Trends in biodiversity and habitat quantification tools used for market-based conservation in the United States

Market-based conservation mechanisms are designed to facilitate the mitigation of harm to and conservation of habitats and biodiversity. Their potential is partly hindered, however, by the quantification tools used to assess habitat quality and functionality. Of specific concern are the lack of transparency and standardization in tool development and gaps in tool availability. To address these issues, we collected information via internet and literature searchers and through conversations with tool developers and users on tools used in U.S. conservation mechanisms, such as payments for ecosystem services (PES) and ecolabel programs, conservation banking, and habitat exchanges. We summarized information about tools and explored trends among and within mechanisms based on criteria detailing geographic, ecological, and technical features of tools. We identified 69 tools that assessed at least 34 species and 39 habitat types. Where tools reported pricing, 98% were freely available. More tools were applied to states along the U.S. West Coast than elsewhere, and the level of tool transferability varied markedly among mechanisms. Tools most often incorporated conditions at numerous spatial scales, frequently addressed multiple risks to site viability, and required 1–83 data inputs. Most tools required a moderate or greater level of user skill. Average tool-complexity estimates were similar among all mechanisms except PES programs. Our results illustrate the diversity among tools in their ecological features, data needs, and geographic application, supporting concerns about a lack of standardization. However, consistency among tools in user skill requirements, incorporation of multiple spatial scales, and complexity highlight important commonalities that could serve as a starting point for establishing more standardized tool development and feature-incorporation processes. Greater standardization in tool design may expand market participation and facilitate a needed assessment of the effectiveness of market-based conservation.     

Mapping legal authority for terrestrial conservation corridors along streams

Wildlife corridors aim to promote species’ persistence by connecting habitat patches across fragmented landscapes. Their implementation is limited by patterns of land ownership and complicated by differences in the jurisdictional and regulatory authorities under which lands are managed. Terrestrial corridor conservation requires coordination across jurisdictions and sectors subject to site-specific overlapping sources of legal authority. Mapping spatial patterns of legal authority concurrent with habitat condition can illustrate opportunities to build or leverage capacity for connectivity conservation. Streamside areas provide pragmatic opportunities to leverage existing policy mechanisms for riverine and terrestrial habitat connectivity across boundaries. Conservation planners and practitioners can make use of these opportunities by harmonizing actions for multiple conservation outcomes. We formulated an integrative, data-driven method for mapping multiple sources of legal authority weighted by capacity for coordinating terrestrial habitat conservation along streams. We generated a map of capacity to coordinate streamside corridor protections across a wildlife habitat gap to demonstrate this approach. We combined values representing coordination capacity and naturalness to generate an integrated legal-ecological resistance map for connectivity modeling. We then computed least-cost corridors across the integrated map, masking the terrestrial landscape to focus on streamside areas. Streamside least-cost corridors in the integrated, local-scale model diverged (∼25 km) from national-scale least-cost corridors based on naturalness. Spatial categories comparing legal- and naturalness-based resistance values by stream reach highlighted potential locations for building or leveraging existing capacity through spatial coordination of policy mechanisms or restoration actions. Agencies or nongovernmental organizations intending to restore or maintain habitat connectivity across fragmented landscapes can use this approach to inform spatial prioritization and build coordination capacity. Article impact statement: Combined mapping of legal authority and habitat condition reveals capacity to coordinate actions along streams for clean water and wildlife.     

The changing sociocultural context of wildlife conservation

We introduced a multilevel model of value shift to describe the changing social context of wildlife conservation. Our model depicts how cultural-level processes driven by modernization (e.g., increased wealth, education, and urbanization) affect changes in individual-level cognition that prompt a shift from domination to mutualism wildlife values. Domination values promote beliefs that wildlife should be used primarily to benefit humans, whereas mutualism values adopt a view that wildlife are part of one's social network and worthy of care and compassion. Such shifts create emergent effects (e.g., new interest groups) and challenges to wildlife management organizations (e.g., increased conflict) and dramatically alter the sociopolitical context of conservation decisions. Although this model is likely applicable to many modernized countries, we tested it with data from a 2017–2018 nationwide survey (mail and email panel) of 43,949 residents in the United States. We conducted hierarchical linear modeling and correlational analysis to examine relationships. Modernization variables had strong state-level effects on domination and mutualism. Higher levels of education, income, and urbanization were associated with higher percentages of mutualists and lower percentages of traditionalists, who have strong domination values. Values affected attitudes toward wildlife management challenges; for example, states with higher proportions of mutualists were less supportive of lethal control of wolves (Canis lupus) and had lower percentages of active hunters, who represent the traditional clientele of state wildlife agencies in the United States. We contend that agencies will need to embrace new strategies to engage and represent a growing segment of the public with mutualism values. Our model merits testing for application in other countries.     

Catalyzing sustainable fisheries management through behavior change interventions

Small-scale fisheries are an important livelihood and primary protein source for coastal communities in many of the poorest regions in the world, yet many are overfished and thus require effective and scalable management solutions. Positive ecological and socioeconomic responses to management typically lag behind immediate costs borne by fishers from fishing pressure reductions necessary for fisheries recovery. These short-term costs challenge the long-term success of these interventions. However, social marketing may increase perceptions of management benefits before ecological and socioeconomic benefits are fully realized, driving new social norms and ultimately long-term sustainable behavior change. By conducting underwater visual surveys to quantify ecological conditions and by conducting household surveys with community members to quantify their perceptions of management support and socioeconomic conditions, we assessed the impact of a standardized small-scale fisheries management intervention that was implemented across 41 sites in Brazil, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The intervention combines TURF reserves (community-based territorial use rights for fishing coupled with no-take marine reserves) with locally tailored social-marketing behavior change campaigns. Leveraging data across 22 indicators and 4 survey types, along with data from 3 control sites, we found that ecological and socioeconomic impacts varied and that communities supported the intervention and were already changing their fishing practices. These results suggest that communities were developing new social norms and fishing more sustainably before long-term ecological and socioeconomic benefits of fisheries management materialized.     

System failure probability evaluation using fault tree analysis and expert opinions in intuitionistic fuzzy environment

In quantitative fault tree analysis of a system, exact failure probability values of components are utilized to calculate the failure probability of the system. However, in many real world problems, it is problematic to get precise and sufficient failure data of system components due to insufficient or imprecise information about components, changing environment or new components. A methodology has already been developed by employing fuzzy set theory for the system reliability evaluation by utilizing qualitative failure data of system components when quantitative failure data of components are inaccessible or insufficient. This paper extends the concept of fuzzy set to intuitionistic fuzzy set and proposes a novel approach to evaluate system failure probability using intuitionistic fuzzy fault tree analysis with qualitative failure data of system components. The qualitative failure data such as expert opinions are collected as linguistic terms. These linguistic terms are then quantified by triangular intuitionistic fuzzy numbers in form of membership function and non-membership function. Additionally, a method is developed for combining the different opinions of experts. To illustrate the applicability of proposed approach, a case study of the crude oil tank fire and explosion accident is performed. The obtained results are very close to the results from pre-existing approaches which confirm that the proposed approach is a more realistic alternative for the study of system reliability in intuitionistic fuzzy environment when quantitative failure data of system components are not known. To help decision makers for improving the security execution of the crude oil tank system, importance measures including Fussell-Vesely importance and cut sets importance are also executed.     

危险化学品仓储事故演化规律及消防力量需求研究

危险化学品仓储火灾事故复杂,处置难度大,易引发事故多米诺效应,对人民的生命和财产造成严重威胁。本文分析了危化品仓储火灾爆炸事故的演化规律和事故风险,结合事故案例剖析危化品仓储火灾爆炸事故后果及对周边区域的影响。针对危险化学品仓储火灾爆炸事故,建立危化品仓储火灾扑救泡沫需求评价二级指标体系,采用模糊层次分析法建立了泡沫灭火剂用量评价数学模型,并根据救援力量类别需求、各种应急救援装备与作战人员需求建立危化品火灾消防力量需求预测模型,准确预测危化品仓储事故消防力量需求。     

三相泡沫流动性能及灭油火实验研究

为研究三相泡沫流动性及灭火性能之间的关系,自主搭建了自流动性及灭火实验台架。利用空心玻璃微珠、2000目云母粉、2000目硅微粉及碳酸钙分别制备三相泡沫,检测其流动及灭火性能。实验结果表明,三相泡沫的流动性与其强施放条件下的灭火性能具有一定的关系。通过对比4种不同类别粉体制备的三相泡沫发现,流动性不足的三相泡沫,其灭火时间较长,但抗复燃能力较强;流动过快的三相泡沫,覆盖油面的能力较强,灭火时间较短,但其存在稳定性较差的缺点,可能会导致油品复燃。     

内拱顶储罐内初始火灾自动灭火系统性能试验研究

为及时有效地抑制石油储罐内发生火灾后的初始火焰,防止火势蔓延后造成更为严重的连锁爆炸事故,研发1种由火灾快速探测系统和快速喷粉系统组成的快速灭火系统,并通过进行性能试验对此系统在石油储罐内的灭火效果进行验证。结果表明:火焰探测系统在探测器距火焰5 m范围内检验并输出报警信号的时间小于50 ms;快速喷粉装置在装粉量为5 kg时,可在310 ms内完成阀门开启至喷粉结束的整个过程。灭火系统可快速检测到火焰并使灭火剂快速有效地达到灭火点,避免火灾发生,具有一定工程应用价值。     

高水无机材料防灭火性能影响因素研究与实践*

为进一步揭示高水无机材料抑制煤自燃机理,将其更好地应用于煤矿防灭火领域,开展高水无机材料流动渗透性能实验与高水无机材料抑制煤堆自燃实验,研究不同水灰比和不同空隙率条件下高水无机材料浆液流动渗透规律和高水无机材料浆液煤堆自燃降温规律。结果表明:高水无机材料浆液的水灰比和煤块间的间隙宽度对其流动渗透性能有显著影响,煤堆不同径向距离处的温度均呈现出开始迅速降低、之后缓慢降低的2个降温阶段。三河尖矿防灭火工程实践应用表明水灰比28∶1的高水无机材料浆液有较好的防灭火效果。     

SVD在串联故障电弧检测及选相中的应用*

煤矿井下发生串联故障电弧易引发火灾等安全事故,为了预防电气火灾、指导线路维修,利用三相电动机及变频器负载开展不同线路、不同电流条件下的串联故障电弧实验,研究三相串联故障电弧的检测及选相方法。首先,对单相电流进行一阶差分处理后,建立改进的吸引子轨迹矩阵作为故障特征矩阵;其次,对故障特征矩阵进行奇异值分解,采用特征矩阵的奇异值构建串联故障电弧检测及选相的特征向量;最后,利用极限学习机建立故障电弧检测及选相模型,并测试检测及选相准确率。研究结果表明:提出的SVD方法可以利用单相电流实现三相电动机及变频器负载回路中的串联故障电弧检测及选相。