Environmental Restrictions Research Articles

ПРАВОВЕ РЕГУЛЮВАННЯ ПРОСТОРОВОГО РОЗВИТКУ ТА ЗАБУДОВИ ТЕРИТОРІЙ В УКРАЇНІ: СУЧАСНІ ВИКЛИКИ В УМОВАХ ВІЙНИ ТА ПІСЛЯВОЄННОЇ ВІДБУДОВИ

The article highlights the main problems of legal regulation of the development of territories, defines the directions of development of urban planning legislation in the light of the concept of recovery of Ukraine from the consequences of the war, the need for integrated planning of the development of territories and implementation of construction information modeling technologies. The article states that the full-scale invasion of the russian federation on the territory of Ukraine has become a difficult test for the state, economic entities, and citizens of Ukraine and requires a change in traditional approaches to the organization and implementation of economic activities in the field of urban planning in favor of digitalization and the abandonment of the Soviet system of planning and development. The author concludes that the issues of modernization of the norms of the Economic Code of Ukraine regarding capital construction, taking into account the digitalization of the construction process, the introduction of a European-oriented system of technical regulation in the construction industry, and the optimization of urban planning documentation with the replacement of more flexible urban planning documents that can be transformed depending from the needs of participants in urban development relations, adopted special urban development programs, but remain static within the framework of sanitary, water protection, and environmental restrictions. The reform of urban planning legislation requires clear terminologies, unified procedures, optimization of urban planning documentation, considering the practices of European countries and the experience of rebuilding post-war states, and most importantly, unified principles of urban planning based on people-centeredness, homogeneity and safety, developed as a result of the collaboration of all participants in urban planning activities.

The Influence of Parental Environmental Exposure and Nutrient Restriction on the Early Life of Offspring Growth in Gambia-A Pilot Study.

Background: The role of the germline in epigenetic transgenerational inheritance starts with environmental factors, acting on the first generation of a gestating mother. These factors influence the developing second-generation fetus by altering gonadal development, thereby reprogramming the primordial germ cell DNA methylation and leading to consequences that might be seen along generations. Objective: Despite these epigenetic factors now surfacing, the few available studies are on animal-based experiments, and conducting a follow-up on human intergenerational trials might take decades. To this response, this study aimed to determine the influence of parental energy, toxicant exposure, age, and nutrient restriction on the early life of offspring growth in Gambia. Method: This pilot study was based on population observation and combined both maternal and paternal factors across the country between August and October 2021. It captures the lifestyle and health detailed account of 339 reproductive parents and their last born (child under 5 years) using a structured interview questionnaire performed by nurses and public health officers. Results: This study showed that parents who worked in industrial areas were more likely to have offspring with poor psychosocial skills. In addition, mothers who are exposed to oxidative stress and high temperatures are more likely to have offspring with poor psychosocial skills. Mothers who consume a high-protein diet were almost three times more likely to have infants with good psychosocial skills in their offspring. Furthermore, there was a negative correlation between maternal stress during pregnancy and the psychosocial skills of offspring. Conclusion: This study was able to ascertain if the maternal diet during gestation, toxicant exposure, maternal stress, and parental smoking habits have an influence on the early life of offspring. While the study recommends a large sample size study to eliminate selection bias, there should be an increased level of awareness of mothers of their offspring’s health and their husbands’ lifestyles that might influence the adulthood health of their offspring.

Efficient Multi‐walled Carbon Nanotubes/Iron Oxide Nanocomposite for the Removal of the Drug Ketoprofen for Wastewater Treatment Applications

AbstractCurrent environmental restrictions, such as the zero liquid discharge policy, require developing new methods to completely remove micropollutants from wastewater. Non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (NSAID) are major component of such pollutants. The adsorptive removal of ketoprofen (KP), a widely prescribed NSAID, was studied using a newly synthesized magnetic adsorbent. The maximum adsorption capacity was determined to be 39.2 mg/g with almost 98 % removal for 50 mg/L KP at neutral pH. The adsorption of KP was found to be pH dependent and more efficient in acidic media. The isothermal behavior of the adsorbent followed a sigmoidal behavior and was best fitted to the corresponding‐states equation (CSE). The adsorption was found to follow second‐order kinetics with a half‐life of 4.4 min. The adsorption was also found to be exothermic and therefore it is favorable at low temperatures. The study also showed that the adsorbent can be regenerated for several adsorption‐desorption cycles. The adsorption mechanism was also explored by state‐of‐the‐art periodic quantum theoretical calculations.

Identifying determinants of sustainable water management at the household level through rainwater harvesting systems in Nepal

Abstract The urban water supply systems around the world are highly stressed at present due to growing water demand caused by rapid population growth and unplanned urbanization. The growing environmental awareness and water supply restrictions have made rainwater harvesting systems (RWHS) a priority as well as a necessity in many countries. To improve urban water security, the practice of an RWHS is increasingly being adopted in the cities and towns of developing countries. This study aims at identifying the factors affecting the adoption of rainwater harvesting for household uses in the Kathmandu valley (KV) of Nepal. The results were drawn from a survey of 405 respondents who reside in the KV. To explain the determinants of adaptation, structural equation modeling (SEM) was used. Results show that independence for water access and system sophistication are significant for the adaptation of RWHS and relative advantage plays a moderating role that has partial mediation among dependent and independent variables with a significant relationship. Thus, variables like independence for water access, system sophistication, relative advantage and sustainable use should be highlighted for a sustainable supply of water. For this, we recommend effective policy interventions at the local and national level for the adoption of RWHS and its advantages in terms of safeguarding water in the long run at the present changing climate scenario.

Science, Culture, World

As knowledge about nature and society deepened, the composition of the sources of socio-economic development expanded to include entrepreneurship, science, innovation, environmental restrictions, education, etc. The growth in the number of significant development factors and the need to take into account their impact on socio-economic concept,within which it will be possible to develop a common framework for assessing the role of traditional and new sources of growth. Already today, politicians, economists and managers, when developing state strategies, plans and programs, are faced with the need to take into account such characteristics of society as trust, inclusiveness, a sense of justice, the cultural level of the population, etc. The importance of these factors is increasing in the face of growing processes of change, the increasing role of innovation and weakening the stability and stability of the world political and economic systems under the influence of globalization processes. In modern conditions, the development and implementation of socio-economic policy requires an assessment of the ability of states to perceive and assimilate innovations, avoiding disorganization and slipping into systemic crises. The question arises, in relation to which object should such an ability be assessed? The article substantiates the choice of a cultural system as such an object. The dynamics of culture and the generalized drivers of its changes are considered, as which coding, language and communications are substantiated. It is shown that over time, science has become the main communication of culture. The globalization of scientific activity leads to the convergence of cultural systems. This process is getting new acceleration as a result of digitalization.

Gain-of-function genetic screens in human cells identify SLC transporters overcoming environmental nutrient restrictions.

Solute carrier (SLC) transporters control fluxes of nutrients and metabolites across membranes and thereby represent a critical interface between the microenvironment and cellular and subcellular metabolism. Because of substantial functional overlap, the interplay and relative contributions of SLCs in response to environmental stresses remain poorly elucidated. To infer functional relationships between SLCs and metabolites, we developed a strategy to identify SLCs able to sustain cell viability and proliferation under growth-limiting concentrations of essential nutrients. One-by-one depletion of 13 amino acids required for cell proliferation enabled gain-of-function genetic screens using a SLC-focused CRISPR/Cas9-based transcriptional activation approach to uncover transporters relieving cells from growth-limiting metabolic bottlenecks. Among the transporters identified, we characterized the cationic amino acid transporter SLC7A3 as a gene that, when up-regulated, overcame low availability of arginine and lysine by increasing their uptake, whereas SLC7A5 was able to sustain cellular fitness upon deprivation of several neutral amino acids. Moreover, we identified metabolic compensation mediated by the glutamate/aspartate transporters SLC1A2 and SLC1A3 under glutamine-limiting conditions. Overall, this gain-of-function approach using human cells uncovered functional transporter-nutrient relationships and revealed that transport activity up-regulation may be sufficient to overcome environmental metabolic restrictions.

New opportunities in plant microbiome engineering for increasing agricultural sustainability under stressful conditions.

Plant microbiome (or phytomicrobiome) engineering (PME) is an anticipated untapped alternative strategy that could be exploited for plant growth, health and productivity under different environmental conditions. It has been proven that the phytomicrobiome has crucial contributions to plant health, pathogen control and tolerance under drastic environmental (a)biotic constraints. Consistent with plant health and safety, in this article we address the fundamental role of plant microbiome and its insights in plant health and productivity. We also explore the potential of plant microbiome under environmental restrictions and the proposition of improving microbial functions that can be supportive for better plant growth and production. Understanding the crucial role of plant associated microbial communities, we propose how the associated microbial actions could be enhanced to improve plant growth-promoting mechanisms, with a particular emphasis on plant beneficial fungi. Additionally, we suggest the possible plant strategies to adapt to a harsh environment by manipulating plant microbiomes. However, our current understanding of the microbiome is still in its infancy, and the major perturbations, such as anthropocentric actions, are not fully understood. Therefore, this work highlights the importance of manipulating the beneficial plant microbiome to create more sustainable agriculture, particularly under different environmental stressors.

Offshore wind and solar complementarity in Brazil: A theoretical and technical potential assessment

The onshore generation of wind and solar energy is a reality in Brazil. There are approximately 700 projects generating wind energy in the Northeast and South regions and 4000 generating solar energy distributed throughout the country. In addition, Brazil has an extensive Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and a very diverse climate, which can contribute to offshore and complementary technologies. The concept of complementarity integrates technology and innovation studies, which are associated with the more efficient use of renewable resources through a better understanding of their intermittency and availability. This study aims to evaluate the complementarity of offshore wind and solar energy along the Brazilian coastline by assessing the theoretical and technical potential of the resources. Wind and solar radiation hourly data of the ERA5 reanalysis are used from 1990 to 2019. A series of technical and environmental restrictions and other uses of the ocean space is assumed to calculate the usable area. The IEA-15 MW wind turbines and crystalline silicon solar panels are considered to calculate annual energy production and capacity factor. The results show the annual and hourly complementarity of the offshore wind and solar energy sources. It is observed that, for instance, offshore solar complements offshore wind up to 40% in the Northeast region within water depth up to 50 m. Additionally, it shows that the monthly energy production of a co-located offshore wind–solar farm in the Northeast region can reach up to 300% more than the hydropower generation.

Urban Land Use Efficiency and Contributing Factors in the Yangtze River Delta Under Increasing Environmental Restrictions in China

Urban Land Use Efficiency and Contributing Factors in the Yangtze River Delta Under Increasing Environmental Restrictions in China

Numerical design methodology for reversible Deriaz turbine with high energy performance and reduced fish impacts

The increased interest for further exploitation of hydropower and pumped hydro storage sites of lower head and capacity, and the tightening on the other hand of the environmental terms and restrictions, would require the design of corresponding hydro turbines and reversible machines with improved environmental performance. This work presents a numerical methodology to optimize the design of a Deriaz turbine in order to achieve high energy efficiency and improved fish friendly behaviour in both pump and turbine operation modes. Various numerical simulation and optimization software and tools are used, while the geometry of the machine is fully parameterized to allow for wide design modifications and corresponding numerical tests. At first, the most important design parameters and their variation range limits are identified by a sensitivity study. Next, several multi-objective optimization procedures are carried out, using general quantitative targets for a comparative evaluation of the various machine runner designs. The results show a complex interdependence or competitiveness of the machine efficiency and the various fish impact performance indices that requires careful analysis. The developed and applied methodology can produce one or more candidate designs that satisfactorily meet all the desired objectives.

A Study of Point Laser for Automatic Local Road Condition Assessment: Feasibility, Challenges, and Limitations

Road condition assessment plays an important role in maintaining the integrity of mature and fast-expanding road networks. Such assessments provide invaluable information for local authorities that enable them to deliver timely preventative road network maintenance. To enable the best use of scarce maintenance resources, it is necessary to assess the condition of the roads periodically. In this article, we present the Point Laser (PL) system as an alternative approach for automatic road assessment. Compared to current systems, ground penetrating radar and the mobile laser scanning system, the PL system has the advantages of low hardware cost, low computational requirements, and fewer environmental restrictions in relation to its use. The article first outlines the principle of the PL system including a low-complexity signal processing approach. Afterward, the feasibility, challenges, and limitations of the PL system are discussed based on its use in a real environment. A visual-based road survey is used as a ground truth to determine the PL’s performance in relation to the requirements of road condition assessment at various levels of road management. The results of the comparison demonstrate that the PL system is an ideal candidate for the automatic assessment of the condition of local road networks, especially those that require frequent assessment for road asset management.

Influence of energy structure, environmental regulations and human capital on ecological sustainability in EKC framework; evidence from MINT countries

Heterogeneous anthropogenic and insufficient development strategies have caused an international compromise between sustainable growth and environmental deterioration. Environmental concerns have necessitated rules and human capital to protect the global ecosystem. Literature is ambiguous on the usefulness of environmental rules in reducing environmental deterioration. This study examines the impact of environmental regulations and education as a proxy for human capital in Mexico, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Turkey (MINT) countries’ ecological footprints between 1990 and 2020. The econometric research shows that present environmental restrictions in MINT countries are unsuccessful at reducing their ecological footprints. Energy consumption and trade-openness also increase ecological footprints. The MINT countries panel also confirms the Environmental Kuznets Curve idea. The country-specific findings show that energy use silently harmed the environment in MINT nations, whereas environmental legislation, economic growth, and trade-openness had diverse effects. These findings suggest that in order for MINT nations to achieve environmental sustainability, they should strengthen and enforce environmental regulations; adopt policies that promote sustainable economic growth; reduce their reliance on fossil-fuels; improve quality education and awareness; and actively engage in sustainable trading activities.

Influence of Sociodemographic Factors, Health Conditions, and Activity on Participation in People With Spinal Cord Injury in South Korea

ObjectiveTo verify the causal relationship between sociodemographic factors, health conditions, and activities that influence the participation of people with spinal cord injury (SCI) using International Spinal Cord Injury (InSCI) Survey data and to investigate the moderation effects of environmental restrictions and health care system concerns. DesignCross-sectional community survey and structural equation model. SettingSCI databases of the Korea National Rehabilitation Center and Korea Spinal Cord Injury Association. ParticipantsCommunity-dwelling adults (N=890) with SCI. InterventionsNot applicable. Main Outcome MeasuresThe InSCI questionnaire domains included sociodemographic factors, health conditions, activity, participation, environmental restrictions, and health system concerns. Sociodemographic factors included age, education, and income. Health conditions included bowel dysfunction, respiratory problems, and pain, among others. Activity included “daily routine” and “using hands,” among others. Participation included “interacting with people” and “intimate relationships,” among others. Environmental restrictions included “public places” and “negative attitudes,” among others. Health care system concerns included “nursing care” and “experience of being treated,” among others. ResultsThe hypothesis that health conditions would have a significant effect on activity was supported because 51% of the total variance in activity factors was explained by health condition factors. The hypothesis that activity would have a significant effect on participation was also supported because 63.4% of total variance in participation factors was explained by activity factors. The moderation effect tests supported the hypotheses that health conditions, activity, and participation would differ depending on the extent of environmental restrictions as well as the extent of health system concerns. ConclusionsWhen formulating policies and recommendations to promote the participation of people with SCI living in the South Korean community, the influence of environmental restrictions and health systems as well as the causal influence of health conditions and activity should be considered.

Motion Analysis of Football Kick Based on an IMU Sensor.

A greater variety of technologies are being applied in sports and health with the advancement of technology, but most optoelectronic systems have strict environmental restrictions and are usually costly. To visualize and perform quantitative analysis on the football kick, we introduce a 3D motion analysis system based on a six-axis inertial measurement unit (IMU) to reconstruct the motion trajectory, in the meantime analyzing the velocity and the highest point of the foot during the backswing. We build a signal processing system in MATLAB and standardize the experimental process, allowing users to reconstruct the foot trajectory and obtain information about the motion within a short time. This paper presents a system that directly analyzes the instep kicking motion rather than recognizing different motions or obtaining biomechanical parameters. For the instep kicking motion of path length around 3.63 m, the root mean square error (RMSE) is about 0.07 m. The RMSE of the foot velocity is 0.034 m/s, which is around 0.45% of the maximum velocity. For the maximum velocity of the foot and the highest point of the backswing, the error is approximately 4% and 2.8%, respectively. With less complex hardware, our experimental results achieve excellent velocity accuracy.

Control properties of sustainable alternatives to produce 2,3-butanediol

Current social needs, as well as political and environmental restrictions, have led to the generation of products within a framework of sustainability, and favoring production processes based on renewable raw materials. During the process design work, the role of the dynamic properties of a process, together with some other metrics, is not always considered. However, several studies have shown that there is a certain relationship between the dynamics and controllability of the process and its sustainability. In this work, the dynamic properties of different separation schemes for the purification of 2,3-BD from biomass fermentation are evaluated. The study allowed determining the best alternatives for the eventual implementation of these schemes, as well as the role of controllability concerning other sustainability indicators. As result, it was found that schemes that include a thermal coupling in their topological design allow a general improvement of all sustainability indicators. In addition, it was observed in this case study that process intensification contributes significantly to the fulfillment of various sustainability indicators.

Assessment of the Performance of Cationic Cellulose Derivatives as Calcium Carbonate Flocculant for Papermaking.

Cationic polyacrylamides (CPAMs) are usually used as filler retention agents in papermaking formulations. However, increasing environmental restrictions and their non-renewable origin have driven research into bio-based alternatives. In this context, cationic lignocellulosic derivatives have been attracting considerable research interest as a potential substitute. In this work, distinct cationic celluloses with degrees of substitution of between 0.02 and 1.06 and with distinct morphological properties were synthesized via the cationization of bleached eucalyptus kraft pulp, using a direct cationization with (3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyl) trimethylammonium chloride (CHPTAC) or a two-step cationization, where the cellulose was first oxidized to form dialdehyde cellulose and was then made to react with Girard’s reagent T (GT). Fibrillated samples were produced by subjecting some samples to a high-pressure homogenization treatment. The obtained samples were evaluated regarding their potential to flocculate and retain precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC), and their performance was compared to that of a commercial CPAM. The cationic fibrillated celluloses, with a degree of substitution of ca. 0.13–0.16, exhibited the highest flocculation performance of all the cationic celluloses and were able to increase the filler retention from 43% (with no retention agent) to ca. 61–62% (with the addition of 20 mg/g of PCC). Although it was not possible to achieve the performance of CPAM (filler retention of 73% with an addition of 1 mg/g of PCC), the results demonstrated the potential of cationic cellulose derivatives for use as bio-based retention agents.

Energy and economic study of the increased energy production of cascaded hydroelectric plants due to the heightening of the upstream reservoir: A case study in Cipó-Rio das Antas dam

Increased hydroelectric reserve capacity through cascade heightening is one option for increasing its overall output. Such increases are relevant to the circumstances faced by the Brazilian energy matrix, which is heavily dependent on hydroelectric dams and where many environmental restrictions may slow the construction of new dams. Thus, this article studies the increase in storage volume in a Brazilian dam and evaluates the gains in terms of electricity generation and water flow on downstream dams. A dam located on the Antas River, in Brazil, was chosen as the study area. Flow regulation capacity from the increased height was determined through multiple hydrological methods which enabled the estimation of energy gains on downstream dams. The results obtained demonstrate that, by increasing the dam height by 1 m to the upstream structure, there would be a regularized flow of 2.47 m3/s along with an increase in energy production of 3.34 GWh/y throughout the entire downstream cascade. Investments of 500,000 USD would be necessary to add an additional meter to the dam construction height, which would be paid off over a period of five years with the increase in energy production. The methodology herein presented can be replicated in other regions, thus aiding in greater efficiency and operation of hydroelectric power plants.

Analysis of students' positive emotions around the green space in the university campus during the COVID-19 pandemic in China.

Green space around the university campus is of paramount importance for emotional and psychological restorations in students. Positive emotions in students can be aroused when immersed in green space and naturalness. However, to what extent can perceived naturalness influence students' positive emotion remains unclear, especially in the context of COVID-19 countermeasures. This study, therefore, attempts to investigate in-depth the nature and strength of the relationships between students' positive emotion and their perceived naturalness, place attachment, and landscape preference, which are potentially varying across universities in different social and environmental contexts and different restrictions policies regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. A course of questionnaire-based surveys was administered on two university campuses in Heilongjiang and Hunan Provinces, China, resulting in 474 effective samples. Structural equation modeling was used to explore the hypothetical conceptual framework of latent variables and the indicators. The findings indicate that the higher students' perceived naturalness results in greater positive emotion. Students' perceived naturalness in green spaces of campus has a positive effect on their place attachment and landscape preference. Moreover, the difference between mediate effects of place attachment and landscape preference were addressed, which verifies the contextual influences.

Empirical investigation of extended TOE model on Corporate Environment Sustainability and dimensions of operating performance of SMEs: A high order PLS-ANN approach

The goal of economic expansion, which ignores social welfare and environmental restrictions, has been supplanted in the business environment. The paper investigates how corporate environmental sustainability affects sundry parts of a company's performance. The study question is dichotomized into two segments. Firstly, examine the effect of selected dimensions, such as Economic, Social, Technological, and Organizational factors, on Corporate Environment Sustainability. Secondly, to validate and prove the mediating effect of CES on firm performance with selected manifests. A total of 390 respondents from SMEs were analyzed systematically. The synergy of Smart-PLS and Artificial Neural Network determines the impact of environmental sustainability on the various dimensions of a firm's performance that yielding a novel insight that would render vital benefit to stakeholders while drawing the policies related to sustainable development. The findings reveal that corporate environmental sustainability plays a significant role in shaping the relationships between technological, organizational, environmental, and social factors and SMEs' operating performance. The study is the first to empirically validate and evaluate the multimodal framework by extending TOE and TBL theorem. This theoretical nexus can be a pathfinder for policymakers, administrators, and managers to enhance SMEs' performance. Additionally, the validity of this construct in the study has been empirically reinforced statistically.

Climate Driven Responses in Cocoa for Tamil Nadu, India

Climate influences the spread of the any crop by imposing environmental restrictions. The present investigation was carried to understand the effect of climate on cocoa in various cocoa growing regions. In order to establish the relationship between weather parameters and cocoa productivity, Coimbatore, Theni, and Tenkasi were chosen as the study regions. Historical climate data was acquired from India Meteorological Department (IMD) for the past 30 years (1991-2020). Cocoa yield was simulated by using the Agricultural Policy/Environmental eXtender (APEX) and it was correlated with the weather variables such as rainfall, maximum temperature, minimum temperature, atmospheric water demand (PET), and crop water requirement (ET). Cocoa crop had positive correlation with rainfall and Actual Evapotranspiration. Whereas, both maximum and minimum temperature had significantly negative effect. Climatic conditions, such as decrease in rainfall, increase in temperature and increase in PET, would significantly reduce the cocoa bean yield. The anticipated increase in temperature and erratic rainfall distribution requires suitable management measures for sustainable cocoa productivity.