Building Co-Management as a Process: Problem Solving Through Partnerships in Aboriginal Country, Australia

Collaborative problem solving has increasingly become important in the face of the complexities in the management of resources, including protected areas. The strategy undertaken by Girringun Aboriginal Corporation in north tropical Queensland, Australia, for developing co-management demonstrates the potential for a problem solving approach involving sequential initiatives, as an alternative to the more familiar negotiated agreements for co-management. Our longitudinal case study focuses on the development of indigenous ranger units as a strategic mechanism for the involvement of traditional owners in managing their country in collaboration with government and other interested parties. This was followed by Australia's first traditional use of marine resources agreement, and development of a multi-jurisdictional, land to sea, indigenous protected area. In using a relationship building approach to develop regional scale co-management, Girringun has been strengthening its capabilities as collaborator and regional service provider, thus, bringing customary decision-making structures into play to 'care for country'. From this evolving process we have identified the key components of a relationship building strategy, 'the pillars of co-management'. This approach includes learning-by-doing, the building of respect and rapport, sorting out responsibilities, practical engagement, and capacity-building.     

PBDE flame retardants and PCBs in migrating Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) in the Strait of Georgia, British Columbia, Canada

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were measured in blubber biopsy samples from 22 live-captured Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) that had just entered the Strait of Georgia, British Columbia, Canada, for their overwintering feeding season. ∑PBDE ranged from 50 μg kg⁻¹ (lipid weight) in adult females to 3780 μg kg⁻¹ in subadult individuals. ∑PCBs ranged from 272 μg kg⁻¹ in adult females to 14 280 μg kg⁻¹ in subadult individuals. While most PBDE and PCB congeners were transferred through milk to pups, PCBs with log K_OW > 7.0 (PCBs 206, 207, 208 and 209) appeared constrained, resulting in a lighter mixture in pups compared to adult females. The ratio of individual PCB congeners by metabolic group (Groups I, II, III, IV and V) to PCB-153 regressed against length of males suggested poor biotransformation of these compounds (slopes did not differ from zero, p > 0.05). PBDE congeners 49, 99, 153 and 183 appeared bioaccumulative (slopes of ratio BDE/PCB 153 versus length were higher than zero, p < 0.05), but the dominance of the single congener, BDE-47 (64% of total PBDEs), likely due in part to debromination pathways, reduced our ability to explore congener-specific dynamics of PBDEs in these pinnipeds. With 80% of our Steller sea lions exceeding a recent toxicity reference value for PCBs, the fasting-associated mobilization of these contaminants raises concerns about a heightened vulnerability to adverse effects during annual migrations.     

A prediction-based approach to modelling temporal and spatial variability of traffic-related air pollution in Montreal, Canada

Concentrations of traffic-related air pollution can be highly variable at the local scale and can have substantial seasonal variability. This study was designed to provide estimates of intra-urban concentrations of ambient nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) in Montreal, Canada, that would be used subsequently in health studies of chronic diseases and long-term exposures to traffic-related air pollution. We measured concentrations of NO₂ at 133 locations in Montreal with passive diffusion samplers in three seasons during 2005 and 2006. We then used land use regression, a proven statistical prediction method for describing spatial patterns of air pollution, to develop separate estimates of spatial variability across the city by regressing NO₂ against available land-use variables in each of these three periods. We also developed a “pooled” model across these sampling periods to provide an estimate of an annual average. Our modelling strategy was to develop a predictive model that maximized the model R². This strategy is different from other strategies whose goal is to identify causal relationships between predictors and concentrations of NO₂.Observed concentrations of NO₂ ranged from 2.6 ppb to 31.5 ppb, with mean values of 12.6 ppb in December 2005, 14.0 ppb in May 2006, and 8.9 ppb in August 2006. The greatest variability was observed during May. Concentrations of NO₂ were highest downtown and near major highways, and they were lowest in the western part of the city. Our pooled model explained approximately 80% of the variability in concentrations of NO₂. Although there were differences in concentrations of NO₂ between the three sampling periods, we found that the spatial variability did not vary significantly across the three sampling periods and that the pooled model was representative of mean annual spatial patterns.     

Spatial and temporal variations in traffic-related particulate matter at New York City high schools

Relatively little is known about exposures to traffic-related particulate matter at schools located in dense urban areas. The purpose of this study was to examine the influences of diesel traffic proximity and intensity on ambient concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) and black carbon (BC), an indicator of diesel exhaust particles, at New York City (NYC) high schools. Outdoor PM_2.5 and BC were monitored continuously for 4–6 weeks at each of 3 NYC schools and 1 suburban school located 40 km upwind of the city. Traffic count data were obtained using an automated traffic counter or video camera. BC concentrations were 2–3 fold higher at urban schools compared with the suburban school, and among the 3 urban schools, BC concentrations were higher at schools located adjacent to highways. PM_2.5 concentrations were significantly higher at urban schools than at the suburban school, but concentrations did not vary significantly among urban schools. Both hourly average counts of trucks and buses and meteorological factors such as wind direction, wind speed, and humidity were significantly associated with hourly average ambient BC and PM_2.5 concentrations in multivariate regression models. An increase of 443 trucks/buses per hour was associated with a 0.62 μg/m³ increase in hourly average BC at an NYC school located adjacent to a major interstate highway. Car traffic counts were not associated with BC. The results suggest that local diesel vehicle traffic may be important sources of airborne fine particles in dense urban areas and consequently may contribute to local variations in PM_2.5 concentrations. In urban areas with higher levels of diesel traffic, local, neighborhood-scale monitoring of pollutants such as BC, which compared to PM_2.5, is a more specific indicator of diesel exhaust particles, may more accurately represent population exposures.     

CO2 storage and enhanced coalbed methane recovery: Reservoir characterization and fluid flow simulations of the Big George coal,Powder River Basin,Wyoming, USA

Coalbeds are an attractive geological environment for storage of carbon dioxide (CO₂) because CO₂ is retained in the coal as an adsorbed phase and the cost of injection can be offset by enhanced coalbed methane (ECBM) production. This paper presents the findings of a CO₂ storage feasibility study on coalbeds in the Wyodak-Anderson coal zone of the Powder River Basin, Wyoming, USA, using reservoir characterization and fluid flow simulations. A 3D numerical model of the Big George coal was constructed using geostatistical techniques, with values of cleat and matrix permeability and porosity constrained through history-matching of production data from coalbed methane (CBM) wells in the field area.Following history-matching, several ECBM and CO₂ storage scenarios were investigated: shrinkage and swelling of the coal was either allowed or disallowed, a horizontal hydraulic fracture was either placed at the injection well or removed from the model, the number of model layers was varied between 1 and 24, and the permeability and porosity fields were constructed to be either homogeneous or heterogeneous in accordance with geostatistical models of regional variability. All simulations assumed that the injected gas was 100% CO₂ and that the coalbed was overlain by an impermeable caprock. Depending on the scenario, the simulations predicted that after 13 years of CO₂ injection, the cumulative methane production would be enhanced by a factor of 1.5–5. Including coal matrix shrinkage and swelling in the model predicted swelling near the injection well, which resulted in a slight reduction (10%) in injection rate. However, including a horizontal hydraulic fracture in the model at the base of the injection well helped mitigate the negative effect of swelling on injection rate. It was also found that six model layers were needed to have sufficient resolution in the vertical direction to account for the buoyancy effects between the gas and resident water, and that capturing the heterogeneous nature of the coal permeability and porosity fields predicted lower estimates of the storage capacity of the Wyodak-Anderson coal zone.After noting that gravity and buoyancy were the major driving forces behind gas flow within the Big George coal, several leakage scenarios were also investigated, in an effort to better understand the interplay between diffusion and flow properties on the transport and storage of CO₂. The modeling predicted that the upward migration of gas due to the buoyancy effect was faster than the diffusion of CO₂ and therefore the gas rapidly rose to the top of the coalbed and migrated into overlying strata when an impermeable caprock was not included in the model.     

Hydrology of Clay Settling Areas and Surrounding Landscapes in the Phosphate Mining District,Peninsular Florida1

Abstract: The objective of this study was to use applied and naturally occurring geochemical tracers to study the hydrology of clay settling areas (CSAs) and the hydrological connectivity between CSAs and surrounding hydrological landscapes. The study site is located on the Fort Meade Mine in Polk County, Florida. The CSA has a well‐developed, subangular‐blocky, clay‐rich surface layer with abundant desiccation cracks and other macropores, and a massive, clay‐rich sublayer that is saturated below ～1.0‐2.5 m. A bromide tracer was applied to study hydrological processes in the upper part of the CSA. Bromide infiltrated rapidly and perched on a massive, clay‐rich sublayer. Bromide concentrations decreased in the upper part of the profile without being transported vertically down through the lower part of the profile suggesting that bromide was lost to lateral rather than to vertical transport. Infiltration and lateral flow were rapid suggesting that preferential flow through desiccation cracks and other macropores likely dominates flow in the upper part of the CSA. Naturally occurring solute and stable isotope tracers were used to study the hydrological connectivity between the CSA and the surrounding hydrological landscape. Three‐end mass‐balance mixing model results indicate that shallow and/or deep CSA water can be found in all downgradient waters and must be as much as ～50% of some downgradient waters. Discharge from the CSA to the surrounding surface water‐bodies and surficial aquifer occurs laterally through the berms and/or vertically through the massive, clay‐rich sublayer. However, the precise flow paths from the CSA to the surrounding hydrological landscape are unclear and the fluxes remain unquantified, so the precise effects of CSAs on the hydrology of the surrounding hydrological landscape also remain unquantified.     

Geographic distribution of selected elements in the livers of polar bears from Greenland, Canada and the United States

To assess geographic distributions of elements in the Arctic we compared essential and non-essential elements in the livers of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) collected from five regions within Canada in 2002, in Alaska between 1994 and 1999 and from the northwest and east coasts of Greenland between 1988 and 2000. As, Hg, Pb and Se varied with age, and Co and Zn with gender, which limited spatial comparisons across all populations to Cd, which was highest in Greenland bears. Collectively, geographic relationships appeared similar to past studies with little change in concentration over time in Canada and Greenland for most elements; Hg and Se were higher in some Canadian populations in 2002 as compared to 1982 and 1984. Concentrations of most elements in the polar bears did not exceed toxicity thresholds, although Cd and Hg exceeded levels correlated with the formation of hepatic lesions in laboratory animals.     

Challenges in understanding the sources of bioaccumulated metals in biota inhabiting turbid river systems

Bioaccumulation of As, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn by Macrobrachium prawns was observed to occur in the Strickland River downstream of a gold mine at Porgera, Papua New Guinea. This was despite the total metal concentrations of waters and sediments indicating no difference from reference sites within tributaries. To provide information on potential sources and bioavailability of metals to prawns, an extensive range of analyses were made on waters, suspended solids, deposited sediments and plant materials within the river system. Dissolved metal concentrations were mostly sub-micrograms per liter and no major differences existed in concentrations or speciation between sites within the Strickland River or its tributaries. Similarly, no differences were detected between sites for total or dilute acid-extractable metal concentrations in bed sediments and plant materials, which may be ingested by the prawns. However, the rivers in this region are highly turbid and the dilute acid-extractable cadmium and zinc concentrations in suspended solids were greater at sites in the Strickland River than at sites in tributaries. The results indicated that mine-derived inputs increased the proportion of these forms of metals or metalloids in the Strickland River. These less strongly bound metals and metalloids would be more bioavailable to the prawns via the dietary pathway. The results highlighted many of the difficulties in using routine monitoring data without information on metal speciation to describe metal uptake and predict potential effects when concentrations are low and similar to background. The study indicated that the monitoring of contaminant concentrations in organisms that integrate the exposure from multiple exposure routes and durations may often be more effective for detecting impacts than intermittent monitoring of contaminants in waters and sediments.     

Effect of nitroethane and nitroethanol on the production of indole and 3-methylindole (skatole) from bacteria in swine feces by gas chromatography

Indole and 3-methylindole (skatole) are odor pollutants in livestock waste, and skatole is a major component of boar taint. Skatole causes pulmonary edema and emphysema in ruminants and causes damage to lung Clara cells in animals and humans. A gas chromatographic method that originally used a nitrogen–phosphorus detector to increase sensitivity was modified resulting in an improved flame ionization detection response for indole and skatole of 236% and 207%, respectively. The improved method eliminates the large amount of indole decomposition in the injector. A 10 μ g mL^–1 spike of indole and skatole in water and swine fecal slurries resulted in recovery of 78.5% and 96% in water and 76.1% and 85.8% in fecal slurries, respectively. The effect of the addition of nitroethane and nitroethanol at 21.8 mM in swine fecal slurries was studied on the microbial production of indole and skatole. Nitroethane and nitroethanol decreased the production of skatole in swine fecal slurries at 24 h. The nitroethane effect on l-tryptophan-supplemented fecal slurries after 6 and 24 h incubation resulted in a decrease of 69.0% (P = 0.02) and 23.5% skatole production, respectively, and a decrease of 14.9% indole at 6 h, but an increase in indole production of 81.1% at 24 h.