Analysis of trace dicyandiamide in stream water using solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography UV spectrometry

An improved method for trace level quantification of dicyandiamide in stream water has been developed. This method includes sample pretreatment using solid phase extraction. The extraction procedure (including loading, washing, and eluting) used a flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, and dicyandiamide was eluted with 20 mL of a methanol/acetonitrile mixture (V/V = 2:3), followed by pre-concentration using nitrogen evaporation and analysis with high performance liquid chromatography–ultraviolet spectroscopy (HPLC–UV). Sample extraction was carried out using a Waters Sep-Pak AC-2 Cartridge (with activated carbon). Separation was achieved on a ZIC^®-Hydrophilic Interaction Liquid Chromatography (ZIC-HILIC) (50 mm × 2.1 mm, 3.5 μm) chromatography column and quantification was accomplished based on UV absorbance. A reliable linear relationship was obtained for the calibration curve using standard solutions (R² > 0.999). Recoveries for dicyandiamide ranged from 84.6% to 96.8%, and the relative standard deviations (RSDs, n = 3) were below 6.1% with a detection limit of 5.0 ng/mL for stream water samples.     

Response of Fish and Macroinvertebrate Bioassessment Indices to Water Chemistry in a Mined Appalachian Watershed

Multimetric indices based on fish and benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages are commonly used to assess the biological integrity of aquatic ecosystems. However, their response to specific stressors is rarely known. We quantified the response of a fish-based index (Mid-Atlantic Highlands Index of Biotic Integrity, MAH-IBI) and a benthic invertebrate-based index (West Virginia Stream Condition Index, WV-SCI) to acid mine drainage (AMD)-related stressors in 46 stream sites within the Cheat River watershed, West Virginia. We also identified specific stressor concentrations at which biological impairment was always or never observed. Water chemistry was extremely variable among tributaries of the Cheat River, and the WV-SCI was highly responsive across a range of AMD stressor levels. Furthermore, impairment to macroinvertebrate communities was observed at relatively low stressor concentrations, especially when compared to state water quality standards. In contrast to the WV-SCI, we found that the MAH-IBI was significantly less responsive to local water quality conditions. Low fish diversity was observed in several streams that possessed relatively good water quality. This pattern was especially pronounced in highly degraded subwatersheds, suggesting that regional conditions may have a strong influence on fish assemblages in this system. Our results indicate that biomonitoring programs in mined watersheds should include both benthic invertebrates, which are consistent indicators of local conditions, and fishes, which may be indicators of regional conditions. In addition, remediation programs must address the full suite of chemical constituents in AMD and focus on improving linkages among streams within drainage networks to ensure recovery of invertebrate and fish assemblages. Future research should identify the precise chemical conditions necessary to maintain biological integrity in mined Appalachian watersheds.     

鄱阳湖河湖交错区软体动物重金属富集与迁移特征分析

河湖交错区是鄱阳湖流域重金属污染物进入湖泊的主要通道,也是重金属富集的场所.本文通过在鄱阳湖河湖交错区采集软体动物样品,分析样品的肌肉和内脏中铁（Fe）、锰（Mn）、铜（Cu）、锌（Zn）、铬（Cr）、镍（Ni）、砷（As）、镉（Cd）、铅（Pb）和锑（Sb）的含量,利用生物-沉积物累积因子和碳氮稳定同位素对鄱阳湖软体动物重金属的富集特征及营养结构和食源关系进行研究,并利用综合目标危险系数进行健康风险评估.结果表明：①鄱阳湖软体动物重金属含量存在显著的种间和组织间的差异,且受体长体重的稀释作用,与所在栖息地的关系不大,但与区域背景环境存在明显的对应关系,均低于水产限量标准值.软体动物对重金属Cu、Zn和Cd具有明显的富集能力,蚌（圆顶珠蚌、三角帆蚌、背瘤丽蚌和褶纹冠蚌）易从环境中富集更多的Mn和Cd,而螺（铜锈环棱螺和大沼螺）则易富集Cu和Zn;②软体动物δ¹³C值为-29.84‰~-21.13‰,δ¹⁵N值为4.09‰~11.51‰,螺和蚌存在明显不同的食物来源.软体动物中的重金属并不随δ¹⁵N值的变化表现出显著的改变,但与δ¹³C值存在显著的线性关系;其中Cu和Zn与δ¹³C值表现为显著的正相关关系,而Mn、Cr、As、Cd、Pb和Sb表现为显著的负相关关系;③健康风险评估结果表明,不论是成人还是儿童,综合目标危险系数（TTHQ） 均大于1,表明鄱阳湖河湖交错区软体动物重金属的富集会对人群食用产生较为显著的健康风险,其中Mn和As是主要的贡献者,且食用蚌的风险略高于螺.研究结果可为鄱阳湖水生态安全、水生生物多样性保护及食品安全评估提供科学依据和理论支撑.     

Renovation of food-processing wastewater by a Riparian wetland

Treated wastewater from a food-processing plant, together with intermittent outflow from a hypereutrophic pond, were discharged over a 20-year period to a cattail-dominated wetland and hence to a small stream. Organics and nutriet levels in the effluent were comparable to levels in domestic wastewater. Fifteen variables were monitored upstream and downstream from the plant over 18 months. Means for most variables were slightly higher downstream, but differences between stations were not statistically significant. Wetland processing of nitrogen was markedly affected by a change from drought to flood conditions. After accounting for dilution, the overall effect of the wetland on the effluent was to reduce biological oxygen demand 43.7%, ammonia N 46.3%, nitrate/nitrite N 17.4%, and conductivity 15.6%. However, total suspended solids were increased 41.4%, total organic nitrogen 28.8%, and total phosphorus 24.7%. It was concluded that the wetland effectively renovated the effluent but the removal efficiency would be improved if the effluent were pretreated to reduce phosphorus and dispersed to increase residence time in the wetland.     

Implications of a simple competition model for the stability of an intercropping system

It is a common view that intercropping systems of agricultural crops produce more stable yields than do systems in which the same crops are grown in monoculture. This paper discusses a modelling approach which has been used to support the notion that whether or not intercropping is more stable than monoculture depends on the mode of interaction among crops, i.e. whether two different crops suppress or enhance each other. It is shown here that this notion is not supported by the model used. We conclude that the relative merits of the two cropping systems depend on the proportion of land allocated to each crop rather than on the mode of interaction. The model suggests that if the optimum allocation of land is considered, both systems will be equally stable.     

南充市城市生态系统健康评价

城市生态系统是一个综合性、复杂性的大系统,涉及到城市自然环境、社会经济、人群健康状况、资源状况、环境状况和城市基础设施等各个方面,健康的城市生态系统是人类所向往的目标.从生态系统健康的内涵出发,依据城市生态系统的特殊性,建立了城市生态系统健康评价指标体系;运用AHP法确定了城市生态系统健康评价各指标要素之间的权重;采用模糊数学法的原理建立城市生态系统健康评价模型.将该模型方法应用于南充市城市生态系统健康评价,通过评价得出:南充城市生态系统健康状况为"亚健康"状态,其隶属度为0.329.     

农业生产措施对土壤碳库的影响

在陆地碳平衡日益成为全球变化科学和生态科学中最为前沿与热点问题的前提下,农业碳平衡问题也受到了强烈的关注,从而促进了农业生产措施对土壤碳库影响的研究。文章综述了农业生产措施对土壤碳库的影响及其效率。从全球不同地区的研究得出,农业措施决定了现阶段农业生态系统是C源还是C汇。目前,影响农田土壤碳库的措施主要有:农业用地面积的扩张;耕地的休耕与利用;农业施肥;耕作方式;作物类型与轮作;秸秆还田。平均不同地区的研究结果,各种措施提高土壤碳积累的效率(CMg·hm-2·a-1)分别为:施用动物肥料0.6(肥料用量10Mg·hm-2·a-1)、施化肥-0.71、耕地转换为草场0.825、改善轮作0.21、实施免耕0.315、秸秆还田0.3。目前研究存在的问题及将来的研究重点应主要集中在:通过改善农业措施提高土壤碳库的可行性;土壤有机碳积累与农业措施间的关系的地区差异性;农业措施提高土壤碳库所产生的环境效益与经济效益。     

Multistate models for monitoring individual trees in permanent observation plots

This interdisciplinary research on forest ecosystems begins with some characteristics of ecosystems which are the basis for the derivation of statistical models for the development and vitality of trees. Several ecological problems which could be solved by longitudinal studies are mentioned. Statistical methods for the evaluation of the crowns of spruce trees (Picea abies Karst) in three permanent observation plots in Switzerland are described. In particular, the time-dependent proportional odds model and a transitional model are used. Through application of these multistate models the data give information on the dependence of an ordered categorical response variable on covariates characterizing the ecosystem. The response variable is observed through infrared aerial photographs. This monitoring system gives insight into the dynamic behaviour of the forest ecosystem. The need for more eco-systematically motivated statistical research using longitudinal studies is identified.     

Application of a coupled ecosystem-chemical equilibrium model, DayCent-Chem, to stream and soil chemistry in a Rocky Mountain watershed

Atmospheric deposition of sulfur and nitrogen species have the potential to acidify terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, but nitrate and ammonium are also critical nutrients for plant and microbial productivity. Both the ecological response and the hydrochemical response to atmospheric deposition are of interest to regulatory and land management agencies. We developed a non-spatial biogeochemical model to simulate soil and surface water chemistry by linking the daily version of the CENTURY ecosystem model (DayCent) with a low temperature aqueous geochemical model, PHREEQC. The coupled model, DayCent-Chem, simulates the daily dynamics of plant production, soil organic matter, cation exchange, mineral weathering, elution, stream discharge, and solute concentrations in soil water and stream flow. By aerially weighting the contributions of separate bedrock/talus and tundra simulations, the model was able to replicate the measured seasonal and annual stream chemistry for most solutes for Andrews Creek in Loch Vale watershed, Rocky Mountain National Park. Simulated soil chemistry, net primary production, live biomass, and soil organic matter for forest and tundra matched well with measurements. This model is appropriate for accurately describing ecosystem and surface water chemical response to atmospheric deposition and climate change.     

水系沉积物中痕量铈、铅快速同时测定的荧光分析法研究

在研究氯化钾介质中铈(Ⅲ)、铅(Ⅱ)的荧光性质基础上,提出了快速测定铈、铅的荧光分析法。在实验条件下,用262．5nm紫外光激发,以120nm／min扫描300～520nm的发射光谱。其在352．4nm处峰高与2．0×10－8～2．0×10－6mol／LCe3－,在485．0nm处峰高与4．0×10－7～1．0×10－5mol／LPb2－,存在线性关系。该法用于标准水系沉积物分析,结果与标准值无显著性差异。Ce￣(3＋)和Pb￣(2＋)的检出限分别为1．5×10－8和2．0×10－7mol／L。