Assessment of a General Finite Line Source Model and CALINE4 for Vehicular Pollution Prediction in Ireland

A comparative evaluation of two Gaussian-based line source models namely, California line source dispersion model version 4 and the general finite line source model, is presented. The concentrations predicted by these models are compared with background-corrected ambient concentrations measured at three different distances from a motorway and performance of both models assessed in the context of integrated transport–environment modelling for regulatory purposes.     

城市环境噪声抽测结果分析

对北京、天津、重庆等20个城市的道路交通及城市区域噪声进行了对比抽测,结果表明地方监测站能够按照相关的技术规范、标准方法开展噪声监测工作,地方站与总(省)站监测结果有非常好的可比性,监测数据97.5%在可接受范围内。并针对抽测中发现的问题,提出了相应的对策与建议。     

佛山市交通CO2排放及低碳出行对策

以佛山市2012年数据为基础,结合COPERT模型,分析了车型种类、排气量、燃油类型、排放水平等对CO2排放因子的影响规律,探讨了不同车型组成与排放水平下的CO2排放分担率,讨论并评估了佛山市的低碳交通出行对策。结果表明:排放水平对CO2排放因子的影响不明显,除重型客车与公交车,燃油类型对CO2排放因子的影响亦不明显,各车型的CO2排放因子随着排气量的增加而增加;当佛山市机动车平均行驶速度提高至55 km/h时,每辆车CO2综合排放因子可达最小值125.73 g/km;轻型客车和摩托车的CO2排放量最大,分别为1469 493 t/a和394 174.3 t/a,分担率分别为52.1%和14.0%;不同排放水平的载客车CO2排放分担率从大到小排序依次为:国I国0国Ⅱ国Ⅲ国Ⅳ,分别为34.7%、22.0%、21.2%、17.5%及4.6%。     

Spatio-temporal variations in water quality of Nullah Aik-tributary of the river Chenab, Pakistan

This study reports the spatio-temporal changes in water quality of Nullah Aik, tributary of the Chenab River, Pakistan. Stream water samples were collected at seven sampling sites on seasonal basis from September 2004 to April 2006 and were analyzed for 24 water quality parameters. Most significant parameters which contributed in spatio-temporal variations were assessed by statistical techniques such as Hierarchical Agglomerative Cluster Analysis (HACA), Factor Analysis/Principal Components Analysis (FA/PCA), and Discriminant Function Analysis (DFA). HACA identified three different classes of sites: Relatively Unimpaired, Impaired and Less Impaired Regions on the basis of similarity among different physicochemical characteristics and pollutant level between the sampling sites. DFA produced the best results for identification of main variables for temporal and spatial analysis and separated eight parameters (DO, hardness, sulphides, K, Fe, Pb, Cr and Zn) that accounted 89.7% of total variations of spatial analysis. Temporal analysis using DFA separated six parameters (E.C., TDS, salinity, hardness, chlorides and Pb) that showed more than 84.6% of total temporal variation. FA/PCA identified six significant factors (sources) which were responsible for major variations in water quality dataset of Nullah Aik. The results signify that parameters identified by statistical analyses were responsible for water quality change and suggest the possibility of industrial, municipal and agricultural runoff, parent rock material contamination. The results suggest dire need for proper management measures to restore the water quality of this tributary for a healthy and promising aquatic ecosystem and also highlights its importance for objective ecological policy and decision making process.     

Three-Dimensional Modeling of an Urban Park and Trees by Combined Airborne and Portable On-Ground Scanning LIDAR Remote Sensing

In this study, we confirmed the utility of airborne and portable on-ground scanning light detection and ranging (LIDARs) for three-dimensional visualization of an urban park and quantification of biophysical variables of trees in the park. The digital canopy height model (DCHM) and digital terrain model generated from airborne scanning LIDAR data provided precise images of the ground surface and individual tree canopies. The heights of 166 coniferous and broadleaf trees of 11 species in the park were estimated from the DCHM images with slight underestimation (mean error = −0.14 m, RMSE = 0.30 m). Portable on-ground scanning LIDAR provided images of individual trees with detailed features. Tree height and trunk diameter were estimated to be within 0.31 m and 1 cm, respectively, from the on-ground LIDAR images. We combined airborne and on-ground LIDAR images to overcome blind regions and created a complete three-dimensional model of three standing trees. The model allowed not only visual assessment from all viewpoints but also quantitative estimation of canopy volume, trunk volume, and canopy cross-sectional area.     

Computational Fluid Dynamics Modelling of the Pollution Dispersion and Comparison with Measurements in a Street Canyon in Helsinki

A measuring campaign was conducted in a street canyon (Runeberg St.) in Helsinki in 2003–2004. The concentrations of NO _x , NO₂, PM₁₀ and PM_2.5 were measured at street level and at roof level at an urban background location. This study utilises the data measured from 1 Jan to 30 April, 2004, when wind speed and direction measurements were also conducted on-site at the roof level. The computational fluid dynamics model ADREA-HF was used to compute the street concentrations, and the results were compared with the measurements. The predictions for the selected cases agreed fairly well (within < 25 % for 15 min average values) with the measured data, except for two cases: a windward flow in case of a low wind speed, and a moderate southerly flow parallel to the street canyon. The main reasons for the differences of predictions and measurements are the negligence of traffic-induced turbulence in the modelling and an under-prediction of ventilation of urban background air from a crossing street. Numerical results are presented for various example cases; these illustrate the formation of the vortices in the canyon in terms of the wind direction and speed and the influence of the characteristics of the flow fields on the concentration distributions.     

基于重金属有效态的农田土壤重金属污染评价研究

目前农田土壤重金属污染评价以重金属全量为依据,而评价农田土壤重金属污染影响时主要考虑农产品安全从而保障人体健康,农作物对重金属的吸收积累量则取决于土壤中有效态重金属含量。在阐述土壤重金属有效态定义的基础上,综合分析了土壤重金属有效态的影响因素及其与土壤中重金属全量和农作物中重金属含量的相关性,概括了土壤重金属有效态在土壤重金属污染评价中的应用,以期提出建立以土壤重金属有效态含量为基础、结合土壤重金属全量及作物中吸收的重金属含量的土壤重金属污染评价体系。     

安徽省合肥和芜湖市对外经济联系量与地缘经济关系匹配分析

引入克鲁格曼指数、建成区面积、人口素质权重系数等指标修正了以往的引力模型,利用修正的引力模型确定城市的对外经济联系量。运用欧氏距离法确定城市间的地缘经济关系,并分析其形成的原因。对经济联系量与地缘经济关系进行匹配,并对匹配结果进行原因分析,根据不同的匹配情况提出城市未来发展战略。研究结果显示：(1)合肥市的地缘经济关系互补性大于竞争性,而芜湖是竞争性大于互补性;在地缘经济关系的形成过程中,产品资源向外地的流动能力指标对形成城市间竞争性或互补性的贡献较大。(2)合肥、芜湖两市的地缘经济关系和外联经济联系量的匹配结果都不理想,属于强、较强经济联系量与强、较强互补地缘经济关系的理想匹配结果较少;城市间产业结构的差异性和交通的便捷性成为影响匹配结果的一个原因。增强经济联系量、调整地缘经济战略、优化匹配关系是城市的首要任务     

Was Contamination of Southern California Groundwater By Chlorinated Solvents Foreseen?

The historical record does not support the argument that the cause of widespread groundwater contamination by chlorinated solvents in southern California was an inability to anticipate or detect the problem. The propensity of industrial wastes, including chlorinated solvents, to contaminate groundwater was understood by the 1940s in southern California. This understanding was not limited to a small group of specialists, but extended to regulators, industry, and the interested public. Industrial waste disposal was deregulated in 1949 as a result of lobbying by industry, despite a warning from the director of the State Health Department that such action would create "a backlog of water pollution over the State that will constitute a plague comparable to the air pollution in Los Angeles". Regulators warned specifically about the danger that groundwater pollution in the San Fernando and San Gabriel valleys would result from improper disposals of industrial chemicals, and solvents were identified as major contaminants in the scientific literature. Analytical methods to detect chlorinated solvents in groundwater at the concentrations found near the DNAPL (dense non-aqueous phase liquids) source zones have been well known since at least 1950, and a method with a detection limit of 10 w g/L was published as early as 1953.     

What’s the Problem? River Management,Education, and Public Beliefs

This paper invokes the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a diagnostic tool to explain an existing public education program's limited success at improving river water quality in the City of Perth, Western Australia. A reflective, client-driven research approach was used. A facilitated expert workshop defined an environmental problem (excess nutrients leaving gardens and entering waterways) and a desired behavior (residents purchasing environmentally sensitive fertilizer) to address the problem. A TPB-based belief elicitation survey captured respondents' beliefs regarding the desired behavior. The findings suggest respondents were aware of the links between purchasing environmentally sensitive fertilizer and river water quality. However, this behavior is compromised by the challenges in identifying appropriate products, product quality concerns, and cost. Viewing the content of a public education program through the lens of the TPB reveals insights into how and why the program fell short in achieving one of its key behavioral change goals.