Boosting freshwater fish conservation with high-resolution distribution mapping across a large territory

The lack of high-resolution distribution maps for freshwater species across large extents fundamentally challenges biodiversity conservation worldwide. We devised a simple framework to delineate the distributions of freshwater fishes in a high-resolution drainage map based on stacked species distribution models and expert information. We applied this framework to the entire Chinese freshwater fish fauna (>1600 species) to examine high-resolution biodiversity patterns and reveal potential conflicts between freshwater biodiversity and anthropogenic disturbances. The correlations between spatial patterns of biodiversity facets (species richness, endemicity, and phylogenetic diversity) were all significant (r = 0.43–0.98, p < 0.001). Areas with high values of different biodiversity facets overlapped with anthropogenic disturbances. Existing protected areas (PAs), covering 22% of China's territory, protected 25–29% of fish habitats, 16–23% of species, and 30–31% of priority conservation areas. Moreover, 6–21% of the species were completely unprotected. These results suggest the need for extending the network of PAs to ensure the conservation of China's freshwater fishes and the goods and services they provide. Specifically, middle to low reaches of large rivers and their associated lakes from northeast to southwest China hosted the most diverse species assemblages and thus should be the target of future expansions of the network of PAs. More generally, our framework, which can be used to draw high-resolution freshwater biodiversity maps combining species occurrence data and expert knowledge on species distribution, provides an efficient way to design PAs regardless of the ecosystem, taxonomic group, or region considered.     

Why bees are critical for achieving sustainable development

Reductions in global bee populations are threatening the pollination benefits to both the planet and people. Whilst the contribution of bee pollination in promoting sustainable development goals through food security and biodiversity is widely acknowledged, a range of other benefits provided by bees has yet to be fully recognised. We explore the contributions of bees towards achieving the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Our insights suggest that bees potentially contribute towards 15 of the 17 SDGs and a minimum of 30 SDG targets. We identify common themes in which bees play an essential role, and suggest that improved understanding of bee contributions to sustainable development is crucial for ensuring viable bee systems.     

Critical pedagogy of place to enhance ecological engagement activities

Scientists in higher education institutions around the globe recognize the importance of engaging with public stakeholders to share their enthusiasm, explain their science, and encourage primary and secondary students to enter the sciences. However, without direct consideration of students’ and teachers’ perspectives and interests, scientists may design activities around their own goals, limiting the impact on school stakeholders (i.e., students, teachers, paraprofessional staff, students’ parents, and other caregivers). We drew from natural and social science research to describe how expanding the conception of place beyond the biophysical can help engage school stakeholders in meaningful ways. We describe the multidimensional PLACE framework that we developed to integrate perspectives, knowledge, and values of all stakeholders in engagement programming. The framework is organized around topics that stakeholders should discuss early on to ensure successful partnerships. We recommend that scientists identify and use pedagogy that is inclusive; language framed around dialogic communication methods; aims and motivations centered on engagement; cultural funds of knowledge of place (i.e., disciplinary, personal, or experiential knowledge); and evaluation of engagement based on meaningful metrics. Two case studies are presented to illustrate how the PLACE framework components, when addressed, can lead to robust, successful partnerships between scientists and schools.     

Effect of ambient polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and nicotine on the structure of Aβ42 protein

● B[a]P, nicotine and phenanthrene molecules altered the secondary structure of Aβ₄₂. ● β-content of the peptide was significantly enhanced in the presence of the PAHs. ● Nicotine made stable cluster with Aβ₄₂ peptide via hydrogen bonds. ● Phenanthrene due to its small size, interfered with the Aβ₄₂ monomer more strongly. Recent studies have correlated the chronic impact of ambient environmental pollutants like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with the progression of neurodegenerative disorders, either by using statistical data from various cities, or via tracking biomarkers during in-vivo experiments. Among different neurodegenerative disorders, PAHs are known to cause increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease, related to the development of amyloid beta (Aβ) peptide oligomers. However, the complex molecular interactions between peptide monomers and organic pollutants remains obscured. In this work, we performed an atomistic molecular dynamics study via GROMACS to investigate the structure of Aβ₄₂ peptide monomer in the presence of benzo[a]pyrene, nicotine, and phenanthrene. Interestingly the results revealed strong hydrophobic, and hydrogen-bond based interactions between Aβ peptides and these environmental pollutants that resulted in the formation of stable intermolecular clusters. The strong interactions affected the secondary structure of the Aβ₄₂ peptide in the presence of the organic pollutants, with almost 50 % decrease in the α-helix and 2 %–10 % increase in the β-sheets of the peptide. Overall, the undergoing changes in the secondary structure of the peptide monomer in the presence of the pollutants under the study indicates an enhanced formation of Aβ peptide oligomers, and consequent progression of Alzheimer’s disease.     

Systematic review of conservation interventions to promote voluntary behavior change

Understanding human behavior is vital to developing interventions that effectively lead to proenvironmental behavior change, whether the focus is at the individual or societal level. However, interventions in many fields have historically lacked robust forms of evaluation, which makes it hard to be confident that these conservation interventions have successfully helped protect the environment. We conducted a systematic review to assess how effective nonpecuniary and nonregulatory interventions have been in changing environmental behavior. We applied the Office of Health Assessment and Translation systematic review methodology. We started with more than 300,000 papers and reports returned by our search terms and after critical appraisal of quality identified 128 individual studies that merited inclusion in the review. We classified interventions by thematic area, type of intervention, the number of times audiences were exposed to interventions, and the length of time interventions ran. Most studies reported a positive effect (n = 96). The next most common outcome was no effect (n = 28). Few studies reported negative (n = 1) or mixed (n = 3) effects. Education, prompts, and feedback interventions resulted in positive behavior change. Combining multiple interventions was the most effective. Neither exposure duration nor frequency affected the likelihood of desired behavioral change. Comparatively few studies tested the effects of voluntary interventions on non-Western populations (n = 17) or measured actual ecological outcome behavior (n = 1). Similarly, few studies examined conservation devices (e.g., energy-efficient stoves) (n = 9) and demonstrations (e.g., modeling the desired behavior) (n = 5). There is a clear need to both improve the quality of the impact evaluation conducted and the reporting standards for intervention results.     

Preliminary studies on potential remediation of acid mine drainage‐impacted soils by amendment with drinking‐water treatment residuals

Mining operations result in a wide range of environmental impacts: acid mine drainage (AMD) and acid sulfate soils being among the most common. Due to their acidic pH and high soluble metal concentrations, both AMD and acid sulfate soils can severely damage the local ecosystems. Proper post‐mining management practices are necessary to control AMD‐related environmental issues. Current AMD‐impacted soil treatment technologies are rather expensive and typically not environmentally sustainable. We conducted a 60‐day bench‐scale study to evaluate the potential of a cost‐effective and environment‐friendly technology in treating AMD‐impacted soils. The metal binding and acid‐neutralizing capacity of an industrial by‐product, drinking water treatment residuals (WTRs) were used for AMD remediation. Two types of locally generated WTRs, an aluminum‐based WTR (Al‐WTR) and a lime‐based WTR (Ca‐WTR) were used. Highly acidic AMD‐impacted soil containing very high concentrations of metals and metalloids, such as iron, nickel, and arsenic, was collected from the Tab‐Simco coal mine in Carbondale, Illinois. Soil amendment using a 1:1 Al‐ and Ca‐WTR mix, applied at 5 and 10 percent rates significantly lowered the soluble and exchangeable fractions of metals in the AMD‐impacted soil, thus lowering potential metal toxicity. Soil pH increased from an extremely acidic 2.69 to a near‐neutral 6.86 standard units over the 60‐day study period. Results from this preliminary study suggest the possibility of a successful scale‐up of this innovative, cost‐effective, and environmentally sustainable technology for remediating AMD‐impacted acid sulfate soils.     

Understanding implications of consumer behavior for wildlife farming and sustainable wildlife trade

Unsustainable wildlife trade affects biodiversity and the livelihoods of communities dependent upon those resources. Wildlife farming has been proposed to promote sustainable trade, but characterizing markets and understanding consumer behavior remain neglected but essential steps in the design and evaluation of such operations. We used sea turtle trade in the Cayman Islands, where turtles have been farm raised for human consumption for almost 50 years, as a case study to explore consumer preferences toward wild‐sourced (illegal) and farmed (legal) products and potential conservation implications. Combining methods innovatively (including indirect questioning and choice experiments), we conducted a nationwide trade assessment through in‐person interviews from September to December 2014. Households were randomly selected using disproportionate stratified sampling, and responses were weighted based on district population size. We approached 597 individuals, of which 37 (6.2%) refused to participate. Although 30% of households had consumed turtle in the previous 12 months, the purchase and consumption of wild products was rare (e.g., 64–742 resident households consumed wild turtle meat [i.e., 0.3–3.5% of households] but represented a large threat to wild turtles in the area due to their reduced populations). Differences among groups of consumers were marked, as identified through choice experiments, and price and source of product played important roles in their decisions. Despite the long‐term practice of farming turtles, 13.5% of consumers showed a strong preference for wild products, which demonstrates the limitations of wildlife farming as a single tool for sustainable wildlife trade. By using a combination of indirect questioning, choice experiments, and sales data to investigate demand for wildlife products, we obtained insights about consumer behavior that can be used to develop conservation‐demand‐focused initiatives. Lack of data from long‐term social–ecological assessments hinders the evaluation of and learning from wildlife farming. This information is key to understanding under which conditions different interventions (e.g., bans, wildlife farming, social marketing) are likely to succeed.     

萃取法分离回收不锈钢酸洗污泥硫酸浸出液中的重金属

采用非皂化P204和皂化P204萃取剂对不锈钢酸洗污泥的硫酸浸出液进行萃取。在浸出液pH为0.80、非皂化P204体积分数为25%、萃取剂与浸出液体积比为1∶2、萃取时间为5 min的条件下,Fe~(3+)萃取率达99.64%,Cr~(3+)和Ni~(2+)萃取率为3.98%和6.99%,一次萃余液pH为0.64。采用皂化P204对除Fe~(3+)后的一次萃余液进行萃取,在P204体积分数为25%、萃取剂与浸出液体积比为1∶2、萃取剂皂化率为60%、一次萃余液pH为1.50、萃取时间为5 min的条件下,Ni~(2+)萃取率为93.12%,Cr~(3+)萃取率为20.69%,二次萃余液pH为2.63。     

聚硅酸钛制备及其助凝特性

采用在活化硅酸制备过程中加入适量Ti Cl4的方法,试制了一种新型无机高分子助凝剂—聚硅酸钛。研究了不同[Si]/[Ti]条件下制备的聚硅酸钛在固定p H值的水中分散物的粒径和Zeta电位随着活化时间的变化趋势,并与活化硅酸作比较。结果表明,在Si/Ti=20,活化48 h的条件下能制备出较为稳定的聚硅酸钛。与活化硅酸相比,聚硅酸钛在水中的分散物具有较大的粒径和更高的Zeta电位。通过对比制备的活化硅酸和聚硅酸钛的红外图谱发现,聚硅酸钛中有TiO-Si键,证明钛离子参与了聚合反应,新生成的化学键提高了它的聚合度和稳定性。采用硫酸铝为混凝剂,聚硅酸钛为助凝剂进行混凝除浊实验。测定了絮凝体的Zeta电位和混凝沉淀后的上清液浊度,研究了硫酸铝投加量和混凝p H对聚硅酸钛助凝效果的影响。结果表明,投加适量的聚硅酸钛助凝剂,明显提高了混凝除浊效果且拓宽了有效混凝p H值的范围。     

硫酸盐还原菌污泥固定化特性

采用玉米芯为碳源,聚乙烯醇(PVA)为包埋载体,饱和硼酸(H3BO3)为交联剂,研究了硫酸盐还原菌污泥(SRBS)、铁屑、麦饭石共固处理合成煤矿酸性废水的最优配比与机理,并分析了固定化过程中小球稳定性及活性的变化规律。实验结果表明,SRBS投加量是影响处理效果的最显著因子,当投加30%SRBS、2%铁屑、3%麦饭石时SO2-4、Mn2+去除率分别为94.13%和84.39%,溶液p H为7.03,未检测出Fe2+;随着交联时间的延长,小球膨胀率及SO2-4还原率分别呈线性与指数下降,从保持小球稳定性与活性角度考虑,可将交联时间设定为4~8 h;该法可为市政污泥的处置以及生物法处理煤矿酸性废水的工程应用提供技术参考。