Moderate Climate Zones Research Articles

Analyzing Passive Design Retrofits using Pareto Front Optimization to Reduce Operational Carbon in Commercial Laboratory Spaces

Buildings are one of the leading sources of carbon emissions in the world. Most of the carbon emissions are released during the operation phase of the building. It is essential for buildings to provide thermal and visual comfort for the users. In the case of existing buildings, it is necessary to offer retrofit solutions so that the operational carbon emissions can be reduced without compromising on the other essential factors. In this study a Multi-Objective Optimization (MOO) of passive design strategies was conducted for a commercial laboratory in India situated in a moderate climate zone. The design variables considered for the study are wall and roof insulation, glazing material, window-wall ratio (WWR), depth of shading device and the number of shading devices used. The objective functions are: 1. reduced energy use intensity and operational carbon emissions, 2. increased thermal comfort hours and 3. increased daylight autonomy. Rhinoceros and grasshopper software along with Ladybug and Honeybee plug-ins were used for the study which resulted in 1296 iterations. MOO technique namely Pareto front optimization was used to optimize the objective functions. Out of 1296 solutions (excluding base case), 72 solutions were non-dominated. Two methods are described in the study to identify the recommendations for retrofit. The first method describes a Heuristic method of selection using Design Explorer recommending 5 good solutions. In the second method a factor is evolved to identify the 5 best solutions in sequential order. The overall study recommends the use of EPS insulation for the RCC roof, WWR of 20% on all sides, 3 horizontal shading devices of depth 0.75 m for all window openings. When compared with the base case scenario, this solution minimizes the EUI by 3.7%, maximizes average TCH by 106.6% and maximizes average DA by 66.9%. The overall operational carbon emissions are reduced by 7095.6 kgCO2.

The impact of green roofs’ composition on its overall life cycle

Green roof systems have been developed to improve the environmental, economic, and social aspects of sustainability. Selecting the appropriate version of the green roof composition plays an important role in the life cycle assessment of a green roof. In this study, 10 compositions of an intensive green roof for moderate zone and 4 green roof compositions for different climatic conditions were designed and comprehensively assessed in terms of their environmental and economic impacts within the “Cradle-to-Cradle” system boundary. The assessment was carried out over a 50-year period for a moderate climate zone. The results showed that asphalt strips and concrete slab produced the highest total emissions. It was found that most greenhouse gases emissions were released in the operational energy consumption phase and in the production phase. The energy consumption phase (48.78%) for automatic irrigation and maintenance caused the highest Global Warming Potential (GWP) value (758.39 kg CO2e) in the worst variant, which also caused the highest life cycle cost (878.47€). On the contrary, in the best variant, planting more vegetation and lower maintenance and irrigation requirements led to a reduction in GWP (445.0 kg CO2e), but in terms of cost (506.6€) this composition didn't represent the best variant. The Global Warming Potential Biogenic (GWP-bio) compared to the Global Warming Potential Total (GWP-total) represents a proportion ranging from 0.8% to 78% depending on the proposed vegetation. Overall higher biogenic carbon values (up to 1525 kg CO2e) were observed for the proposed tall vegetation of Magnolia, Red Mulberry, Hawthorne, Cherry, and Crab-apple Tree. Based on the results of the multicriteria analysis, which included core environmental & economic parameters, biogenic carbon emission levels, the outcome of this paper proposed optimal green roof composition. Optimal intensive green roof composition was subjected to a sensitivity analysis to determine the impact of changing climatic conditions on CO2 emissions and life cycle costs. The results of the sensitivity analysis show that the optimal variant of the green roof can be implemented in the cold and subtropical zone with regard to CO2 emissions, but not with regard to life cycle costs.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) phytoaccumulation in urban areas by Platanus × acerifolia, Celtis australis, and Tilia grandifolia leaves and branches.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations in the leaves and 1-year-old branches of three common tree species growing in a middle-sized city located in a moderate climate zone were estimated. For this purpose, PAH phytoaccumulation in Platanus × acerifolia, Celtis australis, and Tilia grandifolia species from highly urbanized, traffic congested, and highly PAH-contaminated streets was compared with trees from non-contaminated parks in the same urban core. The gathered data was used to define 17 PAH profiles, identify the main PAH pollution emission sources, and determine the organ and species specificity of PAHs accumulation. Due to the direct absorption of polluted air via stomata, the leaves accumulated up to 30% more PAHs compared to the 1-year-old branches. As expected, PAH concentrations were much higher in street trees, while heavy weight PAHs (with five and six rings) were accumulated in the highest concentrations. The highest foliar Σ17 PAH concentrations were detected in street-grown C. australis, followed by P. acerifolia and T. grandifolia (502.68, 488.45, and 339.47ngg-1 dry weight (DW), respectively). The same pattern was noted for Σ17 PAHs in branches (414.89, 327.58, and 342.99ngg-1 DW, respectively). Thus, T. grandifolia emerged as the least effective PAH sink as it accumulated up to ~ 40% less PAHs than P. acerifolia and C. australis leaves/branches. Among the 17 tracked PAHs, benzo[a]anthracene, benzo[a]pyrene, dibenzo[a,h]anthracene, and pyrene were found to have accumulated in the highest concentrations in all analyzed species irrespective of the site, and accounted for more than 50% of the total detected PAHs. Finally, a "black box" about species and organ specificity, as well as specific drivers that limit PAHs uptake capacity by trees, was opened, while this work provides insights into further PAH phytoremediation strategies.

Пространственная реконструкция климата востока Азии в раннем эоцене

Using the Coexistence Approach, climatic zones were identified for the Early Eocene of East Asia. Data for reconstruction include 48 palynofloras from the East Asia's Lower Eocene continental deposits from 75° to 19° N. The climatic inferences obtained are consistent with global trends, showing high values of mean annual temperature (MAT) and mean annual precipitation (MAP). According to our results, there is a weakly expressed latitudinal temperature gradient from the north to the south, showing an increasing trend for MAT values, while a very weakly expressed latitudinal gradient of precipitation demonstrates a decreasing trend for MAP values. Based on MAT and MAP values, three regional climatic zones are distinguished. The warm moderate climate zone (north of ≈ 55° paleolatitude) is characterized by low values for temperature (14.2-16.2 °C) and high ones for precipitation (1158-1334 mm). In the transition zone (≈ 45-55° paleolatitude), MAT values vary from 15.9 to 19.0 °C, and MAP values range from 874 to 1352 mm. The subtropical climate zone (south of ≈ 45° paleolatitude) is characterized by high values for temperature (16.5-19.1 °C) and low, for precipitation (874-1263 mm).

Air pollution seasons in urban moderate climate areas through big data analytics

High particulate matter (PM) concentrations have a negative impact on the overall quality of life and health. The annual trends of PM can vary greatly depending on factors such as a country’s energy mix, development level, and climatic zone. In this study, we aimed to understand the annual cycle of PM concentrations in a moderate climate zone using a dense grid of low-cost sensors located in central Europe (Krakow). Over one million unique records of PM, temperature, humidity, pressure and wind speed observations were analyzed to gain a detailed, high-resolution understanding of yearly fluctuations. The comprehensive big-data workflow was presented with the statistical analysis of the meteorological factors. A big data-driven approach revealed the existence of two main PM seasons (warm and cold) in Europe’s moderate climate zone, which do not correspond directly with the traditional four main seasons (Autumn, Winter, Spring, and Summer) with two side periods (early spring and early winter). Our findings also highlighted the importance of high-resolution time and space data for sustainable spatial planning. The observations allowed for distinguishing whether the source of air pollution is related to coal burning for heating in cold period or to agricultural lands burning during the warm period.

Assessing the Effectiveness of an Innovative Thermal Energy Storage System Installed in a Building in a Moderate Continental Climatic Zone

In the present work, the operating results from an innovative, renewable, energy-based space-heating and domestic hot water (DHW) system are shown. The system used solar thermal energy as its primary source and was assisted by a shallow geothermal application in order to accommodate the space-heating and DHW needs of a domestic building in Austria. The system incorporated phase-change materials (PCMs) in specially designed containers to function as heat-storage modules and provide an energy storage capability for both the space-heating and DHW subsystems. This system was designed, implemented, and tested under real operating conditions in a building for a period of one year. The operating and energy results for the system are demonstrated in this work. The system was compared with a conventional one, and a reduction in the primary energy consumption equal to 84.3% was achieved. The maintenance and operating costs of the system were reduced by 79.7% compared to the conventional system, thus significantly contributing to the NZEB target of the building. The newly proposed system, although presenting an increased operating complexity, utilizes an innovative self-learning control system that manages all of its operations. The combination of a solar thermal energy source with thermal energy storage increases the use of renewable energy by extending the capacity of the system beyond the solar hours and using excess solar energy for space-heating needs. The thermal energy storage unit also increases the energy and economic efficiency of the geothermal heat pump by operating it during the hours of a reduced electricity tariff and using the stored energy during hours of a high electricity demand. The cost for the installation of such a system is higher than a conventional one, but due to the significantly decreased operating costs, the pay-back period was calculated to be 8.7 years.

Thermal stress comfort in a contemporary housing district in a moderate climate zone, Lublin as a case study

Urban climate and its impact on the thermal comfort of residents are significant aspects in urban planning and the design of housing estates. The aim of this article is to investigate the temperature perception among residents in a contemporary residential area in Lublin during the hottest day, utilising an advanced computer simulation tool – the ENVI-met programme. A modern, densely built housing estate with no significant greenery was selected as a case study. General meteorological and spatial data were used for calibrating the housing estate model within the software. The housing estate model within the programme was calibrated using publicly available meteorological and spatial data, and computer simulations were conducted for Lublin's hottest day on 22 July 2022. Based on these simulations, the Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) was calculated. The research results indicate that people experience moderate thermal stress in unshaded areas only at 4:00 pm, while in sunny locations, they experience strong to very strong heat stress throughout the day. This article underscores the importance of computer simulations in analysing the urban microclimate and provides insights into tools that can be used in urban planning and housing estate design processes, with the aim of creating more comfortable and environmentally friendly urban environments.

Impact of de‐icing salts on freeze‐thaw resistance of low‐clinker concretes

AbstractDe‐icing salts are commonly used in moderate climate zone, where concrete is subjected to freeze‐thaw cycles during winter times. The presence of de‐icing salts requires appropriate frost‐thaw resistance of concrete, which is challengingin case of low‐clinker concretes. Proper air‐entrainment of the concrete mix, which is one of the main factors affecting the frost resistance of concrete is not a simple task. Therefore, it is necessary to constantly improve the process of air‐entrainment of the concrete mix and to constantly control the effectiveness and quality of concrete aeration especially those with low clinker cements. In the paper effect of de‐icing salts on air‐entrained by polymer microspheres and traditional air‐entraining admixtures low clinker concrete was evaluated. The conducted tests indicate that low‐clinker concretes made with the use of polymer microspheres, despite greater repeatability in shaping the correct air‐entrainment structure, are characterized by lower resistance to frost in the presence of de‐icing salts compared to traditionally air‐entrained concretes. This mechanism will be investigated in future work.

Connecting material degradation and power loss of PV modules using advanced statistical methodology

The presented work focuses on the influence of different stress combinations (in climate-specific ageing tests) on polymer material degradation and electrical power loss of PV modules and how these data can be linked using advanced statistical methods. The statistical analysis is divided into three parts: in the first part, the direct effects of the climatic stresses on the electrical performance are assessed. The second part aims to correlate the electrical degradation behaviour with changes in the encapsulation material, and the third part does the same for the backsheet material of the modules.Time series of electrical data are extracted from IV curves and correlated with changes in material parameters obtained from fluorescence spectroscopy of the encapsulant as well as infrared spectroscopy and colour measurements of the backsheet. The data set analyzed consists of measurements that were taken throughout accelerated ageing experiments simulating stressors typically found for arid, tropical, moderate, and alpine climate zones. Significant correlations were found between the material changes - as indicated by the spectral measurements - and the electrical power loss of the test modules in the course of climate-specific ageing.The results of the analysis provide valuable input for possible measures of preventive maintenance based on condition monitoring of single modules. The methodology developed in this paper allows for an estimation of the power output for modules with identical design and bill of materials using simple, non-destructive measurement methods. The results from accelerated lab tests and the correlations determined from them can be used to predict the electrical power output of installed PV modules. As a result, deviations in module performance can be detected at an early stage and preventive maintenance measures in PV systems can be carried out.

Comparison of Most Popular Buildings Performance Simulation Tools

A critical procedure in sustainable building design is the building energy performance assessment, which has significant implications for global energy consumption and climate change. This study compares three simulation software programs for a photovoltaic system on a building’s roof. The low-rise residential buildings in three East Mediterranean cities (Amman, Mafraq, and Aqaba) represent moderate drywarm, semiarid, and humid subtropical climate zones were compared using three simulation software programs (IES-VE, DesignBuilder, REVIT) for a typical building with PV on the roof and the second scenario without a PV system installed on the roof. This investigation aims to evaluate the shading effect of the PV system on a building’s roof structure by calculating the total electrical load required to maintain thermal comfort inside the building. The final results showed significant discrepancies between the three software for the base building design and the PV system on the roof, with a range of around 50 %. This highlights the importance of evaluating and calibrating different simulation tools and using them with a great deal of caution.

Tropical red alga <italic>Compsopogon caeruleus</italic>: an indicator of thermally polluted waters of Europe in the context of temperature and oxygen requirements

The red alga Compsopogon caeruleus can generally be found in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. In addition to its natural habitats, this species may be found in waters that receive abnormally hot water, e.g., from powerhouses. To date, the presence of C. caeruleus has not been observed in thermally polluted lacustrine ecosystems in Poland, which has a moderate climate. The thalli of this red alga were found growing on Vallisneria spiralis in Licheńskie Lake. Importantly, this paper presents a previously unknown relationship between the temperature (20, 25, 30, 35, and 40°C) and oxygen requirements of C. caeruleus (based on ex situ measurements of O<sub>2 </sub>consumption by thalli). Surprisingly, 35°C can be the optimum temperature for C. caeruleus, and this temperature is higher than the values reported by some previous thermal analyses by approximately 10°C. Additionally, we reviewed and mapped the distribution of this nonnative and mesophilic red alga in natural / seminatural water ecosystems in Europe. Finally, we propose that the occurrence of C. caeruleus mature thalli can be a novel, simple and easy-to-recognize bioindicator of artificially and permanently heated waters in moderate climate zones by a regular discharge of postindustrial water.

Role of reservoirs of urban heat island effect mitigation in human settlements: moderate climate zone

This paper presents the problem of the increasing negative impact of urban heat islands (UHI) on urban residents based on land surface temperature (LST). It is assumed that water bodies in the agglomeration remain cooler than the air and surrounding urban areas. The study aimed to determine the impact of water bodies and surrounding areas covered by trees on the temperature of an urban area and to minimise the impact of UHI on the life quality of people in the temperate climate zone at day temperatures 25°C (W day) and 29°C (H day). In the adopted research methodology, 167 reservoirs, larger than 1 ha, located within 300 m of urban areas, were analysed. Satellite thermal imagery, spatial land use data (Corine Land Cover), and local land characteristics were used. The average temperature of the reservoirs was appropriately at 4.69°C on W day and 1.9°C for H day lower than in residential areas. The average temperature of areas at a distance of 30 m from the reservoirs was 2.69°C higher onWand 0.32°C higher on H than the water of the reservoirs. The area covered by trees was 0.52°C lower on W day and 0.39°C lower on H day than the residential areas located at a distance of 300 m from the reservoir. On terrestrial areas, the lowest temperature was observed in the area covered by trees within 0–30 m from reservoirs both on warm and hot days. Based on the results of this study, UHI mitigation solutions can be suggested.

Impact of Climate Change on the Energy Consumption of Passenger Car Vehicles

The energy consumption of passenger vehicles is affected by the physical properties of the environment. The ambient temperature in particular has a significant impact on the operating energy consumption. To quantify the impact of a changed climate on vehicles with different drivetrain systems, we set up a model that calculates the change in energy demand with respect to multiple global warming levels. In particular, the effect of rising temperatures on the energy consumption of battery electric vehicles and vehicles with internal combustion engines was investigated. Our results indicate that climate change will likely lead to a rise in energy consumption of vehicles with an internal combustion engine. This is mostly due to the increase in cabin climatization needs caused by the higher ambient temperatures. At a global warming level (GWL) of 4.0 °C, the calculated annual energy consumption on average is 2.1% higher than without taking the climate-change-related changes in temperature into account. Battery electric vehicles, on the other hand, are expected to have a lower overall energy consumption (up to −2.4% at 4 °C GWL) in cold and moderate climate zones. They benefit from the lower heating needs during winter caused by global warming.

On Solar Radiation Prediction for the East–Central European Region

The aim of this paper is to present the results of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model of solar radiation for moderate climatic zones. This analysis covered the area of northeastern Germany. Due to very unfavorable solar energy conditions in this region for at least 1/3 of the year, we decided to select the dates with the most representative conditions: passing warm fronts, cold fronts, and occluded fronts (two cases each). As the reference, two cloudless conditions during high-pressure situations were chosen. Two different shortwave radiation schemes—Rapid Radiative Transfer Model for general circulation model (RRTMG) and Dudhia—were tested. The obtained results were compared with in situ data measured at Deutscher Wetterdienst (DWD) stations and then with European Medium-Range Weather Forecast reanalysis (ERA5) data. The results showed that for high-pressure situations, the mean correlations with measured data were above 90%. The Dudhia scheme, in addition to the expected good results for the high-pressure situation, showed better results than RRTMG for the warm and cold fronts as well. The forecast using the RRTMG scheme gave the best results for the occluded front, which were also better than those of the ERA5 model.

Diagnostic traits of medicinal herbal raw material of species of Thymus genus

The paper presents the peculiarities of morphological-anatomical structure of the organs, which are diagnostic traits of herbal raw materials (HRM) of the commonest species of Thymus L. genus in the moderate climatic zone. We determined that the studied species develop a subshrub life form, which grows monopodially in Th. pulegioides and Th. marschallianus, and sympodially with mono-, di- and polycyclic types of monocarpic shoots in Th. serpyllum. Inflorescence is of thyrsoid type with opposite partial inflorescences, which are constituents of simple dichasia with monochasia. Macroscopic and microscopic diagnostic features of the HRM are structure and pubescence on the stem, leaves and flowers, the anatomical structure of which was studied on 20 µm thick transversal sections using a light microscope. In Th. pulegioides, stems are tetrahedral, pubescent on ribs with unicellular and two-cellular elbow-shaped hairs. Leaves are ovoid, covered by multiangular epidermis that bears diacytic stromas, sharpened capitate unicellular and two-cellular hairs and 10–12 cellular essential oil glandules. In Th. marschallianus, the stems are poorly tetrahedral, rounded, pubescent on the entire surface. Leaves are elliptic, the cells of the epidermis are elongated, significantly tortuous, with 10–12 cellular glandules, diacytic stromas, capitate and unicellular hairs. In Th. serpyllum, the stems are cylindric, pubescent all round. The leaves are elongated-elliptic, epidermis cells are oval, tortuous, stromas are diacytic, essential oil glandules are 8–10 cellular, number of papilla-like hairs is low. The petioles and lamina base of the studied species are pubescent on the sides with short, coned and elbow-shaped, 2–3 cellular hairs, among which there are long, 4–8 cellular hairs; the hairs in Th. serpyllum are multicellular, interrupted. In mesophyll, there are schizogenous essential oil reservoirs. In Th. marschallianus and Th. pulegioídes, the calyx is campanulate, bilabiate, and pubescent. The flower corolla is purple-violet, bilabiate, has tube and outward bend, pubescent inside with coned unicellular hairs, has essential oil glandules and glandular capitate hairs, and pubescence in the fauces comprises long unicellular hairs. In Th. pulegioídes, cells of the corolla epidermis are multiangular-shaped with insignificantly wavy walls, in Th. marschallianus ‒ rectangular with significantly wavy walls. Cells of the tube epidermis are rectangular, tortuous. Surface of the corolla of Th. serpyllum is pubescent on both sides with short, cone-like and three-cellular, interrupted hairs, and also capitate hairs, and has essential oil glandules. Epidermis cells are multi-angular, tubes – rectangular and narrow. The obtained results may be used for diagnostics of HRM of morphologically similar species during their preparation.

Heat resilience of apartment buildings in Korea and Germany: comparison of building design and climate

A major concern in climate adaptation is to enhance the heat resilient design of residential buildings. However, recent scientific literature addressing overheating analysis is only focussing on individual countries. In this article, we discuss how different design of representative apartment buildings in two countries influences the overheating risk or cooling demand and what conclusions can be drawn from it. This is done for a low-rise apartment building located in Germany and a high-rise building in South Korea applying building performance simulation. Both countries are located in the moderate climate zone, but regional differences in frequency of tropical nights and radiant summer days lead to significant differences in overheating intensity (800 Kh/a for the German and 5100 Kh/a for the Korean) or cooling demand (1800 kWh for the German to 1300 kWh for the Korean). The lower cooling demand but much higher overheating intensity of the Korean building compared to the German is mainly caused by the different solar heat gain due to the glazed balcony design of the Korean building where these balcony rooms are not actively cooled. On the contrary, the common internal façade insulation of Korean buildings results in a higher overheating risk compared to the German building and in addition the lower potential of passive cooling by natural ventilation due to the necessity of insect screens in Korea. The large effect of implementing heat adaptation measures on overheating risk reduction or cooling demand (up to 90%) clearly demonstrates that both buildings are far away from a heat resilient design and that heat adaptation measures can address both climate change adaptation and mitigation.

Temperature conditions during commercial transportation of cull sows to slaughter

Management of ambient temperature is central in sow production, but temperature in commercial trucks transporting sows has only received limited scientific focus. We aimed to describe temperature inside trucks depending on season and on shifts in state of the trucks (‘non-stationary’, ‘stopped’, ‘waiting’) transporting sows (up to 8 h) to slaughter. Temperature outside the trucks was described during the last part of the journeys, and compared with temperature inside the trucks. Data were collected during 12 months and included 39 commercial journeys. We measured temperature (°C) inside trucks every minute in one compartment holding sows at commercial density. Data for temperature outside the trucks were collected from an official weather station near the slaughterhouse. Mean journey duration was 233 ± 114 min (range 47–470 min). From GPS-data, 26 of the journeys involved at least one stop lasting 5 min or more. Stops had a mean duration of 14 ± 8 min (range 5–40 min). Mean temperature inside trucks during journeys was 13.8 ± 5.3 °C (3.3–26.0), and differed between seasons. During journeys, temperature inside trucks increased during stationary periods. When compared to the outside temperature during 10 min before arriving at the slaughterhouse, and in the first 10 min of waiting after arrival, the mean temperature difference between inside and outside the truck ranged from 3 to 7 °C.The results suggest that in a moderate climatic zone like Denmark, temperature in trucks transporting sows to slaughter was not maintained within the thermal comfort zone of sows, and increased during stationary periods. This may have adverse consequences in terms of animal welfare. Future studies of optimization of transport management, ventilation and logistics are needed to examine possibilities to maintain temperatures in the comfort zone.

Thermal analysis of 8.5 MVA disk-type power transformer cooled by biodegradable ester oil working in ONAN mode by using advanced EMAG–CFD–CFD coupling

Power transformers are the first devices used to transfer the electrical energy produced in power plants to the grid to supply the industrial and individual receivers with electricity. The heat generation in windings and core, being an effect of the power losses, is usually dissipated in large units by using mineral oils, which are harmful to the environment. Nowadays, the industry and global society seek environmentally-friendly alternatives. One of the most promising substitute for their high biodegradability, safety in operation, and favourable thermo-physical properties are natural ester oils. For this reason, a numerical study of 8.5 MVA disk-type power transformer cooled using conventional mineral oil and a commercially used rapeseed ester oil is presented in this paper. Moreover, due to different thermal behaviour of the considered oils, the comparison was made for the unit working in different seasons of hot and moderate climate zones (Argentina and Poland). In the numerical approach, electromagnetic (EMAG) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models were used for a detailed study of the selected device. In particular, a novel and very efficient EMAG–CFD–CFD coupling procedure was developed to assess the cooling of the large power transformer. Such a coupled computational procedure allowed for the detailed investigation of the power loss, oil flow characteristics, and temperatures with a satisfying computational effort. The results showed that the average windings temperatures are higher by 2–9 K when the ester oil is used, dependent on the ambient conditions. The hotspot temperature in the low voltage windings increased by up to 9 K and up to 18 K in the high voltage windings using ester oil. According to the results, the oil duct construction requires modification in the high voltage region for transformers cooled using mineral oil in cold climate conditions.

The role of extreme temperature in cause-specific acute cardiovascular mortality in Switzerland: A case-crossover study

Since the 2003 heatwave in Europe, evidence has been rapidly increasing on the association between extreme temperature and all-cause mortality. Little is known, however, about cause-specific cardiovascular mortality, effect modification by air pollution and aircraft noise, and which population groups are the most vulnerable to extreme temperature. We conducted a time-stratified case-crossover study in Zurich, Switzerland, including all adult cardiovascular deaths between 2000 and 2015 with precise individual exposure estimates at home location. We estimated the risk of 24,884 cardiovascular deaths associated with heat and cold using distributed non-linear lag models. We investigated potential effect modification of temperature-related mortality by fine particles, nitrogen dioxide, and night-time aircraft noise and performed stratified analyses across individual and social characteristics. We found increased risk of mortality for heat (odds ratio OR = 1.28 [95% confidence interval: 1.11–1.49] for 99th percentile of daily Tmean (24 °C) versus optimum temperature at 20 °C) and cold (OR = 1.15 [0.95–1.39], 5th percentile of daily Tmean (−3 °C) versus optimum temperature at 20 °C). Heat-related mortality was particularly strong for myocardial infarctions and hypertension related deaths, and among older women (>75 years). Analysis of effect modification also indicated that older women with lower socio-economic position and education are at higher risk for heat-related mortality. PM2.5 increased the risk of heat-related mortality for heart failure, but not all-cause cardiovascular mortality. This study provides useful information for preventing cause-specific cardiovascular temperature-related mortality in moderate climate zones comparable to Switzerland.

Dependence of milk production of dairy sheep on climate conditions

Article Details: Received: 2020-10-14 | Accepted: 2020-11-27 | Available online: 2021-01-31 https://doi.org/10.15414/afz.2021.24.mi-prap.85-88 The aim of the study was to determine the influence of selected climatic characteristics on the milk production of ewes during lactation. Data of ewes from sheep farm Liptovska Teplicka located in moderate climate zone (latitude 48°57'50.3N, longitude 20°04'31.0E) were analysed. In period from 2017 to 2019, the following milk traits: total morning milk production (TMPM), total evening milk production (TMPE), total morning+evening production (TMPM+E) and average daily milk production per ewe (ADMP) were measured on a daily basis. Traditional (Carpatian) production system was applied: ewes were on pasture and machine milked twice a day. Climate characteristics were monitored in 10-minute intervals by standard weather station (supplier: firm PHYSICUS), located near sheep farm. The influence of air temperature - T (°C), of relative humidity - RH (%), of wind speed (m.s -1 ) and of total precipitation (mm)recorded daily between 5 a.m. and 4 p.m. in period from April to September on milk traits was analysed. Temperature-humidity index (THI) was calculated according to National Research formula. The influence of year, of month and of interaction year x month was also analysed. Covariance analysis and Pearson correlation coefficients using statistical programme SASv9.2 (procedures GLM and CORR) were employed. The influence of month and of interaction year x month, respectively, on milk traits was found (P 40.0 and THI <= 68.0). Preliminary results suggest that milk production traits of dairy sheep may be significantly influenced by climate also in moderate climatic zone. Keywords: sheep, thermal stress, milk yield, temperate zone References Al Dawood, A. 2017. Towards heat stress management in small ruminants – a review. Ann. Anim. Sci., 17(1), 59-88. DOI: 10.1515/aoas-2016-0068 Finocchiaro, R., Van Kaam, J.B.C.H.M., Portolano, B., Misztal, I. 2005. Effect of heat stress on production of Mediterranean dairy sheep. J. Dairy Sci. , 88, 1855-1864. Gauly, M., Ammer, S. 2020. Review: Challenges for dairy cow production systems arising from climate changes. Animal,. 14:S1, s196-s203. doi:10.1017/S1751731119003239 Gauly, M., Bollwein, H., Breves, G., Brugemann, K., Danicke, S., Das, G., Demeler, J., Hansen, H., Isselstein, J., Konig, S., Loholter, M., Martinshon, M., Meyer, U., Potthoff, M., Sanker, C., Schroder, B., Wrange, N., Meibaum, B., von Samson-Himmelstjerna, G., Stinshof, Wrenzycki, C., 2013. Future consequences and challenges for dairy cow production systems arising from climate change in Central Europe – a review. Animal, 7, 843-859. doi:10.1017/S1751731112002352 Ramon, M., Diaz, C., Perez-Guzman, M.D., Carabano, M.J. 2016. Effect of exposure to adverse climatic conditions on production in Manchega dairy sheep. J. Dairy Sci., 99 , 5764-5779. http://dx.doi.org/10.3168/jds.2016-10909 Hamzaoui, S., Salama, A.A.K., Albanell, E., Such, X., Caja, G. 2013. Physiological responses and lactational performances of late-lactation dairy goats under heat stress conditions. J. Dairy Sci., 96, 6355-6365 . http://dx.doi.org/ 10.3168/jds.2013-6665 National Research Council (NRC). 1971. A guide to envronmental research on animals. Washington, DC: National Academy of Science. Sanches-Molano, E., Kapsona, V.V., Ilska, J.J., Desire, S., Conington, J., Mucha, S., Banos., G. 2019. Genetic analysis of novel phenotypes for farm animal resilience to weather variability. BMC Genetics., 20-84. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12863-019-0787-z Silanikove, N., N. Koluman (Darcan). 2015. Impact of climate change on the dairy industry in temperate zones: predications on the overall negative impact and on the positive role of dairy goats in adaptation to earth warming. Small Rumin Res ., 123, 27-34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.smallrumres.2014.11.005