HOW RIPARIAN ECOSYSTEMS ARE PROTECTED AT LAKE TAHOE1

Riparian ecosystems are designated for special protection from development and disturbance at Lake Tahoe. The Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) required protection of Stream Environment Zones (SEZs) in its Regional Plan for the Lake Tahoe Basin in 1987. These zones are identified by the presence of key indicators such as the evidence of surface water flow, riparian vegetation, near‐surface ground water, designated floodplain, and alluvial soils. They are mapped on each potential building site and assigned a setback that is also off limits to building construction. The SEZs are protected to maintain their functions and values, including flood attenuation, water quality enhancement, and wildlife habitat. Strict regulations control use or disturbance of SEZs on public and private property throughout the watershed. The TRPA has set restoration targets to increase the acreage of naturally functioning SEZs in the Tahoe Basin. Many SEZ restoration projects have been designed and implemented, but SEZ restoration targets have not been met. More SEZ restoration projects are being designed and funded each year. Restoration designers would benefit from increased effectiveness monitoring of completed projects and Web‐based dissemination of monitoring results.     

REMOTE SENSING OF RIPARIAN BUFFERS: PAST PROGRESS AND FUTURE PROSPECTS1

Riparian buffer zone management is an area of increasing relevance as human modification of the landscape continues unabated. Land and water resource managers are continually challenged to maintain stream ecosystem integrity and water quality in the context of rapidly changing land use, which often offsets management gains. Approaches are needed not only to map vegetation cover in riparian zones, but also to monitor the changes taking place, target restoration activities, and assess the success of previous management actions. To date, these objectives have been difficult to meet using traditional techniques based on aerial photos and field visits, particularly over large areas. Recent advances in remote sensing have the potential to substantially aid buffer zone management. Very high resolution imagery is now available that allows detailed mapping and monitoring of buffer zone vegetation and provides a basis for consistent assessments using moderately high resolution remote sensing (e.g., Landsat). Laser‐based remote sensing is another advance that permits even more detailed information on buffer zone properties, such as refined topographic derivatives and multidimensional vegetation structure. These sources of image data and map information are reviewed in this paper, examples of their application to riparian buffer mapping and stream health assessment are provided, and future prospects for improved buffer monitoring are discussed.     

High visibility safety apparel and nighttime conspicuity of pedestrians in work zones

PROBLEM: Every year numerous occupational fatalities result from pedestrians being struck by motor vehicles intruding into work zones. METHOD: Attributes of retroreflective personal safety garments on pedestrian conspicuity at night were assessed in a field study. Using instrumented vehicles on a closed track, participants drove through simulated work zones attempting to detect pedestrians located in the work zones. RESULTS: Configuration of the retroreflective trim, trim color, placement in the work zone, and driver age significantly affected pedestrian conspicuity. Intensity and the amount of retroreflective trim did not. DISCUSSION: Personal safety garments incorporating retroreflective trim significantly improve pedestrian conspicuity in work zones. SUMMARY: The results emphasize the importance of retroreflective trim on personal safety garments, particularly if the trim is located on garment sleeves. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: We examine the design attributes that contribute to making a personal safety garment conspicuous. The results have implications regarding preferred garment designs, industry standards, and service life of personal safety garments.     

Stream and riparian management for freshwater turtles

The regulation and management of stream ecosystems worldwide have led to irreversible loss of wildlife species. Due to recent scrutiny of water policy and dam feasibility, there is an urgent need for fundamental research on the biotic integrity of streams and riparian zones. Although riverine turtles rely on stream and riparian zones to complete their life cycle, are vital producers and consumers, and are declining worldwide, they have received relatively little attention. I review the literature on the impacts of contemporary stream management on freshwater turtles. Specifically, I summarize and discuss 10 distinct practices that produce five potential biological repercussions. I then focus on the often-overlooked use of riparian zones by freshwater turtles, calculate a biologically determined riparian width, and offer recommendations for ecosystem management. Migration data were summarized on 10 species from eight US states and four countries. A riparian zone encompassing the majority of freshwater turtle migrations would need to span 150 m from the stream edge. Freshwater turtles primarily chose high, open sandy habitats to nest. Nests in North America contained eggs and hatchlings during April through September and often through the winter. In addition, freshwater turtles utilized diverse riparian habitats for feeding, nesting, and overwintering. Additional documentation of stream and riparian habitat use by turtles is needed.     

云南宣威群地层路堑边坡滑带土蠕变特性研究

为研究云南宣威群地层路堑边坡滑带土的蠕变特性,采用GDS非饱和反压直剪仪,对边坡滑带土进行直剪蠕变试验,研究该路堑边坡滑带土在不同法向应力下的蠕变特性和长期强度.试验结果表明:该路堑边坡滑带土的绝对蠕变量随水平剪切应力的增加而增加,当水平剪切应力一定时,滑带土的绝对蠕变量与法向应力呈负相关性,而滑带土的瞬时蠕变量随水平...     

METHOD TO IDENTIFY EFFECTWE RIPARIAN BUFFER WIDTHS FOR ATLANTIC SALMON HABITAT PROTECTION1

ABSTRACT: Successful restoration of declining anadromous species is dependent upon effective riparian buffer zone management. Natural resource managers, policy developers and local conservation groups require science‐based information concerning the width at which a given buffer will be effective for its stated purpose. This paper summarizes a method developed in 1999 to determine effective riparian buffer widths for Atlantic salmon habitat protection as part of the Atlantic Salmon Conservation Plan for Seven Maine Rivers. A major assumption of the method is that no two buffers are alike with respect to their effectiveness and that various buffer characteristics dictate the required width for a given level of effectiveness. The method uses a predictive model that generates suggested riparian buffer widths as a function of specific, measurable buffer characteristics (such as slope, soil characteristics, and plant community structure and density) that affect buffer function. The method utilizes a variable‐width, two‐zone approach and specifies land uses that are consistent with desired buffer function within the two zones.     

初论新疆环境域类型特征及对策

在进行环境保护时,首先必须对环境进行域类型划分,然后对划分的环境域特征以及它们之间的相互制约、影响的关系进行研究,并确定对不同的环境域采用不同的措施和对策,以达到环境保护的目的。本文初次对新疆的环境域进行了划分,在此基础上,对其特征及其相互关系进行了初步研究,最后提出了防治和保护不同环境域的措施及对策。     

MEETING PUBLIC EXPECTATIONS WITH ECOLOGICAL INNOVATION IN RIPARIAN LANDSCAPES1

ABSTRACT: Appearances matter for managing riparian landscapes because the appearance of landscapes affects public willingness to accept plans and designs that improve ecological quality. Riparian landscape design and planning should respect and strategically incorporate characteristics that the public values and expects to see. Such design can be quite novel in its ecological effects, but it also should be sufficiently familiar in appearance to correspond with cultural values. This paper describes some influential cultural values for riparian landscapes and demonstrates how attention to such values supports public acceptance of ecologically innovative design in rural and urban watersheds.     

PHYSICAL DETERMINANTS OF ECONOMIC VALUE OF RIPARIAN BUFFERS IN AN AGRICULTURAL WATERSHED1

ABSTRACT: Economic values of riparian buffers in a watershed are evaluated by the changes in the net economic return for farming with and without riparian buffers when achieving the same water quality objectives. The simulated water quality impacts of alternative farming systems using SWAT and experimental data for riparian buffers are used in a mathematical optimization model to estimate net economic return for farming subject to a water quality objective. Physical characteristics such as stream length, channel slope, average land slope, cropland percentage and several soil attributes are identified in the watershed using ARC/INFO GIS. A regression model is then used to evaluate the impacts of these physical characteristics on the estimated economic values of buffers. The study is conducted in Goodwater Creek watershed, Missouri. The results show the estimated economic value of buffers is significantly affected by some soil properties, stream length, and cropland percentage in watershed and can be used to improve the effectiveness of riparian buffers at watershed and regional levels.     

三峡库区消落带土壤剖面中重金属分布特征

通过对三峡库区消落带土壤的研究,探讨了土壤剖面中重金属的分布特征.结果表明:紫色土淋溶层（A层）w（Cd）和w（Hg）平均值,母质层（C层）w（Cd）,w（Zn）和w（Hg）平均值均高于全国同类、同层次土壤的平均水平;石灰岩土A层及C层的重金属质量分数平均值均低于全国同类、同层次土壤的平均水平.从上游至下游,w（Cu）和w（Zn）平均值呈降低趋势,其他重金属质量分数的变化不明显.城区附近土壤重金属质量分数明显高于其他地区.土壤中w（Cd）,w（Cr）,w（As）,w（Hg）和w（Ni）服从正态分布（Sig.>0.05）,土壤pH与w（Cd）和w（Cu）之间具有正相关关系（显著性水平为0.01）.土壤中w（Cd）与w（Cu）,w（Cd）与w（Ni）,w（Cu）与w（Zn）,w（Cu）与w（Cr）,w（Pb）与w（Zn）,w（Pb）与w（As）,w（Pb）与w（Hg）,w（Pb）与w（Ni）,w（Zn）与w（Ni）和w（Hg）与w（Ni）之间具有一定的正相关关系;w（Cd）与w（Pb）,w（Cd）与w（Zn）,w（Cd）与w（As）,w（Cu）与w（Ni）和w（Hg）与w（Cr）之间具有一定的负相关关系.