Environmental benchmarks vs. ecological benchmarks for assessment and monitoring in Canada: Is there a difference?

Environmental benchmarks are widely used in Canadian environmental assessment as a standard against which to monitor air or water quality in response to human activities in the environment. Recent work in Canada has developed the concept of ecological benchmarks as a complement to environmental benchmarks. However, implementation of ecological benchmarks may be challenging. This paper presents an analogy between ecological benchmarks and the more commonly used environmental benchmarks, as an attempt to increase understanding and use of ecological benchmarks in resource management, assessment, and monitoring. Ecological benchmarks, and their corresponding indicators, will be challenging to identify and use. However, through the use of the principles of adaptive management, effective ecological indicators and benchmarks can be established. Although it is essential that ecological benchmarks are site-specific, the analogy and general principles outlined here are applicable to assessment and monitoring in any part of the world.     

Application of a systemic approach to the study of pollution of the Tinto and Odiel rivers (Spain)

The province of Huelva in the SW of Spain presents high environmental contrasts: together with the great abundance of natural spaces, it shows the impacts of historical natural resources exploitation processes. In the Ria of Huelva, the effluents of the chemical industries must be added to the contaminating inputs of the Tinto and Odiel rivers, coming from the acid drainage of the mines located in the Iberian Pyrite Belt. This forced the Environmental Agency (AMA) to elaborate in 1987 an Effluent Remediation Plan in order to negate unacceptable environmental impacts. The application of a grey box systemic analysis to the AMD pollution, undergone by the Tinto and Odiel rivers has allowed to set a conclusive explanation of the sampling results observed for a period of 11 years, thus making available an overall view of the polluting process and, above all, an explanation of its partial aspects.     

Selecting Socio-Economic Metrics for Watershed Management

The selection of social and economic metrics to document baseline conditions and analyze the dynamic relationships between ecosystems and human communities are important decisions for scientists, managers, and watershed citizens. A large variety of social and economic data is available but these have limited use without theoretical frameworks. In this paper, several frameworks for reviewing social-ecosystem relations are offered, namely social sanctions, sense of place, civic structure, and cultural differences. Underlying all of these frameworks are attitudes, beliefs, values, and norms that affect which questions are asked and which indicators are chosen. Much work and significant challenges remain in developing a standard set of spatially based socio-economic metrics for watershed management.     

Extractive Spectrofluorometric Determination of Quinalphos Using Fluorescein in Environmental Samples

A simple, sensitive, convenient and low cost spectrofluorometric technique for determination of quinalphos is described. Quinalphos is decomposed with sodium ethoxide. Resultant sodium diethyl thiophosphate (Na-DETP) is extracted with a cationic fluorescein as ion pair complex into 1-chloro-2-nitrobenzene. The fluorescence of the ion pair, fluorescein-DETP is measured at 530 nm after excitation at 490 nm. This technique is applicable for the determination of quinalphos in water, food grains and vegetable samples up to ng level with Amberlite XAD-4.     

IMPACTS OF VISITORS ON SOIL AND VEGETATION OF THE RECREATIONAL AREA “NACIMIENTO DEL RÍO MUNDO” (CASTILLA-LA MANCHA, SPAIN)

This study examines the effects of recreational use on the soil and vegetation at a site of ecological importance (Nacimiento del Río Mundo, Albacete, Spain). The most visited sites showed increased soil compaction of approximately 50%, bare ground increase to 61 ± 10% and a decrease in richness (from 25 ± 2 to 15 ± 2 species), diversity (from 4.0 ± 0.1 to 2.7 ± 0.4) and stratification of plant species (from 80 ± 11 to 21 ± 4%). The most visited sites had 90% less plant species as compared to the least visited. Intense use was associated with the presence of nitrophilous plant and vegetal species with a morphology adapted to heavy trampling. The recreational areas showed a distribution pattern of impact radiating outwards from the most used and degraded point. At the most visited point, Los Chorros (the spring of the river), the impact radiated outwards for about 20 m. A pilot experiment examining the effects of one-year restriction to visitors for access to a formerly impacted area showed a plant cover increase by anthropic and not by native species of 57 percent units.     

A Spatial Model to Estimate Habitat Fragmentation and Its Consequences on Long-Term Persistence of Animal Populations

The increasing use of the landscape by humans has led to important diminutions of natural surfaces. The remaining patches of wild habitat are small and isolated from each other among a matrix of inhospitable land-uses. This habitat fragmentation, by disabling population movements and stopping their spread to new habitats, is a major threat to the survival of numerous plant and animal species. We developed a general model, adaptable for specific species, capable of identifying suitable habitat patches within fragmented landscapes and investigating the capacity of populations to move between these patches. This approach combines GIS analysis of a landscape, with spatial dynamic modeling. Suitable habitat is identified using a threshold area to perimeter ratio. Potential movement pathways of species between habitat patches are modeled using a cellular automaton. Habitat connectivity is estimated by overlaying habitat patches with movement pathways. The maximum potential population is calculated within and between connected habitat patches and potential risk of inbreeding within meta-populations is considered. The model was tested on a sample map and applied to scenario maps of predicted land-use change in the Peoria Tri-county region (IL). It (1) showed area of natural area alone was insufficient to estimate the consequences on animal populations; (2) underscored the necessity to use approaches investigating the effect of land-use change spatially through the landscape and the importance of considering species-specific life history characteristics; and (3) highlighted the model's potential utility as an indicator of species likelihood to be affected negatively by land-use scenarios and therefore requiring detailed investigation.     

乳状液膜法在湿法冶锌废水深度处理中的研究

提出深度处理湿法冶锌废水的二段液膜处理流程 ,并实验考察了分别回收锌、镉的适宜液膜条件 ,使得这 2种金属离子的达标排放与回收能够兼顾。     

旋流雾化水雾膜提高文丘里水膜除尘效率的实验研究

应用低压旋流雾化水喷嘴 (不同运行压力和组合方式 )实验研究了旋流雾化水雾膜对除尘效率的影响。研究结果表明 :喉部喷嘴布置及运行情况直接影响喉部水雾均匀度和除尘效率 ;采用两两相向的低压旋流雾化水喷嘴组合布置 ,保证喷嘴入口水压力为 0 2～ 0 4MPa ,液气比为 0 1～ 0 2L/m3 时 ,除尘效率将大大提高 ,且有节水节能和脱硫效果。     

利用废渣废碱液年产3000t粒状五水偏硅酸钠工艺初步设计

介绍以铝矾土提取硫酸铝废渣和氧氯化锆副产废碱液为原料生产泡花碱 ,然后利用一次造粒法生产五水偏硅酸钠新工艺确定影响产品质量指标工艺因素。小试试验产品质量指标达到HG/T2 5 6 8- 94要求 ,工艺成本低 ,避免废碱液及废渣排放对环境的污染。     

以工业废物制备高效氧化铁系脱硫剂的研究

研究了以硫酸烧渣、转炉赤泥、平炉尘为主要原料制备氧化铁系 (SW型 )脱硫剂的方法及制备工艺。结果表明 :脱硫剂最佳配方为粘结剂 5 %～ 8% ,制孔剂 0 0 8%～ 0 1% ,木屑 8%～ 12 % ,工业废渣 (硫酸烧渣、转炉赤泥、平炉尘等 ) 78%～ 88% ;成型的最佳温度为 15 0℃ ,活化方法应根据主要原料的不同有所差异 ,活化条件以成型活化优于成型前活化