Workload and psychological strain: A test of the French,Rodgers, and Cobb hypothesis

This study of a random sample of self-employed and non-self-employed dentists tests the French, Rodgers, and Cobb (1974) hypothesis, which predicts a curvilinear relationship between psychological strain and person-environment fit. Self-employed dentists had lower strain scores (based on measures of job satisfaction and self-esteem) and greater congruency in P-E fit (based on comparisons of preferred and typical hours in practice) than dentists who were not self-employed. The relationship between strain and P-E fit among self-employed dentists was curvilinear. Both self-esteem and job satisfaction were higher for dentists with a congruent fit between typical and preferred workload and lower for dentists with incongruent fit.     

The Benefits and Costs of Noise Reduction

This paper attempts to measure, in a cost-benefit analysis, a stricter noise abatement programme for noise originating from roads in Israel. Using the hedonic price method for three large cities and rural area transactions, a benefit from noise reduction was found. In order to perform a social cost-benefit analysis, a measure of benefit has been derived for 1 km of road and has been compared with the cost of noise reduction under different types of road structure. The results indicate that even though benefits have largely increased when compared to past decades (e.g. 1.2% of an average urban property value per 1 decibel reduction), the decision to insulate a given road is dependent on location and road structure. This raises the normative question of a national vs. regional standard that decision makers should be aware of and such studies could be of help in this respect.     

Die Rolle der Globalisierung und Klimaveränderung auf die Entwicklung von Stechmücken und von ihnen übertragenen Krankheiten in Zentral-Europa

Mosquitoes and mosquito-borne diseases know no borders, and their spread is a consequence of globalization related to high mobility of humans and international trade as well as on climate change. Higher temperatures and precipitation favour the development of mosquitoes as well as the pathogens and parasites which are transmitted by mosquitoes. An increase of about 2?°C would shorten the time for the development of larvae and pupae of Anopheles messeae (vector of malaria) by almost three days resulting in an increase of gonotrophic cycles and number of generations. The higher numbers of breeding sites for Anopheles species such as An. plumbeus in cess pools due to the change of agricultural practises increase the contact with potential vectors of malaria as well. However, at least in Germany, malaria will not play an important role anymore. The invasion of new species such as Stegomyia albopicta (formerly Aedes albopictus) is enhanced by human migration and international trade. St. albopicta was first discovered in Germany in 2007. Nowadays, this species, originally from Southeast Asia, occurs in 13 European states. Thus, the risk for outbreaks of arboviroses is increased.     

Monitoring organic contaminants in eggs of glaucous and glaucous-winged gulls (Larus hyperboreus and Larus glaucescens) from Alaska

Gull eggs have been used to monitor contaminants in many parts of the world. The Seabird Tissue Archival and Monitoring Project (STAMP) is a long-term program designed to track trends in pollutants in northern marine environments using seabird eggs. Glaucous and glaucous-winged gull (Larus hyperboreus and Larus glaucescens) eggs collected in 2005 from seven Alaskan colonies were analyzed for organic contaminants. Concentrations ranged from below detection limits to 322 ng g⁻¹ wet mass in one egg for 4,4′-DDE and differed among the samples collected in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering and Chukchi Seas. Chick growth and survival rates may be affected by the contaminant levels found in the eggs, but the eggs should be safe for human consumption if they are eaten in small quantities. STAMP plans to continue collecting and banking gull eggs for future real-time and retrospective analyses.     

Sand dunes management: a comparative analysis of ecological versus economic valuations applied to the Coastal region in Israel

Mobile coastal dunes are of significant ecological importance both globally and locally. Yet a large portion of these dunes are disappearing due to encroachment of local shrubs and exotic plants, resulting in changes of floristic and faunal composition, and an overall decrease in biodiversity of coastal systems. Active management is therefore required to maintain mobile dune presence. This study focuses on economic valuation of coastal dunes in Israel, based on public and professional ecological perspectives. This comparison allows reflection on the suitability of a contingent valuation method (CVM) to assess ecological restoration and conservation projects. The CVM was applied in Nizzanim LTER nature reserve in Israel, and concurrently, data of plant species composition on stabilized and mobile dunes were used to calculate the ecological value index (EVI) of the different dune states. The EVI was then transformed into monetary terms by combining the public valuation and the relative proportion of the various species to the total coverage. The monetary values derived from the general public and the ecological assessment were then compared and used to estimate the expected change in economic value resulting from a state shift from mobile to stabilized dunes. According to the CVM, the total value of the Nizzanim coastal dunes would drop from 344 to 197 million Israeli Shekels (NIS) (1 Shekel = $0.39) if active management does not take place, a reduction of 42 % in value. However, results from the EVI indicate only a 33 % decrease in ecological value (in monetary terms) in the absence of active management. We suggest that in this case, general public perception is strong enough to justify conservation decisions, even though they are not professional ecologists. However, we still recommend the use of both measures for land use decision making.     

Adaptive threat management framework: integrating people and turtles

In the 35 years since its inception, the Brazilian National Program for the Conservation of Marine Turtles (TAMAR) has had great success in protecting the five species of sea turtles that occur in Brazil. It has also contributed significantly to worldwide scientific data and knowledge about these species’ biology, such as life cycles and migration patterns. TAMAR’s conservation strategies have always relied on a variety of environmental education and social inclusion (EESI) activities highly adapted to the socio-environmental evolving contexts of its 25 locations distributed across nine states. Diversity and flexibility are critical to enable timely and effective local responses to existing or potential threats to sea turtles. The intuitive, locally adapted, decentralized, and independent way EESI activities have been carried out have generated positive results in the resolution of specific and evolving local problems through the course of the project. This article brings EESI under the same conceptual framework that underlies its conservation approach by adopting an adaptive threat management framework to organize and qualify its educational and social inclusion interventions according to the main categories of threat addressed by TAMAR.     

Results of Community Deliberation About Social Impacts of Ecological Restoration: Comparing Public Input of Self-Selected Versus Actively Engaged Community Members

Participatory processes for obtaining residents' input about community impacts of proposed environmental management actions have long raised concerns about who participates in public involvement efforts and whose interests they represent. This study explored methods of broad-based involvement and the role of deliberation in social impact assessment. Interactive community forums were conducted in 27 communities to solicit public input on proposed alternatives for recovering wild salmon in the Pacific Northwest US. Individuals identified by fellow residents as most active and involved in community affairs ("AE residents") were invited to participate in deliberations about likely social impacts of proposed engineering and ecological actions such as dam removal. Judgments of these AE participants about community impacts were compared with the judgments of residents motivated to attend a forum out of personal interest, who were designated as self-selected ("SS") participants. While the magnitude of impacts rated by SS participants across all communities differed significantly from AE participants' ratings, in-depth analysis of results from two community case studies found that both AE and SS participants identified a large and diverse set of unique impacts, as well as many of the same kinds of impacts. Thus, inclusion of both kinds of residents resulted in a greater range of impacts for consideration in the environmental impact study. The case study results also found that the extent to which similar kinds of impacts are specified by AE and SS group members can differ by type of community. Study results caution against simplistic conclusions drawn from this approach to community-wide public participation. Nonetheless, the results affirm that deliberative methods for community-based impact assessment involving both AE and SS residents can provide a more complete picture of perceived impacts of proposed restoration activities.     

3-D Flow Modeling of a Hazardous Waste Incinerator

A three-dimensional flow model of a hazardous waste incinerator kiln and vertical secondary combustion chamber arrangement was constructed to evaluate critical system parameters. The chamber wall configuration, location and arrangement of burners, and the positioning of the outlet duct were examined to determine the critical secondary combustion chamber gas residence time and mixing of the combustion flows. The scale model consisted of the rotary kiln as a primary combustion chamber, the secondary combustion chamber, two burners, and the exhaust ducting. Flue gas velocities in the model inlets and outlet were maintained to provide a Reynolds numbers equal to the full size unit. Patterns of smoke which were injected into the model inlets were viewed to evaluate flow mixing. Slow motion playback of video tape was used to determine the minimum residence time of flow in the high temperature combustion zone. The results of the model study were used to complete the engineering of a waste incineration system.     

Shifting paths to conservation: policy change discourses and the 2008 US farm bill

From 2004 until 2006, reform of US agricultural subsidy programmes seemed a likely result of pressure from the World Trade Organization. Many groups saw this pressure as an opportunity to ‘green’ farm policy by crafting environmental service payments that could replace crop subsidies. Yet the 2008 US farm bill fell short of such drastic changes. This paper uses discourse analysis to trace the decline of prospects for reform of the farm bill, and a shift to incremental policy making between 2006 and 2008. It finds that, in addition to political and situational factors, striking discursive shifts altered policy debates and outcomes to create particular conservation impacts. It thus argues for broader use of rhetoric theory and discourse analysis to assess environmental policy. Implications for land conservation are presented in the context of interest group tactics.     

Inhibition of Na+/K+-ATPase and of active ion-transport functions in the gills of the shore crab Carcinus maenas induced by cadmium

Inhibition of Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase from gill plasma membranes of the shore crab Carcinus maenas by cadmium was investigated and compared with inhibitory effects by known antagonists (ouabain and Ca²⁺). For comparative considerations the Cd²⁺-inhibition of the enzyme from dog kidney was also tested. Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase from dog kidney and from crab gill differed greatly in sensitivity against ouabain. The inhibition constant K _i of the dog enzyme amounted to 9.1 × 10⁻⁷ mol l⁻¹, i.e. more than 300-fold smaller than the K _i of 2.9 × 10⁻⁴ mol l⁻¹ determined for the crab enzyme. Ca²⁺ inhibited the activity of Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase from crab gill plasma membranes with a K _i of 4.3 × 10⁻⁴ mol l⁻¹. The Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase from crab gill was inhibited by Cd²⁺ with a K _i of 9.1 × 10⁻⁵ mol l⁻¹. Cd²⁺ inhibited the Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase from dog kidney with a K _i (6.4 × 10⁻⁵ mol l⁻¹) comparable to that observed in the crab gill enzyme. Under experimental conditions Cd²⁺-inhibition of Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase was irreversible. Repeated washing, centrifugation and homogenization of the plasma membranes (four times) with Cd²⁺-free buffer did not restore any activity lost in the presence of 1 × 10⁻³ mol l⁻¹ Cd²⁺. Since ouabain-insensitive (nonspecific) ATPases in the plasma membrane fraction of crab gills were inhibited by Cd²⁺ in the same way as Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase, the heavy metal is considered as an unspecific ATPase inhibitor. Comparing these results with literature data on Cd²⁺-binding to electrophoretically separated proteins suggests that Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase is a Cd²⁺-binding enzyme. The results obtained on Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase were reflected by Cd²⁺-inhibition of the branchial ion-transport functions depending on this enzyme. The transepithelial short-circuit current of isolated gill half lamellae, a direct measure of area-specific active ion uptake, and the transepithelial potential difference of isolated, perfused whole gills, also indicative of active ion uptake, were inhibited by the heavy metal in a time- and dose-dependent mode. Remarkably these inhibitions were also irreversible. These findings are ecologically and biomedically significant: even when the actual environmental or tissue concentrations measured are low, biological microstructures such as Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase may accumulate the heavy metal by tight binding over prolonged periods until the first inhibitory effects occur. Received: 25 June 1997 / Accepted: 25 August 1997