Forest community analysis in the Songshan national nature reserve of China using self-organizing map

The forest communities in the Songshan National Nature Reserve (SNNR) of China were analyzed by using self-organizing map (SOM). Seven types of vegetation were defined by SOM, and represented the panorama of forest communities in the SNNR. The classification of samples and species contribution was consistent. SOM classification and the dominant species visualization in the forest community data in SNNR reflected the impact of the environmental factors, such as elevation, and slope.     

The New England Air Quality Forecasting Pilot Program: Development of an Evaluation Protocol and Performance Benchmark

Abstract

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently sponsored the New England Forecasting Pilot Program to serve as a “test bed” for chemical forecasting by providing all of the elements of a National Air Quality Forecasting System, including the development and implementation of an evaluation protocol. This Pilot Program enlisted three regional-scale air quality models, serving as prototypes, to forecast ozone (O₃) concentrations across the northeastern United States during the summer of 2002. A suite of statistical metrics was identified as part of the protocol that facilitated evaluation of both discrete forecasts (observed versus modeled concentrations) and categorical forecasts (observed versus modeled exceedances/nonexceedances) for both the maximum 1-hr (125 ppb) and 8-hr (85 ppb) forecasts produced by each of the models. Implementation of the evaluation protocol took place during a 25-day period (August 5–29), utilizing hourly O₃ concentration data obtained from over 450 monitors from the U.S. Environment Protection Agency’s Air Quality System network.     

Environmental psychology with a Latin American taste

This paper describes and analyzes the actual and potential contributions of Latin American environmental psychology (EP) to the study of environment–behaviour interactions. Latin America is a richly socoi- and bio-diverse region; the multitude of problems caused by threats to its diversity requires especial conceptual and methodological approaches for studying and solving those problems. Latin American environmental psychologists have contributed ideas and studies according to the specificities (indigenous psychologies) of their nations. These specificities include Latin American traditions of collective participation, holistic worldviews, emotional attachment to places and other individuals, biospheric attitudes and preference for diversity, among others, in addition to the cultural traditions inherited from Europe. These traditions are considered in EP studies conducted by Latin American authors, which are described and commented upon. The importance of formative programs for a professionalizing environmental psychology in the area is discussed. Finally, this paper envisions the future of EP in Latin America. Such a forecast includes our vision of how environmental psychologists in the region could contribute to the general development of a universal environmental psychology.     

Connectivity of wood thrush breeding,wintering, and migration sites based on range‐wide tracking

Many migratory animals are experiencing rapid population declines, but migration data with the geographic scope and resolution to quantify the complex network of movements between breeding and nonbreeding regions are often lacking. Determining the most frequently used migration routes and nonbreeding regions for a species is critical for understanding population dynamics and making effective conservation decisions. We tracked the migration of individual Wood Thrushes (Hylocichla mustelina) (n = 102) from across their range with light‐level geolocators and, for the first time, quantified migration routes and wintering regions for distinct breeding populations. We identified regional and species‐level migratory connectivity networks for this declining songbird by combining our tracking results with range‐wide breeding abundance estimates and forest cover data. More than 50% of the species occupied the eastern wintering range (Honduras to Costa Rica), a region that includes only one‐third of all wintering habitat and that is undergoing intensive deforestation. We estimated that half of all Wood Thrushes in North America migrate south through Florida in fall, whereas in spring approximately 73% funnel northward through a narrow span along the central U.S. Gulf Coast (88–93°W). Identifying migratory networks is a critical step for conservation of songbirds and we demonstrated with Wood Thrushes how it can highlight conservation hotspots for regional populations and species as a whole. Conectividad de Sitios de Reproducción, Invierno y Migración del Zorzal con Base en Rastreo de Cobertura Amplia     

Respiratory and behavioral responses of the grass shrimp Palaemonetes pugio to cadmium and reduced dissolved oxygen

Adult grass shrimp (Palaemonetes pugio) were collected during July and August, 1973, and exposed for 48-h periods to a series of sublethal cadmium (Cd) concentrations: 0.1 and 0.56 mg l^-1 for metabolic studies; and 0.01, 0.05, 0.1, 0.3, 0.56 mg l^-1 for locomotor studies. Treatment effects were tested singly and in combination at selected dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations ranging from near saturation to 0.8 mgl^-1. Shrimp not exposed to Cd exhibited metabolic regulation between 6.5 and, 4.6 mg DOl^-1, with progressively lower O₂ consumption rates at lower DO concentrations. Oxygen consumption of Cd-exposed shrimp was suppressed overall relative to the non-Cd treated shrimp, and with one exception, the magnitude of metabolic suppression directly corresponded to Cd concentration. Locomotor activity of non-Cd exposed shrimp was relatively independent of DO concentration down to 2.8 mg DO l^-1 and became significantly suppressed at 1.8 mg DO l^-1 and below. Significant suppression of locomotion was evident in shrimp exposed to 0.56 mg Cd l^-1, but was not seen in treatment groups of 0.3 mg Cd l^-1 or lower. No interaction on locomotor activity of shrimp was detected between Cd exposure and oxygen concentration. The reduction of locomotor activity and metabolism at 0.56 mg Cd l^-1 exposure is similar to that occurring under reduced oxygen condition. It is hypothesized that Cd acts in some manner to suppress O₂ availability to P. pugio, a suggestion consistent with literature reports on adverse effects of Cd on fish respiratory enzymes and gill tissue.Contribution No. 351 of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Environmental Research Laboratory, Narragansett, Rhode Island. Although the research described in this article was funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, it has not been subjected to Agency review and therefore does not necessarily reflect the views of the Agency and no official endorsement should be inferred     

A PROTOTYPE OF THE MODERN SETTLING -RESERVOIR IN ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA1

ABSTRACT If one goes to Iraq today, as I did in the summer of 1972 one sees that the area once served by this ancient canal system is presently abandoned to desert. The Ur III texts would indicate that the Sumerian irrigation system allowed them to raise good crops of grain, vegetables and fruits, in an area now completely barren except for an occasional thorn-bush. This paper deals in detail with the Sumerian term nag-ku5, which seems to be a key word in arriving at a more accurate picture of Sumerian canal and irrigation systems. Ur III material indicates that the nag-ku5 may have served a role similar to that of the modern settling-reservoir. The aim of this study is the hope that knowledge of the past could help this desert bloom once more.     

Environmental Surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in Wastewater and Groundwater in Quintana Roo,Mexico

The presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) RNA in wastewater has been reported as a result of fecal shedding of infected individuals. In this study, the occurrence of SARS-CoV-2 RNA was explored in primary-treated wastewater from two municipal wastewater treatment plants in Quintana Roo, Mexico, along with groundwater from sinkholes, a household well, and submarine groundwater discharges. Physicochemical variables were obtained in situ, and coliphage densities were determined. Three virus concentration methods based on adsorption-elution and sequential filtration were used followed by RNA isolation. Quantification of SARS-CoV-2 was done by RT-qPCR using the CDC 2020 assay, 2019-nCoV_N1 and 2019-nCoV_N2. The Pepper mild mottle virus, one of the most abundant RNA viruses in wastewater was quantified by RT-qPCR and compared to SARS-CoV-2 concentrations. The use of three combined virus concentration methods together with two qPCR assays allowed the detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in 58% of the wastewater samples analyzed, whereas none of the groundwater samples were positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. Concentrations of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater were from 1.8 × 10³ to 7.5 × 10³ genome copies per liter (GC l⁻¹), using the N1 RT-qPCR assay, and from 2.4 × 10² to 5.9 × 10³ GC l⁻¹ using the N2 RT-qPCR assay. Based on PMMoV prevalence detected in all wastewater and groundwater samples tested, the three viral concentration methods used could be successfully applied for SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection in further studies. This study represents the first detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater in southeast Mexico and provides a baseline for developing a wastewater-based epidemiology approach in the area.

     

Fundamental study of the behavior of chlorine during the combustion of single RDF

A fundamental study of the combustion characteristics and the de-HCl behavior of a single refuse-derived fuel (RDF) pellet was carried out to explain the de-HCl phenomena of RDF during fluidized bed combustion and to provide data for the development of high efficiency power generation technology using RDF. In this research, combustion and pyrolysis experiments were carried out in an electrical furnace using a series of model and actual RDF samples. The de-HCl capability of Ca(OH)2 in RDF was evaluated by measuring the emission fraction of HCl in the flue gas and the capture fraction of Cl in the residue. It was found that the capture fraction of Cl components in the residue increased from 0 to nearly 70% when the molar ratio of Ca/Cl was changed from 0 to around 13. Apparently, the capture fraction also decreased with increasing oxygen concentration in the feed gas. The devolatilization process of RDF was confirmed to be a very important part of de-HCl process. The effect of temperature profile of the RDF pellet on the de-HCl process, as it varies with the heating rate of RDF and the oxygen concentration in the vicinity of the sample, is discussed.     

Evaluation of the macroalga,muskgrass, for the phytoremediation of selenium-contaminated agricultural drainage water by microcosms

Previous field studies suggested that the macroalga, muskgrass (Chara canescens Desv. & Lois), plays an important role in the removal of selenium (Se) from agricultural drainage water. This study evaluated the efficiency of Se removal from drainage water by muskgrass-vegetated wetland microcosms, and determined the extent to which muskgrass removed Se through phytoextraction and biovolatilization. Six flow-through wetland microcosms were continuously supplied with drainage water containing an average Se concentration of 22 microg L(-1) over a 24-d experimental period. The Se mass input and outflow and the rate of Se volatilization were monitored daily for each microcosm. Three microcosms containing muskgrass reduced the daily mass Se input in the inflow drainage water by 72.1%; this compared with a reduction of 50.6% of the mass Se input for three unvegetated control microcosms. Selenium accumulated in muskgrass tissues accounted for 1.9% of the total mass Se input in the microcosm, followed by 0.5% via biological volatilization. The low rates of Se volatilization from selenate-supplied muskgrass, which were 10-fold less than from selenite, were probably due to a major rate limitation in the reduction of selenate to organic forms of Se in muskgrass. This conclusion was derived from X-ray absorption spectroscopy speciation analysis, which showed that muskgrass treated with selenite contained 91% of the total Se in organic forms (selenoethers and diselenides), compared with 47% in muskgrass treated with selenate.     

Emergy evaluation perspectives of a multipurpose dam proposal in Korea

The 'emergy' concept was used to evaluate the economy of Korea and the contributions of a multipurpose dam proposal to the real wealth of the Korean economy. Emergy is defined as the available energy of one kind previously used up directly and indirectly to make a product or service. The indices for Korea calculated from the emergy evaluation were close to those of developed countries. Even though its monetary balance of payments was negative in 1997, the economy of Korea showed positive balance in trade when exports and imports were expressed in emergy. The emergy evaluation showed that the Korean economy places a large stress on its environment. Water supply and generation of electricity were the most important contributions of the proposed dam in terms of emergy; 46.5 and 45.1% of the total benefit, respectively. Flood control contributed 8.4% of the total benefit. Major costs associated with the proposed dam were from sediments (33.2% of the total cost), construction services (22.8%), and social disruption of the region (21.6%). In terms of emergy, the ratio of benefits to costs of the proposed dam was 2.78 if sediments are not included, and 1.86 if sediments are included, which result in more benefits than costs in both cases. The benefit to cost ratio of the dam was larger than that of the current system (1.42) without the dam whether sediments are included in the total cost or not. The environmental stress of the proposed dam was considerably lower than that of the Korean economy, but the dam might increase stress on local environment.