“地球工程”作为减缓气候变化手段的几个关键问题

减缓气候变化可以在大的地理尺度上以工程技术手段来实施。地球工程包括所有能源生产和消费以外的、不涉及工业生产过程管理的,在较大的地球尺度或规模上,去除大气中的CO2或直接控制太阳辐射而降温的各种人为的工程技术手段,主要包括三大类:绿色生物技术手段、碳捕获与埋存技术和太阳光辐射额度控制管理技术。这一类地球工程手段有着一系列经济、技术、环境、伦理、安全和不确定性含义。本文就近年来国际上关于地球工程作为减缓气候变化可能技术选择的几个关键问题开展了分析和讨论,涉及概念界定、技术特点、可能影响、治理构架等。作者认为,对于直接作用于碳的地球工程手段,如绿色生物技术手段和碳捕获与埋存技术,风险小、可操控;太阳光辐管理技术,通过人为排放到大气的SO2和气溶胶等的降温效应,来控制地球气温的上升,尽管使用的经济成本可能不高,具有实际操作可能,但其巨大的不确定性和可能的安全含义,需要引起足够的重视。从伦理上看,当代人是否有权来开展太阳光辐管理技术这类具有巨大科学不确定性的地球工程存在争议,在科学不确定的情况下采取任何行动,就失去了伦理学基础。从法律上看,人工干预太阳辐射,即使是科学实验或研究,由于其影响超出了国界,超出了当代人,也超出了人类社会,如果有人采取行动,也存在法律依据上的质疑。人工干预太阳辐射的研究和实施,需要一个国际治理构架。为了防止其他国家单独行动,需要"相互约束"的治理构架——"自我约束"以换取他国同意"自我约束"。鉴于气候变化和光辐管理在科学上的不确定性,目前不宜实施,短期内也不会提上议事日程。太阳光辐管理技术影响的复杂性和气候变化风险的迫切性,需要我们加大科学研究力度,为科学决策提供依据。中国作为一个新兴经济体,世界第一大CO2排放国,地域空间气候条件存在巨大差异性。从减排成本的角度,从气候影响的空间差异性,开展地球工程的科学研究,有着科学、政策和国际气候外交的积极意义。但是,相关的科学研究需要国际制度构架。由于气候变化框架公约及其谈判尚未涉及,需要开展系统科学、技术、经济、法律和国家安全等方面的相关研究,提高科学认知度,为国际谈判和政策选择提供决策依据。     

Realistic retrospective dose assessments to members of the public around Spanish nuclear facilities

In the frame of an epidemiological study carried out in the influence areas around the Spanish nuclear facilities (ISCIII-CSN, 2009. Epidemiological Study of The Possible Effect of Ionizing Radiations Deriving from The Operation of Spanish Nuclear Fuel Cycle Facilities on The Health of The Population Living in Their Vicinity. Final report December 2009. Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Consejo de Seguridad Nuclear. Madrid. Available from: http://www.csn.es/images/stories/actualidad_datos/especiales/epidemiologico/epidemiological_study.pdf), annual effective doses to public have been assessed by the Spanish Nuclear Safety Council (CSN) for over 45 years using a retrospective realistic-dose methodology. These values are compared with data from natural radiation exposure. For the affected population, natural radiation effective doses are in average 2300 times higher than effective doses due to the operation of nuclear installations (nuclear power stations and fuel cycle facilities). When considering the impact on the whole Spanish population, effective doses attributable to nuclear facilities represent in average 3.5 × 10⁻⁵ mSv/y, in contrast to 1.6 mSv/y from natural radiation or 1.3 mSv/y from medical exposures.     

Photodegradation of azithromycin in various aqueous systems under simulated and natural solar radiation: kinetics and identification of photoproducts

This article describes the photolysis of azithromycin, a macrolide antibiotic with reported occurrence in environmental waters, under simulated solar radiation. The photodegradation followed first-order reaction kinetics in five matrices examined. In HPLC water, the degradation rate was the slowest (half-life: 20 h), whereas in artificial freshwater supplemented with nitrate (5 mg L⁻¹) or humic acids (0.5 mg L⁻¹) the degradation of azithromycin was enhanced by factors of 5 and 16, respectively, which indicated the role of indirect photolysis involving the formation of highly reactive species. Following chromatographic separation on a UPLC system, the characterization of the transformation products was accomplished using high-resolution QqToF-MS analysis. The presence of seven photoproducts was observed and their formation was postulated to originate from (bis)-N-demethylation in the desosamine sugar, O-demethylation in the cladinose sugar, combinations thereof, as well as from hydrolytic cleavages of the desosamine and/or cladinose residue. Two of these photoproducts could also be detected in natural photodegradation process in river water which was spiked with azithromycin.     

论基于EGIS平台的放射源管理系统的开发

放射源管理系统是一种基于环境地理信息系统平台的资源管理系统,是GIS技术与环境监测技术、环境管理技术、数据库技术等各种环境信息分析和处理技术的集成。系统为环保部门提供了一个功能强大的空间信息服务和管理工具,可以直观、方便地获取放射源的监控、管理等数据信息,为环境管理部门的决策提供依据。     

Climate engineering and human rights

ABSTRACT

In this Forum, three scholars discuss how climate engineering will pose novel human rights challenges, and may well force reconsideration of how human rights are applied as a guide to action. Following a short introduction, the first section introduces three competing approaches to human rights, arguing views which emphasize fairness or attempt to maximize satisfaction are more promising than one viewing human rights as inviolable ‘side-constraints’. The second section draws lessons from climate migration that are relevant for climate engineering in terms of incorporating a human rights approach to duties, rights, and participation. The final section compares the ‘needs-based’ and ‘rights-based’ approaches to humanitarian work in the face of climate change and climate engineering, raising concerns for duty-bearers and right-holders. The Forum’s conclusion draws together points of overlap and suggests a path forward for policy and research on this topic.     

Fast,cheap, and imperfect? US public opinion about solar geoengineering

ABSTRACT

Solar geoengineering, which seeks to cool the planet by reflecting a small fraction of sunlight back into space, has drawn the attention of scientists and policymakers as climate change remains unabated. Unlike mitigation, solar geoengineering could quickly and cheaply lower global temperatures. It is also imperfect. Its environmental impacts remain unpredictable, and its low cost and immediate effects may result in ‘moral hazard,’ potentially crowding out costly mitigation efforts. There is little understanding about how the public will respond to such tradeoffs. To address this, a 1000-subject nationally representative poll focused on solar geoengineering was conducted as part of the Cooperative Congressional Election Study (CCES) of the US electorate in October–November 2016. The importance that individuals place on solar geoengineering’s speed and cost predicts their support for it, but there is little to no relationship between their concerns about its shortcomings and support for its research and use. Acquiescence bias appears to be an important factor for attitudes around solar geoengineering and moral hazard.     

Comparison of the daily global solar radiation from different data sources in Northwest China climate

The solar radiation data are of high importance to the solar energy systems. Conventional methods to obtain the solar radiation data are from weather stations, solar radiation models, commercial software databases, and field measurements. In the present study, a new daily global solar radiation model is proposed, by combining the quadratic function of sunshine fraction and sine function of the day of the year. The solar radiation model calculated data are then compared with China Meteorological Data Sharing System (CMDSS) data, TRNSYS data, and field-measured data in Northwest China climate. It is found that the newly proposed solar radiation model has better performance than the other nine solar radiation models in the literature. The solar radiation model calculated data fit well with the CMDSS annually average data. The TRNSYS data are a bit larger than the CMDSS annually average data in summer half year and a little smaller than those in winter half year. The solar radiation model and the CMDSS annually average data have the best correlation, whereas the TRNSYS data and the field-measured data have the worst correlation. The solar radiation model calculated data have the best correlation with the other three data sources.     

Effects of acute γ-irradiation on the aquatic microbial microcosm in comparison with chemicals

Effects of acute γ-irradiation were investigated in the aquatic microcosm consisting of green algae (Chlorella sp. and Scenedesmus sp.) and a blue–green alga (Tolypothrix sp.) as producers; an oligochaete (Aeolosoma hemprichi), rotifers (Lecane sp. and Philodina sp.) and a ciliate protozoan (Cyclidium glaucoma) as consumers; and more than four species of bacteria as decomposers. At 100 Gy, populations were not affected in any taxa. At 500–5000 Gy, one or three taxa died out and populations of two or three taxa decreased over time, while that of Tolypothrix sp. increased. This Tolypothrix sp. increase was likely an indirect effect due to interspecies interactions. The principal response curve analysis revealed that the main trend of the effects was a dose-dependent population decrease. For a better understanding of radiation risks in aquatic microbial communities, effect doses of γ-rays compared with copper, herbicides and detergents were evaluated using the radiochemoecological conceptual model and the effect index for microcosm.