Global population collapse in a superabundant migratory bird and illegal trapping in China

Persecution and overexploitation by humans are major causes of species extinctions. Rare species, often confined to small geographic ranges, are usually at highest risk, whereas extinctions of superabundant species with very large ranges are rare. The Yellow‐breasted Bunting (Emberiza aureola) used to be one of the most abundant songbirds of the Palearctic, with a very large breeding range stretching from Scandinavia to the Russian Far East. Anecdotal information about rapid population declines across the range caused concern about unsustainable trapping along the species’ migration routes. We conducted a literature review and used long‐term monitoring data from across the species’ range to model population trend and geographical patterns of extinction. The population declined by 84.3–94.7% between 1980 and 2013, and the species’ range contracted by 5000 km. Quantitative evidence from police raids suggested rampant illegal trapping of the species along its East Asian flyway in China. A population model simulating an initial harvest level of 2% of the population, and an annual increase of 0.2% during the monitoring period produced a population trajectory that matched the observed decline. We suggest that trapping strongly contributed to the decline because the consumption of Yellow‐breasted Bunting and other songbirds has increased as a result of economic growth and prosperity in East Asia. The magnitude and speed of the decline is unprecedented among birds with a comparable range size, with the exception of the Passenger Pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius), which went extinct in 1914 due to industrial‐scale hunting. Our results demonstrate the urgent need for an improved monitoring of common and widespread species’ populations, and consumption levels throughout East Asia.     

淀浦河近十年水质评价及变化趋势研究

针对区域地表水污染特征,采用综合污染指数法,评价了淀浦河中上游段2005年-2014年间水质达标情况,计算了主要污染物的污染负荷,运用季节性肯达尔趋势检验分析了淀浦河中上游段水质变化趋势.结果表明,近十年来淀浦河中上游段水质均未达到规划水质要求,但总体水质呈改善趋势,水质以轻度污染为主,各主要污染物中,氨氮的污染负荷最大,总磷次之,呈现以氨氮和总磷为主的富营养化污染特征,研究结果为淀浦河的水质改善和水环境的污染防治等工作提供了重要依据.     

三峡水库蓄水前后长江干流主要污染物浓度变化趋势分析研究

利用三峡库区长江干流1998年-2010年水质监测数据,以1998年-2003年代表蓄水前,2004年-2010年代表蓄水后,对比分析蓄水前后主要污染物浓度变化情况,用Spearman秩相关系数法判断其变化趋势的显著性。分析可知,蓄水后氨氮、化学需氧量、总磷指标的平均浓度要低于蓄水前,氨氮、化学需氧量浓度变化幅度大于蓄水前,总磷浓度变化幅度小于蓄水前;Spearman秩相关系数计算结果表明,三峡水库常年回水区内的断面,污染物浓度多数呈下降趋势,但只有晒网坝和培石断面的氨氮指标浓度下降趋势具有显著意义。     

挥发性有机污染物(VOCs)治理进展及发展前沿思考

本文介绍了近年国内外在治理可挥发性有机化合物的研究进展,并对吸附与催化技术,低温等离子体-光催化技术等几种先进的处理技术最新发展作了较全面的综述,并对发展前景进行展望。     

甘南县空气变化趋势分析

运用近五年的大气监测数据分析了甘南县大气污染特征,指出了影响甘南县空气质量的主要污染物及变化趋势。     

ESTIMATION OF COASTAL WATER CONTAMINATION LONG-TERM TREND USING SEASONAL LINEAR MODELS1

ABSTRACT: Bivalves are used as bioindicators to assess trends of the chemical quality of coastal and marine environments due to their ability to concentrate chemicals. These shellfish are subject to seasonal physiological changes influencing the chemical concentration. Using quarterly data, we model concentration via linear regression with a biologically based seasonal component. This was applied to cadmium concentration measured in the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) at three sites in the Seine estuary (Normandy, France). In this case we have a high concentration season from January to June and a “low concentration” season from July to December. This season definition was checked a posteriori, using box-and-whisker plots and a statistical test of comparison of pair-wise adjusted least-squares mean differences, and it appears to be very reasonable. We averaged data by season and across sites. Our final model (R²= 0.846 with N= 27 observations) includes highly significant terms: a season effect, which accounts for 45% of the total variability, a linear and a quadratic time term. Outliers were identified by high Studentized residual values and attributed to bias in the temporal sampling schemes. The methodology developed will further be used with other shellfish and/or other trace elements and organic chemicals.     

NORMALIZED AGRICULTURAL PRICES AND WATER RESOURCES PLANNING1

ABSTRACT: Short-term fluctuations in agricultural markets necesitate adjustments in market prices for use in water resources planning. Two procudures for this price normalizing are described and evaluated. The linear treand and weighted average normalizing procedures perform reasonably well, except in cases of dramatic price oscillations.     

How has a shortage of census and geological information impeded the regularization of artisanal and small‐scale mining?

There is growing consensus that a combination of laissez‐faire policies, ad hoc regulation and debilitating support services has perpetuated socio‐economic and environmental deterioration in the artisanal and small‐scale mining (ASM) industry. However, a lack of anthropological and geological information on ASM prevents many governments both from improving the policy environment of the industry, and from providing more robust extension services to its operators. This article aims to examine more precisely how a deficiency of baseline census and geological data has inhibited industry formalization and undermined many of the measures implemented to address pressing problems at ASM sites. Specifically, it is argued that insufficient knowledge of artisanal mining populations — including their demographic structure — and of areas suitable for ASM activities affects the ability of a government to regularize, as well as to improve, the organization of this largely informal sector of industry. Case studies of Ghana and Zimbabwe are used to illustrate how the undertaking of low‐budget projects in areas of geological prospecting and population analysis could improve the efficiency of ASM assistance.     

NONPARAMETRIC TEST PERFORMANCE FOR TRENDS IN WATER QUALITY WITH SAMPLING DESIGN APPLICATIONS1

ABSTRACT: In this paper four nonparametric tests for monotonic trend detection are compared with respect to their power and accuracy. The importance of comparing powers at equal empirical significance levels rather than nominal levels is stressed. Therefore, an appropriate graphical method is presented. The effect of the sampling frequency is also assessed using Monte Carlo simulations and a trajectory representation that visualizes the dynamics of the trade-off between the type I and type II errors. These methods are applied to compare four nonparametrical tests (seasonal Mann. Kendall, modified seasonal Mann-Kendall, covariance eigenvalue and covariance inversion) under several conditions. It is concluded with respect to the power that it is not worthwhile for the modified seasonal Mann-Kendall test applied to the AR(1) process considered in this paper to increase the sampling frequency from monthly to biweekly for detecting a monotonic trend of 5 percent, 10 percent, or 15 percent of the process variance. Under these conditions the seasonal Mann-Kendall test is highly liberal, while the covariance inversion and the covariance eigenvalue test are conservative. This research is situated in the development of an efficient sampling design for the Flemish water quality monitoring network.     

采空区火源位置探测技术现状及发展方向

概述了国内外采空区火源位置探测技术的现状,着重介绍了温度探测法、气体探测法、磁力探测法、数理解算法、电磁波探测法及电阻探测法等探测技术,并展望了国内外采空区火源位置探测技术的发展方向