AGENDA

Topics:

1. Environmental Issues in the Developing World:
   a. Impact of Urban Development on the Environment
             The urbanization of developing countries has rapidly increased in past decades. Thousands of hectares of agricultural and forested lands have been used for urban development. This includes housing and infrastructure constructions and factory development. Rapid urban growth has resulted in change of land use and directly affected ecosystems. The current session presents research that addresses the effects on environmental habitats as the result of urban development.
   b. Impact of Industrialization on the Environment (in)organic pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
             Economic development is coupled with industrial growth. Recent foreign investments in industries in developing countries have resulted in the creation of numerous factories. However, this has also produced an environmental challenge because of the air emissions and effluent discharges from the factories. Research presented in this session should address the effects of air and water pollution due to industrial activities. Two specific panels in this session will be Water pollution and Air pollution. Authors are welcome to select one of these panels when they submit an abstract for this session.
   c. Water Resources : quality, quantity, and management
   d. Pesticides: Effects and persistence in the environment
   e. Effects of Climate Change on the Environment         
             Global warming, resulting from greenhouse gas emissions, burning fossil fuels, and deforestation is an environmental challenge to our world. The continued increases in global temperature have resulted in rising sea levels and widespread flooding. Global changes are expected to accelerate and impact environmental habitat and agriculture. Research presented in this session will focus on the effects of climate change on the environment, especially coastal environments.
2. Public health: implications from a compromised environment        
             Environmental degradation in developing countries has affected human health. Many public health problems are occurring as a result of the consumption of contaminated food and inhalation of polluted air. This session includes studies that characterize the effects of pollution and contaminated food on public health.
3. Environmental Science and Management in Developing versus Developed Countries
   a. Environmental Toxicology
             Environmental toxicology is an applied science that studies the effects of pollutants in air, dust, sediment, soil, and water. Results from this area of study can support the development of environmental quality criteria, environmental management, and policy. Environmental toxicology programs have been developed in western countries, especially in the United States of America for many decades. While many environmental issues continue to arise, this specific science is less developed or lacking in the developing countries. Presentations that focus on method developments and education on the science of pollutants will be presented in this session.
       * Development of novel strategies for chemical toxicity testing
       * OMICS as a route to identification of toxicity sensors, targets or biomarkers that could impact risk assessment of environmental chemicals
       * Environmental exposure, toxicity pathways and adverse outcomes
       * Aquatic macrophytes in ecotoxicology: detection of effects and their integration into risk assessment and potential for agents of remediation
       * Developing Criteria and Indicators for Selecting Appropriate Wastewater
       * Sediment toxicity and evaluation of contamination at tropical locations
   b. Ecological and Human Health Risk Assessments
             The diversity of ecosystems is one factor that makes it difficult to directly measure the effects of environmental pollutants. However, a technical procedure called “ecological risk assessment “has been developed to quantitatively evaluate the effects of environmental pollutants on ecosystems from the results of individual and population effect studies and the uncertainty in risks. Because relevant ecotoxicology data are lacking, ecological risk and health assessments are not widely conducted in developing countries. Presentations in this session will focus on the introduction of ecological and human health risk assessment methods with case studies illustrated. Case studies can be for metals or organic pollutants.
   c. Environmental Management and Policy
             Environmental management and policy are guided by environmental quality criteria and, therefore, might be different in each country. Environmental management is often less effective in developing countries. Factors that influence the effectiveness of environmental management include traditional culture, environmental education, economy, enforcement of laws, etc. Presentations in this session will emphasize the methods to effectively manage the environment and to develop environmental policy.
       * Managing Environment: Costs, Benefits and Enforcement Issues
4. Environmental Chemistry and Technology
   a. Environmental Monitoring Programs on Water, Soil, Air, and Biota
             The uncontrolled emissions of pollutants from nonpoint and point sources over short or long term periods have resulted in many environmental problems. Air pollution can become a long-range spatial issue (or international issue) due to the dispersion of pollutants in the atmosphere. Atmospheric pollution also can result in the pollution of soil and water from deposition. Soil, sediment, and water can also be polluted due to discharge of untreated industrial wastes and agricultural runoff. Therefore, frequent monitoring is necessary for evaluating the uncertainty of environmental quality over time. This session presents programs that focus on environmental monitoring of water, soil, air, and biota to track spatial and temporal trends in contamination.
   b. Environmental Modeling
             Environment models simulate what might occur in the actual environment and are important tools for environmental research and policy making. Modeling studies for emission inventories; the transport of pollutants in air, water and other environmental media; and human or ecological risk assessments will be presented in this session.
   c. Environmental Remediation and Restoration          Degradation of the environment has affected the lives of organisms, including humans. Local and federal agencies have been created to restore the environment in developing counties. Statutes have also been promulgated that focus on remediation technologies and restoration plans. This process has lagged in developing countries. Presentations that address the development and effectiveness of environmental remediation methods in the laboratory and the field as well as principles of environmental restoration will be presented in this session.
5. Interactive Discussion         
             The purpose of this session is to invite environmental scientists, managers, and policy makers from developed and developing countries to join an interactive discussion on existing environmental issues (e.g., metal pollution, organic pollution, air pollution) and to propose solutions for them. Environmental issues can be local or regional and should focus on two subjects: water-soil pollution and air pollution. Interested attendees are required to register for this session when registering for the conference.