防整理剂的生态毒性,目的是为筛选安全高效的PFOS替代品提供科学依据。研究表明,表面活性剂与三防织物整理剂对跳虫急性毒性的LC50(7d)分别为4959和1007mg·kg-1,而C4与C6整理剂对跳虫急性毒性的LC50(7d)均大于5000mg·kg-1;表面活性剂、织物三防整理剂与C4整理剂对跳虫慢性毒性的EC50(28d)分别为0.15、0.12和0.18mg·kg-1,而C6织物三防整理剂对跳虫慢性毒性的EC50(28d)大于1mg·kg-1;4种替代品生态毒性顺序为织物三防整理剂>表面活性剂>C4>C6织物三防整理剂。通过与本实验室PFOS生态毒性的研究结果比较发现,除织物三防整理剂,其余3种替代品对跳虫的生态毒性作用均小于PFOS,其中C6整理剂对跳虫的毒性最小,有望成为替代PFOS的环保型织物整理剂。     

冷藏技术对发光细菌活性及毒性测试性能的影响

由于发光细菌的在线毒性监测技术受到了细菌生物活性稳定性保持问题的制约,探索一种脱脂牛奶菌悬液冷藏复苏方法,以提高发光细菌活性的保持时间。比较了明亮发光杆菌新鲜菌液冷藏、冻干粉菌悬液冷藏和脱脂牛奶菌悬液冷藏对发光细菌生物活性的影响,同时,比较了不同渗透压调节液对菌悬液急性毒性测试的灵敏度和稳定性的影响。结果表明,质量分数为25%的脱脂牛奶可提高发光细菌生物活性的稳定性,菌悬液冷藏7d后复苏,相对发光率仍可达92%。2%NaCl和10%蔗糖为渗透压调节液时,冷藏至第7天的发光细菌脱脂牛奶菌悬液对重金属毒性测试的灵敏度,与新鲜菌液基本相同,但添加蔗糖降低了其对有机物的测试灵敏度。利用发光细菌脱脂牛奶冷藏菌悬液对Zn~(2+)进行连续7d的毒性测试,EC_(50)的变异系数小于15%,结果稳定性良好。     

A universal approach to estimate biomass and carbon stock in tropical forests using generic allometric models

Allometric equations allow aboveground tree biomass and carbon stock to be estimated from tree size. The allometric scaling theory suggests the existence of a universal power-law relationship between tree biomass and tree diameter with a fixed scaling exponent close to 8/3. In addition, generic empirical models, like Chave's or Brown's models, have been proposed for tropical forests in America and Asia. These generic models have been used to estimate forest biomass and carbon worldwide. However, tree allometry depends on environmental and genetic factors that vary from region to region. Consequently, theoretical models that include too few ecological explicative variables or empirical generic models that have been calibrated at particular sites are unlikely to yield accurate tree biomass estimates at other sites. In this study, we based our analysis on a destructive sample of 481 trees in Madagascar spiny dry and moist forests characterized by a high rate of endemism (> 95%). We show that, among the available generic allometric models, Chave's model including diameter, height, and wood specific gravity as explicative variables for a particular forest type (dry, moist, or wet tropical forest) was the only one that gave accurate tree biomass estimates for Madagascar (R2 > 83%, bias < 6%), with estimates comparable to those obtained with regional allometric models. When biomass allometric models are not available for a given forest site, this result shows that a simple height-diameter allometry is needed to accurately estimate biomass and carbon stock from plot inventories.     

啤酒废水同步脱氮除磷工艺启动研究

为了将短程硝化反硝化与A/O法除磷同时应用于SBR工艺处理啤酒废水,通过改变序批式反应器(SBR)工艺运行方式,使活性污泥依次经历厌氧、好氧、缺氧3个阶段,控制ρ(MLSS)=4 700 mg/L、pH=7.5～8.0、DO=0.3～0.5 mg/L(好氧阶段)。反应器内短程硝化反硝化同步除磷效果明显,氨氮去除率大于90%,亚硝酸盐积累率大于85%,磷去除率大于98%。试验结果表明短程硝化反硝化与A/O法除磷可同时应用于SBR工艺处理啤酒废水。     

Status,source identification,and health risks of potentially toxic element concentrations in road dust in a medium-sized city in a developing country

This study aims to determine the status of potentially toxic element concentrations of road dust in a medium-sized city (Rawang, Malaysia). This study adopts source identification via enrichment factor, Pearson correlation analysis, and Fourier spectral analysis to identify sources of potentially toxic element concentrations in road dust in Rawang City, Malaysia. Health risk assessment was conducted to determine potential health risks (carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks) among adults and children via multiple pathways (i.e., ingestion, dermal contact, and inhalation). Mean of potentially toxic element concentrations were found in the order of Pb > Zn > Cr(IV) > Cu > Ni > Cd > As > Co. Source identification revealed that Cu, Cd, Pb, Zn, Ni, and Cr(IV) are associated with anthropogenic sources in industrial and highly populated areas in northern and southern Rawang, cement factories in southern Rawang, as well as the rapid development and population growth in northwestern Rawang, which have resulted in high traffic congestion. Cobalt, Fe, and As are related to geological background and lithologies in Rawang. Pathway orders for both carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks are ingestion, dermal contact, and inhalation, involving adults and children. Non-carcinogenic health risks in adults were attributed to Cr(IV), Pb, and Cd, whereas Cu, Cd, Cr(IV), Pb, and Zn were found to have non-carcinogenic health risks for children. Cd, Cr(IV), Pb, and As may induce carcinogenic risks in adults and children, and the total lifetime cancer risk values exceeded incremental lifetime.