Environmental Monitoring and Assessment最新文献

Bisphenol A (BPA) and its analogues are toxicants that can disrupt the endocrine system. They have been detected in the soil and agricultural products. Bisphenol substitutes (BPs) are distributed throughout the agricultural water system; however, the current status of these BPs entering the soil from irrigation is unclear. In this study, the association of BPA, bisphenol S (BPS), and bisphenol F (BPF) in vegetable soils with irrigation water samples was analyzed. Their accumulation, migration, and influencing factors were explored through simulated irrigation and adsorption tests. Significant correlations (P < 0.01) were observed, indicating that irrigation water was an important source of BPs in soil. Compared with BPS and BPF, BPA accumulated preferentially in the topsoil (10 cm) and continuously increased with irrigation, resulting in an interception ratio of up to 38.07%. Vertical seepage migration was in the order of BPS > BPF > BPA. Acidic soil (pH = 5), high organic matter content (> 32 mg/g), and micro-agglomerates (< 0.053 mm) promoted the adsorption of these BPs and reduced their migration. Understanding the migration of BPs in soil, particularly in a vertical direction, will assist in controlling their migration. It will also help reduce their accumulation, thereby lowering ecological risks.

The Monterrey Metropolitan Area (MMA) in Northeastern Mexico, already burdened by significant industrial pollution, experienced a severe drought crisis during the 2020–2023 triple-dip La Niña. This prolonged climate anomaly triggered three major fire episodes in the Sierra Madre Oriental (SMO), sharply increasing particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) concentrations. To assess the impact of wildfire emissions on urban pollution, this study integrates ground-based air quality and meteorological measurements, satellite-derived data (VIIRS fire radiative power and MODIS aerosol optical depth), drought indicators from the North American Drought Monitor (NADM), and dispersion modeling using Nonparametric Wind Regression (NWR). Fire-attributable contributions increased by up to 53.3(mu )gm(^{-3}) for PM10 and 12.8(mu )gm(^{-3}) for PM2.5, frequently exceeding both Mexican and WHO air quality standards. On average, the three wildfires accounted for relative increases of 110% in PM10 and 49% in PM2.5 compared to non-fire conditions. These increases were linked to wind-driven smoke transport from the SMO to the MMA, demonstrating that three megafires substantially degraded urban air quality during a period of extreme drought. As climate change is expected to increase the frequency of multi-year ENSO episodes, thereby prolonging droughts and intensifying wildfire occurrence, our findings underscore the urgent need to incorporate biomass burning aerosol emissions into air quality management strategies and health impact assessments in other regions experiencing similar conditions.

Groundwater phosphate pollution is an emerging environmental concern in regions facing rapid urbanization and agricultural intensification. The Surabaya-Lamongan Groundwater Basin (SLGB) in East Java, Indonesia, exemplifies such conditions, where diverse land uses and anthropogenic pressures threaten groundwater quality. This study systematically assessed phosphate contamination across a rural–urban gradient to identify spatial variability, contamination sources, and the influence of well depth and land use–land cover (LULC) on phosphate distribution. Fifty-eight groundwater samples were collected from wells representing different LULC categories and aquifer depths using a grid-based sampling design. Phosphate concentrations were analyzed by UV–Vis spectrophotometry employing the phosphomolybdenum blue method. LULC classification was derived from Landsat 7 ETM + (2000) and Landsat 8 OLI TIRS (2021) imagery. Statistical analyses including independent samples t-test, one-way ANOVA, and one-sample t-test were used to differentiate contamination patterns and evaluate exceedances of the 0.2 mg/L drinking water threshold. Phosphate concentrations were significantly higher in shallow wells than in deep wells (p < 0.05). Residential areas exhibited the highest mean value (1.107 mg/L), followed by agricultural land (0.337 mg/L), while industrial zones had the lowest (0.168 mg/L). The overall mean phosphate concentration (0.627 mg/L) exceeded the permissible limit (p < 0.001), with notable spatial variability across administrative regions. The study provides the first integrated, depth-dependent assessment of phosphate contamination in the SLGB, linking LULC dynamics with groundwater vulnerability across a rural–urban gradient. These findings underscore the need for targeted management strategies to reduce phosphate loading and ensure sustainable groundwater use in rapidly developing basins.

Understanding how wild species utilize their resources is crucial for designing protected natural areas. Using the dynamic Brownian bridge motion model (DBBMM), this study employed satellite telemetry to calculate and analyze the home ranges and core areas of black bear individuals in Mexico. Various environmental factors (such as altitude, vegetation cover, the modified soil adjusted vegetation index, and distance to water bodies) and anthropogenic variables (including distance to primary and secondary roads and the human modification index) were examined to describe the bears’ home ranges. The average home range estimated using MCP was greater in females (245.3 ± 355.0 km²) than in males (130.7 ± 149.3 km²), although there were no significant differences, with the 95% DBBMM (females, 68.5 ± 61.3 km²; males, 69.4 ± 117 km²; W = 20, p = 0.65). In contrast, the 50% DBBMM showed a tendency toward higher values in females (4.73 ± 1.12 km²) than in males (3.05 ± 4.8 km²), but without statistical significance. The generalized linear models revealed that for females and males, proximity to bodies of water influences the selection of core areas, as does proximity to primary roads. Females also use sites with low human modification, and vegetation was not a determining factor for either sex. This study provides insights into the environmental and anthropogenic variables that influence the establishment and size of core areas and home ranges of black bears in northern Mexico.

Natural and engineered water features, or blue infrastructure are increasingly implemented in cities as a form of water-related nature-based solutions (aquaNBS), to address ecological and hydrological challenges that threaten urban biodiversity and water security. Nevertheless, the combination of impacts from climate change, multi-faceted consequences of past management, current urban expansion, population growth, and overall urban ecosystem complexity makes it challenging to evaluate the hydrological function of these aquaNBS, and their sensitivity to hydroclimatic and other environmental changes. To enhance adaptation capacity of aquaNBS towards multiple urban and climatic stressors, it is crucial to understand the main hydrologic processes, as well as hydroclimate influences, that determine the functioning of aquaNBS. Stable water isotopes have proven to be a valuable tool in providing integrated understanding of hydrologic functioning over extended spatial scales. While higher frequency isotope data is usually most informative, even limited isotopic data can aid hydrological characterization. We conducted seasonal sampling over the period of one year in 2023/2024, across a major hydroclimate gradient across four European cities (Poznań, Berlin, Antwerp, Lisbon). The goal was to identify the dominant physical processes (in terms of water sources, dominant flow paths, and age proxies) linked to the main hydroclimate factors along a continental climate gradient. Comparative analyses of local stable water isotope signatures from different aquaNBS types (i.e., streams, ponds) revealed the strong influence of local hydroclimate, as well as varying water source contributions and mixing processes. The application of transit time proxies, such as tracer damping and young water fraction estimations, suggests ponds to be more sensitive to hydroclimate changes, as evidenced by the strong seasonality in evaporative enrichment and high fractions of young water contributions. In contrast, most streams indicated greater mixing of water sources and longer transit times, suggesting greater resilience to hydroclimate variability. In addition, a comparison between seasonally sampled data and monthly sampling for selected locations in Berlin showed that even relatively coarse temporal data collection, but with more extensive spatial coverage, can be sufficient and still insightful for broader hydrologic characterizations of aquaNBS at larger scales.

Remote sensing technology enables broad-scale ecological studies, with birds indicating global changes and validating its data. Despite its global relevance, the integration of remote sensing in ornithological research in India remains limited and fragmented. We conducted extensive literature review on the remote sensing applications in ornithological studies in India from 1992 to 2022 to reorient ornithological research primarily focusing on the existing satellite data, telemetry and GIS tools. The objectives of the review are: (1) to provide an overview of remote-sensing data applications in avian ecological studies, (2) to report the spatiotemporal trends and patterns in the characteristics of remote sensing data (scale, resolution, data source) applied in the studies, and identify the region-specific approaches and (3) to identify the research gaps, improve the methods and propose priority research themes by outlining the future scope of its applications in avian ecology and the conservation efforts as an opportunity to strengthen avian research using remote sensing technology in rapidly changing landscapes. We systematically reviewed literature (N = 108) that related remotely sensed data to bird distribution, abundance assessment, and migration. Our review covered 132 bird species across 19 orders and 5 feeding guilds. Forest birds were more frequently studied than wetland birds, with nearly 50% of the studies focused on single species. Galliformes were the most represented while Falconiformes, Columbiformes, and Ciconiiformes were the least. Studies largely focused on habitat suitability using avian occurrence data (51%) while avian disease outbreak, genetics, and nest site data (each 2%) had least contribution. Our review suggests the need to bridge ecological knowledge gaps using remote sensing and GIS tools through interdisciplinary collaboration among ornithologists, remote sensing experts, and scientists from other allied fields as this can improve data-sharing policies and develop innovative user-friendly products for applications in avian research. Additionally, community participation through citizen science can generate valuable crowd-sourced data for bird conservation and ecosystem management.

Our study focuses on the Wadi Sebdou basin, a tributary catchment located in northwestern Algeria within the larger Tafna River basin, covering an area of 616.8 km². This region is characterized by an extensive karstic system developed within carbonate-dominated terrain of Upper Jurassic age. Severe drought conditions in the region have significantly impacted groundwater recharge in the karst aquifer, resulting in groundwater extraction rates that exceed recharge. Therefore, this study aimed to estimate the average groundwater deficit during the observation period and in particular to characterize the hydrodynamic behavior of the karst aquifer in response to varying levels of natural recharge, thereby assessing its self-renewal capacity. To achieve this, hydrological modeling was conducted using the global conceptual model, GARDÉNIA, which takes account of external water exchanges and cascading reservoir dynamics. Application of the GARDÉNIA model yielded satisfactory calibration results for the period of 1975–2005. Additionally, the study confirmed the presence of a significant climatic variability phenomenon that affected the region from 2005 to 2016, which adversely impacted the model’s performance during this period. During the calibration period, the GARDÉNIA simulations provided robust evidence of the temporal evolution of hydrological processes. These findings underscore the crucial role of the karstic aquifer, particularly its groundwater flow, in maintaining the year-round sustainability of the Wadi Sebdou system. The simulation results demonstrate a consistent hydrodynamic behavior of the karstic aquifer in relation to recharge. When annual recharge reaches 61.5 mm per year, external groundwater flow can be eliminated, effectively stabilizing the water balance in the basin. Water balance calculations indicate that the aquifer in Wadi Sebdou basin receives an average groundwater input of 2.2 mm/year, resulting in an average deficit of 1.35696 hm³/year. This deficit is compensated by the intricate network of the karstic system present in the upper Tafna, which is not directly connected to surface hydrological units. Under zero recharge conditions, the theoretical maximum groundwater flow contribution through this regional karstic system could reach 37.13136 hm³/year (60.2 mm).

The identification of climate change refugia is fundamental for climate-smart conservation planning, especially in highly altered landscapes, such as temperate grasslands. Our study aimed to identify breeding refugia for three focal grassland birds: Baird’s sparrow (Centronyx bairdii), Sprague’s pipit (Anthus spragueii), and thick-billed longspur (Rhynchophanes mccownii) across the Canadian prairies. We used species distribution models to identify breeding refugia within the climatically suitable range for two time periods (2050 and 2080) under two of the most likely climatic scenarios (“intermediate scenario” RCP 4.5 and “worst-case scenario” RCP 8.5). In doing so, we demonstrate the importance of incorporating species-specific dispersal ability and projected shifts in grassland habitats in the analyses. Our study predicts a northward shift in the breeding ranges of all three bird species under both climate scenarios, with almost 100% loss of their current breeding habitat. However, all species are expected to gain bioclimatic space outside of their current range under RCP 4.5 in 2050 and 2080. Further increases in emissions under the RCP 8.5 scenario will likely cause Baird’s sparrow to lose bioclimatic space both in 2050 and 2080, and the same is true for the other two species only in 2080. Approximately 80% of currently suitable habitats for the focal species are located outside protected areas. As the climate warms, almost 100% of future breeding refugia for all birds are likely to reside outside protected areas in all climate change scenarios. Our study provides a framework for climate-integrated conservation planning for the wide-ranging migratory species.

Effective monitoring for stream habitat health is essential for sustainable restoration and management to conserve ecosystem services. Traditional in situ surveying with multi-metric indices is widely used by state and federal agencies but is often labor-intensive and spatially limited. To address these challenges, this study introduces a suite of cost-effective drone-based monitoring toolkits that integrate automated flight-route design, Structure-from-Motion (SfM) image reconstruction, and multi-metric index (MMI) computation. The toolkits form an end-to-end workflow for quantitative habitat evaluation, enabling centimeter-scale mapping and standardized MMI scoring based on Wisconsin DNR and EPA guidelines. The toolkits were examined at Black Earth Creek, Wisconsin, where high- and low-elevation drone images were collected and processed to generate high-resolution (< 1 cm) ortho-photos and terrain maps. The reconstructed terrain achieved horizontal and vertical accuracies of 0.04 m and 0.17 m, respectively, and the UAV-derived MMI results showed strong agreement with field measurements. The entire process—from flight planning to assessment—can be completed by one operator within three hours using an off-the-shelf drone (< USD 1000) and standard photogrammetry software. Beyond improving efficiency, the integrated toolkits provide spatially continuous, repeatable assessments that capture habitat variability and degradation hotspots often missed by conventional transect-based methods. By significantly reducing labor and costs associated with data collection, processing, and assessment, these UAV-based toolkits offer a cost-effective, scalable, and reproducible solution for routine stream habitat monitoring and long-term conservation planning.