An integrated indicator on regional ecological civilization construction in China

China has come up with ecological civilization as one of major goals to improve its ecological sustainability during development in future. Under this broad framework, social, economic and natural ecosystems are expected to develop in harmony. However, there is lack of evaluation mechanism for this newly proposed strategy. Therefore, in this article, ecosystem services, Ecological Footprint and gross domestic product per capita were selected in order to reflect the resource endowment, human occupation on natural capital, and the economic growth. Thus, an integrated indicator was constructed from the three indexes based on the linear correlation among them, and we provided comprehensive evaluation on ecological civilization construction in the provinces and municipalities in China in 2010. When it comes to the indicator of ecological civilization construction, Hainan province has the greatest value which is 0.5091 and Beijing municipality has the smallest value which is 0.0377. At last, the article analyzed the ecological pressure and efficiency in ecological civilization construction in China. The results contribute to scientific and objective evaluation of regional ecological civilization construction in order to properly make decisions and take actions.     

村域社会资本与环境影响的关系——基于甘肃省村域调查数据

社会资本作为改善生态环境的先决条件,已引起了全社会的广泛关注,当前急需辨明社会资本与环境影响之间的关系,并依次寻求解决生态环境问题的对策措施。研究基于甘肃省20个村域的调查数据,以网络、信任、规范为指标测度社会资本,以生态足迹为指标测度环境影响,利用计量经济模型分析了村域层面社会资本与环境影响的关系。结果表明:①社会资本差异有助于解释村域之间的环境影响差异;②社会资本的普遍信任维度、制度信任维度与环境影响呈显著正相关,规范维度与环境影响呈显著负相关,网络维度虽与环境影响呈负相关,但统计上不显著;③劳动力受教育程度、非农就业水平与环境影响呈显著负相关,人口规模虽与环境影响呈正相关,但在多数模型中不显著。最后,指出了社会资本对环境影响作用研究中需进一步关注的问题。     

基于改进模型的1992—2010年中国省域生态足迹核算

生态足迹可以从生物生产角度定量评估区域社会经济发展的可持续程度。本文运用改进的生态足迹模型对我国各省级行政区1992—2010年的生态足迹进行核算及聚类和相关性分析,以衡量各区域发展的差异及相似程度和分析各省域生态足迹变化的主导因素,并根据核算结果建立了各省区市的生态足迹预测模型,进一步明确各省级行政区的生态足迹变化趋势,以期为区域社会经济发展决策提供参考和借鉴。研究结果显示：近20年来,我国各省域社会经济发展对自然资源的依赖程度及对环境的总体影响存在较大差异。生态足迹的变化可以分为3种类型,即逐渐下降型、明显上升型和基本平稳型。北京和上海的生态足迹变化属于逐渐下降型,分别受对化石燃料用地和耕地需求的减少所主导,其中北京市生态足迹与化石燃料用地的相关系数为0.96,上海市生态足迹与耕地的相关系数为0.703,这2个城市在过去20年中的社会经济发展对自然资源的依赖程度逐渐降低;以内蒙古、山西为代表的化石燃料资源较为丰富的省域生态足迹呈明显上升趋势,这些省域生态足迹的增长受区域化石燃料生产的影响较大,个别省级行政单位生态足迹与化石燃料的相关系数为1;东北三省、东南沿海地区及西部自然资源相对匮乏省区的生态足迹属于基本平稳型。     

半干旱黄土丘陵沟壑区小流域生态经济可持续发展研究

为了探讨半干旱黄土丘陵沟壑区小流域综合治理措施对生态经济可持续发展所起的作用,根据大量的实地调研数据,利用生态足迹理论与方法对庙坪小流域生态环境治理前后的生态足迹需求与供给进行了定量计算.结果表明:该流域生态足迹一直大于生态承载力,小流域生态经济为不可持续状态,但人均生态赤字由治理前的0.798 9 hm2下降到治理后的0.552 5 hm2.由于流域水土保持综合治理成效显著,导致流域生态承载力的增幅大于生态足迹的增幅,生态足迹需求及亏缺主要源于化石能源用地和耕地类产品的消费.     

Is there really a green paradox?

In the absence of a CO₂ tax, the anticipation of a cheaper renewable backstop increases current emissions of CO₂. Since the date at which renewables are phased in is brought forward and more generally future emissions of CO₂ will decrease, the effect on global warming is unclear. Green welfare falls if the backstop is relatively expensive and full exhaustion of fossil fuels is optimal, but may increase if the backstop is sufficiently cheap relative to the cost of extracting the last drop of fossil fuels plus marginal global warming damages as then it is attractive to leave more fossil fuels unexploited and thus limit CO₂ emissions. We establish these results by analyzing depletion of non-renewable fossil fuels followed by a switch to a clean renewable backstop, paying attention to timing of the switch and the amount of fossil fuels remaining unexploited. We also discuss the potential for limit pricing when the non-renewable resource is owned by a monopolist. Finally, we show that if backstops are already used and more backstops become economically viable as the price of fossil fuels rises, a lower cost of the backstop will either postpone fossil fuel exhaustion or leave more fossil fuel in situ, thus boosting green welfare. However, if a market economy does not internalize global warming externalities and renewables have not kicked in yet, full exhaustion of fossil fuel will occur in finite time and a backstop subsidy always curbs green welfare.     

Announcing climate policy: Can a green paradox arise without scarcity?

Unintended consequences of a pre-announced climate policy are studied within a framework that allows for competition between polluting and clean energy sources. We show that early announcement of a carbon tax gives rise to a “green-paradox,” in that it increases emissions in the interim period (between announcement and actual implementation), irrespective of the scarcity of fossil fuels. The paradoxical outcome is driven by consumption-saving tradeoffs facing households who seek to smooth consumption over time and holds both when the announced implementation date is taken as a credible threat and when households are skeptical about the (political) will or capability of the government to implement the policy as announced.     

江苏省生态足迹分析与可持续发展研究

生态足迹是定量研究区域可持续发展的一种重要方法。目前将生态足迹用于不同时间序列分析,以描述区域可持续发展状况的研究仅初始于不多的国外研究机构。通过对江苏省10年间生态足迹变化情况进行纵向比较分析,来考虑人类及其发展与生态环境的关系,衡量在人类开发强度较大的江苏省,区域生态供给功能是否能满足开发和消费的需要,量化江苏经济发展对生态环境影响的程度,证实了研究区域江苏省的严峻形势。同时与目前国内外已有的生态足迹研究成果比较,概述江苏省生态足迹赤字产生的原因。     

生态足迹影响因子的定量分析--以中国各省(区市)1999年生态足迹为例

人口的膨胀和人类工业化进程的加剧,使得人类向自然界获取越来越多的资源,同时向环境源源不断地输入废弃物,已经严重超过了自然生态系统的供给能力和环境容量,生态环境日益恶化,水土流失、草场退化、植被消亡、生物多样性锐减、全球变暖等情况已经严重到难以遏制的地步,危及到人类自身的生存.在和平与发展成为世界两大主题的今天,人们越来越关注可持续发展的问题.在现有资料的基础上,利用主成分分析方法,定量地讨论了中国各省(区市)1999年生态足迹大小与其影响因子间的关系.结果表明,生态足迹的大小是各省(区市)的大中型企业个数、全社会固定生产投资等众多因子共同作用的结果,其中总人口和GDP是生态足迹大小的主要影响因子,其因子载荷量分别达到了0.940和0.913.值得一提的是非农业人口与生态足迹的相关系数超过了农业人口,这说明由于消费模式和生活水平等的差异,非农业人口对生态足迹的影响大于农业人口对生态足迹的影响.在此基础上建立了生态足迹影响因子的多元线性回归模型,以期为生态足迹在进行区域可持续发展评价的方法上提供新的思路.     

Foliage profiles of individual trees determine competition,self-thinning,biomass and NPP of a Cryptomeria japonica forest stand: A simulation study based on a stand-scale process-based forest model

A simulation study was carried out to investigate simultaneously the effects of eco-physiological parameters on competitive asymmetry, self-thinning, stand biomass and NPP in a temperate forest using an atmosphere–vegetation dynamics interactive model (MINoSGI). In this study, we selected three eco-physiological relevant parameters as foliage profiles (i.e. vertical distribution of leaf area density) of individual trees (distribution pattern is described by the parameter η), biomass allocation pattern in individual tree growth (χ) and the maximum carboxylation velocity (V_max). The position of the maximal leaf area density shifts upward in the canopy with increasing η. For scenarios with η < 4 (foliage concentrated in the lowest canopy layer) or η > 12 (foliage concentrated in the uppermost canopy layer), a low degree of competitive asymmetry was produced. These scenarios resulted in the survival of subordinate trees due to a brighter lower canopy environment when η < 4 or the generation of spatially separated foliage profiles between dominant and subordinate trees when η > 12. In contrast, competition between trees was most asymmetric when 4 ≤ η ≤ 12 (vertically widespread foliage profile in the canopy), especially when η = 8. In such cases, vertically widespread foliage of dominant trees lowered the opportunity of light acquisition for subordinate trees and reduced their carbon gain. The resulting reduction in carbon gain of subordinate trees yielded a higher degree of competitive asymmetry and ultimately higher mortality of subordinate trees. It was also shown that 4 ≤ η ≤ 12 generated higher self-thinning speed, smaller accumulated NPP, litter-fall and potential stand biomass as compared with the scenarios with η < 4 or η > 12. In contrast, our simulation revealed small effects of χ or V_max on the above-mentioned variables as compared with those of η. In particular, it is notable that greater V_max would not produce greater potential stand biomass and accumulated NPP although it has been thought that physiological parameters relevant to photosynthesis such as V_max influence dynamic changes in forest stand biomass and NPP (e.g. the greater the V_max, the greater the NPP). Overall, it is suggested that foliage profiles rather than biomass allocation or maximum carboxylation velocity greatly govern forest dynamics, stand biomass, NPP and litter-fall.     

广东省农业氮足迹分析

为对农业生产氮素利用和排放情况简单直观而又全面地评估,基于修正的N-Calculator模型的基础上,结合农业生产系统中的氮素流动过程,计算了广东省农业氮足迹.研究发现,该省农业氮足迹的主要来源是化肥施用和养殖业饲料,2010年,两者合计占约81%以上.近20年来,农业氮足迹总量上升了45%,按用地平均更增长了88%,增速最快的是来自非农业部门的大气沉降氮,年增速8.5%,农业能源氮足迹是另一增长较快的项目,增幅为107%.污染氮足迹已占到总足迹的31%,主要是因为土壤的氮素流失.另外,2010年,与农业活动相关的其他部门的农业隐含氮足迹为207209.79t,约为农业氮足迹的17%.