Công bố quốc tế lĩnh vực môi trường số 37-2022

Về quản lý môi trường

– Ảnh hưởng độc lập của thời tiết, chất ô nhiễm không khí và cúm theo mùa đối với nguy cơ nhập viện bệnh lao: Phân tích dữ liệu nhập viện trong 22 năm.

– Chính sách phát triển bền vững có thể giảm lượng khí thải carbon? Bằng chứng thực nghiệm từ các thành phố dựa trên tài nguyên ở Trung Quốc.

– Sự suy giảm đáng kể về sol khí trong lớp trộn ở Bắc Kinh từ năm 2015 đến năm 2020: Ảnh hưởng của việc kiểm soát ô nhiễm không khí có phối hợp khu vực.

– Kỷ lục 140 năm về những thay đổi môi trường ở São Sebastião, Brazil.

– Ảnh hưởng của phát triển kinh tế đến cường độ carbon trong đời sống con người: Bằng chứng từ các phân tích kinh tế lượng không gian.

– Đánh giá tác động của đổi mới xanh, thu nhập và sử dụng năng lượng đối với phát thải CO2 dựa trên tiêu dùng: Bằng chứng thực nghiệm từ các quốc gia mới nổi BRICS.

– Đánh giá tác động bền vững của đổi mới tiết kiệm – Một tổng quan tài liệu.

– Ảnh hưởng của phát triển kinh tế đến cường độ carbon trong đời sống con người: Bằng chứng từ các phân tích kinh tế lượng không gian.

– Đánh giá tác động bền vững của đổi mới tiết kiệm – Một tổng quan tài liệu.

– Tác động không gian của việc mở rộng đô thị đối với ô nhiễm không khí và hiệu quả sinh thái: Bằng chứng từ dữ liệu thống kê và viễn thám đa nguồn ở Trung Quốc.

Về môi trường đô thị

– Trường hợp nghiên cứu về một tòa nhà bền vững: Đánh giá rủi ro môi trường liên quan đến khả năng gây dị ứng từ chất lượng không khí xem xét dữ liệu về khí tượng và cơ sở hạ tầng xanh đô thị về BIM.

– Định lượng các tác động của cơ sở hạ tầng xanh đối với sự phân tán các hạt nano trong không khí ở quy mô đô thị.

– So sánh các phần tử PM đã phân giải kích thước được đo bằng cách sử dụng lá nhôm và chất nền ép Teflon: Hàm ý cho việc phân bổ nguồn hạt siêu mịn và mạng lưới lấy mẫu trong tương lai ở California.

– Đánh giá lượng phát thải khí nhà kính từ lĩnh vực nước thải đô thị Châu Âu và các phương án giảm thiểu phát thải khí nhà kính.

– Sự phân bố và đặc điểm của β-lactamase phổ mở rộng và kháng carbapenem (ESBL) tạo ra Escherichia coli trong nước thải bệnh viện, nhà máy xử lý nước thải và nước sông ở một khu vực đô thị của Nhật Bản.

– Tổng hợp kiểm kê phát thải carbon đen quy mô thành phố: Những thách thức ở các nước đang phát triển dựa trên một nghiên cứu điển hình ở Brazil.

– Các hợp chất hữu cơ dễ bay hơi và sự đóng góp của chúng vào sự hình thành ôzôn ở tầng mặt đất trong môi trường đô thị nhiệt đới.

– Tiêu chuẩn chất lượng không khí xung quanh quốc gia của Ấn Độ có thể bảo vệ chống lại các thành phần nguy hiểm của PM2.5 không?

– Giảm phát thải khí nhà kính trong các tòa nhà dân cư: Một mô hình nhẹ được triển khai trên các thiết bị tiên tiến.

Về môi trường khu công nghiệp

– Tác động của quản lý nguồn nhân lực xanh đối với đổi mới xanh thông qua nguồn nhân lực xanh, kiến thức môi trường và mối quan tâm về môi trường của các nhà quản lý.

– Xác định các yếu tố ảnh hưởng đến việc giảm phát thải VOC trong ngành sơn: Tổng quan tài liệu có hệ thống – SLR.

– Khử cacbon các cụm công nghiệp: Chương trình nghiên cứu dựa trên địa điểm.

– Tích tụ cộng sinh trong công nghiệp và tăng trưởng kinh tế xanh: Một cách tiếp cận khác biệt về không gian.

– Sự đa dạng của vi sinh vật trong nước thải công nghiệp làm cho khả năng theo dõi nguồn nước thải dựa trên giải trình tự thông lượng cao.

– Đánh giá rủi ro sơ bộ của các địa điểm xí nghiệp công nghiệp trong khu vực dựa trên dữ liệu lớn.

– Một cách tiếp cận kinh tế công nghệ để loại bỏ các chất ô nhiễm do thuốc nhuộm từ nước thải công nghiệp sử dụng vi tảo thông qua các tế bào nhiên liệu vi sinh: Các rào cản và quan điểm.

– Phân bố không gian địa lý và đánh giá rủi ro sức khỏe của nước ngầm bị ô nhiễm trong các khu công nghiệp: quan điểm bền vững về môi trường.

– Những tiến bộ của lò phản ứng theo lô trình tự để xử lý nước thải công nghiệp: Tập trung chính vào các sửa đổi, các thông số vận hành quan trọng và viễn cảnh tương lai.

Xin trân trọng giới thiệu!

QUẢN LÝ MÔI TRƯỜNG

1. Independent effect of weather, air pollutants, and seasonal influenza on risk of tuberculosis hospitalization: An analysis of 22-year hospital admission data

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 837, 1 September 2022, 155711

Abstract

Background

While influenza infections and environmental factors have been documented as potential drivers of tuberculosis, no investigations have simultaneously examined their impact on tuberculosis at a population level. This study thereby made use of Hong Kong’s surveillance data over 22 years to elucidate the temporal association between environmental influences, influenza infections, and tuberculosis activity.

Methods

Weekly total numbers of hospital admissions due to tuberculosis, meteorological data, and outdoor air pollutant concentrations in Hong Kong during 1998–2019 were obtained. All-type influenza-like illness positive (ILI+) rate and type-specific ILI+ rates were used as proxies for influenza activity. Quasi-Poisson generalized additive models together with distributed lag non-linear models were used to assess the association of interest.

Results

A total of 164,116 hospital admissions due to tuberculosis were notified in public settings over a period of 22 years. The cumulative adjusted relative risk (ARR) of hospital admission due to tuberculosis was 1.07 (95% CI, 1.00–1.14) when the mean ambient temperature increased from 15.1 °C (the 5th percentile) to 24.5 °C (median). Short-term exposure to air pollutants was not found to be statistically significantly related to tuberculosis hospitalization. Accounting for the environmental covariates in the analysis, the cumulative ARR of tuberculosis admission was elevated to 1.05 (95% CI, 1.01–1.08) when the rate of ILI+ total increased from zero to 19.9 per 1000 consultations, the 95th percentile.

Conclusion

Our findings demonstrated that increased influenza activity and higher temperature were related to a higher risk of tuberculosis admissions. Stepping up the promotion of influenza vaccination, especially before the summer season, may lower the risk of tuberculosis infection/reactivation for vulnerable groups (e.g. elderly born before the launch of Bacillus Calmette–Guérin vaccination programme)

2. Can sustainable development policy reduce carbon emissions? Empirical evidence from resource-based cities in China

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 3, 10 September 2022, 156341

Abstract

Resource-based cities (RBCs) have made outstanding contributions to China’s social and economic development over recent decades. Nevertheless, with the worsening climate change and the exhausted resources, how to curb carbon emissions of RBCs to deliver their low-carbon transformation is becoming a problem plaguing the world. To facilitate the low-carbon transformation of RBCs, the Chinese government has formulated many policies, including the Sustainable Development Policy of National Resource-based Cities, 2013–2020 (SDPRC). However, the implementation of SDPRC has not yielded a clear environmental influence. Therefore, this study employs the Propensity Score Matching-Difference in Difference to investigate this influence based on the panel data of 285 prefecture-level cities from 2006 to 2017 while exploring the related heterogeneity and impact mechanisms. It is found that: (1) the implementation of SDPRC has significantly reduced carbon emissions and intensities of RBCs, with this effect becoming more conspicuous with the advancement of the policy. A robust test also verifies these findings. (2) Results from the heterogeneity test demonstrate that the implementation of SDPRC has imposed a suppressive effect on CO2 emissions in eastern, central, and western Chinese regions, especially pronounced in the latter two regions. Except for the growing cities, which are not significantly affected by the policy, the other three types of cities have seen a catalytic effect on CO2 emission reduction from the implementation of the policy, with the most significant impact observed in the declining cities. (3) Analyses of related mechanisms reveal that thanks to the implementation of SDPRC, RBCs suppress CO2 emissions mainly by optimizing their industrial structures and relieving their energy intensities. Finally, some policy recommendations are proposed based on the findings of this study to facilitate the low-carbon transformation of RBCs.

3. Significant decline in aerosols in the mixing layer in Beijing from 2015 to 2020: Effects of regional coordinated air pollution control

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 4, 10 September 2022, 156364

Abstract

Beijing’s air quality has improved significantly since the implementation of the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan in 2013, but the local and regional contributions to this improvement have rarely been studied. Here, the vertical profile of the atmospheric backscattering coefficient (ABC) was measured by a ceilometer in Beijing from 2015 to 2020. The results show that the ABC in Beijing decreased the most at ground level from 2015 to 2020, decreasing 51.4%. Interannual variability decreased with height, and no noticeable change was found in the height range above 600 m. The most apparent declines occurred in autumn and winter, with decreases greater than 55.0%, and the minimum decrease occurred in summer, with a reduction of only 20.0%. To analyze the reasons for the autumn and winter declines, we divided the whole day into four periods according to the evolution characteristics of the atmospheric boundary layer. The significant decrease in the backscattering coefficient near the ground during the daytime confirms the effect of local emission reductions. In contrast, the considerable decreases in the backscattering coefficient measured at different heights in the midday mixing layer demonstrate the contribution of regional transport reduction. The above research results confirm the importance of regional coordinated air pollution control.

4. A 140-year record of environmental changes in São Sebastião, Brazil

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 4, 10 September 2022, 156578

Abstract

Over the past two centuries, coastal and estuarine areas have experienced environmental stress due to rapid population growth, leading to higher demand, overexploitation, habitat transformation, and pollution, which have severe consequences on the overall ecosystem and human health. This work aims to understand historical perspectives of such environmental stress in a coastal area of São Sebastião city in the São Paulo State of Brazil, which has witnessed rapid changes in land use over the past 60–70 years. We collected eleven surface sediments and one 64 cm long core from the shallow water depth sector of the São Sebastião Channel (SSC), adjacent to the Araçá Bay region. Sediments were dominantly composed of terrestrial siliciclastic material carrying signatures of both local inputs (i.e., weathered granitic and gneissic rocks of Serra do Mar Mountain ranges) and Plata Plume sediments brought by Brazilian coastal currents. Low sediment accumulation (avg. = 0.10 cm yr−1) between 1880 and 1947 showed a stable environment followed by an abrupt increase in sedimentation (avg. = 0.84 cm yr−1) from 1947 to 2017. This approximate eight-fold increase in sedimentation after 1947 marked significant anthropogenic changes in the region, which is coincidental with major changes in land use through the construction of the port of São Sebastião (1930s) and BR-101 Highway (1980s). While recent surface sediments showed no pollution of heavy metals, anthropogenic Zn enrichment was found between 1880 and 2000. Zn enrichment was from the combined sources, e.g., agriculture activities, domestic sewage, and possibly Zn coated ship paints. Our study also indicates that planned future expansion of São Sebastião port may further increase the sedimentation rate in SSC and impact the ecosystem of Araçá Bay and SSC.

5. The effect of economic development on carbon intensity of human well-being: Evidence from spatial econometric analyses

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 364, 1 September 2022, 132632

Abstract

Improving the carbon intensity of human well-being is important not only for nations to improve the lives of their citizens, but also for the world community at large as a means of sustainable development. Based on panel data from 114 nations (or regions) over the period of 1980–2014, this study constructed an index of the carbon intensity of human well-being, and use spatial autocorrelation to explore the pattern of its spatial evolution as well as the characteristics of its spatial clusters. The spatial Durbin model was applied to identify the relationship between economic development and the carbon intensity of human well-being. We drew the following conclusions: First, the carbon intensity of human well-being declined significantly, with spatial differentiation between the high-high and low-low clusters, and a significant gap between developed (or regions) and developing nations. Second, economic development, energy consumption, trade, and mortality rate have increased the carbon intensity of human well-being while industrialization and capital accumulation have reduced it. Third, the dynamic evolution of the carbon intensity of human well-being by various drivers has a regional heterogeneous structure. In particularly, the positive impact of economic development on the carbon intensity of human well-being showed the largest impact on Latin American developing countries, followed by Asian developing and developed countries (or regions), and the smallest impact on African developing countries. Finally, prominent spatial spillover effects were observed on the drivers of the carbon intensity of human well-being. An increase in a nation’s neighbors’ energy consumption, trade, and industrialization increased its carbon intensity of human well-being, whereas increasing economic development, capital accumulation, and mortality rate had the opposite effect. These empirical insights provide an important decision-making reference for countries with different levels of economic development to choose appropriate policies and cross-regional governance mechanisms.

6. An assessment of the effect of green innovation, income, and energy use on consumption-based CO2 emissions: Empirical evidence from emerging nations BRICS

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 365, 10 September 2022, 132636

Abstract

Energy and green innovation are important to a country’s economic progress, but the externalities of increased pollution as a result of a rise in energy used and economic growth must not be overlooked. Within the Stochastic Impacts by Regression on Population, Affluence, and Technology (STIRPAT) framework, this study aims to check empirically the effect of environment-related technologies (ERT), coal consumption (CC), economic growth (EG), and population density (PD) on the consumption-based CO2 emissions (CCO2e) in the BRICS (i.e., Brazil, Russia, India, China, & South Africa), as with fast economic progress BRICS is facing problems of CO2 emission. The econometric techniques of the cross-sectional dependence test, slope heterogeneity test, and second-generation panel unit root test were used to check the nature of the data. The available balance data over the period 1985–2018 were analyzed via Driscoll and Kraay and a dynamic common correlated effect mean group (DCCEMG). Long-term empirical findings show that ERT has a negative impact on the CCO2e, while per capita GDP and CC have a positive impact on CCO2e. Empirical evidence recommends that ERT is important for BRICS countries’ long-term sustainability. It is suggested that policymakers should encourage ERT that help in curbing their CO2 emanations.

7. Assessing the sustainability impacts of frugal innovation – A literature review

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 365, 10 September 2022, 132754

Abstract

Frugal innovation can help to foster sustainability and address global challenges, like building economic growth, addressing various social needs, and protecting the environment. However, if one wants to measure the sustainability impacts of frugal innovation or enable companies to make empirically informed decisions between frugal and alternative innovation, the question of how to assess these empirical impacts arises. The main objectives of this paper are the identification of approaches and indicators for assessing the sustainability impacts of frugal innovation and the analysis of empirical findings relating to prior assessments. To this end, a systematic literature review was conducted, which identified 15 texts, and a qualitative content analysis was employed to evaluate their contents. From these analyses two main approaches for assessment emerged. First, the assessment based on the triple bottom line or the dimensions of sustainability (ecological, social, and economic). Second, assessment against the Sustainability Development Goals. In the identified texts, the sustainability dimensions are preferred over the Sustainable Development Goals for assessing the sustainability impacts of frugal innovation. From the 15 identified texts, 13 use qualitative indicators and two quantitative (conceptual) indicators. To answer the research question of the paper, a set of 47 qualitative indicators relating to integrated dimensions of sustainability for the assessment of the sustainability impacts of frugal innovation is proposed. In addition, this paper presents new insights relating to the empirical evidence of sustainability impacts of frugal innovation. Approximately 60% of 334 empirical findings from 70 different cases related to the Sustainable Development Goals contribute to the five (socially and economically focused) SDGs 8, 3, 10, 12, and 9. After a transformation to the Triple Bottom Line, these findings contribute predominantly to the economic and social dimensions (in each case 45%), and only slightly to the ecological dimension (the remaining 10%). In turn, 164 empirical results from 77 different cases related to the Triple Bottom Line show an almost similar contribution to all three sustainability dimensions with a small lead of the economic dimension. Nonetheless, in the opinion of the author, these findings confirm other studies, that from an empirical perspective, frugal innovation can be described as inherently socially and economically sustainable and ecological sustainability is mostly not the primary focus.

8. Structuring the problem of an inclusive and sustainable energy transition – A pilot study

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 365, 10 September 2022, 132763

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to contribute to structuring the problem of how to advance a sustainable energy transition and achieve carbon neutrality goals while ensuring a democratic and inclusive process, by drawing on a pilot case – i.e., the energy transition in Portugal. By building on approaches and concepts from the Sustainability Transitions research field, the article explores perceptions, values, and concerns regarding distributed and centralized energy models; inclusivity and energy democracy; energy systems’ sustainability concerns and the speed of the transition. The study draws on the hypothesis that stakeholders across the state, market, community and third sector spheres, while equally supporting decarbonization, have different perceptions, values, and concerns regarding the social, environmental, and technological dynamics of the energy transition that need to be better understood for accelerating the transition. The multi-method approach included interviews, a survey (N = 110) and a stakeholder workshop, to unpack the key values and preferences around energy system technologies, sustainability and inclusionary aspects, the role of centralized and distributed energy systems and new investments, namely in green hydrogen and lithium mining. The results indicate there is a significant convergence on the fact that decarbonization is a priority that needs to be supported by inclusive and democratic processes. Decentralization, energy communities and solar energy are extremely valued, and transparency and information sharing are crucial expectations for new lithium mining projects, large-scale solar and green hydrogen investments. These findings outline some avenues for future research, where participation and transparency become anchors for a sustainable and inclusive transition.

9. Does resource environment carrying capacity have a coercive effect on urbanization quality? Evidence from the Yangtze River Economic Belt, China

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 365, 10 September 2022, 132612

Abstract

Understanding the relationship between resource environment carrying capacity (RECC) and urbanization quality (UQ) is of great significance for the new urbanization strategy. Different from previous studies which mainly focused on the coordination degree between urbanization and RECC, this study explores the environmental Kuznets curve relationship between UQ and RECC pressure by considering the nonlinear relationship between systems. The 11 sub-regions in the Yangtze River Economic Belt of China are selected as the study area. Results show that: (1) All 11 sub-regions witness UQ growth during the survey period of 2005–2017, among which Shanghai, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang take the three top positions. (2) The levels of RECC in the 11 sub-regions follow a gradual increasing trend from 2005 to 2017. Shanghai has the highest RECC value, and Guizhou province has the lowest RECC. (3) Except for Zhejiang, the other three sub-regions downstream of the Yangtze River present an N-shaped relationship between UQ and RECC pressure. The relationship for the three midstream regions presents a U shape, while that for upstream regions is either a U shape or an inverted N shape. These findings provide a valuable reference for governments to formulate effective measures for promoting the coordination of UQ and RECC in the Yangtze River Economic Belt. Moreover, new insights for conducting research on the relationship between UQ and RECC in other economic systems on a global level are given.

10. Predicting the environmental economic dispatch problem for reducing waste nonrenewable materials via an innovative constraint multi-objective Chimp Optimization Algorithm

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 365, 10 September 2022, 132697

Abstract

The usage of conventional fossil fuels has aided fast economic growth while also having negative consequences, such as increased global warming and the destruction of the ecosystem. This paper proposes a novel swarm-based metaheuristic method called Chimp Optimization Algorithm (ChOA) to tackle the environmental, economic dispatch issue and reducing the waste nonrenewable materials. In this regard, two objective functions named fuel cost function and emission cost function are proposed. Unique constrained handling also solves the challenge of multi-objective optimization. Standard IEEE 30 bus with six generators and a 10-unit system are used to demonstrate the usefulness of ChOA. The result of ChOA is compared with Individual Best Memory Penalty Factor Grey Wolf Optimizer (IBMPF-GWO), Improved Whale Trainer (IWT), Chaotic Biogeography-Based Optimizer (CBBO), Non-Linear Migration BBO (NLBBO), Hybrid Gravitational Search Algorithm Particle Swarm Optimization (GSAPSO), Covariance Matrix Adaptation Evolution Strategy (CMA-ES), Differential Evolution-Crossover Quantum Particle Swarm Optimization (DE-CQPSO), Salp Swarm Algorithm (SSA), Dragonfly Algorithm (DA), and Fuzzy Grasshopper Optimization Algorithm (FGOA) to confirm its efficiency. For both single- and multi-objective optimization, ChOA’s assessment index and convergence rate are superior to other benchmark algorithms, regardless of whether the goal is to reduce emissions or to reduce fuel costs. The efficacy and robustness of the ChOA in handling environmental economic dispatch problems have been shown by discovering a good compromise value.

11. Paving the way for a green transition through mitigation of green manufacturing challenges: A systematic literature review

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 368, 25 September 2022, 132578

Abstract

The integration of sustainable strategies in manufacturing operations has become mandatory in recent years once sustainable development goals (SDGs) were introduced. Recently, several academicians have explored different strategies under the context of manufacturing including sustainable manufacturing and circular manufacturing. However, manufacturers struggle to shift towards these recent extensions of sustainable/circular manufacturing practices, because most of them are still not able to fully implement green manufacturing (GM). GM acts as a basic platform for these extended manufacturing practices to promote green transition, and manufacturers face several challenges within its implementation. Over the years, several studies explored the challenges and other related factors to promote GM, but manufacturers remain unclear on how to mitigate these challenges. This study considers two metrics of GM, challenges, and critical success factors (CSF), through which a systematic literature review has been made. Based on the review, a CSF theory-based framework has been developed by which GM adoption challenges were mapped with their corresponding mitigating CSFs of GM. To improve understanding among manufacturers, both the challenges and CSFs have been categorized into different dimensions. This is the first study to map the success factors of GM with adoption challenges of GM; this work permits manufacturers to recognize the exact challenges of GM and to understand how they can be mitigated particularly through selected CSFs. In fact, manufacturers will not need to examine other CSFs. In addition to strengthening the academic research of GM, this study seeks to assist practitioners in their journey of green transition with an in-depth explanation of mitigating challenges through CSFs.

12. Transmission channels between financial efficiency and renewable energy consumption: Does environmental technology matter in high-polluting economies?

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 368, 25 September 2022, 132885

Abstract

An efficient financial sector provides necessary funds and credits for developing environmental technology and the deployment of renewable energy projects that increase consumption. Therefore, we try to explore the role of financial efficiency and environmental technology in renewable energy consumption in high-polluting economies. In this regard, most of the past studies have relied on the linear relationship between financial efficiency, environmental technology, and renewable energy consumption. However, our analysis is based on the non-linear assumption, which allows us to estimate the impact of positive and negative shocks on financial efficiency and environmental technology on renewable energy consumption. The panel NARDL method has been used for analysis, confirming that positive shock in financial institutions, financial market, and eco-innovations promotes renewable energy consumption by 1.322%, 2.664%, and 0.740%. Conversely, the negative shock in financial institutions significantly falls renewable energy consumption by 2.235%. The asymmetric effects of these variables are confirmed in the long run. The short-run NARDL findings show that positive and negative shocks in financial institutions and financial markets have an insignificant impact on renewable energy consumption, whereas positive shock in eco-innovation has a significant positive impact on renewable energy consumption. Therefore, policymakers should focus on both the positive and negative changes while making policies to increase renewable energy consumption in high-polluting economies.

13. Toward carbon neutrality before 2060: Trajectory and technical mitigation potential of non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions from Chinese agriculture

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 368, 25 September 2022, 133186

Abstract

In 2020, China announced that it aims to achieve carbon neutrality before 2060. Despite the recognition of agriculture’s importance in emission mitigation strategies, assessing the non-CO2 greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation potentials from this sector remains technically and conceptually challenging. This study developed a bottom-up inventory-based model (the Agriculture-induced non-CO2 GreenHouse Gases INVentory model) to provide region-specific long-term projections (to 2060) of non-CO2 GHG emissions (including methane and nitrous oxide) from the Chinese agricultural sector. Seventeen production-side technologies were identified that could reduce on-farm emissions, and their mitigation potentials by 2060 were evaluated. Results showed that agricultural non-CO2 GHG emissions rose by 34% from 1980 to 2018, and they are projected to increase further by 33% to reach 1153 MtCO2-eq yr−1 by 2060. Implementing selected technological adaptations could lead to peak agricultural emissions before 2030 and then reduce them by 32%–50% by 2060. The most effective mitigation measures include feed supplements, feed quality improvements, slow-release fertilizers, and improved water management for paddy fields and uplands. All six regions of China will see a gradual increase in agricultural emissions. South Central China and Southwest China have the largest shares of total national emissions and the greatest mitigation potentials. However, technology adoption faces a series of socio-economic obstacles such as the high cost of technology promotion, smaller farm sizes, farmers’ aversion to risk, and a complex set of objectives for agriculture.

14. Quantifying and characterizing the impacts of PM2.5 and humidity on atmospheric visibility in 182 Chinese cities: A nationwide time-series study

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 368, 25 September 2022, 133182

Abstract

Ambient particulate matter less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) and humidity have been considered as two leading determinants of atmospheric visibility. However, quantitative evidence of their independent and interactive effects on visibility is rare at multi-city level. Based on the data of 190 monitoring stations from 182 Chinese cities, the generalized linear model combined with nonlinear smoother was constructed to estimate the station-specific effects of PM2.5 and relative humidity on visibility. Then, multivariate meta-analysis was used to pool the station-specific estimates. Finally, attributable visibility loss respectively due to PM2.5 and humidity were calculated. In general, both PM2.5 and relative humidity were detected to have a significant non-linear negative influence on visibility. Per 1 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 was associated with a visibility reduction of 0.232 km and 0.030 km under the level of PM2.5 below or above 68 μg/m3, respectively. The visibility declined by 0.105 km, 0.254 km, and 0.569 km per 1% increase in relative humidity under low (<58%), middle (58%–85%), and high (>85%) humidity, respectively. Significant interactive effects of PM2.5 and humidity were observed. The impacts of PM2.5 on visibility were significantly amplified in days with moderate humidity. However, extremely high humidity could largely attenuate the PM2.5-visibility association. The influence of extremely high humidity (like 99%) also consistently declined as the PM2.5 concentration elevated. From the national perspective, PM2.5 accounted for a higher proportion of average daily visibility loss than humidity [9.75 km (95%CI: 7.94, 11.57) vs. 7.23 km (95%CI: 5.02, 9.45)]. The relatively mild polluted southern China suffered from similar PM2.5-attributable visibility loss with northern China. The findings could provide important information for the prediction and improvement of atmospheric visibility.

15. Can China’s carbon emissions trading scheme promote balanced green development? A consideration of efficiency and fairness

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 367, 20 September 2022, 132916

Abstract

The carbon emission trading scheme (ETS) is an important market-based tool for achieving carbon neutrality. The existing research on the policy effect of ETS focuses on emission reduction effect and economic effect respectively. In view of this, based on the connotations of green development, we embed fairness toward the environment into the green development system to construct a balanced green development index to measure two dimensions, namely, efficiency and fairness. Theoretically understand the synergistic development effect of economic growth and ecological environment quality produced by the implementation of ETS, and analyze the impact of carbon market on balanced green development. A multiperiod difference-in-differences (DID) model explores the impact of China’s carbon ETS on the green equilibrium level by using Chinese provincial panel data for the period 2008–2018. First, the results demonstrate that China’s balanced green development level is weakly coordinated overall and there is a global spatial agglomeration effect. Second, the carbon ETS has significantly improved the level of balanced green development which promotes the degree of coordination between green economic growth and environmental fairness, offering an effective path that includes efficiency and fairness for green development. Third, there are regional differences in the impact of the carbon ETS on green equilibrium levels. The effect on the western region of China was significantly higher than that of the central and eastern regions of China. Compared with the existing research, the study breaks the single research perspective. From the perspective of efficiency and fairness, we propose improvements in the construction of a national unified carbon emissions trading market to strengthen the balanced green development. This paper provides a theoretical basis and policy reference for deepening China’s green and high-quality development under the “carbon peaking and carbon neutrality” goal.

16. Spatial effects of urban expansion on air pollution and eco-efficiency: Evidence from multisource remote sensing and statistical data in China

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 367, 20 September 2022, 132973

Abstract

Existing literature mainly focuses on the impact of urban expansion on air pollution, while eco-efficiency comprehensively considers the high-quality development of the economy and the environment, and can more comprehensively measure the green development of cities. This study uses multisource remote sensing and statistical data from 268 cities in China from 2008 to 2018, combined with ArcGIS analysis, super-efficiency EBM-DEA (Epsilon Based Measure-Data Envelopment Analysis), and SDM (spatial Durbin model) to explore the spatial effects of urban expansion on air pollution and eco-efficiency. The results show that the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and Chengdu-Chongqing urban agglomerations are the areas with the most serious air pollution, while the high-value areas of eco-efficiency are mainly concentrated in the eastern coastal areas, and the low-value areas are located in the central and western regions. During the study period, the center of gravity of air pollution and eco-efficiency shifted to the northeast. In addition, urban expansion has a significant U-shaped relationship with air pollution, and a significant inverted U-shaped relationship with eco-efficiency. Appropriate urban expansion has strong positive externalities on the direct and spillover effects of air pollution and eco-efficiency. However, excessive urban expansion has aggravated the air pollution of local cities, but it is beneficial to the air improvement of neighboring cities. Furthermore, for every 1% increase in UEI2 in provincial capital cities, air pollution decreases by 0.1705%, and eco-efficiency increases by 0.0244%. However, the western region and small and medium-sized cities should strictly control spatial expansion and achieve “smart growth”.

MÔI TRƯỜNG ĐÔ THỊ

1. Laboratory investigation of pollutant emissions and PM2.5 toxicity of underground coal fires

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 837, 1 September 2022, 155537

Abstract

Widespread underground coal fires (UCFs) release large amounts of pollutants, thus leading to air pollution and health impacts. However, this topic has not been widely investigated, especially regarding the potential health hazards. We quantified the pollutant emissions and analyzed the physicochemical properties of UCF PM2.5 in a laboratory study of coal smoldering under a simulated UCF background. The emission factors of CO2, CO, and PM2.5 were 2489 ± 35, 122 ± 9, 12.90 ± 1.79 g/kg, respectively. UCF PM2.5 are carbonaceous particles with varied morphology and complex composition, including heavy metals, silica and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The main PAHs components were those with 2–4 rings. Benzoapyrene (BaP) and indeno[1,2, 3-cd]pyrene (IcdP) were important contributors to the carcinogenesis of these PAHs. We quantitatively evaluate the toxicity of inhaled UCF PM2.5 using a nasal inhalation exposure system. The target organs of UCF PM2.5 are lungs, liver, and kidneys. UCF PM2.5 presented an enriched chemical composition and induced inflammation and oxidative stress, which together mediated multiple organ injury. Long-term PM2.5 metabolism is the main cause of persistent toxicity, which might lead to long-term chronic diseases. Therefore, local authorities should recognize the importance and effects of UCF emissions, especially PM2.5, to establish control and mitigation measures.

2. Case of study on a sustainability building: Environmental risk assessment related with allergenicity from air quality considering meteorological and urban green infrastructure data on BIM

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 1, 10 September 2022, 155910

Abstract

Digitisation is gaining importance with 3D workflow for architecture-specific annotation of built heritage. The objective is to use the Building Information Modeling (BIM) methodology in order to carry out a study of alternatives of impact on environmental sustainability associated with the potential allergenicity with green infrastructure on a new housing, located in Mérida (SW Spain).

It is intended to simulate the meteorology (direction and speed of the wind) in the study city with the compass rose for 18 years (2003−2020) to assess the meteorological pattern associated with the wind on the studied housing. 3 green infrastructure garden alternatives (considering 5 ornamental species of cypress trees) were designed to evaluate the potential impact of allergenicity on the housing. AIROT index was applied to project the results on the frontage of the housing. This index was developed in the field of large areas of urban environments. The calculation was carried out in the most exact way possible in specific sections of the frontage of the housing and automatically with tools associated with the BIM environment (such as Autodesk Revit, Dynamo, Enscape, Wrplot and Bim One) to the discipline of Architecture (such as Autodesk Autocad and Autodesk Flow Design).

The obtained results were applied to evaluate 3 scenario designs, trying to minimize the potential exposure to urban green infrastructure (focus on cypress trees) in this current project, and offering a health reference guide in future projects, from the design phase considering appropriate measures and proposing recommendations.

3. Quantification of green infrastructure effects on airborne nanoparticles dispersion at an urban scale

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 1, 10 September 2022, 155778

Abstract

Many dispersion models are available to simulate the mass concentrations of particulate matter in an urban environment. Still, fewer are capable of simulating the effect of green infrastructure (GI) on the airborne nanoparticles represented by total particle number concentration (ToNC). We developed an integrated approach capable of simulating the dispersion of airborne nanoparticles under the various scenarios of green infrastructure. We demonstrated the usefulness of this approach by simulating a high-resolution spatial (250 × 250 m) concentration of traffic-emitted airborne nanoparticles at an urban scale under eight GI urban planning scenarios: the base year 2015 (2015-Rl-GI); business-as-usual for 2039 (2039-BAU-GI); three hypothetical future scenarios with maximum possible coniferous (2039-HMax-Con), deciduous (2039-HMax-Dec) trees, and grassland (2039-HMax-Grl) over the available land; and three alternative future scenarios by considering coniferous (2039-HNR-Con), deciduous (2039-HNR-Dec) trees, and grassland (2039-HNR-Grl) around traffic lanes. We assessed both the parametric and structural uncertainties due to particle transformation processes (nucleation, coagulation and deposition) and uncertainty in particle number emission factors (PNEFs) on ToNC, respectively. We also simulated the combined impact of deposition and aerodynamic dispersion of GI on ToNC reduction. The annual average ToN emission (ToNE) reduced from 5.36 × 1022 (2015) to 2.84 × 1021 (2039) particles due to the UK’s air quality plan in future. Parametric uncertainty due to variable PNEFs might cause variation in annual ToNC from −57% to +60%. However, structural uncertainties in ToNC, due to particle transformation processes were up to −12%, −11% and +0.14% for deposition, coagulation, and nucleation, respectively. The annual ToN deposition (ToND) and concentration were 28–4800 × 1019 particles and 3.94–19.10 × 103 # cm−3, respectively, depending on the percentage share of GI type and annual traffic emissions. Planting maximum coniferous trees (2039-HMax-Con) simulated maximum reduction in annual ToNC. Coniferous trees near traffic lanes (2039-HNR-Con) also found to be more effective to reduce annual ToNC.

4. Unbalanced emission reductions and adverse meteorological conditions facilitate the formation of secondary pollutants during the COVID-19 lockdown in Beijing

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 1, 10 September 2022, 155970

Abstract

During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown in 2020, severe haze pollution occurred in the North China Plain despite the significant reduction in anthropogenic emissions, providing a natural experiment to explore the response of haze pollution to the reduction of human activities. Here, we study the characteristics and causes of haze pollution during the COVID-19 outbreak based on comprehensive field measurements in Beijing during January and February 2020. After excluding the Spring Festival period affected by fireworks activities, we found the ozone concentrations and the proportion of sulfate and nitrate in PM2.5 increased during the COVID-19 lockdown compared with the period before the lockdown, and sulfate played a more important role. Heterogeneous chemistry and photochemistry dominate the formation of sulfate and nitrate during the whole campaign, respectively, and the heterogeneous formation of nitrate at night was enhanced during the lockdown. The coeffects of more reductions in NOx than VOCs, weakened titration of NO, and increased temperature during the lockdown led to the increase in ozone concentrations, thereby promoting atmospheric oxidation capacity and photochemistry. In addition, the increase in relative humidity during the lockdown facilitated heterogeneous chemistry. Our results indicate that unbalanced emission reductions and adverse meteorological conditions induce the formation of secondary pollutants during the COVID-19 lockdown haze, and the formulation of effective coordinated emission-reduction control measures for PM2.5 and ozone pollution is needed in the future, especially the balanced control of NOx and VOCs.

5. Initial ecological restoration assessment of an urban river in the subtropical region in China

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 3, 10 September 2022, 156156

Abstract

Rivers in urbanised cities are often polluted, black, and odorous, with poor water quality and deteriorated ecology. Despite many river restoration studies, assessments of ecological responses to river restoration practices remain scant. Benthic animals are useful biological indicators showing the change and succession of river ecosystems; however, previous studies have mainly focussed on a few target species without considering overall ecosystem integrity. Here, we used a multi-index biological assessment method, benthic index of biological integrity (B-IBI) to assess ecological responses to river restoration of the Shahe River in subtropical region of China. Spatiotemporal changes in the macrobenthos community structure after restoration were monitored to explore species succession. We found that the number of macrobenthos species increased from 16 to 42, with the emergence of some pollution-sensitive species during the restoration period. Molluscs showed widespread recovery, and their relative proportions almost doubled from 12.5% to 24.4%. Oligochaetes and chironomids were the pioneer species in the recovering communities, while gastropod molluscs and pollution-sensitive aquatic insects were transitional species that first settled during the initial recovery period. Based on our survey data, 25 candidate metrics were selected, and five core metrics (total taxa, Simpson diversity index, percentage of crustaceans and molluscs, percentage of predators, and percentage of collector-gatherers) were identified after screening to establish the B-IBI. Our analysis revealed a distinct improvement in the overall health of the river, with the proportions of “excellent” and “good” sites increasing from zero to 28.6% and from 14.3% to 42.9%, respectively. A correlation analysis indicated that water flow, molluscs, and total phosphorus content were the three drivers of ecological recovery in the Shahe River. Overall, our study demonstrates the importance of governance and restoration of rivers in tropical and subtropical cities, and provides valuable evidence that can guide the design and evaluation of river restoration works.

6. Comparison of size-resolved PM elements measured using aluminum foil and Teflon impaction substrates: Implications for ultrafine particle source apportionment and future sampling networks in California

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 4, 10 September 2022, 156523

Abstract

Measurement networks for ultrafine particulate matter (PM0.1) have been limited by the high costs for equipment, supplies, and labor associated with the need to collect PM0.1 samples on multiple substrates for full chemical analysis. Here we explore whether a single cascade impactor loaded with aluminum foil substrates is sufficient for PM0.1 source apportionment calculations in order to reduce those costs. An extraction method previously designed to measure elements on Teflon substrates was modified to accommodate features of aluminum foil substrates. Regression analysis between co-located aluminum foil and Teflon substrates in the particle diameter range 0.1–1.8 μm showed good agreement (R > 0.7) for 18 elements. Regression in the diameter range 0.1–0.18 μm (quasi-ultrafine particulate matter) was used to characterize the uncertainty introduced by the aluminum foil extraction method for the elements Li, K, V, Br, Rb, Mo, Cd, Sn, Sb, and Ba. This uncertainty was used to generate 30 simulated aluminum foil PM0.1 datasets at each of three sites, followed by source apportionment analysis using Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF). At two of the three sites, the PM0.1 source contributions calculated using aluminum foil substrates alone were almost identical to the PMF results from combined aluminum foil and Teflon substrates. The PM0.1 source contributions calculated using aluminum foil substrates at the third site were closer to the results from a previous Chemical Mass Balance (CMB) study than to the PMF results from the combined aluminum foil and Teflon substrates, possibly because the CMB study also relied exclusively on samples collected using aluminum foil substrates. The success of the PM0.1 source apportionment approach using aluminum foil substrates in a single cascade impactor provides a viable method for reducing costs in PM0.1 sampling networks by 40–47%. Similar results may be achievable at locations outside of California.

7. Evaluation of greenhouse gas emissions from the European urban wastewater sector, and options for their reduction

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 4, 10 September 2022, 156322

Abstract

We present an assessment of greenhouse gas emissions from urban wastewater treatment plants in Europe. We propose a quantification in terms of emission factors (kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) per population equivalent (PE) and year) taking into account all phases of wastewater treatment, from the construction of the infrastructure to the discharge of treated effluents. The assessment includes (1) life-cycle emissions of infrastructure; (2) emissions of dissolved methane in the sewer networks; (3) direct emissions of nitrous oxide and methane from the treatment processes; (4) emissions due to COD and nitrogen in the effluents; (5) indirect emissions due to the generation of electricity and the production of reagents; and (6) emission credits due to energy recovery or biomethane export associated with the anaerobic digestion of sludge. Our estimated emissions range between approximately 50 and 125 kg CO2e/PE/y depending on the type of treatment plant, of which about 20 to 40 are embedded in the infrastructure. We estimate that direct nitrous oxide emissions and indirect electricity emissions are the main contributors in the operation phase, followed by direct methane emissions. By extrapolating these emissions to the ensemble of the European Union’s wastewater treatment plants, we estimate a cumulative emission of about 35 million tonnes CO2e/year, of which ca. 14 are due to the infrastructure. We analyse various scenarios to reduce emissions, showing that the efficient use of electricity at the plant and the decarbonisation of electricity would significantly help to improve the CO2e footprint of the WWTPs. In particular, the recovery of methane from biogas and the decarbonisation of electricity may reduce emissions below 27 million tonnes CO2e/year. Extending N removal to the whole territory for all plants above 10,000 PE may contribute to decrease direct nitrous oxide emissions.

8. Distribution and characteristics of carbapenem-resistant and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) producing Escherichia coli in hospital effluents, sewage treatment plants, and river water in an urban area of Japan

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 839, 15 September 2022, 156232

Abstract

Occurrence of profiles of the carbapenem-resistant Escherichia coli (CRE-E) and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli (ESBL-E) in an urban river in a sub-catchment of the Yodo River Basin, one of the representative water systems of Japan was investigated. We conducted seasonal and year-round surveys for the antimicrobial-resistant bacteria (AMRB) and antimicrobial-resistance genes (AMRGs) in hospital effluents, sewage treatment plant (STP) wastewater, and river water; subsequently, contributions to wastewater discharge into the rivers were estimated by analyses based on the mass flux. Furthermore, the characteristics of AMRB in the water samples were evaluated on the basis of antimicrobial susceptibility tests. CRE-E and ESBL-E were detected in all water samples with mean values 11 and 1900 CFU/mL in the hospital effluent, 58 and 4550 CFU/mL in the STP influent, not detected to 1 CFU/mL in the STP effluent, and 1 and 1 CFU/mL in the STP discharge into the river, respectively. Contributions of the pollution load derived from the STP effluent discharged into the river water were 1 to 21%. The resistome profiles for blaIMP, blaTEM, and blaCTX-M genes in each water sample showed that AMRGs were not completely removed in the wastewater treatment process in the STP, and the relative abundances of blaIMP, blaTEM, and blaCTX-M genes were almost similar (P<0.05). Susceptibility testing of antimicrobial-resistant E. coli isolates showed that CRE-E and ESBL-E detected in wastewaters and river water were linked to the prevalence of AMRB in clinical settings. These results suggest the importance of conducting environmental risk management of AMRB and AMRGs in the river environment. To our knowledge, this is the first detailed study that links the medical environment to CRE-E and ESBL-E for evaluating the AMRB and AMRGs in hospital effluents, STP wastewater, and river water at the basin scale on the basis of mass flux as well as the contributions of CRE-E and ESBL-E to wastewater discharge into the river.

9. Compilation of a city-scale black carbon emission inventory: Challenges in developing countries based on a case study in Brazil

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 839, 15 September 2022, 156332

Abstract

Black carbon (BC) inventories for cities are scarce, especially in developing countries, despite their importance to tackle climate change and local air pollution. Here, we draw on results from a case study in a Brazilian city to discuss the challenges of compiling a BC inventory for different activity sectors. We included traditionally inventoried sectors, such as industries and on-road transportation, other less reported sectors (food establishments and aviation), and open burning of household solid waste (HSW), typically found in developing countries. We present a machine-learning technique (Random Forest) as a novel approach to obtain HSW burning activity using a set of spatial predictors. The BC inventory was based on PM2.5 emissions weighted by the fraction of PM2.5 emitted as BC and developed for the year 2018. We also reported the disaggregated spatial PM2.5 emissions for the same combustion sources, and documented the databases used for activity data and emission factors (EF). The total estimated BC and PM2.5 emissions amounted to 57.88 and 234.75 tons, respectively, with on-road vehicle exhaust emissions and industrial combustion as the main BC sources (63 and 22%, respectively). For PM2.5 emissions, on-road transportation (exhaust and non-exhaust) contributed 48%, followed by industrial combustion (21%) and food establishments (20%). Population density, number of vacant lots, and property tax values were identified as the most important features to predict the HSW fire activity. A comparison with other inventories revealed that the BC emission profile of Londrina is similar to the profile reported for Greater Mexico City, another Latin American city. Thus, the methodology used in this study could be extended to other cities with similar local BC sources. Finally, we highlight that the lack of local activity data, representative EF, and even methodology may undermine the development of reliable BC inventories, and intensive research should be conducted to characterize the emission sources.

10. Volatile organic compounds and their contribution to ground-level ozone formation in a tropical urban environment

Chemosphere, Volume 302, September 2022, 134852

Abstract

This study aims to determine the trends of volatile organic compound (VOC) concentrations and their potential contribution to O3 formation. The hourly data (August 2017 to July 2018) for 29 VOCs were obtained from three Malaysian Department of Environment continuous air quality monitoring stations with different urban backgrounds (Shah Alam, Cheras, Seremban). The Ozone Formation Potential (OFP) was calculated based on the individual Maximum Incremental Reactivity (MIR) and VOC concentrations. The results showed that the highest mean total VOC concentrations were recorded at Cheras (148 ± 123 μg m−3), within the Kuala Lumpur urban environment, followed by Shah Alam (124 ± 116 μg m−3) and Seremban (86.4 ± 89.2 μg m−3). VOCs such as n-butane, ethene, ethane and toluene were reported to be the most abundant species at all the selected stations, with overall mean concentrations of 16.6 ± 11.9 μg m−3, 12.1 ± 13.3 μg m−3, 10.8 ± 11.9 μg m−3 and 9.67 ± 9.00 μg m−3, respectively. Alkenes (51.3–59.1%) and aromatic hydrocarbons (26.4–33.5%) have been identified as the major contributors to O3 formation in the study areas based on the overall VOC measurements. Relative humidity was found to influence the concentrations of VOCs more than other meteorological parameters. Overall, this study will contribute to further understanding of the distribution of VOCs and their contribution to O3 formation, particularly in the tropical urban environment.

11. Associations between Children’s asthma and allergic symptoms and phthalates in dust in metropolitan Tianjin, China

Chemosphere, Volume 302, September 2022, 134786

Abstract

Prevalences of allergies and asthma have increased through the past few decades around the world, especially in countries and regions that have adopted modern lifestyles. Epidemiological studies outside of China have found a relationship between phthalates concentrations in indoor dust and symptoms of respiratory, skin and nose allergies. The aim of our study is to investigate the association between children’s asthma and allergic symptoms and concentrations of different phthalates in settled dust samples collected from children’s homes in metropolitan Tianjin (Tianjin and Cangzhou), China. We selected 126 cases with current allergic symptoms and 254 controls without allergic symptoms from the cohort of 7865 children. We collected dust samples from children’s bedroom and analyzed them for their content of diethyl phthalate (DEP), diisobutyl phthalate (DiBP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP), butylbenzyl phthalate (BBzP), di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) and diisononyl phthalate (DiNP). We found a higher concentration of DEP in rhinitis children’s homes (0.33 vs. 0.27 μg/g dust) and a higher concentration of DiBP in asthma children’s homes (29.04 vs. 15.66 μg/g dust). The concentration of DiBP was significantly associated with diagnosed asthma (adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 1.30; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.07, 1.57). A dose–response relationship was found between concentrations of DiBP in dust and asthma. This study shows that some phthalates are associated with allergic and asthma symptoms in children.

12. Can the Indian national ambient air quality standard protect against the hazardous constituents of PM2.5?

Chemosphere, Volume 303, Part 1, September 2022, 135047

Abstract

Globally, exposure to ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution claims ∼9 million lives, yearly, and a quarter of this deaths occurs in India. Regulation of PM2.5 pollution in India is based on compliance with its National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) of 40 μg/m3, which is eight times the revised global air quality guideline (AQG) of 5 μg/m3. But, whether the NAAQS provides adequate protection against the hazardous components in PM2.5 is still not clear. Here, we examined the risk to health associated with exposure to PM2.5–bound polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in an Indian district averaging below the NAAQS. The annual average concentrations of PM2.5 mass, Σ28PCB and Σ13PAHs were 34 ± 17 μg/m3, 21 ± 12 ng/m3 and 458 ± 246 ng/m3, respectively. Concentrations of As, Cr, Mn and Ni in PM2.5 surpassed the screening levels for residential air. Substantial level of risks to health were associated with exposure to dioxin-like PCBs (Σ12dlPCB), PAHs, As, Cr and Ni. The hazard index or lifetime cancer risk were 240, or 9 cases per 1000 population, respectively. The estimated risks to health through exposure to hazardous components, except Ni, were greatest in rural areas, having a lower average PM2.5 concentration, than urban or peri-urban areas, suggesting higher toxicity potential of rural combustion sources. The large disparity between the estimated risk values and the acceptable risk level suggests that it would take a more stringent standard, such as the global AQG, to protect vulnerable populations in India from hazardous components in PM2.5.

13. Seasonal source analysis of nitrogen and carbon aerosols of PM2.5 in typical cities of Zhejiang, China

Chemosphere, Volume 303, Part 3, September 2022, 135026

Abstract

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) significantly impacts global air quality and human health due to its smaller particle size and larger specific surface area. Nitrogen and carbon aerosols, as the main components of PM2.5, play key roles in air pollution. This study identified the sources and seasonal variation of nitrogen and carbon aerosols in PM2.5 in typical cities of Zhejiang. The annual average PM2.5 concentrations of Hangzhou (HZ), Ningbo (NB), and Huzhou (HUZ) were 39.8 ± 19.1 μg m−3, 40.0 ± 21.5 μg m−3, and 50.1 ± 22.6 μg m−3, respectively, which exceeded the Chinese air quality limit of 35.0 μg m−3. The results showed that the concentrations of nitrogen aerosols (NO3− and NH4+) in water-soluble inorganic ions were higher at 9.6 ± 4.6 μg m−3, 9.0 ± 4.5 μg m−3 and 11.5 ± 5.4 μg m−3 in HZ, NB and HUZ, respectively, especially in winter, accounting for over 60% of the total. The annual average δ15N values of PM2.5 were 6.2 ± 1.9‰, 6.4 ± 2.2‰ and 6.7 ± 1.9‰ in HZ, NB and HZ, respectively; the δ15N values in winter were relatively low. A Bayesian isotopic mixing model was employed to analyse the sources of nitrogen aerosols in winter; the results showed that nitrogen concentration was mainly affected by NH3 and NOX emitted by motor vehicle exhaust, coal combustion, biomass combustion, biogenic soil emissions, animal wastes and ocean evaporation (NB). In addition, the carbon component analysis of PM2.5 showed that the annual average mass concentration of TC accounted for 18.7%, 16.4% and 20.1% of PM2.5 in HZ, HUZ and NB, respectively. The same isotope model was used to analyse the sources of carbon aerosols; the results showed that carbon aerosols were mainly affected by the sources of motor vehicle exhaust, coal combustion, biomass combustion and dust. In the PM2.5 in Zhejiang, the most contributory sources of nitrogenous aerosols and carbon aerosols were motor vehicle exhaust sources.

14. Short-term ambient air pollution exposure and adult primary insomnia outpatient visits in Chongqing, China: A time-series analysis

Environmental Research, Volume 212, Part A, September 2022, 113188

Abstract

Growing evidence suggest that air pollutants can be associated with sleep disorders. However, no study has explored the association of short-term air pollution exposure with primary insomnia, a specific type of sleep disorders. To evaluate the correlation of short-term air pollution exposure with adult primary insomnia outpatient visits in Chongqing, China, we collected data of adult primary insomnia outpatient visits and air pollutants’ concentrations between 2013 and 2019 and the associations were estimated with single-day lags as well as moving average lags using a generalized additive model. Totally, 23,919 outpatient visits for adult primary insomnia were identified. The daily data of adult insomnia outpatient visits, air pollutants (NO2, CO, SO2, O3, PM10 and PM2.5) and meteorological conditions (daily mean temperature and relative humidity) were gathered. Short-term exposure to multiple air pollutants, especially NO2 and SO2, was associated with adult primary insomnia visits. A 10 μg/m3 increase in NO2 and SO2 at lag 05 corresponded to increased primary insomnia outpatient visits 3.87% (95% CI: 1.50%–6.24%) and 7.22% (95% CI: 2.10%–12.35%), respectively. Moreover, stronger links were presented in females and cool seasons for NO2 while in the elderly for SO2. Collectively, this time-series study suggested that short-term exposure to air pollutants, especially to NO2 and SO2, was associated with higher risk of adult primary insomnia outpatient visits, and such association could to be sex-, age-, and season-modified.

15. Greenhouse gas emission reduction in residential buildings: A lightweight model to be deployed on edge devices

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 368, 25 September 2022, 133092

Abstract

Electricity produced and used in the residential sector is responsible for approximately 30% of the greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE). Insulating houses and integrating renewable energy and storage resources are key for reducing such emissions. However, it is not only a matter of installing renewable energy technologies but also of optimizing the charging/discharging of the storage units. A number of optimization models have been proposed lately to address this problem. However, they are often limited in several respects: (i) they often focus only on electricity bill reduction, placing GHGE reduction on the backburner; (ii) they rarely propose hybrid-energy storage optimization strategies considering thermal and storage heater units; (iii) they are often designed using Linear Programming (LP) or metaheuristic techniques that are computational intensive, hampering their deployment on edge devices; and (iv) they rarely evaluate how the model impacts on the battery lifespan. Given this state-of-affairs, the present article compares two approaches, the first one proposing an innovative sliding grid carbon intensity threshold algorithm developed as part of a European project named RED WoLF, the second one proposing an algorithm designed based on LP. The comparison analysis is carried out based on two distinct real-life scenarios in France and UK. Results show that both algorithms contribute to reduce GHGE compared to a solution without optimization logic (between 10 to 25%), with a slight advantage for the LP algorithm. However, RED WoLF makes it possible to reduce significantly the computational time ( min for LP against for RED WoLF) and to extend the battery lifespan (4 years for LP against 12 years for RED WoLF).

MÔI TRƯỜNG KHU CÔNG NGHIỆP

1. The effect of environmental regulation and skill premium on the inflow of FDI:Evidence from Chinese industrial sectors

International Review of Economics & Finance, Volume 81, September 2022

Abstract

Whether environmental regulation helps to promote the inflow of FDI in China’s industry and whether the effect of environmental regulation on FDI through the skill premium varies across industrial sectors remains unclear. Therefore, this article develops the mediating effect model and the threshold effect model to estimate the impact mechanism of environmental regulation on FDI in Chinese industrial sectors. The results indicate that: First, within the sample period, environmental regulation has significantly hindered the increase in the skill premium in Chinese industrial sectors. Second, the enhancement of environmental regulation has significantly boosted the inflow of FDI in industrial sectors, especially in the strategic emerging industries. Finally, skill premium has a single threshold effect, and when it is less than or equal to the threshold, its increase helps environmental regulation promote the inflow of FDI, but when it exceeds the threshold, environmental regulation will not significantly affect the inflow of FDI.

2. Does environmental regulatory pressure affect corporate debt financing?

Resources, Conservation and Recycling, Volume 184, September 2022, 106405

Abstract

This study explores whether and how environmental regulatory pressure affects enterprise debt financing. We find that environmental regulatory pressure significantly reduces the debt financing scale of enterprises in Guangdong Province, China, listed from 2010 to 2018. Our heterogeneous analysis of enterprise size, ownership type, and industry attributes shows that the negative relationship between environmental regulatory pressure and debt financing is strong in small-scale, privately owned, and high pollution-intensity enterprises. We also explore the mechanism from the perspective of the environmental awareness of enterprises and debt funders and observe that both are improved following strong environmental regulatory pressure. We confirm that environmental regulatory pressure has a negative effect on the debt financing of listed enterprises. Our study provides implications on how to promote the rationalization and perfection of environmental policies effectively.

3. Effects of green human resource management on green innovation through green human capital, environmental knowledge, and managerial environmental concern

Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Volume 52, September 2022,

Abstract

The current literature in the environmental management domain proposes that employee behaviour is essential to enhancing environmental outcomes, but few studies have examined how human resource management (HRM) is linked with the green innovation of organisations. The study aims to investigate the interrelationship between green human resource management and green innovation in the hotel industry through the mediation of green human capital and environmental knowledge and moderation of managerial environmental concerns (MEC). The study was conducted on 209 participants from several occupational levels, including frontline workers, entry-level management, middle management, and top management employees of various hotel chains in Pakistan. Data were collected through stratified random sampling and analysed using the partial least structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) technique. Resultantly, GHRM positively contributed to the green innovation of organisations. The mediating roles of green human capital and environmental knowledge were also statistically significant. Furthermore, the results reveal that the link between GHRM and green human capital is stronger with MEC as a moderator. The study contributes to the body of knowledge by investigating environmental protection based on the human capital theory through empirical evidence on hypothesised relationships. Moreover, the study extends the GHRM scope by adding predictors such as environmental knowledge for efficient hotel industry performance.

4. Identification of factors affecting the reduction of VOC emissions in the paint industry: Systematic literature review – SLR

Progress in Organic Coatings, Volume 170, September 2022, 106945

Abstract

In recent years, the interest of the manufacturing industry in new perspectives aimed at sustainability has increased, driving the manufacture of paints to use alternatives that help to reduce the impacts generated by the emission of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs); these impacts are especially negative since they have environmental consequences related to atmospheric pollution and social consequences due to their harmful effects on human health. The economic field has a positive effect due to the performance and varied application of the coatings in different industries. A systematic literature review (SLR) was conducted to identify factors that contribute to the reduction of VOCs emissions in the coating industry. Search equations were proposed with selected keywords, reading and selection of articles, analysis and classification of the information and finally plotting the data with the use of VantagePoint software. A total of 51 articles were selected for analysis, finding three key factors. (1) green chemistry, based on the formulation of paints from the use and/or synthesis of raw materials with renewable materials; (2) incorporation of cleaner production strategies which involves the change of paint technology, such as water-based, powdered, or with variation of the solids content; and (3) regulations and standards that must be complied with regarding VOCs emissions and that depend on the type of industries and the country where they are applied. Polyurethane resins were identified as the most studied for VOCs abatement. The paints market has focused on new sources to develop environmentally friendly materials, introducing manufacturing processes and technologies that combine sustainability and performance in this industry.

5. The impact of industrial agglomeration on ecological efficiency: An empirical analysis based on 244 Chinese cities

Environmental Impact Assessment Review, Volume 96, September 2022, 106841

Abstract

Improving ecological efficiency is an integral part of the pursuit of high-quality economic development, and industrial agglomeration is a significant mechanism affecting ecological efficiency. This study measured the ecological efficiency of 244 Chinese cities from 2005 to 2017 using the super-epsilon-based measure model. Then, the impacts of industrial agglomeration on ecological efficiency and regional heterogeneity were empirically tested using dynamic spatial panel Durbin models based on the panel data of these cities. Finally, a mediating effect model was used to examine the role of the agglomeration effect between industrial agglomeration and ecological efficiency. There is a significant inverted U-shaped relationship between industrial agglomeration and ecological efficiency, and the level of ecological efficiency in most cities is smaller than the “agglomeration inflection point.” In addition, the agglomeration effect is an important way for industrial agglomeration to influence ecological efficiency. With an increase in industrial agglomeration, the aggregation effect is transformed into a crowding effect, especially in the southeastern coastal area of China, where the crowding effect has already appeared. Therefore, this study argues that in order to improve ecological efficiency, it is necessary to formulate differentiated policies to minimize the crowding effect according to the regional development status.

6. Decarbonisation of industrial clusters: A place-based research agenda

Energy Research & Social Science, Volume 91, September 2022, 102725

Abstract

Decarbonisation of industrial clusters is crucial for climate change mitigation and net zero policy goals, involving the deployment of technologies including hydrogen and carbon capture, utilisation and storage. Industrial clusters co-locate large-scale facilities for electricity generation and distribution, oil refineries and the manufacturing and distribution of products including fertilisers, glass, plastics and aerosols. Given the geographical, co-located rationale of industrial clusters, this perspective argues that adopting a place-based approach is fundamental to the success of industrial decarbonisation. The place-based approach offers two significant advantages. First, it provides conceptual and methodological tools to guide industrial decarbonisation in ways that are grounded in the social sciences. Second, it can assist with joining up diverse policy goals – mitigating climate change, enabling economic prosperity and reducing regional inequalities. Three conceptual pillars of this approach are identified – ontology, place-making and sense of place. An illustrative case study draws on this approach to critically assess the emergence of the concept of ‘SuperPlaces’ in UK policy discourse. The article concludes by proposing a research agenda that can inform policy making and practice in ways that go beyond a superficial or ephemeral appropriation of place. In doing so, this agenda can enable emissions reduction in ways that are considered fair and acceptable by local communities.

7. Industrial symbiotic agglomeration and green economic growth: A spatial difference-in-differences approach

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 364, 1 September 2022, 132560

Abstract

As a new form of industrial organization, there is still a lack of research on how industrial symbiotic agglomeration affects green economic growth. To fill this research gap, this paper analyzes the impact mechanism of industrial symbiotic agglomeration on green economic growth from the perspective of energy efficiency, waste recycling, and green technology innovation. Based on the data of Chinese cities from 2004 to 2019, we use the spatial difference-in-differences approach for empirical testing. The research concludes: (1) Industrial symbiotic agglomeration can both significantly promote green economic growth and have a spillover effect on neighboring cities. (2) The specific spillover effects are divided into three cases. Diffusion effect (within 150 km), siphon effect (150 km–750 km), no significant spatial effect (over 750 km). (3) The promotion and spillover effects of industrial symbiotic agglomeration on green economic growth can only be brought into full play when a certain threshold is reached. The local promotion effect requires the area of the symbiotic agglomeration area to be greater than 106 km2, while the spillover effect requires a larger scale (greater than 393.2 km2) for it to manifest itself. This has theoretical and practical significance for promoting green growth and achieving sustainable development through symbiotic agglomeration.

8. The microbial diversity in industrial effluents makes high-throughput sequencing-based source tracking of the effluents possible

Environmental Research, Volume 212, Part E, September 2022, 113640

Abstract

In order to explore the microbial diversity in industrial effluents, and on this basis, to verify the feasibility of tracking industrial effluents in sewer networks based on sequencing data, we collected 28 sewage samples from the industrial effluents relative to four factories in Shenzhen, China, and sequenced the 16S rRNA genes to profile the microbial compositions. We identified 5413 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in total, and found that microbial compositions were highly diverse among samples from different locations in the sewer system, with only 107 OTUs shared by 90% of the samples. These shared OTUs were enriched in the phylum of Proteobacteria, the families of Comamonadaceae and Pseudomonadaceae, as well as the genus of Pseudomonas, with both degradation related and pathogenic bacteria. More importantly, we found differences in microbial composition among samples relevant to different factories, and identified microbial markers differentiating effluents from these factories, which can be used to track the sources of the effluents. This study improved our understanding of microbial diversity in industrial effluents, proved the feasibility of industrial effluent source tracking based on sequencing data, and provided an alternative technique solution for environmental surveillance and management.

9. Chemical characterization of PM2.5 in heavy polluted industrial zones in the Guanzhong Plain, northwest China: Determination of fingerprint source profiles

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 840, 20 September 2022, 156729

Abstract

Industrial emission has been proved to be an important source of atmospheric PM2.5, which causes serious air pollution and health impacts. The air quality of the industrial zones, which are the intermediate stationary areas between the direct emissions and diffusion to the atmosphere, is always overlooked. In this study, the PM2.5 filter samples were collected in the six representative types of industrial zones in four cities of the Guanzhong Plain in 2020. The chemical characteristics of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the zones were investigated. The mass concentrations of 13 elements and 39 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in PM2.5 were quantified. Cement and concrete (CC) and brick production (BP) exhibited a similar chemical composition profile characterized by high proportions of calcium (Ca), aluminum (Al), benzo[k]fluoranthene (BkF), 1-nitronaphthalene (1N-NAP), and 3-nitrofluoranthene (3N-FLA). Glassware and ceramics (GC) showed a distinguishable profile with a relatively low ratio of copper/cadmium (Cu/Cd) and lead (Pb)/Cd. The profile for metal forging (MF) was abundant in vanadium (V), Pb, indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene (IcdP) and also recognized by particular diagnostic ratios of nitrated-PAHs (n-PAHs). The highest proportions of several metals such as chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), zinc (Zn), Cd, and fluoranthene (FLA) were found in the thermoelectric industry (TI) due to a large amount of coal consumption in the manufacture processing. Chemical production (CP) was the only industrial type using natural gas as the main fuel in this study, which shows the distinguishing feature of relatively high proportions of low molecular weight parent-PAHs (p-PAHs) and 2-ring oxygenated-PAHs (o-PAHs). This study not only attains the detailed chemical fingerprints, but also the potential tracers and ratios, which are of great significance for refining source apportionment and relieving PM2.5 pollution contributed by the industrial sources.

10. Improving high-quality development with environmental regulation and industrial structure in China

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 366, 15 September 2022, 132997

Abstract

At the present stage, economic high quality has become an inevitable trend for the healthy development of society. Environmental regulation of new green innovation initiatives has become a breakthrough for economic high quality. The optimization and upgrading of the industrial structure will also have an unprecedented impact on the sustainable growth of the economy. The focus of this study is to analyze the dynamic relationship between environmental regulation, industrial structure advancement and economic high quality. Based on the panel data of the Huaihe River Economic Belt from 2005 to 2018, an empirical study is conducted using the spatial Durbin model. The results show that the economic high quality has a spatial spillover effect, the impact of environmental regulation on economic high quality of the local and neighboring regions is shown as an inverted “U” shape, improving the advanced level of industrial structure can positively affect economy of the local and neighboring regions. Moreover, this study innovatively points out that environmental regulation is positively regulating the relationship between the advanced industrial structure and economic high quality. The above research results have important guiding significance for accelerating the green and sustainable development of the country and region.

11. Preliminary risk assessment of regional industrial enterprise sites based on big data

Science of The Total Environment, Volume 838, Part 4, 10 September 2022, 156609

Abstract

An accurate and inexpensive preliminary risk assessment of industrial enterprise sites at a regional scale is critical for environmental management. In this study, we propose a novel framework for the preliminary risk assessment of industrial enterprise sites in the Yangtze River Delta, which is one of the fastest economic development and most prominent contaminated regions in China. Based on source–pathway–receptors, this framework integrated text and spatial analyses and machine learning, and its feasibility was validated with 8848 positive and negative samples with a calibration and validation set ratio of 8:2. The results indicated that the random forest performed well for risk assessment; and its accuracy, precision, recall, and F1 scores in the calibration set were all 1.0, and the four indicators for the validation set ranged from 0.97 to 0.98, which was better than that for the other models (e.g., logistic regression, support vector machine, and convolutional neural network). The preliminary risk ranking of industrial enterprise sites by the random forest showed that high risks (probabilities) were mainly distributed in Shanghai, southern Jiangsu, and northeastern Zhejiang from 2000 to 2015. The relative importance of the site industrial, production, and geographical features in the random forest was 69%, 22%, and 9%, respectively. Our study highlights that we could quickly and effectively establish a priority (or ranking) list of industrial enterprise sites that require further investigations, using the proposed framework, and identify potentially contaminated sites.

12. Carbon peaking strategies for industrial parks: Model development and applications in China

Applied Energy, Volume 322, 15 September 2022, 119442

Abstract

Industrial carbon emission reduction is an important target for most countries. China pledges to achieve carbon dioxide peaking and neutrality before 2030 and 2060 respectively where industrial parks agglomerate most of the manufacturing industries and contribute much to the total CO2 emission; thus, it is of great significance to explore appropriate CO2 peaking strategies for the parks. We develop a land-industry-carbon integrated model that jointly projects land availability, land productivity, industrial structure, CO2 emissions, and carbon productivity (the ratio of gross industrial output value to CO2 emission) of industrial parks to quantitatively elucidate the CO2 peaking strategies. This study applies the model to four typical medium and large-sized Chinese industrial manufacturing parks. We analyze the characteristics of energy consumptions and CO2 emissions and reveal the parks have CO2 reduction potential ranging from 52% to 73% driven by carbon productivity improvement and industrial structure adjustment. Two parks could peak CO2 emissions before 2025 and realize the absolute decoupling of economic development from CO2 emissions during 2020–2030. Their carbon productivities will be 1.54 and 1.61 times in 2025 and both 2.78 times in 2030 compared with those in 2020. Another two parks tend to step from relative decoupling during 2020–2025 to absolute decoupling later, and their CO2 emissions will peak before 2030 with 2.08- and 3.70-times carbon productivities as much as those in 2020. Based on the model applications, two synergistic carbon peaking pathways are proposed for Chinese industrial parks, including (1) reallocating CO2 caps among industries considering land and carbon productivities, (2) facilitating the carbon productivity improvement for the stock industries and setting thresholds of carbon productivity for the forthcoming incremental industries. Customized strategies are also developed for the four parks. The model can provide both a pragmatic paradigm for industrial carbon peaking and policy support for global industrial parks.

13. A techno-economic approach for eliminating dye pollutants from industrial effluent employing microalgae through microbial fuel cells: Barriers and perspectives

Environmental Research, Volume 212, Part D, September 2022, 113454

Abstract

Microbial fuel cells are biochemical factories which besides recycling wastewater are electricity generators, if their low power density can be scaled up. This also adds up to work on many factors responsible to increase the cost of running a microbial fuel cell. As a result, the first step is to use environment friendly dead organic algae biomass or even living algae cells in a microbial fuel cell, also referred to as microalgal microbial fuel cells. This can be a techno-economic aspect not only for treating textile wastewater but also an economical way of obtaining value added products and bioelectricity from microalgae. Besides treating wastewater, microalgae in its either form plays an essential role in treating dyes present in wastewater which essentially include azo dyes rich in synthetic ions and heavy metals. Microalgae require these metals as part of their metabolism and hence consume them throughout the integration process in a microbial fuel cell. In this review a detail plan is laid to discuss the treatment of industrial effluents (rich in toxic dyes) employing microbial fuel cells. Efforts have been made by researchers to treat dyes using microbial fuel cell alone or in combination with catalysts, nanomaterials and microalgae have also been included. This review therefore discusses impact of microbial fuel cells in treating wastewater rich in textile dyes its limitations and future aspects.

14. Geospatial distribution and health risk assessment of groundwater contaminated within the industrial areas: an environmental sustainability perspective

Chemosphere, Volume 303, Part 1, September 2022, 134749

Abstract

Groundwater is the second largest water source for daily consumption, only next to surface water resources. Groundwater has been extensively investigated for its pollution level in urban areas. The groundwater quality assessments in industrial areas associated with every urban landscape are still lacking. This study was carried out in two industrial areas including Okhla and Mohan cooperative in New Delhi, India. The six groundwater samples were obtained for water quality assessment for 2015 and 2018. The heavy metals investigated in water samples were Cu, As, Pb, Mn, Ni, Zn, Fe, Cr, and Mn. The water quality was assessed in the heavy metals index (MI) and heavy metal pollution index (HPI). From indexing approach, it was observed that pollution levels have increased in year 2018 as compared to the year 2015. MI < 1 for Cu in 2015 and 2018 in both industrial areas. In the case of remaining metals, MI ranged from 2.5 to 8.4. When the HPI indexing approach was adopted, water was unfit for drinking in both industrial areas in 2015 and 2018, with an HPI value > 100. Non-carcinogenic risk assessment (HI) ranged from 1.7 to 1.9 in 2015, increasing from 17.41 to 217 in 2018, indicating high risk in both years. Carcinogenic risk (CR) was within the acceptable range for 48% of each heavy metal analysed sample. When the Carcinogenic risk index was considered (CRI), all samples were beyond the acceptable range, and every person was prone to carcinogenic risk in 2015.

15. Advancements of sequencing batch reactor for industrial wastewater treatment: Major focus on modifications, critical operational parameters, and future perspectives

Journal of Environmental Management, Volume 317, 1 September 2022, 115305

Abstract

Industrial wastewater discharge has increased manifolds over the last few decades. Efficient industrial wastewater treatment is mandatory to meet stringent discharge regulations. Biological treatment systems, such as the sequencing batch reactor (SBR) are generally employed for domestic wastewater treatment. However, low infrastructure and energy requirements, as well as low footprint, make SBR a prominent technique to treat industrial wastewater. In the present review, the feasibility of SBR to treat wastewater generated from industries, such as textile, pulp and paper, pharmaceutical, tannery, etc., has been discussed. The factors affecting the treatment efficacy of the SBR in terms of organics and nutrient removal have also been investigated. It has been observed that the SBR system is effective for industrial wastewater treatment as it is easy to operate, resistant to shock loads, and can retain high biomass concentrations. The modifications to the conventional SBR, such as sludge granulation, the addition of bio-film carriers, and the incorporation of adsorbents, salt-tolerant microbes, and coagulants have been discussed. Further, various novel combinations of SBR with the other advanced treatment technologies, such as Fenton, membrane-based process, and electrochemical process have shown enhanced removal of various conventional and recalcitrant pollutants. The current review also accentuates the sustainability aspects of SBR technology to treat industrial wastewater which may be beneficial for researchers and engineers working in this field.

16. Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and the associations with oxidative stress in waste incineration plant workers from South China

Chemosphere, Volume 303, Part 3, September 2022, 135251

Abstract

Waste incineration is one of the most common emission sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), causing potential occupational exposure in waste incineration workers. However, relative investigations among waste incineration plant workers are still very limited, particularly in China. Therefore, we collected urine specimens from 77 workers in a waste incineration plant as the exposed group, and 101 residents as the control group in Shenzhen, China. Nine mono-hydroxylated PAH metabolites (OH-PAHs) and 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) were measured, and their internal relationships were explored. The urinary levels of most OH-PAHs and 8-OHdG in the exposed group exhibited high levels versus another group (p < 0.05). We found negative associations between OH-PAHs and 8-OHdG in the control group (p < 0.05), while most of OH-PAHs were not associated with 8-OHdG in the exposed group, which indicated that the exposure to waste incineration could enlarge the level of individual oxidative stress damage. Nevertheless, PAHs were less likely to trigger obvious health risks in exposed workers through estimation of human intake and exposure risks. This study provides a reference for occupational PAH exposure and strengthen the need of health monitoring among incineration workers.

17. Multi-objective optimization of energy conservation and emission reduction in China’s iron and steel industry based on dimensionality reduction

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 368, 25 September 2022, 133131

Abstract

With increasingly stringent environmental restrictions, the iron and steel industry is faced with multiple targets such as energy conservation, emission reduction, and cost control, hence, making industrial-environmental management a multi-objective optimization (MOO) problem. Existing studies adopt MOO models to address this issue, however, their methods result in high-dimension problems that increase computational cost and the difficulty to formulate optimal management schemes. This study builds a constrained MOO model in China’s iron and steel industry, and introduces a dimensionality reduction technique to identify redundant objectives which can be omitted without altering the Pareto dominance structure of the original high-dimension problem. NSGA-II is then applied on the resulting lower-dimension problem to optimize the application of five types of Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction (ECER) measures, consisting of 23-process equipment and 55-ECER technologies. Results show that: (1) The high-dimension problem can be reduced to a four objective optimization problem. The four key-objectives are cost, energy, CO2, and PM intensity control. Hence, ECER policies should focus on these four key-objectives since optimizing them will synergistically minimize redundant objectives like NOx and SO2 emissions; (2) For the resulting lower-dimension problem, solution quality increases as reflected by algorithm verification metrics (spacing metric and hypervolume indicator), while computational cost is reduced by 73% and the decision making process is simplified significantly; (3) By-production reutilization and cleaner production technologies are the most attractive measures, contributing about 60% of ECER potential and only 30% of total cost. Equipment upgrading also has good ECER effects, but requires strong economic incentives, while end-of-pipe and renewable energy technologies have the lowest ECER potential. In sum, this study proposed a methodology to reduce the complexity of ECER optimization under multiple objectives, and provided suggestions to enhance industrial-environmental management under increasing environmental restrictions.

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