Trade‐Offs between Cattle Production and Bird Conservation in an Agricultural Frontier of the Gran Chaco of Argentina

Intensification of food production in tropical landscapes in the absence of land‐use planning can pose a major threat to biological diversity. Decisions on whether to spatially integrate or segregate lands for production and conservation depend in part on the functional relations between biological diversity and agricultural productivity. We measured diversity, density, and species composition of birds along a gradient of production intensification on an agricultural frontier of the Argentine Chaco, where dry tropical forests are cleared for cattle production. Bird species diversity in intact forests was higher than in any type of cattle‐production system. Bird species richness decreased nonlinearly as cattle yield increased. Intermediate‐intensity silvopastoral systems, those in which forest understory is selectively cleared to grow pastures of non‐native plants beneath the tree canopy, produced 80% of the mean cattle yield obtained in pastures on cleared areas and were occupied by 70–90% of the number of bird species present in the nearest forest fragments. Densities of >50% of bird species were significantly lower in open pastures than in silvopastoral systems. Therefore, intermediate‐intensity silvopastoral systems may have the greatest potential to sustain cattle yield and conserve a large percentage of bird species. However, compared with low‐intensity production systems, in which forest structure and extent were intact, intermediate‐intensity silvopastoral systems supported significantly fewer forest‐restricted bird species and fewer frugivorous birds. These data suggest that the integration of production and conservation through intermediate‐intensity silvopastoral systems combined with the protection of forest fragments may be required to maintain cattle yield, bird diversity, and conservation of forest‐restricted species in this agricultural frontier. Compromisos entre la Producción de Ganado y la Conservación de Aves en una Frontera Agrícola del Gran Chaco de Argentina     

Effect of inoculation methods on the composting efficiency of municipal solid wastes

Four types of inoculation methods were studied during the composting of municipal solid wastes and dry grass (MSWG). The methods included a control group as well as initial-stage, two-stage, and multi-stage inoculations. Fulvic acids were extracted from the composting materials and characterized by spectroscopic techniques. The results showed that inoculation of microbes in MSWG enhanced the biodegradation of aliphatics, proteins, and polysaccharides. The inoculation also increased the molecular weight, humic- and fulvic-like compound content, as well as humification degree of the composting products. The inoculation of microbes in MSWG significantly improved composting process and efficiency. The improvement efficiency was in the order of initial-stage < two-stage < multi-stage inoculations. Inoculation of microbes based on composting organic matter composition and temperature enhanced composting efficiency.     

食物安全:基于食品系统理论的探讨

在经济发展、消费升级、资源短缺和环境问题凸显的新的外部环境背景下,本文引入了国外新兴的食品系统理论,探讨并提出了可持续的食物安全保障的新观念.食物安全始终是中国经济发展、社会稳定和国家自立的基础.国内多数学者仍然用30年前食物匮乏时期的思路来研究现代的食物安全问题,其结果导致研究结论与现实情况不符.如何在节约资源、减少浪费的同时又能够满足人们不断升级的食物消费需求,是对未来食物安全保障的新要求.本文首先分析了我国食物安全研究的现状,指出了不足和问题,然后引入国外新兴的食品系统理论,在探讨其概念内涵的基础上,剖析了食品系统与食物安全的关系,影响食物安全的因素和研究视角,并进一步提炼出基于食品系统理论的新的食物安全保障观念,为我国研究食物安全提供借鉴.     

The fate of recombinant plasmids during composting of organic wastes

Composting was investigated as a means for safe disposal of organic waste containing bacteria that carry transgenes in recombinant plasmids. To generate model recombinant plasmids, a mobile IncQ plasmid, RSF1010, and a non-mobile plasmid, pGFP, were genetically modified to carry a DNA segment encoding both green fluorescent protein and kanamycin resistance and were designated as RSF1010-GFPK and pGFPK. Escherichia coli (E. coli) C600 harboring these plasmids were inoculated into chicken manure specimens that were placed in compost at 20 and 60 cm from the bottom of a 1.0-m high compost bin. Control specimens were held at ambient temperature. By day 10, compost temperatures at the lower and upper levels of the bin had reached 45.3 and 61.5°C, respectively, and at both levels the target E. coli had been inactivated and the plasmids had lost their capacity to be transformed or mobilized. Furthermore, based on real time Polymerase chain reaction (PCR), the transgene fragments along with the host chromosomal DNA fragment from specimens at the upper level had been degraded beyond the detection limit. However, at the lower level where temperatures remained below 48°C these fragment persisted to day 21. At ambient temperatures (0–8°C), the E. coli, plasmids and the transgene fragments persisted in manure specimens throughout the 21 day test period. The study showed the potential for composting as a safe procedure for disposal of bacteria carrying transgenes in recombinant plasmids.     

Hazardous waste indicators for national decision makers

Indicators and indices are important tools that assist decision makers to formulate and implement plans for management at local, national and international levels. Four indicators for hazardous waste management are described that have recently been adopted within the United Nations framework of Indicators of Sustainable Development. Although these four indicators will be useful tools, the need for a broader range of policy-relevant qualitative and quantitative indicators, proxy indicators and indices is outlined. The argument is advanced that in order for all nations to better manage the range of hazardous waste issues, including waste generation, export/import and disposal, a set of innovative indicators and indices is required. Useful indicators and indices are described that could be used to link and quantify likely environmental, ecosystem and health impacts and risks especially from hazardous waste disposal. Indicators are also suggested that could be used to illustrate the shift in industrial strategy away from end-of-pipe processes towards waste recycling, cleaner production and integrated life-cycle analysis. It was concluded that until the lack of reliable and harmonized data on hazardous waste is addressed, indicator development and use by national and international decision makers cannot readily be implemented.     

Key Features and Context‐Dependence of Fishery‐Induced Trophic Cascades

Abstract: Trophic cascades triggered by fishing have profound implications for marine ecosystems and the socioeconomic systems that depend on them. With the number of reported cases quickly growing, key features and commonalities have emerged. Fishery‐induced trophic cascades often display differential response times and nonlinear trajectories among trophic levels and can be accompanied by shifts in alternative states. Furthermore, their magnitude appears to be context dependent, varying as a function of species diversity, regional oceanography, local physical disturbance, habitat complexity, and the nature of the fishery itself. To conserve and manage exploited marine ecosystems, there is a pressing need for an improved understanding of the conditions that promote or inhibit the cascading consequences of fishing. Future research should investigate how the trophic effects of fishing interact with other human disturbances, identify strongly interacting species and ecosystem features that confer resilience to exploitation, determine ranges of predator depletion that elicit trophic cascades, pinpoint antecedents that signal ecosystem state shifts, and quantify variation in trophic rates across oceanographic conditions. This information will advance predictive models designed to forecast the trophic effects of fishing and will allow managers to better anticipate and avoid fishery‐induced trophic cascades.     

餐厨垃圾厌氧消化中硬脂酸钙的形成及作用

在稳定运行的餐厨垃圾单相厌氧消化体系中，出现白色颗粒状物质，且随着负荷的提高，其数量和粒径不断增加。利用能谱技术分析白色颗粒的元素组成，结合傅里叶红外光谱和13C核磁共振技术分析白色颗粒中的官能基团。经过研究分析认为，该白色颗粒的主要成分为长链羧酸钙盐，具体为硬脂酸钙。同时，对其形成过程进行了分析。该物质的形成对餐厨垃圾中油脂的去除提供了新的思路和途径。     

改性建筑垃圾作为橡胶填料的可行性研究

将废旧混凝土和废粘土砖经湿式表面改性后作为橡胶填料,辅以配合剂与丁苯橡胶进行混炼、硫化制得橡胶组合物,并将其与以等量轻质碳酸钙作为填料,按相同配比混炼、硫化制得的橡胶组合物的性能进行比较.结果表明,将加工成微米级别(0.5～12.0 μm)的建筑垃圾(废旧混凝土或废粘土砖)经水解双(三乙氧基硅基丙基)四硫化物(KH-8...     

虹膜识别在肉类食品安全追溯系统中的应用及关键技术研究

为了提高大型动物肉类食品的安全性,在研究肉类食品供应链的安全管理的基础上,将大型动物的虹膜识别技术引入食品供应链管理中,构建基于虹膜识别的大型动物肉类食品安全可追溯系统,达到肉类食品安全信息查询及出现安全问题后的个体溯源的目的。借鉴人眼虹膜识别的相关技术,以牛眼为例对大型动物虹膜识别的相关算法和虹膜定位等关键技术进行研究,运用改进的Sobel算子对图像进行边缘检测;引入二次B样条曲线算法实现了牛眼虹膜的精确定位;分析牛虹膜纹理特征的分布特点,实现了虹膜特征区域的提取及归一化处理。研究成果对大型动物的虹膜识别研究和肉类食品供应链安全管理具有一定的参考意义。