Climate dynamics and extreme precipitation and flood events in Central Europe

Past changes and possible future variations in the nature of extreme precipitation and flood events in Central Europe and the Alpine region are examined from a physical standpoint. An overview is given of the following key contributory physical processes: (1) the variability of the large-scale atmospheric flow and the associated changes of the North-Atlantic storm track; (2) the feedback process between climate warming and the water cycle, and in particular the potential for more frequent heavy precipitation events; and (3) the catchment-scale hydrological processes associated with variations in major river flooding events and that are related to land-use changes, river training measures, and shifts in the proportion of rain to snowfall. In this context an account is provided of the possible future forecasting and warning methodologies based upon high-resolution weather prediction and runoff models. Also consideration is given to the detectability of past (future) changes in observed (modeled) extreme events. It is shown that their rarity and natural fluctuation largely impedes a detection of systematic variations. These effects restrict trend analysis of such events to return periods of below a few months. An illustration using daily precipitation from the Swiss Alps does yield evidence for pronounced trends of intense precipitation events (return period 30 days), while trends of stronger event classes are not detectable (but nevertheless can not be excluded). The small detection probability for extreme events limits possible mitigation of future damage costs through an abatement of climate change alone, and points to the desirability of developing improved early forecasting/warning systems as an additional no-regret strategy. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Performance of different composting techniques in reducing oestrogens content in manure from livestock in a Vietnamese setting

Steroid oestrogens (SE) are released by humans and animals into the environment. In the Mekong Delta animal excrement is directly discharged into surface water and can pollute the water. Only a few animal production sites are currently treating the excrement in either biogas plants or vermicomposting systems. The concentration of SE in manures from pigs and cattle was monitored in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Fresh cow faeces had an oestrogen concentration of 3.3 ng E2 eq/g dry weight. The SE concentration in effluent from biogas plants fed with animal manures was 341 ng E2 eq/L. Most of the SE were in the solid phase (77.9–98.7%). Vermicomposting reduced SE to 95% of the original input.     

Social,hydro-ecological and climatic change in the southwest coastal region of Bangladesh

Regional Environmental Change - This study investigates the historical development of the southwest coastal region of Bangladesh through the lens of human-delta co-evolutionary system. The change...     

Biological responses of workplace particles and their association with adverse health effects on miners

Epidemiological research has demonstrated the relationship between exposure to quartz dust and an elevated risk of pneumoconiosis and possible elevated risk of cancer. The current study was designed to evaluate the biological responses of workplace particles containing crystalline silica using an in vitro cell test. Respirable particle samples were sampled from four tin mines, where the standardized mortality ratio (SMR) for pneumoconiosis was 51.6 and SMR for lung cancer was 2.2 in dust-exposed miners. Alveolar macrophages (AM) are considered as the target cells for primary dust effects. The samples were then measured at 15, 30, 60 and 120 microg particle per 10(6) AM for cytoxicity with the release of glucuronidase, lactate dehydrogenase, for reactive oxygen damage with H(2)O(2) release, and for ability to induce fibrosis using the secretion of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha). Pure quartz (DQ12) and corundum were used as controls. The results showed the samples from tin mines caused a higher cytoxicity when compared to corundum, yet lower when compared to quartz. However, reactive oxygen species release (148-177 nmol/3 x 10(5) AM in high concentration of 120 microg/10(6) AM) induced by the samples were significantly higher than that induced by quartz (57 nmol/3 x 10(5) AM) and corundum (62 nmol/3 x 10(5) AM). Furthermore, particle samples induced higher TNF-alpha secretion than corundum, the samples from Limu tin mine induced much higher TNF-alpha levels than that induced by DQ12 quartz. The results from the in vitro tests help elucidate the degree of hazard of dust particles in tin mines. The in vitro reaction patterns of AM also constitute a powerful tool to monitor biological and pathogenic responses of humans following dust particle exposure.     

PM2.5 assessment in 21 European study centers of ECRHS II: Method and first winter results

The follow-up of a cohort of adults from 29 European centers of the former European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS) I (1989-1992) will examine the long-term effects of exposure to ambient air pollution on the incidence, course, and prognosis of respiratory diseases, in particular asthma and decline in lung function. The purpose of this article is to describe the methodology and the European-wide quality control program for the collection of particles with 50% cut-off size of 2.5 microm aerodynamic diameter (PM2.5) in the ECRHS II and to present the PM2.5 results from the winter period 2000-2001. Because PM2.5 is not routinely monitored in Europe, we measured PM2.5 mass concentrations in 21 participating centers to estimate background exposure in these cities. A standardized protocol was developed using identical equipment in each center (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Well Impactor Ninety-Six [WINS] and PQ167 from BGI, Inc.). Filters were weighed in a single central laboratory. Sampling was conducted for 7 days per month for a year. Winter mean PM2.5 mass concentrations (November 2000-February 2001) varied substantially, with Iceland reporting the lowest value (5 microg/m3) and northern Italy the highest (69 microg/m3). A standardized procedure appropriate for PM2.5 exposure assessment in a multicenter study was developed. We expect ECRHS II to have sufficient variation in exposure to assess long-term effects of air pollution in this cohort. Any bias caused by variation in the characteristics of the chosen monitoring location (e.g., proximity to traffic sources) will be addressed in later analyses. Given the homogenous spatial distribution of PM2.5, however, concentrations measured near traffic are not expected to differ substantially from those measured at urban background sites.     

Estimating Watershed Level Nonagricultural Pesticide Use From Golf Courses Using Geospatial Methods1

Abstract: Limited information exists on pesticide use for nonagricultural purposes, making it difficult to estimate pesticide loadings from nonagricultural sources to surface water and to conduct environmental risk assessments. A method was developed to estimate the amount of pesticide use on recreational turf grasses, specifically golf course turf grasses, for watersheds located throughout the conterminous United States (U.S.). The approach estimates pesticide use: (1) based on the area of recreational turf grasses (used as a surrogate for turf associated with golf courses) within the watershed, which was derived from maps of land cover, and (2) from data on the location and average treatable area of golf courses. The area of golf course turf grasses determined from these two methods was used to calculate the percentage of each watershed planted in golf course turf grass (percent crop area, or PCA). Turf‐grass PCAs derived from the two methods were used with recommended application rates provided on pesticide labels to estimate total pesticide use on recreational turf within 1,606 watersheds associated with surface‐water sources of drinking water. These pesticide use estimates made from label rates and PCAs were compared to use estimates from industry sales data on the amount of each pesticide sold for use within the watershed. The PCAs derived from the land‐cover data had an average value of 0.4% of a watershed with minimum of 0.01% and a maximum of 9.8%, whereas the PCA values that are based on the number of golf courses in a watershed had an average of 0.3% of a watershed with a minimum of <0.01% and a maximum of 14.2%. Both the land‐cover method and the number of golf courses method produced similar PCA distributions, suggesting that either technique may be used to provide a PCA estimate for recreational turf. The average and maximum PCAs generally correlated to watershed size, with the highest PCAs estimated for small watersheds. Using watershed specific PCAs, combined with label rates, resulted in greater than two orders of magnitude over‐estimation of the pesticide use compared to estimates from sales data.