Building blocks of economic resilience to climate change: a south east Australian fisheries example

Climate change will impact on ecological, social, and economic elements of fisheries; however, the three are seldom considered in an integrated fashion. We develop a fishery-level assessment of economic resilience to climate change for the Tasmanian rock lobster fishery, a linked social–ecological system. We outline the main climate change forcing influences that link climate change to the fishery via changes in lobster abundance, distribution, and phenology. Using a bottom-up approach, we identify twelve economic attributes strongly related to the fisheries’ economic resilience to climate change. Resilience attributes are grouped according to the level of the economic domain (business, sectoral, and governance). Attributes are then evaluated to determine the overall economic resilience of the rock lobster fishery in the context of the specific nature of predicted climate change effects. We identify areas of low resilience in the economic sub-system for this fishery. Evaluating the economic resilience of regional fisheries using this integrated, interdisciplinary framework provides a practical, parsimonious, and conceptually sound basis for undertaking comprehensive and contextually tailored assessments of climate change impacts and economic vulnerability. The framework can be extended to include a broader range of climate change impacts and the social domain of the human sub-system.     

Do phytotoxic allelochemicals remain in ashes after burning Chrysanthemoides monilifera subsp. monilifera (boneseed)?

Australia is facing challenges in controlling Chrysanthemoides monilifera subsp. monilifera(boneseed). However, burning has achieved some success in this regard. We aimed to investigate the comparative phytotoxicity of boneseed dried powder and ashes(burnt at 450℃ and250℃). Phenolic compounds in powder and ashes were measured using Folin–Ciocalteu assay and HPLC. The phytotoxicity of boneseed powder and ash extracts was assessed through germination bioassay on Lactuca sativa and the phytotoxicity of litter and ashes was evaluated using field soil, both in growth chamber. Burning of boneseed reduced total phenolics in ashes of boneseed organs by 99% and 100% both at high and low temperatures. The four phenolic compounds that were detected in boneseed were either absent or at negligible levels in the ashes,with inversely related to temperature. Both boneseed ash extracts and litter ash-mediated soil significantly reduced phytotoxicity displaying increased germination, biometric and biochemical parameters of test species compared with unburnt powder extracts and litter powder-mediated soil respectively, with greater reduction of phytotoxicity found for ashes produced at the lower temperature. Interestingly, the ash extracts and litter ash-mediated soil were found to stimulate some of those parameters of the test species compared to control. There was no excessive reactive oxygen species(ROS) produced in test species exposed to ash extracts compared with unburnt powder extracts. These findings suggest that burning of boneseed is an appropriate method of weed control and that this approach will reduce phytotoxicity of this species on native plants.     

Contamination of microplastics,surface morphology and risk assessment in beaches along the Thoothukudi coast,Gulf of Mannar region

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Microplastics accumulation on beaches raises a serious concern worldwide. Hence, the present study was conducted with the focus of investigating the...     

On‐Site Exposure to Treated Wastewater Effluent Has Subtle Effects on Male Fathead Minnows and Pronounced Effects on Carp

This study tested the hypotheses that (1) exposure to treated Water Reclamation Plant (WRP) effluent will induce biological effects in exposed fish that are consistent with environmental estrogen (EE) exposure; and (2) seasonal differences in effluent composition will moderate biological effects. We conducted seven on‐site exposures using a mobile laboratory. Total estrogenicity of effluents was 10‐ to 20‐fold higher during spring than in fall. Common EEs including steroid estrogens, alkylphenols, and bisphenol‐A were ubiquitous. An unusual spike in total estrogenicity identified a combined sewer overflow event. Fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) responded to exposure with subtle changes in vitellogenin concentrations and secondary sex characteristics. An opportunity to assess a common carp (Cyprinus carpio) population permanently sustained inside the Stickney WRP revealed pronounced exposure effects, but also the resilience of biological organisms even under long‐term exposure. In contrast to other studies, no histopathological changes were found. The mobile exposure laboratory proved capable of maintaining U.S. Environmental Protection Agency‐recommended exposure conditions while providing flexibility for rapid deployment at multiple sites with minimal operational disruption. Further studies using this platform hold promise to resolve the convoluted interactions between complex effluents and inherent biological complexity.     

Climate change and sustainable development: realizing the opportunity

Manifold linkages exist between climate change and sustainable development. Although these are starting to receive attention in the climate exchange literature, the focus has typically been on examining sustainable development through a climate change lens, rather than vice versa. And there has been little systematic examination of how these linkages may be fostered in practice. This paper examines climate change through a sustainable development lens. To illustrate how this might change the approach to climate change issues, it reports on the findings of a panel of business, local government, and academic representatives in British Columbia, Canada, who were appointed to advise the provincial government on climate change policy. The panel found that sustainable development may offer a significantly more fruitful way to pursue climate policy goals than climate policy itself. The paper discusses subsequent climate change developments in the province and makes suggestions as how best to pursue such a sustainability approach in British Columbia and other jurisdictions.     

Degradation and mineralization of 2-chioro-, 3-chloro- and 4-chlorobiphenyl by a newly characterized natural bacterial strain isolated from an electrical transformer fluid-contaminated soil

A bacterium classified as Achromobacter xylosoxidans strain IR08 by phenotypic typing coupled with 16S rRNA gene analysis wasisolated from a soil contaminated with electrical transformer fluid for over sixty years using Aroclor 1221 as an enrichment substrate.The substrate utilization profiles revealed that IR08 could grow on all three monochlorobiphenyls (CBs), 2,4'- and 4,4'-dichlorobiphenylas well as 2-chlorobenzoate (2-CBA), 3-CBA, 4-CBA, and 2,3-dichlorobenzoate. Unusually, growth was poorly sustained on biphenyland benzoate. In growth experiments, IR08 degraded all CBs (0.27 mmol/L) in less than 96 h with concomitant stoichiometric release ofinorganic chloride and growth yields were 2-3 times higher than those observed on biphenyl. In contrast to most of the chlorobiphenyl-degrading strains described in the literature, which are reported to form CBA, no metabolite was identified in the culture broth byHPLC analysis. When co-incubated with respective CBs and biphenyl, strain IR08 preferentially utilized the chlorinated analoguesin less than 96 h while it took another 264 h before 90% of the initially supplied biphenyl could be degraded. The promotion of co-metabolic transformation of halogenated substrates by the inclusion of their non-halogenated derivatives may not therefore, result inuniversal benefits.     

The impact of climate change on three indicator Galliformes species in the northern highlands of Pakistan

The rise in global temperature is one of the main threats of extinction to many vulnerable species by the twenty-first century. The negative impacts of climate change on the northern highlands of Pakistan (NHP) could change the species composition. Range shifts and range reduction in the forested landscapes will dramatically affect the distribution of forest-dwelling species, including the Galliformes (ground birds). Three Galliformes (e.g., Lophophorus impejanus, Pucrasia macrolopha, and Tragopan melanocephalus) are indicator species of the environment and currently distributed in NHP. For this study, we used Maximum Entropy Model (MaxEnt) to simulate the current (average for 1960–1990) and future (in 2050 and 2070) distributions of the species using three General Circulation Models (GCMs) and two climate change scenarios, i.e., RCP4.5 (moderate carbon emission scenario) and RCP8.5 (peak carbon emission scenario). Our results indicated that (i) under all three climate scenarios, species distribution was predicted to both reduce and shift towards higher altitudes. (ii) Across the provinces in the NHP, the species were predicted to average lose around one-third (35%) in 2050 and one-half (47%) by 2070 of the current suitable habitat. (iii) The maximum area of climate refugia was projected between the altitudinal range of 2000 to 4000 m and predicted to shift towards higher altitudes primarily?>?3000 m in the future. Our results help inform management plans and conservation strategies for mitigating the impacts of climate change on three indicator Galliforms species in the NHP.

     

Removal of emerging contaminants from wastewater using advanced treatments. A review

Environmental Chemistry Letters - The rise of emerging contaminants in waters challenges the scientific community and water treatment stakeholders to design remediation techniques that are simple,...