Pesticides play an important role in controlling pests that carry diseases and threaten crop production. In recent years, however, there has been increased concern about the adverse impacts of pesticides and their degradation products on public health and the environment. A considerable amount of work is being done to develop nonchemical methods of pest control, but it is not yet feasible to dispense with the use of chemical pesticides. Pesticides: Evaluation of Environmental Pollution brings together, in a single volume, current knowledge on environmental pollution caused by pesticides. It helps readers evaluate the effects that pesticide residues have in all compartments of the environment. Featuring contributions by eminent scientists from around the world, the book gives an overview of the fate and transport of pesticides and their degradation in the environment. Detailing the sources, concentration, and hazards of residues, it examines their effects in humans, birds and mammals, fish, soil invertebrates, soil microflora, aquatic invertebrates, water, milk products, and more. The book also addresses endocrine-disrupting pesticides and explores biopesticides as alternatives to chemical pesticides. A review of data on the potential hazards of pesticides, this reference will be of interest to readers working in the areas of chemical crop protection and pollution management. It adds a balanced perspective to the debate between those who think that pesticides should be banned and those who consider the continued use of large quantities to be necessary for the survival of humanity. See also Handbook of Pesticides: Methods of Pesticide Residues Analysis (CRC Press, 2009).

This reference offers both a basic introduction and advanced technical details of available mathematical and computing methods for modeling sustainable development, closing an exisiting gap in this field, as well as illustrating their use through case studies and examples. The methods and case studies presented here are targetted at sustainable development, although they have a wide range of other applications, including economics, medicine and control systems.

Concern over the effects of noise on marine life, particularly marine mammals, has emerged as a topic of considerable interest to both professionals and laypersons alike. The controversy has been fueled by a series of international events that suggest a relationship between man-made sound and marine mammal behavior, resulting in mass strandings and death. International Regulation of Underwater Sound offers a refreshingly objective and responsible look at how ocean noise should be addressed given the lack of regulatory structure and the considerable scientific uncertainty that exists over the effects of noise on marine life.
This book will interest policymakers, acousticians, marine mammal biologists, environmental activists, lawyers, oceanographers, and those in the shipping, engineering, and offshore oil and gas industries. It is an essential text for government agencies, regional institutions, universities, and international governmental organizations. Dr. McCarthy offers a comprehensive examination of a timely and controversial subject that has aroused interest in the scientific, legal, and environmental communities.

Cutting across traditional subject boundaries, Principles of Ecotoxicology, Fourth Edition gives readers an integrated view of ecotoxicology, from molecules to ecosystems. This new edition of a bestselling textbook continues to emphasize principles rather than practice, providing the interdisciplinary perspective and grounding required for research.

Organized into three sections, the book first describes the molecular structures, properties, and environmental fate of pollutants. It then deals with the effects of pollutants on living organisms at the molecular, cellular, and individual levels. Moving into population biology and population genetics, the third part of the book addresses a question of great interest to ecologists: What effects do pollutants have at the levels of population, community, and the whole ecosystem?

The book also looks at how ecotoxicology is used in the biomonitoring of environmental pollution, the investigation of pollution problems, the conducting of field trials, the study of the development of resistance, and the growing area of environmental risk assessments. Throughout, examples and case studies illustrate the principles.

This updated fourth edition includes new material on nanoparticle pollution, bioaccumulation, biomarkers, and chemical warfare in nature, as well as a new chapter on the future directions of ecotoxicology. A concise textbook that will also appeal to practicing ecotoxicologists, it provides a solid basis for understanding what happens to chemicals in the real world, where they go, how they ultimately degrade, and how they affect the individuals and populations that encounter them.

What’s New in This Edition

Revised and updated material throughout

A chapter on future directions of ecotoxicology

New material on nanoparticle pollution and chemical warfare in nature

Expanded coverage of bioaccumulation, biomarkers, and risk assessment for affected populations

More case studies, many from the United States

Discussion of neurotoxic and behavioral effects of pollutants

Recent research on the decline of vultures and effects of neonicotinoids on bees

Organic Pollutants: An Ecotoxicological Perspective, Second Edition (CRC Press, 2008), a companion volume to this book, covers the mechanistic aspects of ecotoxicology in more depth.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Pollutants and Their Fate in Ecosystems

Major Classes of Pollutants

Routes by Which Pollutants Enter Ecosystems

Long-Range Movements and Global Transport of Pollutants

The Fate of Metals and Radioactive Isotopes in Contaminated Ecosystems

Fates of Organic Pollutants in Individuals and in Ecosystems

Effects of Pollutants on Individual Organisms

Testing for Ecotoxicity

Biochemical Effects of Pollutants

Physiological Effects of Pollutants

Interactive Effects of Pollutants

Biomarkers

In Situ Biological Monitoring

Effects of Pollutants on Populations and Communities

Changes in Numbers: Population Dynamics

Evolution of Resistance to Pollution

Changes in Communities and Ecosystems

Extrapolating from Molecular Interactions to Consequent Effects at Population Level

Biomarkers in Population Studies

Ecotoxicology: Looking to the Future

Glossary

Bibliography

Index

Chapters include a summary and further reading.

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During the last century international trade has become indispensable for many economies. This is not only the case for trade in primary raw materials and consumer products but also for secondary (recyclable) materials. With the rapid growth of the recycling sector worldwide, trade in recyclables increased tremendously. It is striking that most of this trade flows from developed to developing countries. This book addresses the main causes of this typical trade pattern and investigates its economic and environmental effects by carrying out case studies on waste paper imports in India, waste plastics imports in China, and used-tyre trade in Europe. The book concludes by recommending policies that are aimed at preventing negative economic and environmental effects potentially resulting from trade in recyclables. The book offers new ideas to researchers who are involved in international trade, material flows, and waste management, and provides new insights for decision-makers who are interested in WTO and the Basel Convention.

The overall goal in this book is to explain key economic, environmental, technology, and transportation factors that are affecting the provincial and industrial energy intensities and environmental pollution in the People s Republic of China (China). The author defines energy intensity as the energy consumption per unit of output. She concentrates on China, because it is the second largest energy user and pollution generator in the world. In this book, the focus is on the cokemaking sector in the Shanxi Province. Cokemaking is the largest consumer of coal in the region, using more than one-half of the coal consumed there.

Throughout the book, the author stresses the important role of the Shanxi Province in encouraging improvements in energy efficiency and pollution by (1) introducing new coke-oven technologies and (2) encouraging pollution-abatement measures for the older ovens. Economic, environmental, technology, transportation, and social aspects of cokemaking are discussed and the author examines how these factors are affecting the energy intensities and pollution in the Shanxi Province. "

This book presents the most innovative recent methodological developments in phytoremediation research, and outlines a variety of the contexts in which phytoremediation has begun to be applied. A significant portion is devoted to groundbreaking methods for the production of plants that are able to degrade, take up, or tolerate the effects of pollutants. The book adopts a multidisciplinary approach to the examination of principles and practices of phytoremediation.

Trees can reduce noise by sound reflection and absorption and this is the first book bringing together the widely scattered literature on noise abatement by urban trees. The book will interest those concerned with environmental management, noise control, and urban forestry. It is an invaluable source of information for environmental managers, foresters, acousticians, engineers, architects, scientists, and students.

Are alternative energies and Green New Deals enough to deliver environmental justice? Peter Gelderloos argues that international governmental responses to the climate emergency are structurally incapable of solving the crisis. But there is hope. Across the world, grassroots networks of local communities are working to realise their visions of an alternative revolutionary response to planetary destruction, often pitted against the new megaprojects promoted by greenwashed alternative energy infrastructures and the neocolonialist, technocratic policies that are the forerunners of the Green New Deal. Gelderloos interviews food sovereignty activists in Venezuela, Indigenous communities reforesting their lands in Brazil and anarchists fighting biofuel plantations in Indonesia, looking at the battles that have cancelled airports, stopped pipelines, and helped the most marginalised to fight borders and environmental racism, to transform their cities, to win a dignified survival.

The automobile is one of the inventions that has made a decisive contribution to human mobility, and consequently it has become an inseparable part of modern human society. However, it is through this widespread use that its negative impacts on the environment have become so highly visible. Achievements in improving the ecological characteristics of the automobile are highly impressive: a modern car emits only a fraction of the amounts of noise and exhaust pollutants produced by its predecessors 30 years ago. The contributions to this book were written by experts, most of whom have been actively involved in the development of modern automobiles and their combustion engines for more than 30 years. They have participated in all phases of the ecological development of the automobile and summarize their experience and know-how in this book .

Heavy metals can be emitted into environment by both natural and anthropogenic sources, mainly mining and industrial activity. Human exposure occurs through all environmental media. Infants are more susceptible to the adverse effects of exposure. Increasing attention is now being paid to the mental development of children exposed to heavy metals. The purpose of this book is to evaluate the existing knowledge on intellectual impairment in children exposed to heavy metals in their living environment and to identify the research needs in order to obtain a clearer picture of the situation in countries and regions at risk, in which the economy is closely related to metallurgy and heavy metals emission, and to recommend a strategy for human protection. In greater detail the main objectives could be formulated as follows: to review the principal sources of single, and complex mixtures of, heavy metal pollutants in the environment; to identify suitable methodology for chemical analyses in the environment and in humans; to evaluate the existing methods for measuring mental impairment, including their reliability and validity; to recommend a standard testing protocol to be used in future research; to assess the future role of environmental heavy metal pollution in countries and regions at risk and its effects on children's neurological development; to recommend a prevention strategy for protecting children's health and development.

Does money blur perspectives for a better life?
Lifting the money veil from our yardsticks of progress, income and wealth, reveals the trade-offs of economic growth. The book presents new indicators of the social, economic and ecological impacts of our lifestyles and production techniques. The indicators help to identify those responsible for these impacts and account for their accountability in terms of environmental and other ("social") costs.
Sustainable development is to bring about long-term prosperity without undermining its natural foundation. For the assessment of the opaque concept we need both, physical impact measures and environmentally modified ("green") indicators of income, capital and output.
Peter Bartelmus opens the dialogue between frequently hostile camps of economists and environmentalists, data producers and users, and scientists and policy makers. Together, they may steer us towards a sustainable future.

This book publishes detailed scientific review articles on all aspects of environmental contamination and associated toxicological consequences. The book will facilitate the task of accessing and interpreting cogent scientific data. It is likely to be of interest to researchers, resource managers, and policy administrators.

New analytical techniques have enhanced current understanding of the behavior of trace and ultratrace elements in the biogeochemical cycling, chemical speciation, bioavailability, bioaccumulation, and as applied to the phytoremediation of contaminated soils. Addressing worldwide regulatory, scientific, and environmental issues, Trace Elements in the Environment explores these frontiers, including biotechnological aspects of metal-binding proteins and peptides and phytoremediation strategies using trees, grasses, crop plants, aquatics, and risks to ecological and human health. Discussing trace elements in the holistic environment, this book covers advances in state-of-the-art analytical techniques, molecular biotechology, and contemporary biotechnology that enhances knowledge of the behavior of trace elements in the biogeosphere and at the cellular and molecular level. The editors and their hand-picked panel of contributors provide authoritative coverage of trace elements in the environment. They highlight cutting-edge applications of emerging strategies and technologies to the problems of trace elements in the environment. The editors discuss emerging areas such as bacterial biosorption of trace elements, processes, and applications of electroremediation of heavy metals-contaminated soils, application of novel nanoporous sorbents for the removal of heavy metals, metalloids, and radionuclides. The book focuses on the effects of increasing levels of trace elements on ecological and human health, evaluates the effectiveness of methods of phytoremediation, and covers risk assessment, pathways, and trace element toxicity. Containing more than 150 illustrations, tables, photographs, and equations, the book's coverage spans the entire body of knowledge available about how and why plants interact with metals and other trace elements.

Emissions trading (ET) challenges business managers in an entirely new manner, changing the criteria by which environmental policy steers management decisions from hierarchical to monetary. The 24 contributions to this volume discuss ET theoretically and empirically in these broad topic areas: 1) Institutional design, decision making and innovation; 2) Investment and management strategies; 3) ET and business administration and 4) Effects of existing and emerging ET schemes.

Over the past two decades, the use of microbes to remove pollutants from contaminated air streams has become a widely accepted and efficient alternative to the classical physical and chemical treatment technologies. This book focuses on biotechnological alternatives, looking at both the optimization of bioreactors and the development of cleaner biofuels. It is the first reference work to give a broad overview of bioprocesses for the mitigation of air pollution. Essential reading for researchers and students in environmental engineering, biotechnology, and applied microbiology, and industrial and governmental researchers.

Every person on our home planet is affected by a worldwide deluge of man-made chemicals and pollutants - most of which have never been tested for safety. Our chemical emissions are six times larger than our total greenhouse gas emissions. They are in our food, our water, the air we breathe, our homes and workplaces, the things we use each day. This universal poisoning affects our minds, our bodies, our genes, our grandkids, and all life on Earth. Julian Cribb describes the full scale of the chemical catastrophe we have unleashed. He proposes a new Human Right - not to be poisoned. He maps an empowering and hopeful way forward: to rid our planet of these toxins and return Earth to the clean, healthy condition which our forebears enjoyed, and our grandchildren should too.

A balanced, comprehensive overview of Environmental Quality Standards (EQS), Derivation and Use of Environmental Quality and Human Health Standards for Chemical Substances in Water and Soil addresses the selection and prioritization of substances for standard derivation. With integrated content and up-to-date information on assessment of regulations that affect the derivation and use of EQS, it examines the derivation of these standards and their implementation to protect human health and the environment. The book is based on contributions from thirty-five scientists, regulators, and policy makers from eleven countries with individual expertise across disciplines such as risk assessment, environmental, health, economic, and social sciences. These scientists summarize current knowledge on aquatic and terrestrial environmental quality standards, placing these standards in a wider socioeconomic and regulatory context. The book explains how to derive environmental standards that are defensible from a scientific and socioeconomic perspective. Using multidisciplinary techniques applicable to water, sediments, and soils; the text demonstrates how to select the best form and derivation method relative to individual environmental standards. The book presents an in-depth examination of when, where, and how to implement environmental standards based on the social and economic context. It includes detailed coverage of technical approaches that shed light on the derivation and implementation of EQSs. It also identifies future research that will help to underpin the science of environmental and human health standards.

As a result of arms control efforts over the past 50 years, nuclear material is subject to strict national controls and tough international treaties. But there are still almost no controls, other than a voluntary International Atomic Energy Agency code of conduct, on the sorts of radiological sources used to make radiological dirty bombs. Radiological sources are used all over the world for a wide range of peaceful purposes, including smoke detectors, medical devices, meteorology, mining and thermoelectric generators. There are at least eight million identified radiological sources worldwide. Their small size, portability and high value make them vulnerable to misuse and theft: the IAEA reported 272 cases of illicit trafficking in sealed radioactive sources between 1993 and 2002.

The IAEA estimates that 110 countries worldwide still fail to impose adequate controls. The time is ripe for an international convention and treaty on the safety and security of radiological sources.

This book covers expert discussions designed to enhance cooperation and assistance between NATO and Partner countries in support of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) efforts to secure radioactive sources against the threat of terrorism and also to support the security agenda at the International Radiation Protection Association Congress in Buenos Aires in 2008.

A balanced, comprehensive overview of Environmental Quality Standards (EQS), Derivation and Use of Environmental Quality and Human Health Standards for Chemical Substances in Water and Soil addresses the selection and prioritization of substances for standard derivation. With integrated content and up-to-date information on assessment of regulations that affect the derivation and use of EQS, it examines the derivation of these standards and their implementation to protect human health and the environment.

The book is based on contributions from thirty-five scientists, regulators, and policy makers from eleven countries with individual expertise across disciplines such as risk assessment, environmental, health, economic, and social sciences. These scientists summarize current knowledge on aquatic and terrestrial environmental quality standards, placing these standards in a wider socioeconomic and regulatory context. The book explains how to derive environmental standards that are defensible from a scientific and socioeconomic perspective. Using multidisciplinary techniques applicable to water, sediments, and soils; the text demonstrates how to select the best form and derivation method relative to individual environmental standards.

The book presents an in-depth examination of when, where, and how to implement environmental standards based on the social and economic context. It includes detailed coverage of technical approaches that shed light on the derivation and implementation of EQSs. It also identifies future research that will help to underpin the science of environmental and human health standards.

Sol-gel processing is a soft-chemistry method to obtain functional materials at low temperatures. This route can be used to produce very sophisticated nanomaterials and to tailor the materials to very specific applications. Adsorption and detection of pollutants, water purification and soil remediation represent challenging fields of application that can be exploited by sol-gel materials. In this volume several contributions from invited speakers and participants at the NATO advanced research workshop on "Sol-gel approaches to materials for pollution control, water purification and soil remediation," which has been held in Kiev, Ukraine on October 2007, are reported. The book offers a wide and updated overview of the most advanced sol-gel methods for materials processing and at the same time presents several case studies concerning possible solutions for environmental issues. General articles on sol-gel from the invited speakers and focused research articles allow getting inside sol-gel applications on this very important field.

Enhanced analytical capabilities and separation techniques, improved detection limits, and accessibility of instrumentation have led to massive strides in the use of isotopes to assess microbial processes in surface and subsurface sediments. Considering the rapid growth of research and commercial interest in stable isotope and radioisotope applications for contaminant hydrology and microbial ecology, an up-to-date overview of the field is long overdue. Environmental Isotopes in Biodegradation and Bioremediation comprehensively covers established and emerging isotope methods for environmental applications, focusing on biodegradation and bioremediation. This book is an invaluable tool for researchers, practitioners, and regulators who require an extensive understanding of the application of isotope methods to natural compounds and environmental contaminants. It addresses questions including: What amount of a compound comes from anthropogenic release? Do the chemicals involved undergo degradation in the environment? Do they persist and accumulate? This book is divided into four sections: Isotope Fundamentals covers important background and theoretical information needed to understand later chapters Isotopes and Microbial Processes discusses the application of isotopes to different environmental redox conditions that dictate the predominant microbial processes that will occur Isotopes in Field Applications describes the transformation of anthropogenic pollutants and the application of isotope tools to field sites Isotope Emerging Areas addresses the use of compounds labeled with stable isotopes, including stable isotope probing and the use of radiocarbon at natural abundance and novel stable isotopes This reference details how isotope tools can be used to gain insight into the origin and fate of natural compounds and contaminants in the environment. Integrating theoretical and practical knowledge, the authors examine the principles of isotope tools and then present an extensive overview of key environmental processes that can be investigated with isotope methods. They also discuss analytical and data evaluation procedures, addressing established and emerging applications. To illustrate concepts and methodology, the authors use a wide range of case studies and recent field and laboratory research from various disciplines currently employing these methods. This book is a valuable tool for expanding the application of both stable isotopes and radioisotopes into untapped areas.

The book reviews the current state of knowledge on the chemical and physical processes occurring in the environmental media (i) the atmosphere, (ii) the aqueous phase and (iii) soil and identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the chemical mechanisms (both explicit and condensed) currently available to simulate the multimedia environmental chemistry of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter in these media. Contributions examine how well this knowledge has been incorporated into different types of CT models and appraise the current status and significant issues in the development and usage of the models. Model simulations of some real world chemical perturbations to the Earth system are presented which appraise the performance of the models in relation to "real world" observations. Serious caveats in our understanding of chemical processes and their simulation in the various compartments of the Earth system are highlighted and areas are identified that need urgent improvement, in particular with respect to environmental security.

Water management and disasters, including droughts and floods are becoming very important subjects in the international platforms. This book will provide information about high technology techniques to solve important problems using remote sensing and GIS for topics such as the environmental security, water resources management, disaster forecast and prevention and information security.

In 1969, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) established the C- mittee on Challenges of Modern Society (CCMS). The subject of air pollution was from the start one of the priority problems under study within the framework of various pilot studies undertaken by this committee. The organization of a periodic conference dealing with air pollution modelling and its application has become one of the main activities within the pilot study relating to air pollution. The first five international conferences were organized by the United States as the pilot country, the second five by the Federal Republic of Germany, the third five by Belgium, the fourth four by The Netherlands, the next five by Denmark and the last five by Portugal. This volume contains the abstracts of papers and posters presented at the 29th NATO/CCMS International Technical Meeting on Air Pollution Modelling and Its Application, held in Aveiro, Portugal, during September 24-28, 2007. This ITM was organized by the University of Aveiro, Portugal (Pilot Country and Host Organization). The key topics distinguished at this ITM included: Local and urban scale modelling; Regional and intercontinental modelling; Data assimilation and air quality forecasting; Model assessment and verification; Aerosols in the atmosphere; Interactions between climate change and air quality; Air quality and human health.