Summary

Environmental science emerged from the fields of natural history and medicine during the Enlightenment. Today, it provides an integrated, quantitative, and interdisciplinary approach to the study of environmental systems. Environmental studies are incorporating more of the social sciences in order to understand human relationships, perceptions and policies towards the environment. This entry collection features information about design and technology for improving environmental quality in every aspect.

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Topic Review
Performance Measurement Indicators for Facilities Management
With the use of cyber-physical systems (CPS) advanced computational capabilities, the delivery of facilities management (FM) mandates are efficiently and effectively conducted. Since performance measurement is an important yardstick in ascertaining the outcome of FM approaches, this research assesses the performance measurement indicators that influence the uptake of CPS for FM functions. Using a structured questionnaire, data were collected from built environment professionals in the Gauteng province of South Africa. Data collected was analysed using a five-stage process which includes: data reliability and validity, descriptive statistics, establishing a difference in groups’ opinion, principal component analysis, and model testing and fit statistics for confirmatory factor analysis. 
  • 570
  • 19 May 2022
Topic Review
Culturable and Molecular Diversity of Marine Fungi
Fungi are considered terrestrial and oceans are a “fungal desert”. However, with the considerable progress made over past decades, fungi have emerged as morphologically, phylogenetically, and functionally diverse components of the marine water column. Although their communities are influenced by a plethora of environmental factors, the most influential include salinity, temperature, nutrients, and dissolved oxygen, suggesting that fungi respond to local environmental gradients. 
  • 640
  • 18 May 2022
Topic Review
Classification of the Marine Selective Catalytic Reduction Systems
The marine SCR system is mainly composed of a urea solution injection system, mixer, SCR reactor, measurement system, and soot blowing system. The urea solution injection system is composed of a urea storage tank, urea injection pump, nozzle, valve, and pipeline. Additionally, a static mixer is arranged in the exhaust pipe of the marine SCR system to improve the mixing uniformity of exhaust gas and ammonia gas. 
  • 2.5K
  • 18 May 2022
Topic Review
Sustainable Agriculture and Biodiversity Conservation in Japan
Japan aims to be carbon-neutral by 2050 by targeting various sectors including agriculture. One of the main strategies in this sector to mitigate climate change effects is environmental conservation agriculture (ECA); however, ECA utilization remains low in most of Japan’s prefectures to this date. Japan has been active in promoting biodiversity conservation and sustainable agriculture, which is why it currently has a total of 11 Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) designated by FAO. Japan has been proactive in preserving endangered species, such as butterflies vascular plants, and birds
  • 2.5K
  • 19 May 2022
Topic Review
The Ecosystem Services of Temperate Wetlands
Wetlands constitute important habitats that provide several ecosystem services (ES). Wetlands have been termed the kidneys of the world for their water purification services and contain 20–25% of total soil organic carbon. Wetlands are among the ecosystems with the most valuable ES, with regulating services being the most important for inland wetlands. 
  • 563
  • 18 May 2022
Topic Review
Remote Sensing of Geomorphodiversity Linked to Biodiversity
Remote sensing (RS) enables a cost-effective, extensive, continuous and standardized monitoring of traits and trait variations of geomorphology and its processes, from the local to the continental scale. RS technologies can record geomorphic traits, their diversity and variations, from which the other four geomorphodiversity characteristics are derived. However, compared to in situ measurements, RS approaches can only record certain parts of these geomorphic traits and their variations. This is because capturing geomorphic traits and diversity using RS approaches is limited by various constraints, namely: (1) the characteristics and spatial-temporal distribution of geomorphic traits; (2) the characteristics of geomorphological processes; as well as (3) the RS sensor characteristics, the chosen RS platforms and the characteristics of RS data-processing and classification information. These constraints and limitations define the detectability, feasibility, accuracy, depth of information, repeatability, and, thus, standards disability in monitoring the five geomorphic characteristics using RS approaches.
  • 435
  • 20 May 2022
Topic Review
Environmental Enrichment Effects in the Cerebellum
The cerebellum is a very plastic brain region that responds to every experience with deep structural and functional rearrangement.
  • 393
  • 18 May 2022
Topic Review
Ectomycorrhizal Mushrooms
Environmental changes and heavy metal pollution are some of the consequences of anthropogenic activities. Many ecosystems, including edaphic ecosystems, suffer from the effects of pollution. The accurate assessment of soil heavy metal contamination leads to better approaches for remediating soils. The exploration of different ways, including biological methods, to conduct environmental monitoring is still ongoing.
  • 851
  • 17 May 2022
Topic Review
Carbon Emissions from Construction in China
The construction industry’s high energy consumption and carbon emissions significantly burden the ecological environment. Numerous solid wastes and greenhouse gases (GHG) are generated as high-energy-consuming and high-emission products during the construction process. Thirty percent of China’s total energy consumption comes from construction projects.
  • 692
  • 17 May 2022
Topic Review
Sponge City Practices in China
In recent years, China has been committed to strengthening environmental governance and trying to build a sustainable society in which humans and nature develop in harmony. As a new urban construction concept, sponge city uses natural and ecological methods to retain rainwater, alleviate flooding problems, reduce the damage to the water environment, and gradually restore the hydrological balance of the construction area.
  • 1.3K
  • 17 May 2022
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