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
Diurnal Extrema Timing—A New Climatological Parameter
Diurnal Extrema Timing (DET) are daily occurrence times of air temperature minimum and maximum. Although unrecognized and unrecorded as a meteorological variable, the exact timing of daily temperature extrema plays a crucial role in the characterization of air temperature variability. The results reveal the timing of daily air temperature maximum as the most vulnerable to climate change among temperature and timing extrema indices.
  • 549
  • 12 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Epigenetics in the Uterine Environment
The societal burden of non-communicable disease is closely linked with environmental exposures and lifestyle behaviours, including the adherence to a poor maternal diet from the earliest preimplantation period of the life course onwards. Epigenetic variations caused by a compromised maternal nutritional status can affect embryonic development and offspring health later in life.
  • 749
  • 14 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Towards Circular Economy for More Sustainable Apparel Consumption
The apparel industry causes environmental problems, particularly due to the shortening life cycle of garments and fast-fashion’s throw-away culture. The circular economy provides solutions to minimise and prevent these problems through innovative circular business models, which require changes in consumer behaviours. With the lens of environmental psychology, we analyse consumers’ willingness to acquire circular apparel considering four approaches on clothing life-cycle extension. We conducted an online questionnaire among Brazilian and Dutch consumers and tested if the Value-Belief-Norm (VBN) theory can explain the willingness of consumers to purchase circular apparel. Our results indicate that, overall, the variables from the VBN theory explain circular behaviour in the apparel industry and that the paths suggested by the model are supported by our analyses. Additionally, we tested and found that when all of the variables from the VBN theory were controlled for, materialistic values did not explain circular behaviours in the apparel industry among Brazilian respondents. However, they had a positive influence on some circular apparel behaviours among Dutch consumers. Overall, materialistic values did not play an important role in predicting willingness to consume circular clothing. Furthermore, the results suggest that the VBN theory predicts willingness to consume circular apparel better in the Netherlands compared to Brazil, suggesting that this behaviour may be perceived as more effortful for the Brazilian population. However, we highlight the need for future research.
  • 604
  • 12 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Potential of Sunflower-Legume Intercropping
The ongoing climate change, coupled with the transformations of cultivation practices and land use in sole crop production, may cause a significant decline in sunflower yield stability. Considering that the sunflower is the third oilseed in the world oilseed market, with 45 million tons of grain per year, and that it takes the fourth position in the vegetable oil market, the implementation of sustainable growing technology in sunflower production is a necessity. Considering the above, the goal of the research was to analyze and recommend sustainable sunflower production technology in intercropping systems. A four-year trial was conducted in Serbia’s agroecological conditions (45∘34′23.2'' N 19∘86′18.9'' E) using a split-plot design. Two oil-type hybrids and one confectionary-type hybrid were intercropped with common vetch, red clover, and alfalfa. Common vetch × sunflower intercropping resulted in the decrease in almost all sunflower traits. Moreover, sunflower × alfalfa intercropping proved to be the most appropriate. The yield of NS Gricko and Rimi PR were statistically on the same level with sole cropping, while alfalfa biomass had better results after alfalfa was intercropped with NS Gricko, as compared to sole cropping. In view of the prevailing belief that yields are more stable in intercropping than in sole cropping, further research is needed in this respect, in addition to further research of the time and method of sowing.
  • 612
  • 11 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Social-LCA in Life Cycle Management
Social life cycle assessment (S-LCA) is an emerging and pivotal tool for sustainability evaluation of products throughout their life cycle (UNEP,2009). 
  • 579
  • 12 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Antibiotic-Resistant Staphylococcus spp.
The application of antibiotics to orange trees in open production environments to halt the spread of bacterial disease presents risks to the environment and creates health concerns for Thai farmers using those agents. ARB on crops such as oranges may enter the global food supply and adversely affect public health. 
  • 432
  • 10 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Consumer Perception of Sharing Economy
The idea of sharing economy is based “on the philosophy of access-based consumption where, instead of buying and owning things, consumers want access to goods and prefer to pay for the experience of temporarily accessing them".
  • 1.4K
  • 10 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Agroforestry and Related Myths
Agroforestry, a sustainable land-use system that combines the trees, crops, and livestock on the same piece of land, increases the overall productivity of the land and create a system that is scientifically sound, ecologically desirable, socially acceptable and practically feasible. 
  • 548
  • 25 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Heavy Metal Accumulation in Rice and Aquatic Plants
Aquatic ecosystems are contaminated with heavy metals by natural and anthropogenic sources. Among heavy metals, cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), chromium (Cr), lead (Pb), and mercury (Hg) cause significant damage to aquatic ecosystems and can invariably affect human health. These metals can enter the human body through food chains, and the presence of heavy metals in food can lead to numerous human health consequences. Heavy metals in aquatic plants can affect plant physicochemical functions, growth, and crop yield. 
  • 960
  • 10 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Beeswax
Beeswax is one of the natural waxes that have been used as a support ingredient in cosmetic and pharmaceutical formulations. Although it has well-known healing properties, it remains a secondary and poorly valued product, particularly in South American countries' apiarian production. In Latin America, for example, the apiarian activity can be traced back to stingless bees in pre-Columbian times. Then, with the arrival of the Spaniards in the 16th century, honey bees (Apis mellifera iberian and A. m. mellifera) were introduced, which were joined afterward by other breeds such as A. m. ligustica and A. m. scutellata. Over the years, honey has been the main product from the apiarian farmers, being beeswax a secondary product, mainly used for the regular renewal procedure of the hives. Nowadays, beeswax's cosmetic and pharmaceutical use is found at the level of small laboratories and small businesses.
  • 5.0K
  • 10 Oct 2022
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