Science-Driven Management of Protected Areas: A Philippine Case Study

The lack of scientific baseline information hinders appropriate design and management of protected areas. To illustrate the value of science to management, we consider five scenarios for the 202.0 km² Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, Philippines: (1) closure to human activities, (2) and (3) two levels of increase in unplanned human activities, (4) creation of a forest corridor and (5) additional allocation of land for permanent or shifting agriculture. We then use habitat-specific bird density estimates to simulate the net effect of each scenario on 18 focal bird populations. Closure has significant benefits—populations of five species are predicted to increase by >50 % and nine by >25 %, but two secondary forest flycatchers, including the endemic and ‘Vulnerable’ Palawan flycatcher, decline dramatically, while the creation of a 4.0 km² forest corridor yields average increases across species of 2 ± 4 % (SD). In contrast, heavier unplanned park usage produces declines in all but a few species, while the negative effects of an extra 2.0 km² of shifting cultivation are 3–5 times higher than for a similar area of permanent agriculture and affect species whose densities are highest in primary habitats. Relatively small changes within the park, especially those associated with agricultural expansion, has serious predicted implications for local bird populations. Our models do not take into account the full complexities of bird ecology at a site, but they do provide park managers with an evidence base from which to make better decisions relating to biodiversity conservation obligations which their parks are intended to meet.     

If not here, then perhaps not anywhere: urban growth management as a tool for sustainability planning in British Columbia's capital regional district

In 1995 the provincial government of British Columbia, Canada, passed new legislation encouraging regional districts to prepare Regional Growth Strategies. The strategies were to be means of coordinating municipal action on regional issues. They were also meant to facilitate pursuit of sustainability objectives, including reducing urban sprawl, protecting environmentally sensitive areas, providing affordable housing and decreasing pollution. This paper examines the experience so far in one region that chose to prepare a growth strategy: the Capital Regional District (CRD) at the south end of Vancouver Island. Growth-management planning in the CRD has been and remains both critical and difficult. The region expects a substantial population increase over the next couple of decades and has a limited land base for urban expansion. Many citizens recognise that their quality of life is high, but vulnerable and, as a result, public support for effective growth management is stronger in the CRD than in many other provincial growth areas. However, BC does not have a tradition of strong regional governance and the CRD as a regional authority is the creature of sixteen municipalities and electoral areas. Seven years into the process, effective growth management still faces substantial challenges, including the persistent jurisdictional protectionism of CRD municipalities. Nevertheless, there have been positive achievements and an admirable diversity of individuals, organisations and initiatives continue to push municipal and regional officials towards a more sustainable future.     

A comparison of visual and olfactory learning performance in the bumblebee Bombus terrestris

Animals use cues from a range of sensory modalities to discriminate stimuli and as predictors of reward. Whilst there is appreciable variation in the cognitive performance of animals, we know surprisingly little about the extent to which learning varies among individuals across different sensory modalities. Do individuals that are good at learning in one sensory modality also perform well in another (performance is correlated between modalities), or do individuals demonstrate specialisation in learning performance in one modality (trading-off performance between modalities)? We tested these hypotheses by examining the performance of 76 Bombus terrestris workers, from four colonies, in both an odour-and visual learning task. Olfactory learning was assessed using proboscis extension reflex (PER) conditioning and visual (colour) learning was examined using a well-established free-flying paradigm. Our results showed neither a correlation, nor a trade-off, in individual performance for learning tasks using different sensory modalities. However, there was considerable variation among workers within each colony in their performance in both learning tasks. This extent of interindividual variation in learning ability across sensory modalities could be adaptive for colonies dealing with changeable foraging conditions. There was also significant intercolony variation in final task performance level in the olfactory learning task, and both the strength and persistence of blue preference in the colour learning task. This is the first study to demonstrate variation in olfactory learning performance across multiple bumblebee colonies using PER conditioning, suggesting this is an effective paradigm for assessing associative olfactory learning performance both within and among colonies.     

Retaining natural vegetation to safeguard biodiversity and humanity

Global efforts to deliver internationally agreed goals to reduce carbon emissions, halt biodiversity loss, and retain essential ecosystem services have been poorly integrated. These goals rely in part on preserving natural (e.g., native, largely unmodified) and seminatural (e.g., low intensity or sustainable human use) forests, woodlands, and grasslands. To show how to unify these goals, we empirically derived spatially explicit, quantitative, area-based targets for the retention of natural and seminatural (e.g., native) terrestrial vegetation worldwide. We used a 250-m-resolution map of natural and seminatural vegetation cover and, from this, selected areas identified under different international agreements as being important for achieving global biodiversity, carbon, soil, and water targets. At least 67 million km² of Earth's terrestrial vegetation (∼79% of the area of vegetation remaining) required retention to contribute to biodiversity, climate, soil, and freshwater conservation objectives under 4 United Nations’ resolutions. This equates to retaining natural and seminatural vegetation across at least 50% of the total terrestrial (excluding Antarctica) surface of Earth. Retention efforts could contribute to multiple goals simultaneously, especially where natural and seminatural vegetation can be managed to achieve cobenefits for biodiversity, carbon storage, and ecosystem service provision. Such management can and should co-occur and be driven by people who live in and rely on places where natural and sustainably managed vegetation remains in situ and must be complemented by restoration and appropriate management of more human-modified environments if global goals are to be realized.     

Philippine protected areas are not meeting the biodiversity coverage and management effectiveness requirements of Aichi Target 11

Aichi Target 11 of the Convention on Biological Diversity urges, inter alia, that nations protect at least 17 % of their land, and that protection is effective and targets areas of importance for biodiversity. Five years before reporting on Aichi targets is due, we assessed the Philippines’ current protected area system for biodiversity coverage, appropriateness of management regimes and capacity to deliver protection. Although protected estate already covers 11 % of the Philippines’ land area, 64 % of its key biodiversity areas (KBAs) remain unprotected. Few protected areas have appropriate management and governance infrastructures, funding streams, management plans and capacity, and a serious mismatch exists between protected area land zonation regimes and conservation needs of key species. For the Philippines to meet the biodiversity coverage and management effectiveness elements of Aichi Target 11, protected area and KBA boundaries should be aligned, management systems reformed to pursue biodiversity-led targets and effective management capacity created.     

Future methane emissions from the heavy-duty natural gas transportation sector for stasis,high, medium,and low scenarios in 2035

Today’s heavy-duty natural gas–fueled fleet is estimated to represent less than 2% of the total fleet. However, over the next couple of decades, predictions are that the percentage could grow to represent as much as 50%. Although fueling switching to natural gas could provide a climate benefit relative to diesel fuel, the potential for emissions of methane (a potent greenhouse gas) from natural gas–fueled vehicles has been identified as a concern. Since today’s heavy-duty natural gas–fueled fleet penetration is low, today’s total fleet-wide emissions will be also be low regardless of per vehicle emissions. However, predicted growth could result in a significant quantity of methane emissions. To evaluate this potential and identify effective options for minimizing emissions, future growth scenarios of heavy-duty natural gas–fueled vehicles, and compressed natural gas and liquefied natural gas fueling stations that serve them, have been developed for 2035, when the populations could be significant. The scenarios rely on the most recent measurement campaign of the latest manufactured technology, equipment, and vehicles reported in a companion paper as well as projections of technology and practice advances. These “pump-to-wheels”(PTW) projections do not include methane emissions outside of the bounds of the vehicles and fuel stations themselves and should not be confused with a complete wells-to-wheels analysis. Stasis, high, medium, and low scenario PTW emissions projections for 2035 were 1.32%, 0.67%, 0.33%, and 0.15% of the fuel used. The scenarios highlight that a large emissions reductions could be realized with closed crankcase operation, improved best practices, and implementation of vent mitigation technologies. Recognition of the potential pathways for emissions reductions could further enhance the heavy-duty transportation sectors ability to reduce carbon emissions.

Implications: Newly collected pump-to-wheels methane emissions data for current natural gas technologies were combined with future market growth scenarios, estimated technology advancements, and best practices to examine the climate benefit of future fuel switching. The analysis indicates the necessary targets of efficiency, methane emissions, market penetration, and best practices necessary to enable a pathway for natural gas to reduce the carbon intensity of the heavy-duty transportation sector.     

河岸蜘蛛——多样水生生态系统中PCB污染的指示生物

栖息在河岸的蜘蛛越来越多地被用来追踪水生生态系统中存在和流出污染物的空间格局。然而,我们对蜘蛛在何种情况下可有效标志水生污染的认识有限。本研究力证在具有高生境异质性的水生生态系统中,能够有效地利用河岸蜘蛛来追踪沉积物中多氯联苯(PCBs)污染的空间格局。2011年到2013年,在五大湖共同关注区(AOC)的Manistique河流域,对2类常见科属的河岸蜘蛛进行采样,结果表明生物体内的ΣPCB浓度的空间格局能够普遍地追踪采样点范围内沉积物中ΣPCBs的空间变化。该研究区域位于密歇根北部半岛南岸(Manistique,MI,US),是一个河口生态系统,包括港口、河流、回水和湖泊等栖息地。沉积物ΣPCB浓度用总有机碳浓度进行归一,解释了11个采样点中41%的以脂类归一的蜘蛛ΣPCB浓度变异。此外,2类常见河岸蜘蛛类群(园蛛科Araneidae和长脚蛛科Tetragnathidae)的ΣPCB浓度高度相关(r² > 0.78),并且按全年计算其平均ΣPCB浓度两者相似。结果表明,在异质性的水生生态系统中,例如在河流入海口,会因为栖息地和污染物变化在水生生物分类中的差别不明显,河岸蜘蛛就可能成为水生和河岸食物网中PCB有效性的标记物。此外,对于为不同种群大型结网蜘蛛提供生存条件的海岸线开发和沿岸植被的生境异质性,目前的方法具有很强的适用性。
精选自Kraus, J. M., Gibson, P. P., Walters, D. M. and Mills, M. A. (2017), Riparian spiders as sentinels of polychlorinated biphenyl contamination across heterogeneous aquatic ecosystems. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 36: 1278–1286. doi: 10.1002/etc.3658
详情请见http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/etc.3658/full