A health risk assessment for fluoride in Central Europe

Like many elements, fluorine (which generally occurs in nature as fluoride) is beneficial to human health in trace amounts, but can be toxic in excess. The links between low intakes of fluoride and dental protection are well known; however, fluoride is a powerful calcium-seeking element and can interfere with the calcified structure of bones and teeth in the human body at higher concentrations causing dental or skeletal fluorosis. One of the main exposure routes is via drinking water and the World Health Organisation currently sets water quality guidelines for the element. In Central Europe, groundwater resources that exceed the guideline value of 1.5 mg l⁻¹ are widespread and effects on health of high fluoride in water have been reported. The aim of the current project was to develop a geographic information system (GIS) to aid the identification of areas where high-fluoride waters and fluorosis may be a problem; hence, where water treatment technologies should be targeted. The development of the GIS was based upon the collation and digitisation of existing information relevant to fluoride risk in Ukraine, Moldova, Hungary and Slovakia assembled for the first time in a readily accessible form. In addition, geochemistry and health studies to examine in more detail the relationships between high-fluoride drinking waters and health effects in the population were carried out in Moldova and Ukraine demonstrating dental fluorosis prevalence rates of 60–90% in adolescents consuming water containing 2–7 mg l⁻¹ fluoride.     

Human health risk assessment of explosives and heavy metals at a military gunnery range

In this research, a risk assessment was undertaken in order to develop the remediation and management strategy of a contaminated gunnery site, where a nearby flood controlling reservoir is under construction. Six chemicals, including explosives and heavy metals, posing potential risk to environmental and human health, were targeted in this study. A site-specific conceptual site model was constructed, based on effective, reasonable exposure pathways, to avoid any overestimation of the risk. Also, conservative default values were adapted to prevent underestimation of the risk when site-specific values were not available. The risks posed by the six contaminants were calculated using the API’s Decision Support System for Exposure and Risk Assessment, with several assumptions. In the crater-formed-area (Ac), the non-carcinogenic risks (i.e., HI values) of tri-nitro-toluene (TNT) and Cd were slightly larger than 1, but for RDX (Royal Demolition Explosives) was over 50. The total non-carcinogenic risk of the whole gunnery range was calculated to be 62.5, which was a significantly high value. The carcinogenicity of Cd was estimated to be about 10⁻³, while that for Pb was about 5 × 10⁻⁴, which greatly exceeded the generally acceptable carcinogenic risk level of 10⁻⁴–10⁻⁶. It was concluded from the risk assessment that there is an immediate need for remediation of both carcinogens and non-carcinogens before construction of the reservoir. However, for a more accurate risk assessment, further specific estimations of the changes in environmental conditions due to the construction of the reservoir will be required; and more over, the effects of the pollutants to the ecosystem will also need to be evaluated.     

Public perceptions of design options for new nuclear plants in the UK

An important consideration for any new nuclear build programme is an understanding of the public's viewpoint, as in many countries this can influence the direction of future energy markets. This paper presents a first attempt at understanding public views on the design of new nuclear plants. A survey of 1304 adults in the UK was carried out using a questionnaire developed in this research. The study suggests that the general public are willing and able to express preferences for design aspects of nuclear power plants and that meaningful information can be obtained to inform designers. Responses indicate that public preferences are consistent with current design practice for nuclear power plants. Further analysis reveals that public preferences related to plant design are not influenced strongly by their existing attitudes. Our findings contribute to the literature on the governance of energy supply technologies and the involvement of the public in the innovation process. We argue that involving the public in the design of nuclear power plants is an important aspect of a more transparent, participatory approach intended to improve trust in the governance of future energy supply options.     

Communicating costs and benefits of the chemical industry and chemical technology to society

Risk Communication is increasingly important to the chemical and manufacturing industries in the wake of a wave of major incidents in recent years. However, risk communication strategies as they are currently implemented tend to place the chemical industry on the defensive. Renewed attempts should be made to place the life-saving benefits of the chemical industry back in the public eye and counter-balance the popular political view that the chemical industry is often responsible for loss of life. In truth, while the chemical industry suffers on the job fatalities like many industries, the frequency is much less than many common industries and the chemical industry provides benefits to society that ultimately save far more lives.     

Development of generic bow-tie diagrams of accidental scenarios triggered by flooding of industrial facilities (Natech)

Interactions between natural events and industrial installations may lead to dangerous phenomena. According to bibliographical research, the industrial sector is often unprepared for these joint natural and technological or Natech events mainly because of the lack of guidelines on how to apply Natech regulations and the lack of information on the dynamics of Natechs. In order to fill the gaps and provide guidance on Natech risk assessment to operators, a systematic risk analysis methodology was developed and resulted firstly in proposing general reference bow-ties that reconfigure accidental scenarios triggered by flood events. The validation of these scenarios was made in the surface treatment sector. Building on these bow-ties, the risk analysis methodology will be completed and a checklist simple to use, along with a list proposing preventive and protective measures, to be used by operators in order to decrease the vulnerability of their industrial facilities to technological accidents triggered by floods will be developed in future work.     

环境模型在风险评估中的应用

环境模型方法是化学品风险评估中经常使用的方法。环境模型可提供化学品的浓度、归趋和主要迁移转化途径等信息,目前已被广泛应用于各类环境系统中。本文对该方法使用的一般步骤进行介绍,并对我国的环境模型工作提出了几点建议。     

宁波市地表水重金属时空分布特性和健康风险评价

分别在丰水期和枯水期,从宁波市工业区和商业区地表水中采集了120个水样,检测了6种重金属(Cd、 Cr、 Ni、 Pb、 Zn和Fe)的浓度水平,分析了它们的时空分布特征,计算了重金属间的斯皮尔曼相关系数;结合时空特征和斯皮尔曼相关系数推测了主要污染源;通过计算健康风险指数和致癌风险指数评价了地表水中重金属对暴露人群存在的风险.结果表明,宁波市工业区和商业区不同季节地表水重金属的污染特性有很大的差异.工业区丰水期和枯水期重金属浓度平均值的大小顺序分别为：Fe>Zn>Ni>Pb>Cr>Cd和Fe>Zn>Cr>Ni>Pb>Cd,超标的严重性顺序分别为：Cr>Cd?Pb和Pb>Cr=Cd,含重金属工业废水是工业区地表水重金属的主要污染源之一.商业区丰水期和枯水期重金属浓度平均值的大小顺序分别为：Fe>Pb>Ni>Zn>Cd>Cr和Fe>Pb>Ni>Zn>Cr=Cd,丰水期超标的严重性顺序为：Cd>Pb;枯水期仅有Pb超标,超标率60%,公路源污染物是商业区地表水...     

Temporal trends in organophosphorus pesticides use and concentrations in river water in Japan, and risk assessment

We reviewed organophosphorus pesticide use in Japan between 1982 and 2016 using data from the National Institute of Environmental Studies. Organophosphorus pesticide concentrations in river water throughout Japan were taken from the literature, and risk assessments were performed for some organophosphorus pesticides based on risk quotients and hazard quotients. Assessments were performed for 20 common pesticides, including insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides. The amounts used decreased in the order: insecticides?>?herbicides?>?fungicides. Organophosphorus insecticide and fungicide use have decreased over the last four decades, but organophosphorus herbicide use has increased. During this period, annual organophosphorus pesticide use was the highest for chlorpyrifos (105,263?tons/year) and the lowest for glyphosate-sodium (8?tons/year). The ecotoxicological risk assessment indicated that diazinon and fenitrothion posed strong risks to the Japanese aquatic environment, and chlorpyrifos and malathion have moderate risks. None of the pesticides that were assessed posed significant risks to humans. Continued use of organophosphorus pesticides in Japan may cause strong risks to aquatic environments. These risks should be reassessed periodically.     

Development and validation of abiotic ligand model for nickel toxicity to wheat (Triticum aestivum)

A terrestrial biotic ligand model (t-BLM) was developed to predict nickel toxicity to wheat (Triticum aestivum) root elongation in hydroponic solutions. The competitive effects of five major cations (Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, Na⁺, K⁺ and H⁺) on Ni toxicity were investigated and Mg²⁺ was found to be a strong competitor, while H²⁺ showed less competing effect. Besides free Ni²⁺, the toxicity induced by the species NiHCO₃⁺ was non-neglect able at pH > 7 because NiHCO₃⁺ occupied a significant fraction of total Ni under such condition. Thus, a t-BLM including Ni²⁺, NiHCO₃⁺, Mg²⁺, and H⁺ could successfully predict the nickel toxicity to wheat root elongation and it performed better prediction than the conventional free ion activity model. In addition, the model was examined with two sets of independent experiments, which contained multiple cations and low-molecular-weight organic acids to mimic the rhizo-sphere condition. The developed t-BLM well predicted nickel toxicity in both experiments since it can account in both complexation and competition effects, suggesting its potential to be used in a complicated matrix like soil solution. This study provides direct evidence that the t-BLM is a reliable method for the risk assessment of nickel in terrestrial system.     

Learning from the application of nuclear probabilistic safety assessment to the chemical industry

This paper introduces the new approach of risk analysis established by the French Ministry of the Environment and develops the benefits of applying nuclear probabilistic safety assessment approaches to the chemical industry.In the aftermath of the AZF disaster in Toulouse on 21 September 2001, a new law was proposed by the French government asking for the investigation of all representative scenarios and the assessment of the probability of the resulting dangerous phenomena to demonstrate an acceptable level of safety. Therefore, any accident is investigated from a global point of view, according to its gravity and its probability.In 2000, the French Ministry of the Environment asked the Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN), and in particular its Systems and Risk Protection Assessment (SESPRI) and its Industrial Risks, Fire and Containment Assessment and Study (SERIC) departments, to conduct a Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) study of an LPG distribution facility, specially for the BLEVE scenario. This study has showed the power of PSA for defining and prioritizing actions to be carried out to improve safety of facilities; however, it requires credible data for reliability and failure of the equipment, not available in generic failure databases.Since 2007, IRSN has taken several initiatives in collaboration with operators in order to provide more precise and representative failure rates for main safety equipment, ready to use in future PSA relative to LPG plants.