Coupling ecosystem science with management: A Great Lakes perspective from Green Bay,Lake Michigan,USA

Continued resource degradation in various areas of the Great Lakes has led to doubts of the adequacy of conventional science and management approaches. The need for a more holistic approach, identified as an ecosystem approach, appears now to be more widely accepted although progress with implementation is slow. We argue here that ecosystem science is an integral part of an ecosystem approach and is a prerequisite to effective management planning.One of the problems of implementing an ecosystem approach is forging the link between ecosystem based research and management. For Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA, certain structural and functional qualities of the ecosystem have been used to define operational guides and to formulate management objectives. These objectives are being utilized in the development of a remedial action plan for Green Bay.Deceased 5 February 1986.     

Researchers’ Experiences, Positive and Negative, in Integrative Landscape Projects

Integrative (interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary) landscape research projects are becoming increasingly common. As a result, researchers are spending a larger proportion of their professional careers doing integrative work, participating in shifting interdisciplinary teams, and cooperating directly with non-academic participants. Despite the growing importance of integrative research, few studies have investigated researchers’ experiences in these projects. How do researchers perceive the outcomes of integrative projects, or career effects? Do they view the projects generally as successes or failures? This study analyses researchers’ experiences in integrative landscape studies and investigates what factors shape these experiences. The data stems from 19 semi-structured qualitative interviews and a Web-based survey among 207 participants in integrative landscape research projects. It finds that researchers experience participation in integrative projects as positive, in particular discussions among participants, networking, teamwork, and gaining new insights and skills. Furthermore, most researchers perceive the projects as successful and as having a positive effect on their careers. Less positive aspects of integration relate to publications and merit points. Factors found to contribute to positive experiences include reaching a high degree of integration amongst the involved disciplines, common definitions of integrative research concepts, and projects that include a large share of fundamental research as well as projects with many project outcomes. Based on these findings, we advise future projects to plan for integration, facilitate discussions, and reach agreement on integrative concepts. We suggest that aspects of fundamental research be included in integrative projects. We also suggest that planning be done at an early stage for peer-reviewed publications, to ensure that participants gain merit points from their participation in integrative research efforts.     

Irrigation and collective action: A study in method with reference to the Shiwalik Hills, Haryana

In recent years decentralized development approaches have gained prominence in the agricultural sector. A host of community based watershed management projects have been implemented that encourage community organizations to undertake management of previously government controlled irrigation systems and forests. Community organizations have been given the responsibility of managing water distribution, collection of irrigation service fees and undertaking routine maintenance of irrigation infrastructure. In this context, analysis of irrigation management has concluded that groups that are relatively homogeneous may fare better than heterogeneous groups in facilitating collective action. However, this article argues that analysis of the influence of group heterogeneity on collective action is complicated because of its multi‐dimensional nature and the presence of non‐monotonic effects in mechanisms linking heterogeneity and collective outcomes. The article discusses the importance of context specification in analysis of group heterogeneity through a discussion of elements of a joint management contract in Haryana (India), identification of key variables with a potential to explain collective action in irrigation management and construction of household endowment and water interest scores to account for the influence of group heterogeneity in facilitating collective action. In the process of applying household endowment and water interest scores, the authors highlight the role of local ecological variation and non‐farm employment in influencing collective action. Proper specification of local context enables the researchers to rely on household endowment and water interest scores to predict conflicts and potential for irrigation service provision and compliance with irrigation service rules.     

Integrating fire management into land-use planning: A multiple-use management research,development, and applications program

The traditional view of fire as a destructive agent requiring immediate suppression is giving way to the view that fire can and should be used to meet land management goals. Thus,fire control is being replaced by the more general concept offire management, which is based on the need to integrate fire policy with land management objectives. The social, economic, and ecologic effects of fire must be evaluated in the selection of land management alternatives.The activities of fire management organizations—fire prevention, control, and use of fire—must respond to needs of land management. Many agencies have developed fire organizations as separate entities that set their own objectives. The many land and resource managers who have recognized the need to incorporate fire considerations into land-use planning have so far lacked the techniques to do so.As a natural process, fire has an important function in forest and range ecosystems. Fire can greatly influence the quantity and quality of resource outputs; it is a two-edged sword that can either harm or benefit our goals, depending upon the complex effects of fire and the nature of our wants.The Fire in Multiple-Use Management Research, Development, and Applications (RD&A) Program was initiated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, at the Northern Forest Fire Lab in Missoula to assist land managers. This profile explains what an RD&A program is; discusses its mission, goals, and approach to the problem; and tells why the approach involves federal laboratories, universities, and private research foundations.     

The organization of integrated environmental research in The Netherlands

This article presents new concepts for the organization of increasingly complex environmental research activities on the institutional, the national, or the international level. An environmental research cycle with four phases, similar to the industrial product cycle, is described, and its implications in managing the interface between research, policy making, and enforcement are depicted. Furthermore, five main themes of future environmental research are proposed, including advanced analytical methods, environmental monitoring, an environmental management information system (EMIS), and the development of ecological targets at a national and a global level. The specific tasks of universities, private organizations, and governmental institutions in the total environmental research area are defined and a structure is proposed to develop collaborative networks.     

我国交通运输气候灾害的初步研究

利用收集的资料,从我国实际国情出发,在分析我国气候特点、交通运输发展特点的基础上,综合研究了我国交通运输气候灾害的特点、类型、分布及其影响,为进一步开展气候异常对交通运输的影响研究打下了基础．     

Tree Basal Growth Response to Flooding in a Bottomland Hardwood Forest in Central Ohio1

Abstract: Tree basal growth in response to flooding regime was evaluated at a 5.2‐ha bottomland forest along the Olentangy River in central Ohio. Tree‐ring analysis was used to develop a 14‐year basal area increment (BAI) (cm²/year) series for 42 canopy trees (representing 10 species) throughout the bottomland. Mean annual BAI was evaluated relative to the frequency and duration of bankfull (>70 m³/s) and high‐flood (>154 m³/s) river discharge for a given water year (October 1‐September 30) and growing season (April 1‐September 30). A significant polynomial relationship was detected between the number of days of high‐flood river discharge over a combined two‐year period (Year i + Year i ? 1) and mean annual BAI. No significant relationships were detected when only the concurrent‐year or previous‐year flood regimes were considered or when growing season was considered. A similar relationship was detected when duration of high‐flood discharge days and BAI were both evaluated in two‐year increments (Year i + Year i ? 1). Mean annual BAI was most influenced by boxelder (Acer negundo) which was the dominant species and exhibited strong agreement with the overall BAI series. In each case, the resulting parabolic curve of tree basal growth in response to flooding suggests an optimal number of flooding days, a response to perturbation consistent with the subsidy‐stress model. Dendrochronology may be a useful tool for managers looking to restore environmental flows to regulated rivers.     

Research progress on electromagnetic radiation in gas-containing coal and rock fracture and its applications

This paper reviews the status quo of the research on electromagnetic radiation in gas-containing coal and rock fracture. It focuses mainly on the electromagnetic radiation phenomena, the generation mechanism, characteristics, law of change and experimental applications in the field. Based on the authors’ research work in the past decade, detailed discussions are made with respect to the engineering applications of electromagnetic radiation spectrum, law of transmission and signal collection of gas-containing coal and rock. Furthermore, the paper gives the prospect of electromagnetic radiation effects in coal and rock fracture and its applications.     

机场热点区域三选法研究

要预防机场活动区内航空器滑错滑行道或跑道,就必须有效、准确地识别机场活动区内可能发生混淆的热点区域。为此,在对比研究德尔菲法和头脑风暴法的基础上,提出矩阵法和模糊聚类分析2种定量研究模型。算例结果表明,矩阵法和模糊聚类分析的结果相互印证。结合德尔菲法、矩阵法和模糊聚类分析的三选法在识别机场热点区域过程中能够减少人为主观偏见,提高准确性和可靠性,识别精度总体优于单一的筛选方法。     

热固性耐高温环三磷腈基体树脂的合成及应用研究进展

对近年来国内外热固性环三磷腈耐高温基体树脂的研究进展及其在耐热、阻燃材料领域的应用进行简单综述。重点介绍了热固性环三磷腈衍生物的合成、结构和性能特点及其应用,并对国内外环三磷腈类阻燃、耐高温材料的研究进行了展望。