Found 10076 publications. Showing page 116 of 404:
2018
Although air pollution is one of the most significant environmental factors posing a threat to human health worldwide, air quality data are scarce or not easily accessible in most European countries. The current work aims to develop a centralized air quality data hub that enables citizens to contribute to air quality monitoring. In this work, data from official air quality monitoring stations are combined with air pollution estimates from sky-depicting photos and from low-cost sensing devices that citizens build on their own so that citizens receive improved information about the quality of the air they breathe. Additionally, a data fusion algorithm merges air quality information from various sources to provide information in areas where no air quality measurements exist.
2018
Analyses of selected organic contaminants and metals in drinking bottles. Technical report.
On behalf of Norwegian Consumer Council NILU has conducted analyses of organic contaminants and metals in the leachate from selected drinking bottles. The simulation of the leakage is conducted based on a compilation of the methods described within NS-EN-1186-9 and NS-EN-13130-1. The instrumental analytical methods used were already established at NILU and NIVA. A number of different organic contaminants and metals have been found in trace amounts in the different products.
NILU
2018
Meteorological Synthesizing Centre - East (MSC-E)
2018
Background Prenatal exposure to persistent organic pollutants (POPs), may influence offspring weight gain. More prospective epidemiological studies are needed to compliment the growing body of evidence from animal studies. Methods Serum from 412 pregnant Norwegian and Swedish women participating in a Scandinavian prospective cohort study were collected in 1986–88, and analyses of two perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) and five organochlorines (OCs) were conducted. We used linear and logistic regression models with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to evaluate the associations between maternal serum POP concentrations at 17–20 weeks of gestation and child overweight/obesity (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 85th percentile) at 5-year follow-up. Results were further stratified by country after testing for effect modification. We also assessed potential non-monotonic dose-response (NMDR) relationships. Results In adjusted linear models, we observed increased BMI-for-age-and-sex z-score (β = 0.18, 95% CI: 0.01–0.35), and increased triceps skinfold z-score (β = 0.15, 95% CI: 0.02–0.27) in children at 5-year follow-up per ln-unit increase in maternal serum perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) concentrations. We observed increased odds for child overweight/obesity (BMI ≥ 85th percentile) for each ln-unit increase in maternal serum PFOS levels (adjusted OR: 2.04, 95% CI: 1.11–3.74), with stronger odds among Norwegian children (OR: 2.96, 95% CI: 1.42–6.15). We found similar associations between maternal serum perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) concentrations and child overweight/obesity. We found indications of NMDR relationships between PFOS and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) 153 and child overweight/obesity among Swedish children. Conclusion We found positive associations between maternal serum PFAS concentrations and child overweight/obesity at 5-year follow-up, particularly among Norwegian participants. We observed some evidence for NMDR relationships among Swedish participants.
2018
Short-lived climate forcers have been proven important both for the climate and human health. In particular, black carbon (BC) is an important climate forcer both as an aerosol and when deposited on snow and ice surface because of its strong light absorption. This paper presents measurements of elemental carbon (EC; a measurement-based definition of BC) in snow collected from western Siberia and northwestern European Russia during 2014, 2015 and 2016. The Russian Arctic is of great interest to the scientific community due to the large uncertainty of emission sources there. We have determined the major contributing sources of BC in snow in western Siberia and northwestern European Russia using a Lagrangian atmospheric transport model. For the first time, we use a recently developed feature that calculates deposition in backward (so-called retroplume) simulations allowing estimation of the specific locations of sources that contribute to the deposited mass.
EC concentrations in snow from western Siberia and northwestern European Russia were highly variable depending on the sampling location. Modelled BC and measured EC were moderately correlated (R = 0.53–0.83) and a systematic region-specific model underestimation was found. The model underestimated observations by 42 % (RMSE = 49 ng g−1) in 2014, 48 % (RMSE = 37 ng g−1) in 2015 and 27 % (RMSE = 43 ng g−1) in 2016. For EC sampled in northwestern European Russia the underestimation by the model was smaller (fractional bias, FB > −100 %). In this region, the major sources were transportation activities and domestic combustion in Finland. When sampling shifted to western Siberia, the model underestimation was more significant (FB < −100 %). There, the sources included emissions from gas flaring as a major contributor to snow BC. The accuracy of the model calculations was also evaluated using two independent datasets of BC measurements in snow covering the entire Arctic. The model underestimated BC concentrations in snow especially for samples collected in springtime.
2018
The aim of this pilot-study was to use silicone rubber-based passive samplers to measure novel brominated flame retardants (nBFRs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and dechlorane plus (DP) in seawater and air around Longyearbyen as well as investigate the presence of those compounds in sediment and biota (amphipods, Gammarus spp.) nearby Longyearbyen. Passive samplers require no electricity and provide an integrated picture of the levels of the targeted compounds over time. The results were combined with the sampled sediment and Gammarus spp. to assess concentrations in the environment. Out of all substances under study, PBDE-47 and -99, α- and β- tetrabromoethylcyclohexane (TBECH), syn- and anti-DP were detected in all investigated matrices. Freely dissolved water concentrations of ΣDPs (3 pg/L) were in line with recent Arctic studies, while ΣPBDEs (3 pg/L) were comparable to urban rivers in southern Norway. Nevertheless, for some compounds, especially the lighter and most volatile ones, long-range transport is most likely a more important contribution to observed levels than local sources. For other compounds, e.g. PBDEs, local sources might still play a role for the load of contaminants into the surrounding environment. The present study is the first to report a suit of nBFRs and DPs in Arctic benthic fauna. Many of the nBFRs and DPs were detected in sediment and in the amphipods. We recommend further studies with respect to measurements of concentrations over time, and in other species as well, to better understand whether the nBFRs and DPs are common in the marine environment on Svalbard. We recommend that local sources of flame retardants in remote areas receive more attention in the future.
Norsk institutt for vannforskning (NIVA)
2018
Based on observations of the chlorofluorocarbons CFC-13 (chlorotrifluoromethane), ΣCFC-114 (combined measurement of both isomers of dichlorotetrafluoroethane), and CFC-115 (chloropentafluoroethane) in atmospheric and firn samples, we reconstruct records of their tropospheric histories spanning nearly 8 decades. These compounds were measured in polar firn air samples, in ambient air archived in canisters, and in situ at the AGAGE (Advanced Global Atmospheric Gases Experiment) network and affiliated sites. Global emissions to the atmosphere are derived from these observations using an inversion based on a 12-box atmospheric transport model. For CFC-13, we provide the first comprehensive global analysis. This compound increased monotonically from its first appearance in the atmosphere in the late 1950s to a mean global abundance of 3.18 ppt (dry-air mole fraction in parts per trillion, pmol mol−1) in 2016. Its growth rate has decreased since the mid-1980s but has remained at a surprisingly high mean level of 0.02 ppt yr−1 since 2000, resulting in a continuing growth of CFC-13 in the atmosphere. ΣCFC-114 increased from its appearance in the 1950s to a maximum of 16.6 ppt in the early 2000s and has since slightly declined to 16.3 ppt in 2016. CFC-115 increased monotonically from its first appearance in the 1960s and reached a global mean mole fraction of 8.49 ppt in 2016. Growth rates of all three compounds over the past years are significantly larger than would be expected from zero emissions. Under the assumption of unchanging lifetimes and atmospheric transport patterns, we derive global emissions from our measurements, which have remained unexpectedly high in recent years: mean yearly emissions for the last decade (2007–2016) of CFC-13 are at 0.48 ± 0.15 kt yr−1 (> 15 % of past peak emissions), of ΣCFC-114 at 1.90 ± 0.84 kt yr−1 (∼ 10 % of peak emissions), and of CFC-115 at 0.80 ± 0.50 kt yr−1 (> 5 % of peak emissions). Mean yearly emissions of CFC-115 for 2015–2016 are 1.14 ± 0.50 kt yr−1 and have doubled compared to the 2007–2010 minimum. We find CFC-13 emissions from aluminum smelters but if extrapolated to global emissions, they cannot account for the lingering global emissions determined from the atmospheric observations. We find impurities of CFC-115 in the refrigerant HFC-125 (CHF2CF3) but if extrapolated to global emissions, they can neither account for the lingering global CFC-115 emissions determined from the atmospheric observations nor for their recent increases. We also conduct regional inversions for the years 2012–2016 for the northeastern Asian area using observations from the Korean AGAGE site at Gosan and find significant emissions for ΣCFC-114 and CFC-115, suggesting that a large fraction of their global emissions currently occur in northeastern Asia and more specifically on the Chinese mainland.
2018
There is a concern that continued emissions of man-made per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) may cause environmental and human health effects. Now widespread in human populations and in the environment, several PFASs are also present in remote regions of the world, but the environmental transport and fate of PFASs are not well understood. Phasing out the manufacture of some types of PFASs started in 2000 and further regulatory and voluntary actions have followed. The objective of this review is to understand the effects of these actions on global scale PFAS concentrations.
2018
2018
Air quality in 7 Norwegian municipalities in 2015. Summary report for NBV results.
This report documents the methodology used to compile air quality information for the year 2015 in seven Norwegian municipality areas under the first phase of development of the Norwegian Air Quality Planning Tool, also called “Nasjonalt Beregningsverktøy” or NBV. It follows a similar structure to and complements the final report entitled “Air quality in 7 Norwegian municipalities in 2015 – Summary report for NBV results” (NILU rapport 21/2017) where information on air quality in the seven main city areas in Norway was presented.
This report constitutes a user guide for the NBV-services, available at http://www.luftkalitet-nbv.no, in municipal areas. It provides recommendations on how to best use each product for air quality planning purposes and explains the main strengths and limitations of the results. The NBV air quality data for municipalities is subject to larger uncertainties than the data available for the main Norwegian city areas and this has to be taken into consideration when analyzing the results.
NILU
2018
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2018
Model development for high-resolution emissions from residential wood combustion
In this report, we describe the MetVed model developed to estimate emissions from residential wood combustion (RWC) at high spatial-temporal resolution. The model uses a downscaling method approach, which builds on bottom-up principles and derive a wood burning potential for each grid based on the housing type, size and heating technology, energy demand and outdoor temperature of each grid. The model builds on the combination of several databases with information at high level of detail. The databases contain geo-localised information about dwelling number and type, energy consumption statistics, fireplace and stove locations, and the available technology for residential heating. The datasets are combined and the dependencies between the different variables are analysed. MetVed includes the time variation for RWC based on the heating degree concept combined with time-variation from consumer statistics, and the vertical distribution based on the RWC shared in apartment buildings versus houses. The results from the MetVed-model have shown to improve the accuracy of dispersion modelling results when compared with predictions based on previous emission inventories.
NILU
2018
Environmental contaminants are found throughout Arctic marine ecosystems, and their presence in seabirds has been
associated with toxicological responses. However, there are few studies of genotoxicity in Arctic avian wildlife. The purpose of
the present study was to quantify deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) damage in lymphocytes of selected seabird species and to
examine whether accumulation of organohalogen contaminants (SOHCs) affects DNA damage. Blood was sampled from
common eider (Somateria mollissima), black guillemot (Cepphus grylle), black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla), glaucous gull
(Larus hyperboreus), arctic skua (Stercorarius parasiticus), and great skua (Stercorarius skua) in Kongsfjorden, Svalbard (Norway).
Contaminant concentrations found in the 6 species differed, presumably because of foraging ecology and biomagnification.
Despite large differences in contaminant concentrations, ranging from SOHCs 3.3 ng/g wet weight in the common eider to
SOHCs 895 ng/g wet weight in the great skua, there was no strong difference among the species in baseline DNA damage or
sensitivity to a genotoxic stressor (hydrogen peroxide). Baseline levels of DNA damage were low, with median values ranging
from 1.7% in the common eider to 8.6% in the great skua. There were no associations between DNA damage and contaminants
in the investigated species, suggesting that contaminant concentrations in Kongsfjorden are too low to evoke genotoxic effects,
or possibly that lymphocytes are resistant to strand breakage. Clearly, genotoxicity is a topic for future studies of Arctic seabirds
Arctic; Seabirds; Genotoxicity; Comet Assay; Persistent organic pollutants; Perfluoroalkyl substances
2018
Interdecadal change in the relationship between the East Asian winter monsoon (EAWM) and the Arctic Oscillation (AO) has been documented by many studies. This study, utilizing the model outputs from phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5), evaluates the ability of the coupled models in CMIP5 to capture the intensified relationship between the EAWM and winter AO since the 1980s, and further projects the evolution of the EAWM–AO relationship during the 21st century. It is found that the observed evolution of the EAWM–AO relationship can be reproduced well by some coupled models (e.g., GFDL-ESM2M, GISS-E2-H, and MPI-ESM-MR). The coupled models’ simulations indicate that the impact of winter AO on the EAWM-related circulation and East Asian winter temperature has strengthened since the 1980s. Such interdecadal change in the EAWM–AO relationship is attributed to the intensified propagation of stationary planetary waves associated with winter AO. Projections under the RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 scenarios suggest that the EAWM–AO relationship is significant before the 2030s and after the early 2070s, and insignificant during the 2060s, but uncertain from the 2030s to the 2050s.
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