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Books > Earth & environment > The environment > Pollution & threats to the environment > General
Professionals in environmental health and safety (EHS) management use statistics every day in making decisions. This book was created to provide the quantitative tools and techniques necessary to make important EHS assessments. Readers need not be statistically or mathematically inclined to make the most of this book-mathematical derivations are kept to a minimum and subjects are approached in a simple and factual manner, complemented with plenty of real-world examples. Chapters 1-3 cover knowledge of basic statistical concepts such as presentation of data, measurements of location and dispersion, and elementary probability and distributions. Data gathering and analysis topics including sampling methods, sampling theory, testing, and interference as well as skills for critically evaluating published numerical material is presented in Chapters 4-6. Chapters 7-11 discuss information generation topics-regression and correlation analysis, time series, linear programming, network and Gnatt charting, and decision analysis-tools that can be used to convert data into meaningful information. Chapter 12 features six examples of projects made successful through statistical approaches being applied. Readers can use these approaches to solve their own unique problems. Whether you are a EHS professional, manager, or student, Health, Safety, and Environmental Data Analysis: A Business Approach will help you communicate statistical data effectively.
Plant-based is best for health, go vegan to help save the planet, eat less meat... Almost every day we are bombarded with the seemingly incontrovertible message that we must reduce our consumption of meat and dairy - or eliminate them from our diets altogether. But what if the pervasive message that the plant-based diet will improve our health and save the planet is misleading - or even false? What if removing animal foods from our diet is a serious threat to human health, and a red herring in the fight against climate change. In THE GREAT PLANT-BASED CON, Jayne Buxton demonstrates that each of these 'what-ifs' is, in fact, a reality. Drawing on the work of numerous health experts and researchers, she uncovers how the separate efforts of a constellation of individuals, companies and organisations are leading us down a dietary road that will have severe repercussions for our health and wellbeing, and for the future of the planet. THE GREAT PLANT-BASED CON is neither anti-plant nor anti-vegan - it is a call for us to take an honest look at the facts about human diets and their effect on the environment. Shocking and eye-opening, this book outlines everything you need to know to make more informed decisions about the food you choose to eat.
This title, first published in 1990, is intended to assess the impact of national environmental control policies on international trade and competitiveness in general, and, in particular, the impact of differential environmental control policies on the international trade and competiveness of the two industrialized nations, Germany and the United States. To assess the impact of differential environmental control policies on trade, this study applies a comparative analysis of the two countries.
This study, originally published in 1972, examines the connections between human society and the rest of the universe that are attributable to economic activity. These include the inputs from the environment to industry, such as oxygen, used in the combustion of mineral fuels. Also included are the industrial outputs which are fed back into the environment in the form of waste products. An attempt will be made to establish functional relations between the extent and character of economic activity and the flow of materials in both directions between the economy and the environment. This title will be of interest to students of environmental and natural resource economics.
First published in 1992. Why are environmental problems, problems? Usually, says Graham Bennett. because the interests of the polluter are incompatible with the preservation of the environment. A hunter of whales, no matter how concerned about their decline, will always need to kill again, and a government, no matter how worried about the effects of its polluting industry, will still fight to keep it going. In this fascinating book the author takes six examples as far apart as the Rhine and the Arctic, as Tennessee and the Gulf of Genoa, to illustrate his point. In doing so he shows up the dilemmas facing those who are fighting to improve matters. He demonstrates the degree of duplicity exercised by those in power in order to preserve their interests, but he also shows how often environmental problems emerge simply because of muddle. These riveting stories describe not just the well-known effects of pollution or environmental destruction, but the ways in which the problems arise and the circumstances and complexity of the questions to be resolved. Whatever the concern - the preservation of the Bowhead Whale, or dumping salt in the Rhine - this book is a must for every environmentalist.
This volume focuses on practical aspects of sustainable water management in urban areas and presents a discussion of key concepts, methodologies, and case studies of innovative and evolving technologies. Topics include: (1) challenges in urban water resiliency; (2) water and energy nexus; (3) integrated urban water management; and (4) water reuse options (black water, gray water, rainwater). This volume serves as a useful reference for students and researchers involved in holistic approaches to water management, and as a valuable guide to experts in governmental agencies as well as planners and engineers concerned with sustainable water management systems in urban environments.
State Responsibility for Transboundary Air Pollution in International Law systematically analyses the unique nature of problems that transboundary air pollution presents in international law. Although an attempt is made to present transboundary air pollution as a unified field, a distinction is made between pollution from industrial and related sources, and those from nuclear operations, given the very serious nature of risks that nuclear pollution presents. The book extensively considers existing regulatory frameworks as found in treaty regimes and non-binding instruments. The role as well as the shortcomings of traditional international law, especially the application of principles of state responsibility to problems involving multiple actors, and which cannot therefore be easily accommodated within the present bilateral framework of dispute resolution in international law is given extended treatment. The potential role of institutions charged with supervising compliance is also undertaken and the status of emergent principles is critically assessed. The issues examined in this book are of much contemporary relevance and will appeal to those interested in the legal aspects of transboundary air pollution as well as those concerned with the general issues surrounding the application of international law to environmental problems.
The inorganic and organic water constituents, often called color-producing agents (CPAs), responsible for water color are generally referred to as water quality parameters. Utilization of water color for assessment of water quality parameters can be achieved by using the established techniques in aquatic optics attained over many decades. Aquatic optics can be subdivided according to whether the natural water body is salty (marine), inland or fresh (limnological), or coastal (often brackish). The authors describe the transformation of water color under varying natural and anthropogenically-driven conditions and, for the first time in a quantitative manner, a closed circle of issues related to remote sensing of water quality in optically complex waters generally inherent to inland and marine coastal waters. Primarily, the text synthesizes the solutions of problems in remote sensing, incorporating mathematics, hydrobiology/hydochemistry, atmospheric optics and ecology.
How does pollution impact our daily quality of life? What are the effects of pollution on children's development? Why do industry and environmental experts disagree about what levels of pollutants are safe? This clearly written book, traces the debates over five key pollutants - lead, mercury, noise, pesticides, and dioxins and PCBs - and provides an overview of the history of each pollutant, basic research findings, and the scientific and regulatory controversies surrounding it. It focuses, in particular, on the impact of these pollutants on children's psychological development, their intellectual functioning, behaviour, and emotional states. Only by understanding the impact of pollution can we prevent future negative effects on quality of life and even pollution disasters from occurring. This volume will be of great interest to parents, child health care experts, public health officials, regulators, and health and environmental lawyers.
This book presents the results of the first full-scale emissions trading schemes in Australia and internationally, arguing these schemes will not be sufficient to 'civilize markets' and prevent dangerous climate change. Instead, it articulates the ways climate policy needs to confront the collective nature of our predicament.
Noise Control Management presents a system-wide management approach to the many noise-related problems that plague industrial settings. Students learn how to define noise problems and determine the feasibility of mitigating them. The text shows how to identify noise sources and set up priorities for dealing with the problems these sources create. Coverage includes a full range of noise control devices, from quiet equipment to barriers, enclosures, silencers, and other devices.
When federal and state governments battle over environmental regulations, whose approach should prevail? Shortly after passage of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments, a controversial U.S. EPA mandate led to an intense conflict between federal regulators and California politicians. The disagreement pitted EPA's required overhaul of auto inspections against California's desire to self-govern its test program - popularly called 'Smog Check.' The conflict nearly upended the Clean Air Act, and triggered dramatic policy shifts throughout the United States. Smog Check presents these struggles in first-hand detail. Eisinger, an EPA official at the time of this conflict, probes deeply into the issues and explores broader questions including: when does it become imperative for agencies to bargain with one another, when should regulatory flexibility and performance-based regulations be favored over command and control approaches, and what should be done when decisions need to be made in the face of scientific disagreement? The book also includes insightful commentary from other EPA participants in the Smog Check controversy. Smog Check's lessons will be relevant to climate change, air pollution control, and numerous other policy challenges.
Comparative analyses of social actors and policy outcomes in Bahia and Texas show the similarities and differences in the actors and the policies adopted in each case. As a result of historical and structural developments in Bahia and Texas, Cetrel operates under pollution-control standards and technologies for protecting the environment and workers that are similar to those of the GCA. This convergent trend is characterized as dependent convergence between developing and developed countries. The author makes recommendations for stronger international solidarity among progressive forces in developed and developing countries to promote preventive alternatives to pollution control.
This book discusses the sources, human health hazards and risk prevention strategies associated with aeolian dust particles (fine and ultrafine) in the atmosphere. It covers the challenges of accurately forecasting aeolian dust and the need to raise public awareness on the warning signs and harmful impacts of airborne dust. Also discussed is the presence of microorganisms, heavy metals and other pollutants in dust which contributes to harmful impacts on human health as well as management and treatment options for the various health issues that can result from exposure. The book is a useful resource for scientists, engineers and policymakers interested in dust and health.
Seawater desalination is a rapidly growing coastal industry that is increasingly threatened by algal blooms. Depending on the severity of algal blooms, desalination systems may be forced to shut down because of clogging and/or poor feed water quality. To maintain stable operation and provide good feed water quality to seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) systems, ultrafiltration (UF) pre-treatment is proposed. This research focused on assessing the ability of UF and other pre-treatment technologies to reduce biofouling in SWRO systems. An improved method to measure bacterial regrowth potential (BRP) was developed and applied at laboratory, pilot and full scale to assess the ability of conventional UF (150 kDa) and tight UF (10 kDa) alone and in combination with a phosphate adsorbent to reduce regrowth potential and delay the onset of biofouling in SWRO. The improved bacterial regrowth potential method employs a natural consortium of marine bacteria as inoculum and flow cytometry. The limit of detection of the BRP method was lowered to 43,000 +/- 12,000 cells/mL, which is equivalent to 9.3 +/- 2.6 g-Cglucose/L. The reduction in bacterial regrowth potential after tight UF (10 kDa) was 3 to 4 times higher than with conventional UF (150 kDa). It was further reduced after the application of a phosphate adsorbent, independent of pore size of the UF membrane. Pilot studies demonstrated that the application of tight UF (10 kDa) coupled with a phosphate adsorbent consistently lowered the bacterial regrowth potential and no feed channel pressure drop increase was observed in membrane fouling simulators (MFS) over a period of 21 days. The study also showed that non-backwashable fouling of UF membranes varied strongly with the type of algal species and the algal organic matter (AOM) they release. The presence of polysaccharide (stretching -OH) and sugar ester groups (stretching S=O) was the main cause of non-backwashable fouling. In conclusion, this study showed that an improved BRP method is suitable for the assessment of SWRO pre-treatment systems and it can be a useful tool to develop potential strategies to mitigate biofouling and improve the sustainability of SWRO systems.
The clock is relentlessly ticking! Our world teeters on a knife-edge between a peaceful and prosperous future for all, and a dark winter of death and destruction that threatens to smother the light of civilization. Within 30 years, in the 2030 decade, six powerful 'drivers' will converge with unprecedented force in a statistical spike that could tear humanity apart and plunge the world into a new Dark Age. Depleted fuel supplies, massive population growth, poverty, global climate change, famine, growing water shortages and international lawlessness are on a crash course with potentially catastrophic consequences. In the face of both doomsaying and denial over the state of our world, Colin Mason cuts through the rhetoric and reams of conflicting data to muster the evidence to illustrate a broad picture of the world as it is, and our possible futures. Ultimately his message is clear; we must act decisively, collectively and immediately to alter the trajectory of humanity away from catastrophe. Offering over 100 priorities for immediate action, The 2030 Spike serves as a guidebook for humanity through the treacherous minefields and wastelands ahead to a bright, peaceful and prosperous future in which all humans have the opportunity to thrive and build a better civilization. This book is powerful and essential reading for all people concerned with the future of humanity and planet earth.
The book compiles an update information about the state of bioremediation in emerging Latin American countries. Some of the studied regions are sites that suffered decades of pollution by agrochemicals, heavy metals and industrial waste due to the lack of control by government regulations. Such is the case of Northern Argentina, where were illegally deposited over 30 tn of obsolete organochlorine pesticides in 1994. The content has focused in the use of native organisms (from bacteria to plants) as a viable solution to the problem of pollution, using low-cost and powerful techniques, socially well accepted and appropriate from the environmental point of view. In this context, levels of pesticide found in the Latin American population are informed. It was also displayed as a multidisciplinary approach based on concerns of a diverse group of researchers (biochemists, biologists, chemical engineers and geneticists) about a global problem, dealing with specific cases of study, with a view to project their findings to worldwide. In this regard, researchers provide their findings to regulatory sectors, whom could make appropriate decisions.
This book reviews comprehensively the opportunities and responsibilities of science, society and politics to combat plastic pollution in marine and freshwaters. It provides insights on what information is needed, and from whom, and it outlines policies proposed by various institutions including OSPAR, HELCOM and the European Union. Plastic waste has become a global threat to the aquatic environment that does not stop at country borders. Meanwhile, there are many efforts in science, industry, commerce and governments to tackle the problem worldwide. School education, NGO public actions, voluntary trade reduction measures, governmental management options and governmental regulatory actions are part of the portfolio of efforts to deal with the problem. Together with the companion volume Plastics in the Aquatic Environment - Part I: Current Status and Challenges, it provides scientists, policymakers and environmental managers with essential reference information on how this problem is being solved, what challenges and barriers are expected and how they can be overcome.
This book discusses bioavailability concepts and methods, summarizing the current knowledge on bioavailability science, as well as possible pathways for integrating bioavailability into risk assessment and the regulation of organic chemicals. Divided into 5 parts, it begins with an overview of chemical distribution in soil and sediment, as well as the bioavailability and bioaccumulation of chemicals in plants, soil, invertebrates and vertebrates (including humans). It then focuses on the impact of sorption processes and reviews bioavailability measurement methods. The closing chapters discuss the impact of bioavailability studies on chemical risk assessment, and highlights further research needs. Written by a multi-disciplinary team of authors, it is an essential resource for scientists in academia and industry, students, as well as for authorities.
With increasing population and industrialization, our negative impact on our environment is no longer limited to coastal and surface waters or to urban air; it is necessary to examine the movement of chemical pollutants over vastly greater areas. Oceans, deep groundwater aquifers, and even the stratosphere are significantly affected. The mechanisms by which pollutants reach these areas, how they migrate and are transformed through physical and biochemical processes, and their ultimate effects are the topics at the forefront of environmental science. This volume addresses the fate of chemical pollutants in our air, water, and soil. The result of a historic collaboration between eminent Russian and American scientists, Fate of Pesticides and Chemicals in the Environment contains new predictive models of transport and transformation from many of the leading scientists in this area of research. Numerous informative chapters analyze the biotransformation of organic chemicals and pesticides, atmospheric deposition of toxic pollutants in the Great Lakes and elsewhere, the transport of volatile organic compounds and pesticide residues through surface soil, and many other important problems in the field. The sources and pathways of pollutants into all areas of the environment are thoroughly explored; the role of free radicals in chemical transformations, surface and bottom sediment redox reactions in water, the contribution of microbial degradation, and considerations for in situ biorestoration are just a few of the complex issues addressed. The book also contains comprehensive information on pesticide labeling laws and groundwater protection which will be of interest to all soil and waterchemists and environmental engineers.
Non-Exhaust Emissions: An Urban Air Quality Problem for Public Health comprehensively summarizes the most recent research in the field, also giving guidance on research gaps and future needs to evaluate the health impact and possible remediation of non-exhaust particle emissions. With contributions from some of the major experts and stakeholders in air quality, this book comprehensively defines the state-of-the-art of current knowledge, gaps and future needs for a better understanding of particulate matter (PM) emissions, from non-exhaust sources of road traffic to improve public health. PM is a heterogeneous mix of chemical elements and sources, with road traffic being the major source in large cities. A significant part of these emissions come from non-exhaust processes, such as brake, tire, road wear, and road dust resuspension. While motor exhaust emissions have been successfully reduced by means of regulation, non-exhaust emissions are currently uncontrolled and their importance is destined to increase and become the dominant urban source of particle matter by 2020. Nevertheless, current knowledge on the non-exhaust emissions is still limited. This is an essential book to researchers and advanced students from a broad range of disciplines, such as public health, toxicology, atmospheric sciences, environmental sciences, atmospheric chemistry and physics, geochemistry, epidemiology, built environment, road and vehicle engineering, and city planning. In addition, European and local authorities responsible for air quality and those in the industrial sectors related to vehicle and brake manufacturing and technological remediation measures will also find the book valuable.
Forty years after the publication of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, this important study examines the history, industrial uses, and harmful effects of the twelve most commonly used organochloride chemicals. All have been fully or partially banned by the Stockholm Protocol, an international treaty signed by about 120 countries in December 2000. Among the twelve are the dioxins (the active ingredient in Agent Orange) and polychlorinated byphenyls (PCBs), which are toxic in minute quantities. Johansen pays special attention to the Inuit of the Arctic, where these chemicals have been bio-accumulating to dangerous levels, moving up the food chain to a degree of toxicity that some Inuit mothers are no longer able to safely breast-feed their infants. The polar stratospheric ozone has been devastated by emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), and new scientific findings connect global warming near the Earth's surface to significant cooling in the stratosphere. This synergy aggravates ozone depletion because the chemical reactions that destroy the ozone become more energetic as temperatures drop. Synthetic toxins have taken their toll on minority ethnic groups in the United States, and persistent organic pollutants have inflicted physiological damage on humans and other animals. Finally, Johansen explores the estrogenic effects of such chemicals. Sperm counts have declined as much as 50% in 50 years.
'Beautiful, like a muddy journey through time . . . a really important book' RAYNOR WINN, author of The Salt Path Lisa Woollett has spent her life combing beaches and mudlarking, collecting curious fragments of the past: from Roman tiles and Tudor thimbles, to Victorian buttons and plastic soldiers. In a series of walks from the Thames, out to the Kentish estuary and eventually to Cornwall, she traces the history of our rubbish and, through it, reveals the surprising story of our changing consumer culture. Timely and beautifully written, Rag and Bone shows what we can learn from what we've thrown away and urges us to think more about what we leave behind.
This book provides essential information on the role of phytonanotechnology in the removal of environmental pollutants and covers recent advances in experimental and theoretical studies on plant-derived nanoparticles. It also discusses their current and potential applications and challenges.The combination of nanotechnology and phytoremediation, which is called phytonanotechnology, have the potential to remove contaminants from the environment or degrade them. The efficiency of contaminant removal can be improved by combining both methods as they are complementary to each other.Phytonanotechnology offers the advantages of increased bioavailability, prolongation of heavy metal absorption time, and multiple metal removal, all contributing to improved efficacy and decreased toxicity in plants and surroundings. Therefore, there is immense scope for nature-derived molecules to be formulated into nanotechnology-based phytoremediation approaches targeting the specific heavy metal removal from effluents and surroundings. This encourages research initiatives to synthesize more phytonanotechnology based uptake plant systems with high efficiency. Efficient formulation targeting strategies and the evaluation of targeting efficiency of phytonanotechnology, conforming to international standards of their toxicology and biocompatibility, could pave the way for heavy metal uptake and removal by plant-based systems.This book serves as a valuable resource for postgraduate students, environmental scientists and materials scientists in academia and corporate research.
Control of waterborne disease is a multi-disciplinary function relying on co-operation between engineers, public health professionals, toxicologists, environmental health officials and other professionals. With this in mind, Waterborne Disease: Ecology and Epidemiology provides a comprehensive overview of waterborne-related health problems for all such professionals with an interest in this significant world-wide problem. Each chapter follows a logical structure, focusing upon a specific disease group and presenting a detailed and authoritative examination of a given pathogen's microbiology, clinical aspects and diagnosis. Chapters also review the distribution of each pathogen in the aquatic environment and discuss outbreaks and sporadic disease from microbiological, epidemiological and water supply perspectives. With increasing awareness of environmental problems throughout the world, this unique volume provides timely and invaluable reading for medical practitioners, environmental health officers, public health professionals, water quality engineers, scientists and environmental regulators. |
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