Surveillance for adverse health effects following a chemical release in west virginia

On 11 August 1985, a large inadvertent release occurred from a chemical manufacturing plant in Institute, West Virginia. The emission was related to overheating of a storage tank that contained chemicals for the production of aldicarb, a cholinesterase inhibiting pesticide. As a result of this emission, 136 persons were treated in five local emergency rooms, 29 of whom were hospitalized for one or more days, mostly for observation. No fatalities resulted. Interviews with treated persons and non-treated community residents confirmed that the health effects were transient and compatible with exposure to irritating vapors rather than with exposure to methyl isocyanate (a chemical used in the process) or to aldicarb. Only 5% of the treated persons and 5% of the community residents surveyed were adequately warned of the emission by the plant siren. Because persons in the nearby community are potentially vulnerable to chemical injury, we recommend the development of an improved warning system, a formal evacuation procedure, and other measures to limit exposure of persons in this area in the event of a future release.     

从硫磺度渣中回收硫磺

为了变废为宝,增加经济效益,提高资源的利用率,减少环境污染,经摸索出采用"溶解——蒸馏法"从硫磺废渣回收硫磺的工艺方法.此方法工艺简单、投资省,操作容易,经济效益高等特点,比较成功地解决了硫磺废渣的污染问题,现将此方法介绍如下:一、生产原理及工艺流程1. 原理硫磺废渣中含有大量硫的成份,利用二硫化碳能溶解硫的特点,使硫与其它杂质分开,蒸馏已溶解硫的二硫化碳的液体,使磺硫结晶出来得到利用.     

我国矿产资源态势与对策

我国矿产资源总量大,居世界第3位人均拥有量小,居世界第80位。我国要实现现代化建设的第二步战略目标,矿产资源供需存在着矛盾。为了解决供需矛盾,必须从地质找矿、矿山、一次资源回收、二次资源回收、节能和节材等方面挖掘潜力。改革资源耗费型经济发展旧模式,确立资源节约型经济发展新模式,废止“有水快流”的方针,确立开发与节约并重的方针,是缓解矿产资源供需矛盾的根本途径。具体对策有:(1)依靠科学技术进步开发节约(2)搞好资源进出口贸易取长补短(3)健全法制管理体系依法治矿(4)用好计划机制管好资源和矿山(5)用好市场机制搞活矿业经济。     

环境科技英语

前言:1992年我们将迎来世界第二次人类环境会议,环境问题已成为世界舆论的热点,有关环境问题、环境科学和技术及各种信息大量出现在报刊及电台的媒体上.环境问题的世界性交流越来越多,其中以英语形式出现的文献、资料和信息最多.为使更多的环保管理干部及科技工作者适应新形势的要求,能直接通过英语阅读及时了解世界范围的环境问题信息及有关科技资料,我们在这里尝试设立一个环境科技英语的学习园地,帮助有志于下决心学会阅读环境科技英语文献的同志们,通过连续对每期"环境科技英语"的学习,坚持不懈的     

Loch fleet: liming to restore a brown trout fishery

This project has been successful in meeting its objectives in terms of demonstrating that catchment liming techniques can restore acidified waters to conditions suitable for fish populations for relatively long periods. This improvement in conditions has extended to the inlet stream, which provides vital fish spawning and nursery areas, which are difficult to treat effectively be other means in remote locations. The project has also provided an assessment of the effectiveness of differing rates and modes of lime application, which suggest that only quite restricted parts of a catchment require treatment. This not only maximizes the cost-effectiveness of the treatments, but also helps to minimize any side-effects on, for example, moorland vegetation. The biological monitoring programme at Loch Fleet has also provided an assessment of the overall ecological consequences of adding limestone to naturally acidic and calcium-deficient ecosystems.     

Measurement of dry deposition of ammonia on a forest

Ammonia concentration gradients above a Douglas fir canopy were measured from 16 August to 31 December 1989 by two automated high-precision thermodenuders at the location Speulderbos in The Netherlands. Concentration gradients were used to calculate the dry deposition flux of ammonia via flux-gradient theory. Meteorological data were obtained from a nearby tower. Ammonia concentrations were highly variable with highest values during the night. Concentration gradients were very small during daytime and quite large at night. Median values of the calculated deposition flux and deposition velocity were 0.1 microg m(-2) s(-1) and 3.2 cm s(-1) respectively (N=1624).     

Critical loads for Finnish lakes: comparison of three steady-state models

Three simple steady-state water-chemistry models are used to calculate critical loads of sulfur for lakes in Finland. Because of the high concentrations of organic matter in Finnish lakes, the influence of organic anions on the calculation of critical loads has been given special attention. The first two methods are well known ion-balance methods which have been used in many previous lake-acidification studies. The third method, developed for this study, includes the numerical solution of equilibrium equations for organic anions, inorganic carbon species and inorganic monomeric aluminum. The original pH and aluminum concentration of the lakes are estimated with this model, and a method to estimate the original acid neutralizing capacity (ANC) by simulating a Gran-titration is also tested on the lake data. Uncertainty in the predictions is estimated by varying the most critical model parameters.     

Ozone in the urban southeastern United States

Ozone measurements (daily maximum values) from the Aerometric Information Retrieval System database are analyzed for selected sites, during 1980 to 1988, in southeastern USA. Frequency distributions, for most sites during most years, show a typical bell-shaped curve with the higher frequency around the yearly daily maximum ozone mean of about 100 to about 110 microg m(-3) (50-55 ppbv). Abnormal years in ozone concentration may skew the distribution as the mean shifts. A correlation of daily maximum ozone concentrations above 140 microg m(-3) (70 ppbv) between sites shows a division between the sites in the northern protion of the region and those in the southern portion of the region. Variations in ozone levels are well correlated over distances of several hundred kilometers, suggesting that high values are associated with synoptic scale episodes. An ozone exposure analysis also shows higher ozone exposures (250-300 ppm days) in the northerly sites as compared to the southerly sites (150-170 ppm days).     

Effect of nickel on some aspects of protein metabolism in the gill and kidney of the freshwater fish, Cyprinus carpio L

Nickel has an adverse effect on some aspects of protein metabolism of the freshwater fish, Cyprinus carpio. The main changes observed were: (a) Decrease in soluble, structural and total proteins, AlAT and AAT activities with an increase in the levels of free amino acids, protease and GDH activities and ammonia in the gill and kidney at 1, 2, 3, and 4 days of exposure to a lethal concentration, 40 mg litre(-1) of nickel; (b) Increase in soluble, structural and total proteins, free amino acids and the activities of protease, AlAT, AAT and GDH with a decrease in ammonia and urea in these organs at 1, 5, 10 and 15 days of exposure to sublethal concentration, 8 mg litre(-1); (c) The magnitude in these changes increased over time with both concentrations of the metal, and was more marked in gill than in kidney.     

The response of stream-dwelling fish to liming

The fish fauna in 22 limed and seven unlimed small streams was monitored using yearly electrofishing to assess the effects of liming on species occurrence and abundance. The liming techniques were divided into three main methods, lake liming, doser liming and wetland liming, to evaluate whether different strategies had different effects on the fish fauna. The predominant species at the investigated stations were salmonids, mainly brown trout (Salmo trutta) and Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). Other species generally occurred in low numbers. The average number of fish species did not increase significantly after liming, which was probably due to recolonization difficulties caused by the frequent occurrence of migration obstacles in the streams. After liming the density of salmonids increased significantly, irrespective of the liming method. Other fish species showed no general increase, but in individual streams significant increases of European minnow (Phoxinus phoxinus) and bullhead (Cottus gobio) occurred. Some unlimed streams had acid spates with a pH below 6, which immediately lowered the numbers of salmonid parr. Other unlimed streams lost fish species progressively due to increasing acidification. pH, and probably increased levels of metals, were the major factors regulating the fish fauna. Few examples of biotic interactions were observed, but with an increase of Atlantic salmon parr after liming, brown trout abundances decreased in three streams.