Who is in the Lower Reaches, Who Suffers Disasters？ Take Minqin County, a Disappearing Oasis as a Case

Minqin Oasis is located in the lower reaches of the Shiyanghe River Basin, northeast of the Heixi Corridor, at the middle of the Silk Road. Because of the its existence, Badain Jaran Desert and Tengger Desert cannot converge and develop in the south. It has always been an important green barrier to guarantee the eco-security of Hexi Corridor and the Silk Road for thousands of years. But in recent decades, Minqin Oasis is becoming smaller and the desert is becoming larger. Many people, especially the governmental officials in the lower reaches think that the upper and middle reaches have robbed the lower reaches of water resources, and caused insufficient water usage and the deteriorated eco-environment, in the lower reaches, However, the governmental officials in the upper and middle reaches claim that the whole river basin should take the upper and middle reaches as the key regions to develop economy. To address the above argument, we analyze the reasons why Minqin Oasis is disappearing, and find that there are two main factors. One is the quick development of population and economy in the upper and middle reaches; the other is the rapid development of population and economy in the lower reaches. The two factors both have great effect on the water utilization for eco-environment in the lower reaches. So Minqin Oasis is disappearing not only because of the upper and middle reaches but also because of the growth of population and economy itself. The lower reaches should not completely blame the upper and middle reaches. The upper and middle reaches should also pay more attention to the eco-environment in the lower reaches. The whole river basin should develop a harmonious and sustainable relationship among the upper, middle and lower reaches.     

Local communities' participation in decision-making processes through planning and budgeting in African countries

Community participation and community based management are topical themes in current policy and discussion revolving around decision-making processes especially those dealing with natural resources management.This review shows that while governments have accepted the need to either cede or devolve control and management of natural resources to the local communities,the communities are not part and parcel of the planning and budgeting which are crucial in decisionmaking.Communities were seen to be more involved in the implementation of natural resource management programs but lacked ownership of the projects.This causes lack of commitment to the programs and at times hostile reaction from the communities.The communities are always at the receiving end when it pertains to losses in the exchange.Community participation was shown to be effective when the local population is involved not as co-operating users but as natural resource managers or owner managers.     

Global Major Progress and Trends in the Implementation of Agenda 21

This paper summarizes, from a global perspective, the major progress in the implementation of the Agenda 21 since the UN Conference on Environment and Development. The results show that global economy has achieved a substantial growth, and positive progress has been made in poverty eradication, urbanization, and conservation and intensive use of natural resources. However, relevant international conventions and commitments have not yet been completely fulfilled. The paper further analyzes the current major challenges and future trends of global sustainable development. It is argued that there are three major challenges:1) fatal global environmental issues posing an increasing threat to human survival; 2) more and more severe global competition for developing spaces; and 3) issues highlighting global people’s livelihood. There are four trends of global sustainable development:1) sustainable development will further turn from concept into global action; 2) green will be the main trend of global development; 3) emerging developing countries will become the main driving force of global sustainable development; and 4) international relations in the field of sustainable development will turn to competitive co-operation.     

Research on Indicator System of Regional Eco-efficiency:A Case Study of Chengyang District

Eco-efficiency is a valuable tool for managing and solving issues involving resource consumption and pollution emission in current production processes. Despite the popularity of the term “eeo-efficiency“ in business, limited attention has been paid to measuring and reporting regional eco-efficiency for local government policy makers. Based on the concept and method of eco-efficiency, an indicator system of regional eco-efficiency is established in this study. The indicator system comprises 22 indicators, which are divided in to three categories including socio-economic development, resources consumption,environmental pressure. As a promising statistical technique,principle component analysis is used to set the weight of indicators which attempts to calculate the eco-efficiency indices of Qingdao‘s Chengyang District. The results show that the eco-efficiency of Chengyang District has clearly improved 35.1% with small fluctuation from 1995 to 2003. Socio-economic development index and resources consumption index also represent obvious increasing trends. The correlation coefficient between soci-economic development index and resources consumption index is 0.979, which means the social progress and economic growth of Chengyang District depend on an extravagant consumption of resources. The environmental pressure index increased slowly before 1997 and declined gradually after 1997, due to more attention being paid to environmental protection by local government in recent years. Chengyang District still keeps the traditional economic development mode with a high consumption and high production, so the emphases of future development should put on improving the improving the efficient use of natural resources and promoting environmental management sustainability. The results show that the indicators system of regional eco-efficiency is a promising method to quantitatively evaluate resources and environmental efficiency and provide an effective decision-making support for local governments.     

Energy revolution:for a sustainable future

The discovery and use of fossil fuels have not only helped the evolution of human society from agricultural civilization to industrial civilization,but also caused serious environmental and climate problems.The earth is calling for a sustainable future,and a change from industrial civilization to ecological civilization based on the new"energy revolution".A macroscopic quantitative analysis of China’s environmental capacity and climate capacity shows that China is in urgent need of changing the extensive developing mode and having an energy revolution.It is foreseeable that fossil fuels will remain the most consumed source of energies in China now and in the next few decades.Although the efficient and clean use of fossil fuels are very important,this is not an energy revolution or the fundamental solution to environmental and climate problems.Unconventional gases including shale gas play an important role in the mitigation of environmental problems and climate change,but"shale gas revolution"or"shale gas era"is not suitable to China since the proportion of natural gas in primary energy structure in China can only be increased by a maximum of 20%.The transition of Chinese energy structure from fossil-fuels-dominating stage to multiple-energy-sources stage and then to a nonfossil-fuels-dominating stage is the inevitable future,with the help of great contribution from renewable energy and nuclear energy.Among renewable energies,the proportion of non-hydro renewable energies will gradually increase.Improvement of their market competitiveness(economic efficiency)relies on technological innovation.Renewable energies will be the main energy source for the earth in future.Despite the impact of the Fukushima nuclear disaster,the whole world,including China,will not give up nuclear energy development.Safe,steady,and large-scale development of nuclear power is a rational choice of China.Transition from nuclear fission power plant to nuclear fusion power plant is the inevitable future.Nuclear energy will be a sustainable energy source and another main energy source of the earth in future.China needs to enhance energy security consciousness,promote energy saving,and change the energy supply-demand patterns,that is the transition from"meet a too-fast-growing demand with an extensive supply"to"meet a reasonable demand with a rational supply".All countries need to work together to address global environmental problems and climate change.Energy revolution is the foundation for a sustainable future.With a wide range of international cooperation,the win-win cooperation is the only way of overcoming these challenges.     

Environment as the Stage for Economic Actors

The relative importance of economics and environment in debate may soon be reversed due to the influence of three fac- tors. Firstly, in the global economy it is hard to hide the unwanted products of economic processes. Secondly, huge advances in sci- ence will reduce the imperfect knowledge of markets, making some monitoring and analyzing tools show the design of sensible and equitable livelihood in communities, which is more important than the motivation of maximising profits for some individuals or firms. Thirdly, China, as the last major player on the planet to take on economic growth, comes from traditions fundamentally differ- ent from those economies that have experienced the Industrial Revolution previously. Its challenges with sustainability and en- vironmental conservation predate Western economics by millennia, and it is implementing policies domestically and starting to work on the world stage that acknowledges that the surroundings are the host for any economic and socio-political system.     

Population,development,and environment in India

High population growth and continued economic development have caused serious environmental damage in the Asia Pacific region.However,the recent experience is that the pace of environmental degradation is faster in developing countries than in developed countries.To this end,the study seeks to assess the impact of population pressure on India’s environment,with particular reference to the degradation of natural endowments like land and water resources and the resultant environmental pollution in the six regions of India.The rapid economic growth and expansion of infrastructure development in recent decades have not come without serious environmental consequences particularly in the southern,northern,and western regions.But in the eastern,north-eastern,and central regions of the country,environmental damage has been mainly due to rapid population growth.     

China＇s Total Emission Control Policy： a Critical Review

As part of a comprehensive environmental management system, many countries establish emission control targets for mass emissions of a pollutant. Such targets are often the key objective of an environmental policy, such as an emission trading program. In China, however, it is more than just an objective of one particular policy; it has become a concept that has influenced many national environmental policies and activities. The objective of this article is to review the implementation of the total emission control policy in the past 10 years and explore emerging issues in its implementation. The article has three sections： a summary of the implementation experience, issues with the design and implementation of the policy, and policy recommendations.     

A study on aquaculture industry regulations and policies of globally representative states

Aquaculture has a long history,and has achieved rapid development from 1950 to 2010,especially since the 1990s.Nevertheless,aquaculture has also seen a series of problems emerge.Inevitably,aquaculture interacts with the environment and society.Rapid development requires that close attention be paid to potential environmental and social impacts and their prevention or mitigation.The development and management of aquaculture is related closely with a variety of legal and institutional arrangements.Thus,aquaculture raises numerous legal and institutional issues.This paper explores actual legal and institutional practices of global representative aquaculture countries and provides a comprehensive account of the legislation and policies of different countries.Further,this paper reveals that the optimal legal framework for aquaculture is in line with related international regulations(especially the soft laws)and strictly operational,and the corresponding policy framework should establish early access and warning,as well as post assessment and feedback mechanisms.     

SWOT Analysis and Challenges of Nile Basin Initiative: An Integrated Water Resource Management Perspective

Abstract

River Nile is one of the longest transboundery rivers and it is shared and used by Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. As of today, the Nile is a crucial resource for the economic development of the Nile Basin countries and a vital source of livelihood for 160 million inhabitants as well as 300 million people living in the 10 riparian countries. The Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) is one of the international cooperative river basin management program and regional partnership where all the Nile Basin countries except Eritrea unite to pursue long-term sustainable development, improved land use practices and management. This review therefore focused on the challenges not faced on NBI in terms of integrated use of the river and conducted analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) based on secondary data. The result of the review revealed that for decades, the Nile Basin people have been facing many complex environmental, social, economic and political challenges that have made it difficult for the proper management and sustainability of Nile water. The initiative provides training to develop skills in government ministries, non-governmental organizations and local communities in each country. It is also working to raise awareness of critical environmental issues by strengthening networks of environmental education practitioners; developing curriculum in the education sector. The challenges of NBI include the involvement and funding of World Bank, lack of sufficient staff, procedural and policies conflicts, lack of coordination and linkage with other regional institutions and lack of recognition as river basin organization. Considering the complex nature of the project, it is recommended that the NBI should come up with a strong multi-disciplinary monitoring and evaluation team to follow up all implemented projects. The NBI should carry out participatory land use planning in communities along the river basin. Moreover, livelihood analysis should be carried out especially in communities along the Nile to come up with poverty eradication projects which are socially acceptable, applicable, economically viable and affordable.     

长江流域治理开发对生态与环境的改善和保护作用

长江流域治理开发是长江治理、开发、保护和管理的总称，包括流域治理、水资源开发利用、水资源保护、水土保持生态建设以及流域管理等内容，经过建国以来半个多世纪的发展和努力，长江流域治理开发取得了巨大的成就。在可持续发展战略和和谐社会思想的指导下，流域治理开发与生态环境建设息息相关，正确评价长江流域治理开发对生态与环境的改善和保护作用，对于促进治江事业的健康发展，充分发挥其生态环境效益具有十分重要的意义。通过对长江流域近五十多年来治理开发的总结归纳，分别从治理、开发、保护和管理等角度分析和总结了其对生态环境的保护和改善作用，认为长江流域治理开发总体上对生态、环境保护发挥了充分和积极的作用。     

水污染控制规划的GIS辅助技术研究

以宁波市甬江流域为例，以GIS技术辅助流域水污染控制规划，在ARCGIS90的环境中，完成了流域水系概化、水质评价，并利用GIS的叠置技术，建立功能区划水域－入河排污口－陆上汇流区的对应关系。根据水环境功能区的水质目标，通过建立污染源－水环境质量的输入响应关系，然后利用GIS技术对甬江流域数字高程模型（DEM）进行数字地形分析，得到甬江流域的模拟河网和流域汇水图，构筑了水污染控制单元，作为水环境容量核定和总量分配的基本工作区域。最后利用GIS的可视化表达进行辅助决策，确定各水环境功能区的水环境容量，结合排污状况（包括工业、农业、生活）的分析，得出流域水污染控制的总量控制方案和对策措施。甬江流域水污染控制规划的实践表明，在规划过程中，GIS作为一个必不可少的工具渗透在每一个环节中，为数据管理、空间图形表达和空间决策分析提供有效的工作平台和可靠的技术支持     

季风形成与长江流域的季风文化

由于深受季风环流的影响,长江文化与黄河文化均可称之为“季风文化”。这种文化源远流长,延绵不绝。东亚季风的形成是中国环境演变的关键事件,它是随着沧海桑田的变化特别是青藏高原的隆起而形成和强化的。在长江流域,随着东亚季风的建立,原有行星风系的环流形势被季风环流所取代,从而避免了全年受单一副热带高压的持续控制。因此,当地球相同纬度位置上的尼罗河流域、两河流域和印度河流域备受“副高”沙漠的袭击、使其古老文明遭到枯萎或夭折时,长江流域却因夏季风的吹拂,获得了降水的主要水汽来源,从而显得生机勃勃,其古老文明虽历经沧桑,仍不断发扬光大,且高峰迭起,一直巍然屹立于世界东方。     

Adoption and adaptation of natural resource management innovations in smallholder agriculture: reflections on key lessons and best practices

Many smallholder farmers in vulnerable areas continue to face complex challenges in adoption and adaptation of resource management and conservation strategies. Although much has been learned from diverse experiences in sustainable resource management, there is still inadequate understanding of the market, policy and institutional failures that shape and structure farmer incentives and investment decisions. The policy and institutional failures exacerbate market failures, locking smallholder resource users into a low level equilibrium that perpetuates poverty and land degradation. Improved market access that raises the returns to land and labor is often the driving force for adoption of new practices in agriculture. Market linkages, access to credit and availability of pro-poor options for beneficial conservation are critical factors in stimulating livelihood and sustainability-enhancing investments. Future interventions need to promote joint innovations that ensure farmer experimentation and adaptation of new technologies and careful consideration of market, policy and institutional factors that stimulate widespread smallholder investments. Future projects should act as ‘toolboxes’, giving essential support to farmers to devise complementary solutions based on available options. Addressing the externalities and institutional failures that prevent private and joint investments for management of agricultural landscapes will require new kinds of institutional mechanisms for empowering communities through local collective action that would ensure broad participation and equitable distributions of the gains from joint conservation investments. Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

跨国水资源保护的法律措施——兼及中国的实践

国际流域各国在自己境内利用跨国水资源或进行其他活动时，有义务保护国际流域水资源，防止对其他流域国造成重大损害。对有关国际文件的规定和国际社会的实践进行了系统的分析和比较，从促进跨国水资源包括涉及我国的跨国水资源保护的目的出发，运用比较、概括和归纳的方法，对流域各国保护国际流域水资源的法律措施进行了归纳和总结。这些措施包括但不限于环境影响评价、交流信息、监测、通知、紧急情况下的援助、控制污染、公众参与等。最后就中国促进相关跨国水资源的保护提出了具体的措施建议：严格执行《环境影响评价法》、《水污染防治法》等法律法规；建立跨国河流水环境监测网；保持和加强与相邻国家和沿岸各国的信息交流与合作；继续与更多的沿岸国谈判和签署双边或多边流域保护协议，并建立流域保护或管理委员会负责对跨国河流流域的保护与管理.     

水污染控制规划的GIS辅助技术研究

以宁波市甬江流域为例，以GIS技术辅助流域水污染控制规划，在ARCGIS90的环境中，完成了流域水系概化、水质评价，并利用GIS的叠置技术，建立功能区划水域－入河排污口－陆上汇流区的对应关系。根据水环境功能区的水质目标，通过建立污染源－水环境质量的输入响应关系，然后利用GIS技术对甬江流域数字高程模型（DEM）进行数字地形分析，得到甬江流域的模拟河网和流域汇水图，构筑了水污染控制单元，作为水环境容量核定和总量分配的基本工作区域。最后利用GIS的可视化表达进行辅助决策，确定各水环境功能区的水环境容量，结合排污状况（包括工业、农业、生活）的分析，得出流域水污染控制的总量控制方案和对策措施。甬江流域水污染控制规划的实践表明，在规划过程中，GIS作为一个必不可少的工具渗透在每一个环节中，为数据管理、空间图形表达和空间决策分析提供有效的工作平台和可靠的技术支持     

鄱阳湖流域基本特征、面临挑战和关键科学问题

鄱阳湖流域总面积占长江流域面积的9%，占江西省国土面积的939%，鄱阳湖流域的生态健康维系着流域内，特别是长江中下游的生态安全，是区域经济、社会、生态可持续发展的重要保障。在全面认识鄱阳湖流域基本特征和面临挑战的基础上，探讨了鄱阳湖流域面临的五大科学问题：“山 江 湖”的相互关系与流域的生态健康；全球变化背景下流域生态系统的响应；流域生物多样性地理格局与社会经济合理分区；长江流域环境演变对鄱阳湖流域的影响；流域科学管理的理论与实践。为鄱阳湖生态经济区的建设和全流域的综合管理提供科学的建议和对策     

赤水河流域产业状况与综合流域管理策略

赤水河流域位于川、滇、黔3省接壤地带，流域面积 18 932 km2，流经贵州、云南、四川的13个县市。目前，赤水河流域依然是长江上游生态环境、水质最好的一级支流。促进流域环境保护与经济的协调发展，是地区在进行流域管理的难题。通过研究发现，赤水河流域上、中、下游具有显著的产业特点。上游主要以煤电行业为主，污染大，过度垦殖导致水土流失严重；中游以优质白酒为主导的轻工产业为主，但政府发展规划上却突出了重工业发展的重要性；下游地区具有良好的生态环境并开展了初步规模的自然生态旅游，但在产业发展上受到上、中游地区的严重影响和限制。因此，流域的产业发展对整个流域的环境保护和经济可持续发展的影响很大，而现行的流域管理却忽视了产业布局的整体考虑。通过赤水河流域环境问题和产业发展以及相互之间关系的分析，通过综合流域管理的思想，提出建立全流域统一的环境保护机制的策略，把流域的环境特点转化为经济发展的要素，促进流域环境的保护和经济的协调发展。     

On shrimp,salt and security: livelihood risks and responses in South Bangladesh and East India

Bangladesh and India are among the world’s most populous but also most vulnerable countries to environmental risks. In addition to storms, sea-level rise, floods and droughts, local communities face a multitude of pre-existing and concomitant economic and socio-political risks. To understand these risks and how communities respond to them is critical in securing community livelihoods. We therefore ask what are the livelihood risks; how do they impact the human security of environment sensitive communities in Satkhira, Bangladesh and in Odisha, India; and, what are the responses of these communities to the livelihood risks? The communities studied in Bangladesh depend mainly on the shrimp and fish resources of the Sundarbans mangrove forest. The two communities researched at Lake Chilika in India depend on fishing and salt farming, respectively. The field research, conducted in 2012 and 2013, shows that the communities face multiple and interacting livelihood risks. While storms and floods are common environmental risks in both countries, related livelihood risks are case-specific. In Bangladesh, attacks by criminals are the major threat to human well-being, while in India, it is violent conflict between lake users. Unsustainable resource extraction is found in both study countries. In Bangladesh, shrimp farming weakens the flood protection, while in India, illegal prawn farming marginalizes poorer lake users. Accessing loans and labor migration are responses observed in both countries. We conclude that adaptation to environmental changes needs to be sensitive to the interaction between governance, local institutions and socio-economic developments.