Conservation Easements: Biodiversity Protection and Private Use

Abstract:  Conservation easements are one of the primary tools for conserving biodiversity on private land. Despite their increasing use, little quantitative data are available on what species and habitats conservation easements aim to protect, how much structural development they allow, or what types of land use they commonly permit. To address these knowledge gaps, we surveyed staff responsible for 119 conservation easements established by the largest nonprofit easement holder, The Nature Conservancy, between 1985 and 2004. Most easements (80%) aimed to provide core habitat to protect species or communities on-site, and nearly all were designed to reduce development. Conservation easements also allowed for a wide range of private uses, which may result in additional fragmentation and habitat disturbance. Some residential or commercial use, new structures, or subdivision of the property were permitted on 85% of sampled conservation easements. Over half (56%) allowed some additional buildings, of which 60% restricted structure size or building area. Working landscape easements with ranching, forestry, or farming made up nearly half (46%) of the easement properties sampled and were more likely than easements without these uses to be designated as buffers to enhance biodiversity in the surrounding area. Our results demonstrate the need for clear restrictions on building and subdivision in easements, research on the compatibility of private uses on easement land, and greater public understanding of the trade-offs implicit in the use of conservation easements for biodiversity conservation.     

Effect of working time on environmental pressures: empirical evidence from EU-15, 1970–2010

There is growing interest in the correlation between working time and environmental pressures, but prior empirical studies mostly focused on static methodologies. This article used dynamic panel regression approaches to examine and compare the relationship among western, southern, and northern European countries over the period 1970–2010, and proved the existence of strongly significant relationships in all models. Furthermore, this article detected the relationship between working hours and environmental indicators (carbon emission and energy use) at different phases. We contribute to a further understanding of the environmental effects of the working time reduction policy by comparing the differences among various periods and country groups in a system generalized method of moments (GMM) dynamic framework.     

全面提高成人高校学报质量的思考

针对全国报刊治理整顿后多数学报由内部发行转为正式学报类期刊的新情况,本文从学报业务工作的几个方面对全面提高成人高校学报(以下简称“成高学报”)办刊质量进行了较详细的论述,旨在对成高学报的办刊工作起到一些促进作用。     

高职院校试行"综合导师制"的教育教学实践研究

结合学院迎接人才培养工作水平评估和学院“迎评促建”工作的要求,凸现高职教育“以就业为导向”的办学要求,在环境工程系推行了“综合导师制”。意在充分发挥专业老师在教书育人、专业辅导、大学生人生规划和就业素质提高上的优势,积极构建环境工程系全员育人、全程育人、全方位育人的工作格局,建立一种师生互动的新型教育教学关系。     

Hunting in unfamiliar space: echolocation in the Indian false vampire bat, Megaderma lyra, when gleaning prey

The literature suggests that in familiar laboratory settings, Indian false vampire bats (Megaderma lyra, family Megadermatidae) locate terrestrial prey with and without emitting echolocation calls in the dark and cease echolocating when simulated moonlit conditions presumably allow the use of vision. More recent laboratory-based research suggests that M. lyra uses echolocation throughout attacks but at emission rates much lower than those of other gleaning bats. We present data from wild-caught bats hunting for and capturing prey in unfamiliar conditions mimicking natural situations. By varying light level and substrate complexity we demonstrated that hunting M. lyra always emit echolocation calls and that emission patterns are the same regardless of light/substrate condition and similar to those of other wild-caught gleaning bats. Therefore, echoic information appears necessary for this species when hunting in unfamiliar situations, while, in the context of past research, echolocation may be supplanted by vision, spatial memory or both in familiar spaces.Communicated by T. Czeschlik     

干化污泥制备节能烧结墙体材料

以干化污泥作为替代燃料和造孔剂加入到以页岩为主体的原料体系中,制备出具有节能效果的多孔污泥页岩烧结墙体材料,这是提高污泥利用效率和满足村镇建筑节能建材制备的有效手段,探究了城市污泥掺量、烧结温度和烧结保温时间对烧结墙体材料试样的物理性能、力学性能的影响规律。结果表明,在采用污泥和瘠性页岩为主要原料时不能满足多孔节能烧结墙体材料挤出成型要求,而应采用压制成型工艺,当污泥掺量为15%时,烧结温度为1 050 ℃,保温时间为6 h,可以制备出性能指标优异并满足工程实用的烧结墙体材料,且污泥中的重金属可有效固溶于材料内部,气体排放也可满足国家标准中的相关指标要求,研究结果对干化污泥的利用具有较好的指导意义。     

Interactive mechanism of working environments and construction behaviors with cognitive work analysis: an elevator installation case study

Unsafe behavior is a leading factor in accidents, and the working environment significantly affects behaviors. However, few studies have focused on detailed mechanisms for addressing unsafe behaviors resulting from environmental constraints. This study aims to delineate these mechanisms using cognitive work analysis (CWA) for an elevator installation case study. Elevator installation was selected for study because it involves operations at heights: falls from heights remain a major cause of construction worker mortality. This study adopts a mixed research approach based on three research methodology stages. This research deconstructs the details of the working environment, the workers’ decision-making processes, the strategies chosen given environmental conditions and the conceptual model for workers’ behaviors, which jointly depict environment–behavior mechanisms at length. By applying CWA to the construction industry, environmental constraints can easily be identified, and targeted engineering suggestions can be generated.     

战略环境评价系统及工作程序

介绍了战略环境评价系统组成的五个要素 ,即评价者、评价对象、评价目的、评价标准和评价方法 ,分析了其相互关系及各要素与战略环境评价系统的关系 ,并提出了战略环境评价工作程序。     

建筑结构活荷载标准与灾害荷载设防水平 --使用年限的影响

旨在提供不同使用年限建筑结构对应的活荷载水平.分析了结构可靠度理论的特点,揭示了设计使用年限是结构可靠度的时间特征.应根据不同设计使用年限活荷载的超越概率等于常规设计荷载超越概率的原则确定活荷的载标准;通过建立不同设计使用期、不同设计基准期与活荷载取值的关系,给出了不同使用年限对应活荷载与灾害荷载设防水平.     

钢铁企业工作场所煤气泄漏扩散规律的研究

以钢铁企业管网煤气泄漏为研究对象,以煤气泄漏扩散规律为研究主题,在确定煤气泄漏相似于浮力射流的基础上,建立煤气泄漏扩散的数学模型。采用CFD软件PHOENICS数值模拟气体泄漏过程的速度场及其浓度分布。在已有煤气泄漏检测系统的基础上,选择性实验模拟煤气泄漏浓度与扩散时间、扩散方向的变化。数值模拟和实验模拟表明,虽然两种方法所得结果存在一定差异,从定性分析角度而言,却能够反映工作场所煤气泄漏后在有限空间内运移扩散的一般规律。