鲁中山丘区地下水硝酸盐污染状况研究

地下水中硝酸盐污染是人们高度关注的问题,本文通过大量的水质测试分析资料,对位于鲁中山丘区的临朐县、沂源县、沂水县及莒县境内浅层地下水中硝酸盐污染状况进行了评价。评价结果显示,研究区浅层地下水中硝酸盐污染严重,硝酸盐含量(以氮计)大于20 mg/L的Ⅳ、Ⅴ类水水样占总水样的35.17%,Ⅳ、Ⅴ类水分布面积约2 655 km^2,占研究区总面积的33%左右。地下水中硝酸盐污染多呈面状分布特征,农业生产中化肥、有机肥的施用是引起地下水中硝酸盐含量升高的主要原因。     

目标规划在矿山地下水疏放管理中应用——以淮南潘北煤矿西翼采区为例

长期以来,由于矿山地下水疏放工作缺乏科学的规划和管理,造成地下水资源大量浪费并引发了一系列环境地质问题。目前,解决矿山采煤"疏水和保水"矛盾的最有效方法,就是对地下水资源的疏放进行合理优化和分配。为此,本文采用最优化方法,以安徽淮南潘北煤矿西翼采区为研究对象,在分析水文地质条件和构建水文地质模拟模型基础上,建立了以水位和疏放量为约束条件,以最小疏放量为目标函数的目标规划管理模型。根据模型的最优解,对区内疏放水钻孔进行了重新分配和布置,使得A煤层的开采时间由22年后缩短为5年之内,地下水疏放量由2.31×107m3减少为1.19×10~7m~3,并经现场实际验证,该模型是正确、可行的。这将为今后类似条件下的矿山疏放水工作提供一定的借鉴作用。     

Hydrochemical characteristics and geochemistry evolution of groundwater in the plain area of the Lake Baiyangdian watershed,North China Plain

Water cycle and water quality in the Lake Baiyangdian watershed of the North China Plain have undergone great changes due to over-pumping of groundwater and wastewater discharge.In this paper,hydrogeochemical data was collected to analyze the hydrochemical characteristics and geochemistry evolution of groundwater.The study area was divided into two typical parts.One was in the upstream plain area,where over-pumping had resulted in significant decline of groundwater level;the other one was located in the downstream area near the Fu River and Lake Baiyangdian(Lake BYD region).In addition to the natural weathering of minerals,excessive fertilizer was also a main factor of higher ion concentration in groundwater.According to studies,due to good permeability,these regions were easy to be polluted even with deep groundwater depth.However,upstream shallow groundwater and surface water,including lake water,domestic along with industrial wastewater were all sources of present shallow groundwater in the Lake BYD region.Results indicated that anthropogenic activities rather than minerals much matter to the groundwater in these regions.Particularly,wastewater largely decided the groundwater quality,which suggested that the management and restoration of surface water quality was crucial to groundwater protection.     

Assessment of groundwater potential zones in coal mining impacted hard-rock terrain of India by integrating geospatial and analytic hierarchy process (AHP) approach

The study aims at delineating groundwater potential zones using geospatial technology and analytical hierarchy process (AHP) techniques in mining impacted hard rock terrain of Ramgarh and part of Hazaribagh districts, Jharkhand, India. Relevant thematic layers were prepared and assigned weight based on Saaty’s 9-point scale and normalized by eigenvector technique of AHP to identify groundwater prospect in the study area. The weighted linear combination method was applied to prepare the groundwater potential index in geographic information system. Final groundwater prospects were classified as excellent, very good, good, moderate, poor and very poor groundwater potential zones. Study thus revealed that the excellent, very good and good groundwater potential zones, respectively, cover 148.3, 373.66 and 438.86 km² of the study area, whereas the poor groundwater potential zone covers 180.05 km². Validation was done through a receiver operating characteristic curve, which indicated that AHP had good prediction accuracy (AUC = 75.45%).     

The suitability of shallow hand dug wells for safe water provision in sub-Saharan Africa: Lessons from Ndola,Zambia

Many informal communities within urban areas in sub-Saharan Africa are heavily reliant on shallow hand-dug wells for water, but these are vulnerable to contamination from a range of sources. This paper assesses the heavy metal contamination and total coliform risk of unprotected shallow wells in Ndola, Zambia – a city struggling with contaminated surface waters from both bacteriological and potential mining waste products. One hundred and twenty three shallow wells were sampled across the Ndola, and these encompassed the three main lithologies of the city. All wells lacked an internal casing, however, some wells did have covers and/or pavements surrounding the wells, albeit of dubious efficacy. Despite the lack of protection, the quality of water used abstracted from these wells generally met the World Health (WHO) guidelines for heavy metals (with the exception of Al) and total coliforms (although, this was highly variable). The quality of shallow well water varied across Ndola relative to the underlying geology, where total recoverable concentrations were typically lowest in granite-gneiss. Dissolved load concentrations were lowest in dolomite-limestone, highlighting the role of aquifer geology in acting as a buffer against metal toxicity. Our study illustrates that shallow wells, within the appropriate geological units, may provide a safe and reliable source of drinking water. Well protection is, however, needed to ensure that the proliferation of shallow well use does not lead to regional degradation of the groundwater resource. There is an immediate need to invest in promoting internal well casing during the construction of shallow wells, concomitant with investment and education into protecting wells at the surface, despite the current relatively low level of contamination in wells without protection.     

Spatial distribution of nitrate health risk associated with groundwater use as drinking water in Merida,Mexico

Water containing nitrate levels above 45 mg/l is not recommended for human consumption and its prolonged intake is associated with various health conditions. In Merida city, Mexico, the only source for water supply is a karstic aquifer, but the absence of sewerage and drainage networks makes it highly vulnerable to anthropogenic contamination. In this work, the concentration and spatial distribution of nitrate in the Merida's karstic aquifer were assessed by statistical and geostatistical techniques. The sources of nitrate contamination were tracked by making statistical correlations between nitrate concentrations and key ions; the potential risk to human health was also estimated by using the Hazard Index (HI). A total of 177 groundwater samples were collected from the four water supply systems serving Merida, during 2012 and 2013. Nitrate concentrations from collected samples varied between 15.51 and 70.61 mg/l, with maximum and minimum concentrations per sampling point ranging from 47.47 to 70.61 mg/l and from 15.51 to 17.32 mg/l, respectively. Significant positive correlations (P < 0.05) between nitrates and chlorides, sulphates and potassium were found, which may indicate potential contamination from domestic wastewater and agricultural activities. The spatial distribution of nitrate concentrations in the aquifer revealed an increase in nitrates following a trajectory South–North West, towards central and northwestern zones within Merida Metropolitan Area. From the health risk analysis, it was found that infants exposed at current nitrate levels are at a higher risk (HI_MAX = 1.40) than adults (HR < 1.0) and therefore, there is a clear need for implementing effective strategies to protect groundwater quality and to better manage and control nitrate pollution sources.     

Numerical analysis of applying special pavements to solve the frost heave diseases of high-speed railway roadbedsin seasonally frozen ground regions

The Haerbin-Dalian Passenger Dedicated Line is the first high-speed railway constructed in the seasonally frozen ground regions of northeastern China. Frost heave diseases occurred in the first winter of its operation(between October 2012 and January 2013), and frost heave was observed mainly in the roadbed fills that were considered not susceptible to frost heave. This paper proposes applying two special pavements — black pavement and insulation-black pavement — to improve the thermal regime of the roadbed. Three numerical models of the roadbed temperature field were built based on the field conditions of the Changchun section(D3K692+840 to D3K692+860). The results show that:(1) Compared with cement pavement, black pavement and insulation-black pavement could reduce the freezing index at the roadbed surface by 37% and 64%, respectively, which could influence the maximum frozen depth;(2) the maximum frozen depths under the black pavement and insulation-black pavement were respectively 1.3–1.4 m and 1 m. Compared with cement pavement, they could reduce the maximum frozen depth by 0.4 m and 0.7–0.8 m, respectively, which would reduce the permitted amount of frost heave by 4 mm and 7–8 mm, which would meet the deformation limit established by the Code for Design on Special Subgrade of Railway;(3) the freezing periods of the black pavement and the insulation-black pavement were, respectively, approximately four months and two months. Compared with cement pavement, they could reduce the freezing period by approximately 19 days and 40 days, respectively, and delay the initial freezing time by 9 days and 18 days; and(4) compared with cement pavement, black pavement and black-insulation pavement could reduce the frozen areas of roadbeds in the cold season, which suggests that these two special pavements could provide better thermal stability for roadbeds.     

Cracking the nut of agribusiness and global food insecurity: In search of a critical agenda of research

The article examines some of the main trends of the modernisation of agribusiness and raises some questions about geographical transformations taking place in the centre and north of Brazil. The country represents an emblematic case of neo-liberalised agriculture in need of further investigation. It is discussed in the text how corporate, industrial-scale agribusiness practices in Brazil bring back some spectral elements of capitalism, which never disappeared and in which the invisible becomes visible again. It is a phenomenon of multiple dialectics that needs further theoretical, methodological and investigative elaboration. The most dramatic circumstances, and most interesting for academics to study, are at the frontier of the expansion of agribusiness, where spatially and temporally patterns are heterogeneous and largely unpredictable. Agribusiness is especially promoted at the agriculture frontier in Brazil because it is in itself an economic, ecological and ethical frontier. Therefore, critical research into the complexity of contemporary agribusiness should really be about the political economy of alternatives to the highly vulnerable and unsatisfactory approaches to food and agriculture that prevail today and continue to expand unabated.     

Structure and dynamics of the periphytic ciliate community under different hydrological conditions in a Danubian floodplain lake

Ciliated protozoans are important constituents of periphytic communities in aquatic habitats, including river-floodplain ecosystems. As the knowledge about the diversity and ecological importance of periphytic ciliates in floodplain habitats is still limited, the main objectives of this study were to analyse the temporal variations in the community structure and functional role and reveal the main environmental factors controlling community dynamics. The study was conducted in one of the Danube's largest conserved floodplains – Kopački Rit in Croatia. In situ research included two experimental series in a lake, the first from spring till winter and the second from summer till winter. Samples were collected biweekly using glass slides as artificial substrates for periphyton development. During the study, two hydrological (low-water and high-water) periods interchanged. High-water periods were characterized by greater water transparency and nutrient concentrations, while electrical conductivity, chlorophyll a concentration, total suspended solids and particulate organic matter in water were higher during low-water periods. Furthermore, hydrological changes greatly affected the periphytic ciliate communities and the highest abundances were registered during low water levels. We identified a total of 133 ciliate taxa, among which the peritrichs, sessile filter feeders, were the dominant representatives in the periphyton, with the highest densities registered in the absence of floods. During extremely high water levels, the composition of the ciliate community in periphyton changed, with mobile ciliates, predators and filter feeders, becoming dominant. This study indicates that the main food source for periphytic ciliates in a floodplain lake are bacteria and algae, confirming the important role of these microorganisms in the lake food web, by making the carbon fixed in bacteria and algae available for the organisms of higher trophic levels. Additionally, periphytic ciliates have a considerable effect on planktonic organisms in the lake, thus connecting benthic and pelagic food webs, especially during low-water periods.     

Scientists' warning on extreme wildfire risks to water supply

2020 is the year of wildfire records. California experienced its three largest fires early in its fire season. The Pantanal, the largest wetland on the planet, burned over 20% of its surface. More than 18 million hectares of forest and bushland burned during the 2019–2020 fire season in Australia, killing 33 people, destroying nearly 2500 homes, and endangering many endemic species. The direct cost of damages is being counted in dozens of billion dollars, but the indirect costs on water-related ecosystem services and benefits could be equally expensive, with impacts lasting for decades. In Australia, the extreme precipitation (“200 mm day −1 in several location”) that interrupted the catastrophic wildfire season triggered a series of watershed effects from headwaters to areas downstream. The increased runoff and erosion from burned areas disrupted water supplies in several locations. These post-fire watershed hazards via source water contamination, flash floods, and mudslides can represent substantial, systemic long-term risks to drinking water production, aquatic life, and socio-economic activity. Scenarios similar to the recent event in Australia are now predicted to unfold in the Western USA. This is a new reality that societies will have to live with as uncharted fire activity, water crises, and widespread human footprint collide all-around of the world. Therefore, we advocate for a more proactive approach to wildfire-watershed risk governance in an effort to advance and protect water security. We also argue that there is no easy solution to reducing this risk and that investments in both green (i.e., natural) and grey (i.e., built) infrastructure will be necessary. Further, we propose strategies to combine modern data analytics with existing tools for use by water and land managers worldwide to leverage several decades worth of data and knowledge on post-fire hydrology.