Atmospheric deposition from non-ferrous mining and smelting is one of the dominant sources of heavy metal pollution in soil. Jiyuan City in Henan Province, China produces about 900 000 tonnes of lead annually. Heavy metal soil contamination and elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) of local children in Jiyuan have been reported. This work investigated As, Cd and Pb deposition fluxes over 17 consecutive months at collection sites about 1000 m from a major lead smelter in Jiyuan. Mean As, Cd and Pb deposition fluxes were 17.2, 3.45 and 88.8 mg/m2/(30 d), respectively, lower values occurred from July to September during the traditional rainy season. Decreasing deposition fluxes of Cd and Pb were observed during the 17 month period, while As increased in the same period. Deposition fluxes of As, Cd and Pb of the sites near the smelter were 22.6, 29.2 and 29.4 times of those of a clean background site (0.762, 0.118 and 3.03 mg/m2/(30 d), respectively) far away from the smelter. Annually, the deposition enriches agricultural soil (0–20 cm plow zone) at the sampling sites with 0.805, 0.161 and 4.16 mg/kg As, Cd and Pb, respectively.

In this research, we examine the effects of PM10 and CO2 air pollutants on infant mortality and life expectancy at birth, in 60 developing countries during the period 1990–2010 by using unbalanced panel data and recursive simultaneous equations model. Our results show that the gains are obtained in the health status through the improvement in socio-economic conditions can be canceled by PM10 and CO2 air pollutants. Therefore, health policies which just focus on socio-economic aspects and ignore the adverse impacts of the air pollution may do little in efforts directed to improve the current health status of developing countries.

Strong winds and storm surges from Typhoon Haiyan caused damage of US$12–15billion and >10,000 human casualties in central Philippines in November 2013. To validate a proposed government US$22million mangrove replanting program, mangrove damage and short-term recovery were surveyed in seven natural and planted mangrove sites in Eastern Samar province at 2.5month and 4.5month post-Haiyan. The preliminary assessment showed that natural mangroves (except for those directly hit by the storm) were recovering by means of tree sprouts and surviving seedlings and saplings compared to the devastated plantation. Likewise, tree mortality was higher in the plantation and natural forests hit by the storm surge, compared to more undamaged and partially damaged trees in natural mangroves. Hence the main recommendations to government are (1) to protect recovering mangroves by not releasing rehabilitation funds (that will inadvertently pay for clearing of live trees and for removal of seedlings), (2) to only plant in totally damaged sites (e.g., plantations), and (3) to only plant naturally dominant species, e.g., Sonneratia alba and Avicennia marina (instead of the popular Rhizophora apiculata, R. mucronata and R. stylosa).

Oysters provide a critical habitat, are a food resource for higher trophic levels and support important commercial fisheries throughout the world. Oyster reefs can improve water quality by removing phytoplankton. While sediment denitrification may be enhanced adjacent to oyster reefs, little is known about nitrification and denitrification associated with living oysters and their shells. We measured nitrification and denitrification in living oysters (Crassostrea virginica and Crassostrea gigas) and empty oyster shells. Nitrification was similar between live oysters and empty oyster shells, however, denitrification was enhanced significantly on living oysters compared to shells. This is the first demonstration of nitrification and denitrification associated with living oysters and their shells. Our data suggest that loss of historic oyster reefs has likely affected the resilience of estuaries to eutrophication. The additional benefit of oyster mediated denitrification should be considered in restoration of oyster reefs as a tool for managing eutrophication.

Since the ban on tributyltin (TBT) in 2008, dozens of alternative antifouling agents have been used instead. Unfortunately, these alternative antifouling agents contain diverse toxic components, which have contaminated the coasts. From 2006 to 2013, the concentration of chlorothalonil, dichlofluanid, and Irgarol 1051 were monitored continuously, and their mean concentrations increased due to the increase in maritime cargo and consequent increase in the incoming and outgoing ships in harbors. An analysis of the sampling points according to harbor type showed that the contamination was more severe in fishing and big harbors, where there are more incoming and outgoing ships. A correlation analysis indicated a high correlation between chlorothalonil and dichlofluanid. Unlike Irgarol 1051, which is only used as an antifouling agent, the other two substances are used as agricultural chemicals as well, which could explain the high correlation. This study suggests that these alternative antifouling agents should be tracked continuously.

There are problems associated with dismantling vessels that have reached the end of their life, when pollution problems associated with the process need to be addressed. The first problem in “end-of-life vessels” (EOLV) is to define their legal frameworks. The second problem is their dismantlement for recycling of ships. In order to reduce the effects of pollution caused by EOLV dismantling, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted the Hong Kong Convention on 15 May 2009. While preparing for implementing the obligations under the Hong Kong Convention, China shall make effort on five aspects: (i) establish an ISRT for the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships, (ii) improve the competitiveness of ship dismantling plants, (iii) strengthen international exchanges, (iv) amend the domestic laws and regulations, and (v) support from the China Classification Society.

Within the context of coordination level between state and central government, we develop an econometric model to estimate the association between income and ambient air pollution, considering the societal preferences jointly influenced by the citizens and the government. We obtain empirical evidence supporting our hypothesis that state level coalition government can effectively improve quality of environment by means of reducing ambient air pollution level. This impact can be increased or decreased based on the societal preferences of the citizens, based on the area of inhabitance and irrespective of the choice of pollutants.

This study presents data on abundance and density of macro-floating marine debris (FMD), including their composition, spatial distribution and potential sources off continental Portugal. FMD were assessed by shipboard visual surveys covering ±252,833km2 until the 220nm limit. The FMD average density was 2.98items/km2 and abundance amounted to 752,740 items. Unidentified plastics constitute the major bulk of FMD (density=0.46items/km2; abundance=117,390 items), followed by styrofoam, derelict or lost materials from fisheries, paper/cardboard and wood material. The North sector of the area presents higher FMD diversity and abundances, probably as a result of the high number of navigation corridors and fisheries operating in that sector. Most FMD originate from local sources, namely discharges from vessels and derelict material from fisheries. Considering the identifiable items, cables and fishing lines were the only fishing related items among the top ten FMD items in Portuguese offshore waters.

Knowledge of the levels of pollutants to which the occupants of a residential home are exposed is important, because of the potential adverse effect of the pollutants on the occupants' health. This study presents the first indoor-to-outdoor ratio (IOR) prediction models for CO2, NO2, and the lung-deposited nanoparticles (defined as particulate matters of 10–1000 nm in diameter). The IORs of CO2, NO2, and the lung-deposited nanoparticles (LDN) were measured in 20 residential homes in Seoul, South Korea, and meteorological information, building characteristics, and information relating to occupants' indoor activities were collected as predictor candidates. A correlation analysis and a multistep multivariate linear regression analysis were performed to develop the IOR models. Based on the analysis, the selected predictors of the IOR for a home are the number of occupants, the type of stove, and the number of cooking activities for CO2, the temperature and number of cooking activities for NO2, and the number of occupants and floor level on which the home is located for LDN. The accuracies of the models were examined in terms of R2, and were found to be 0.70, 0.54, and 0.79 for CO2, NO2, and LDN models, respectively.

Concentrations of fine particulate mercury (PHg), particulate matter ≤2.5 μm (PM2.5), and particulate matter ≤10 μm (PM10) were monitored for the whole year of 2013 in Shanghai, China. The average concentrations of PHg were 1270 ± 716 pg/m3 and 341 ± 187 pg/m3 during haze and non-haze days respectively. The average PHg concentration throughout the whole year 2013 was 642 ± 616pg/m3. It was observed that PHg concentrations on haze days were 3 times higher than on non-haze days. The concentration of PHg on non-haze days in 2013 varied from 0.25 to 0.48 ng/m3. The mean monthly PHg concentration was highest in December (1.92 ng/m3), while the minimum mean concentration was observed in February and August (0.80 ng/m3), and there was a clear seasonal variation: winter (1.67 ng/m3), autumn (1.08 ng/m3), spring (1.02 ng/m3), and summer (1.00 ng/m3) during haze days. The correlation between PHg and PM2.5 was strong (r = 0.96 on haze days; r = 0.90 on non-haze days), while the correlation between PHg and PM10 was weaker (r = 0.85 on haze days; r = 0.57 on non-haze days). The PHg concentration on haze days was always higher than on non-haze days, indicating that haze conditions were accelerating the formation of PHg. The result also indicated that PHg was inclined to combine with fine particles. The existence of strong correlations between the concentrations of PM2.5, PM10, and PHg indicated the commonality of the contributing sources, such as traffic, industrial emissions, and the combustion of coal.