API src

Found 56 results.

Related terms

Effect of weed management strategies on the risk of enteric pathogen transfer into the food chain and lettuce yield and quality

Das Projekt "Effect of weed management strategies on the risk of enteric pathogen transfer into the food chain and lettuce yield and quality" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Bonn, Institut für Organischen Landbau durchgeführt. The risk of pathogen transfer from soil to plant, here: lactuca sativa var. capitata, under organic farming conditions is to be investigated within the scope of the QLIF project. When brute fertilisers are applied during production, a health risk by consuming raw eadibles, as e.g. lettuce, is often discussed because of the demanding high standard of sanitation. The type of fertiliser might promote transfer of Enterobacteriaceae, and among these possibly human pathogens. Splash-effects during rainfall and irrigation as well as transfer of soil particles during mechanical weed control. Risks of the pathogen transfer into lettuce will be examined by use of different fertilisation and weed control management strategies, the latter being compared regarding their effectiveness in reducing pathogen transfer. Different field trials with organic fertilisation will be performed in 2006 and 2007. The contents of Enterobacteriaceae, coliforms and E. coli are used as sanitation indicators for the assessment of the effectivity of weed control strategies. Therefore, the contents will be measured in soil as well as in plants. Furthermore, the quality of lettuce will be acquired by analyses of nutrient composition and morphological measurements.

Water and global Change (WATCH)

Das Projekt "Water and global Change (WATCH)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Potsdam-Institut für Klimafolgenforschung e.V. durchgeführt. Der globale Wasserkreislauf ist ein integraler Teil des Erdsystems. Er spielt eine zentrale Rolle in der globalen atmosphärischen Zirkulation, kontrolliert den globalen Energiekreislauf (mittels der latenten Wärme) und hat einen starken Einfluss auf die Kreisläufe von Kohlenstoff, Nährstoffen und Sedimenten. Global gesehen ist das Angebot an Frischwasser bei weitem größer als die menschlichen Bedürfnisse. Allerdings ist davon auszugehen, dass gegen Ende des 21. Jahrhunderts diese Bedürfnisse die gleiche Größenordnung erreichen werden wie das gesamte verfügbare Wasser. Für diverse Regionen jedoch übersteigt der Wasserbedarf (u.a. für die Landwirtschaft sowie die Nutzung in der Industrie und in den Haushalten) schon heute das regionale Angebot. Ansteigende CO2-Konzentrationen und Temperaturen führen zu einer Intensivierung des globalen Wasserkreislaufs und somit zu einem generellen Anstieg von Niederschlag, Abfluss und Verdunstung. Obwohl die Vorhersagen von zukünftigen Niederschlagsänderungen relativ unsicher sind, gibt es deutliche Hinweise, dass einige Regionen, wie z.B. der Mittelmeerraum, mit einer Abnahme des Niederschlags zu rechnen haben, während in einigen äquatornahen Regionen, wie z.B. Indien und der Sahelzone, der Niederschlag zunehmen wird. Hinzu kommt, dass sich auch jahreszeitliche Verläufe ändern könnten, die neue und manchmal auch unerwartete Probleme und Schäden verursachen können. Eine Intensivierung des Wasserkreislaufs bedeutet wahrscheinlich auch einen Anstieg in dessen Extremen, d.h. vor allem Überschwemmungen und Dürren. Es gibt Vermutungen, dass sich auch die interannuale Variabilität erhöhen wird und zwar einhergehend mit einer Intensivierung der El Nino und NAO-Zyklen, was zu mehr Dürren und großskaligen Hochwassersituationen führen würde. Diese Zyklen sind globale Phänomene, die diverse Regionen gleichzeitig beeinflussen, wenngleich dies oft auf verschiedene Art und Weise passiert.

Ensuring Health and Food Safety from Rapidly Expanding Wastewater Irrigation in South Asia

Das Projekt "Ensuring Health and Food Safety from Rapidly Expanding Wastewater Irrigation in South Asia" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Freiburg, Institut für Umweltsozialwissenschaften und Geographie, Professur für Physische Geographie durchgeführt. Identification the risks and benefits associated with the use of untreated wastewater in urban and peri-urban fodder and vegetable cropping systems in India and Pakistan, with a particular focus on livelihoods, livestock and food safety. The project activities are in Hyderabad (India) and Faisalabad (Pakistan). Main task is the creation of a project GIS database and field mapping.

Phase 1: Earth and Space Based Power Generation Systems

Das Projekt "Phase 1: Earth and Space Based Power Generation Systems" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, Institut für Technische Thermodynamik, Abteilung Systemanalyse und Technikbewertung durchgeführt. This study has to be understood in the frame of the global Energy Policy. A great part of world energy production is currently based on non-renewable sources: oil, gas and coal. Global warming and restricted fossil energy sources force a strong demand for another climate compatible energy supply. Therefore, fossil energy sources will nearly disappear until the end of this century. The question is to find a viable replacement. By using viable' it is meant a low-cost and environmental friendly energy. In other words, the question is to find an alternative to nuclear energy among all proposed but still not mature renewable energies. One of the solutions proposed is solar energy. Yet, two major concerns slow down its development as an alternative: first, it lacks of technological maturity and secondly it suffers from alternating supply during days and nights, winters and summers. The idea proposed by Glaser in the sixties to bypass this inconvenient is to take the energy at the source (or at least, as near as possible): in other words, to put a solar station on orbit that captures the energy without problems of climatic conditions and to redirect it through a beam to the ground. That is the concept of Solar Power Satellites. Its principal feasibility was shown by DOE / NASA in 1970 years studies (5 GW SPS in GEO). Project objectives: This phase 1 study activity is to be seen as the initial step of a series of investigations on the viability of power generation in space facing towards an European strategy on renewable, CO2 free energy generation, including a technology development roadmap pacing the way to establish in a step-wise approach on energy generation capabilities in space. The entire activity has to be embedded in an international network of competent, experienced partners. As part of this, an interrelationship to and incorporation of activities targeting the aims of the EU 6th FP ESSPERANS should be maintained. In particular, the activities related to following objectives are described: The generation of scientifically sound and objective results on terrestrial CO2 emission free power generation solutions in comparison with state-of-the-art space based solar power solutions The detailed comparison and trades between the terrestrial and the space based solutions in terms of cost, reliability and risk The identification of possible synergies between ground and space based power generation solutions The assessment on terrestrial energy storage needs by combining ground based with space based energy generation solutions The investigation of the viability of concepts in terms of energy balance of the complete systems and payback times.

Tsunami Risk ANd Strategies For the European Region (TRANSFER)

Das Projekt "Tsunami Risk ANd Strategies For the European Region (TRANSFER)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum durchgeführt. The project main goal is to contribute to our understanding of tsunami processes in the Euro-Mediterranean region, to the tsunami hazard and risk assessment and to identifying the best strategies for reduction of tsunami risk. Focus will be posed on the gaps and needs for the implementation of an efficient tsunami early warning system (TEWS) in the Euro- Mediterranean area, which is a high-priority task in consideration that no tsunami early warning system is today in place in the Euro-Mediterranean countries. The main items addressed by the project may be summarised as follows. The present Europe tsunami catalogue will be improved and updated, and integrated into a world-wide catalogue (WP1). A systematic attempt will be made to identify and to characterise the tsunamigenic seismic (WP2) and non-seismic (WP3) sources throughout the Euro-Mediterranean region. An analysis of the present-day earth observing and monitoring (seismic, geodetic and marine) systems and data processing methods will be carried out in order to identify possible adjustments required for the development of a TEWS, with focus on new algorithms suited for real-time detection of tsunami sources and tsunamis (WP4). The numerical models currently used for tsunami simulations will be improved mainly to better handle the generation process and the tsunami impact at the coast (WP5). The project Consortium has selected ten test areas in different countries. Here innovative probabilistic and statistical approaches for tsunami hazard assessment (WP6), up-to-date and new methods to compute inundation maps (WP7) will be applied. Here tsunami scenario approaches will be envisaged; vulnerability and risk will be assessed; prevention and mitigation measures will be defined also by the advise of end users that are organised in an End User Group (WP8). Dissemination of data, techniques and products will be a priority of the project (WP9). Prime Contractor: Alma Mater Studiorum-Universita di Bologna; Bologna, Italy.

FuncTional tOOls for Pesticide RIsk assessmeNt and managemenT (FOOTPRINT)

Das Projekt "FuncTional tOOls for Pesticide RIsk assessmeNt and managemenT (FOOTPRINT)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen, Institut für Landschaftsökologie und Ressourcenmanagement durchgeführt. FOOTPRINT aims at developing a suite of three pesticide risk prediction and management tools, for use by three different end-user communities: farmers and extension advisors at the farm scale, water managers at the catchment scale and policy makers/registration authorities at the national/EU scale. The tools will be based on state-of-the-art knowledge of processes, factors and landscape attributes influencing pesticide fate in the environment and will integrate innovative components which will allow users to: i) identify the dominant contamination pathways and sources of pesticide contamination in the landscape; ii) estimate pesticide concentrations in local groundwater resources and surface water abstraction sources; iii) make scientifically-based assessments of how the implementation of mitigation strategies will reduce pesticide contamination of adjacent water resources. The three tools will share the same overall philosophy and underlying science and will therefore provide a coherent and integrated solution to pesticide risk assessment and risk reduction from the scale of the farm to the EU scale. The predictive reliability and usability of the tools will be assessed through a substantial programme of piloting and evaluation tests at the field, farm, catchment and national scales. The tools developed within FOOTPRINT will allow stakeholders to make consistent and robust assessments of the risk of contamination to water bodies at a range of scales relevant to management, mitigation and regulation (farm, catchment and national/EU). They will in particular i) allow pesticide users to assess whether their pesticide practices ensure the protection of local water bodies and, ii) provide site-specific mitigation recommendations. The FOOTPRINT tools are expected to make a direct contribution to the revision of the Directive 91/414/EC, the implementation of the Water Framework Directive and the future Thematic Strategy on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides. Prime Contractor: Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières; Paris; France.

Dynamic Sensing of Chemical Pollution Disasters and Predictive Modelling of their Spread and Ecological Impact (ECODIS)

Das Projekt "Dynamic Sensing of Chemical Pollution Disasters and Predictive Modelling of their Spread and Ecological Impact (ECODIS)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Max-Planck-Institut für marine Mikrobiologie durchgeführt. ECODIS will develop sensor technologies for monitoring the physicochemical reactivity and biological impact of inorganic and organic pollutant species in aquatic systems. ECODIS will also apply these technologies to the study of the short and long term chemical and biological status of aquatic ecosystems following a pollution disaster. Exposure conditions experienced by organisms are defined by the temporal profiles of concentration and speciation of pollutants. These profiles will be quantitatively linked to biological effects via an innovative dynamic approach based on the flux of pollutant species as a key parameter in effective ecosystem quality. The dynamic features of pollutant species distributions over biotic and abiotic components will be a basic component of a new generic dynamic approach for any macroscopic aquatic ecosystem impacted by a pollution disaster event. This will involve the integration of the dynamic features of pollutants with their macroscale transport resulting from diffusion and flows in the water body. One of the major goals of ECODIS is to arrive at a model that includes predicted pollutant species distributions, and ensuing biological risks, in all compartments of the aquatic ecosystem as a function of time and space. Especially in disaster situations, the pollutant sink/source functioning of ecosystems under extreme load will be a key factor in the rate of spread of the disaster impact. ECODIS will couple the sink/source function with the transport modelling and derive the ensuing immediate and long term impact of a given pollution disaster. ECODIS will also open the way for developing sophisticated strategies for dynamic risk assessment and disaster management policies. One of the ultimate goals in ECODIS's action plan is the formulation of a set of guidelines for monitoring, data management, and interpretation of pollution disasters. Prime Contractor: Wageningen Universiteit; Wageningen; Netherland.

Earthquakes, tsunamis and landslides in the Corinth rift, Greece A multidisciplinary approach for measuring, modelling, and predicting their triggering mode and their effects (3HAZ-CORINTH)

Das Projekt "Earthquakes, tsunamis and landslides in the Corinth rift, Greece A multidisciplinary approach for measuring, modelling, and predicting their triggering mode and their effects (3HAZ-CORINTH)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum durchgeführt. The project will contribute to better measure, model, and predict the processes leading to earthquakes, andslides, submarine slides, and tsunamis, and their effect in terms of hazard. The target area is the rift of Corinth,well known for its exceptional activity with respect to these hazards. This work will focus on the western end of the rift, close to the cities of Patras and Aigion, where the risk is highest. We will study the short term seismic hazard with methods involving seismology, geodesy, geophysics, and geochemistry. In addition to strong motion analysis and prediction, transient processes (seismic swarms, 'silent' earthquakes, fluid transients) will be studied, for a better modelling fault mechanics and earthquake preparation processes. In addition to the existing monitoring arrays and data base, specific new instrumentation will be built. Near-real time alarms systems for significant earthquakes will be developed and tested. For the long term seismic hazard, the seismic potential of active faults will be assessed on land and offshore. For submarine slope failures, places of past and future potential slumps will be mapped, and complemented by marine sediment coring and dating on selected places. Scenarios of slope failure and of coseismic displacement of the sea floor will be the inputs for tsunami modelling. The latter will be implemented using the existing high resolution bathymetry for modelling of the wave run up. Early warning alarms will be developed and tested. For landslides, the main objective is to monitor and model the perturbation of the sliding of a well documented active landslide, in response to ground shaking from local earthquakes. Continuous GPS, seismic and tilt monitoring, and repeated advanced geodesy, will quantify sliding rates and constrain first order models. The feasibility of alarm systems will be studied. Prime Contractor: Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris, Sismogénèse, Department de Sismologie; Paris; France.

Integrated Assessment of Vulnerable Ecosystems under Global Change (AVEC)

Das Projekt "Integrated Assessment of Vulnerable Ecosystems under Global Change (AVEC)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Potsdam-Institut für Klimafolgenforschung e.V. durchgeführt. Veränderungen des Klimas, der Biodiversität, der Deposition von Stickstoff, Phosphor und Schwefel sowie der Landnutzung betreffen die Ökosysteme in Europa und die von ihnen für die Gesellschaft bereitgestellten Dienstleistungen. Die Vulnerabilität dieser Dienstleistungen hinsichtlich der genannten Veränderungen kann heute durch moderne wissenschaftliche Techniken bewertet werden. In den vom Projekt durchgeführten Sommerschulen, organisierten Workshops und veröffentlichten Publikationen wurde der gegenwärtige Stand des Wissens über Methoden der Vulnerabilitätsbewertung präsentiert. Themenschwerpunkte waren dabei - die Untersuchung der treibenden Kräfte und Prozesse, die für Umweltveränderungen in Europa verantwortlich sind, - die Evaluation der für die Gesellschaft bereitgestellten Ökosystemdienstleistungen, - eine Diskussion darüber, was Bestandteil einer Bewertung der Vulnerabilität sein sollte, wie z.B. Analyse der Exposition, Sensitivität und Anpassungskapazität, und - wie Stakeholder in die Bewertungsprozesse eingebunden werden können. Enge Zusammenarbeit findet dabei mit dem 'Millennium Ecosystem Assessment' (MA) und der Europäischen Umweltagentur (European Environment Agency - EEA) statt. Hier werden Informationen über die verschiedenen Bewertungsaktivitäten ausgetauscht, um Vorteile und Unterschiede in den Ergebnissen zu identifizieren und zu diskutieren. Zusätzlich sollen effektive Politikstrategien abgeleitet werden und den Entscheidungsträgern in Europa vermittelt werden, welche Ergebnisse für die europäische Politik kurz- oder langfristig die höchste Relevanz haben. Ziele: Ziel ist die Etablierung eines Netzwerks zur Forschung über die Vulnerabilität von Ökosystemen unter Berücksichtigung des globalen Wandels. Dazu werden folgende Aktivitäten durchgeführt: 1. Organisation einer zweiwöchigen Sommerschule in den Jahren 2003 und 2005, 2. Organisation zweier europäischer Workshops zu den Themen Umweltveränderungen und Ökosystemdienstleistungen und 3. Unterstützung von Veröffentlichungen, in denen der Stand des Wissens über Risiken für spezifische Ökosystemdienstleitungen zusammengefasst wird. Insgesamt sollen durch das Netzwerk die Erfahrungen von aktuellen europäischen szenarioorientierten Projekten, die Risiken für Ökosysteme im globalen Wandel bewerten, durch intensiven Austausch verbunden werden. Im ersten Workshop mit dem Titel 'Vulnerability of European ecosystems facing an increasing drought risk' wurden das gegenwärtige Wissen über die Vulnerabilität hinsichtlich eines veränderten Wasserregimes unter besonderer Berücksichtigung von Trockenheit präsentiert. Dabei wurde auf das vergangene und zukünftige Klima, den Einfluss von Landbedeckung und Landnutzung auf das Wasserdargebot und die Wasserverfügbarkeit, die Reaktion von Ökosystemen auf Trockenheit und die Reaktionsmöglichkeiten der europäischen Umweltpolitik fokussiert. usw.

Prevention of salt damage to the built cultural heritage by the use of crystallisation inhibitors (SALTCONTROL)

Das Projekt "Prevention of salt damage to the built cultural heritage by the use of crystallisation inhibitors (SALTCONTROL)" wird vom Umweltbundesamt gefördert und von Universität Münster, Institut für Mineralogie durchgeführt. The project aims to develop a new method for the prevention of salt damage, based on the use of compounds that inhibit the growth of salt crystals. When inhibitors are applied, salt crystallisation within the pores of stones is prevented, allowing the salts to form as non-disruptive efflorescences along the stone surface. The effects of crystallisation inhibitors will be evaluated in different ways, ranging from atomic scale studies to macro-scale crystallisation tests and site trials, to evaluate the possibilities, limits and risks of their use in this new field of application for these products. The use of these inhibitors as a conservation method in the field of cultural heritage requires a profound understanding of the mechanisms and factors that determine the development of salt damage. Hence, several important aspects of salt formation will be investigated, by experiments with and without added inhibitors: (i) the relationship between porosity, threshold supersaturation and salt damage, (ii) the mechanisms of transport of moisture and ions during drying and crystallisation, and (iii) the influence of environmental conditions, including temperature, relative humidity and air speed. The final outcome of the project is the formulation of a tested reliable procedure for the use of crystallisation inhibitors in conservation. Prime Contractor: Universiteit Gent; Gent; Belgium.

1 2 3 4 5 6