Search results for "quality"
showing 10 items of 8136 documents
Assessing optimal water quality monitoring network in road construction using integrated information-theoretic techniques
2020
Author´s accepted manuscript. The environmental impacts of road construction on the aquatic environment necessitate the monitoring of receiving water quality. The main contribution of the paper is developing a feasible methodology for spatial optimization of the water quality monitoring network (WQMN) in surface water during road construction using the field data. First, using the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) method, the water quality index (WQI) was computed in each potential monitoring station during construction. Then, the integrated form of the information-theoretic techniques consists of the transinformation entropy (TE), and the value of information (VOI) we…
Using present and past climosequences to estimate soil organic carbon and related physical quality indicators under future climatic conditions
2018
Abstract This research aimed at testing the use of present and past climosequences to estimate soil organic carbon (SOC) and related physical quality indicators under future climatic conditions. The influence of climate on soil features was studied for four combinations of typical Mediterranean soil types and cropping systems, placed along climosequences of the past (P1: 1961–1990), present (P2: 1981–2010) and future (P3: 2021–2050). The four test areas were located in Italy, each one characterized by the same soil typology and cropping system, placed on similar morphological position and parent material, wide enough to cross climatic boundaries. Legacy soil profiles that were sampled in th…
Influence of microporosity distribution on the mechanical behavior of oolithic carbonate rocks.
2015
Abstract The mechanical behavior of oolithic carbonate rocks was investigated for selected rocks with two different microstructural attributes: uniform (UP) and rimmed (RP) distribution of microporosity within ooids. These oolithic carbonate rocks are from the Oolithe Blanche formation, a deep saline aquifer in the Paris Basin, and a possible target for CO2 sequestration and geothermal production. Samples of similar physical properties (porosity, grain diameter, cement content) but different microporosity textures were deformed under triaxial configuration, in water saturated conditions, at 28 MPa of confining pressure, 5 MPa of pore pressure and at a temperature of 55 °C. During the experi…
Personal Exposure to Ultrafine Particles According to Different Environments and Modes of Transport in Schoolchildren: Results from a Spanish Cohort …
2017
Background Combustion, especially in diesel engines, emits a complex mixture of gases and particles that could be harmful for the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Daily personal exposure to the smallest particulate matter (less than 0.1 µm and usually called nanoparticles or ultrafine particles – UFP) has been studied to a lesser extent compared to coarser particles. In this study we aim to assess personal exposure to UFP in different environments and transport modes among schoolchildren from a Spanish birth-cohort in the province of Valencia. Methods The study population consisted of 114 children aged 10-11 years. For each of them, personal exposure to UFP was measured continuously …
Open source solutions to improve the quality of sustainable forest management
2019
Climate change is becoming more acute, including in terms of individual perception. Forest, as an ecosystem, has a special role to play in mitigating climate change, protecting the soil, water and air. There are forests of scientific interest, preservation of the Eco fund and forest Geno fund, as well as recreational forests, so that the ecological functions are fulfilled in the optimum. Also, alongside the social function, green energy generation is one of the main attributes of the forest. In addition to preserving biodiversity, the forestry administration has as objectives the provision of the necessary resources for the short, medium and long-term development of local communities. Fores…
Chemical speciation of Fe, Mn, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cu, Co, Ni and Cr in the suspended particulate matter off the Mejerda River Delta (Gulf of Tunis, Tunisia)
2016
International audience; Fluxes of suspended particulate matter (SPM) and their associated metals were performed off the Mejerda River Delta during both the wet (March) and the dry (July) seasons in 2012, using sediment traps at study stations at depths of 10, 20 and 40 m. Fluxes nearest to the Mejerda outlet were more significant, especially during winter (36 g m−2 day−1), but dissipated further offshore, 24.5–6 g m−2 day−1 at the 20 m and 21.8–4.8 g m−2 day−1 at the 40 m stations. Many variations observed in seasonal and spatial metal fluxes are similar to those of SPM, in particular Pb and Zn, probably because they are associated with the mining activity characteristic of the Mejerda catc…
Economic performance and risk of farming systems specialized in perennial crops: An analysis of Italian hazelnut production
2019
Abstract Assessing farm profitability and economic risk is important to support farmers' decisions. Several factors affect yields and product prices, in turn influencing farmers' income level and economic risk. However, the literature has often neglected to explicitly account for the role of product quality. This is particularly important for crops such as hazelnut because farmers' prices vary according to the quality of the harvested product. Furthermore, it seems fundamental to disentangle the role of parameters influencing farm results, noticeably yield, product price and quality. This is because farmers select their risk management tools to satisfy their needs, but these are often suita…
Mercury emissions from soils and fumaroles of Nea Kameni volcanic centre, Santorini (Greece)
2013
There have been limited studies to date targeting mercury emissions from volcanic fumarolic systems, and no mercury flux data exist for soil or fumarolic emissions at Santorini volcanic complex, Greece. We present results from the first geochemical survey of Hg and major volatile (CO2, H2S, H2O and H-2) concentrations and fluxes in the fumarolic gases released by the volcanic/hydrothermal system of Nea Kameni islet; the active volcanic center of Santorini. These data were obtained using a portable mercury spectrometer (Lumex 915+) for gaseous elemental mercury (GEM) determination, and a Multi-component Gas Analyzer System (Multi-GAS) for major volatiles. Gaseous Elemental Mercury (GEM) conc…
Social vulnerability to climate policies: Building a matrix to assess policy impacts on well-being
2021
In this article, we address the social vulnerability of people to climate mitigation policies and contribute to assessing the social impacts of climate policies by introducing a matrix tool for conducting vulnerability assessments and participatory climate policy planning. The matrix serves as a methodological tool for identifying social groups in their social spaces. First, we lay the foundation for the matrix by linking social vulnerability to equality and justice, demonstrating the importance of addressing social vulnerability in climate policy design and research. Next, we introduce the ways in which social vulnerability has been addressed in the integration of social and climate policy…
Comment on the letter of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) dated April 21, 2020 regarding “Fossils from conflict zones and reproducibility…
2020
Motivation for this comment Recently, the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) has sent around a letter, dated 21st April, 2020 to more than 300 palaeontological journals, signed by the President, Vice President and a former President of the society (Rayfield et al. 2020). The signatories of this letter request significant changes to the common practices in palaeontology. With our present, multi-authored comment, we aim to argue why these suggestions will not lead to improvement of both practice and ethics of palaeontological research but, conversely, hamper its further development. Although we disagree with most contents of the SVP letter, we appreciate this initiative to discuss scien…