Mass Media and Environmental Risk: Seven Principles

Dr. Sandman suggests that, when spokespersons for risk sources are inept in conveying their messages, they and we pay heavily for their mistakes

Radiative and free-convective heat transfer from a finite horizontal plate inside an enclosure

An experimental and analytical investigation of heat transfer from a horizontal, thin, square plate inside of an enclosure was carried out. Experimental results were obtained from both the upward-facing and the downward-facing sides of the heated plate. Starting with the integrated momentum and energy equations, approximate solutions were obtained for heat transfer in the laminar and the turbulent regime that correlate well with experimental data. Radiative heat transfer correction was given special attention. Effects of the enclosure-related recirculation of the test fluid, as well as effects of simultaneous heat transfer on both sides of the plate, caused an early transition, and indicated a high level of internal turbulence

Testing the Role of Technical Information in Public Risk Perception

It is widely believed that more detail about health effects and likely exposure routes is apt to reduce citizens\u27 concerns about low-probability Risks. The authors\u27 study suggests that providing such detail may not be as useful as, e.g., addressing public concerns and keeping citizens current on officials\u27 actions

Cleaning up seas using blue growth initiatives : Mussel farming for eutrophication control in the Baltic Sea

Eutrophication is a serious threat to aquatic ecosystems globally with pronounced negative effects in the Baltic and other semi-enclosed estuaries and regional seas, where algal growth associated with excess nutrients causes widespread oxygen free “dead zones” and other threats to sustainability. Decades of policy initiatives to reduce external (land-based and atmospheric) nutrient loads have so far failed to control Baltic Sea eutrophication, which is compounded by significant internal release of legacy phosphorus (P) and biological nitrogen (N) fixation. Farming and harvesting of the native mussel species (Mytilus edulis/trossulus) is a promising internal measure for eutrophication control in the brackish Baltic Sea. Mussels from the more saline outer Baltic had higher N and P content than those from either the inner or central Baltic. Despite their relatively low nutrient content, harvesting farmed mussels from the central Baltic can be a cost-effective complement to land-based measures needed to reach eutrophication status targets and is an important contributor to circularity. Cost effectiveness of nutrient removal is more dependent on farm type than mussel nutrient content, suggesting the need for additional development of farm technology. Furthermore, current regulations are not sufficiently conducive to implementation of internal measures, and may constitute a bottleneck for reaching eutrophication status targets in the Baltic Sea and elsewhere. Highlights • Mussel farming is a viable internal measure to address Baltic Sea eutrophication. • Rates of nutrient removal depend on salinity at the regional scale and food availability at the local scale. • Cost effectiveness of nutrient removal by mussel farming depends also on farm type. • Total farm area needed for achieving HELCOM nutrient reduction targets is realistic