Assessing who gains and who loses from natural resource policy: Distributional information and the public participation process

Recent legislation mandates an increased role for public participation in natural resource policy making. This paper presents an operational way to provide those impacted with relevant information and to enable public officials to assess public reaction to proposed policies. The methodology transforms results obtained from a multisector model of income formation and distribution into positive economic measures of distributional impacts. The usefulness of the methodology is illustrated in the context of a policy to increase coal surface mining on public lands.     

Mercury Vapor Determination in Hospitals

The measurements of metallic mercury vapor were carried out in seven local hospitals, where mercury-containing products are widely used, as well as in one residence to check effectiveness of decontamination after mercury spillage. Hopcalite as a solid sorbent was used in active and passive sampling methods, and mercury was analyzed by CV-AAS technique. Good agreement was found between results of mercury measurements using active samplers (pumped hopcalite adsorption tubes) and passive (diffusion) monitors applied in indoor atmosphere. The results indicated the presence of metallic mercury vaporization sources in the assessed hospital rooms but in the majority of cases mercury levels did not exceed 1 g/m³ i.e. Polish permissible concentration for residence. However, in some of the hospital rooms, elevated concentrations of mercury vapor were found and airborne levels of up to 13.9 g/m³ were recorded. Higher concentrations of mercury vapor were observed in autumn season when compared to summer.     

A Method of Mercury Removal from Topsoil Using Low-Thermal Application

Mercury contamination in the environment is problematic due to the unusual physical properties and well-recognized toxicity of this common metal. The bioavailability of mercury depends strongly on its chemical speciation. Anthropogenic mercury and its compounds appear in soil as hot spots located close to industrial facilities that used or produced mercury. The nature of the chemical production process, transportation and disposal practices often determined the chemical composition and distribution of mercury in the surrounding soils. Current ex situ soil remediation methods are expensive, produce undesirable side effects to the environment and usually involve transportation of contaminated soil.In this project, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, a low-cost, simple approach to removing mercury from soil was evaluated. The process uses low-temperature thermal desorption of volatile metallic mercury and its compounds, and subsequent vapor capture.The project consisted of laboratory and plot-scale experiments. The laboratory efforts evaluated theoretical calculations of mercury removal as a function of time and temperature. The plot-scale experiment was a practical application of the laboratory results. For both experiments, mercury-polluted soil was obtained from a chemical production facility located in southern Poland. In laboratory experiments, at temperature 373 K total mercury concentration decreased in soil by nearly 32%. In plot-scale experiments, at temperature 440 K, about 60–70% of total mercury was removed from the soil.At the end of the experiment, a test of soil biological activity was performed to check if the high temperature applied to the soil did not impair the soil growth properties. There was no negative effect of temperature found.     

The Effects of Small Dam Removal on the Distribution of Sedimentary Contaminants

With increasing concern over degradation of aquatic resources, issues of liability, and maintenance costs, removal of small dams has become increasing popular. Although the benefits of removal seem to outweigh the drawbacks, there is a relative paucity of studies documenting the extent and magnitude of biological and chemical changes associated with dam removal, especially those evaluating potential changes in contaminant inventories. In August and November of 2000, a run-of-the-river dam on Manatawny Creek (southeast Pennsylvania) was removed in a two-stage process. To assess the effects of dam removal on the contaminant redistribution within the creek, sedimentary concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and trace metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn) were evaluated prior to and several months after removal. Pre- and post-removal analyses revealed elevated and spatially variable concentrations of total PAHs (ranging from approximately 200 to 81,000 ng(g dry weight) and low to moderate concentrations of trace metals and PCBs. The concentrations of these sedimentary contaminants pre- versus post-removal were not significantly different. Additionally, though the impoundment received storm water run-off and associated contaminants from the adjacent city of Pottstown, the total inventory of fine-grain sediments in the impoundment prior to removal was very low. The removal of the low-level Manatawny Creek dam did not significantly redistribute contaminants downstream. However, each dam removal should be assessed on a case by case basis where the potential of sedimentary contaminant redistribution upon dam removal exists.     

The Stream and Its Altered Valley: Integrating Landscape Ecology into Environmental Assessments of Agro-Ecosystems

Little is known about the importance of landscape and land cover to the implementation and performance of agricultural conservation projects designed to improve stream quality. In our study, we addressed the potential importance of landscape and land cover to conservation projects by measuring variation across 191 μ-basins (100–2400 ha) and integrating the observed variation into a study design aimed at determining the effectiveness of conservation projects. Our findings indicate that there are strong gradients across which landscape and land cover attributes vary. Land cover varied along a gradient of agricultural intensity, basin morphometry across gradients of stream closure and basin size, basin substrate was described by variation in drumlin formation, glacial landform type, and soil drainage, while agricultural conservation projects varied according to the level of project implementation. Correlation of these gradients found several associations between landscape and land cover, indicating that agricultural intensity was being constrained predominantly by drumlin formation and glacial landform type. Landscape and land cover did not appear to be determining factors in the implementation of conservation projects by land owners. Based on these findings we chose 32 μ-basins which represented the variability along each of the defined gradients for further study. We conclude that landscape scale variables demonstrate important variation and covariation that can and should be integrated into study designs for the assessment of streams and human activities affecting streams.     

A far-near sparse covariance model with application in climatology

Environmental and Ecological Statistics - Teleconnection, the strong dependence between two distant locations, provides interesting information for discovering the structures in spatial data. While...     

Keeping pace with forestry: Multi-scale conservation in a changing production forest matrix

The multi-scale approach to conserving forest biodiversity has been used in Sweden since the 1980s, a period defined by increased reserve area and conservation actions within production forests. However, two thousand forest-associated species remain on Sweden’s red-list, and Sweden’s 2020 goals for sustainable forests are not being met. We argue that ongoing changes in the production forest matrix require more consideration, and that multi-scale conservation must be adapted to, and integrated with, production forest development. To make this case, we summarize trends in habitat provision by Sweden’s protected and production forests, and the variety of ways silviculture can affect biodiversity. We discuss how different forestry trajectories affect the type and extent of conservation approaches needed to secure biodiversity, and suggest leverage points for aiding the adoption of diversified silviculture. Sweden’s long-term experience with multi-scale conservation and intensive forestry provides insights for other countries trying to conserve species within production landscapes.

     

Retiring: Role identity processes in retirement transition

Retirement transition has become a prolonged process of adaptation, including changes in role identity. However, there is a dearth of research on the process by which retirees cope with the role transition, including how pre-retirement role identities shape the transition, the forms of identity work undertaken by retirees, and the unfolding nature of retirement transition. In an in-depth qualitative examination of the transition process, we identify pre-retirement role identity profiles based on work and nonwork role identities. We then examine how pre-retirement role identities influence the transition process, including the nature of identity work in transition and the transition pathways demonstrated by retirees. Our findings provide insights into strengths and limitations afforded by pre-retirement identities: They facilitate agentic coping in which retirees shed old and adopt new identities but also impose inertia and prolong the transition until identity crises force the retirees to undergo identity exploration and adoption of new identities.     

Effects of Climate and Soil Properties on U.S. Home Lawn Soil Organic Carbon Concentration and Pool

Following turfgrass establishment, soils sequester carbon (C) over time. However, the magnitude of this sequestration may be influenced by a range of climatic and soil factors. Analysis of home lawn turfgrass soils throughout the United States indicated that both climatic and soil properties significantly affected the soil organic carbon (SOC) concentration and pool to 15-cm depth. Soil sampling showed that the mean annual temperature (MAT) was negatively correlated with SOC concentration. Additionally, a nonlinear interaction was observed between mean annual precipitation (MAP) and SOC concentration with optimal sequestration occurring in soils receiving 60–70?cm of precipitation per year. Furthermore, soil properties also influenced SOC concentration. Soil nitrogen (N) had a high positive correlation with SOC concentration, as a 0.1?% increase in N concentration led to a 0.99?% increase in SOC concentration. Additionally, soil bulk density (ρ_b) had a curvilinear interaction with SOC concentration, with an increase in ρ_b indicating a positive effect on SOC concentration until a ρ_b of ~1.4–1.5?Mg?m^?3 was attained, after which, inhibition of SOC sequestration occurred. Finally, no correlation between SOC concentration or pool was observed with texture. Based upon these results, highest SOC pools within this study are observed in regions of low MAT, moderate MAP (60–70?cm?year^?1), high soil N concentration, and moderate ρ_b (1.4–1.5?Mg?m^?3). In order to maximize the C storage capacity of home lawns, non C-intensive management practices should be used to maintain soils within these conditions.     

Why do honey-bee (Apis millifera) foragers transfer nectar to several receivers? Information improvement through multiple sampling in a biological system

The task of nectar foraging in honey-bees is partitioned between foragers and receivers. Foragers typically transfer a nectar load in the nest as sub-loads to several receivers rather than as a single transfer. Foragers experience delays in finding receivers and use these delays to balance the number of foragers and receivers. A short delay results in the forager-recruiting waggle dance whereas a long delay results in the receiver-recruiting tremble dance. Several nectar transfers increase the cost of this system by introducing additional delays in finding extra receivers. We tested four hypotheses to explain the occurrence of multiple transfer. We found no evidence that multiple transfer is due to different crop capacities of foragers and receivers or that it results from extensive trophallactic interactions with nest-mates. Receiver bees frequently evaporate nectar in their mouthparts to hasten the production of honey. The suggestion has been made that multiple transfer is driven by receivers who take partial loads from foragers to enhance nectar evaporation. An alternative suggestion is that foragers drive multiple transfer to gain better information on the balance of foragers and receivers. Multiple sampling of the delay in finding a receiver reduces the standard deviation of the delay mean and so provides foragers with better information than is provided by a single delay. The enhanced-evaporation hypothesis predicts that receivers break foragers' first transfer whereas the information improvement hypothesis predicts foragers break their first transfers. Furthermore, only the information improvement hypothesis predicts a high level of multiple receptions. Data on transfer break-off and receiver behaviour strongly support the information improvement hypothesis and reject the enhanced-evaporation hypothesis. We suggest that multiple transfer is an adaptive sampling mechanism, which improves foragers' information on colony work allocation, and that multiple sampling is a common feature of social insect societies.