A scoping review of post-disaster social support investigations conducted after disasters that struck the Australia and Oceania continent

This scoping review provides a summary of research findings on social support dynamics in the wake of disasters that occurred on the continent of Australia and Oceania between 1983 and 2013. Forty-one studies, quantitative and qualitative, were summarised, investigating different facets of post-disaster supportive interactions. All inquiries assessed disasters resulting from natural hazards, with the majority of them conducted following events in Australia and New Zealand. The review revealed similar patterns of post-disaster social support dynamics that routinely unfold after disastrous incidents all over the world. Consistent with the disaster mental health literature, the documentation of social support mobilisation and social support deterioration processes was common. Salutary direct effects of supportive behaviours on post-disaster psychological distress were also highly evident. Most studies, however, posed research questions or hypotheses that lacked empirical or theoretical grounding. In conclusion, the review offers several recommendations on how to advance research on post-disaster social support.     

Cancer and Non-Cancer Health Risk from Eating Cassava Grown in Some Mining Communities in Ghana

Food crops such as cassava, cocoyam and other tuber crops grown in mining communities uptake toxic or hazardous chemicals such as arsenic, and cadmium, from the soil. Cassava is a stable food for Ghanaians. This study evaluated human health risk from eating cassava grown in some mining communities in Ghana such as Bogoso, Prestea, Tarkwa and Tamso, which are important mining towns in the Western Region of Ghana. The study evaluated cancer and non-cancer health effects from eating cassava grown in the study areas in accordance with US Environmental Protection Agency’s Risk Assessment guidelines. The results of the study revealed the following: cancer health risk for Tamso, 0.098 (RME – Reasonable Maximum Exposure) and 0.082 (CTE – Central Tendency Exposure). This means that approximately 10 and 8 out of 100 resident adults are likely to suffer from cancer related cases by RME and CTE parameters respectively. For Prestea, we have 0.010 and 0.12, which also means that approximately 1 out of 100 and 10 resident adults out of 100 are also likely to suffer from cancer related diseases by RME and CTE parameters. The results of the study obtained were found to be above the acceptable cancer risk range of 1× 10⁻⁶ to 1× 10⁻⁴, i.e., 1 case of cancer out of 1 million or 100,000 people respectively.     

Assessing Spatial, Temporal, and Analytical Variation of Groundwater Chemistry in a Large Nuclear Complex, USA

Statistical analyses were applied at the Hanford Site, USA, to assess groundwater contamination problems that included (1) determining local backgrounds to ascertain whether a facility is affecting the groundwater quality and (2) determining a ‘pre-Hanford' groundwater background to allow formulation of background-based cleanup standards. The primary purpose of this paper is to extend the random effects models for (1) assessing the spatial, temporal, and analytical variability of groundwater background measurements; (2) demonstrating that the usual variance estimate s ², which ignores the variance components, is a biased estimator; (3) providing formulas for calculating the amount of bias; and (4) recommending monitoring strategies to reduce the uncertainty in estimating the average background concentrations. A case study is provided. Results indicate that (1) without considering spatial and temporal variability, there is a high probability of false positives, resulting in unnecessary remediation and/or monitoring expenses; (2) the most effective way to reduce the uncertainty in estimating the average background, and enhance the power of the statistical tests in general, is to increase the number of background wells; and (3) background for a specific constituent should be considered as a statistical distribution, not as a single value or threshold. The methods and the related analysis of variance tables discussed in this paper can be used as diagnostic tools in documenting the extent of inherent spatial and/or temporal variation and to help select an appropriate statistical method for testing purposes.     

A Simulation Study to Assess the Sensitivity of a Forest Health Monitoring Network to Outbreaks of Defoliating Insects

The sensitivity of the United States Forest Health Monitoring network to outbreaks of defoliating insects was examined by means of a simulation study. A model constructed specifically for the study was used to generate a wide variety of defoliation patterns in forested landscapes. Forest configuration was that of Minnesota, USA, as expressed by the GAP land cover classification. Combinations of model parameters were based on a Latin Hypercube sample. The relationship between the average number of plots defoliated and outbreak characteristics was then examined via multiple regression. Both theoretical and model results pointed to a strong, linear relationship between the average number of plots defoliated and outbreak size. Model results provided additional insight, suggesting a significant relationship between the average number of plots defoliated and other outbreak characteristics after outbreak size was taken into account.     

环境内分泌干扰物低剂量-效应研究进展

环境内分泌干扰物(EDCs)的低剂量-效应已成为生态毒理学界的研究热点.环境内分泌干扰物在接近或低于无可见不良效应浓度水平(NOAEL)时仍可诱发生物效应并存在非单调剂量-效应关系,这对现行的动物繁殖和发育毒理学检测规程以及环境内分泌干扰物风险评价的理论和方法提出了挑战.此外,由于环境中内分泌干扰物呈低剂量长期暴露的特征,研究低剂量-效应对正确进行生态风险评价具有重大的科学意义.在总结国内外相关研究的基础上,对当前环境内分泌干扰物低剂量-效应的研究进展进行了综述.     

宁东能源化工基地核心区表层土壤酚类污染物的污染评价、空间分布及来源解析

采集了宁东能源化工基地核心区的146个表层土壤样品,检测了6种优控酚类污染物.运用单因子污染指数、内梅罗综合污染指数和致癌风险指数评价了酚类污染物的污染程度及健康风险.借助主成分分析和绝对主成分分数-多元线性回归受体模型,结合地统计学方法,对酚类污染物的空间分布及来源进行了分析.结果显示:2,4-二氯酚和2,4,6-三...     

北京市菜地土壤和蔬菜镉含量及其健康风险分析

通过对北京市蔬菜和菜地土壤镉含量状况进行大规模调查,研究了蔬菜和土壤镉含量及其健康风险,并筛选出抗镉污染能力强的蔬菜品种.根据蔬菜的消费量同时兼顾品种多样性的原则,在北京市规模化蔬菜栽培基地(采集蔬菜及土壤样品)和蔬菜批发市场(蔬菜样品)共采集97种蔬菜363个样品和54个土壤样品.研究发现:北京市菜地土壤镉积累明显,其范围为0.091～0.971 mg·kg-1,其算术均值和Box-Cox均值分别为0.229和0.187 mg·kg-1,其中有两个样点土壤镉含量(0.971和0.886 mg·kg-1)超过<土壤环境质量标准>(GB15618-1995)中的二级标准(0.6 mg·kg-1);北京市蔬菜镉含量范围、算术均值和Box-Cox均值分别为0.1～101.4、12.8和10.0μg·kg-1;叶菜类和根茎类蔬菜的镉平均含量显著高于瓜果类和特菜;北京市本地产蔬菜与市售外地产蔬菜的镉含量没有显著差异;裸露地蔬菜镉含量显著高于设施蔬菜;小白菜、辣椒、茄子、萝卜和大白菜镉富集系数较高,其抗镉污染能力较弱,而冬瓜、黄瓜、叶甜菜、大葱、云架豆、甘蓝、西红柿等镉富集系数较低,其抗镉污染能力较强.北京市居民每人从蔬菜中摄入镉的量为12 2μg·d-1,蔬菜镉对北京市部分人群存在一定的潜在健康风险.     

铁矿石对脱除烧结废气中NOx的催化效应

向混合料中加添加剂能够在烧结过程中脱除烧结废气中的NO。实验研究了铁矿石对NO脱除反应的催化效应。在900℃下,分别以5种不同铁矿石作为填料层,用2种标准气体和压缩空气配制的混合气体模拟烧结废气。试验结果表明,铁矿石种类对铁矿石的催化能力有重要影响。D型铁矿的催化能力最强而且不会发生弱化,NO转化率接近100%;其它几种铁矿石的催化能力较差,随着反应时间的延长有明显的弱化现象,但很快即基本趋于稳定状态,NO转化率达到了60%~70%。     

Health and environmental assessment of mercury exposure in a gold mining community in Western Mindanao, Philippines

The small-scale gold mining activities using mercury began in the late 1980s in Sibutad, Western Mindanao. It is located very near the Murcielagos Bay with tailing ponds directly discharging into bodies of water. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the health and environmental effects of gold mining activities on the community. Residents were randomly selected and classified into two groups, namely, the directly exposed and indirectly exposed populations using a set inclusion criteria. Complete medical and laboratory examinations were performed. Environmental and biologic samples were collected for total mercury and methylmercury determinations. The results showed that the directly exposed group had significantly higher mean blood total mercury and methylmercury levels in comparison with the indirectly exposed population. Although there were no significant differences between hair total mercury and methylmercury levels, there was a trend for higher levels of these biomarkers among the directly exposed residents as compared with the unexposed group. The absence of statistically significant differences may be attributable to the small sample size. Ambient air quality monitoring for mercury exceeded the allowable levels. However, levels of mercury in drinking water and sediments were within allowable limits. Frequency of gastrointestinal complaints was significantly associated with elevated hair methylmercury levels (p=0.02). Also, there appears to be a trend towards higher blood total mercury levels and frequency of gastrointestinal complaints (p=0.09). An interesting finding in this study was the increasing incidence of elevated diastolic blood pressure with elevated hair total mercury levels (p=0.07). Mercury storage at home is a risk factor.     

松花江流域大型底栖动物生物完整性指数构建及其适用性

利用生物完整性指数评价河流健康状态,对于水环境管理决策具有重要的实践意义。基于大型底栖动物构建生物完整性指数(B-IBI),并评价松花江流域的水生态系统健康状况。在松花江主要干支流设定37个采样点,分别于2016年6、9月进行环境因子和大型底栖动物调查研究。最终从28个候选参数中确定了种类总数、摇蚊种类数、敏感种百分比、Hilsenhoff指数、Marglef指数作为核心参数构建B-IBI。通过0～10赋分法,计算得到了松花江流域全部采样点的生物完整性评价得分。结果显示,松花江流域内60%区域生物状态存在不同程度的损害。另外,B-IBI能够综合反映松花江大型底栖动物群落多样性、生境质量、理化水质等,具有一定的适用性。