Rapid Assessment of Risks to a Mobile Marine Mammal in an Ecosystem-Scale Marine Protected Area

Abstract:  Ecosystem-scale networks of marine protected areas (MPAs) are important conservation tools, but their effectiveness is difficult to quantify in a time frame appropriate to species conservation because of uncertainties in the data available. The dugong ( Dugong dugon ) is a mobile marine species that occurs in shallow inshore waters of an ecosystem-scale network of MPAs (the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area [GBRWHA]). We developed a rapid approach to assess risk to dugongs in the region and evaluate options to ameliorate that risk. We used expert opinion and a Delphi technique to identify and rank 5 human factors with the potential to adversely affect dugongs and their sea grass habitats: netting, indigenous hunting, trawling, vessel traffic, and poor-quality terrestrial runoff. We then quantified and compared the distribution of these factors with a spatially explicit model of dugong distribution. We estimated that approximately 96% of habitat of high conservation value for dugongs in the GBRWHA is at low risk from human activities. Using a sensitivity analysis, we found that to decrease risk, commercial netting or indigenous hunting had to be reduced in remote areas and the effects of vessel traffic, terrestrial runoff, and commercial netting had to be reduced in urban areas. This approach enabled us to compare and rank risks so as to identify the most severe risks and locate specific sites that require further management attention.     

Modeling China's semiconductor industry fluorinated compound emissions and drafting a roadmap for climate protection

Fluorinated compounds (FC) are high-global warming potential (GWP) greenhouse gases used and emitted during the manufacture of silicon semiconductor devices. Following the U.S. EPA's PFC Emissions Vintage Model (PEVM), uncontrolled FC emissions are modeled as proportional to total manufactured layer area (TMLA) of silicon. FC emissions of World Semiconductor Council (WSC) charter member countries (Europe, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and the United States), which voluntarily committed in 1999 to lower FC emissions by 2010 to 10% of baseline year emissions, are modeled for the period 1995–2020. For this same period, emissions from Chinese manufacturers under alternative emission reduction scenarios are modeled. If Chinese manufacturers were to adopt a baseline year of 2005 and a reduction target of 10% below baseline year emissions to be achieved by 2020, emissions would be 3.4 MMTCO₂eq, comparable to the similarly projected controlled emissions of an average WSC charter member country (=16.3/5 MMTCO₂eq) in 2020. The relative stringency of the alternative reduction scenarios considered for China vary between 50 and 95% reduction compared to business as usual (BAU). This is comparable to the stringency of the WSC charter members’ goals for which FC emission reduction technologies are currently available.     

2010 World Expo and Urban Life Quality in Shanghai in Terms of Sustainable Development

Based on sustainable development theory and the UN＇s Human Development Index, this thesis puts forward what the quality of urban life implies, makes a study of the world Expo＇s potential influences on the urban life of Shanghai and advances the strategy and measures to strengthen the life-quality-facing urban management     

OVERCOMING THE NATION'S BEST LANDSCAPED SEWER: RECREATORS' PERCEPTIONS OF THE CONNECTICUT RIVER1

ABSTRACT: Once referred to as America's “best landscaped sewer,” the Connecticut has undergone a dramatic transformation in the last three decades. During this time, a number of public agencies and private organizations have worked diligently to implement policies and measures aimed at improving the river's quality. Ample data collected over the years indicate that the actual water quality conditions of the Connecticut River, as measured by empirical parameters, have improved. However, prior to this study, no data existed regarding the public's perceptions of these changes. This paper will address this issue by presenting the results of a multiyear survey designed to assess the public's perceptions regarding the Connecticut's current quality, and its suitability in supporting various recreational activities. The results suggest that the majority of individuals perceive the Connecticut's water quality to be high enough to support a wide range of recreational activities including those involving physical contact with the water. Additionally, this research concludes that the vast majority of individuals who have recreated on the river for 20 years or more do perceive a significant improvement in the river's overall quality. Thus, it appears that policies and actions taken to improve the Connecticut's quality have been successful in the public's eye.     

A critique of the official report on the evacuation of the World Trade Center: continued doubts

This paper criticises the conclusions and the unanswered questions in the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)'s official report on the evacuation of the World Trade Center in New York City, United States, on 11 September 2001. It reviews the extent to which the report disregards several conventional statistical methods and comments on the NIST's refusal to share the machine‐readable data file with the scientific community for replication and further analysis. Problems lie in the sampling methods employed, the treatment of missing data, the use of ordinary least squares (OLS) with binary dependent variables, the failure to document the scalability of the scales used, the lack of tests to check for constant error variance, and the absence of overall fit tests of the model. There are also conceptual and theoretical issues, such as the absence in the report of considerations of the influence of group‐level processes and their impact on the collective behaviour of evacuating collectivities.     

Nontraditional settlement patterns and typhoon hazard on contemporary Majuro atoll,Republic of the Marshall Islands

Low-lying islands and atolls are particularly prone to storm surges created by tropical depressions and typhoons. This paper presents a case study of traditional and contemporary settlement patterns of Majuro, the capital of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and discusses its vulnerability to such storm surges. The paper shows that the application of traditional knowledge extends to the realm of urban planning and that, in fact, ignoring this traditional knowledge as expressed in pre-World War II settlement patterns, exposes urban development to increased flood hazards, a risk which may exact a price too high in life and property.     

世界与中国核电市场寿命周期探索

核电是高效、安全、清洁、经济的能源 ,但它和一切进入市场的产品一样 ,有其市场寿命周期。世界核电发展 5 0年 ,经历了市场寿命的投入期、成长期 ,现在处于成熟期 ;中国核电发展十多年 ,已进入成长期。笔者探索了世界与中国核电市场寿命分期 ,各期产生转换的动因 ,重点探讨了核电市场前景 ;同时认为 ,世界核电在未来的 2 0年左右 ,由于退役装机容量大于新增装机容量 ,可能出现阶段衰退 ,但会继续发展 ,进入新的寿命周期 ;而中国核电由于社会、经济快速发展 ,能源资源的不足 ,能源、电力结构调整与地区优化 ,环境与生态可持续发展等多方因素 ,仍需要不断发展 ,预测中国核电将有 6 0年以上的发展期。     

Heritage as exemplar: a pedagogical role for heritage studies in values education

Studies of heritage at all levels of education can help foster understanding of other peoples and cultures and of the environmental issues facing us all. Used judicially, such studies have a highly positive role to play in educating people everywhere to contribute to making the world a sustainable and just environment for future generations. They provide examples or case studies, in the pedagogical sense used by educationalists, that illustrate many valuable points that are central to a sound values education contributing to ensuring that the public, and hopefully the political elite, are engaged in a push for such a just and sustainable future. Individual examples of heritage sites, and especially of World Heritage properties, contain valuable lessons of great pedagogical value.     

2015年世界田联赛期间北京地区气溶胶成分遥感分析

基于OPAC模型,利用太阳-天空辐射计观测,对2015年世界田联锦标赛期间（2015-08-02-2015-09-23）北京地区的气溶胶各成分：黑碳（BC）、可溶性成分（WASO）、不可溶性成分（INSO）、沙尘成分（DUST）进行定量反演研究。结果显示：赛会中的气溶胶光学厚度（0.37）明显小于赛会前（0.98）和赛会后（0.95）;赛会中BC、WASO、INSO、DUST质量浓度（6.3、14.8、60.9、66.0 μg/m³）明显比赛会前的质量浓度（10.9、49.1、86.5、290.1 μg/m³）和赛会后的质量浓度（9.6、148.8、112.8、143.8 μg/m³）低。利用气溶胶成分的离线分析技术验证了BC的反演结果,两者的相关性较好,r为0.93。气溶胶光学厚度及各成分质量浓度的变化说明赛会期间北京地区采取的保障措施对空气质量提升起到了较好的作用。