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Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2023) | Viewed by 25726

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Chi Peng

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Guest Editor

School of Metallurgy and Environment, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China
Interests: trace metals; risk assessment; soil contamination

Prof. Dr. Hui Wang

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Guest Editor

School of Water Conservancy and Environment, University of Jinan, Jinan 250022, China
Interests: soil ecology; environmental effects of emerging pollutants

Prof. Dr. Jinyan Zhan

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Guest Editor

State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Interests: land use/cover change; ecosystem services; environmental impact scenario estimation
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Dr. Xianlai Zeng

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Guest Editor

School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Interests: urban mining; resource evaluation; E-waste management; circular economy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Liancong Luo

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Guest Editor

Institute for Ecological Research and Pollution Control of Plateau Lakes, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming 650504, China
Interests: algal bloom; water quality; extreme weather; lakes; climate change

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce this Collection titled “Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management”. It will be a collection of papers from researchers invited by the Editorial Board Members. The aim is to provide a venue for networking and communication between IJERPH and scholars in the field of environmental ecology and management. All papers will be published with fully open access after peer review.

Dr. Chi Peng
Prof. Dr. Hui Wang
Prof. Dr. Jinyan Zhan
Dr. Xianlai Zeng
Dr. Liancong Luo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

pollution ecology
soil pollution
environmental models
risk assessment and prediction
ecosystem services
restoration of terrestrial ecosystems
sustainability
regional development
climate change
pollution effect
heavy metal
emerging pollutants
global change
soil microbia
nitrogen deposition
human disturbance
water ecology
biological response
human being health

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Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 2653 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Pollution Risk Prediction for Cadmium in Soil from an Abandoned Mine Based on Random Forest Model

by Jie Cao, Zhaohui Guo, Yongjun Lv, Man Xu, Chiyue Huang and Huizhi Liang

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(6), 5097; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20065097 - 14 Mar 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2079

Abstract

It is highly uncertain as to the potential risk of toxic metal(loid)s in abandoned mine soil. In this study, random forest was used to predict the risk of cadmium pollution in the soils of an abandoned lead/zinc mine. The results showed that the random forest model is stable and precise for the pollution risk prediction of toxic metal(loid)s. The mean of Cd, Cu, Tl, Zn, and Pb was 6.02, 1.30, 1.18, 2.03, and 2.08 times higher than the soil background values of China, respectively, and their coefficients of variation were above 30%. As a case study, cadmium in the mine soil had “slope” hazard characteristics while the ore sorting area was the major source area of cadmium. The theoretical values of the random forest model are similar to the practical values for the ore sorting area, metallogenic belt, riparian zone, smelting area, hazardous waste landfill, and mining area. The potential risk of soil Cd in the ore sorting area, metallogenic belt, and riparian zone are extremely high. The tendency of pollution risk migrates significantly both from the ore sorting area to the smelting area and the mining area, and to the hazardous waste landfill. The correlation of soil pollution risk is significant between the mining area, the smelting area, and the riparian zone. The results suggested that the random forest model can effectively evaluate and predict the potential risk of the spatial heterogeneity of toxic metal(loid)s in abandoned mine soils. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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13 pages, 2430 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Quantitative Assessment of Water Quality Improvement by Reducing External Loadings at Lake Erhai, Southwest China

by Falu Gong, Liancong Luo, Huiyun Li, Lan Chen, Rufeng Zhang, Guizhu Wu, Jian Zhang, Weiqiang Shi, Fan Zhang, Hao Zhang and Ting Sun

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(6), 5038; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20065038 - 13 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1879

Abstract

To quantitatively evaluate the effects on water quality improvement caused by reducing external loadings entering Lake Erhai through inflow rivers, a one-dimensional hydrodynamic and ecological model (DYRESM–CAEDYM) was set up to simulate the water quality and water level variations. The calibrated and validated model was used to conduct six scenarios for evaluating the water quality responses to different amounts of external loading reduction at Lake Erhai. The results show (1) the total nitrogen (TN) concentration of Lake Erhai will be higher than 0.5 mg/L without any watershed pollution control during April–November 2025, which cannot meet Grade II standard of the China Surface Water Environmental Quality Standards (GB3838-2002). (2) External loading reductions can significantly reduce the concentrations of nutrients and Chla at Lake Erhai. The effects of water quality improvement will be proportional to the reduction rate of external loading reductions. (3) Internal release might be an important source of pollution It needs to be seriously considered as well as external loading for mitigating the eutrophication at Lake Erhai in the future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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20 pages, 9050 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Socioeconomic Factors Influence the Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Blue–Green Infrastructure Demand: A Case of Nanjing City

by Haixia Zhao, Binjie Gu, Jinding Fan, Junqi Wang and Liancong Luo

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(5), 3979; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20053979 - 23 Feb 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2321

Abstract

Blue–green infrastructure provides a variety of ecosystem services and is becoming an increasingly vital part of urban ecosystem protection. It is an ecological facility for ecological conservation and environmental protection, and a foundation for realizing people’s needs for a better life. This study selects indicators from four dimensions: social, economic, environmental, and ecological, and the demand for blue–green infrastructure is assessed comprehensively. The results show that: (1) the demand for blue–green infrastructure varies spatially with the development of the city; (2) the total demand for blue–green infrastructure in Nanjing from 2000 to 2020 shows a pattern of “high in the center and low in the periphery”; (3) the level of economic development, urban spatial pattern, and decision management orientation have different degrees of influence on the demand for blue–green infrastructure, with the urban spatial pattern having the greatest impact. Therefore, in the future, blue–green infrastructure should be optimized by taking into account the spatial characteristics of demand in Nanjing. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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16 pages, 4378 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Impact of Vanadium-Containing Stone Coal Smelting on Trace Metals in an Agricultural Soil–Vegetable System: Accumulation, Transfer, and Health Risks

by Zhichao Jiang, Xiyuan Xiao, Zhaohui Guo, Yunxia Zhang and Xiaoxiao Huang

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(3), 2425; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20032425 - 30 Jan 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1673

Abstract

Dietary exposure to trace metals (TMs) through vegetable consumption has been identified as a potential risk to human health. Fifty-one paired agricultural soil and leaf vegetable samples were collected around V-containing stone coal smelting sites in Hunan Province, China, to study the contamination and transfer characteristics of TMs (Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, V, and Zn) in the soil–vegetable system. The health risk to local residents through vegetable ingestion was evaluated using Monte Carlo simulations. The results showed that 96.2%, 23.1%, 53.8%, 30.8%, 96.2%, and 69.2% of the soil samples had Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, V, and Zn contents exceeding their related maximum allowable values, respectively. Cadmium and V were the primary pollutants based on the I_geo values. Moreover, 46.9% and 48.4% of vegetable samples exceeded the maximum permissible levels for Cd and Pb, respectively. There was a negative correlation between the bioaccumulation factors for Cd and V of the vegetable and soil physicochemical properties, including pH, organic matter, and free Fe₂O₃ content. Ingestion of garland chrysanthemum and pak choi posed high health risks, and Cd, V, and Pb were the primary contributors. These findings will help design strategies to minimize contamination and human exposure to soil–vegetable systems caused by V-containing stone coal smelting. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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23 pages, 7485 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Bibliometric Analysis for Carbon Neutrality with Hotspots, Frontiers, and Emerging Trends between 1991 and 2022

by Guofeng Wang, Rui Shi, Wei Cheng, Lihua Gao and Xiankai Huang

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(2), 926; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20020926 - 4 Jan 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2415

Abstract

The proposal of carbon neutrality is a manifestation of actively responding to global warming and sustainable development, which means all greenhouse gases achieve near-zero emissions. China is also fulfilling its national mission in this regard. This paper collected 4922 documents from the “Web of Science Core Database” and used Citespace (6.1.R2 Advanced) and Vosviewer (1.6.18) software and Bibliometrix functions to carry out descriptive statistics on the number of publications, cooperation mechanisms, and keyword hotspots, finding that the literature mainly focused on China’s carbon neutrality, carbon emissions, energy efficiency, sustainable development, and other related topics in the past two years. Further, the 2060 carbon neutrality action plan for China is discussed, focusing on the implementation plan and technical route and proposing the corresponding plans. The purpose of this paper is to accelerate the pace of China’s achievement of this goal and to provide feasible solutions and pathways to its achievement through insight into global carbon neutrality hotspots and new trends. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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14 pages, 3128 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Spatial and Temporal Variation and Prediction of Ecosystem Carbon Stocks in Yunnan Province Based on Land Use Change

by Long Li, Wei Fu and Mingcan Luo

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(23), 16059; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192316059 - 30 Nov 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2288

Abstract

The function of ecosystems as carbon sinks has emerged as a key strategy for advancing the concept of “carbon neutrality” and “carbon peaking”. Ecosystem carbon stocks are impacted by land use changes that alter ecosystem structure and function. We evaluated the ecosystem carbon stocks of Yunnan Province in different periods with the aid of the carbon stock module of the InVEST model, analyzed the relationship between land use type shift and ecosystem carbon stock changes, and combine them with the CA-Markov model to predict land use types in 2030. The results showed that between 1990 and 2020, changes in land use primarily affected cropland, grassland, and forested areas. The ecosystem’s average carbon stock from 1990 to 2020 was 8278.97 × 10⁶ t. The carbon stocks of cropland, grassland, and unused land decreased by 31.36 × 10⁶ t, 32.18 × 10⁶ t, and 4.18 × 10⁶ t during 1990–2020, respectively, while the carbon stocks of forest land, water area, and construction land increased by 24.31 × 10⁶ t, 7.34 × 10⁶ t, and 22.08 × 10⁶ t. The main cause of the increase in carbon stocks in the ecosystem in Yunnan Province throughout the process of land use type shift was the development of forest land area, whereas the main cause of the decline was the shrinkage of cropland and grassland areas. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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15 pages, 385 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ecological Sustainability and Households’ Wellbeing: Linking Households’ Non-Traditional Fuel Choices with Reduced Depression in Rural China

by Xiaoheng Zhang, Guiquan Yan, Qipei Feng, Amar Razzaq and Azhar Abbas

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(23), 15639; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315639 - 24 Nov 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1736

Abstract

A sustainable and pleasant environment is deemed to offer various positive externalities such as scenic, visual and behavioral archetypes and patterns exhibiting in various forms. Such a scenario can significantly relieve households from many psychological and personal complications such as depression. Depression has aroused great concerns in recent years due to its personal and social burdens and unforeseeable damage. Many studies have explored the effects of air pollution caused by traditional fuel consumption on depression. However, limited evidence is available on how household non-traditional fuel choices affect depression. Based on a nationally representative dataset collected from China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) in 2012, this paper employs an endogenous switching regression (ESR) model and an endogenous switching probit (ESP) model to address the endogenous issue and to estimate the treatment effects of non-traditional fuel choices on depression in rural China. The empirical results show that non-traditional fuel users have significantly lower Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) scores, indicating non-traditional fuel users face a lower risk of depression. Compared to solid fuels, employing non-traditional fuels will lead to a 3.659 reduction in depression score or decrease the probability of depression by 8.2%. In addition, the results of the mechanism analysis show that household non-traditional fuel choices affect depression by reducing the probability of physical discomfort and chronic disease. This study provides new insight into understanding the impact of air pollution in the house on depression and how to avoid the risk of depression in rural China effectively. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

17 pages, 2642 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Urbanization Impact on Regional Sustainable Development: Through the Lens of Urban-Rural Resilience

by Chenchen Shi, Xiaoping Zhu, Haowei Wu and Zhihui Li

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(22), 15407; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192215407 - 21 Nov 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3367

Abstract

The urban–rural system is an economically, socially, and environmentally interlinked space, which requires the integration of industry, space, and population. To achieve sustainable and coordinated development between urban and rural systems, dynamic land use change within the urban–rural system and the ecological and social consequences need to be clarified. This study uses system resilience to evaluate such an impact and explores the impact of land use change, especially land conversion induced by urbanization on regional development through the lens of urban–rural resilience. The empirical case is based on the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Urban Agglomeration (BTHUA) in China from 2000 to 2020 when there was rapid urbanization in this region. The results show that along with urbanization in the BTHUA, urban–rural resilience is high in urban core areas and low in peripheral areas. From the urban core to the rural outskirts, there is a general trend that comprehensive resilience decreases with decreased social resilience and increased ecological resilience in this region. Specifically, at the city level, comprehensive resilience decreases sharply from the urban center to its 3–5 km buffer zone and then remains relatively stable in the rural regions. A similar trend goes for social resilience at the city level, while ecological resilience increases sharply from the urban center to its 1–3 km buffer zone, and then remains relatively stable in the rural regions in this region, except for cities in the west and south of Hebei. This study contributes to the conceptualization and measurement of urban–rural resilience in the urban–rural system with empirical findings revealing the impact of rapid urbanization on urban–rural resilience over the last twenty years in the BTHUA in China. In addition, the spatial heterogeneity results could be used for policy reference to make targeted resilience strategies in the study region. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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18 pages, 2846 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Trade and Embodied CO₂ Emissions: Analysis from a Global Input–Output Perspective

by Xinsheng Zhou, Qinyang Guo, Yuanyuan Wang and Guofeng Wang

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(21), 14605; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192114605 - 7 Nov 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3019

Abstract

Global trade drives the world’s economic development, while a large amount of embodied carbon is transferred among different countries and regions. Based on a multi-regional input–output model, the trade embodied carbon transfers of bilateral trade between 185 countries/regions around the world were calculated. On the basis, regional trade embodied carbon transfer patterns and major national trade patterns in six continents, eight major economic cooperation organizations, and six representative countries/regions were further analyzed. The results showed that Europe was the continent with the largest embodied carbon inflows from trade and Africa was the continent with the largest embodied carbon outflows from trade. China was the country which had the largest embodied carbon outflows from trade, while the United States, France, Japan, and Germany were countries which had embodied carbon inflows from trade. OECD, EU, and NAFTA were the economic cooperation organizations with embodied carbon inflows from trade, while BRICS, SCO, RCEP, OPEC, and ASEAN were economic cooperation organizations with embodied carbon outflows from trade. Developed countries such as the United States, France, and the United Kingdom protected their environment by exporting high-value products and importing low-value and carbon-intensive products. Developing countries such as China and Russia earned foreign exchange by exporting carbon-intensive and commodity products at a huge environmental cost. In contrast, Germany, China, and Russia played different roles in the global industrial chain, while Germany exchanged more trade surpluses at lower environmental costs. Therefore, for different countries and regions, their own industries should be actively upgraded to adjust the import and export structure, the cooperation and coordination in all regions of the world should be strengthened, and the transfers of embodied carbon needs to be reduced to make the trade model sustainable. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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18 pages, 1044 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Food, Energy, and Water Nexus at Household Level: Do Sustainable Household Consumption Practices Promote Cleaner Environment?

by Pomi Shahbaz, Shamsheer ul Haq, Azhar Abbas, Abdus Samie, Ismet Boz, Salim Bagadeem, Ziyue Yu and Zhihui Li

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(19), 12945; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912945 - 10 Oct 2022

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3418

Abstract

Governments around the globe are trying to find sustainable solutions for lessening pressure on natural resources and reducing carbon emissions. Daily household consumption of food, energy, and water has an impact on stocks of natural resources, environmental quality, and climate change. Households have significant potential for increasing conservation actions for efficient use of natural resources and greenhouse gas emissions. Households could contribute to a clean and healthy environment by adopting sustainable household practices through lower per capita consumption and carbon emissions. This study explored the role of different sustainable household consumption practices in promoting a clean environment as well as the factors affecting the adoption of these practices in Pakistan. Factor analysis and an ordered probit model were used to analyze the data from 1424 participants chosen through a multistage random sampling technique. The factor analysis identified 35 sustainable household practices for sustainable consumption. These 35 practices were grouped into the underlying factors of “Food” (14 items), “Energy” (12 items), and “Water” (9 items). The results from the econometric model showed a significant relationship between gender, education, residential area, family size, and income and the adoption of sustainable household consumption practices. Statistically, higher levels of reported sustainable consumption practices were apparent among females, households living in urban areas, more educated people, individuals of large family sizes, and more affluent households. Therefore, public policies for taking care of the environment need to put households at the center while at the same time promoting mass uptake of sustainable consumption practices related to food, energy, and water. In addition, the sector-specific policies also need to be augmented through focus on household-level consumption and production dynamics for achieving the UN’s SDGs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Editorial Board Members' Collection Series: Environmental Ecology and Management)

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