Drivers of deforestation and degradation for 28 tropical conservation landscapes

Analysing the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in conservation landscapes can provide crucial information for conservation management. While rates of forest loss can be measured through remote sensing, on the ground information is needed to confirm the commodities and actors behind deforestation. We administered a questionnaire to Wildlife Conservation Society’s landscape managers to assess the deforestation drivers in 28 tropical conservation landscapes. Commercial and subsistence agriculture were the main drivers of deforestation, followed by settlement expansion and infrastructure development. Rice, rubber, cassava and maize were the crops most frequently cited as drivers of deforestation in these emblematic conservation landscapes. Landscape managers expected deforestation trends to continue at similar or greater magnitude in the future, calling for urgent measures to mitigate these trends.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s13280-020-01325-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Lessons for resource conservation from two contrasting small-scale fisheries

Small-scale fisheries present challenges to management due to fishers’ dependency on resources and the adaptability of management systems. We compared social-ecological processes in the sea cucumber fisheries of Zanzibar and Mayotte, Western Indian Ocean, to better understand the reasons for resource conservation or collapse. Commercial value of wild stocks was at least 30 times higher in Mayotte than in Zanzibar owing to lower fishing pressure. Zanzibar fishers were financially reliant on the fishery and increased fishing effort as stocks declined. This behavioral response occurred without adaptive management and reinforced an unsustainable fishery. In contrast, resource managers in Mayotte adapted to changing fishing effort and stock abundance by implementing a precautionary fishery closure before crossing critical thresholds. Fishery closure may be a necessary measure in small-scale fisheries to preserve vulnerable resources until reliable management systems are devised. Our comparison highlighted four poignant lessons for managing small-scale fisheries: (1) diagnose the fishery regularly, (2) enable an adaptive management system, (3) constrain exploitation within ecological limits, and (4) share management responsibility.     

The impacts of a global pandemic on the efficacy and stability of contemporary wildlife conservation: South Africa as a case study

Conservationists speculated on potential benefits to wildlife of lockdown restrictions because of the COVID-19 pandemic but voiced concern that restrictions impeded nature conservation. We assessed the effects of lockdown restrictions on biodiversity conservation in South Africa, a biodiverse country with economic inequality and reliance on wildlife resources. We solicited expert opinion using the IUCN’s Threats Classification Scheme to structure a questionnaire and illustrated responses with individual case studies from government parastatal and non-governmental conservation organisations. The most highly reported threats were biological resource use, residential/commercial developments, invasive species, and human intrusions. The trends reported by 90 survey respondents were supported by case studies using environmental compliance data from parastatal conservation organisations. Lack of tourism revenue and funding were cited as hindrances to conservation. Mechanisms to prevent environmental degradation in the face of global emergencies must be implemented and ‘ring-fenced’ to ensure conservation is not a casualty during future global crises.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13280-022-01814-z.     

Transcriptome analysis provides insights for understanding the adverse effects of endosulfan in Drosophila melanogaster

Indiscriminate use of agrochemicals worldwide, particularly, persistent organic pollutants (POPs), is of concern. Endosulfan, a POP, is used by various developing/developed nations and is known to adversely affect the development and the hormonal profiles of humans and animals. However, little is known about the molecular players/pathways underlying the adverse effects of endosulfan. We therefore analyzed the global gene expression changes and subsequent adverse effects of endosulfan using Drosophila. We used Drosophila melanogaster keeping in view of its well annotated genome and the wealth of genetic/molecular reagents available for this model organism. We exposed third instar larvae of D. melanogaster to endosulfan (2.0 μg mL⁻¹) for 24 h and using microarray, we identified differential expression of 256 genes in exposed organisms compared to controls. These genes are associated with cellular processes such as development, stress and immune response and metabolism. Microarray results were validated through quantitative PCR and biochemical assay on a subset of genes/proteins. Taking cues from microarray data, we analyzed the effect of endosulfan on development, emergence and survival of the organism. In exposed organisms, we observed deformities in hind-legs, reminiscent of those observed in higher organisms exposed to endosulfan. In addition, we observed delayed and/or reduced emergence in exposed organisms when compared to their respective controls. Together, our studies not only highlight the adverse effects of endosulfan on the organism but also provide an insight into the possible genetic perturbations underlying these effects, which might have potential implications to higher organisms.     

Determination of sulfosulfuron residues in soil under wheat crop by a novel and cost-effective method and evaluation of its carryover effect

A novel and cost-effective method of sulfosulfuron extraction has been developed using distilled water as an extraction solvent. Using this method, the environmental fate of sulfosulfuron was investigated in soil under wheat crop. Studies were conducted under natural field conditions in randomized block design and herbicide (75% water dispersible granules (WG)) was applied after 24 days of sowing. The rates of applications were 25 and 50 g of active ingredient (a.i.) per hectare. Soil samples were collected at predetermined intervals and analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The minimum detection limit was found to be 0.001 μ g g^{? 1}. The dissipation of sulfosulfuron followed first-order rate kinetics and dissipated with a half-life of 5.4–6.3 days. After harvest, field soil was used for conducting a pot experiment with bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) as test plants to study the carry over effect of sulfosulfuron. No phytotoxicity was observed to bottle gourd in pot experiment with harvest soil.     

不同释钾菌对粉煤灰的生态效应

粉煤灰治理难度大,但它含有植物生长必需的营养元素钾,将其就地资源化生物利用是一条较好的途径。释钾菌是一种能把矿物中的难溶性钾转化为有效钾的细菌,从土壤中筛选出2种释钾菌,经过在粉煤灰基质中的驯化培养,通过盆栽试验种植紫花苜蓿,比较不同菌株对粉煤灰的改良作用及其对植物生长的影响。结果表明,筛选出的菌株C6对粉煤灰中速效钾的释放效果明显,降低了基质pH,显著地促进了植物的生长,对粉煤灰生态修复具有重要意义。     

改性矿物吸附剂抗菌作用

通过对蒙脱石、沸石和蛭石进行改性处理,研究了三者对大肠杆菌（E．coB）和猪链球菌（S．suis）的抗菌作用。结果发现,经过改性处理后三者对细菌的抗菌能力上升,其中以双十八烷基二甲基溴化铵改性蒙脱石（DODMAB．MMT）的抗菌效果最好,对E．coli和S．suis的抗菌率达到95％以上。研究了DODMAB—MMT在体外对E．coli和S．suis的抗菌规律,以及对土壤中微生物的影响。结果表明,同等菌液浓度条件下,DODMAB—MMT对S．suis的抗菌效果好于E．coli。介质温度、pH值和有机物浓度都会对DODMAB—MMT的抗菌效果产生影响,在一定范围内,介质温度越高、pH值偏离中性、有机物含量越低时,抗菌效果越好。低浓度DODMAB—MMT（〈25rtlg／g土壤）对土壤中E．coli和S．suis基本无抗菌作用,高浓度DODMAB—MMT对土壤中的E．coli和S．suis具有抗菌作用。     

Ecological effects, transport, and fate of mercury: a general review

Mercury at low concentrations represents a major hazard to microorganisms. Inorganic mercury has been reported to produce harmful effects at 5 μg/l in a culture medium. Organomercury compounds can exert the same effect at concentrations 10 times lower than this. The organic forms of mercury are generally more toxic to aquatic organisms and birds than the inorganic forms. Aquatic plants are affected by mercury in water at concentrations of 1 mg/l for inorganic mercury and at much lower concentrations of organic mercury. Aquatic invertebrates widely vary in their susceptibility to mercury. In general, organisms in the larval stage are most sensitive. Methyl mercury in fish is caused by bacterial methylation of inorganic mercury, either in the environment or in bacteria associated with fish gills or gut. In aquatic matrices, mercury toxicity is affected by temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen and water hardness. A wide variety of physiological, reproductive and biochemical abnormalities have been reported in fish exposed to sublethal concentrations of mercury. Birds fed inorganic mercury show a reduction in food intake and consequent poor growth. Other (more subtle) effects in avian receptors have been reported (i.e., increased enzyme production, decreased cardiovascular function, blood parameter changes, immune response, kidney function and structure, and behavioral changes). The form of retained mercury in birds is more variable and depends on species, target organ and geographical site. With few exceptions, terrestrial plants (woody plants in particular) are generally insensitive to the harmful effects of mercury compounds.     

Increased appreciation of forests and their restorative effects during the COVID-19 pandemic

Public expectations of forests as high-quality restorative environments that facilitate subjective well-being and stress relief along with numerous health benefits have been rising sharply during recent decades. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic and its accompanying restrictive measures also transformed forests into some of the few places to spend time away from home. The presented study drew on the assumption that the pandemic situation and a rise in the number of forest visits would affect the experience, recognition, and appreciation of the well-being aspects related to spending time in forests. The study goal was to elucidate the potential effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the relationships between forest visits, well-being and stress relief, emotions, perception of nature and forest value and importance, pro-environmental behavior, and societal expectations of the role of forests and forest ecosystem services. A survey using a digital questionnaire was conducted several months after the pandemic outbreak on a representative sample of the Slovak population. The Wilcoxon test and ordinal regression analysis were used to identify significant relationships, e.g., between the recency of anger episodes and the number of forest visits. The results showed that the pandemic strengthened the perception of forests as a high-quality restorative environment and that emotions associated with forest visits played an important role in the perceived importance of forests and their possible overexploitation. The results underscore the urgent need to put demands for forest recreation on par with the forest bioeconomy and to sensitize forest visitors to management and conservation requirements.     

水罗兰对不同密度铜绿微囊藻抑制作用的研究

通过水罗兰与铜绿微囊藻共培养12 d,研究了水罗兰对低密度、高密度的铜绿微囊藻的抑制作用.结果表明,铜绿微囊藻初始光密度(OD680)分别为0.026、0.257时,水罗兰可显著抑制铜绿微囊藻的生长,使其OD680降低.水质检测结果显示,培养过程中共培养液营养盐浓度一直处于较高水平,铜绿微囊藻OD680降低及生长停滞并非因营养不足所引起.通过实验证实了水罗兰可作为铜绿微囊藻水华控制的生态修复物种.     

Physiological effects of tetracycline antibiotic pollutants on non-target aquatic Microcystis aeruginosa

This study aimed to evaluate the aquatic toxicity of three typical tetracycline antibiotics, including tetracycline, oxytetracycline, and chlortetracycline, on the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa. The cell density, chlorophyll a content, protein content, and enzymatic antioxidant activities were determined. The results showed that the cell growth was significantly inhibited by the three compounds at a low concentration. The chlorophyll a and protein content decreased significantly after exposure to 0.05 mg L^?1 of each compound for 9 d. When exposed to 0.2–1 mg L^?1 of tetracycline, the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity increased, but peroxidase (POD) and catalase (CAT) activities decreased. In contrast, when exposed to oxytetracycline and chlortetracycline at different concentrations ranging from 0.2 to 1 mg L^?1 and from 0.01 to 0.05 mg L^?1, the SOD activity decreased, but the POD and CAT activities increased. These findings indicate that tetracycline antibiotics influence cell growth and protein synthesis, and they also induce oxidative stress in M. aeruginosa at environmentally similar concentrations. Thus, this study may provide further insights into the toxic effects of tetracycline antibiotics and the controlled use of antibiotics.     

Toxic effects of chlorpromazine on Carassius auratus and its oxidative stress

Under laboratory conditions, ecotoxicological effects of chlorpromazine (CPZ) on freshwater goldfish (Carassius auratus) were examined using the toxic culture experiment. The results showed that the median lethal concentration (LC₅₀) of CPZ toxic to Carassius auratus in 24, 48 and 96 h was 1.11, 0.43 and 0.32 mg/L, respectively. Thus, CPZ is an extreme toxicant to goldfish. Furthermore, there were significantly positive correlations between the ecotoxicological effects of CPZ and its concentrations, and the toxicity became higher as the exposure time increased. The activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in goldfish livers was significantly influenced by CPZ. At the same exposure time, the activity of SOD reduced first, and increased then, whereas the activity of CAT enhanced first and decreased then. At the same exposure levels of CPZ, the activity of SOD and CAT changed similarly, decreased first, then increased and decreased at last. Within the range of exposure concentrations, the changes in the activity of CAT can more easily reflect the oxidation stress in Carassius auratus by CPZ than those of SOD.     

电极材料对电解法处理循环式准好氧垃圾填埋场渗滤液效果的影响研究

分别用3种不同材料电极(不锈钢、Ti/Pt和Ti/RuO2-IrO2)作阳极、石墨电极作阴极在同一条件下分别对循环式准好氧填埋垃圾场渗滤液进行电解处理对比研究.研究结果表明,随着电解时间的变化,渗滤液中的COD、BOD5、BOD5/COD、重金属离子浓度、色度和pH值均会发生改变.当电解时间为10～20 min时,用上述3种电极作阳极电解均会出现渗滤液COD、BOD5、BOD5/COD增大的现象;当电解时间为30～40 min时,用Ti/RuO2-IrO2或Ti/Pt电极作阳极电解均可使渗滤液的色度降为0;当电解时间为120 min时,分别用3种电极作阳极电解都可使渗滤液中的COD、BOD5和重金属得到有效的去除,其中用Ti/RuO2-IrO2电极作阳极电解对COD、BOD5的去除效果最好:用Ti/Pt电极作阳极电解对Pb2 的去除效果最好.     

电极材料对电解法处理循环式准好氧垃圾填埋场渗滤液效果的影响研究

分别用3种不同材料电极（不锈钢、Ti／Pt和Ti／RuO2-IrO2）作阳极、石墨电极作阴极在同一条件下分别对循环式准好氧填埋垃圾场渗滤液进行电解处理对比研究。研究结果表明，随着电解时间的变化，渗滤液中的COD、BOD5、BOD5／COD、重金属离子浓度、色度和pH值均会发生改变。当电解时间为10—20min时，用上述3种电极作阳极电解均会出现渗滤液COD、BOD5、BOD5／COD增大的现象；当电解时间为30—40min时，用Ti／RuO2-IrO2或Ti／Pt电极作阳极电解均可使渗滤液的色度降为0；当电解时间为120min时，分别用3种电极作阳极电解都可使渗滤液中的COD、BOD5和重金属得到有效的去除，其中用Ti／RuO2-IrO2电极作阳极电解对COD、BOD5的去除效果最好：用Ti／Pt电极作阳极电解对Pb^2＋的去除效果最好。     

纳米氧化锌粒径效应对人工湿地运行性能的影响

为考察ZnO NPs粒径效应对人工湿地运行性能的影响,在进水COD约为216.00 mg·L-1、总氮约为11.10 mg·L-1和总磷约为3.84 mg·L-1的条件下连续运行126 d,对暴露于不同粒径ZnO NPs(10.00mg·L-1)的人工湿地脱氮除磷性能、填料渗透系数、胞外聚合物(extracellula...     

水力停留时间变化对2种人工湿地净化效果的影响

依托建立在新沂河河漫滩的人工湿地中试工程开展现场实验,研究分析水力停留时间变化对2种人工湿地污染物净化效果的影响。结果表明:水力停留时间的变化显著影响潜流和垂直流湿地污染物净化的效果,2种湿地高锰酸盐指数和氨氮(NH4+-N)去除效果随水力停留时间的变化均呈现先上升后下降的趋势。垂直流人工湿地显示出比潜流湿地更好、更稳定的污染物净化效果,其高锰酸盐指数和NH4+-N去除效果的最佳停留时间均出现在2 d左右,2种污染物的去除率分别达到93.1%和87.7%;而潜流湿地在水力停留时间为2 d左右时高锰酸盐指数去除率最高,达到92.3%,在2.5 d左右的时候NH4+-N去除率最高,达到81.5%。潜流和垂直流湿地都适合应用于新沂河污染河水的处理,在设计和实践应用中,两者的水力停留时间参数均可设定为2 d。     

Synergetic effects of anodic-cathodic electrocatalysis for phenol degradation in the presence of iron(II)

A novel electrocatalysis method for phenol degradation was described using a β-PbO₂ anode modified with fluorine resin and a Ni–Cr–Ti alloy cathode. In case of air sparging at the cathodic zone, the techniques of anodic–cathodic electrocatalysis (ACEC) and ferrous ion catalyzed anodic–cathodic electrocatalysis (FACEC) in the presence of iron(II) were developed. Both of ACEC and FACEC were more effective than anodic electrocatalysis (AEC). The percentage of phenol eliminated by FACEC could increase by nearly 30% compared with that of AEC, and the current efficiency could reach to 70%. Important operating factors such as ferrous ion concentration, air-sparging rate and applied current were investigated and it was found that such beneficial effects could be achieved at a suitable current and ratio of the concentration of ferrous ion to the air sparged. The mechanism of phenol degradation is proposed to be the generation of hydroxyl radicals concerned with the two electrodes. Results also indicated that the process provided an efficient way to regenerate ferrous ion compared with the conventional Fenton's system.     

花卉秸秆为碳源的潜流人工湿地对硝氮的去除及其负效应

可用有机碳源不足是限制低碳高硝氮废水反硝化脱氮效能的关键因素。采用4种常见花卉（康乃馨、玫瑰、百合、紫罗兰）的废弃秸秆作为有机碳源投加至垂直布设于潜流人工湿地前端的穿孔管中,考察并对比各系统对低碳高硝氮废水的脱硝效能及其氮转化情况。结果表明,投加花卉秸秆显著增强了人工湿地的NO3--N去除效能,其中,康乃馨秸秆强化脱NO3--N效能最佳,实验期间平均去除率为51.8%和每批次去除量873.4 mg;玫瑰秸秆最差,平均去除率为31.1%和每批次去除量535.0 mg。NO3--N去除率均随运行时间的延长而逐渐下降。伴随NO3--N的去除,系统内产生了一定量的NO2--N和NH4+-N,其浓度均与NO3--N去除率呈显著正相关（p<0.05）。此外,花卉秸秆的投加使系统运行初期出水中的有机物含量偏高。以玫瑰秸秆为外加碳源产生的负效应最低。综合考虑碳源投加的正负效应,康乃馨秸秆为本实验条件下的最佳碳源,玫瑰秸秆则应增加投加量以达到更好的应用效果。     

Oxygenated fuel induced cosolvent effects on the dissolution of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons from contaminated soil

The cosolvent-induced dissolution of polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from contaminated soil caused by oxygenated fuel spills was studied. Oxygenated fuel induces a solvent flushing effect on the contaminated soil due to the high content of oxygenated compounds (i.e., methanol, ethanol, and methyl tert butyl ether (MTBE)). The miscible displacement techniques were applied to evaluate the increased potential for secondary contamination in an impacted site. Significant solubility enhancement of the 18 PAHs monitored during fuel spill simulation and cosolvent flushing is clearly evident when compared to normal water dissolution. The breakthrough concentration profile for each PAH constituent was integrated over the cumulative effluent volume (i.e., the zeroth moment) to determine the total PAH mass removed during the experiment. The removal efficiency of PAHs ranges from 46.6% to 99.9% in three oxygenated fuels (i.e., M85, E85, and oxygenated gasoline) during the fuel spill. Several factors including hydrophobicity of compounds, nonequilibrium dissolution due to nonuniform coal tar distribution, and heterogeneous media properties affect the oxygenated compound-induced dissolution process. This study provides a basis to predict the facilitated transport of hydrophobic organic compounds from subsurface environment due to the cosolvent effects of oxygenated fuels.