Biogeochemistry of aromatic hydrocarbons in the benthos of microcosms†

Investigations into the fate of petroleum compounds in the marine environment were carried out using experimental microcosms of two sizes and designs. Aromatic hydrocarbons or No. 2 fuel oil were spiked to the water of a 13 m³ continuous flow system and to a 2281 recycled flow system. The transport and alteration of this oil was traced in the sediment and benthic organisms (Glycera americana, Crepidula sp., and Nephtys incisa) of these microcosms. Measurable contamination was found in both sample types. The aromatic hydrocarbon distribution, including relative isomeric distribution (e.g., C₂‐phenanthrenes) was found to be different in sediment and in organisms from that which was originally introduced to the experimental microcosm. Differences in isomer distribution between Glycera and Crepidula were also detected. Based on the experimental data: molecular weight and specific isomeric form, biochemical processes, solubility, and particle adsorption/desorption influence the fate of petroleum compounds in benthic ecosystems.     

Reserve design to optimize functional connectivity and animal density

Ecological distance-based spatial capture–recapture models (SCR) are a promising approach for simultaneously estimating animal density and connectivity, both of which affect spatial population processes and ultimately species persistence. We explored how SCR models can be integrated into reserve-design frameworks that explicitly acknowledge both the spatial distribution of individuals and their space use resulting from landscape structure. We formulated the design of wildlife reserves as a budget-constrained optimization problem and conducted a simulation to explore 3 different SCR-informed optimization objectives that prioritized different conservation goals by maximizing the number of protected individuals, reserve connectivity, and density-weighted connectivity. We also studied the effect on our 3 objectives of enforcing that the space-use requirements of individuals be met by the reserve for individuals to be considered conserved (referred to as home-range constraints). Maximizing local population density resulted in fragmented reserves that would likely not aid long-term population persistence, and maximizing the connectivity objective yielded reserves that protected the fewest individuals. However, maximizing density-weighted connectivity or preemptively imposing home-range constraints on reserve design yielded reserves of largely spatially compact sets of parcels covering high-density areas in the landscape with high functional connectivity between them. Our results quantify the extent to which reserve design is constrained by individual home-range requirements and highlight that accounting for individual space use in the objective and constraints can help in the design of reserves that balance abundance and connectivity in a biologically relevant manner.     

Incorporating connectivity into conservation planning for the optimal representation of multiple species and ecosystem services

Conservation planning tends to focus on protecting species’ ranges or landscape connectivity but seldom both—particularly in the case of diverse taxonomic assemblages and multiple planning goals. Therefore, information on potential trade-offs between maintaining landscape connectivity and achieving other conservation objectives is lacking. We developed an optimization approach to prioritize the maximal protection of species’ ranges, ecosystem types, and forest carbon stocks, while also including habitat connectivity for range-shifting species and dispersal corridors to link protected area. We applied our approach to Sabah, Malaysia, where the state government mandated an increase in protected-area coverage of approximately 305,000 ha but did not specify where new protected areas should be. Compared with a conservation planning approach that did not incorporate the 2 connectivity features, our approach increased the protection of dispersal corridors and elevational connectivity by 13% and 21%, respectively. Coverage of vertebrate and plant species’ ranges and forest types were the same whether connectivity was included or excluded. Our approach protected 2% less forest carbon and 3% less butterfly range than when connectivity features were not included. Hence, the inclusion of connectivity into conservation planning can generate large increases in the protection of landscape connectivity with minimal loss of representation of other conservation targets.     

A social assessment of urban parkland: Analyzing park use and meaning to inform management and resilience planning

Globally, municipalities are tackling climate adaptation and resilience planning. Urban green space has crucial biophysical buffering capacities, but also affects social interactions and human well-being. This paper considers the social dimension of urban green space, through an assessment focused on park use, function, and meanings, and compares results to categories of cultural ecosystem services. We develop a mixed-method approach for assessment of uses and social meanings of parkland and pilot this method in 2140 acres of parkland in waterfront neighborhoods surrounding New York City’s Jamaica Bay, an area heavily affected by Hurricane Sandy. This method combines observation of human activities and signs of prior human use with structured interviews of park users. We find that urban parkland is a crucial form of ‘nearby nature’ that provides space for recreation, activities, socialization, and environmental engagement and supports place attachment and social ties. We show that parks, through their use by and interactions with humans, are producing vital cultural ecosystem services that may help to strengthen social resilience. Certain services were more easily detectable than others via our assessment technique, including recreation, social relations, and sense of place. The assessment method was designed to be spatially explicit, scalable, and replicable; natural resource managers engaged in park management and/or resilience planning could apply this method across individual sites, in particular districts—such as vulnerable waterfront areas, and citywide. This study demonstrates a way in which cultural ecosystem services and an understanding of social meaning could be incorporated into park management and resilience planning.     

渤海区域生态补偿机制的研究

生态系统方法是保护和管理自然资源的新理念，得到世界各海洋大国的普遍关注和认可。生态系统方法要求运用生态补偿机制。构建海洋生态补偿机制的基本思路是：①根据海洋生态系统服务功能变化及其对利益相关者的影响界定补偿主体和补偿对象：②补偿途径以财政转移支付和环境资源税费为主；③遵循理论计算值与现有实践相结合的原则制定补偿标准。围绕影响渤海生态系统健康的关键是人类活动．提出了构建渤海区域生态补偿机制的初步设想。主要包括：改革现有“排污收费制度”。提高收费标准，增强制度的生态补偿效力。以减少陆源污染物排海；建立流域和海域之间的用水生态补偿机制。以增加入海淡水量；推广“退渔还湿”的生态补偿政策；加大资金投入．强化现有渔业生态补偿政策；以同区域内的土地价格为参照。对围海造地收取生态补偿金。     

基于灰色层次分析法的城市复合产业生态系统综合评价

城市复合产韭生态系统是以人为主体而构成的复杂系统.在人类社会发展的过程中,城市扮演了极其重要的角色,体现了人类社会发展的最新成就.然而工业革命以后,伴随着城市经济飞速发展的是越来越严重的社会、环境问题,造成城市的经济发展与社会、环境不协调.为解决这一问题,需要从学术上对城市复合产业生态系统的经济、社会、环境子系统的发展水平做出正确的分析评价,以有助于制定正确的发展政策.现有评价多采用模糊数学的方法,但是存在无法科学确立隶属函数的问题.针对这一特点,本文提出了基于灰色层次分析的城市复合产业生态系统综合效率评价方法,并以大连市为案例研究区,从产业经济、社会和生态环境三方面做了综合评价.从结果来看,大连市城市复合产业生态系统的综合绩效评价结果为二级,即良好.为实现城市的可持续发展,需要大力发展循环经济和推行节能减排,以提高系统的总体绩效,实现经济、环境和社会发展的三赢.     

Emergy Evaluation of a Village Ecosystem in Wolong Nature Reserve in China

Abstract

Due to historic reasons, there are several human settlements in nature reserves and national parks, which may constitute a threat to biodiversity. Establishment of nature reserves may however generate constraints for development of local communities residing in these reserves. The village ecosystem of Zhuanjinglou Village in Wolong Nature Reserve includes population, farming and livestock (domestic and alpine) and forest ecosystem. An emergy analysis of agro-ecosystem (including the farming and livestock ecosystem) and energy consumption in Zhuanjinglou Village indicates that livestock ecosystem plays an important role in village ecosystem, which may be the source of great pressure on the state of the local environment. The increasing ratio of electricity in energy consumption may play a positive role for environmental conservation. Despite some successful experiences, there are some remaining issues that need to be addressed in the ecological rehabilitation of the village ecosystem.     

Meta-analysis of landowner participation in voluntary incentive programs for provision of forest ecosystem services

Many voluntary incentive programs for provision of forest ecosystem services (ES) have low participation rates, insufficient enrollment areas, and inefficient ecological outcomes. Understanding participation behavior in such programs has therefore become a crucial part of policy success. We synthesized a large body of literature on the behavior of nonindustrial private forest owners based on surveys of stated (intended) participation or data on actual participation in existing or hypothetical programs. Using metaregression analysis, we examined how methodological, program-characteristic, and economic-incentive variables affected participation rate estimates. Participation rates tended to be overestimated when landowner participation was elicited in hypothetical choice situations (compared with real situations) and when dichotomous choice surveys (compared with census data) were used. The marginal effect sizes were quite large, for example, a 31% increase with use of stated choices in hypothetical scenarios, and practitioners should therefore be aware of them. However, use of choice experiment surveys in a modified scenario based on existing programs had no effect on participation when all other determinants were controlled for. Participation rates decreased significantly as length of the contract increased and when there was no withdrawal option. These results suggest that perpetual contracts have a lower negative impact on participation than time-limited contracts with a duration of over 50 years. We confirmed that as compensation amounts increased, participation increased. One-time up-front payments were more effective in increasing initial participation than annual payments for contracts of over 5 years. We identified the robust determinants and the effect sizes of those determinants on landowner participation rate estimates, thereby contributing to a better understanding of forest owner behavior and offering useful insights to enable researchers and resource managers to improve the design and efficiency of new and existing forest ES programs.     

北京市北沙河上游典型小流域水环境治理措施的生态效益分析

北京市属于资源型重度缺水地区,水资源紧缺严重制约其可持续发展,加之水质恶化,造成了全市水资源和水环境形势严峻的局面.为此,北京市布设相应措施对小流域水环境问题进行治理,分析治理措施的生态效益能够为小流域水环境治理措施的合理布设提供科学依据.以北京市昌平区北沙河上游8条小流域为研究区,基于In VEST(Integrat...     

Determination of trichloroacetic acid in environmental studies using carbon 14 and chlorine 36

Radioisotopes carbon 14 and chlorine 36 were used to elucidate the environmental role of trichloroacetic acid (TCA) formerly taken to be a herbicide and a secondary air pollutant with phytotoxic effects. However, use of ¹⁴C-labeling posed again known analytical problems, especially in TCA extraction from the sample matrix. Therefore—after evaluation of available methods—a new procedure using decarboxylation of [1,2-¹⁴C]TCA combined with extraction of the resultant ¹⁴C-chloroform with a non-polar solvent and its subsequent radiometric measurement was developed. The method solves previous difficulties and permits an easy determination of amounts between 0.4 and 20 kBq (10–500 ng g⁻¹) of carrier-less [1,2-¹⁴C]TCA in samples from environmental investigations. The procedure is, however, not suitable for direct [³⁶Cl]TCA determination in chlorination studies with ³⁶Cl. Because TCA might be microbially degraded in soil during extraction and sample storage and its extraction from soil or needles is never complete, the decarboxylation method—i.e. 2 h TCA decomposition to chloroform and CO₂ in aqueous solution or suspension in closed vial at 90 °C and pH 4.6 with subsequent CHCl₃ extraction—is recommended here, estimated V < 7%. Moreover, the influence of pH and temperature on the decarboxylation of TCA in aqueous solution was studied in a broad range and its environmental relevance is shown in the case of TCA decarboxylation in spruce needles which takes place also at ambient temperatures and might amount more than 10–20% after a growing season. A study of TCA distribution in spruce needles after below-ground uptake shows the highest uptake rate into current needles which have, however, a lower TCA content than older needle-year classes, TCA biodegradation in forest soil leads predominatingly to CO₂.