The sources, impact and management of car park runoff pollution: a review

Traffic emissions contribute significantly to the build-up of diffuse pollution loads on urban surfaces with their subsequent mobilisation and direct discharge posing problems for receiving water quality. This review focuses on the impact and mitigation of solids, metals, nutrients and organic pollutants in the runoff deriving from car parks. Variabilities in the discharged pollutant levels and in the potentials for pollutant mitigation complicate an impact assessment of car park runoff. The different available stormwater best management practices and proprietary devices are reported to be capable of reductions of between 20% and almost 100% for both suspended solids and a range of metals. This review contributes to prioritising the treatment options which can achieve the appropriate pollutant reductions whilst conforming to the site requirements of a typical car park. By applying different treatment scenarios to the runoff from a hypothetical car park, it is shown that optimal performance, in terms of ecological benefits for the receiving water, can be achieved using a treatment train incorporating permeable paving and bioretention systems. The review identifies existing research gaps and emphasises the pertinent management practices as well as design issues which are relevant to the mitigation of car park pollution

A dynamic leaching method for the assessment of tracemetals release from hydraulic binders using continuous concentration ofleachates.

With respect to sustainable development, the leachability of trace metal from solid materials in contact with water has focused much attention over the years. Portland cements produced in industrial kilns generally contain from 10 to 300 mg/kg of trace metals. The behaviour of these endogenous metals has been, in this regard, the target of different leaching studies. Many of these researches concluded that heavy metals release are lower than analytical detection limits. Although satisfying from an environmental point of view, it induces a lack in the knowledge about the trace metals behavior during the leaching of cement based material. Accordingly, we designed the CTG-LEACHCRETE device, a dynamic leaching system (modified Soxhlet type) that overcomes this difficulty and allows long term monitoring. The experimental procedure is presented and preliminary results are discussed

Codes and standards on earth construction

Earthen structures provide solutions to build green and sustainable buildings. Any engineered construction needs guidelines on the production of materials, construction of the structural elements, quality control methods and design guidance. There is lack of universally accepted standards on the production of earth construction materials and construction methods as compared to the standards available on conventional materials. The paper attempts to review the existing standards and norms on the earth construction, and bring out the need for comprehensive standard codes on earth construction. An analysis of the existing standard codes on earth construction has been provided. There are about 70 standards, but there is lack of coherence among the standards and globally acceptable terminology. The paper highlights the points needing attention while developing comprehensive globally applicable standards on different types of construction methods.(undefined

Women and health professionals’ perspectives on a conditional cash transfer programme to improve pregnancy follow-up: a qualitative analysis of the NAITRE randomised controlled study

Objectives Women of low socioeconomic status have been described as having suboptimal prenatal care, which in turn has been associated with poor pregnancy outcomes. Many types of conditional cash transfer (CCT) programmes have been developed, including programmes to improve prenatal care or smoking cessation during pregnancy, and their effects demonstrated. However, ethical critiques have included paternalism and lack of informed choice. Our objective was to determine if women and healthcare professionals (HPs) shared these concerns.Design Prospective qualitative research.Setting We included economically disadvantaged women, as defined by health insurance data, who participated in the French NAITRE randomised trial assessing a CCT programme during prenatal follow-up to improve pregnancy outcomes. The HP worked in some maternities participating in this trial.Participants 26 women, 14 who received CCT and 12 who did not, mostly unemployed (20/26), and - 7 HPs.Interventions We conducted a multicentre cross-sectional qualitative study among women and HPs who participated in the NAITRE Study to assess their views on CCT. The women were interviewed after childbirth.Results Women did not perceive CCT negatively. They did not mention feeling stigmatised. They described CCT as a significant source of aid for women with limited financial resources. HP described the CCT in less positive terms, for example, expressing concern about discussing cash transfer at their first medical consultation with women. Though they emphasised ethical concerns about the basis of the trial, they recognised the importance of evaluating CCT.Conclusions In France, a high-income country where prenatal follow-up is free, HPs were concerned that the CCT programme would change their relationship with patients and wondered if it was the best use of funding. However, women who received a cash incentive said they did not feel stigmatised and indicated that these payments helped them prepare for their baby’s birth.Trial registration number NCT0240285