Radioactivity values 15 months after chernobyl in areas of western Norway

Summary Values of radiation in the mountainous Hurrungane region of Norway are presented from animals, plants, soil, ice and water. Certain species are noted as particularly effective accumulators. The significance of altitude is examined and the advantages of pasturing sheep at low altitude noted. The fate of the radioactivity in the soil and the accumulation in the woody tissue of trees is examined. It is observed that the faeces of herbivores such as sheep and reindeer still retained appreciable counts.Dr Brian Pyatt is the Section Leader and Principal Lecturer in Ecology in the Department of Life Sciences at Trent Polytechnic. This short paper partly follows on an earlier report which appeared inThe Environmentalist 7(3) 197–200 (1987).     

Long-Term Effectiveness of Restoration Treatments on Closed Wilderness Campsites

This study assessed long-term recovery of vegetation on six wilderness campsites in subalpine forests in Oregon that were closed to use and that received common restoration treatments (scarification, soil amendments, mulch, transplanting, and seeding). Vegetation cover was assessed every year for the first 7 years following treatment, as well as 10 and 15 years after treatment. This made it possible to compare long-term treatment effectiveness to short-term efficacy. Plots that were closed and not scarified had virtually no vegetation cover even after 15 years without use. If long-used campsites in these subalpine forests are simply closed and allowed to recover on their own, restoration of undisturbed conditions will require hundreds if not thousands of years. Study results show, however, that simple treatments can accelerate recovery rates substantially. Scarification and transplanting were highly effective treatments, with seeding and soil amendment with organic matter and compost also contributing to success, but to a lesser degree. The use of a mulch mat, in contrast, had no effect, either positive or negative. Assessments of success conducted within the first few years of treatment overestimate treatment efficacy, particularly the effectiveness of soil amendments and seeding.     

Personal Wilderness Relationships: Building on a Transactional Approach

Wilderness managers are charged with the challenging goal of balancing resource protection and experience quality across a broad, value-laden landscape. While research has provided insight into visitors’ motivations and their meanings for wilderness, a struggle exists to implement experiential concepts within current management frameworks. This research posits the human experience of wilderness to be an evolving, enduring relationship, and that research needs can be addressed by conceptualizing and investigating an individuals’ personal wilderness relationship. The purpose of this study was to explore wilderness relationships of visitors to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. A predictive model was proposed to investigate the internal dimensions of a visitor’s wilderness relationship. A mail-back questionnaire was distributed during the summer of 2007, resulting in a sample of 564 respondents. Data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. Results from testing several relationship models provided support for a multidimensional structure consisting of five factors with a single overarching relationship factor. The preferred relationship model indicated the importance of identities and attachment in place relationships. Trust and commitment toward management were also important considerations. This research provided the preliminary evidence for a multidimensional wilderness relationship model and complements a perspective of wilderness experiences as wilderness. Findings may help to reframe decision-making and public-input processes that guide management actions to increased wilderness character protection and facilitate quality wilderness experiences.     

Nutrient transport within three vegetative treatment areas receiving silage bunker runoff

Silage bunker runoff can be a very polluting substance and is increasingly being treated by vegetative treatment areas (VTAs), but little information exists regarding nutrient removal performance of systems receiving this wastewater. Nutrient transport through the shallow subsurface of three VTAs (i.e. one VTA at Farm WNY and two VTAs at Farm CNY) in glaciated soils containing a restrictive layer (i.e., fragipan) was assessed using a mass balance approach. At Farm WNY, the mass removal of ammonium was 63%, nitrate was 0%, and soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) was 39%. At Farm CNY, the mass removal of ammonium was 79% in the West VTA, but nitrate and SRP increased by 200% and 533%, respectively. Mass removal of ammonium was 67% in the East VTA at Farm CNY; nitrate removal was 86% and SRP removal was 88%. The East VTA received a much higher nutrient loading, which was attributed to a malfunctioning low-flow collection apparatus within the settling basin. Results demonstrate that nutrient reduction mechanisms other than vegetative uptake can be significant within VTAs. Even though increases in nitrate mass were observed, concentrations in 1.65m deep wells indicated that groundwater impairment from leaching of nitrate was not likely. These results offer one of the first evaluations of VTAs treating silage bunker runoff, and highlight the importance of capturing concentrated low flows in VTA systems.     

A Comparison of Urban-Proximate and Urban-Distant Wilderness Users on Selected Variables

/ The underlying premise of this study is that wilderness areas attract visitors desiring or expecting different wilderness experiences. In this study, wilderness areas were dichotomized according to distance from a large urban center (urban-proximate vs urban-distant). Four wilderness areas in southern California were used as the study sites. Comparisons were made on selected attributes commonly associated with the wilderness experience. Differences were observed on a number of variables such as acceptable number and type of encounters with other visitors, management preferences, and preferred group sizes. The findings of this study are congruent with those from previous studies and suggest that distance to large urban centers may be a functional variable in explaining differences among selected wilderness attributes.KEY WORDS: Expectancy theory; Normative standards; Wilderness; Wilderness experience; Urbanization     

Local attitudes on protected areas: Evidence from three Natura 2000 wetland sites in Greece

Environmental policies aimed at the conservation of protected areas are significantly influenced by social factors revealing the importance of investigating local knowledge and perceptions during their planning and implementation. The present article aims to explore perceptions and awareness of citizens in three protected areas of Greece: The National Park of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, the Wetland of Kalloni, and Lake Tavropou. The survey explores perceptions of individuals on environmental issues and alternative management scenarios referring to management actors, funding sources, and management schemes for the conservation of biodiversity. Differences between the three research areas are also explored. According to the results of the study, citizens are in general supportive of protected areas and present relatively high levels of knowledge of environmental issues. However, environmental awareness is not accompanied by active participation for the resolution of environmental problems. By exploring differences between the three research areas, it is revealed that the provision of information significantly influences individuals’ perceptions on relevant issues. Also, a significant finding of the study is that citizens are supportive of some forms of participatory management. It is essential, to encourage public participation and deliberation in order to promote their sustainable management.     

The impact of agricultural runoff on the quality of two streams in vegetable farm areas in Ghana

A study of two small streams at Akumadan and Tono, Ghana, was undertaken during the rain and dry season periods between February 2005 and January 2006 to investigate the impact of vegetable field runoff on their quality. In each stream we compared the concentration of current-use pesticides in one site immediately upstream of a vegetable field with a second site immediately downstream. Only trace concentrations of endosulfan and chlorpyrifos were detected at both sites in both streams in the dry season. In the wet season, rain-induced runoff transported pesticides into downstream stretches of the streams. Average peak levels in the streams themselves were 0.07 microg L(-1) endosulfan, 0.02 microg L(-1) chlorpyrifos (the Akumadan stream); 0.04 microg L(-1) endosulfan, 0.02 microg L(-1) chlorpyrifos (the Tono stream). Respective average pesticide levels associated with streambed sediment were 1.34 and 0.32 microg kg(-1) (the Akumadan stream), and 0.92 and 0.84 microg kg(-1) (the Tono stream). Further investigations are needed to establish the potential endosulfan and chlorpyrifos effects on aquatic invertebrate and fish in these streams. Meanwhile measures should be undertaken to reduce the input of these chemicals via runoff.     

Farmland damage and its impact on the overlapped areas of cropland and coal resources in the eastern plains of China

The subsidence caused by coal mining in areas where cropland and coal resources overlap in the eastern plains of China with high ground water levels has caused large amounts of water to collect in cropland, significant damage to cropland, and a sharp contradiction between people and land distribution within this region. Systematic analysis and calculation were conducted on these areas by using GIS spatial overlay analysis technology, subsidence and occupied cropland estimation models, and crop yield reduction prediction model to reveal the overlapped characteristics and extent of farmland damage, as well as to evaluate the effects of farmland damage to grain yield, farmland landscape, agricultural population, and dynamical equilibrium of the total cultivated land. Results showed that the overlapped areas of cropland and coal resources on the eastern plains of China occupied an area covering 1.33 × 10⁵ km², which accounted for 31.93% of the total cropland area. In 2020, the accumulative total area of destroyed cropland reached 3.83 × 10³ km², thus reducing grain yield by 9.63 × 10⁸ kg, and increasing the number of landless farmers to 1.91 × 10⁶. Furthermore, the quality and production capacity of cultivated land decreased, farmland landscape patterns changed, land patterns and structures were adjusted, the dynamical equilibrium of the total cultivated land was difficult to guarantee, and social instability increased in coal mining subsidence areas. These findings provided a scientific basis for relevant government departments to enact countermeasures for the coordinative production of coal and grain.     

Perceived Effects of Setting Attributes on Visitor Experiences in Wilderness: Variation with Situational Context and Visitor Characteristics

Understanding how setting attributes influence the nature of the visitor experience is crucial to effective recreation management. Highly influential attributes are useful indicators to monitor within a planning framework, such as Limits of Acceptable Change. This study sought to identify the setting attributes perceived to have the most profound effect on the ability to have “a real wilderness experience” and to assess the degree to which attribute importance varied with situational context and visitor characteristics. To this end, exiting hikers were surveyed at moderate and very high use trailheads in Alpine Lakes Wilderness, WA (USA), and Three Sisters Wilderness, OR (USA). They were asked about the degree to which encountering varying levels of different setting attributes would add to or detract from their experience. Attributes with the largest range of effect on experience, based on evaluations of different levels, were considered most important. The most influential attributes were litter and several types of campsite interaction—people walking through camp and number of other groups camping close by. The perceived importance of setting attributes did not vary much between wilderness locations with substantially different use levels, suggesting that conclusions are robust and generalizable across wilderness areas. There also was little difference in the perceptions of day and overnight visitors. In contrast, we found substantial variation in the perceived importance of setting attributes with variation in wilderness experience, knowledge, attachment, and motivation. Our results validate the emphasis of many wilderness management plans on indicators of social interaction, such as number of encounters.     

Impacts on air pollution in urban areas

Environmental management involves controlling various forms of pollution to levels that do not pose a threat to the health of the people and the environment in general. This paper presents a framework to analyze sources of local air pollution in cities. Using an OLS model, an investigation is performed of the relationship among the concentrations of air pollutants [more precisely, concentrations of sulfur dioxide (SO₂), dust, nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), carbon oxide (CO) and ozone (O₃)], economic activities, and meteorology. Time series analysis leads to a model, that explains a high degree of the variance in the air pollution data. The model is applied to daily time series from three measurement stations in innsbruck, Austria. Estimation results of the model generally fit with the expected relations. Space heating influences SO₂, dust, and NO, while NO₂ levels are primarily affected by traffic. These results also indicate interdependent relations among the pollutants NO, NO₂, O₃, and CO; O₃ levels depend on temperature and sunshine.     

Effects of Stock Use and Backpackers on Water Quality in Wilderness in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, USA

During 2010–2011, a study was conducted in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks (SEKI) to evaluate the influence of pack animals (stock) and backpackers on water quality in wilderness lakes and streams. The study had three main components: (1) a synoptic survey of water quality in wilderness areas of the parks, (2) paired water quality sampling above and below several areas with differing types and amounts of visitor use, and (3) intensive monitoring at six sites to document temporal variations in water quality. Data from the synoptic water quality survey indicated that wilderness lakes and streams are dilute and have low nutrient and Escherichia coli concentrations. The synoptic survey sites were categorized as minimal use, backpacker-use, or mixed use (stock and backpackers), depending on the most prevalent type of use upstream from the sampling locations. Sites with mixed use tended to have higher concentrations of most constituents (including E. coli) than those categorized as minimal-use (P ≤ 0.05); concentrations at backpacker-use sites were intermediate. Data from paired-site sampling indicated that E. coli, total coliform, and particulate phosphorus concentrations were greater in streams downstream from mixed-use areas than upstream from those areas (P ≤ 0.05). Paired-site data also indicated few statistically significant differences in nutrient, E. coli, or total coliform concentrations in streams upstream and downstream from backpacker-use areas. The intensive-monitoring data indicated that nutrient and E. coli concentrations normally were low, except during storms, when notable increases in concentrations of E. coli, nutrients, dissolved organic carbon, and turbidity occurred. In summary, results from this study indicate that water quality in SEKI wilderness generally is good, except during storms; and visitor use appears to have a small, but statistically significant influence on stream water quality.     

Monitoring and management of streambank erosion and natural revegetation on the lower Gordon River,Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area,Australia

The wash from high-speed tourist cruise launches causes erosion of the formerly stable banks of the lower Gordon River within the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area. Speed and access restrictions on the operation of commercial cruise vessels have considerably slowed, but not halted erosion, which continues on the now destabilized banks. To assess the effectiveness of restrictions, bank erosion and natural revegetation are monitored at 48 sites using erosion pins, survey transects, and vegetation quadrats. The subjectively chosen sites are grouped on the basis of geomorphology and bank materials. The mean measured rate of erosion of estuarine banks slowed from 210 to 19 mm/year with the introduction of a 9 knot speed limit. In areas where cruise vessels continue to operate, alluvial banks were eroded at a mean rate of 11 mm/yr during the three-year period of the current management regime. Very similar alluvial banks no longer subject to commercial cruise boat traffic eroded at the slower mean rate of 3 mm/yr. Sandy levee banks have retreated an estimated maximum 10 m during the last 10–15 years. The mean rate of bank retreat slowed from 112 to 13 mm/yr with the exclusion of cruise vessels from the leveed section of the river. Revegetation of the eroded banks is proceeding slowly; however, since the major bank colonizers are very slow growing tree species, it is likely to be decades until revegetation can contribute substantially to bank stability.     

Human impact on Kashmir Himalayan bird populations

Summary The rapid depletion in the variety and abundance of the bird faunas of Kashmir is cited and related to the reduction in temperate moist forests and lake associated wetlands. These declining areas of habitat are, in turn, thought to reflect the increasing pressures created by both the indigenous population and tourism. Tourism planning is recommended to avert further degradation so that the national heritage may be preserved for future generations.Dr. G. M. Oza is Reader in Botany in the Faculty of Science at The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. He is also General Secretary of the Indian Society of Naturalists (INSONA), and a Member of the Commission on Ecology and Head of the Asian Antelope Sub-Group of the Species Survival Commission of IUCN.     

Human impact on the Falkland Islands environment

Summary A historic analysis of human-initiated influences on the Falkland Islands ecologies is presented. Ecosystems were extensively altered by the destruction of seal and penguin communities in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries; and by the introduction of domesticated animals and exotic plants, the proliferation of fires, and the hunting to extinction, or near extinction, of certain animals. The harsh Falklands climate has permitted only limited recovery from some of these ravages. No island ecosystems, however remote, are spared the effects of economic and political changes influencing the rest of the world.He has published a previous article on island ecologies inThe Environmentalist (1992).     

Assessing human-induced pressures on coastal areas with publicly available data

The assessment of human-induced pressures on the coastal area is essential to target management plans effectively, and moreover is required by the EU Water Framework Directive. A simple and cost-effective assessment of human-induced pressures on the coastal zone is applied using two methodologies: a qualitative visual assessment which uses satellite images; and a quantitative assessment based on governmental census data. These methods are applied to defined areas (23 areas) of four Italian regions: Liguria, Tuscany, Latium and Sardinia. The results show a high agreement (83%) between these two methods, in which only four of the 23 areas are classified differently. These differences may mainly be ascribed to the qualitative or quantitative properties of the methods, and to the different geographical units adopted. These characteristics however provide complementary information, which suggests that the application of both proposed methods confirms reliability and allows fine-tuning of the assessment. The pressure assessment proposed is simple, time and cost-effective, and repeatable over time and space. It therefore can be applied in different contexts to respond to legislative requirements or to target management plans and remedial actions effectively.     

The impact of basic sciences on modern biotechnology

Conference Reports

The impact of basic sciences on modern biotechnology     

环境政策对企业绩效的影响

一个国家的环境政策是国家保护环境的大致方针,直接关系到这个国家的环境立法和环境管理,更直接影响到这个国家的整体环境状况,不同类型的环境政策对企业也产生了各方面的影响。本文研究环境政策的不同形式、内容、具体执行手段及其对企业的环境、经济绩效产生的影响。通过研究西方发达国家的成功环境政策,探讨我国环境政策中存在的不足与缺陷。最后根据不同管理手段的可行性,有效性及最终效果,联系我国具体国情,在符合可持续发展原则的同时,提出更为有效,对企业绩效具有正面刺激的环境政策建议。