Packaging plays a major role in the environmental footprints of products from any industrial sector, and thus is important to address the sustainability issues of packaging. Packaging and the packaging sector have to be eco-conscious as there are many types of packaging across various industrial sectors and so are their environmental impacts as well. Plastic packaging is one of the most common element and the packaging sector accounts for almost 40% of plastic pollution in the world. Sustainable packaging is the only way forward to alleviate the environmental devastations from the the packaging sector. This book presents case studies and discusses how to make packaging more sustainable for a better future.

A very good piece of work, I assure you, and a merry. -Now, good Peter Quince, call forth your actors by the scroll. -Masters, spread yourselves. A Midsummer Night's Dream. Act 1, Sc. 2 This volume is the outcome of a NATO Advanced Study Institute held in August 1979 at Bishop's University, Lennoxville, Quebec, Canada. About 130 participants from all the countries of the aJiiance as well as India and Japan attended this event which lasted two weeks. Seventeen of these participants had been invited to present reviews of chosen topics, usually in their specialty. This book is constituted mainly of these presentations, which were prepared as chapters. In addition, six of the participants, whose seminars were found to complement the main chapters, were coopted by the invited lectures/authors to provide additional chapters. Although a lecture was given on electric fields, a chapter on this matter is unfortunately absent due to the lack of preparation time. One may say that Environmental Physiology of Fishes as a discipline originated in Canada. Having been involved as a teacher and worker in this field since 19 54, it was but natural that I was tempted to organise an ASI and get a volume out on the matter. I was encouraged by discussions with colleagues and the acceptance on the part of a large number of eminent colleagues to attend the ASI, deliver lectures and write chapters.

This book focuses on the development of DGT (diffusive gradients in thin films) and the related techniques for measuring and investigating the geochemical process and P transfer across the sediment/water or sediment/root interface in lakes. A series of DGT techniques such as new types of probes, test methods in sediment or the rhizosphere, DIFS (DGT induced fluxes in sediments and soils) model for kinetic P exchange, CID (computer imaging densitometry) for S(-II), and microchelex gel/LA-ICP-MS (laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry) have been developed. The corresponding chapters on the theory and methodology of DGT, the "internal P loading" or P transfer across sediment/root in two lakes, provide insights into the research method and conclusions, including the P release mechanism, the quantification of "internal P loading", kinetic P exchange in DGT/sediment interface, Fe- or S(-II)-microniches at submillimeter scales in sediments for the prediction of P release, and DGT as a surrogate for the prediction of P uptake by roots. It also offers new perspectives in the fields of P analysis and P process in micro-interfaces in lakes using DGT techniques. The P remobilization from Fe-bound P, the coupled Fe-S(-II)-P geochemical reaction and algae biomass breakdown causing P release, are elucidated using DGT methods in sediment layers. DGT parameters and curves for time or distance derived from DIFS can be used to assess kinetic P release in the sediment microzone. CID and LA-ICP-MS methods deliver Fe- and S(-II) images at submillimeter scales, which can be used for the quantification of flux related to microniche peaks and the prediction of P release from Fe-microniche or Fe-S(-II)-P geochemical reactions. DGT measurements in-situ in rhizosphere or rhizonbox can give CE (effective concentration) and CDGT values for the prediction of P accumulated in plant tissues. This book provides a valuable reference resource for senior graduate students, lecturers and researchers in the fields of the geochemical process of eutrophic elements in lakes, lake eutrophication mechanism and environmental analysis.

It is becoming increasingly realised that the oceans and rivers, in particular, are not unlimited reservoir into which waste can be dumped and that control of these emissions is necessary if complete destruction of the environment is to be avoided. T. R. Crompton has drawn together up-to-date information on these issues and on the relevant analytical methods needed by all experts active in environmental protection and toxicology.

The decision by multinational Shell not to dispose of the Brent Spar oil facility in the North Atlantic was taken after several occupations of the structure by Greenpeace, and as a result of large scale pro-Greenpeace protest in the UK, Germany and other countries. This case is often cited to show the power of single-issue groups to force big business to rethink the importance of environmental issues. However, research shows Shell changed its mind on the Brent Spar issue because of the corporate structure of the company and reluctance to bear the bad publicity. Grant Jordan considers the role of scientific advice in shaping governmental decisions on matters such as BSE, genetically modified foods, and global warming.

This companion to Accounting for Resources, 1 tracks the life cycle of specific elements, such as chlorine and heavy metals, in order to estimate the generation and dissipative losses of material wastes. The book begins with a succinct review of the life-cycle analysis methodology and evaluates some of its weaknesses in estimating the generation of waste. The authors propose a new quantitative measure of the potential for environmental harm of waste materials. They include case studies to add weight to their proposal. Four horizontal life-cycle case studies are included; one for chlorine and chlorine chemicals; one for mercury; one for arsenic and cadmium; and the other for copper, lead and zinc. The book also includes a longitudinal study of heavy metals use and dissipation, during the period 1880-1980 with reference to the Hudson-Raritan basin. The book concludes with an overview, including some recommendations for future research and for policy changes with respect to governmental statistical data collection and organization.

This book reviews the current state of knowledge on, recent advances in, and future prospects of Montenegrin river basins in the context of anthropogenic activities. Edited by three respected experts in the field, the book begins with an introduction to the specific hydrogeological conditions in Montenegro and critical reflections on the impact of hydropower projects. It then reviews the vulnerability of river ecosystems, exploring potential genotoxic effects and water quality, and explaining typology and monitoring of these aspects, and particularly highlighting mollusk assemblages and monitoring of intermittent rivers. The closing chapters focus on the impact of river flooding and discuss controversial projects aiming to find an approach mutually acceptable to all stakeholders. Given its scope, the book is an indispensable resource for scientists in academia and the water industry, as well as for decision-makers in the field investigating the interactions between land and water, limnology and biota, and natural and cultural resources.

Polar Seas Oceanography describes a new tool called the Generic Model System for simulations and assessment of potential radioactive spreading in the Arctic regions, through rivers, estuaries, regional seas and the Arctic and Atlantic basin. It considers the present and future potential for spreading of radionuclear pollution from sources, such as from the major Russian processing plants through Siberian rivers as well as from European sources such as the UK Sellafield plant. The book provides support for decision making involving risk prevention, forecasting and readiness for probable crises, alerting and detection, relief and mitigation and damage assessment. The book combines the expertise of professionals from the radionuclear and climate-change sciences."

Microbial or biological degradation has long been the subject of active concern, and the rapid expansion and growing sophistication of various industries in the last century has significantly increased the volume and complexity of toxic residues of wastes. These can be remediated by plants and microbes, either natural origin or adapted for a specific purpose, in a process known as bioremediation. The interest in microbial biodegradation of pollutants has intensified in recent years in an attempt to find sustainable ways to clean contaminated environments. These bioremediation and biotransformation methods take advantage of the tremendous microbial catabolic diversity to degrade, transform or accumulate a variety of compounds, such as hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls, polaromatic hydrocarbons pharmaceutical substances, radionuclides and metals. Unlike conventional methods, bioremediation does not physically disturb the site. This book describes the basic principles of biodegradation and shows how these principles are related to bioremediation. Authored by leading, international environmental microbiologists, it discusses topics such as aerobic biodegradation, microbial degradation of pollutants, and microbial community dynamics. It provides valuable insights into how biodegration processes work and can be utilised for pollution abatement, and as such appeals to researchers and postgraduate students as well as experts in the field of bioremediation.

Twenty years ago, researchers wishing to identify contaminated areas in aquatic environments generally took water samples, and analysed them badly (as we have since discovered) for a few "pollutants" which were of topical note at the time (and which could be quantified by the methods then available). Today, the use of aquatic organisms as biomonitors in preference to water analysis has become commonplace, and many national and interna tional programmes exist around the world involving such studies. We believe that this trend will continue, and have complete faith in the methodology (when it is employed correctly). We hope that the following text assists in some part in attaining this goal, such that the quality of our most basic global resource -water - is adequately protected in the future. DAVE PHILLIPS, PHIL RAINBOW England, March 1992 vii Acknowledgements Our thanks for contributions to this book are due to several individuals and groups, for varying reasons. Firstly, a co-authored book is always a triumph, and we trust that the following text is an acceptable compromise of the views of two individual authors, on a complex and developing topic. Secondly, many of the ideas herein have crystallised over the last two decades as the field has grown, and we are individually and collectively grateful to a number of researchers for their insight and assistance."

This book provides an authoritative review of the origin and extraction of strontium and its impact on the environment. It also presents the latest strontium decontamination and remediation strategies. Around the globe, nuclear power is being recognized as a major source of energy and is expected to play a crucial role in meeting the energy requirements of present day society. However, the pros and cons have to be considered, and the safe disposal of large amounts of radionuclide wastes is becoming a matter of great concern. These wastes encompass contaminants such as heavy metals and toxic substances, which may exist in solid, liquid or gaseous forms or a combination of these, and as such, their disposal requires particular attention. The book focuses on 90Sr, which is a predominant isotope of strontium and considered an intermediate level radioactive waste with a half-life of 28.8 years, average biological half-life of 18 years and 546 KeV decay energy. Written by expert contributors, it addresses occurrence, detection and extraction of strontium, the chemical and nuclear properties of strontium isotopes, the fate and migration of strontium in soil, its bioaccumulation, and its associated health impact, mechanistic toxicity response as well as related regulation and remediation. It appeals to scholars, scientists and environmental managers working with strontium contamination in the environment and its consequences.

Animal agriculture is a major industry in the United States and around the world. Like all major industries, animal operations generate a significant amount of waste by-products, by-products which represent serious potential environmental pollutants. This work is an attempt to help those concerned with animal waste management--agricultural economists and policy-makers, environmental and public health officers, farmers, and so on--deal with this critical issue by addressing the problems generated by animal waste within a comprehensive management approach. As animal production worldwide has taken on the characteristics of an industrial operation, the implications of large quantities of waste--disposal and/or refuse--must be analyzed in environmental, economic, and public health terms. This work provides such an analysis.

Identifying and remediating environmental contamination is a complex and very expensive problem worldwide. Pollution of soil and water by pesticides is a significant issue that persists for years after the pesticide application ceases. Pesticide Properties in the Environment is a unique database compiled from extensive literature searches. It presents data on hundreds of pesticides, including their common, commercial, and scientific names, their chemical formulas, and their environmental properties including water solubility, field half-life, sorption coefficient, and vapor pressure. All data is carefully cited to original references, and is presented both in printed form and as an electronic database. Pesticide Properties in the Environment will be invaluable for environmental scientists, engineers, and consultants, as well as soil scientists and water quality specialists.

Hormones and Pharmaceuticals Generated by Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations: Transport in Water and Soil examines how hormones, antibiotics and pharmaceuticals generated from concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) of cattle, poultry, swine and aquaculture are transported in water and soil. Little is known of the environmental fate of the tons of physiologically active steroid hormones released each year. In their own regard, in the last 20 years considerable attention has been given to a wide variety of natural and anthropomorphic agents known as endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs). Until the contribution of steroid hormones to the environment are better defined, it will be difficult to quantify the exact impact of EDCs. While some advances in the understanding of the fate of these compounds in water has been made, little is known about the processes that govern their transport in soil or how they eventually reach groundwater. As this book discusses extensively, it is somewhat of a mystery how steroids, with their lipophilic nature, strong binding to humic acids and extensive metabolism by soil bacteria, can be transported through even a few centimeters of soil, let alone 20 to 40 meters to the groundwater. With respect to antibiotics, the emphasis is on their fate and transport in the environment and on the emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Impacts on soil ecology, including the impact of antibiotics on the metabolism of other active agents, is also discussed. Similarly, the acaricides and insecticides used in animal husbandry are widely used and their environmental pathways have been studied and have significant impacts on soil and dung ecology. Active compounds with potential environmental impacts, such as growth promoters generated from CAFOs, are described. However, because little is known of their environmental fate, emphasis is placed on defining the gaps in our knowledge and defining their possible effects.

This book presents the latest results of global warming researches focusing on Japanese and international efforts. In 2002, Japan initiated Global Warming Research Initiatives lead by the Council for Science and Technology Policy, which aims to harmonize the national research activities and projects. This book is the first report from the initiative. In this book, latest knowledge and future research directions are described for four study areas of the initiative: monitoring and process study, projection modelling and climate change study, impact and risk assessment, and response policies. Readers can review the major topic areas on global warming and climate change. They include the circulation of green house gases in the atmosphere, major results of climate observation, climate prediction made by the Earth Simulator supercomputer, predicted impacts of climate change and future threats, and mitigation and adaptation strategies on climate policy.

First published in 1987, Peter Brimblecombe's book provides an engaging historical account of air pollution in London, offering a fascinating insight into the development of air pollution controls against a changing social and economic background. He examines domestic and industrial pollution and their effects on fashions, furnishings, buildings and human health. The book ends with an intriguing analysis of the dangers arising from contemporary pollutants and a glimpse of what the future may hold for London.

The book contains the contributions at the NATO Study Institute on Exposure and Risk Assessment of Chemical Pollution - Contemporary Methodology, which took place in Sofia - Borovetz, Bulgaria, July 1-10, 2008. Rapid advances in mathematics, computer science and molecular biology and chemistry have lead to the development in of a new branch of toxicology called Computational Toxicology. This emerging field is addressing the estimation and prediction of exposure risk and effects of chemicals based on experimental data, measured concentration and biological mechanisms and computational models of biological systems. Mathematical models are also being used to predict the fate and transport of substances in the environment. Because this area is still in its infancy, there has been limited application from governmental agencies to regulating controllable processes, such as registration of new chemicals, determination of estimated exposure and risk based limits and maximum acceptable concentrations in different compartments of the environment - ambient air, waters, soil and food products. However, this is soon to change as the ability to collect, analyze and interpret the required information is becoming increasingly more efficient and cost effective. Full implementation of the new processes have to involve education on both part of the experimentalists who are generating the data and the models, and the risk assessors who will use them to better protect human health and the environment.

Humans are exposed daily to low concentrations of metals that are released into the environment by both natural and industrial processes. Environmental Metal Pollutants, Reactive Oxygen Intermediaries and Genotoxicity: Molecular Approaches to Determine Mechanisms of Toxicity examines concerns about the acute and/or chronic exposure of humans to concentrations of these metals that are below the threshold levels established by various federal regulatory agencies. Some of these metals are accumulated in various tissues and over time this may result in the accumulation of a significant body burden. This could increase the risk of developing a variety of diseases later in life, at a time when thresholds for such effects may already be reduced by the processes of aging. Such possibilities could only further compromise the quality of life in the elderly population and could contribute to the rising cost of health care in this country. Studies that have been conducted to determine the possible risks associated with exposure to relatively non-toxic concentrations of environmental metals have been hampered by a lack of appropriate models and a lack of funding. It has also been difficult for researchers to demonstrate a correlation between the exposure of humans or animals to low concentrations of environmental pollutants and disease. This book examines recent technological advances in the areas of molecular biology, biochemistry, and computer-enhanced image analyses that provide researchers with the tools to begin elucidating the genotoxic effects of environmental metal pollutants and the mechanisms by which these metals cause DNA damage. Environmental Metal Pollutants, Reactive Oxygen Intermediaries and Genotoxicity: Molecular Approaches to Determine Mechanisms of Toxicity presents data that demonstrate that certain environmental metal pollutants are genotoxic. The authors describe the role of reactive oxygen intermediates in causing the DNA damage induced by environmental metal pollutants and discuss their possible role in human disease.

Understanding urban air pollution is a prerequisite to finding effective solutions to air quality problems and for a sustainable development in the urban environment. In this book the current state of the art in urban air pollution research is presented. A major focus is on suitable air pollution modelling concepts, covering also street canyon geometries. Such models may be applied to establish source-receptor relationships in support of urban air quality management. Procedures for evaluating the performance of air pollution models are proposed, and results from field experiments and laboratory studies are shown to provide better insight into the characteristics of air pollution at the urban and local scales. The contents of this book are of a high policy relevance, given their direct connection to the formulation of improved tools for urban air quality assessments.

This book examines the costs involved in reducing ammonia emissions from agricultural practices as well as the potential benefits for climate change mitigation. It features contributions by experts in agricultural production processes, producers of agricultural equipment and service providers as well as scientists who assess the issue from an European perspective. Coverage examines all agricultural production stages starting from animal feed and housing, including the storage and application of liquid and solid manure and of mineral fertilizer. In addition, the book looks at the relationship between ammonia control and greenhouse gas emissions and details the GAINS (Greenhouse Gas and Air Pollution Interactions and Synergies) model for estimating costs and reducing ammonia emissions from agriculture. Examples and case studies from select European countries, including Italy, Switzerland, Russia, Ireland, and Spain, provide readers with detailed studies of ammonia abatement costs and the effectiveness of implementing control measures under different conditions. This book is the result of an Expert Workshop held under the auspices of the UNECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP) and organised by the Task Force on Reactive Nitrogen (TFRN). The findings of this workshop have informed the development of documents supporting the revision of the Gothenburg Protocol and provided researchers and practitioners with vital new data. Bringing together a wealth of key information on the costs of ammonia abatement and the climate co-benefits, this monograph provides readers with deep insight into this complex issue.

Salinization of soils is a major threat to irrigated agriculture and counteracts the targets of costly public infrastructure investments. In this study, salinization is regarded as the outcome of an institutional arrangement which impedes the effective implementation of well-known and well-established control measures be they technical, managerial or economic. In public irrigation systems neither the management units nor the farmers are offered any incentives towards the control of high groundwater levels and salinization if the management units are embedded in a highly centralized non-market institutional setting. The author answers the question under which conditions management units and irrigators are active in halting and reversing the process of salinization.

In 2002, the Swedish Metal Information Task Force (MITF) engaged the Environmental Research Group (MFG) to update previous monographs on copper, zinc and major alloying metals (such as chromium, nickel and molybdenum) in society and in the environment. This book presents new results on metal fluxes from society to the environment, on metal speciation in water, soil and sediment, and its interpretation in terms of mobility, biological uptake and toxicity. The scientific fundamentals of new approaches, like the Acid Volatile Sulphide (AVS) concept to predict metal bioavailability in sediments, and the Biotic Ligand Model (BLM) to calculate the toxicity of metals to aquatic organisms, are critically evaluated, with a focus on copper, nickel, zinc, and, in part, chromium.

Recent scientific advances now offer an improved understanding of the mechanisms and factors controlling the intricate behaviour of trace metals, their interactions, uptake and effect in natural systems. Traditional risk assessment methods usually built on quite crude toxicity tests done in unrealistic "laboratory waters," and did not consider natural conditions. In contrast, modern approaches now increasingly involve the full utilisation of site-specific factors, which are decisive for the formation of bioavailable and toxic metal forms.

Audience: This book provides excellent guidance not only to scientists focusing on the assessment of the ecological risk of metals, but also to authorities, decision makers in industry, educational staff and the interested public concerned with the occurrence and fate of trace metals.

Numerous studies have revealed that the poor disproportionately bear the burden of environmental problems in America today. Issues range from higher levels of poisonous wastes, carbon dioxide, and ozone, to greater than normal incidences of asthma and lead poisoning. The environmental justice movement, which has emerged in working class and low-income African American and Latino communities since the early 1990s, is an effort that is reinterpreting the definition of the environment as "where we live, work, and play" to connect new constituencies traditionally outside of the postwar environmental movement. Novotny documents this expanding constituency through case studies of four community groups ranging from South Central Los Angeles to Louisiana. "Environmental racism" is understood as yet another type of discrimination which results in a high incidence of environmental concerns in poorer communities due to what many activists see as discriminatory land use practices, decisions by industry that intentionally locate hazardous wastes in these communities, and the uneven enforcement of environmental regulations by federal, state, and local officials. Community leaders have added environmental causes to their fight against unemployment, impoverishment, and substandard housing. This study explores various attempts to put a halt to illegal practices and to broaden public awareness of the issues involved.

Risk assessment has come to assume acute importance in the former Soviet Union since money is so scarce, yet the needs for cleanup are so huge. Other factors contribute to this situation, too: New leaders are still emerging, and governmental structures are still evolving. This creates a particular difficulty for environmentalists who attempt to become involved in the risk assessment process. New information continues to surface on the fallout from Chernobyl and its consequences for human health. Scientists are still debating the effects of low doses of radiation delivered over a long period of time. This type of contamination is especially prevalent in the Russian North, for example, as a result of the dumping of nuclear submarine reactors into the Kara and Barents Seas. This book examines the complexities of risk assessment in the FSU at this unique time in history.