International Journal of Environment and Pollution (18 papers in press)

Regular Issues

• Research on immobilisation of heavy metals in karst soil in Guizhou Province under the effect of carbonate  
  by Shaoxia Lin, Mingyang Cui, Zhiqiang Xiao, Changhu Lin 
  Abstract: Yellow soil and limestone soil are two dominant types of agricultural cultivated soil in carbonatite outcropped regions in Guizhou Province. Heavy metals in these soils are characteristic of high background value and low activity. To explore the relationship between high carbonate content and heavy metal activity in soils, this study simulated immobilisation of heavy metals in yellow soil and limestone soil under the existence of different concentrations of carbonates through laboratory experiments. Results showed that CaCO3 can increase the pH of yellow soil up to 7.08 and the limestone soil up to 8.25. CaCO3 is conducive to immobilisation of heavy metals in yellow soils within a certain range. It can relieve bio-availability of heavy metals in soil. In limestone soils, CaCO3 controls activity of heavy metals by adjusting soil pH and thereby influences solubility product constant of metallic compound precipitation. The adsorption kinetics model revealed that adsorption of heavy metals by yellow soil and limestone soil is not a physical adsorption, but a chemical adsorption based on chemical bonds. The rate of adsorption is controlled by heavy metal diffusion in soil particles and liquid film diffusion. High-concentration carbonates in karst soils in Guizhou Province can inhibit activity of heavy metals. Although the background value of heavy metals in soils in Guizhou Province is high, it hasnt shown serious health risks to crops or human beings.
  Keywords: calcium carbonate; heavy metal; yellow soil; adsorption kinetics;.
  
  
• Geographic information system simulation and assessment for environmental impact of overall urban planning  
  by Chuhong Li, Bo Zhou 
  Abstract: In order to achieve the rationality of urban positioning and development direction and the suitability of ecological shadow environment, the environmental impact of overall urban planning based on Geographic Information System (GIS) evaluation method is evaluated. Firstly, a GIS evaluation index system for the environmental impact of urban planning is established, and the regional boundary layer model and the atmospheric motion equation are used to analyze the feasibility of the GIS model. Then, the construction of GIS evaluation model for the environmental impact of overall urban planning is introduced, and spatial division of the planning scheme is carried out. The atmospheric environment and noise environment models of urban planning are established using the land regression method, and the water environment use model is established using the continuous water tank method. Finally, taking X city as an example, the environmental impact of the overall urban planning is evaluated using the GIS evaluation model. The results show that the assessment of environmental impact of urban master planning based on GIS is feasible. In terms of the water quality environment, the GIS model can be used to find out the reasons affecting the water quality environment and provide good guidance for the site selection and planning of factories in cities. In the aspect of atmospheric environment, the congested routes can be found out to provide guidance for urban road planning. In terms of noise environment, the construction site can be selected away from the concentrated residential buildings. The GIS evaluation of urban master plan quantitatively evaluates the atmospheric environment, noise environment, and water environment, which can provide scientific basis for urban master plan. The study provides a good guiding ideology for the overall planning of the city.
  Keywords: environmental impact; overall urban planning; geographic information system; evaluation model.
  
  
• Effects of phosphorus fertiliser type and application rate on leaf traits of sickle lucerne (Medicago falcate L) in a semi-arid environment in Northern China  
  by Bo Xu, Huimin Jiang, Baoyin Taogetao 
  Abstract: By observing the micro-structure of sickle alfalfa (Medicago falcate L.) treated with different phosphorus fertilisers, the adaptive mechanism of sickle alfalfa to structures in different phosphorus application rates can be explained, and a theoretical basis for phosphorus environment adapted by alfalfa can be provided. Six micro-morphological structure indicators from 2012 to 2014, including leaf thickness, palisade tissue thickness, spongy tissue thickness, palisade/spongy ratio, CTR and SR, were measured for sickle alfalfa treated with different phosphorus fertilisers. The results show: (1) with increase of phosphorus application rate, leaf thickness firstly increased and then decreased: it was thickest under moderate phosphorous rate; (2) different phosphorus fertiliser types had less effect on leaf thickness.
  Keywords: phosphorus fertiliser; leaf micro-structural mechanism; allometry.
  
  
• Assessment the risk of urban exposure to polyaromatic hydrocarbons in cities of Transylvania, Romania  
  by Andreea-Maria Rotaru, Mihail Simion Beldean-Galea 
  Abstract: The goal of this study is to estimate the urban environmental risk exposure to polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the atmosphere of six cities of Transylvania region using moss as biomonitor and GC-MS analysis.The carcinogenic potential of the measured atmospheric PAHs was estimated by the benzo[a]pyrene toxicity equivalent (BaPeq) and the toxic equivalence factor (TEF), respectively.The PAHs concentration found in the analysed dried moss ranged from 45.27 ng g-1 in T
  Keywords: polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; urban atmosphere; moss; biomonitors; risk assessment; Transylvania.
  
  
• Visible symptoms and changes in physiological parameters of Cinnamomum camphora and Michelia chapensis under ozone stress  
  by Lan Pan, Long-hua Ye, Hong-yue Chen, Gan-wen Lie 
  Abstract: The responses of Cinnamomum camphora and Michelia chapensis to ozone (O3) exposure in terms of the O3 injury and changes in the physiological parameters of their leaves were examined in charcoal-filtered (CF) air and O3 at 1
  Keywords: tropospheric ozone; visible injury; chlorophyll; antioxidative system.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJEP.2022.10051155
   
  
• Photocatalytic degradation of Ciprofloxacin by bagasse-derived graphene oxide, and toxicity test of the degraded products through microbiological assay  
  by Aditya Kumar Jha, Sukalyan Chakraborty 
  Abstract: Ciprofloxacin, an antibiotic of fluoroquinolone drug class, is often associated with negative impacts on aquatic ecosystems demanding innovative techniques and materials for treatment before discharge. In the present study, bagasse, a potential solid waste, was used to treat Ciprofloxacin by converting it into Graphene Oxide (GO) using ferrocene reagent as a catalyst by slow thermal pyrolysis. Characterisation of GO by SEM and HRTEM revealed ultra-thin sheet-like layers, while Raman spectroscopy confirmed its high purity and XRD confirmed its crystalline nature. The synthesised material, when tested for removal of Ciprofloxacin through natural solar-irradiated photocatalysis, showed a maximum 81% degradation following pseudo-second-order kinetics. Mass spectrometry confirmed the fragmentation of the antibiotic into lower molecular weight compounds. Further, a microbiological assay of the degraded products on bacterial strains indicated them to be innocuous. The study depicts a circular economic approach to tackling the solid waste disposal problem and wastewater treatment simultaneously.
  Keywords: Ciprofloxacin; degradation mechanism; graphene oxide; photocatalytic degradation; sunlight.
  
  
• Spatial and temporal analyses of airborne particulate matter in South Marmara region of Turkey  
  by Atilla Mutlu 
  Abstract: In the lengthy time period between 2007 and 2019, airborne particulate matter (PM10) levels from real-time intensive measurements were analysed to determine how the long-term PM10 levels may vary from the effects of both meteorological parameters and different emission sources in the South Marmara region of Turkey. In this study, the main statistical approaches, such as an analysis of variance, correlation analysis, and multiple and quantile regression analyses, were performed to determine how daily measured long-term PM10 levels varied by the influence of local meteorological parameters in the study area. According to the regression models, the significant contributors in the study area were ambient temperature and wind speeds. The local sources, including quarries, crushing and screening facilities, briquette houses and marble workshops, of airborne PM10 levels may be considered the main contributors to the peak PM10 levels in the study area. Therefore, spatial analyses were performed to understand the main contributor to the PM10 episodes when the highest PM10 levels were observed throughout the studied years. Also, the cluster analysis and weighted concentration analysis (CWT) approach showed that the local sources were mostly associated with the higher PM10 levels during the long-term observation of the study area.
  Keywords: PM10; ANOVA; regression analysis; HYSPLIT; cluster; CWT.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJEP.2022.10053599
   
  
• Transcriptome analysis of muskmelon respond to cadmium stress  
  by Yunqiang Wang, Zhen Lei, Xiaoqian Liu, Zhengkang Zou, Licong Yi, Yu Gong, Zhaoyi (corresponding Author) Dai, Junli (corresponding Author) Li 
  Abstract: Cadmium (Cd) contamination is the most serious and largest heavy metal pollution of China. It is necessary to explore the mechanism of Cd poisoning and the mechanism of resistance to Cd stress in crops. In the study, Illumina sequencing technology was used for transcriptome high-throughput sequencing. The molecular mechanism of Cd stress in muskmelon was investigated using gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis. In addition, through the detection of physiological indexes of muskmelon leaves, it was found that chlorophyll content and POD activity were considerably reduced. In addition, the related genes were significantly up-regulated exposed to Cd. In the study, the main pathways and genes of muskmelon response to Cd stress were analysed, providing a theoretical foundation for future research into the mechanism of Cd stress response.
  Keywords: muskmelon; RNA-seq; transcriptome; high-throughput sequencing; cadmium stress; differentially expressed genes; gene ontology; KEGG; physiological indexes; response pathways.
  
  
• Modelling the assessment of atmospheric impacts from smart farming application  
  by Evangelia Fragkou, George Tsegas, Fotios Barmpas, Eleftherios Chourdakis, Nicolas Moussiopoulos 
  Abstract: The project LIFE GAIA Sense focuses on the development and application of an innovative 'Smart Farming' system, aiming to reduce consumption of natural resources and to minimise the environmental impact of agricultural activities, while increasing crop production. One of the main objectives of the project is to evaluate and quantify the impact of smart farming applications on the atmospheric environment. A combined use of dispersion modelling and continuous measurements of several atmospheric pollutants is employed to assess the emission, dispersion and deposition of gases and particulates, taking advantage of collected input data as provided by the on-site GAIA sensors and meteorological stations. Activity data for emissions calculation are derived by targeted questionnaires to farmers. The atmospheric dispersion calculations follow a multiscale approach, based on a two-way coupled model system, incorporating the mesoscale model MEMO/MARS-aero and the microscale model MIMO, in conjunction with a soil model.
  Keywords: sustainable agriculture; smart farming; environmental impact assessment; air quality assessment; air quality modelling; atmospheric emissions from agriculture.
  
  
• Identification of 'Blue tears' and its relationship with water quality of coastal waters in Pingtan Island  
  by Yingbing Zou, Junkun Chen, Xiuling Ma, Yuxiang Yang, Jianyong You, Qianhuo Chen, Yi Zheng, Shengchang Xiang 
  Abstract: This is the first example of research on the identification of 'Blue tears' and its effect on water quality. In view of the fascinating 'Blue tears' appearing in Pingtan Island from April to July in recent years, a survey on plankton and regular water quality was conducted in Pingtan related sea areas throughout 2018. It showed that plankton increased sharply during the bloom of 'Blue tears' in May and June, and Noctiluca scintillans with bio-luminescence ability is one of the main dominant species, up to 50700 cells per litre in May. Phytoplankton availability largely determined the bloom of N. scintillans. Different from the reported work that N. scintillans may cause the seawater to deteriorate, the assimilative capacity of the coastal waters in Pingtan Island held good. The growth and disappearing process of N. scintillans was also proposed.
  Keywords: Pingtan Island; coastal waters; Noctiluca scintillans; water quality; Blue tears.
  
  
• Air pollution awareness and risk perception in ger areas of Ulaanbaatar  
  by Bonjun Koo, Seong-Cheol Kang, Throstur Thorsteinsson, Ana Maria Cruz 
  Abstract: Residents in the ger areas of Ulaanbaatar aggravate air pollution by heavily using coal for heating and cooking. Measures intended to reduce air pollution in the ger areas have often been unsuccessful because such measures did not reflect the awareness and preference of the residents. In the belief that a better understanding of the characteristics and thinking of people affected by air pollution could help develop more effective measures, this paper investigates awareness, risk perception, and willingness to change of the ger residents regarding air pollution issues through a questionnaire survey with hypothesis testing. The results show that the ger residents level of awareness about air pollution is quite high. While they perceive that information on air quality is insufficient, they acknowledge risks of air pollution well. The ger residents also show support for strong measures to curb air pollution and willingness to take burdens such measures may bring to them.
  Keywords: air pollution; awareness; risk perception; hypothesis testing; ger areas.
  
  
• Analysis of the mechanism of iron-enhanced Anammox characteristics and nitrogen removal performance: a review  
  by Cuizhong Chen, Jiankang Wang, Junfeng Li, Zhihua Sun, Mingju Lan, Shengbao Liu, Xinrong Wu, Keqing Du 
  Abstract: Iron has become common additive for promoting the stable operation of the Anammox reaction. This study introduces the analysis of sludge characteristics and activity changes (growth rate, granulation, heme c, and enzyme activity) of iron atoms with different valences during the reaction startup and operation process, and interprets the macroscopic performance of the Anammox reaction system. It combines inhibition and recovery kinetics and analyses the denitrification performance to understand the inhibition and recovery potential of iron substances for Anammox bacteria. The migration and transformation of nitrogen sources and the abundance and diversity of the functional microbial genes reveal that Anammox dominates the reaction process, and it is supplemented by Feammox and autotrophic denitrification. Meanwhile, a combination of stable isotope probes and tracer technology could help in understanding the denitrification pathway. Understanding the denitrification mechanism in the Fe-N cycle process provided the reference for the application of practical projects.
  Keywords: Anammox; iron; sludge characteristics; microbial diversity; isotope technology.
  
  
• Forecasting municipal solid waste generation in Tianjin based on long and short term memory neural network model  
  by Xiaoqin Liang, Bingchun Liu, Xin Qi, Jie Ji, Xiaogang Yu 
  Abstract: Achieving an accurate prediction of urban waste collection volume is of great significance for the planning of urban waste treatment facilities and the formulation of waste treatment policies. This paper takes Tianjin as the research object, constructs a prediction model based on the Long Short-Term Memory neural network model (LSTM), and selects seven factors affecting the generation of urban domestic waste, including natural gas, artificial gas, liquefied petroleum gas, water supply, population, GDP and total social retail sales, as input indicators, to achieve an effective prediction. The experimental results show that the LSTM model established in this paper is accurate in prediction, with a MAPE of 9.27. Secondly, through the prediction of the future trend of waste generation under different scenarios, it is found that Tianjin municipal waste generation will be between 2.3918 MT and 5.1340 MT in 2019-2023. Finally, this paper puts forward relevant suggestions to deal with the increase in the amount of municipal solid waste.
  Keywords: municipal solid waste; deep learning; sustainable development; LSTM.
  
  

Special Issue on: Stochastic Computational Models for Air Pollution and Environmental Risk Assessment

• Effects of an ICT-based campus energy management system on educational performance: a perspective of a fuzzy DEA approach  
  by Xuesong Zhai, Yumeng Zhu, Yan Li, Wenzhi Chen 
  Abstract: The use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to digitalise and visualise the campus energy management aided the ideology of green and sustainable campuses. However, the effects of ICT-based energy management systems on educational performance are less explored. Although Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) has been regarded as a validating efficiency evaluation approach, the data sources were constrained to the objective data set. The subjective educational data are invalid to be employed in the DEA. This study applied fuzzy set theory to the DEA to evaluate the efficiency of an ICT-based campus energy management system on educational performance. The energy-management input data and educational performance output data were collected from 63 universities and colleges in China. The efficiency distinctions across samples may be theoretically explained by fuzzy DEA, emphasising the value of further investigation of an ICT-based energy management system on educational performance by varied school features.
  Keywords: campus energy management; education performance; ICT in education; efficiency assessment; fuzzy set; DEA model.
  DOI: 10.1504/IJEP.2022.10053926
   
  
• Model and simulation of grassland social-ecological system risk assessment: a case study of Yanchi County, Ningxia  
  by Caixia Hou, Xiaojie Zhang, Mengmeng Zhang, Mengmeng Wang, Hanliang Fu 
  Abstract: To effectively control desertification and restore grassland social-ecological system (SES), in 2002, China launched a grazing-prohibited policy in severely desertified areas. At present, a new grazing-prohibited policy is about to start. Whether the policy needs to be adjusted and how to adjust it have become issues that need to be considered. Based on this, Yanchi County, a typical desertification reversal area, was taken as an example to build the grassland SES dynamic model. By adjusting the prohibited grazing time and area, we assessed the risk and resilience of grassland SES. According to the dynamic results, (1) under the current policy, SES resilience will remain stable; (2) When the prohibited grazing time is 273 days and the grazing time is from June to August, the resilience is at its strongest; (3) By adjusting the prohibited grazing area, when the proportion of grazing prohibition is 100%, the resilience is at its strongest.
  Keywords: social-ecological system; risk assessment; resilience; system dynamics; prohibited grazing time; prohibited grazing area.
  
  
• Research on forest carbon sequestration assessment and forest management plan based on TOPSIS method and grey correlation analysis  
  by Hong Chen, Chao-Chen Tie, Ye Teng, Zhang Geng, Jia-Ming Zhu 
  Abstract: In view of the impact of climate change on human development, countries have taken measures to reduce carbon emissions and carbon sequestration. Forest carbon sink plays an pivotal part in achieving carbon neutrality in China. China has put forward the 'double carbon' goal of carbon peak and carbon neutralisation. Firstly, using the data of nine forest resources inventory from 1973 to 2018, an evaluation model of forest carbon sequestration effect in China is established, and 24 provinces in China are compared and analysed. Secondly, the grey correlation analysis model is used to study the dynamic change of forest carbon sink effect and forest resources in China. Finally, it provides reasonable advice for the development and management of forest resources in China, improves the level of forest management, and provides a basis for the implementation of China's carbon peak and carbon neutral strategy.
  Keywords: climate change; human development; carbon emission; 'double carbon' target; effect evaluation model; grey correlation analysis.
  
  
• Dynamic characteristics of low-carbon economy investment yields  
  by Qizhi He, Bo Li, Xu Zhang, Xiang Dai 
  Abstract: The rapid development of low carbon economics has brought great influence on resources allocation and social welfare. The paper tests empirically the stochastic volatility of low carbon economics investment yields and gives compares it with that of other corresponding variables using the stochastic volatility models, and finds out that there only a weak leverage-effect in the investment yields of Mainland low carbon and strong leverage-effects in the investment yields of Shanghai composite index, China securities high technology and environmental governance and no leverage-effect in the investment yields of China securities energy. The empirical tests show that the investment yield of low carbon economics is influenced by Shanghai composite index, China securities high technology and environmental governance, and there exist break-points in the relationship among low carbon economics and the front variables using constant-coefficient model and break-point model. Finally, conclusions and suggestions are given.
  Keywords: stochastic volatility model; leverage-effect; low carbon economics; environmental governance; break-point model.
  
  
• Assessing ecological efficiency of China's urban agglomerations using data envelopment analysis model  
  by Jie Wu, Yinghao Pan, Zhixiang Zhou, Xiaoxing Liang 
  Abstract: Air pollution is a increasing serious problem in urban areas with the development of urban agglomeration. Ecological efficiency assessment is considered as a key way in regional environmental regulation, in which a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model is widely used to compute the ecological efficiency score with stochastic factors. This paper focuses on two kinds of relationship among cities within urban agglomerations and constructs a set of DEA models by inserting different relationship matrices. The presented models are used to assess the ecological efficiency of three major urban agglomerations, namely "Beijing Tianjin Hebei" , "Yangtze River Delta" and "Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area", by constructing an index system with pollution emission indexes. The results of an empirical study illustrate the performance of urban agglomerations during 2014 to 2019, and provide details of the efficiency score for their member cities.
  Keywords: air pollution; efficiency assessment; data envelopment analysis; urban agglomeration.