Quantifying population declines based on presence‐only records for red‐list assessments

Accurate trend estimates are necessary for understanding which species are declining and which are most in need of conservation action. Imperfect species detection may result in unreliable trend estimates because this may lead to the overestimation of declines. Because many management decisions are based on population trend estimates, such biases could have severe consequences for conservation policy. We used an occupancy‐modeling framework to estimate detectability and calculate nationwide population trends for 14 Swiss amphibian species both accounting for and ignoring imperfect detection. Through the application of International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List criteria to the different trend estimates, we assessed whether ignoring imperfect detection could affect conservation policy. Imperfect detection occurred for all species and detection varied substantially among species, which led to the overestimation of population declines when detectability was ignored. Consequently, accounting for imperfect detection lowered the red‐list risk category for 5 of the 14 species assessed. We demonstrate that failing to consider species detectability can have serious consequences for species management and that occupancy modeling provides a flexible framework to account for observation bias and improve assessments of conservation status. A problem inherent to most historical records is that they contain presence‐only data from which only relative declines can be estimated. A move toward the routine recording of nonobservation and absence data is essential if conservation practitioners are to move beyond this toward accurate population trend estimation.     

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.     

危险废物交易信息化体系建设初探

分析了我国目前实施危险废物交易的意义和必要性及危险废物交易现状,提出在危险废物交易还处于市场化运行的初级阶段,引入信息化技术,为危险废物交易同时提供监管和市场化平台,建立健全配套的管理制度和办法,是实现危险废物的循环利用和经济可持续发展的有效途径之一。     

Assessing the Institutional Effectiveness of State Environmental Agencies in Turkey

Improving the performance of the state environmental agencies (SEAs) necessitates an effective institutionalization of governmental environmental management functions. There are examples of successful and unsuccessful SEAs in several parts of the world. Analysis and assessment of these cases can deliver useful insights for institution builders. The objective of this article is the assessment of the institutional effectiveness of the SEAs in Turkey through the perceptions of the experts using the Delphi Technique. In this regard, a checklist is developed including 16 criteria and 123 subcriteria to measure the institutional effectiveness of the SEAs. Twenty-eight national and international experts have formed a Delphi panel and evaluated the national and local conditions. Results, based on the perceptions of the experts, indicate that the overall effectiveness of the SEAs is far less than satisfactory. Negative consensus has been reached over the effectiveness of 13 of the16 criteria and 95 of the123 subcriteria; however, no consensus has been achieved over the remainder of the parameters. The survey has also proven that the Delphi Technique can be effectively used for that purpose. Utilization of the checklist method is also useful in diagnosing the problematic components of the SEAs. It is recommended that this approach be used in similar cases elsewhere.     

Applying Integrated Urban Water Management Concepts: A Review of Australian Experience

This article explores recent Australian experiences in the application of the concept of integrated urban water management (IUWM) to land development sites through the review of 15 case studies. It discusses lUWM’s emergence and comments on the success or otherwise of Australian experience in its application. The understanding of IUWM is maturing within the Australian water industry, an occurrence that has been facilitated by demonstration sites such as those reviewed. Successes include the translation of IUWM concepts into well-functioning operational urban developments, significant reductions in the impact of the urban developments on the total water cycle, and the increasing acceptance of the concept within the water and land development industries. However, there is still room for greater integration of the water supply, stormwater, and wastewater components of the urban water cycle, improved dissemination of knowledge, enhancement of skills in both public and private organisations, and monitoring the performance of systems and technologies.     

Climate engineering and human rights

ABSTRACT

In this Forum, three scholars discuss how climate engineering will pose novel human rights challenges, and may well force reconsideration of how human rights are applied as a guide to action. Following a short introduction, the first section introduces three competing approaches to human rights, arguing views which emphasize fairness or attempt to maximize satisfaction are more promising than one viewing human rights as inviolable ‘side-constraints’. The second section draws lessons from climate migration that are relevant for climate engineering in terms of incorporating a human rights approach to duties, rights, and participation. The final section compares the ‘needs-based’ and ‘rights-based’ approaches to humanitarian work in the face of climate change and climate engineering, raising concerns for duty-bearers and right-holders. The Forum’s conclusion draws together points of overlap and suggests a path forward for policy and research on this topic.     

庐山不同森林植被类型土壤碳库管理指数评价

土壤碳库管理指数(CPMI)是表征土壤碳库变化的一个重要量化指标,能够反映土壤的碳库变化和碳库质量。选取庐山8种森林植被类型土壤为研究对象,对其土壤有机碳库特征及碳库管理指数进行系统研究。结论表明:(1)土壤有机碳(SOC)主要分布于0~20 cm土层中,随着土层深度增加,不同森林植被类型下SOC含量急剧下降;在0~60 cm土层中,不同森林植被类型下SOC含量的平均值排序为:马尾松林常绿阔叶林灌丛针阔混交林常绿-落叶混交林黄山松林落叶阔叶林竹林。(2)不同森林植被类型下活性有机碳(ASOC)含量为0.24~0.57 g·kg–1,总有机碳(TOC)含量为9.72~14.74 g·kg–1,土壤碳库指数(CPI)为1.63~2.48,碳库活度(A)为0.019~0.062,碳库活度指数(AI)为0.388~1.265。不同森林植被类型下ASOC含量排序:落叶阔叶林黄山松林常绿-落叶阔叶混交林灌丛针阔混交林常绿阔叶林竹林马尾松林;不同森林植被类型下ASOC/TOC(%)排序:落叶阔叶林黄山松林常绿-落叶阔叶混交林竹林灌丛针阔混交林常绿阔叶林马尾松林;不同森林植被类型下CPMI排序为:落叶阔叶林黄山松林常绿-落叶阔叶混交林灌丛针阔混交林常绿阔叶林竹林马尾松林。     

基于效果-效率-适应性的养殖废弃物资源化利用管理模式评价框架构建及初步应用

由于产业发展正处于转型阶段,我国畜禽养殖污染治理中的管理问题比技术问题更加突出,选择适宜的组织管理模式尤其重要。融合了效果分析、效率评价和适应性分析,尝试构建一个养殖废弃物资源化利用管理模式综合评价框架,并选择太湖流域4个不同类型的典型案例进行方法例证。研究表明,传统的养殖企业主导型管理模式应用于小型、分散养殖废弃物资源化利用时面临着经济效率低、适应性差难题;农村废弃物处理中心、种植企业和有机肥企业的参与可以改善小型、分散养殖废弃物资源化利用的经济效率;综合考虑效果、效率与适应性,种植企业、有机肥企业主导型模式的适宜推广范围更广。应根据不同地区种植-养殖产业关系、污染治理需求、经济发展水平与政府投入能力等,灵活组合应用不同管理模式。     

Collaborative emergency management: better community organising, better public preparedness and response

Community coordination requires communication and planning of precautions to take when faced with a severe threat of disaster. The unique case of the four Florida hurricanes of 2004--Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne--is used here to assess community responses to repeated threats of hurricanes. The paper examines how effectiveness in coordinating community disaster response efforts affects future public preparedness. The findings suggest that pre-season planning, open communication between emergency managers and elected officials, and the use of technology all had a significant impact on community responses. The repeated threat scenario indicates that emergency managers must work vigilantly to keep residents informed of the seriousness of a situation. The study describes how emergency managers in Florida countered public complacency during four hurricanes in six weeks. The strategies identified as useful by public managers in the context of hurricanes are applicable to other natural and man-made disasters.