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Books > Earth & environment > The environment > Pollution & threats to the environment > General
This book reviews the unique ecosystem of the Lake Skadar/Shkodra and its basin, and discusses the latest advances made in this region to face the impact of climate change. Divided into 23 chapters, the book gathers leading expertise from various scientific and engineering communities and provides readers with extensive discussions of core issues, including the water and sediment chemistry of Lake Skadar/Shkodra and the metal pollution that is evident in plants, aquatic invertebrates and fish. Readers will discover how a sustainable science-based management approach can be applied to the Lake Skadar/Shkodra region, and will learn about the environment prospects for the region. This book is intended as an essential tool for all scientists interested in the Lake Skadar/Shkodra environment - in particular those investigating the interactions between land and water, between limnology and biota, and between natural and cultural resources.
Focusing on Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, and Mainland China, the contributors to this book analyze various cases of air pollution within East Asia. Air pollution in East Asia is a major health risk, which also has damaging impacts on the environment leading to impacts on society, economic growth, and welfare. While existing laws and policies have made progress in alleviating air pollution in each country in the region, the protection of favorable environments and the resolution of transboundary air pollution problems have become major targets of regional cooperation. Combining perspectives from social sciences and science, technology, and society studies, the contributors to this book examine both the technical and socioeconomic-political aspects of these challenges through a range of case studies from around the region. The book is a valuable read for researchers and policymakers looking at air pollution and transboundary governance challenges within and beyond East Asia.
Hazardous Air Pollutants: Case Studies from Asia examines the variety of public health problems, such as cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, increased mortality, and impaired mental health, that are severely affecting multiple Asian countries as a result of exposure to high concentrations of air pollution in the wake of rapid industrialization. The contributors to this book have direct research experience in health problems caused by air pollution in the countries under discussion. The countries analyzed include China, Taiwan, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Korea. The book is divided in two sections. Each chapter of the first section focuses on one country and summarizes multiple key aspects that contextualize public health issues within it, including Geography Meteorology Economics Demographics Sources of air pollution Epidemiological findings Biological mechanisms The first section also assesses the exposure and risk within each country. The second section introduces new fields of air pollution research, the impact of vehicle emission regulations, the effects of coal energy generation, and climate change. Presented in a concise and methodical manner, this book provides an up-to-date overview of the air pollution levels, health findings, and air quality policies of Asian countries. It expands understanding about the effects of air pollution on public health in Asia and lays a groundwork for future approaches to research and policy.
This comprehensive book contains contributions from specialists who provide a complete status update along with outstanding issues encompassing different topics related to deep-sea mining. Interest in exploration and exploitation of deep-sea minerals is seeing a revival due to diminishing grades and increasing costs of processing of terrestrial minerals as well as availability of several strategic metals in seabed mineral resources; it therefore becomes imperative to take stock of various issues related to deep-sea mining. The authors are experienced scientists and engineers from around the globe developing advanced technologies for mining and metallurgical extraction as well as performing deep sea exploration for several decades. They invite readers to learn about the resource potential of different deep-sea minerals, design considerations and development of mining systems, and the potential environmental impacts of mining in international waters.
Names like Love Canal, Chernobyl, and the Exxon Valdez have come to symbolize our anxiety over toxic substances in the environment and their effects on human health and the ecology. Yet, as toxins continue to accumulate rapidly in our air, water, and soil, major environmental disasters are only the most obvious manifestation of a complex and growing problem - the tip of the iceberg, so to speak. The need for scientists and nonscientists who are well versed in the fundamentals of environmental toxicology has never been greater, so too, the need for introductory texts in the field. Based on a groundbreaking course given at the University of Illinois for the past two decades, Toxic Substances in the Environment is a superb introduction to the field of environmental toxicology. While the majority of texts and references on toxins in the environment suffer from either a dearth of careful examination or an overabundance of ponderous detail, this book offers just the right balance of accessibility and scientific rigor. It is basic enough to serve as an advanced undergraduate introduction to environmental toxicology and its two most prominent subgroups - the ecological impact of pollutants, and the effect of pollutants on human health. Yet, at the same time, it is unstinting in scientific detail. While the range of topics is broad, this book offers concise and engaging discussions of diverse subjects such as air pollution and global ecosystems; neurotoxicity; genetic toxicology; social issues associated with environmental toxins; and many others. Supported by more than 100 tables and illustrations, the text is organized around a series of case studies that illustrate the hazards associated withparticular substances and demonstrate the multidisciplinary approach that is essential to any effective effort to clean up or prevent contamination. This case study orientation, along with an annotated bibliography and a unique chapter on policy and policy issues, in which the author offers a rundown of the major public and civic environment action groups, makes Toxic Substances in the Environment a useful professional reference. Reflecting a number of the major concerns and interests voiced by students majoring in a variety of disciplines, including biology, chemistry, agriculture, economics, and engineering, this superb didactic tool is destined to become the environmental toxicological bible of future generations.
As government and community leaders, private companies, citizens, and applied scientists search for low-cost methods to cleanup environmental pollution, phytotechnologies can contribute to the solution by utilizing natural processes to reduce environmental risk. Phytotechnologies use vegetation to manage environmental contaminants in soil, surface water, and groundwater based on site-specific design considerations that can save 50 to 75 percent of the capital and operating costs compared to conventional remediation and containment technologies. Successful phytotechnology applications are based on scientific knowledge of plant physiology, chemical contaminants, climate, and soil conditions. This book presents current research findings that address soil and water contamination with obsolete pesticides, radionuclides and other inorganic and organic contaminants. This book documents international sharing of information by scientists and stakeholders seeking to use the best available information: to disseminate existing knowledge on phytotechnologies and exchange experience of field-scale applications for cleanup of industrial, agricultural, and wastewater contamination, to assess existing knowledge and identify research needs and directions for future work especially in regard to environmental management in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and to promote collaboration between different countries in preparing applications for environmental remediation and restoration.
Agricultural pollution (with nitrates and pesticides) is one of the biggest threats to drinking water resources. At many places regional and local water authorities, together with the water supply industry, are involved in preventive action aimed at farming practices. Three national case studies (Germany, The Netherlands, and the United Kingdom) analyse these efforts within the context of problematical national agricultural policy and the need to implement EU directives on water quality. Additional case studies cover the role of the European Union, while the same problem in a different setting is analysed for the United States. The central question of how national and European governments can reinforce the control capacity of the actors at the regional and local level, is treated from the theoretical perspective of the policy network approach.
In "When Smoke Ran Like Water," the world-renowned epidemiologist Devra Davis confronts the public triumphs and private failures of her lifelong battle against environmental pollution. She documents the shocking toll of a public-health disaster-300,000 deaths a year in the U.S. and Europe from the effects of pollution-and asks why we remain silent. For Davis, the issue is personal: Pollution is what killed many in her family and forced some of the others, survivors of the 1948 smog emergency in Donora, Pennsylvania, to live out their lives with impaired health. She describes that episode and also makes startling revelations about how the deaths from the London smog of 1952 were falsely attributed to influenza; how the oil companies and auto manufacturers fought for decades to keep lead in gasoline, while knowing it caused brain damage; and many other battles. "When Smoke Ran Like Water" makes a devastating case for change.
Within all areas of transportation, solutions for economical and environmentally friendly technology are being examined. Fuel consumption, combustion processes, control and limitation of pollutants in the exhaust gas are technological problems, for which guidelines like 98/69/EC and 99/96 determine the processes for the reduction of fuel consumption and exhaust gas emissions. Apart from technological solutions, the consequences of international legislation and their effects on environmental and climate protection in the area of the transportation are discussed.
This book discusses contamination of water, air, and soil media. The book covers health effects of such contamination and discusses remedial measures to improve the situation. Contributions by experts provide a comprehensive discussion on the latest developments in the detection and analysis of contaminants, enabling researchers to understand the evolution of these pollutants in real time and develop more accurate source apportionment of these pollutants. The contents of this book will be of interest to researchers, professionals, and policy makers alike.
Forensic and Environmental Detection of Explosives is the first comprehensive book on the detection of explosives. It combines the two main fields of application:
This book is devoted to sewage sludge, its sustainable management, and its use and implications on soil fertility and crop production. The book traces the main chemical and biological properties of sewage sludge, and covers topics such as sewage sludge biostabilization and detoxification, biological and thermochemical treatment technologies, emerging nutrient recovery technologies, the role of microorganisms in sewage sludge management, and the sustainable use of sewage sludge as fertilizer in agriculture. The book offers a valuable asset for researchers, scholars and policymakers alike.
Today more than 5 million chemicals are known and roughly 100,000 of them are frequently used, with both numbers rising. Many of these chemicals are ultimately released into the environment and may cause adverse effects to ecosystems and human health. Effect-directed analysis (EDA) is a promising tool for identifying predominant toxicants in complex, mostly environmental mixtures combining effect testing, fractionation and chemical analysis. In the present book leading experts in the field provide an overview of relevant approaches and tools used in EDA. This includes diagnostic biological tools, separation techniques and advanced analytical and computer tools for toxicant identification and structure elucidation. Examples of the successful application of EDA are discussed such as the identification of mutagens in airborne particles and sediments, of endocrine disruptors in aquatic ecosystems and of major toxicants in pulp and paper mill effluents. This book is a valuable, comprehensive and interdisciplinary source of information for environmental scientists and environmental agencies dealing with the analysis, monitoring and assessment of environmental contamination.
Industrial Disasters, Toxic Waste, and Community Impact focuses on hazardous and toxic wastes releases, industrial disasters, the consequent contamination of communities and the environment, and the subsequent social impacts, including adverse health effects, deaths and property destruction, psychosocial problems, and community disruption. This book explains the emergence of a sociological study of risk and of natural, technological, and hybrid disasters, along with a review of the accumulated body of knowledge in the field. It is unique in its integration of sociological perspectives with perspectives from other disciplines when discussing the problems posed by technological hazards both in advanced industrialized societies and in the underdeveloped world. Francis O. Adeola extends the field through an innovative presentation of topics which up to now have had sparse treatment in sociology texts. This book starts by presenting the sociology of hazardous waste, risk, and disasters as a relatively new development, engendering both a growing passion and an increasing volume of empirical research among scholars. Next, it describes how hazardous and toxic wastes disposal, exposure, remediation, and proximate adverse health consequences have risen to the level of endemic social problem both in the United States and around the world. After discussing these cases in relation to contemporary theories of industrial and organizational disasters, Adeola delves into classifying of hazardous wastes, indicating the characteristics of each type of waste, and identifying what makes them especially dangerous to people and the environment. Other major topics addressed in the rest of the book include electronic waste (e-waste) as a new species of trouble in terms of the volume and toxicity of global e-waste generation and management, the environmental and health risks of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), case studies of contaminated communities within the United States and across the globe, the international flows of toxic waste, analysis of risk and environmental contamination by race and ethnicity in the United States, and the juxtaposition of the issues of environmental justice and human rights. With its many contributions to environmental sociology, Industrial Disasters, Toxic Waste, and Community Impact will be a valuable addition to the libraries of students, scholars, and practitioners interested in the intersection of toxic waste releases, human exposure to contaminants, and public health.
Comprising 12 chapters, this book focuses on volatile methylsiloxanes (VMSs), the shorter-chained organosiloxanes, and reviews the main areas and environmental compartments where they have been found and studied. It opens with a detailed description of the structural and functional properties, toxic risks and possible transformations of VMSs in the environment and their main uses in various activities and products, as well as the identification of the main sources of emission. Further chapters examine the analytical strategies and protocols that have been used to address the quantification of VMSs, including the issue of possible cross-contaminations. The book also discusses the presence of VMSs in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and in water bodies, their atmospheric fate and levels in biota, as well as occurrences of VMSs in remote areas of the world. It closes with a comprehensive conclusion and discussion on future directions for upcoming studies. This book is not intended as a finishing line, but rather as an important step towards improving our understanding of VMSs, to fuel new collaborations between research groups and/or with industry and lastly to convince more researchers to explore the mysteries of these ubiquitous, yet understudied, chemicals.
A fast-paced, gripping insider account of the entrepreneurs and renegades racing to bring lab-grown meat to the world. The trillion-dollar meat industry is one of our greatest environmental hazards; it pollutes more than all the world's fossil-fuel-powered cars. Global animal agriculture is responsible for deforestation, soil erosion and more emissions than air travel, paper mills and coal mining combined. It also depends on the slaughter of more than 60 billion animals per year, a number that is only increasing as the global appetite for meat swells. The whole world seems to be sleepwalking into a food crisis. But a band of doctors, scientists, activists and entrepreneurs have been racing to end animal agriculture as we know it, hoping to fulfill a dream of creating meat without ever having to kill an animal. This is the story of a group of seven vegans quietly working to solve one the most pressing issues we face today, creating the biggest upheaval to the food business in decades along the way. In Billion Dollar Burger, Chase Purdy explores the companies at the cutting edge of the nascent food technology sector, from polarizing activist-turned-tech CEO Josh Tetrick to lobbyists and regulators on both sides of the issue. Billion Dollar Burger follows the people fighting to upend our food system as they butt up against the entrenched interests fighting viciously to stop them. It will take readers on a truly global journey from Silicon Valley to China, by way of Israel and the UK. The stakes are monumentally high: cell-cultured meat is the best hope for sustainable food production, a key to fighting climate change, a gold mine for the companies that make it happen and an existential threat for the farmers and meatpackers that make our meat today.
This is the second of two volumes that together provide an integrated picture of the Montenegrin Adriatic coast, presenting the natural components of the system as well as the chemical composition and chemical processes in the extended area. This book covers all aspects of marine chemistry such as the hydrographic and oceanographic characteristics of seawater, the toxicity of heavy metals in the marine environment, the quality of marinas and maritime areas, and the legal regime for protecting the marine environment from pollution. Given the breadth and depth of its coverage, the book offers an invaluable source of information for researchers, students and environmental managers alike.
This volume written by 25 experts from industry and research provides a thorough overview of commerically important and environmentally mobile organosilicon materials. It outlines the structure, properties and applications of the four most significant material classes, and summarizes their environmental entry, transport, fate and impact. Detection and analytical methods are discussed both in the context of environmental assay and ecotoxicity testing along with some of the challenges. Measurement/estimation techniques and data available for several eco-pertinent properties of selected organosilicon compounds are summarized and limitations of the estimation and expertimental methods discussed. The environmental laws/regulations/trends in the U.S., Europe and Japan are discussed, along with their relevance to organosilicon materials. The book concludes with a broad overview of the major markets and global silicone producers, reviewing the industry's stewardship initiatives, relevant HES (health, environmental and safety) organizations and global cooperation.
Environmental pollution is an emerging global public health problem of both developing and developed nations. Such pollution is a major risk factor for many illnesses, including nervous system disorders. This book combines the highlights the effects of environmental pollution on brain biology. It will be a thorough overview of the pathophysiological and oxidative stress mechanisms and how environmental pollution affects the brain biology. The author discusses environmental pollution and brain development, memory, autism, hearing and vision loss and brain cancer. Several chapters address controversial topics such as the effect of Electromagnetic Field Radiation (RF-EMFR).
This book presents materials and physical methods for carbon dioxide sequestration. Materials include nanosponges, titanium oxide/zeolite hybrids, classical absorbents, metal oxides, ionic liquids, alkaline soils and metal organic frameworks. Methods include cryogenic capture, adsorption, solvent dissolution and soil sequestration.
Offers comprehensive information on POPs in simple language Discusses previously known and newly developed POPs and their sources, effects, and transport Explains current and upcoming challenges in management of POPs Highlights new technologies for remediation and sound management of POPs Covers measures taken for elimination of POPs in various countries and the role of Stockholm Convention
This book provides a complete coverage of all aspects of the occurrence, toxicity and analysis of toxicants in the aqueous ecosystem. The aqueous ecosystem includes natural waters such as rivers, coastal waters and open seawater. It also includes sedimentary matter present in these waters, creatures (fish, crustacea) and plant life. Chapters dealing with toxicity measurement, control of pollution regulation and toxicity data systematically discuss metals, organometallic compounds and organic compounds. In addition, Chapters 4 and 5 deal with the effects of these types of toxicants in natural waters and water creatures tissues, whilst Chapter 8 deals with the health of such creatures. Contents:
This book aims to provide comprehensive and systematic introduction and summary of corrosion characteristics, mechanisms, and control methods of candidate alloys in sub- and supercritical water environment. First of all, corrosion types of candidate alloys and the effects of major alloying elements on corrosion resistance of potential alloys in sub- and supercritical water are compared and analyzed. At the same time, research status of candidate materials, and development and application trends of several corrosion-resistant alloys are summarized. Then, corrosion characteristics of Ni-Cr, Ni-Cr-Mo, Ni-Fe-Cr and Ni-Fe-Cr-Mo-Cu corrosion-resistant alloys, FeCrAl alloy, and Zircaloy are discussed in detail, including the corrosion rate, the structure and composition of oxide film, and the effects of various surface treatment processes, etc. More specifically, it also investigates corrosion behavior of Ni-based alloy, Fe-Ni-based, and stainless steels in supercritical water. The effects of aggressive species on the corrosion behavior of Ni-base alloys are also explored in supercritical water. Readers will further discover the total corrosion processes and mechanisms of typical candidate alloys in sub- and supercritical water environment. Finally, the work explores the corrosion control methods such as ceramic coatings and passivation processes in supercritical water oxidation and in subcritical water, respectively. Future challenges and development trends of corrosion research of candidate materials in sub- and supercritical water environments are covered at the end of this book. It offers valuable reference for theoretically guiding material selection and design and operating parameter optimization of key equipment in the sub- and supercritical water technologies. The book is written for senior undergraduates, graduate students, scholars, and researchers who are interested in corrosion behavior of candidate materials of supercritical water oxidation system, supercritical water gasification system, and nuclear reactor.
Leading experts discuss the characteristics, advantages, limitations and future aspects of modern spectroscopic techniques for environmental analysis. Demonstrates how these methods can be applied to trace gas detection and assessment. Concentrates on the latest techniques—both laser and non-laser based—which offer advantages for air pollution and gas monitoring as opposed to more conventional methods. Numerous examples of applications illustrate the potential of the techniques backed up by cutting-edge information and representative data.
Lombard analyzes the complementary relationship between trade and the environment in the emerging North American environmental management system comprising Canada, the United States, and Mexico. He views the development of closer trade relations among the three NAFTA members as having an overall and long-term beneficial impact on the environment, particularly air quality, in North America. He presents a revised model of environmental policy implementation which stresses further decentralization of environmental protection enforcement, greater reliance on nongovernmental organizations, including businesses, in environmental policy decisionmaking, and the fostering of regional approaches to resolving environmental problems. |
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