• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.14-25
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• 2008

Benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and m-, p-, and o-xylene, the most influential aromatic volatile organic compounds (VOCs), were measured in Bangkok, Thailand, one of the most rapidly developing urban areas in Southern East Asia. The purpose of this study is to characterize the ambient air quality with respect to above mentioned aromatic compounds. The data were monitored in ten sites which cover roadside area, residential area and background area. Canister technique was used to obtain air sample at 24 hour interval per a month during April-August in 2007. GC/MS with three stage preconcentrator was used to analyze these samples. The average concentrations of benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene m-, p-xylene and o-xylene are 5.8, 36.1, 4.1, 11.0 and $3.7{\mu}g/m^3$, respectively. They were observed to be distributed in a log-normal form. Moreover, o-xylene and m, p-xylene exhibited a very good correlation (r=0.976). The slope of the regression equation between them was 3.07 which consisted with a previous reported value. The average ratio of toluene to benzene was 6.4 in April, May June and August. This value was comparable to the ones measured in other Asian cities. Two types of statistical analyses, cluster and factor analyses, were applied to the data in this study. Well characterization was made to understand the air quality of Bangkok area.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.110-117
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• 2011

The paper tries to understand the other side of characteristics on occupational injuries and diseases in forestry. Occupational injuries and diseases in forestry seems to be greatly influenced by the environmental characteristics of the mountain district and individual's ability of workers. A traditional method on the analysis of occupational injuries and diseases data may show that the main cause of occupational injuries and diseases is the material factors significantly. To identify the other side of occupational injuries and diseases in forestry, the occupational injuries and diseases data of 3,091 workers in forestry was analyzed. The data in forestry, 2009 shows certain characteristics among the recent occupational injuries and diseases data. The first step is to classify the data according to standard of classification of original cause materials. Material factors are 72.3% and human factors (included managerial factors) and environmental factors are 27.0%. The next step is to reclassify the first step data by using the concept of influence factors which caused and influenced occupational injuries and diseases. The result is that material factors are 2.4%, human factors(included managerial factors) and environmental factors are 97.0%. Also, an aging degree of workers in forestry is higher than other categories of business. It is true that an aging degree of injured or diseased workers in forestry is higher than that of other categories of business. However, relevance with increase of occupational injuries and diseases could not be explained. An injury and disease rate in forestry is remarkably increased recently than other categories of business. One of the reason why an injury and disease rate increased remarkably in 2009 could be considered as the increase of the number of workers and related budget. Therefore, this study proposes important measures or means to prevent occupational injuries and diseases in forestry.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.221-234
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• 2023

This study was conducted to develop a habitat assessment system for the endangered wildlife II Kirengeshoma koreana Nakai through in-depth interviews with experts based on field surveys and environmental characteristics through spatial data analysis and literature research. Evaluation factors were selected based on the survey results of 31 variables for 23 K. koreana habitats. Afterwards, the importance and evaluation range for each assessment factor were selected. The selection of survey variables, assessment factors, importance of each factor and assessment range was conducted through in-depth interviews with experts at each stage. As a result, the assessment factors and importance were 16% for precipitation of the wettest month, 10% for vegetation zone, 12% for vegetation type, 10% for crown canopy vitality, 14% for tree layer coverage, 13% for drainage grade, 12% for soil depth, and 13% for distance to stream including dry stream. This study provides basic ecological information and a habitat assessment system for K. koreana habitats. Therefore, it can be used as primary data for preparing an endangered wildlife conservation policy, preparing a habitat improvement plan, and selecting an alternative habitat.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.11 no.8
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• pp.49-55
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• 2010

Safety estimation of the pillar between parallel tunnels are very important considering stress concentration in case the piller width is not enough to secure the stability. Pillar width needs to be determined properly because of the progressive failure-risk of pillar due to stress-concentration. In this research, the effect of element size in numerical analysis was evaluated based on that yield pillar's stability and proposed systematic analysis about pilar's stability examination. In consequence of it, element size does not give any effect on intensity stress ratio. On the other hand, the analysis using the smaller element size results in lower safety factor in strength reduction technique. In case of the weathered re.k on the main ground layer, the analysis of result was not reliable. In conclusion, the smaller element size is, the more stable factor is.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.23 no.12
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• pp.17-23
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• 2022

This paper analyze the precast panel retaining wall's safety factor changes based on the numerical analysis using PLAXIS 2D software. Numerical analysis conditions include construction method, nail and panel fixing method, backfill material compaction conditions, rainfall conditions. The classification according to the construction method of the precast panel retaining wall includes the top-down and bottom-up methods. The difference between the top-down and bottom-up methods is the presence or absence backfill material and the ground excavation method. The top-down method involves vertically excavating the ground and attaching the panel using mortar, but in the bottom-up method, the ground is vertically excavated and harden the backfill material. As a result of numerical analysis, the top-down method secured a higher safety factor in all cases except the rainfall conditions.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.538-550
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• 2008

Radon is an invisible, odorless, and radioactive gas. It is formed by the disintegration of radium, which is a decay product of uranium. Some amounts of radon gas and its products are present ubiquitously in the soil, water, and air. Particularly high radon levels occur in regions of high uranium content. Although radon is permeable into indoor environment not only through geological features (bed rock and permeability) but also through the construction materials and underground water, the radiation from the geological features is generally main exposure factor. So there can be a problem in a certain space such as the underground and/or relatively poor ventilation condition. In this study, a GIS technique was used in order to investigate spatial distribution of radon measured from sub- way stations of 1 thru 8 in Seoul, Korea in 1991, 1998, 2001, and 2006. Spatial analysis was applied to reproduce the radon distribution. We utilized spatial analysis techniques such as inverse distance weighted averaging (IDW) and kriging techniques which are widely used to relate between different spatial points. To validate the results from the analyses, the jackknife technique for an uncertainty test was performed. When the number of measuring sites was less than 100 and also when the number of omitted sites increased, the kriging technique was better than IDW. On the other hand, when the number of sites was over 100, IDW technique was better than kriging technique. Thus the selection of analytical tool was affected sensitives by the analysis based on the number of measuring sites.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.97-115
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• 2023

Ecosystem services (ES) are the benefits that people obtain from ecosystems. Traditional ES assessment methods have focused on the supply of ES, using biophysical data. However, these methods often fail to capture the full value of ES, which is also determined by social and cultural factors. This study proposes a new approach to ES assessment that incorporates socio-cultural perspectives. The study was conducted in Seoul, South Korea. A survey was conducted of 1,805 residents of Seoul to assess their satisfaction with ecosystem services. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify bundles of ES that were perceived as important by residents. A revised importance-satisfaction analysis was used to calculate the urgency level of each bundle. The results of the study showed that the 21 ES that were considered in the survey could be grouped into three bundles: urban green area-based, biodiversity-based, and resilience-based. The urgency level analysis showed that some bundles were more important than others, and that some bundles were more urgent than others. The findings of this study have several implications. First, they suggest that a socio-cultural approach to ES assessment can provide a more comprehensive and accurate assessment of ES. Second, they show that this approach can be used to identify areas where ES management is most needed. Third, they suggest that this approach could be used to inform ES management and policy decisions.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.440-448
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• 2007

Although the anthracite power plant is an important source of greenhouse gas, research on this type of power plant has not been conducted much. The present study investigated the entire anthracite power plants in Korea and analyzed the emitted gas in connection with GC/FD and a methanizer in order to develop $CO_2$ emission factors. The study also sampled the anthracite to analyze the amount of carbon and hydrogen using an element analyzer, and to measure the calorie using an automatic calorie analyzer. The emission factors computed through the fuel analysis was 30.45 kg/GJ and that computed through the $CO_2$ gas analysis was 26.48 kg/GJ. The former is approximately about 15% higher than the latter. When compared the carbon content factors of anthracite with that of bituminous coal, the value of anthracite was 24% higher Compared with IPCC values, the emission factors by the fuel was 14% higher, and that by the emitted $CO_2$ gas was about 1.2% lower. More research is needed on our own emission factors of various energy-consuming facilities in order to stand on a higher position in international negotiations regarding the treaties on climate changes.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.157-166
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• 2017

Objectives: Exposure to hazardous air pollutants could be affected by sociodemographic factors such as age, gender and more. Information on time spent in microenvironments has a critical role in exposure assessment. The purpose of this study was to analyze the exposure pathways which influence personal exposure through time-activity patterns and sociodemographic factors. Methods: A total of 379 subjects were collected from the second term of the Korean National Environmental Health Survey. A questionnaire survey in relation to sociodemographic factors and a time-activity diary were carried out for personal exposure to toluene. Focusing on personal exposure to toluene, factors affecting personal exposure were analyzed using multiple regression analysis. Results: Participants spent their time in an indoor house for $16.8{\pm}4.0hr$, workplace or school $2.3{\pm}3.5hr$, and other indoor $2.1{\pm}2.2hr$. Sociodemographic factors were significantly different among each personal exposure and microenvironment. Time of staying at an office turned out to be a main factor from point of exposure in exposure pathway using multiple regression analysis. As a result, this means that exposure may be different according to the time of staying in each microenvironment. Conclusions: Personal exposure to air pollutants might be decided by time-activity pattern indicating when, where, and which activities people pursue, as well as individual sociodemographic factors.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.27-42
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• 2018

It is important to identify the contaminant sources and to evaluate the fate and transport of heavy metals to crops in agricultural lands. This study was conducted to evaluate metal sources and its transfer and accumulation to crop in agricultural soils. Pollution indices were calculated and multivariate analysis was performed to identify metal sources. To evaluate transfer and accumulation of metals to crops, the contents of phytoavailable metals were evaluated by using single extraction method and the correlation between metal content and soil properties was analyzed. Also the BCF was quantitatively evaluated for investigating the metal transition to each crop grown in the research area. As a result, Cr, Ni, and Co were expected to be mainly derived from geologic factors due to weathering of certain parent rocks. The content of nickel in soils of the research area was slightly higher than that of the concern level criteria based on total concentration, but the amount transferred and accumulated in the crops was actually low. Understanding the contamination characteristics by investigating the pollution sources of heavy metals and its transfer and accumulation to crops through various evaluation techniques could provide important information for proper management of the agricultural land.