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This paper looks at three contaminated communities in southern Europe facing pollution from industrial and mining activity and analyses forms of avoidance behaviour, using both economic and sociological approaches. Based on a quantitative household survey, we show that avoidance behaviour is mainly explained by residential location and socio-economic characteristics. Pollution perception is not statistically correlated to most avoidance behaviour. From in-depth qualitative interviews, we learn more about people's risk perception and whether and why people adopt avoidance behaviour, including discovering some inventive solutions. To conclude, our results cast doubt on the efficacy of current public advisory communications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the role of corporate financial reports in the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) regulatory activities. By tracking the EPA's direct retrieval of SEC filings, we identify three key findings. First, the EPA retrieves a large volume of financial reports, especially from firms in high‐pollution industries. Second, the EPA is more likely to access financial reports during enforcement investigations and significant rule proposals, but less so during compliance monitoring, with patterns varying predictably across firms. Third, the EPA's reliance on financial reports is potentially driven by its demand for information on firm liquidity, solvency, and profitability. Overall, our study highlights the usefulness of financial reports for the EPA as an environmental regulator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aims to characterize three industrial wastewater samples collected from petrochemical, food and beet sugar industries to determine the pollution potential and select the appropriate pre-treatment approach. According to the biodegradability profile of the multi-sourced mixed (composite) sample, the advanced oxidation process (AOPs) namely, Fenton (F) and Electro-Fenton (EF) were adopted as pre-treatment techniques and the operating parameters such as time, type of electrodes, pH, voltage, iron and H2O2 concentrations were critically examined. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was conducted to compare the performance efficiency of F& EF AOPs for treating the composite samples and the total operating costs for both approaches were assessed. The results revealed that, the initial values of the composite sample were 7.11, 19.2, 32.6, 19.3, 937, 1512, 860, 3.9, 2110 and 2.34 for pH, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), Electrical Conductivity (EC), Salinity, BOD, COD, Oil and grease (O&G), Total Phosphorous (TP), Total Suspended Solids (TSS) and Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen (TKN), respectively. In addition, EF process achieved more removal efficiency for COD, O&G, BOD, TSS, and TKN (84.3%, 69%, 85%, 72% and 71.27%) compared to Fenton which displayed 78.43%, 66%, 69%, 70.1%, and 61%, respectively. Moreover, there are statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) between the initial and final (pretreated) values of the composite industrial wastewater for the addressed parameters and EF was significantly (p < 0.05) more effective than F process. The total operating costs were 3.117 and 2.063$ for F and EF, respectively, which confirmed that EF is more efficient and cost effective than F process. It was concluded that electro-Fenton process is favorable, eco-friendly and cost-effective option for pretreating real complicated multi-sourced industrial wastewater. The present study demonstrated a new avenue for achieving efficient management of industrial wastewater generated from similar industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the growing concerns over environmental degradation and the demand for sustainable development, the Chinese government has implemented several fiscal incentive policies to enhance environmental governance. Taking the phased comprehensive demonstration cities of the Energy Saving and Emission Reduction Fiscal Policy (ESERFP) as an exogenous shock, this study uses a staggered difference-in-differences method to evaluate the impact of the fiscal incentive policy on pollution control using panel data from 268 prefecture-level cities in China from 2003 to 2017. The results indicate that the industrial pollutant emissions in the demonstration cities significantly decreased compared with those in the non-demonstration cities under the influence of the ESERFP. Specifically, industrial wastewater discharges in the demonstration cities decreased by 15.5% while industrial sulfur dioxide emissions decreased by 19.5%. Moreover, promoting industrial structure upgrades and green technology innovations are the main mechanisms of the ESERFP in reducing industrial pollution emissions. Furthermore, the emission-reduction effect of the ESERFP is more significant in areas with more fiscal resources, lower promotion incentives based on local economic performance, greater emphasis on environmental protection, and those with no old industrial bases. Further analysis shows that the positive effect of the ESERFP on pollution control in the demonstration cities remains relatively effective after the demonstration period ends, and the policy does not sacrifice economic dividends. Overall, this study explores the impact of fiscal incentive policies designed to achieve environmental improvements via pollution control, offering valuable fiscal policy insights for China and other developing economies seeking solutions to environmental pollution, including fiscal incentive policy formulation and implementation, fiscal incentives to support regional green transformations, improving the differentiation and precision of fiscal incentives and enhancing environmental performance assessment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water quality monitoring reveals changing trends in the environmental condition of aquatic systems, elucidates the prevailing factors impacting a water body, and facilitates science-backed policymaking. A 2020 hiatus in water quality data tracking in the Lower Passaic River (LPR), New Jersey, has created a 5-year information gap. To gain insight into the LPR water quality status during this lag period and ahead, water quality indices computed with 16-year historical data available for 12 physical, chemical, nutrient, and microbiological parameters were used to predict water quality between 2020 and 2025 using seasonal autoregressive moving average (ARIMA) models. Average water quality ranged from good to very poor (34 ≤ µWQI ≤ 95), with noticeable spatial and seasonal variations detected in the historical and predicted data. Pollution source tracking with the positive matrix factorization (PMF) model yielded significant R2 values (0.9 < R2 ≤ 1) for the input parameters and revealed four major LPR pollution factors, i.e., combined sewer systems, surface runoff, tide-influenced sediment resuspension, and industrial wastewater with pollution contribution rates of 23–30.2% in the upstream and downstream study areas. Significant correlation of toxic metals, nutrients, and sewage indicators suggest similarities in their sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gas turbines are widely used for power generation globally, and their greenhouse gas emissions have increasingly drawn public attention. Compliance with environmental regulations necessitates sophisticated emission measurement techniques and tools. Traditional sensors used for monitoring emission gases can provide inaccurate data due to malfunction or miscalibration. Accurate estimation of gas turbine emissions, such as particulate matter, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides, is crucial for assessing the environmental impact of industrial activities and power generation. This study used five different machine learning models to predict emissions from gas turbines, including AdaBoost, XGBoost, k-nearest neighbour, and linear and random forest models. Random search optimization was used to set the regression parameters. The findings indicate that the AdaBoost regressor model provides superior prediction accuracy for emissions compared to other models, with an accuracy of 99.97% and a mean squared error of 2.17 on training data. This research offers a practical modelling approach for forecasting gas turbine emissions, contributing to the reduction of air pollution in industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to explore whether the over-reliance on political resources hampers corporate technological innovation and the role of environmental regulation in mitigating the adverse effect. A simplified theoretical framework is proposed to combine political ties, environmental regulations, and corporate innovation. Then, based on the data for listed private companies in China's heavy pollution industry, our empirical results show that political relations have negative impacts on both patent licensing and R&D investment, indicating the existence of a political resource curse in listed private companies in China's heavy pollution industry. The transmission mechanisms include mitigating market competition and inducing overinvestment, but increasing the rent-seeking motivation is not a channel through which political connections negatively affect corporate innovation. Further empirical analysis demonstrates that environmental regulations help eliminate the curse effect of political ties on technological innovation at the firm level in China, through increasing market competition and reducing overinvestment. The findings of this paper provide insights for optimizing environmental regulation policies, which are conducive to inducing technical innovation in politically connected enterprises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To provide consistent air purification benefits from urban forests, it is crucial to identify common characteristics that allow for similar experimental setups. This study aimed to analyze P M 10 concentrations in urban forests near pollution sources and understand their mitigation effects. Data from the Asian Initiative for Clean Air Networks, Korea, were used, focusing on three urban forests adjacent to road and industrial pollution sources in Korea, with P M 10 concentrations collected during 2021. Considering high P M 10 concentrations during winter and spring, these seasons were divided into two sub-periods, resulting in six seasonal periods for analysis. To address the right-skewed P M 10 distribution and reduce outlier influence, the Kruskal–Wallis test was used. The results showed that "good" P M 10 levels were lowest in early spring, increasing to a peak in summer before declining. High P M 10 events were concentrated in spring, early spring, and early winter. The Kruskal–Wallis test indicated lower median P M 10 concentrations in urban forests compared to pollution sources in the latter half of the year, while no significant median differences were found in the first half. Distribution visualizations further confirmed that even during high P M 10 periods, all urban forests showed lower P M 10 values compared to pollution sources. In conclusion, P M 10 concentrations in urban forests were consistently lower than in pollution sources across all seasons, demonstrating their effectiveness in air purification at both road and industrial pollution sources. Future research should consider additional variables, such as P M 2.5 , to further explore differences between pollution sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article proposes a difference-in-differences empirical research framework that utilizes the Green Financial Reform and Innovation Pilot Zone (GFRIPZ) implemented in China in 2017 as an exogenous shock to identify the incentive and synergy effect of green finance (GF) on enterprise green innovation (GI). The results indicate that GF effectively stimulates enterprise GI and significantly influences the allocation of external and internal funds among industries. GF effectively stimulates GI in clean and non-polluting industries by increasing debt financing and productive investment. However, it has a punitive effect on debt financing of heavy-polluting industries, and the GI effect on heavy-polluting industries is insignificant, although it enhances R&D investment among industries. GF can produce a good synergistic effect with green policies, but the synergistic effect on non-green policies is not obvious. GF mainly promotes GI in non-state, big, and enterprises in areas with high marketization. Moreover, only the heavy pollution industry presents significant environmental performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Complex mineral mining leads to critical earth's surface disturbance and environmental pollution from industrial waste. This research aims to comprehensively study, assess and show the current scale of the earth's surface disturbances in the largest mining region of Ukraine - the Kryvyi Rih. Ironore Basin and suggests ways to improve the situation based on backfill technologies for the earth's surface rehabilitation and industrial waste utilization. Methods: To identify the forms of surface disturbance, their parameters, and spatial location, satellite images of the region, government statistical data, and a geographic information system software suite were studied. An analysis of the effectiveness of existing reclamation measures for technogenic voids in the region was carried out, and a new concept of surface restoration was proposed using beneficiation tailings, which are difficult to utilize in the region. Results: It has been determined that the contribution of the Kryvyi Rih Iron-ore Basin to waste generation is 92.08% of the total volume of waste accumulations in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and 65.5% in Ukraine as a whole, amounting to 10.7 billion tons. It is determined that 65.25% of the total disturbed land area is industrial waste, 34.76% - quarry cavities and mine failure zones, occupying 49% of the Kryvyi Rih city area. An analysis of waste accumulation density in allotted areas shows that per 1 m2 of land area, on average, 183.5 tons of dump waste rocks and 73.5 tons of beneficiation tailings are placed. Disposal of beneficiation tailings is recognized as a priority, because their utilization is slower, occupy the largest area, creating a risk of dams breaching and intense dusting from tailings dams surface, threatening the environment and public health. For the first time in Ukraine, a concept for the earth's surface rehabilitation for various industrial purposes has been developed based on paste backfill technologies. Discussion: Paste backfill technology implementation is prioritized in the central and northern parts of the city, which can dispose of at least 65-70 million tons of waste in cavities and reclaim about 200 ha of land. The research results are valuable for the development of strategies or programs to overcome the technogenic-ecological crisis in the city. The rehabilitated earth's surface can be usefully involved in various infrastructure projects for the development of the industrial and economic potential of an industrial city such as Kryvyi Rih. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The phenomenon of 'pollution for promotion' has been addressed in the literature from the perspective of tax competition or local protection, but the underlying institutional causes have not been thoroughly discussed. In this study, we put forward the theoretical hypothesis of 'industrial pollution as a last resort due to reliance on commodity taxes' and empirically tested this hypothesis using data on commodity taxes and industrial pollution in prefecture-level cities from 2003 to 2019. Our findings indicate that a 1% increase in the share of GST (Goods and Services Tax) is associated with a significant average increase of approximately 0.51% in industrial pollution. The primary channels through which GST affects industrial pollution include the expansion of production scale amongst heavy polluters, reduced environmental requirements for large taxpayers and increased land development. Commodity tax dependence creates a barrier for local governments to adopt more sustainable economic development models, leading to increased industrial pollution. The findings of this study contribute to a better understanding of the institutional barriers during China's economic transformation, shed light on the responses of firms and governments within existing institutional frameworks, and provide policy insights for transitioning towards high-quality economic development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnesium slag (MS) and fly ash (FA) are industrial wastes that must be utilized in a clean, effective, and massive method to avoid environmental pollution. In this study, the preparation of diopside-augite-based glass-ceramics was theoretically analyzed and experimentally conducted by disposal of MS and FA with chromium oxide (Cr 2 O 3) as a nucleating agent. The thermodynamics analysis first indicated that pyroxene could be the main crystal phase of the target glass-ceramics for the co-utilization of both wastes. The experimental results indicated that the main phase in prepared glass-ceramics samples was diopside ([Ca(Mg, Fe, Al)(Si, Al) 2 O 6 ], and the degree of glass network polymerization was enhanced with the FA in raw material increasing from 50 wt% to 65 wt%. Plus, the crystal size of the prepared glass-ceramics was gradually refined by increasing the FA. The optimized conditions were given as controlling nucleation at 790 °C for 2 h and crystallization at 929 °C for 2 h of the parent glass that derived from 40 wt% MS and 60 wt% FA as raw materials, 1 wt% Cr 2 O 3 as nucleating agent. The resulting glass-ceramics had excellent properties and chemical stability, such as a density of 3.11 g cm−3, bending strength of 101.98 MPa, acid resistance of 98.34 %, and alkali resistance of 99.53 %. This study provided a route to produce eco-friendly glass-ceramics material for architectural decoration by high-efficiency utilization of MS and FA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was to screen air pollution-induced stress in some plant species in the Sejzi industrial region (Isfahan, Iran). An assessment of APTI and other physiological and biochemical features of significant species in the area was conducted across three seasons: spring, summer, and autumn. The physiological and biochemical factors of the following species were evaluated: Limonium persicum, Atriplex lentiformis, Nitraria schoberi, Haloxylon persicum, Tamarix hispida, Zygophyllum atriplicoides, Karelinia caspica, and Prosopis farcta. The physiological factors assessed included acidity and relative humidity content, while the biochemical factors assessed included proline, sugar, ascorbic acid, and total chlorophyll. Subsequently, a thorough evaluation was carried out on the species under investigation to ascertain their biomonitors' capabilities and APTI. The study findings indicated that the species P. farcta, N. schoberi, and K. caspica consistently had high APTI values during the spring, autumn, and summer seasons, classifying them as tolerant plant species. Conversely, the observed traits showed significant fluctuations across the seasons. The investigation's findings indicate that the species L. persicum, N. schoberi, and K. caspica exhibit higher annual averages of chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, total chlorophyll, and carotenoid compared to other species. The examination of the annual variation in the tolerance levels of plant species to pollution ranked from highest to lowest was as follows: N. schoberi, P. farcta, K. caspica, Z. atriplicoides, H. persicum, T. hispida, L. persicum, and A. lentiformis. Moreover, based on the annual average, the primary determinants that impact the APTI in the species being studied include ascorbic acid (35%), leaf acidity (19%), total chlorophyll content (35%), and relative humidity content (69%). Furthermore, a distinct and significant correlation was found between proline and sugar levels and the annual APTI values. Additionally, the species P. farcta had the highest API compared to other species. The study revealed the high potential of some plant species against air pollution induced stress which can be used in air and dust pollution management in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review surveys recent evidence on environmental security, bringing diverse approaches to the subject and evidence relating to different environmental issues into conversation with one another. We focus on the five environmental issues most commonly viewed as having conflict or security effects: climate change, water, forests and deforestation, biodiversity and conservation, and mining and industrial pollution. For each issue, we consider evidence along three dimensions: the impacts of environmental variables on violent conflict, the conflict impacts of policy and development interventions vis-à-vis these environmental issues, and their global policy framing and institutionalization. Through this, we draw particular attention to the poverty and/or inconsistency of the evidence relating to environmental variations, which stands in stark contrast to the extensive evidence on policy and development interventions; noting that policymakers have been much more concerned with the former theme than the latter, we call for this imbalance to be addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2014, China has implemented a unified environmental regulation policy for the livestock industry. With unified environmental regulations across provinces, does the phenomenon of 'pollution havens' still exist? To address this question, this paper examines spatial variations among provinces and their spillover effects on the pig industry using data on environmental regulations and pig production panels. The results indicate that: (1) Environmental regulation policies are gradually converging across regions. (2) Under unified environmental regulation, the existence of 'pollution havens' in the pig industry is no longer evident. As national regulations become stronger, increasing local regulatory intensity will not affect the number of pig farms in neighboring areas nor lead to significant emigration of such farms. (3) In cases where there are inter-regional variations in environmental regulations, large-scale farmers may relocate to neighboring areas with less stringent regulations; however, under unified environmental regulation, neither small nor large-scale farmers will migrate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hexavalent chromium (Cr[VI]) is a widespread environmental pollutant in air and water that is primarily attributed to industrial pollution. The current maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) for drinking water from the World Health Organization and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (0.05 and 0.1 mg/L, respectively) were set based on contact dermatitis and warrant further toxicological investigation. While Cr(VI) is neurotoxic and accumulates in the brain, most animal studies only report whole-brain Cr, leaving large knowledge gaps. Few studies consider differences between ages or sexes, and fewer consider essential metal dyshomeostasis. We sought to investigate where Cr accumulates in the brain, considering sex and age differences, following a 90-day drinking water exposure to current MCLs. Here, we report Cr levels in six brain regions of rats exposed to drinking water Cr(VI). We observed Cr only accumulated in the hippocampus, and only in older females. We further assessed changes to essential metals in the hippocampus, observing opposite effects across sexes and between young rats compared to older rats. In sum, our data indicate drinking water Cr(VI) selectively targeted the hippocampus, with geriatric females accumulating the most Cr, and induced significant essential metal dyshomeostasis even in tissues lacking evident Cr accumulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Magnisi peninsula is a small portion of land located near the largest Italian petrol-chemical pole of Augusta–Priolo–Melilli (40 km2), which, since the 1950s, devastated the local environment and landscape and unloaded directly into the sea an impressive quantity of pollutants. Unlike the terrestrial part of the area, where a Natural Oriented Reserve (NOR) called “Saline di Priolo” was established in the 2000s, no concrete legislative action has been implemented or proposed for the marine environment. At the same time, the fauna of the marine environment has not been studied in the same way as that of the terrestrial environment. As concerns the molluscan fauna, most of the information dates back to the 1800s. These studies were exclusively focused on the shells of some mollusks in the area. Instead, no study related to this area has ever been carried out on the group of sea slugs. This study conducted between 2022 and 2023, through snorkeling activities, allowed to provide the first faunistic list of the sea slugs of this area, together with information on the biology and ecology of these gastropods, highlighting the potential biodiversity present in this small stretch of coastline affected by high industrial pollution.

In the context of the rapid integration of artificial intelligence and the real economy, exploring the effects of intelligent transformation on the quality of green innovation in enterprises is of great practical significance. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the impact mechanism of intelligent transformation on the green innovation quality of enterprises based on panel data of listed enterprises in China from 2007–2019. We found that intelligent transformation promotes the improvement of corporate green innovation quality, and the results were robust. Furthermore, intelligent transformation improves the green innovation quality of enterprises through the mediating effects of human capital, research and development expenditure, information sharing effect and factor allocation efficiency. The development of the Internet, the implementation of the National Big Data Comprehensive Pilot Zone and the Broadband China strategy have all strengthened the green innovation quality improvement effect of intelligent transformation. The green innovation quality enhancement effect of intelligent transformation is heterogenous with regard to region, industry factor intensity, industry pollution level and enterprise ownership. Finally, this study provides important policy implications based on its empirical results. Future research should develop more suitable and comprehensive indicators, and focus on the latest data acquisition status to ensure timeliness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban industrial pollution plays a dominant role in environmental pollution in China. Exploring the digital governance path of urban industrial pollution can provide strong support for improving environmental quality. This article empirically investigates the role and path of digitalization in the governance of urban industrial pollution from three dimensions: economic scale, structural scale, and technological scale. The results show that there is an inverted "U"-shaped relationship between digitalization and urban industrial pollution, with initial promotion followed by suppression. Among them, economic scale, industrial transformation and upgrading, and green innovation are the paths for digital governance of urban industrial pollution. In addition, there is a chain path of "green innovation-industrial transformation and upgrading" between the two. Through spatial Durbin model and regional heterogeneity analysis, it is found that digitalization has a spatial spillover effect on urban industrial pollution control, and eastern regions, regions with high economic development level and industrialized cities benefit more from digital urban industrial pollution control. The research conclusions of this article provide references for the Chinese government to formulate relevant policies, deepen the integration of digitalization and urban industrial pollution, and promote digital governance of urban industrial pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, heavy rainfall disasters linked to climate change have become more frequent, raising concerns about the release of chemicals stored in factories. Assessing chemical contamination during such emergencies therefore necessitates the development of a quick and easy method for evaluating hazardous contaminants in combination with toxicity testing. This study proposes a "toxicity screening" method that combines biological response testing and chemical analysis to systematically evaluate hazardous contaminants in emergency situations. The toxicity screening method evaluates the water quality in three steps, including water quality measurements and a delayed fluorescence (DF) assay, metal content measurements and a DF assay, and targeted screening analysis and a DF assay. The efficacy of this method was tested using industrial wastewater from 14 locations. Seven of the samples were non-toxic, while the other seven samples were toxic, displaying no observed effect concentration (NOEC) values ranging from 0.625 to 20%. Two toxic samples in the first phase possessed high total chlorine concentrations (0.4 mg L−1) and conductivities (2200 mS m−1), indicating that the main sources of toxicity were residual chlorine and a high salt concentration. In the second phase, metal content analysis identified metals as the toxicity cause in four samples. In the third phase, the organic contaminants were analyzed, and tri-n-octyl phosphate (TNOP) was detected at a concentration of 0.00027 mg L−1. The results of solid-phase extraction experiments and exposure tests with TNOP alone indicated that the contribution of TNOP to the toxicity was negligible and that chemicals not adsorbed on the solid-phase extraction cartridges were the cause of toxicity. The proposed method can therefore be considered effective for disaster-related water quality assessment, delivering results within 12 days. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Magnisi peninsula is a small portion of land located near the largest Italian petrol-chemical pole of Augusta–Priolo–Melilli (40 km2), which, since the 1950s, devastated the local environment and landscape and unloaded directly into the sea an impressive quantity of pollutants. Unlike the terrestrial part of the area, where a Natural Oriented Reserve (NOR) called "Saline di Priolo" was established in the 2000s, no concrete legislative action has been implemented or proposed for the marine environment. At the same time, the fauna of the marine environment has not been studied in the same way as that of the terrestrial environment. As concerns the molluscan fauna, most of the information dates back to the 1800s. These studies were exclusively focused on the shells of some mollusks in the area. Instead, no study related to this area has ever been carried out on the group of sea slugs. This study conducted between 2022 and 2023, through snorkeling activities, allowed to provide the first faunistic list of the sea slugs of this area, together with information on the biology and ecology of these gastropods, highlighting the potential biodiversity present in this small stretch of coastline affected by high industrial pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New arrangements of power are emerging in response to the turbulence generated by the quest to improve life and render it productive. This paper specifies such arrangements by developing the concept of metabolic politics: an apparatus that shifts from discipline to power regulating material, bodily, and environmental transformations. The dominant function of metabolic politics is to render the transformative capacities of living bodies and the circulatory dynamics of materials into object‐targets of governance. Through a comparative analysis of regulating pollution from industrial poultry units in Britain and India, the paper identifies logics of a metabolic politics and distinguishes these from the biopolitics of populations. Metabolic politics entails interventions targeting a milieu rather than deviant populations; its actions are directed at transformative capacities of bodies in addition to improving their productivity; its modes of governance operates via regulation and not just discipline; and its techniques of operation proceed through modulation instead of enclosure. Metabolic politics is a transversal form of power. It is situated and historically contingent, rather than uniform and universal. As a response to crises generated by the industrialisation and cheapening of life, metabolic politics furnishes vital insights into the administration and governance of the contemporary living and material world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global warming driven by climate change has profound impacts on nitrogen dynamics in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. The increased emissions of greenhouse gases alter the distribution and availability of nitrogen, which is a critical nutrient for all living organisms. This review examines the connections between climate change and nitrogen cycling, highlighting the adverse effects on ecosystem health and productivity. The proliferation of nitrogen pollution due to agricultural runoff, industrial effluents, and urban wastewater aggravates eutrophication, leading to significant environmental and economic consequences. The imbalance in nitrogen availability not only affects plant growth and soil fertility but also disrupts aquatic ecosystems, resulting in harmful algal blooms and hypoxic conditions. Effective mitigation and adaptation strategies are essential to addressing these challenges. Sustainable agricultural practices, such as precision farming and the use of slow-release fertilizers, along with robust policies and innovative technologies, like biochar application and nitrification inhibitors, are essential in managing nitrogen levels. This review underscores the importance of interdisciplinary approaches that involve integrating insights from ecology, agronomy, and the social sciences to develop comprehensive solutions. Future research should focus on long-term studies to assess the cumulative impacts of climatic changes on nitrogen availability and ecosystem health to guide policies and management practices for sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents three simple models to study how prices, politics and persuasion may each play a role in environmental policy-making. Our conclusions are twofold. First, in the absence of increasing returns, requiring the polluting industry to purchase pollution permits can internalize the negative externality of pollution, and the optimal price of pollution permits should increase with the disutility of pollution. Second, with increasing returns in the industry using clean technologies, it is welfare enhancing to complement the pollution permits policy with a tax-funded subsidy to the clean industry, or with a tax-funded public campaign to persuade consumers to move away from pollution-generating goods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several mining-related pollutions, industrial waste, and soil deterioration define South Africa's environmental landscape. These have led to the consumption of unhealthy food, contaminated agricultural products, and polluted water. The polluted environment has been linked to numerous diseases among the populace, thus making environmental remediation an important issue in South Africa. Phytoremediation has been identified as a biological method for the restoration of polluted environments naturally and holistically. Therefore, it is vital to evaluate the level of phytoremediation-related research in South Africa in pursuit of a way out of environmental pollution. Thus, the purpose of this study was to map phytoremediation-related research in South Africa from inception to 2022. Statistical records from the Web of Science Core Collection were analyzed with the bibliometric package in RStudio, while mapping was performed via VOSviewer. Our study showed a low annual growth rate of publication (4.49%). The analysis uncovered that the 39 documents analyzed were written by 112 authors, and the first document was featured in the Journal of Geochemical Exploration in 1997. Kirkham, MB and Liphadzi, MS are the most relevant authors. USA has the strongest collaboration with South Africa, while the International Journal of Phytoremediation, the South African Journal of Botany, and Water SA are the most relevant journals. The result of this study can guide upcoming researchers and policymakers, together with essential facts for enhancing the restoration of the polluted environment in the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The implementation of the environmental protection tax (EPT) is a crucial step in the tasks of achieving the "double-carbon" objective and fostering comprehensive green economic and social growth. The literature on the effect of EPT policies has focused mainly on environmental effects and economic effects and has rarely paid attention to social effects, such as the impact of such policies on employment. By reference to data regarding pollution-intensive listed companies in China from 2014 to 2022, this article uses the 2018 EPT reform as a quasi-natural experiment to explore the effects of EPT on employment within these industries. The EPT reform is shown to have a significant dampening effect on corporate employment in the pollution industry, a conclusion that continues to hold after a number of robustness tests, including the differences-in-differences-in-differences (DDD) tests, the parallel trend test, the placebo test, and the PSM-DID test. Further analysis shows that the EPT reform suppressed employment in polluting industries mainly through two pathways: the output effect and the factor substitution effect. Moreover, the EPT reform generated more significant disincentives to employment in non-state-owned enterprises, large-scale enterprises, and mining industries. This study's findings can serve as a crucial reference for policies in China that aim to promote high-quality full employment in the context of environmental governance. The results of this research can also serve as a reference for a cost‒benefit analysis of environmental policies in China in terms of employment and provide a theoretical basis for and practical experience regarding the task of coordinating the relationship between environmental governance and employment regulation in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Air quality is a fundamental component of a healthy environment for human beings. Monitoring networks for air pollution have been established in numerous industrial zones. The data collected by the pervasive monitoring devices can be utilized not only for determining the current environmental condition, but also for forecasting it in the near future. This paper considers the applications of different machine learning methods for the prediction of the two most widely used quantities. Particulate matter (PM) with a diameter of 2.5 and 10 µm, respectively. The data are collected via a proprietary monitoring station, designated as the Ecolumn. The Ecolumn monitors a number of key parameters, including temperature, pressure, humidity, PM 1.0, PM 2.5, and PM 10, in a timely manner. The data were employed in the development of multiple models based on selected machine learning methods. The decision tree, random forest, recurrent neural network, and long short-term memory models were employed. Experiments were conducted with varying hyperparameters and network architectures. Different time scales (10 min, 1 h, and 24 h) were examined. The most optimal results were observed for the Long Short-Term Memory algorithm when utilizing the shortest available time spans (shortest averaging times). The decision tree and random forest algorithms demonstrated unexpectedly high performance for long averaging times, exhibiting only a slight decline in accuracy compared to neural networks for shorter averaging times. Recommendations for the potential applicability of the tested methods were formulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indonesia’s maritime sector plays an important role in its economic growth as one of Southeast Asia’s main powers. The sector that includes fishery, transportation and trade supports over seven million jobs in the region. However, the marine ecosystem of Indonesia is presently facing threats from industrial pollution, harmful fishing methods as well as destruction of marine habitats. Proper marine governance needs to be implemented to ensure that these threats do not hamper Indonesia’s growth. The need for proper management of marine ecosystems is addressed in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the United Nations’ set 17 interlinked goals that serve as the new framework for the international development agenda; specifically, in SDG 14. Marine cadastre has emerged as one of the instruments in the act of marine governance. This paper offers a look into how marine cadastre, as a system within marine governance, can contribute to the implementation of SDG 14 in Indonesia. Three SDG 14 targets relating to the management of marine areas have been identified as having the potential for marine cadastre implementation. Additionally, an overview of the current state of marine cadastre from the legal, technical and institutional aspects is also presented in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is challenging to interpret hydrogeochemical datasets with complex natural and anthropogenic genesis in intensive industrial areas. This paper elucidates the hydrogeochemical characteristics and pollution sources of groundwater in an industrial park, East China, combining the self-organizing map (SOM), hydrochemical graphs, and correlation analysis. The results show that the total dissolved solids of groundwater range from 73.45 to 997.92 mg/L and can be regarded as freshwater. The pH varies greatly from 6.44 to 9.90, most of samples belonging to weakly acidic-weakly alkaline. The groundwater can be classified into five clusters by SOM, representing the non- or least-polluted groundwater (cluster D), high salt groundwater (cluster A), high NH4+-N and HCO3− groundwater (cluster B), high Fe and Mn groundwater (cluster C), and high pH groundwater (cluster E), which were contaminated by industrial salts, historical agriculture activity, industrial reducing substances, and industrial alkali, respectively. The natural evolution of groundwater (cluster D) in the study area is mainly controlled by mineral weathering/dissolution. The contributions of calcite, dolomite, gypsum, halite, and silicate mineral to groundwater solute are 55.8–66.3%, 15.1–18.0%, 9.0–10.7%, 2.5–10.1%, and 2.3–9.4%, respectively, based on the mass conservation. The contaminated groundwaters (all other clusters except for cluster D) have different hydrochemical characteristics associated with the pollution sources. In addition, the relatively reductive environment in quaternary flu-lacustrine sediments favored the formation of high level of Fe, Mn, and NH4+-N in groundwater. This study provides a new insight into the characteristic contaminants and their distributions in groundwater and the associated pollution sources based on the large datasets in an intensive industrial area. The data evaluation methods and results of this study could be useful to the groundwater usage management and pollution control in this area and other industrial areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As global demands for enhanced energy efficiency and environmental protection continue to grow, optimizing the combustion processes of industrial boilers has become a critical challenge. These processes involve complex thermodynamic and chemical reactions that directly impact energy utilization and pollutant emissions. However, existing methods for combustion prediction and optimization often fall short in terms of accuracy and efficiency, making it difficult to adapt to varying operational conditions. This study proposes a thermodynamics-based multi-objective optimization method for industrial boiler combustion. A high-precision combustion prediction model is established using deep learning, and an evolutionary algorithm is employed for multi-objective optimization, aiming to achieve an optimal balance between combustion efficiency and pollutant emissions. The findings of this research not only offer new insights into combustion optimization for industrial boilers but also contribute valuable theoretical and practical implications for enhancing energy utilization efficiency and reducing environmental pollution in industrial production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urban environments are characterised by sparsity of space, elevated levels of air pollution and limited exposure to natural environments. Yet, residential environmental quality varies substantially both between and within cities. This study combines information on the socio-economic and demographic composition of 243,607 urban neighbourhoods with administrative and remote sensing data on the spatial distribution of industrial plants and urban green space to investigate patterns of environmental inequality in urban Germany at unprecedented levels of spatial granularity. It disentangles neighbourhood disadvantages experienced by foreign minorities (non-nationals) from those experienced by low-income households in order to assess the plausibility of economic explanations of residential sorting. The high level of spatial granularity makes it possible to examine patterns of environmental inequality not only between the relatively large areas that have been used as units of analysis in previous work but also within them, while reducing the threat of ecological bias. Results indicate that non-nationals are more likely to be exposed to industrial air pollution and less likely to live close to green spaces. This association holds even after adjusting for neighbourhood income composition and in fixed-effects specifications that restrict the analysis to within-city variation. I find no evidence for environmental inequality by socio-economic status. Exploratory sub-sample analyses show that neighbourhood disadvantages for non-nationals are higher in cities characterised by high levels of anti-foreigner sentiment, pointing towards housing market discrimination as a potentially important driver of foreign residents' neighbourhood disadvantage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite extensive research on particulate matter (PM) pollution in India's Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP), source apportionment remains challenging. This study investigates the effect of particulate matter (PM10)-associated water soluble inorganic ions (WSIIs) on ambient air concentration across the middle IGP from January to December 2018. Moreover, the seasonal fluctuation and chemical characterization of PM10 were assessed for the year 2018. The results revealed a high concentration of PM10 (156 µg/m3), exceeding the WHO and National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) limits. The highest PM10 levels were observed during autumn, winter, summer, and the rainy season. The study identified SO42− and NH4+ as the most common WSIIs, constituting 46% and 23% of the total WSIIs. Source apportionment analysis indicated that street dust, biomass burning, and vehicle and industrial emissions together with secondary formation significantly contributed to IGP's PM pollution. Additionally, the investigation of air mass back trajectory suggests that air quality in IGP is largely influenced by eastern and western Maritime air masses originated from the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, Gujarat, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental pollution destroys the sustainable development of industries worldwide, and its effect on structural changes is the focus of discussion. This paper constructs a model of the structural change of environmental pollution impacts and then, empirically estimates using panel data of Chinese cities from 2003 to 2020. The paper found that the more manufacturing pollutants are discharged, the more serious the manufacturing cost disease(MCD). Compared with low-productivity manufacturing, environmental pollution in high-productivity industries increases sector costs more. Then, this paper verifies that MCD and real wages are two key channels through which pollution emissions affect the share of the manufacturing sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strengthening industrial pollution control in the Yangtze River is a fundamental national policy of China. There is a lack of detailed distribution of chemical industrial parks (CIPs). This Study utilized random forest (RF) and active learning to generate the distribution map of CIPs along the Yangtze River at 10-m resolution. Based on Sentinel-2 imagery, spectral and texture features are extracted. Combined with the Points of Interest (POI), a multidimensional feature space is constructed. By employing partitioned training, classification of CIPs map is achieved on Google Earth Engine (GEE). Technical validation along the entire Yangtze River demonstrates a model accuracy of 80%. Compared to traditional manual survey methods, this approach saves significant time and economic costs while also being timelier. As the first publicly available CIPs map within a 5-km range along the Yangtze River, this research will provide a scientific basis for the fine governance of chemical industries in the region. Additionally, it offers a model guide for the accurate identification of the chemical industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global interest in groundwater resource management is significant, with petrochemical industrialization identified as a potential source of groundwater pollution. Petrochemical industrial processes cause significant impacts on groundwater quality through the discharging of highly contaminated waste with oil and chemicals. This study aims to determine the impact of the heavy petrochemical industrial city of Jubail Saudi Arabia on groundwater quality and identify special sources of pollution using a statistical approach. Samples from 47 groundwater wells were collected and analyzed for 23 indicators, mainly chlorinated hydrocarbons, 1,1-olefin hydrocarbons, vinyl chlorides, 1,1,2-trichloroethylene and chloroform, 1,2-dichloroethylene, chlorobenzene, and benzene. The results were compared with permissible standard limits to identify the level of exceedance. The results showed an exceedance in the concentrations of chlorinated hydrocarbons, total petroleum hydrocarbons, 1,1-dichloroethane, 1,2-dichloroethane, 1,1-trichloroethane, and vinyl chloride more than ten times above the permissible limits of these concentrations. The study revealed the high impact of the petrochemical industries on groundwater quality. Since the current monitoring program depends only on annual sampling of groundwater, there has been a recommendation to install an online groundwater monitoring system to conserve water quality and achieve sustainable management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how the setup of special environmental courts is accountable for firms' internal adjustment of production and export across industries with different pollution intensities. Inspired by a simple theoretical model, we find that, after the establishment of environmental courts, firms see a larger decrease in export value, export quantity, export variety as well as export destination in more polluting industries. We further find different impacts on firms with varying ownership and size. These findings imply that companies reallocate their available resources from more polluting varieties to less polluting ones, thus turning green through this within‐firm adjustment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a problem of multiple failures, effective solutions to environmental problems require overcoming the limitations of single environmental policies and using collaborative governance with multiple regulatory instruments. Based on this, this study examines how collaborative governance between government‐led environmental regulation and public‐participatory environmental regulation can more effectively promote sustainable development strategies for firms. Using data from Chinese listed firms in heavy pollution industries from 2006 to 2019, we constructed a collaborative governance model, and found that (1) government‐led environmental regulation has a significant impact on end‐treatment but no impact on the source treatment of firms; (2) collaborative governance between government‐led and public‐participatory environmental regulation has a significant impact on source treatment but no impact on end‐treatment; (3) mechanism analysis shows that improving long‐term orientation and increasing corporate sustained investments are potential channels of the collaborative governance effect. These findings not only advance our understanding of the policy mix effects of different environmental regulation tools, but also have important policy implications for deepening collaborative governance practices in promoting sustainable development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ecological accountability is an important means for the Chinese government to promote the development of green policies. In this study, a central environmental protection inspection was used as an exogenous shock event, China's A-sharelisted companies were selected as the research sample, and the impact of the central environmental protection inspection on the financialization behavior of heavily polluting enterprises was empirically tested. The research shows that the central environmental protection inspection significantly inhibited the financialization of heavily polluting enterprises. A mechanism analysis showed that the central environmental protection inspection mainly inhibited the financialization of enterprises by promoting green innovation, which shows that the implementation of a central environmental protection inspection can promote green innovation and transformation by forcing heavily polluting enterprises to return to their main business, produce a "crowding-out effect" on financial assets, and place a focus on sustainable and high-quality development. A heterogeneity test showed that the inhibitory effect of the central environmental protection inspection on enterprise financialization was more significant in the sample group of state-owned enterprises and areas with a higher level of development of green finance. This study provides a reference for evaluating the implementation effect and effectiveness of central environmental protection inspections and has significance for regulatory authorities in improving the revision of ecological accountability policies, promoting the green transformation of heavy pollution industries, and regulating the financial asset investment behavior of listed companies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An experiment was conducted on the development of Hypogymnia physodes (L.) Nyl. from soredia to branched lobes near the copper smelter in the Middle Urals 10 years after emission cessation. Soredia were cultivated in fir-spruce forests in heavily polluted and unpolluted areas. In both areas, soredia development was examined on fir bark collected from both the heavily polluted and unpolluted areas. The probability of lobe formation was lower in the polluted area even when soredia were cultivated on bark from the unpolluted area. Bark from the polluted area negatively impacted the success of soredia development, irrespective of the cultivation area. The lowest success of early development occurred when soredia were cultivated on polluted bark in the heavily polluted area, where the already low probability of lobe formation was accompanied by high mortality of the developed lobes. This study underscores the enduring impact of industrial pollution on H. physodes development, highlighting the need for ongoing environmental restoration and monitoring efforts in post-industrial areas to support biodiversity conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to investigate the hydrogeologic and hydrogeochemical properties of the Çarşamba aquifer located in the Central Black Sea Section of the Black Sea Region. The groundwater of the Çarşamba aquifer was sampled in 33 boreholes between July-2019 and December-2019 and physical parameters, major anions and cations and trace element analyses were performed in the groundwater. According to the results, pH values in groundwater are higher in the coastal areas and lower in the southern areas. High EC values are obtained in groundwater samples obtained from boreholes located close to the Blacksea. It was determined that Na, Cl and SO4 contents in the groundwater of the Çarşamba aquifer are high according to the standards of the World Health Organization and the Regulation on Water Intended for Human Consumption. The reason for this is thought to be groundwater consumption for agricultural irrigation in the aquifer and industrial activities carried out in the region. When the groundwater of the Çarşamba aquifer is examined in terms of trace elements, it is seen that the Ni, Mn, As, Al and Cr contents in some well waters do not comply with the standards of the Standard for Water Intended for Human Consumption and the World Health Organization. High trace element contents are thought to be caused by industrial facilities, agricultural activities and fossil fuel combustion in the region. Groundwater withdrawals should be kept under control in boreholes located close to the coast where seawater intrusion is effective in the Çarşamba aquifer and restrictions should be imposed on the use of fertilizers used in agricultural activities. In order to control the high trace element contents, studies should be carried out to prevent pollution from industrial facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industrialization and population growth are the important factors for the deterioration of air quality in the current scenario. Air pollution monitoring using plants as bioindicators is the best and cheapest way. Oxidative stress induced on plants due to air pollution can be studied using antioxidant peroxidase enzyme activity. The present study aims at the comparative assessment of peroxidase activity of twelve plant species from the Chembur industrial area and less polluted zone of similar ecological conditions for two years. The peroxidase activity was determined using the spectrophotometric method. The observations based on the current investigation revealed a rise in the peroxidase activity of twelve plant species of the industrial zone as compared to the less polluted zone. It may indicate an increase in the resistant capacity of all experimental samples toward the oxidative stress caused due to air pollution. Plant species like Pithecellobium dulce (Roxb.) Benth, Ricinus communis L., Leucaena leucocephala (Lam.) de Wit., Albizia saman (Jacq.) Merr, Thespesia populnea (L.) Sol. ex. Correa, Polyalthia longifolia (Sonn.) Thwaites, Prosopis juliflora (SW.) DC., Terminalia catappa L. showed higher peroxidase activity values and hence may be used as bioindicators. Thespesia populnea (L.) Sol. ex. Correa, Polyalthia longifolia (Sonn.) Thwaites and Terminalia catappa L. being evergreen plants may be planted in good numbers in the Chembur industrial area. It may act as a primary step to ameliorate the industrial air pollution in the Chembur industrial zone by enhancing the green zone. This kind of investigation with other factors may help us to sustain our mother nature for future generations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study assessed the accumulation of heavy metals in aquatic plants from 2008 to 2018, reflecting changes in environmental conditions due to increased industrial activity and pollution. Aquatic plants, crucial for treating pollution and improving water quality, were analyzed in East Hammar and AlChebiyesh marshes. The research showed species-specific differences in element accumulation. Vallisneria spiralis (2008) and Ceratophyllum demersum (2018) accumulated 30 elements each, while Potamogeton perfoliatus (2018) also accumulated 30 elements. Ceratophyllum demersum (2008), Potamogeton crispus (2008 and 2018), and Potamogeton perfoliatus (2018) accumulated 29 elements each. Vallisneria spiralis (2018) accumulated 27 elements. Vallisneria spiralis (2008) recorded the highest concentrations of iron, boron, vanadium, tin, cesium, bismuth, indium, and cerium. The highest titanium concentration was noted in 2018. The highest aluminum accumulation was in Vallisneria spiralis (2008). Potamogeton perfoliatus accumulated the most barium, strontium, and molybdenum, with concentrations of 2682, 629.7, and 89.9ppm, respectively. Potamogeton species consistently accumulated 0.4 ppm of antimony and the highest zinc concentration at 91.8ppm. These findings underscore the distinct element accumulation capabilities of different aquatic plant species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the impact of China’s new environmental law (NEL, referring to the new Environmental Protection Law implemented in China in 2015, hereafter NEL) on the financial performance (FP) of Chinese A-share companies listed in the heavy pollution industry from 2011 to 2020. Using the DID approach, the study finds that the regulation initially has a negative impact but brings long-term positive results for these companies. It also highlights the impact of the regulation on financing opportunities and R&D investment, with smaller companies facing more significant challenges. Lastly, based on the study’s findings, some policy suggestions are proposed to offer theoretical guidance and policy references for countries to achieve high-quality development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses the web crawler method to obtain information on the distribution of commercial bank branches in China and uses the multidimensional fixed-effects model to explore the impact of commercial bank expansion on firm pollution emissions and its mechanism. The findings reveal that commercial bank expansion significantly reduces firms’ pollution emissions and that there is an optimal geographical radius for this suppression effect. The number of commercial bank branches within 20 km of the firm has the biggest inhibiting influence on the firm’s pollution emission, which diminishes as geographical distance increases. This dampening effect remains robust after testing using the instrumental variable method and the Difference-In-Differences method. Examination of heterogeneity demonstrates that the influence of commercial bank expansion on firm pollution emission depends on the degree of regional low-carbon policies and laws, the level of pollution in the industry, and capital intensity of the industry, as well as the firm’s size and ownership. The mechanism test proves that commercial bank expansion reduces firm pollution emissions by promoting technological progress and increasing their investment in pollution reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of odorous compounds presents issues for both ambient air pollution and specific industrial processes. Monitoring these odorous compounds is important because some of them have adverse effects on human health, on the environment and process efficiency even at very low concentrations. In industrial areas, many odorous compounds, such as Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), can be emitted, in a wide range of concentration and specific identification and quantification of all these molecules can be a challenge given the number of potential interferences. The goal of this study is to present a complete and fully autonomous on-line cabinet solution for the continuous monitoring of odorous compounds. This solution is composed of several Gas Chromatographs (GC), each specifically designed to target some VOCs and/or odorous compounds. Gas generators were also used, allowing a complete autonomy of the system. All analytical systems and gas generators were integrated in two airtight and waterproof cabinets regulated in temperature. This complete and fully autonomous solution is ideal for industrial processes operating in harsh environmental conditions, ensuring accurate and continuous results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hypoxic zones and associated nitrate pollution from farms, cities and industrial facilities is driving declines in water quality that affect ecosystems, economies and human health in major rivers and coastal areas worldwide. In the Mississippi River, the United States Environmental Protection Agency set a goal of reducing nitrogen loading 20% by 2025, but estimating progress towards this goal is difficult because data from in‐stream gauges and laboratory samples are too sparse. Satellites have the potential to provide sufficient data across the Mississippi River, if a key methodological challenge can be overcome. Satellites provide data from visible light, but nitrates are only observable with ultraviolet light. We address this methodological challenge by using a two‐step surrogate modelling procedure to link optical data and nitrates in the Lower Mississippi River. First, we correlate in situ nitrate measurements to common water quality parameters, particularly turbidity and chlorophyll, using data from water sensors installed at Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA, and a long‐term dataset from Louisiana State University. Second, we correlate these water quality data to satellite estimates of water quality parameters. We found a correlation between these water quality parameters and nitrate concentrations, as indicated by a coefficient of determination, when the relationship was viewed in nonlinear parameter space. The spatial extent of the correlation was tested with an upstream nitrate sensor 140 km north of the estimation location. These results provide proof of concept that we can develop models that use satellite data to provide large‐scale monitoring of nitrates across the Mississippi River Basin and other impaired rivers, globally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable development is a common development model pursued by countries around the world. The environmental, social, and governance (ESG) concept has garnered significant interest across industries globally. This study extends on existing research (Fang & Hu, 2023), from the perspective of innovation sustainability, and investigates the impact of ESG performance on enterprise sustainable green innovation (SGI). For the data of 1140 Chinese A‐share listed enterprises from 2009 to 2019, the estimated result shows that the coefficient of ESG performance is 0.6640 (p < 0.05). This means that ESG advantages significantly promote enterprise SGI. And the environmental dimension performance has a bigger promoting effect. The impact of ESG on SGI is significantly positive for growth and maturity stages, state‐owned, and non‐heavy pollution industry enterprises. Green investor and environmental subsidy are important ways for ESG performance to affect SGI. In addition, the executive environmental protection experience moderates the relationship between ESG performance and SGI in a significant and beneficial way. This study proposes that government agencies should implement differentiated ESG regulation measures and enterprises can increase their reliance on stakeholders and social resources to acquire additional resources. Theoretical and practical implications of this contribute to the enhancement of enterprise SGI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]