• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.279-289
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• 2012

This study conducted a comparative analysis of benthic macroinvertebrate communities in the Fosu and Benya lagoons in Ghana, based on the anthropogenic effect on the two lagoons. Salinity, oxygen, temperature, conductivity, turbidity and pH were measured, invertebrate richness and species densities were determined. The AZTI Marine Biotic Index (AMBI) and multivariate statistics were used to determine the different responses of fauna to pollution. The fauna were categorized into five ecological groups based on the degree of tolerance of the different species to pollution: disturbance-sensitive species; disturbance-indifferent species, disturbance-tolerant species, second-order opportunistic species; and first-order opportunistic species. The Fosu Lagoon supported more pollution tolerant species, whereas the Benya Lagoon had more species that were sensitive to organic enrichment under relatively unpolluted conditions. Chironomus sp., which is adapted to virtually anoxic conditions, was the most abundant in the Fosu Lagoon whereas Nemertea sp. was the most abundant in the Benya Lagoon. The numerical and relative abundance (%) of all 7 taxa in the Fosu Lagoon was 1,359 and 92.35%, respectively. The numerical and relative abundance (%) of all 34 taxa in the Benya Lagoon was 2,459 and 87.52%, respectively. Expectedly, the level of dissolved oxygen in the less saline Fosu Lagoon was higher than that in the more saline Benya Lagoon. The reduced photoperiod and photosynthetic activities of aquatic plants might account for this trend. There is a need to implement comprehensive monitoring and management initiatives for sustaining the ecological health of coastal lagoons in Ghana in order to support the many people that depend upon these ecosystems for their livelihood.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.149-154
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• 2015

In recent years, immobilization agents were introduced into organic contaminated soil remediation and more and more materials were screened and used as the immobilizing carrier. However, effect of the decomposition of the immobilizing carrier on the bioremediation was rarely concerned. Therefore, the decomposition experiment of immobilizing carrier -corncob was carried out in the lab with the efficient degradation fungi - Mucor mucedo (MU) existing, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) residues E4/E6 of the dissolved organic matter and microbial diversity during the decomposition process were studied. The results showed that: a) during the decomposition, the degradation of pyrene (Pyr) was mainly in the first 28 d in which the content of extractable Pyr decreased rapidly and the highest decrease was in the treatment with only MU added. b) Anslysis of E4/E6 changes showed that rich microorganisms could promote aromatization and condensation of humus. c) From the diversity index analysis it can also be seen that there is no significant difference in effects of PAHs on the uniformity of microorganisms. These results will not only be useful to have a better understanding of the bioavailability of contaminants adsorbed to biodegradable carriers in PAHs contaminated soil remediation, but also be helpful to perfect the principle of immobilized microbial technique.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.24 no.8
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• pp.711-720
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• 2003

To study characteristics of the heavy metal pollution, sediment samples were collected at 67 sites on the roadside of Jeonju city during summer and winter, 2002. The total concentration of metals including Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, and Mn in the sediment samples were determined. The results indicate that the roadside sediments in Jeonju city have lower (1/2 to 1/7 times) concentrations of Zn, Cu, Pb and Cd than the metal concentrations previously reported for roadside soil, dust and sewage sludges in Seoul. However, the metal concentrations are higher than environmental quality criteria in soil suggested from several countries, and Zn, Cu, Pb and Cd contents are usually 2-7 times higher than the world average contents of the metals in natural soil. Although pollution index and concentrations of Cr, Ni, Pb and Zn in the roadside sediments at industrial area were usually higher than those of downtown and residential area, the metal having small vehicle- and steel-related industries had high concentrations of metals. The results of chemical partitioning analysis showed that Pb, Zn and Mn are mainly associated with carbonate/adsorbed and Fe-Mn oxide phases but that Cu is largely associated with the organic and sulfide fractions. It thus indicates that both large and small (vehicle- and steel-related) industries are main sources of heavy metal contamination. Due to high solubility of the carbonate phases by natural leaching episodes, the carbonate/adsorbed Cd, Co, Ni, Pb, Zn and Mn in the roadside sediments may serve as a potential source of contamination.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.6-13
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• 2015

BACKGROUND: Most of the tailings have been left without any management in abandoned metalliferous mines and have become the main source of heavy metal contamination for agricultural soils and crops in the these areas. METHODS AND RESULTS: This experiment was carried out to investigate the assessment of the heavy metal contamination in paddy soils located on downstream of the closed metalliferous mine. The average total concentrations of cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), and arsenic (As) in paddy soils were 8.88, 56.7, 809, 754, and 37.9 mg/kg, respectively. Specially, the average concentrations of Cd, Pb and Zn were higher than those of warning criteria for soil contamination(4 mg/kg for Cd, 200 mg/kg for Pb, and 300 mg/kg for Zn) in agricultural soil established by Soil Environmental Conservation Act in Korea. The proportions of 0.1 M HCl extractable Cd, Cu, Pb, Zn, and As concentration to total concentration of these heavy metals in paddy soils were 27.7, 21.3, 35.1, 13.8 and 10.5%, respectively. The pollution index of these five metals in paddy soils ranged from 0.42 to 11.92. Also, the enrichment factor (EFc) of heavy metals in paddy soils were in the order as Cd>Pb>Zn>Cu>As, and the enrichment factor in paddy soil varied considerably among the sampling sites. The geoaccumulation index (Igeo) of heavy metals in soils were in the order as Cd>Pb>Zn>Cu>As, specially, the average geoaccumulation index of Cd, Pb, and Zn (Igeo 2.49~3.10) were relatively higher than that of other metals in paddy soils. CONCLUSION: Based on the pollution index, enrichment factor, and geoaccumulation index for heavy metal in paddy soils located on downstream of closed metalliferous mine, the main contaminants are mine waste materials and mine drainage including mine activity.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.25-36
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• 2005

Several metalliferous and coal mines, including Myungjin, Seojin and Okdong located at the upper watershed of Okdong stream, were abandoned or closed since 1988 due to the mining industry promotion policy. Thus these disposed an enormous amount of mining wastes without a proper treatment facilities, resulting in water pollution in the downstream areas. Acid mine drainage (AMD) and waste water effluents from the closed coal mines were very strongly acidic showing pH ranges of 2.7 to 4.5 and had a high level of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) showing the ranges of 1,030 to 1,947 mg/L. Also heavy metal concentrations in these samples such as Fe, Cu, Cd and anion such as sulfate were very high. Concentrations of water soluble heavy metals in the Okdong streams were in the orders of Fe>Al>Mn>Zn>Cu>Pb>Cd, indicating Fe from the AMD and waste water effluents contributed greatly to the quality of water and soil in the lower watershed of Okdong stream. Copper concentrations in the effluents from the tile drainage of mine tailings dams were highest during the raining season. Water Pollution Index (WPI) of the surface water at the upper stream of Okdong river where AMD of the abandoned coal mines was flowed into main stream were in the ranges of 16.3 to 47.1. On the other hand, those at the mid stream where effluents from tailings dams and coal mines flowed into main stream were in the WPI ranges of 10.6 to 19.5. However, those at the lower stream were ranged from 10.6 to 14.9. These results indicated that mining wastes such as AMD and effluents from the closed mines were the major source to water pollution at the Okdong stream areas.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.87-103
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• 1996

The purposes of this research are to investigate the pollution level of heavy metals due to the urbanization and industrialization in the satellite cities of Seoul, and to assess the chemical species and the sources of heavy metals in highly contaminated soils and dusts. Soil and dust samples were collected from the Uijeongbu and the Koyang cities, which are northern and the northwestern satellite cities of Seoul metropolitan city, respectively. Relatively high pH values($6.3{\sim}9.9$) were found in roadside soils compared with agricultural and forest soils. Difference in pH values of soils was not identified between before and after rainy seasons. In spite of no specific pollution sources in the above cities, the contents of Cu, Pb, and Zn in soils and dusts were much higher than the world average contents. The metal levels in dusts were higher than those in soils, but the metal concentration in dusts was significantly decreased after rainy season. Pollution index was high(> 1.0) in the areas of heavy traffic, industrial complex, and city centres. There is an appreciable proportion of total Zn in exchangeable/water-acid soluble fraction. Copper is predominantly associated with reducible and oxidizable phases, whereas Pb is largely in reducible association. It is concluded that the mobility and bioavailability of metals are high in the order of Zn >> Cu > Pb, on the basis of characteristic particle morphology and chemical composition, Pb-containing particles are originated probably from the automobile exhaust, particularly in heavy traffic areas. The metallic forms and iron-oxide associated forms of Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Pb can be assessed as industrial origin.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.341-352
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• 1997

Retention ponds have been dug along some of the motorways in France to minimize environmental pollution by keeping pollutants from spreading over the surrounding area. In order to study heavy metal pollution and diagenetic behaviour of sediments, eight core samples were collected from the bottom of a retention pond located along the A-71 motorway in Sologne. The metal concentrations in interstitial waters and extractable metal concentrations in sediment layers using sequential chemical extraction method were determined. The depth distributions of Pb, Zn and Cd concentrations in interstitial water and particulate sediments were studied, and distribution coefficients (KD) were also determined to investigate the environmental mobility of these elements. In addition. the index of geoaccumulation and the Fe-normalized enrichment factor were calculated to differentiate the natural accumulation from the anthropogenic pollution. The vertical concentration profiles of heavy metals in core sediments indicate that surface enrichments (0~2 cm) of Pb, Zn, Cd and organic carbon were always observed at each core sample, due to the early diagenesis. However, the major factor contributing to the accumulation of Cd at the sediment surface is attributed to the dissolution of Cd from polluted roadside soil during periods of rainstorms and its subsequent redeposition on the sediment surface after being carried to the retention pond. A comparison of the KD values indiactes that a decrease in the KD values for Pb and Zn was observed with depth while KD values for Cd increase. According to the KD values. the relative mobility of studied metals was determined as following: Mn>Zn>Cd>Pb, for the upper layer, and Mn>Cd>Zn>Pb, for the lower layers.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.393-405
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• 2007

To examine the sedimentary geochemical characteristics of sediment in the Tamjin River and Doam bay, the analysis was conducted, using the sample obtained in February 2000, on the grain size and the contents of metallic elements and organic carbon. The factors that influence the geochemical behavior of metallic elements in the surface sediment are grain size, organism, surrounding soil and $CaCO_3$. To find out the pollution level of metallic elements, the enrichment factor (EF) and the index of geoaccumulation ($I_{geo}$) were researched. The majority of metallic elements sustain their values in natural state. The elements such as K, Ba, Zr, etc. appear to be rich in some places. The EF and $I_{geo}$ of P, Cu, Zn, and Pb, which belong to toxic heavy metals, are partly related with man-made pollution. P and Cu have a high EF, Pb has a high $I_{geo}$ and Zn is high in both EF and $I_{geo}$. The low contents of P and Cu are not likely to be related with the pollution of water environment. However, given the development of relative pollution, the research and the management regarding the pollutants are needed. Because Pb, naturally enriched by geological characteristics, has a large influence on water environment along with Zn, the adequate measures against man-made pollution should be worked out.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.1-12
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• 1999

This study aims to find basic data for using the quantitative assessment of the sustainability and establishing the systematic index of the planning for local cities to consider the environmentally sound and sustainable development. The research designs to review professional responding to surveys preceded by separate questionnaires and interviews from book reviews, and suggests to make an assessment model of the sustainability for local cities. The research found consequently as follows. Firstly, the research survey items were decides totally 52, grouped 9 assessmental issues and distributed under 4 assessmental domains for the sustainability from the references of book reviews. Secondly, the research result concentrated on the followings from the professional responding to surveys. 1. A most influent factor is the distribution of animals and plants in a nature domain. The next influent factors are the ratio of mass-transportation systems, the numbers of the species of animals and plants, the acreage of conservative forestry, the numbers of reused water resources, and the usage number of water supply, orderly in the nature domain. 2. A most influent factor is the usage number of synthetic detergents in a pollution domain. The next influent factors are the volume of waste water, the number of registered vehicles, the degree of soil pollution, and the charge of development imposition, orderly in the pollution domain. 3. A most influent factor is the acreage of athletic facilities, in an urban domain. the next influent factors are the acreage of recreational facilities, the number and acreage of cultural assets, the number of cultural facilities, the acreage of landscape conservation area, the charge of cultural asset management, orderly in the urban domain. 4. A most influent factor is the number of waste disposal facilities in a participation domain. The next influent factors are the capacity of reused waste, the usage of synthetic detergents, the ratio of waste water disposal, orderly in the participation domain. 5. A most contributed influent domain to the assessment of the sustainability for local cities is the urban domain. The next influent domains are nature domain, participation domain, and pollution domain, orderly in the contribution of the assessment of the sustainability. But, the pollution domain is little relationship with the sustainability. Therefore, it is clear that the abundant greens and the improved level of culture are dominant influences on the sustainabiligy, as like improving the ratio of roadside trees, the acreage of parks, and enlarging the number of cultural facilities.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.21-27
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• 2003

The purpose of this study was to investigate the distribution and characteristics of heavy metals in the fallout dust deposits at the middle and high schools. We collected the samples at 60 schools in Kongju, Incheon and Daejeon on from September to November, 2001, and analyzed Cadmium(Cd), Copper(Cu), Lead(Pb) and Zinc(Zn) from them. Zn was the highest level as 551 $\pm$ 79.9 ppm, and the next order were Pb, Cu, and Cd as 146.0 $\pm$ 15.2 ppm, 98.7 $\pm$ 14.4 ppm and 5.21 $\pm$ 0.76 ppm, respectively. The rates of schools exceeding the soil environmental standards were 56.3% in Cd, 53.3% in Zn, 51.5% in Pb, and 31.7% in Cu, respectively. Cd and Pb were the highest levels at schools in Daejeon as 6.30 $\pm$ 0.87 ppm and 171 $\pm$ 26.1 ppm, respectively. Cu and Zn were the highest levels at schools in Incheon as 176.2 $\pm$ 55.8 ppm and 919.8 $\pm$ 185.7 ppm, respectively. At Incheon, Cu and Zn levels were significantly higher than Kongju(p=0.04l), and Daejeon(p=0.016), respectively. Total pollution index(PI) of heavy metals was 1.51 $\pm$ 0.16. PI was 2.00 $\pm$ 0.51 on Incheon, 1.50 $\pm$ 0.13 on Daejeon, and 0.92 $\pm$ 0.24 on Kongju. Correlations were 0.675 (p<0.05) between Cu and Cd, 0.663(p<0.05) between Cu and Zn, and 0.477 between Cd and Pb. In conclusion, Among heavy metals in the fallout dust deposits at schools, Cu and Zn were the highest levels at Incheon, Cd and Pb were the highest levels at Daejeon.