Biodegradability and Mechanical Properties of Poly(vinyl alcohol)-Based Blend Plastics Prepared Through Extrusion Method

Plastic blend materials consisting of poly(vinyl alcohol), glycerol and xanthan or gellan were prepared through laboratory extrusion. Their base mechanical properties were compared with the properties of poly(vinyl alcohol) foil and their biodegradability in soil, compost and both activated and anaerobic sludge were assessed. In samples with lower polysaccharide content (10–21 %w/w) the tensile strength of 15–20 MPa was found; the elongation at break of all blends was relatively close to the parameter of poly(vinyl alcohol) foil. The biodegradability levels of the blends tested corresponded to the content of natural components, and the mineralization of the samples with the highest carbohydrate proportion (42 %) reached 50–78 %, depending on the type of the environment. Complete biodegradation of all samples occurred in activated sludge.     

Critical Anthropomorphism and Animal Ethics

Anthropomorphism has long been considered a cardinal error when describing animals. Ethicists have feared the consequences of misrepresenting animals in their reasoning. Recent research within human-animal studies, however, has sophisticated the notion of anthropomorphism. It is suggested that avoiding anthropomorphism merely creates other morphisms, such as mechanomorphism. Instead of avoiding anthropomorphism, it is argued that it is a communicative strategy that should be used critically. Instances of anthropomorphism in animal ethics are analyzed in this paper. Some analogies made between people and non-human animals in present theories of animal ethics are clear instances of psychological anthropomorphism. Other analogies are implicit cases of cultural anthropomorphism. It is argued that animal ethics needs to take the wider discourse of critical anthropomorphism into account in order to sophisticate the understanding and use of anthropomorphic projections. Anthropomorphism is an efficient tool of communication, and it may be made an adequate one as well.     

The legitimacy of leadership in international climate change negotiations

Leadeship is an essential ingredient in reaching international agreements and overcoming the collective action problems associated with responding to climate change. In this study, we aim at answering two questions that are crucial for understanding the legitimacy of leadership in international climate change negotiations. Based on the responses of the three consecutive surveys distributed at COPs 14-16, we seek first to chart which actors are actually recognized as leaders by climate change negotiation participants. Second, we aim to explain what motivates COP participants to support different actors as leaders. Both these questions are indeed crucial for understanding the role, importance, and legitimacy of leadership in the international climate change regime. Our results show that the leadership landscape in this issue area is fragmented, with no one clear-cut leader, and strongly suggest that it is imperative for any actor seeking recognition as climate change leader to be perceived as being devoted to promoting the common good.     

The sensitivity of current and future forest managers to climate-induced changes in ecological processes

Climate vulnerability of managed forest ecosystems is not only determined by ecological processes but also influenced by the adaptive capacity of forest managers. To better understand adaptive behaviour, we conducted a questionnaire study among current and future forest managers (i.e. active managers and forestry students) in Austria. We found widespread belief in climate change (94.7 % of respondents), and no significant difference between current and future managers. Based on intended responses to climate-induced ecosystem changes, we distinguished four groups: highly sensitive managers (27.7 %), those mainly sensitive to changes in growth and regeneration processes (46.7 %), managers primarily sensitive to regeneration changes (11.2 %), and insensitive managers (14.4 %). Experiences and beliefs with regard to disturbance-related tree mortality were found to particularly influence a manager’s sensitivity to climate change. Our findings underline the importance of the social dimension of climate change adaptation, and suggest potentially strong adaptive feedbacks between ecosystems and their managers.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13280-015-0737-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Spatially valid data of atmospheric deposition of heavy metals and nitrogen derived by moss surveys for pollution risk assessments of ecosystems

For analysing element input into ecosystems and associated risks due to atmospheric deposition, element concentrations in moss provide complementary and time-integrated data at high spatial resolution every 5 years since 1990. The paper reviews (1) minimum sample sizes needed for reliable, statistical estimation of mean values at four different spatial scales (European and national level as well as landscape-specific level covering Europe and single countries); (2) trends of heavy metal (HM) and nitrogen (N) concentrations in moss in Europe (1990–2010); (3) correlations between concentrations of HM in moss and soil specimens collected across Norway (1990–2010); and (4) canopy drip-induced site-specific variation of N concentration in moss sampled in seven European countries (1990–2013). While the minimum sample sizes on the European and national level were achieved without exception, for some ecological land classes and elements, the coverage with sampling sites should be improved. The decline in emission and subsequent atmospheric deposition of HM across Europe has resulted in decreasing HM concentrations in moss between 1990 and 2010. In contrast, hardly any changes were observed for N in moss between 2005, when N was included into the survey for the first time, and 2010. In Norway, both, the moss and the soil survey data sets, were correlated, indicating a decrease of HM concentrations in moss and soil. At the site level, the average N deposition inside of forests was almost three times higher than the average N deposition outside of forests.     

Neutralisation of an acidic pit lake by alkaline waste products

A former open pit where black shale (alum shale) was excavated during 1942–1965 has been water filled since 1966. The water chemistry was dominated by calcium and sulphate and had a pH of 3.2–3.4 until 1997–1998, when pH was gradually increasing. This was due to the intrusion of leachates from alkaline cement waste deposited close to the lake. A stable pH of around 7.5 was obtained after 6–7 years. The chemistry of the pit lake has changed due to the neutralisation. Concentrations of some dissolved metals, notably zinc and nickel, have gone down, as a result of adsorption/co-precipitation on solid phases (most likely iron and aluminium hydroxides), while other metals, notably uranium and molybdenum, are present at elevated levels. Uranium concentration is reaching a minimum of around pH 6.5 and is increasing at higher pH, which may indicate a formation of neutral and anionic uranyl carbonate species at high pH (and total carbonate levels around 1 mM). Weathering of the water-exposed shale is still in progress.     

Modeling Past and Future Acidification of Swedish Lakes

Decades of acid deposition have caused acidification of lakes in Sweden. Here we use data for 3000 lakes to run the acidification model MAGIC and estimate historical and future acidification. The results indicate that beginning in about 1920 a progressively larger number of lakes in Sweden fell into the category of “not naturally acidified” (∆pH > 0.4). The peak in acidification was reached about 1985; since then many lakes have recovered in response to lower levels of acid deposition. Further recovery from acidification will occur by the year 2030 given implementation of agreed legislation for emissions of sulphur (S) and nitrogen (N) in Europe. But the number of catchments with soils being depleted in base cations will increase slightly. MAGIC-reconstructed history of acidification of lakes in Sweden agrees well with information on fish populations. Future acidification of Swedish lakes can be influenced by climate change as well as changes in forest harvest practices.     

The response of Chenopodium album L. and Abutilon theophrasti Medik. to reduced doses of mesotrione

Limited toxicity data are available for estuarine and marine species and the widely used pyrethroid insecticide, permethrin. This study determined acute effects of permethrin on survival, lipid peroxidation, acetylcholinesterase activity, and splenocyte proliferation for two fish species found in South Carolina estuaries; juvenile red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) and adult mummichog (Fundulus heteroclitus). Juvenile S. ocellatus were significantly more sensitive than adult F. heteroclitus to permethrin exposure, with a 96-h LC50 value of 8 μg/L determined for red drum compared to 23 μg/L for mummichog. Lipid peroxidation activity of the liver increased in permethrin-treated fish compared to control animals after 24 h and decreased after 96 h. Permethrin had no effect on acetylcholinesterase activity of the brain at the concentrations tested. Permethrin exposure significantly inhibited splenocyte proliferation, indicating an immunosuppressive effect. Most of the effects of permethrin on fish cellular stress enzymes and survival occurred at concentrations much higher than those typically measured in the environment. However, inhibition of splenocyte proliferation in juvenile red drum occurred at approximately twice that of measured permethrin concentrations in surface water. These findings may prove useful to the future management and regulation of pyrethroid insecticide use near estuarine habitats.     

Are individual NOEC levels safe for mixtures? A study on mixture toxicity of brominated flame-retardants in the copepod Nitocra spinipes

In aquatic ecosystems organisms are exposed to mixtures of pollutants. Still, risk assessment focuses almost exclusively on effect characterization of individual substances. The main objective of the current study was therefore to study mixture toxicity of a common group of industrial substances, i.e., brominated flame-retardants (BFRs), in the harpacticoid copepod Nitocra spinipes. Initially, 10 BFRs with high hydrophobicity but otherwise varying chemical characteristics were selected based on multivariate chemical characterization and tested individually for effects on mortality and development using a partial life cycle test (six days) where silica gel is used as a carrier of the hydrophobic substances. Based on these findings, six of the 10 BFRs were mixed in a series of NOEC proportions (which were set to 0.008, 0.04, 0.2, 1, and five times the NOEC concentrations for each individual BFR), loaded on silica gel and tested in a full life cycle test (26 days). Significantly increased mortality was observed in N. spinipes after six and 26 days exposure at a NOEC proportion that equals the NOEC LDR value (x1) for each BFR in the mixture (p=0.0015 and p=0.0105, respectively). At the NOECx5 proportion all animals were dead. None of the other NOEC proportions caused significant negative responses related to development and reproduction. This shows that low concentrations of individual substances can cause toxicity if exposed in mixtures, which highlights the need to consider mixture toxicity to a greater extent in regulatory work.     

Female sand gobies gain direct benefits by choosing males with eggs in their nests

In some fish species with paternal care, females prefer to spawn with males whose nests already contain eggs. Several hypotheses have been put forward to explain this behaviour, such as reduced risk of predation or cannibalism (the dilution effect), increased parental investment, and mate copying. This experimental study focuses on female mate choice in the sand goby, Pomatoschistus minutus. Females were found to choose males with eggs in their nests. In addition, hatching success increased with clutch size, mainly because males with larger clutches showed less filial cannibalism. Increased egg survival in large clutches may thus be explained by a combination of the dilution effect and higher parental investment. In another experiment, females did not seem to copy the observed mate choice of other females. In conclusion, female preference for males with eggs in their nests is adaptive, and can be explained by direct benefits, as more surviving offspring are produced. Received: 23 December 1995/Accepted after revision: 11 May 1996