Non-point Emissions Research Articles

Identification of point and nonpoint emission sources of neonicotinoid pollution in regional surface water

Neonicotinoid insecticides are widely applied in farmland, with high detection rates in soils and surface waters, posing potential risks to biodiversity and human health. As a nonpoint emission, surface runoff is widely regarded as the major source of neonicotinoid pollution in surface waters, but few studies have determined the point source contribution to rivers that may be primarily from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Here, we collected the surface water from eight river basins in Zhejiang Province of China and quantified residual concentrations of eight widely commercialized neonicotinoids. Four of these were detected in all samples, with concentrations of dinotefuran and nitenpyram of 119 ± 166 and 87.6 ± 25.3 ng/L, respectively, representing more than 90 % of the total (282 ± 174 ng/L). Neonicotinoid residues were higher in tributaries due to nearby farmland and more dilution effects in the mainstream, and the residues were higher in lower reaches which can be explained by the water flow direction. Significant spatial differences in neonicotinoid distribution between surface water and agricultural soils result from environmental factors (e.g., water turbidity, precipitation, temperature) impacting migration and transport processes. Neonicotinoid residues in surface water showed a significant positive correlation with total WWTP emissions after adjusting for environmental factors. Conversely, no significant association was observed with cropland density (a nonpoint emission source), indicating that point emission source (contributing 20.6 %) predominantly influenced neonicotinoid residue spatial variation in river basin-scale surface water.

Variation Analysis of Long-term TN concentration and influencing factors in Miyun Reservoir in China

<p>The total nitrogen (TN) is the key indicator for the eutrophication of Miyun Reservoir. Base on the long-term series of remote sensing, hydrological and water quality observation data, this paper comprehensively analyzed the trend of water quality especially the TN concentration and its influencing factors over 30 years in Miyun reservoir. The development trends of the TN concentration during the 14th Five Year Plan Period were predicate with the designed water quality scenarios simulations. The results showed that the water covered area of Miyun reservoir was reduced from 1986 to 2004 and enlarged from 2004 to 2020, and the smallest water covered area was about 56.4km2 in 2004 while the largest was about 170.7km2 in 2020. For the regional rainfall and artificial water storage, the inflow of Miyun reservoir is much greater than the water intake, and this is the main reason for the water covered area increased. From 1988 to 2020, TN contents in the inflow water of Chaohe river and Baihe river were generally in upward trends, with annual upward rates of 0.16 mg/L and 0.05 mg/L at the 99% confidence levels separately. However, the TN concentrations from Chaohe river and Baihe river presented downward trends for the recent 5 years. And this is own to the emission control and river ecological control measures in the upstream basin of Miyun reservoir. From 1988 to 2020, the annual averaged TN concentration of the main dams in Chaohe and Baihe (BHZB and CHZB) was 1.10±0.32 mg/L and 1.17±0.31 mg/L respectively and in recent 5 years, and significant positive trends were also identified at both two stations with the steadily rising the water level and volume in Miyun reservoir. The lightly increase of TN concentration in recent years in Miyun reservoir was the comprehensive results of external input and self purification capacity. Based on the MIKE21 model of four scenario simulations, the TN concentration of Miyun reservoir will meet the class Ⅱ water quality level (China’s Environmental Quality Standards for Surface Waters, GB3838-2002) under the comprehensive implementation of rural domestic source control and agricultural non-point emission control measures in the upstream basin of Miyun reservoir during the 14th Five Year Plan period.</p>

Evaluating the effects of different pollution reduction scenarios on the total phosphorus concentration of a mountainous river basin in southwest China using SWAT model: a case study of the Donghe River in Baoshan, Yunnan

Abstract Water quality has become a significant concern in many river basins in China due to both point and non-point source pollution. The SWAT model assessed pollution reduction scenarios and their effects on Donghe River basin water quality in southwest China. The calibrated model evaluated existing point and non-point emissions. Three schemes reduced point sources by 30, 60, and 90% and non-point sources by 25, 50, and 75%, respectively. Simulations analyzed annual and monthly total phosphorus (TP) concentrations under the scenarios. Results showed that the scenarios effectively improved water quality, meeting Class IV TP standards annually. However, TP exceeded standards in dry months (January–April, December) under all scenarios. A certain degree of negative correlation (R = −0.52, P = 0.11) between TP and rainfall suggests rainfall that influences TP. Comprehensive measures are needed to achieve standards year-round. In summary, the study found that reducing emissions improved Donghe water quality overall but more work is required to meet standards during dry periods. Rainfall correlates with and may affect TP. The work emphasizes implementing comprehensive approaches for year-round water quality improvements in the basin.

Multilevel air quality evolution in Shenyang: Impact of elevated point emission reduction

Visibility observed at different altitudes is favorable to understand the causes of air pollution. We conducted 4-years of observations of visibility at 2.8 and 60 m and particulate matter (PM) concentrations from 2015 to 2018 in Shenyang, a provincial city in Northeast China. The results indicated that visibility increased with the increasing height in winter (especially at night), and decreased with height in summer (especially at the daytime). PM concentration exhibited opposite vertical variation to visibility, reflecting that visibility degrades with the increase of aerosol concentration in the air. The radiosonde meteorological data showed that weak turbulence in the planetary boundary layer (PBL) in winter favored aerosols’ accumulation near the surface. Whereas in summer, unstable atmospheric conditions, upper-level moister environment, and regional transport of air pollutants resulted in the deterioration of upper-level visibility. Inter-annual variation in the two-level visibility indicated that the upper-level visibility improved more significantly than low-level visibility, much likely due to the reduction in emission of elevated point sources in Shenyang. Our study suggested that strengthening the control of surface non-point emissions is a promising control strategy to improve Shenyang air quality.

Atmospheric mercury sources in a coastal-urban environment: a case study in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Mercury (Hg) is an environmental toxicant dangerous to human health and the environment. Its anthropogenic emissions are regulated by global, regional, and local policies. Here, we investigate Hg sources in the coastal city of Boston, the third largest metropolitan area in the Northeastern United States. With a median of 1.37 ng m-3, atmospheric Hg concentrations measured from August 2017 to April 2019 were at the low end of the range reported in the Northern Hemisphere and in the range reported at North American rural sites. Despite relatively low ambient Hg concentrations, we estimate anthropogenic emissions to be 3-7 times higher than in current emission inventories using a measurement-model framework, suggesting an underestimation of small point and/or nonpoint emissions. We also test the hypothesis that a legacy Hg source from the ocean contributes to atmospheric Hg concentrations in the study area; legacy emissions (recycling of previously deposited Hg) account for ∼60% of Hg emitted annually worldwide (and much of this recycling takes place through the oceans). We find that elevated concentrations observed during easterly oceanic winds can be fully explained by low wind speeds and recirculating air allowing for accumulation of land-based emissions. This study suggests that the influence of nonpoint land-based emissions may be comparable in size to point sources in some regions and highlights the benefits of further top-down studies in other areas.

Mitigating geolocation errors in nighttime light satellite data and global CO2 emission gridded data

Accurate geospatial modeling of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is an essential part of the future of global GHG monitoring systems. Our previous work found a systematic displacement in the high-resolution carbon dioxide (CO2) emission raster data of the Open-source Data Inventory for Anthropogenic CO2 (ODIAC) emission product. It turns out this displacement is due to geolocation bias in the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) nighttime lights (NTL) data products, which are used as a spatial emission proxy for estimating non-point source emissions distributions in ODIAC. Mitigating such geolocation error (~1.7 km), which is on the same order of the size of the carbon observing satellites field of view, is especially critical for the spatial analysis of emissions from cities. In this paper, there is proposed a method to mitigate the geolocation bias in DMSP NTL data that can be applied to DMSP NTL-based geospatial products, such as ODIAC. To identify and characterize the geolocation bias, we used the OpenStreetMap repository to define city boundaries for a large number of global cities. Assumption is that the total emissions within the city boundaries are at the maximum if there is no displacement (geolocation bias) in NTL data. Therefore, it is necessary to find an optimal vector (distance and angle) that maximizes the ODIAC total emissions within cities by shifting the emission fields. In the process of preparing annual composites of the nighttime stable lights data, some pixels of the DMSP data corresponding to water bodies were zeroed, which due to the geolocation bias unreasonably distorted the ODIAC emission fields. Hence, an original approach for restoring data in such pixels is considered using elimination of the factor that distorted the ODIAC emission fields. It is also proposed a bias correction method for shifted high-resolution emission fields in ODIAC. The bias correction was applied to multiple cities from the different continents. It is shown that the bias correction to the emission data (elimination of geolocation error in non-point emission source fields) increases the total CO2 emissions within city boundaries by 4.76% on average, due to reduced emissions from non-urban areas to which these emissions were likely to be erroneously attributed.

Evaluating nighttime lights and population distribution as proxies for mapping anthropogenic CO2 emission in Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos

Tracking spatiotemporal changes in GHG emissions is key to successful implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). And while emission inventories often provide a robust tool to track emission trends at the country level, subnational emission estimates are often not reported or reports vary in robustness as the estimates are often dependent on the spatial modeling approach and ancillary data used to disaggregate the emission inventories. Assessing the errors and uncertainties of the subnational emission estimates is fundamentally challenging due to the lack of physical measurements at the subnational level. To begin addressing the current performance of modeled gridded CO2 emissions, this study compares two common proxies used to disaggregate CO2 emission estimates. We use a known gridded CO2 model based on satellite-observed nighttime light (NTL) data (Open Source Data Inventory for Anthropogenic CO2, ODIAC) and a gridded population dataset driven by a set of ancillary geospatial data. We examine the association at multiple spatial scales of these two datasets for three countries in Southeast Asia: Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos and characterize the spatiotemporal similarities and differences for 2000, 2005, and 2010. We specifically highlight areas of potential uncertainty in the ODIAC model, which relies on the single use of NTL data for disaggregation of the non-point emissions estimates. Results show, over time, how a NTL-based emissions disaggregation tends to concentrate CO2 estimates in different ways than population-based estimates at the subnational level. We discuss important considerations in the disconnect between the two modeled datasets and argue that the spatial differences between data products can be useful to identify areas affected by the errors and uncertainties associated with the NTL-based downscaling in a region with uneven urbanization rates.

Errors and uncertainties in a gridded carbon dioxide emissions inventory

Emission inventories (EIs) are the fundamental tool to monitor compliance with greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and emission reduction commitments. Inventory accounting guidelines provide the best practices to help EI compilers across different countries and regions make comparable, national emission estimates regardless of differences in data availability. However, there are a variety of sources of error and uncertainty that originate beyond what the inventory guidelines can define. Spatially explicit EIs, which are a key product for atmospheric modeling applications, are often developed for research purposes and there are no specific guidelines to achieve spatial emission estimates. The errors and uncertainties associated with the spatial estimates are unique to the approaches employed and are often difficult to assess. This study compares the global, high-resolution (1 km), fossil fuel, carbon dioxide (CO2), gridded EI Open-source Data Inventory for Anthropogenic CO2 (ODIAC) with the multi-resolution, spatially explicit bottom-up EI geoinformation technologies, spatio-temporal approaches, and full carbon account for improving the accuracy of GHG inventories (GESAPU) over the domain of Poland. By taking full advantage of the data granularity that bottom-up EI offers, this study characterized the potential biases in spatial disaggregation by emission sector (point and non-point emissions) across different scales (national, subnational/regional, and urban policy-relevant scales) and identified the root causes. While two EIs are in agreement in total and sectoral emissions (2.2% for the total emissions), the emission spatial patterns showed large differences (10~100% relative differences at 1 km) especially at the urban-rural transitioning areas (90–100%). We however found that the agreement of emissions over urban areas is surprisingly good compared with the estimates previously reported for US cities. This paper also discusses the use of spatially explicit EIs for climate mitigation applications beyond the common use in atmospheric modeling. We conclude with a discussion of current and future challenges of EIs in support of successful implementation of GHG emission monitoring and mitigation activity under the Paris Climate Agreement from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21). We highlight the importance of capacity building for EI development and coordinated research efforts of EI, atmospheric observations, and modeling to overcome the challenges.

Estimation of Nutrient Load on the Kuibyshev Reservoir From the Catchment Area

The present level of external nutrient load and its separate parts on the Kuibyshev reservoir — the largest one on the Eurasian continent, was estimated. The mathematic model for calculating mean annual input of nitrogen and phosphorus from river drainage areas of non-homogeneous structure, and load on water bodies was developed. The main components of the load are the nonpoint nutrient emission by the underlying surface which is currently not affected by agricultural impact, the load generated by agricultural activity, discharges of pollutants from point sources into the hydrographic network of the catchment area and directly into the water-receiving reservoir, and the mass exchange with the atmosphere. The model includes calculating the retention of chemicals by catchments and by their hydrographic network. The model was calibrated against the data of State monitoring for the pilot areas: the catchment area of the Kazanka river (the left bank tributary) and the Sviyaga (the right bank tributary). The nutrient load generated by discharges from point sources of pollution was estimated using statistical reporting data. The values of atmospheric deposition of nitrogen and phosphorus on the surface of the study catchments were calculated using the data of field studies on the chemical composition of deposits. It is shown that implementation of the best available technologies into agricultural practice will not lead to any significant reduction in the nutrient load on the reservoir, because in recent years across most of the study area the rates of application of nutrients with organic and mineral fertilizers have been lower than the average removal of nitrogen and phosphorus with the harvested crops. An approximate estimation of nutrient load on the Kuibyshev reservoir was carried out for the left and the right bank sides of the catchment area. The background (natural) and diffuse (anthropogenic) components of the load are identified

Introducing nonpoint source transferable quotas in nitrogen trading: The effects of transaction costs and uncertainty

Transaction costs and uncertainty are considered to be significant obstacles in the emissions trading market, especially for including nonpoint source in water quality trading. This study develops a nonlinear programming model to simulate how uncertainty and transaction costs affect the performance of point/nonpoint source (PS/NPS) water quality trading in the Lake Tai watershed, China. The results demonstrate that PS/NPS water quality trading is a highly cost-effective instrument for emissions abatement in the Lake Tai watershed, which can save 89.33% on pollution abatement costs compared to trading only between nonpoint sources. However, uncertainty can significantly reduce the cost-effectiveness by reducing trading volume. In addition, transaction costs from bargaining and decision making raise total pollution abatement costs directly and cause the offset system to deviate from the optimal state. While proper investment in monitoring and measuring of nonpoint emissions can decrease uncertainty and save on the total abatement costs. Finally, we show that the dispersed ownership of China's farmland will bring high uncertainty and transaction costs into the PS/NPS offset system, even if the pollution abatement cost is lower than for point sources.

Economic evaluation of agricultural pollution control options for China

Environmental sustainability has become a policy priority in China. In agriculture, China has had major success in rehabilitating desertified lands through programs to convert steeply-sloped cropland to forest and limit grazing on sensitive grasslands. However, little has been done in terms of policies for agricultural nutrient management. Runoff and leaching of nutrients in chemical fertilizers and livestock manure are widely acknowledged as significant problems in China. This paper presents an evaluation of agricultural nonpoint pollution control options for China. Options analyzed include design standards (command & control), performance standards, and design and performance incentives. Evaluation criteria include economic efficiency and effectiveness, environmental impact and risk, and social criteria such as equity and food security. The evaluation indicates that the best options for China involve subsidies to farmers for changing production practices in order to reduce nonpoint emissions, combined with appropriate farmer education and technical assistance.

Will urban expansion lead to an increase in future water pollution loads?—a preliminary investigation of the Haihe River Basin in northeastern China

Urban expansion is a major driving force changing regional hydrology and nonpoint source pollution. The Haihe River Basin, the political, economic, and cultural center of northeastern China, has undergone rapid urbanization in recent decades. To investigate the consequences of future urban sprawl on nonpoint source water pollutant emissions in the river basin, the urban sprawl in 2030 was estimated, and the annual runoff and nonpoint source pollution in the Haihe River basin were simulated. The Integrated Model of Non-Point Sources Pollution Processes (IMPULSE) was used to simulate the effects of urban sprawl on nonpoint source pollution emissions. The outcomes indicated that the urban expansion through 2030 increased the nonpoint source total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorous (TP), and chemical oxygen demand (COD) emissions by 8.08, 0.14, and 149.57 kg/km(2), respectively. Compared to 2008, the total nonpoint emissions rose by 15.33, 0.57, and 12.39 %, respectively. Twelve percent of the 25 cities in the basin would increase by more than 50 % in nonpoint source TN and COD emissions in 2030. In particular, the nonpoint source TN emissions in Xinxiang, Jiaozuo, and Puyang would rise by 73.31, 67.25, and 58.61 %, and the nonpoint source COD emissions in these cities would rise by 74.02, 51.99, and 53.27 %, respectively. The point source pollution emissions in 2008 and 2030 were also estimated to explore the effects of urban sprawl on total water pollution loads. Urban sprawl through 2030 would bring significant structural changes of total TN, TP, and COD emissions for each city in the area. The results of this study could provide insights into the effects of urbanization in the study area and the methods could help to recognize the role that future urban sprawl plays in the total water pollution loads in the water quality management process.

The Copper Balance of Cities: Exploratory Insights into a European and an Asian City.

Material management faces a dual challenge: on the one hand satisfying large and increasing demands for goods and on the other hand accommodating wastes and emissions in sinks. Hence, the characterization of material flows and stocks is relevant for both improving resource efficiency and environmental protection. This article focuses on the urban scale, a dimension rarely investigated in past metal flow studies. We compare the copper (Cu) metabolism of two cities in different economic states, namely, Vienna (Europe) and Taipei (Asia). Substance flow analysis is used to calculate urban Cu balances in a comprehensive and transparent form. The main difference between Cu in the two cities appears to be the stock: Vienna seems close to saturation with 180 kilograms per capita (kg/cap) and a growth rate of 2% per year. In contrast, the Taipei stock of 30 kg/cap grows rapidly by 26% per year. Even though most Cu is recycled in both cities, bottom ash from municipal solid waste incineration represents an unused Cu potential accounting for 1% to 5% of annual demand. Nonpoint emissions are predominant; up to 50% of the loadings into the sewer system are from nonpoint sources. The results of this research are instrumental for the design of the Cu metabolism in each city. The outcomes serve as a base for identification and recovery of recyclables as well as for directing nonrecyclables to appropriate sinks, avoiding sensitive environmental pathways. The methodology applied is well suited for city benchmarking if sufficient data are available.

Cost‐effective regulation of nonpoint emissions from pastoral agriculture: a stochastic analysis

Nutrient emissions from pastoral agriculture are a global cause of declining water quality. Their management is complicated through variability arising from climate and soil influences. This paper compares the implications of input‐based policies and direct restrictions on leaching to achieve 10 and 20 per cent reductions in nitrogen (N) load, in the context of pasture‐based New Zealand dairy farms. The most important mitigation practices on these farms are de‐intensification (involving reductions in N fertiliser application and stocking rate) and the application of nitrification inhibitors. A stylised conceptual model, incorporating both sources of variability, is used to identify the implications of alternative policies. Direct restriction of estimated N leaching is the most cost‐effective policy to reduce N leaching by 10 and 20 per cent. These results indicate the general insufficiency of input‐based mechanisms for water quality improvement, given the low correlation between input use and leaching, possible substitution with unrestricted inputs and their failure to motivate the use of mitigation strategies. Additionally, model output indicates that inherent variability in water quality, mainly due to climate influences, can dominate the benefits of regulatory action in any given year.

Gridded Field Observations of Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers and Decabromodiphenyl Ethane in the Atmosphere of North China

Brominated flame retardants (BFRs) such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are important pollutants, yet few data on ambient BFRs levels have been available for North China, one of the most developed regions of the country. In this study, we investigated levels and spatial distributions of BFRs based on gridded field observations coupled with passive air sampling in the aforementioned region. A model incorporating both point and nonpoint sources was developed to simulate the spatial distribution and to achieve source apportionment. Although high concentration was observed at an electronic-waste (e-waste) recycling site, the median level of the sum of tri-, tetra-, hepta-, hexa-, and hepta-PBDEs (∑10PBDEs) was 0.56 ng/sample, which was lower than those observed previously in mainland China. Source apportionment revealed that nonpoint emissions contributed nearly 78% of ∑10PBDEs observed in this study. In contrast, high levels of BDE-209 and DBDPE were observed, with median concentrations of 4.0 and 10.2 ng/sample, respectively. Point sources located in the region around Laizhou Bay, Shandong Province were the major sources, which contributed 31% of BDE-209 and 70% of DBDPE observed in this study, indicating that this manufacturing base was the most important source region for atmospheric deca-BFRs in North China. To our knowledge, this is the first study to report source apportionment of atmospheric BFRs based on gridded field observations.

Spatial distribution of polychlorinated naphthalenes in the atmosphere across North China based on gridded field observations

Polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) belong to a group of dioxin-like pollutants; however little information is available on PCNs in North China. In this study, gridded field observations by passive air sampling at 90 sites were undertaken to determine the levels, spatial distributions, and sources of PCNs in the atmosphere of North China. A median concentration of 48 pg m−3 (range: 10–2460 pg m−3) for ∑29PCNs indicated heavy PCN pollution. The compositional profile indicated that nearly 90% of PCNs observed were from thermal processes rather than from commercial mixtures. Regarding the source type, a quantitative apportionment suggested that local non-point emissions contributed two-thirds of the total PCNs observed in the study, whereas a point source of electronic-waste recycling site contributed a quarter of total PCNs. The estimated toxic equivalent quantity for dioxin-like PCNs ranged from 0.97 to 687 fg TEQ m−3, with the electronic-waste recycling site with the highest risk.

Testing and modeling the influence of reclamation and control methods for reducing nonpoint mercury emissions associated with industrial open pit gold mines

Industrial gold mining is a significant source of mercury (Hg) emission to the atmosphere. To investigate ways to reduce these emissions, reclamation and dust and mercury control methods used at open pit gold mining operations in Nevada were studied in a laboratory setting. Using this information along with field data, and building off previous work, total annual Hg emissions were estimated for two active gold mines in northern Nevada. Results showed that capping mining waste materials with a low-Hg substrate can reduce Hg emissions from 50 to nearly 100%. The spraying of typical dust control solutions often results in higher Hg emissions, especially as materials dry after application. The concentrated application of a dithiocarbamate Hg control reagent appears to reduce Hg emissions, but further testing mimicking the actual distribution of this chemical within an active leach solution is needed to make a more definitive assessment. Implications: Laboratory and field measurements of mercury flux from materials typically found at large open pit gold mines in Nevada indicate that non-point-source mercury emissions are a significant component of total mercury emissions, but that these nonpoint emissions can be significantly reduced by postmining capping and reclamation, and possibly by chemical treatments of leach ore and tailings waste.

Conducting an Agricultural Life Cycle Assessment: Challenges and Perspectives

Agriculture is a diverse field that produces a wide array of products vital to society. As global populations continue to grow the competition for natural resources will increase pressure on agricultural production of food, fiber, energy, and various high value by-products. With elevated concerns related to environmental impacts associated with the needs of a growing population, a life cycle assessment (LCA) framework can be used to determine areas of greatest impact and compare reduction strategies for agricultural production systems. The LCA methodology was originally developed for industrial operations but has been expanded to a wider range of fields including agriculture. There are various factors that increase the complexity of determining impacts associated with agricultural production including multiple products from a single system, regional and crop specific management techniques, temporal variations (seasonally and annually), spatial variations (multilocation production of end products), and the large quantity of nonpoint emission sources. The lack of consistent methodology of some impacts that are of major concern to agriculture (e.g., land use and water usage) increases the complexity of this analysis. This paper strives to review some of these issues and give perspective to the LCA practitioner in the field of agriculture.

Release of Harmful Air Pollutants from Open Burning of Domestic Municipal Solid Wastes in a Metropolitan Area of Korea

Open burning of solid wastes, a potential nonpoint emission source, has recently become a topic of interests, particularly in the metropolitan area of Seoul, Korea. To estimate the effects of irregular open burning on local air quality, we evaluated the emission levels of harmful substances from test combustion of individual types of domestic municipal solid waste (MSW), including paper, wood, and plastics. The emission factors of PM10, PM2.5, PAHs, and heavy metals obtained from laboratory tests differed depending on the combustion material. A brief survey of residents and local government officials showed that more than 10.6% of homes in the metropolitan area have eliminated waste by irregular burning. Based on the public survey in the test area, the average annual emissions of hazardous materials from frequent open burning was estimated to be 71 tons for PM10, 46.6 tons for PM2.5, 914 kg for heavy metals, and 67 kg for PAHs. Open burning creates nearly 0.44% of regional air pollution from PM10.

Procedure for restoration of environmental damage resulting from non-point source emissions

The paper examines the notion of non-point source emission as well as legal methods, procedures, for restoration of environmental damage. It is pointed out that non-point source pollution is generated from several polluters. Joint activity of polluters calls for measures of ecological restoration, instead of tort proceedings. However, non-point source emissions may result in standard case tort provided human health is affected, lives are lost or property is damaged or destroyed. In this article two types of tort proceedings are being examined: those initiated by an action for elimination of the source of pollution, when the environmental risk is emerging and an action for compensation of damages, when the damage has already occurred, prior to the action being filed. Further, the author points to the problem of causation given that with non-point emissions each individual act of emission does not cause damage by itself; however it contributes to an emergence of damage in joint activity with other emissions. For these reasons, lawmakers opted for joint and severe liability in cases of non-point emissions.