Exercise tests and BBB method for evaluation of motor disorders in rats after contusion spinal injury.

Contusion spinal injury of different severity was induced by the weight drop method in male rats by dropping standard weight from the heights of 6.5, 12.5, 25, and 50 mm on the spine after laminectomy at the Th9 level.

Short rotation coppice as alternative land use for Chernobyl-contaminated areas of Belarus.

Field experiments were conducted in the Chernobyl-affected area to assess if short rotation coppice (SRC) for energy production is a feasible alternative for contaminated land. Four willow clones were planted on sandy and peaty soil and the radiocaesium (137Cs) and radiostrontium (90Sr) transfer factors (TF) and yield relevant parameters were recorded during four growing seasons. The 137Cs and 90Sr soil-to-willow wood TF on sandy soil (second growing season) were on average 1.

Spatial assessment of the economic feasibility of short rotation coppice on radioactively contaminated land in Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia. II. Monte Carlo analysis.

A Monte Carlo analysis of two sequential GIS-embedded submodels, which evaluate the economic feasibility of short rotation coppice (SRC) production and energy conversion in areas contaminated by Chernobyl-derived (137)Cs, was performed to allow for variability of environmental conditions that was not contained in the spatial model inputs. The results from this analysis were compared to the results from the deterministic model presented in part I of this paper. It was concluded that, although the variability in the model results due to within-gridcell variability of the model inputs was considerable, the prediction of the areas where SRC and energy conversion is potentially profitable was robust.

Spatial assessment of the economic feasibility of short rotation coppice on radioactively contaminated land in Belarus, Ukraine, and Russia. I. Model description and scenario analysis.

The economic feasibility of short rotation coppice (SRC) production and energy conversion in areas contaminated by Chernobyl-derived (137)Cs was evaluated taking the spatial variability of environmental conditions into account. Two sequential GIS-embedded submodels were developed for a spatial assessment, which allow for spatial variation in soil contamination, soil type, and land use. These models were applied for four SRC production and four energy conversion scenarios for the entire contaminated area of Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia and for a part of the Bragin district, Belarus.

Short rotation coppice for revaluation of contaminated land.

When dealing with large-scale environmental contamination, as following the Chernobyl accident, changed land use such that the products of the land are radiologically acceptable and sustain an economic return from the land is a potentially sustainable remediation option. In this paper, willow short rotation coppice (SRC) is evaluated on radiological, technical and economic grounds for W. European and Belarus site conditions.