Effectiveness of Panama as an intercontinental land bridge for large mammals

Habitat fragmentation is a primary driver of wildlife loss, and establishment of biological corridors is a common strategy to mitigate this problem. A flagship example is the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC), which aims to connect protected forest areas between Mexico and Panama to allow dispersal and gene flow of forest organisms. Because forests across Central America have continued to degrade, the functioning of the MBC has been questioned, but reliable estimates of species occurrence were unavailable. Large mammals are suitable indicators of forest functioning, so we assessed their conservation status across the Isthmus of Panama, the narrowest section of the MBC. We used large-scale camera-trap surveys and hierarchical multispecies occupancy models in a Bayesian framework to estimate the occupancy of 9 medium to large mammals and developed an occupancy-weighted connectivity metric to evaluate species-specific functional connectivity. White-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari), jaguar (Panthera onca), giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and tapir (Tapirus bairdii) had low expected occupancy along the MBC in Panama. Puma (Puma concolor), red brocket deer (Mazama temama), ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), and collared peccary (Pecari tajacu), which are more adaptable, had higher occupancy, even in areas with low forest cover near infrastructure. However, the majority of species were subject to ≥1 gap that was larger than their known dispersal distances, suggesting poor connectivity along the MBC in Panama. Based on our results, forests in Darien, Donoso–Santa Fe, and La Amistad International Park are critical for survival of large terrestrial mammals in Panama and 2 areas need restoration.     

Inhibition character of crotonaldehyde manufacture wastewater on biological acidification

• The inhibition of the main organic pollutions in CMW was demonstrated. • Variations of AK and BK showed a high correlation with the SAA of Ac and n-Bu. • The inhibitory degree was in the order of Ac>n-Bu for individual toxicants. • Biodegradation products of the main toxicants were analyzed. This work aims to investigate the inhibitory effect of crotonaldehyde manufacture wastewater (CMW) on biological acidification. To reveal the inhibitory effect of wastewater to the anaerobic granular sludge (AnGS), variations of the specific acidogenic activity (SAA) and activities of key enzymes were investigated. The results indicated that the dosage of CMW causing a 50% effect concentration (EC₅₀) on the activity of total volatile fatty acids (TVFA) production was 380 mg COD/g VSS. The inhibitory effect of individual toxicants in CMW on the activity of TVFA production were in the order of crotonaldehyde>ethyl sorbate>(E,E)-2,4-hexadienal, and their inhibitory degrees on individual VFA products were acetic acid (Ac)>n-butyric acid (n-Bu), which could correspond to the variations in the activities of acetate kinase (AK) and butyrate kinase (BK). Furthermore, the combined effect of three toxicants on the activity of TVFA production was significantly higher than that of any individual toxicant, and the contribution of the relative toxicity to CMW was 77.27%. Additionally, the biodegradation products of the main toxicants indicated that the removal of crotonaldehyde and (E,E)-2,4-hexadienal was primarily due to the hydrogenation of alkene and aldehyde and the oxidation of aldehyde. Nevertheless, the removal of ethyl sorbate was primarily based on adsorption. In conclusion, biological acidification has a limited ability to treatment CMW, therefore, a further pretreatment technology should be used to remove the main toxicant of wastewater.     

《名古屋议定书》政府间委员会(ICNP)议题谈判成效

《生物多样性公约》缔约方大会第10次会议(COP-10)决定设立名古屋议定书政府间委员会(ICNP),主要负责《关于遗传资源获取与惠益分享(ABS)的名古屋议定书》(简称《议定书》)缔约方大会第1次会议(COP/MOP-1)的筹备工作。2011年6月、2012年7月和2014年2月,分别在加拿大、印度和韩国共召开了3次会议。会议对《议定书》生效和执行将面临的问题开展了讨论。通过详细梳理不同缔约方与其它国家政府对两年期方案预算、COP/MOP议事规则、COP/MOP-1临时议程草案、全球多边惠益分享机制、ABS信息交换所、能力建设、意识提高、遵约程序和机制、监测与报告以及示范合同条款等主要议题所持观点,总结了会议的进展动态,综合分析了各议题的谈判成效,深入探讨了名古屋议定书委员会对《议定书》生效和执行的积极作用以及面临的挑战。     

Determination of types of interactions exhibited by binary mixtures of heavy metals tested against the hermit crab,Clibanarius africanus

Single and joint action toxicity of heavy metal compounds (ZnCO₃, CuSO₄ and CdSO₄) were carried out against the hermit crab, Clibanarius africanus in laboratory bioassays. On the basis of 96?h LC₅₀ values, CuSO₄ (96?h LC₅₀?=?0.03?mM) was found to be the most toxic followed by CdSO₄ and ZnCO₃ (96?h LC₅₀?=?0.24?mM) in decreasing order of toxicity. The evaluation of the metal compounds in mixtures of ZnCO₃–CuSO₄, ZnCO₃–CdSO₄ and CdSO₄–CuSO₄ in pre-defined molar ratios revealed that interactions between Zn–Cu and Zn–Cd test mixtures were in conformity with the models of antagonism (reduction in toxicity of constituent metals). The synergistic ratios (S.R.s) and relationship between observed/predicted 96?h LC₅₀ values (relative toxic unit, RTU) were consistently below 1, indicating antagonistic interactions. Analysis using isobolograms also indicated the interactions between the mixture components to be antagonistic. However, with regards to CdSO₄–CuSO₄ test mixtures, the interactions between these metals were mainly in conformity with the model of synergism. The S.R. and RTU values were largely above 1, indicating synergistic interactions. The importance of the joint action evaluations for the management and protection of aquatic ecosystems, particularly in the setting up of water quality criteria was discussed.     

Applicability of Montreal Process Criterion 4 — soil and water conservation — to rangeland sustainability

SUMMARY

Criterion 4 of the Montreal Process addresses the conservation of soil and water resources as a way to assess the sustainability of a nation's forests. For the most part, the indicators under this criterion are relevant to rangelands. The area and percent of rangeland with significant soil erosion apply equally well to both biomes. Percent of streams with flow rates and timing outside its range of historical variation is also equally important, although a measure of proper functioning and condition may provide a better measure of the indicator. The area and percent of rangeland with diminished soil productive capability because of a loss of reduced organic matter or changed physical characteristics can be useful indicators locally and regionally.     

Development of a risk measure as a sustainable project selection criterion

SUMMARY

Sustainable decision-making requires consideration of technology, ecology, and the social and political infrastructure of society. While it may never be possible to identify with certainty what is sustainable and what is not, an attempt has been made in this paper to formulate a measure that permits one to compare the performances of project alternatives with respect to risk. An algorithm is presented for the evaluation of a risk criterion that can be used with other criteria in the process of selecting project alternatives. The intent of the risk criterion is to involve project stakeholders in the process of quantifying the risks associated with different project alternatives.     

水体沉积物质量基准研究现状

沉积物质量基准是对水质基准的补充,对水质管理具有重要意义。目前国际上沉积物质量基准计算方法有十几种。对各种方法的理论基础、数据需求、适用范围等方面进行了概述之后,综合分析了各种方法的理论基础。研究结果认为,应将建立沉积物质量基准的方法分为以生物效应数据为基础的生物效应数据库法和以相平衡分配原理为依据的相平衡分配法。而根据统计方法不同,生物效应数据库法又分为单值基准、双值基准和三轴图法。同时还对美国、加拿大、荷兰、英国、澳大利亚和新西兰的沉积物质量基准研究发展和应用概况进行了分析。结合我国实际情况认为,依赖于大量生物效应数据的生物效应数据库法,目前在我国的适用范围有限,只能用于推导少数几种污染物的基准值。相平衡分配法具有可靠的理论基础而且不需要大量的生物效应数据,具有很大的发展潜力。因此,对于目前沉积物质量基准研究处于初级阶段的我国,更适合使用相平衡分配法计算污染物沉积物质量基准。     

我国水生生物水质基准推导的物种选择

水生生物水质基准旨在保护水生生物不受水体中化学物质的有害影响,是水质基准体系的重要组成部分.不同区域水生态系统的生物区系不同,导致基准值也会存在差异.在综合研究美国、欧盟、加拿大、荷兰、澳大利亚和新西兰等国家和地区在推导水生生物水质基准的物种选择及其考虑因素的基础上,初步研究我国水生生物水质基准推导的物种选择原则.结果表明:推导我国水生生物水质基准需要选择来自8科的水生生物,分别为鲤科鱼类、硬骨鱼纲中的另一科、两栖动物纲的一科、浮游动物中节肢动物门和轮虫动物门各一科、底栖动物中节肢动物门和环节动物门各一科及一种最敏感的大型水生植物(或浮游植物),可全面代表我国水生态系统不同的营养级和生命形式.      

基于浮游生物群落变化的生态学基准值计算方法初探

基于浮游生物群落对环境压力变化的响应,参照美国国家环境保护局(US EPA)颁布的生物学基准计算方法,结合理化因子,采用综合指数法计算了我国太湖流域和辽河流域的生态学基准值.计算框架为:①确定流域水环境生态学基准参照点和生态学基准指标;②作出参照点各基准指标box分布图并进行评分;③将各生态学基准指标得分等权重相加,并把90分位数值作为该流域的基准值.结果表明:我国太湖流域夏、冬季的生态学基准值分别为94.7和86.7,辽河流域夏、冬季的生态学基准值分别为100.0和96.4.通过该基准值可较好地区分2009年辽河流域和太湖流域夏、冬季采样点位的生境优劣,这说明基于浮游生物群落变化来计算生态学基准值的方法是可行的.