Financing Marine Protected Areas Through Visitor Fees: Insights from Tourists Willingness to Pay in Chile

Tourism is a financing mechanism considered by many donor-funded marine conservation initiatives. Here we assess the potential role of visitor entry fees, in generating the necessary revenue to manage a marine protected area (MPA), established through a Global Environmental Facility Grant, in a temperate region of Chile. We assess tourists’ willingness to pay (WTP) for an entry fee associated to management and protection of the MPA. Results show 97 % of respondents were willing to pay an entrance fee. WTP predictors included the type of tourist, tourists’ sensitivity to crowding, education, and understanding of ecological benefits of the MPA. Nature-based tourists state median WTP values of US$ 4.38 and Sun-sea-sand tourists US$ 3.77. Overall, entry fees could account for 10–13 % of MPA running costs. In Chile, where funding for conservation runs among the weakest in the world, visitor entry fees are no panacea in the short term and other mechanisms, including direct state/government support, should be considered.     

Dynamics of aeolian desertification and its driving forces in the Horqin Sandy Land,Northern China

Aeolian desertification is one of the most serious environmental and socioeconomic problems in arid, semi-arid, and dry subhumid zones. Understanding desertification processes and causes is important to provide reasonable and effective control measures for preventing desertification. With satellite remote sensing images as data source to assess the temporal and spatial dynamics of desertification from 1975 to 2010 in the Horqin Sandy Land, dynamic changes of aeolian desertification were detected using the human–machine interactive interpretation method. The driving factors of local desertification were analyzed based on natural and socioeconomic data. The results show that aeolian desertified land in the study area covered 30,199 km² in 2010, accounting for 24.1 % of the study area. The total area of aeolian desertified land obviously expanded from 30,884 km² in 1975 to 32,071 km² in 1990, and gradually decreased to 30,199 km² in 2010; aeolian desertified land represented an increasing trend firstly and then decreased. During the past 35 years, the gravity centers of desertified lands that are classified as extremely severe and severe generally migrated to the northeast, whereas those that are moderate and slight migrated to the northwest. The migration distance of severely desertified land was the largest, which indicated the southern desertified lands were improved during the last few decades. In addition, the climatic variation in the past 35 years has been favorable to desertification in the Horqin Sandy Land. Aeolian desertified land rapidly expanded from 1975 to 1990 under the combined effects of climate changes and unreasonable human activities. After the 1990s, the main driving factors responsible for the decrease in desertification were positive human activities, such as the series of antidesertification and ecological restoration projects.     

江阴地区主要内河叶绿素a动态特征及其与环境因子的相关分析

根据江阴市四条主要内河锡澄运河、白屈港河、张家港河及横河的监测数据,分析叶绿素?a（Chla）的动态变化及其与理化水质因子的相关关系,并建立逐步回归多元线性模型,筛选与Chla显著相关的水质因子。结果表明,四条河道Chla存在明显的时间变化和空间分异。不同河道对Chla有显著影响的水质因子各不相同。总体来说,锡澄运河、白屈港河及张家港河Chla的主要影响因子为水温和外源输入,而横河除了这两个因子外,还受P和NH3-N影响。     

2013年度新疆环境申报统计工作思考与建议

对2013年度新疆环境申报统计的创新工作方法进行了较详细的总结。通过统一工作部署,整合统计申报报表制度,严格执行数据质量核查制度,开发“污染源管理系统”,形成了较完善的工作体系,对今后申报统计工作质量的提高提出了思考与建议。     

Characteristics of penicillin bacterial residue

IMPLICATIONS: During the production of penicillin, a mass of waste bacterial residue is generated. In the past, the bacterial residues have been used for food additives. Unfortunately, doubts of their suitability as a feedstock have been raised because of the small amount of antibiotics and the degradation products remaining in the bacterial residues. So, penicillin bacterial residue is one of the hazardous wastes. Therefore, penicillin bacterial residue should be managed in accordance with the hazardous waste. To get a right method, the penicillin bacterial residue was characterized.     

耐盐性毒死蜱降解混合菌的构建及其降解特性

为明确蜡状芽孢杆菌(Bacillus cereus)混合菌株对毒死蜱的降解效果,采用正交实验的方法构建混合菌。以混合菌对毒死蜱的降解率和菌株的生长量为依据,利用单一因素实验考察了不同因素对混合菌降解毒死蜱的影响。结果表明:构建的混合菌中三菌株的体积比为1∶1∶3。在含80 mg/L毒死蜱的反应体系中,最适接菌量为8%(V/V),最适pH为7。在实验浓度下,混合菌对毒死蜱的降解符合一级动力学方程。混合菌对盐分有较高的耐受度,当反应液中氯化钠浓度在20～100 g/L之间时,混合菌对80 mg/L毒死蜱的降解率最高达61%。     

醇对柴油微乳体系性能的影响

采用AOT为表面活性剂,不同碳链长度正构醇为助表面活性剂,通过稀释法制备了AOT/柴油/正构醇/水微乳体系。考察了醇与表面活性剂的质量比(r)和正构醇的碳链长度对柴油微乳体系的影响,对不同条件下制备的微乳体系的电导率(δ)、界面张力(γ)及运动粘度(μ)进行了表征。结果表明,采用正丁醇时,微乳体系会出现渗滤现象。采用其他醇时,微乳体系的最大增溶水量(W0)随碳链长度增加而减小,随r增大先增大后减小;随增溶水量(W)增加,δ增大直至达到稳定,γ减小,μ增大;随醇碳链长度增大,δ减小,γ、μ增大;随r增大,δ增大,γ、μ减小。采用正戊醇(r=0.4)时,微乳体系的W0最大,γ、μ均较小,柴油微乳液体系的性能较佳。     

PCR-DGGE技术解析A~2/O工艺好氧单元中微生物群落结构

应用PCR-DGGE方法,追踪了汉沽工业废水处理中好氧工艺的活性污泥系统中微生物群落结构动态变化过程及其微生物群落结构组成。研究结果表明：系统中的微生物群落结构随水质变化而变化,随着培养时间的延长,微生物群落结构趋于稳定,分别属于5大类群,与γ、δ、α、ε变形杆菌（Proteobacterias）、芽孢杆菌（Bacilli）的亲缘关系较近。其中γ变形杆菌是该废水处理过程中的主要菌群,包括Pseudomonas sp.、Rheinheimera sp.、Citrobacter sp.、Klebsiella sp.、Enterbacte-riaceae、Stenotrophomonas maltophilia、Acinetobacter。在整个系统中uncultured Pseudomonas sp.、Halobacillus sp.、Pseudomonassp.、Pseudomonas stutzeri、Acinetobacter sp.可稳定存在于系统中,为该污水处理系统中的优势微生物。因此,提高Halobacillussp.、Pseudomonas sp.、Pseudomonas stutzeri、Acinetobacter sp.菌属在系统中的数量和质量,有利于提高废水生化处理的效果。     

市政污泥与不同烟煤混合燃烧特性

使用非等温热重法,研究了淮北烟煤和神华烟煤在6种不同市政污泥掺混比条件下对混合燃烧特性的影响,并对混合燃烧过程的动力学特性进行了分析。实验结果表明:污泥与煤的混合燃烧特性从总体上表现为污泥与煤共同作用的结果,最优的污泥掺混比受到煤种的影响。在不同煤中污泥掺烧比少于20%对煤的活性影响较小。活化性能较差的淮北烟煤在污泥掺混比为30%时,在不同的温度区间分别表现出污泥与煤的反应特征。活化性能较好的神华烟煤在污泥掺混比为40%时表现这一趋势。