Regulation (EC) No. 1107/2009 and upcoming challenges for exposure assessment of plant protection products--Harmonisation or national modelling approaches?

In the new European Pesticide Regulation (EC) No. 1107/2009, the harmonisation of approaches for estimation of the environmental exposure of pesticides is considered a major goal. Several member states currently require their own models for the calculation of predicted environmental concentrations (PEC) in surface water. The variety of methods makes risk evaluations rather time-consuming for both notifiers and evaluating authorities. In the present study we compare surface water concentrations of 19 compounds using EU and country-specific models and risk assessment approaches to evaluate to which extent the resulting estimated exposure concentrations differ. Our results show that EU and country specific approaches and the resulting surface water concentrations differ considerably regarding basic model assumptions and assessment methods. The results indicate that the aimed harmonisation of risk assessment approaches within the EU will be difficult based on current models. New scenarios may help to achieve a harmonisation taking country-specific features into account.     

Photophysical and photochemical properties of the pharmaceutical compound salbutamol in aqueous solutions

Salbutamol is a potent β₂-adrenergic receptor agonist widely used in the treatment of bronchial asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. An increasing number of studies have detected salbutamol in natural water systems worldwide. Studies have shown that sunlight degrades salbutamol resulting in the formation of products; some showing higher toxicity to bacteria Vibrio fischeri than the parent compound. In this contribution, steady-state absorption and emission techniques, high-performance liquid chromatography, and transient absorption spectroscopy are used to investigate the photochemistry of salbutamol in aqueous buffer solutions at controlled pH values. Ground- and excited-state calculations that include solvent effects are performed to guide the interpretation of the experimental results. Salbutamol is sensitive to UVB light absorption in the pH range from 3 to 12, forming products that absorb light at longer wavelengths than the parent compound. Quantum yields of degradation reveal that the deprotonated species is 10-fold more photo-active than the protonated species. In line with this result, the fluorescence quantum yield of the protonated species is more than an order of magnitude higher than that of the deprotonated species. Transient absorption spectroscopy shows that population of the triplet state occurs with a rate constant of 7.1 × 10⁸ s⁻¹ in the protonated species, while a rate constant of 1.7 × 10¹⁰ s⁻¹ is measured for the deprotonated species. While degradation of the deprotonated species is not affected by the presence of molecular oxygen, a twofold increase in the photodegradation yield of the protonated species in air-saturated conditions is observed.     

Comparing the sensitivity of soil invertebrates to pesticides with that of Eisenia fetida

The sole routine testing of the standard earthworm Eisenia fetida for the terrestrial risk assessment of pesticides has been under much debate since other soil invertebrates may be more sensitive than this standard test species. However, the very low availability of laboratory toxicity data for taxa other than E. fetida has greatly hampered sensitivity comparisons. In the present study, the relative tolerance (T_rel) approach was used to enable comparing toxicity thresholds obtained from the US-EPA ECOTOX database, for main terrestrial taxonomic groups and pesticidal types of action (insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, and other) separately. Analyses confirmed previously reported lower and higher sensitivity of collembolans to fungicides and insecticides, respectively. However, various other discrepancies in susceptibility relative to E. fetida were encountered as indicated by species sensitivity distributions and/or calculated 95% confidence intervals of T_rel values. Arachnids and isopods were found to be more sensitive to insecticides, and nematodes to fungicides, as compared to E. fetida. Implications of study findings for the terrestrial risk assessment of pesticides are discussed.     

成子湖面临的问题与保护对策

成子湖不仅为沿湖周边地区经济发展提供强有力的资源支持,同时也是南水北调东线工程的调蓄湖泊——洪泽湖的重要组成部分,做好成子湖的保护至关重要。在通过分析了成子湖面临的主要问题,提出了进一步做好成子湖保护工作的对策和建议。     

An evaluation of legislative measures on electrical and electronic waste in the People's Republic of China

With the increasing number of recycling mishaps in connection with waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE) in the People's Republic of China, it is imperative that the handling and recycling of WEEE be sufficiently regulated in China. Regulations covering three major issues, namely, take-back issues, controls on hazardous substances in WEEE and the assurance of good environmental management in WEEE plants, were promulgated between 2006 and 2008. The evaluation in this country report shows that few of these regulatory measures have performed satisfactorily in terms of enforcement, of public acceptance and of environmental concerns. In brief, the take-back requirements and the associated financial responsibilities are only vaguely defined; the control on hazardous substances and the so-called "environmental expiry date" requirements cannot be properly enforced, and the resources needed to ensure the satisfactory enforcement of the environmental abatement and pollution control requirements in WEEE plants are overwhelming. In addition, the use of a "multiple enforcement body" approach to the control of hazardous substances in WEEE is an indication that the Chinese government lacks the determination to properly enforce the relevant legal requirements.     

The role of intergenerational influence in waste education programmes: the THAW project

Whilst the education of young people is often seen as a part of the solution to current environmental problems seeking urgent attention, it is often forgotten that their parents and other household members can also be educated/influenced via home-based educational activities. This paper explores the theory of intergenerational influence in relation to school based waste education. Waste Watch, a UK-based environmental charity (www.wastewatch.org.uk), has pioneered a model that uses practical activities and whole school involvement to promote school based action on waste. This methodology has been adopted nationally. This paper outlines and evaluates how effective school based waste education is in promoting action at a household level. The paper outlines Waste Watch's 'Taking Home Action on Waste (THAW)' project carried out for two and half years in Rotherham, a town in South Yorkshire, England. The project worked with 6705 primary age children in 39 schools (44% of primary schools in the project area) to enable them to take the "reduce, reuse and recycle message" home to their families and to engage these (i.e. families) in sustainable waste management practices. As well as substantial increases in students' knowledge and understanding of waste reduction, measurement of the impact of the project in areas around 12 carefully chosen sample schools showed evidence of increased participation in recycling and recycling tonnages as well as declining levels of residual waste. Following delivery of the project in these areas, an average increase of 8.6% was recorded in recycling set out rates which led to a 4.3% increase in paper recycling tonnages and an 8.7% increase in tonnages of cans, glass and textiles collected for recycling. Correspondingly, there was a 4.5% fall in tonnages of residual waste. Waste Watch's THAW project was the first serious attempt to measure the intergenerational influence of an education programme on behaviour at home (i.e. other than schools' own waste). It clearly shows that household recycling behaviour can be positively impacted by intergenerational influence via a practical school-based waste education model. However, although the model could potentially have a big impact if rolled out nationally, it will require seed funding and the long-term durability of the model has not yet been fully quantified.     

火电厂环保设施运行状态及性能评价技术研究

介绍了火电厂环保设施运行状态及性能评价技术的创新性研究,包括研究方法、评价方法、评价技术及实际应用情况。该研究是继火电厂工程减排、结构减排后的重要管理技术创新,为进一步促进火电厂环保设施安全、稳定、可靠、经济运行,确保达标排放,推进火电行业管理减排和技术监督提供了技术支持。     

巢湖流域水质状况与环境目标可达性分析

对巢湖湖区、巢湖环湖河流水质现状及变化趋势进行了调查。结果表明。“九五”以来,巢湖湖区水体以劣Ⅴ类为主;2000年以来,巢湖主要环湖河流中,南淝河、十五里河、派河和双桥河入湖常年水质为劣Ⅴ类,其主要污染物为氨氮。巢湖流域水体污染特征为：城市河段污染较重。点源污染较为集中;面源和生活污染贡献较大;从1998年以来,TP与TN质量浓度值一直处于较高水平。巢湖流域水质环境目标可达性分析表明,巢湖湖区整体上尚不能达到规划的目标。到2005年东半湖能稳定达标。南淝河能否实现达标排放。取决于合肥市的污水处理率及处理效果。十五里河、派河、双桥河水质受点源控制,只要加强管理,可达规划的目标。     

中国污染场地修复的研究进展、问题与展望

随着城市化和产业转移进程的加快,我国城镇工业企业搬迁或遗留的污染场地数量与日俱增,亟须开展污染场地治理与修复工作,以保障人居环境安全、国民健康和社会稳定.综述了我国污染场地及其产生、状态和风险,污染场地管理、修复技术及工程实践进展,污染场地管理和修复的主要问题,场地污染防治与修复政策、技术和融资机制需求,旨在推进污染场...     

场地环境污染的电动修复技术研究现状与趋势

在综述国内外场地污染土壤电动修复技术的研究现状和趋势的基础上,针对场地土壤电动修复中常见问题,包括电极设置方式、化学增强试剂的选择、土壤类型和污染程度等影响去除效率的因素及处理效果和能耗等进行阐述,探讨当前我国场地土壤电动修复技术研发的重点,以促进场地污染土壤修复技术的发展和应用.