Quantifying soil carbon stocks and greenhouse gas fluxes in the sugarcane agrosystem: point of view

Strategies to mitigate climate change through the use of biofuels (such as ethanol) are associated not only to the increase in the amount of C stored in soils but also to the reduction of GHG emissions to the atmosphere.This report mainly aimed to propose appropriate methodologies for the determinations of soil organic carbon stocks and greenhouse gas fluxes in agricultural phase of the sugarcane production. Therefore, the text is a piece of contribution that may help to obtain data not only on soil carbon stocks but also on greenhouse gas emissions in order to provide an accurate life cycle assessment for the ethanol. Given that the greenhouse gas value is the primary measure of biofuel product quality, biorefiners that can show a higher offset of their product will have an advantage in the market place

Avaliação da correlação entre as concentrações de poluentes atmosféricos e a mortalidade de idosos no município de Curitiba Evaluation of the correlation between atmospheric pollutant concentrations and elderly mortality in Curitiba

Este estudo tem por objetivo verificar as associações de curto prazo entre as concentrações de poluentes atmosféricos e a mortalidade de idosos no município de Curitiba (PR). O período de análise compreendeu os anos de 2003 a 2008. Foram realizadas análises de correlação simples e de regressão múltipla, utilizando-se um modelo aditivo generalizado (MAG), para avaliar as relações entre os poluentes dióxido de enxofre (SO2), ozônio (O3) e partículas totais em suspensão (PTS) e o número de óbitos totais (ObT) e por doenças respiratórias (ObR) de pessoas com idade superior a 60 anos. Os resultados obtidos mostraram relações positivas e estatisticamente significativas entre os níveis de PTS e a mortalidade de idosos por todas as causas (ObT), mesmo considerando-se que os níveis de PTS atenderam aos padrões de qualidade do ar para o período em estudo.<br>This study aims to analyze the short-term association between concentration of atmospheric pollutants and the mortality of elderly in the city of Curitiba (Brazil). The data comprised the period from 2003 to 2008. The relationships between the pollutants sulfur dioxide (SO2), ozone (O3) and total suspended particles (TSP) and the number of total deaths (ObT) and deaths due to respiratory deceases (ObR) of people aged over 60 years were investigated with simple correlation and multiple regression analyses, using a generalized additive model (GAM). The results showed a positive and statistically significant relationship between TSP concentrations and elderly mortality from all causes (ObT), even considering that TSP concentrations met the air quality standards during the period of study