Multi-level governance for large marine commons: Politics and polycentricity in Palau's protected area network

This paper brings together institutional theories of polycentricity and critical human geography theory on scalar politics to advance understanding of the form and function of nested, polycentric regimes for the governance of large-scale common pool resources. We focus on institutional changes associated with a national marine protected area network in Palau through which national government and NGOs gain influence in local decision-making processes. Influence is gained through an attempt to scale up common-pool resource governance to an ecologically-relevant spatial scale in an effort to protect coral reef resilience and biodiversity across Palau. An institutional approach informed by scalar politics brings into focus potential tradeoffs between organizing governance reform around ecologically versus institutionally relevant scales. Our analysis suggests that prioritization of ecologically-relevant scales in institutional reform resulted in more nested but less polycentric institutional arrangements governing the network. We conclude that less distributed decision-making in the overall nested governance system could threaten the sustainability and resilience of coral reefs in the long-term by constraining institutional innovation and diversity. Results demonstrate the potential for interdisciplinary dialog to advance the research frontier on multi-level governance for large common pool resources.     

Wasting collaboration potential: A study in urban green space governance in a post-transition country

Most accounts of urban green space governance originate in cities where such initiatives have been successful. Meanwhile, there is too little information on cities where such initiatives develop with more difficulty. In order to overcome the problems that such cities face, their situations need to be studied more carefully to facilitate peer comparisons. This article provides an account of urban green space governance in three cities in Poland (Krakow, Lodz, Poznan), where environmental protection is still quite far down on the list of political priorities. With the use of a social network analysis we looked at the extent of relationships between different stakeholders and the roles of different actors within the network. The results indicate that the network's collaboration potential is barely used and that cross-sectoral collaboration is especially deficient. In particular, public institutions hold a relatively strong position and downplay the role of other actors. More collaboration is necessary and the potential bridging role of NGOs should be used to a larger extent. However, this requires more openness and trust within the network.     

Drinking water quality governance: A comparative case study of Brazil,Ecuador, and Malawi

Human health is greatly affected by inadequate access to sufficient and safe drinking water, especially in low and middle-income countries. Drinking water governance improvements may be one way to better drinking water quality. Over the past decade, many projects and international organizations have been dedicated to water governance; however, water governance in the drinking water sector is understudied and how to improve water governance remains unclear. We analyze drinking water governance challenges in three countries – Brazil, Ecuador, and Malawi – as perceived by government, service providers, and civil society organizations. A mixed methods approach was used: a clustering model was used for country selection and qualitative semi-structured interviews were used with direct observation in data collection. The clustering model integrated political, economic, social and environmental variables that impact water sector performance, to group countries. Brazil, Ecuador and Malawi were selected with the model so as to represent the diversity of the clusters. This comparative case study is important because similar challenges are identified in the drinking water sectors of each country; while, the countries represent diverse socio-economic and political contexts, and the case selection process provides generalizability to our results. We find that access to safe water could be improved if certain water governance challenges were addressed: coordination and data sharing between ministries that deal with drinking water services; monitoring and enforcement of water quality laws; and sufficient technical capacity to improve administrative and technical management of water services at the local level. From an analysis of our field research, we also developed a conceptual framework that identifies policy levers that could be used to influence governance of drinking water quality on national and sub-national levels, and the relationships between these levers.     

Making water policy work in the United Kingdom: A case study of practical approaches to strengthening complex,multi-tiered systems of water governance

We propose a suite of actions for strengthening water governance in contexts with complex, multi-tiered arrangements. In doing so, we focus on the collective water policies and approaches of the United Kingdom (UK), including those of devolved governments, which confront a host of serious water-related challenges—from massive flooding of urban areas and agricultural lands, to pressure on aquifers from rising water demand and drought. Further complexity in addressing these challenges has emerged in the wake of the June 2016 vote to leave the European Union (EU), so-called ‘Brexit’, and the ensuing ‘separation process’ with uncertainties for institutional and governance arrangements to follow. We make ten proposals for improving and reinvigorating water policy in complex, multi-layered situations, and comment specifically on their application in the UK setting. These are: put in place a system-wide water policy; fully embrace community-led nested river basin planning and management; fully fund river basin planning and management; re-focus the policy framing; use best-available data and information; create conversational spaces and become a more water-literate society; mobilise people; support and sustain core community networks; underpin river basin plans with regulatory provisions and effective monitoring and enforcement; and address systemic institutional amnesia. Individually and collectively, we contend that these actions will have a marked effect on transforming the planning and management of water resources. A system-wide water policy that maintains and builds on the substantive biophysical and socio-economic benefits delivered through implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive, together with the more recent Floods Directive, will galvanise stewardship of water in the UK. We urge more active engagement with and empowerment of the multiplicity of system ‘actors’, and highlight the role of non-government actors in a post-Brexit world as conduits for reaching out to and connecting directly with a wide range of water-related actors, especially across the EU. While attention to-date has focused on a plethora of specifically water-related projects, initiatives, plans and regulations, what is really needed is a systemic, long-term view of water resource management.     

科层制度视角下旅游地水资源治理的演变研究——以哈尼梯田为例

旅游业的可持续依赖于各项环境资源的投入及其科学有效的治理,而旅游地公共池塘资源治理问题仍有待深入。水资源作为一类典型的公共池塘资源,是目的地可持续发展的关键。以哈尼梯田核心区为案例,以水权科层概念模型为分析框架,通过半结构访谈、参与式观察等质性研究方法,探讨大众旅游发展前后目的地水权结构的演变历程。研究发现：（1）政体变动和大众旅游业的发展是促成目的地水权结构演变的主要动力,从赋权体系和分配方式两方面影响用户的水资源利用实践;（2）旅游情境下,目的地用户主体的异质性增强,水资源稀缺性提高,商品化趋势明显;（3）科层结构下,集体层级的决策实体作为连接国家层级决策实体和用户层级的中间层,只有充分发挥其监督管理的治理职能才能促进资源的公平利用与可持续发展。现阶段案例地水资源治理以市场力量为主导,而政府管理存在一定缺位,面临可持续发展的挑战。     

基于产业投资视角的乡村旅游发展区域差异与形成机制

乡村旅游发展区域差异是乡村旅游投资空间不均衡的外在表现。新时代乡村振兴背景下乡村旅游投资不断增长,正加速影响乡村旅游发展空间格局与区域差异。在对比认识浙晋乡村旅游发展差异基础上,深入剖析了乡村旅游投资系统作用区域乡村旅游发展差异的深层机理。结果发现：（1）以乡村旅游精品线路为表征的浙晋乡村旅游发展水平和市场成熟度差异显著。（2）在乡村旅游投资“自然—产业—社会”环境中,产业基础环境对区域乡村旅游发展差异贡献最突出,是区域差异形成的核心要素,自然生态环境是基础,社会文化环境则发挥积极促进作用。（3）乡村旅游发展区域差异是不同乡村旅游投资环境引起区域乡村旅游投资收益预期和回报水平与乡村旅游发展路径及模式差异的结果。基于此,提出新时代乡村旅游投资IE-maps模式,以期促进区域乡村旅游协调发展和乡村振兴战略实施。     

Approach and application of life cycle screening in early phases of process design: case study of supercritical water gasification

Process design can be influenced most in the early phases. Here, screening methods play a major role, as they reduce the complexity of a system studied by making a pre-selection from a set of alternatives available. The remaining alternatives can be analyzed in more detail in the subsequent design process, which increases design efficiency. The present paper focuses on a multi-stage screening approach for use in the early process development phase in particular. This approach is based on the use of non-compensatory decision support methods that are transferred to life cycle assessment. It may be divided into a first stage, in which the decision matrix used is developed on the basis of decision analysis principles, and a second stage, in which the decision matrix developed is further processed using non-compensatory decision support methods. An example of such a method is the pareto-dominance analysis applied here. The approach proposed is validated by application to the process of biomass gasification in supercritical water, which is being developed at the moment. Here, screening is performed to identify those life cycles, the potential environmental impacts of which contribute most to the total impacts. Attributes are selected in line with the requirement of a simple, but still sufficient modeling of these environmental impacts. By pareto-dominance analysis, emissions from the gasification of sewage sludge, the pre-chain of natural gas production, and from the construction of the supercritical gasification plant are identified to dominate over the remaining life cycles studied. Apart from the predominating alternatives, it is of particular importance to know the dominated alternatives. Due to their small shares in the result, no or only a small expenditure is needed to identify improvement potentials of these alternatives.     

基于正交设计及EFDC模型的湖泊流域总量控制——以滇池流域为例

构建了基于正交设计-水质模拟-方案评价的污染物总量控制方案的方法体系,并应用于滇池流域.选择TN、TP作为总量控制指标,将滇池流域划分为6个子区单元,通过设计5水平（0%,5%,10%,15%,20%）6因素的正交试验表,得到25种不同削减方案;耦合EFDC模型模拟得到25种不同削减情景条件下湖泊水质的TN、TP浓度分布,计算各方案综合营养状态指数（TSI）,筛选符合中度富营养化标准（60     

博弈视角下跨界河流水资源保护协作机制——以太湖流域太浦河为例

跨界河流水资源保护利益协调问题是流域水资源管理的难点。以太湖流域典型跨界河流太浦河为例,对比分析上下游水资源保护利益诉求,基于博弈理论,引入外部驱动（流域机构介入、激励约束政策）与内部均衡（生态补偿、断面水质考核）四种协调手段,探讨均衡太浦河上下游利益矛盾、激励上下游实现合作保护的协作机制。结果表明：（1）在引入协调手段的博弈模型中,实现了博弈系统向协作策略（达标,补偿）演化。（2）基于博弈分析结果,协作策略（达标,补偿）的实现与激励约束力度、补偿金额、水权、上游保护成本与效益等因素密切相关。（3）外部驱动机制有利于协调上下游河流功能定位需求差异,并调动上下游加强协作保护的积极性与主动性;内部均衡机制有利于弥补上游水权、产业发展等利益损失,并倒逼太浦河水质达标、保障下游取水安全。（4）构建的太浦河水资源保护协作机制,可为加快推进长三角一体化协同发展,建设流域“清水走廊”提供理论与决策支持参考。     

RS、GIS在内陆湖泊水质研究中的应用

:遥感 (RS)、地理信息系统 (GIS)技术的综合应用在许多研究领域广泛推广并日渐成熟 ,表现出广阔的发展前景。将 RS、GIS相结合 ,综合应用于内陆湖泊水质的监测和分析 ,充分体现了其快速、经济、高效的强大优势。本文首先回顾了一般监测方法的特点及局限性 ,主要讨论了 RS、GIS的特点及在内陆湖泊监测和分析中的优势所在。最后提出了此领域的发展方向展望