Environmental Monitoring and Assessment最新文献

Plastic waste is a major source of microplastic (MP) pollution, posing adverse environmental and public health risks. This study assessed MP abundance in 24 urban ponds and lakes within the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, India, during the post- and pre-monsoon seasons of 2022–2023. Results showed that MP concentrations were significantly higher in the post-monsoon season (20 ± 3.46 items L⁻¹; ANOVA, p < 0.05), with red, white, and black particles being the most prevalent. MPs prevalently ranged between 500 and 1000 µm with fibers constituting 58–59% of the total MPs. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) analysis identified polyethylene (PE) as the dominant polymer. MP abundance showed negative correlations with dissolved oxygen and turbidity, and positive associations with pH, TDS, BOD₅, and total coliform counts. A Support Vector Machine (SVM) model was developed for morphology-based MP classification, achieving an accuracy of 89%. Additionally, remote sensing and GIS techniques were used to develop index-based models for water-body identification and MP quantification (items L⁻¹) using spectral data from Sentinel-2 imagery. These models demonstrated high validation accuracy of 98.01% and 92.60%, respectively. Metal analysis of sediment and MPs of water detected chromium, suggesting possible MP–metal interactions within sediments. Although the Pollution Load Index (PLI) indicated relatively low contamination levels, the Polymer Hazard Index (PHI) exceeded 1000, indicating substantial ecological risk. Future studies should focus on long-term monitoring, socio-economic and health impact assessments and development of effective mitigation strategies particularly addressing plastic-waste derived-MPS.

Graphical Abstract

Permanently submerged aquatic moss growing in fast-flowing waters of the Yenisei River houses a dense community of gammarid amphipods, which are important food items for commercial fish species. The aim of the present study was to develop an algorithm for quantification of the contribution of bryofauna to the total budget of macroinvertebrates associated with the surface area of the river bottom. Moss vegetation cover was assessed using airborne imaging. A Gaussian mixture model was applied for classification of the orthomosaic. The ratio of biomass to surface of tufts of aquatic moss was obtained experimentally. The biomass of the most abundant macroinvertebrates associated with tufts of moss and with the mineral bottom substrate, gammarid amphipods, was quantified. The results show that in the depth range of 1–2 m, aquatic moss covers 29% of the bottom area. Aquatic moss housed a considerable proportion of gammarid amphipods (28.3–96.4%) of the total biomass of gammarids associated with the moss and the mineral bottom substrate during June–November. The study shows that bryofauna in fast-flowing waters of the Yenisei can contribute considerably to the secondary production of the river and should be taken into account in estimates of the forage for fish. The proposed algorithm can be used for temporal and spatial quantification of aquatic moss biomass and bryofauna per unit surface area of the bottom.

In South Greenland, public concerns have linked “black livers” in sheep to presumed environmental pollution from the Kvanefjeld mining exploration project. Elevated concentrations of metals and radionuclides in the area reflect natural geochemistry and weathering processes, not pollution from exploration activities. However, in response, we conducted a preliminary case–control study to diagnose the condition, investigate links between liver discoloration and environmental concentrations of metals and radionuclides, and to estimate the annual effective dose to the public from polonium-210 (²¹⁰Po) ingestion via sheep and lamb liver consumption. We also evaluated the prevalence of acquired melanosis, grazing and herd effects, and their association with carcass quality and disease markers. Histological analysis confirmed acquired melanosis in affected liver samples. No statistically significant differences in concentrations of chemical elements or radionuclides (including ²¹⁰Po and ²¹⁰Pb) were found between case and control groups, across age groups, grazing areas, or farms. Except for the most exposed children (10% percentile), the estimated annual effective dose to adults and children from ²¹⁰Po ingestion in black and healthy livers remained below the world average of 120 µSv due to the ingestion of naturally occurring radionuclides. The overall prevalence of ovine acquired melanosis based on a large sample size was 10.59%, with herd prevalence ranging from 0% to 51.79%. Age-specific prevalence was 10.38% in lambs and 13.40% in adult sheep. Acquired melanosis was negatively correlated with fat and muscle content in carcasses. The consumption of sheep livers from South Greenland does not appear to pose a toxicological or radiological risk.

Graphical Abstract

This study evaluated historical changes in land cover in the Chobe Enclave, Botswana, by characterising the landscape and illustrating its spatiotemporal changes to establish insights into the extent to which the National Conservation strategy of 1990 has facilitated conservation of the landscape. Previous research in the area has focused on changes in broad land cover categories, reporting a continuous and ongoing shift from woodlands to shrublands and grasslands. Our study clarifies the species-level dynamics shaping the observed structural change in plant functional types. We used a random forest classifier to identify 15 land covers and account for the fractional cover of photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic vegetation. We confirm an ongoing structural shift in plant functional types. The shift involves the displacement of the historically abundant Colophospermum mopane by generally short-statured communities, such as Terminalia sericea and Dichrostachys cinerea. The Dichrostachys cinerea accounted for 27.5%, 29.0%, 30.5%, and 25.3% in 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2020, respectively. Concurrently, the Terminalia sericea accounted for 24.3%, 25.1%, 28.1%, and 25.6% in 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2020, respectively. The communities showed aggressive encroachment towards the Colophospermum mopane, alongside other confounding factors. In this case, the vegetation was inversely correlated to elephant, cattle, and buffalo populations at r_s = −0.8, −0.8, and −0.2, respectively. The observations highlight that the envisioned sustainable management of natural resources through the National Conservation Strategy has not been fully addressed, as indicated by the continual disruption of the ecological integrity of the landscape and the detrimental implications posed on the support services it provides.

Urban environmental noise pollution is emerging as a critical challenge to public health and sustainable urban development. Using grid-based urban regional noise data collected in March–June 2023 across 11 prefecture-level cities in Zhejiang Province, this study systematically evaluates the spatiotemporal distribution of urban noise exposure, diurnal variations, estimated health burdens among high-risk populations, and the underlying associated factors. Results indicate that Ningbo reported the highest day–evening–night equivalent sound level (L_den) at 61.3 dB(A), while Quzhou recorded the lowest at 55.1 dB(A), with noise hotspots concentrated along the Hangzhou–Jiaxing–Huzhou to Ningbo–Shaoxing urban corridor. The evening rush hour was identified as the noisiest period (mean equivalent continuous sound level, LAeq = 56.4 dB(A)), whereas nighttime equivalent sound level (L_night) declined markedly to 45.0 dB(A), yielding a day–night difference exceeding 11 dB(A). Health impact assessments estimated that approximately 4.75 million residents were highly annoyed, 2.79 million were highly sleep disturbed, and approximately 2,026 cardiovascular deaths were attributable to noise exposure, with Ningbo and Hangzhou bearing the heaviest burdens. Correlation analysis further showed that per capita income, industrial land use, and road length were positively associated with noise levels, whereas per capita green space was negatively associated. Therefore, targeted mitigation is needed in high-noise areas and periods, prioritizing stricter nighttime control, optimization of industrial and transport layouts, and expansion of urban green space. Such measures may help reduce noise pollution and its adverse health effects, contributing to a better balance between environmental protection and social equity.

Mountain ecosystems are essential for understanding species distribution and adaptation. Anthropogenic pressure and global change threaten high-altitude medicinal plants. This study evaluates the ecology and biogeography of the endemic Trillium govanianum (Melanthiaceae), focusing on its response to disturbance gradients, spatial distribution, and community structure in the Kashmir Himalayas. Field surveys across 18 sites recorded 113 plant species associated with T. govanianum populations, predominantly herbs (82.3%), perennials (80.5%), and hemicryptophytes (52.2%), with microphyllous leaf forms (59.3%). Species richness was highest in the Asteraceae, Polygonaceae, and Lamiaceae families. Digital elevation model (DEM) analysis revealed that 50% of T. govanianum populations were found between 2800 and 3050 m, primarily on north-facing slopes. Floristic dissimilarity between temperate and subalpine communities was significant, with a dissimilarity of 77.8% (PERMANOVA: F = 9.146, p < 0.0001; NMDS stress = 0.093), demonstrating clear ecological segregation. Indicator species analysis identified 56 taxa with strong zonal fidelity, with T. govanianum as a typical subalpine indicator species. Co-occurrence analysis indicated positive relationships with Rumex nepalensis, Taxus wallichiana, and Geum elatum, and negative relationships with Morina longifolia and Micromeria biflora, suggesting both facilitative and competitive interactions. Canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) identified nomadic settlements (10.7%, p = 0.018) and non-timber forest product extraction (10.6%, p = 0.022) as significant threats, explaining 57.6% of the variation in species composition among sites. These threats reduce the abundance of T. govanianum and disrupt its population distribution. The findings emphasize the need for conservation strategies, monitoring, habitat protection, and sustainable livelihood interventions.

This article aims to predict the concentration of air pollutants at any unmonitored location based on sparse monitoring points in the monitoring area, thereby achieving the goal of fine-grained air pollution mapping. To learn the spatial distribution characteristics of air pollutants from sparse monitoring data, this article proposes a novel Graph Neural Network (GNN) model called Graph Convolutional Neural Networks on K Neighbors (KN-GCN). Additionally, a data augmentation method is employed to enhance the sparse monitoring data and prevent overfitting of the KN-GCN model during the training process. Moreover, since the ground truth concentration value is unavailable at unmonitored locations, the accuracy of the prediction cannot be measured. Therefore, a training strategy is designed to reflect the unmeasurable accuracy on the metrics of the KN-GCN model. To evaluate the proposed method, a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation experiment and a public dataset experiment are conducted. The results reveal that the proposed method outperforms the baseline methods by an average of 65% and 17.8% in the CFD experiment and public dataset experiment, respectively.

Antibiotic pollution poses a significant threat to aquatic ecosystems and human health. However, comprehensive nationwide assessments remain scarce. Using the PRISMA method, this study conducts a meta-analysis of 139 studies (2000–2024) to evaluate the spatiotemporal distribution, sources, and risks of antibiotics in China's surface waters. Results reveal 117 antibiotics detected, with concentrations ranging from 0.773 to 119,284 ng·L⁻¹, showing a distinct "east-high, west-low" pattern. Tetracyclines (Oxytetracycline, Chlorotetracycline, Tetracycline) were identified as the dominant pollutants, particularly Oxytetracycline, whose average concentration in the Wangyang River Basin reached 97,433.8 ng·L⁻¹, far exceeding other regions. Key pollution sources include livestock farming, aquaculture, and pharmaceutical waste. Risk quotient method revealed that Sulfamethoxazole, Sulfadiazine and Roxithromycin pose high risks to algae, with Sulfamethoxazole's high-risk areas accounting for 88.75% of monitored waters. Human health risk analysis showed that Ciprofloxacin and Sulfamethoxazole exhibit significant non-carcinogenic (up to 8.03) and carcinogenic risks (up to 0.009) to children, respectively, with high-risk areas concentrated in the Bohai Bay and Pearl River Basin. This meta-analysis emphasizes the need for enhanced monitoring, improved wastewater treatment, and targeted policies for high-risk antibiotics, providing a scientific basis for managing antibiotic pollution in China.

The Indus River basin heavily depends critically on the snow and glacier reserves of the Hindukush–Karakoram–Himalaya (HKH) region, often termed the “third pole.” However, rising temperatures and shifting climatic patterns increasingly threaten these snow and glacial reserves, necessitating further scientific investigation. This study analyzes snow cover dynamics in the Yasin River basin using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Terra Snow Cover 8-Day L3 Global 500-m product (MOD10A2, Collection 6.1) from 2003 to 2023 and Landsat-derived Modified Normalized Difference Water Index for 2003, 2013, and 2023 to assess changes in surface water bodies. Climate data (temperature and precipitation) from the meteorological Station (2003–2023) were incorporated, and statistical relationships were examined using Pearson and Spearman correlation analyses. Results show two distinct decadal patterns: (1) 2003–2012 exhibited a steady decline with a minimum August snow cover area (SCA) of 1432 km², and (2) from 2013 to 2023, summer melt intensified significantly, with August SCA dropping to 1335 km², confirming a climate-driven acceleration of snow loss. This trend aligns with the recorded temperature rise across the HKH region. Winter months maintained high SCA (2655–2600 km²), while summer snow retention declined markedly in the second decade. A strong negative correlation between temperature and SCA (r = −0.88) suggests significant warming-induced snow loss, while precipitation showed a weaker relationship. Concurrently, surface water bodies expanded from 411 km² (2003) to 523 km² (2023), reflecting enhanced meltwater contribution. The study indicates that minor SCA reductions are likely driven by global warming, potentially disrupting the hydrological and ecological balance in the Yasin basin. This study underscores the need for enhanced snow cover monitoring to support climate-resilient water management in vulnerable downstream regions.