Development of Methodology for Vulnerability Assessment of Chemical Accident in Terrestrial Ecosystem: (2) Focusing on the Herbs

Abstract

Objective:As the industry rapidly develops in modern society, the use of chemicals increases and people and various organism living in terrestrial environments are exposed to these chemicals in large quantities. Chemical accidents frequently occur around the world, and these accidents could cause fatal damage to the terrestrial ecosystem. When the terrestrial ecosystem is exposed to highly toxic chemicals, soil functions as well as living organisms in the terrestrial ecosystem could be severely damaged. Countermeasures against chemical accidents and chemicals are required to prevent such damage and for this purpose, systematic vulnerability assessment techniques should be developed to prepare terrestrial ecosystem management for chemical accidents. For this purpose, this study is conducted to develop chemical vulnerability assessment techniques based on biological characteristics of plants.Method:First, we selected 215 species among herb plants according to the domestic distribution and establish various vulnerability indicators that can be evaluated according to the exposure and recovery categories.Results and Discussion:As a result of vulnerability scoring for 215 herbs species, the most vulnerable species were Humulus japonicus, Linum usitatissimum, Psilotum nudum, Trigonotis peduncularis, and Lamium amplexicaule. The least vulnerable species were Miscanthus sinensis, Dactylis glomerata, Spodiopogon sibiricus, and Polygonum filiforme.Conclusions:Terrestrial ecosystem is a main stage of human activity, so there is a high risk of chemical accidents as a large amount of chemicals are used. By utilizing this terrestrial ecosystem vulnerability assessment proposed in this study, we can prioritize the vulnerability of chemicals on the terrestrial ecosystem and use this technique to manage chemical accidents and chemicals and prepare countermeasures.