Can environmental compensation contribute to socially equitable conservation? The case of an ecological fiscal transfer in the Brazilian Atlantic forest

ABSTRACT

Regions of high biodiversity often coincide with regions of poverty and conservation can imply economic and social costs for poor resident populations. Environmental compensation is considered a tool to reduce socio-environmental conflict, improve the equity of conservation and promote sustainable development. The intricacies of specific socio-ecological systems may determine how compensation payments are interpreted locally to produce outcomes. This research examines the social perceptions of an ecological fiscal transfer which intends to compensate the local public administration for the substantial costs of conservation in a hotspot of biological and social diversity in the Brazilian Atlantic forest. In this context we explore whether financial compensation (1) influences local perceptions of the conservation regime, (2) contributes towards the reconciliation of human-conservation conflicts and (3) triggers any meaningful socio-economic improvement that would counter the local costs of conservation. Results show that environmental compensation is not widely recognised as effectively benefiting the community. Local authorities consider compensation insufficient to enact a sustainable development agenda. Environmental compensation could play an important role in a policy mix for socially equitable conservation by being explicitly linked to community benefits, especially to fostering local livelihoods. The collaboration of actors operating across multiple governance levels may improve the institutional capacity of local actors to produce effective outcomes.     

The need for bioaugmentation after thermal treatment of a TCE-contaminated aquifer: Laboratory experiments

A microcosm study was conducted to evaluate the need for bioaugmentation after a thermal treatment to anaerobically dechlorinate trichloroethene (TCE) to ethene. The microcosms were either: heated to 100 degrees C and slowly cooled to simulate thermal remediation while bioaugmenting when the declining temperature reached 10 degrees C; or kept at ambient groundwater temperatures (10 degrees C) and bioaugmented for comparison. Aquifer samples from three sediment locations within a TCE-polluted source zone were investigated in duplicate microcosms. In biostimulated (5 mM lactate) and heated microcosms, no conversion of TCE was observed in 4 out of 6 microcosms, and in the remaining microcosms the dechlorination of TCE was incomplete to cDCE (cis-dichloroethene). By comparison, complete TCE dechlorination to ethene was observed in 4 out of 6 heated microcosms that were bioaugmented with a highly enriched dechlorinating mixed culture, KB-1, but no electron donor, and also in 4 of 6 microcosms that were augmented with KB-1 and an electron donor (5 mM lactate). These data suggest that electron donor released during heating, was capable of promoting complete dechlorination coincident with bioaugmentation. Heated microcosms demonstrated less methanogenesis than unheated microcosms, even with elevated H2 concentrations and addition of KB-1, which contains methanogens. This suggests that the heating process suppressed the native microbial community, which can decrease competition with the bioaugmented culture and increase the effectiveness of dechlorination following a thermal treatment. Specifically, cDCE removal rates were four to six times higher in heated than unheated bioaugmented microcosms. This study confirms the need for bioaugmentation following a laboratory thermal treatment to obtain complete dechlorination of TCE.     

加油站土壤与地下水环境管理问题思考与对策

分析了加油站对土壤与地下水的可能污染途径,结合广州市加油站分布现状及远景规划,借鉴国内外环境管理先进经验,提出了全面开展加油站土壤与地下水污染隐患排查、强化加油站环境监测管理要求、加快推进防渗设施改造工作、完善选址过程中的环保准入要求、加强风险管控与修复工作等建议。     

气相色谱法检测地下水中六六六和滴滴涕

采用环己烷萃取、浓硫酸净化,联合气相色谱电子捕获检测器分析地下水中的六六六和滴滴涕,优化了升温程序、进样口温度、衬管等分析参数。8种组分在8.6 m in内完全分离,在0.001 mg/L~0.200 mg/L范围内标准工作曲线线性良好,检出限为0.03μg/L~0.38μg/L,标准溶液平行测定的RSD为0.1%~4.8%,加标回收率为90.0%~131%。     

重点行业企业用地地下水中挥发性有机物分析方法探究

通过优化顶空条件(氯化钠加入量、顶空平衡温度、顶空平衡时间),对采用顶空-气相色谱-质谱联用法测定地下水中55种挥发性有机物的方法进行探究.结果表明:该方法检出限为0.24～2.30μg/L,相对标准偏差为0.76％ ～13.2％,实际样品加标回收率为82.7％ ～119％.该方法具有较高的灵敏度、精密度和准确度,操作...