Washing away poverty: Water, democracy and gendered poverty eradication in South Africa

This article discusses ways in which the South African Government and grassroots organizations envisage and implement democracy achieved since 1994 in the field of water resources management. The focus is on the democratic, political and economic freedom and equality in resource rights for poor black women, who are central to poverty eradication. While the new water policy and law provide an enabling framework for achieving these goals, implementation on the ground encounters both new opportunities and constraints. This is illustrated by several cases of establishing South Africa's new water management institutions: catchment management agencies and water user associations. The important nexus between state‐led democratization of water resources management and bottom‐up grassroots movements is also discussed. The article concludes that the Government's affirmative and targeted intervention is indispensable for redressing gender inequalities and eradicating poverty.     

WATER QUALITY SAMPLING SCHEMES FOR VARIABLE FLOW CANALS AT REMOTE SITES1

ABSTRACT: Growing interest in water quality has resulted in the development of monitoring networks and intensive sampling for various constituents. Common purposes are regulatory, source and sink understanding, and trend observations. Water quality monitoring involves monitoring system design; sampling site instrumentation; and sampling, analysis, quality control, and assurance. Sampling is a process to gather information with the least cost and least error. Various water quality sampling schemes have been applied for different sampling objectives and time frames. In this study, a flow proportional composite sampling scheme is applied to variable flow remote canals where the flow rate is not known a priori. In this scheme, historical weekly flow data are analyzed to develop high flow and low flow sampling trigger volumes for auto‐samplers. The median flow is used to estimate low flow sampling trigger volume and the five percent exceedence probability flow is used for high flow sampling trigger volume. A computer simulation of high resolution sampling is used to demonstrate the comparative bias in load estimation and operational cost among four sampling schemes. Weekly flow proportional composite auto‐sampling resulted in the least bias in load estimation with competitive operational cost compared to daily grab, weekly grab sampling and time proportional auto‐sampling.     

The design and use of strategic planning arenas

This paper takes a close look at communication, process, power and institutional arrangements in the context of strategic planning. It introduces an eight step process for structuring strategic thinking and acting and develops the concept of “arenas” as a very influential — yet often very subtle — exercise of power over the course of a strategic planning process.     

Integrating product quality and environmental performance through innovation—the l'oréal case

Meeting the demands of today's marketplace has become an increasingly complex challenge for corporations in all industries. The consumer is demanding high-quality products, low cost, and more recently, a new variable: environmental performance. Customers will not accept sacrifices in quality or cost to help businesses meet regulatory requirements or develop environmentally sound products. They want it all. Consequently, companies are faced with the complex task of balancing cost, quality, and environmental performance.     

Effects of biodegradable plastic components on metabolism of an estuarine benthos

We examined the metabolic response of an estuarine benthic community to additions of three materials being considered for use in manufacture of biodegradable substitutes for plastics. Diver-collected cores containing benthos were dosed with 59 g/m² of three test materials, cornstarch, a bacterial polyester (PHBV), and ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH), or left undisturbed as controls. Fluxes of dissolved nutrients (ammonia, nitrate + nitrite, phosphate, silica) and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) were similar in control cores and cores dosed with EVOH during a 1-month test period at 20°C. Fluxes in cores dosed with starch and PHBV differed significantly from controls but not from each other. After 2 weeks of incubation, production of DIC was higher in cores containing starch and PHBV, while efflux of ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite was reduced. After 4 weeks of incubation, production of DIC was similar among all treatments and controls, while efflux of ammonia was high in the starch- and PHBV-containing cores compared to controls and cores with EVOH. Fluxes of silica and phosphate were similar in all cores during the experiment. These results indicate that both starch and PHBV are carbon-rich substrates readily metabolized by the benthic community but that their presence significantly alters normal nutrient exchange patterns. This response is expected because of the high carbon-to-nitrogen ratio of starch and PHBV and indicates that impacts of these two materials would be similar. However, the high biological oxygen demand of such materials and resulting disturbance of normal nutrient regeneration patterns of the benthos (delayed ammonia efflux and potential stimulation of denitrification) must be considered in developing strategies for their disposal.Paper presented at the Biodegradable Materials and Packaging Conference, September 22–23, 1993, Natick, Massachusetts.     

Evaluating cumulative effects on wetland functions: A conceptual overview and generic framework

This article outlines conceptual and methodological issues that must be confronted in developing a sound scientific basis for investigating cumulative effects on freshwater wetlands. We are particularly concerned with: (1) effects expressed at temporal and spatial scales beyond those of the individual disturbance, specific project, or single wetland, that is, effects occurring at the watershed or regional landscape level; and (2) the scientific (technical) component of the overall assessment process. Our aim is to lay the foundation for a research program to develop methods to quantify cumulative effects of wetland loss or degradation on the functioning of interacting systems of wetlands. Toward that goal we: (1) define the concept of cumulative effects in terms that permit scientific investigation of effects; (2) distinguish the scientific component of cumulative impact analysis from other aspects of the assessment process; (3) define critical scientific issues in assessing cumulative effects on wetlands; and (4) set up a hypothetical and generic structure for measuring cumulative effects on the functioning of wetlands as landscape systems.We provide a generic framework for evaluating cumulative effects on three basic wetland landscape functions: flood storage, water quality, and life support. Critical scientific issues include appropriate delineations of scales, identification of threshold responses, and the influence on different functions of wetland size, shape, and position in the landscape.The contribution of a particular wetland to landscape function within watersheds or regions will be determined by its intrinsic characteristics, e.g., size, morphometry, type, percent organic matter in the sediments, and hydrologic regime, and by extrinsic factors, i.e., the wetland's context in the landscape mosaic. Any cumulative effects evaluation must take into account the relationship between these intrinsic and extrinsic attributes and overall landscape function. We use the magnitude of exchanges among component wetlands in a watershed or larger landscape as the basis for defining the geographic boundaries of the assessment. The time scales of recovery for processes controlling particular wetland functions determine temporal boundaries. Landscape-level measures are proposed for each function.     

Access and Local Government Research: Methodological Reflections

This methodological paper draws on research from Australia to examine the question of gaining access to local governments in undertaking work on natural resource management. It is argued that a range of macro-level changes have impacted on the local government sector in Australia, and these changes have rendered access problematic for researchers. These changes include an expansion of local government roles, an increase in financial pressure within the sector, a proliferation of audit measures across local governments and a low level of respect amongst local government personnel for academics and academic work. The paper concludes by identifying the reasons why understanding access in qualitative research on local government and environmental sustainability is important.     

Mercury Accumulation in Periphyton of Eight River Ecosystems1

Abstract: In 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water‐Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency studied total mercury (THg) and methylmercury (MeHg) concentrations in periphyton at eight rivers in the United States in coordination with a larger USGS study on mercury cycling in rivers. Periphyton samples were collected using trace element clean techniques and NAWQA sampling protocols in spring and fall from targeted habitats (streambed surface‐sediment, cobble, or woody snags) at each river site. A positive correlation was observed between concentrations of THg and MeHg in periphyton (r² = 0.88, in log‐log space). Mean MeHg and THg concentrations in surface‐sediment periphyton were significantly higher (1,333 ng/m² for MeHg and 53,980 ng/m² for THg) than cobble (64 ng/m² for MeHg and 1,192 ng/m² for THg) or woody snag (71 ng/m² for MeHg and 1,089 ng/m² for THg) periphyton. Concentrations of THg in surface‐sediment periphyton had a strong positive correlation with concentrations of THg in sediment (dry weight). The ratio of MeHg:THg in surface‐sediment periphyton increased with the ratio of MeHg:THg in sediment. These data suggest periphyton may play a key role in mercury bioaccumulation in river ecosystems.     

Maternal care in house mice

Summary This paper analyzes the flexibility of maternal care in wild house mice (Mus domesticus) under different reproductive conditions in the laboratory. All maternal activities were both qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed over a period of 28 days after birth of a litter. The standard behavior of a lactating house mouse with 7–8 young can be described as follows: During days 1–16 the offspring fully depend on the mother for nutrition. Due to rapid growth of the litter, the energetic demands of lactation reach a peak for the female during days 13–16. During days 17–22, the weaning period, the young begin to eat solid food. This period is characterized by behaviors that indicate different interests of the mother and offspring, and thus the existence of a parent-offspring conflict sensu Trivers (1974). Resting alone and remaining far from the litter indicate the female's interest in avoiding the offspring's demands, which are expressed in frequent attempts to initiate sucking. There is no aggression towards the young during weaning. House mice are weaned at 23 days. The relationship between mother and young appears free of conflict after weaning. Nursing is replaced by resting with body contact, but the offspring do not try to suck. The following results suggest that during the weaning period the offspring do not get more milk than corresponds to the maternal optimum—despite their frequent sucking attempts:(a) When the mother is simultaneously lactating and pregnant, offspring are smaller at weaning than under standard conditions. (b) Small litters are weaned earlier than large ones. Despite a longer nursing period, offspring from large litters are lighter at weaning than those from small ones. (c) Under high energy demand, as after postpartum mating and with large litters, females wean their young at a body weight which corresponds to the earliest physiologically possible state of independence.Parity of the female has no effect on maternal activities, nor has the presence of the father. In the latter case, however, offspring are less often left alone and unprotected.Females seem to adjust their investment according to the body weight of the progeny by delaying or advancing the date of weaning (Table 2). This behavior allows the production of the largest possible number of offspring that can be raised to a minimal physiological threshold corresponding to a body weight of approximately 9 g. Such flexibility in parental care may enhance maternal fitness under different and unpredictable environmental conditions.