IMS Method Performance Analyses for Giardia in Water Under Differing Conditions

Immunomagnetic separation (IMS) has been specified as a standard method for the measurement of Giardia under USEPA Method 1623. In this study, IMS was evaluated on the basis of recovery efficiencies for Giardia cysts under various IMS operation conditions. Significant change in recovery was observed by altering the debris ratio of water samples. Notably, cyst recovery efficiencies utilizing IMS dropped with increased turbidity, and results for varying dosages of magnetic beads and cysts indicate that 1 / 100 immunomagnetic beads is sufficient to conjugate large numbers of cysts. Changing vessel volume and replacing the sample buffer had no significant effect on cyst recovery efficiencies.     

Metal Concentration in Oyster, Crassostrea Gigas, and Sediment in Ann-Ping Mariculture Ground, Taiwan

This study was to assess the metal contamination in oyster tissue grown in the Ann-ping mariculture ground in Taiwan. the information generated from this work also revealed general metal pollution problem for Taiwan's oyster farmers. Oysters, Crassostrea gigas, and surficial sediments collected from ten locations in Ann-ping mariculture ground in Taiwan for metals concentration (Cu, Zn, Pd, Cd, Fe and Mn) were performed. Analytical results indicated that the yearly averaged oyster copper concentrations (μg g^-1, wet weight) in oyster soft parts from Ann-ping increased from 21.3±4.1 in 1993; 24.1±6.8 in 1994; 36.8±11.9 in 1995 to 43.9±23.1 μg g^-1, wet weight, in the 1996 raising season. the mean oyster copper concentration reached a level of 50 μg g^-1, wet weight, in December 1996. This increasing trend of metal concentration in oyster tissue indicates a potential pollution source which may pose a potential disaster as green oyster incidence, which occurred on the Charting coast in 1986, in Taiwan. Sediment samples in Ann-ping mariculture ground were also collected and examined. the seasonal variation of the copper concentration in surficial sediment from Ann-ping did not show an increasing trend as observed in oyster tissue.     

Particle release transport in Danshuei River estuarine system and adjacent coastal ocean: a modeling assessment

A three-dimensional hydrodynamic model was created to study the Danshuei River estuarine system and adjacent coastal ocean in Taiwan. The model was verified using measurements of the time-series water surface elevation, tidal current, and salinity from 1999. We conclude that our model is consistent with these observations. Our particle-tracking model was also used to explore the transport of particles released from the Hsin-Hai Bridge, an area that is heavily polluted. The results suggest that it takes a much longer time for the estuary to be flushed out under low freshwater discharge conditions than with high freshwater discharge. We conclude that the northeast and southwest winds minimally impact particle dispersion in the estuary. The particles fail to settle to the bottom in the absence of density-induced circulation. Our model was also used to simulate the ocean outfall at the Bali. Our experimental results suggest that the tidal current dominates the particle trajectories and influences the transport properties in the absence of a wind stress condition. The particles tend to move northeast or southwest along the coast when northeast or southwest winds prevail. Our data suggest that wind-driven currents and tidal currents play important roles in water movement as linked with ocean outfall in the context of the Danshuei River.     

Multi-criteria analysis via the VIKOR method for prioritizing land-use restraint strategies in the Tseng-Wen reservoir watershed

It is important to adopt proper water and soil conservation and land-use planning in a watershed for lowering adverse impacts on reservoir water quality. Although reservoir watersheds occupy a large amount of land in Taiwan, high population density has exerted development pressures on such land. Therefore, the priority ranking of land-use restrictions for the subdivisions with different degrees of environmental vulnerability is necessary in watershed management. Since there are several criteria for evaluating the potential environmental impact from the subdivisions, multi-criteria analysis was applied as a technique for solving these problems in this study. The VIKOR method was applied to determine the best feasible solution according to the selected criteria, including geographical and meteorological factors. The objective of this study was to establish the priority ranking of land-use restrictions in the Tseng-Wen reservoir wastershed in southern Taiwan. The results show that subdivisions close to the outlet or reservoir area should have the priority of land-use restrictions.     

Experimental Evaluation of the Sustainability of Dwarf Bamboo (Pseudosasa usawai) Sprout-Harvesting Practices in Yangminshan National Park,Taiwan

Sustainable harvest of natural products that meets the needs of local people has been viewed by many as an important means for sustaining conservation projects. Although plants often respond to tissue damage through compensatory growth, it may not secure long-term sustainability of the populations because many plants enhance individual well-being at the expense of propagation. Sustainability may further be threatened by infrequent, large-scale events, especially ill-documented ones. We studied the impacts of sprout harvesting on sprout growth in a dwarf bamboo (Pseudosasa usawai) population that has seemingly recovered from an infrequent, large-scale masting event. Experimental results suggest that although a single sprout harvest did not significantly alter the subsequent abundance and structure of sprouts, culm damage that accompanied sprout harvesting resulted in shorter, thinner, and fewer sprouts. Weaker recovery was found in windward, continually harvested, and more severely damaged sites. These findings suggest that sprout growth of damaged dwarf bamboos is likely non-compensatory, but is instead supported through physiological integration whose strength is determined by the well-being of the supplying ramets. Healthy culms closer to the damage also provided more resources than those farther away. Sustainable harvesting of sprouts could benefit from organized community efforts to limit the magnitude of culm damage, provide adequate spacing between harvested sites, and ensure sufficient time interval between harvests. Vegetation boundaries relatively resilient to infrequent, large-scale events are likely maintained by climatic factors and may be sensitive to climate change. Continual monitoring is, therefore, integral to the sustainability of harvesting projects.     

Performance measurement for incineration plants using multi-activity network data envelopment analysis: The case of Taiwan

This study proposes the use of multi-activity network data envelopment analysis to appraise how incineration plants in Taiwan perform. Sample data from 2006 is used to examine the trade-offs between efficiency enhancement and pollution abatement. The respective efficiencies of the waste treatment and electricity generation are also assessed in a unified framework. The empirical results indicate that it is more important to improve the efficiency of waste treatment activity than of electricity generation activity in order to enhance the overall performance of Taiwan's incinerators. Since ownership, location and length of operations do not in general affect their performance, any improvement has to come from the careful monitoring of each process of the waste treatment operations. Furthermore, given that the policy in Taiwan has moved away from incineration to recycling, the problem of an over-supply of incinerators may become apparent in the near future. Our results indicate that the availability of capacity size may be an important factor when policy-makers consider whether to close down some existing incinerators.     

The effects of preozonation on the biodegradability of mixed phenolic solution using a new gas-inducing reactor

In this study, the effects of preozonation on the biodegradability of mixed 2-chlorophenol/4-cresol solution were investigated using a new gas-inducing reactor, which can provide high ozone utilization efficiency. The decomposition rate of phenolic mixture, COD removal and TOC removal increases with increasing pH. A half-order overall kinetic model can correctly describe the decomposition of phenolic mixture. The BOD(5)/COD ratio of the preozonized solutions increases with increasing preozonation time, indicating that preozonation can enhance the biodegradability. Based on high ozone utilization rate, it is concluded that the best characteristic time can be chosen at the rapid increase of ozone gas outlet concentration. Since the ozone gas outlet concentration can be easily monitored, it is a useful real-time control parameter in preozonation.     

A storm event-based approach to TMDL development

It is vitally important to define the critical condition for a receiving water body in the total maximum daily load (TMDL) development process. One of the major disadvantages of using a continuous simulation approach is that there is no guarantee that the most critical condition will be covered within the subjectively selected representative hydrologic period, which is usually several years depending on the availability of data. Another limitation of the continuous simulation approach, compared to a design storm approach, is the lack of an estimate of the risk involved. Because of the above limitations, a storm event-based critical flow-storm (CFS) approach was previously developed to explicitly address the critical condition as a combination of a prescribed stream flow and a storm event of certain magnitude, both having a certain frequency of occurrence and when combined, would create a critical condition. The CFS approach was tested successfully in a TMDL study for Muddy Creek in Virginia. The present paper reports results of a comparative study on the applicability of the CFS approach in Taiwan. The Dy-yu creek watershed in northern Taiwan differs significantly from Muddy Creek in terms of climate, hydrology, terrain, and other characteristics. Results show that the critical condition for different watersheds might be also different, and that the CFS approach could clearly define that critical condition and should be considered as an alternative method for TMDL development to a continuous simulation approach.