Application of network method as a tool for integrating biodiversity values in Environmental Impact Assessment

Highway construction or expansion projects are among major activities of economic development especially in developing countries. However, road development consistently can lead to major damages to the environment, including habitat fragmentation and ecological instabilities and a considerable threat to fauna and flora. At this point, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in road developments is needed to address and evaluate the ecological issues in decision-making. The object of this study is to strengthen the consideration of ecological issues, i.e., biodiversity in the existing EIA tools. This paper regards a network method as a means to make informed planning decisions by the lessons from a case study. The results indicate that network method is well suited to be applied in ecological impacts assessment. However, some limitations such as complexity and time consumed make casual networks unpopular. Also, impact of traffic noise on acoustic communication (wildlife and human) was performed. It has been shown that sound level for human is much higher than admissible standards. Finally, the study expresses some mitigation measures to improve the acquisition for environmental impact assessment process.     

Review of monitoring and assessing ground vegetation biodiversity in national forest inventories

Ground vegetation (GV) is an important component from which many forest biodiversity indicators can be estimated. To formulate policies at European level, taking into account biodiversity, European National Forest Inventories (NFIs) are one of the most important sources of forest information. However, for monitoring GV, there are several definitions, data collection methods, and different possible indicators. Even though it must be considered that natural conditions in different countries form very different understory types, each one has its own cost-efficient monitoring design, and they can hardly be compared. Therefore, the development of general guidelines is a particularly complex issue. This paper is a review of data collection methods and consequently a selection of the best available methods for the set of indicators with an emphasis on GV sampling methodologies in NFIs. As a final result, recommendations on GV definitions and classifications, sampling methodologies, and indicators are formulated for NFIs. Different sampling areas are recommended for each life form (shrubs, herbs, etc.). Inventory cycles and sampling seasons (depending on the phonological stages) should be specially considered and evaluated in the results. The proposed indicators are based on composition at different levels of sampling intensity for each life form and on coverage measurements.     

Uncertainty based optimal monitoring network design for a chlorinated hydrocarbon contaminated site

An application of a newly developed optimal monitoring network for the delineation of contaminants in groundwater is demonstrated in this study. Designing a monitoring network in an optimal manner helps to delineate the contaminant plume with a minimum number of monitoring wells at optimal locations at a contaminated site. The basic principle used in this study is that the wells are installed where the measurement uncertainties are minimum at the potential monitoring locations. The development of the optimal monitoring network is based on the utilization of contaminant concentration data from an existing initial arbitrary monitoring network. The concentrations at the locations that were not sampled in the study area are estimated using geostatistical tools. The uncertainty in estimating the contaminant concentrations at such locations is used as design criteria for the optimal monitoring network. The uncertainty in the study area was quantified by using the concentration estimation variances at all the potential monitoring locations. The objective function for the monitoring network design minimizes the spatial concentration estimation variances at all potential monitoring well locations where a monitoring well is not to be installed as per the design criteria. In the proposed methodology, the optimal monitoring network is designed for the current management period and the contaminant concentration data estimated at the potential observation locations are then used as the input to the network design model. The optimal monitoring network is designed for the consideration of two different cases by assuming different initial arbitrary existing data. Three different scenarios depending on the limit of the maximum number of monitoring wells that can be allowed at any period are considered for each case. In order to estimate the efficiency of the developed optimal monitoring networks, mass estimation errors are compared for all the three different scenarios of the two different cases. The developed methodology is useful in coming up with an optimal number of monitoring wells within the budgetary limitations. The methodology also addresses the issue of redundancy, as it refines the existing monitoring network without losing much information of the network. The concept of uncertainty-based network design model is useful in various stages of a potentially contaminated site management such as delineation of contaminant plume and long-term monitoring of the remediation process.     

Thermal monitoring and analysis of the large-scale field earth-dam breach process

Thermal imaging is a nondestructive testing method for monitoring internal material changes that are indicated by changes in an object’s surface temperature. In this study, field observation using thermographs was applied to monitor and analyze the breach process of large-scale earth dams. The earth dam test site was Landao Creek in Nantou County, Taiwan. Four field tests were performed to monitor and analyze a single earth dam and two successive earth dams. Ponding first occurred at the lowland of the riverbed upstream, and base seepage occurred at the base of the dam downstream; overtopping failure soon followed. Earth-dam failure mode is affected by the topographic characteristics of the riverbed; specifically, lowland areas are prone to ponding upstream, which causes piping and seepage downstream as well as subsequent breaches. Ponding and piping cause water seepage and soil wetting, which are reflected in lower surface temperatures recorded on thermographs. Thermographs can monitor changes in surface temperature to evaluate the potential failure modes of dams. Dam surfaces with large temperature variations may be potential failure areas. If confirmed, this fact may prove useful for failure-mode prediction. This paper proposes a monitoring index to reflect the temperature changes in a given period, and this study verified it empirically.     

Use of two population metrics clarifies biodiversity dynamics in large-scale monitoring: the case of trees in Japanese old-growth forests

An alkaline comet assay and a micronucleus test were carried out on erythrocytes of the European chub, Squalius cephalus L., collected in spring and autumn in 2005 and 2006 at three sampling sites in River Sava, near Zagreb, Croatia. The results of comet assay showed the lowest genotoxic influence at the least polluted site, while higher DNA damage was observed at the polluted sites. Although the basal levels of DNA damage were elevated, a clear gradation of DNA damage was found due to pollution intensity in all sampling periods. The lowest cytogenetic damage as revealed by the micronucleus test (MNT) was observed as well at the least polluted site. High variations in MN frequency were observed between sampling periods, although the number of micronucleated erythrocytes was consistently the highest one at the polluted site. The comet assay as a biomarker of genotoxic effect exhibited higher sensitivity in discriminating the genotoxic capacity of studied polluted sites while the MNT was less sensitive. However, both tests should be used together in biomonitoring studies because they can reveal different aspects of DNA damage; comet assay, the early event of genotoxic exposure, and MNT, its final result as a mutagenic potential.     

Establishment of a structural equation model for ground-level ozone: a case study at an urban roadside site

This study established a cause–effect relationship between ground-level ozone and latent variables employing partial least-squares analysis at an urban roadside site in four distinct seasons. Two multivariate analytic methods, factor analysis, and cluster analysis were adopted to cite and identify suitable latent variables from 14 observed variables (i.e., meteorological factors, wind and primary air pollutants) in 2008–2010. Analytical results showed that the first six components explained 80.3 % of the variance, and eigenvalues of the first four components were greater than 1. The effectiveness of this model was empirically confirmed with three indicators. Except for surface pressure, factor loadings of observed variables were 0.303–0.910 and reached statistical significance at the 5 % level. Composite reliabilities for latent variables were 0.672–0.812 and average variances were 0.404–0.547, except for latent variable “primary” in spring; thus, discriminant validity and convergent validity were marginally accepted. The developed model is suitable for the assessment of urban roadside surface ozone, considering interactions among meteorological factors, wind factors, and primary air pollutants in each season.     

Water quality status and trends in agriculture-dominated headwaters; a national monitoring network for assessing the effectiveness of national and European manure legislation in The Netherlands

Large nutrient losses to groundwater and surface waters are a major drawback of the highly productive agricultural sector in The Netherlands. The resulting high nutrient concentrations in water resources threaten their ecological, industrial, and recreational functions. To mitigate eutrophication problems, legislation on nutrient application in agriculture was enforced in 1986 in The Netherlands. The objective of this study was to evaluate this manure policy by assessing the water quality status and trends in agriculture-dominated headwaters. We used datasets from 5 agricultural test catchments and from 167 existing monitoring locations in agricultural headwaters. Trend analysis for these locations showed a fast reduction of nutrient concentrations after the enforcement of the manure legislation (median slopes of ?0.55 mg/l per decade for total nitrogen (N-tot) and ?0.020 mg/l per decade for total phosphorus (P-tot)). Still, up to 76 % of the selected locations currently do not comply with either the environmental quality standards (EQSs) for nitrogen (N-tot) or phosphorus (P-tot). This indicates that further improvement of agricultural water quality is needed. We observed that weather-related variations in nutrient concentrations strongly influence the compliance testing results, both for individual locations and for the aggregated results at the national scale. Another important finding is that testing compliance for nutrients based on summer average concentrations may underestimate the agricultural impact on ecosystem health. The focus on summer concentrations does not account for the environmental impact of high winter loads from agricultural headwaters towards downstream water bodies.     

evaluation of a measurement method for forest vegetation in a large-scale ecological survey

We evaluate a field method for determining species richness andcanopy cover of vascular plants for the Forest Health MonitoringProgram (FHM), an ecological survey of U.S. forests. Measurementsare taken within 12 1-m² quadrats on 1/15 ha plots in FHM.Species richness and cover are determined for four height classes(strata) within each quadrat and aggregated by stratum over the entireplot. We estimated (1) the agreement between experienced trainers andinexperienced technicians who collected the data on this survey(accuracy) and (2) the agreement among the technicians (precision) forresults on species richness and cover from 3 test plots at 3 timeintervals. The methods appear to be highly precise, although somediscrepancies with the values obtained by the trainers were found.Trainers found significantly more species in the ground stratum (0–0.6 m) and measured significantly more cover in the uppermost stratum(>4.9 m). The proportion of variation due to measurement error andtemporal variability was less than 13% for species richness (all strata)and cover (all but one stratum). This indicates that the method issuitable for monitoring changes in species richness and canopy coverfor a large-scale synoptic monitoring project such as FHM.     

Review of indicators and field methods for monitoring biodiversity within national forest inventories. Core variable: Deadwood

Deadwood is one of the four elements taken into account in this review of indicators and field methods and is often considered as a key indicator of forest biodiversity. We have analysed the main types of surveys and have realised how greatly the needs and constraints used to monitor deadwood can vary among them. For instance, classical National Forest Inventories usually tend to avoid time-consuming collecting methods. In the wide variety of existing definitions of deadwood, such inventories require simple and clear definitions, especially in terms of quantified thresholds. Thus, deadwood is properly described by characterising several components, such as snags, logs, stumps, branches and fine woody debris. Deadwood sampling methods alter depending on the different components and dimensions considered (standing dead trees, lying dead trees and branches, etc. assessed quantitatively). Attributes such as tree species and stage of decay are used mainly to qualify the deadwood components. The deadwood volume estimations are usually based on classical approaches already applied to living or felled trees: volume equations and/or formulas giving the volumes of common geometric solids. The purpose of this paper is to focus on different deadwood assessment techniques and to provide the information necessary to identify the most relevant methods for collecting deadwood data. The latter is used to build indicators that characterise the evolution of forest biodiversity at the scale of large forest territories.     

Macrobenthic surveys as a valuable tool for assessing freshwater quality in the Iberian Peninsula

Relationships between natural macrobenthic communities and aquatic environmental conditions have been recently used to perform the Biological Monitoring Water Quality (BMWQ) score system for assessing freshwater quality in the Iberian Peninsula. In this paper, the second version of the BMWQ score system is applied to two selected field studies (organic and nonorganic pollution) in order to illustrate the suitable functional character of this method. The total BMWQ (t-BMWQ) score and the average BMWQ (a-BMWQ) score are calculated, and their relationships with diversity indices are also examined. The BMWQ method appears to be very sensitive to changes in freshwater quality generated by simple organic pollution, but this method appears to be less sensitive to changes generated by complex nonorganic pollution. In addition, both scores are more sensitive measures to assess macroinvertebrate response to organic pollution than total density and diversity indices, exhibiting higher positive coefficients of linear correlation with Camargo's diversity index than with Shannon's and MacArthur's diversity indices. However, the a-BMWQ score is more sensitive to changes in family composition than the t-BMWQ score, whereas this latter score is more sensitive to family richness and sample size. In this sense, the use of the a-BMWQ score is recommended for the biological assessment of freshwater quality degradation in the Iberian Peninsula. More information is obtained for less effort when the a-BMWQ score is used.     

Evaluating the utility and seasonality of NDVI values for assessing post-disturbance recovery in a subalpine forest

Forest disturbances around the world have the potential to alter forest type and cover, with impacts on diversity, carbon storage, and landscape composition. These disturbances, especially fire, are common and often large, making ground investigation of forest recovery difficult. Remote sensing offers a means to monitor forest recovery in real time, over the entire landscape. Typically, recovery monitoring via remote sensing consists of measuring vegetation indices (e.g., NDVI) or index-derived metrics, with the assumption that recovery in NDVI (for example) is a meaningful measure of ecosystem recovery. This study tests that assumption using MODIS 16-day imagery from 2000 to 2010 in the area of the Colorado’s Routt National Forest Hinman burn (2002) and seedling density counts taken in the same area. Results indicate that NDVI is rarely correlated with forest recovery, and is dominated by annual and perennial forb cover, although topography complicates analysis. Utility of NDVI as a means to delineate areas of recovery or non-recovery are in doubt, as bootstrapped analysis indicates distinguishing power only slightly better than random. NDVI in revegetation analyses should carefully consider the ecology and seasonal patterns of the system in question.     

Limitations of habitats as biodiversity surrogates for conservation planning in estuaries

Increasing pressures on global biodiversity and lack of data on the number and abundance of species have motivated conservation planners and researchers to use more readily available information as proxies or surrogates for biodiversity. “Habitat” is one of the most frequently used surrogates but its assumed value in marine conservation planning is not often tested. The present study developed and tested three alternative habitat classification schemes of increasing complexity for a large estuary in south-east Australia and tested their effectiveness in predicting spatial variation in macroinvertebrate biodiversity and selecting estuarine protected areas to represent species. The three habitat classification schemes were: (1) broad-scale habitats (e.g., mangroves and seagrass), (2) subdivision of each broad-scale habitat by a suite of environmental variables that varied significantly throughout the estuary, and (3) subdivision of each broad-scale habitat by the subset of environmental variables that best explained spatial variation in macroinvertebrate biodiversity. Macroinvertebrate assemblages differed significantly among the habitats in each classification scheme. For each classification scheme, habitat richness was significantly correlated with species richness, total density of macroinvertebrates, assemblage dissimilarity, and summed irreplaceability. However, in a reserve selection process designed to represent examples of each habitat, no habitat classification scheme represented species significantly better than a random selection of sites. Habitat classification schemes may represent variation in estuarine biodiversity; however, the results of this study suggest they are inefficient in designing representative networks of estuarine protected areas.     

Evaluation of the Industrial Source Complex short-term model in a large-scale multiple source region for different stability classes

The original Industrial Source Complex Model (ISCST, 90346) and its latest version, the ISCST2 (92090), are evaluated for the 1- and 24-hour averaging periods, using six statistical parameters. The confidence limits on two parameters were obtained using the bootstrap, jacknife, seductive, and robust resampling techniques. Evaluation is conducted in a multiple point source environment and in all the different stability categories, using a year of meteorological data, emission inventory of the Lucas County, in Toledo, Ohio, and monitoring data from two nearby stations for the year 1987. This was representative of a real time situation in which the ISCST is generally applied for regulatory work. The sensitivity analysis shows that the ISC is a poor performing model in the 1-h and 24-h averaging period, neutral and stable categories, and modifications to it are necessary in order to improve its performance. Its performance changes depending on the chosen paired values. A better relative performance is observed in the unstable category relative to the neutral and stable categories. Improved model performance may be achieved by applying modifications to the physics on which the model is based.     

Bioassay for assessing cell stress in the vicinity of radio-frequency irradiating antennas

The 24 h exposure of water plants (etiolated duckweed) to RF-EMF between 7.8 V m(-1) and 1.8 V m(-1), generated by AM 1.287 MHz transmitting antennas, resulted in alanine accumulation in the plant cells, a phenomenon we have previously shown to be a universal stress signal. The magnitude of the effect corresponds qualitatively to the level of RF-EMF exposure. In the presence of 10 mM vitamin C, alanine accumulation is completely suppressed, suggesting the involvement of free radicals in the process. A unique biological connection has thus been made between exposure to RF-EMF and cell stress, in the vicinity of RF transmitting antennas. This simple test, which lasts only 24 h, constitutes a useful bioassay for the quick detection of biological cell stress caused in the vicinity of RF irradiating antennas.     

Urban green area provides refuge for native small mammal biodiversity in a rapidly expanding city in Ghana

Urbanization is a key driver of global biodiversity loss. Although sub-Saharan African countries are experiencing unprecedented urbanization and urban expansion, very little is known about how this impacts tropical biodiversity. Here, we assessed the effects of urban expansion and urban green space on local small mammal species diversity in Accra, Ghana. We surveyed small mammals in the University of Ghana botanical garden, an urban green area (UGA) and adjoining built-up environment (BE) and compared the results with baseline data (BLD) collected when large areas of the current city still remained mostly undeveloped. The methodology involved live-trapping using Sherman collapsible live-traps. Our data showed higher small mammal abundance and diversity in the UGA than BE. Similarity of species composition was higher between UGA and BLD than between BE and BLD. The small mammal species captured in BE (the rodents Mastomys erythroleucus, Rattus rattus, and Arvicanthis rufinus, and the shrew Crocidura olivieri) are known to easily adapt to human-modified landscapes. Our results suggest that urbanization negatively influenced the abundance, diversity, and community composition of small mammals. Efforts should be directed towards the integration of urban green areas into urban land development planning in developing countries in order to conserve local wildlife and ecological services that enhance the quality of urban life.     

Selection of a halophytic plant for assessing the phytotoxicity of dredged seaport sediment stored on land

The filling of dry quarries in coastal areas with sediments dredged in seaports represents a potentially interesting method of recycling of these materials. However, this recycling requires the prior carrying out of an Environmental Risk Assessment of the scenario concerned. For this, the question arose as to the type of plants capable of developing on the surface of such a deposit and the method to implement for assessing the possible phytotoxicity of dredged sediments. To answer this question, we chose to work with halophytic plants to be free from the salt-related effect and to assess only the effect related to the toxic compounds present. Based on the objectives set, these works led to the use of common plants of the French coast, with direct seeding, and with pollution-sensitive plants. Three species of angiosperms, Armeria maritima, Anthemis maritima and Plantago coronopus, were finally tested. As a result of this work, Armeria maritima was retained as the most suitable plant for testing the possible phytotoxic effect of dredged marine sediments stored on land. The results obtained with this plant are as follows: germination of 40 % of the seeds in 31 days, produced biomass of 493 mg FW in 6 months and a capacity to bioaccumulate metal pollutants in roots with 350 and 720 mg/kg DW for Zn and Cu, respectively.     

Unique phenotypes in the sperm of the earthworm Eudrilus eugeniae for assessing radiation hazards

The earthworm, Eudrilus eugeniae is a segmented worm. It has two pairs of testes whose cells are highly proliferative. It was found that the earthworm, which is irradiated with X-ray, shows the following phenotypic changes in its sperm: fragmented acrosome in the head, break in the tail, and the appearance of zigzag sperm tail. Sperm morphology can be used as a tool to study radiation hazards in local areas. These three phenotypes were not observed in the sperm of worms exposed to different concentration of toxic chemicals such as sodium arsenate, lead acetate, and mercuric chloride. In contrast, exposure of worms to ethidium bromide caused fragmented acrosome in the head of their sperm cells.     

Expres: An expert system for assessing the fate of pesticides in the subsurface

The expert system described here is designed to aid regulatory personnel in their assessment of the potential for pesticides to contaminate the soil and groundwater environment. The expert system, known as EXPRES (EXpert system for Pesticide Regulatory Evaluation Simulations), consists of existing numerical models which are used to simulate the transport and transformation of pesticides in the unsaturated zone, coupled with a knowledge-based system that guides the user through the choice of all the necessary information for characterizing the physical, meteorological, hydrogeological, pedological and agricultural settings of typical agricultural regions across Canada, as required by the pesticide model. The expert system is designed to be used as a management tool to aid in policy decisions. Thus, its purpose is to provide an assessment of the potential hazards and to identify if further study is warranted.     

Monitoring conservation effectiveness in a global biodiversity hotspot: the contribution of land cover change assessment

Tropical forests, which play critical roles in global biogeochemical cycles, radiation budgets and biodiversity, have undergone rapid changes in land cover in the last few decades. This study examines the complex process of land cover change in the biodiversity hotspot of Western Ghats, India, specifically investigating the effects of conservation measures within the Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary. Current vegetation patterns were mapped using an IRS P6 LISS III image and this was used together with Landsat MSS data from 1973 to map land cover transitions. Two major and divergent trends were observed. A dominant degradational trend can be attributed to agricultural expansion and infrastructure development while a successional trend, resulting from protection of the area, showed the resilience of the system after prolonged disturbances. The sanctuary appears susceptible to continuing disturbances under the current management regime but at lower rates than in surrounding unprotected areas. The study demonstrates that remotely sensed land cover assessments can have important contributions to monitoring land management strategies, understanding processes underpinning land use changes and helping to inform future conservation strategies.