The potential leakage from marine CO2 storage sites is of increasing concern, but few studies have evaluated the probable adverse effects on marine organisms. Fish, one of the top predators in marine environments, should be an essential representative species used for water column toxicity testing in response to waterborne CO2 exposure. In the present study, we conducted fish life cycle toxicity tests to fully elucidate CO2 toxicity mechanism effects. We tested sub-lethal and lethal toxicities of elevated CO2 concentrations on marine medaka (Oryzias melastigma) at different developmental stages. At each developmental stage, the test species was exposed to varying concentrations of gaseous CO2 (control air, 5%, 10%, 20%, and 30%), with 96 h of exposure at 0–4 d (early stage), 4–8 d (middle stage), and 8–12 d (late stage). Sub-lethal and lethal effects, including early developmental delays, cardiac edema, tail abnormalities, abnormal pigmentation, and mortality were monitored daily during the 14 d exposure period. At the embryonic stage, significant sub-lethal and lethal effects were observed at pH < 6.30. Hypercapnia can cause long-term and/or delayed developmental embryonic problems, even after transfer back to clean seawater. At fish juvenile and adult stages, significant mortality was observed at pH < 5.70, indicating elevated CO2 exposure might cause various adverse effects, even during short-term exposure periods. It should be noted the early embryonic stage was found more sensitive to CO2 exposure than other developmental stages of the fish life cycle. Overall, the present study provided baseline information for potential adverse effects of high CO2 concentration exposure on fish developmental processes at different life cycle stages in marine ecosystems.

Mobile in situ concentration and meteorology data were collected for the Chino Dairy Complex in the Los Angeles Basin by AMOG (AutoMObile trace Gas) Surveyor on 25 June 2015 to characterize husbandry emissions in the near and far field in convoy mode with MISTIR (Mobile Infrared Sensor for Tactical Incident Response), a mobile upwards-looking, column remote sensing spectrometer. MISTIR reference flux validated AMOG plume inversions at different information levels including multiple gases, GoogleEarth imagery, and airborne trace gas remote sensing data. Long-term (9-yr.) Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer satellite data provided spatial and trace gas temporal context.For the Chino dairies, MISTIR-AMOG ammonia (NH₃) agreement was within 5% (15.7 versus 14.9 Gg yr⁻¹, respectively) using all information. Methane (CH₄) emissions were 30 Gg yr⁻¹ for a 45,200 herd size, indicating that Chino emission factors are greater than previously reported.Single dairy inversions were much less successful. AMOG-MISTIR agreement was 57% due to wind heterogeneity from downwind structures in these near-field measurements and emissions unsteadiness. AMOG CH₄, NH₃, and CO₂ emissions were 91, 209, and 8200 Mg yr⁻¹, implying 2480, 1870, and 1720 head using published emission factors. Plumes fingerprinting identified likely sources including manure storage, cowsheds, and a structure with likely natural gas combustion.NH₃ downwind of Chino showed a seasonal variation of a factor of ten, three times larger than literature suggests. Chino husbandry practices and trends in herd size and production were reviewed and unlikely to add seasonality. Higher emission seasonality was proposed as legacy soil emissions, the results of a century of husbandry, supported by airborne remote sensing data showing widespread emissions from neighborhoods that were dairies 15 years prior, and AMOG and MISTIR observations. Seasonal variations provide insights into the implications of global climate change and must be considered when comparing surveys from different seasons.

Poor indoor air quality can have adverse effects on human health, especially in susceptible populations; however, few studies have measured multiple pollutants in facilities for susceptible populations at a national scale in South Korea. Therefore, we measured the concentrations of indoor pollutants (fine particulate matter (PM₁₀), CO₂, airborne bacteria (AB), total volatile organic compounds (TVOCs), and formaldehyde) to determine their possible relation to other indoor environmental factors and characteristics of facilities with susceptible populations, such as hospitals, geriatric hospitals, elderly care facilities, and postnatal care centers throughout South Korea. Indoor pollutants were sampled at 82 indoor facilities, including 62 facilities for susceptible populations. Spearman's correlation, Kruskal–Wallis, and Mann–Whitney analyses were used to examine the relationship among and differences between pollutants at indoor facilities and indoor/outdoor differences in PM₁₀ concentration. There were significant correlations between indoor temperature and AB concentration (r = 0.37, p < 0.01), TVOCs, and formaldehyde (r = 0.264, p < 0.01). Indoor PM₁₀ concentrations were higher than outdoor concentrations at all facilities for susceptible populations (p < 0.01). CO₂ might be a good indicator for predicting indoor pollutants when categorized into two levels (≤750 ppm and >750 ppm). The hazard quotient of formaldehyde was higher than the acceptable level of 1 for children under the age of eight in postnatal care centers, indicative of unsafe levels. Therefore, more depth study for exposure characteristics of formaldehyde and indoor air quality (IAQ) in postnatal care facilities as a national scale is needed for finding the children exposure levels.

To explore the effect of elevated CO₂ concentrations ([CO₂]) on phosphine formation in paddy fields, the matrix-bound phosphine (MBP) content, different phosphorus fractions and various carbon forms in soil samples from rice cultivation under varying CO₂ concentrations of 400 ppm, 550 ppm and 700 ppm by indoor simulation experiment were determined. This study showed that MBP concentration did not increase significantly with elevated [CO₂] over four-week cultivation periods of rice seedlings, regardless of soil layers. MBP had a significant positive correlation with total phosphorus (TP) and inorganic phosphorus (IP), and multiple stepwise linear regression analysis further indicated that MBP preservation in neutral paddy soils with depths of 0–20 cm may have been due to conversion from FeP and CaP. Based on redundancy analysis and forward selection analysis, speculated that the formation of MBP in the neutral paddy soils as the response to atmospheric elevated [CO₂] was due to two processes: (i) FeP transformation affected by the changes of soil respiration (SCO₂) and TOC was the main precursor for the production of MBP; and (ii) CaP transformation resulting from variation in HCO₃⁻ was the secondary MBP source. The complex combination of these two processes is simultaneously controlled by SCO₂. In a word, the soil environment in the condition of elevated [CO₂] was in favor of MBP storage in neutral paddy soils. The results of our study imply that atmospheric CO₂ participates in and has a certain impact on the global biogeochemical cycle of phosphorus.

Faced with the unavoidable reality of the emission of pollutant gases by vessels both while sailing and when performing in-port manoeuvres, the international community has devised an extensive set of rules to limit greenhouse gas emissions and the emission of other pollutants which are bad for our health. In order to make these reductions in the emissions, the areas addressed are the engine regime or speed control, the quality of the fuel used, the state of conservation of the vessel and its hull or the time taken to perform the manoeuvres of mooring and unmooring. One factor which is having a strong influence on this last aspect is the installation in commercial ports of Automatic Mooring Systems using suction cups (AMS). These devices, which help to reduce considerably the time required to perform the mooring and unmooring manoeuvres, allow the times taken in operations for making steady a vessel to land and of releasing it to sail away to be reduced from some tens of minutes to a few seconds. The aim of this work is to verify the effect of the AMS on the emission of pollutant gases in the surroundings of the installations devoted to Ro-Ro/Pax vessel traffic. In particular, will focus on the CO2 emissions produced by vessels during mooring operations using two different calculation methodologies (EPA and ENTEC), first when using traditional mooring methods as a means of securing the vessel to the dock and second when using only the AMS, to finally carry out a comparison of the results. Will conclude with a discussion on the values of the reduction in emissions obtained and the advantages of installing AMS in commercial ports. In the RoRo/Pax terminals in which the AMS is installed and operating, a reduction in CO2 emissions of 97% has been estimated.

The need of more food production, an increase in acidic deposition and the large capacity of paddy to emit greenhouse gases all coincide in several areas of China. Studying the effects of acid rain on the emission of greenhouse gases and the productivity of rice paddies are thus important, because these effects are currently unknown. We conducted a field experiment for two rice croppings (early and late paddies independent experiment) to determine the effects of simulated acid rain (control, normal rain, and treatments with rain at pH of 4.5, 3.5 and 2.5) on the fluxes of CO₂, CH₄ and N₂O and on rice productivity in subtropical China. Total CO₂ fluxes at pHs of 4.5, 3.5 and 2.5 were 10.3, 9.7 and 3.2% lower in the early paddy and 28.3, 14.8 and 6.8% lower in the late paddy, respectively, than the control. These differences from the control were significant for pH 3.5 and 4.5. Total CH₄ fluxes at pHs of 4.5, 3.5 and 2.5 were 50.4, 32.9 and 25.2% lower in the early paddy, respectively, than the control. pH had no significant effect on CH₄ flux in the late paddy or for total (early + late) emissions. N₂O flux was significantly higher at pH 2.5 than 3.5 and 4.5 but did not differ significantly from the flux in the control. Global-warming potentials (GWPs) were lower than the control at pH 3.5 and 4.5 but not 2.5, whereas rice yield was not appreciably affected by pH. Acid rain (between 3.5 and 4.5) may thus significantly affect greenhouse gases emissions by altering soil properties such as pH and nutrient pools, whereas highly acidic rain (pH 2.5) could increase GWPs (but not significantly), probably partially due to an increase in the production of plant litter.

In Part II of this work we present the results of the downscaled offline Weather Research and Forecasting/Community Multiscale Air Quality (WRF/CMAQ) model, included in the “Technology Driver Model” (TDM) approach to future U.S. air quality projections (2046–2050) compared to a current-year period (2001–2005), and the interplay between future emission and climate changes. By 2046–2050, there are widespread decreases in future concentrations of carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx = NO + NO2), volatile organic compounds (VOCs), ammonia (NH3), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 μm (PM2.5) due mainly to decreasing on-road vehicle (ORV) emissions near urban centers as well as decreases in other transportation modes that include non-road engines (NRE). However, there are widespread increases in daily maximum 8-hr ozone (O3) across the U.S., which are due to enhanced greenhouse gases (GHG) including methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) under the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) A1B scenario, and isolated areas of larger reduction in transportation emissions of NOx compared to that of VOCs over regions with VOC-limited O3 chemistry. Other notable future changes are reduced haze and improved visibility, increased primary organic to elemental carbon ratio, decreases in PM2.5 and its species, decreases and increases in dry deposition of SO2 and O3, respectively, and decreases in total nitrogen (TN) deposition. There is a tendency for transportation emission and CH4 changes to dominate the increases in O3, while climate change may either enhance or mitigate these increases in the west or east U.S., respectively. Climate change also decreases PM2.5 in the future. Other variable changes exhibit stronger susceptibility to either emission (e.g., CO, NOx, and TN deposition) or climate changes (e.g., VOC, NH3, SO2, and total sulfate deposition), which also have a strong dependence on season and specific U.S. regions.

Rapid urbanization and economic growth has led to significant increase in municipal solid waste generation in India during the last few decades and its management has become a major issue because of poor waste management practices. Solid waste generated is deposited into open dumping sites with hardly any segregation and processing. Carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) are the major greenhouse gases that are released from the landfill sites due to the biodegradation of organic matter. In this present study, CH₄ and CO₂ emissions from a landfill in north-east India are estimated using a flux chamber during September, 2015 to August, 2016. The average emission rates of CH₄ and CO₂ are 68 and 92 mg/min/m², respectively. The emissions are highest in the summer whilst being lowest in winter. The diurnal variation of emissions indicated that the emissions follow a trend similar to temperature in all the seasons. Correlation coefficients of CH₄ and temperature in summer, monsoon and winter are 0.99, 0.87 and 0.97, respectively. The measured CH₄ in this study is in the range of other studies around the world. Modified Triangular Method (MTM), IPCC model and the USEPA Landfill gas emissions model (LandGEM) were used to predict the CH₄ emissions during the study year. The consequent simulation results indicate that the MTM, LandGEM-Clean Air Act, LandGEM-Inventory and IPCC models predict 1.9, 3.3, 1.6 and 1.4 times of the measured CH₄ emission flux in this study. Assuming that this higher prediction of CH₄ levels observed in this study holds well for other landfills in this region, a new CH₄ emission inventory (Units: Tonnes/year), with a resolution of 0.1⁰ × 0.1⁰ has been developed. This study stresses the importance of biodegradable composition of waste and meteorology, and also points out the drawbacks of the widely used landfill emission models.

Communities resident in urban areas located near active volcanoes can experience volcanic ash exposures during, and following, an eruption, in addition to sustained exposures to high concentrations of anthropogenic air pollutants (e.g., vehicle exhaust emissions). Inhalation of anthropogenic pollution is known to cause the onset of, or exacerbate, respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. It is further postulated similar exposure to volcanic ash can also affect such disease states. Understanding of the impact of combined exposure of volcanic ash and anthropogenic pollution to human health, however, remains limited.The aim of this study was to assess the biological impact of combined exposure to respirable volcanic ash (from Soufrière Hills volcano (SHV), Montserrat and Chaitén volcano (ChV), Chile; representing different magmatic compositions and eruption styles) and freshly-generated complete exhaust from a gasoline vehicle. A multicellular human lung model (an epithelial cell-layer composed of A549 alveolar type II-like cells complemented with human blood monocyte-derived macrophages and dendritic cells cultured at the air-liquid interface) was exposed to diluted exhaust (1:10) continuously for 6 h, followed by immediate exposure to the ash as a dry powder (0.54 ± 0.19 μg/cm2 and 0.39 ± 0.09 μg/cm2 for SHV and ChV ash, respectively). After an 18 h incubation, cells were exposed again for 6 h to diluted exhaust, and a final 18 h incubation (at 37 °C and 5% CO2). Cell cultures were then assessed for cytotoxic, oxidative stress and (pro-)inflammatory responses.Results indicate that, at all tested (sub-lethal) concentrations, co-exposures with both ash samples induced no significant expression of genes associated with oxidative stress (HMOX1, NQO1) or production of (pro-)inflammatory markers (IL-1β, IL-8, TNF-α) at the gene and protein levels. In summary, considering the employed experimental conditions, combined exposure of volcanic ash and gasoline vehicle exhaust has a limited short-term biological impact to an advanced lung cell in vitro model.

Chemical composition and pollutant sorption of biochar-derived organic matter fractions (BDOMs) are critical for understanding the long-term environmental significance of biochar. Phenanthrene (PHE) sorption by the humic acid-like (HAL) fractions isolated from plant straw- (PLABs) and animal manure-based (ANIBs) biochars, and the residue materials (RES) after HAL extraction was investigated. The HAL fraction comprised approximately 50% of organic carbon (OC) of the original biochars. Results of XPS and 13C NMR demonstrated that the biochar-derived HAL fractions mainly consisted of aromatic clusters substituted by carboxylic groups. The CO2 cumulative surface area of BDOMs excluding PLAB-derived RES fractions was obviously lower than that of corresponding biochars. The sorption nonlinearity of PHE by the fresh biochars was significantly stronger than that of the BDOM fractions, implying that the BDOM fractions were more chemically homogeneous. The BDOMs generally exhibited comparable or higher OC-normalized distribution coefficients (Koc) of PHE than the original biochars. The PHE logKoc values of the fresh biochars correlated negatively with the micropore volumes due to steric hindrance effect. In contrast, a positive relationship between the sorption coefficients (Kd) of BDOMs and the micropore volumes was observed in this study, suggesting that pore filling could dominate PHE sorption by the BDOMs. The positive correlation between the PHE logKoc values of the HAL fractions and the aromatic C contents indicates that PHE sorption by the HAL fractions was regulated by aromatic domains. The findings of this study improve our knowledge of the evolution of biochar properties after application and its potential environmental impacts.