ENVIRONMENTAL AUDITING: An Approach for Characterizing Tropospheric Ozone Risk to Forests

/ The risk tropospheric ozone poses to forests in the United States is dependent on the variation in ozone exposure across the distribution of the forests in question and the various environmental and climate factors predominant in the region. All these factors have a spatial nature, and consequently an approach to characterization of ozone risk is presented that places ozone exposure-response functions for species as seedlings and model-simulated tree and stand responses in a spatial context using a geographical information systems (GIS). The GIS is used to aggregate factors considered important in a risk characterization, including: (1) estimated ozone exposures over forested regions, (2) measures of ozone effects on species' and stand growth, and (3) spatially distributed environmental, genetic, and exposure influences on species' response to ozone. The GIS-based risk characterization provides an estimation of the extent and magnitude of the potential ozone impact on forests. A preliminary risk characterization demonstrating this approach considered only the eastern United States and only the limited empirical data quantifying the effect of ozone exposures on forest tree species as seedlings. The area-weighted response of the annual seedling biomass loss formed the basis for a sensitivity ranking: sensitive-aspen and black cherry (14%-33% biomass loss over 50% of their distribution); moderately sensitive-tulip popular, loblolly pine, eastern white pine, and sugar maple (5%-13% biomass loss); insensitive-Virginia pine and red maple (0%-1% loss). In the future, the GIS-based risk characterization will include process-based model simulations of the three- to 5-year growth response of individual species as large trees with relevant environmental interactions and model simulated response of mixed stands. The interactive nature of GIS provides a tool to explore consequences of the range of climate conditions across a species' distribution, forest management practices, changing ozone precursors, regulatory control strategies, and other factors influencing the spatial distribution of ozone over time as more information becomes available.KEY WORDS: Ecological risk assessment; GIS; Ozone; Risk characterization; Forests; Trees     

公民对全球环境变化的响应——以上海、香港地区为例

工业革命以来,全球环境发生了前所未有的变化,将可能给地球系统带来灾难性后果,究其原因主要是由于人类活动造成的。人的行为深受意识的影响和制约,环境意识对于环境问题的产生和解决至关重要。本文选取上海、香港两个地区来分析公民对环境的关注度、公民的环保意识、环保行为以及公民对政府环境工作的看法和评价,研究公民对全球环境变化反应的区域差异,为政府制定相关环境保护政策提供理论依据。调查结果显示,上海、香港两地公民在很多环境闷题上具有共识。但是。在对手环境状况好转的期待值、参与环境保护活动的积极性、对人为因素主导力量的认识、环境保护与日常生活的切实关系、为环境保护的支付意愿、对于环境教育内容的认可度等方面存在着一定的差异。     

大气低分子有机酸研究方法及其前沿问题

文章系统地阐述了大气有机酸的研究历史、现状和目前存在问题及可能取得研究进展的方法。低分子有机酸是大气中重要的微量挥发性有机碳组分,它们广泛存在于大气对流层中,对气候、环境和生态系统具有重要影响。长期以来,对大气有机酸的研究都是基于其含量的分析,尽管这一研究手段对有机酸的认识起到了推动作用,但含量的分析已越来越不能满足于当前人们对大气有机酸生物地球化学认识的需求。由于稳定同位素组成的示踪作用,近年来人们开始探索利用有机酸中碳同位素的测试分析方法来研究其循环过程。这一方法涉及水溶液中有机酸的萃取过程。由于其近发、半挥发性和其易污染性,常规的萃取方法不能应用于有机酸的萃取。最近出现的固相微萃取技术为有机酸碳同位素组成的准确分析研究提供了可能的途径。利用这一方法探索有机酸同位素组成的分析,有可能为大气有机酸生物地球化学循环研究开辟一片新的天地,从而使该领域研究向前推进一步。     

贵阳市区大气降水中有机酸的研究

利用ICS-90常规离子色谱结合RFC-30型淋洗液在线发生器,对贵阳市区大气降水中的小分子有机酸进行了系统研究。测得贵阳市降水中的有机酸主要以甲酸[质量分数为(0.2-4.5)×10-6]、乙酸[质量分数为(0.6-5.3)×10-6]、草酸[质量分数为(0.1-4.9)×10-6]为主,其次是乳酸和丙酮酸,及少量丙酸和甲烷磺酸;有机酸对降水自由酸平均贡献为23.2%,占总阴离子的1.4%;通过比较贵阳市区有机酸前后二十年的变化,得出现阶段可能至少有近1/2乙酸和3/4甲酸来源于人类的活动,这说明有机酸人为源是其来源的重要组成部分。     

Interventions for Reducing Extinction Risk in Chytridiomycosis‐Threatened Amphibians

Wildlife diseases pose an increasing threat to biodiversity and are a major management challenge. A striking example of this threat is the emergence of chytridiomycosis. Despite diagnosis of chytridiomycosis as an important driver of global amphibian declines 15 years ago, researchers have yet to devise effective large‐scale management responses other than biosecurity measures to mitigate disease spread and the establishment of disease‐free captive assurance colonies prior to or during disease outbreaks. We examined the development of management actions that can be implemented after an epidemic in surviving populations. We developed a conceptual framework with clear interventions to guide experimental management and applied research so that further extinctions of amphibian species threatened by chytridiomycosis might be prevented. Within our framework, there are 2 management approaches: reducing Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (the fungus that causes chytridiomycosis) in the environment or on amphibians and increasing the capacity of populations to persist despite increased mortality from disease. The latter approach emphasizes that mitigation does not necessarily need to focus on reducing disease‐associated mortality. We propose promising management actions that can be implemented and tested based on current knowledge and that include habitat manipulation, antifungal treatments, animal translocation, bioaugmentation, head starting, and selection for resistance. Case studies where these strategies are being implemented will demonstrate their potential to save critically endangered species. Intervenciones para Reducir el Riesgo de Extinción en Anfibios Amenazados por la Quitridiomicosis     

Application of Multiattribute Decision-Making Methods for the Determination of Relative Significance Factor of Impact Categories

A relative significance factor (f _i ) of an impact category is the external weight of the impact category. The objective of this study is to propose a systematic and easy-to-use method for the determination of f _i . Multiattribute decision-making (MADM) methods including the analytical hierarchy process (AHP), the rank-order centroid method, and the fuzzy method were evaluated for this purpose. The results and practical aspects of using the three methods are compared. Each method shows the same trend, with minor differences in the value of f _i . Thus, all three methods can be applied to the determination of f _i . The rank order centroid method reduces the number of pairwise comparisons by placing the alternatives in order, although it has inherent weakness over the fuzzy method in expressing the degree of vagueness associated with assigning weights to criteria and alternatives. The rank order centroid method is considered a practical method for the determination of f _i because it is easier and simpler to use compared to the AHP and the fuzzy method.     

Comparison of Three Extraction Methods for 17 β-Estradiol in Sand,Bentonite, and Organic-Rich Silt Loam

Extraction is an important procedure for samples that contain soil because other compounds in soil may affect analysis of estrogens. This study was conducted to evaluate three different extraction methods for 17β-estradiol in soil. Sand, bentonite, and organic-rich silt loam were spiked with 1 mg kg^{? 1} of 17β-estradiol as a model compound of estrogens. 17β-estradiol and its metabolites, estrone and estriol, were extracted using (i) a modified Bligh and Dyer extraction, (ii) a pressurized fluid extraction, and (iii) a diethyl ether extraction, and measured by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. There were significant differences in the extraction efficiency for 17β-estradiol among the extraction methods and the soils: the efficiencies ranged from 10% to 97%. Overall, the diethyl ether extraction method had the largest efficiency of 17β-estradiol with 45% and 57% for bentonite and silt loam, respectively. Transformation of 17β-estradiol to estrone and estriol in the different extraction methods was less than 3.6% during the extraction procedures. This study underlined the importance of sample preparation for estrogen analysis in soil samples.     

玉米秸秆生物炭对贵州黄壤持水能力的影响

生物炭具有丰富的微孔结构,能够影响土壤的持水性能,对植物生长和土壤中养分的保持有着重要意义。而土壤水分特征曲线又是表征土壤持水能力的一个重要指标。本文通过压力膜法测定添加不同比例生物炭的黄壤水分特征曲线,并结合van Genuchten模型对实测结果进行拟合,推导水动力学参数。结果表明,随着生物炭施入量的增加(0、5%、10%),土壤的田间持水量增加,凋萎含水量降低,土壤有效含水量增加。生物炭添加能够显著提高土壤的持水能力,增强水分的可利用性。同时,van Genuchten模型拟合结果同实测值高度相似,可以用作预测生物炭改良土壤的水动力学参数。     

苯并噻吩脱硫菌株的筛选及脱硫活性研究

从孤岛油田油浸土样中筛选到1株能降解苯并噻吩(BT)的脱硫菌,经初步鉴定该菌为戈登氏菌属(Gordona sp.).实验证明:该菌能以类似于4S途径脱除BT及其衍生物中的硫,但是不能脱除二苯并噻吩(DBT)及其衍生物中的硫.GC-MS分析表明该途径的终产物为邻羟基苯乙醛或其异构体苯并呋喃.在以BT为唯一硫源的培养基中30℃培养48h,Gordona sp.C-6能降解0.15mmol/L的BT,终产物占发酵培养基中BT加入量的50%,其余BT在有氧培养过程中挥发.通过Matlab拟合曲线确定以邻羟基苯乙酸为标准品进行产物定量检测的方法.