Patagonian Fjord Ecosystems in Southern Chile as a Highly Vulnerable Region: Problems and Needs

Southern Chile encompasses one of the most extensive fjord regions of the world, the Patagonia, currently exposed to natural and anthropogenic perturbations. These fjord ecosystems provide important services to humans, which have not been adequately measured and valued. As a consequence, ecosystem services are commonly ignored in public policy design and in the evaluation of development projects. Here we tackle questions that are highly relevant for the nation’s development, namely (1) understanding fjord functioning, and (2) developing management strategies based on ecosystem services, in order to secure simultaneous and adequate use of these ecosystems which area influenced by ecological (e.g., biogeochemical) and productive (e.g., aquaculture, fisheries) processes. We also seek to strengthen the analysis of fjord ecosystem value from the economical (including coastal zoning), socio-cultural, institutional, and governmental points of view. In addition, the investigation of current and future effects of climate change on this large region offers a unique opportunity to understand the social and economic consequences of a global phenomenon at local to regional scales. Biogeochemical and socio-economic models will be used to simulate future scenarios under a gamut of management options.     

Pollution in coastal fog at Alto Patache,Northern Chile

Background  

The Atacama Desert in Northern Chile is one of the most arid places on earth. However, fog occurs regularly at the coastal mountain range and can be collected at different sites in Chile to supply settlements at the coast with freshwater. This is also planned in the fog oasis Alto Patache (20°49′S, 70°09′W). For this pilot study, we collected fog water samples in July and August 2008 for chemical analysis to find indications for its suitability for domestic use.     

A method of detecting carbonyl compounds in tree leaves in China

Background, aim, and scope  

Carbonyl compounds have been paid more and more attention because some carbonyl species have been proven to be carcinogenic or a risk for human health. Plant leaves are both an important emission source and an important sink of carbonyl compounds. But the research on carbonyl compounds from plant leaves is very scarce. In order to make an approach to the emission mechanism of plant leaves, a new method was established to extract carbonyl compounds from fresh plant leaves.     

Information system for monitoring environmental impacts of genetically modified organisms

Background, aim and scope  

European legislation stipulates that genetically modified organisms (GMO) have to be monitored to identify potential adverse environmental effects. A wealth of different types of monitoring data from various sources including existing environmental monitoring programmes is expected to accumulate. This requires an information system to efficiently structure, process and evaluate the monitoring data.     

The Fallacies of Concurrent Climate Policy Efforts

Climate policy has assumed an extreme degree of urgency in the international debate in recent years. This article begins by taking a critical look at the scientific underpinnings of the efforts to stabilize the climate. It points to several serious question marks on the purported relationship between greenhouse gas emissions and global warming, and expresses distrust about claims of impending catastrophes related to rising sea levels, hurricanes, and spread of infectious disease. It then reviews the concurrent climate policy efforts and concludes that they are incoherent, misguided and unduly costly, and that they have so far had no perceptible impact on anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The exceedingly ambitious policy plans currently under preparation suffer from similar fallacies. For these reasons, but also because of the remaining scientific doubts and the exorbitant costs that have to be incurred, skepticism is expressed about the preparedness to implement the climate policy plans currently on the table.     

Mapping Biological Resources in the Coastal Zone: An Evaluation of Methods in a Pioneering Study from Norway

For many years, the planning and management of terrestrial areas has been supported by a detailed knowledge of the distribution of habitats and their associated species. However, the detailed mapping of biological resources in extent coastal areas, such as the Norwegian coastal zone, is unrealistic due to its enormous coastline. Here, we present a useful and feasible approach and a set of simple, cost-effective methods which are suitable for providing a broad-scale overview of marine habitats and fish resources. This approach was developed in conjunction with a pioneer study conducted along the southern coast of the Skagerrak, where we combined knowledge gathered from local fishermen with scientific knowledge of important species and nature types to establish a coastal sea mapping program. GIS modeling tools were used in both the mapping program and to integrate local and scientific knowledge into digital maps made available to local area management. This multi-faceted approach, which combines local knowledge and scientific methods, provides valuable information with respect to marine biodiversity, and has been used extensively by local environmental management.     

Turning calcium carbonate into a cost-effective wastewater-sorbing material by occluding waste dye

Background, aim, and scope  

Over the years, organic pollution in the environment has aroused people’s concern worldwide, especially persistent organic pollutants (POPs). Particularly in developing countries, plenty of concentrated organic wastewaters treated noneffectively are discharged into aquatic environments from chemical, textile, paper-making, and other industries to seriously threaten the surface and drinking water. The conventional wastewater treatment techniques are often helpless due to high cost with multilevel processing. Adsorption as an efficient method is often applied to the treatment of wastewater. The aim of this work is to develop an eco-friendly and cost-effective wastewater-sorbing material with weak acidic pink red B (APRB) and calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) by reusing highly concentrated dye wastewater.     

Pesticide cocktails can interact synergistically on aquatic crustaceans

Background, aim and scope  

The ergosterol biosynthesis-inhibiting (EBI) fungicide prochloraz can enhance the effect of other pesticides in a range of animal species. Approximately 50% of the fungicides used in Denmark are EBI fungicides. Hence, if they all have synergising potential, a risk assessment of pesticide mixtures based on additivity might not suffice. This study investigates the synergising potential of six different EBI fungicides representing the imidazoles (prochloraz), the triazoles (epoxiconazole, propiconazole and tebuconazole), the piperidines (fenpropidin) and the morpholines (fenpropimorph) together with the pyrethroid insecticide alpha-cypermethrin.