PROFILE: Risk Assessment as an Environmental Management Tool: Considerations for Freshwater Wetlands

/ This paper presents a foundation for improving the risk assessmentprocess for freshwater wetlands. Integrating wetland science, i.e., use of anecosystem-based approach, is the key concept. Each biotic and abiotic wetlandcomponent should be identified and its contribution to ecosystem functionsand societal values determined when deciding whether a stressor poses anunreasonable risk to the sustainability of a particular wetland.Understanding the major external and internal factors that regulate theoperational conditions of wetlands is critical to risk characterization.Determining the linkages between these factors, and how they influence theway stressors affect wetlands, is the basis for an ecosystem approach.Adequate consideration of wetland ecology, hydrology, geomorphology, andsoils can greatly reduce the level of uncertainty associated with riskassessment and lead to more effective risk management. In order to formulateeffective solutions, wetland problems must be considered at watershed,landscape, and ecosystem scales. Application of an ecosystem approach can begreatly facilitated if wetland scientists and risk assessors work together todevelop a common understanding of the principles of both disciplines.KEY WORDS: Ecological risk assessment; Freshwater wetlands;Environmental pollution; Chemical stressors; Physical stressors; Biologicalstressors     

Removal and recycling of copper from aqueous solutions using treated Indian barks

Removal of copper from aqueous solutions containing 100–1000 ppm, using different Indian bark species, was performed on laboratory scale. The percentage removal of metal ions depends on the solution pH, bark species and time. The efficiency of copper removal by the used raw barks increases with a rise of solution pH and reaches a maximum of about 65–78% around pH 4–5. However, the decontaminated aqueous solutions were colored due to the dissolution of soluble organic compounds contained in the raw bark. This increases the biological and chemical oxygen demand (BOD and COD) of the solutions as well as the total organic carbon content (TOC). For this reason, raw bark should be treated either by chemical or biological means. Such treatment will allow the extraction of the soluble organic compounds and increase the chelating capacity and efficiency of the treated bark. Depending on the pH value, the chelating efficiency of treated barks is about 1.2–2.2 times that of the raw ones. Moreover, the retention capacity of the Indian treated bark varies from about 42–51 mg/g of dry bark. It is equal to or higher than that of common European species. About 1.8 mols of H₃O⁺ are released, by the treated barks, for every mol of chelated copper ions. Moreover, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations show uniform distribution of metal ions throughout the copper saturated bark. Infra red (IR) spectra suggest that the copper ions are chelated to hydroxyl and/or carboxyl functional groups of organic compounds contained in the treated bark. It seems that the interaction of the copper ions with the bark follows a cation exchange mechanism. This hypothesis is supported by elution experiments that allow recovery of about 99% of the contained copper. The retention capacity of the treated bark is almost constant after five cycles of chelation–elution, suggesting that the ‘life time cycle' is sufficiently long for continuous industrial application. The spent copper loaded barks can either be incinerated or pyrolysed. It generates solids containing either ≈80% of CuO or ≈14% of Cu°, respectively. Such materials can be used either in the secondary or primary copper production, thus offering a friendly environmental solution of effluents' treatment. The suggested process can be used as an alternative to the classical technologies for effluent decontamination. It is also efficient for polishing effluents treated by other methods.     

Interactions betweenLythrum salicaria and native organisms: A critical review

Seventy-one articles concerningLythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife), a European herb introduced to North America, were reviewed for evidence of utilization by North American fauna and the effect of loosestrife on native plant species. In contrast to popular claims, 29 species of organisms were found to utilize this plant, and no evidence of species declines due to purple loosestrife were found. Evidence that loosestrife out-competes cattails and other plant species was found to be lacking or contradictory. Thus detailed, quantitative data are needed to understand loosestrife's natural history, population dynamics, and impacts on native ecosystems if we are to effectively manage this plant.     

Natural history of crop-related wild species: Uses in pest habitat management

The natural histories of crop-related wild species in their native habitats can be used to develop novel pest management strategies. Traditionally, such information has provided insights for biological control, plant breeding, crop management, and applied ecology Further insights can be garnered.     

Incorporation of biological information in water quality planning

Progress toward the goal of restoring integrity to the waters in the United States has been difficult to assess. This difficulty may arise from the type of regulatory policy that has been traditionally used. With the advent of widespread wastewater treatment, the use of a planning approach employing receiving water impact standards may offer a more practical and direct means of defining and assessing integrity. Biological community response is shown to offer an integrated approach to implementing and evaluating water quality management policy. The state of Maine (USA) has revised its water quality law by utilizing biological community response to assess integrity. This law is presented as a model that employs impact measures and a planning approach for the implementation of water quality management policy.     

Biological monitoring and environmental assessment: a conceptual framework

Direct biological monitoring is essential for effective assessment efforts. Past approaches to biomonitoring are too simplistic (for example, toxicity testing, indicator species) or conceptually invalid (diversity indexes). Assessments that use ecological guilds use ecological principles in a more integrative fashion. The best long-term approach is development of suites of metrics, like those used in the index of biotic integrity (IBI), to reflect individual, population, community, and ecosystem attributes in an integrative framework. Efforts to use the conceptual content of IBI in a wider diversity of habitats should be encouraged and followed up with effective control actions.     

人体温度调节的计算机数值模拟

在研究人体温度调节生理机制的基础上，通过必要的近似简化方法，对一维人体温度调节数学模型进行某些改进，用控制容积法推导出微分方程的有限差分格式，并利用相应的计算程序对人体温度调节进行数值模拟     

反硝化除磷工艺中二次曝气作用分析

反硝化除磷工艺是根据反硝化除磷菌开发的新工艺．结合试验重点探讨了二次曝气在该工艺中的作用：吹脱反硝化产生的附着于活性污泥上的氮气;缺氧段硝酸盐不足时提供O2作为二级电子受体使DPB污泥充分吸磷：p（COD）／p（N）,p（COD）／p（P）比值偏高时,再生活性污泥。指出二次曝气在反硝化除磷工艺中具有重要作用。     

果脯生产废水治理工程设计

介绍了“IC厌氧反应器＋生物接触氧化”工艺处理高浓度果脯生产废水的实例,处理后水中的CODCr、BOD5和SS浓度均低于GB 8978-1996《污水综合排放标准》中的二级标准。该工艺流程重视废水的预处理,运行费用低、管理简单方便、易于操作、无二次污染、投资规模少。实践证明,这一方法用于高浓度果脯生产废水处理是非常成功的,有很高的实用价值。     

短时冲击负荷对不同粒径分布陶粒曝气生物滤池性能的影响

通过比较装有2种粒径分布（大粒径、小粒径陶粒堆积密度分别为4．5×10^2和5．4×10^2kg／m^3）的陶粒曝气生物滤池对溶解性化学需氧量（sCODCr）及NH4^＋-N、浊度的去除情况,考察短时水力冲击负荷及有机冲击负荷对不同粒径分布曝气生物滤池性能的影响。结果表明,对于2种粒径的陶粒曝气生物滤池,短时水力冲击负荷几乎不降低sCODCr及NH4^＋-N的去除率,但导致浊度去除率的下降,说明曝气生物滤池有较强的抗短时水力冲击负荷能力;短时有机冲击负荷的增大导致sCODCr及NH4^＋-N去除率的降低,但对浊度的去除却影响很小,而在解除冲击负荷后去除率很快恢复正常水平,说明大粒径滤池比小粒径滤池有较强的抗NH4^＋-N短时冲击的能力,但小粒径滤池比大粒径滤池有较强的抗sCODCr短时冲击的能力,并能保持较高的浊度去除率。