Financing Marine Protected Areas Through Visitor Fees: Insights from Tourists Willingness to Pay in Chile

Tourism is a financing mechanism considered by many donor-funded marine conservation initiatives. Here we assess the potential role of visitor entry fees, in generating the necessary revenue to manage a marine protected area (MPA), established through a Global Environmental Facility Grant, in a temperate region of Chile. We assess tourists’ willingness to pay (WTP) for an entry fee associated to management and protection of the MPA. Results show 97 % of respondents were willing to pay an entrance fee. WTP predictors included the type of tourist, tourists’ sensitivity to crowding, education, and understanding of ecological benefits of the MPA. Nature-based tourists state median WTP values of US$ 4.38 and Sun-sea-sand tourists US$ 3.77. Overall, entry fees could account for 10–13 % of MPA running costs. In Chile, where funding for conservation runs among the weakest in the world, visitor entry fees are no panacea in the short term and other mechanisms, including direct state/government support, should be considered.     

风速对自然通风型人工湿地氧传质速率及污染物去除效果的影响

系统地研究了拔风管式自然通风型人工湿地(naturally-ventilated constructed wetland, CW_NV)在不同风速(u≤4.0 m·s⁻¹)条件下的氧传质速率(oxygen transfer rate, OTR)以及对有机物、氮、磷的去除效果。结果表明,外部空气可通过拔风管上的孔口有效地扩散并溶解到湿地内部。与无通风CW系统(CW₀)相比,CW_NV内部OTR(61.38~78.30 g·(m³·d)⁻¹)较CW₀高出19.3%~33.5%,从而强化了CW_NV中氨化、硝化和有机物好氧降解等过程。CW_NV内NH₃-N和COD的去除负荷分别为2.84~4.57 g·(m³·d)⁻¹和45.0~56.6 g·(m³·d)⁻¹,较CW₀分别提高了90.5%~119.6%和11.9%~23.2%。CW_NV出水中硝酸盐浓度为1.10~10.39 mg·L⁻¹,而CW₀出水中硝酸盐浓度仅为0.41~0.91 mg·L⁻¹。在适宜的风速条件下,湿地中可同时存在好氧与缺氧/厌氧环境,这既利于硝化作用又利于反硝化作用,从而可使湿地获得较好的TN去除效果。当风速u≤1.0 m·s⁻¹时,CW_NV系统中TN去除负荷6.70~6.77 g·(m³·d)⁻¹,较CW₀系统高出17.2%~23.1%。但是,自然通风对于TP去除效果的提高十分有限,仅能提高2.4%~4.8%的TP去除率。此外,CW_NV系统中风速与OTR、COD、NH₃-N和TN的去除负荷及其降解速率常数之间的关系符合二次方程。     

Über ein langlebiges Zwischenprodukt der photochemischen Reaktion zwischen Jod und Oxalat

The Science of Nature -     

An interlaboratory comparison of sediment elutriate preparation and toxicity test methods

Elutriate bioassays are among numerous methods that exist for assessing the potential toxicity of sediments in aquatic systems. In this study, interlaboratory results were compared from 96-h Ceriodaphnia dubia and Pimephales promelas static-renewal acute toxicity tests conducted independently by two laboratories using elutriate samples prepared from the same sediment. The goal of the study was to determine if the results from the elutriate tests were comparable between two U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) laboratories when different elutriate preparation procedures were employed by each lab. Complete agreement in site characterization was attained in 22 of the 25 samples for both bioassays amongst each lab. Of the 25 samples analyzed, 10 were found to be toxic to at least one of the species tested by either laboratory. The C. dubia elutriate tests conducted by the National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) indicated that 7 of the 25 sediment samples were toxic, while 8 sediment samples were characterized as such in testing conducted by USEPA Region 6 (Region 6). The P. promelas elutriate tests conducted by NERL determined 8 samples as toxic, while Region 6 tests displayed toxicity in 5 of the samples. McNemar's test of symmetry for C. dubia (S?=?0.33, p?=?0.5637) and P. promelas (S?=?3.0, p?=?0.0833) tests indicated no significant differences in designating a site toxic between NERL and Region 6 laboratories. Likewise, Cohen's kappa test revealed significant agreement between NERL and Region 6 C. dubia (K?=?0.7148, p?<?0.01) and P. promelas (K?=?0.6939, p?<?0.01) elutriate tests. The authors conclude that differences in interlaboratory elutriate preparation procedures have no bearing on the ability of either the C. dubia or P. promelas bioassay testing methods to detect toxicity while yielding similar results.     

Oxygen isotope fractionation between bird bone phosphate and drinking water

Oxygen isotope compositions of bone phosphate (δ¹⁸O_p) were measured in broiler chickens reared in 21 farms worldwide characterized by contrasted latitudes and local climates. These sedentary birds were raised during an approximately 3 to 4-month period, and local precipitation was the ultimate source of their drinking water. This sampling strategy allowed the relationship to be determined between the bone phosphate δ¹⁸O_p values (from 9.8 to 22.5‰ V-SMOW) and the local rainfall δ¹⁸O_w values estimated from nearby IAEA/WMO stations (from ?16.0 to ?1.0‰ V-SMOW). Linear least square fitting of data provided the following isotopic fractionation equation: δ¹⁸O_w = 1.119 (±0.040) δ¹⁸O_p ? 24.222 (±0.644); R ² = 0.98. The δ¹⁸O_p–δ¹⁸O_w couples of five extant mallard ducks, a common buzzard, a European herring gull, a common ostrich, and a greater rhea fall within the predicted range of the equation, indicating that the relationship established for extant chickens can also be applied to birds of various ecologies and body masses. Applied to published oxygen isotope compositions of Miocene and Pliocene penguins from Peru, this new equation computes estimates of local seawater similar to those previously calculated. Applied to the basal bird Confuciusornis from the Early Cretaceous of Northeastern China, our equation gives a slightly higher δ¹⁸O_w value compared to the previously estimated one, possibly as a result of lower body temperature. These data indicate that caution should be exercised when the relationship estimated for modern birds is applied to their basal counterparts that likely had a metabolism intermediate between that of their theropod dinosaur ancestors and that of advanced ornithurines.     

The influence of natural stressors on the toxicity of nickel to <Emphasis Type="Italic">Daphnia magna</Emphasis>

Global warming has become a source of awareness regarding the potential deleterious effects of extreme abiotic factors (e.g., temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO) levels) and also their influence on chemicals toxicity. In this work, we studied the combined effects of nickel and temperature (low and high levels) and nickel and low levels of DO to Daphnia magna, and concentration addition and independent action concepts as well as their deviations for synergism/antagonism, dose ratio and dose level dependency, were applied to survival and feeding rate data. Nickel single exposure showed an LC₅₀ value for 48 h of 7.36 mg l⁻¹ and an EC₅₀ value for feeding impairment at 2.41 mg l⁻¹. In the acute exposures to high and low temperatures, 50% of mortality was observed, respectively, at 30.7°C and 4.2°C whereas 50% reduction on the feeding activity was recorded at 22.6°C and 16.0°C. Relatively to low DO levels, a LC₅₀ value for 48 h of 0.5 mg l⁻¹ was obtained; feeding activity EC₅₀ value was 2 mg l⁻¹. On acute combined experiments, antagonism was observed for the combination of nickel and extreme temperatures, whereas a synergistic behaviour was observed in the combined exposure of nickel and low DO levels. At sublethal levels, nickel showed to be the main inducer of toxicity at high and low temperatures but not at low levels of dissolved oxygen. Toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics modelling studies should be made in the future to understand the toxicological pathways involved on complex combinations of stressors and to validate any conclusions.     

Photodegradation of an azo dye of the textile industry

An advanced oxidation treatment, UV/H2O2, was applied to an azo dye, Hispamin Black CA, widely used in the Peruvian textile industry. Rates of color removal and degradation of the dye have been evaluated. A strongly absorbing solution was completely decolorized after 35 min of treatment, and after 60 min an 82% reduction of the total organic carbon (TOC) was obtained. It has been found that the degradation rate increased until an optimum value, beyond which the reagent exerted an inhibitory effect. The degradation rate was also function of pH.     

Process safety challenges for SMEs in China

While process safety regulations and standards have been in place in western countries for more than two decades, China has only recently started to officially embrace these issues with the adoption of its Process Safety Management (PSM) regulation AQ/T 3034-2010 (SAWS, 2010). However, compliance with this regulatory framework requires substantial resources and may therefore appear too complex to be efficiently implemented by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the chemical sector. This is of particular relevance as about 99% of chemical companies in China are SMEs, accounting for more than 80% of all chemical accidents. To address this issue, additional local regulations and planning activities related to process safety have been implemented in China, including the establishment of hundreds of chemical industry parks. Some of the process safety problems faced by chemical industry parks are identified and discussed in this paper. To help solve these problems, UNEP's “Responsible Production approach for Chemical Hazards Management along the Value-Chain” is introduced in this paper and suggested as a simplified PSM approach targeted specifically at SMEs which, regardless of handling hazardous chemicals in their daily operations, may not have the knowledge or capacity to efficiently implement PSM and may not fall in the scope of the PSM regulation AQ/T 3034-2010. By introducing PSM to SMEs in a more manageable way, relevant steps can be progressively implemented by companies towards full compliance with the current regulatory framework, contributing to increased safety in chemical industry parks in China.     

Atmospheric carbonaceous aerosols over grasslands of central Europe and a Boreal forest

A labour-intensive analytical technique was applied to atmospheric particulate matter samples collected in a German urban/industrial influenced grassland location (Melpitz) and in a Finnish forest area (Hyyti?l?) in order to achieve a detailed chemical speciation of the organic content. The representative nature of the solvent and water-extractable fractions was determined. The organic compounds identified in the solvent extracts are represented by primary compounds with both anthropogenic and biogenic origin, which mainly derive from the vegetation waxes and from petrogenic sources. Secondary products resulting from the oxidation of volatile organic compounds were also detected. The German meadow presented the highest levels of sugars and acidic compounds in the water extracts, whilst polyols were the most abundant class in the Finnish forest. The major compounds of these classes were malic acid, mannitol, arabitol, glucose and sucrose. Levoglucosan was also found in the water extract.     

Nonlinear effects of food aggregation on interference competition in mallards

Previous studies of interference competition have shown an asymmetric effect on intake rate of foragers on clumped resources, with only subordinate individuals suffering. However, the food distributions in these studies were uniform or highly clumped, whereas in many field situations, food aggregation is intermediate. Here we investigated whether food distribution (i.e., uniform, slightly clumped, and highly clumped) affects the behavioral response of mallards foraging alone or competing with another. Although the amount of food was the same in all distributions, the mallards reached higher intake rates, visited fewer patches, and showed longer average feeding times in the highly clumped distribution. Competing mallards had lower intake rates on the slightly clumped than on the uniform or highly clumped food distributions. Subordinates generally visited more patches and had shorter feeding times per patch, but their intake rates were not significantly lower than those of dominants. Therefore, we propose that subordinates do not necessarily suffer from interference competition in terms of intake rate, but do suffer higher search costs. In addition, although dominants had significantly higher average feeding times on the best quality patches of the highly clumped food distribution, such an effect was not found in the slightly clumped distribution. These findings indicate that in environments where food is aggregated to a lesser extent, monopolization is not the best strategy for dominants. Our results suggest that interference experiments should use food distributions that resemble the natural situation animals are faced with in the field.