How to be a more effective environmental scientist in management and policy contexts

This paper is intended for young researchers with an environmental conscience, alerting them that a self-centred ecology can work against conservation and other desirable goals. I propose that there is confusion in the biophysical ecologists’ community about the role of knowledge, stemming from several already surpassed beliefs that have been strongly criticized by scholars in the field of science and technology studies. In particular, environmental scientists still often seem trapped in the information deficit model, assuming a linear and unidirectional flow of knowledge from experts to users. This leads to an incomplete understanding and unrealistic expectations of ongoing processes of citizen participation (co-production of knowledge), impatience regarding the speed at which issues can be dealt with by politics, and a fuzzy notion of the role of our convictions regarding the value of nature conservation when we are consulted as experts. I analyse the consequences of disregarding tacit knowledge, i.e. the one knowledge beyond that codified in academic papers and books. I emphasize that preferences and values have a large influence on how we perceive, process, and act (or postpone to act) on information on our non-exclusive roles as scientists, decision makers or citizens. I argue that this is why political and ideological preferences have a large influence not only on which teams are appointed to solve problems, but also on which situations are perceived as problematic and given higher priorities. I include a cheat-sheet to enhance communication with decision-makers and other non-scientists that could prevent environmental zeal to be transformed into society’s annoyance and our eventual irrelevance. I plea for a more realistic attitude towards ecological research, highlighting that in environmental debates we are also long-term stakeholders, and not only casual, external and aseptic observers.     

Perspectives of the Scientific Community on the Status of Ecological Risk Assessment

/ Views from a wide variety of practicing environmental professionals on the current status of ecological risk assessment (ERA) indicate consensus and divergence of opinion on the utility and practice of risk assessment. Central to the debate were the issues of whether ERA appropriately incorporates ecological and scientific principle into its conceptual paradigm. Advocates argue that ERA effectively does both, noting that much of the fault detractors find with the process has more to do with its practice than its purpose. Critics argue that failure to validate ERA predictions and the tendency to over-simplify ecological principles compromise the integrity of ERA and may lead to misleading advice on the appropriate responses to environmental problems. All authors felt that many improvements could be made, including validation, better definition of the ecological questions and boundaries of ERA, improved harmonization of selected methods, and improvements in the knowledge base. Despite identified deficiencies, most authors felt that ERA was a useful process undergoing evolutionary changes that will inevitably determine the range of environmental problems to which it can be appropriately applied. The views expressed give ERA a cautious vote of approval and highlight many of the critical strengths and weaknesses in one of our most important environmental assessment tools.KEY WORDS: Ecological risk assessment; Ecology; Probability     

生态学原理在生态工业园发展中的应用

近年来生态学原理越来越广泛的应用于人类社会的各个方面,尤其是随着循环经济模式的提出和清洁生产理念的倡导,生态工业园成为工业园发展的未来方向。本文重点阐述了国内外生态工业园的类型以和发展趋势,以及我国生态工业园目前在建设过程中存在的相关问题。     

Environmental effects of oil and gas lease sites in a grassland ecosystem

The northern Great Plains of Saskatchewan is one of the most significantly modified landscapes in Canada. While the majority of anthropogenic disturbances to Saskatchewan’s grasslands are the result of agricultural practices, development of petroleum and natural gas (PNG) resources is of increasing concern for grassland conservation. Although PNG developments require formal assessment and regulatory approval, follow-up and monitoring of the effects of PNG development on grasslands is not common practice. Consequently, the effects of PNG activity on grasslands and the spatial and temporal extent of such impacts are largely unknown. This paper examines the spatial and temporal extent of PNG development infrastructure from 1955 to 2006 in a grassland ecosystem in southwest Saskatchewan. The effects of PNG development on grassland ecology were assessed from measurements of ground cover characteristics, soil properties, and plant community composition at 31sites in the study area. PNG lease sites were found to have low cover of herbaceous plants, club moss (Lycopodiaceae), litter, and shallow organic (Ah) horizons. Lease sites were also characterized by low diversity of desirable grassland plants and low range health values compared to off-lease reference sites. These impacts were amplified at active and highly productive lease sites. Impacts of PNG development persisted for more than 50 years following well site construction, and extended outward 20 m–25 m beyond the direct physical footprint of PNG well infrastructure. These results have significant implications with regard to the current state of monitoring and follow-up of PNG development, and the cumulative effective of PNG activity on grassland ecosystems over space and time.     

Ken Burns' The National Parks: America's Best Idea (2009): Missed Opportunities for Environmental Messages

Ken Burns, over the course of a long and celebrated career, has developed an effective and popular formula for his documentary films, and a comfortable relationship with the Public Broadcasting System. With such a convincing, accomplished style, his work has the opportunity to tackle ecological concerns in his latest series, but Burns chooses not to do so, offering no explicit lessons to apply to current problems. While stressing the importance of the people's parks, ecological debates on land use for future citizen-owners are minimized; the conflict of conservation versus preservation policies is barely differentiated. With the skill and reputation of Burns, his researchers, and his production team, there is a singular opportunity for their films to address ecological issues, creating productive conversation using America as a microcosm of the larger global issues faced today. Nostalgia and national pride are useful, but those attributes should be channeled to look to the future.     

Edward Burtynsky's Manufactured Landscapes: The Ethics and Aesthetics of Creating Moving Still Images and Stilling Moving Images of Ecological Disasters

This paper analyzes the complex relationship between photography and film in the documentary “Manufactured Landscapes,” a film about the work of Edward Burtynsky: beautiful, painterly, large format photos of scarred landscapes, dumps and industrial worksites. Combining the format of an artist portrait, showing the photographer at work, with that of a social documentary about the impact of mass industrialization and globalization worldwide, the film has the power to make us look beyond the beauty of his images and see the big picture of the issues at stake: the impact of mass production and mass consumption in which we all take part. The film also forces us to think about the role of the artist in society as either aesthete or truth teller.     

How could sympatric megaherbivores coexist? Example of niche partitioning within a proboscidean community from the Miocene of Europe

Although low in diversity, megaherbivores (mammals weighting over 10(3) kg) and especially proboscideans have a powerful impact on the structure and dynamics of present-day ecosystems. During the Neogene (23 to 2.6 Ma) of Europe, the diversity and geographic distribution of these megaherbivores was much greater. Nonetheless, their role in past ecosystems is unclear. Nutrition is one of the main bonds between organisms and their environment. Therefore, the ecology of organisms can be inferred from their dietary habits. The present study is aimed at characterizing the feeding habits of diverse megaherbivores through dental microwear analyses. This method was applied on cheek teeth of three sympatric species of proboscideans from the middle/late Miocene of the Molasse Basin in Southern Germany: Gomphotherium subtapiroideum, Gomphotherium steinheimense, and Deinotherium giganteum. The microwear signatures are significantly different between these taxa, suggesting differences in feeding habits and ecological niches within a woodland environment. D. giganteum probably browsed on dicotyledonous foliages whereas the two species of gomphotheres were neither strict grazers nor strict browsers and instead probably fed on a large spectrum of vegetal resources. The differences of occlusal molar morphology between the two gomphotheres are supported by the dental microwear pattern. Indeed, G. subtapiroideum probably ingested more abrasive material than G. steinheimense. Thus, our results suggest that these proboscideans did not compete for food resources.     

红色旅游资源开发中敬畏感与自豪感对游客文明旅游行为意向的驱动机制

在我国大力推进文明旅游示范区和示范单位建设的时代背景下,引导和培育红色旅游景区游客的文明旅游行为,对于推动新时期发扬红色传统、传承红色基因和实现红色旅游资源的可持续开发具有重要的意义。基于规范激活理论、敬畏原型理论和社会认同理论,统筹考虑红色精神弘扬和红色文化传承功能,构建纳入敬畏感和自豪感情感因素的游客文明旅游行为意向的理论分析框架,选择我国红色旅游代表性景区台儿庄古城、岳麓山、陆军讲武堂旧址等作为案例调研地,运用结构方程模型和层级回归模型,实证检验在红色旅游资源开发中促进游客实施文明旅游行为的关键因素、作用机制及其驱动路径。研究发现：（1）在红色旅游资源开发情景中,后果意识、责任归属、道德规范与游客文明旅游行为意向之间的假设关系得到了验证。（2）敬畏感通过道德规范显著正向影响游客实施文明旅游行为,游客体验到的敬畏感越多,则感受到实施文明旅游行为的道德责任越多,且实施文明旅游行为的可能性越大。自豪感对道德规范和文明旅游行为意向没有显著正向影响,游客在红色旅游景区体验到的自豪感未能在促进游客文明道德责任提升和实施文明旅游行为中发挥作用。（3）景区知名度负向调节道德规范与文明旅游行为意向的正向关系,景区知名度较高时,道德规范对文明旅游行为意向的正向影响较小。因此,应增强游客对不文明行为的消极后果认知,提升游客负责任意识和道德责任,营造红色旅游的庄严氛围,激发游客的敬畏感,高度重视知名红色旅游景区的文明示范和引领,以期为我国红色旅游资源的可持续开发提供决策参考。     

The ecological basis for simulating phytoplankton responses to environmental change (PROTECH)

The theory and mathematical development of a model, called PROTECH, are presented. The model simulates the dynamic responses of up to eight species of phytoplankton to environmental variability in lakes and reservoirs. PROTECH models were developed originally to fulfil a commercial, decision-support role in the management of industrial water quality, where plankton growth is an issue. The progressive refinements to the model nevertheless have a robust ecological basis. This makes PROTECH a promising tool for researching plankton community ecology. The model calculates exponents describing growth and attrition, from a base of the maximum growth rates of algal species in culture. Subject to defined thresholds, growth integrates variability in the fluxes of light and nutrients. The paper develops this philosophy and its embodiment into the structure of the model. Examples of its authenticated, validated and sensitivity-tested outputs are presented.     

生态位理论及其对企业经营管理的启示

在生物进化过程中存在趋异性特征,通过生物多样性的发展来更有效的利用自然资源。生态位理论强调的是一种差异进化,用协同来避免竞争。企业应在经营过程中准确找到自身的生存空间,避免过度竞争。