Use of Maryland Biological Stream Survey Data to Determine Effects of Agricultural Riparian Buffers on Measures of Biological Stream Health

This study was undertaken to determine the importance of riparian buffers to stream ecology in agricultural areas. The original Maryland Biological Stream Survey (MBSS) data set was partitioned to represent agricultural sites in Maryland's Coastal Plain and Piedmont regions. ANOVA, multiple linear regression (MLR), and CART regression tree models were developed using riparian and site catchment landscape characteristics. MBSS data were both stratified by physiographic region and analyzed as a combined data set. All models indicated that land management at the site was not the controlling factor for fish IBIs (FIBI) at that site and, hence, using FIBI to evaluate site-scale factors would not be a prudent procedure. Measures of instream habitat and location in the stream network were the dominant explanatory factors for FIBI models. Both CART and MLR models indicated that forest buffers were influential on benthic IBIs (BIBI). Explanatory variables reflected instream conditions, adjacent landscape influence, and chemistry in the Coastal Plains sites, all of which are relatively site specific. However, for Piedmont sites, hydrologic factors were important, in addition to adjacent landscape influence, and chemistry. Both Coastal Plain and Piedmont CART models identified several hydrologic factors, emphasizing the dominant control of hydrology on the physical habitat index (PHI). Riparian buffers were a secondary influence on PHI in the Coastal Plain, but not in the Piedmont. Between 40% and 70% of the variation in FIBI, BIBI, and PHI was explained by the “easily obtainable” variables available from the MBSS data set. While these are empirical results specific to Maryland, the general findings are of use to other locations where the establishment of forest buffers is considered as an aquatic ecosystem restoration measure.     

Land-cover changes in an urban lake watershed in a mega-city, Central China

Urbanization can exert a profound influence on land covers and landscape characteristics. In this study, we characterize the impact of urbanization on land cover and lacustrine landscape and their consequences in a large urban lake watershed, Donghu Lake watershed (the largest urban lake in China), Central China, by using Landsat TM satellite images of three periods of 1987, 1993 and 1999 and ground-based information. We grouped the land covers into six categories: water body, vegetable land, forested land, shrub-grass land, open area and urban land, and calculated patch-related landscape indices to analyze the effects of urbanization on landscape features. We overlaid the land cover maps of the three periods to track the land cover change processes. The results indicated that urban land continuously expanded from 9.1% of the total watershed area in 1987, to 19.4% in 1993, and to 29.6% in 1999. The vegetable land increased from 7.0% in 1987, 11.9% in 1993, to 13.9% in 1999 to sustain the demands of vegetable for increased urban population. Concurrently, continuous reduction of other land cover types occurred between 1987 and 1999: water body decreased from 30.4% to 23.8%, and forested land from 33.6% to 24.3%. We found that the expansion of urban land has at least in part caused a decrease in relatively wild habitats, such as urban forest and lake water area. These alterations had resulted in significant negative environmental consequences, including decline of lakes, deterioration of water and air quality, and loss of biodiversity.     

Changes of Land Use and of Ecosystem Service Values in Sanjiang Plain, Northeast China

Agricultural activities, especially reclamation, are considered major threats to the wetland ecosystems in Sanjiang Plain, the largest concentrated area of the freshwater wetlands in China. In the past decades, the area of the cultivated land and its grain production have been increased at the cost of wetlands shrinkage. The large-scale land reclamation severely affected the ecosystems in this region. However, such effects at the regional scale are seldom evaluated quantitatively. We used three datasets of LANDSAT MSS and/or TM imagery to estimate the area changes and the transition of land use types from 1980 to 2000. We also valued changes in ecosystem services delivered by each land category using value coefficients published by Costanza et al. [Nature 387, 1997, 253–260]. Sensitivity analysis suggested that these estimates were relatively robust. Finally, the contribution of various ecosystem functions was ranked to the overall value of the ecosystem services in this study. According to our estimates, the total annual ecosystem service values in Sanjiang Plain have declined by about 40% between 1980 and 2000 ($156284–182572.18 million in total over 20 years). This substantial decline is largely attributed to the 53.4% loss of wetlands. For individual ecosystem functions, waste treatment, water supply and disturbance regulation account for more than 60% to the total ecological values. During those two decades, the contribution of disturbance regulation, cultural and recreation decreased, while the contribution of water regulation, nutrient cycling, food production, raw materials and climate regulation increased during the same period. We also put forward a few proposals concerning the future land use policy formulation and sustainable ecosystems. They are adjusting the ‘food first’ agricultural policy, establishing more nature reserves for wetlands, creating systems for the rational use of water, harnessing the degraded cultivated land and encouraging eco-tourism.     

改良式人工湿地处理乡镇河流污水工程应用

采用改良式潜流人工湿地工艺处理乡镇河流污水,结果表明,处理系统稳定,操作简单,维持技术要求低,投资低,运行费用低,处理效果好.对于治理乡镇生活及河流污水具有较大的推广应用价值.     

慢速渗滤土地处理设计参数的研究

由于慢速渗滤土地处理系统对污水中的有机污染物有较高的去除能力,且城市污水的有机污染物浓度远低于系统的处理负荷量,故系统的设计参数受污水中氮浓度控制.试验表明,BOD_5负荷率高达3.57g/m~2·d仍不会影响系统的工艺性能,但氮负荷率一般不应超过0.6—0.7g/m~2·d.由氮极限值确定的水力负荷率为3—6m/a.在规定的负荷率下,投配水深采用<7cm,4—5天投配一次污水的投配频率是适宜的.     

快速渗滤土地处理法去除污水中挥发卤代烃的效率研究

本文就不同周期和布水率对快速渗滤系统中挥发性有机物去除率的影响进行了探讨。通过该法与六种常用的污水处理技术对挥发性卤代烃去除率的比较,表明快速渗滤土地处理法更为行之有效。     

不同利用方式对江西省农田土壤碳氮磷生态化学计量特征的影响

根据江西省2013年采集的16582个农田耕层(0～20 cm)土壤样点数据,运用实地调查、经典统计学与地统计学等相结合方法,研究了江西省耕地土壤碳氮磷生态化学计量特征的空间变异性及不同农田利用方式对其的影响.研究结果表明:江西省耕地土壤有机碳(SOC)、全氮(TN)和全磷(TP)平均含量分别为17.90、1.58和0.52 g·kg~(-1),土壤碳氮比(C∶N)、碳磷比(C∶P)和氮磷比(N∶P)平均值分别为11.72、38.29和3.38,土壤C∶N∶P比平均值为34.44∶3.03∶1,说明P是江西省耕地土壤主要的限制因素.此外,由于碳、氮、磷三者之间并不存在显著的两两相关性,表明江西省耕地土壤中不存在稳定的"Redfield ratio";半方差函数表明,江西省土壤碳、氮、磷生态化学计量特征具有中等程度的空间变异性,其空间变异特征主要受到随机性因素的影响;经ANOVA检验显示,不同农田利用方式对土壤碳氮磷生态化学计量特征影响显著(p0.05),土壤SOC和TN平均含量依次表现为:两季水田水旱轮作一季水田一季旱地两季旱地,土壤TP平均含量依次表现为:两季旱地两季水田一季水田一季旱地水旱轮作,土壤C∶N依次表现为:两季水田两季旱地一季水田水旱轮作一季旱地,土壤C∶P平均值依次表现为:水旱轮作两季水田一季水田一季旱地两季旱地,土壤N∶P平均值依次表现为:水旱轮作一季旱地两季水田一季水田两季旱地.总体而言,土壤碳、氮、磷生态化学计量比的变化特征是农田利用方式和环境因子综合作用的结果,土壤C∶N∶P比对土壤碳、氮、磷储量及养分的限制性具有重要的指示作用.     

GIS ASSESSMENT OF THE VULNERABILITY OF THE ROSETTA AREA, EGYPT TO IMPACTS OF SEA RISE

A study of the area, including Rosetta city and the estuary of the river Nile (Rosetta branch), has been carried out for assessment of the impact of sea level rise (slr). A geographic information system (GIS) has been built including layers of land use, topography, archeological sites, land cover and population. Analysis of data has been carried out to assess vulnerability of various land use and land cover classes to the impact of sea level rise.Because the area under study has geomorphic relief profiles just over the sea level, inundation of total land could reach 26% of total study area due to only half a meter rise in sea level. This lost area includes 32% of urban clusters mainly used for human shelter and contains 52% of present monuments, 25% of valuable high quality dense palm trees cultivation, 75% of beaches and 19% of lands suitable, 25% of valuable high quality dense palm trees cultivation, 75% of beaches and 19% of lands suitable for agricultural reclamation (although suffering from salt water intrusion and soil salinization). This is expected to cause a significant impact on the present population, economic activities, total regional revenue, and also on tourism. At 1.1 m sea level rise, 72% to total study area could be inundated. This area contains all beaches, half of the palm cultivation, 43% of total urban clusters, which includes 81% of the monumental sites and historic buildings.Other environmental problems such as solid waste management, sanitary disposal network, deteriorating conditions of some monumental structures, in addition to the sea level rise act negatively on the environmental quality of the urban community. Future plans for urban expansion in the area must be studied carefully in order to preserve valuable palm lands and maintain and protect monuments and historic sites which help the promotion of tourism. An environmental management program is essential for upgrading tourism, promoting urban development and protecting coastal lands.     

黄土高原区煤矿排土场复垦及区域生态恢复示范工程

黄土高原资源开发后物生态恢复问题是该区域生态环境中亟待解决的重要问题,以内蒙古准格尔露天矿排土地复垦及区域环境生态恢复示范工程为实例,研究了在黄土高原资源开发区搞生态恢复工程的技术,方法和效果。研究结果表明,该生态恢复的技术关键是在必要的土地处理和工程措施基础上,选择适宜的植物种类,依不同的立半条件和功能划分,建立与之适应的生态结构模式。该研究中选出了６０余种适宜植物种和８种适宜生态结构类型,使其     

石墨矿废弃地生态复垦研究

通过现场试验和小区工程措施,研究了石墨矿废弃地的生态复垦问题并建立了复垦示范田。结果表明,通过一定的技术工程措施石墨矿废弃矿坑和尾渣堆的复垦土地的理化性质基本达到了当地农业耕地的水平。从技术、经济的角度分析,石墨矿废弃地复垦的关键是耕种层的熟土配比。经筛选后的矿渣或矿毛与熟土按1:1或1:2的比例混配都可达到生态复垦的目的,但是前者的保水、供水、供肥能力不及后者。