Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is not sufficiently tailored to the analysis of strategic environmental problems of material suppliers. Sustainable development calls for a reduction by a factor of 10 to 20 in the material intensity of the economy, a situation which leads to dramatic shifts in markets for raw materials. Furthermore, a material supplier might have major improvement options in the material’s numerous downstream uses. LCAs, however, can’t cover these two aspects. An adapted form of Substance Flow Analysis (SFA) may be an answer. This approach defines a system in relation to the flow of a specific material through society. All environmental interventions related to the material are inventoried. An emission evaluation indicates the dominant environmental bottlenecks, given the current market volume of each application of the material. This helps to identify improvement options and strategic choices in market portfolios. Scenario analysis on potential measures can further indicate changes of material flows — and thus markets — in the system. The approach is illustrated with a case study on chlorine. 相似文献
Environment, Development and Sustainability - Land use and land cover change (LULCC) is one of the problems that the world has been facing for the last few decades despite political attention.... 相似文献
Bombardier beetles (Coleoptera, Carabidae, Brachininae) possess a remarkable defense mechanism where a hot chemical spray is released from the tip of their abdomen, with an audible explosive sound. To date, the repellent properties of these chemicals have been tested against a limited number of taxa, such as amphibians and insects. To investigate the impact of bombardier beetle defenses on avian predators, feeding trials were conducted using the bombardier beetle (Pheropsophus jessoensis) and the Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica), a sympatric and generalist predator. All naïve, hand-reared quail attacked live beetles, indicating the absence of an innate aversion to them. However, most of the quail rejected consuming the beetles whether or not the beetles sprayed them with chemicals. Naïve quail also rejected dead P. jessoensis individuals. These results support the recent hypothesis that it is not essential for P. jessoensis to spray noxious chemicals to deter predators. We also found that some of the quail exposed to live P. jessoensis remembered to avoid them for up to 5 weeks. Our results provide the first evidence of the repelling effects of bombardier beetle defense mechanisms on avian predators.
The analysis for arsenic in hair is commonly used in epidemiological studies to assess exposure to this toxic element. However, poor correlation between total arsenic concentration in hair and water sources have been found in previous studies. Exclusive determination of endogenous arsenic in the hair, excluding external contamination has become an analytical challenge. Arsenic speciation in hair appears as a new possibility for analytical assessing in As-exposure studies. This study applied a relative simple method for arsenic speciation in human hair based on water extraction and HPLC-HG-ICP-MS. The concentration of arsenic species in human hair was assessed in chronically As(V)-exposed populations from two villages (Esqui?a and Illapata) of the Atacama Desert, Chile. The arsenic concentrations in drinking water are 0.075 and 1.25 mg L(-1), respectively, where As(V) represented between 92 and 99.5% of the total arsenic of the consumed waters. On average, the total arsenic concentrations in hair from individuals of Esqui?a and Illapata were 0.7 and 6.1 microg g(-1), respectively. Four arsenic species, As(III), DMA(V), MMA(V) and As(V), were detected and quantified in the hair extracts. Assuming the found species in extracts represent the species in hair, more than 98% of the total arsenic in hair corresponded to inorganic As. On average, As(III) concentrations in hair were 0.25 and 3.75 microg g(-1) in Esqui?a and Illapata, respectively; while, the As(V) average concentrations were 0.15 and 0.45 microg g(-1) in Esqui?a and Illapata, respectively. Methylated species represent less than 2% of the extracted As (DMA(V)+ MMA(V)) in both populations. As(III) in hair shows the best correlation with chronic exposure to As(V) in comparison to other species and total arsenic. In fact, concentrations of As(total), As(III) and As(V) in hair samples are correlated with the age of the exposed individuals from Illapata (R= 0.65, 0.69, 0.57, respectively) and with the time of residence in this village (R= 0.54, 0.71 and 0.58, respectively). 相似文献
The analysis of BTEX and other substituted benzenes in water samples using solid phase microextraction (SPME) and quantification by gas chromatography with flame ionization detection (GC-FID) was validated. The best analytical conditions were obtained using PDMS/DVB/CAR fibre using headspace extraction (HS-SPME) at 50 [degree]C for 20 min without stirring. The linear range for each compound by HS-SPME with GC/FID was defined. The detection limits for these compounds obtained with PDMS/DVB/CAR fibre and GC/FID were: benzene (15 ng L(-1)), toluene (160 ng L(-1)), monochlorobenzene (54 ng L(-1)), ethylbenzene (32 ng L(-1)), m-xylene (56 ng L(-1)), p-xylene (69 ng L(-1)), styrene (35 ng L(-1)), o-xylene (42 ng L(-1)), m-dichlorobenzene (180 ng L(-1)), p-dichlorobenzene (230 ng L(-1)), o-dichlorobenzene (250 ng L(-1)) and trichlorobenzene (260 ng L(-1)). This headspace SPME-GC-FID method was compared with a previously validated method of analysis using closed-loop-stripping analysis (CLSA). The headspace SPME-GC-FID method is suitable for monitoring the production and distribution of potable water and was used, in field trials, for the analysis of samples from main intakes of water (surface or underground) and from the water supply system of a large area (Lisbon and neighbouring municipalities). 相似文献
Lead and cadmium contamination of an agricultural soil has been studied using batch and column experiments. Thermodynamics of theretention phenomena may be represented by a Langmuir isotherm foran aqueous metal concentration up to 100 mg L-1. First order kinetics with respect to the solid phase yield good predictabilityfor both batch and column experiments. Kinetics and thermodynamics of lead retention predominate over those ofcadmium. As a consequence, lead is preferentially retainedand can even displace sorbed cadmium. In the event of anspill involving both metals, cadmium would move further inthe soil and its aqueous concentration downstream could beeven higher than that of the influent solution, increasingpotential risks. A two-region model has been used to fit all the experimental results. Satisfactory predictions for column experiments are obtained with parameters which are consistent with those obtained for the batch experiments, for which sorption is described by a Langmuir isotherm including competitive retention. 相似文献
To assess the concern over declining base cation levels in forest soils caused by acid deposition, input-output budgets (1990s
average) for sulphate (SO4), inorganic nitrogen (NO3-N; NH4-N), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg) and potassium (K) were synthesised for 21 forested catchments from 17 regions in Canada,
the United States and Europe. Trend analysis was conducted on monthly ion concentrations in deposition and runoff when more
than 9 years of data were available (14 regions, 17 sites). Annual average SO4 deposition during the 1990s ranged between 7.3 and 28.4 kg ha−1 per year, and inorganic nitrogen (N) deposition was between 2.8 and 13.8 kg ha−1 per year, of which 41–67% was nitrate (NO3-N). Over the period of record, SO4 concentration in deposition decreased in 13/14 (13 out of 14 total) regions and SO4 in runoff decreased at 14/17 catchments. In contrast, NO3-N concentrations in deposition decreased in only 1/14 regions, while NH4-N concentration patterns varied; increasing at 3/14 regions and decreasing at 2/14 regions. Nitrate concentrations in runoff
decreased at 4/17 catchments and increased at only 1 site, whereas runoff levels of NH4-N increased at 5/17 catchments. Decreasing trends in deposition were also recorded for Ca, Mg, and K at many of the catchments
and on an equivalent basis, accounted for up to 131% (median 22%) of the decrease in acid anion deposition. Base cation concentrations
in streams generally declined over time, with significant decreases in Ca, Mg and K occurring at 8, 9 and 7 of 17 sites respectively,
which accounted for up to 133% (median 48%) of the decrease in acid anion concentration. Sulphate export exceeded input at
18/21 catchments, likely due to dry deposition and/or internal sources. The majority of N in deposition (31–100%; median 94%)
was retained in the catchments, although there was a tendency for greater NO3-N leaching at sites receiving higher (<7 kg ha-1 per year) bulk inorganic N deposition. Mass balance calculations show that export of Ca and Mg in runoff exceeds input at
all 21 catchments, but K export only exceeds input at 16/21 sites. Estimates of base cation weathering were available for
18 sites. When included in the mass balance calculation, Ca, Mg and K exports exceeded inputs at 14, 10 and 2 sites respectively.
Annual Ca and Mg losses represent appreciable proportions of the current exchangeable soil Ca and Mg pools, although losses
at some of the sites likely occur from weathering reactions beneath the rooting zone and there is considerable uncertainty
associated with mineral weathering estimates. Critical loads for sulphur (S) and N, using a critical base cation to aluminium
ratio of 10 in soil solution, are currently exceeded at 7 of the 18 sites with base cation weathering estimates. Despite reductions
in SO4 and H+ deposition, mass balance estimates indicate that acid deposition continues to acidify soils in many regions with losses of
Ca and Mg of primary concern.
The U.S. Government's right to retain a non-exclusive, royalty free licence in and to any copyright is acknowledged.
The Canadian Crown reserves the right to retain a non-exclusive, royalty free licence in and to any copyright. 相似文献
The evaluation of certain vascular plants that grow in the city of Madrid as biomonitors of SO2 air pollution in urban environments has been carried out. Total concentration of sulphur in leaves of the chosen higher plants
as well as other parameters in close relation to this contaminant (visible injury symptoms, chlorophyll a- and b-content and
peroxidase activity) have been determined in order to study the spatial distribution and temporal changes in SO2 deposition. Results obtained show that coniferous species such as Pinus pinea, were more sensitive to SO2 atmospheric concentration than leafy species as Quercux ilex subspecies ballota and, in the same way, bush species, such asPyracantha coccinea and Nerium oleander, were more sensitive than wooded species, such as Cedrus deodaraandPinus pinea, respectively. There is a higher accumulation of sulphur in vegetable species located near highways and dense traffic incidence
roads and near areas with high density of population. The minimum values for accumulation of SO2 were registered in winter and spring seasons (from January to April) due to the vegetative stop; while maximum values are
obtained during the summer season (from June to September), due to the stoma opening. The highest increments in sulphur concentration,
calculated as the difference between two consecutive months, are obtained in May and June for all considered species except
forCedrus deodara and Pyracantha coccinea, both species have few seasonal changes during the whole year. Some species are more sensitive to natural washing than others,
showing a decrease in sulphur concentration after rainfall periods. 相似文献