Prospects for Reconciling the Conflict between Economic Growth and Biodiversity Conservation with Technological Progress

Abstract: The conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation is understood in portions of academia and sometimes acknowledged in political circles. Nevertheless, there is not a unified response. In political and policy circles, the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) is posited to solve the conflict between economic growth and environmental protection. In academia, however, the EKC has been deemed fallacious in macroeconomic scenarios and largely irrelevant to biodiversity. A more compelling response to the conflict is that it may be resolved with technological progress. Herein I review the conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation in the absence of technological progress, explore the prospects for technological progress to reconcile that conflict, and provide linguistic suggestions for describing the relationships among economic growth, technological progress, and biodiversity conservation. The conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation is based on the first two laws of thermodynamics and principles of ecology such as trophic levels and competitive exclusion. In this biophysical context, the human economy grows at the competitive exclusion of nonhuman species in the aggregate. Reconciling the conflict via technological progress has not occurred and is infeasible because of the tight linkage between technological progress and economic growth at current levels of technology. Surplus production in existing economic sectors is required for conducting the research and development necessary for bringing new technologies to market. Technological regimes also reflect macroeconomic goals, and if the goal is economic growth, reconciliatory technologies are less likely to be developed. As the economy grows, the loss of biodiversity may be partly mitigated with end‐use innovation that increases technical efficiency, but this type of technological progress requires policies that are unlikely if the conflict between economic growth and biodiversity conservation (and other aspects of environmental protection) is not acknowledged.     

小城镇基准地价更新方法研究

基准地价评估及更新是目前土地管理的一项重要和经常性的工作。针对小城镇的土地利用特点，对小城镇土地定级估价更新中的地价样本祷点、土地级别调整、基准地价更新评估等方面进行了研究，选择级别界线修订法更新小城镇土地级别，并在此基础上探索出适合小城镇特点的基准地价更新方法。     

Deflagration to detonation transition in a vapour cloud explosion in open but congested space: Large scale test

The paper reviews large scale experiments with various fuels in air where successful deflagration to detonation transition (DDT) took place. This includes a recent experiment disclosed in the Buncefield R&D program, where DDT developed in the propane/air mixture. The DDT occurred in branches of deciduous trees in a premixed stagnant mixture. An internal R&D investigation programme was initiated to better understand the phenomena. A large scale experiment in an open space with ethane air mixture is presented in the paper. The premixed mixture was ignited at the edge of the congested three-dimensional rigs which consisted of vertical and horizontal pipes. After ignition, the flame accelerated in the congestion and transitioned to detonation at the end of congestion. Stable detonation propagated through the remaining open and uncongested space.The flame acceleration process leading to DDT is scale dependent. It also depends on many parameters leading to a large investigation array and, significant cost. However, such R&D efforts aimed toward a safer plant design, i.e. the prevention of occurrence of a major accident, are a small fraction of a real accident cost.     

亚热带丘陵小流域土壤有效磷空间变异与淋失风险研究

肥料过施导致的土壤磷素累积和淋失是农业面源污染的重要方面.以湖南省长沙县金井镇脱甲河小流域(52 km2)为研究区,采用高密度布点采样、Arc GIS软件和属性相似反距离加权插值法研究了亚热带丘陵小流域表层(0~20 cm)土壤有效磷(Olsen-P)含量(以P计,下同)的空间分布特征与磷素的淋失风险.结果表明,菜地、果园、稻田和茶园土壤Olsen-P平均含量为62.0、16.1、14.4和13.7 mg·kg-1,是林地(平均含量为2.36 mg·kg-1)的5.8~26.3倍.5个土地利用类型土壤Olsen-P含量均具有高等变异水平和中等程度的空间自相关性(块基比C0/(C0+C)=50%),这与区内地形地貌、土壤母质、人工施肥等具有密切关系.根据土壤0.01 mol·L-1Ca Cl2浸提态P和Olsen-P的非线性关系可确定区内红壤和水稻土P的淋失风险临界值分别为69.97和98.40 mg·kg-1,并据此对脱甲河小流域土壤磷素淋失的风险进行了定量评价,结果表明旱地土壤具有明显较高的淋失风险,其中中等以上的比例占36.4%,而稻田土壤仅有0.2%,为中等以上淋失风险.因此,控制旱地(尤其是菜地)磷肥的投入是降低亚热带丘陵小流域土壤P淋失风险和减轻农业面源污染的关键.     

典型喀斯特小流域水文水化学过程对旱季暴雨的响应

通过定位监测和样品跟踪采集,在旱季对喀斯特小流域连续20天无前期降雨的一场暴雨(累计降雨量64mm)水文水化学过程进行了动态监测,并分析了相关的影响因素。结果表明,小降雨事件(8.5mm)未能引起溪流水位、电导率及温度的明显变化,而当累计降雨量达到35.5mm后溪流水开始响应。此后,溪流水文水化学参数对降雨快速响应,除硝态氮外,电导率(EC)、δ18 O、Ca2+迅速降至最低值,雨水稀释作用对其水化学变化起主要作用。通过对溪流新旧水比例进行划分发现,降雨前期和后期,溪流以旧水补给为主,而在水位快速上涨阶段,新水比例达到34%左右。两次降雨过程中,在溪流水水位升高的情况下,水体中硝态氮浓度仍然表现出高于雨前浓度的趋势。该研究为该区旱季小流域水资源利用和污染物防治方面提供了一定理论依据。     

岷江上游水电开发特点及其空间格局分析

研究流域的水电开发类型与空间格局,可为水库群的累积环境影响评价、流域水电优化布局等提供科学参考。在流域分割的基础上,对岷江上游水电站的基本类型、水电站的空间分布格局进行了全面分析,并构建水电开发率、水电开发密度和水电开发强度3个指标对流域水电开发程度作出综合评价。结果表明岷江上游流域水电站类型以高水头低闸坝的引水式小水电为主,高坝大库相对较少。梯级水电开发已拓展至岷江三级支流,汶川—都江堰河段是干流水电开发程度最高的河段,杂谷脑河是水电开发程度最高的一级支流流域。岷江上游流域的水电开发率远高于全国平均水平,梯级水电开发密度大于国内主要河流。农村小水电占水电站总数的82%,梯级农村小水电对生态环境的累积影响是将来值得深入探讨的问题。