The Grain of Spatially Referenced Economic Cost and Biodiversity Benefit Data and the Effectiveness of a Cost Targeting Strategy

Facing tight resource constraints, conservation organizations must allocate funds available for habitat protection as effectively as possible. Often, they combine spatially referenced economic and biodiversity data to prioritize land for protection. We tested how sensitive these prioritizations could be to differences in the spatial grain of these data by demonstrating how the conclusion of a classic debate in conservation planning between cost and benefit targeting was altered based on the available information. As a case study, we determined parcel‐level acquisition costs and biodiversity benefits of land transactions recently undertaken by a nonprofit conservation organization that seeks to protect forests in the eastern United States. Then, we used hypothetical conservation plans to simulate the types of ex ante priorities that an organization could use to prioritize areas for protection. We found the apparent effectiveness of cost and benefit targeting depended on the spatial grain of the data used when prioritizing parcels based on local species richness. However, when accounting for complementarity, benefit targeting consistently was more efficient than a cost targeting strategy regardless of the spatial grain of the data involved. More pertinently for other studies, we found that combining data collected over different spatial grains inflated the apparent effectiveness of a cost targeting strategy and led to overestimation of the efficiency gain offered by adopting a more integrative return‐on‐investment approach.     

Investment and the Policy Process in Conservation Monitoring

Despite decades of discussion and implementation, conservation monitoring remains a challenge. Many current solutions in the literature focus on improving the science or making more structured decisions. These insights are important but incomplete in accounting for the politics and economics of the conservation decisions informed by monitoring. Our novel depiction of the monitoring enterprise unifies insights from multiple disciplines (conservation, operations research, economics, and policy) and highlights many underappreciated factors that affect the expected benefits of monitoring. For example, there must be a strong link between the specific needs of decision makers and information gathering. Furthermore, the involvement of stakeholders other than scientists and research managers means that new information may not be interpreted and acted upon as expected. While answering calls for sharply delineated objectives will clearly add focus to monitoring efforts, for practical reasons, high‐level goals may purposefully be left vague, to facilitate other necessary steps in the policy process. We use the expanded depiction of the monitoring process to highlight problems of cooperation and conflict. We critique calls to invest in monitoring for the greater good by arguing that incentives are typically lacking. Although the benefits of learning accrued within a project (e.g., improving management) provide incentives for investing in some monitoring, it is unrealistic, in general, to expect managers to add potentially costly measures to generate shared benefits. In the traditional linear model of the role of science in policy decisions, monitoring reduces uncertainty and decision makers are rational, unbiased consumers of the science. However, conservation actions increasingly involve social conflict. Drawing insights from political science, we argue that in high‐conflict situations, it is necessary to address the conflict prior to monitoring. Las Inversiones y el Proceso de Políticas en el Monitoreo de la Conservación Sanchirico et al.     

Designing individualisation of eco information: a conceptual framework and design toolkit

Eco-labelling is the practice of eco information provision that most directly addresses consumer behaviour. Nowadays, consumers are facing difficulties in perceiving and understanding existing eco labels. In previous work, we proposed the conceptual framework of eco information individualisation which tailors eco labels according to the specific needs of individual users using contextual technologies. This paper extends the conceptual framework by introducing a more structured way of considering the personal data and product data requirements, and reports the development of a design toolkit that aims to support designers in the designing of individualised eco information. A design workshop was carried out to introduce the concept to designers, and evaluate the usability and usefulness of the toolkit. Positive responses were received. The design outputs generated from the workshop were considered largely feasible and have the potential to be developed into digital prototypes. These indicate that it is possible for designers to learn to design eco information individualisation in a short time. This paper is a step towards a greater understanding of designing individualised eco information.     

城市地表形态对热环境的影响——以上海市为例

基于遥感与GIS技术,利用Landsat7-ETM+影像反演地表温度,用社会经济统计数据、土地利用现状数据和道路交通网络数据计算城市景观形态参数以表征地表特征,从行政区(县)、5km间距同心环带和局部区块3个水平上划分空间单元建立数据样本,分析城市地表形态对热环境空间分布格局的影响。结果表明:(1)景观混合度和景观分裂度对地表温度有恒定的负向影响,区块连通性与地表温度负相关;(2)景观分裂度对热环境的影响取决于地类属性:分裂度大的增温地类,地表增温效应弱;分裂度大的降温地类,地表降温效应强;(3)人口密度和经济密度可对地表温度产生恒定正向影响;(4)人口密度、建设用地比例和房屋建筑比例是分布在区(县)尺度、同心圆环尺度和典型区块尺度上影响地表热环境最显著的地表形态要素。     

黑土区城郊耕地重金属污染空间扩散机制

城郊复杂环境条件下的耕地土壤重金属污染空间扩散机制是落实土壤污染源头防控和保障黑土地质量安全的基础.针对以往溯源研究中污染源头难定位和扩散趋势不明确等问题,以长春市城郊地区为例,以耕地土壤As、Pb、Hg和Cd元素为研究对象,采用近邻传播（AP）算法和空间自回归的扩散格局-驱动因素组合分析法尝试揭示黑土区城郊耕地重金属污染空间扩散机制.结果表明,ω（As）和ω（Cd）均值分别为39.35mg ·kg^-1和0.183 mg ·kg^-1,累积水平较高.内梅罗指数显示研究区有52.38%的耕地已出现轻度污染.AP算法识别出As存在3个影响幅度相似的潜在污染源地,均位于远离城市的典型农耕区;Pb元素的2个潜在污染源地集中分布于范家屯镇附近的工业区;Hg和Cd元素的扩散格局复杂,尤其是Cd元素,呈现多地并发的污染扩散特征.空间滞后模型表明,As元素的空间扩散格局和农药施用强度有关;Cd元素主要受土壤类型和设施农业布局的制约;Pb元素受区域城镇化和工业化发展的影响;Hg元素和区域污染迁移条件相关.污染调蓄功能未对4种元素的空间扩散格局产生显著影响.研究丰富了耕地重金属污染的空间分析理论和方法,对落实城郊黑土地的污染源头防控具有科学意义.     

环境信息数字图书馆系统构建研究

文章简要叙述了建立环境信息数字图书馆的意义及其在黑龙江省环境信息化推进过程中的地位与作用,叙述了数字图书馆的发展概况及基本技术体系,比较了国际和国内数字图书馆的发展历程。结合环保行业自身的特点和目前环保信息化所处的阶段,论证了黑龙江省环境信息数字图书馆建立的可行性。概述了黑龙江省环境信息数字图书馆的建设原则,总体目标,概括了黑龙江省环境信息数字图书馆的总体构成,并提出黑龙江省环境信息数字图书馆的建设构想。     

Modeling the current-voltage characteristics of thin-film silicon solar cells based on photo-induced electron transfer processes

Power conversion efficiency of p-i-n type microcrystalline silicon (c-Si:H) solar cells has been analyzed in terms of sequential processes of photo-induced electron transfer. The effect of the excitonic state on the charged carrier generation has been studied compared to a conventional scheme in which only charged carriers are taken into account for the operation of the solar cells. A numerical model has been developed to calculate current-voltage characteristics of solar cells on the basis of two types of charged carrier generation processes (exciton process and charged carrier process). The light trapping effect due to a textured back surface reflector (BSR) was embedded in the numerical model by using the effective medium theory in combination with the matrix method in the field of the electromagnetic theory of light. As an application of this modeling, it was found that the reported data of the power conversion efficiency were not explained by the conventional charged carrier process model and that the combined model of the charged carrier process with the exciton process well explains the performance of the p-i-n type c-Si:H solar cells. In this way, the typical power conversion efficiencies were estimated to be 10.5% for the device (i-layer thickness: 1.8 m) with the BSR (period: 600 nm; height: 250 nm) and 8.6% for the device with the flat reflector under the condition that the fractions of the exciton process and charged carrier process were 60% and 40%, respectively.     

Modeling the current-voltage characteristics of thin-film silicon solar cells based on photo-induced electron transfer processes

Power conversion efficiency of p-i-n type macrocrystalline silicon (µc-Si:H) solar cells has been analyzed in terms of sequential processes of photo-induced electron transfer. The effect of the excitonic state on the charged carrier generation has been studied compared to a conventional scheme in which only charged carriers are taken into account for the operation of the solar cells. A numerical model has been developed to calculate current-voltage characteristics of solar cells on the basis of two types of charged carrier generation processes (exciton process and charged carrier process). The light trapping effect due to a textured back surface reflector (BSR) was embedded in the numerical model by using the effective medium theory in combination with the matrix method in the field of the electromagnetic theory of light. As an application of this modeling, it was found that the reported data of the power conversion efficiency were not explained by the conventional charged carrier process model and that the combined model of the charged carrier process with the exciton process well explains the performance of the p-i-n type μc-Si:H solar cells. In this way, the typical power conversion efficiencies were estimated to be 10.5% for the device (i-layer thickness: 1.8 μm) with the BSR (period: 600 nm; height: 250 nm) and 8.6% for the device with the flat reflector under the condition that the fractions of the exciton process and charged carrier process were 60% and 40%, respectively.     

有机污染物在HDPE膜-膨润土复合防污帷幕中的一维扩散解析解

HDPE膜-膨润土复合防污帷幕被认为是目前最为安全有效的地下污染源阻隔技术之一.针对帷幕底部嵌入不透水层和帷幕下游地下水较为活跃的工况,推导了有机污染物在HDPE膜-膨润土复合防污帷幕三层结构中的一维扩散解析解.利用本文的解析解分析了HDPE膜-膨润土复合帷幕对亲水性和疏水性两类有机污染物的阻隔效果.分析结果表明:由于亲水性有机物与HDPE膜间的分配系数低,该复合防污帷幕对其阻隔效果显著优于具有高分配系数的疏水性有机物.对于疏水性有机物,可通过增大复合帷幕中膨润土的阻滞因子和帷幕厚度来改善其阻隔效果;膨润土的阻滞因子增大10倍且帷幕厚由0.6m增大为1.0m,改进后复合帷幕对疏水性有机物的阻隔效果可达到原帷幕对低分配系数亲水性有机物的阻隔水平.工程实践中可通过对HDPE膜进行表面处理以降低其分配系数或膨润土改性以增大其阻滞因子等措施来增强该复合帷幕的阻隔效果.     

南四湖内源氮磷释放的对比研究

采用柱状沉积物采样器和Peeper间隙水采集器分别于2011年8月获取南四湖不同湖区原位柱状沉积物和间隙水,通过原柱样静态释放实验及间隙水分子扩散模型对其氮磷释放规律进行了研究.结果表明,南四湖不同湖区夏季氮磷界面交换速率差异显著,静态释放实验沉积物NH4+-N和PO43--P的释放速率分别为3.1～10.3 mg·m-2· d-1和0.3～2.7mg·m-2· d-1,总体呈北高南低的趋势,南阳湖明显大于其他各湖区,这与其距离济宁市区较近,沉积物受污染较重有关.Peeper法与离心法分别获取不同湖区间隙水,利用分子扩散模型计算出NH4+-N和PO43--P的释放速率分别为3.69～4.51 mg·m--2·d-1、0.24 ～0.66 mg·m-2·d-1和2.54～4.16 mg·m-2·d-1、0.04～0.51 mg·m-2·d-1,同一采样点,Peeper法计算出释放速率比传统离心法高出约20％.通过静态释放实验获得的NH4+-N和PO43--P释放速率(R)在空间分布上与间隙水分子扩散模型计算出的结果相一致,但前者明显大于后者,将其进行比较,氮和磷的R/F值分别为0.84 ～2.64和2.03 ～13.79,表明原柱样静态模拟实验进行内源释放速率估算时,可能比分子扩散模型法计算的结果更接近于实际情况.