Operation of EMEP ‘supersites’ in the United Kingdom. Annual report for 2008.

As part of its commitment to the UN-ECE Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution the United Kingdom operates two ‘supersites’ reporting data to the Co-operative Programme for Monitoring and Evaluation of the Long-range Transmission of Air Pollutants in Europe (EMEP). This report provides the annual summary for 2008, the second full calendar year of operation of the first EMEP ‘supersite’ to be established in the United Kingdom. Detailed operational reports have been submitted to Defra every 3 months, with unratified data. This annual report contains a summary of the ratified data for 2008. The EMEP ‘supersite’ is located in central southern Scotland at Auchencorth (3.2oW, 55.8oN), a remote rural moorland site ~20 km south-west of Edinburgh. Monitoring operations started formally on 1 June 2006. In addition to measurements made specifically under this contract, the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology also acts as local site operator for measurements made under other UK monitoring networks: the Automated Urban and Rural Network (AURN), the UK Eutrophication and Acidification Network (UKEAP), the UK Hydrocarbons Network, and the UK Heavy Metals Rural Network. Some measurements were also made under the auspices of the ‘Air Pollution Deposition Processes’ contract. All these associated networks are funded by Defra. This report summarises the measurements made between January and December 2008, and presents summary statistics on average concentrations. The site is dominated by winds from the south-west, but wind direction data highlight potential sources of airborne pollutants (power stations, conurbations). The average diurnal patterns of gases and particles are consistent with those expected for a remote rural site. The frequency distributions are presented for data where there was good data capture throughout the whole period. Some components (e.g. black carbon) show log-normal frequency distributions, while other components (e.g. ozone) have more nearly normal frequency distributions. A case study is presented for a period in June 2008, showing the influence of regional air pollutants at this remote rural site. All the data reported under the contract are shown graphically in the Appendix

Water soluble aerosols and gases at a UK background site. Part 1: Controls of PM2.5 and PM10 aerosol composition

There is limited availability of long-term, high temporal resolution, chemically speciated aerosol measurements which can provide further insight into the health and environmental impacts of particulate matter. The Monitor for AeRosols and Gases (MARGA, Applikon B.V., NL) allows for the characterisation of the inorganic components of PM10 and PM2.5 (NH4+, NO3-, SO42-, Cl-, Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+) and inorganic reactive gases (NH3, SO2, HCl, HONO and HNO3) at hourly resolution. The following study presents 6.5 years (June 2006 to December 2012) of quasi-continuous observations of PM2.5 and PM10 using the MARGA at the UK EMEP supersite, Auchencorth Moss, SE Scotland. Auchencorth Moss was found to be representative of a remote European site with average total water soluble inorganic mass of PM2.5 of 3.82 μg m−3. Anthropogenically derived secondary inorganic aerosols (sum of NH4+, NO3- and nss-SO42−) were the dominating species (63 %) of PM2.5. In terms of equivalent concentrations, NH4+ provided the single largest contribution to PM2.5 fraction in all seasons. Sea salt was the main component (73 %) of the PMcoarse fraction (PM10-PM2.5), though NO3- was also found to make a relatively large contribution to the measured mass (17 %) providing evidence of considerable processing of sea salt in the coarse mode. There was on occasions evidence of aerosol from combustion events being transported to the site in 2012 as high K+ concentrations (deviating from the known ratio in sea salt) coincided with increases in black carbon at the site. Pollution events in PM10 (defined as concentrations > 12 μg m−3) were on average dominated by NH4+ and NO3-, where smaller loadings at the site tended to be dominated by sea salt. As with other western European sites, the charge balance of the inorganic components resolved were biased towards cations, suggesting the aerosol was basic or more likely that organic acids contributed to the charge balance. This study demonstrates the UK background atmospheric composition is primarily driven by meteorology with sea salt dominating air masses from the Atlantic Ocean and the Arctic, whereas secondary inorganic aerosols tended to dominate air masses from continental Europe

The Use of unregulated staff: Time for regulation?

Internationally, shortages in the nursing workforce, escalating patient demands, and financial constraints within the health system have led to the growth of unlicensed nursing support workers. Recently, in relation to the largest publicly funded health system (National Health Service), it was reported that extensive substitution of registered nurses with unskilled nursing support workers resulted in inadequate patient care, increased morbidity and mortality rates, and negative nurse outcomes. We argue that it is timely to consider regulation of nursing support workers with their role and scope of practice clearly defined. Further, the addition of these workers in a complementary model of care (rather than substitutive model) should also be explored in future research, in terms of impact on patient and nurse outcomes

Surface-atmosphere exchange of inorganic water-soluble gases and associated ions in bulk aerosol above agricultural grassland pre- and post- fertilisation

The increasing use of intensive agricultural practices can lead to damaging consequences for the atmosphere through enhanced emissions of air pollutants. However, there are few direct measurements of the surface–atmosphere exchange of trace gases and water-soluble aerosols over agricultural grassland, particularly of reactive nitrogen compounds. In this study, we present measurements of the concentrations, fluxes and deposition velocities of the trace gases HCl, HONO, HNO3, SO2 and NH3 as well as their associated water-soluble aerosol counterparts Cl−, NO2−, NO3−, SO42− and NH4+ as determined hourly for 1 month in May–June 2016 over agricultural grassland near Edinburgh, UK, pre- and postfertilisation. Measurements were made using the Gradient of Aerosols and Gases Online Registrator (GRAEGOR) wet-chemistry two-point gradient instrument. Emissions of NH3 peaked at 1460ng m−2 s−1 3h after fertilisation, with an emission of HONO peaking at 4.92ng m−2 s−1 occurring 5h after fertilisation. Apparent emissions of NO3− aerosol were observed after fertilisation which, coupled with a divergence of HNO3 deposition velocity (Vd) from its theoretical maximum value, suggested the reaction of emitted NH3 with atmospheric HNO3 to form ammonium nitrate aerosol. The use of the conservative exchange fluxes of tot-NH4+ and tot-NO3− indicated net emission of tot-NO3−, implying a ground source of HNO3 after fertilisation. Daytime concentrations of HONO remained above the detection limit (30ng m−3) throughout the campaign, suggesting a daytime source for HONO at the site. Whilst the mean Vd of NH4+ was 0.93mm s−1 in the range expected for the accumulation mode, the larger average Vd for Cl− (3.65mm s−1), NO3− (1.97mm s−1) and SO42− (1.89mm s−1) reflected the contribution of a super-micron fraction and decreased with increasing PM2.5∕PM10 ratio (a proxy measurement for aerosol size), providing evidence – although limited by the use of a proxy for aerosol size – of a size dependence of aerosol deposition velocity for aerosol chemical compounds, which has been suggested from process-orientated models of aerosol deposition

The UK particulate matter air pollution episode of March-April 2014: more than Saharan dust

A period of elevated surface concentrations of airborne particulate matter (PM) in the UK in spring 2014 was widely associated in the UK media with a Saharan dust plume. This might have led to over-emphasis on a natural phenomenon and consequently to a missed opportunity to inform the public and provide robust evidence for policy-makers about the observed characteristics and causes of this pollution event. In this work, the EMEP4UK regional atmospheric chemistry transport model (ACTM) was used in conjunction with speciated PM measurements to investigate the sources and long-range transport (including vertical) processes contributing to the chemical components of the elevated surface PM. It is shown that the elevated PM during this period was mainly driven by ammonium nitrate, much of which was derived from emissions outside the UK. In the early part of the episode, Saharan dust remained aloft above the UK; we show that a significant contribution of Saharan dust at surface level was restricted only to the latter part of the elevated PM period and to a relatively small geographic area in the southern part of the UK. The analyses presented in this paper illustrate the capability of advanced ACTMs, corroborated with chemically-speciated measurements, to identify the underlying causes of complex PM air pollution episodes. Specifically, the analyses highlight the substantial contribution of secondary inorganic ammonium nitrate PM, with agricultural ammonia emissions in continental Europe presenting a major driver. The findings suggest that more emphasis on reducing emissions in Europe would have marked benefits in reducing episodic PM2.5 concentrations in the UK

UK Eutrophying and Acidifying Atmospheric Pollutants Monitoring networks UKEAP

In 2012 the complete dataset from the Defra funded UK Eutrophying and Acidifying Atmospheric Pollutants National Ammonia MOnitoring Network and the Acid Gas and aerosol network was prepared and submitted to EMEP for publication in the EMEP database. The talk gave an overview of the measurements being made and the scientific purpose of them

Challenges in quantifying biosphere???atmosphere exchange of nitrogen species

El art??culo aborda las complejidades y dificultades que se enfrentan al intentar medir y comprender el intercambio de especies de nitr??geno entre la biosfera y la atm??sfera. Este intercambio es crucial para el ciclo del nitr??geno, que tiene implicaciones significativas para los ecosistemas, la calidad del aire y el cambio clim??tico. Uno de los principales desaf??os mencionados en el art??culo es la variabilidad espacial y temporal de las emisiones de nitr??geno. Las fuentes de nitr??geno, como la agricultura, la industria y los procesos naturales, pueden variar considerablemente en diferentes regiones y momentos del a??o. Esto hace que sea complicado establecer mediciones precisas y representativas del intercambio de nitr??geno. Adem??s, el art??culo destaca la falta de m??todos estandarizados para medir las diferentes especies de nitr??geno, como el ??xido nitroso (N2O), el amon??aco (NH3) y el ??xido n??trico (NO). Cada uno de estos compuestos tiene diferentes propiedades qu??micas y biol??gicas, lo que requiere enfoques espec??ficos para su cuantificaci??n. La diversidad de t??cnicas y equipos utilizados en diferentes estudios tambi??n contribuye a la inconsistencia de los datos. Otro aspecto importante que se menciona es la interacci??n entre los procesos biogeoqu??micos que afectan el ciclo del nitr??geno. Por ejemplo, la nitrificaci??n y la desnitrificaci??n son procesos clave que influyen en las emisiones de nitr??geno, pero su din??mica puede verse afectada por factores como la temperatura, la humedad y la disponibilidad de nutrientes. Esto a??ade una capa adicional de complejidad al intentar modelar y predecir el intercambio de nitr??geno. El art??culo tambi??n discute la importancia de integrar datos de diferentes escalas, desde estudios locales hasta modelos globales. La falta de datos a gran escala puede limitar nuestra comprensi??n de c??mo las emisiones de nitr??geno afectan el clima y la calidad del aire a nivel global. Por lo tanto, se enfatiza la necesidad de una colaboraci??n m??s estrecha entre cient??ficos de diferentes disciplinas y regiones para abordar estos desaf??os. Finalmente, el art??culo concluye con una llamada a la acci??n para mejorar las metodolog??as de medici??n y modelado del intercambio de nitr??geno. Se sugiere que el desarrollo de tecnolog??as m??s avanzadas y la estandarizaci??n de los m??todos de medici??n podr??an ayudar a superar algunas de las barreras actuales. Adem??s, se destaca la importancia de la educaci??n y formaci??n en este campo para asegurar que los futuros investigadores est??n equipados con las herramientas necesarias para abordar estos desaf??os. En resumen, el art??culo subraya que, aunque hay muchos obst??culos en la cuantificaci??n del intercambio de especies de nitr??geno entre la biosfera y la atm??sfera, hay oportunidades para mejorar nuestra comprensi??n y gesti??n de este ciclo vital. La colaboraci??n interdisciplinaria y el avance tecnol??gico son clave para avanzar en este campo de estudio

A História da Alimentação: balizas historiográficas

Os M. pretenderam traçar um quadro da História da Alimentação, não como um novo ramo epistemológico da disciplina, mas como um campo em desenvolvimento de práticas e atividades especializadas, incluindo pesquisa, formação, publicações, associações, encontros acadêmicos, etc. Um breve relato das condições em que tal campo se assentou faz-se preceder de um panorama dos estudos de alimentação e temas correia tos, em geral, segundo cinco abardagens Ia biológica, a econômica, a social, a cultural e a filosófica!, assim como da identificação das contribuições mais relevantes da Antropologia, Arqueologia, Sociologia e Geografia. A fim de comentar a multiforme e volumosa bibliografia histórica, foi ela organizada segundo critérios morfológicos. A seguir, alguns tópicos importantes mereceram tratamento à parte: a fome, o alimento e o domínio religioso, as descobertas européias e a difusão mundial de alimentos, gosto e gastronomia. O artigo se encerra com um rápido balanço crítico da historiografia brasileira sobre o tema