Distribution of airborne particles from multi-emission source

The purpose of this work was to study the distribution of airborne particles in the surroundings of an iron and steel factory in southern Finland. Several sources of particulate emissions are lying side by side, causing heavy dust loading to the environment. This complicated multi-pollutant situation was studied mainly by SEM/EDX methodology.Particles accumulated on Scots pine bark were identified andquantitatively measured according to their element content,size and shape. As a result, distribution maps of particulateelements were drawn and the amount of different particle typesalong the study lines was plotted. Particulate emissions fromthe industrial or energy production processes were not themain dust source. Most emissions were produced from theclinker crusher. Numerous stockpiles of the industrial wastesand raw materials also gave rise to particulate emissions as aresult of wind erosion. It was concluded that SEM/EDXmethodology is a useful tool for studying the distribution ofparticulate pollutants.     

北欧湖泊鱼类状况调查:酸化、富营养化和放养活动对现有鱼类品种组成的影响

1995～1997年间对挪威、瑞典和芬兰的3821个湖泊的鱼类种群状况做了评估.采用分层随机抽样从芬诺斯堪的亚(芬兰、挪威、瑞典、丹麦的总称)所有面积≥0.04km2的126482个湖泊中选择调查湖泊.分析了湖泊的水化学,湖内鱼类状况则从邮件调查问卷中获得.鱼类种群损失发生最为频繁的地区在挪威南部酸化最严重的地区,而在芬诺斯堪的亚东部最少.根据调查问卷,鳟(Salmotrutta)、拟鲤(Rutilus rutilus)、北极红点鲑(Salvelinus alpinus)和鲈鱼(Percafluviatilis)鱼群损失的数量估计超过10000条.这些品种的鱼群潜在地受低碱性湖水影响的数量超过11000条.大约有3300个湖泊显示出总磷高于25μg/L,品种以鲤科鱼为主,这在芬诺斯堪的亚东部、芬兰西南最为明显.这次调查并未显示出鱼类品种由于富营养化而灭绝.1/3的湖泊人工放养了至少一个新的鱼类品种,最常放养的品种有鳟、白鲑(Coregonus lavaretus s.1.)、北极红点鲑、虹鳟(Oncorhynchusmykiss)、梭鲈(Stizostedion lucioperca)、茴鱼(Thymallus thymallus)、狗鱼(Esox lucius)、欧鳊(Abramis brama)、丁 (Tinca tinca)和欧 (Phoxinus phoxinus).在芬诺斯堪的亚湖泊,这些品种的人工放养量估计超过52000群.因此,北欧湖泊现有鱼类品种的数量最近受放养的影响超过了因环境变化如酸化等而损失造成的影响.     

近期和长远时段内北极生态系统结构受到的影响

生物在物种水平上对全球气候变暖和紫外线B(UV-B)辐射增强的反应受到其群落内其他物种以及生态系统内养分循环的调节,所有的这些反应将会导致生态系统结构的变化.根据高纬度地区坏境因子的可能变化而做的控制试验表明,由夏季变暖而引起苔原植被的变化要小于增加施肥而引起的变化,试验涉及的某些环境因子对北极生态系统的结构有非常强烈地影响,但是这些影响因地区而异,观测结果表明,处于最寒冷地区的植物群落和无脊椎动物群落对全球气候变暖和紫外线B辐射的增强反应最为强烈.尽管微生物量和养分储存量相对稳定,北极无脊椎动物群落还是很可能会对全球变暖产生迅速的反应.试验结果显示,加强紫外线B辐射会改变革兰氏阴性细菌和真菌的群落组成结构,但不会对植物群落的组成产生影响.由夏季气温升高而提高的植物生产力将会控制食物网的动态变化,以苔原植被和亚极地森林植物为基础的食物网中的营养流动会明显地影响到几种优势动物种群数量的周期性波动,在某些年分这些动物的种群数量会达到峰值.小型啮齿动物和食叶昆虫如秋毛虫种群数量的周期性变化则会影响苔原和森林苔原植物的组成结构和多样性,同时也会影响到一些专性捕食者和寄生虫的变化.在暖冬,雪表形成冰壳可能会减少旅鼠的植物食物来源,然而较深的雪也可以使它们免受雪地表面上捕食者对它们的捕食.在芬诺斯堪的亚地区,已有证据表明小型啮齿类动物群落结构和种群动态的显著变化会导致专门以小型啮齿类动物为食物的捕食者的数量减少.气候还可能改变昆虫在白桦森林生态系统中的作用,因为暖冬可以增加这些昆虫卵的成活率,并且扩大其分布范围.此外,在夏季困扰驯鹿的昆虫会由于夏季气候的变暖而扩大其分布范围、增加种群数量并且种群更为活跃;同时在另一方面也会对驯鹿不利,即那些昔日驯鹿/北美驯鹿的避难场所--冰川和未融的成片的雪--在这样温暖的夏季则可能会消失.     

Are Urban Stream Restoration Plans Worth Implementing?

Environmental Management - To manage and conserve ecosystems in a more sustainable way, it is important to identify the importance of the ecosystem services they provide and understand the...     

Identification of structural breaks in the forest product markets: how sensitive are to changes in the Nordic region?

Forests play a fundamental role in the global carbon cycle and can be managed to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and conserve or sequester carbon. Global policy and environmental changes can affect regional consumption of forest products, as well as inter-regional trade of forest goods and services. This study analyzes global and regional change impacts on the production, consumption and trade of forest products in two Nordic countries, Finland and Sweden. Annual data on removal and trade (1964–2012) for roundwood and sawnwood is used to identify structural breaks based on Chow tests. According to the analysis, the time period is divided into two periods: t1 (1964–1980) and t2 (1981–2012). In the first period, breaks occurred in 1975 and 1976 in the Finnish model and no break is found in the Swedish model. In the second period, we identify breaks in 1991 and 1992 for the Finnish model and in 2004, 2005 and 2006 for the Swedish model. Although our findings have broad empirical support, we do not identify any specific incident as a direct cause of the changes in the consumption and trade patterns of the two types of wood in these countries. The models and analysis presented here can serve as methodological tools for policymakers to better understand the effects of structural changes in the production of forest goods and services in the Nordic region and globally.     

Are national biodiversity strategies and action plans appropriate for building responsibilities for mainstreaming biodiversity across policy sectors? The case of Finland

The Convention on Biological Diversity's national biodiversity strategies and action plans (NBSAPs) are major mechanisms for mainstreaming biodiversity into national policies. This article examines whether and how the NBSAPs contribute to mainstreaming biodiversity across policy sectors in Finland in order to halt biodiversity loss. We have developed an innovative analytical framework where the concept of responsibility addresses how motivations for mainstreaming can be built, and the concept of social learning outcomes addresses the extent of institutional changes for biodiversity. The Finnish NBSAP processes have been able to build diverse forms of responsibility (liability, accountability, responsiveness and care) in different policy sectors by providing new knowledge, careful process design and developing institutional linkages. Despite pro-biodiversity outcomes in the targeted policy sectors, the responsibilities do not diffuse from the environmental administration to other policy sectors to a sufficient extent. Closing this ‘responsibility gap’ is a key challenge for building effective environmental policies.     

Changes in the heavy metal and nutrient contents of dried feather mosses during long-term storage

This study measured heavy metal and nutrient concentrations of two feather mosses during the periods of dry storage. Samples (Hylocomium splendens, Pleurozium schreberi) were collected in the nationwide moss surveys carried out on the permanent sample plots of the 8th Finnish National Forest Inventory in 1985–86, 1990, 1995 and 2000. A small amount of each moss sample was analyzed soon after collection, and the remainder was dried and stored at the Paljakka environmental specimen bank (ESB). The 108 stored samples from 27 plots were reanalyzed in 2008. Concentrations of heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, Zn) and nutrients (Ca, K, Mg, P) were determined and compared for each survey year. Overall, Fe, Pb and Cr concentrations decreased, and Cu concentrations increased significantly during storage. The greatest decrease was observed in samples from plots where their initial concentrations were the highest. Changes in the concentrations of Cd, Ni and Zn were less pronounced. The loss of heavy metals is likely due to drying when cell membranes rupture and some of the surface material is lost. K, P and, to some extent, Mg concentrations increased during storage, whereas Ca did not change significantly. Nutrient increase is probably due to their movement from older to younger growths during the initial phase of drying. Ca is mostly bound to cell walls and is not easily released. Results emphasize the importance of establishing the intended use of a stored moss prior to sampling, in order to select and optimize an appropriate storage technique.     

Does control of soil erosion inhibit aquatic eutrophication?

Much of the phosphorus (P) from erosive soils is transported to water bodies together with eroded soil. Studies clarifying the impact of soil erosion on eutrophication have sought largely to quantify the reserves of P in soil particles that can be desorbed in different types of receiving waters. Aquatic microbiology has revealed that the cycling of P is coupled to the availability of common electron acceptors, Fe oxides and SO?, through anaerobic mineralization in sediments. Eroded soil is also rich in Fe oxides, and their effect on the coupled cycling of C, Fe, S, and P has been neglected in eutrophication research. Soil erosion, and its control, should therefore be studied by considering not only the processes occurring in the water phase but also those taking place after the soil particles have settled to the bottom. We propose that in SO?-rich systems, Fe oxides transported by eroded soil may promote Fe cycling, inhibit microbial SO? reduction and maintain the ability of sediment to retain P. We discuss the mechanisms through which eroded soil may affect benthic mineralization processes and the manner in which soil erosion may contribute to or counteract eutrophication.     

Population Persistence and Offspring Fitness in the Rare Bellflower Campanula cervicaria in Relation to Population Size and Habitat Quality

Abstract: Data from several animal species and a few plant species indicate that small populations face an elevated risk of extinction. Plants are still underrepresented in these studies concerning the relation between population size and persistence. We studied the effect of population size on persistence among natural populations of the rare bellflower Campanula cervicaria in Finland. We monitored 52 bellflower populations for 8 years and found that the mean population size decreased from 24 to 14 during this period. Small populations with ≤5 individuals were more prone to losing all fertile plants than were larger ones. Reduction in population size was nevertheless unrelated to the degree of population isolation, measured as the distance to the nearest known population. To test the hypothesis that offspring fitness is lower in small populations, we germinated bellflower seeds from different-sized populations in a laboratory and found that seed germination ability was independent of population size. The seedlings raised from seeds of small populations grew faster than those taken from larger populations. Population size was negatively related to the amount of shade in the habitats. In conclusion, decreasing population sizes of C. cervicaria seemed not to be caused by lowered germination ability or growth rate in small populations; rather, population size reductions appeared to be due to closing of vegetation in the habitats.