Intermedia Pollutant Transport

The National Center for Intermedia Transport Research (NCITR) was established at UCLA in 1982 by EPA as one of six Centers of Excellence for the study of environmental pollution problems. One of the functions undertaken by the NCITR has been to hold periodic workshops and to provide a forum for the discussion of current topiCS in the environmental pollution arena. To this end, two other workshops have previously been held. The first, held in November 1982, was chaired by H. R. Pruppacher, R. G. Semonin and W. G. N. Slinn on Precipitation Scavenging, Dry DepOSition and Resuspension. The second, held in January 1986, was chaired by Y. Cohen on Pollution Transport and Accumulation in a Multimedia Environment. The present workshop, chaired by D. T. Allen, Y. Cohen and I. R. Kaplan, was held on August 24-26, 1988 in Santa Monica, California. The title of the workshop was Intermedia Pollutant Transport: Modeling and Field Measurements. Approximately one hundred individuals participated and twenty five papers were given, mostly by invitation. The workshop was divided into the following four broad topiCS: 1) Transport of Pollutants from the Atmosphere, 2) Transport of Pollutants from Soils and Groundwaters, 3) Transport of Pollutants from Lakes and Oceans, and 4) Multimedia Transport of Pollutants. The last afternoon was reserved for a Panel Discussion.

The National Center for Intermedia Transport Research (NCITR) was established at UCLA in 1982 by EPA as one of six Centers of Excellence for the study of environmental pollution problems. One of the functions undertaken by the NCITR has been to hold periodic workshops and to provide a forum for the discussion of current topiCS in the environmental pollution arena. To this end, two other workshops have previously been held. The first, held in November 1982, was chaired by H. R. Pruppacher, R. G. Semonin and W. G. N. Slinn on Precipitation Scavenging, Dry DepOSition and Resuspension. The second, held in January 1986, was chaired by Y. Cohen on Pollution Transport and Accumulation in a Multimedia Environment. The present workshop, chaired by D. T. Allen, Y. Cohen and I. R. Kaplan, was held on August 24-26, 1988 in Santa Monica, California. The title of the workshop was Intermedia Pollutant Transport: Modeling and Field Measurements. Approximately one hundred individuals participated and twenty five papers were given, mostly by invitation. The workshop was divided into the following four broad topiCS: 1) Transport of Pollutants from the Atmosphere, 2) Transport of Pollutants from Soils and Groundwaters, 3) Transport of Pollutants from Lakes and Oceans, and 4) Multimedia Transport of Pollutants. The last afternoon was reserved for a Panel Discussion.

The National Center for Intermedia Transport Research (NCITR) was established at UCLA in 1982 by EPA as one of six Centers of Excellence for the study of environmental pollution problems. One of the functions undertaken by the NCITR has been to hold periodic workshops and to provide a forum for the discussion of current topiCS in the environmental pollution arena. To this end, two other workshops have previously been held. The first, held in November 1982, was chaired by H. R. Pruppacher, R. G. Semonin and W. G. N. Slinn on Precipitation Scavenging, Dry DepOSition and Resuspension. The second, held in January 1986, was chaired by Y. Cohen on Pollution Transport and Accumulation in a Multimedia Environment. The present workshop, chaired by D. T. Allen, Y. Cohen and I. R. Kaplan, was held on August 24-26, 1988 in Santa Monica, California. The title of the workshop was Intermedia Pollutant Transport: Modeling and Field Measurements. Approximately one hundred individuals participated and twenty five papers were given, mostly by invitation. The workshop was divided into the following four broad topiCS: 1) Transport of Pollutants from the Atmosphere, 2) Transport of Pollutants from Soils and Groundwaters, 3) Transport of Pollutants from Lakes and Oceans, and 4) Multimedia Transport of Pollutants. The last afternoon was reserved for a Panel Discussion.

Pollutants released to the environment are distributed among the many environmental media such as air, water, soil, and vegetation, as the result of complex physical, chemical and biological processes. The possible environmental impact associated with chemical pollutants is related to their concentration levels and persistence in the various environmental compartments. Therefore, information regarding the migration of pollutants across environmental phase boundaries (eg., air-water, soil-water) and their accumulation in the environment is essential if we are to assess the potential environmental impact and the associated risks. In recent years it has become apparent that environmental pollution is a multimedia problem. Risk assessment and the design of appropriate pollution control measures require that we carefully consider the transport and accumulation of pollutants in the environment. We are now recognizing that the environment must be considered as a whole, and the scientific and regulatory approaches must consider the interactions of environmental media. It is also becoming apparent that single-medium approaches are partial and often counter-productive. On the other hand any multimedia program must carefully consider the rate of each environmental medium in the overall multimedia scheme.

What happens when a chemical is released into the environment? It diffuses, disperses, adsorbs, reacts, and/or changes state. To predict and analyze this process, the mathematics of diffusion is applied to lakes, rivers, groundwater, the atmosphere, the oceans, and transport between these media. A sustainable world requires a deep understanding of the transport of chemicals through the environment and how to address and harness this process. This volume presents a succinct and in-depth introduction to this critical topic. Featuring authoritative, peer-reviewed articles from the Encyclopedia of Sustainability Science and Technology, Transport and Fate of Chemicals in the Environment represents an essential one-stop reference for an audience of researchers, undergraduate and graduate students, and industry professionals.