Balancing making a difference with making a living in the conservation sector

Goals play important roles in people's lives because they focus attention, mobilize effort, and sustain motivation. Understanding conservationists’ satisfaction with goal progress may provide insights into real-world environmental trends and flag risks to their well-being and motivation. We asked 2694 conservationists working globally how satisfied they were with progress toward goals important to them. We then explored how this satisfaction varied among groups, including demographic and occupational. Finally, we looked at respondents' experiences associated with goal-progress satisfaction. Many (94.0%) indicated that making a meaningful contribution to conservation was an important goal for them, and over half were satisfied or very satisfied in this area (52.5%). However, respondents were generally dissatisfied with progress on collective conservation goals (e.g., stopping species loss). Some groups were more likely to report dissatisfaction than others. For instance, those in conservation for longer tended to be less satisfied with collective goal progress (log odds –0.21, 95% credibility interval [CI] –0.32 to –0.10), but practitioners reported greater satisfaction (log odds 0.38, 95% CI 0.15–0.60). Likewise, those who were more optimistic in life (log odds 0.24, 95% CI 0.17–0.32), male (log odds 0.25, 95% CI 0.10–0.41), and working in conservation practice (log odds 0.25, 95% CI 0.08–0.43) reported greater satisfaction with individual goal progress. Free-text responses suggested widespread dissatisfaction with livelihood goals, particularly related to job security and adequate compensation. Although contributing to conservation appeared to be a source of satisfaction, slow goal progress in other areas––particularly around making a living––looked to be a source of distress and demotivation. Employers, funders, professional societies, and others should consider ways to help those in the sector make a difference while making a satisfactory living by, for example, prioritizing conservationists′ well-being when allocating funding. This support could include avoiding exploitative practices, fostering supportive work environments, and celebrating positive outcomes.     

Attitudes of Canadian Pig Producers Toward Animal Welfare

As part of a larger study eliciting Canadian producer and non-producer views about animal welfare, open-ended, semi-structured interviews were used to explore opinions about animal welfare of 20 Canadian pig producers, most of whom were involved in confinement-based systems. With the exception of the one organic producer, who emphasized the importance of a “natural” life, participants attached overriding importance to biological health and functioning. They saw their efforts as providing pigs with dry, thermally regulated, indoor environments where animals received abundant feed, careful monitoring and where prospective disease outbreaks could be minimized and controlled. Emphasis was also placed on low-stress handling and agreeable working conditions which were believed to promote good animal care. The fact that pigs tend to respond to such conditions with steady growth reinforced the belief that good welfare was provided. Participants supported the use of sow gestation stalls, but with some reservations, and expressed concern about welfare problems that could occur if sows were grouped. Invasive procedures (castration, tail-docking, teeth clipping) were recognized as painful but were accepted because they were seen as: (1) necessary for sales or management; (2) satisfactory trade-offs to prevent worse welfare problems such as injury or infection; or (3) sufficiently short-term to be relatively unimportant. Participants were adamantly opposed to animal neglect and some welcomed actions of animal protectionists that expose poor care. Producers also welcomed natural-science-based approaches to improving animal welfare. The findings contribute to a broader effort to identify overlapping values among different stakeholder groups as a basis for formulating mutually agreeable, farm animal care and handling polices.     

Economics of "essential use exemptions" for metered-dose inhalers under the Montreal Protocol

The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer has led to rapid reductions in the use of ozone-depleting substances worldwide. However, the Protocol provides for "essential use exemptions" (EUEs) if there are no "technically and economically feasible" alternatives. An application that might qualify as an "essential use" is CFC-powered medical metered-dose inhalers (MDIs) for the treatment of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and the US and other nations have applied for exemptions in this case. One concern is that exemptions are necessary to ensure access to medications for low-income uninsureds. We examine the consequences of granting or withholding such exemptions, and conclude that government policies and private-sector programs are available that make it economically feasible to phase out chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in this application, thereby furthering the global public health objectives of the Montreal Protocol without compromising the treatment of patients who currently receive medication by means of MDIs.     

Testing isosource: stable isotope analysis of a tropical fishery with diverse organic matter sources

We sampled consumers and organic matter sources (mangrove litter, freshwater swamp-forest litter, seagrasses, seagrass epiphytes, and marine particulate organic matter [MPOM]) from four estuaries on Kosrae, Federated States of Micronesia for stable isotope (sigma13C and sigma34S) analysis. Unique mixing solutions cannot be calculated in a dual-isotope, five-endmember scenario, so we tested IsoSource, a recently developed statistical procedure that calculates ranges in source contributions (i.e., minimum and maximum possible). Relatively high minimum contributions indicate significant sources, while low maxima indicate otherwise. Litter from the two forest types was isotopically distinguishable but had low average minimum contributions (0-8% for mangrove litter and 0% for swamp-forest litter among estuaries). Minimum contribution of MPOM was also low, averaging 0-13% among estuaries. Instead, local marine sources dominated contributions to consumers. Minimum contributions of seagrasses averaged 8-47% among estuaries (range 0-88% among species). Minimum contributions of seagrass epiphytes averaged 5-27% among estuaries (range 0-69% among species). IsoSource enabled inclusion of five organic matter sources in our dual-isotope analysis, ranking trophic importance as follows: seagrasses > seagrass epiphytes > MPOM > mangrove forest > freshwater swamp-forest. IsoSource is thus a useful step toward understanding which of multiple organic matter sources support food webs; more detailed work is necessary to identify unique solutions.     

The fear of being eaten reduces energy transfer in a simple food chain

Food chain length is an important property of ecosystems, but the mechanisms maintaining it remain elusive. Classical views suggest that energetic inefficiencies (the "energy-flow hypothesis") limit food chain length, but others have argued that better explanations reside in more complex scenarios that consider the stability of food webs or the combined effects of productivity and ecosystem size. We argue that abandonment of the energy-flow hypothesis is premature. For a simple tritrophic rocky intertidal food chain, we show that the efficiency of energy transfer is strongly influenced by predation risk and consumer density. Effects tied to predation risk were particularly strong, explaining 32% of the variation in growth efficiency (compared to 15% for density effects) and reducing it by 44-76%. Hence, the stress (fear of being eaten) that predators impose on prey may be instrumental in limiting energy transfer up the food chain and thus contribute to the shortening of food chains.     

Surface-mediated formation of PBDD/Fs from the high-temperature oxidation of 2-bromophenol on a CuO/silica surface

As a model brominated hydrocarbon that may form brominated dioxins, we studied the surface-mediated, oxidative thermal degradation of 2-bromophenol on a supported copper oxide catalyst in a 1 mm i.d., fused silica flow reactor at a constant concentration of 90 ppm over a temperature range from 250 to 550 degrees C. Observed products included: dibenzo-p-dioxin (DD), 1-monobromodibenzo-p-dioxin (1-MBDD), dibromodibenzo-p-dioxin (DBDD), tribromodibenzo-p-dioxin (TrBDD), 4-monobromodibenzofuran (4-MBDF), 2,4,6-tribromophenol, 2,4- and 2,6-dibromophenol, and polybrominated benzenes. The results are compared and contrasted with previous work on surface catalyzed oxidative thermal degradation of 2-chlorophenol as well as our own work with the surface-catalyzed pyrolytic thermal degradation of 2-bromophenol. Typically 20 to 200x higher yields of PBDDs are observed for 2-bromophenol than for the analogous PCDDs for 2-chlorophenol. However the anticipated PBDF, 4,6-DBDF, was not observed and 4-MBDF was observed at very low yields. Surprisingly, the maximum yields of PBDDs were observed at higher temperatures than under pyrolytic conditions. This is attributed to regeneration of the catalytic surface due to the presence of oxygen. Higher yields of polybrominated phenols and polybrominated benzenes were also observed than for the analogous chlorinated phenols and benzenes from the oxidation of 2-chlorophenol. This can be attributed to the ease of bromination over chlorination based on the higher abundance of bromine atoms present for 2-bromophenol than chlorine atoms present for 2-chlorophenol.     

Validation of three new methods for determination of metal emissions using a modified Environmental Protection Agency Method 301

Three new methods applicable to the determination of hazardous metal concentrations in stationary source emissions were developed and evaluated for use in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) compliance applications. Two of the three independent methods, a continuous emissions monitor-based method (Xact) and an X-ray-based filter method (XFM), are used to measure metal emissions. The third method involves a quantitative aerosol generator (QAG), which produces a reference aerosol used to evaluate the measurement methods. A modification of EPA Method 301 was used to validate the three methods for As, Cd, Cr, Pb, and Hg, representing three hazardous waste combustor Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) metal categories (low volatile, semivolatile, and volatile). The modified procedure tested the methods using more stringent criteria than EPA Method 301; these criteria included accuracy, precision, and linearity. The aerosol generation method was evaluated in the laboratory by comparing actual with theoretical aerosol concentrations. The measurement methods were evaluated at a hazardous waste combustor (HWC) by comparing measured with reference aerosol concentrations. The QAG, Xact, and XFM met the modified Method 301 validation criteria. All three of the methods demonstrated precisions and accuracies on the order of 5%. In addition, correlation coefficients for each method were on the order of 0.99, confirming the methods' linear response and high precision over a wide range of concentrations. The measurement methods should be applicable to emissions from a wide range of sources, and the reference aerosol generator should be applicable to additional analytes. EPA recently approved an alternative monitoring petition for an HWC at Eli Lilly's Tippecanoe site in Lafayette, IN, in which the Xact is used for demonstrating compliance with the HWC MACT metal emissions (low volatile, semivolatile, and volatile). The QAG reference aerosol generator was approved as a method for providing a quantitative reference aerosol, which is required for certification and continuing quality assurance of the Xact.     

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in mussels from selected French coastal sites: 1981-2003

The present study focused on the retrospective analysis of PBDEs in archived blue mussel (Mytilus edulis or Mytilus galloprovincialis) samples collected over the past 22 years (1981-2003) from coastal areas of France. We have found that PBDE levels in mussels from the English Channel increased markedly from 1981 to 1991-1995, doubling approximately every 5-6 years followed by a levelling off and a possible beginning of a decrease. The rate of the decline of hexa- and hepta-BDE congeners was more rapid than the decline of tetra- and penta-BDEs in these mussel samples. The difference in the course of time of lower and higher brominated PBDE concentrations suggests that the congener profile in the mussel samples changes over time. The increase in PBDE concentrations in the mussel samples contrasts with a concomitant constant decrease of chlorobiphenyls (CBs) in the same set of samples. However, pulse inputs of both groups of organohalogen compounds were determined for the mussel samples collected at the mouth of the Seine estuary and were probably related to riverine inundations and a flushing out of the deposited sediments from the internal estuary into the bay of the River Seine, as well as considerable dredging activities taking place during same years. In France, the highest PBDE concentrations were determined in the mussels from the English Channel, more precisely in the bay of the Seine, and the regional differences in PBDE levels were mainly connected to the difference in anthropogenic urban and industrial environmental pressures. Published data comparing PBDE levels in mussels have shown significant differences in concentrations between North/South America and Europe. This observation further confirms that the PBDE levels in the North American environment are higher than in Europe. However, the data used for this comparison of mussel contamination by PBDEs is still relatively sparse.     

Longitudinal monitoring of neutral and adaptive genomic diversity in a reintroduction

Restoration programs in the form of ex-situ breeding combined with reintroductions are becoming critical to counteract demographic declines and species losses. Such programs are increasingly using genetic management to improve conservation outcomes. However, the lack of long-term monitoring of genetic indicators following reintroduction prevents assessments of the trajectory and persistence of reintroduced populations. We carried out an extensive monitoring program in the wild for a threatened small-bodied fish (southern pygmy perch, Nannoperca australis) to assess the long-term genomic effects of its captive breeding and reintroduction. The species was rescued prior to its extirpation from the terminal lakes of Australia's Murray-Darling Basin, and then used for genetically informed captive breeding and reintroductions. Subsequent annual or biannual monitoring of abundance, fitness, and occupancy over a period of 11 years, combined with postreintroduction genetic sampling, revealed survival and recruitment of reintroduced fish. Genomic analyses based on data from the original wild rescued, captive born, and reintroduced cohorts revealed low inbreeding and strong maintenance of neutral and candidate adaptive genomic diversity across multiple generations. An increasing trend in the effective population size of the reintroduced population was consistent with field monitoring data in demonstrating successful re-establishment of the species. This provides a rare empirical example that the adaptive potential of a locally extinct population can be maintained during genetically informed ex-situ conservation breeding and reintroduction into the wild. Strategies to improve biodiversity restoration via ex-situ conservation should include genetic-based captive breeding and longitudinal monitoring of standing genomic variation in reintroduced populations.