Solution-oriented global environmental assessments: Opportunities and challenges

This article provides an introduction to the Special Issue dedicated to “Solution-oriented Global Environmental Assessments: Opportunities and Challenges”. In the follow-up to the Paris climate agreement and the adoption and early implementation of the global Sustainable Development Goals involving many synergies and trade-offs, the need to shift the focus from environmental problem analysis towards the exploration of specific solution options can be observed in international environmental governance debates. To remain policy-relevant, credible and legitimate, global environmental assessments (GEAs) must carefully adapt to a rapidly evolving governance landscape. This Special Issue sheds light on the potential utility and implications of increased solution-orientation of GEAs. It builds on the research project “The Future of Global Environmental Assessment Making” that was jointly initiated in 2013 by UN Environment and the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change. The article collection includes research on the coevolution of GEAs and the increasingly solution-oriented governance context; conditions of success for contemporary GEAs; the treatment of divergent viewpoints, stakes and stakeholders in solution-oriented GEAs; knowledge aggregation; and the enhanced measurement of GEA effectiveness in the emerging governance landscape.     

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.     

城市老工业区土壤重金属污染状况与健康风险评价

本文对西部某老工业区土壤中As、Pb、Cr、Cd、Hg、Zn的含量、空间分布状况展开了研究,并依据《污染场地风险评估技术导则》对该老工业区的健康风险进行了评价。研究结果表明,该老工业区土壤重金属污染严重,6种元素与陕西土壤背景值相比超标100%,表明其不适宜作为居住用地开发。健康风险评价结果显示,As、Pb、Cr、Cd元素的非致癌风险值分别为3.83、1.7、1.94、1.09,均超过非致癌风险可接受值1,表明该老工业区对人们存在非致癌健康风险;对于致癌风险,As、Cr、Cd元素的致癌风险值远大于致癌风险边界值,分别超过致癌风险值的2个数量级(2.64×10-4)、4个数量级(1.94×10-2)、1个数量级(6.12×10-5),表示As和Cr已经达到了显著致癌风险的水平。     

现役民机客舱热舒适评价

采用修正热舒适评价值(Corrected Predicted Mean Vote,CPMV)模型,针对实测的国内及国际航线数据进行了客舱环境的热舒适评价.结果表明,当客舱内压力满足适航标准要求范围、相对湿度明显低于舒适性要求时,低压和低相对湿度均能导致热舒适评价值(Predieted Mean Vote,PMV)的正偏移,偏移量为0.3～0.4,即低气压和低湿会使乘客感觉更温暖,但这2个参数对乘客热舒适的影响有限.短途航班热舒适性不理想,部分航班出现过热或过冷现象.     

基于RS&GIS的长白山地区生态安全评价研究

以遥感影像数据、专题数据、DEM数据、气象站实测数据和统计数据为数据源,采用极差法、层次分析法、综合指数法、RS&GIS等方法对长白山地区的生态安全进行了评价.结果表明:长白山地区生态安全水平呈现出明显的空间差异性,整体由中部向东西两端逐渐降低.各生态安全等级面积从大到小为临界安全等级、较安全等级、不安全等级、较不安全等级、安全等级.统计了各行政单元的平均生态安全指数和等级构成,各县市生态安全水平从高到低为长白县、抚松县、安图县、和龙市、临江市,各县市的生态安全等级构成也有所差异.长白山地区生态安全水平以临界安全等级为主,整体上生态环境质量一般,系统服务功能受到了一定程度的破坏.     

兰州地区人群对六六六的暴露及健康风险评价

为研究兰州地区六六六(HCH)对人群的健康风险,应用改进的美国环境保护署(US EPA)多介质暴露模型,结合兰州地区人群状况,计算了各年龄人群通过11种暴露途径对六六六的暴露量.结果表明,兰州地区居民对环境中六六六的终身日平均暴露量为2.01×10-5 mg/(k·d)(儿童)和2.53×10-5 mg/(kg·d)(成人).暴露途径中以食物暴露为主导,其次是呼吸暴露,皮肤暴露作用很小.食物中贡献较大的为谷物和蔬菜.相应的健康风险度分别为5.40×10-9 a-1(男性)和6.30× 10-9a-1(女性).兰州地区六六六居民人体健康风险度低于可接受健康风险度标准,兰州地区六六六人群暴露水平与天津、太原、太湖地区相比存在一定的差异,女性对六六六的暴露量高于男性.兰州人群成人的六六六暴露量大于儿童,成人是六六六暴露风险最高的群体.各项参数中,谷物和蔬菜摄食量和相应的六六六残留浓度是影响暴露的重要因素.通过蒙特卡罗模拟得到各年龄段人群对HCH的日均暴露量的分布特征,各输出变量均服从对数正态分布.     

河南省武陟县大田土壤重金属形态分布及潜在生态风险评价

为了解河南省武陟县大田土壤重金属Cr、Cd、Pb、As、Cu、Se、Ni和Co的形态分布和生态风险情况,在该区域采集了12个表层土壤(0～20cm)样品,采用修正的BCR连续提取法进行形态分析,探讨其生物有效性,并采用Hakanson指数法评价了重金属的潜在生态风险.结果表明,土壤中不同重金属的形态分布差异很大,其中,Cr、As、Ni和Co均主要以残渣态存在,分别占其总量的66.6％、61.4％、50.7％和41.8％;Cu和Se主要以可氧化态存在,分别占其总量的43.8％和67.8％;Pb主要以可还原态存在,占总量的61.1％;Cd主要以酸提取态存在,占总量的53.3％.生物有效性分析表明,Cd的可利用态K1为0.933,生物有效性是最大的,对土壤生态系统的潜在危害性较大,其次是Pb和Co;Cu和Se在土壤环境发生变化时,很容易再次释放到外界环境中;Cr、As和Ni不易被外界生物利用.潜在生态风险评价结果显示,以国家土壤环境质量标准二级标准为参比值时,Cr、Cd、Pb、As、Cu和Ni的单项潜在生态风险程度均为轻微,综合潜在生态风险处于轻微等级.     

通用电气风险评估模式在我国中小企业干预中的应用及效果评估

为提高对职业危害的识别和控制能力,采用跨国企业风险评估模式帮助我国中小企业改善职业健康与安全管理。选用通用电气环境健康安全管理体系中的11个相关元素作为评估工具,对企业开展干预,并评估效果。结果表明,干预效果较好,工人接触有害物质的水平明显降低,个体防护用品使用率和正确使用率有较大提高,职业危害风险评估符合率有明显提高。应用风险评估模式干预的示范企业,职业卫生现状得到有效改善,为企业管理提供了借鉴。     

Framing an independent,integrated and evidence-based evaluation of the state of Australia's biophysical and human environments

A new approach was developed for Australia's 2011 national State of the Environment (SoE) report to integrate the assessment of biophysical and human elements of the environment. A Common Assessment and Reporting Framework (CARF) guided design and implementation, responding to jurisdictional complexity, outstanding natural diversity and ecosystem values, high levels of cultural and heritage diversity, and a paucity of national-scale data. The CARF provided a transparent response to the need for an independent, robust and evidence-based national SoE report. We conclude that this framework will be effective for subsequent national SoE assessments and other integrated national-scale assessments in data-poor regions.     

AHP based life cycle sustainability assessment (LCSA) framework: a case study of six storey wood frame and concrete frame buildings in Vancouver

Construction and building industry is in dire need for developing sustainability assessment frameworks that can evaluate and integrate related environmental and socioeconomic impacts. This paper discusses an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) based sustainability evaluation framework for mid-rise residential buildings based on a broad range of environmental and socioeconomic criteria. A cradle to grave life cycle assessment technique was applied to identify, classify, and assess triple bottom line (TBL) sustainability performance indicators of buildings. Then, the AHP was applied to aggregate the impacts into a unified sustainability index. The framework is demonstrated through a case study to investigate two six storey structural systems (i.e. concrete and wood) in Vancouver, Canada. The results of this paper show that the environmental performance of a building in Canada, even in regions with milder weather such as Vancouver, is highly dependent on service life energy, rather than structural materials.