Better estimates of soil carbon from geographical data: a revised global approach

Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change - Soils hold the largest pool of organic carbon (C) on Earth; yet, soil organic carbon (SOC) reservoirs are not well represented in climate...     

Mate guarding and territorial aggression vary with breeding synchrony in golden whistlers (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pachycephala pectoralis</Emphasis>)

Male paternity assurance behaviour during the female fertile period has been widely documented amongst birds. In contrast, how sex-specific behavioural strategies vary with local breeding synchrony levels remains largely unknown. This is important because, in many species, intra-population patterns of extra-pair fertilisation rates, and hence cuckoldry risk, are known to vary with the number of simultaneously fertile females. Each sex may therefore differ in how they behave towards male conspecifics during different degrees of breeding synchrony. Here I provide evidence of such sex-specific differences in the golden whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis), a species in which within-pair paternity assurance is negatively associated with breeding synchrony. Via simulated territorial intrusions using decoy males, I show that males, but not females, increase levels of aggression to male intruders during periods of low synchrony, possibly because cuckoldry risk is greatest during this period. In addition, males appear to invest more effort into mate guarding after, but not before, territorial intrusions during this period. These inter-sexual differences may reflect conflicts in interest between the sexes, with females consistently showing interest in males during the fertile period regardless of synchrony levels and males investing more resources into expelling intruders when the risk of paternity loss is greatest. This study thus provides evidence that males may be able to detect variation in breeding synchrony and cuckoldry risk and adjust their paternity assurance behaviour accordingly.     

Tissue-specific congener composition of organohalogen and metabolite contaminants in East Greenland polar bears (Ursus maritimus)

Congener patterns of the major organohalogen contaminant classes of PCBs, PBDEs and their metabolites and/or by-products (OH-PCBs, MeSO2-PCBs, OH-PBDEs and MeO-PBDEs) were examined in adipose tissue, liver, brain and blood of East Greenland polar bears (Ursus maritimus). PCB, OH-PCB, MeSO2-PCB and PBDE congener patterns showed significant differences (p相似文献   

Is the Clean Development Mechanism delivering benefits to the poorest communities in the developing world? A critical evaluation and proposals for reform

This paper explores whether the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), a flexibility mechanism under the Kyoto Protocol, has contributed to poverty alleviation in countries that host CDM projects. We argue that the CDM should deliver pro-poor benefits to the communities in which projects are established, since poverty alleviation is integral to sustainable development, which is one of the main purposes of the CDM. After briefly discussing the background of the CDM, we discuss assessment difficulties to which research is prone when evaluating CDM projects for alleged sustainable development contributions. Section 4 brings together and analyses available empirical research on the pro-poor benefits the CDM purportedly delivers to host country communities, concluding that the CDM has failed to deliver poverty alleviation. Therefore, without attempting to be exhaustive, we suggest policy reforms that aim to redirect the CDM to those most in need of assistance.     

The dynamics of industrial symbiosis: a proposal for a conceptual framework based upon a comprehensive literature review

There is increasing evidence that throughout the world, firms, governmental agencies and NGOs are seeking to stimulate industrial symbiosis. This concept and its application have also been the topic of extensive research. Up till now, this work lacks a more comprehensive theoretical framework, and this paper fills this gap. We provide a theoretical basis for understanding the dynamics through which regional industrial systems change their connectiveness in an attempt to reduce their ecological impact. We position our framework within the field of industrial symbiosis based on a comprehensive literature search in the ISI Web of Science database for publications that listed ‘industrial symbiosis’, ‘eco-industrial park’, or a combination of ‘industrial-ecology’ and ‘regional’ as a topic.The framework conceptualizes industrial symbiosis as a process at two levels: (1) the level of the regional industrial system (RIS), and (2) the societal level where the concept and routines of industrial symbiosis diffuse. We link the dynamics at these levels to changes in ecological impact and increase in institutional capacity. We conclude with a research agenda based on the variables and their basic relationships specified in our framework. The main line of research we propose is to systematically investigate how institutional capacity evolves over time in regional industrial systems and how it affects the ecological impact of such systems. We also propose to investigate how insights from existing literature about stimulating and impeding factors to industrial symbiosis can be understood in terms of mechanisms of transmission and how these mechanisms interact to create nationally distinct patterns of diffusion of industrial symbiosis.     

Decision support in urban water management based on generic scenarios: The example of NoMix technology

Urine source separation (NoMix technology) followed by processing the concentrated nutrient solution has the potential to become a cost-efficient alternative to conventional end-of-pipe nutrient elimination. A choice of processing technologies can only be made for specific scenarios, and there is currently no methodology for analyzing generic situations. In setting up a formalized decision-support methodology (based on STEEPLED analysis), we discuss how to create such generic scenarios, how to couple them with process engineering objectives, how to define the technology requirements, and finally how to produce a realistic subset of technology alternatives. The methodology is tested in five real scenarios. We also touch on the criteria for a final choice of technology taking into account large uncertainties about the performance of real technologies. We conclude that technology development is one of the most important requirements for implementing urine source separation in practice. There is an urgent need to develop cost-efficient processing technologies that satisfy the requirements of stakeholders.     

Community action for environmental restoration: a case study on collective social capital in India

In southern India, tens of thousands of village-level irrigation systems (‘tanks’ and feeder channels) are in disrepair. This paper analyses the results of a local NGO effort that focused on awareness-raising and advice to bring about self-sustained community action for irrigation system restoration. After designing a model structure that contains both motivational and capacity (social capital) factors, it is found that (pre-existing) collective social capital, as measured through five simple indicators, strongly correlates with success of the NGO strategy. The intensity of the NGO’s effort shows a negative correlation with success, however. The discussion focuses on issues of social capital definition and measurement and the practical implications of the concept for environmental action, especially the difference between using existing social capital for environmental management versus the construction of social capital as a basis for later self-sustained environmental work. Readers should send their comments on this paper to BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

Coastal and riverine ecosystems as adaptive flood defenses under a changing climate

Adaptation planning for flood risk forms a significant part of global climate change response. Engineering responses to higher water levels can be prohibitively costly. Several recent studies emphasize the potential role of ecosystems in flood protection as adaptive risk reduction measures while also contributing to carbon fixation. Here, we use a conceptual model study to illustrate the built-in adaptive capability of ecosystems to reduce a wide range of wave heights, occurring at different water levels, to a narrower range. Our model shows that wave height of waves running through a forested section is independent of initial height or of water level. Although the underlying phenomenon of non-linear wave attenuation within coastal vegetation is well studied, implications of reducing variability in wave heights for design of ecosystem and levee combinations have not yet been properly outlined. Narrowing the range of wave heights by a vegetation field generates an adaptive levee that is robust to a whole range of external conditions rather than only to a maximum wave height. This feature can substantially reduce costs for retrofitting of levees under changing future wave climates. Thereby, in wave prone areas, inclusion of ecosystems into flood defense schemes constitutes an adaptive and safe alternative to only hard engineered flood risk measures.     

Twenty years of temporal change in perfluoroalkyl sulfonate and carboxylate contaminants in herring gull eggs from the Laurentian Great Lakes

In this study, temporal trends and patterns of major C(4) to C(15) chain length PFCAs and PFSAs and some sulfonamide, fluorotelomer acid and alcohol precursors were determined in herring gull (Larus argentatus) egg pools. Samples were analyzed from fifteen collection years including 1990 and all years from 1997 to 2010, and from seven colonies located throughout the Great Lakes, ranging from remote to highly urbanized areas. Other than at the Toronto Harbour colony, the slopes of ∑PFSA concentrations (C(6), C(8), and C(10)) versus time were negative indicating general declines between 1990 and 2010. PFOS was the dominant PFSA regardless of colony or year, ranging from 80 to 99% of ∑PFSA. For ∑PFCA (C(8)-C(15)), slopes of concentrations versus time were generally positive with 4 of 7 colonies showing statistically significant (p < 0.05) increases in levels through time. Individual PFCAs showed similar increasing trends except for PFOA. Regardless of colony, the PFCA pattern was dominated by the C(10) to C(13) PFCAs. Consistent with the PFOS declines, concentrations of the PFOS precursor, PFOSA, declined at most colonies between 1990 and 2006 and post-2006 concentrations were below detection limits. Declining concentrations of the C(8) PFCs, PFOS, PFOA and PFOSA, were consistent with the phase out in 2002 by the 3M Company in North America of all of C(8) PFC-related chemistry products. Increasing production volumes of fluorotelomer based compounds, and degradation of these compounds to PFCAs may explain increasing trends of PFCAs in gull eggs. Dietary changes as measured by carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes, showed minimal relationships to PFC levels in gull eggs, which indicates the complexity of aquatic and terrestrial food of gulls and sources of PFCs.     

Assessment and review of organochlorine pesticide pollution in Kyrgyzstan

The current study describes the preliminary assessment and securing activities of the largest and most hazardous POPs-contaminated sites in Kyrgyzstan. In 2010, cattle died and population were found with high pesticide levels in blood, human milk, and placenta. In the first phase of the study, a historic assessment of the pesticide dumping at the landfill/dump sites have been conducted. In the second phase, soil analysis for organochlorine pesticides in the areas of the pesticide disposal sites, the former pesticides storehouses, agro-air strips, and the cotton-growing fields were conducted. By this assessment, a first overview of the types and sources of pollution and of the scale of the problem is compiled including information gaps. From major pesticides used, DDT, DDE, and HCH were measured in the highest concentrations. With the limited analytical capacity present, a reasonable risk assessment could be performed. This paper also reports on practical risk reduction measures that have been carried out recently at the two major pesticide disposal sites with support of a Dutch environmental engineering company, an international NGO (Green Cross Switzerland) and local authorities from the Suzak region within an UN project. Local population living near the sites of the former pesticide storehouses and agro-airstrips are advised not to cultivate vegetables and melons or to raise cattle on these areas. Instead, it is recommended to grow technical crops or plant trees. Further recommendations on monitoring and assessment is given including the suggestion to consider the findings in the National Implementation Plan of Kyrgyzstan.