Monitoring the Environment: Taking a Historical Perspective

This paper introduces the five papers that follow, all of which were originally presented at a workshop titled Monitoring the Environment: Scales, Methods, and Systems in Historical Perspective. The workshop, sponsored by the Society for the History of Technology and the American Society for Environmental History, examined past efforts to develop tools, methods, and systems for measuring or monitoring some aspect of the physical environment. Four of the papers included here focus on various aspects of air quality monitoring; the fifth has to do with monitoring the earth from space. Despite differences in time period and approach, each article examines how specific tools and methods – and the motivations for developing those tools and methods – evolved. Among other things, these papers make clear that systems for monitoring various aspects of the physical environment are shaped by a variety of stakeholders and suggest that efforts to construct such systems should not be viewed as a purely technical task.     

Evaluation of phosphorus loads from Ontario municipal wastewater treatment plants

Results are presented from an evaluation of the nature and accuracy of phosphorus loads discharged by Ontario municipal wastewater treatment plants into the Great Lakes. Data were examined for the 96 plants treating flows in excess of 4546 m³d^-1 for the period 1981 to 1985. For the Lake Erie, Lake Ontario/St. Lawrence River and Upper Great Lakes basins, total basin phosphorus loads were classified according to type of wastewater treatment system, the type of chemical added for phosphorus removal, plant capacity, and sampling frequency. Load estimation techniques were compared using the 1985 daily data from three representative treatment plants. Annual phosphorus loads were compared using the complete data records for the plants and using Monte Carlo techniques to simulate an incomplete data record typical of once per week effluent phosphorus sampling. Potential sources of bias were identified in annual phosphorus load estimates from municipal treatment plants.     

The chemistry of the Beavon sulfur removal process

The Beavon Sulfur Removal Process (BSRP) removes essentially all of the sulfur compounds from Claus plant tail gases. The sulfur containing compounds, such as hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, carbonyl sulfide and carbon disulfide, are converted to sulfur in over 99.9% efficiency. The BSRP consists of two stages. In the first stage the various sulfur compounds are either hydrogenated or hydrolyzed to give hydrogen sulfide while in the second stage the hydrogen sulfide is oxidized using the Stretford process to give elemental sulfur of good quality. The process is a commercial success with 29 plants operating or under construction in the United States and 4 in Japan. This process can also be utilized in Synthetic Natural Gas plants, natural gas processing, and other similar applications.     

Governing the ungovernable? Reflections on informal gemstone mining in high-altitude borderlands of Gilgit-Baltistan,Pakistan

The ethnically diverse high-altitude region of Gilgit-Baltistan, with its complex political history, remains relatively free from the controlling gaze of the central state apparatus of Pakistan. In these extraordinary terrain, where local communities rule the region as the “State by proxy”, informal gemstone mining provides an important supplement to livelihoods. This paper shows that gemstone mining in Gilgit-Baltistan is characterised by customary rules and regulations that are based on collective responsibility, and members follow customary authorities because they are not external to the community. It argues that the very idea of centralised “governance” of mineral resources, used widely in contexts of resource extraction as the panacea, needs to be reconsidered when dealing with the particularities of the context. It draws on the concept of ungovernability to underline the fact that sometimes it may simply be impossible to administer informal mining in the conventional sense of the term. It suggests in conclusion that informal mining, which has a long history in Pakistan and has played an increasing role as a source of rural employment and revenue, needs to be accommodated within the legal framework of mining. More importantly, to govern informal mining of gemstones, the first task would be to consider how things are currently done, understanding and respecting customary laws, and build upon them to incorporate their elements into systems that acknowledge community rights and a more equitable sharing of benefits.     

A Method for Setting the Size of Plant Conservation Target Areas

Abstract: Realistic time frames in which management decisions are made often preclude the completion of the detailed analyses necessary for conservation planning. Under these circumstances, efficient alternatives may assist in approximating the results of more thorough studies that require extensive resources and time. We outline a set of concepts and formulas that may be used in lieu of detailed population viability analyses and habitat modeling exercises to estimate the protected areas required to provide desirable conservation outcomes for a suite of threatened plant species. We used expert judgment of parameters and assessment of a population size that results in a specified quasiextinction risk based on simple dynamic models. The area required to support a population of this size is adjusted to take into account deterministic and stochastic human influences, including small-scale disturbance, deterministic trends such as habitat loss, and changes in population density through processes such as predation and competition. We set targets for different disturbance regimes and geographic regions. We applied our methods to Banksia cuneata, Boronia keysii, and Parsonsia dorrigoensis, resulting in target areas for conservation of 1102, 733, and 1084 ha, respectively. These results provide guidance on target areas and priorities for conservation strategies.     

Manganese nodules and marine technology

This article examines the problems and prospects of manganese nodule mining. The technological requirements for the exploitation of nodule deposits are considered, superimposed on an interdisciplinary policy-oriented approach. The technological dimension is emphasized because its crucial importance is often underrated when deep ocean mining is assessed. This dimension cannot be divorced from the interactions between economics, international law and oceanography. The technological problems and opportunities of nodule mining are diverse. Provided delays at the UN and economic uncertainties do not channel some of the interest into land-based alternatives, this could be an important area of future technical development.     

Tyrannical Spaces: young people, bullying and urban neighbourhoods

We consider the street experiences of a group of urban children living in a large East Midlands town in the UK. Our attention focuses upon an issue that has seldom been examined, neighbourhood bullying. We highlight how some children, through their propinquity within neighbourhood spaces, clash and collide to such an extent that their experiences of a locality become severely blighted. For these unfortunate young people local environments are tyrannical spaces, defined in terms of 'no-go areas', danger and threat. These are not remarkable geographies, however, and we suggest that like many school environments, where bullying has increasingly been recognised and disclosed, within many localities there is a 'hidden' geography of fear waiting to be uncovered. The paper is organised into five parts: first, we briefly examine the concept of bullying, particularly in relation to young people in schools; secondly, we extend these ideas into a neighbourhood context drawing upon recent ideas of 'self', 'other' and microgeographies; thirdly, we outline the research project from which this article emerges; fourthly, we look at some empirical evidence from an urban case study that draws attention to the form and consequences of neighbourhood bullying; lastly, we discuss the relevance of these findings to future policy and practice, particularly in relation to the management of neighbourhood spaces. We propose that systematically applied local strategies to tackle bullying within neighbourhoods are needed, particularly those which engage young people and adults together through a whole community approach.