Reflections on network governance in Africa's forestry sector

International forestry governance is an integral part of the global policy debates on how to prevent deforestation, illicit extraction, and unsustainable timber practices. Africa is an important producer of timber, yet the region is beset by a lack of capacity and other governance challenges in the management of its forestry sector. We employ a network governance analysis to examine the extent to which the evolution and operation of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and la Commission des Forêts d'Afrique Centrale (COMIFAC) have addressed governance challenges. We assess the strengths and weaknesses of these two leading examples of international forestry governance by introducing recent evidence and insights from Africa. We conclude with a policy‐relevant discussion of how the FSC and COMIFAC might enhance authority, legitimacy, and effectiveness and improve forestry governance in Africa and other parts of the world.     

Establishing IUCN Red List Criteria for Threatened Ecosystems

Abstract: The potential for conservation of individual species has been greatly advanced by the International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) development of objective, repeatable, and transparent criteria for assessing extinction risk that explicitly separate risk assessment from priority setting. At the IV World Conservation Congress in 2008, the process began to develop and implement comparable global standards for ecosystems. A working group established by the IUCN has begun formulating a system of quantitative categories and criteria, analogous to those used for species, for assigning levels of threat to ecosystems at local, regional, and global levels. A final system will require definitions of ecosystems; quantification of ecosystem status; identification of the stages of degradation and loss of ecosystems; proxy measures of risk (criteria); classification thresholds for these criteria; and standardized methods for performing assessments. The system will need to reflect the degree and rate of change in an ecosystem's extent, composition, structure, and function, and have its conceptual roots in ecological theory and empirical research. On the basis of these requirements and the hypothesis that ecosystem risk is a function of the risk of its component species, we propose a set of four criteria: recent declines in distribution or ecological function, historical total loss in distribution or ecological function, small distribution combined with decline, or very small distribution. Most work has focused on terrestrial ecosystems, but comparable thresholds and criteria for freshwater and marine ecosystems are also needed. These are the first steps in an international consultation process that will lead to a unified proposal to be presented at the next World Conservation Congress in 2012.     

Person–organization and person–supervisor fits: Employee commitments in a Chinese context

The present study simultaneously examined people's perceptions of person–organization (PO) and person–supervisor (PS) fit and related these perceptions to employees' commitments. Three‐hundred‐and‐sixty employee–supervisor dyads from Taiwanese organizations reported about their PO fit and PS fit perceptions. In addition, supervisors reported about their perceptions of fit and guanxi with each of their employees. Results indicated that PO and PS fit perceptions both had an independent and additive relationship with organizational commitment. The link between employee PS fit perceptions and organizational commitment was mediated by commitment to the supervisor. Both employee and supervisor fit perceptions contributed to commitment to the supervisor through their influence on the quality of the leader‐member exchange (LMX). Guanxi could not explain additional variance in LMX and supervisor commitment. Implications for theory and practices regarding person–environment fit, commitment, and LMX are discussed. The study findings offered suggestions for a new Theory of Multiple Fits. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

TURBIDITY SUSPENI)ED SEDIMENT,AND WATER CLARITY: A REVIEW1

ABSTRACT: Suspended sediment causes a range of environmental damage, including benthic smothering, irritation of fish gills, and transport of sorbed contaminants. Much of the impact, while sediment remains suspended, is related to its light attenuation, which reduces visual range in water and light availability for photosynthesis. Thus measurement of the optical attributes of suspended matter in many instances is more relevant than measurement of its mass concentration. Nephelometric turbidity, an index of light scattering by suspended particles, has been widely used as a simple, cheap, instrumental surrogate for suspended sediment, that also relates more directly than mass concentration to optical effects of suspended matter. However, turbidity is only a relative measure of scattering (versus arbitrary standards) that has no intrinsic environmental relevance until calibrated to a ‘proper’ scientific quantity. Visual clarity (measured as Secchi or black disc visibility) is a preferred optical quantity with immediate environmental relevance to aesthetics, contact recreation, and fish habitat. Contrary to common perception, visual clarity measurement is not particularly subjective and is more precise than turbidity measurement. Black disc visibility is inter‐convertible with beam attenuation, a fundamental optical quantity that can be monitored continuously by beam transmissometry. Visual clarity or beam attenuation should supplant nephelometric turbidity in many water quality applications, including environmental standards.     

TOWARDS CHARACTERIZING AND PLANNTNG FOR DROUGHT IN VERMONT‐PART II: POLICY IMPLICATIONS1

ABSTRACT: Vermont is one of approximately half a dozen states for which no official drought mitigation plan exists. Given the recurring nature of this natural hazard, current contingency measures should be expanded upon into a coherent mitigation framework. The types of drought and impacts resulting from the 1998 to 1999 event were the focus of a previous article in this volume. The present article builds on the understanding of drought characteristics specific to the Vermont context and introduces the rationale behind a proposed drought planning framework. Pivotal organizations and institutions that should be involved in this process are also presented.     

STOCHASTIC WATER QUALITY ANALYSIS USING RELIABILITY METHOD1

ABSTRACT: This study developed a QUAL2E‐Reliability Analysis (QUAL2E‐RA) model for the stochastic water quality analysis of the downstream reach of the main Han River in Korea. The proposed model is based on the QUAL2E model and incorporates the Advanced First‐Order Second‐Moment (AFOSM) and Mean‐Value First‐Order Second‐Moment (MFOSM) methods. After the hydraulic characteristics from standard step method are identified, the optimal reaction coefficients are then estimated using the Broyden‐Fletcher‐Goldfarb‐Shanno (BFGS) method. Considering variations in river discharges, pollutant loads from tributaries, and reaction coefficients, the violation probabilities of existing water quality standards at several locations in the river were computed from the AFOSM and MFOSM methods, and the results were compared with those from the Monte Carlo method. The statistics of the three uncertainty analysis methods show that the outputs from the AFOSM and MFOSM methods are similar to those from the Monte Carlo method. From a practical model selection perspective, the MFOSM method is more attractive in terms of its computational simplicity and execution time.     

OPTIMIZATION OF INTERMITTENT PUMPING SCHEDULES FOR AQUIFER REMEDIATION USING A GENETIC ALGORITHM1

ABSTRACT: Using a genetic algorithm (GA), optimal intermittent pumping schedules were established to simulate pump‐and‐treat remediation of a contaminated aquifer with known hydraulic limitations and a water miscible contaminant, located within the Duke Forest in Durham, North Carolina. The objectives of the optimization model were to minimize total costs, minimize health risks, and maximize the amount of contaminant removed from the aquifer. Stochastic ground water and contaminant transport models were required to provide estimates of contaminant concentrations at pumping wells. Optimization model simulations defined a tradeoff curve between the pumping cost and the amount of contaminant extracted from the aquifer. For this specific aquifer/miscible contaminant combination, the model simulations indicated that pump‐and‐treat remediation using intermittent pumping schedules for each pumping well produced significant reductions in predicted contaminant concentrations and associated health risks at a reasonable cost, after a remediation time of two years.     

SPECTRAL ANALYSIS OF TIDAL FLUCTUATIONS IN GROUND WATER LEVEL1

ABSTRACT: Water level data at 16 ground water wells and two sea water gauging stations, coupled with barometric measurements in an alluvial plain in the central‐west region of Taiwan, are analyzed using spectral analysis in the time and frequency domains. The semi‐diurnal component from water level station is observed to be the most noticeable signal while the diurnal component is the less distinct signal recorded at the water level stations. Both semidiurnal and diurnal components are coupled with atmospheric pressure measurements. From the atmospheric pressure data, spectral analysis indicates that both the raw and the pressure adjusted water levels are almost in phase and retain the same amplitude in this area. It implies that the effect of pressure variations is not significant for the sea water and ground water level nearby; the astronomical tidal components, as expected, are the main factor causing fluctuation of ocean water and ground water levels in the Choshuihsi alluvial plain.     

Integrated Modular Modeling of Water and Nutrients From Point and Nonpoint Sources in the Patuxent River Watershed1

Abstract: We present a simple modular landscape simulation model that is based on a watershed modeling framework in which different sets of processes occurring in a watershed can be simulated separately with different models. The model consists of three loosely coupled submodels: a rainfall‐runoff model (TOPMODEL) for runoff generation in a subwatershed, a nutrient model for estimation of nutrients from nonpoint sources in a subwatershed, and a stream network model for integration of point and nonpoint sources in the routing process. The model performance was evaluated using monitoring data in the watershed of the Patuxent River, a tributary to the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, from July 1997 through August 1999. Despite its simplicity, the landscape model predictions of streamflow, and sediment and nutrient loads were as good as or better than those of the Hydrological Simulation Program‐Fortran model, one of the most widely used comprehensive watershed models. The landscape model was applied to predict discharges of water, sediment, silicate, organic carbon, nitrate, ammonium, organic nitrogen, total nitrogen, organic phosphorus, phosphate, and total phosphorus from the Patuxent watershed to its estuary. The predicted annual water discharge to the estuary was very close to the measured annual total in terms of percent errors for both years of the study period (≤2%). The model predictions for loads of nutrients were also good (20‐30%) or very good (<20%) with exceptions of sediment (40%), phosphate (36%), and organic carbon (53%) for Year 1.     

Human Instability in Flood Flows1

Abstract: Loss of human stability in flood flows and consequent drowning are a high personal hazard. In this paper, we review past experimental work on human instability. The results of new experiments by the Flood Hazard Research Centre (FHRC) are also reported. These new results show that low depth/high velocity flood waters are more dangerous than suggested based on previous experimental work. It is discussed how human instability can be related to two physical mechanisms: moment instability (toppling) and friction instability (sliding). Comparison of the test results with these physical mechanisms suggests that the occurrence of instability in the tests by FHRC is related to friction instability. This mechanism appears to occur earlier than moment instability for the combination of shallow depth and high flow velocity. Those concerned to identify locations where high flood flows could be a threat to human life need to modify their hazard assessments accordingly.