Changing scenario of Himalayan agroecosystems: loss of agrobiodiversity, an indicator of environmental change in Central Himalaya, India

Environmental, biological, socio-cultural and economic variations in the Himalayas have led to the evolution of diverse and unique traditional agroecosystems, crop species, and livestock, which help the traditional mountain farming societies to sustain themselves. During the recent past, as a result of rapid changes in land use caused by socio-cultural and economic changes and various environmental perturbations, the agrobiodiversity of the Central Himalayan agroecosystems has changed steadily. A recent survey conducted in 150 different villages located along an elevated transect of the Alaknanda catchment of the Central Himalaya revealed that over a period of two decades (1970–74 and 1990–94) the cultivated area under many traditional crops had declined significantly. A micro-level study carried out in 30 villages revealed that a series of changes had occurred in land use practices over a period of 25–30 years.The loss of agrobiodiversity and the changing socio-cultural and economic dimensions and their impacts on the sustainability of Himalayan agroecosystems are emerging as major causes of concern at local/regional/national scale, and appropriate options to meet these challenges are discussed in this paper.     

Critical environmental indicators: performance indices and assessment models for sustainable rural development planning

Sustainable development planning must be based on environmental and biophysical baseline indices that effectively define comparative development potential and environmental constraints. As such, indices must define the comparative advantage of the natural resource base and measure the fundamental capacity to sustain production rates of natural resource goods and services used to create societal well being. Complex biophysical and socioeconomic characteristics affect the identification and selection of sustainable development strategies. When derived from effective baseline indicators, indices may be used to define the spatial and temporal distribution of economically viable production opportunities and may be expressed in derived indices that realistically describe basic production opportunities and guide the selection of feasible, long-term development strategies. Specifically, representative indices are critical in the identification of development goals and realistic objectives and can be used to evaluate, select and implement sustainable development strategies and plans. It is stressed that the relevancy and effectiveness of public policies depend on the identification of representative evaluation models and baseline indices to define development strategies that are both environmentally sustainable and economically viable. In this context, the role of baseline indicators that define natural resource production capacities is discussed. This includes potential resource uses, derived benefits and their economic and environmental impacts. Key thematic indicators are suggested that may be especially useful in identifying development alternatives and impacts. This suggested that clearly defined environmental pollution limits or impact standards be used to define public risk tolerance limits and carrying capacity constraints. It is argued that these measures may be more effective in directing policy choices than economic valuation of non market goods and services that represent environmental externalities associated with resource exploitation options and economic development strategies. To this end, examples of thematic indicators and derived indices are introduced that may prove effective in resource assessment, economic evaluation and strategic development planning.     

Use of Scale Invariance in Evaluating Judgement Indicators

Indicators are used to draw conclusions about ecological endpoints when these endpoints cannot be measured directly. In many cases, inferences about an endpoint are only possible because assumptions have been made about the relationship between indicator and endpoint; we refer to such indicators as judgement indicators. The validity of inferences made using a judgement indicator can be gauged by examining the known or assumed form of the general relationship between indicator and endpoint. The rules for this kind of inference are a consequence of scale invariance, which originates from measurement theory. For simple indicators comprised of a single indicator measurement, the inferences allowed – equivalence, rank, equality of intervals, and equality of ratios – depend on whether the data are nominal, ordinal, interval, or ratio scaled. For composite indicators containing two or more simple indicators, inferences are also affected by the mathematical form of combination; e.g., whether the terms are summed or multiplied. Standardizing simple or composite indicators can allow inferences about the relative importance of observations, based on the natural range of occurrence. Scale invariance is a particularly important consideration in landscape assessments, since these often make use of judgement indicators.     

大气臭氧污染的生物学指标监测评价

臭氧是具有很大危害性的大气污染物之一,近150年来大气对流层中的臭氧质量浓度已经增加了36%,在今后50～100年内还将以每年0.5%-2%的速度继续升高。植物对大气污染物的敏感性是由多种因素相互作用而成的复杂综合性状。以不同质量浓度（分别为0.0、1.0、2.0、3.0、4.0、5.0 mg·L-1）臭氧（O3）胁迫下的不同类型植物为例,观察植物在不同时间（2、4、6、8 h）的外观伤害症状和细胞膜透性与O3质量浓度的相关性。试验结果表明：不同植物对O3的敏感度不同,蔬菜对臭氧相对较敏感;低质量浓度长时间和高质量浓度短时间的作用条件下,植物的受害症状基本相同,典型症状表现为叶片上散布细密点状斑,斑点的颜色呈白色、黄色、棕褐色,也有褪绿斑;植物细胞膜透性数据即电导率直接反映植物受损程度。综合植物外观症状指标与生理生化指标建立了相对定量化的大气质量生物学指标评价模式,即划分为轻微（0-0.2）、轻度（0.2-0.4）、中度（0.4-0.6）、高度（0.6-0.8）、严重（0.8-1.0）5个受害等级,以定量的判断O3气体对植物的伤害。     

O_3-BAC组合工艺深度净化MBR出水的中试研究

采用臭氧-生物活性炭（O3-BAC）组合工艺对某工业园区再生水厂MBR出水进行了深度净化的中试研究,主要考察了组合工艺各节点对常规指标的处理效果。结果表明,臭氧投加量约3 mg/L（H2O）、臭氧接触塔接触时间为30min、活性炭滤池空床接触时间（BECT）为15 min时,O3-BAC组合工艺能有效去除水中色度、浊度,平均色度和浊度分别从21度和7.8 NTU降至3度和2.0 NTU以下;组合工艺对UV254、高锰酸盐指数的平均去除率分别约为39%和35%;对NH4＋-N有一定的去除,去除率为58%～77%;组合工艺对粪大肠菌群去除效果显著,平均去除率在95%以上。O3-BAC组合工艺是一种有效工业园区再生水深度净化技术。     

Monitoring Australian Rangeland Sites Using Landscape Function Indicators and Ground- and Remote-Based Techniques

If the goal for managing rangelands is to achieve a balance between production and conservation, then monitoring is essential to detect change and apply corrective action. In some range-land areas of northern Australia, monitoring has detected a tilt in the production-conservation balance towards excessive production. How big is this imbalance? Can it shift back? Robust monitoring is needed to answer these questions. The aim is to know what to monitor, and where. For example, to detect changes caused by livestock on rangeland forage production and soil erosion, indicators linking grazing disturbances to landscape function are needed, that is, indicators that signal how well landscapes are capturing, concentrating, and utilizing scarce water, nutrient, and organic resources. Studies in Australia and the USA document that simple vegetation and soil patch attributes can be measured as indicators of the 'state of health' of landscape function. For example, field and remote sensing-based grazing studies in Australia document that landscapes with a high cover of perennial plant patches function effectively to capture runoff water and nutrients in sediments, whereas landscapes with a low cover of these patches do not — they are dysfunctional — as indicated by large patches of bare soil. Aerial videography is proving to be a robust technique for measuring indicators of landscape function such as small patches of vegetation and the extent of bare soil. These indicators typically have a sigmoidal response to grazing impacts. We illustrate that if these indicators are measured on monitoring sites established near the sigmoidal 'point of inflection’ then small changes in these indicators can be detected.     

以雨水为核心的城市水环境构建思路

在研究国内外利用雨水构建城市水环境的文献基础上,得出城市水环境构建要空中层、地表层和地下层综合构建三位一体的指导思想,以雨水为核心的城市水环境构建的思路是：从易到难,分步骤进行构建。