Lake ecosystem responses to rapid climate change

In this paper, we examine the consequences of rapid climate change on lake ecosystems in terms of two main effects: variability effects and magnitude effects. How these factors influence life history selection is considered by focusing upon body size as a quantifiable and strong correlate of life history variation (Pianka 1970, McNab 1980, Charnov 1991). We then consider the relationship between the concept of biological diversity and the diversity of life history strategies in the context of rapid climate change.     

掘进巷道瓦斯分布数值实验研究

根据局部通风流场特点确定适合矿井局部通风掘进巷道工作面瓦斯与风流质量交换的数学模型,在近壁面使用标准壁面函数法解决近壁面的流动,在湍流充分发展区,使用RNG k-ε双方程湍流模型;讨论考虑巷道支护的情况下壁面粗糙度的影响,确定矿井掘进工作面局部通风模型网格划分的方法、掘进头瓦斯涌出的边界条件;利用计算流体力学(CFD)软件Fluent对掘进工作面的风流与瓦斯的混合过程进行了模拟;得出不同瓦斯涌出量情况下掘进巷道工作面风流分布和瓦斯浓度的分布规律。研究表明:瓦斯涌出量和风速对流场分布有影响,随着瓦斯涌出量的增大和风速的降低,瓦斯对流场的影响越来越明显。     

流动人员职业健康监护存在的问题与对策

流动人口的职业健康监护问题是职业卫生工作的重点与难点,是预防控制职业病,是保障流动人口职业健康和公平劳动权益的重要环节。根据对北京、浙江、山东、湖北、内蒙等地的调研,对流动人口职业健康监护存在的问题及原因进行了总结分析,结合目前我国职业卫生资源提出了政策建议。     

基于生态学研究制定湿地保护策略：以台湾七股湿地为例

制定合理有效的滨海湿地保护法律制度和管理策略,需要我们理解生物多样性、生态功能和生态系统服务之间的相互关系,并正确地评估滨海湿地的脆弱性以及人类活动和环境变化对湿地的影响。然而,当前滨海湿地保护政策制定过程中有关生态及经济评估数据尚显不足。在此,本文以台湾七股滨海区域作为案例,展示了滨海湿地环境保护政策制定过程生态学研究发挥的影响力,并体现出对其他领域和当地居民相互协作的力量整合,最终实现湿地保护的策略。     

Integrating disaster risk reduction in national development planning: experience and challenges of Jamaica

It is generally recognised by the disaster risk management and development communities that disasters have a negative impact on development, and indeed can set back development by years. This realisation led to a new paradigm for the management of hazards and their impacts, namely an integrated approach which emphasises disaster risk reduction being incorporated into national development planning. Awareness, however, does not necessarily translate into implementation. ‘Reduce the underlying risk factors’, Priority for Action 4 of The Hyogo Framework for Action 2005–2015, reported the lowest average score for progress of the five priority areas. Challenges to progress, as reported by Governments included inappropriate development practices, high levels of poverty and other factors which increase vulnerability. Various authors have recognised the difficulty of consistently and successfully integrating disaster risk reduction into development planning. This integration is particularly challenging for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) which face high exposure to hazards, vulnerable populations and limited resources, often both human and financial. The efforts of Jamaica, a Caribbean SIDS, at integrating disaster risk reduction into national development, and some factors which proved to be important in making progress are presented here. This retrospective paper is written from the perspective of a participant observer and traces developments in disaster risk management over three decades, 1980–2010. Integration and inclusiveness, use of quantitative methods and application of risk assessments are identified as being important in gaining acceptance for disaster risk reduction.     

Coordination in theory,coordination in practice: the case of the Clusters

The atomised nature of the humanitarian system has led to frequent and repeated attempts to coordinate humanitarian activity. Since 2005, some of the best resourced, and arguably most successful, coordination mechanisms have been the humanitarian Clusters, groups of UN (United Nations) and non‐UN actors that engage in sectoral coordination of humanitarian response (such as the provision of healthcare and water) at the global and country level. Nevertheless, it is not clear exactly what ‘coordination’ means in the context of a Cluster. Formal guidance suggests that they should be aiming to create a single, joint strategy to guide the activities of members. Actual experience of the Clusters, however, indicates that looser forms of coordination are more effective. This finding resonates with organisational theory, and with the experience of emergency management professionals beyond the international humanitarian sector. To capitalise fully on the success of the Clusters, policymakers may need to rethink their attitudes to, and expectations of, coordination.     

Insurance and flood risk reduction in Ghana: do insurers penalise homeowners who take precautionary measures?

Today, many advocate insurance as a tool for coping with natural disasters. Beyond providing prompt financial relief to victims of disasters, insurance can also incentivise individuals to invest in preventive measures if insurers reward such efforts with reduced premiums. However, insurers might be unable to reward investments in precautionary measures with lower premiums if they are ill-informed about individual-level risks. Here, we explore how Ghanaian home insurers respond to investments in flood risk reduction by asking them to quote premiums for four identical buildings; two had investments in flood risk reduction, while the other two had none. We find that insurers did not reward investments in risk reduction, with some charging higher premiums for elevated buildings, suggesting they have interpreted such preventive measures as a sign of high flood risk. This failure to reward investments in precautionary measures may discourage insured homeowners from investing in risk reduction.     

The challenge of sustainable development in small island developing states: case study on tourism in the Caribbean

Small island developing states (SIDS) in the Caribbean have long specialised in primary commodity exports, and traditional export sectors continue to be a major source of employment. The challenge of sustainable development for the Caribbean SIDS has two dimensions. The first is to adjust to the economic and social impact of the loss of preferential markets for traditional exports and of the dismantling of the ISI apparatus erected during the post-World War II period. The second is to ensure that existing and new patterns of production and consumption comply with the criteria for sustainable development, which is here defined as environmental, socio-cultural and economic sustainability.
This article outlines the potential contribution of sustainable tourism to the larger goal of sustainable development in the SIDS in the Caribbean. It reviews current literature on sustainable development and sustainable tourism, particularly their application to the Caribbean SIDS, and evaluates the Caribbean tourism industry from the point of view of sustainable tourism. Conclusions are drawn and proposals made for a policy-oriented agenda in support of the quest for sustainable tourism in the SIDS in the Caribbean.     

A LOW COST DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEM FOR SMALL FARMERS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES1

ABSTRACT: In areas where water is scarce, drip irrigation provides the most efficient way to conserve irrigation water, but its cost of £1000 an acre is prohibitive for most small farmers in developing countries. The cost was reduced by 90 percent by (1) making dripper lines moveable, so that each line reaches ten rows instead of one; (2) replacing 25-cent emitters with simple 0.70 mm holes punched by a heated needle; and (3) using £3.00 off-the-shelf 20 liter containers with cloth filters in place of expensive filter systems. This reduced the cost of a half-acre system to £50. The low cost system was field tested in the hill areas of Nepal, and in mulberry cultivation in Andhra Pradesh, India. Uniformity of flow from emitters was 73–84 percent. Small farmers reported that the low cost trickle irrigation system cut labor requirements in half, and doubled the area irrigated by the same amount of water. The low cost drip system is likely to be widely adopted by small farmers in semi-arid and hilly regions.     

炼化企业污水处理厂恶臭治理设施排放特征及污染控制策略

以某炼化企业污水处理厂为研究对象,对其恶臭治理设施外排气体的组成特征及其健康风险进行了分析。外排气体中的恶臭物质主要是氨、硫化氢、非甲烷总烃、芳香烃、有机含硫化合物;其中,氨、硫化氢、甲硫醇、甲硫醚、二甲二硫、二硫化碳和4-乙基甲苯的浓度均高于嗅阈值;甲硫醇、硫化氢的理论臭气浓度最高,是关键的致臭物质;生化设施恶臭治理单元的外排气体对污水厂整体恶臭污染的贡献度最高(77%);外排气体中,20种恶臭污染物的非致癌健康风险指数(HI_total≈10⁻⁴)和终生致癌风险(LCR_total≈10⁻⁸)低。