This book describes the vast variety of xenobiotics, such as pesticides, antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes, agrochemicals and other pollutants, their interactions with the soil environment, and the currently available strategies and techniques for soil decontamination and bioremediation. Topics covered include: transport mechanisms of pollutants along the Himalayas; use of earthworms in biomonitoring; metagenomic strategies for assessing contaminated sites; xenobiotics in the food chain; phyto-chemical remediation; biodegradation by fungi; and the use of enzymes and potential microbes in biotransformation. Accordingly, the book offers a valuable guide for scientists in the fields of environmental ecology, soil and food sciences, agriculture, and applied microbiology.

This book provides extensive and comprehensive knowledge to the researchers/academics who are working in the field of cesium contaminated sites, and the impact on plants. This book is also helpful for graduate and undergraduate students who are specializing in radioecology or safe disposal of radioactive waste, remediation of legacies and the impact on the environment. Radiocesium (137Cs and 134Cs) was released into the environment as a result of nuclear weapons testing in 1950s and 1960s (~1x1018 Bq), and later due to the Chernobyl accident in 1986 (8.5x1016 Bq) and Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in 2011 (~1x1017 Bq). 137Cs is still of relevance due to its half-life of 30 years. The study of radioisotope 137Cs is important, as production and emission rates are high compared to other radioisotopes, due to high fission yield and high volatility. This book contains original work and reviews on how cesium is released into the environment on translocation from soil to plants and further on to animals and into the human food chain. Separate chapters focus on the effective half-life of cesium in plants and on how different cultivars are responding in accumulation of cesium. Other key chapters focus on cesium impact on single cells to higher plants and also on remediation measures as well as on basic mechanism used for remedial options and analysis of transfer factors. The book rounds off by contributions on cesium uptake and translocation and its toxicity in plants after the Chernobyl and Fukushima accidents.

This volume provides in-depth coverage of the latest in remote sensing of hydrological extremes: both floods and droughts. The book is divided into two distinct sections - floods and droughts - and offers a variety of techniques for monitoring each. With rapid advances in computer modelling and observing systems, floods and droughts are studied with greater precision today than ever before. Land surface models, especially over the entire Continental United States, can map the hydrological cycle at kilometre and sub-kilometre scales. In the case of smaller areas there is even higher spatial resolution and the only limiting factor is the resolution of input data. In-situ sensors are automated and the data is directly relayed to the world wide web for many hydrological variables such as precipitation, soil moisture, surface temperature and heat fluxes. In addition, satellite remote sensing has advanced to providing twice a day repeat observations at kilometre to ten-kilometre spatial scales. We are at a critical juncture in the study of hydrological extremes, and the GPM and SMAP missions as well as the MODIS and GRACE sensors give us more tools and data than were ever available before. A global variety of chapter authors provides wide-ranging perspectives and case studies that will make this book an indispensable resource for researchers, engineers, and even emergency management and insurance professionals who study and/or manage hydrological extremes.

This book focuses on the development of wellness protocols for smart home monitoring, aiming to forecast the wellness of individuals living in ambient assisted living (AAL) environments. It describes in detail the design and implementation of heterogeneous wireless sensors and networks as applied to data mining and machine learning, which the protocols are based on. Further, it shows how these sensor and actuator nodes are deployed in the home environment, generating real-time data on object usage and other movements inside the home, and therefore demonstrates that the protocols have proven to offer a reliable, efficient, flexible, and economical solution for smart home systems. Documenting the approach from sensor to decision making and information generation, the book addresses various issues concerning interference mitigation, errors, security and large data handling. As such, it offers a valuable resource for researchers, students and practitioners interested in interdisciplinary studies at the intersection of wireless sensing processing, radio communication, the Internet of Things and machine learning, and in how they can be applied to smart home monitoring and assisted living environments.

This book represents an important new contribution to the literature that presents practical and comprehensive solutions to mining activities. Its timely content has been prepared by several experts from around the world and its practical format addresses the major environmental predictive techniques required for the extraction and processing of metal resources. Packed with reviews and case studies, it covers current methods used to forecast environmental effects of metal mining.

This book offers an up-to-date overview of the concepts, modeling, technical and technological details and practical applications of different types of sensors, and discusses the trends of next generation of sensors and systems for environmental and food engineering. This book is aimed at researchers, graduate students, academics and industry professionals working in the field of environmental and food engineering, environmental monitoring, precision agriculture and food quality control.

This book presents the most important ideas behind Bayes' Rule in a form suitable for the general reader. It is written without formulae because they are not necessary; the ability to add and multiply is all that is needed. As well as showing in full the application of Bayes' Rule to some quantitatively simple, though not trivial, examples, the book also convincingly demonstrates that some familiarity with Bayes' Rule is helpful in thinking about how best to structure one's thinking.

Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology attempts to provide concise, critical reviews of timely advances, philosophy and significant areas of accomplished or needed endeavor in the total field of xenobiotics, in any segment of the environment, as well as toxicological implications.

Providing a detailed examination of climate negotiations records since the 1990s, this book shows that, in addition to agreeing on climate policy frameworks, the negotiations process is of crucial importance to success. Shedding light on the dynamics of international climate policymaking, its respective chapters explore key milestones such as the Kyoto Protocol, Marrakech Accords, Cancun Agreement and Doha Framework. The book identifies a minimum of three conditions that need to be fulfilled for successful climate negotiations: the negotiations need to reflect the fact that climate change calls for global solutions; the negotiation process must be flexible, including multiple trajectories and several small steps; and decisive tactical maneuvers need to be made, as much can depend on, for example, personalities and the negotiating atmosphere. With regard to the design of an international climate policy regime, the main challenge presented has been the inability to agree on globally supported greenhouse gas emission reduction measures. The book offers an excellent source of information for researchers, policymakers and advisors alike.

This book investigates elementary processes in the Earth's atmosphere involving photons, electrons, ions, radicals, and aerosols. It is based on global atmospheric models such as the standard atmospheric model with averaged atmospheric parameters across the globe and over time, the Earth's energetic balance, and the global electric circuit that allows to analyze fundamental atmospheric properties to be analyzed. Rate constants of elementary processes in the Earth's atmosphere, together with measured atmospheric parameters and existing concepts of atmospheric phenomena, are used in the analysis of global and local atmospheric processes. Atmospheric photoprocesses result from the interaction of solar radiation with the atmosphere and processes involving ions, oxygen atoms, excited atomic particles and ozone molecules. Atmospheric electricity as a secondary phenomenon to atmospheric water circulation results in a chain of processes that begins with collisions of water aerosols in different aggregate states. Cosmic rays are of importance for atmospheric electricity, as they create positive and negative ions in the air. Air breakdown in an electric field of clouds in the form of lightning may develop under the influence of cosmic ray-created seed electrons, which are necessary for electron multiplication in ionization wave-streamers. The upper atmosphere (ionosphere) is formed under solar radiation in a vacuum ultraviolet spectrum, and absorption of this radiation leads to air photoionization. The greenhouse effect is determined by atmospheric water, whereas transitions between a water vapor and aerosols may lead to a change in atmospheric optical depth. Carbon dioxide contributes in small portions to the atmospheric greenhouse effect. Cosmic rays are of importance for atmospheric discharge, the origin of lightning and cloud formation in the first stage of aerosol growth. This book provides a qualitative description of atmospheric properties and phenomena based on elementary processes and simple models.

This book, designed as a handbook, provides a systematic treatment of analytical solutions describing groundwater flow during aquifer tests. The book integrates the majority of known solutions from well hydraulics and subsurface flow theory, starting with pioneering work from the early 20th century up to the most recent publications in scientific journals. The book includes about 300 transient solutions covering a wide range of aquifer test scenarios and hydrogeological conditions. All the solutions have been thoroughly tested and implemented in the multifunctional ANSDIMAT software. The book comprises three parts and is supplemented by appendices. The first part of the book is dedicated to basic analytical relationships referring to pumping tests with constant discharge rate. Conceptual models describe confined, unconfined, confined-unconfined, inhomogeneous, and fracture-porous aquifers, as well as leaky aquifers and multi-layer aquifer systems. Complicating factors such as flow boundaries, aquifer anisotropy, non-uniform aquifer thickness, partial well penetration, wellbore storage and skin, the effect of capillary forces are also considered. The second part focuses on complex pumping test settings and well system configurations. Analytical solutions are presented for pumping from a horizontal or inclined well, constant-head tests, multi-well variable-discharge tests, simultaneous pumping from adjacent aquifers and dipole flow tests. Detailed descriptions are given for slug and recovery tests. The third part of the book contains algorithms for evaluating hydraulic characteristics using analytical and graphical methods, and is supplemented by the ANSDIMAT tool. This software includes solutions for some practical engineering-hydrogeological problems, in particular, the assessment of aquifer characteristics by data on groundwater level monitoring and the evaluation of water inflow into open pits. The book is supplemented with appendices in which hydrogeologists can find a vast body of useful information including mathematical descriptions of the majority of analytical functions used in the book, their plots and possible approximations. Audience: The book is useful for hydrogeologists (students, engineers and researchers) engaged in groundwater flow studies, aquifer test analysis, environmental geologists and civil engineers. Experts in water flow numerical modeling and programmers developing software for aquifer tests will find valuable information in this book, which can also be used for educational and research purposes.

This book offers comprehensive information on the developments and applications of the solid phase microextraction (SPME) technique. The first part of the book briefly introduces readers to the fundamentals of SPME, while subsequent sections describe the applications of SPME technique in detail, including environmental analysis (air, water, soil/sediments), food analysis (volatile/nonvolatile compounds), and bioanalysis (plants, animal tissues, body fluids). The advantages and future challenges of the SPME technique are also discussed. Including recent research advances and further developments of SPME, the book offers a practical reference guide and a valuable resource for researchers and users of SPME techniques. The target audience includes analytical chemists, environmental scientists, biological scientists, material scientists, and analysts, as well as students at universities/institutes in related fields. Dr. Gangfeng Ouyang is a Professor at the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, China. Dr. Ruifen Jiang is an Associate Professor at the School of Environment, Jinan University, China.

After the perceived failure of global approaches to tackling climate change, enthusiasm for local climate initiatives has blossomed world-wide, suggesting a more experimental approach to climate governance. Innovating Climate Governance: Moving Beyond Experiments looks critically at climate governance experimentation, focusing on how experimental outcomes become embedded in practices, rules and norms. Policy which encourages local action on climate change, rather than global burden-sharing, suggests a radically different approach to tackling climate issues. This book reflects on what climate governance experiments achieve, as well as what happens after and beyond these experiments. A bottom-up, polycentric approach is analyzed, exploring the outcomes of climate experiments and how they can have broader, transformative effects in society. Contributions offer a wide range of approaches and cover more than fifty empirical cases internationally, making this an ideal resource for academics and practitioners involved in studying, developing and evaluating climate governance.

This book highlights the importance of human behaviour in the building design process, with a focus on the construction of zero-energy buildings. It reports on and discusses the strategies the authors have adopted to develop behavioural models, and explains how to integrate them into building design. The analyses and findings presented in the book are supported by novel experimental data derived from building monitoring projects carried out by the authors' research group. Further, the book suggests key methodologies and modelling approaches. The authors subsequently address occupants' behaviour in zero-energy buildings from an energy perspective. They investigate many different aspects of the interactions between users and buildings devices, from assessing the triggering factors of occupants' behaviours, to discussing modelling and simulation approaches. Methods for acquiring and analysing experimental data are presented, as well as a discussion on objective and subjective factors that trigger occupants' behaviour. Other content includes: experimental investigations from real case studies to assess occupants' interaction with building devices; an assessment of the driving factors that trigger human actions to identify the key parameters in the behavioural models; and critical suggestions on monitoring and modelling approaches to optimise data acquisition and modelling methods. The guidelines presented here will allow designers and researchers to improve the accuracy of their simulations of buildings energy performance, and support both building design and management processes. It will be of particular use to researchers involved in the development of behavioural models, as it presents experimental data and a comprehensive overview of behavioural modelling. The book will also be of interest to students who are studying the behavioural component of integrated building design.

The past few decades have witnessed remarkable growth in the application of passive seismic monitoring to address a range of problems in geoscience and engineering, from large-scale tectonic studies to environmental investigations. Passive seismic methods are increasingly being used for surveillance of massive, multi-stage hydraulic fracturing and development of enhanced geothermal systems. The theoretical framework and techniques used in this emerging area draw on various established fields, such as earthquake seismology, exploration geophysics and rock mechanics. Based on university and industry courses developed by the author, this book reviews all the relevant research and technology to provide an introduction to the principles and applications of passive seismic monitoring. It integrates up-to-date case studies and interactive online exercises, making it a comprehensive and accessible resource for advanced students and researchers in geophysics and engineering, as well as industry practitioners.

This book provides sound conceptual understanding of the current approach to management and decision making regarding geo-based challenges in developing countries that tend to suffer from information poverty and subjectivity and are reactive. The book also provides the necessary technical tools to energize research thinking and develop locally driven practical and sustainable solutions, ultimately moving management and decision making from being reactive to being proactive. This book fills a void as there are no published books to show the way forward or to present real case studies for this purpose. Case studies that utilize new technologies and scientific thinking are presented for developing sustainable management options based either on producing local applied research or on utilising relevant international research. These case studies are based on the author's first-hand experiences in arid/semi-arid (Iraq, Tunisia, Morocco and Jordan), temperate (UK) and tropical environments (Malaysia, the Caribbean region, Indonesia and Australia).

The subjects refer to histories of ancient and modern use of seacoasts; possible macro-projects capable of massive changes in the coastlines of the Dead Sea, Red Sea and Persian Gulf caused by canal and massively scaled hydropower dam installations; relevant macro-projects for the Black Sea and Baltic Sea; possibilities of refreshment of the Aral Sea and Iran's Lake Uremia with seawater or river freshwater importation macro-projects; potential rehabilitation of some vital arid zone regions now dominated by moving or movable surface granular materials using unique and unusual macro-projects; seawater flooding of land regions situated below present-day global sea-level; harnessing energy and obtaining freshwater from the world's salt-laden ocean by modern industrial means; various macro-projects designed specifically for the protection (reduction of vulnerability) of particular Earth geographical regions.

This book is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license. This book reports on the results of an extended survey conducted across Europe within the framework of the APPRAISAL FP7 project to determine the extent to which an integrated assessment approach to air quality is being adopted, on the one hand, by regional and local authorities to develop air quality plans and, on the other, by researchers. Following a detailed analysis of the role and structure of the components of an integrated assessment study, the results of the survey are considered from a variety of perspectives. Above all, the book discusses the new light the survey sheds on emission abatement policies and measures planned at regional and local scales, and on their synergies/trade-offs with measures implemented at the national scale. Detailed consideration is given to the currently available modeling methodologies for identifying emission sources, assessing the effectiveness of emission reduction measures, and evaluating the impacts of emission abatement measures on human health. Current strengths and weaknesses revealed by the survey are explored, and the application of an integrated assessment tool in two case studies (in Brussels and Porto) is discussed. The book will appeal to all those interested in the use of integrated assessment in connection with the sources, effects and control of air pollution.

This monograph provides a field-proven approach to analyze industrial production with a cross-company scope as well as regarding all hierarchical system levels of manufacturing enterprises. The book exemplifies this approach in the context of aluminum die casting, and presents a set of measures which allow a 30 percent energy reduction along the value chain. The target audience primarily comprises researchers and experts in the field but the book may also be beneficial for graduate students.

The book embodies the detailed account about unique symbionts i.e. LICHENS in ecosystem monitoring. The first chapter deals with unique characteristics features of lichens which facilitate their survival in extreme climates and makes them an ideal organism for ecosystem monitoring. Biosynthesis of secondary metabolites are known to protect lichens against increasing environmental stresses therefore second chapter provides insight into various chromatographic and modern spectroscopic techniques involved in separation and characterization of lichen substances. The third chapter elaborates the criteria for selection of biomonitoring species and characters of host plant that influences lichen diversity and details about different lichen species utilized for biomonitoring. One can retrieve preliminary information about the air quality based on the lichen community structure and distribution of bioindicator species as lichen communities/indicator species provides valuable information about the natural/anthropogenic induced changes in the microclimate and land-use changes due to human activity. Therefore, for identification of species, a key to genera and species provides concise information to identify the lichen species based on their morphological and anatomical characters and chemicals present. Keys provided in Chapter 4 will help the beginners to identify some common lichen species based on the distribution in different climatic zones of India. The section also provides comprehensive information about the bioindicator communities and bioindicator species from India. Chapter 5 provides the details of factors affecting the ecosystem (natural as well as anthropogenic disturbances) and role of lichens in ecosystem monitoring in India has been discussed in detail. Chapter 6 discusses the need and utility of indicator species especially lichen biomonitoring data in sustainable forest management and conservation. The content about lichens in biomonitoring will be a valuable resource for researchers from different fields and will provide an essential reference for people interested in lichens and its role in ecosystem monitoring. The book will also hopefully popularize lichenological studies in India and will generate more active participation of lichen biomonitoring studies in management and conservation of natural resources in India.

The book deals primarily with the aspects like energy resources and its proper utilization, disposal of various forms of wastes and its effects and effects of major catastrophic events like nuclear disasters, global warming, etc. It also deals with the choice of suitable disposal sites for solid and hazardous waste, which is growing at an extremely rapid pace due to rapid industrialization, population growth (primarily in countries like India and China) and urbanization. In addition groundwater contamination due to various causes and its effect on the food chain is also amply discussed. The book is specifically aimed with the state-of-art information regarding research and development in these areas of study, coupled to extensive modelling and case based results obtained, both from India as well as other countries. The book is extremely instructive for the students, research workers, scientists, faculty members in Applied Physics, Solid Earth Geophysics, Radiometric Methods and Exploration, Ground Water Geochemistry, Mathematical Modeling Techniques in Earth Sciences, Near Surface Geophysics and Earth and Environmental Sciences.

This book presents an analysis of land and water resources in Siberia, initially characterizing the landscapes, their ecosystems, crucial processes, human impacts on soil and water quality, and the status quo of available research. Further chapters deal with modern monitoring and management methods that can lead to a significant knowledge shift and initiate sustainable soil and water resources use. These include soil hydrological laboratory measurement methods; process-based field evaluation methods for land and water quality; remote sensing and GIS technology-based landscape monitoring methods; process and ecosystem modeling approaches; methods of resource and process evaluation and functional soil mapping; and tools for controlling agricultural land use systems. More than 15 of these concrete monitoring and management tools can immediately be incorporated into research and practice. Maintaining the functions of great landscapes for future generations will be the reward for these efforts.

This book provides essential background knowledge on a wide range of hydrological processes governing contaminant transport from soil to surface water across a range of scales, from hillslope to watershed. The mathematical description of these processes is based on both well-known and unique analytical solutions of different initial and boundary problems (primarily using methods from the kinematic wave theory and the reservoir/lumped-parameter concept), supported by numerical modelling studies. Some research topics, in particular several case studies, are illustrated by monitoring and experimental data analysis to show the importance of the research's applications in environmental practice and environmental education. Specific results concern the recognition of: (a) the effect of transient rainfall-runoff-infiltration partitioning on the chemical response of drainage areas to excess precipitation under certain field conditions related to the soil, hillslope characteristics, and contaminant properties; (b) soil erosion as a key factor that enhances the potential of adsorbed chemical transport in runoff; and (c) common tendencies in radionuclide behaviour in the near-surface environment contaminated by radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl (1986), Fukushima (2011) and the less known Kyshtym (1957) accidents, as well as from nuclear weapon tests in the atmosphere since 1952. The book's goal is to provide a conceptual foundation enabling readers to apply scientific knowledge to solve practical problems in environmental hydrology and radiology. More specifically, the book presents the state-of-the-art approaches that scientists and natural resources experts need in order to significantly improve the prediction of changes in the soil-water system chemistry due to human activities.

In The Earth as a Distant Planet, the authors become external observers of our solar system from a distance and try to determine how one can understand how Earth, the third in distance to the central star, is essentially unique and capable of sustaining life. The knowledge gained from this original perspective is then applied to the search for other planets outside the solar system, or exoplanets. Since the discovery in 1992 of the first exoplanet, the number of planet detections has increased exponentially and ambitious missions are already being planned for the future. The exploration of Earth and the rest of the rocky planets are Rosetta stones in classifying and understanding the multiplicity of planetary systems that exist in our galaxy. In time, statistics on the formation and evolution of exoplanets will be available and will provide vital information for solving some of the unanswered questions about the formation, as well as evolution of our own world and solar system. Special attention is paid to the biosignatures (signs of life) detectable in the Earth's reflected spectra and the search for life in the universe. The authors are experts on the subject of extrasolar planets. They provide an introductory but also very much up-to-date text, making this book suitable for researchers and for advanced students in astronomy and astrophysics.

This thesis presents an impressive summary of the potential to use passive seismic methods to monitor the sequestration of anthropogenic CO2 in geologic reservoirs. It brings together innovative research in two distinct areas - seismology and geomechanics - and involves both data analysis and numerical modelling. The data come from the Weyburn-Midale project, which is currently the largest Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) project in the world. James Verdon's results show how passive seismic monitoring can be used as an early warning system for fault reactivation and top seal failure, which may lead to the escape of CO2 at the surface.