An implementation assessment of China’s Environmental InformationDisclosure Decree

China’s 2007 Open Government Information Regulations is widely considered as a milestone in the country’s information policyhistory and is praised as a “sunshine program”. The Environmental Information Disclosure Decree was the first to operationalizethese general regulations into a sectoral information disclosure system on environment. This study assessed the implementation of theenvironmental information disclosure system about six months after the Decree took e ect on May 1, 2008. Through reviewing thewebsites of all 31 provincial Environmental Protection Bureaus and the Ministry of Environmental Protection, conducting an experimentwith actual information disclosure request, and through interviews with all provincial Environmental Protection Bureaus, this articleconcluded that the implementation of the environmental information disclosure system still falls short. Future improvements shouldfocus on further publicity of the regulations and decree to enhance public participation, the establishment of an independent evaluationand supervision system for information disclosure, the exchange of experiences and best practices among provincial EnvironmentalProtection Bureaus, and on strengthening the legal status of environmental information disclosure.     

Soil sorption of acidic pesticides: modeling pH effects

A model of acidic pesticide sorption in soils was developed from theoretical modeling and experimental data, which initially considered a combination of a strongly acidic pesticide and a variable-charge soil with high clay content. Contribution of 2,4-D [(2,4-dichlorophenoxy) acetic acid] anionic-form sorption was small when compared with molecular sorption. Dissociation of 2,4-D was not sufficient to explain the variation in Kd as a function of pH. Accessibility of soil organic functional groups able to interact with the pesticide (conformational changes) as a function of organic matter dissociation was proposed to explain the observed differences in sorption. Experimental 2,4-D sorption data and K(oc) values from literature for flumetsulam [N-(2,6-difluorophenyl)-5-methyl [1,2,4] triazolo [1,5-a] pyrimidine-2-sulfonamide] and sulfentrazone [N-[2,4-dichloro-5-[4-(difluromethyl)-4,5-dihydro-3-methyl-5-oxo-1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-yl] phenyl] methanesulfonamide] in several soils fit the model.     

MODELING UPLAND EROSION1

ABSTRACT: We have developed a computer model of soil loss on an upland watershed from the continuity considerations for sediment transport and from equations describing rill and interrill erosion. The model is based on dividing the upland area into a grid containing rill and interill zones, on the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE), and on equations describing detachment and transport capacity of rill flow. The USLE estimates the sediment load from the contributing areas. The location and amount of total erosion and deposition are determined by comparing the transport and detachment capacity of rill flow for specific storms. The model considers the mechanics of erosion process and can serve as basis for reservoir and channel design and land use planning.     

Impact of Dredging on Phosphorus Transport in Agricultural Drainage Ditches of the Atlantic Coastal Plain1

Abstract: Drainage ditches can be a key conduit of phosphorus (P) between agricultural soils of the Atlantic Coastal Plain and local surface waters, including the Chesapeake Bay. This study sought to quantify the effect of a common ditch management practice, sediment dredging, on fate of P in drainage ditches. Sediments from two drainage ditches that had been monitored for seven years and had similar characteristics (flow, P loadings, sediment properties) were sampled (0‐5 cm) after one of the ditches had been dredged, which removed fine textured sediments (clay = 41%) with high organic matter content (85 g/kg) and exposed coarse textured sediments (clay = 15%) with low organic matter content (2.2 g/kg). Sediments were subjected to a three‐phase experiment (equilibrium, uptake, and release) in recirculating 10‐m‐long, 0.2‐m‐wide, and 5‐cm‐deep flumes to evaluate their role as sources and sinks of P. Under conditions of low initial P concentrations in flume water, sediments from the dredged ditch released 13 times less P to the water than did sediments from the ditch that had not been dredged, equivalent to 24 mg dissolved P. However, the sediments from the dredged ditch removed 19% less P (76 mg) from the flume water when it was spiked with dissolved P to approximate long‐term runoff concentrations. Irradiation of sediments to destroy microorganisms revealed that biological processes accounted for up to 30% of P uptake in the coarse textured sediments of the dredged ditch and 18% in the fine textured sediments of the undredged ditch. Results indicate that dredging of coastal plain drainage ditches can potentially impact the P buffering capacity of ditches draining agricultural soils with a high potential for P runoff.     

Political Modernization in China's Forest Governance? Payment Schemes for Forest Ecological Services in Liaoning

Payment for environmental services (PES) schemes are increasingly being introduced in developed and developing countries for the ecological conservation of forests also. Such payment schemes resemble a new mode of forest governance labelled political modernization, in which centralized and state-based command-and-control policies make room for market dynamics, non-state actors, and decentralization. In entering the new Millennium, China has massively started using payment schemes to conserve its forests. An analysis of the implementation of the Forest Ecological Benefit Compensation Fund Programme in Liaoning Province is used to investigate whether China's PES schemes resemble notions of political modernization. It is concluded that Liaoning Province introduced market dynamics and farmer participation in the implementation of its PES scheme, but in a way different from that theorized by political modernization scholars. Hence, it should rather be seen as a ‘Chinese style’ political modernization process.     

Regulatory aspects

Summary At this time, there is no US legislation that is specifically aimed at regulating the environmental release of genetically engineered organisms or their modified components, either during the research and development stage or during application. There are some statutes, administered by several federal agencies, whose language is broad enough to allow the extension of intended coverage to include certain aspects of biotechnology. The one possible exception is FIFRA, which has already brought about the registration of several natural microbial pesticides but which also has provision for requiring the registration of strain improved microbial pesticides. Nevertheless, there may be gaps in coverage even if all pertinent statutes were to be actively applied to the control of environmental release of genetically modified substances. The decision to regulate biotechnology under TSCA was justified, in part, on the basis of its intended role as a gap-filling piece of environmental legislation. The advantage of regulating biotechnology under TSCA is that this statute, unlike others, is concerned with all media of exposure (air, water, soil, sediment, biota) that may pose health and environmental hazards. Experience may show that extending existing legislation to regulate biotechnology is a poor compromise compared to the promulgation of new legislation specifically designed for this purpose. It appears that many other countries are ultimately going to take the latter course to regulate biotechnology.