Impacts of Chronic Anthropogenic Noise from Energy‐Sector Activity on Abundance of Songbirds in the Boreal Forest

Abstract: The effects of human activities in forests are often examined in the context of habitat conversion. Changes in habitat structure and composition are also associated with increases in the activity of people with vehicles and equipment, which results in increases in anthropogenic noise. Anthropogenic noise may reduce habitat quality for many species, particularly those that rely on acoustic signals for communication. We compared the density and occupancy rate of forest passerines close to versus far from noise‐generating compressor stations and noiseless well pads in the boreal forest of Alberta, Canada. Using distance‐based sampling, we found that areas near noiseless energy facilities had a total passerine density 1.5 times higher than areas near noise‐producing energy sites. The White‐throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis), Yellow‐rumped Warbler (Dendroica coronata), and Red‐eyed Vireo (Vireo olivaceus) were less dense in noisy areas. We used repeat sampling to estimate occupancy rate for 23 additional species. Seven had lower conditional or unconditional occupancy rates near noise‐generating facilities. One‐third of the species examined showed patterns that supported the hypothesis that abundance is influenced by anthropogenic noise. An additional 4 species responded negatively to edge effects. To mitigate existing noise impacts on birds would require approximately $175 million. The merits of such an effort relative to other reclamation actions are discussed. Nevertheless, given the $100 billion energy‐sector investment planned for the boreal forest in the next 10 years, including noise suppression technology at the outset of construction, makes noise mitigation a cost‐effective best‐management practice that might help conserve high‐quality habitat for boreal birds.     

公众聚集场所人群疏散基础数据的分析

针对直接利用国外的人群疏散基础数据进行我国公共聚集场所人群疏散的模拟将会产生不准确的预测结果、导致这些场所人员安全得不到保证的问题,通过对大量国内外相关数据的搜集、整理和分析,确定了6种基础数据是建立疏散模型和开发疏散模拟软件的必备基础,包括:人员类型和人群的组成、人员水平投影面积和形状、人员密度、人员行走速度、边界效应宽度和预动作时间;总结出获取基础数据的4种主要方法,即直接观测和录像观测、人群疏散演习、个体试验和问卷调查;并确定了可在现有资料中直接获得并使用的数据以及仍需要进一步研究确定的数据。研究结论为公共聚集场所人群疏散问题的研究提供了参考和依据。     

Estimating Watershed Level Nonagricultural Pesticide Use From Golf Courses Using Geospatial Methods1

Abstract: Limited information exists on pesticide use for nonagricultural purposes, making it difficult to estimate pesticide loadings from nonagricultural sources to surface water and to conduct environmental risk assessments. A method was developed to estimate the amount of pesticide use on recreational turf grasses, specifically golf course turf grasses, for watersheds located throughout the conterminous United States (U.S.). The approach estimates pesticide use: (1) based on the area of recreational turf grasses (used as a surrogate for turf associated with golf courses) within the watershed, which was derived from maps of land cover, and (2) from data on the location and average treatable area of golf courses. The area of golf course turf grasses determined from these two methods was used to calculate the percentage of each watershed planted in golf course turf grass (percent crop area, or PCA). Turf‐grass PCAs derived from the two methods were used with recommended application rates provided on pesticide labels to estimate total pesticide use on recreational turf within 1,606 watersheds associated with surface‐water sources of drinking water. These pesticide use estimates made from label rates and PCAs were compared to use estimates from industry sales data on the amount of each pesticide sold for use within the watershed. The PCAs derived from the land‐cover data had an average value of 0.4% of a watershed with minimum of 0.01% and a maximum of 9.8%, whereas the PCA values that are based on the number of golf courses in a watershed had an average of 0.3% of a watershed with a minimum of <0.01% and a maximum of 14.2%. Both the land‐cover method and the number of golf courses method produced similar PCA distributions, suggesting that either technique may be used to provide a PCA estimate for recreational turf. The average and maximum PCAs generally correlated to watershed size, with the highest PCAs estimated for small watersheds. Using watershed specific PCAs, combined with label rates, resulted in greater than two orders of magnitude over‐estimation of the pesticide use compared to estimates from sales data.     

Estimated Injury Risk for Specific Injuries and Body Regions in Frontal Motor Vehicle Crashes

Objective: Injury risk curves estimate motor vehicle crash (MVC) occupant injury risk from vehicle, crash, and/or occupant factors. Many vehicles are equipped with event data recorders (EDRs) that collect data including the crash speed and restraint status during a MVC. This study's goal was to use regulation-required data elements for EDRs to compute occupant injury risk for (1) specific injuries and (2) specific body regions in frontal MVCs from weighted NASS-CDS data.

Methods: Logistic regression analysis of NASS-CDS single-impact frontal MVCs involving front seat occupants with frontal airbag deployment was used to produce 23 risk curves for specific injuries and 17 risk curves for Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) 2+ to 5+ body region injuries. Risk curves were produced for the following body regions: head and thorax (AIS 2+, 3+, 4+, 5+), face (AIS 2+), abdomen, spine, upper extremity, and lower extremity (AIS 2+, 3+). Injury risk with 95% confidence intervals was estimated for 15–105 km/h longitudinal delta-Vs and belt status was adjusted for as a covariate.

Results: Overall, belted occupants had lower estimated risks compared to unbelted occupants and the risk of injury increased as longitudinal delta-V increased. Belt status was a significant predictor for 13 specific injuries and all body region injuries with the exception of AIS 2+ and 3+ spine injuries. Specific injuries and body region injuries that occurred more frequently in NASS-CDS also tended to carry higher risks when evaluated at a 56 km/h longitudinal delta-V. In the belted population, injury risks that ranked in the top 33% included 4 upper extremity fractures (ulna, radius, clavicle, carpus/metacarpus), 2 lower extremity fractures (fibula, metatarsal/tarsal), and a knee sprain (2.4–4.6% risk). Unbelted injury risks ranked in the top 33% included 4 lower extremity fractures (femur, fibula, metatarsal/tarsal, patella), 2 head injuries with less than one hour or unspecified prior unconsciousness, and a lung contusion (4.6–9.9% risk). The 6 body region curves with the highest risks were for AIS 2+ lower extremity, upper extremity, thorax, and head injury and AIS 3+ lower extremity and thorax injury (15.9–43.8% risk).

Conclusions: These injury risk curves can be implemented into advanced automatic crash notification (AACN) algorithms that utilize vehicle EDR measurements to predict occupant injury immediately following a MVC. Through integration with AACN, these injury risk curves can provide emergency medical services (EMS) and other patient care providers with information on suspected occupant injuries to improve injury detection and patient triage.     

Emerging market patterns in the recycled paper trade

The international recovered paper trade serves two important functions: increasing raw material availability in the paper and board industry and providing economic incentives to recycle. The purpose of this paper is to shed further light on emerging patterns in this trade by empirically analysing the changes in the bilateral trade flows of recycled paper between 1992 and 2008. According to our estimations, two important changes occurred in the 1990s and 2000s. First, the growing importance of developing economies in global recycled paper trade plays a significant role in import demand as a determinant of trade flows. Second, the changes in global trade patterns necessitate investigating the transportation cost measures used in applied research.     

超高压工程电缆绝缘油对海洋生物的生态毒性效应

随着超高压联网工程建设项目不断增多,取得巨大经济效益的同时,其电缆安全性日益受到关注。采用标准实验方法,研究电缆绝缘油对8种占据不同生态位的海洋生物(费氏弧菌(Vibrio fischeri)、牟氏角毛藻(Chaetoceros mueleri)、卤虫(Artemia sp.)、蒙古裸腹溞(Moina mongolica)、凡纳滨对虾(Litopenaeus vannamei)、裸项栉鰕虎鱼(Ctenogobius gymnauchen)、双齿围沙蚕(Perinereis aibuhitensis)、菲律宾蛤仔(Ruditapes philippinarum))的急性毒性,同时进行了电缆绝缘油对裸项栉鰕虎鱼14 d延长毒性实验和电缆绝缘油对蒙古裸腹溞的慢性毒性。结果表明,电缆绝缘油在50%饱和溶解浓度下未对费氏弧菌产生明显的发光抑制作用;对牟氏角毛藻、凡纳滨对虾、裸项栉鰕虎鱼、双齿围沙蚕和菲律宾蛤仔等5种生物未表现出急性毒性影响,其LC50均大于饱和浓度;对卤虫的96 h-LC50为17.07%,LOEC为12.5%,NOEC为6.25%;对蒙古裸腹溞96 h-LC50为29.75%,LOEC为25.0%,NOEC为12.5%;电缆绝缘油对卤虫和蒙古裸腹溞有剧毒。对裸项栉鰕虎鱼成鱼14 d延长毒性LC50大于500 000 mg·L~(-1);对蒙古裸腹溞母溞存活数的NOEC为625μg·L~(-1),LOEC为1 250μg·L~(-1);对母溞存活期的NOEC为312μg·L~(-1),LOEC为625μg·L~(-1);对产胎数的NOEC为625μg·L~(-1),LOEC为1 250μg·L~(-1);对产幼溞数的NOEC为625μg·L~(-1),LOEC为1 250μg·L~(-1)。     

四氯丙烯对稀有鮈鲫的急性毒性及安全浓度评价

采用半静态试验方式测试了四氯丙烯对稀有鮈鲫(Gobiocypris rarus)的急性毒性,试验浓度分别设定为0.25 mg·L~(-1)、0.30mg·L~(-1)、0.36 mg·L~(-1)、0.42 mg·L~(-1)、0.50 mg·L~(-1)和0.60 mg·L~(-1),同时进行空白对照(试验用水)和分散剂对照(体积分数为0.006%的吐温-80水溶液)试验。采用气相色谱法对试验溶液进行浓度分析,实测浓度分别为0.19 mg·L~(-1)、0.25 mg·L~(-1)、0.34 mg·L~(-1)、0.40 mg·L~(-1)、0.51 mg·L~(-1)和0.64 mg·L~(-1),试验结果以实测浓度表示和统计。结果表明:四氯丙烯致稀有鮈鲫无死亡发生(EC0)的最高浓度为0.25 mg·L~(-1),导致稀有鮈鲫100%死亡(EC100)的最低浓度为0.51 mg·L~(-1)。根据实测浓度,用SPSS(17.0)概率单位法求得四氯丙烯对稀有鮈鲫的半数致死浓度96 h-LC50为0.347 mg·L~(-1),95%置信区间为0.328 mg·L~(-1)~0.361 mg·L~(-1)。     

Effect of commercial pesticides on plant growth-promoting activities of Burkholderia sp. strain L2 isolated from rhizosphere of Lycopersicon esculentum cultivated in agricultural soil

The in vitro study was carried out to examine the toxicity of four commercially used pesticides (phorate, mancozeb, chlorpyrifos, and endosulfan) at the recommended dose (1X) and higher field doses (1.5X, 2X, 2.5X, and 3X) on plant growth-promoting activities of Burkholderia sp. strain L2, isolated from pesticide-treated rhizosphere of Lycopersicon esculentum. At the recommended dose, level of toxicity of all the pesticides to phosphate solubilization activity and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) production was less detrimental as compared to exceeding doses. At maximum dose rate of each pesticide, the percentage decrease in phosphate solubilization and IAA production over control was found in order of chlorpyrifos < mancozeb < endosulfan < phorate. Present study proves that Burkholderia sp. strain L2 could be used as a potential microbial inoculant in the agricultural soil having persistent pesticide residues.     

基于ERA-Interim资料分析青藏高原“湿池”变化特征

论文利用ERA-Interim(0.5°×0.5°,简称ERA)、NCEP/NCAR2(2.5°×2.5°,简称NCEP2)两种不同分辨率的再分析资料和探空观测资料,首先分析了夏季(7月)和冬季(1月)青藏高原(以下简称高原)上大气水汽含量大值区(简称"湿池")的区域分布特征,然后基于ERA资料分析了1979—2012年间高原"湿池"的一些变化特征,发现了一些新的事实。主要结果包括:在对流层中上层,高原上无论夏、冬季都有大气水汽含量的高值中心——高原"湿池"存在。夏季7月高原"湿池"强度最强,ERA资料除了在高原南部有自西到东的连续高湿中心带外,在高原西北部还有一个高湿中心;NCEP2资料仅在高原东南部和西南部有两个高湿中心。冬季1月,两种资料均只在高原东南部有高湿中心。总体上,ERA资料与探空观测资料的高湿中心区更为接近。7月,高原南部高湿中心在1990年代中期(1994—1996年)之后持续偏强,西北部中心强度有弱—强—弱—强交替变化特征;1月,高湿中心在1980年代末期开始持续偏强。高原南部高湿中心带在7月几乎是一个连续的区域,1996年以后这一特征更为明显,在1月则是分为东西两段的高湿中心带。     

不同晶型纳米TiO_2在斑马鱼体内的富集与清除

为探讨纳米材料的慢性生物效应以及材料结构对生物富集的影响,开展了A-TiO2(锐钛型纳米TiO2)和R-TiO2(金红石型纳米TiO2)在斑马鱼(Danio rerio)体内的长期富集和清除试验.采用半静态暴露试验,试验周期为46 d(暴露阶段28 d,清除阶段18 d),每种晶型设置2个处理组(ρ分别为4.0和10.0 mg/L),测定各时间点斑马鱼体内不同晶型纳米TiO2含量(以w计);以暴露阶段的BAF(生物富集系数)以及清除阶段的排出速率常数、总量清除率为终点,比较斑马鱼对2种晶型纳米TiO2的富集、清除的异同.结果表明:在暴露阶段,A-TiO2在斑马鱼体内的富集量显著高于R-TiO2,10.0 mg/L处理组斑马鱼体内富集量均显著高于4.0 mg/L处理组;4.0和10.0 mg/L的A-TiO2处理组的BAF分别为76.7和105.4 L/kg,略高于R-TiO2(41.6和36.1 L/kg),二者在斑马鱼体内均不具有生物蓄积性.在清除阶段,斑马鱼体内的2种晶型的纳米TiO2均可被排出,清除阶段的清除率为88.0%~100%;斑马鱼体内2种晶型纳米TiO2富集量的下降均符合一阶指数衰减方程,排出速率常数在0.26~1.01 d-1之间.