Developing a National Indicator of Soil Quality on U.S Forestlands: Methods and Initial Results

The Montreal Process was formed in 1994 to develop an internationally agreed upon set of criteria and indicators for the conservation and sustainable management of temperate and boreal forests. In response to this initiative, the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) and Forest Health Monitoring (FHM) programs of the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service have implemented soil measurements as part of a national monitoring program to address specific questions related to the conservation of soil and water resources. Integration of soil assessments into the national FIA program provides for systematic monitoring of soil properties across all forested regions of the U.S. using standardized collection, laboratory, and statistical procedures that are compatible with existing forest inventory data. The resulting information will provide quantitative benchmarks for regional, national, and international reporting on sustainable forest management and enhance our understanding of management effects on soil quality. This paper presents an overview of the FIA soil monitoring program, outlines the field and laboratory protocols as currently implemented, and provides examples of how these data may be used to assess indicators of sustainable management as defined by the Montreal Process.     

Long-Term and Seasonal Changes in Chemical Composition of Surface Waters in Latvia

The changes of the chemical composition in Latvianinland waters over the last twenty years weredetermined, based on data of the National MonitoringProgramme. Relationships between the water compositionwere studied. The chemical composition and seasonalchange pattern depend a lot on hydrological factorswhich differed between eastern and western Latvia.Different pattern of long-term changes is found forsubstances which have different sources andsinks, at first for nutrients (decrease only in the lastfew years) and inorganic ingredients (commonlyincreasing trend). An attempt was made to identify themain sources of the major water ingredients and linkchanges of their concentrations with changes inloading to waters.     

黄河兰州段水环境中多环芳烃污染初步研究

2004年11月对黄河兰州段11个采样点的水样、悬浮颗粒物和表层沉积物中的多环芳烃(PAHs)污染作了初步研究。调查结果显示,在此河段中,16种优先控制的PAHs均有检出,总PAHs浓度范围分别为水中,2920~6680ng/L;表层沉积物中,960~2940ng/g(干重);悬浮物中,4145~29090ng/g(干重);其中含量较高的是和芘,且分子量较小的PAHs所占的比例较大。来源分析结果显示,黄河兰州段水环境中PAHs的来源是燃烧源和石油源混合的结果,为混合输入型。用生物学阈值对表层沉积物质量进行评价,黄河兰州段表层沉积物的PAHs污染不算严重,偶尔会产生负面生态效应。     

TOF–SIMS surface analysis of chemical components of size–fractioned urban aerosols in a typical heavy air pollution event in Beijing

Size–fractioned atmospheric aerosol particles were collected during a typical heavy air pollution event in Beijing. The organic and inorganic components on the surfaces of the samples were analyzed using time–of–flight secondary ion mass spectrometry(TOF–SIMS).The variation characteristics of the surface chemical composition and influencing factors were studied, and the possible sources of these chemical compositions were identified through principal component analysis. The results showed that inorganic components such as crustal elements and sulfate, and organic components such as aliphatic hydrocarbons and oxygen–containing organic groups were present. Some surface components, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, heavy metals and fluorides may exert adverse effects on human health. The species and relative percentages of the chemical components varied with particle size, diurnal and pollution progress. During a heavy pollution event, the species and relative percentages of secondary components such as oxygen–containing organic groups and sulfurous compounds increased, indicating that particles aged during this event. The surface chemical composition of the aerosol particles was affected mainly by emissions from coal combustion and motor vehicles. In addition, air pollution, meteorological factors, and air mass transport also exerted a significant effect on the surface chemical composition of aerosol particles.     

Characterization of precipitation in the background of atmospheric pollutants reduction in Guilin: Temporal variation and source apportionment

Rainfall samples were collected from three observation sites in Guilin from 2013 to 2017, and the chemical composition characteristics of precipitation and the contribution made by different ion sources were analyzed when atmospheric pollutants levels were reduced. The results showed that acid gas emissions and atmospheric pollutant concentrations continued to decline during the study period. However, the change in the volume-weighted mean pH at the three sites suggested that acid rain pollution was not alleviated and began to deteriorate after 2015. The continuing downward trend for alkaline neutralizing ions (Ca²⁺, NH₄⁺) in precipitation indicated that the reduction in alkaline neutralizing substances in the atmosphere was an important factor that led to the deterioration in acid rain across Guilin. The principal component analysis and spearman correlation analysis indicated five sources of ions in precipitation. Quantitative assessment of these five sources indicated that fossil fuel combustion contributed the most ions concentration in precipitation at the three sites, followed by agriculture, terrestrial (crustal) sources, marine sources, and biomass burning. Long-distance airflow might affect the acidity, the electrical conductivity (EC), and ion concentrations in precipitation across Guilin. The airflow trajectory from the west and southeast directions corresponded to higher acidity and ion concentrations. According to the current air pollution control strategy planned by Guilin, reducing atmospheric coarse particles and NH₃ at the same time may potentially lead to further deteriorations in acid rain contents. Therefore, Guilin needs to develop more reasonable pollution prevention measures that synergistically control atmospheric pollutants and acid rain pollution.     

中国地表水环境质量标准研究

《地表水环境质量标准》是水环境管理的尺度,在推动我国水污染防治、公众健康与水生态安全保障等方面发挥着十分重要的作用.随着我国进入生态文明建设新阶段,水环境保护和社会经济发展形势发生深刻变化,如何与时俱进,及时修订丰富现行标准成为迫在眉睫的问题.全面剖析了我国现行GB 3838—2002《地表水环境质量标准》修订历程、修订依据、重要贡献、存在问题及国家需求,结合国际标准发展趋势和我国社会发展阶段,提出未来将《地表水环境质量标准》由单项标准向系列标准转变的修订思路框架.初步阐述了由系列标准构成的“1+N”的标准体系框架,其中,“1”是地表水环境质量基本项目标准,用于判断地表水环境质量的优劣程度,反映水环境功能的基本水质要求;“N”是不同的特定保护项目标准,包括保护水生生物的有毒有害污染物项目水质标准、地表饮用水源地水质标准、湖泊营养物状态评价标准以及地表水水生物状况评价标准,并提出了各分标准的相关制修订方案.      

物理化学方法在安全评价中的应用研究

提出以本质安全与系统安全为目的,在安全评价领域中使用物理化学方法,对化工装置中化学反应过程及其他物理化学过程进行安全分析与评价,从而深入了解变化过程,提出安全对策与措施。对安全评价模式、方法进行了探索并应用到实际工作中,同时阐述了该模式中HAZOP方法、物理化学方法各自的特点。列举了物理化学方法在几个方面的应用并以一实例:催化剂制备装置的安全评价。     

DISSOLVED HEAVY METALS IN SHALLOW GROUND WATER IN A SOUTHEASTERN MICHIGAN URBAN WATERSHED1

ABSTRACT: The occurrence of dissolved heavy metal concentrations in shallow ground water were measured at 126 sites within an urban watershed in southeastern Michigan. A total of 1,140 samples were collected from the first saturated zone, and the mean concentrations of 11 heavy metals (arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, selenium, silver, and zinc) were obtained and compared to their corresponding mean concentrations within surface soil. The results suggest that former and current land use processes have resulted in significant adverse impacts on the study region. Levels of Cr 20 to 30 times the maximum contaminant level (MCL) have been detected in the ground water beneath industrial sites. In addition, Cd and Pb have been found at levels exceeding their MCLs where surface soils are clay‐rich, and in sandy soils at more than 10 times their MCLs. The high levels of Cr in ground water strongly suggest that the chromium is in a hexavalent form, and this likelihood is supported by current studies. Given the hydraulic connection between the watershed's surface waters and the Great Lakes, these findings raise significant ecological and public health concerns.     

Financial viability of reforesting reclaimed surface mined lands, the burden of site conversion costs, and carbon payments as reforestation incentives

US Federal law mandates that mined land be returned by mine operators to a condition capable of supporting its pre-mining use or a higher use. Previously forested lands have commonly been reclaimed to hayland/pasture or wildlife habitat, and most of these lands have been abandoned from management and rendered non-productive. This situation has left landowners in the position of converting these reclaimed mined lands to forests at a later date, if they choose to make them economically productive. Such land-use conversion, however, comes with a substantial up-front cost to the landowner, which makes the financial viability of such a conversion questionable. We examine the financial viability of reforestation of these previously reclaimed mine lands by calculating land expectation value (LEV) under a range of conditions that include forest type, site quality, and reforestation intensity. We find that conversion to white pine is viable on higher quality sites under low to moderate interest rates with low or high timber prices, but conversion to mixed hardwoods is only profitable under the high price scenario with low interest rates, and only on higher quality sites. We also consider the implications of a shift in reforestation burden from the landowner to the mine operator, and results suggest that including costs of reforestation as part of the mining operation creates a financially viable forest enterprise for landowners under all scenarios for both white pine and mixed hardwoods. Two forms of carbon payments that could encourage reforestation of previously reclaimed mined lands also are examined: an annual payment based upon the total accumulated carbon found on-site in a given year, and an annual payment based on only the increment of carbon storage each year. Our carbon payment results indicate that annual values of up to $5.17 per ton of carbon stored in hardwoods and $9.39 per ton of carbon stored in pines would be required to make reforestation profitable under the poorest conditions (high interest rates, low prices, and poor quality site) when the payment is based on accumulated on-site carbon, although lower values are required under more favorable scenarios. Payments that are based upon the annual increment of carbon must fall in the range of $8.66–$71.88 per ton of carbon stored in hardwoods and $0–$83.29 per ton of carbon stored in pines to make reforestation financially viable.     

南京近地层单点气象要素与大气细菌浓度分布规律调查研究

为了分析南京某地的气象要素和当地大气细菌浓度的分布及变化规律，探讨二之间的关系，本利用气象观测仪器和大气细菌采样仪器进行现场观测与测量，在大量气象观测数据和大气细菌采样结果基础上，分析了他们的变化规律。总体来看，南京大气细菌浓度不高，1天内气象要素及细菌浓度均呈周期变化，且二有一定的相关性。