Low-carbon transition of iron and steel industry in China: Carbon intensity, economic growth and policy intervention

As the biggest iron and steel producer in the world and one of the highest CO₂ emission sectors, China's iron and steel industry is undergoing a low-carbon transition accompanied by remarkable technological progress and investment adjustment, in response to the macroeconomic climate and policy intervention. Many drivers of the CO₂ emissions of the iron and steel industry have been explored, but the relationships between CO₂ abatement, investment and technological expenditure, and their connections with the economic growth and governmental policies in China, have not been conjointly and empirically examined. We proposed a concise conceptual model and an econometric model to investigate this crucial question. The results of regression, Granger causality test and impulse response analysis indicated that technological expenditure can significantly reduce CO₂ emissions, and that investment expansion showed a negative impact on CO₂ emission reduction. It was also argued with empirical evidence that a good economic situation favored CO₂ abatement in China's iron and steel industry, while achieving CO₂ emission reduction in this industrial sector did not necessarily threaten economic growth. This shed light on the dispute over balancing emission cutting and economic growth. Regarding the policy aspects, the year 2000 was found to be an important turning point for policy evolution and the development of the iron and steel industry in China. The subsequent command and control policies had a significant, positive effect on CO₂ abatement.     

面向2035的节能与新能源汽车全生命周期碳排放预测评价

发展节能与新能源汽车是降低交通运输行业碳排放的重要技术路径.为量化预测节能与新能源汽车的全生命周期碳排放,利用全生命周期评价方法,以汽车相关技术路线和政策为参考,选取燃油经济性、整车轻量化水平、电力结构碳排放因子和氢能碳排放因子为关键参数,构建传统燃油汽车(ICEV)、轻度混合动力汽车(MHEV)、重度混合动力汽车(HEV)、纯电动汽车(BEV)和燃料电池汽车(FCV)的数据清单并对其全生命周期碳排放进行量化预测评价,对电力结构碳排放因子和不同制氢方式碳排放因子进行了敏感性分析和讨论.结果发现,2022年ICEV、 MHEV、 HEV、 BEV和FCV的全生命周期碳排放量(以CO₂-eq计)分别为208.0、 195.5、 150.0、 113.5和205.0 g·km^-1.到2035年,BEV和FCV相比于ICEV具有较为显著的减碳效益,分别降低69.1%和49.3%.电力结构的碳排放因子对BEV的全生命周期碳排放的影响最显著.关于燃料电池汽车的不同制氢方式,短期应以工业副产氢提纯为主供应FCV氢能需求,长期以可再生能源电解水制氢和化石能源...     

基于多因子指数集成的流域面源污染风险研究

为掌握流域面源污染风险的整体趋势,基于风险评价时,单个因子对系统某种风险的贡献率可能大于1且因子对系统风险贡献呈一定结构性的问题,定义了风险标准值的概念和算法,建立了系统风险多因子集成评价方法,并在地理信息系统支持下对泸沽湖流域进行了案例研究.结果表明,泸沽湖流域面源污染流失风险处于较高的水平;系统风险多因子集成评价法在对多个同类系统间进行比较时,具有较大的优势;该方法可以与其他多种方法相结合对系统属性进行全面综合评价.     

Characterizing the Width of Amphibian Movements During Postbreeding Migration

Habitat linkages can help maintain connectivity of animal populations in developed landscapes. However, the lack of empirical data on the width of lateral movements (i.e., the zigzagging of individuals as they move from one point to point another) makes determining the width of such linkages challenging. We used radiotracking data from wood frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus) and spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) in a managed forest in Maine (U.S.A.) to characterize movement patterns of populations and thus inform planning for the width of wildlife corridors. For each individual, we calculated the polar coordinates of all locations, estimated the vector sum of the polar coordinates, and measured the distance from each location to the vector sum. By fitting a Gaussian distribution over a histogram of these distances, we created a population‐level probability density function and estimated the 50th and 95th percentiles to determine the width of lateral movement as individuals progressed from the pond to upland habitat. For spotted salamanders 50% of lateral movements were ≤13 m wide and 95% of movements were ≤39 m wide. For wood frogs, 50% of lateral movements were ≤17 m wide and 95% of movements were ≤ 51 m wide. For both species, those individuals that traveled the farthest from the pond also displayed the greatest lateral movement. Our results serve as a foundation for spatially explicit conservation planning for pond‐breeding amphibians in areas undergoing development. Our technique can also be applied to movement data from other taxa to aid in designing habitat linkages. Caracterización de la Amplitud de Movimiento de Anfibios durante la Migración Pos‐Reproducción     

Quantifying forest fragmentation spatial process in the developing State of Selangor,peninsular Malaysia

Forest fragmentation has several phases; thus, the ecological significance of each phase during a particular period of time must be interpreted. To interpret, this study quantifies the magnitude of forest loss and the changes in the temporal pattern of fragmentation in the State of Selangor, peninsular Malaysia. Using the decision tree model of land transformation, five phases of forest fragmentation were identified: perforation, dissection, dissipation, shrinkage and attrition. This analysis showed that the magnitude of forest loss was the highest during the dissipation phase. The patchiness analysis showed that dissipation contributes to the highest environmental uncertainty found for the forest patches. This study can be considered a first step in the exploration of the properties and the behavioural pattern shown by the spatial process of forest fragmentation.     

Defining the Impact of Non‐Native Species

Non‐native species cause changes in the ecosystems to which they are introduced. These changes, or some of them, are usually termed impacts; they can be manifold and potentially damaging to ecosystems and biodiversity. However, the impacts of most non‐native species are poorly understood, and a synthesis of available information is being hindered because authors often do not clearly define impact. We argue that explicitly defining the impact of non‐native species will promote progress toward a better understanding of the implications of changes to biodiversity and ecosystems caused by non‐native species; help disentangle which aspects of scientific debates about non‐native species are due to disparate definitions and which represent true scientific discord; and improve communication between scientists from different research disciplines and between scientists, managers, and policy makers. For these reasons and based on examples from the literature, we devised seven key questions that fall into 4 categories: directionality, classification and measurement, ecological or socio‐economic changes, and scale. These questions should help in formulating clear and practical definitions of impact to suit specific scientific, stakeholder, or legislative contexts. Definiendo el Impacto de las Especies No‐Nativas     

The role of digital data entry in participatory environmental monitoring

Many argue that monitoring conducted exclusively by scientists is insufficient to address ongoing environmental challenges. One solution entails the use of mobile digital devices in participatory monitoring (PM) programs. But how digital data entry affects programs with varying levels of stakeholder participation, from nonscientists collecting field data to nonscientists administering every step of a monitoring program, remains unclear. We reviewed the successes, in terms of management interventions and sustainability, of 107 monitoring programs described in the literature (hereafter programs) and compared these with case studies from our PM experiences in Australia, Canada, Ethiopia, Ghana, Greenland, and Vietnam (hereafter cases). Our literature review showed that participatory programs were less likely to use digital devices, and 2 of our 3 more participatory cases were also slow to adopt digital data entry. Programs that were participatory and used digital devices were more likely to report management actions, which was consistent with cases in Ethiopia, Greenland, and Australia. Programs engaging volunteers were more frequently reported as ongoing, but those involving digital data entry were less often sustained when data collectors were volunteers. For the Vietnamese and Canadian cases, sustainability was undermined by a mismatch in stakeholder objectives. In the Ghanaian case, complex field protocols diminished monitoring sustainability. Innovative technologies attract interest, but the foundation of effective participatory adaptive monitoring depends more on collaboratively defined questions, objectives, conceptual models, and monitoring approaches. When this foundation is built through effective partnerships, digital data entry can enable the collection of more data of higher quality. Without this foundation, or when implemented ineffectively or unnecessarily, digital data entry can be an additional expense that distracts from core monitoring objectives and undermines project sustainability. The appropriate role of digital data entry in PM likely depends more on the context in which it is used and less on the technology itself.     

Hydromorphological and socio-cultural assessment of urban rivers to promote nature-based solutions in Jarabacoa,Dominican Republic

In Latin America and the Caribbean, river restoration projects are increasing, but many lack strategic planning and monitoring. We tested the applicability of a rapid visual social–ecological stream assessment method for restoration planning, complemented by a citizen survey on perceptions and uses of blue and green infrastructure. We applied the method at three urban streams in Jarabacoa (Dominican Republic) to identify and prioritize preferred areas for nature-based solutions. The method provides spatially explicit information for strategic river restoration planning, and its efficiency makes it suitable for use in data-poor contexts. It identifies well-preserved, moderately altered, and critically impaired areas regarding their hydromorphological and socio-cultural conditions, as well as demands on green and blue infrastructure. The transferability of the method can be improved by defining reference states for assessing the hydromorphology of tropical rivers, refining socio-cultural parameters to better address river services and widespread urban challenges, and balancing trade-offs between ecological and social restoration goals.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13280-021-01565-3.     

沈阳市发展低碳经济的探索与实践

概述了近年来沈阳市发展低碳经济工作的进展情况,介绍了沈阳市发展低碳经济具有的深厚基础以及政策、机制和体制机遇,并从建设大浑南低碳发展样板区、实施低碳交通体系建设工程、建设低碳电力供应工程、开展低碳社区建设工程等方面出发,提出了沈阳市实现低碳发展的战略构想。     

城市污水生物脱氮除磷的新理论与技术

评述了近年来城市污水生物脱氮除磷理论和功能微生物的研究进展,重点介绍了生物处理的新方法：短程硝化反硝化处理法、厌氧氨氧化处理法、同步硝化反硝化处理法、同步反硝化除磷脱氮法,并总结了各处理工艺的应用状况。对生物脱氮除磷微生物学和新的理论技术发展趋势做出了展望。