Challenging the current strategy of radiological protection of the environment: arguments for an ecosystem approach

The system of radiological protection of the environment that is currently under development is one contribution to the general need to adequately protect the environment against stress. Dominated by operational goals, it emphasizes conceptual and methodological approaches that are readily accessible today: reference organisms supported by individual-based traditional ecotoxicological data. Whilst there are immediate advantages to this approach (pragmatism, consistency with other approaches in use for man and biota), there are also clear limitations, especially in a longer run perspective, that need to be acknowledged and further considered. One can mention a few: uncertainties generated by the need for various extrapolations (from lower to higher levels of biological organisation, …), various features missed such as potential ecological impact through impairment of ecosystem processes, trans-generational impacts as mediated through genomic instability, indirect effects mediated through trophic interactions or disruption of ecological balances,… Such limitations have already been faced in other fields of environmental protection against other stressors, pushing a number of environment professionals to assign stronger emphasis on more systemic approaches. This review discusses the advantages and limitations of the current approach designed for the radiological protection of non-human biota in the broader context of environment protection as a whole, with especial reference to upcoming trends and evolutions. This leads in particular to advocating the need to boost scientific and methodological approaches featuring the ecosystem concept as a mean to access a unified goal of protection: preserving life sustainability through protection of ecosystem structure and functioning.     

太湖沉积物重金属污染及生态风险性评价

对1993年～1999年所采集的太湖表层沉积物中重金属含量进行了统计分析和生态风险性评价.结果表明,太湖沉积物的pH值呈中性至弱碱性,较适合于沉积物中粘土矿物及腐殖质对重金属的吸附;太湖大部分地区沉积物未受到重金属污染,且沉积物中重金属处于安全状态.沉积物生态风险性指数评价结果也表明,太湖大部分地区目前无重金属生态危害.     

加强预警监测体系建设 高效应对突发生态环境问题

简述了区域突发生态环境问题的现状与特点以及环境监测应对突发生态环境问题的现状,指出了环境监测应对突发生态环境污染存在的问题。提出,应加快预警监测技术体系建设,丰富预警监测技术手段,重视生物生态监测在预警监测中的作用,提高环境质量综合评价水平,发挥环境信息系统在预警监测中的作用,加强预警监测技术人才培养。     

Towards a planning support system for environmental management and agri-environmental measures--the Colorfields study

The authors present the beginnings of a planning support system (PSS) for agri-environmental measures exemplified by a virtual implementation of Colorfields and blooming strips on model farms, based on real-world data. This paper starts with an introduction to the Colorfields, a concept for transdisciplinary and sustainable landscape design of set-aside land. Colorfields comprise of blooming strips of flowering annual or biennial plants, which are designed and drilled in pattern on fallow land creating Land Art. The temporary scenic arrangements of the Colorfields combine the advantages of ecological strips, e.g. providing habitats for insects (especially bees), improving soil fertility through the cultivation of intercrops, with improvements of the social recognition of farmers as producers of pleasant landscapes instead of monoculture fields.The prototype of the PSS uses two software tools of different scientific origin, the bio-economic modeling system MODAM and the landscape visualization system Lenné3D, which are linked based on geo-data. The resulting system helps to assess the economic effects and visualizes the effects of the specific landuse patterns under different scenarios.The economic assessment of blooming strips on arable land and of one Colorfield on fallow land shows that these measures prove to be profitable from an economic viewpoint assuming the current area payments for the obligatory European Union set-aside program. Furthermore, the visualizations enable the design to be tested virtually by exploring the resultant scenery. They provide artists, planners and stakeholders including farmers with a tool to virtually wander through landscape scenarios supporting a collaborative design and a shared vision for the community.The results of the two model farms and previous case studies for Colorfields demonstrate how current policy conditions could be used for the improvement of environmental and scenic qualities. Furthermore, the ability of the tools, MODAM and Lenné3D, suggests to support and promote these activities.     

农药企业搬迁土地挥发性有机物风险评价

对常州某农药生产场地土壤中挥发性有机物(VOCs)污染状况以及健康风险和生态风险进行了调查评价。结果表明,该场地土壤中挥发性有机物污染以苯系物和卤代烃为主。苯系物质量浓度为0~56.6 mg/kg,卤代烃质量浓度为0~1.14 mg/kg。健康风险评价结果均在可接受范围内,而生态风险评价显示生产车间内的土壤VOCs生态风险较大,存在着对生物的危害。     

生态补水对玄武湖水质的影响

分析南京玄武湖1997年-2010年的水质变化,以及生态补水与玄武湖水质变化的关系。结果表明,玄武湖于1998年实施生态补水,随着生态补水的持续运行和生态补水量的不断增加,玄武湖水质得以显著改善,其水质类别由生态补水前的劣V类水体转为V类水体,并接近于Ⅳ类水体,富营养化程度由重度富营养化水平转为轻度富营养化水平。目前玄武湖主要营养物质来源于生态补水,相关性分析显示各湖区TN浓度与生态补水中TN浓度呈显著相关关系。     

东北地区农业现代化与新型城镇化协调发展研究

新型城镇化与农业现代化作为"三化"、"四化"乃至"五化"战略的重要核心内容,研究新型城镇化与农业现代化的协调发展对于开创中国未来城乡经济社会发展一体化的新格局至关重要。以东北三省34个地级城市为研究对象,构建农业现代化与新型城镇化的评价指标体系,结合熵值赋权、变异系数赋权的综合确权法测算城市农业现代化与新型城镇化的发展水平,基于耦合协调度模型探讨二者的耦合度与协调发展度,并划分其阶段类型,研究表明:(1)东北三省新型城镇化的发展水平排序:辽宁省吉林省黑龙江省,农业现代化的发展优势排序:黑龙江省辽宁省吉林省;辽宁与吉林省的新型城镇化发展速度超前于农业现代化,仅黑龙江省的新型城镇化发展滞后于农业现代化;(2)东北三省新型城镇化的高值区分布在以哈尔滨为核心的黑龙江省西南、以长春为核心的吉林省中部、以沈阳和大连为核心的辽宁省中部及南端,农业现代化的高值区分布在哈—大—齐—绥沿线的松嫩平原;沈阳、大连、哈尔滨、长春新型城镇化水平居于东北三省前列,哈尔滨、沈阳、齐齐哈尔、绥化农业现代化水平位于首位;(3)辽宁省新型城镇化与农业现代化的耦合协调发展度均强于黑龙江省,吉林省略低;耦合度高值区位于黑龙江省东北部的三江平原、辽宁省的沿海经济带,协调发展度高值区位于黑龙江省西南部的松嫩平原及以长春、沈阳、大连为核心的小范围圈层区域;仅哈尔滨与沈阳市处于勉强协调阶段,多数城市处于高强度、中高强度拮抗耦合与轻度、中度失调阶段。     

Effects of signals of disorder on fear of crime in real and virtual environments

Despite the fact that virtual environments are increasingly deployed to study the relation between urban planning, physical and social disorder, and fear of crime, their ecological validity for this type of research has not been established. This study compares the effects of similar signs of public disorder (litter, warning signs, cameras, signs of vandalism and car burglary) in an urban neighborhood and in its virtual counterpart on the subjective perception of safety and livability of the neighborhood. Participants made a walking tour through either the real or the virtual neighborhood, which was either in an orderly (baseline) state or adorned with numerous signs of public disorder. During their tour they reported the signs of disorder they noticed and the degree to which each of these affected their emotional state and feelings of personal safety. After finishing their tour they appraised the perceived safety and livability of the environment. Both in the real and in the simulated urban neighborhood, signs of disorder evoked associations with social disorder. In all conditions, neglected greenery was spontaneously reported as a sign of disorder. Disorder did not inspire concern for personal safety in reality and in the virtual environment with a realistic soundscape. However, in the absence of sound disorder compromised perceived personal safety in the virtual environment. Signs of disorder were associated with negative emotions more frequently in the virtual environment than in its real-world counterpart, particularly in the absence of sound. Also, signs of disorder degraded the perceived livability of the virtual, but not of the real neighborhood. Hence, it appears that people focus more on details in a virtual environment than in reality. We conclude that both a correction for this focusing effect and realistic soundscapes are required to make virtual environments an appropriate medium for both etiological (e.g. the effects of signs of disorder on fear of crime) and intervention (e.g. CPTED) research.     

Identification of priority pharmaceuticals in the water environment of China

In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to the trace-level contamination of pharmaceuticals in the water environment all over the world. Considering a large number of pharmaceuticals used, it is crucial to establish a priority list of pharmaceuticals that should be monitored and/or treated first. In the present study, we developed a ranking system based on the pharmaceutical consumption, removal performance in the wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and potential ecological effects, and applied to the situation of China. 39 pharmaceuticals, which had available consumption data and also been reported previously in the WWTPs of China, were selected as candidate pharmaceuticals. Among them, seventeen pharmaceuticals were considered as priority pharmaceuticals, out of which, erythromycin, diclofenac acid and ibuprofen, had the high priority. Compared with other literatures, we found that some pharmaceuticals given concerns to globally should also be included in the priority list in China; while some pharmaceuticals, not mentioned in other literatures, such as cefalexin, ketoconazole, should be also given prior consideration in China. Among all the therapeutic classes, antibiotics, which were grossly abused in China, contributed the most to the priority pharmaceuticals. However, priority antibiotics accounted for only 32% of candidate antibiotics, while 71% and 100% of the candidate anti-inflammatory and antilipidemic respectively were identified as the priority pharmaceuticals, indicating that antibiotics might be overanxiously considered in the previous studies on their behaviors in the WWTPs of China.     

Inferring chemical effects on carbon flows in aquatic food webs: Methodology and case study

The majority of ecotoxicological enclosure experiments monitor species abundances at different chemical concentrations. Here, we present a new modelling approach that estimates changes in food web flows from such data and show that population- and food web level effects are revealed that are not apparent from abundance data alone. For the case of cypermethrin in freshwater enclosures, photosynthesis and excretion (d⁻¹) of phytoplankton at 3.643 μg L⁻¹ cypermethrin were 30% lower and 100% higher than in the control, respectively. The ingestion rate of mesozooplankton (d⁻¹) was 6 times higher in the treated enclosures than in the control as food concentration increased with insecticide exposure. With increasing cypermethrin concentrations, nanoflagellates progressively relied on phytoplankton as their main food source, which rendered the food web less stable. We conclude that this tool has excellent potential to analyse the wealth of enclosure data as it only needs species abundance and general constraints.