山岳景区依托型乡村旅游就业吸附的空间特征

乡村振兴战略和乡村产业转型发展背景下,休闲旅游产业在乡村地域的兴起扰动了当前就业人口由乡村向城镇流动的宏观趋势,乡村旅游就业吸附正从微观上改变着城乡间劳动力空间流动的格局和过程。为科学理解乡村旅游就业吸附引起城乡劳动力空间流动发生变化的特征与机制,文章基于在浙晋山岳景区依托型乡村旅游地深度访谈的一手数据,分析了乡村旅游就业人口流动的空间分布特征、就业吸附的空间模式和过程机制。结果表明:①山岳景区依托型乡村旅游就业吸附呈现距离衰减和空间层级结构的特征,0~4 km为核心层、4~12 km为过渡层、12 km以上为外缘层;但在不同社会经济发展环境下该特征存在区域差异,欠发达地区乡村旅游就业吸附的空间集中性,比发达地区更加明显。②研究从城乡地域空间系统的视角,基于人口转移“推—拉”理论对乡村旅游就业人口空间流动特征和影响机制进行分析,发现山岳景区依托型乡村旅游就业吸附呈现以城镇、乡村为就业吸附极,以城乡接合部为吸附效用“分水岭”的空间模式;其中,连接城乡间的便捷交通是乡村旅游就业吸附实现的关键介质。③基于乡村旅游就业吸附空间适用性,文章针对性提出了“空间围栏效应”的概念。文章不仅从微观尺度上丰富了乡村旅游就业人口空间流动特征、过程、模式等的理论认识,而且对切实指导乡村地域在乡村旅游开发实践中理性理解乡村旅游的就业促进作用,提升乡村旅游开发规划和投资的效率具有积极意义。     

Social determinants of soil and water conservation in rural Kenya

Soil erosion is a major environmental problem and threat to rural development in Kenya. Numerous attempts to address the problem have apparently had little success. There are however some districts that have been very successful, notably Machakos. In this study we search for the factors that determine successful development in soil conservation such as social capital, human capital and market integration. One of our main results is that social capital measures are significant determinants of investment in soil conservation. A better understanding of the relevant mechanisms is essential for developing policies targeting improvement in natural resource management.

Mapping radioactivity in groundwater to identify elevated exposure in remote and rural communities

A survey of radioactivity in groundwater (110 sites) was conducted as a precursor to providing a baseline of radiation exposure in rural and remote communities in Queensland, Australia, that may be impacted upon by exposure pathways associated with the supply, treatment, use and wastewater treatment of the resource. Radionuclides in groundwater, including ²³⁸U, ²²⁶Ra, ²²²Rn, ²²⁸Ra, ²²⁴Ra and ⁴⁰K were measured and found to contain activity concentration levels of up to 0.71 BqL⁻¹, 0.96 BqL⁻¹, 108 BqL⁻¹, 2.8 BqL⁻¹, 0.11 BqL⁻¹ and 0.19 BqL⁻¹ respectively. Activity concentration results were classified by aquifer lithology, showing correlation between increased radium isotope concentration and basic volcanic host rock. The groundwater survey and mapping results were further assessed using an investigation assessment tool to identify seven remote or rural communities that may require additional radiation dose assessment beyond that attributed to ingestion of potable water.     

Significant radioactive contamination of soil around a coal-fired thermal power plant

Soil samples were collected around a coal-fired power plant from 81 different locations. Brown coal, unusually rich in uranium, is burnt in this plant that lies inside the confines of a small industrial town and has been operational since 1943. Activity concentrations of the radionuclides 238U, 226Ra, 232Th, 137Cs and 40K were determined in the samples. Considerably elevated concentrations of 238U and 226Ra have been found in most samples collected within the inhabited area. Concentrations of 235U and 226Ra in soil decreased regularly with increasing depth at many locations, which can be explained by fly-ash fallout. Concentrations of 235U and 226Ra in the top (0-5 cm depth) layer of soil in public areas inside the town are 4.7 times higher, on average, than those in the uncontaminated deeper layers, which means there is about 108 Bq kg(-1) surplus activity concentration above the geological background. A high emanation rate of 222Rn from the contaminated soil layers and significant disequilibrium between 238U and 226Ra activities in some kinds of samples have been found.     

Sustainable energy generation using hybrid energy system for remote hilly rural area in India

Hybrid energy systems are renewable energy system combined in a complementary fashion to ensure dependable power supply at competitive cost. Diesel generators (DGs) are also added here as a back-up source of supply. For remote areas far from a transmission grid, these systems can provide a reliable and cost-effective supply. Addition of DG could instigate environmental pollution in such remote unpolluted areas. In the present work, optimal sizing of hybrid energy system has been attempted for a remote village cluster of Uttarakhand (India) to make available desired power supply at minimum environmental effluence. Hybrid Optimization Model for Electrical Renewable (HOMER) software from National Renewable Energy Laboratory, USA has been employed to attain the objective. The software offered several feasible systems, ranked on the basis of net present cost (NPC). All such systems are further analysed for emissions they have made in the environment. Hence, the optimal system fulfilling the criteria of minimal environmental degradation with sufficiently minimum NPC has been searched for. In the present work, the most appropriate system offered on the basis of NPC is the one which has five wind turbines (10 kW each), one DG (65 kW) and 25 batteries (6 V, 6.94 kW h each). The NPC of the system is $1,252,018, whereas its initial capital cost and levelised cost of energy (COE) are $94,233 and $0.292/kW h, respectively. After further analysis of all the feasible systems on the basis of environmental effluence, the most feasible system explored is the one which has minimal emissions of various pollutants such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbon, particulate matter, sulphur dioxide and nitrous oxide. The system has been obtained on a compromised NPC of $1,270,921 with a capital cost of $148,133 and COE of $0.296/kW h. Components of the system include five wind turbines (10 kW), a 9 kW PV panel and a 65 kW DG along with 30 batteries (6 V, 6.94 kW h each). The system so obtained would prove to be a feasible, optimally sized and sustainable power supply alternative for remote unelectrified hilly rural area.     

Protected areas as vehicles in population development: lessons from rural South Africa

Protected areas in developing countries are increasingly expected to move beyond biodiversity protection so as also to contribute to poverty reduction and the economic development of their surrounding communities. The purpose of this article is to report on the key findings that emerged from the assessment of a poverty alleviation programme at the Golden Gate Highlands National Park in South Africa and the lessons learned from that particular programme. Designed around outcomes analysis as an analytical framework for programme evaluation, a mixed-method approach of semi-structured interviews and focus-group sessions was used to collect data from amongst programme beneficiaries, the park management and members of the park’s advisory board. The findings indicate that although programmes of this kind can indeed impact positively on poverty levels, their direct impacts do however remain limited to a relatively small proportion of households in neighbouring communities. The article concludes that by conceptualising poverty as a multidimensional state of well-being, this allows for the exploration of a much broader range of potential social, cultural and economic benefits available from protected areas.     

Design,measurement and evaluation of photovoltaic pumping system for rural areas in Oman

In the present paper, the optimum design of a PV system used to operate a water pumping system was determined for Oman. The system design focused on the environmental conditions of Sohar city. The implementation and measurement of the designed system are presented to prove the effectiveness of the proposed system. The results show that the system can provide the required power at peak hours, leading to a substantial reduction in the sizing of the PV system. Consequently, the investment capital costs 2400 USD, and the cost of energy is equal to 0.309 USD/kWh. Furthermore, the results indicate that the system annual yield factor is 2024.66 kWh/kWp and that the capacity factor is 23.05 %, which is encouraging since the latter is typically 21 %. The system capital cost and the cost of energy are worth comparing to a diesel generator. A comparison is made between the proposed system and several others in the literature. The comparison indicated that the system cost of energy is promising.     

少数民族聚集区乡村空间重构的影响机理——以新疆和田地区为例

乡村空间重构不仅是农村现代化的必由之路,还是实现土地集约利用的重要途径。和田地区,经济发展缓慢,其村庄基础设施差,而且由于人口迅速发展,其人地矛盾突出,因此对和田地区进行乡村空间重构势在必行。基于此,本文依据2015年对和田地区入户调查的1 162份问卷,选取了农户的个体特征、家庭特征、职业特征和居住环境特征四个方面的19个影响因素作为自变量,选取农户是否愿意整治作为因变量,运用二元Logistic模型对农户迁居至中心村的影响因素和迁居意愿进行了回归分析。对问卷的统计可知,有64%的被调查者表示接受整治。通过与其他区域的调查对比可知,经济越是发达的地区,其中心村整治的进展越快,农民接受整治的意愿也越强烈。相反,经济越不发达的地区,其中心村整治的进展越缓慢,农民接受搬迁的意愿越低。农户是否愿意接受乡村重构,是农户家庭特征、居民点的基础设施和农户的职业特征共同作用的结果。就农户的家庭特征来看,家庭劳动力数量偏少、家庭年收入越高、耕地面积适中的农户,其搬迁意愿是最强烈的。在农户的职业特征中,愿意参与土地流转、有外出务工经验的农户,其搬迁意愿是最强烈的。在环境特征中,若农户对居住环境和现居住村的建设越不满意、居住环境中需要改善的项目越多,农户的搬迁意愿越强烈。因此,对于和田地区来说,在引导居民集中居住的同时,要引导农户流转土地,促进更多人就业,积极推动特色农业的发展,走农业现代化的道路,以促进农民收入的持续增长。此外,农户对于整治的一个很重要的期望就是改善居住环境,因此在未来的村庄总体建设和规划中,应积极改善村庄内基础设施,并与居住建设同步进行。一直以来,对少数民族聚集区的乡村空间重构的研究比较少。本文对和田地区中心村的研究,是对少数民族地区乡村空间重构研究的重要补充。     

Determinants of adaptation practices to climate change by Chepang households in the rural Mid-Hills of Nepal

This study analyzes the factors influencing the adoption of various adaptation practices by a highly marginalized indigenous community in the remote rural Mid-Hills of Nepal. The analysis is based on a household survey conducted among 221 Chepang households selected randomly. A multivariate probit model was used to analyze five categories of adaptation choices against a set of socio-economic, institutional, infrastructural, and perception variables. Perception of rainfall changes, size of landholding, status of land tenure, distance to motor road, access to productive credit, information, extension services, and skill development trainings are all influential to enable households to deviate away from traditional coping strategies and adopt suitable practices to adapt to climate vagaries. Policies and development activities should be geared to address these determinants in order to facilitate adaptation.     

Radionuclide contamination of sediment deposits in the Ob and Yenisey estuaries and areas of the Kara Sea

The Ob and Yenisey rivers are major contributors to total riverine discharge to the Arctic Ocean. Several large nuclear facilities discharge into these rivers, which could affect actual and potential discharges of radionuclides to the Arctic region. This article presents new radionuclide concentration and grain-size data resulting from analyses of several sediment samples collected during research cruises in the Ob and Yenisey estuaries and adjacent areas during 2000 and 2001. Results indicate that discharges from the main nuclear facilities do not constitute a major contribution to the level of radioactive contamination in the marine areas studied, though Co-60 was detected at low concentrations in some sediment horizons. However, the aggregate contamination from different sources is not radioecologically significant in sediments within the study area, maximum Cs-137 levels being approximately 80 Bq kg(-1) dry weight.     

Cs,Co and K uptake by lettuce plants in two distributions of soil contamination

¹³⁷Cs and ⁶⁰Co, two of the radionuclides more representative of discharges from nuclear facilities, are of interest for radiological protections because of their great mobility in biosphere and affinity with biological systems. The aim of the present work is the investigation of the possible influence of the vertical distribution of ¹³⁷Cs and ⁶⁰Co in soil upon their uptake by lettuce as function of plant's growth. An experiment ad hoc has been carried out in field conditions. The results show that (i) the transfer of ¹³⁷Cs and ⁶⁰Co from soil to lettuce is independent by their distribution in soil, (ii) the soil–plant transfer factors of ¹³⁷Cs and ⁶⁰Co show a similar trend vs. growth stage, (iii) the ⁴⁰K transfer factor trend is different from those of anthropogenic radionuclides, and (iv) ¹³⁷Cs and ⁶⁰Co specific activities are about 1 Bq/kg, in the mature vegetable with soil activity from 9 to 21 kBq/m².     

Spatial differentiation of the impact of transport accessibility on the multidimensional poverty of rural households in karst mountain areas

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Transportation facilities are crucial prerequisite for enhancing economic development. In karst mountain areas, poverty of peasant households is...     

Environmental contamination of heavy metals from zinc smelting areas in Hezhang County, western Guizhou, China

Total heavy metal (Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn) concentrations were evaluated in smelting waste, soil, crop and moss samples collected from the Hezhang artisanal zinc smelting areas, Guizhou, China. Soil samples from the cornfield near the smelting sites contained extremely high Cd (5.8-74 mg kg(-1)), Pb (60-14,000 mg kg(-1)) and Zn (260-16,000 mg kg(-1)) concentrations. Elevated heavy metal concentrations were also found in corn plants and total Pb (0.80-1.5 mg kg(-1)) and Cd (0.05-0.76 mg kg(-1)) concentrations in corn grain have totally or partially exceeded the national guidance limits for foodstuff. Thus, the soil-to-crop transfer of heavy metals might pose a potential health risk to the local residents. Similar to the high heavy metal levels in soil and corn, Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn concentrations in moss samples collected from the smelting sites ranged from 10 to 110, 10 to 55, 26 to 51, 400 to 1200 and 330 to 1100 mg kg(-1), respectively, exhibiting a local spatial pattern of metals deposition from the atmosphere. Based on examination of Zn/Cd and Pb/Cd ratios of the analyzed samples, we have distinguished between the flue gas dust derived and smelting waste derived metals in different environmental compartments.     

城乡污染转移的利益悖论及对策研究

污染从城市向农村的转移加剧了农村生态环境问题,已经成为制约农村经济发展的主要瓶颈之一。城乡污染转移是城乡经济主体为实现自身利益相互博弈的结果,本质是一个政治经济学问题。本文利用政治经济学研究方法,分别剖析了城乡家庭、企业和政府的利益诉求及其在污染问题中的行为选择,解释了城乡污染转移的可能性和必然性,在此基础上进一步研究了污染转移所导致的利益悖论,并对悖论形成的深层原因进行挖掘,进而提出城乡污染协同治理的政策建议。研究表明,城乡污染转移表面上看是经济主体利益最大化的理性选择:农村家庭受经济发展水平、信息获取能力和政策影响能力的限制,更注重短期经济利益而忽略长期环境利益;乡镇企业和污染企业对经济利益的追逐加快了城乡污染转移;地方政府为实现当地区域利益所采取的重城市轻乡村战略和政府之间的利益冲突也为污染转移提供了助力。事实上,城乡污染转移违背了经济发展的一般规律,形成污染转移的利益悖论:转移到农村的污染危害农业生产、进而损害城乡人力资本,有悖于长期经济增长;加剧农村生态资源退化、扩大城乡差距,有悖于区域协调发展;污染转移是城市对农村、当代人对后代人环境容量的剥削,有悖于环境的公平。认为:经济主体长期利益和短期利益的矛盾、城乡区域利益和整体利益的冲突以及制度供给不足和制度监管缺位是造成污染转移悖论的深层原因。在此基础上,提出了化解污染转移悖论的对策建议:统筹规划,实现长期利益和短期利益的统一;整合城乡,促进区域利益和整体利益协同;强化制度创新,完善制度供给;完善制度监管,提高执行效率;促进技术创新,减少污染排放。     

Institutional credibility and leadership: critical challenges for community-based natural resource governance in rural and remote Australia

Community-based natural resource management (CBNRM) institutions are challenged with finding common ground as a basis for action among diverse resource users and stakeholders. Establishing and maintaining institutional credibility within their regions, catchments, communities and among their membership is fundamental to overcoming the challenge. So too is applying appropriate institutional and governance structures and appointing appropriate leaders. Drawing on triangulated case study data collected over a 12-month period using multiple methods, this paper examines the influence of institutional credibility and leadership on the functioning, decision-making and governance of two CBNRM institutions in Queensland, Australia. The paper shows that stakeholders have very different expectations of what makes a CBNRM institution credible. Satisfying the multiple expectations requires CBNRM institutions to incorporate diverse stakeholder representation, assert their legitimacy and demonstrate accountability, transparency, fairness and justice. The paper also draws attention to the value and importance of appointing inspirational leaders who focus on encouraging followers to pursue collective goals. Comparing the merits and constraints of appointing average Joes versus community elites to the Boards of CBNRM institutions, the paper highlights the urgent need for community-based natural resource governance and inspirational leadership education and training programs to improve the availability and quality of CBNRM leadership in rural Australia. Since combining credible CBNRM institutions with inspirational leaders does not necessarily equate to sustainable on-ground NRM outcomes, it is critical that the education and training programs emphasise the importance of monitoring and evaluating the improvements in decision-making processes and in decision outcomes.