From proposal to decision: Suggestions for tightening up the “NEPA process”

Although the process of documenting compliance with NEPA (the National Environmental Policy Act) requires no drastic revisions, it can be managed more rigorously. Suggestions for revision can be grouped under five major steps: 1) getting a complete proposal from the applicant; 2) getting the decision-making process onto the right decision-making path; 3) modifying the applicant's proposal 4) going down a shorter path through the EA/FONSI (environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact) or through categorical exclusion review; and 5) going down the longer path through the EIS. Step 2 is perhaps the most critical, because there a decision must be made whether to write an EA/FONSI or an EIS, on the basis of whether the proposal would “significantly affect … the … environment.” In the past, this decision has not always been made promptly or rigorously. Accordingly, we suggest that the agency responsible for NEPA compliance should develop a system (a “black box”), consisting of a core group of specialists working with an interdisciplinary team, using sophisticated techniques for modeling impacts and directing both their research and their writing according to the concept of significance. By determining more efficiently and reliably whether the impacts of a proposal would be significant, such an approach would improve management of the total process.     

高效液相色谱测定花粉素中水溶性维生素

本文介绍一种灵敏而准确的高效液相色谱测定花粉素中五种水溶性维生素(即B_1、B_2、B_5、B_6和B_(12))方法。研究了移动相醋酸盐缓冲溶液的浓度和PH对色谱分离效果的影响,水溶性维生素的定量分析是用日立3011-N的填充柱(其内径为4毫米,长250毫米),以含有2.5％乙醇的醋酸钠-醋酸组成的缓冲溶液(PH6)作为移动相,在波长254纳米处进行紫外检测,变异系数和回收率分别为2-5％和91.0-101.5％。     

科技论文的写作

本文介绍了科技论文的写作步骤和基本格式,指出科技论文写作中应注意的事项。     

Effect of Humic Acid on the Bioavailability of γ-Hexachlorocyclohexane in Marsilea Minuta (L.)

Effect of various concentrations of humic acid (0.2 to 1%) on thebioavailability of -HCH in vegetative clones of theaquatic fern Marsilea minuta was studied in a staticexperimental bioassay system on different photoperiods. Additionof humic acid showed the reduction in the bioavailability of-HCH in all the photoperiods (72 hr light to 144 hrlight) at the interval of 16 hr light (L) and 8 hr dark (D) inboth aerial and submerged portion as compared to controlindicating its protective role in toxicity.     

经济手段防治白色污染的博弈分析

经济手段在环境管理中的作用及涉及到政府与各利益关系人之间的博弈过程。本文就政府与一次性餐具生产者，销售者之间的博弈关系，分析如何应用经济手段使其在防治“白色污染”中发挥更好的作用。     

北京市近地层气象要素与大气细菌浓度分布规律的调查研究

以1998年10月的观测资料为例,分析了北京市某地气象要素的变化规律以及该地区大气细菌浓度的分布特征,对两者之间的相互关系进行了初步探讨,发现一天内气象要素及细菌浓度均是周期变化,且两者有一定的相关性。     

How and why is Aquatic Quality Changing at Nahanni National Park Reserve, nwt, Canada?

Nahanni National Park Reserve is located at southwestern NWT-Yukon border. One of the first UNESCO World Heritage sites, Nahanni lies within Taiga Cordillera and Taiga Shield Ecozones. Base and precious metal mining occurred upstream of Nahanni prior to park establishment. Nahanni waters, sediments, fish, and caribou have naturally elevated metals levels. Baseline water, sediment and fish tissue quality data were collected and analyzed throughout Nahanni during 1988–91 and 1992–97. These two programs characterized how aquatic quality variables are naturally varying in space and time, affected by geology, stream flow, seasonality, and extreme meteorological and geological events. Possible anthropogenic causes of aquatic quality change were examined. Measured values were compared to existing Guidelines and site-specific objectives were established.     

A pilot project to detect and forecast harmful algal blooms in the northern Gulf of Mexico

More timely access to data and information on the initiation, evolution and effects of harmful algal blooms can reduce adverse impacts on valued natural resources and human health. To achieve this in the northern Gulf of Mexico, a pilot project was initiated to develop a user-driven, end-to-end (measurements to applications) observing system. A key strategy of the project is to coordinate existing state, federal and academic programs at an unprecedented level of collaboration and partnership. Resource managers charged with protection of public health and aquatic resources require immediate notice of algal events and a forecast of when, where and what adverse effects will likely occur. Further, managers require integrated analyses and interpretations, rather than raw data, to make effective decisions. Consequently, a functional observing system must collect and transform diverse measurements into usable forecasts. Data needed to support development of forecasts will include such properties as sea surface temperature, winds, currents and waves; precipitation and freshwater flows with related discharges of sediment and nutrients; salinity, dissolved oxygen, and chlorophyll concentrations (in vivo fluorescence); and remotely-sensed spatial images of sea surface chlorophyll concentrations. These data will be provided via a mixture of discrete and autonomous in situ sensing with near real-time data telemetry, and remote sensing from space (SeaWiFS), aircraft (hyperspectral imagery) or land (high-frequency radar). With calibration across these platforms, the project will ultimately provide a 4-dimensional visualization of harmful algae events in a time frame suitable to resource managers.     

Using improved neural network model to analyze RSP,NOx and NO2 levels in urban air in Mong Kok,Hong Kong

As the health impact of air pollutants existing in ambient addresses much attention in recent years, forecasting of airpollutant parameters becomes an important and popular topic inenvironmental science. Airborne pollution is a serious, and willbe a major problem in Hong Kong within the next few years. InHong Kong, Respirable Suspended Particulate (RSP) and NitrogenOxides NO_x and NO₂ are major air pollutants due to thedominant diesel fuel usage by public transportation and heavyvehicles. Hence, the investigation and prediction of the influence and the tendency of these pollutants are ofsignificance to public and the city image. The multi-layerperceptron (MLP) neural network is regarded as a reliable andcost-effective method to achieve such tasks. The works presentedhere involve developing an improved neural network model, whichcombines the principal component analysis (PCA) technique and theradial basis function (RBF) network, and forecasting thepollutant levels and tendencies based in the recorded data. Inthe study, the PCA is firstly used to reduce and orthogonalizethe original input variables (data), these treated variables arethen used as new input vectors in RBF neural network modelestablished for forecasting the pollutant tendencies. Comparingwith the general neural network models, the proposed modelpossesses simpler network architecture, faster training speed,and more satisfactory predicting performance. This improvedmodel is evaluated by using hourly time series of RSP, NO_x and NO₂ concentrations collected at Mong Kok Roadside Gaseous Monitory Station in Hong Kong during the year 2000. By comparing the predicted RSP, NO_x and NO₂ concentrationswith the actual data of these pollutants recorded at the monitorystation, the effectiveness of the proposed model has been proven.Therefore, in authors' opinion, the model presented in the paper is a potential tool in forecasting air quality parameters and hasadvantages over the traditional neural network methods.     

Benchmarking for best practice environmental management

Benchmarking of environmental performance to demonstrate theachievement of best practice environmental management is acomponent of a new form of licensing of industrialdischarges in Western Australia. The paper describes theapproaches to benchmarking for the critical environmentalissues for an alumina refinery and wastewater treatmentplant. It also describes the lessons learnt from thebenchmarking process on appropriate methods, the benefitsand difficulties in the benchmarking process, and changesthat would assist benchmarking for best practiceenvironmental management.