Numerical modeling of changes in groundwater storage and nitrate load in the unconfined aquifer near a river receiving reclaimed water

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Reclaimed water (RW) has been widely used as an alternative water resource to recharge rivers in mega-city Beijing. At the same time, the RW also...     

Assessing economic sustainability and ecological efficiency with genuine progress indicator: a case study of the Yangtze River Delta from 2000 to 2018

To achieve urban sustainability, it is critical to enhance the environment, economy, and society simultaneously. This study adopted the revised genuine progress indicator (GPI) and ecological footprint (EF) to evaluate the ecological efficiency and economic sustainability of the Yangtze River Delta from 2000 to 2018. Spatial analysis was utilized to identify spatial autocorrelation. A total of 27 cities were then partitioned through k-means cluster analysis. The results showed that GPI and ecological efficiency improved rapidly, but economic sustainability showed a downward trend. GPI and GDP had a high degree of spatial correlation, especially in Suzhou-Wuxi-Changzhou Metropolitan Area. However, no spatial correlation existed between GPI and EF. The city with high GEE can reach 3000 $/gha, indicating the city consumed 1 global hectare to create $3000 of genuine economic growth. Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Taizhou were cities with the highest level of economic sustainability and ecological efficiency. The spatiotemporal characteristics of economic sustainability and ecological efficiency revealed in this study will provide theoretical guidance for alleviating ecological pressure and promoting economic sustainable development.

     

Plastic waste as a valuable resource: strategy to remove heavy metals from wastewater in bench scale application

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Single-use plastic waste is gradually considered a potential material for circular economy. Ion exchange resin obtained from polystyrene waste by...     

Conditional effect of governance quality on the finance-environment nexus in a multivariate EKC framework: evidence from the method of moments-quantile regression with fixed-effects models

This paper investigates the mitigating effect of governance quality on the finance-environment nexus in a multivariate EKC framework in 123 selected countries during the 1990–2017 period. We mainly employ the method of moments-quantile regression (MM-QR) with the fixed-effects model, among others. First, the MM-QR estimator reveals that financial development reduces environmental quality more significantly in countries with initially higher levels (the 75^th and 90^th quantiles) of CO₂ emissions than in other countries (the 25^th and 10^th quantiles). Second, the attenuating effect of governance quality on the finance-environment nexus is more remarkable in nations with low initial levels (the 25^th and 10^th quantiles) of CO₂ emissions. Third, we find that the marginal positive effect of financial development on CO₂ emissions is smaller under a good regulatory framework than under corruption control and the rule of law, especially in the top emitters (the 75^th and 90^th quantiles). Fourth, unlike oil, which has a considerable negative impact on the environmental quality of the major emitters, renewable energy usage reduces CO₂ emissions in countries in all quantiles, primarily in the lowest quantiles. Fifth, the findings also show that urbanization dramatically worsens environmental quality in all economies, particularly those in the lowest quantiles. Finally, we confirm that the EKC hypothesis holds in all countries across different quantiles. The study’s final section discusses policy implications for sustainable development in all countries.

     

Method and mechanism of chromium removal from soil: a systematic review

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Heavy metal pollution has increasingly affected human life, and the treatment of heavy metal pollution, especially chromium pollution, is still a...     

DSCAM-AS1 promotes cervical carcinoma cell proliferation and invasion via sponging miR-338-3p

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Deregulated lncRNA DSCAM-AS1 expression was found in several tumors. However, mechanism and functional role of DSCAM-AS1 in cervical carcinoma remain...     

Forty years studies on polychlorinated biphenyls pollution,food safety,health risk,and human health in an e-waste recycling area from Taizhou city,China: a review

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - E-waste generation has become a serious environmental challenge worldwide. Taizhou of Zhejiang Province, situated on the southeast coastline of China,...     

Construction and application of comprehensive drought monitoring model considering the influence of terrain factors: a case study of southwest Yunnan,China

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Droughts in winter and spring are one of the most prominent natural disasters in the Yunnan Province in China. They occur frequently, with long...     

Distribution and fractionation of phosphorus, cadmium, nickel, and lead in calcareous soils amended with composts

Composts improve organic carbon content and nutrients of calcareous soils but the accumulation and distribution of phosphorus and heavy metals among various fractions in soil may vary under the south Florida conditions. The accumulation of P, Cd, Ni, and Pb with depth and the distribution of water soluble, exchangeable, carbonate, Fe-Mn oxides, organic and residual forms of each element were investigated in soils amended with municipal solid waste (MSW) compost, co-compost and biosolids compost and inorganic fertilizer (as control). Total concentrations of P, Cd, Ni, and Pb were higher in the 0-22 cm soil layers and decreased considerably in the rock layers. These elements were in the decreasing order of P > Pb > Ni > Cd. Amounts of water soluble and exchangeable forms of P, Cd, Ni and Pb were negligible at 0-22 cm soil depths except for Cd in the 10-22 cm depth. Amending calcareous soil with either organic or inorganic amendments rendered phosphorus, nickle and lead in the residual form followed by Fe-Mn oxides form in the 0-10 and 10-22 cm soil layers. Cadmium was predominantly in the Fe-Mn oxides fraction followed by the residual and carbonate forms in both soil layers. A significant positive correlation was found between various organic carbon fractions and organic forms of P, Cd and Pb in the surface soil layer. Soil amended with MSW compost had higher concentration of Cd in the organic fraction whereas, co-compost and MSW compost amended soil had higher concentrations of organic Ni fraction in the 0-10 cm soil layer.     

Ocean pollution from land-based sources: East China Sea, China

The environment of East China Sea (ECS) has been faced by huge stresses from anthropogenic activities and population growth in the Yangtze River drainage basin and the areas along the coasts. Improper use of natural resources and short-term economic objectives have resulted in severe environmental degradation in a fairly short time frame and the degradation has now reached a level where the health and well being of the coastal populations are threatened. The main pollutants are inorganic nitrogen, phosphate, oil hydrocarbons, organic matters and heavy metals. Nutrients cause eutrophication of the coastal waters and the estuarine area and very often stimulate the occurrence of red tides. The environmental pollution of Yangtze River basin directly impact on the state of the marine environment in the ECS. The ecosystem stability is maintained by a steady water discharge from the river, that mixes with the marine salty water in the estuary, and the sediment loads from the river that balance ocean erosion in the delta and its adjacent coastal area. The large-scale water transfer and dam constructions in the Yangtze River basin will change this basis. For the ECS the challenge is to reverse the negative processes taking place and to restore ecosystem balance. The main challenge is to integrate socioeconomic and environmental decision making in order to promote sustainable development. A better understanding of the driving forces in society that cause these environmental pressures is required in order to overcome these obstacles. International cooperation may be an important contributor to the progress and in particular provide access to financial, technological, scientific and human resource assistance.