Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Transboundary pollution – Case studies'

Investigators who were closely associated with five groundwater monitoring programs were asked to critically examine their studies as a guide to others involved in similar projects. The particular question to be answered was, "What monitoring techniques should have or could have been implemented?" given that time and money were not constraints. The case studies involved contamination of aquifers from oil field brine disposal, plating waste disposal, landfill leachate, nitrate from multiple sources, and recharge from an oxidation pond. Among the general recommendations of the investigators, resulting from the process of critical evaluation of their associated projects, were the following: establish interdisciplinary committees to set up the monitoring program; maximize the density of well network; use alternative methods to wells; completely analyze the samples, including heavy metals; thoroughly examine the hydrogeology of the problem site; use tracers; develop predictive computer models of the flow system; monitor in the zone of aeration, where applicable; develop innovative methodologies; and continue monitoring until the problem is thoroughly quantified.

The effectiveness of a state's natural resource management is rendered meaningless if the particular resource migrates into another state's jurisdiction. In the case of marine mammals, inadequate management of the species anywhere along their annual migration could make food insecure for the regional human populations. My research evaluates to what extent International Environmental Agreements have been able to manage transboundary challenges to food security. Two case studies, the Polar Bear Agreement (2000) and the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (1946), are analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively using Ronald Mitchell's four factors for describing variation of International Environmental Agreements' effectiveness: incentives, capacities, information, and norms. To ensure food security in the Bering Strait, this thesis stresses the importance of local concerns, norms and stakeholders. Transboundary management includes stakeholders at various scales to address a local challenge that is intersected by an international political boundary. The higher values of the Bowhead whale International Environmental Agreement's four factors, in the quantitative analysis, account for the higher level of food security for Bowhead whale. The qualitative analysis makes three recommendations for future International Environmental Agreements, in this case the draft U.S.-Russia agreement on Pacific walrus: 1) conservation of the Pacific walrus, 2) maintenance of Native self-determination and, 3) encouragement the flow of information between the local and federal stakeholders and between the United States and Russia. In order to ensure future food security in the Bering Strait Region, the management of the Pacific walrus depends on an effective International Environmental Agreement.

Bibiography: leaves 91-96. The Timor Gap area is managed jointly by Australia and Indonesia through the Treaty of Timor Gap (1989). The Zone of Cooperation area A 's main activity is oil exploration and exploitation. The main concern of the research is the provisions for environmental protection and the procedure of environmental impact assessment in the Treaty.

The International Relations (IR) literature has been dominated by studies on great powers, often neglecting the role of small states. Moreover, the accounts on small states have generally overlooked the role of geography. This thesis proposes an analytical framework to observe the role of geography by observing the impact of Multinational Transboundary Infrastructures (MTIs) on the relational power of small states. The framework is then applied to the case study of Laos observing the impact of two selected MTIs – the Xayaburi dam and the Boten-Vientiane high-speed railway – on Laos’s relational power with respect to Vietnam and China. Data has been collected through a set of 48 semi-structured qualitative elite interviews mainly carried out during a period of fieldwork in Laos in 2015. The data generated by the interviews, triangulated with other primary and secondary sources, enabled a process tracing analysis of the two negotiation processes on the selected MTIs. The findings show that the two observed MTIs positively affected the relational power of Laos despite the asymmetry that shapes its bilateral relationships with both Vietnam and China in terms of capabilities. The case study therefore indicates that a central geographic position could reduce asymmetries of power and that relational power manifest a greater explanatory capacity than power-as-capabilities. This thesis contributes to knowledge adding empirical material on the diplomatic negotiation on the Xayaburi dam; on the Boten–Vientiane high-speed railway; on Laos’s international relations with Vietnam and China; and on China’s High-Speed Railway Diplomacy. The thesis contributes also to the theoretical literature by identifying a geographic gap in small states studies. Analytically, the thesis contributes developing the concept of MTIs and an original analytical framework to study relational power. Finally, methodologically the thesis provides new insights on how to gain access to elites in Laos.

International agreements like the Convention on Biodiversity are soliciting the development of transboundary networks of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in order to improve the protection of natural resources and the individual ecological relevance of MPAs. Together with ecosystem based criteria, environmental governance plays a key role in the management of marine and coastal areas in particularly at transboundary scale. Therefore this research focuses on two study cases relevant for transboundary governance for MPAs. The first case study is the North Adriatic, regarding the analysis of the network of MPAs in the North Adriatic Sea at a transboundary level among Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. The second case study regards the analysis of the governance of the Wadden sea trilateral cooperation for the management of the area that started in 1978. One of the objectives of this work was the identification and analysis of the figure of the policy entrepreneur and the strategies used to bring about a policy change in the environmental conservation strategies in the two case studies. Policy entrepreneurs are defined as those individuals or organisations that thanks to their perseverance, ingenuity, and willingness to spend time and resources for an idea, can help bringing about a policy change. Moreover, in the North Adriatic case the research applied also social network analysis methods to identify the main actors involved (e.g. managers of MPAs, NGOs, governmental agencies and other actors relevant for MPAs), their roles and relations within the system of governance of MPAs in the North Adriatic. Focus interviews were also used to investigates possible ways to improve the efficiency of MPAs and the existing constraints that can slow the process. From the analysis of the role of policy entrepreneurs, in both case studies these were found among organizations out of the government. In both cases, individual stakeholders were supported by a staff of an organization or a company and they applied a number of strategies such as the so called “window of opportunity” and “venue shopping”. In the North Adriatic case the analysis of the governance of MPAs let emerge the need to enhance collaboration among MPAs in order to exchange expertise, enhance the protection of the coastal and marine resources and gain more political influence in order to cope with the lack of interest of national governments towards the issue.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are persistent organic pollutants which were not produced in Turkey, however both national and international studies illustrate a measurable amount of PCB pollution in receiving environments, aquatic fauna and people. In this study, various information sources such as the national and international scientific literature, official records and reports are investigated to obtain information regarding PCB pollution in Turkey. Furthermore, various PCB pollution analysis techniques for soil/sediment samples are investigated and the selected methods are established in the laboratories of METU. Satisfactory recoveries are obtained for methods for the extraction of PCBs, clean-up of extract and gas chromatographic (GC/ECD) analysis of the sample. Finally, field studies are performed in two locations in Ankara. The first one is a preliminary pollution investigation study around Lake Eymir. Lake Eymir is suspected to be contaminated with PCBs due to a nearby transformer repair facility. The second, more detailed study is performed for a 25 km reach of Ankara Creek, passing through the Industrial Zone, Sincan Dumpsite and Ankara Central Wastewater Treatment Plant. Total- PCB concentrations are in the range of 0.2 and 777 ng/g with the median of 37.1 ng/g. Toxic Equivalent Concentrations (TEQ) are assessed for dioxin-like congeners and Aroclor 1016/1260 basis. A Chemical Mass Balance Model is used to identify and apportion the sources of PCBs for Ankara Creek samples. Typically highly chlorinated Clophen mixtures are identified in sediments as the pollution sources.

Air pollution is becoming an increasing problem in Sub-Saharan Africa. Every year, it claims the lives of more than 712,000 people, which is more than the number of lives claimed by unsafe water and malnutrition. However, there is a lack of data on the topic in this region. I therefore designed my study to contribute to the small but growing literature on air pollution in Sub-Saharan Africa. My study looks at the relationship between local seasonal variations and air pollution levels. I am focusing on fine particles (PM2.5) because of their impacts on public health. My study revealed that average air pollution levels in Gabon meet the World Health Organization standards (WHO). However, daily variations suggest PM2.5 levels that exceed the recommended levels, which can be harmful to human health. I therefore recommend addressing pollution sources as a way of reducing overall pollution levels in the country.

In the mid-1800s, monitoring networks were established to investigate atmospheric composition impacts, and the conditions giving rise to them. The development of these networks, in terms of coordination and standardisation between contributing sites, has resulted in large advances in knowledge of the nature of atmospheric composition. Currently thousands of sites collect high quality atmospheric composition measurements globally. This thesis contends that in order to maximise the information derived from these measurements, a further advancement in standardisation is required to encompass the interpretation of monitoring network data. Currently there are limited examples of a common interpretation of data applied across all sites in a monitoring network, especially in relation to specific atmospheric composition impacts. In this thesis, a ‘chemical climatology’ framework is outlined which provides a common basis for targeting analysis towards identifying the linkage between a specific atmospheric composition impact and its causal drivers. Case studies apply the chemical climatology framework to demonstrate its utility in deriving scientific and policy relevant conclusions using measurement data from the UK monitoring supersites located at Harwell and Auchencorth. Prior to this, the representativeness of each site is quantified through the application of cluster analysis to ozone data at 100 rural European sites to identify groupings of sites with similar ozone variation. Harwell was representative of rural locations within 120 km of London, while Auchencorth was representative of a larger, transboundary spatial domain including the remainder of the rural UK. The first case study links the impact of ozone on human health (quantified by SOMO10 and SOMO35 metrics) and vegetation (flux-based PODY) to meteorological and emissions drivers. Between 1990 and 2013 at Harwell, there was a significant decrease in the contribution of European ozone to determining the impacts. Improvement in the human health impact was heavily dependent on the choice of metric (SOMO35 decreased, no change in SOMO10), and the vegetation impacts had not improved as high ozone episodes frequently coincided with plant conditions which reduced ozone uptake. These chemical climates emphasise the need for ozone mitigation on larger (hemispheric) scales than currently implemented. Secondly, the impact of 27 measured VOCs on the extent of the regional ozone increment is assessed. The photochemical loss of VOCs is then linked to reported gridded VOC emissions using air mass back trajectory analysis. Ethene and m+p-xylene had the largest diurnal photochemical loss during maximum monthly regional ozone increment, but the key conclusion was the limitation introduced through the reporting of gridded VOC emissions in heavily aggregated source sectors. Finally, the conditions producing the long term health impact of particulate matter (quantified by annual average PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations) at each site are derived through integration of measurements of PM10 and PM2.5 with measurements of PM constituents. It is shown that the frequent, moderate PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations made a larger contribution to annual average values compared to the relatively infrequent high, episodic concentrations. The contribution of PM constituents and the contribution of local vs regional emissions to the range of PM concentrations is investigated. It was concluded that similar reductions in the contribution of secondary inorganic aerosol to the moderate PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations could be achieved from both the reduction of frequently traversed, smaller emissions sources, and less frequently traversed, larger emissions sources. The final chapter demonstrates the benefits from the extension of this framework to an entire monitoring network. It is envisioned that for each atmospheric composition impact, a standard set of statistics would be calculated which quantify the ‘impact’, ‘state’ and ‘drivers’ of that chemical climate. Calculation of ozone human health chemical climates across 100 European monitoring sites demonstrate this concept. This standardised interpretation of monitoring network data not only allows consistent comparison of an impact, but the common basis for determining how the impact is derived allows for the consideration of novel mitigation strategies and their spatial applicability.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2006.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 370-379).
Look at the three efforts to resolve public disputes over diesel passenger cars and urban air quality management in South Korea. this dissertation explores the main obstacles in nascent democracies to meeting the necessary conditions for successful dispute resolution prescribed by Western scholars of consensus-building theory and practice. The first two cases did not resolve the disputes. even though they produced a consensus agreement through deliberation. The agreements were challenged and adjusted through regulatory processes. This type of unstable consensus building is regarded as one of pathologies of consensus building efforts in analytic decision-making. This paper analyzes why this problem happened. with the new analytic framework. which incorporates Kingdon's multiple stream framework and the theory of consensus building. This paper found that the final dispute resolution was made in conventional politics stream by adversarial power game in politics rather than in consensus building stream. Most cases did not have necessary factors for successful consensus building effort. Most of all, the first two consensus building efforts were strategically initiated by policy entrepreneurs who were not neutral in managing many other necessary factors of successful consensus building.
(cont.) As a result, the efforts of dispute resolution were actually the processes of conflict expansion rather than the authentic consensus building efforts. Non-neutral deployment of consensus building efforts was manifested in idiosyncratic features of policy process and politics in South Korea. Policy entrepreneurs strategic motives were a reaction to the unbalanced representation of weak environmental rationales in the existing policy making process of multi-level policymaking venues. Thus. main obstacles to successful consensus building in nascent democracies exist in institutional levels, which play against the neutral initiation of consensus building efforts. One way to secure the neutrality is to develop a new type of entrepreneurs. so-called 'consensus-building entrepreneurs.
by Dong-Young Kim.
Ph.D.

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, Technology and Policy Program; and, Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2003.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 121-131).
The residential sector has been a long-acknowledged, but seldom-addressed, source of air pollution in the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA). The combination of high emission levels and large numbers of people directly exposed means that the indoor environment is a unique situation. If current trends of demographic growth, urbanization and increased appliance saturation continue, the urgency to address residential sector emissions will increase considerably. Additionally, households have wide-reaching impacts on many sectors including industry through the demand for appliances, power generation and fuel suppliers through the demand for energy, services through the demand for infrastructure, and many more. Through recent efforts, researchers at MIT and in Mexico have attempted to understand and represent the residential sector, to identify and mitigate emissions release and exposure, most of which is energy-related. To reduce energy consumption, and thus emissions, in the home several strategies have been considered: reduced and improved use of fuel; increased energy efficiency; fuel leakage prevention and improved practices; improved building efficiency; and improved fuel transmission and delivery. Another issue of concern in this sector is the use of toxic solvents. Household air pollution reduction strategy outcomes are difficult to predict because of the diversity of households (e.g., size, income, location) within the residential sector. Determination of the factors that affect energy consumption and household behavior would be very useful to decision makers as they develop more targeted policies for the provision of energy services and reduction of household-generated emissions.
by Kellyn E. Roth.
S.M.

Nowadays with developing of all parts of human society such as industries, irrigations, cities, etc., the need for fresh water is increasing. There are lots of pollution sources that affect our fresh water resources. In order to have sustainable development and save our fresh water resources for current and future generations, we have to monitor steadily our projects and environments to preserve our water resources from pollution sources. In this thesis, I have general overview on pollutions come from landfills and municipal wastes to our groundwater resources around the world and how we can preserve our resources from pollutions with using of some approaches that come in directives. In order to summarize this research, in the first step, I will discuss about groundwater definition in academic literatures and its different aspects, the importance of it as fresh water resources to cities, industries and agricultural users and. Then I will discuss about different parameters and elements which are caused pollution on groundwater resources. After, I will introduce some landfill case studies around the world. Finally, I will provide some criteria which are prevented our groundwater resources from different pollutions with using of some directives and rules.

Contaminants such as pharmaceuticals are of increasing concern due to their ubiquitous use and persistence in surface waters worldwide. Limited attention has been paid to the effects of pharmaceuticals on marine life, despite widespread detection of these contaminants in the marine environment. Of the existing studies, the majority assess the negative effects of pharmaceuticals over an exposure period of 30 days or less and focus on cellular and subcellular biomarkers. Longer studies are required to determine if chronic contaminant exposure poses risks to marine life at environmentally relevant concentrations. Also scarce in the literature is examination of whole organism effects to identify potential community-level consequences. Two long-term studies with the antidepressant pharmaceutical, fluoxetine (the active constituent in Prozac®) were conducted to determine whether nominal concentrations detected in estuarine and coastal environments affect organism health and interactions. First, we measured whole organism metrics in the California mussel, Mytilus californianus over a period of 107 days. Specifically, we measured algal clearance rates, growth, and condition indices for both reproductive and overall health. We found that fluoxetine negatively affects all measured characteristics, however many effects are mediated by length of exposure. Perhaps the most notable result was that mussels spiked with fluoxetine cleared less algae after 30 days of exposure. Reduced growth and condition indices likely are a consequence of improper nutrition among fluoxetine-treated mussels. Any level of fluoxetine significantly affected the gonadosomatic index after 47 days. The results from this study on mussels fill an important data gap, highlighting organism-level effects of chronic exposure periods; such data more explicitly identify the impacts of pharmaceuticals and other contaminants on marine communities and ecosystems. Fluoxetine has also been documented to affect the behavior of fish and invertebrates, including freshwater and marine bivalves, crustaceans, and fish. Given that other crustaceans exhibited increased activity levels under fluoxetine exposure, we hypothesized that this would subject them to greater predation risk. In our second exposure study, we assessed whether a similar range of fluoxetine concentrations used in the mussel study altered the risk behavior of the Oregon mud crab, Hemigrapsus oregonensis, in response to a common predator, the red rock crab, Cancer productus. We conducted this study for 60 days, conducting day and night behavioral trials (with and without predators) four times a week. We found that crabs exposed to any amount of fluoxetine (3 or 30 ng/L) had increased activity levels relative to controls; however behaviors of 3 ng/L-spiked crabs were not always significantly different from controls. Among control crabs, day and night trials yielded similar results, where a clear response to the addition of the predator was observed. Crabs dosed with fluoxetine exhibited more foraging and active behaviors in the presence of the predator. Additionally, crabs spiked with fluoxetine at 30 ng/L had the greatest risk of mortality either by predation by red rock crabs or due to more aggressive behaviors among conspecifics. The results of this study shed light on a particularly unexplored area of contaminants research: how do psychoactive pharmaceuticals affect animal behavior when exposed to the low concentrations persisting in the aquatic environment for a prolonged period of time?

The concept of “Environmental authoritarian” becomes the focus of discussion in the academic field of environmental politics since it has limited observations. In the recent years, the severe air pollute issue is considered as a threat by both citizens and authorities in China. Along with the more stricter environmental protection laws being issued, even the measures of the factory closings and coal ban seems to become acceptable as the population  have suffered in the heavy smog for years. Does this led to the rise of “environmental authoritarian” in China?  Taking this as a heuristic point, I observe the positions of various stakeholders in the environmental governance as well as present the findings from research on the implementation and enforcement of air pollution controls measures in Jing-Jin-Ji region. I offer a critical examination of “environmental authoritarian”, especially the levels of public participation at the policy process. After to do the research, the key funding is that the concept of “Environmental authoritarian” is too simplified, it cannot cover the complex and detailed environmental governance at local empirical cases.

Nitrogen pollution in water is common in our environment, especially in places affected by agriculture and livestock, industry or wastewater discharge areas. Ammonium and nitrate are the most common pollutants and can be removed primarily by microorganisms. This removal is carried out by a series of microorganisms that live in these environments as communities, the study of which is essential to evaluate the efficiency of the N removal from water. In this thesis, a variety of methods have been used to study these microorganisms accurately in two types of highly sensitive environments for pollution, wetlands and groundwater.
La contaminació de l’aigua per excés de nitrogen és habitual en el nostre entorn, especialment en llocs impactats per l’agricultura i la ramaderia, zones de descàrrega d’aigües residuals, o com a resultat de l’activitat industrial. L’amoni i el nitrat són els contaminants més freqüents i poden ser eliminats principalment pels microorganismes. Aquesta eliminació la duen a terme diferents microorganismes que habiten en aquests ambients en forma de comunitats, l’estudi de les quals és cabdal per a valorar l’eficiència de l’eliminació del N de l’aigua. En aquesta tesi es desenvolupen mètodes per a fer un estudi acurat d’aquests microorganismes en dos tipus d’ambients altament sensibles a la contaminació, els aiguamolls i l’aigua freàtica.

[ES] El nitrógeno (N) es uno de los elementos más importantes para la vida, pero el desequilibrio provocado sobre el ciclo del N está causando daños importantes a muchos ecosistemas en todo el mundo. En aguas costeras, los procesos del N se ven alterados por fertilizantes, la urbanización o la producción de energía. El objetivo principal de esta tesis es contribuir a la evaluación de cómo la actividad antropogénica y el cambio climático modifican la dinámica del N en aguas costeras. Con este propósito se seleccionaron dos lugares de estudio: la demarcación hidrográfica del Júcar (JRBD) en el Noroeste del Mar Mediterráneo y la Región Hidrológica del Golfo Central (CGHR) al Sur del Golfo de México. La tesis se presenta como una colección de cuatro artículos. El primer artículo evalúa cómo la nitrificación en aguas costeras es alterada por las presiones antropogénicas y en asentamientos urbanos en el JRBD. Mediante la aplicación de un modelo biogeoquímico simple que simula la dinámica del nitrito en nueve áreas costeras, se evaluó el desacoplamiento de los dos pasos de la nitrificación. Las conclusiones indican que las presiones antropogénicas modifican los picos de nitrito en invierno debido a las bajas temperaturas y que el segundo paso de la nitrificación es más sensible a la temperatura, lo que implica que el cambio climático puede contribuir al desacoplamiento. El segundo artículo evalúa las tendencias del nitrógeno inorgánico disuelto (NID) por el cambio climático en el JRBD. El efecto de las variables meteorológicas en las concentraciones de NID se estudió mediante la aplicación de redes neuronales artificiales simples entrenadas con datos de campo. Se observaron tendencias decrecientes de nitrito y nitrato a lo largo del siglo XXI bajo los escenarios climático RCP 4.5 y RCP 8.5, debido al aumento de las temperaturas y a la disminución de las precipitaciones, con cambios más significativos en invierno. El amonio no mostró ninguna tendencia anual significativa, pero se observaron aumentos o disminuciones durante algunos meses. En el tercer artículo se desarrolla un nuevo método basado en teoría de sistemas grises y entropía de Shannon para obtener información útil sobre la contaminación por N en áreas donde los datos disponibles son limitados. El método se aplicó a ocho estuarios del CGHR asociados a manglares. Se desarrollaron dos índices: el índice gris de prioridad de gestión de nitrógeno (GNMP) y el índice gris de presión de uso del suelo (GLUP). Ambos fueron comparados para validar la metodología y los resultados indican que la urbanización sobre playas y manglares es la principal causa de la contaminación de N. El cuarto artículo es un análisis espaciotemporal de la contaminación de N a lo largo de dos ríos que desembocan en una zona turística del CGHR asociada a manglares. Mediante técnicas estadísticas como el análisis de cluster, la prueba de MannKendall y la prueba W de MannWhitney, se realizó una evaluación del origen de la contaminación de N y las variaciones temporales de los compuestos de N. Los resultados concluyen que las concentraciones de N orgánico están aumentando a lo largo de la costa, y la principal fuente identificada fue la descomposición de la especie invasora de jacintos de agua en aguas salinas, que ha cubierto completamente las playas y manglares circundantes potenciado por la contaminación de N. El conjunto de la investigación concluye que tanto la contaminación como el cambio climático alteran el ciclo del N en aguas costeras al modificar elementos importantes del N como la nitrificación, las variaciones interanuales de las concentraciones de N o los ecosistemas costeros. Las diferencias en las características ecológicas y socioeconómicas de las dos zonas de estudio desempeñaron un papel decisivo en las presiones e impactos de las actividades antropogénicas. Además, los métodos desarrollados pueden aplicar
[CAT] El nitrogen (N) és un dels elements més importants per a la vida, però el desequilibri provocat sobre el cicle del N està causant danys importants a molts ecosistemes. En aigües costaneres els processos del N es veuen alterats per fertilitzants, el desenvolupament urbà o la producció d'energia. L'objectiu principal d'aquesta investigació és contribuir a l'avaluació de com l'activitat antropogénica i el canvi climàtic modifiquen la dinàmica del N en aigües costaneres. Amb aquest propòsit es van seleccionar dos llocs d'estudi: la demarcació hidrogràfica del Xúquer (JRBD) al Nord-oest de la Mar Mediterrània i la Regió Hidrològica del Golf Central (CGHR) al Sud del Golf de Mèxic. La tesi es presenta com una col·lecció de quatre articles. El primer article avalua com la nitrificació en aigües costaneres es veu alterada per les pressions antropogèniques i prop dels assentaments urbans en el JRBD. Mitjançant l'aplicació d'un model biogeoquímic que simula la dinàmica del nitrit a nou àrees costaneres, es va avaluar el desacoblament dels dos passos de la nitrificació. Les conclusions indiquen que les pressions antropogèniques modifiquen els pics de nitrit observats a l'hivern a causa de les baixes temperaturas i que el segon pas de la nitrificació és més sensible a la temperatura, la qual cosa implica que el canvi climàtic pot contribuir al desacoblament d'aquests dos passos. El segon article avalua les tendències futures de nitrogen inorgànic dissolt (NID) pel canvi climàtic en el JRBD. L'efecte de les variables meteorològiques en les concentracions de NID es va estudiar mitjançant l'aplicació de xarxes neuronals artificials simples entrenades amb dades de camp. Es van observar tendències decreixents de nitrits i nitrats al llarg del segle XXI sota els escenaris climàtics RCP 4.5 i RCP 8.5, a causa de l'augment de les temperatures i a la disminució de les precipitacions, amb canvis més significatius a l'hivern. L'amoni no va mostrar cap tendència anual significativa, però es van observar augments o disminucions durant alguns mesos. En el tercer article es desenvolupa un nou mètode basat en la teoria dels sistemes grisos i l'entropia de Shannon per a obtindre informació útil sobre la contaminació per N en àrees on les dades disponibles són limitats. El mètode es va aplicar a huit estuaris del CGHR associats a manglars. Es van desenvolupar dos índexs: l'índex gris de prioritat de gestió de nitrogen (GNMP) i l'índex gris de pressió d'ús de la terra (GLUP). Els dos van ser comparats per a validar la metodologia. Els resultats indiquen que el desenvolupament urbà sobre platges i manglars és la principal causa de la contaminació de N en l'àrea d'estudi. El quart article és una anàlisi espacio-temporal de la contaminació de N al llarg de dues rius que desemboquen en una zona turística costanera del CGHR associada a manglars. Mitjançant tècniques estadístiques com l'anàlisi de clúster, les proves MannKendall i W de MannWhitney, es va realitzar una avaluació de l'origen de la contaminació de N i les variacions temporals dels compostos de N. Els resultats conclouen que les concentracions de N orgànic estan augmentant al llarg de la costa, i la principal font identificada va ser la descomposició de l'espècie invasora de jacints d'aigua en aigües salines, que ha cobert completament les platges i manglars circumdants potenciat per la contaminació de N. El conjunt de la investigació conclou que tant la contaminació com el canvi climàtic alteren el cicle del N en aigües costaneres en modificar els processos del N com la nitrificació, les variacions interanuals de les concentracions de N i la destrucció dels ecosistemes costaners. Les diferències en les característiques ecològiques i socioeconòmiques de les dues zones d'estudi van exercir un paper decisiu en les pressions i impactes de les activitats antropogèniques. A més, els mètodes desenvolupats poden
[EN] Nitrogen (N) is one of the most important elements for life on Earth, but the unbalance caused to the N cylce is causing dramatic damage to many ecosystems around the world. In coastal waters, the N processes are altered by anthropogenic activities such as the excessive use of fertilizers, urban development or energy production. The main objective of this research is to contribute to the evaluation of how anthropogenic activities and climate change modify the N dynamics in coastal waters. For this purpose, two study sites were selected: the Jucar River Basin District (JRBD) in the Northwestern Mediterranean Sea (Spain) and the Central Gulf Hydrological Region (CGHR) in the Southern Gulf of Mexico (Mexico). The thesis is presented as a collection of four research articles. The first article evaluates how nitrification in coastal waters is altered by anthropogenic pressures and close to urban settlements in the JRBD. Through the application of a simple biogeochemical model that simulates nitrite dynamics to nine coastal areas, an evaluation of the decoupling of the two steps of nitrification was carried out. The main conclusions indicate that anthropogenic pressures modify the nitrite peaks observed in winter driven by low temperatures. The research also concludes that the second step of nitrification is more sensitive to temperature, which entails that climate change may contribute to the decoupling. The second article evaluates the future trends of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentrations under climate change in the JRBD. The effect of meteorological variables on DIN concentrations was studied through the application of simple artificial neural networks trained with field data. Decreasing trends of nitrite and nitrate concentrations were observed throughout the 21st century under both climatic scenarios RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5, mainly due to rising temperatures and decreasing rainfall, with major changes expected in winter. On the other hand, ammonium did not show any significant annual trend but it either increased or decreased during some months. The third article develops a new method based on grey systems theory and Shannon entropy to derive useful information regarding N pollution in areas where only limited data is available. The method was applied to eight estuaries of the CGHR associated to mangroves. Two indexes were developed: the Grey Nitrogen Management Priority (GNMP) index and the Grey Land Use Pressure (GLUP) index. The two indexes were then confronted to validate the methodology. The results indicate that the urban development over beaches and mangroves is the leading cause of N pollution in the study area. The fourth article is a spatiotemporal analysis of N pollution along two rivers discharging into a touristic coastal area of the CGHR associated to mangroves. Through statistical techniques such as clustering analysis, the Mann-Kendall test and the Mann-Whitney W-test, an evaluation of the origine of N pollution and the temporal variations of the N compounds was performed. The results conclude than organic N concentrations are increasing along the coast, and the main potential source identified was the decomposition of the invasive species of water hyacinths in saline waters, which has completely covered the surrounding beaches and mangroves, enhanced by N pollution. Overall, the main conclusions are that both pollution and climate change alter the N cycle in coastal waters by modifying N processes such as nitrification, the interannual variations of N concentrations and by destroying the coastal ecosystems. The differences in ecological and socio-economic characteristics of the two study sites played a significant role in the pressures and impacts of anthropogenic activities. Moreover, the methods developed can be applied to other coastal regions to evaluate the anthropogenic alteration of the N cycle worldwide.
This thesis was carried out with an international cotutelle between the Polytechnic University of Valencia in Spain and the Veracruzan University in Mexico. This thesis has been financed by the following scholarships: - Erasmus Mundus - MAYANET Grant Agreement Number 2014-0872/001 - 001, funded with support from the European Commission. - Cotutelle PhD scholarship granted by the Universitat Politècnica de València. - Excellence Scholarship awarded by the Mexican Government through the Mexican Agency for International Development Cooperation (AMEXCID)
Temiño Boes, R. (2020). Anthropogenic alteration of the nitrogen cycle in coastal waters: Case studies from the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/158560
TESIS

Household air pollution (HAP) is responsible for almost 4 million premature deaths every year, a burden that is primarily carried by women and children in developing countries. The mortality and morbidity impact of HAP can be significantly alleviated through clean cookstove interventions. However, for these interventions to be effective, the new intervention stove must be a substantially cleaner technology and adoption should be high and sustained over time. Woody biomass is the fuel of choice in many developing communities, and contributes substantially to HAP. Several organizations have launched clean cooking interventions to address this issue. However, the majority of those interventions do not address adoption related challenges, that they often face. This thesis explores previous studies on Human-Centered Design (HCD) and the impact of feedback and data access on behavior change. It details a HCD process and methodology applied during the design process of an air quality feedback system, to improve adoption of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cookstoves in Rwanda. The feedback system is intended to provide real-time air quality information to stove users and potentially encourage them to abandon traditional biomass cookstoves in favor of the cleaner LPG stoves.

While roads can present weak to complete barriers to wildlife, depending on the animal and traffic volume, mitigations such as under-crossings and green bridges on highways at least partially increase the permeability of the landscape to some of these species. The few studies evaluating the effectiveness of these structures for at least three years typically focused on a single species. Here, we monitored the crossing structure under Boeckman Road, in Wilsonville Oregon, for wildlife activity across summer seasons for ten years, since construction of the road and subsequent opening to traffic. This long-term multi-species dataset, which includes monitoring when the road was closed to traffic has provided a unique opportunity. Wildlife activity was collected using sand track pads monitored during summer seasons from 2009 to 2018. Wildlife activity showed a significant community level response from year to year and species-specific responses to year, vegetation change, disturbance, detection area, and previous experimental additions of artificial light. Roads create barriers to animal movement through collisions and habitat fragmentation. Investigators have attempted to use traffic volume, the number of vehicles passing a point on a road segment, to predict effects to wildlife populations approximately linearly and along taxonomic lines; however, taxonomic groupings cannot provide sound predictions because closely related species often respond differently. We assess the role of wildlife behavioral responses to traffic volume as a tool to predict barrier effects from vehicle-caused mortality and avoidance, to provide an early warning system that recognizes traffic volume as a trigger for mitigation, and to better interpret roadkill data. We propose four categories of behavioral response based on the perceived danger to traffic: Nonresponders, Pausers, Speeders, and Avoiders. By considering a species' risk-avoidance response to traffic, managers can make more appropriate and timely decisions to mitigate effects before populations decline or become locally extinct. Barriers to animal movement can isolate populations, impacting their genetic diversity, susceptibility to disease, and access to resources. Barriers to movement may be caused by artificial light, but few studies have experimentally investigated the effects of artificial light on movement for a suite of terrestrial vertebrates. Therefore, we studied the effect of ecological light pollution on animal usage of a bridge under-road passage structure. On a weekly basis, sections of the structure were subjected to different light treatments including no light added, followed by a Reference period when lights were off in all the structure sections. Findings suggest that artificial light may be reducing habitat connectivity for some species though not providing a strong barrier for others. Through the work conducted herein we provide contributions to the understanding of how elements of the built environment impact wildlife communities ability to move across the landscape. Additionally, we provide new tools to support resource managers in barrier mitigation and connectivity planning. Habitat fragmentation effects are a complex set of issues that require resources and collaboration to reach meaningful solutions. The work presented here can also support decision-making, communication, and collaborative efforts that will ultimately result in on-the-ground impacts to reduce fragmentation effects and mitigate existing barriers effectively to promote the long-term viability of wildlife and the systems they depend on.

L'arrêt cardiaque est un problème majeur de santé publique. Il se caractérise par une perte subite des fonctions cardiaques, de la respiration et de l’état de conscience et est habituellement causé par une perturbation électrique au niveau du coeur. Les arrêts cardiaques hors hôpital (ACHH) concernent plus de 85% des arrêts cardiaques. Les taux de survie, tout en restant bas, varient largement à travers le monde, de 2 à 20%. Dans la population générale, l'incidence de la mort subite par arrêt cardiaque serait estimée à 4-5 millions de cas par an. La pollution de l'air est un problème environnemental majeur pour la santé. En 2013, elle était le quatrième facteur de risque de mortalité globale et était estimée être à l'origine de 5,5 millions de décès par an à travers le monde. Dans la littérature, l'exposition à court terme à la pollution de l'air, notamment en ce qui concerne les particules en suspension, est retrouvée en association avec la morbidité et la mortalité cardiovasculaire. Plusieurs études trouvent une association positive entre les particules fines notées PM2,5 (de diamètre aérodynamique inférieur à 2,5 μm) et les arrêts cardiaques hors hôpital (ACHH) bien que l'association soit non significative dans d'autres études. En ce qui concerne les particules en suspension notées PM10 (de diamètre aérodynamique inférieur à 10 μm), le dioxyde d'azote (NO2), l'ozone (O3) et le dioxyde de soufre (SO2), l'évaluation du risque d'ACHH conduit à des résultats discordants. Les mécanismes impliqués dans la relation entre la pollution de l'air et les ACHH ne sont pas clairement connus. Ils pourraient mettre en jeu des perturbations électriques et des réactions inflammatoires. Le but de notre travail est d'étudier l'effet de l'exposition à ces différents polluants à des échelles de temps horaire et journalière sur la survenue d'ACHH dans la région Nord-Pas de Calais, France. De plus, nous nous sommes intéressés plus spécifiquement aux ACHH survenant en période scolaire avec des analyses en sous-groupes notamment par sexe, âge, cause de l'arrêt, statut diabétique, afin de pouvoir révéler des sous-groupes potentiellement plus vulnérables. L'étude a collecté les ACHH qui sont survenus dans la région Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France, en 2015. Une étude de cas-croisé stratifiée sur le temps couplée à une régression logistique conditionnelle a été principalement utilisée pour évaluer l'association entre les ACHH et les polluants de l'air (PM2,5, PM10, NO2, O3, SO2) mesurés dans l'heure de l'arrêt jusqu'à 5 jours avant l'arrêt. 1039 cas ont été inclus dans l'étude. La plupart des associations positives significatives ont été observées pour les expositions aux PM2,5 et PM10 et pour les ACHH en période scolaire. Pour la plus petite p-value, le plus grand OR était : pour l'ensemble des ACHH et dans le sous-groupe des hommes, pour la moyenne cumulée sur 12 heures avant l'arrêt des PM10 (OR=1,33, p<0,001 et OR=1,34, p=0,001 respectivement) ; dans le sous-groupe des âges de 50 à 75 ans, pour la moyenne le jour de l'arrêt des PM2,5 (OR=1,27, p<0,001) ; dans le sous-groupe des arrêts de cause cardiaque, pour la moyenne quatre jours avant l'arrêt des PM2,5 (OR=1,26, p<0,001) ; dans le sous-groupe des cas avec diabète, pour la moyenne cumulée sur quatre heures avant l'arrêt des PM2,5 (OR=1,55, p=0,002). Les résultats montrent des associations significatives entre les particules en suspension et les ACHH en période scolaire, avec des sous-groupes de susceptibilité (hommes, âge de 50 à 75 ans, ACHH de cause cardiaque, et les diabétiques). L'exploration de sous-groupes de vulnérabilité est d'autant plus importante dans les études épidémiologiques des polluants de l'air du fait des risques peu élevés à l'échelle de la population habituellement observés. L'ensemble de ces informations pourraient encourager les autorités publiques à émettre des politiques de recommandations spécifiques ciblées pour les sous-groupes de susceptibilité
Cardiac arrest is an important public issue. It refers to the sudden, unexpected loss of heart function, breathing and consciousness and usually results from an electrical disturbance in the heart. More than 85% of cardiac arrests are out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA). Overall survival rates remain low in most countries but vary widely across the world (range: 2–20%). In the general population, sudden cardiac death rates range from 4 to 5 million cases per year. Outdoor air pollution is a major environmental health problem. In 2013, it ranked as the fourth risk factor for global mortality and was estimated to cause 5,5 million deaths worldwide per year. Short-term exposure to air pollution especially with regard to fine particulate matter is increasingly associated in the literature with cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. A positive association can be found between fine particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter under 2.5 μm (PM2.5) and OHCA in several studies, though the association remains insignificant in others. With respect to PM smaller than 10 microns (PM10), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ozone (O3) and sulfur dioxide (SO2), the evaluation of risk of OHCA brings out inconsistent results. The way ambient air pollution and OHCA are related is still unclear. It might involve electrical disturbances and inflammatory reactions. The aim of our study is to investigate the effect of exposure to air pollution, on an hourly and daily scale, on the incidence of OHCA in Nord-Pas-de-Calais, France. Additional objectives were to investigate, among OHCA occurring during non-holiday periods, susceptible subgroups by sex, age, cause of the OHCA, diabetes status. The study included OHCA that occurred in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, France, in 2015. A time-stratified casecrossover study design coupled with a conditional logistic regression was primarily used to evaluate the association between OHCA and air pollutants (PM2,5, PM10, NO2, O3, SO2) measured within the hour of the arrest up to 5 days before. In all, 1039 cases were included. Most of the significant positive associations were found for PM2,5 and PM10 exposures and for OHCA during non-holiday periods. For the smallest p-value, the largest OR was : for all OHCA and within the subgroup of men, for the cumulative average twelve hours before the arrest of PM10 (OR=1,33, p<0,001 and OR=1,34, p=0,001 respectively) ; within the subgroup of age 50 to 75 years old, for the average on the day of the arrest of PM2,5 (OR=1,27, p<0,001) ; within the subgroup of arrests of cardiac cause, for the average four days before the arrest of PM2,5 (OR=1,26, p<0,001) ; within the subgroup of cases with diabetes, for the cumulative average four hours before the arrest of PM2,5 (OR=1,55, p=0,002).The findings show significant links between short-term exposure to particulate matter and OHCA during non-holiday periods, with susceptible subgroups (men, age 50 to 75 years old, OHCA of cardiac cause, and diabetics). Investigation of susceptible subgroups becomes especially important in epidemiological studies of air pollutants because of the small population-wide relative risks that are usually observed. The results of this study could encourage public authorities to implement specific policy recommendations aimed at vulnerable subgroups

L’estudi de la concentració i la distribució de metalls i metal·loides en ambients costaners ha guanyat rellevància durant els darrers quaranta anys, principalment a conseqüència de la creixent preocupació per llurs efectes nocius sobre els ecosistemes i la salut pública. Els cicles dels metalls i metal·loides, amb una gran quantitat de variables físiques, químiques, biològiques i també antropogèniques que hi influeixen, són extremadament complexos, la qual cosa en dificulta la comprensió. Per aquest motiu, la millora de les metodologies i l’aplicació de noves tècniques d’estudi són fonamentals per poder aprofundir en el coneixement dels processos associats a la contaminació i la pol·lució de l’oceà per metalls i metal·loides. En aquest context, aquesta Tesi representa una contribució al desenvolupament i a la integració de les metodologies disponibles per a l’estudi dels fluxos de metalls i metal·loides d’origen antropogènic cap al medi marí. Per atènyer aquest objectiu, la Tesi s’ha centrat en l’estudi de dues vies d’entrada de metalls i metal·loides cap a la mar costanera: les descàrregues d’aigua subterrània (DAS) i l’abocament directe de residus en dues àrees de la costa mediterrània, la costa central de Catalunya i la badia de Portmán, a Múrcia. En primer terme, s’han abordat les metodologies de quantificació de les DAS mitjançant isòtops de Ra i 222Rn. L’anàlisi i monitoratge dels isòtops de Ra a l’aqüífer al·luvial de la riera d’Argentona al llarg de dos anys ha demostrat que la variabilitat observada en llurs concentracions, de més d’un ordre de magnitud, està governada pel desplaçament de la posició de la interfase salina durant períodes de precipitacions abundants. La variabilitat enregistrada en les concentracions dels isòtops dificulta la determinació d’un valor representatiu de Ra a l’aqüífer, la qual cosa és un requeriment necessari per quantificar els fluxos de les DAS. Puix que els fluxos de metalls i metal·loides derivats de las DAS s’incrementen significativament durant els episodis de precipitacions, l’elevada dinàmica dels aqüífers costaners en règims micromareals fa necessari un millor coneixement dels processos hidrogeològics locals o regionals per poder reduir les incerteses associades a la quantificació dels fluxos de metalls i metal·loides als sistemes costaners. En segon terme, la Tesi situa el focus sobre els fluxos de metalls i metal·loides derivats de l’abocament massiu de residus, sia d’origen industrial i urbà, com al prodelta del riu Besòs, o d’origen miner, com a la badia de Portmán. A més, amb l’objectiu de millorar la resolució de l’estudi i poder descriure en detall l’evolució temporal del flux de metalls i metal·loides, s’ha dut a terme l’anàlisi dels sediments a molt alta resolució mitjançant un escàner de fluorescència de raigs X (XRF core scanner). Aquest equipament permet obtenir una gran quantitat d’informació en molt poc temps, de manera no destructiva i amb resolucions impossibles d’aconseguir amb mètodes tradicionals de caràcter destructiu. Així doncs, s’ha desenvolupat un procediment de calibratge per transformar les mesures semiquantitatives de l’XRF core scanner a concentracions totals per diversos metalls i metal·loides (Ti, Mn, Fe, Zn, As i Pb). Els resultats demostren que els procediments analítics i estadístics desenvolupats en aquest treball milloren la qualitat de les regressions lineals, amb coeficients de correlació (r2) superiors a 0,94 i amb una reducció de les desviacions estàndards de les funcions obtingudes, especialment pel mètode de regressió ponderat de mínims quadrats (WLS). Això es tradueix en una minoració significativa dels errors associats a les concentracions calibrades de metalls i metal·loides, la qual cosa ha permès quantificar els llindars de concentració establerts en diverses guies de qualitat del sediment (Sediment Quality Guidelines, SQGs) amb un rang d’error de 0,4% a 2% pel Fe, 1% a 7% pel Zn, 3 a 14% pel Pb, i 5% a 16% pel Mn. Finalment, aquest procediment de calibratge ha estat aplicat a la caracterització física i geoquímica d’un dipòsit submarí altament contaminat generat per l’abocament de residus miners resultants de l’explotació de jaciments de sulfurs a la badia de Portmán. Mitjançant una metodologia que integra múltiples tècniques analítiques fisicoquímiques, sedimentològiques i de datació per 210Pb de testimonis de sediment, hom ha identificat sis fàcies sedimentàries: quatre pertanyents als residus miners sensu strictu (fàcies 2, 3, 4 i 5) i dues corresponents a sediments marins amb un cert grau de contaminació que predaten i postdaten el dipòsit de residus (fàcies 1 i 6). Els resultats obtinguts han permès explicar acuradament l’evolució del dipòsit de residus miners, el qual es concentra principalment al nord-oest de l’àrea d’estudi com a resultat no només de la ubicació del punt de descàrrega sinó també de la dinàmica sedimentària governada per l’efecte dominant de l’onatge de component est i sud-oest i els corrents litorals associats. De l’anàlisi geoquímica se’n desprèn que les concentracions de metalls i metal·loides al dipòsit de residus miners són molt superiors a les reportades en altres llocs de la mar Mediterrània. En els sediments superficials acumulats després de la finalització dels abocaments les concentracions de metalls i metal·loides són encara significativament superiors als valors naturals previs a l’activitat minera. Això, conjuntament amb la modelització numèrica de les concentracions i les distribucions de metalls i metal·loides en el sediment marí superficial (14 cm superiors), ha evidenciat l’existència d’un flux persistent cap als sediments més recents i cap al fons marí després de vint-i-cinc anys de la clausura de l’abocament de residus miners. Per tot plegat, aquesta Tesi contribueix, volem pensar que de manera significativa, a la millora de les metodologies d’estudi dels fluxos de metalls i metal·loides, i de determinació i quantificació de llurs concentracions i distribucions al medi marí costaner. L’esforç d’integració metodològica desenvolupat en aquesta Tesi ha permès assolir una millor comprensió dels processos de contaminació i de pol·lució, i demostra que l’ús integrat de diverses metodologies és clau per a la millora dels programes i actuacions de gestió ambiental que permetin reduir els fluxos de metalls i metal·loides d’origen antropogènic cap a l’oceà i els seus efectes sobre l’ecosistema costaner.
El estudio de la concentración y la distribución de metales y metaloides en ambientes costeros, ha adquirido relevancia en los último cuarenta años, principalmente como consecuencia de la creciente preocupación por sus efectos nocivos sobre los ecosistemas y la salud pública. Los ciclos de los metales y metaloides, con una gran cantidad de variables físicas, químicas, biológicas y también antropogénicas que influyen, son extremadamente complejos, circunstancia que dificulta su comprensión. Por este motivo, la mejora de las metodologías y la aplicación de nuevas técnicas de estudio es fundamental para poder profundizar en el conocimiento de los procesos asociados a la contaminación y la polución del océano por metales y metaloides. En este contexto, esta Tesis representa una contribución al desarrollo y a la integración de las metodologías disponibles para el estudio de los flujos de metales y metaloides de origen antropogénico hacia el medio marino. Para alcanzar este objetivo, la Tesis se ha centrado en el estudio de dos vías de entrada de metales y metaloides hacia el mar costero: las descargas de agua subterránea (DAS) y el vertido directo de residuos en dos áreas de la costa mediterránea, la costa central de Cataluña y la bahía de Portmán, en Murcia. En primer lugar, se han abordado las metodologías de cuantificación de las DAS mediante isótopos de Ra y 222Rn. El análisis y el monitoreo de los isótopos de Ra en el acuífero aluvial de la riera de Argentona, durante dos años ha demostrado que la variabilidad observada en sus concentraciones, de más de un orden de magnitud, está gobernada por el desplazamiento de la posición de la interfase salina durante períodos de precipitaciones abundantes. La variabilidad registrada en las concentraciones de los isótopos dificulta la determinación de un valor representativo de Ra en el acuífero, lo cual es un requisito necesario para cuantificar los flujos de DAS. Puesto que los flujos de metales y metaloides derivados de las DAS aumentan significativamente durante los episodios de precipitaciones, la elevada dinámica de los acuíferos costeros en regímenes micromareales hace necesario un mejor conocimiento de los procesos hidrogeológicos locales o regionales para poder reducir las incertidumbres asociadas a la cuantificación de los flujos de metales y metaloides hacia los sistemas costeros. En segundo lugar, la Tesis sitúa el foco sobre los flujos de metales y metaloides derivados del vertido masivo de residuos, sean estos de origen industrial y urbano, como en el prodelta del río Besós, o de origen minero, como en la Bahía de Portmán. Además, con el objetivo de mejorar la resolución del estudio y poder describir en detalle la evolución temporal del flujo de metales y metaloides, se ha llevado a cabo el análisis de los sedimentos a muy alta resolución mediante un escáner de fluorescencia de rayos X (XRF core scanner). Este instrumento permite obtener una gran cantidad de información en muy poco tiempo, de modo no destructivo y con una resolución imposibles de conseguir con métodos tradicionales de carácter destructivo. Así pues, se ha desarrollado un procedimiento de calibración para transformar las medidas semicuantitativas del XRF core scanner en concentraciones totales para diversos metales y metaloides (Ti, Mn, Fe, Zn, As y Pb). Los resultados demuestran que los procedimientos analíticos y estadísticos desarrollados en este trabajo mejoran la calidad de las regresiones lineales, con coeficientes de correlación (r2) superiores a 0,94 y con una reducción de las desviaciones estándares de las funciones obtenidas, especialmente por el método de regresión ponderado de mínimos cuadrados (WLS). Esto se traduce en una minoración significativa de los errores asociados a las concentraciones calibradas de metales y metaloides, lo cual ha permitido cuantificar los umbrales de concentración establecidos en diversas guías de calidad del sedimento (Sediment Quality Guidelines, SQGs) con un rango de error de 0,4% a 2% para el Fe, 1% a 7% para el Zn, 3 a 14% para el Pb, y 5% a 16% para el Mn. Finalmente, se ha aplicado este procedimiento de calibración a la caracterización física y geoquímica de un depósito submarino altamente contaminado generado por el vertido de residuos mineros resultantes de la explotación de yacimientos de sulfuros en la bahía de Portmán. Mediante una metodología que integra múltiples técnicas analíticas fisicoquímicas, sedimentológicas y de datación por 210Pb de testigos de sedimento, se han identificado seis facies sedimentarias: cuatro pertenecientes a los residuos mineros sensu strictu (facies 2, 3, 4 y 5) y dos correspondientes a sedimentos marinos con un cierto grado de contaminación que pre-datan y post-datan el depósito de residuos (facies 1 y 6). Los resultados obtenidos han permitido explicar la evolución del depósito de residuos mineros, el cual se concentra principalmente al noroeste del área de estudio debido no sólo a la ubicación del punto de vertido si no también a la dinámica sedimentaria gobernada por el efecto dominante del oleaje de componente este y sudoeste y por las corrientes litorales asociadas. Del análisis geoquímico se desprende que las concentraciones de metales y metaloides en el depósito de residuos mineros son muy superiores a las reportadas para otros lugares del Mar Mediterráneo. En los sedimentos superficiales acumulados posteriormente al cese de los vertidos las concentraciones de metales y metaloides son aún significativamente superiores a los valores naturales previos a la actividad minera. Esto, junto con la modelización numérica de las concentraciones y las distribuciones de metales y metaloides en el sedimento marino superficial (14 cm superiores), ha puesto de manifiesto la existencia de un flujo persistente hacia los sedimentos más recientes y hacia el lecho marino después de veinticinco años de la clausura de los vertidos de residuos mineros. Per todo lo expuesto, esta Tesis contribuye, queremos pensar que de manera significativa, a la mejora de las metodologías de estudio de los flujos de metales y metaloides, y de determinación y cuantificación de sus concentraciones y distribuciones en el medio marino costero. El esfuerzo de integración metodológica desarrollado en esta Tesis ha permitido alcanzar una mejor comprensión de los procesos de contaminación y de polución, y demuestra que el uso integrado de diversas metodologías es clave para la mejora de los programas y actuaciones de gestión ambiental que permitan reducir los flujos de metales y metaloides de origen antropogénico hacia el océano, así como sus efectos sobre el ecosistema costero.
The study of the concentration and distribution of metals and metalloids in coastal environments has gained interest in the last forty years, mainly due to the growing concern about their harmful effects on the ecosystems and public health. Even so, the elevated complexity of the metals and metalloids cycles, which are influenced by numerous physical, chemical, biological and anthropogenic variables, makes their understanding difficult. Because of this, improving the state of the art methodologies and applying new techniques is essential to achieve a better knowledge of the processes associated with marine pollution by metals and metalloids. In this context, this PhD Thesis represents a contribution to the development and integration of methodologies for the study of anthropogenic-sourced fluxes of metals and metalloids into the sea. To achieve this objective, the Thesis is focused in the study of two type of pathways of metals and metalloids fluxes to the coastal sea: submarine groundwater discharges (SGD) and direct waste disposal in two areas of the Iberian Mediterranean coast, which are the central coast of Catalonia and Portmán Bay, in Murcia. Firstly, the Thesis addresses the methodologies for quantifying SGD using Ra and 222Rn isotopes. The analysis and monitoring of Ra isotopes in the alluvial aquifer of the Argentona torrent during two years has shown that the variability of their concentrations, which is more than one order of magnitude, is mainly governed by the displacement of the saline interface during heavy rain periods. The recorded variability of the isotopic concentrations makes difficult determining a representative value of Ra in the aquifer, which is a requirement to quantify SGD. Given the significant increase of SGD metals and metalloids fluxes derived during heavy rain events, the high dynamics of coastal aquifers in microtidal regimes imposes a better knowledge of the hydrogeological processes at local or regional scales in order to reduce the uncertainties associated with the quantification of such fluxes in coastal systems. Secondly, this PhD Thesis focuses in metals and metalloids fluxes from massive coastal waste accumulations, whether they result from mining activities, as in Portmán Bay, or from industrial and urban sources, as in the Besòs River prodelta off Barcelona city. To improve the fineness of analysis needed to carefully describe the temporal evolution of metal and metalloids fluxes, we have carried out high-resolution measurements of the sediments by means of a XRF core scanner. This equipment produces huge amounts of data within a reduced time of analysis, in a non-destructive way and with resolutions that are unachievable by traditional, sample destructive methods. A calibration procedure has been developed to transform the semi-quantitative measurements from the XRF core scanner into total concentrations of various metals and metalloids (Ti, Mn, Fe, Zn, As and Pb). The results demonstrate that the analytical and statistical procedures developed in this study improve the quality of linear regressions, with correlation coefficients (r2) above 0.94 and a reduction of standard deviations, especially when applying the weighted least squares regression method (WLS). This translates into a reduction of errors associated with the calibrated concentrations of metals and metalloids, which allows quantifying the concentration thresholds defined by various sediment quality guides (SQG) with an error range of 0.4% to 2% for Fe, 1% to 7% for Zn, 3% to 14% for Pb and 5% to 16% for Mn. The same calibration procedure has been applied to the physical and geochemical characterization of a highly polluted marine deposit originated by the dumping of mining wastes in Portmán Bay. The application of multiple analytical physicochemical, sedimentological and 210Pb dating techniques to a large set of short sediment cores allowed identifying six main sedimentary facies, four of which correspond to the mine tailings sensu strictu (facies 2, 3, 4 and 5) and two to contaminated marine sediments that predate (facies 1) and postdate (facies 6) the mine tailings deposit. The results allow explaining the evolution of the mine tailings deposit, which mainly concentrate into the northwest corner of the study area as a consequence not only of the location of the discharge point but also of the sedimentary dynamics governed by the dominant effect of an easterly and southwesterly wave pattern and associated littoral currents. The analyses show that the metals and metalloids concentrations in the main tailings facies are significantly higher than those commonly found in other regions of the Mediterranean Sea. Within the top layer of sediments, which formed following the cessation of waste disposal, the concentration of metals and metalloids is less but still is significantly higher than background natural values prior to mining activities. This data, together with the numerical modeling of the concentrations and distribution of metals and metalloids in the uppermost layer of marine sediments (top 14 cm), evidences a persistent flow to the most recent sediments and the seafloor twenty-five years after the closure of mine waste discharge. Finally, the outcomes of this Thesis involve a significant improvement of the methodologies applied to the study of metal and metalloid fluxes to the marine coastal environment, and also on the determination and quantification of their concentrations and distributions. The major effort for methodological integration carried out in this Thesis has led to a better understanding of the processes controlling those fluxes and the ensuing contamination and pollution effects. We think that we have also proven that the integrated used of complementary methodologies is critical for improving environmental management programs and actions aimed at reducing the fluxes of anthropogenic metals and metalloids to the ocean and their deleterious effects on marine coastal ecosystems.

This thesis examines a crisis of governance in the Republic of South Africa (RSA), a crisis which threatens Constitutionally guaranteed intergenerational rights to water, meaning these rights are unlikely to be upheld. RSA's post-1994 Constitution incorporated a number of historically unparalleled human rights, based on fundamental principles of human dignity and equality. This includes the right to water resources for current and future generations - making RSA one of a few countries to enshrine intergenerational rights in law. Under law, Government acts as fiduciary trustee with duties to protect the water resources for current and future generations of citizens. The thesis asserts that influences of Emmanuel Kant, John Rawls and Edith Brown Weiss are reflected in the Constitution and subsequent laws. However, historical and on-going impacts from extractive industries in the province of Gauteng are negatively impacting upon intergenerational water rights. Acid mine drainage is an acidic wastewater produced as a by-product of mineral extraction - particularly gold. It is polluting ground- and surface-waters across the province. A lack of effective government response to this issue has meant that AMD is acting as a catalyst accelerating the country's already problematic governance processes to a crisis level. As it has no long-term management plan, the government is neglecting its intergenerational responsibilities and abrogating Constitutional purpose. This situation is exacerbated by multiple, often conflicting, understandings in different sectors of society of the significance of intergenerational equity, further reinforcing the governance crisis. Due to lack of government response, non-State agents, specifically the mining and financial sectors, are becoming increasingly involved in political decision-making and governance. This has positive short-term effects in ensuring that the rights of communities that were previously affected by water shortages and pollution are upheld. Yet there are potential serious long-term repercussions for democracy in RSA as a result: non-State actors are not best equipped to determine outcomes of governance, and this may result in procedures of deliberative democracy being contravened. Robert Dahl's theories inform this thesis's understanding of deliberative democracy. Consequently, although RSA's Constitution guarantees intergenerational equity in theory, it is hard to achieve in practice. This is due to the governance crisis that has been precipitated by acid mine drainage, so that intergenerational rights to water are an unlikely long-term outcome for this developing nation.

Defence date: 12 October 1998
Examining Board: Prof. dr. Adrienne Héritier (EUI, supervisor) ; Prof. Dr. Christer Jönsson (University of Lund) ; Prof. Dr. Gerd Junne (University of Amsterdam, external co-supervisor) ; Prof. Dr. Jan Zielonka (EUI)
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digitised archive of EUI PhD theses completed between 2013 and 2017
Marco Verweij presents a new and challenging theoretical framework within which to understand international relations, based on the cultural theory developed by Mary Douglas, Michael Thompson, Aaron Wildavsky, and others. By applying this framework in a detailed study of the environmental protection of the river Rhine in Western Europe and the Great Lakes of North America, he also contributes to a better understanding of how transboundary environmental problems have been, and can be, solved.

The failures of regional cooperation in Africa have been attributed to a number of factors ranging from the lack of political will and commitment by African governments to the role of weak institutions and enforcement mechanisms. These approaches to assessing cooperation focus on the internal versus external nexus of African politics. Regional joint-venture initiatives have the potential to resolve most of the pressing issues facing the continent such as energy security. Part of the energy security issue in Africa is the inadequate supply of and lack of access to electricity within sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore engaging the different sub-regional initiatives towards electricity security, this research employs the Stag Hunt Game theory to analyse regional cooperation emerges to mitigating the electricity access problem in the continent. This research report finds that the problem of cooperation does not simply lie in the lack of political will and commitment on the part of governments in Africa; there are other strategic issues concerned. Thus, an examination of two prominent power pools initiative namely the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) and the West African Power Pool (WAPP) helps to bring to the fore underlying issues that impact negatively on the success of cooperation. As a result, this research argues that regional ‘public good’ should not undermine national self-sufficiency rather; both initiatives should complement each other.

博士
國立交通大學
運輸科技與管理學系
100
Outdoor air pollution contributes to mortality and morbidity. In this dissertation, we estimated the impact of outdoor and traffic-related air pollution on public health in Taiwan. Attributable cases of morbidity and mortality and potential gain in life expectancy were estimated. Epidemiology-based concentration-response functions for a 10 μg/m3 increase in inhalable coarse particulate matter, i.e. PM10, and fine particulate matter, i.e. PM2.5, were used to quantify the effects of air pollution. For PM10, cases attributable to air pollution were estimated for mortality (adults ≥30 years), respiratory hospital admissions and cardiovascular hospital admissions (all ages). The traffic-related fraction was estimated based on Taiwan emission data system (TEDS) for PM10 emission inventories. For PM2.5, cases attributable to air pollution were estimated for all-cause mortality (adults ≥30 years), cardiopulmonary mortality (adults ≥30 years), and lung cancer (adults ≥30 years). We quantified the public health impact of long-term exposure to PM2.5 in terms of attributable number of deaths and the potential gain in life expectancy by reducing PM2.5 annual levels to 25 μg/m3, 20 μg/m3, 15 μg/m3, and 10 μg/m3. The results indicate that air pollution caused 18% of total mortality or more than 22,000 attributable cases for PM10 in 2007. More than half of all mortality caused by air pollution could be attributed to motor vehicle traffic, accounting also for 13,000 cases of mortality. 180,000 additional cases of chronic bronchitis, and 210,000 asthma attacks were found to be attributable to motor vehicle emissions. For PM2.5, when the guideline for PM2.5 long-term exposure was set at 25 μg/m3, we could prevent 2.6% of all-causes mortality or 3,600 deaths in 2010. The potential gain in life expectancy at age 30 of this reduction would increase by a range between one month and seven months. These health impact assessments estimate the public health impacts of recent patterns of air pollution. Although individual health risks of air pollution are relatively small, the public health consequences are considerable. Several limitations could affect health impact assessment estimates as sources of uncertainty and variability. However, even after taking the overall uncertainty of these assessments into account, we emphasize the need to consider outdoor air pollution and traffic-related air pollution as a widespread cause of impaired health. In a century moving toward sustainable development and health, closer collaboration of public health and environmental policies will improve the well-being. Our results show that air quality guidelines for PM10 should be tightened both in short-term and long-term. For PM2.5, especially for long-term exposure, should be adopted in Taiwan as soon as possible to protect public health.

The study investigated the causes of water pollution in Kliptown, an informal settlement 17km south of Johannesburg. The study further examined the impact of water pollution, sanitation and inadequate and low quality water provision on children’s social life, health and well-being in informal settlements. The subject of water pollution due to inadequate water supply and sanitation is one that brings a lot of debate, due to the overwhelming impacts it has on children’s social life as well as their health. In informal settlements, social impacts arising from inadequate water supply and sanitation such as the prevalence of water-related diseases like diarrhoea, skin rashes and eye infections have become a permanent feature. This study aimed at assessing the social impacts of water pollution in Kliptown’s Tamatievlei, Mandela View and Valentine Village informal settlements. It also looked at the factors that contribute to the social impacts of water pollution and propose recommendations on how to minimise the social impacts of water pollution on children in Kliptown’s informal settlements. The study applied a mixed method approach, utilising exploratory and descriptive questions to extrapolate both qualitative and quantitative data, which was also presented in quality and quantity form. Outcomes of the investigation indicated that diarrhoea is a major waterborne disease that affects children, mostly under-five years of age, in the informal settlements and that children sometimes missed school due to their being treated for diarrhoea and other water-related illnesses. It was also found that children lived in unhygienic conditions with smelling bucket system toilets and rotting garbage. The study established that children congregated for water at water points for long periods and in the process, they were deprived of time to take part in other social activities. The study recommends mitigating inadequate, low quality water supply, water pollution and sanitation in an integrated manner to gradually eliminate the negative social impacts on children’s social life, health and well-being in Kliptown informal settlement.
Environmental Science
M.Sc. (Environmental Management)

The eThekwini Municipality is facing two major challenges in controlling odorous emissions by various industries in the South Durban Basin; firstly, getting industry to manage their onsite odorous emissions and, secondly regulating these odorous emissions. This study focused on the Jacobs’s Industrial Complex (JIC) which comprises various industries releasing air emissions which impact on the local air quality. The impact of these emissions is supported by the number of odour complaints reported to the eThekwini Environmental Health Department by the public. Cleaner production (CP) is an integrated approach aimed at continuously reducing environmental impacts of processes, products and services through applying preventive approaches rather than controlling and managing pollution once it has been created. This dissertation has assessed the application of CP as a concept to prevent and reduce emissions of odours by industries in the JIC that are an impacting on the environment and neighbouring communities. Three CP case studies are analysed to demonstrate the applicability of the approach. These are a CP project for drum reprocessing company based in the South Durban Basin and two waste minimisation clubs which operated from 1998 to 2000 in Durban. The key findings, outcomes, experiences and lessons learnt from these case studies underpin the recommendation of an approach that can be applied by eThekwini Municipality to incorporate CP in the scheduled trade (ST) permitting of odour producing industries. This research has applied a multi-case study design implying both qualitative and quantitative approaches. A qualitative approach was used in the detailed analyses of case studies whilst the quantitative one was applied in the graphical analyses of the odour complaints statistics for the JIC. The study concludes by drawing two major recommendations from the lessons leant. Recommendation 1: The general CP strategy that can be applied by eThekwini Municipality in regulating, promoting, enforcing, monitoring and evaluating application of CP practices among stakeholders. The recommended objectives for the general strategy include: · Enforcement of uniform regulatory standards. · Development of a policy or guidelines. · Effective compliance monitoring and enforcement. · Develop a local Cleaner Production Centre (LCPC). · Ensure co-operative governance. · Provide adequate financial resources. · Monitoring and evaluation. Recommendation 2: Strategy for incorporating CP in the ST permitting of odour producing industries. It is recommended that the ST permit holder for an odour producing industry comply with the following: · Prioritisation of odour like the other priority pollutants. · Industry to perform an audit to map odour emitting areas. · Permit holder to development a CP based odour management plan. · Investigate possible CP projects that can be undertaken to prevent and mitigate odour emissions. · Incorporate an odour management plan into a 5 year environmental improvement plan. · Develop and appropriately manage an odour complaints management system. · Set odour management performance indicators and baselines for targets and reporting. · The permit holder should include odour management performance including odour complaints management in the annual report.
Thesis (M.Sc.Eng.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.

碩士
國立臺北科技大學
環境工程與管理研究所
97
Due to people who live in urban area have more opportunities to expose in air pollutants of high concentration and people have 80% time stay in door. This paper is to monitor the air quality and the exposed health risk appraisal by indoor outer space. Moreover, the study also compares AERMOD（AMS/EPA Regulatory Model, AERMOD） test for realizing the efficiency of people who expose in indoor outer space. As result, the paper to study and discuss the residents district affect by Stationary source (e.g. restaurant industry, oil station), and Mobile source including the air pollutants by vehicles (e.g. PM10, SO2, NO2, CO, and O3) in the school, communication and region of Taipei city, county. In addition, the improvement of air quality by control way and finally the study will use the Air Resources Co-Benefits Model, ARCoB in order to evaluate the average life of residents and the efficiency of medical expense by Relative risk of die and diseases.. The result shows that for the unit density of the air pollutant improvement 1 μg/m3 corresponds to increase life expectancy of the individual and reduce the medical expenditure shows that the improvement of PM10 has more benefits for health which explains PM10 is the most obvious health influence to the human body; CO can improvement the health of inhabitants for the smallest benefits because the Epidemiology studies Dose-Response Curve of CO shows that CO concentration originally is not high level. In addition, after improving the situation, the reaction to the human body health is not so obvious so after reducing the amount the health benefit is the worst.

To incorporate concepts of sustainable agriculture into policy formulation, and decision making for ecosystem management there is a need to integrate social, environmental and economic objectives. This thesis explores a Social Benchmarking model for achieving this integration. The social benchmarking methodology has been designed to respond to complex ecosystem problems that are caused by diffuse source pollution. It is a multimethodology approach that develops qualitative and quantitative data for measurement of change over time, combined with participative processes for identifying best practices and developing tools for providing information to decision makers. The philosophy behind the process is to actively acknowledge that each stakeholder has a vested interest in their own future and that they need credible information to enable them to reach agreement on future ecosystem issues. The research was conducted in seven coastal catchments in New South Wales, Australia between 1998 and 2003. The case study explores the issues raised by problems from acid sulfate soils. Oxidation of these soils causes acidification of soils and diffuse source pollution of water. It is relatively simple to treat at source, but there are multiple sources and entry points from private and public land. The impacts can be a lowering pH to less than 3, affecting water quality, biodiversity and downstream industries. This has resulted in conflict between the multiple stakeholders. Such environmental problems are challenging much of the orthodox thinking and effectiveness of policies. To achieve sustainable development, government agencies need to change their operational ideas away from purely efficient use to include environmentally and socially acceptable use of resources by multiple stakeholders. The key themes of this thesis are using a benchmarking system to provide feedback to industry groups and the role and relationship between human and social capital for participatory and evidence based policy development. How to align education and regulatory policies with best practice standards and incentives so that institutions support building adult skills and community capacity to change. Thus, this thesis develops social indicators of human and social capital for stakeholders associated with acid sulfate soils, along with environmental and economic indicators. The benchmarking system provided feedback to the industry groups (beef, cane, dairy and tea tree landholders) about where their industry was positioned relative to others in the industry, identified best practices and provided the mechanism for triple bottom line reporting. There are three reports within the scope this thesis. The first report ‘Farming community ideas about the way forward’ in 1998 described the industry, provided baseline data and introduces major issues, such as how there is considerable concern about developing a balance between education and regulation within stakeholder groups. Using participatory research to validate the survey results, the best management practices were identified. One industry, the sugar cane industry, was tackling managing acid sulfate soils and felt they were in control. This was due to their emphasis on building human and social capital. They had developed a soil sampling program and aligned their best practice standards and regulatory policies. The soil sampling program was investigated and guidelines developed to enable sharing of this knowledge in other industries. “Keys to Success” is best practices guidelines about how to sample for acid sulfate soils. The last report in the series “Four years on: What Changed?” looks at these same four industries and the changes that have occurred, while also exploring in more detail the policy implications including: Investing in adult education policies to increase adult skills over 4 years resulted in 25% increase in knowledge and behavioural change (sustainability performance indicators). Access to strong social capital, increases likelihood of life long learning and accounts for variation in human capital and behavioural change. Number of information resources accessed was highly correlated with positive attitude to behavioural change. Lack of equity between institutional and civil stakeholders undermines belief system and social capitals by causing conflict and loss of trust in institutions. These books form the basis of a social/sustainability reporting system, they also provided the basis of the communication strategy to build human capital within the stakeholder groups. One final contribution to the communication facet of this thesis is the proceedings from an OECD funded workshop, Agriculture and Ecosystems Management. These proceedings were aimed at policy and academic stakeholders and attempt to investigate the relationship between the divergent viewpoints held by social, environmental and economic researchers. Building human capital and thereby capacity of individuals and groups to move beyond agricultural production and to become natural resource managers requires alignment of policies and ongoing support and change in institutional thinking. Building strong social capital is the key to facilitating change particularly where collective action is required, but contradictory information and policies can rapidly undermine social capital. Within the context of the acid sulfate soils case study, results from this research indicate that communication of information about change in society through reporting mechanisms is an important facet of facilitating sustainable development that requires more attention in policy and institutional frameworks.