Policy strategies to foster the resilience of mountain social-ecological systems under uncertain global change

Globalization and climate change threaten the sustained provision of essential ecosystem services (ES) for people living in and downstream of mountain regions. The increasing evidence of the many vulnerabilities of mountain social-ecological systems has highlighted the urgent need for policy-relevant research into ways of coping with these trends. In this context, resilience has been emerging as a concept for both understanding and managing the complex social-ecological systems in which ES are provided and consumed. Yet, literature on resilience of social-ecological systems is mainly theoretical with limited application in real-world mountain case studies. In this paper, we present a comprehensive quantitative assessment of the social-ecological resilience of a case study in the Swiss Alps under global change. We model and evaluate an indicator for resilience that shows the capacity of the mountain social-ecological system to provide a set of demanded ES. In a first step, we model the development of this indicator in different scenarios of global change. In a second step, we test the effect of a rich set of policy strategies under all these scenarios to identify types and timing of interventions that are robust under multiple global change settings. Results indicate that the resilience of the mountain social-ecological system is endangered in all scenarios, especially if strong globalization is assumed. Robust strategies that buffer the system against these pressures require early spatial planning action in combination with more targeted direct payments to support the current regional structure and traditional mountain farming practices. Such information is crucial to guide decision-making processes in the era of highly uncertain future global change.     

Scientific evidence,expert entrepreneurship,and ecosystem narratives in the UK Natural Environment White Paper

The Natural Environment White Paper represents the most important conservation policy shift in the United Kingdom (UK) in twenty years. It formalises the ecosystem approach within national policy objectives and emphasises the economic value of ecosystem services. By analysing the use of various evidence sources, the involvement of science entrepreneurs, and the development of policy narratives, our goal was to understand factors that influenced adoption of an ecosystem service framework in the UK. We interviewed 48 policy actors and found that centrally-sponsored synthesis reports with entrepreneurial authors provided the most influential expert-based knowledge in the development of the White Paper. More recently published reports had greater influence, yet the window of opportunity for scientific evidence having policy impact was greater in the problem-setting stages of policy development. The interaction between teams preparing syntheses and expert entrepreneurs helped influence the construction of strategic policy narratives. Those narratives increased the impact of scientific evidence by communicating and framing key policy-salient messages, and brokering between broad ecosystem-based and environmental economics narratives. The combination of ecological and economics evidence was particularly salient in the UK case due to the context of continued biodiversity loss and the acceptability of valuation narratives within central government. Our findings suggest that evidence impact varies at different stages of the policy process, and that this is driven by the interplay of contextual factors like policy timing, personal influence, and the competition between different sets of actors and narratives.     

Understanding behaviour to inform water supply management in developed nations – A review of literature, conceptual model and research agenda

Water is a scarce resource in many parts of the developed world. Two solutions are possible to address water scarcity: conservation of existing resources, or the further production of water from new sources e.g. through recycling of wastewater or desalination of seawater. However, the main hurdle to implementation of many of these solutions is often viewed as a lack of public willingness to adopt these alternative water behaviours. Research in this area is therefore crucial. Yet, and possibly due to the interdisciplinary nature of such research, there is currently no comprehensive overview of what has been done before. This study fills this gap by (1) choosing a general consumer behaviour perspective as a starting point, (2) developing a conceptual model of research required in the area of water-related public acceptance studies, (3) identifying eight key water-related behaviours which require future research attention, and (4) reviewing which areas of the conceptual model have been investigated in the past by conducting an extensive literature review of water-related social science research.The review established that the majority of work which has been conducted is located at the cross-roads of personal characteristics and behavioural intentions. Significant gaps exist in relation to researching the adoption of a wide range of demand-side water behaviours. This indicates a dominance of supply-side solutions in social-research exploration. The review identifies a number of research needs including: the exploration of actual adoption of water-related behaviours (rather than behavioural intentions); and to widen the scope of water behaviour enquiry to include more demand-side solutions. Given the increasing scarcity of water in many areas of the world, addressing these identified gaps will be of significant importance. Thus our model informs the social-research agenda for water policy.     

MODELING A CONCRETE BLOCK IRRIGATION DIVERSION SYSTEM1

ABSTRACT: Concrete block irrigation diversion systems have been proposed as alternatives to permanent dams of concrete or rock or temporary gravel berms. Permanent dams can cause stream channel instability, bank erosion, sediment pollution, ice flow blockage, and safety problems for recreational floating craft. Temporary berms can require substantial streambed disturbance and can promote sediment pollution, stream bank instability, and bank erosion. A design procedure was developed based on a model of the hydraulic performance of concrete block diversion systems. The procedure was used to model a site on the Gallatin River in Montana. The method relies on HEC-RAS (Hydrologic Engineering Center -River Analysis System) software combined with analytical techniques in an iterative scheme. The hydraulic performance of different diversion configurations (the existing heavy-rock diversion system, concrete blocks oriented parallel to flow, and concrete blocks oriented diagonally) was assessed using the model under a range of flow rates. The minimum diversion dimensions (length, number, and size of blocks) that maintained block stability while diverting the requisite flow were determined for each model run. At the Gallatin River site, the block system oriented parallel to flow required less diversion material than the diagonal orientation. The recommended diversion length was 51.8 m (170 ft). Trapezoidal blocks with a top width of 20.3 cm (8 in), a height of 45.7 cm (18 in), and side slopes of 2 vertical to 1 horizontal were specified. This configuration minimizes the total block mass, diverts the required flow, and has a factor of safety of 2.0 against block displacement.     

Knowledge co-production in practice: Enabling environmental management systems for ports through participatory research in the Dutch Wadden Sea

Coastal zone management is inconceivable without the mobilization and integration of different types of knowledge – that is, without knowledge co-production practices. This article applies the concept of knowledge co-production to analyze the process of emergence, standardization, and enculturation of environmental management systems (EMSs) within port communities in the Dutch Wadden Sea. Moreover, it is a report from the field in which we reflect on the participatory practices conducted to facilitate the knowledge arrangements required to develop EMSs for a group of ports. The article concludes that this type of knowledge arrangement and co-production practices (involving different types of actors and knowledge) might become mandatory in the near future to stabilize the EMS phenomenon in the practices of ports.     

Water Resources Modeling of the Ganges‐Brahmaputra‐Meghna River Basins Using Satellite Remote Sensing Data1

Nishat, Bushra and S.M. Mahbubur Rahman, 2009. Water Resources Modeling of the Ganges‐Brahmaputra‐Meghna River Basins Using Satellite Remote Sensing Data. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 45(6):1313‐1327. Abstract: Large‐scale water resources modeling can provide useful insights on future water availability scenarios for downstream nations in anticipation of proposed upstream water resources projects in large international river basins (IRBs). However, model set up can be challenging due to the large amounts of data requirement on both static states (soils, vegetation, topography, drainage network, etc.) and dynamic variables (rainfall, streamflow, soil moisture, evapotranspiration, etc.) over the basin from multiple nations and data collection agencies. Under such circumstances, satellite remote sensing provides a more pragmatic and convenient alternative because of the vantage of space and easy availability from a single data platform. In this paper, we demonstrate a modeling effort to set up a water resources management model, MIKE BASIN, over the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Meghna (GBM) river basins. The model is set up with the objective of providing Bangladesh, the lowermost riparian nation in the GBM basins, a framework for assessing proposed water diversion scenarios in the upstream transboundary regions of India and deriving quantitative impacts on water availability. Using an array of satellite remote sensing data on topography, vegetation, and rainfall from the transboundary regions, we demonstrate that it is possible to calibrate MIKE BASIN to a satisfactory level and predict streamflow in the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers at the entry points of Bangladesh at relevant scales of water resources management. Simulated runoff for the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers follow the trends in the rated discharge for the calibration period. However, monthly flow volume differs from the actual rated flow by (?) 8% to (+) 20% in the Ganges basin, by (?) 15 to (+) 12% in the Brahmaputra basin, and by (?) 15 to (+) 19% in the Meghna basin. Our large‐scale modeling initiative is generic enough for other downstream nations in IRBs to adopt for their own modeling needs.     

Pesticides in ground water in the united states: Monitoring,modeling, and risks from the U.S. perspective

Abstract

Scientific and regulatory interest in ground water contamination by pesticides increased significantly in 1979. This was prompted by findings of the nematicide 1,2‐dibromo‐3‐chloropropane (DBCP) and the nematicide/insecticide aldicarb (Temik®) in ground water in several states. Since that time, at least 130 pesticides and pesticide metabolites have been detected in ground water in over 150 studies, but detection frequencies are 4–10% nationally. Detection frequencies of pesticides over Health Advisory Levels are generally lower. Screening‐level models and detailed computer simulation models are useful for risk assessments and regulatory decisions. Attenuation Factor, CMLS, PRZM2, GLEAMS, and LEACHM are all useful models.     

Homology modeling of anti-parathion antibody and its interaction with organophosphorous pesticides and analogues

The mechanism of specific recognition in pesticide immunochemistry was investigated by computer-based strategy, and a rapid method for the identification of antibody specificity was developed. Based on the previously produced anti-parathion monoclonal antibody (mAb), the DNA sequence was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). From the translated amino acid sequences, a three-dimensional structure of the antibody was constructed by homology modeling method, and then it was coordinated by 1 ns molecular dynamics under the explicit solvent condition. The stereochemical property and folding quality were further assessed by Procheck and Profile-3D. The self-compatibility score for the antibody model was 98.7, which was greater than the low score 46.2 and close to the top score 102.6. In addition, parathion and several structural analogues were docked to the constructed antibody structure. The docking results showed that the interaction energy (-40.54 kcal/mol) of antibody-parathion complex was the lowest among all the tested pesticides, which accounted for the high specificity of the antibody to parathion and perfectly matched with the experimental data. Moreover, three residues, Phe165, Asp107 and Thr100 were recognized as the most important residues for antibody reacting with parathion. The interaction energy negatively correlated with the antibody specificity.     

Key airborne concentrations of chemicals for emergency response planning in HAZMAT road transportation- margin of safety or survival

The release of chemicals due to road transportation accidents could have adverse consequences such as fatality, physical and financial loss and environmental damage. The purpose of this study was to determine the suitable margin of safety/survival of individuals in HAZMAT road transportation accidents for use in Emergency Response Planning (ERP). In this study, at first, the safety margin and survival margin were defined and proposed. Then, as a case study, the chemical tanker trucks in Iran's road transport fleet were investigated and the full bore rupture of the tanker trucks was considered as the selective scenario. Eventually, safety margin and survival margin were determined using ALOHA and PHAST software and the Chemical Exposure Index (CEI). The results showed that using the CEI, among the selected chemicals, ammonia, chlorine and 1,3-butadiene had the highest chemical release potential with the exposure indices of 597, 548 and 284, respectively, and need further investigation. The possible safety margin obtained in this study was distances over 5100 m (using ALOHA software for ammonia) and 10,983 m (using PHAST software for chlorine). On the other hand, the survival margin was distances over 980 m away from the accident area (using ALOHA software for ammonia) and 620 m away from the accident area (using the PHAST software for chlorine). The results of this study indicate that determining the safety and survival margins surrounding the tanker trucks and containers of chemicals is a critical issue for the emergency response planning and determining the standards of road's safety and survival margins. On the other hand, due to the obtainment of different results by various methods and software, in road accidents, the highest hazard distance is suggested to be considered to determine the safety margin (distances longer than 10,983 m) and survival margin (distances longer than 980 m) for ERP, regardless of the type of used material and software.     

Application of modeling and simulation tools in costs and pollution monitoring

This paper presents the development and application of process modeling and simulation tools to aid in the monitoring and measuring of pollution from industry, and investigate a plant's overall performance. A case study of a generic reduction plant is investigated, taking into account the underlying principles that determine the amount of fluoride emissions released from the plant's processes. The simulation study includes the investigation of the gas cleaning system within the plant, such as the system's operating relationships between the scrubbing efficiency, wear of the scrubber filter bags, maintenance costs and its response to the change of scrubbing circulation. Two sets of simulation runs are performed to seek a balance for the plant's overall system performance, taking into account environmental issues (fluoride emissions) and cost. The final simulation result demonstrates that cost savings can be achieved when the plant operates in a cleaner manner.