Mooresalas6440

all for further research to unveil their role as ecological indicators of small-scale variables or as effect traits. Antibiotics used for human and veterinary purposes are released into the environment, resulting in potential adverse effects, including the development and spread of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Here we investigated the dynamic fate of 36 antibiotics in a large river basin Dongjiang in South China, and discussed their potential antibiotic resistance selection risk. Based on the usage, excretion rate, wastewater treatment rate, human population and animal numbers the emissions of 36 frequently detected antibiotics were estimated for the Dongjiang River Basin. The total usage of the 36 antibiotics in the basin was 623.4 tons, which included 37% for human use and the rest for veterinary purposes. After being metabolized and partially treated, the amount of antibiotics excreted and released into the environment decreased to 267.6 tons. By allocating the high-precision antibiotic discharge inventory to 42 sewage plants and 17 livestock farms, an improved GREAT-ER (Geography referenced Regional Exposure Assessmenof antibiotic resistance. Arsenic accumulation in the environment poses ecological and human health risks. Simufilam A greater knowledge about soil total As content variability and its main drivers is strategic for maintaining soil security, helping public policies and environmental surveys. Considering the poor history of As studies in Brazil at the country's geographical scale, this work aimed to generate predictive models of topsoil As content using machine learning (ML) algorithms based on several environmental covariables representing soil forming factors, ranking their importance as explanatory covariables and for feeding group analysis. An unprecedented databank based on laboratory analyses (including rare earth elements), proximal and remote sensing, geographical information system operations, and pedological information were surveyed. The median soil As content ranged from 0.14 to 41.1 mg kg-1 in reference soils, and 0.28 to 58.3 mg kg-1 in agricultural soils. Recursive Feature Elimination Random Forest outperformed other ML algorithms, ranking as most important environmental covariables temperature, soil organic carbon (SOC), clay, sand, and TiO2. Four natural groups were statistically suggested (As content ± standard error in mg kg-1) G1) with coarser texture, lower SOC, higher temperatures, and the lowest TiO2 contents, has the lowest As content (2.24 ± 0.50), accomplishing different environmental conditions; G2) organic soils located in floodplains, medium TiO2 and temperature, whose As content (3.78 ± 2.05) is slightly higher than G1, but lower than G3 and G4; G3) medium contents of As (7.14 ± 1.30), texture, SOC, TiO2, and temperature, representing the largest number of points widespread throughout Brazil; G4) the largest contents of As (11.97 ± 1.62), SOC, and TiO2, and the lowest sand content, with points located mainly across Southeastern Brazil with milder temperature. In the absence of soil As content, a common scenario in Brazil and in many Latin American countries, such natural groups could work as environmental indicators. BACKGROUND China is experiencing one of the worst air quality problems in the world. China implemented the Air Pollution Prevention and Control Action Plan (APPCAP) and the air quality has recently achieved remarkable improvement. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the associations of variations in annual fine particulate matter (PM2.5) levels and changes in life expectancy in Chinese urban populations from 2013 to 2017. METHOD We collected annual-average concentrations of PM2.5 and average life expectancy of urban residents in 214 cities from 2013 to 2017. We conducted a longitudinal panel analysis applying linear mixed-effect models to evaluate the association between PM2.5 reduction and life expectancy increase with and without adjustment for socioeconomic and medical-care confounders. RESULT The nationwide-average annual PM2.5 concentrations decreased from 67.78 μg/m3 in 2013 to 45.25 μg/m3 in 2017; meanwhile, the average life expectancy of urban residents increased from 78.53 to 79.86 years. A decrease of 10 μg/m3 in PM2.5 was associated with an increment of 0.18 (95% confidence interval 0.06, 0.30) year in life expectancy. After simultaneously adjusting for GDP per capita, smoking prevalence, urbanization rate and maternal mortality, the association turned to be insignificant at the national level, but remained significant in the eastern region with life expectancy gained 0.16 (95% CI 0.04, 0.27) year per 10 μg/m3 reduction of PM2.5. CONCLUSION Lower PM2.5 air pollution might be associated with extended life expectancy in east of China. The implementation of APPCAP during 2013 to 2017 might have resulted in benefits on life expectancy, especially in east of China. Communities across the Western United States face the growing challenge of managing water resources in the face of rapid population growth and climate change. There are two contrasting approaches to understanding and managing residential water demand in this context. Many scientists and water managers see water use as a reflection of individual attitudes and decisions where people are assumed to have the agency to act independently of structural constraints. Conversely, other scientists and policymakers focus on the importance of the built environment and the broader social, economic, and policy contexts within which households make water decisions. Using multilevel models, we compared attitudinal, demographic, and structural drivers of indoor and outdoor residential water use for a sample of households in Northern Utah. We estimated multilevel mixed-effect Poisson models with robust standard errors using matched household survey data with metered residential water use records. Outdoor water use had a substantially greater amount of neighborhood-level variation than indoor water use. Structural factors generally eclipsed individual agency in our analysis. While indoor use was most strongly predicted by household size, tenure status, and length of residence, outdoor water use was most associated with the built environment (lot size and the presence of vegetable gardens and underground sprinklers), socioeconomic status (household income, rental status), and residents' sensitivity to lawn watering norms. Higher water prices were associated with lower water use, with lower-income households being more responsive to prices than higher-income households. Our findings have important implications for water managers and policymakers.