Reducing Fertilizer‐Nitrogen Losses from Rowcrop Landscapes: Insights and Implications from a Spatially Explicit Watershed Model

We present conceptual and quantitative models that predict changes in fertilizer‐derived nitrogen delivery from rowcrop landscapes caused by agricultural conservation efforts implemented to reduce nutrient inputs and transport and increase nutrient retention in the landscape. To evaluate the relative importance of changes in the sources, transport, and sinks of fertilizer‐derived nitrogen across a region, we use the spatially explicit SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes watershed model to map the distribution, at the small watershed scale within the Upper Mississippi‐Ohio River Basin (UMORB), of: (1) fertilizer inputs; (2) nutrient attenuation during delivery of those inputs to the UMORB outlet; and (3) nitrogen export from the UMORB outlet. Comparing these spatial distributions suggests that the amount of fertilizer input and degree of nutrient attenuation are both important in determining the extent of nitrogen export. From a management perspective, this means that agricultural conservation efforts to reduce nitrogen export would benefit by: (1) expanding their focus to include activities that restore and enhance nutrient processing in these highly altered landscapes; and (2) targeting specific types of best management practices to watersheds where they will be most valuable. Doing so successfully may result in a shift in current approaches to conservation planning, outreach, and funding.     

Loss prevention in turnaround maintenance projects by selecting contractors based on safety criteria using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP)

Turnaround maintenance (TAM) is a usual plant shutdown that is done by process industries to perform asset inspections, repairs, and overhauls. TAM engineering projects are needed on a periodic basis to optimize a plant's performance. Process industrial plants usually don't have enough in-house manpower to carry out needed TAM jobs; it is not uncommon for a process industrial plant to outsource its TAM manpower supply to external contractors. This will create a peculiar management challenge regarding how to assure orientation of safety practices for the newly hired labor. Although accidents during process plant shutdowns may have severe consequences, the safety management systems in place for many companies only cover normal operations and few explicitly address TAM projects. Usually, contractors are evaluated from a safety perspective after handling the project by monitoring safety indicators such as number of injuries, incidents, etc. This paper emphasizes safety attributes to be included in selecting contractors at the bidding stage to assure loss prevention and better safety orientation during TAM implementation. The paper starts with reviewing TAM literature and defining main needed safety attributes to prequalify contractors. It develops an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model that is applied to rank TAM contractors' selection. A case study is presented for a petrochemical plant in Saudi Arabia to demonstrate the AHP model.     

Seeking,Thinking, Acting: Understanding Suburban Resident Perceptions and Behaviors Related to Stream Quality

Theories in risk, psychology, and communication suggest aiming to inform the public about basic ecological facts may not be enough to influence knowledge of risks or behaviors to mitigate water quality risks. The risk information‐seeking and processing model and the theory of planned behavior suggest several additional variables that are likely to influence risk‐mitigating behaviors. We used data from a survey of watershed residents in Ohio to explore a model of behavioral intentions to positively impact stream health. Residents' informational norms, or the perceived pressure to know about local stream health, strongly predicted their information‐seeking behaviors. Active‐seeking behaviors predicted positive attitudes toward behaviors impacting stream health, which predicted intentions to positively impact stream health. Implications for outreach include couching communication in terms of risk found important to the local community, here wildlife were seen as negatively influenced by water quality, as opposed to plain reports typically provided by utility companies. Increasing social pressure to feel informed by emphasizing the existing knowledge of stream ecology among residents could change the norm for the less informed. A low response rate limits the generalizability of findings here, but leveraging these findings in outreach efforts could prove more successful in engaging the public to improve stream health and support policies to improve stream health.     

Comparing Green and Grey Infrastructure Using Life Cycle Cost and Environmental Impact: A Rain Garden Case Study in Cincinnati,OH

Green infrastructure (GI) is quickly gaining ground as a less costly, greener alternative to traditional methods of stormwater management. One popular form of GI is the use of rain gardens to capture and treat stormwater. We used life cycle assessment (LCA) to compare environmental impacts of residential rain gardens constructed in the Shepherd's Creek watershed of Cincinnati, Ohio to those from a typical detain and treat system. LCA is an internationally standardized framework for analyzing the potential environmental performance of a product or service by including all stages in its life cycle, including material extraction, manufacturing, use, and disposal. Complementary to the life cycle environmental impact assessment, the life cycle costing approach was adopted to compare the equivalent annual costs of each of these systems. These analyses were supplemented by modeling alternative scenarios to capture the variability in implementing a GI strategy. Our LCA models suggest rain garden costs and impacts are determined by labor requirement; the traditional alternative's impacts are determined largely by the efficiency of wastewater treatment, while costs are determined by the expense of tunnel construction. Gardens were found to be the favorable option, both financially (~42% cost reduction) and environmentally (62‐98% impact reduction). Wastewater utilities may find significant life cycle cost and environmental impact reductions in implementing a rain garden plan.     

Using GIS to Delineate Headwater Stream Origins in the Appalachian Coalfields of Kentucky

Headwater streams have a significant nexus or physical, chemical, and/or biological connection to downstream reaches. Generally, defined as 1st‐3rd order with ephemeral, intermittent, or perennial flow regimes, these streams account for a substantial portion of the total stream network particularly in mountainous terrain. Due to their often remote locations, small size, and large numbers, conducting field inventories of headwater streams is challenging. A means of estimating headwater stream location and extent according to flow regime type using publicly available spatial data is needed to simplify this complex process. Using field‐collected headwater point of origin data from three control watersheds, streams were characterized according to a set of spatial parameters related to topography, geology, and soils. These parameters were (1) compared to field‐collected point of origin data listed in three nearby Jurisdictional Determinations, (2) used to develop a geographic information system (GIS)‐based stream network for identifying ephemeral, intermittent, and perennial streams, and (3) applied to a larger watershed and compared to values obtained using the high‐resolution National Hydrography Dataset (NHD). The parameters drainage area and local valley slope were the most reliable predictors of flow regime type. Results showed the high‐resolution NHD identified no ephemeral streams and 9 and 65% fewer intermittent and perennial streams, respectively, than the GIS model.     

Streamside Management Zones Compromised by Stream Crossings,Legacy Gullies,and Over‐Harvest in the Piedmont

Streamside management zone (SMZ) breakthroughs were identified and characterized to determine frequency and potential causes, in order to provide enhanced guidance for future water quality protection. Ten kilometers of SMZs were carefully examined for partial or complete breakthroughs. With partial breakthroughs the SMZ trapped sediment before it reached the stream, while complete breakthroughs appeared to have allowed sediment to have passed through with minimal restriction. A total of 41 breakthroughs occurred (33 complete, 8 partial) across 16 sites, averaging 1 complete breakthrough per 0.3 km of SMZ length. The most common complete breakthroughs were caused by stream crossings (42%), reactivation of legacy agricultural gullies (27%), and harvest related soil disturbances near/within SMZs (24%). Pearson correlations of site characteristics at breakthroughs indicated no strong relationships between breakthrough sites, representing the variable nature of these unique circumstances. Stream crossings are an intentional breakthrough for access purposes, but resulting environmental impacts can be reduced with best management practice implementation. Current recommendations for SMZs tend to work in most situations, yet further research is needed to identify causal factors and quantify breakthrough severity.     

亚热带丘陵小流域土壤有效磷空间变异与淋失风险研究

肥料过施导致的土壤磷素累积和淋失是农业面源污染的重要方面.以湖南省长沙县金井镇脱甲河小流域(52 km2)为研究区,采用高密度布点采样、Arc GIS软件和属性相似反距离加权插值法研究了亚热带丘陵小流域表层(0~20 cm)土壤有效磷(Olsen-P)含量(以P计,下同)的空间分布特征与磷素的淋失风险.结果表明,菜地、果园、稻田和茶园土壤Olsen-P平均含量为62.0、16.1、14.4和13.7 mg·kg-1,是林地(平均含量为2.36 mg·kg-1)的5.8~26.3倍.5个土地利用类型土壤Olsen-P含量均具有高等变异水平和中等程度的空间自相关性(块基比C0/(C0+C)=50%),这与区内地形地貌、土壤母质、人工施肥等具有密切关系.根据土壤0.01 mol·L-1Ca Cl2浸提态P和Olsen-P的非线性关系可确定区内红壤和水稻土P的淋失风险临界值分别为69.97和98.40 mg·kg-1,并据此对脱甲河小流域土壤磷素淋失的风险进行了定量评价,结果表明旱地土壤具有明显较高的淋失风险,其中中等以上的比例占36.4%,而稻田土壤仅有0.2%,为中等以上淋失风险.因此,控制旱地(尤其是菜地)磷肥的投入是降低亚热带丘陵小流域土壤P淋失风险和减轻农业面源污染的关键.     

基于流域视角的水环境综合治理规划研究——以江苏省淀山湖为例

以流域为单元进行水资源综合规划和管理是实现水环境改善的重要途径。本文以太湖流域第二大省界湖泊—淀山湖为例,在综合分析流域水环境质量基础上,利用GIS 分析工具划分流域治理片区并制定分区管控策略。根据流域所含骨干河流流向、骨干河流与淀山湖交汇特点、上中下游不同河段及镇域行政边界,将淀山湖流域分为吴淞江流域、千灯浦- 淀山湖流域、昆南湖荡流域、元荡湖荡流域、太浦河流域五大片区138 个子评价单元。通过水环境容量与压力两类空间叠加分析,构建形成污染重点减排区、污染综合治理区、产业绿色化提升区、生态环境保育区等四个类型区域,并提出差异化的产业准入和环境治理措施。本研究不仅为以流域为治理单元的水环境治理规划提供了较为可行的技术体系,而且为太湖流域水环境综合整治思路创新提供了可借鉴的案例。     

Post‐tsunami relocation of fisher settlements in South Asia: evidence from the Coromandel Coast,India

The tsunami that struck the coasts of India on 26 December 2004 resulted in the large‐scale destruction of fisher habitations. The post‐tsunami rehabilitation effort in Tamil Nadu was directed towards relocating fisher settlements in the interior. This paper discusses the outcomes of a study on the social effects of relocation in a sample of nine communities along the Coromandel Coast. It concludes that, although the participation of fishing communities in house design and in allocation procedures has been limited, many fisher households are satisfied with the quality of the facilities. The distance of the new settlements to the shore, however, is regarded as an impediment to engaging in the fishing profession, and many fishers are actually moving back to their old locations. This raises questions as to the direction of coastal zone policy in India, as well as to the weight accorded to safety (and other coastal development interests) vis‐à‐vis the livelihood needs of fishers.     

关于老工业区污染场地管理的探讨

根据在某老工业区第1批28块场地环境调查的实践,对污染场地管理中存在的问题进行了分析并提出了相应改进建议：①获取准确的场地资料难度很大,建议研究制定场地全过程档案管理制度;②工业企业关闭搬迁会产生新的环境污染风险,工业企业关闭搬迁应该成为污染场地管理的重要环节,环保部门应该在工业企业搬迁前介入,严格监管整个过程中的环境污染;③大量区域由于其中污染严重、风险高的场地缺乏修复资金而难以再开发利用,建议结合规划优先启动资金投入低的污染较轻区域修复,并同时对风险较高的污染场地进行风险管控,当区域开发取得一定规模、成就和收益后,可以整合资金力量和资源开展污染较重区域的修复。