Deliberative democracy meets democratised science: a deliberative systems approach to global environmental governance

The main achievements of the debates on deliberative democracy and democratised science are investigated in order to analyse the reasons, meanings and prospects for a democratisation of global environmental policy. A deliberative systems approach, which emphasises the need to explore how processes in societal spheres interact to shape the deliberative qualities of the system as a whole, is adopted. Although science plays a key role in this, its potential to enhance deliberative capacity has hardly been addressed in deliberative theories. The democratisation of science has potential to contribute to the democratisation of global environmental policy, in that it also shapes the potential of deliberative arrangements in the policy sphere. Deliberative arrangements within the policy sphere may stimulate the democratisation of science to different degrees.     

Environment contamination by mycotoxins and their occurrence in food and feed: Physiological aspects and economical approach

The contamination of food and feed by mycotoxins as toxic metabolites of fungi is a risk not only for consumers resulting in various embarrassment regarding health status and well-being, but also for producers, companies and export market on the ground of economic losses and ruined stability of economic trade. As it is given in historical evidence, the contamination of food by mycotoxins is a topic as old as a history of mankind, finding some evidence even in the ancient books and records. Nowadays, the mycotoxins are used in modern biotechnological laboratories and are considered an agent for targeting the specific cells (e.g., defected cells to eliminate them). However, this promising procedure is only the beginning. More concern is focused on mycotoxins as abiotic hazard agents. The dealing with them, systematic monitoring, and development of techniques for their elimination from agricultural commodities are worldwide issues concerning all countries. They can be found alone or in co-occurrence with other mycotoxins. Thus, this review aims to provide widened information regarding mycotoxins contamination in environment with the consequences on health of animals and humans. The inevitability for more data that correctly determine the risk points linked to mycotoxins occurrence and their specific reactions in the environment is demonstrated. This review includes various symptoms in animals and humans that result from mycotoxin exposure. For better understanding of mycotoxin's impact on animals, the sensitivities of various animal species to various mycotoxins are listed. Strategies for elimination and preventing the risks of mycotoxins contamination as well as economical approach are discussed. To complete the topic, some data from past as historical evidences are presented.     

TUGAI: An Integrated Simulation Tool for Ecological Assessment of Alternative Water Management Strategies in a Degraded River Delta

The development of ecologically sound water allocation strategies that account for the needs of riverine ecosystems is a pressing issue, especially in semiarid river basins. In the Aral Sea Basin, a search for strategies to mitigate ecological and socioeconomic deterioration has been in process since the early 1990s. The Geographic Information System–based simulation tool TUGAI has been developed to support the policy determination process by providing a simple, problem-oriented method to assess ecological effects of alternative water management strategies for the Amudarya River. It combines a multiobjective water allocation model with simple, spatially explicit statistical and rule-based models of landscape dynamics. Changes in environmental conditions are evaluated by a fuzzy habitat suitability index for Populus euphratica, which is the dominant species of the characteristic riverine Tugai forests. Water management scenarios can be developed by altering spatiotemporal water distribution in the delta area or the amount of water inflow into the delta. Outcomes of scenario analysis are qualitative comparisons of the ecological effects of different options for a time period of up to 28 years. The given approach utilizes different types of knowledge, from quantitative hydrological data to qualitative local expert knowledge. The main purpose of the tool is to integrate the knowledge in a comprehensive way to make it available for discussions on alternative policies in moderated workshops with stakeholders. In this article, the modules of the tool, their integration, and three hypothetical scenarios are presented. Based on the experience gained when developing the TUGAI tool, we propose that the general framework can be transferred to other areas where tradeoffs in water allocation between the environment and other water users are of major concern. The potential for a simulation tool to structure and inform a complex resource management situation by involving local experts and stakeholders in the development of possible future scenarios will become increasingly valuable for transparent and participatory resource management.     

Community-Based Environmental Management in Atlantic Canada: The Impacts and Spheres of Influence of the Atlantic Coastal Action Program

The Atlantic Coastal Action Program (ACAP) is a unique, community-based program initiated by Environment Canada in 1991 to help Atlantic Canadians restore and sustain watersheds and adjacent coastal areas. ACAP is the eastem-most Environment Canada Ecosystem Initiative. The ACAP family is currently made up of 14 ecosystem-based organizations in the four Atlantic provinces. Each one of these non-profit organizations operates independently, but is formally linked under the umbrella of ACAP to represent a force stronger than the individual parts. In Environment Canada's experience, the program consistently demonstrates the value of a community-based approach and produces results on an ecosystem basis. This paper will examine some of the impacts of ACAP in terms of economics, credible community science, and environmental results which most often align with Environment Canada's objectives. It will explore the influences of the community-based approach to environmental management on multiple scales (local, regional, etc.). Through examples, the paper will demonstrate the effectiveness of ACAP in influencing some of the policies, programs and attitudes of various levels of government and industry in the region, as well as describe how the community-based model has been exported internationally. The paper will conclude with a discussion on a planned path forward for ACAP.     

土地政策参与宏观调控手段的完善

土地政策参与宏观调控是在特定经济背景下提出的.随着时间的推移和经济环境的变化,土地政策在h参与宏观调控的过程中也应做出相应的调整.列举了新经济背景下土地调控手段存在主次错位、刚性不强、缺乏有效配合等一系列问题,针对这些问题提出了在土地政策参与宏观调控的过程中要增加地土经济手段的运用、推动土地政策法律化和增强部门间协调配合等相关对策与建议.     

中国工业化进程与能源矿产供需均衡的研究

工业化与能源需求的均衡关系及解决工业化进程中能源供需失衡的战略途径是中国工业化进程中需要探讨的重大问题.文章运用协整技术,就1990-2008年间中国工业化进程与能源需求协整关系的检验,认为中国工业化与能源需求增长具有长期稳定的均衡关系,能源需求将继续保持增长,能源利用效率也将持续提高.然而工业化进程中重工业化高能耗结构特征与能源低效利用并存的困境以及能源供需矛盾不利于能源供需平衡的平稳发展.我国应适应工业化进程的基本规律,转变能源消费方式;走新型工业化道路,适当限制低附加值产业发展,鼓励产业向离附加值、低能耗、高技术产业转移;在实现能源开发利用技术进步和创新的同时.有效利用国内外能源资源;建立能源应急机制等战略途径来实现工业化进程中能源供需平衡发展.     

海河流域水污染成因与多层次治理结构的制度选择

海河流域是我国经济相对发达地区,但也是水环境污染十分严重地区,水污染的有效治理对区域内资源节约型和环境友好型社会建设具有重要意义。本文在分析海河流域水污染现状及成因的基础上,指出单纯依赖以排污权交易为主的市场化手段进行治污的局限性。最终,分别提出针对省(市)级政府、地市级政府和企业三个层面应该采取的多层次水污染治理结构的制度选择。     

基于变异系数法的安徽省节能减排评价研究

以行政区域为单位进行节能减排评价研究,分析其中的影响因素,便于因地制宜地采取措施开展节能减排工作。本文以安徽省为研究对象,运用变异系数法对节能减排作评价研究。研究表明,节能减排总体成效显著,但减排问题突出,其中污染物排放与产业结构存在密切关系,进一步的关联分析得出影响减排的主要行业因素。据此,提出从调整产业结构、加强科技创新、完善法规政策方面推进节能减排。     

Atmospheric fate of non-volatile and ionizable compounds

A modified version of the Multimedia Activity Model for Ionics MAMI, including two-layered atmosphere, air-water interface partitioning, intermittent rainfall and variable cloud coverage was developed to simulate the atmospheric fate of ten low volatility or ionizable organic chemicals. Probabilistic simulations describing the uncertainty of substance and environmental input properties were run to evaluate the impact of atmospheric parameters, ionization and air-water (or air-ice) interface enrichment.The rate of degradation and the concentration of OH radicals, the duration of dry and wet periods, and the parameters describing air-water partitioning (K_AW and temperature) and ionization (pK_a and pH) are the key parameters determining the potential for long range transport. Wet deposition is an important removal process, but its efficiency is limited, primarily by the duration of the dry period between precipitation events.Given the underlying model assumptions, the presence of clouds contributes to the higher persistence in the troposphere because of the capacity of cloud water to accumulate and transport non-volatile (e.g. 2,4-D) and surface-active chemicals (e.g. PFOA). This limits the efficiency of wet deposition from the troposphere enhancing long-range transport.     

大连市农业循环经济发展主要途径与模式

简要总结国内外农业循环经济发展概况及成功经验,简要介绍＂十二五＂期间,大连发展农业循环经济的主要途径与模式,为我国农业循环经济发展提供参考借鉴。