Browsing by Subject "pollution"
Now showing items 1-6 of 6
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(2019)The Baltic Sea is a vulnerable marine environment and susceptible to pollution. The situation is especially severe in the Gulf of Finland due to a large catchment area compared to the size of the Gulf. The north eastern Gulf of Finland has been described as one of the most contaminated areas of the entire Baltic Sea, with extensive pollution load via river Kymi in the past. Still today, the currents bring contaminants from the eastern part of the Gulf – the Neva estuary and the Bay of Viborg. The concentrations of V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Mo, Cd, Sb, Hg, Pb, Bi and La were studied in the surface sediments and three GEMAX cores. The vertical distribution revealed the temporal change in the metal accumulation. The spike in the Cs concentration, indicating the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, enabled the estimation of the accumulation of studied elements over time. The horizontal distribution maps based on the concentrations in the surface sediments enabled the discovery of the sites with most intense metal accumulation. Correlation coefficients showed the effect of carbon and sediment grain size in the distribution of metals. The comparison of the metal concentrations to the natural background levels and the Canadian sediment quality guidelines (SQGs) enabled the estimation of the degree of contamination of the area. The metal concentrations have declined during the last decades in the north eastern Gulf of Finland, indicating lower contamination input towards present day. However, in the oxidized Ravijoki core, the decline was not that obvious, probably due to metal scavenging by Fe and Mn oxides and bioturbation. The regional metal distribution was strongly affected by the grain size and carbon – most metals showed high positive correlations with carbon and finer sediment fraction. Mn was an exception, showing negative correlations with both carbon and clay, probably due to the Mn reduction at sites with high organic matter accumulation. The regional distribution pattern suggested main Cd pollution arriving from the eastern part of the Gulf. The distribution of Hg, Mo, Cu and Zn also suggested a possible source in the east. High concentrations of Hg, Pb and Cu were discovered in the outlets of river Kymi. According to the Canadian SQGs, the sediments in the north-eastern Gulf of Finland were contaminated. The situation is especially severe in the case of Zn – the higher reference value PEL, above which adverse biological effects frequently occur, was exceeded even in the oxidized Ravijoki sediments. The highest concentrations of the elements with defined SQGs (Cd, Cr, Zn, Cu, Hg, Pb and As) exceeded the lower reference values in the surface sediments, indicating that all these metals could, at least locally, pose a severe threat to benthic species.
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(2023)This study focuses on analyzing dust samples with gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometer. Humans get exposed to dust daily and it is important to know the risks this exposure brings. Dust is a complex, mainly organic matrix, which absorbs compounds easily. Some of these absorbed compounds have adverse effects on human health. To identify these harmful compounds from samples, they must be extracted into a solvent and possibly cleaned, so that they can be analyzed with gas chromatography coupled with a mass spectrometer system. Analysis of dust samples requires the right gas chromatography column, which can separate analytes of interest and a mass spectrometer with an ion source that can be used to analyze the sample qualitatively and/or quantitatively depending on the depth and type of the study. Along with samples, standards are used in quality control of the analysis method and in finding limitations of the method. Methods and results of the studies used in this thesis are compiled into tables. Sources and health effects of found compounds are discussed. In the experimental part of the thesis, analysis of dust samples from Finnish museums was done for the Finnish Institute of Occupational Health. These samples were concentrated and analyzed with gas chromatography coupled with a mass spectrometer system. The system had calibration issues, which had to be solved before the data it provided was usable. After the calibration issue was fixed, the analysis results were obtained and studied. In these results many harmful compounds were found, of which many were related to the preservation of the items housed in the museums. The compounds' health effects were studied and tabulated. These results show that further studies are required for dust samples to avoid exposure to compounds found in them.
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(2020)Oil spillages represent a serious environmental hazard for flora and fauna of marine and coastal ecosystems. Though marine oil spills have decreased since the 1970s, the increasing production of petroleum goods remains a potential source of pollution due to its use and transportation. When aquatic organisms, including fish, are exposed to toxic oil compounds, this can cause sublethal morphological changes and increase mortality. In this context, herring have been frequently studied, and results suggest that particularly herrings eggs and larvae are highly susceptible to oil toxicity. In this thesis, a Bayesian meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the effects of crude and fuel oil on the mortality of herring eggs from the genus Clupea. Observations from laboratory studies, collected during a literature review, served as input for the statistical analysis. To this end, Bayesian inference modeling was applied to generate posterior probability distributions for additional mortality caused by exposure to oil mixtures. Also, oil concentration, oil type, exposure time, and temperature were analyzed to study possible correlations with mortality impacts. The results of this study suggest that acute mortality of exposed herring eggs is similar to mortality observed for individuals exposed to only small concentrations or none at all. Of all evaluated oil types, medium grade crude oil caused the most significant change in instantaneous mortality with increasing oil concentration. Generally, distinct oil types had a greater influence on mortality outcomes than temperatures at the given concentrations. For the lowest temperatures, some correlations for increased mortality were found. Overall, the unexplained variability between the reviewed studies has a relatively small influence on mortality outcomes. In conclusion, the mortality of exposed herrings eggs is most likely delayed due to sublethal effects, rather than immediate, at the modeled concentrations. Altogether, uncertainty amongst the posterior probability distributions is high, indicating a wide possibility range for the monitored parameters' actual values. The reasons for elevated uncertainty likely stem from diverse experimental setups, biological differences between tested species, relatively small sample sizes, and model-related issues. Thus, future research could consider additional variables, information from observational studies and other fish species to reduce uncertainty in mortality outcomes.
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(2020)Oil spillages represent a serious environmental hazard for flora and fauna of marine and coastal ecosystems. Though marine oil spills have decreased since the 1970s, the increasing production of petroleum goods remains a potential source of pollution due to its use and transportation. When aquatic organisms, including fish, are exposed to toxic oil compounds, this can cause sublethal morphological changes and increase mortality. In this context, herring have been frequently studied, and results suggest that particularly herrings eggs and larvae are highly susceptible to oil toxicity. In this thesis, a Bayesian meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the effects of crude and fuel oil on the mortality of herring eggs from the genus Clupea. Observations from laboratory studies, collected during a literature review, served as input for the statistical analysis. To this end, Bayesian inference modeling was applied to generate posterior probability distributions for additional mortality caused by exposure to oil mixtures. Also, oil concentration, oil type, exposure time, and temperature were analyzed to study possible correlations with mortality impacts. The results of this study suggest that acute mortality of exposed herring eggs is similar to mortality observed for individuals exposed to only small concentrations or none at all. Of all evaluated oil types, medium grade crude oil caused the most significant change in instantaneous mortality with increasing oil concentration. Generally, distinct oil types had a greater influence on mortality outcomes than temperatures at the given concentrations. For the lowest temperatures, some correlations for increased mortality were found. Overall, the unexplained variability between the reviewed studies has a relatively small influence on mortality outcomes. In conclusion, the mortality of exposed herrings eggs is most likely delayed due to sublethal effects, rather than immediate, at the modeled concentrations. Altogether, uncertainty amongst the posterior probability distributions is high, indicating a wide possibility range for the monitored parameters' actual values. The reasons for elevated uncertainty likely stem from diverse experimental setups, biological differences between tested species, relatively small sample sizes, and model-related issues. Thus, future research could consider additional variables, information from observational studies and other fish species to reduce uncertainty in mortality outcomes.
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(2021)Recognizing and evaluating the benefits of trees is important for creating sustainable, safe and recreational urban spaces. i-Tree Eco software is developed by USDA for evaluation and valuation of ecosystem services of urban trees and forests. The objective of this research was to find out how does the quality of collected data affect i-Tree Eco modelling. Two different types of data and modelling results were compared in this research. All trees of the park Kupittaanpuisto in Turku were measured and evaluated according to the i-Tree guidance in late summer 2018 (later inventory). The contrasting data was selected from the tree register maintained by the city of Turku (later tree register). i-Tree Eco models several ecosystem services, of which carbon storage, carbon sequestration, avoided surface water runoff and pollution removal were analyzed in this research. The software estimates the structural value of the trees considering the land use and tree condition as well. The results show that the quality of data affects modelling results. Based on the total inventory data, the amounts of carbon sequestration, avoided surface water runoff and pollution removal were higher than the amounts modelled according to the tree register data. On the other hand, the structural value and carbon storage were bigger based on the register data than on the total inventory measurements. Lack of canopy dimensions and estimates of canopy condition had an impact on the modelling results. According to the total inventory, there were 1315 trees in the Kupittaanpuisto (ca. 34 ha), the structural value was approx. 2 430 000 €, carbon storage was 563 t, annual carbon sequestration 12 t, annual avoided surface water runoff 811 m3 and annual pollution removal 307 kg. On grounds of this research it can be stated that canopy measurements and canopy condition estimates are needed to make more accurate estimates of ecosystem services when using i-Tree Eco. This research showed that trees in the Kupittaanpuisto produce many ecosystem services and the trees are valuable. In the future, the results can be used as a reference for other research projects on ecosystem services of urban trees in the Nordic countries.
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(2021)Recognizing and evaluating the benefits of trees is important for creating sustainable, safe and recreational urban spaces. i-Tree Eco software is developed by USDA for evaluation and valuation of ecosystem services of urban trees and forests. The objective of this research was to find out how does the quality of collected data affect i-Tree Eco modelling. Two different types of data and modelling results were compared in this research. All trees of the park Kupittaanpuisto in Turku were measured and evaluated according to the i-Tree guidance in late summer 2018 (later inventory). The contrasting data was selected from the tree register maintained by the city of Turku (later tree register). i-Tree Eco models several ecosystem services, of which carbon storage, carbon sequestration, avoided surface water runoff and pollution removal were analyzed in this research. The software estimates the structural value of the trees considering the land use and tree condition as well. The results show that the quality of data affects modelling results. Based on the total inventory data, the amounts of carbon sequestration, avoided surface water runoff and pollution removal were higher than the amounts modelled according to the tree register data. On the other hand, the structural value and carbon storage were bigger based on the register data than on the total inventory measurements. Lack of canopy dimensions and estimates of canopy condition had an impact on the modelling results. According to the total inventory, there were 1315 trees in the Kupittaanpuisto (ca. 34 ha), the structural value was approx. 2 430 000 €, carbon storage was 563 t, annual carbon sequestration 12 t, annual avoided surface water runoff 811 m3 and annual pollution removal 307 kg. On grounds of this research it can be stated that canopy measurements and canopy condition estimates are needed to make more accurate estimates of ecosystem services when using i-Tree Eco. This research showed that trees in the Kupittaanpuisto produce many ecosystem services and the trees are valuable. In the future, the results can be used as a reference for other research projects on ecosystem services of urban trees in the Nordic countries.
Now showing items 1-6 of 6