Recreational Rates and Future Land Use Preferences for Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory Facility

To manage ecosystems it is essential to understand physical properties and biological function, as well as the ecological services and social/cultural perceptions of a variety of stakeholders. Where land managers are required to make decisions about restoration, remediation and future land use, understanding attitudes and future land use preferences is essential. In this paper I synthesize data on five surveys of recreational rates and preferences for future land use for the Department of Energy's Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL). Subjects were interviewed at several well-attended events at different distances from INEEL, representing local and regional views. Between 24 and 59% of the subjects hunted, between 55 and 71% fished, and up to 87% camped, indicating potential for exposure if INEEL were open for recreation. Average recreational rates varied by location, with the Shoshone-Bannock Indians having higher hunting, fishing, hiking and camping rates than all others. There were significant differences in future land use preferences; subjects living close to the site rated nuclear material processing very high, while those living farther away ranked it intermediate. Indians ranked this use the lowest. Using the land as a National Environmental Research Park (NERP) was rated the highest (or nearly the highest) for all groups. Industrial uses were generally rated low by all groups. These data can be used by local planners and policy makers in decision making regarding levels of clean-up, future land use, future end-states and long-term protection and stewardship of these contaminated lands. The relative unanimity in future land use preferences for NERP and recreation, rather than new industrial purposes, provides guidance for remediation, suggesting that residential clean-up standards may be more stringent than required. Further, the relative approval of continued nuclear reprocessing (but not nuclear storage) also provides guidance for risk-based end-state planning.     

The Impact of Future Land Use Scenarios on Runoff Volumes in the Muskegon River Watershed

In this article we compared the response of surface water runoff to a storm event for different rates of urbanization, reforestation and riparian buffer setbacks across forty subwatersheds of the Muskegon River Watershed located in Michigan, USA. We also made these comparisons for several forecasted and one historical land use scenarios (over 140 years). Future land use scenarios to 2040 for forest regrowth, urbanization rates and stream setbacks were developed using the Land Transformation Model (LTM). Historical land use information, from 1900 at 5-year time step intervals, was created using a Backcast land use change model configured using artificial neural network and driven by agriculture and housing census information. We show that (1) controlling the rate of development is the most effective policy option to reduce runoff; (2) establishing setbacks along the mainstem are not as effective as controlling urban growth; (3) reforestation can abate some of the runoff effects from urban growth but not all; (4) land use patterns of the 1970s produced the least amount of runoff in most cases in the Muskegon River Watershed when compared to land use maps from 1900 to 2040; and, (5) future land use patterns here not always lead to increased (worse) runoff than the past. We found that while ten of the subwatersheds contained futures that were worse than any past land use configuration, twenty-five (62.5%) of the subwatersheds produced the greatest amount of runoff in 1900, shortly after the entire watershed was clear-cut. One third (14/40) of the subwatersheds contained the minimum amount of runoff in the 1960s and 1970s, a period when forest amounts were greatest and urban amounts relatively small.     

How Preferences for Public Participation are Linked to Perceptions of the Context, Preferences for Outcomes, and Individual Characteristics

Practitioners and stakeholders involved in environmental and risk assessment and decision-making efforts have access to a growing list of policies and guidance for implementing good process. The advice is often general. There is little understanding of how situation specific features are relevant in new circumstances. In a series of ten case studies we investigated how people’s (a) perceptions of the context, (b) preferences for outcomes, and (c) affiliations, experiences and motivations are related to their preferences for process features in a particular situation. The cases are in three policy areas: watershed management, forestry management, and clean-up and public health management of radioactively contaminated sites. We conclude this paper with a discussion of how the results can inform process design. Process design should be based on a diagnostic approach that specifically assesses relevant situational characteristics.     

Land Use and Land Cover Change Analysis and Prediction in the Upper Reaches of the Minjiang River,China

Scientists have aimed at exploring land use and land cover change (LUCC) and modeling future landscape pattern in order to improve our understanding of the causes and consequences of these phenomena. This study addresses LUCC in the upper reaches of Minjiang River, China, from 1974 to 2000. Based on remotely sensed images, LUCC and landscape pattern change were assessed using cross-tabulation and landscape metrics. Then, using the CLUE-S model, changes in area of four types of land cover were predicted for two scenarios considering forest polices over the next 20 years. Results showed that forestland decreased from 1974 to 2000 due to continuous deforestation, while grassland and shrubland increased correspondingly. At the same time, the farmland and settlement land increased dramatically. Landscape fragmentation in the study area accompanied these changes. Forestland, grassland, and farmland take opposite trajectories in the two scenarios, as does landscape fragmentation. LUCC has led to ecological consequences, such as biodiversity loss and lowering of ecological carrying capacity.     

新疆玛纳斯河流域的土地利用与退化问题

玛纳斯河流域山地、平原、沙漠、湖泊俱全，土地利用类型有8个一级类型及40个二级类。20世纪50年代以来，在山前水、土、光热组合优良地区开展大规模水土开发建设，使区内的土地资源得以充分利用，土地开发利用率达40％以上。然而，不合理的土地利用已经导致土地退化，其主要类型有土地荒漠化、耕地土壤贫瘠化、土壤次生盐渍化、土地沙漠化、水土流失、土地污染等6种。据区域土地利用特点与退化类型及原因，提出了合理利用土地与防止土地退化的5条措施，以确保玛河流域土地永续利用与持续发展。     

Science, Policy, Stakeholders, and Fish Consumption Advisories: Developing a Fish Fact Sheet for the Savannah River

In recent years there has been a startling rise in the issuance of fish consumption advisories. Unfortunately, compliance by the public is often low. Low compliance can be due to a number of factors, including confusion over the meaning of advisories, conflicting advisories issued by different agencies, controversies involving health benefits versus the risks from consuming fish, and an unwillingness to act on the advisories because of personal beliefs. In some places, such as along the Savannah River, one state (South Carolina) had issued a consumption advisory while the other (Georgia) had not, although at present, both states now issue consumption advisories for the Savannah River. Herein we report on the development of a fish fact sheet to address the confusing and conflicting information available to the public about consuming fish from the Savannah River. The process involved interviewing fishers to ascertain fishing and consumption patterns, evaluating contaminant levels and exposure pathways, discussing common grounds for the provision of information, and consensus-building among different regulatory agencies (US Environmental Protection Agency, South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, Georgia Department of Natural Resources) and the Department of Energy. Consensus, a key ingredient in solving many different types of “commons” problems, was aided by an outside organization, the Consortium for Risk Evaluation with Stakeholder Participation (CRESP). The initial role for CRESP was to offer scientific data as a basis for groups with different assumptions about risks to reach agreement on a regulatory response action. The process was an example of how credible science can be used to implement management and policies and provide a basis for consensus-building on difficult risk communication issues. The paper provides several lessons for improving the risk process from stakeholder conflicts, through risk assessment, to risk management. It also suggests that consensus-building and risk communication are continuing processes that involve assimilation of new information on contaminants and food-chain processes, state and federal law, public policy, and public response.     

Hydrologic Sensitivity to Climate and Land Use Changes in the Santiam River Basin,Oregon

Future changes in water supply are likely to vary across catchments due to a river basin's sensitivity to climate and land use changes. In the Santiam River Basin (SRB), Oregon, we examined the role elevation, intensity of water demands, and apparent intensity of groundwater interactions, as characteristics that influence sensitivity to climate and land use changes, on the future availability of water resources. In the context of water scarcity, we compared the relative impacts of changes in water supply resulting from climate and land use changes to the impacts of spatially distributed but steady water demand. Results highlight how seasonal runoff responses to climate and land use changes vary across subbasins with differences in hydrogeology, land use, and elevation. Across the entire SRB, water demand exerts the strongest influence on basin sensitivity to water scarcity, regardless of hydrogeology, with the highest demand located in the lower reaches dominated by agricultural and urban land uses. Results also indicate that our catchment with mixed rain‐snow hydrology and with mixed surface‐groundwater may be more sensitive to climate and land use changes, relative to the catchment with snowmelt‐dominated runoff and substantial groundwater interactions. Results highlight the importance of evaluating basin sensitivity to change in planning for planning water resources storage and allocation across basins in variable hydrogeologic settings.     

Water Quality and Land Use Changes in the Alafia and Hillsborough River Watersheds,Florida, USA1

Abstract: Spatial distribution of land use can have a substantial effect on surface and groundwater quality. Our objective was to test for trends in flow components and water quality related to changes in land use in the Alafia and Hillsborough River watersheds in Florida, USA, over the period 1974‐2007. In addition, water quality statistics were evaluated in the perspective of numeric water quality criteria and proposed reclassification of segments of the Alafia River. Trends in 10 water quality parameters and three discharge variables were evaluated using a nonparametric trend detection test. Results of land use analysis indicated substantial urbanization and loss of agricultural land in the study area. Discharge variables did not exhibit significant trends, whereas trends in the majority of water quality concentrations were negative or nonsignificant with total nitrogen and total Kjeldahl nitrogen as exceptions showing positive trends. Changes in nutrient pathways could not be clearly identified. Considering recently promulgated numeric nutrient criteria and standards for dissolved fluoride, much of the Alafia River was found to be out of compliance. While there were land use changes and changes in water quality over the study period, it was difficult to identify a direct cause‐effect relationship. Responses to regulatory efforts, such as the Clean Water Act and improvements in phosphate mining practices, may have had greater impacts on water quality than changes in land use.     

Modeling the Driving Forces of the Land Use and Land Cover Changes Along the Upper Yangtze River of China

Induced by high population density, rapid but uneven economic growth, and historic resource exploitation, China’s upper Yangtze basin has witnessed remarkable changes in land use and cover, which have resulted in severe environmental consequences, such as flooding, soil erosion, and habitat loss. This article examines the causes of land use and land cover change (LUCC) along the Jinsha River, one primary section of the upper Yangtze, aiming to better understand the human impact on the dynamic LUCC process and to support necessary policy actions for more sustainable land use and environmental protection. Using a repeated cross-sectional dataset covering 31 counties over four time periods from 1975 to 2000, we develop a fractional logit model to empirically determine the effects of socioeconomic and institutional factors on changes for cropland, forestland, and grassland. It is shown that population expansion, food self-sufficiency, and better market access drove cropland expansion, while industrial development contributed significantly to the increase of forestland and the decrease of other land uses. Similarly, stable tenure had a positive effect on forest protection. Moreover, past land use decisions were less significantly influenced by distorted market signals. We believe that these and other findings carry important policy implications.     

Dams,Floodplain Land Use,and Riparian Forest Conservation in the Semiarid Upper Colorado River Basin,USA

Land and water resource development can independently eliminate riparian plant communities, including Fremont cottonwood forest (CF), a major contributor to ecosystem structure and functioning in semiarid portions of the American Southwest. We tested whether floodplain development was linked to river regulation in the Upper Colorado River Basin (UCRB) by relating the extent of five developed land-cover categories as well as CF and other natural vegetation to catchment reservoir capacity, changes in total annual and annual peak discharge, and overall level of mainstem hydrologic alteration (small, moderate, or large) in 26 fourth-order subbasins. We also asked whether CF appeared to be in jeopardy at a regional level. We classified 51% of the 57,000 ha of alluvial floodplain examined along >2600 km of mainstem rivers as CF and 36% as developed. The proportion developed was unrelated to the level of mainstem hydrologic alteration. The proportion classified as CF was also independent of the level of hydrologic alteration, a result we attribute to confounding effects from development, the presence of time lags, and contrasting effects from flow alteration in different subbasins. Most CF (68% by area) had a sparse canopy (50% canopy cover occupied <1% of the floodplain in 15 subbasins. We suggest that CF extent in the UCRB will decline markedly in the future, when the old trees on floodplains now disconnected from the river die and large areas change from CF to non-CF categories. Attention at a basinwide scale to the multiple factors affecting cottonwood patch dynamics is needed to assure conservation of these riparian forests.     

Multi-Destination and Multi-Purpose Trip Effects in the Analysis of the Demand for Trips to a Remote Recreational Site

One of the basic assumptions of the travel cost method for recreational demand analysis is that the travel cost is always incurred for a single purpose recreational trip. Several studies have skirted around the issue with simplifying assumptions and dropping observations considered as nonconventional holiday-makers or as nontraditional visitors from the sample. The effect of such simplifications on the benefit estimates remains conjectural. Given the remoteness of notable recreational parks, multi-destination or multi-purpose trips are not uncommon. This article examines the consequences of allocating travel costs to a recreational site when some trips were taken for purposes other than recreation and/or included visits to other recreational sites. Using a multi-purpose weighting approach on data from Gros Morne National Park, Canada, we conclude that a proper correction for multi-destination or multi-purpose trip is more of what is needed to avoid potential biases in the estimated effects of the price (travel-cost) variable and of the income variable in the trip generation equation.     

Georelational Analysis of Soil Type, Soil Salt Content, Landform, and Land Use in the Yellow River Delta, China

The Yellow River Delta, one of China’s three major river deltas, is becoming a major region for the development of agriculture and fisheries. Protecting the delicate ecology of newly formed aquatic systems as well as the evolution of soils, natural vegetation, and fauna on older upland environments in the delta is a priority in planning for the wise use of the delta’s resources for future agricultural development. In this article, we use a Geographic Information System (GIS) to analyze relationships between land-use/land-cover characteristics in the Dongying municipality, one of the most intensely developed areas of the delta, and spatial variations in soil salinity and landforms. This analysis reveals that soil salt content decreases from regionally high values in isolated depressions to relatively moderate values in embanked former back swamps, with the lowest values occurring in abandoned river courses. Comparing the present land use on this soil salinity–landform pattern shows that it is basically at odds with general concepts of land suitability for agricultural utilization of saline soils. Crop-based agriculture in the region is probably overdeveloped, whereas more appropriate agricultural development, like cattle and forest production, is underrepresented. Future development should focus on converting farmland in embanked former back swamps and abandoned river courses into grasslands and forests. Crop-based agriculture (up to 151,000 ha) could be planned at the low-salinity terrace uplands and flood plains. The article provides guidelines for decision-makers regarding agricultural land use and wetland protection in the Yellow River Delta.     

Effects of Local Land Use on Physical Habitat, Benthic Macroinvertebrates, and Fish in the Whitewater River, Minnesota, USA

Best management practices (BMPs) have been developed to address soil loss and the resulting sedimentation of streams, but information is lacking regarding their benefits to stream biota. We compared instream physical habitat and invertebrate and fish assemblages from farms with BMP to those from farms with conventional agricultural practices within the Whitewater River watershed of southeastern Minnesota, USA, in 1996 and 1997. Invertebrate assemblages were assessed using the US EPA's rapid bioassessment protocol (RBP), and fish assemblages were assessed with two indices of biotic integrity (IBIs). Sites were classified by upland land use (BMP or conventional practices) and riparian management (grass, grazed, or wooded buffer). Physical habitat characteristics differed across buffer types, but not upland land use, using an analysis of covariance, with buffer width and stream as covariates. Percent fines and embeddedness were negatively correlated with buffer width. Stream sites along grass buffers generally had significantly lower percent fines, embeddedness, and exposed streambank soil, but higher percent cover and overhanging vegetation when compared with sites that had grazed or wooded buffers. RBP and IBI scores were not significantly different across upland land use or riparian buffer type but did show several correlations with instream physical habitat variables. RBP and IBI scores were both negatively correlated with percent fines and embeddedness and positively correlated with width-to-depth ratio. The lack of difference in RBP or IBI scores across buffer types suggests that biotic indicators may not respond to local changes, that other factors not measured may be important, or that greater improvements in watershed condition are necessary for changes in biota to be apparent. Grass buffers may be a viable alternative for riparian management, especially if sedimentation and streambank stability are primary concerns.     

Mapping Ecosystem Services for Land Use Planning,the Case of Central Kalimantan

Indonesia is subject to rapid land use change. One of the main causes for the conversion of land is the rapid expansion of the oil palm sector. Land use change involves a progressive loss of forest cover, with major impacts on biodiversity and global CO₂ emissions. Ecosystem services have been proposed as a concept that would facilitate the identification of sustainable land management options, however, the scale of land conversion and its spatial diversity pose particular challenges in Indonesia. The objective of this paper is to analyze how ecosystem services can be mapped at the provincial scale, focusing on Central Kalimantan, and to examine how ecosystem services maps can be used for a land use planning. Central Kalimantan is subject to rapid deforestation including the loss of peatland forests and the provincial still lacks a comprehensive land use plan. We examine how seven key ecosystem services can be mapped and modeled at the provincial scale, using a variety of models, and how large scale ecosystem services maps can support the identification of options for sustainable expansion of palm oil production.     

Water Use for Hydraulic Fracturing of Oil and Gas in the South Platte River Basin,Colorado

Water use for oil and gas development (i.e., hydraulic fracturing) is a concern in semiarid basins where water supply is often stressed to meet demands, and oil and gas production can exacerbate the situation. Understanding the impacts of water use for hydraulic fracturing (HF) on water availability in semiarid regions is critical for management and regulatory decisions. In the current work, we quantify water use for HF at several scales — from municipal to state‐wide — using the IHS Enerdeq database for the South Platte Basin. In addition, we estimate produced water (a by‐product of oil and gas production), using data from the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to explore reuse scenarios. The South Platte River Basin, located in northeastern Colorado, encompasses the Denver‐Metro area. The basin has one of the most productive oil and gas shale formations in Colorado, with much of the production occurring in Weld County. The basin has experienced higher horizontal drilling rates coupled with an increasing population. Results show water use for horizontal and vertical wells averages 11,000 and 1,000 m³, respectively. Water use for HF in the South Platte Basin totaled 0.63% of the basin's 2014 total water demand. For Weld County, water use for HF was 2.4% of total demand, and for the city of Greeley, water use was 7% of total demand. Produced water totaled 9.4 Mm³ in the basin for 2014, which represents 42% of the total water used for HF.     

RESEARCH: Land Use Characteristics and Water Quality: A Methodology for Valuing of Forested Buffers

In this study, water quality and basin characteristics data from different basins of the Fish River basin, Baldwin County, Alabama, were used to develop a valuation model. This valuation model is based on the effectiveness of “contributing zones” identified and delineated using methods described by Basnyat and others (Environmental Management]1999] 23(4):539–549). The “contributing zone” delineation model suggests that depending on soil permeability, soil moisture, depth to water table, slope, and vegetation, buffer widths varying from 16 m to 104 m must be maintained to assimilate or detain more than 90% of the nitrate passing through the buffers. The economic model suggests the value of retiring lands (to create the buffers) varies from $0 to $3067 per ha, depending on the types of crops currently grown. The total value of retiring all areas identified by the contributing zone model is $1,125,639 for the study area. This land value will then form the basis for estimates of the costs of land management options for improving (or maintaining) water quality throughout the study area.     

Land Use for Military Training in the UK: The Current Situation,Likely Developments and Possible Alternatives

This paper describes the current pattern of land ownership for military training in the UK. The main component-armytraining areas-is considered in detail. Recent historical trends are reviewed in the context of changes in force size and weapons systems.Problems and benefits arising from the primary use of land for military training are defined. Relevant literature is reviewed. Comparisons are made with training systems in other countries, in particular the USA, the Netherlands,Switzerland, France and Australia. Recent developments in government policy are described and analysed. Possible future requirements are explored. This information is used to construct an argument that the current training system in the UK is outmoded and unsustainable. The authors contend that there is a need for a strategic review of military training, encompassing a thorough assessment of alternatives to traditional live firing on dedicated training areas.