环境空气质量自动监测站的管理与维护

随着工业化、城镇化的深入推进,二氧化硫、氮氧化物、烟粉尘和挥发性有机物等各类污染物排放到环境中,致使中国大气受到严重污染,给人体的健康、动植物的生长、发育和繁殖等带来负面的影响。为实时监测环境空气质量,建立环境空气质量自动监测站逐渐成为大气污染防治的主要手段。文中以环境空气质量自动监测站为研究对象,提出环境空气质量自动监测站管理与维护面临的问题,探讨相应的解决措施,以期为环境空气质量自动监测站的管理与维护提供参考依据。     

基于自动种子区域生长的火焰分割算法

在存在壁面反射的低照度火灾环境中,传统的火焰分割算法如颜色分割、运动检测等,在进行火焰分割时造成过分割现象,分割的效果不理想,影响后续的火灾正确识别。针对上述问题,提出了一种基于自动种子区域生长(Automatic Seeded Region Growing,ASRG)的火焰分割算法。首先将从火灾视频中获取的火灾图像从RGB颜色空间转换到YCbCr颜色空间,在Y通道中采用较大自适应阈值背景减法将火灾图像二值化,分别将可疑火焰像素点的横坐标和纵坐标按大小进行排序,取排序后的中间值作为种子点,再由原RGB火灾图像转换而成的灰度图像中,以该种子点进行区域生长,最后将区域生长后的火焰分割图像与采用较小自适应阈值背景减法得到的火焰分割图像进行交集处理,得到最终的火焰分割图像。实验表明ASRG算法在存在壁面反射的低照度火灾环境中,火焰分割效果好,有效解决了该环境下的火焰过分割问题,同时在其他火灾环境中也有较好的火焰分割效果。     

基于地貌指数的汶川地震灾区单沟泥石流总量计算方法

现行的泥石流总量计算方法普遍存在计算参数较难获取或难以精确获取的问题,加上汶川地震灾区沟谷内分布大量的由崩塌、滑坡体等形成的固体松散物质;所以多数泥石流总量计算公式在汶川震区存在局限性.参考适用于以崩塌、滑坡体为主要物源的泥石流总量计算公式;分析研究区范围内地形地貌发育状态与降雨因素及其地质条件之间的影响关系;将地貌指数(Strahler积分)应用于泥石流总量计算,尝试解决缺乏降雨数据情况下泥石流总量计算问题.根据“8.13”四川清平群发性泥石流数据初步回归分析得到适合于汶川震区的泥石流总量计算模型.     

不同收入来源对甘肃省城乡收入差距的影响研究

收入由多个来源部分组成,城乡收入差距的变化是收入来源各部分变动的综合反映,透过收入来源的角度可以清晰地判断城乡收入差距产生的根源.本文运用泰尔指数及其分解方法,对2003-2008年甘肃省城乡收入差距大小及其在总区域收入差距中的贡献变化趋势进行测度,并利用要素分解法实证分析了不同收入来源对城乡收入差距的影响,以此揭示甘肃省城乡收入差距产生的原因.研究发现,城乡收入差距在总区域收入差距中的贡献是递增变化的,已经成为影响甘肃省居民收入差距的重要因素;工资性收入是目前拉大城乡收入差距最为重要的原因,而家庭经营性收入则起着缩小差距的作用,转移性收入和财产性收入在总收入中所占比例很小,但转移性收入对城乡收入差距的贡献却不容轻视.基于研究结果,提出了增加农民非农收入、推进农业产业化进程和完善城乡间收入再分配制度等政策建议,以期为欠发达地区缩小城乡收入差距带来一些启示.     

Application of biomarkers to assess the condition of European Marine Sites

A series of European Marine Sites has been designated as Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) in England. The aim of this study was to develop a practical methodology to assess the condition of SACs by applying a suite of biomarkers. Biomarkers were applied to the blue mussel Mytilus edulis and the shore crab Carcinus maenas from the Fal and Helford SAC (Cornwall). Individual biomarkers provided useful diagnostic information on the activity of certain classes of contaminants and an integrated Biomarker Response Index (BRI) was used to achieve a more holistic understanding of the condition of the SAC. The BRI indicated that the general health of both organisms was impacted in the upper part of the SAC (Fal Estuary) which correlated well with known chemical hotspots and sources of contamination. The BRI allows a pragmatic way to prioritise SAC sites that may require further investigative studies.     

Use of Descriptors of Ecosystem Functioning for Monitoring a National Park Network: A Remote Sensing Approach

Baseline assessments and monitoring of protected areas are essential for making management decisions, evaluating the effectiveness of management practices, and tracking the effects of global changes. For these purposes, the analysis of functional attributes of ecosystems (i.e., different aspects of the exchange of matter and energy) has advantages over the traditional use of structural attributes, like a quicker response to disturbances and the fact that they are easily monitored through remote sensing. In this study, we described the spatiotemporal patterns of different aspects of the ecosystem functioning of the Spanish national parks and their response to environmental changes between 1982 and 2006. To do so, we used the NOAA/AVHRR-GIMMS dataset of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a linear estimator of the fraction of photosynthetic active radiation intercepted by vegetation, which is the main control of carbon gains. Nearly all parks have significantly changed during the last 25 years: The radiation interception has increased, the contrast between the growing and nongrowing seasons has diminished, and the dates of maximum and minimum interception have advanced. Some parks concentrated more changes than others and the degree of change varied depending on their different environmental conditions, management, and conservation histories. Our approach identified reference conditions and temporal changes for different aspects of ecosystem functioning, which can be used for management purposes of protected areas in response to global changes.     

Modeling perceived collision risk in port water navigation

An increase in the likelihood of navigational collisions in port waters has put focus on the collision avoidance process in port traffic safety. The most widely used on-board collision-avoidance system is the automatic radar plotting aid which is a passive warning system that triggers an alert based on the pilot’s pre-defined indicators of distance and time proximities at the closest point of approaches in encounters with nearby vessels. To better help pilot in decision making in close quarter situations, collision risk should be considered as a continuous monotonic function of the proximities and risk perception should be considered probabilistically. This paper derives an ordered probit regression model to study perceived collision risks. To illustrate the procedure, the risks perceived by Singapore port pilots were obtained to calibrate the regression model. The results demonstrate that a framework based on the probabilistic risk assessment model can be used to give a better understanding of collision risk and to define a more appropriate level of evasive actions.     

Contribution of sociodemographic characteristics, occupation, diet and lifestyle to DDT and DDE concentrations in serum and adipose tissue from a Bolivian cohort

The organochlorine pesticide p,p′-Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) was widely used in the early 1960s-70s for vector control in tropical and subtropical areas of South America. Due to its persistence, DDT has a high potential to bioaccumulate in the food chain and living organisms and is a major public health concern, especially in South America.The main purpose of the present study was to investigate predictors of serum and adipose tissue concentrations of p,p′-DDT and its main metabolite, p,p′-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (p,p′-DDE), in an adult cohort (n = 112) from Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, using multiple linear regression models. These models explained 29.3-47.8% of the variability in adipose tissue concentrations of p,p′-DDT and p,p′-DDE, respectively, and 32.9-47.0% of that in serum. Main exposure predictors included age, occupational class, residence, diet, smoking habit, and accumulated breastfeeding time.This is one of the few studies to explore predictors of human exposure to these chemicals using a multivariate approach in a South American population. Results show that predictors of human exposure to p,p′-DDT and p,p′-DDE in Santa Cruz de la Sierra may diverge from those found in other populations of the world, due to particular sociodemographic and lifestyle characteristics of this region.     

Anticipated Performance Index of some tree species considered for green belt development in and around an urban area: a case study of Varanasi city, India

It is well established that trees help to reduce air pollution, and there is a growing impetus for green belt expansion in urban areas. Identification of suitable plant species for green belts is very important. In the present study, the Air Pollution Tolerance Index (APTI) of many plant species has been evaluated by analyzing important biochemical parameters. The Anticipated Performance Index (API) of these plant species was also calculated by considering their APTI values together with other socio-economic and biological parameters. Based on these two indices, the most suitable plant species for green belt development in urban areas were identified and recommended for long-term air pollution management.     

Watershed Evapotranspiration Increased due to Changes in Vegetation Composition and Structure Under a Subtropical Climate1

Abstract: Natural forests in southern China have been severely logged due to high human demand for timber, food, and fuels during the past century, but are recovering in the past decade. The objective of this study was to investigate how vegetation cover changes in composition and structure affected the water budgets of a 9.6‐km² Dakeng watershed located in a humid subtropical mountainous region in southern China. We analyzed 27 years (i.e., 1967‐1993) of streamflow and climate data and associated vegetation cover change in the watershed. Land use/land cover census and Normalized Difference of Vegetation Index (NDVI) data derived from remote sensing were used to construct historic land cover change patterns. We found that over the period of record, annual streamflow (Q) and runoff/precipitation ratio did not change significantly, nor did the climatic variables, including air temperature, Hamon’s potential evapotranspiration (ET), pan evaporation, sunshine hours, and radiation. However, annual ET estimated as the differences between P and Q showed a statistically significant increasing trend. Overall, the NDVI of the watershed had a significant increasing trend in the peak spring growing season. This study concluded that watershed ecosystem ET increased as the vegetation cover shifted from low stock forests to shrub and grasslands that had higher ET rates. A conceptual model was developed for the study watershed to describe the vegetation cover‐streamflow relationships during a 50‐year time frame. This paper highlighted the importance of eco‐physiologically based studies in understanding transitory, nonstationary effects of deforestation or forestation on watershed water balances.