From revelation to revolution: apocalypticism in green politics

Apocalyptic narratives in green politics have provoked much controversy about questions of rhetoric and framing. Critics argue that constant warnings about impending environmental collapse demoralise and demobilise the public, while advocates argue that dire predictions embody a realism necessary if the radical collective action required for a green transition is to be taken. This is not just a debate about the tactics of presentation; at a substantive ideological level, the multilayered questions raised by apocalypticism cut to the heart of significant divisions in the green movement between radical and mainstream currents concerning their orientation to structures of political and economic power. Comparisons with the contested historical tradition of apocalyptics in Christian theology shed light upon the dynamic tensions between movement insurgency and institutionalisation. Apocalypticism has played a key role in framing the green critique of capitalist modernity and is intrinsically connected to the formulation of utopic alternatives. In both theory and practice, it remains the animating spirit of radical environmentalism.     

Methods for Determining Paniculate Mass and Size Properties: Laboratory and Field Measurements

No single particle size measuring device was found suitable in both the fine and ultrafine particle size regimes, however, combinations of devices have been used successfully. Methods of measurement and applications in the laboratory and field are discussed.     

Temperature and salinity effects on the toxicity of common pesticides to the grass shrimp,Palaemonetes pugio

This study investigated the effects of increased temperature and salinity, two potential impacts of global climate change, on the toxicity of two common pesticides to the estuarine grass shrimp, Palaemonetes pugio. Larval and adult grass shrimp were exposed to the fungicide chlorothalonil and the insecticide Scourge® under standard toxicity test conditions, a 10°C increase in temperature, a 10 ppt increase in salinity, and a combined increased temperature and salinity exposure. Toxicity of the fungicide chlorothalonil increased with temperature and salinity. Toxicity of the insecticide Scourge® also increased with temperature; while increased salinity reduced Scourge® toxicity, but only in adult shrimp. These findings suggest that changes in temperature and salinity may alter the toxicity of certain pesticides, and that the nature of the effect will depend on both the organism's life stage and the chemical contaminant. Standard toxicity bioassays may not be predictive of actual pesticide toxicity under variable environmental conditions, and testing under a wider range of exposure conditions could improve the accuracy of chemical risk assessments.     

Fabric Filter Technology for Utility Coal-Fired Power Plants

This is the third in a series of papers discussing the experience of electric utilities in applying baghouse technology for the collection of particulate matter at coal-fired electric power generating plants. The series presents new data obtained in research sponsored by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) on reverse-gas and shake/deflate cleaned baghouses, and specifically addresses a number of unresolved issues in the design and operation of these units. This paper provides an overview of the design and operating characteristics of baghouses now in place in the utility industry. In addition, it discusses three key issues in design and operation: the relationships among dust cake weight and chemical composition, air-to-cloth ratio, and pressure drop; fabric selection; and bag life.     

Are Toronto’s streams sick? A look at the fish and benthic invertebrate communities in the Toronto region in relation to the urban stream syndrome

Impacts of urbanization on aquatic ecosystems are intensifying as urban sprawl spreads across the global land base. The urban stream syndrome (USS) identifies “symptoms” associated with urban development including changes in biotic communities, hydrology, water chemistry, and channel morphology. Direct relationships between road density (as surrogate of urbanization) and indicators of the USS were identified for streams in the Toronto region. Significant negative relationships were revealed between road density and biological (fish and benthic macroinvertebrate) richness, diversity, and fish Index of Biotic Integrity scores. Significant positive relationships were found between road density and tolerant fish/benthic macroinvertbrates, benthos Family Biotic Index scores, mean summer stream temperature, stream flashiness, and several water quality variables. Analysis of biological data showed that only four fish species and a reduced number of benthic macroinvertebrate families remained at the most urbanized sites. Road density was found to be a major determinant in both the fish and benthic macroinvertebrate community structure.     

Improving the Evaluation of Conservation Programs

Abstract: The evaluation of conservation programs is rare but increasingly important in improving their effectiveness. Regular evaluations of conservation programs and the implementation of recommendations resulting from such assessments are infrequent because of resistance by participants and lack of funding. Evaluations may be internal or external, depending on the purpose of the review and how broadly it is focused. We strongly recommend external peer review of long-term complex conservation programs every 5 years, supported by more frequent (annual) internal reviews. Criteria for success must encompass both biological and social measures and include learning and the application of new knowledge to management. Evaluations must also go beyond monitoring to assess the value of the program. We emphasize the need to include the organization and function of a conservation program (the process) in any evaluation in addition to substantive criteria for success, which usually involve biological measures (numbers). A dysfunctional program organization and process can as effectively cripple a conservation effort as can a major biological catastrophe. We provide examples of different types of conservation program evaluations, including moderated workshops and case-study analysis, and provide advice on the logistics and organization of the review, emphasizing the importance of the evaluation process itself to a successful outcome. One important aspect of an evaluation is having an individual with leadership ability and considerable expertise to organize the format and oversee the review process itself. Second, it is essential at the outset to ensure agreement among the program participants and the review committee on the goals and objectives of the conservation program, what is to be evaluated, and the criteria for defining success. Finally, the best evaluations are inclusive and involve all participants and stakeholders.     

Feeding,starvation and metabolic rate in the shore crab Carcinus maenas

The relationship between food intake and metabolic rate (as measured by oxygen consumption) of Carcinus maenas (L.) was studied. The metabolic rate of feeding crabs which had been starved for a short period increased, and several days were required for it to return to its original level. During prolonged starvation, the metabolic rate of C. maenas fell in two stages. The first reduction was to about 60% of the feeding level; this occurred during the first week of starvation. There was then a further reduction to about 40% of the feeding level and, at this level of metabolism, the crabs were able to survive for 3 months, with only 50% mortality; most of this occurred in the last 2 weeks. Metabolic rate was found to affect food intake; crabs acclimated to 24°C took 2.4 times as much food as crabs acclimated to 10°C, although the metabolic levels of the two groups differed by a factor of only 1.4. From the results obtained when the crabs were starved and when starved crabs were fed, it is suggested that, during starvation, the metabolic rate of C. maenas first drops from the elevated feeding level to a level at which carbohydrate reserves are utilised, and subsequently to a minimum level at which lipid reserves and proteins are used.     

Residual gasoline saturation in unsaturated soil with and without organic matter

The goal of this study was to investigate the influence of one variable, natural organic matter, on residual gasoline saturation in sandy soils. Capillary pressure-saturation (P_c−S) relationships (air-gasoline) were determined for three physically-similar sandy soils, with different organic carbon contents (0.086%, 0.89% and 1.65%) and residual gasoline saturations were compared. Two initial moisture conditions, residual water saturation and air-dry, were evaluated. One soil type was packed to two different bulk densities. Visualization of the soils using cryo-scanning electron microscopy was performed to aid in better understanding the role of the organic matter in the soil. The results showed that soils with higher organic contents had higher residual gasoline saturations when starting with an initially air-dry soil. Increasing the bulk density of the same air-dried soil resulted in an increase in residual gasoline saturation. In the presence of a residual water saturation, however, residual gasoline saturations were virtually identical for the three soils and independent of bulk density; approximately 5–10 times lower than in soil that was initially air-dry. The presence of the residual water effectively coated the surface of the soil thereby reducing or eliminating gasoline/soil interactions. Some residual water may also be occupying very small pore spaces, making these locations inaccessible to the gasoline.     

Using the bootstrap and fast Fourier transform to estimate confidence intervals of 2D kernel densities

Kernel density estimators are often used to estimate the utilization distributions (UDs) of animals. Kernel UD estimates have a strong theoretical basis and perform well, but are usually reported without estimates of error or uncertainty. It is intuitively and theoretically appealing to estimate the sampling error in kernel UD estimates using bootstrapping. However, standard equations for kernel density estimates are complicated and computationally expensive. Bootstrapping requires computing hundreds or thousands of probability densities and is impractical when the number of observations, or the area of interest is large. We used the fast Fourier transform (FFT) and discrete convolution theorem to create a bootstrapping algorithm fast enough to run on commonly available desktop or laptop computers. Application of the FFT method to a large (n>20,000) set of radio telemetry data would provide a 99.6% reduction in computation time (i.e., 1.6 as opposed to 444 hours) for 1000 bootstrap UD estimates. Bootstrap error contours were computed using data from a radio-collared polar bear (Ursus maritimus) in the Beaufort Sea north of Alaska.