The main objective of the present study was to provide a comprehensive LCI of medium scale composting of food waste
and yard waste at institutional level, based on substance flow analysis (SFA). A secondary objective was to present the
composition and assess the quality of the final compost product from composting of typical Asian organic waste (food
waste and yard waste). The experiments were designed to represent a batch situation in an institutional medium size
composting scenario with input material of food waste mixed with grass clippings and dried leaves. Two composting
runs were carried out with the intention to showcase the heterogeneity of organic waste and study the effect of windrow
size on the performance of the process. The input and output material were sampled and characterized in order to
quantify the substance balance of the process. SFA was performed by means of the mass balance model STAN 2.5 to
compute unknown parameters (gaseous emissions). SFAs have been performed for C, N, K, P, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni and Pb. The
composting windrows were fed with 212.4 and 393 kg, respectively. VS content reduction is greater in composting pile
with larger size (Run 2). The loss of C during composting was recorded in the range of 0.146-0.166 kg/kg ww. The C
losses via leachate were insignificant (0.02% of the total input C). The total N loss during the process was 0.005-0.012
kg/kg ww. The leachate generation was measured as 0.012-0.013 kg/kg ww. The flows of selected heavy metals were
assessed. Heavy metals were of minor significance due to low concentrations in the inputs (food waste and yard waste).
Heavy metals were found to be released to the atmosphere. However, majority of heavy metals remain in the finished
compost. The C/N reduction during the process was in the range of 10-23%. In general, the compost composition was
considered to be within the ranges previously reported in literature and thus ready for application in gardening. The LCI
presented in the present study can be used as a starting point for making environmental assessments of medium-scale
co-composting of food waste and yard waste in tropical environment. No major environmental problems were identified
from the process, except for the emissions of GHGs.
The effect of season on yield and quality of organic solvent extracts from Gracilaria changii was determined. The sustainability of the bioactive compound of G. changii from Malaysia was investigated by using the TLC and FTIR standards methods. Studies was carried out to examine the sustainability of the bioactive compound in the various extract obtained from G. changii collected from Pantai Morib, Beach Selangor Malaysia on bimonthly for a period of one year in 2003. This study revealed that the bioactive compounds was present all over the year but with different quantities. In general the variation in yield or quantities of bioactive compound was related to environment. G. changii can be considered a candidate for drug development since it retained the number of bioactive compound.
(Kenaf fibre is a good reinforcement in fibre polymer composites due to its high strength
and elastic modulus, high stiffness, low density, low cost and eco-efficient, less health
hazards, renewability, good mechanical and thermal properties, and biodegradability. It is
traditionally used for rope, twine, fish net and sacking materials. Recently, it was observed
that kenaf fibre had huge potentials to replacing synthetic fibre in composites due to the
rising environmental and ecological issues, thus this awareness has motivated efforts for
the advancement of new innovative bio-based composites incorporating kenaf fibre for
various end-use structural applications. This paper presents an overview of the development
made so far in the area of kenaf fibre and its composites in terms of chemical and microstructural
properties, mechanical properties, dimensional stability, thermal stability, product
development and application. Some fundamental issues and suggestions for further research
in this area are also discussed.
Determining the water quality of Bakun Reservoir 13 months after it operates at full supply level is crucial for better understanding of changes in the physicochemical parameters, which may enable the prediction of its effects on the survival of aquatic life in the reservoir. This study determined 13 physicochemical parameters at six stations within the reservoir at fixed depths. The results showed that the minimum 5 mg/L of dissolved oxygen (DO) required for sensitive aquatic organisms was recorded at 6 m depth. However, DO was not detectable at depths exceeding 7 m. The water was acidic at depths of more than 10 m. Turbidity and total suspended solids increased corresponding with depth. Inorganic nitrogen were predominantly in the form of ammonia-nitrogen, creating an unhealthy environment for aquatic life. Concentration of Chl-a was significantly higher at the subsurface water than 30 m depth in four out of six stations. The present study shows changes in water quality as compared to the pre-impounded period and 15 months after the filling phase, in particular, stratification of dissolved oxygen, thermocline conditions and alkalinity. The changes varied according to the distance from the dam and may have been influenced by existing land developments within the area such as the construction of the Murum Hydroelectric Dam, oil palm plantations and timber concessionares. Though the water quality might have deteriorated, further study is needed to determine if this condition will prolong.
This study investigates the spatial variation of water quality parameters in Sungai Setiu Basin at ten different locations from March 2010 to February 2011. The water quality was assessed using the Water Quality Index by Malaysian Department of Environment (DOE-WQI) and classified according to the Malaysia Interim National Water Quality Standard (INWQS). Six water quality parameters embedded in the DOE-WQI were dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), pH, ammoniacal nitrogen (AN) and total suspended solid (TSS). In addition, this study also examined the changes in water quality over the past 10 years by comparing the present water quality to the previous works. The overall mean WQI value obtained was 84.0 which indicate that the Sungai Setiu basin is in clean condition and all measured water quality parameters gave value within the permissible limits of the INWQS classification except for pH which fall in Class III. It can be concluded that water quality in Sungai Setiu does not varies greatly over a decade. Hence continuous monitoring is needed to improve the water quality and minimize water pollution.
The serious deterioration of the ecological environment comes from a large number of geological disasters. These disasters were caused by a number of engineering activities. Ecological restoration is an important measure to reduce geological disasters and protect the ecological environment. On the basis of the introduction of cast-in-situ grids technology, external-soil spray seeding technology and vegetation bag technology, according to the ecological restoration experiment of the road slope attach to the Three Gorges Pumped-Storage Power Station in Hohhot, decision analysis of slope ecological restoration is done with AHP. It is shown that in arid and semi-arid area, selection of slope ecological restoration scheme mainly needs considering the ecological effect and stability. The major factor of ecological effects is survival rate of vegetation. The major factor of stability is the stability in a whole. Cast-in-situ grids technology will be the first choice for ecological restoration of road slope in arid and semi-arid area. This study provides reference for decision of the slope ecological restoration in arid and semi-arid region.
The study is conducted to evaluate the significance of solar irradiance, ambient temperature and relative humidity as predictors and to quantify the relative contribution of these ambient parameters as predictors for photovoltaic module temperature model. The module temperature model was developed from experimental data of mono-crystalline and poly-crystalline PV modules retrofitted on metal roof in Klang Valley. The model was developed and analyzed using Multiple Linear Regressions (MLR) and Principle Component Analysis (PCA) Techniques. Solar irradiance, ambient temperature and relative humidity have been proven to be the significant predictors for module temperature. For poly-crystalline PV module, the relative contribution of solar irradiance, ambient temperature and relative humidity are 64.28 %, 17.45 % and 12.64 % respectively. For mono-crystalline PV module, the relative contribution of solar irradiance, ambient temperature and relative humidity are 66.12 %, 17.46 % and 12.48 % respectively. Thus, there is no significant difference in terms of relative contribution of these ambient parameters towards photovoltaic module temperature between poly-crystalline and mono-crystalline PV module technologies.
Environmental enrichment (EE) is an environmental paradigm encompassing sensory, cognitive, and physical stimulation at a heightened level. Previous studies have reported the beneficial effects of EE in the brain, particularly in the hippocampus. EE improves cognitive function as well as ameliorates depressive and anxiety-like behaviors, making it a potentially effective neuroprotective strategy against neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). Here, we summarize the current evidence for EE as a neuroprotective strategy as well as the potential molecular pathways that can explain the effects of EE from a biochemical perspective using animal models. The effectiveness of EE in enhancing brain activity against neurodegeneration is explored with a view to differences present in early and late life EE exposure, with its potential application in human being discussed. We discuss EE as one of the non pharmacological approaches in preventing or delaying the onset of AD for future research.
This study assessed the economic value of public urban green spaces (UGSs) in Kuala Lumpur (KL) city by using the hedonic price method (HPM). It involves 1269 house units from eight sub-districts in KL city. Based on the hedonic price method, this study formulates a global and local model. The global model and local model are analyzed using ordinary least square (OLS) regression and geographically weighted regression (GWR). By using the hedonic price method, the house price serves as a proxy for public urban green spaces' economic value. The house price is regressed against the set of three variables which are structural characteristics, neighborhood attributes, and environmental attributes. Measurements of interest in this study are environmental characteristics, including distance to public UGSs and size of public UGSs. The results of the OLS regression illustrated that Taman Rimba Kiara and Taman Tasik Titiwangsa provide the maximum economic value. On average, reducing the distance of the house location to Taman Rimba Kiara by 10 m increased the house price by RM1700. Similarly, increasing the size of the Taman Tasik Titiwangsa by 1000 m2 increases the house price by RM60,000. The advantage of the GWR result is the economic value of public UGSs which can be analyzed by the specific location according to sub-district. From this study, the GWR result exposed that the economic values of Taman Rimba Bukit Kiara and Taman Tasik Titiwangsa were not significant in each of the sub-district within KL city. Taman Rimba Bukit Kiara was negatively significant at all sub-districts except Setapak and certain house locations located at the sub-district of KL. In contrast, Taman Tasik Titiwangsa was positively significant at all sub-districts except certain house locations at the sub-districts of Batu, KL, Setapak, and KL city center. In conclusion, results show that the house price is influenced by the environmental attribute. However, even though both of these public UGSs generate the highest economic value based on distance and size, its significant values with an expected sign are only obtained based on the specific house location as verified by the local model. In terms of model comparison, the local model was better compared with the global model.
In the current context of rapid development and urbanization, land use and land cover (LULC) types have undergone unprecedented changes, globally and nationally, leading to significant effects on the surrounding ecological environment quality (EEQ). The urban agglomeration in North Slope of Tianshan (UANST) is in the core area of the Silk Road Economic Belt of China. This area has experienced rapid development and urbanization with equally rapid LULC changes which affect the EEQ. Hence, this study quantified and assessed the spatial-temporal changes of LULC on the UANST from 2001 to 2018 based on remote sensing analysis. Combining five remote sensing ecological factors (WET, NDVI, IBI, TVDI, LST) that met the pressure-state-response(PSR) framework, the spatial-temporal distribution characteristics of EEQ were evaluated by synthesizing a new Remote Sensing Ecological Index (RSEI), with the interaction between land use change and EEQ subsequently analyzed. The results showed that LULC change dominated EEQ change on the UANST: (1) From 2001 to 2018, the temporal and spatial pattern of the landscape on the UANST has undergone tremendous changes. The main types of LULC in the UANST are Barren land and Grassland. (2) During the study period, RSEI values in the study area were all lower than 0.5 and were at the [good] levels, reaching 0.31, 0.213, 0.362, and 0346, respectively. In terms of time and space, the overall EEQ on the UANST experienced three stages of decline-rise-decrease. (3) The estimated changes in RSEI were highly related to the changes of LULC. During the period 2001 to 2018, the RSEI value of cropland showed a trend of gradual increase. However, the rest of the LULC type's RSEI values behave differently at different times. As the UANST is the core area of Xinjiang's urbanization and economic development, understanding and balancing the relationship between LULC and EEQ in the context of urbanization is of practical application in the planning and realization of sustainable ecological, environmental, urban, and social development in the UANST.
The connection between ecological footprint and economic complexity has significant implications for environmental sustainability regarding the policy. Additionally, institutional quality is crucial in ensuring environmental sustainability and moderating the link between economic complexity and ecological footprint. The task of achieving sustainable environmental development and preventing further degradation of the environment poses a formidable challenge to policymakers. This study delves into the significance of technology innovation and renewable energy in creating a more sustainable environment. Recognizing the need for a more critical review, this research establishes the dynamic linkage between ecological footprint, renewable energy consumption, and technological innovation, especially in conjunction with a moderating component, particularly institutional quality, in G20 countries from 1990 to 2021. We employ advanced panel approaches to address panel data analysis concerns, such as cross-sectional dependence, slope heterogeneity, unit root, cointegration test and CS-ARDL. The long-term estimator indicates that renewable energy and technological innovation negatively but significantly impact the ecological footprint. Whilst economic growth, FDI, and urbanization have shown a positive and significant impact on ecological footprint; institutional quality negatively moderates the relationship between ecological footprint, renewable energy, and technological innovation in the G20 countries. Further evidence from the Dumitrescu-Hurlin Granger causality test shows that efforts to expand access to renewable energy, technological advancements, and economic growth will significantly affect environmental impacts. Based on our results, it is imperative to introduce more favorable legislation and encourage technological advancements in the field of renewable energy if we want to achieve our sustainable development objectives.
Life cycle assessment was used to evaluate the environmental impacts of phytoplanktonic biofuels as possible sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels. Three scenarios were examined for converting planktonic biomass into higher-value commodities and energy streams using the alga Scenedesmus sp. and the cyanobacterium Arthrospira sp. as the species of interest. The first scenario (Sc-1) involved the production of biodiesel and glycerol from the planktonic biomass. In the second scenario (Sc-2), biodiesel and glycerol were generated from the planktonic biomass, and biogas was produced from the residual biomass. The process also involved using a catalyst derived from snail shells for biodiesel production. The third scenario (Sc-3) was similar to Sc-2 but converted CO2 from the biogas upgrading to methanol, which was then used in synthesizing biodiesel. The results indicated that Sc-2 and Sc-3 had a reduced potential (up to 60 % less) for damaging human health compared to Sc-1. Sc-2 and Sc-3 had up to 61 % less environmental impact than Sc-1. Sc-2 and Sc-3 reduced the total cumulative exergy demand by up to 44 % compared to Sc-1. In conclusion, producing chemicals and utilities within the biorefinery could significantly improve environmental sustainability, reduce waste, and diversify revenue streams.
Estimating the asymmetrical influence of foreign direct investment is the primary goal of the current study. In addition, further controlled variables affect environmental degradation in OIC nations. Due to this, current research employs the asymmetric (NPARDL) approach and the data period from 1980 to 2021 to estimate about viability of the EKC (environmental Kuznets curve) theory. The study utilized greenhouse gas (GHG) including emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4), and ecological footprint as substantial parameters of environmental quality. A nonlinear link between foreign direct investments, trade openness, economic growth, urbanization, energy consumption, and environmental pollution with CO2, N2O, CH4, and ecological footprint in the OIC nations is confirmed by the study's outcomes, which however reveals inconsistent results. Furthermore, the results also show that wrong conclusions might result from disregarding intrinsic nonlinearities. The study's conclusions provide the most important recommendations for decision-makers.
Governance has become indispensable within the healthcare sector, but previous studies have not explored the potential environmental benefits linked to healthcare governance. Thus, this study focuses on the role of governance in moderating healthcare and environmental emissions in 159 low, lower-middle, upper-middle and high-income countries. To do so, cross-sectional autoregressive distributed lag (CS-ARDL) techniques were applied using panel data from 1999 to 2021, followed by the computation of threshold and marginal effect of governance on healthcare and environmental emissions nexus. Findings revealed that, with the exception of high-income countries in the short run, governance has an insignificant impact on healthcare and emissions nexus in low-, lower-middle and upper-middle-income countries. Surprisingly, the findings imply that, in the long run, countries with greater levels of governance are likely to have lesser environmental impacts related to healthcare. There was also evidence indicating that low, lower-middle, upper-middle and high-income countries must reach a certain level of governance before realising the benefits of healthcare. Therefore, to achieve lower environmental impacts from healthcare, countries must promote effective governance policies that can incentivise and enforce sustainable practices and technologies in the healthcare sector.
Environmental sustainability is a key target to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs). However, achieving these targets needs tools to pave the way for achieving SDGs and COP28 targets. Therefore, the primary objective of the present study is to examine the significance of clean energy, research and development spending, technological innovation, income, and human capital in achieving environmental sustainability in the USA from 1990 to 2022. The study employed time series econometric methods to estimate the empirical results. The study confirmed the long-run cointegrating relationship among CO2 emissions, human capital, income, R&D, technological innovation, and clean energy. The results are statistically significant in the short run except for R&D expenditures. In the long run, the study found that income and human capital contribute to further aggravating the environment via increasing CO2 emissions. However, R&D expenditures, technological innovation, and clean energy help to promote environmental sustainability by limiting carbon emissions. The study recommends investment in technological innovation, clean energy, and increasing R&D expenditures to achieve environmental sustainability in the USA.
The effective treatment of waste to be used as a resource in future has a major role in achieving environmental sustainability and moving towards circular economy. The current research is aimed to provide in-depth detail regarding prominent trends and research themes, evolution, future research orientation, main characteristics, and mapping of research publications on waste management, technological innovation in circular economy domain from the year 2000 to 2021. Different analyses including text mining and bibliometric and content analyses were applied to answer the research question and provide the details on aforementioned variables. From the bibliometric analyses, a total of 1118 articles were drawn out from the Scopus database to conceptualize the core body of research. As a result, the following themes were identified: electronic waste, circular economy transition, plastic waste, bio-based waste management, lifecycle assessment, and ecological impacts, and construction and demolition waste management. The highlighted features, future research orientation, and prominent research perspective can provide guideline for future research to enrich the literature through conducting studies on provided research directions and help lead waste management and technological innovation policymakers, professionals, and practitioners in moving towards circular transition.
Bauxite mining is not known to most Malaysian except recently due to environmental pollution issues in Kuantan, Pahang. Potential impacts are expected to go beyond physical environment and physical illness if the situation is not controlled. Loss of economic potentials, and the presence of unpleasant red dust causing mental distress, anger and community outrage. More studies are needed to associate it with chronic physical illness. While evidences are vital for action, merely waiting for a disease to occur is a sign of failure in prevention. All responsible agencies should focus on a wider aspect of health determinants rather than merely on the occurrence of diseases to act and the need to emphasize on sustainable mining to ensure health of people is not compromised.
Although faced with historical and ongoing hardships, many indigenous communities in Southeast Asia have managed to survive and thrive. The identification of factors that assist these communities in coping with the challenges experienced would help enhance their overall psychological well-being and resilience. The current review outlines types of protective factors for the indigenous communities in Southeast Asia focusing on the cultural, family and community elements linked to their psychological well-being. Four themes of protective factors were identified strong connection to the land and the environment, embracing cultural norms and traditions, passing down and keeping indigenous knowledge across generations, and emphasis on community and social cohesion. Findings suggest that the value of interconnectedness serves as an overarching theme that forms the worldview of the indigenous communities in Southeast Asia. Interconnectedness was important to the indigenous peoples as they considered themselves to be extensions of their family, community, ancestors, future descendants, the land and to all living things and creations that reside on their lands. Future intervention attempts to promote resilience among these communities should take these factors into account, and pay closer attention to community-level factors that seem to have a profound impact on the indigenous construction of resilience.
Matched MeSH terms: Environment; Social Environment*