Understanding American and Korean Students’ Support for Pro-environmental Tax Policy: The Application of the Value–Belief–Norm Theory of Environmentalism

By using the value–belief–norm theory of environmentalism, this study investigates American and Korean college students’ support for pro-environmental tax policy as a way to address global climate change. The results indicate that environmental concern and the perceived severity of climate change were significant predictors of one's tax policy support. Perceived individual responsibility for addressing climate change mediated the relationship between environmental beliefs (i.e. environmental concern and perceived severity) and tax policy support for Koreans. Such relationship was not observed among Americans. This study also examines whether political ideology functions as a predictor of tax policy support. For Americans, political ideology was a significant factor in predicting one's tax policy support and that it remained significant even after the inclusion of more proximal predictors—environmental concern and perceived severity. For Koreans, however, political ideology was not a significant factor. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

1H-NMR-based profiling of organic components in leachate from animal carcasses disposal site with time

Leachate, generated by the decomposition of animal carcasses, presents many environmental, sanitary, and food safety hazards. However, research on the characteristics of leachate is lacking. In this study, we performed biochemical profiling of leachate from two animal species (pig and cattle) in two soil types (sandy loam and sandy soil) using ¹H-NMR-based profiling, followed by multivariate data analysis. The leachate was collected from a well-controlled artificial burial site over a 31-week period. Principal components analysis (PCA) of the NMR data showed similar patterns between species and soil types. Organic components, including organic acids and phenols, predominated, and their levels increased with time. The methylamine level in leachate from pig carcasses 18 weeks following burial was significantly higher than that from cattle carcasses; leachate from cattle carcasses in sandy soil 1 week after burial contained unique components (specifically ethanol, formate, alanine, N-methylation, and taurine), in contrast with those from sandy loam soil. This study suggests that a NMR-based profiling approach is useful to characterize the organic components in leachate from animal carcasses over time.     

The effective control of major industrial accidents by the Major Industrial Accident Prevention Centers (MAPC) through the Process Safety Management (PSM) grading system in Korea

This paper examines effectiveness of a regulatory enforcement organization (Major industrial Accident Prevention Center, MAPC), and a grading system for implementation of the Process Safety Management (PSM) regulation in Korea. A lot of chemical installations have been built in Korea since the 1960s. The frequent occurrence of major industrial accidents had made people's concerns grow. The Korean government enacted PSM regulations in 1996 in order to curb these accidents.However, a key question is how to make sure companies comply with the PSM regulations. In order to improve company’ compliance with PSM regulations the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) responsible for the regulation introduced a grading management system in 2001 and then established special supervisory centers for enforcement of PSM regulations in 2005. This paper reviews the role and effectiveness of the system in term of PSM enforcement. The author found that the grade-based approach has encouraged employers to implement the requirements of the PSM regulations. MAPCs play an effective role in enhancing enforcement performance. Although the more chemical plants have been established in Korea, the fewer major industrial accidents have occurred since the introduction of the system. The results may be useful for the policy maker to build an effective and efficient enforcement system.     

Ergonomic interventions for prevention of work-related musculoskeletal disorders in a small manufacturing assembly line

This study involves performing improvements in workstation specification using a three-dimensional human modeling tool and proposing well-balanced work scheduling (WBWS) to prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) in a small manufacturing plant. To analyze risk factors of WMSDs, various tasks at 10 different types of workstation were evaluated with detailed motion analysis using a customized checklist. Questionnaires were administered to 27 workers to evaluate symptoms related to WMSDs. Revised workstation specifications were suggested based on anthropometric characteristics of workers using before–after analyses as an engineering control. Additionally, WBWS was proposed as an administrative control to avoid continuous physical stress on specific body parts in repetitive tasks. A software tool for WBWS was developed for convenient and easy application. The results of the study may aid managers in applying ergonomic interventions with time and cost savings, and enhance worker satisfaction and motivation due to improvements in working conditions to prevent WMSDs.     

National monitoring of PCDD/DFs in environmental media around incinerators in Korea

To examine the levels of PCDD/DFs pollution in environmental samples in the vicinity of various incinerators, the levels of PCDD/DFs in air and soil samples collected near 17 incinerators and stack emission gases were investigated between 2003 and 2006. A total of 434 soil, 28 stack emission gas, and 38 air samples were analyzed for their PCDD/DFs concentrations. The PCDD/DFs concentrations in the flue gas samples ranged from 0.02 to 16.41 ng I-TEQ/Sm(3), with an arithmetical mean value of 3.13 ng I-TEQ/Sm(3). The PCDD/DFs concentrations in the air samples ranged from 0.032 to 0.965 pg I-TEQ/Sm(3). The soil samples contained between N.D. and 153.23 pg I-TEQ/g-dry, with an average of 7.36 pg I-TEQ/g-dry. These levels were generally consistent with or lower than many previous studies. The average PCDD/DFs levels in the soil samples decrease with increasing distance from the incinerator. From the PCDD/DFs level gradient from each plant, a distance of 500 m is suggested as being under the influence of an incinerator.     

Air Pollution in the Republic of Korea

This paper discusses the potential for using commercially available treatment techniques to remove VOCs from hazardous waste streams and addresses some of the issues associated with making waste treatment a viable VOC emission control technique for hazardous waste management facilities. It discusses the waste streams of concern because of their volatile constituents and describes potentially applicable treatment techniques. The use of models for treatment process design is described. Finally, the paper discusses treatment cost, treatment residuals, and considerations of importance in choosing where in the life cycle of a hazardous waste stream to treat it.     

Degradation of phenol,Asulam and lignin in aqueous solution by Ozonation

Phenol, the herbicide asulam (methylsulfanilyl carbamate) and lignin were degraded by ozonation. The addition of Fe³⁺ did not affect the disappearance rates of phenol and asulam appreciably, whereas UV illumination accelerated the disappearance rate. Fe³⁺ under UV illumination showed only a slight effect on the disappearance rate, but a fairly large effect on TOC elimination. The degradation of the intermediate compounds of asulam including aromatic compounds and organic acids, under UV illumination was accelerated by the addition of Fe³⁺. A possible degradation process of asulam by ozonation was proposed on the basis of intermediate and final products identified.     

Prolonged exposure to low dissolved oxygen affects early development and swimming behaviour in the gastropod Nassarius festivus (Nassariidae)

Effects of low dissolved oxygen on early development and swimming behaviour of veliger larvae of the scavenging gastropod Nassarius festivus were studied. Embryonic development was significantly delayed when dissolved oxygen level was reduced to 3.0 mg O₂ l⁻¹ and no embryo hatched successfully at 0.5 mg O₂ l⁻¹. Veliger larvae hatched at 4.5 mg O₂ l⁻¹ had significantly smaller velar lobe, shell length and shell width. Median 48-h LC₅₀ value of the veliger larvae was estimated at 1.25 mg O₂ l⁻¹ with lower swimming speed (swimming velocity and dispersal velocity) being recorded for the survivors exposed to reduced oxygen levels. The percentage of veliger larvae that developed into crawling juveniles was significantly reduced and metamorphosis was delayed at 4.5 mg O₂ l⁻¹ whereas all larvae at 3.5 mg O₂ l⁻¹ died before they underwent metamorphosis. Juveniles developed at 4.5 mg O₂ l⁻¹ were also smaller than those at 6.0 mg O₂ l⁻¹. Results indicated that dissolved oxygen levels well above hypoxia levels (2.8 mg O₂ l⁻¹) have already had significant impact on the hatching success and larval development in gastropods, which may lead to long-term decreases in population growth.