Heading for a post-modern landscape — Portuguese trends in the reconciliation of environmental quality and landscape planning with economic development

The absence of ecological principles in traditional planning has theoretically been overcome by the adoption of the concept of sustainable development. However, this concept has been bypassed by the political mainstream. Policies designed to improve environmental quality appear to be largely ineffectual. Therefore, landscape planning integrating ecological and economic principles needs to be widely emphasized and practiced. The new landscape would then be the expression of a post-modern relationship of human beings with nature.In light of these ideas, an overview of Portuguese trends is presented, examining the reconciliation of environmental quality and landscape planning with economic development and exploring existing opportunities for the creation of post-modern landscapes. Through a case study in northern Portugal, one of the existing legal instruments for landscape planning is discussed.     

The fire environment in a multi-room building— comparison of predicted and experimental results

This paper outlines results from a research project which is being used to investigate realistic fire environments in a prototype multi-room building. A comprehensive set of experimental data was obtained from a recently constructed three-storey Experimental Building-Fire Facility. The facility is used for a variety of fire investigation purposes, including fire growth and spread, smoke movement, and the effects of stair pressurisation and extinguishment. For the current investigation, a propane burner was located in the centre of a burn room to simulate a fire under both steady-state and transient-state conditions. The burn room was connected to other rooms. A comprehensive set of temperature, radiation and flow velocity measurements was obtained.

The numerical results obtained from a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model were found to agree well with the experimental results. The CFD model results were also found to agree well with zone model predictions. These results encourage use of the CFD model to research the phenomena of realistic fire growth and spread and smoke movement in prototype building layouts.     

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in sediments of the southern Baltic Sea — trends and fate

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have been determined in recent [0–1(2), 1(2)–5 and 5–10 cm deep layers] sediments from different sites of the southern Baltic Sea, including the Szczecin Lagoon, collected from May 1996 to October 1999, i.e. before and after the great flood in Poland of July/August 1997. The PCB distribution has been correlated with location and hydrological conditions as well as with organic carbon, algal pigments and their derivatives in the sediments. The sum of PCB (seven congeners) was equal to 1–149 ng/g dry wt., on average this was rather low (up to 40 ng/g). There was a decreasing trend in PCBs concentrations in the bottom sediments of the southern Baltic in 1996 but considerable amounts were still accumulated there. The flood of 1997 caused a distinct increase of PCB concentration level in the sediments, which again showed a decreasing trend in the next few years. This illustrates that at present the main source of PCBs for the southern Baltic are not a direct consequence of human activity, but from floods and heavy rains washing these compounds from land to the sea. Algae and algal detritus play an important role in the transport and distribution of PCBs in the southern Baltic. High correlation of PCBs with chlorophyll a derivatives — products of zooplankton grazing — indicates that PCBs are ingested by zooplankton with phytoplankton and then exuded with fecal pellets. PCBs bound to algal detritus or to fecal pellets in the water column are transferred to sediments, there they may be trapped either in a bonded and unchanged form or resuspended, remobilized and/or dechlorinated, depending on their properties and environmental conditions.     

The nature of cultural landscapes — a nature conservation perspective

This paper explores the reasons for the growing interest in cultural landscapes in nature conservation circles. It contains a brief discourse on nature and culture, emphasizing the declining power of the idea of pristine wilderness, the realization that many disturbed ecosystems are important to conservation, that agri-biodiversity is a resource to be protected along with wild biodiversity, and the need to find models of sustainable land use. Examples are given, at the global (World Heritage Convention), European and national levels, of the way in which the growing interest in cultural landscapes manifests itself; special attention is given to the category of protected area known as 'protected landscape/seascape'. Finally, the author identifies the major natural qualities found in cultural landscapes which will assist in understanding, identifying and protecting those features of value.     

Housing design in relation to environmental comfort — a comparison of the traditional Malay house and modern housing

The changing needs of the Malaysian population mean that there is an urgent necessity for designers to acquire a better understanding of the relationships between climate, building and man. Dr Hanafi outlines some of the choices with diagramatic sketches and makes comparisons between traditional and new forms of construction.     

Tunnels in Opalinus Clayshale — A review of case histories and new developments

Numerous tunnels have been built and new tunnels are planned in the Swiss Jura Mountains, and most of them intersect Opalinus Clayshale. This paper reviews several tunnel case histories which show that Opalinus Clayshale can be quite problematic by swelling during construction and also during operation, if the invert cover is not strong enough and if water can penetrate into the shale. Modern testing methods and a newly developed behavioral model based on these tests are then presented. They clearly show that Opalinus Clayshale when unloaded as can occur around the tunnel perimeter swells which in turn can induce creep and even failure. Considering this behavior in design and construction will reduce swelling and creep. Modern, TBM-based tunnel construction which utilizes prefabricated liner elements satisfies these requirements. In addition, the paper describes project management procedures that allow one to include the risks associated with swelling when assessing and awarding bids.     

The Øresund Tunnel — Making a success of design and build

This paper explores the benefits of design and build as procurement method for major infrastructure projects. The discussion is developed by considering the case of the Øresund Tunnel, part of the Øresund Link between Denmark and Sweden. Several examples are described of how design and build permitted innovations—in construction method and in permanent works design—which would not have arisen if design and construction had been procured separately. The paper demonstrates that in the right circumstances, design and build can lead to lower cost, faster construction, reduced risk and improved build quality.     

西部山地城市新区城市空间塑造

针对山地城市空间塑造与平原城市的不同,介绍了恩施市旗峰大道沿线区域城市空间的形成过程,阐述了山地城市新区城市空间的塑造过程与方法,以期营造一个生态良好,环境怡人的城市居住区。     

The use of natural processes in reclamation — advantages and difficulties

The damage to soil and vegetation caused by mining, unless prevented by careful planning, is usually extreme, because the original ecosystems have had to be grossly disturbed or buried by the mining process. Radical reconstruction is therefore required. In nature this takes place by the well-known processes of primary succession, without human assistance. In the interest of economy and the maintenance of our natural resources, reclamation should attempt to involve the same processes. But primary succession on raw substrates can take several centuries to complete. This paper attempts to analyse what seem to be the factors that limit the processes involved and how they can be overcome by ameliorative treatments. It examines in particular how long this amelioration will take and how much it is likely to cost. Knowing this we are then be able to include a natural approach in land reclamation effectively.     

The development of low volatile organic compound emission house—a case study

An aim in developing low volatile organic compound (VOCs) emission house is to reduce the level of VOCs in domestic housing. In this study, a case study for the reduction of exposure to VOCs from a newly constructed residential house was presented. Before application, the construction materials used in the house were tested in an environmental chamber and low VOC emission materials were then selected. Design of the house abided by the following principals: maximizing the ventilation rate and avoiding the use of high VOC emission materials in the house. By improved building design and proper construction materials selection, risk of personal exposure to VOCs in the house was significantly reduced. The total VOCs (TVOCs) concentrations measured in the house ranged from non-detectable to 43 μg/m³. These values were much lower than the published values (0.48–31.7 mg/m³) for new houses in Scandinavian countries and in the USA. The low TVOCs concentrations obtained in this study probably resulted from the high ventilation rates and the use of low VOCs emission materials. This study also combined the results with the three traditional ways in improvement of IAQ. The results obtained in this study confirmed that the most effective strategy for controlling IAQ was pollution prevention and the next most important was the design of ventilation rates to handle uncontrollable sources. The effectiveness of aging as a means of indoor pollution control was also reviewed.     

The spatial and temporal trends of Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb and Zn in Seine River floodplain deposits (1994-2000)

Fresh floodplain deposits (FD), from 11 key stations, covering the Seine mainstem and its major tributaries (Yonne, Marne and Oise Rivers), were sampled from 1994 to 2000. Background levels for Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb, and Zn were established using prehistoric FD and actual bed sediments collected in small forested sub-basins in the most upstream part of the basin. Throughout the Seine River Basin, FD contain elevated concentrations of Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb and Zn compared to local background values (by factors>twofold). In the Seine River Basin, trace element concentrations display substantial downstream increases as a result of increasing population densities, particularly from Greater Paris (10 million inhabitants), and reach their maxima at the river mouth (Poses). These elevated levels make the Seine one of the most heavily impacted rivers in the world. On the other hand, floodplain-associated trace element levels have declined over the past 7 years. This mirrors results from contemporaneous suspended sediment surveys at the river mouth for the 1984-1999 period. Most of these temporal declines appear to reflect reductions in industrial and domestic solid wastes discharged from the main Parisian sewage plant (Seine Aval).     

高校新区给排水系统的比较

本文主要通过对近期高校新区规划设计中所采用的给排水系统的比较 ,对各种给排水系统的优缺点做一简单介绍     

The use of performance-based simulation tools for building design and evaluation — a Singapore perspective

This paper provides an overview of some of the state-of-the art performance-based simulation tools available for the design evaluation of environmental quality in buildings. Through an extensive industry survey, it reveals the extent of usage of performance-based simulation tools for building design and evaluation in Singapore. It highlights particularly the difficulties encountered in the usage and the needs of the industry for such tools. Recommendations are also given as to how to promote the pervasive use of such simulation tools to enhance the design process.     

Patterns of flowering in grasslands — providing a baseline for environmental managers and planners

The number of species in bloom in 25 m² permanent plots, which were located in grasslands subject to a range of management regimes, was monitored at regular intervals in 1986 and 1988. A single well-defined peak of number of species in bloom occurred in early July (around day 190: 9 July) for all non-mown sites. Only a minority of species flowered well away from the peak. It is recommended that management and interpretive strategies for grazed and unmanaged grasslands should concentrate on exploiting this phenomenon, whilst mowing regimes for amenity grasslands should be manipulated to provide colour and interest early and late in the season.     

The spatial and temporal distribution of crop residue burning in the contiguous United States

Burning crop residue before and/or after harvest is a common farming practice however; there is no baseline estimate for cropland burned area in the contiguous U.S. (CONUS). We present the results of a study, using five years of remotely sensed satellite data to map the location and areal extent of crop residue burning in the CONUS. Our burned area approach combines 500 m Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Normalized Burn Ratio (dNBR) data, with 1 km MODIS active fire counts calibrated using coincident high resolution satellite data to generate area estimates. Our results show that cropland burning is an extensive and recurring annual event in several states in the CONUS. On average, 1,239,000 ha of croplands burn annually, which is equivalent to 43% of the annual average area of wildland fires in the U.S., as reported by the United States Forest Service for the same period. Several states experience high levels (> 30,000 ha yr^− 1) of crop residue burning, including Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Louisiana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, and Washington. Validation with high resolution burn scar imagery and GPS data collected during targeted field campaigns showed a moderate to high-level accuracy for our burned area estimates, ranging from 78 to 90%. Our approach provides a more consistent methodology for quantifying cropland burned area at regional scales than the previously available U.S. national and state-level statistics on crop residue burning.     

Spatial and temporal trends of contaminants in Canadian Arctic freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems: a review

The state of knowledge of contaminants in Canadian Arctic biota of the freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems has advanced enormously since the publication of the first major reviews by Lockhart et al. and Thomas et al. in The Science of the Total Environment in 1992. The most significant gains are new knowledge of spatial trends of organochlorines and heavy metal contaminants in terrestrial animals, such as caribou and mink, and in waterfowl, where no information was previously available. Spatial trends in freshwater fish have been broadened, especially in the Yukon, where contaminant measurements of, for example, organochlorines were previously non-existent. A review of contaminants data for fish from the Northwest Territories, Yukon and northern Quebec showed mercury as the one contaminant which consistently exceeds guideline limits for subsistence consumption or commercial sale. Lake trout and northern pike in the Canadian Shield lakes of the Northwest Territories and northern Quebec generally had the most elevated levels. Levels of other heavy metals were generally not elevated in fish. Toxaphene was the major organochlorine contaminant in all fish analyzed. The concentrations of organochlorine contaminants in fish appear to be a function not only of trophic level but of other aspects of the lake ecosystem. Among Arctic terrestrial mammals, PCBs and cadmium were the most prominent contaminants in the species analyzed. Relatively high levels (10-60 micrograms g-1) of cadmium were observed in kidney and liver of caribou from the Yukon, the Northwest Territories and northern Quebec, with concentrations in western herds being higher than in those from the east. For the organochlorine contaminants, a west to east increase in zigma PCBs, HCB and zigma HCH was found in caribou, probably as a result of the predominant west to east/north-east atmospheric circulation pattern which delivers these contaminants from industrialized regions of central and eastern North America to the Arctic via long-range atmospheric transport. Radiocesium contamination of lichens and caribou has continued to decrease. Significant contamination by PCBs and lead of soils and vascular plants was observed in the immediate vicinity and within a 20-km radius of DEW line sites in the Canadian Arctic. There was also evidence for transfer of PCBs from plants to lemmings. There was no evidence, however, that large mammals such as caribou living in the general area of the DEW line sites had elevated levels of PCBs. There is very limited temporal trend information for most contaminants in biota of Arctic terrestrial and freshwater environments.     

The deformation modulus of rock masses — comparisons between in situ tests and indirect estimates

Three methods of in situ deformation modulus (Em) measurements of rock masses have been described, analysed and compared. The plate jacking (PJT) test, where the deformations are measured by extensometers in drill holes, gives generally the best results. A factor of 2.5 has been found between PJT and the Goodman jack test, and the plate loading test. From analyses of the results it has been pointed out that the damage from blasting of the test adit reduces the magnitude of test results with a factor between 2 and 4. The existing equations for indirect estimates of the rock mass deformation modulus from classification systems have been analysed and adjustment suggested. Taking into consideration the uncertainties connected to in situ deformation measurements caused by blast damage, test procedure and test method, a good characterization of the ground may give comparable, or possibly better Em values, using the RMi or the RMR system than the in situ tests. The RMR system gives, however, values that are too high for Em in massive rock.     

Spatial and temporal trends and effects of contaminants in the Canadian Arctic marine ecosystem: a review

Recent studies have added substantially to our knowledge of spatial and temporal trends of persistent organic pollutants and heavy metals in the Canadian Arctic marine ecosystem. This paper reviews the current state of knowledge of contaminants in marine biota in the Canadian Arctic and where possible, discusses biological effects. The geographic coverage of information on contaminants such as persistent organochlorines (OCs) (PCBs, DDT- and chlordane-related compounds, hexachlorocyclohexanes, toxaphene) and heavy metals (mercury, selenium, cadmium, lead) in tissues of marine mammal and sea birds is relatively complete. All major beluga, ringed seal and polar bear stocks along with several major sea bird colonies have been sampled and analysed for OC and heavy metal contaminants. Studies on contaminants in walrus are limited to Foxe Basin and northern Québec stocks, while migratory harp seals have only been studied recently at one location. Contaminant measurements in bearded seal, harbour seal, bowhead whale and killer whale tissues from the Canadian Arctic are very limited or non-existent. Many of the temporal trend data for contaminants in Canadian Arctic biota are confounded by changes in analytical methodology, as well as by variability due to age/size, or to dietary and population shifts. Despite this, studies of OCs in ringed seal blubber at Holman Island and in sea birds at Prince Leopold Island in Lancaster Sound show declining concentrations of PCBs and DDT-related compounds from the 1970s to 1980s then a levelling off during the 1980s and early 1990s. For other OCs, such as chlordane, HCH and toxaphene, limited data for the 1980s to early 1990s suggests few significant declines in concentrations in marine mammals or sea birds. Temporal trend studies of heavy metals in ringed seals and beluga found higher mean concentrations of mercury in more recent (1993/1994) samples than in earlier collections (1981–1984 in eastern Arctic, 1972–1973 in western Arctic) for both species. Rates of accumulation of mercury are also higher in present day animals than 10–20 years ago. Cadmium concentrations in the same animals (eastern Arctic only) showed no change over a 10-year period. No temporal trend data are available for metals in sea birds or polar bears. There have been major advances in knowledge of specific biomarkers in Canadian Arctic biota over the past few years. The species with the most significant risk of exposure to PCBs and OC pesticides may be the polar bear which, based on comparison with EROD activity in other marine mammals (beluga, ringed seal), appears to have elevated CYP1A-mediated activity. The MFO enzyme data for polar bear, beluga and seals suggest that even the relatively low levels of contaminants present in Arctic animals may not be without biological effects, especially during years of poor feeding.