全国辐射环境监测网络射频综合场强测量比对

在2011年全国辐射环境监测网络射频综合场强项目测量比对中,采用稳健统计方法对36家参比单位的78个比对测量结果进行统计分析。结果表明,全国各监测机构满意结果占87.3%,有问题结果占7.7%,离群结果占5%。对可能影响监测结果的若干因素进行了研究,如仪器型号等,反映了目前全国辐射环境监测网络射频电磁场测量项目的监测能力水平,为进一步开展质保工作提供了科学依据。     

Trends of organochlorine pesticides in drinking water supplies

The effectiveness of the treatment process for the removal of pesticides in the final water supplies in Delhi has been evaluated. Samples were collected during 2000–2005 from five water treatment plants (WTPs). Analysis was carried out to identify pesticides, which are more commonly encountered in treated drinking water. In most of the treatment plants, the concentrations of lindane, total endosulphan and total DDT were significantly less in the finished water. Monitoring of these less soluble pesticide in the finished water from WTPs was done quarterly to arrive at the quality trends and to plan for the mitigation action, in case the concentration of the parameter exceeded at any site or time.     

Iron content in groundwaters of Visakhapatnam environs, Andhra Pradesh, India

Trace elements are essential for human health. However, excess concentrations of these elements cause health disorders. A study has been carried out in Visakhapatnam environs, Andhra Pradesh, India to ascertain the causes for the origin and distribution of iron content in the groundwaters. Fifty groundwater samples are collected and analyzed for iron. The content of iron ranges from 400 to 780 μg/l. A comparison of groundwater data with rock and soil chemistry suggests that the concentration of iron (400–530 μg/l) in the groundwaters is derived from the rocks and soils due to geogenic processes. This concentration is taken as a natural occurrence of iron in the groundwaters of the study area for assessing the causes for its next higher content (>530 μg/l). Relatively higher concentration of iron (540–550 μg/l) is observed at some well waters, where the wells are located nearby municipal wastewaters, while the very high concentration of iron (610–780 μg/l) is observed in the industrially polluted groundwater zones, indicating the impact of anthropogenic activities on the groundwater system. These activities mask the concentration of iron caused by geogenic origin. Hence, both the geogenic and anthropogenic activities degrade the groundwater quality. Drinking water standards indicate that the iron content in all the groundwater samples exceeds the permissible limit (300 μg/l) recommended for drinking purpose, causing the health disorders. Necessity of close monitoring of groundwater quality for assessing the impact of geogenic and anthropogenic sources with reference to land use/land cover activities is emphasized in the present study area to protect the groundwater resources from the pollution.     

Health impact assessment research and practice: A place for paradigm positioning?

In this article, we provide a critical review of the place of paradigm in health impact assessment (HIA) research and practice. We contend that most HIA practitioners have given insufficient attention to paradigm positioning when developing and applying HIA methodologies and that some concerns about current HIA practice can be attributed to this. We review HIA literature to assess the extent and nature of attention given to paradigm positioning and these related concerns. We then respond to our critique by exploring the implications, opportunities and challenges of adopting a critical realist paradigm, which we believe has the potential to help HIA practitioners to develop HIA methodology in a way that addresses these issues.     

国家生态文明试验区(贵州)经济增速与植被恢复协调发展

以国家生态文明试验区(贵州)作为研究区,以植被覆盖度(FVC)作为研究对象,基于2000～2019年的NDVI数据分析了贵州省近20年FVC的时空演变特征,利用地理探测器方法识别并量化了经济持续增速下维持植被恢复的主要驱动力,结果表明:(1)近20年来贵州省FVC整体呈增加趋势,FVC分布整体水平较高,主要以中等、中高和高度覆盖为主,三者面积占比之和约为89.7%,年均增长率为0.52%,平均FVC为0.53.(2)近20年来贵州省FVC变化趋势以轻微改善、基本不变为主,两者面积占比之和为68.94%,改善区域面积占比为57.93%,西部区域得到明显改善和提升,退化区域主要集中在城镇周边,总体动态变化趋于稳定且向好改善.(3)FVC空间分布格局演变深受人类活动与自然环境因子的双重影响,且人类活动对于植被恢复的驱动作用更强,国内生产总值(GDP)和降水是经济持续增速下维持植被恢复的人类活动与自然环境因子主导驱动力.(4)积极推动产业结构优化升级、大力推进第三产业快速发展以及不断贯彻落实退耕还林还草政策等积极的人类活动为贵州省实现经济增速与植被恢复协调发展的“双赢”局面做出了巨大贡献.     

Estimation of the accumulation rates and health risks of heavy metals in residential soils of three metropolitan cities in China

Heavy metal concentrations in urban soils are likely to increase over time because of continuous urbanization and heavy metal emissions. To estimate the accumulation rates of heavy metals in urban soils, we collected soil samples from residential areas with different building ages in the metropolitan cities of Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing, China. Heavy metal concentrations in the soils varied among the cities and were primarily affected by soil parent material and the intensity of anthropogen...     

Influence of groundwater recharge and well characteristics on dissolved arsenic concentrations in southeastern Michigan groundwater

Arsenic concentrations exceeding 10 μg/l, the United States maximum contaminant level and the World Health Organization guideline value, are frequently reported in groundwater from bedrock and unconsolidated aquifers of southeastern Michigan. Although arsenic-bearing minerals (including arsenian pyrite and oxide/hydroxide phases) have been identified in Marshall Sandstone bedrock of the Mississippian aquifer system and in tills of the unconsolidated aquifer system, mechanisms responsible for arsenic mobilization and subsequent transport in groundwater are equivocal. Recent evidence has begun to suggest that groundwater recharge and characteristics of well construction may affect arsenic mobilization and transport. Therefore, we investigated the relationship between dissolved arsenic concentrations, reported groundwater recharge rates, well construction characteristics, and geology in unconsolidated and bedrock aquifers. Results of multiple linear regression analyses indicate that arsenic contamination is more prevalent in bedrock wells that are cased in proximity to the bedrock-unconsolidated interface; no other factors were associated with arsenic contamination in water drawn from bedrock or unconsolidated aquifers. Conditions appropriate for arsenic mobilization may be found along the bedrock-unconsolidated interface, including changes in reduction/oxidation potential and enhanced biogeochemical activity because of differences between geologic strata. These results are valuable for understanding arsenic mobilization and guiding well construction practices in southeastern Michigan, and may also provide insights for other regions faced with groundwater arsenic contamination.     

Transport and dynamics of toxic pollutants in the natural environment and their effect on human health: research gaps and challenge

The source–pathway–receptor (SPR) approach to human exposure and risk assessment contains considerable uncertainty when using the refined modelling approaches to pollutant transport and dispersal, not least in how compounds of concern might be prioritised, proxy or indicator substances identified and the basic environmental and toxicological data collected. The impact of external environmental variables, urban systems and lifestyle is still poorly understood. This determines exposure of individuals and there are a number of methods being developed to provide more reliable spatial assessments. Within the human body, the dynamics of pollutants and effects on target organs from diffuse, transient sources of exposure sets ambitious challenges for traditional risk assessment approaches. Considerable potential exists in the application of, e.g. physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models. The reduction in uncertainties associated with the effects of contaminants on humans, transport and dynamics influencing exposure, implications of adult versus child exposure and lifestyle and the development of realistic toxicological and exposure data are all highlighted as urgent research needs. The potential to integrate environmental with toxicological models provides the next phase of research opportunity and should be used to drive empirical and model assessments.     

Potential for Advanced Technology to Improve Air Quality and Human Health in Shanghai

/ Air quality in most Asian cities is poor and getting worse. It will soon become impossible to sustain population, economic, and industrial growth without severe deterioration of the atmospheric environment. This paper addresses the city of Shanghai, the air-quality problems it faces over the next 30 years, and the potential of advanced technology to alleviate these problems. Population, energy consumption, and emission profiles are developed for the city at 0.1 degrees x 0.1 degrees resolution and extrapolated from 1990 to 2020 using sector-specific economic growth factors. Within the context of the RAINS-Asia model, eight technology scenarios are examined for their effects on ambient concentrations of sulfur dioxide and sulfate and their emission control costs. Without new control measures, it is projected that the number of people exposed to sulfur dioxide concentrations in excess of guidelines established by the World Health Organization will rise from 650,000 in 1990 to more than 14 million in 2020. It is apparent that efforts to reduce emissions are likely to have significant health benefits, measured in terms of the cost of reducing the number of people exposed to concentrations in excess of the guidelines ($10-50 annually per person protected). Focusing efforts on the control of new coal-fired power plants and industrial facilities has the greatest benefit. However, none of the scenarios examined is alone capable of arresting the increases in emissions, concentrations, and population exposure. It is concluded that combinations of stringent scenarios in several sectors will be necessary to stabilize the situation, at a potential cost of $500 million annually by the year 2020. KEY WORDS: Coal; China; Shanghai; Sulfur dioxide; Air quality; Health effects