Biodegradability of leathers through anaerobic pathway

Leather processing generates huge amounts of both solid and liquid wastes. The management of solid wastes, especially tanned leather waste, is a challenging problem faced by tanners. Hence, studies on biodegradability of leather become imperative. In this present work, biodegradability of untanned, chrome tanned and vegetable tanned leather under anaerobic conditions has been addressed. Two different sources of anaerobes have been used for this purpose. The effect of detanning as a pretreatment method before subjecting the leather to biodegradation has also been studied. It has been found that vegetable tanned leather leads to more gas production than chrome tanned leather. Mixed anaerobic isolates when employed as an inoculum are able to degrade the soluble organics of vegetable tanned material and thus exhibit an increased level of gas production during the initial days, compared to the results of the treatments that received the anaerobic sludge. With chrome tanned materials, there was not much change in the volume of the gas produced from the two different sources. It has been found that detanning tends to improve the biodegradability of both types of leathers.     

Impacts of hunting on tropical forests in Southeast Asia

Although deforestation and forest degradation have long been considered the most significant threats to tropical biodiversity, across Southeast Asia (Northeast India, Indochina, Sundaland, Philippines) substantial areas of natural habitat have few wild animals (>1 kg), bar a few hunting‐tolerant species. To document hunting impacts on vertebrate populations regionally, we conducted an extensive literature review, including papers in local journals and reports of governmental and nongovernmental agencies. Evidence from multiple sites indicated animal populations declined precipitously across the region since approximately 1980, and many species are now extirpated from substantial portions of their former ranges. Hunting is by far the greatest immediate threat to the survival of most of the region's endangered vertebrates. Causes of recent overhunting include improved access to forests and markets, improved hunting technology, and escalating demand for wild meat, wildlife‐derived medicinal products, and wild animals as pets. Although hunters often take common species, such as pigs or rats, for their own consumption, they take rarer species opportunistically and sell surplus meat and commercially valuable products. There is also widespread targeted hunting of high‐value species. Consequently, as currently practiced, hunting cannot be considered sustainable anywhere in the region, and in most places enforcement of protected‐area and protected‐species legislation is weak. The international community's focus on cross‐border trade fails to address overexploitation of wildlife because hunting and the sale of wild meat is largely a local issue and most of the harvest is consumed in villages, rural towns, and nearby cities. In addition to improved enforcement, efforts to engage hunters and manage wildlife populations through sustainable hunting practices are urgently needed. Unless there is a step change in efforts to reduce wildlife exploitation to sustainable levels, the region will likely lose most of its iconic species, and many others besides, within the next few years.     

Political transition and emergent forest‐conservation issues in Myanmar

Political and economic transitions have had substantial impacts on forest conservation. Where transitions are underway or anticipated, historical precedent and methods for systematically assessing future trends should be used to anticipate likely threats to forest conservation and design appropriate and prescient policy measures to counteract them. Myanmar is transitioning from an authoritarian, centralized state with a highly regulated economy to a more decentralized and economically liberal democracy and is working to end a long‐running civil war. With these transitions in mind, we used a horizon‐scanning approach to assess the 40 emerging issues most affecting Myanmar's forests, including internal conflict, land‐tenure insecurity, large‐scale agricultural development, demise of state timber enterprises, shortfalls in government revenue and capacity, and opening of new deforestation frontiers with new roads, mines, and hydroelectric dams. Averting these threats will require, for example, overhauling governance models, building capacity, improving infrastructure‐ and energy‐project planning, and reforming land‐tenure and environmental‐protection laws. Although challenges to conservation in Myanmar are daunting, the political transition offers an opportunity for conservationists and researchers to help shape a future that enhances Myanmar's social, economic, and environmental potential while learning and applying lessons from other countries. Our approach and results are relevant to other countries undergoing similar transitions.     

高原山地农户旱灾应灾行为研究——以云南省南涧县为例

旱灾作为云南省的第一大农业气象灾害,给农业生产造成了巨大的损失。在旱灾面前,人类既是旱灾承灾体,又是减灾政策、措施以及直接抗旱减灾响应行为的具体执行者。在灾害的发生过程中,人类应灾行为对提高旱灾应对能力、减少旱灾损失有着更为实际的效果。该文以云南省南涧县为例,通过问卷调查和入户访谈获取数据,使用主成分分析和系统聚类分析方法对数据进行处理,并将收集到的11种应灾行为分为三大类进行多维尺度分析;根据175名农户对11种应灾行为的评价特点,将这些农户进行判别分析并划分为三类应灾人群,针对不同应灾人群中的典型农户分析其应灾行为特征。     

Evaluation of toxic effects induced by arsenic trioxide or/and antimony on autophagy and apoptosis in testis of adult mice

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Arsenic trioxide (ATO) and antimony (Sb) are well-known ubiquitous environmental contaminants and cause unpromising male reproductive effects in...     

美丽城市内涵与美丽杭州建设战略研究

城市是环境、经济、社会的复合体与基本单元,美丽城市建设是美丽中国的重要基础和途径。本文在城市系统、城市形象、城市美学和生态文明建设理论的基础上,研究提出美丽城市建设的自然、环境、人居、经济、人文、生活等六大系统框架,提出评价指标体系构建思路原则。结合美丽杭州建设战略研究,提出了三大战略重点、四大战略途径和六大战略任务的总体框架。提出美丽城市建设需要重视格局、结构、质量的内在约束引导机制、区域分类指导机制以及差异化的评价指标体系建设的建议．为姜丽城市建设提供券者．     

Determination of estrogens and estrogenic activities in water from three rivers in Tianjin, China

Studies on estrogenic disrupting compounds(EDCs) occurrence and identification of main responsible compounds in river water discharged into the sea are of significance.In the present research,we screened estrogenic activities of 10 river water samples from 3 main rivers discharged into Bohai Sea in Tianjin using a recombinant two-hybrid yeast assay and chemical analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.All sample extracts induced significant estrogenic activity,with 17β-estradiol equivalents(EEQ) of raw water ranging from 5.72 to 59.06 ng/L.Six most concerned EDCs in the river water samples including estrone,17β-estradiol,17α-ethinylestradiol,estriol,diethylstilbestrol and estradiol valerate were determined,with their concentrations up to 50.70,31.40,24.40,37.20,2.56,and 8.47 ng/L,respectively.Through causality analysis by comparing the EEQ values of yeast assay and chemical analysis,17α-ethinylestradiol and 17β-estradiol were identified as the main contributors to the estrogenic effects of the river samples,accounting for the whole estrogenic activities(62.99% to 185.66%),and estrogen antagonistic compounds might presented in the heavy polluted water samples.The proposed approach using both chemical analysis and bioassay could be used for identification and evaluation of the estrogenic activity of EDCs in river water.