PUBLIC INFORMATION AND CITIZEN INVOLVEMENT1

ABSTRACT: Public information, an important contributer to citizen involvement in the governmental decision making process, has traditionally been given a low priority by government agencies. However, citizens are becoming increasingly concerned about governmental decisions that affect their lives and are demanding more information about governmental activities, including information about water resource issues, Because of this active citizen interest and involvement, the role of public information in increasing citizen awareness is becoming more important. Government officials and professionals should recognize that public information efforts also play an important role in achieving increased credibility and respect for their agencies. Once an agency recognizes the importance of public information and decides to initiate a public information program, careful planning is required to develop a program that addresses the needs of both the citizens and the agency. Two of the most flexible and cost effective ways to get information to the publié are through publications and public meetings. Both can be easily adapted to suit the needs of specific audiences and projects. A successful public information program can be carried out at a relatively low cost, but it requires a substantial amount of time and energy. The commitment of time and energy for this purpose is a good investment, however, because an effective public information program can play a significant role in improving the quality of governmental decisions through the increased involvement of the citizenry.     

The legal frameworks that govern fetal surgery in the United Kingdom,European Union,and the United States

The specialty of fetal surgery or fetal intervention is one of the most exciting emerging fields of modern medicine. It is made possible by decades of major developments in antenatal imaging, obstetric anaesthesia, fetal medicine, paediatric surgery, and of course by the bold and novel practitioners willing to take new steps to advance the field. Beginning in the 1970s, it has now reached a stage of maturity where there are several established in utero procedures and countless clinical trials and studies to develop more. But what is the legal situation that fetal surgeons find themselves in? What are the rights and legal protections for the fetus and the mother, both of which are arguably the patient? This article will address this question, discussing and summarising the current legal frameworks governing fetal surgery in the jurisdictions of the United Kingdom, European Court of Human Rights, and the United States of America as well as discuss what the future may hold and how researchers and physicians in the specialty can best navigate the legal environment.     

Alarming decline of freshwater trigger species in western Mediterranean key biodiversity areas

Theidentification of key biodiversity areas (KBA) was initiated by the International Union for Conservation of Nature in 2004 to overcome taxonomic biases in the selection of important areas for conservation, including freshwater ecosystems. Since then, several KBAs have been identified mainly based on the presence of trigger species (i.e., species that trigger either the vulnerability and or the irreplaceability criterion and thus identify a site as a KBA). However, to our knowledge, many of these KBAs have not been validated. Therefore, classical surveys of the taxa used to identify freshwater KBAs (fishes, molluscs, odonates, and aquatic plants) were conducted in Douro (Iberian Peninsula) and Sebou (Morocco) River basins in the Mediterranean Biodiversity Hotspot. Environmental DNA analyses were undertaken in the Moroccan KBAs. There was a mismatch between the supposed and actual presence of trigger species. None of the trigger species were found in 43% and 50% of all KBAs surveyed in the Douro and Sebou basins, respectively. Shortcomings of freshwater KBA identification relate to flawed or lack of distribution data for trigger species. This situation results from a misleading initial identification of KBAs based on poor (or even inaccurate) ecological information or due to increased human disturbance between initial KBA identification and the present. To improve identification of future freshwater KBAs, we suggest selecting trigger species with a more conservative approach; use of local expert knowledge and digital data (to assess habitat quality, species distribution, and potential threats); consideration of the subcatchment when delineating KBAs boundaries; thoughtful consideration of terrestrial special areas for conservation limits; and periodic field validation.     

Nutritional geometry and macronutrient variation in the diets of gannets: the challenges in marine field studies

Foraging theory proposes that the nutritional driver of food choice and foraging in carnivores is energy gain. In contrast, recent laboratory experiments have shown that several species of carnivore select prey that provides a diet with a specific balance of macronutrients, rather than the highest energy content. It remains, however, to be determined how nutritionally variable the foods of predators in the wild are, and whether they feed selectively from available prey to balance their diet. Here, we used a geometric method named the right-angled mixture triangle (RMT) for examining nutritional variability in the prey and selected diets of a group of wild carnivores and marine top predators, the gannets (Morus spp.). A prey-level diet analysis was performed on Australasian gannets (M. serrator) from two New Zealand locations, and the macronutrient composition of their chosen prey species was measured. We use RMT to extend the comparison in the compositions of foods and diets from Australasian gannets from Australia as well as Northern gannets (M. bassanus) and Cape gannets (M. capensis). We found nutritional variability at multiple scales: intra- and interspecific variability in the pelagic fish and squid prey themselves; and intra- and interspecific variability in the diets consumed by geographically disparate populations of gannets. This nutritional variability potentially presents these predatory seabirds with both opportunity to select an optimal diet, and constraint if prevented from securing an optimal diet.