Aspects of planning in Scotland: an introductory paper

This paper provides an outline of the development planning and development control systems which operate in Scotland, illustrating that while they share common principles and objectives with the equivalent systems in England and Wales there are a number of important differences both in law and more especially in practice to be appreciated. Future changes are outlined both in relation to the statutory planning system as well as in the broader fields of housing, economic development and the countryside.     

SAGEBRUSH RANGELAND HYDROLOGY AND EVALUATION OF THE SPUR HYDROLOGY MODEL1

ABSTRACT: An excellent hydrologic record on sagebrush range-land has been developed at the Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed in southwestern Idaho. The objectives of this paper were two-fold: (1) to analyze and describe the hydrologic record (8–18 years) from four sagebrush watersheds (1–83 ha); and (2) to evaluate the hydrology component of SPUR, a comprehensive rangeland model. The watersheds represent a gradient in elevation (1180–1658 m) and precipitation (240–350 mm/yr). Runoff was a small fraction (> 2 percent) of the total water budget for all of the watersheds. It occurred very infrequently at the three lower elevation watersheds: Summit, Flats, and Nancy Gulch. At Lower Sheep, the highest elevation watershed, runoff occurred most years for a period of 1 to 17 weeks in the winter. Frozen soil combined with rainfall or snowmelt was associated with most of the runoff from Flats and Nancy Gulch. At Summit summertime thunderstorms produced all of the runoff. The average annual sediment yield from all of the watersheds was low (17–950 kg/ha). It was highest from Summit, which had well developed alluvial channels and very steep slopes. SPUR was able to simulate runoff with reasonable accuracy only at Summit, where frozen soils were not a factor. There was poor correlation between predicted and actual annual 8ediment loss. The model tended to overpredict evapotranspiration early in the growing season and underpredict it in the late summer.     

IDENTIFICATION OF DISSOLVED-CONSTITUENT SOURCES IN MINE-SITE GROUND WATER USING BATCH MIXING1

ABSTRACT: Batch-mixing experiments were used to help identify lithologic and mineralogic sources of increased concentrations of dissolved solids in water affected by surface coal mining in northwestern Colorado. Ten overburden core samples were analyzed for mineral composition and mixed with distilled water for 90 days until mineral-water equilibrium was reached. Between one day and 90 days after initial contact, specific conductance in the sample mixtures had a median increase of 306 percent. Dissolved-solids concentrations ranged from 200 to 8,700 mg/L in water samples extracted from the mixtures after 90 days. Mass. balance simulations were conducted using the geochemical models BALANCE and WATEQF to quantify mineral-water interactions occurring in five selected sample mixtures and in water collected from a spring at a reclaimed mine site. The spring water is affected by mineral-water interactions occurring in all of the lithologic units comprising the overburden. Results of the simulations indicate that oxidation of pyrite, dissolution of dolomite, gypsum, and epsomite, and cation-exchange reactions are the primary mineral-water interactions occurring in the overburden. Three lithologic units in the overburden (a coal, a sandstone, and a shale) probably contribute most of the dissolved solids to the spring water. Water sample extracts from mixtures using core from these three units accounted for 85 percent of the total dissolved solids in the 10 sample extracts. Other lithologic units in the overburden probably contribute smaller quantities of dissolved solids to the spring water.     

CONFLICTING PERSPECTWES ABOUT DETECTION LIMITS AND ABOUT THE CENSORING OF ENVIRONMENTAL DATA1

ABSTRACT: Current conventions for reporting analytical results from environmental samples brings the objectives of laboratory scientists into conflict with those of environmental scientists. The objective of chemical analyses is to provide estimates of the true composition of samples. Reported results must reflect the analytical uncertainty. Current conventions require left-censoring of those results below the Limit of Detection. The objective of statistical interpretation of environmental data is to provide estimates of the characteristics of ecosystems. Such statistical analyses are often confounded by left-censoring of analytical results. We review the different points of view and propose a compromise which recognizes these conflicting perspectives.     

Resolving conflicting priorities in Ontario agriculture

Changes in global patterns of grain production have affected the profitability of commercial, cash-crop agriculture in North America. The current financial crisis has highlighted a perceived conflict between the priorities of (1) strengthening net farm profit, (2) maintaining the productive potential of the land base, (3) enhancing the health and cohesiveness of the agricultural community, and (4) addressing societal demands for safe foodstuffs. Reducing input costs by reducing the need for privately owned machinery can minimize the scale-dependence of agricultural practices, as illustrated with examples involving silage and intensively managed pasture in Ontario. This approach could improve farming opportunities for nontraditional, part-time farmers, and at the same time, create a niche for professional custom operators and managers. Enhancing the viability of nontraditional farm operations, a historically neglected component of the farming community, as well as commercial farms is viewed as one approach to sustaining and improving both the agricultural land base and the agricultural community. Applying resource-extensive rather than resource-intensive approaches to forage management reveals that these apparently divergent priorities are, in fact, interlocking pieces of the same puzzle.     

CHANGES IN WATER POLICY IN THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA1

ABSTRACT: Ideology has predisposed the People's Republic of China against the use of prices to allocate water. Prolonged drought in north China has made the Chinese more aware of their unfavorable water resource inventory and the expense of expanding supply. Therefore, as part of the economic liberalization commenced since the death of Mao Zedong, China has started to make more active use of pricing to regulate demand and reduce the need for supply expansion.     

An approach to integrate impact scoping with environmental impact assessment

Impact scoping is the process of identifying important issues of a proposal and focusing the environmental impact assessment (EIA) on the high-priority issues. Although impact scoping in one form or another has been inherent to EIA for some time, documentation of its development and discussion of refinements to impact scoping processes have not been forthcoming. This article traces the development of impact scoping through time and highlights the need for such processes in EIA. A focused environmental assessment (FEA) approach to impact scoping that is suitable for implementation in an EIA is presented here and advantages of its use are delineated. FEA is a three-staged process that encourages impact scoping through progressive steps including impact identification, assessment and management planning. FEA combines a suite of EIA methods including: issues matrices, impact hypotheses, valued ecosystem components, and stakeholder participation sessions to effectively integrate impact scoping with EIA.     

Making Sense of the Policy Process for Carnivore Conservation

Grizzly bears ( Ursus arctos horribilis ), mountain lions ( Puma concolor ), wolverines ( Gulo gulo ), wolves ( Canis lupus ), and lynx ( Felis lynx ) are all top-level carnivores in the Rocky Mountains of the northern U.S. and southern Canada. Because of their body size and high trophic position, these species require abundant prey species and large habitat areas—requirements that make their conservation a controversial public policy problem. Because the challenge of conserving these species extends beyond biological issues, it is necessary to involve other relevant disciplines and perspectives in understanding and solving the problem. Our examination of the context, content, and process of large carnivore conservation policies suggests more effective and active roles for scientists in designing solutions to the problem of landscape-level carnivore conservation. Scientists must develop an understanding of the range of participants in the policy process and the ways in which these participants receive and utilize information. This knowledge of the policy process could help scientists to better understand their roles in framing and clarifying policy questions, projecting the consequences of various alternatives, and presenting policy information in appropriate fora.