Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management最新文献

The U.S. Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration program gives tribes and government-appointed agencies the authority to assess injury to natural resources and pursue compensatory action for resources injured or lost due to unlawful release of chemicals into the environment. This study was performed to develop and test a Bayesian network (BN) decision support tool to lend quantitative insight into natural resource injury assessment. The BN model represents the causal relationship between the released polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and three common adverse effects of PCB exposure in fish-mortality, growth, and reproductive effects-as well as a combined largest effects model pathway. Each end point of a causal pathway is a probabilistic estimation of an injured or uninjured decision based on the PCB concentration in fish tissue and toxicity data. The probability distributions from the BN's combined largest effects model pathway results were linked to spreadsheets that automate injury quantification in units of discount service acre years. Probabilistic injury determinations and quantifications were performed for individual spatial subregions of the study area and for the entire site. The case study focused on the fish resources of an inactive PCB-contaminated Superfund site in mideastern Indiana-the Little Mississinewa River and the larger Mississinewa River, into which the Little Mississinewa River drains. Using the BN tool, we determined that there was at least low-level injury to fish resources throughout the Mississinewa River and reservoir. We found that the likelihood of injury decreased with distance from the original contaminant release site. When quantified, the injury to the entire basin totaled 94,216 lost discount service acre years. A secondary analysis determined higher injury to bottom-feeding species of fish. This study demonstrated that BNs can be used to characterize and quantify natural resource injury for Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration purposes.

Florida red tide (Karenia brevis) blooms release brevetoxins, potentially affecting respiratory, gastrointestinal, and neurological health. Multiple studies have identified associations between red tide exposure and various health conditions, particularly respiratory. However, there remains a need to elucidate the causal mechanisms underlying these associations and to more precisely estimate the magnitude of their effects. This study aimed to estimate the causal effect of K. brevis exposure on acute respiratory, gastrointestinal, and neurological conditions using a large cohort, clinically validated diagnoses, and a comprehensive set of potential individual- and community-level confounders. An observational cohort was derived by using electronic health record data from a large clinical research data network covering >60% of health care providers in Florida. West coast residents within 5 km of the shoreline were included. Monthly K. brevis concentrations were categorized and linked to acute diagnoses from 2012 to 2019. Generalized estimating equations, incorporating an adjustment set calculated from an expert-reviewed directed acyclic graph, were used to estimate the causal effects of red tide on the diagnoses. Based on the assumption of correct model specification and the absence of unmeasured confounding or selection bias, red tide exposure showed a weak effect on increasing risk of acute respiratory conditions (adjusted odds ratio = 1.001 per log cells/L higher, p = .012) and gastrointestinal conditions (adjusted odds ratio = 1.002 per log cells/L higher, p = .010). No appreciable effect was found for neurological conditions. The interaction between wind and red tide suggested that onshore winds combined with higher red tide levels may exacerbate the risk of respiratory and gastrointestinal illness. This causal analysis brings further evidence that red tide exposure may increase the risk of acute respiratory and gastrointestinal illness, albeit with small effect sizes, contingent on the validity of our causal model assumptions. Thus, environmental policies apt to reduce K. brevis growth in the Florida west coast might also produce positive public health effects.

The rapid process of urbanization and industrialization has intensified the competition for land resources among various stakeholders. The transformation of land between uses for production, living, and ecological development is becoming increasingly fierce, which in turn causes fluctuations in regional environmental quality. Examining the upper reaches of the Yangtze River (URYR), this study makes use of land use data obtained from remote sensing image interpretation for five periods from 1980-2020; the land-use transformation, environmental effects, and influencing factors in the URYR are then quantitatively analyzed by means of a transition matrix, environmental quality index, and geographical detector. The results show that from 1980-2020, land-use transformation manifested as an increase in living land and a decrease in production and ecological land. The primary type of conversion of land use occurred between production and ecological land, and the overall environmental quality of the region has declined. The high-value areas are mostly concentrated in the southwest and east, and the low-value agglomeration areas are in the central and western regions. Natural environmental factors are the basis of the environmental quality in the URYR. The influencing factors from strong to weak are topographic relief, slope, net primary productivity, mean annual temperature, altitude, land use intensity, economic density, annual average precipitation, road network density, population density, and land-use diversity.

Dam removals and fish passage can enhance aquatic connectivity but may also promote upstream transport of legacy contaminants by migratory fish. This study assessed the potential for contaminant biotransport in Michigan's Boardman River following the planned removal of the Union Street Dam and installation of FishPass, a selective fish passage facility. We quantified polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), mercury (Hg), and organochlorine pesticides in carcass and egg samples from migratory species including Chinook and coho salmon, migratory rainbow trout, common white and longnose sucker, lake trout, walleye, and sea lamprey. Chinook salmon exhibited the highest PCB concentrations in both carcasses and eggs, exceeding those of rainbow trout and native suckers. Similarly, Chinook salmon were predicted to deposit up to 2,200 mg PCBs upstream under a high run size scenario, over 80 and 100 times greater than rainbow trout and native suckers. Although suckers had lower individual contaminant burdens, their relatively large run sizes contributed moderately to potential contaminant biotransport compared with rainbow trout, indicating an interaction between abundance and spawner contaminant burden. Stream-resident brook and brown trout in reaches open to migratory fish had higher PCBs and lower Hg concentrations than in closed reaches, likely reflecting dietary exposure to eggs and growth dilution. These results demonstrate that the potential for contaminant biotransport varies widely among migratory species and highlights the need for managers to consider both contaminant burden and run size when making fish passage decisions to balance ecological restoration with contaminant exposure risk.

Quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs), often referred to as QACs or quats, are a class of frequently used chemicals have been receiving greater attention due to their increased use during the COVID-19 pandemic and association with a variety of hazard traits. The lack of a standardized nomenclature for this class of chemicals compromises our ability to understand the use of individual QACs within and across products and product categories, which in turn makes it challenging to accurately assess the potential for human and environmental exposures. This article presents a clear, descriptive, and consistent nomenclature for QACs. This nomenclature was developed with a focus on QACs used as surfactants and antimicrobials in personal care and cleaning products. By harmonizing the names and abbreviations used to communicate about QACs by the scientific, regulatory, and industrial communities, we hope to improve the ease and accuracy of that communication.

Double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-based biopesticides are a promising new method of pest management. These biopesticides leverage the endogenous RNA interference pathway to selectively regulate expression of key genes involved in growth and development in pests, providing the potential to minimize harmful environmental effects by highly specific targeting. As dsRNA-based biopesticides are presented for regulatory review, evaluating potential off-target effects on nontarget organisms (NTOs) in a manner that may be unique to this novel sequence-specific mode of action is crucial. To address this, we propose here a bioinformatics framework for consideration of sequence-specific off-target effects in NTOs. This framework includes careful consideration of NTOs based on potential exposure and susceptibility and recommends standardizing analyses to search for 21-nucleotide stretches of perfect identity and 80% overall identity between the dsRNA and off-target transcripts. We recommend a three-pronged approach to ensure a comprehensive risk assessment: (a) phylogenetic analysis of gene orthologs that defines the taxonomic scope of sequence similarity, (b) broad searches of large databases to identify potential unexpected similarity in distantly related species, and (c) full transcriptome analyses in NTO species of particular concern for a thorough understanding of all potential hazards. Finally, we recommend considering the results of bioinformatic analyses in the context of risk characterization, which means considering likely exposure to the dsRNA-based pesticide and potential susceptibility or barriers to dsRNA uptake. This approach enables a robust ecological risk assessment for dsRNA-based biopesticides and a regulatory path forward for this promising new pest management tool.

The One Health concept strongly brings into focus the important connections for human and ecosystem health. However, the incorporation of behavior method guidelines in risk assessment and regulation/policy is not equal between human and ecological disciplines. A survey was conducted on the perceptions and role of behavioral (eco)toxicology in the protection of human and ecosystem health. Those surveyed include scientists working in the field of environmental toxicology and behavioral ecology, representing industry, government, nongovernment organizations, and academia/research centers. The respondents (N = 166) agreed that contaminants "can impact" and "are impacting" wildlife (97% and 77%) and humans (84% and 62%, respectively). Overall respondents believed behavioral experiments to be repeatable (60%), reliable (61%), and relevant (84%), although those not studying behavior (43%) were more cautious in their answers. Respondents were more likely to be neutral when asked whether behavioral endpoints are more sensitive (43%), but they agreed (80%) that behavioral endpoints provide important alternative information to standard endpoints. The largest group disagreed (42%) with the statement that behavioral endpoints are currently used in risk assessment but agreed that they were essential (55%). The majority of respondents disagreed (63%) that we understood the risks of contaminants to human and ecosystem health, but they agreed (68%) that regulatory authorities should consider behavioral endpoints. When answers were compared among sectors (academia, government, or industry), industry scientists were more likely to be negative or neutral in their responses to the application of behavioral toxicology. We discuss how these data could be used to support our understanding of and confidence in the effects of contaminants on human and ecosystem health.

We compared ground flora sampling methods for assessing the state of multiple bottomland forest restorations 6-21 years after restoration implementation in northeast Indiana, United States. Data from standard fixed-area plots of appropriate size and complexity for forest assessments were compared with data from smaller fixed-area plots of different shapes and plotless sampling methods. The methods were compared for their ability to (1) assess species richness and abundance, (2) detect and monitor invasive and dominant species, and (3) understand community composition. We assessed the biases of the compared methods, identified the training and skills needed to conduct sampling, and examined sampling costs in relation to total monitoring costs. Results show that smaller plots are able to detect more species per unit area sampled without significant differences in floristic quality measures. Data from smaller plots were sufficient for comprehensively describing site conditions even when less of the total site area was sampled. Although multivariate analyses of data from smaller plots yielded greater within-group dissimilarity than data from larger plots, multiple response permutation procedure analyses indicated no significant differences between nonmetric multidimensional scaling solutions based on data from the different sampling methods. Regardless of the sampling methods used to collect data, use of multivariate analyses identified a gradient of time since restoration was implemented as the dominant factor relating to differences between community composition. Sampling costs spanned a range of one order of magnitude but generally represented less than 6% of total assessment costs. Results suggest that when selecting sampling methods, matching monitoring effort to specific measurable management endpoints is more important than sampling cost.

Not-In-My-Backyard (NIMBY) facilities, often characterized by their negative externalities, are frequently opposed or resisted by the public. To examine the impact of information interventions on public acceptance of NIMBY facilities, a behavioral investigation experiment consisting of a survey of 100 college students before and after viewing negative videos of either environmentally polluting or psychologically excluding types of NIMBY facilities was conducted to assess the efficacy of these interventions in shaping public perceptions and attitudes. Differences in respondent's attitudes toward the types of NIMBY facilities demonstrated that the information intervention affected perceptions and attitudes toward NIMBY facilities. Changes in response variables for perceived risk, perceived benefits, self-efficacy, positive emotion label, social environment, and public acceptance showed that environmentally polluting NIMBY facilities elicited a more negative response than psychologically excluding NIMBY facilities. Postintervention, significant differences emerged across all six dimensions, and attitudes toward environmentally polluting NIMBY facilities became more negative than those toward psychologically excluding NIMBY facilities, with a significant increase in the perceived risk and a significant decrease in the perceived benefit. The study demonstrated that information interventions influenced attitudes toward NIMBY facilities, and that this influence differed between the two facility types.

Accumulation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) has been demonstrated in biota across the globe. Higher trophic-level air-breathing organisms that live in or depend on aquatic ecosystems are most at risk from PFOS and other bioaccumulative per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Nonetheless, there are very few guidelines available for the protection of air-breathing wildlife. The Australian and New Zealand Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Water Quality provide Default Guideline Values (DGVs) for toxicants. These DGVs are based on traditional ecotoxicological tests that do not consider bioaccumulation. For chemicals known to bioaccumulate, the guidelines recommend a precautionary approach by applying the DGV that protects 99% of species. The PFAS National Environmental Management Plan (NEMP) provides Wildlife Diet Guidelines (WDGs) to protect mammals and birds that consume aquatic organisms. Other jurisdictions have developed Water Quality Criteria for the protection of wildlife via the use of dietary studies and combined with bioconcentration factors to back-calculate a safe concentration of PFOS in the water. As end users tend to use Water Quality Guidelines/Criteria as screening tools for further risk assessment, it is critically important to understand whether these PFOS guidelines effectively protect wildlife. In 2022-2023, water, sediment, and biota samples were collected over a year at eight sites in southeast Queensland, Australia. The dominant PFAS found in biota was PFOS, with the only other PFAS found in biota to be long-chain perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFCAs). Fifty percent of the sites had mean PFOS surface water concentrations that were below the draft Australian DGV, and yet all but one had biota concentrations that exceeded the NEMP WDGs. Bioaccumulation factors (BAFS) in fish were inversely related to concentrations of PFOS in water and showed a high variability within species and sites. Considering this, an interim field derived screening threshold is proposed for wildlife risk assessments.