Estimation of thermodynamic parameters of the biosphere, based on remote sensing

A method that allows the estimation of the thermodynamic parameters of the biosphere has been developed. It results in the subdivision of the following four phase states of the biosphere: three equilibrium states: “white planet” with high albedo and low entropy; temperate forest in winter with high entropy; and desert with high entropy; and one nonequilibrium state: the “active forests” with low entropy, high information gain and the highest exergy values. The phase shift to a nonequilibrium state happens when albedo is less than 0.2.     

Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) and hardwood dynamics in a fire-maintained ecosystem: A simulation approach

Longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) savannas of the southeastern U.S. represent an archetype of a fire dependent ecosystem. They are known to have very short fire return intervals (∼1-3 years) that perpetuate understory plant diversity (up to 50 species m⁻²), support pine recruitment, and suppress fire sensitive hardwoods. Understanding the relationships that regulate longleaf and southern hardwoods is especially critical. With decreased fire frequency, insufficient intensity, or lack of underground competition, a woody mid-story rapidly develops, dominated by fire sensitive trees and shrubs that in-turn suppress more fire dependent species (including pine seedlings). This may occur in forest gaps, where pine-needle abundance is diminished, reducing fire spread potential. The interactions between longleaf pine, hardwoods, forest fuels, and fire frequency are complex and difficult to understand spatially. The objective of this study was to develop a spatially explicit longleaf pine-hardwood stochastic simulation model (LLM), incorporating tree demography, plant competition, and fuel and fire characteristics. Data from two longleaf pine study sites were used to develop and evaluate the model with the goal to incorporate simple site-specific calibration parameters for model versatility. Specific model components included pine seed masting, hardwood clonal sprouting, response to fire (re-sprouting, mortality), and tree density driven competition effects. LLM spatial outputs were consistent with observed forest gap dynamics associated with pine seedling establishment and hardwood encroachment. Changes in fire frequency (i.e., fire probability = 0.35-0.05) illustrated a shift in community structure from longleaf pine dominated to a hardwood dominated community. This approach to assessing model response may be useful in characterizing longleaf ecosystem resilience, especially at intermediate fire frequencies (e.g., 0.15) where the community may be sensitive to small changes in the fire regime. Height distributions and population densities were similar to in situ findings (field and LIDAR data) for both study sites. Height distributions output by the LLM illustrated fluctuations in population structure. The LLM was especially useful in determining knowledge gaps associated with fuel and fire heterogeneity, plant-plant interactions, population structure and its temporal fluctuations, and hardwood demography. This is the first known modeling work to simulate interactions between longleaf pine and hardwoods and provides a foundation for further studies on fire and forest management, especially in relation to ecological forestry practices, restoration, and site-specific applications.     

Pollution of River Mahaweli and farmlands under irrigation by cadmium from agricultural inputs leading to a chronic renal failure epidemic among farmers in NCP, Sri Lanka

Chronic renal failure (CRF) associated with elevated dietary cadmium (Cd) among farming communities in the irrigated agricultural area under the River Mahaweli diversion scheme has reached a significantly higher level of 9,000 patients. Cadmium, derived from contaminated phosphate fertilizer, in irrigation water finds its way into reservoirs, and finally to food, causing chronic renal failure among consumers. Water samples of River Mahaweli and its tributaries in the upper catchment were analyzed to assess the total cadmium contamination of river water and the possible source of cadmium. Except a single tributary (Ulapane Stream, 3.9?μg?Cd/l), all other tested tributaries carried more than 5?μg?Cd/l, the maximum concentration level accepted to be safe in drinking water. Seven medium-sized streams carrying surface runoff from tea estates had 5.1-10?μg?Cd/l. Twenty larger tributaries (Oya), where the catchment is under vegetable and home garden cultivation, carried 10.1-15?μg?Cd/l. Nine other major tributaries had extremely high levels of Cd, reaching 20?μg?Cd/l. Using geographic information system (GIS), the area in the catchment of each tributary was studied. The specific cropping system in each watershed was determined. The total cadmium loading from each crop area was estimated using the rates and types of phosphate fertilizer used by the respective farmers and the amount of cadmium contained in each type of fertilizer used. Eppawala rock phosphate (ERP), which is mostly used in tea estates, caused least pollution. The amount of cadmium in tributaries had a significant positive correlation with the cadmium loading of the cropping system. Dimbula Tea Estate Stream had the lowest Cd loading (495.9?g/ha/year), compared with vegetable-growing areas in Uma Oya catchment with 50,852.5?g?Cd/ha/year. Kendall's τ rank correlation value of total Cd loading from the catchment by phosphate fertilizer used in all crops in the catchment to the Cd content in the tributaries was +0.48. This indicated a major contribution by the cropping system in the upper catchment area of River Mahaweli to the eventual Cd pollution of river water. Low soil pH (4.5-5.2), higher organic matter content (2-3%), and 18-20?cmol/kg cation exchange capacity (CEC) in upcountry soil have a cumulative effect in the easy release of Cd from soil with the heavy surface runoff in the upcountry wet zone. In view of the existing water conveyance system from upcountry to reservoirs in North Central Province (NCP) through diversion of River Mahaweli, in addition to their own nonpoint pollution by triple superphosphate fertilizer (TSP), this demands a change in overall upper catchment management to minimize Cd pollution through agriculture inputs to prevent CRF due to elevated dietary cadmium among NCP farmers.     

A feasibility study on bioelectrokinetics for the removal of heavy metals from tailing soil

The combination of bioremediation and electrokinetics, termed bioelectrokinetics, has been studied constantly to enhance the removal of organic and inorganic contaminants from soil. The use of the bioleaching process originating from Fe- and/or S-oxidizing bacteria may be a feasible technology for the remediation of heavy metal-contaminated soils. In this study, the bioleaching process driven by injection of S-oxidizing bacteria, Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans, was evaluated as a pre-treatment step. The bioleaching process was sequentially integrated with the electrokinetic soil process, and the final removal efficiency of the combined process was compared with those of individual processes. Tailing soil, heavily contaminated with Cd, Cu, Pb, Zn, Co, and As, was collected from an abandoned mine area in Korea. The results of geochemical studies supported that this tailing soil contains the reduced forms of sulfur that can be an energy source for A. thiooxidans. From the result of the combined process, we could conclude that the bioleaching process might be a good pre-treatment step to mobilize heavy metals in tailing soil. Additionally, the electrokinetic process can be an effective technology for the removal of heavy metals from tailing soil. For the sake of generalizing the proposed bioelectrokinetic process, however, the site-specific differences in soil should be taken into account in future studies.     

Analysis of behavioral changes of zebrafish (Danio rerio) in response to formaldehyde using Self-organizing map and a hidden Markov model

Two computational methods were applied to classification of movement patterns of zebrafish (Danio rerio) to elucidate Markov processes in behavioral changes before and after treatment of formaldehyde (0.1 mg/L) in semi-natural conditions. The complex data of the movement tracks were initially classified by the Self-organizing map (SOM) to present different behavioral states of test individuals. Transition probabilities between behavioral states were further evaluated to fit Markov processes by using the hidden Markov model (HMM). Emission transition probability was also obtained from the observed variables (i.e., speed) for training with the HMM. Experimental transition and emission probability matrices were successfully estimated with the HMM for recognizing sequences of behavioral states with accuracy rates in acceptable ranges at central and boundary zones before (77.3-81.2%) and after (70.1-76.5%) treatment. A heuristic algorithm and a Markov model were efficiently combined to analyze movement patterns and could be a means of in situ behavioral monitoring tool.     

A uniform fish consumption advisory protocol for the Ohio River

ORSANCO and the six Ohio River main stem states have been working to align states' fish consumption advisories (FCAs) to enhance the value of advice issued to the public. To achieve this goal, ORSANCO worked closely with a panel consisting of state and USEPA representatives. The result of this effort is the Ohio River Fish Consumption Advisory Protocol (ORFCAP). The ORFCAP represents a single set of variables agreed upon by the panel that allows for a standardized protocol to create advisory thresholds to which states can defer to issue consumption advice for the Ohio River. The ORFCAP identifies ORSANCO as a clearinghouse for data which will be distributed to the panel for decision making. Other components include identifying primary contaminants of concern (PCBs and mercury) and dividing the river into four reporting units. The protocol was developed to issue FCAs for the protection of sensitive populations using five advisory groupings for PCBs and four for mercury. Specific variables used in the calculation of advisory thresholds such as health protection values, cooking reductions, average meal sizes, etc., were selected by the panel. Lastly, the protocol calls for FCA decisions to be based on analysis of the most recent 10?years of data for each species in each reporting unit to determine size class needs and advisory groupings. Upon pending implementation of the protocol by the main stem states, these decisions will be made annually through a series of discussions involving ORSANCO, the panel, and other appropriate state personnel.     

Numerical simulation of propane detonation in medium and large scale geometries

A modelling strategy has been developed for consequence analysis of medium and large scale gaseous detonation. The model is based on the solution of Euler equations with one-step chemistry. The Van Leer flux limited method which is a total variation diminishing scheme is used for shock capturing. Preliminary calculations were firstly conducted for small domains with fine grids which resolve the wave, relatively coarse grids which have less than 10 grids across the wave and coarse grids in which the minimum grid size is larger than the wave thickness to ensure that the reaction scheme has been properly tuned to capture the correct detonation pressure, temperature and velocity in the resolutions used in the different cases. The model was firstly tested against a medium scale detonation test in a shock tube with U-bends. Reasonably good agreement is achieved on detonation pressure and mean shock wave velocities at different measuring segments of the tube. Following the validation, the detonation of a hypothetical planar propane-air cloud is simulated. The predictions uncovered some interesting features of such large scale detonation phenomena which are of significance in the safety context, especially for accidental investigations. The findings from the present analysis are in line with the forensic evidence on damages in some historic accidents and challenges previous analysis of a major accident in which forensic evidence suggested localised detonation but was considered as the consequence of fire storms by the investigation team.     

Development of a Local-Scale Spatially Refined Multimedia Fate Model (LSRMFM) for Urban-Scale Risk Assessment: Model Formulation, GIS-Based Preprocessing, and Case Study

A local-scale spatially refined multimedia fate model (LSRMFM) was developed to evaluate in detail the multimedia transport of organic compounds at a spatial level. The model was derived using a combination of an advection?Cdispersion?Creaction partial differential equation, a steady-state multimedia fugacity model, and a geographical information system. The model was applied to predicting four major volatile organic compounds that are produced as emissions (benzene, toluene, xylene, and styrene) in an urban and industrial area (the 50?×?50-km area was divided into 0.5?×?0.5-km segments) in Korea. To test the accuracy of the model, the LSRMFM was used to predict the extent of dispersion and the data compared with actual measured concentrations and the results of a generic multimedia fate model (GMFM). The results indicated that the method developed herein is appropriate for predicting long-term multimedia pollution. However, the comparison study also illustrated that the developed model has some limitations (e.g., steady-state assumption) in terms of explaining all the observed concentrations, and additional verification and study (e.g., validation using a large observed data set, integration with a more accurate runoff model) would be desirable. In comparing LSRMFM and GMFM, discrepancies between the LSRMFM and GMFM outputs were found, as the result of geographical effects, even though the environmental parameters were identical. The geographical variation for LSRMFM output indicated the existence of considerable local human and ecological risks, whereas the GMFM output indicated less average risk. These results demonstrate that the model has the potential for improving the management of pollutant levels under these refined spatial conditions.     

Exposure assessment for methyl and total mercury from seafood consumption in Korea, 2005 to 2008

Reports on the occurrence and intake assessment of mercury for Korean seafood are currently not available. This is the first report to estimate the intake of methyl (Me-Hg) and total mercury (T-Hg) from seafood consumption in Korea. The concentrations of Me-Hg and T-Hg in seafood ranged from 1.02 to 780 (mean: 55.6) ng g(-1) wet weight and 4.89 to 1008 (mean: 100) ng g(-1) wet weight, respectively. The residue levels of Me-Hg and T-Hg in Korean seafood were moderate compared with those found in other countries. The methylation ratios of fish, cephalopods and crustaceans were similar, but shellfish had lower values compared with other species. The intakes of Me-Hg and T-Hg from seafood consumption for the general population were estimated to be 38.8 and 73.8 ng kg(-1) body weight per day, respectively. Mackerel, tuna and squid made the highest contributions to the total intake of these contaminants. Among eight age groups, 30-49 year and 3-6 year age groups had the highest exposure to Me-Hg and T-Hg. The concentrations and intakes of Me-Hg and T-Hg from Korean seafood were less than the allowable residue levels and threshold intake levels suggested by Korean and international authorities. The present study may be useful for risk management of mercury in Korean seafood.