Zdravstvena ekologija i nadzor okoliša u Estoniji

An assessment of environmental health and monitoring in Estonia after the dissolution of the Soviet Union has shown that the country suffered from neglect during the "cold war" after World War II, and efforts to improve the status quo have been slow since independence was gained in 1991. Conditions in Estonia are affected by the fifty-year long occupation. Industrial, military and agricultural activities have left a legacy of pollution and obsolete installations. The regulatory framework and life style attitudes from the Soviet era interfere with reform efforts. The current transition period holds risks that derive from a run-down infrastructure, a weak economy, and disruptions, inherent in the reorganization itself. Over the past few years a recession has further complicated the situation and the public health status has worsened. International assistance progiammes as well as efforts by Estonians have led to some change and progress in environmental management since 1991, and lately ambitious environmental and public health sector programmes have been initiated by the government. Much work, however, still needs to be done. An examination of the recent history of this small country provides examples of environmental neglect and consequences, as well as recommended corrective measures.Zdravstveno-ekološka ocjena situacije u Estoniji nakon raspada Sovjetskog Saveza pokazala je da je država zanemarivana tijekom razdoblja hladnog rata nakon II. svjetskog rata i da su od proglašenja nezavisnosti godine 1991. bili spori napori za poboljšanje postojećeg stanja. Na stanje u Estoniji utječe pedesetogodišnje razdoblje okupacije. Industrijske, vojne i poljoprivredne djelatnosti ostavile su u nasljeđe onečišćenost i zastarjela postrojenja. Zakonski okviri i stavovi o načinu života iz sovjetske ere ometaju reformske napore. U sadašnjem prijelaznom razdoblju prisutne su opasnosti koje proizlaze iz upropaštene infrastrukture, slabe ekonomije i poremećaja usko povezanih s reorganizacijom. Tijekom posljednjih pet godina ekonomska kriza još je više otežala ove okolnosti, a stanje u javnom zdravstvu se pogoršalo. Nakon 1991. međunarodni programi pomoći kao i napori samih Estonaca doveli su do nekih promjena i napretka u nadzoru okoliša, a nedavno je vlada potaknula veoma nadobudne programe u područjima okoliša i javnog zdravstva. Međutim, potrebno je obaviti još puno posla. Pregled nedavne povijesti ove malene države pruža primjere sustavnog zanemarivanja i nagomilanih posljedica te preporučene korektivne mjere za njihovo razrješavanje

Atmospheric chamber study of oil shale fly ash particles from circulating fluidized bed and pulverized firing processes

Oil shale combustion fly ash collected to electric precipitators from pulverized firing (PF) and circulating fluidized bed combustion (CFB) processes was investigated in atmospheric chamber experiments. The aim of the work was to detect differences in the atmospheric behaviour of the fine particles from CFB and PF boilers of the Estonian Power Plant (PP), located close to Narva, Estonia. One series of experiments was performed in a dual outdoor Teflon film smog chamber (270 m3) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (USA) under normal weather conditions (temperature, humidity, sunlight). Parallel tests were carried out in an outdoor smog chamber (108 m3) at Tuulna, Harju County, Estonia, where the experiment was made under meteorological conditions similar to those at the location of the PP. The size distribution and number concentration of particles in the chamber were monitored during the experiment. The fractional distribution results demonstrate that the CFB aerosol in the chamber air had more fine particles than the PF aerosol. Approximately 2 h after injection the fly ash particles larger than 4 μm had settled out from both samples. The initial fly ash aerosol had a trimodal fractional distribution. Both PF and CFB fly ash formed stable aerosols 1–3 μm in diameter during the 6 h experiment and are therefore prone to long-range transport

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons bioaccessibility in seafood: Culinary practices effects on dietary exposure

This work aimed to determine the effect of culinary practices on the contamination level and bioaccessibility of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in seafood. The selected farmed seafood species (marine shrimp, clams and seaweed) were commercially available in Portugal. The mean concentrations of PAHs varied between 0.23 and 51.8 µg kg-1, with the lowest value being observed in raw shrimp and the highest in dried seaweed. The number of compounds detected in seaweed and clams (naphthalene, acenaphthene, fluorene, phenanthrene, benzo(b)fluoranthene and benzo(j)fluoranthene) were higher than in shrimp (fluorene and pyrene). Among the PAHs measured, fluorene was the predominant one. There was a significant interaction effect between species and culinary treatment (p < 0.05), thus boiled and dried seaweed samples presented the lowest and the highest levels of fluorene (0.13 and 1.8 µg kg-1), respectively. The daily intake of PAHs decreased with bioaccessibility, varying from 22% for benzo(k)fluoranthene (in raw clam) to 84% for phenanthrene (in steamed clam). According to the potency equivalent concentrations, screening values and bioaccessibility of PAHs, the consumption of marine shrimp, clam and seaweed is considered as safe for consumers.This work received financial support from European (FEDER funds through COMPETE) and Portuguese funds (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia Project UID/QUI/50006/2013). The Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology supported the Ph.D. Grant of ALM (SFRH/BD/103569/2014) as well as the post-doc Grant of P.A. (SFRH/BPD/100728/2014) and the IF2014 contract of AM.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Die Oxydation von Benzo(a)Pyren-Chinonen

The autoxidation and oxidation with hydrogen peroxide (I) of intermediate products of BP oxidation - 6-hydroxy-BP and three BP quinones have been studied in aqueous solution. The reaction of autoxidation of BP derivates is of first order which rate does not depend on the structure of quinone. The oxidation with I is the reaction of mixed first-second order. The estimation of concentration effect of I on the oxidation of three BP quinones indicates that reaction rate depends on the initial concentration of oxidant and on the structure of BP quinones. The rate as well as autoxidation and oxidation wth I decrease during further oxidation of BP and BP derivates because of the inhibitory effect of some reaction products such as BP quinones