Seeing the environment through islamic eyes: Application ofShariah to natural resources planning and management

A comprehensive paradigm of environmental ethics should encompass two things: (1) a particular way of life, and (2) a path to achieve that ideal. An effective paradigm must also be internally consistent, yet externally workable in the real world. On the whole, the modern environmental movement has failed to provide these essential components and qualities in its associated philosophies, most of which suffer from being too abstract or too utopian.This paper suggests that Islam, as a religion and as a body of knowledge, is capable of providing its followers with a comprehensive and practical system of environmental ethics. The basic principles and guidelines of the faith represent the conceptual ideal, while Islamic institutions and laws provide the operational components of an ethical system.     

INTEGRATED ECHO SOUNDER,GPS, AND GIS FOR RESERVOIR SEDIMENTATION STUDIES: EXAMPLES FROM TWO ARKANSAS LAKES1

ABSTRACT: Bathymetric and sedimentation surveys were conducted using a dual frequency (28/200 kHz) echo sounder system in two reservoirs (Lee Creek Reservoir and Lake Shepherd Springs) in the Ozark Plateau of northwestern Arkansas. Echo sounder survey data were merged within geographic information system (GIS) software to provide detailed visualization and analyses of current depths, pre‐impoundment topography, distribution, thickness, and volume estimates of lacustrine sediment, time averaged sediment accumulation rates, long term average annual sediment flux, and water storage capacity. Calculated long term average sediment accumulation rates were used to model sediment infilling and projected lifetimes of each reservoir. Results from echo sounder surveys and GIS analyses suggest that the Lee Creek Reservoir has a projected lifetime of approximately 500 years compared to a projected lifetime for Lake Shepherd Springs of approximately 3,000 years. Estimated differences in projected lifetimes of these reservoirs reflected differences in initial reservoir volume and long term average annual sediment flux from the respective watersheds related to watershed area, physiography, land cover, and land use. The universal soil loss equation (USLE) model generated sediment fluxes an order of magnitude larger from the watersheds of both reservoirs compared to the geophysical data estimates. This study demonstrated the utility of merging geophysical survey (echo sounder) data within a GIS as an aid to understanding patterns of reservoir sedimentation. These data and analyses also provide a baseline relevant to understanding sedimentation processes and are necessary for development of long term management plans for these reservoirs and their watersheds.     

Sources of lead and zinc associated with metal smelting activities in the Trail area,British Columbia,Canada

The spatial distribution and deposition of lead and zinc emitted from the Trail smelter, British Columbia, Canada, was studied by strategically locating moss bags in the area surrounding the smelter and monitoring the deposition of elements every three months. A combined diffusion/distribution model was applied to estimate the relative contribution of stack-emitted material and material emitted from the secondary sources (e.g., wind-blown dust from ore/slag storage piles, uncovered transportation/trucking of ore, and historical dust). The results indicate that secondary sources are the major contributor of lead and zinc deposited within a short distance from the smelter. Gradually, the stack emissions become the main source of Pb and Zn at greater distances from the smelter. Typical material originating from each source was characterized by SEM/EDX, which indicated a marked difference in their morphology and chemical composition.     

航天继电器用AgCuONiO电接触材料的电寿命服役性能研究

目的 探究一种可替代AgCdO的高性能且环境友好的新型电接触材料,以提升航天继电器的可靠性。方法 在一定条件下以合金内氧化法制备AgCuONiO电接触材料,并与商用AgCdO电接触材料进行对比,利用电寿命模拟试验分析2款材料的电寿命循环服役性能,分析其失效机理。结果 AgCuONiO材料的总质量损失为0.000 88 g,平均燃弧时间、燃弧能量、熔焊力、回跳次数、回跳时间、回跳能量分别为4 222μs、694 mJ、0.049 N、1.799次、592.999μs、63.892 mJ,均大于商用AgCdO电接触材料,但其接触电阻低,且稳定,失效模式为无法分断电弧,而商用AgCdO电接触材料为粘连失效。AgCuONiO电接触材料的电寿命服役周期为44073次,是AgCdO电接触材料的3倍左右,因此可以显著提高航天继电器的可靠性。结论AgCuONiO电接触材料的一些电寿命服役性能虽然不如商用AgCdO电接触材料,但其电寿命服役周期明显强于商用Ag Cd O电接触材料,可作为替代AgCdO的较佳候选材料之一,应用于服役寿命要求更长的航天继电器。     

Environmental impacts of land management on the sustainability of natural resources in Oriental Erg Tunisia,North Africa

Environment, Development and Sustainability - In southwestern Tunisia, the intense exploitation of the natural resources (soil, water, hydrocarbons, etc.) bears unrecoverable consequences on the...     

Climate change and disaster management

Climate change, although a natural phenomenon, is accelerated by human activities. Disaster policy response to climate change is dependent on a number of factors, such as readiness to accept the reality of climate change, institutions and capacity, as well as willingness to embed climate change risk assessment and management in development strategies. These conditions do not yet exist universally. A focus that neglects to enhance capacity-building and resilience as a prerequisite for managing climate change risks will, in all likelihood, do little to reduce vulnerability to those risks. Reducing vulnerability is a key aspect of reducing climate change risk. To do so requires a new approach to climate change risk and a change in institutional structures and relationships. A focus on development that neglects to enhance governance and resilience as a prerequisite for managing climate change risks will, in all likelihood, do little to reduce vulnerability to those risks.     

Determination of some heavy metals levels in the meat of animal species (sheep,beef, turkey,and ostrich) and carcinogenic health risk assessment in Kurdistan province in the west of Iran

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Heavy metals accumulation in food products as a result of industrialization is one of the main potential threats to public health. This study was...     

Understanding the patterns and processes underlying water quality and pollution risk in West–Africa River using self-organizing maps and multivariate analyses

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Rivers are dynamic systems in complex interactions with their surrounding environments. Reliable and fast interpretation of water quality is therefore...     

Protection of wetlands as a strategy for reducing the spread of avian influenza from migratory waterfowl

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 has led to the death or destruction of millions of domesticated and wild birds and caused hundreds of human deaths worldwide. As with other HPAIs, H5N1 outbreaks among poultry have generally been caused by contact with infected migratory waterfowl at the interface of wildlands and human-dominated landscapes. Using a case–control epidemiological approach, we analyzed the relation between habitat protection and H5N1 outbreaks in China from 2004 to 2017. We found that while proximity to unprotected waterfowl habitats and rice paddy generally increased outbreak risk, proximity to the most highly protected habitats (e.g., Ramsar-designated lakes and wetlands) had the opposite effect. Protection likely involves two mechanisms: the separation of wild waterfowl and poultry populations and the diversion of wild waterfowl from human-dominated landscapes toward protected natural habitats. Wetland protection could therefore be an effective means to control avian influenza while also contributing to avian conservation.