Prospects for Reconciling the Conflict between Economic Growth and Biodiversity Conservation with Technological Progress

Abstract: The conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation is understood in portions of academia and sometimes acknowledged in political circles. Nevertheless, there is not a unified response. In political and policy circles, the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) is posited to solve the conflict between economic growth and environmental protection. In academia, however, the EKC has been deemed fallacious in macroeconomic scenarios and largely irrelevant to biodiversity. A more compelling response to the conflict is that it may be resolved with technological progress. Herein I review the conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation in the absence of technological progress, explore the prospects for technological progress to reconcile that conflict, and provide linguistic suggestions for describing the relationships among economic growth, technological progress, and biodiversity conservation. The conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation is based on the first two laws of thermodynamics and principles of ecology such as trophic levels and competitive exclusion. In this biophysical context, the human economy grows at the competitive exclusion of nonhuman species in the aggregate. Reconciling the conflict via technological progress has not occurred and is infeasible because of the tight linkage between technological progress and economic growth at current levels of technology. Surplus production in existing economic sectors is required for conducting the research and development necessary for bringing new technologies to market. Technological regimes also reflect macroeconomic goals, and if the goal is economic growth, reconciliatory technologies are less likely to be developed. As the economy grows, the loss of biodiversity may be partly mitigated with end‐use innovation that increases technical efficiency, but this type of technological progress requires policies that are unlikely if the conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation (and other aspects of environmental protection) is not acknowledged.     

A review of Australian approaches for monitoring,assessing and reporting estuarine condition: II. State and Territory programs

In contrast to Europe, the USA and South Africa, Australia has no specific, overarching federal legislation to underpin a nationally-coordinated framework for monitoring, assessing and reporting estuarine condition. This has resulted in a complex mosaic of diverse approaches and governance structures, hindering the ability to make inter-State comparisons. In this second part of a comprehensive three-part review, we present a systematic appraisal of current and impending approaches for measuring and reporting estuarine condition in each of Australia’s States and Territories. A concise summary is provided in each case, supported by extensive appendices containing detailed accounts of relevant monitoring and reporting programs. We synthesise and evaluate this output at the State/Territory level, highlighting areas of improvement and major gaps.     

山东省在全国的区际地位及区域内部分工格局研究

区域分工对区域经济发展具有重要作用。山东地处我国东部沿海,是全国人口大省、经济大省,在全国经济发展格局中占有举足轻重的地位。根据区域分工理论,对山东省在全国和区域内部分工进行了分析,揭示了山东省在全国的区际地位以及所辖17个市之间的区域分工与合作格局,为山东省强化区域分工和联系,提高区域竞争力提供决策依据。     

Evaluating Alternative Temporal Survey Designs for Monitoring Wetland Area and Detecting Changes Over Time in California

Evaluation of wetland extent and changes in extent is a foundation of many wetland monitoring and assessment programs. Probabilistic sampling and mapping provides a cost‐effective alternative to comprehensive mapping for large geographic areas. One unresolved challenge for probabilistic or design‐based approaches is how best to monitor both status (e.g., extent at a single point in time) and trends (e.g., changes in extent over time) within a single monitoring program. Existing wetland status and trends (S&T) monitoring programs employ fixed sampling locations; however, theoretical evaluation and limited implementation in other landscape monitoring areas suggest that alternative designs could increase statistical efficiency and overall accuracy. In particular, designs that employ both fixed and nonfixed sampling locations (alternately termed permanent and temporary samples), termed sampling with partial replacement (SPR), are considered to efficiently and effectively balance monitoring current status with detection of trends. This study utilized simulated sampling to assess the performance of fixed sampling locations, SPR, and strictly nonfixed designs for monitoring wetland S&T over time. Modeled changes in wetland density over time were used as inputs for sampling simulations. In contrast to previous evaluations of SPR, the results of this study support the use of a fixed sampling design and show that SPR may underestimate both S&T.     

Pollution levels and characteristics of phthalate esters in indoor air of offices

The pollution status and characteristics of PAEs (phthalate esters) were investigated in indoor air of offices, and PAEs of both gas-phase and particulate-phase were detected in all the samples. The concentration (sum of the gas phase and the particulate phase) was 4748.24 ng/m³, ranging between 3070.09 and 6700.14 ng/m³. Diethyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, and di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate were the most abundant compounds, together accounting for 70% of the Σ6PAEs. Dividing the particulate-phase PAEs into four size ranges (<2.5, 2.5-5, 5-10, >10 μm), the result indicated that PAEs in PM_2.5 were the most abundant, with the proportion of 72.64%. In addition, the PAE concentration in PM_2.5 correlated significantly with the total particulate-phase PAEs (R² = 0.85). Thus, the amount of PAEs in PM_2.5 can be estimated from the total amount of particulate-phase PAEs using this proportion. In a comparison between the offices and a newly decorated study room, it was found that pollution characteristics were similar between these two places. Thus, it is implied that the PAE concentration decreased by 50% 2 yr after decorating.     

Pollution levels and characteristics of phthalate esters in indoor air of offices

The pollution status and characteristics of PAEs(phthalate esters) were investigated in indoor air of offices, and PAEs of both gas-phase and particulate-phase were detected in all the samples. The concentration(sum of the gas phase and the particulate phase) was4748.24 ng/m3, ranging between 3070.09 and 6700.14 ng/m3. Diethyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, and di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate were the most abundant compounds, together accounting for 70% of the ∑ 6PAEs. Dividing the particulate-phase PAEs into four size ranges( 2.5, 2.5–5, 5–10, 10 μm), the result indicated that PAEs in PM2.5were the most abundant,with the proportion of 72.64%. In addition, the PAE concentration in PM2.5correlated significantly with the total particulate-phase PAEs(R2= 0.85). Thus, the amount of PAEs in PM2.5can be estimated from the total amount of particulate-phase PAEs using this proportion. In a comparison between the offices and a newly decorated study room, it was found that pollution characteristics were similar between these two places. Thus, it is implied that the PAE concentration decreased by 50% 2 yr after decorating.     

广西“十二五”主要污染物总量减排现状分析与探讨

实施污染物总量减排是中国环境管理和污染控制的重大举措,“十二五”后期仍是中国环境保护的重点内容,为此科学分析和制定有效的减排对策措施意义重大。通过总结广西“十二五”前三年总量减排工作现状及实施成效,从大气污染物减排、城镇污水处理、畜禽养殖污染防治、机动车氮氧化物控制、环境监管能力建设等方面分析存在问题,提出科学合理的减排对策建议：第一,突出污染减排倒逼作用;第二,严格环境准入;第三,狠抓大气污染物减排;第四,加强环保基层能力建设;第五,加强环境监管能力建设。     

龙山县生态公益林建设与管理现状及对策

简述了龙山县生态公益林建设与管理的现状,剖析了新时期发挥生态公益林的生态、社会效益与提高林农收入矛盾,分析了龙山县生态公益林建设与管理中存在的问题,提出了龙山县实现生态公益林生态、社会效益与提高林农收入的措施.参4.     

生态环境风险管理与损害赔偿制度现状与展望

我国目前面临的生态环境风险形势复杂严峻，严密防控生态环境风险已成为“十四五”和中长期生态环境保护、美丽中国建设的重要任务之一。本文探讨了生态环境风险的概念、分类，系统梳理了生态环境风险评估与管理、生态环境损害评估与损害赔偿等领域的国内外管理经验与研究进展。在此基础上，重点剖析了我国生态环境风险管理面临的痛点与难点问题，从树立生态环境风险法治管理理念、构建生态环境风险管理战略布局、建立生态环境风险常态化管控体系、加强生态环境风险防控技术支撑、强化经济和社会治理手段助力风险管控、建设生态环境损害赔偿业务化工作体系等六个方面，系统提出了加强我国生态环境风险管理的对策建议，以期为更有效地防范化解重大生态环境风险提供决策参考。     

Assessment of the Water Quality and Ecosystem Health of the Great Barrier Reef (Australia): Conceptual Models

Run-off containing increased concentrations of sediment, nutrients, and pesticides from land-based anthropogenic activities is a significant influence on water quality and the ecologic conditions of nearshore areas of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, Australia. The potential and actual impacts of increased pollutant concentrations range from bioaccumulation of contaminants and decreased photosynthetic capacity to major shifts in community structure and health of mangrove, coral reef, and seagrass ecosystems. A detailed conceptual model underpins and illustrates the links between the main anthropogenic pressures or threats (dry-land cattle grazing and intensive sugar cane cropping) and the production of key contaminants or stressors of Great Barrier Reef water quality. The conceptual model also includes longer-term threats to Great Barrier Reef water quality and ecosystem health, such as global climate change, that will potentially confound direct model interrelationships. The model recognises that system-specific attributes, such as monsoonal wind direction, rainfall intensity, and flood plume residence times, will act as system filters to modify the effects of any water-quality system stressor. The model also summarises key ecosystem responses in ecosystem health that can be monitored through indicators at catchment, riverine, and marine scales. Selected indicators include riverine and marine water quality, inshore coral reef and seagrass status, and biota pollutant burdens. These indicators have been adopted as components of a long-term monitoring program to enable assessment of the effectiveness of change in catchment-management practices in improving Great Barrier Reef (and adjacent catchment) water quality under the Queensland and Australian Governments’ Reef Water Quality Protection Plan.