Garnering support for Pigouvian taxation with tax return: a lab experiment

Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - To test if tax return can effectively and efficiently increase the acceptance of externality taxation, a laboratory experiment with a negative...     

Macrophage activity and histopathology of the lymphohematopoietic organs in male Wistar rats orally exposed to single or mixed pesticides

The noxious effects of low or effective dose exposure to single or mixed pesticides on macrophage activity and the lymphohematopoietic organs were investigated. Male Wistar rats were orally exposed to dichlorvos, dicofol, endosulfan, dieldrin and permethrin, either as single or combined mixtures during a 28-day study containing eight groups: one group received a semipurified diet (non-treated); two groups received a semipurified diet containing low dose mixture (dieldrin 0.025 mg/kg, endosulfan, 0.6 mg/kg, dicofol 0.22 mg/kg, dichlorvos 0.23 mg/kg, permethrin 5 mg/kg) or an effective dose mixture (dichlorvos 2.3 mg/kg, dicofol 2.5 mg/kg, endosulfan 2.9 mg/kg, dieldrin 0.05 mg/kg and permethrin 25.0 mg/kg), respectively; the other five groups received a semipurified diet containing each single pesticide in effective doses. At sacrifice, the thymus, spleen, mesenteric lymph nodes, Payer's patches and bone marrow were removed for histological analysis. Peritoneal macrophages were obtained to determine the phagocytosis and spreading indexes and tumoral necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), nitric oxide (NO) and H₂O₂ production. Exposure to pesticide mixtures did not alter the percentage of macrophage phagocytosis and spreading, TNF-α production or the NO and H₂O₂ release when compared to the non-treated group. Neither was there any apparent evidence that a pesticide mixture at low or effective doses altered the histological structure of the lymphohematopoietic organs. The findings indicate that short-term treatment with pesticide mixtures did not induce an apparent immunotoxic effect in male Wistar rats.     

Determination of gaseous polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by a simple direct method using thermal desorption–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry

In the last decade, the development of novel analytical methodologies enabled the identification of several environmental pollutants responsible for health problems associated with indoor exposure. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are among the potential hazardous chemicals present in ambient air. Due to their bioaccumulation potential and carcinogenic/mutagenic effects, 16 PAHs are currently listed as priority air pollutants. The main goal of this work was to implement a new and simple method for sampling and determination of PAHs in air by using a thermal desorption (TD) technique followed by gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry analysis. A detailed study was carried out to optimise the experimental method in each of its phases, including (active) sampling, TD and chromatographic analysis. The results demonstrate that this approach allowed the detection and quantification of the six more volatile PAHs, namely, naphthalene, acenaphthylene, acenaphthene, fluorene, phenanthrene, and anthracene. Acceptable precision and good linearity over the explored range were obtained. No carry-over was observed during experimental tests and the method provided a reproducible answer. The applicability of the novel methodology was tested in real environment, namely, on the roof of a building in an urban area, in a domestic kitchen and in a collective car garage. The method enabled the identification of two PAHs in the field samples, specifically, naphthalene (two rings) and phenanthrene (three rings). With regard to PAHs sample composition, the most abundant PAH found, in the three different locations, was naphthalene, accounting for about 84–100 % of the total PAH mass detected.     

城市汽车空气污染控制基准研究

本文论述了城市汽车空气污染研究的目标、基本方法及城市汽车污染控制区的划分原则和方法.汽车类型流动源采用整个控制区平均浓度作为分析对比的基础不合适,应该专门研究确定基准控制点.为了合理选择确定控制计算点,提出3种方法:峰值法、核心区和重点控制区法、9点平均法.9点平均法可以有效增加各类污染源的敏感点,同时又可避免增加该点位影响过大的缺陷.这种方法在其他类型大气污染源控制中也能发挥作用.     

镇江市边坡地质灾害及其防治对策

镇江市边坡地质灾害分布广泛、发生频繁。在分析该市边坡地质灾害主要类型及基本特征 的基础上，对其成因机制进行了探讨。认为镇江市边坡地质灾害是各种自然因素和人类活动在一定环境条件下共同作用的结果。在此基础上，提出了防治原则和相应的对策。     

Effect of culture conditions on the formation of struvite by Myxococcus xanthus

The amount of struvite (MgNH₄PO₄·6H₂O) produced by Myxococcus xanthus as well as the culture parameter values (pH, total phosphorus, total Kjeldahl nitrogen) were dependent on the culture medium used. Struvite formation started during the exponential phase and the maximum concentration was observed at the beginning of stationary growth phase. The addition of each medium component to the liquid culture influenced the amount of crystal produced. This amount did not depend on the pH increase during the culture period. The moment of the bacterial growth phase, at which each medium component was added, influenced the struvite formation.     

水质自动监测中的质量保证与质量控制

质量保证与质量拉制是水质自动监测中十分重要的技术工作和管理工作，包括人员素质、运行与管理机制、试剂与标准溶液的配制及文件记录等。在实际工作中，监测人员可根据仪器的运行状况，定期对仪器进行校准、标准溶液的棱查、比对实验验证及试剂有效性检查，用以检查仪器的基线飘移情况。如果分析中出现一个异常值，它的前后均为正常值，这种数值大多是由仪器的进样、仪器内部试剂传输等原因所致，如果发生原因不明的数据异常，就要及时检查系统的各个环节并采集实际水样进行人工分析，直至查清原因，剔除异常值，并在周报中加以说明，以确保上报数据的准确性、精密性和可比性。