Balancing Conservation and Economic Sustainability: The Future of the Amazon Timber Industry

Logging has been a much maligned feature of frontier development in the Amazon. Most discussions ignore the fact that logging can be part of a renewable, environmentally benign, and broadly equitable economic activity in these remote places. We estimate there to be some 4.5 ± 1.35 billion m³ of commercial timber volume in the Brazilian Amazon today, of which 1.2 billion m³ is currently profitable to harvest, with a total potential stumpage value of $15.4 billion. A successful forest sector in the Brazilian Amazon will integrate timber harvesting on private lands and on unprotected and unsettled government lands with timber concessions on public lands. If a legal, productive, timber industry can be established outside of protected areas, it will deliver environmental benefits in synergy with those provided by the region’s network of protected areas, the latter of which we estimate to have an opportunity cost from lost timber revenues of $2.3 billion over 30 years. Indeed, on all land accessible to harvesting, the timber industry could produce an average of more than 16 million m³ per year over a 30-year harvest cycle—entirely outside of current protected areas—providing $4.8 billion in returns to landowners and generating $1.8 billion in sawnwood sales tax revenue. This level of harvest could be profitably complemented with an additional 10% from logging concessions on National Forests. This advance, however, should be realized only through widespread adoption of reduced impact logging techniques.     

河网水质模型研究进展

纵观水质模型的研究、应用及相关科学的发展,本文针对现有的水质模型做了分析评价,简要介绍了河网水质模型的未来研究趋势,并提出了几点建议。     

浅议“环境试验设备技术条件”新标准

2006年至2008年,89版“环境试验设备技术条件”相继修订发布。本文着重阐述了“环境试验设备技术条件”新旧标准的变化及其与GB／T5170的关系。     

基于“反规划”视角的乡村旅游规划新途径探析

引入"反规划"思想,针对传统规划方法给乡村旅游带来的不利影响,强调"反规划"在乡村旅游规划中应用的必要性与可行性。通过与传统规划方法进行对比分析发现,当前乡村旅游规划中存在不少亟待解决的问题。同时,探析了"反规划"思想在乡村旅游规划中的运用,建立乡村旅游"反规划"发展模式为保障乡村旅游可持续性发展提供了理论依据。     

应用CALINE4模式估算机动车排放污染物的浓度——以济南市主干道为例

随着经济的快速发展,机动车排气污染已成为我国城市空气污染的重要来源,而且在一定时段,机动车排气污染已成为空气污染最主要的污染源之一。以济南市经十路为例,采用实地调查的方法,得出各时段的车流量,选用大气环评助手EIAA中的CALINE4模式对机动车尾气中的主要污染物CO、NOx、THC的排放浓度进行估算,得出3种污染物CO、NOx、THC最大值均出现在7:00—8:00之间,最小值均出现在12:00-13:00之间,排放强度由大到小为:CO、THC、NOx。     

静电激发型袋除尘器的机理及应用前景

静电激发型袋除尘器有别于常规的电袋结合除尘器,其是将电除尘器的预荷电原理作用于烟气后,利用袋除尘器的滤袋做收尘极板来收集粉尘。本文通过分析Max-9^TMESFF的结构介绍了其除尘机理,并分析了它的应用前景。     

沟谷泥石流运动过程模型试验

泥石流运动过程是泥石流运动力学核心内容之一.以新疆天山公路K630泥石流为原型,选取几何相似比1:650,推导了泥石流质量、固液两相流速和泥石流冲击力相似比,以流通区为核心,建造了沟谷泥石流试验模型.试验结果表明,泥石流运动具有显著的阵流特性,阵流间隔时间为10s左右,其间嵌套2~3次弱阵现象;阵流期间,泥石流流速和冲击力均较大;从流通区的源头至沟口,流速呈现非线性增大趋势,且泥石流体中固液两相流速变化趋势相似,弯道处泥石流超高现象显著;泥石流运动初期由于泥石流体中固相和液相混和搅拌不均匀而呈现稀性泥石流特征,随后粘性特性增强.这些现象与现场观测结果基本一致.     

基于震后低压变化的供水管网功能可靠度分析

供水管网的抗震功能是指供水管网在地震作用下能够满足震后城市特定用水需要(需水量和水压)的能力。地震发生后,供水管网一般处于低压供水状态,使得管网中部分用户的水压和水量不能得到全部满足,导致管网部分节点的实际配水量小于需水量。为此,在传统的管网水力分析基础上考虑节点流量随节点水压的动态变化,通过求解非线性水力方程组,得到管网节点实际流量和水压;同时,借鉴结构可靠度分析方法,引入供水管网系统随机水力模型,给出了震后供水管网功能可靠度分析的一次二阶矩方法。以一实际管网为例,演示了震后低压供水时管网功能可靠度分析的应用方法。     

Impact of European legislation on marketed pesticides — A view from the standpoint of health impact assessment studies

The very significant impact of European legislation (Directive 91/414/EEC) on the authorization of plant protection products is reviewed herein, which has resulted in withdrawal of 704 active substances (AS) out of 889 assessed so far. The list of currently approved 276 AS includes 194 AS “existing” in the market before 1993 and 82 “new” AS introduced during the last 15 years. Results of toxicity characterization of the approved AS are also summarized, utilizing several well-known databases. Although significant data gaps exist for a rather large part of the approved AS, it is found that 84 AS are positive for at least one health effect (after chronic and/or acute exposure) including carcinogenicity, reproductive and neuro-developmental disorders, as well as endocrine disruption. The toxicity characterization results of this study are compared to those of recent assessments by other organizations (KemI, the Swedish Chemicals Agency, and the Pesticide Safety Directorate of the UK), where interpretation and use is made of AS “cut-off” criteria foreseen in new EU legislation. These studies report a comparatively smaller AS number with positive toxicity characterization. The possibility of some additional AS withdrawal in the near future, combined with the rather small rate of new AS introduction (approx. 5 per year) suggest that the list of approved AS over the next 10–15 years may not change very drastically. Consideration of the above trends is necessary and instructive in evaluating results of existing health impact assessment (HIA) studies, as well as in planning new ones. Due to the very drastic change in the number and type of marketed AS, that took place within the past 8–9 years, it is suggested that new HIA studies (based on epidemiological data after year 2000) should focus on a rather short time frame and, therefore, on appropriate cohort groups, e.g. young children. For the same reason, results of epidemiological studies of the past (involving banned AS) should be carefully interpreted and used with caution.     

Spatial distribution of uranium and thorium in the surface soil around proposed uranium mining site at Lambapur and its vertical profile in the Nagarjuna Sagar Dam

The understanding and evaluation of the possible interactions of various naturally occurring radionuclides in the world's third largest man-made dam, Nagarjuna Sagar located in Andhra Pradesh, India and built on river Krishna assumed significance with the finding of uranium deposits in locations near the dam. For the present work, surface soil samples from the mineralized area of Lambapur, Mallapuram, Peddagattu and sediment core samples from the Nagarjuna Sagar dam were analyzed for naturally occurring radionuclides namely uranium and thorium using gamma spectrometric technique. Also toxic elements lead and chromium were analysed by the Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer (EDXRF) technique. Surface soil samples show a variation from 25 to 291 Bq/kg (2.02–23.5 mg/kg) for ²³⁸U and 32–311 Bq/kg (7.9–76.9 mg/kg) for ²³²Th. U/Th concentration ratio in surface soil samples ranged from 0.19 to 0.31 and was found comparable with the nation wise average of 0.26. The study of sediment core samples reflected higher U/Th concentration ratio of 0.30–0.33 in the bottom section of the core as compared to 0.22–0.25 in the upper section. The concentration ratio in the upper section of the core was similar to the ratio 0.23 found in the western Deccan Basalt region through which the river originates. A higher concentration of lead and chromium was observed in the upper section of the core compared to bottom section indicating the impact of river input on the geochemical character of dam sediment.