Acid-base characteristics of organic carbon in the HUMEX lake Skjervatjern

The Humic Lake Acidification Experiment (HUMEX) was launched in 1988 to study the role of humic substances in the acidification of surface waters and the impacts of acidic deposition on the chemical and biological properties of humic substances. This subproject was designed to determine the contribution of organic acids to the acidity of Lake Skjervatjern (the HUMEX Lake) and the impacts of the acidification on the characteristics of organic carbon. In order to get an empirical measure for organic acidity, dissolved organic carbon (DOC) was fractionated, isolated, and base-titrated from each half of Lake Skjervatjern. Hydrophobic acids were the dominant organic carbon fraction; the total organic acid content was generally greater than 80% of the DOC. The reliability of the fractionation procedure was tested with synthetic acids and the Nordic Fulvic acid. The DOC fractions did not show high variation over the 1.5-y acidification period. Hydrophilic acids had consistently greater exchange acidities compared to hydrophobic acids, averaging 12.9 μeq/mg DOC vs. 10.9 μeq/mg DOC, respectively. The dissociation of organic acids during acid-base titrations clearly increased with increasing pH. The high organic anion contribution to the ion balances indicates that humic matter is an important acidity source in Lake Skjervatjern. There are slight signs that the contribution of organic acids to overall lake acidity has decreased since acidification was initiated.     

Optimal Pricing of Depletable, Replaceable Resources: The Case of Landfill Tipping Fees

We develop a general model for pricing a depletable, replaceable asset, and discuss its application in determining optimal tipping fees for a sanitary landfill. We show that the optimal fee includes a component that grows at the real interest rate as space in the landfill is depleted, and then drops when a new landfill is built. Because the scarcity cost of landfill space increases as the landfill is filled, it may be optimal to delay a waste reduction program (such as recycling, composting, or incineration) until the landfill is partially full.     

Sex ratios and intrasexual competition for mates in a sex-role reversed shorebird,Wilson's phalarope (Phalaropus tricolor)

Summary Operational sex ratio (OSR) was proposed by Emlen and Oring (1977) as an empirical measure of the intensity of sexual selection. Few studies, however, have examined the link between OSR and levels of intrasexual competition, which may influence selection. We studied the seasonal relationship between OSR and female-female competition for mates in Wilson's phalarope (Phalaropus tricolor), a sex-role reversed, non-territorial shorebird. Positive correlations between four measures of OSR (Scan Ratio, Day Ratio, Focal Ratio, and Chase Ratio) indicated seasonal changes in the availability of mates for females. Changes in mate availability resulted from the interaction between paternal care and female emancipation, asynchronous spring arrival schedules of the sexes (Reynolds et al. 1986), and the effect of clutch failure on renesting opportunities. Measures of intrasexual competition (courtship chases, percent males defended, rate and intensity of mate defense, and female-male proximity) varied significantly within and among years. Univariate and multivariate correlations indicated general agreement between measures of OSR and estimates of intrasexual competition. Our results suggest that OSR may provide a useful estimate of the opportunity for sexual selection, especially in species with matedefense mating systems.     

Urbanization and nutrient retention in freshwater riparian wetlands.

Urbanization can degrade water quality and alter watershed hydrology, with profound effects on the structure and function of both riparian wetlands (RWs) and aquatic ecosystems downstream. We used freshwater RWs in Fairfax County, Virginia, USA, as a model system to examine: (1) the effects of increasing urbanization (indexed by the percentage of impervious surface cover [%ISC] in the surrounding watershed) on nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations in surface soils and plant tissues, soil P saturation, and soil iron (Fe) chemistry; and (2) relationships between RW soil and plant nutrient chemistries vs. the physical and biotic integrity of adjacent streams. Soil total P and NaOH-extractable P (representing P bound to aluminum [Al] and Fe hydrous oxides) varied significantly but nonlinearly with % ISC (r2 = 0.69 and 0.57, respectively); a similar pattern was found for soil P saturation but not for soil total N. Relationships were best described by second-order polynomial equations. Riparian wetlands appear to receive greater P loads in moderately (8.6-13.3% ISC) than in highly (25.1-29.1% ISC) urbanized watersheds. These observations are consistent with alterations in watershed hydrology that occur with increasing urbanization, directing water and nutrient flows away from natural RWs. Significant increases in total and crystalline soil Fe (r2 = 0.57 and 0.53, respectively) and decreases in relative soil Fe crystallinity with increasing %ISC suggest the mobilization and deposition of terrestrial sediments in RWs, likely due to construction activities in the surrounding watershed. Increases in RW plant tissue nutrient concentrations and %ISC in the surrounding watershed were negatively correlated with standard indices of the physical and biotic integrity of adjacent streams. In combination, these data suggest that nutrient and sediment inputs associated with urbanization and storm-water management are important variables that affect wetland ecosystem services, such as water quality improvement, in urbanizing landscapes.     

Prioritizing ecological and human welfare risks from environmental stresses

The ecological systems of Earth are subjected to a wide array of environmental stresses resulting from human activities. The development of appropriate environmental protection and management policies and the appropriate allocation of resources across environmental stresses require a systematic evaluation of relative risks. The data and methodologies for comprehensive ecological risk assessment do not exist, yet we do have considerable understanding of econological stress-response relationships. A methodology is presented to utilize present knowledge for assignment of relative risks to ecological systems and human welfare from anthropogenic stresses. The resultant priorities, developed for the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) relative risk reduction project, highlight global climate change, habitat alteration, stratospheric ozone depletion, and species depletion as the highest environmental risks, significantly diverging from the present emphasis by EPA and the public on toxic chemical issues. Enhanced attention to ecological issues by EPA and development of ecological risk assessment methodologies that value ecological and economic issues equitably are key recommendations.     

EFFECTS OF LIME-SLUDGE DISCHARGE ON AN ARCTIC RIVER1

ABSTRACT: The Fairbanks Water Treatment Plant in Fairbanks, Alaska, processes approximately 3 MGD of drinking water using lime softening. Approximately 0.3 MGD of lime-sludge from the treatment process is combined with effluent from a nearby power plant and discharged to the Chena River. There is little information available on the impact of water-treatment sludge discharges, and virtually no information on the impacts of such discharges in polar environments. Concern surrounding the discharge of water treatment sludges have centered on alum-sludge due to the potential toxic effects of aluminum. Because of the relatively benign composition of lime-sludge, very little research has been published. However, there is the possibility that discharge of solids will result in sedimentation, accumulation of solids, and subsequent impacts on benthic organisms. This paper reports on the results of a study to determine if lime-sludge discharge from the water treatment plant is adversely impacting the river environment. The results provide basic information on the important variables of concern in lime-discharges to rivers. Samples from the discharge of the water treatment plant and combined water treatment plant/power plant effluent were collected weekly over a one-year period, and in-stream benthic and water column samples were collected biweekly during the fall and spring. Sediment and water quality data indicate that while significant accumulation of sludge solids is found downstream of the water treatment plant outfall, they are flushed out of the system by spring flows, which are significantly increased by snow melt. This process is most likely repeated on a yearly cycle. Hence, the data suggest that the FMUS water treatment plant's discharge of lime-sludge is probably not adversely impacting the river. More generally, this may indicate that the natural flow variations and sediment-laden characteristics of Arctic, glacier-fed rivers may assimilate large quantities of nonputrescible solids without significant changes in the natural river environment. Further research in this area is required to verify this conclusion.     

MULTICRITERIA EVALUATION IN A POLICY ANALYSIS OF A RHINE ESTUARY1

ABSTRACT: As part of a major project to provide the Rhine delta protection from North Sea floods, the Dutch installed sluices at Haringvliet in the late 1960s and converted the Haringvliet-Hollandsch Diep-Biesbosch (HHB) estuary into a tidally-damped, fresh-water system. Two decades later, the Dutch Rijkswaterstaat commissioned a study of alternative policies for managing the sluices and removing contaminated bottom sediments, including policies which would at least partially restore estuarine conditions to the HHB. This paper describes the public policy analysis comprising that study, focusing on the role played by formal mullicriteria evaluation (MCE), including the Analytic Hierarchy Process. Through the tasks of value-tree structuring, impact measurement, and criterion prioritization, the MCE influenced the entire structure of the analysis, became an integral part of it, and, despite initial skepticism among the participants about the utility of multicriteria analysis, was subsequently accepted and viewed favorably by the majority of them.     

Risk-taking, warning labels, training, and regulation: Are they associated with the use of helmets by all-terrain vehicle riders?

Training programs and warning labels have been advocated as a means of convincing consumers to follow safety precautions when using all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), and are emphasized in the recent consent decree signed between the Consumer Product Safety Commission and ATV manufacturers. An alternative approach is to mandate safe behavior through regulations and law. This field study of ATV operator behavior conducted in six states in 1988 and 1989 provides initial insight into the effectiveness of these approaches. Logit analysis revealed that helmet use was significantly higher when required by law or when riders had 3 or more years of riding experience. Helmet use was significantly lower when riders rode frequently, when helmets were perceived as uncomfortable or not used on motorcycles, and when subjects had been moderately or seriously injured in ATV accidents. The presence of warning labels, reading of a manual, and participation in a training course were not significantly related to helmet use.     

1979～1996年期间泰国沿海各府造成红树林减少的经济学和人口学因素

本文分析了泰国沿海各府确定将红树林转为商业性养虾用地的经济学和人口学因素.因此红树林的转化取决于给养虾人的回报(即虾的价格)、养虾投入的成本(即饲料价格和工人的工资)和红树林地区的"可利用性".另外,人均收入、人口增长和人口的迁入(即养虾场的数量)等外在因素也是很重要的.我们通过对1979～1996年期间泰国沿海21个府进行的分组调查,对红树林的转化和养虾场的扩大进行了实验性调查.结果显示,由于养虾业的发展,虾的价格、最低工资、离市场的距离、饲料价格、人口增长、人均收入以及养虾场的密度都对泰国红树林的转化造成了重要影响.