A hybrid approach using AHP–TOPSIS–entropy methods for sustainable ranking of structural materials

Nowadays, many countries are looking towards sustainability as a goal because our world has limited resources and serious environmental impacts. In the construction industry, the process of sustainable selection of structural material is considered one of the keys to achieve more sustainable construction. In this paper, the theories of decision making are utilised to develop an approach for evaluation and ranking the structural materials over their total life based on sustainability criteria using multi-attribute decision-making methods. One of them is Analytical Hierarchy Process which is utilised to build the problem hierarchical structure and assign weights of the predetermined sustainable factors. The other is Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to the Ideal Solution which is utilised to rank the structural materials within both each material life cycle phase and the complete material life cycle phases. The third is the concept of entropy by Shannon to evaluate the weight factor for each phase of material life cycle. The proposed approach presents an objective, systematic and comprehensive method for the sustainable ranking of materials that links between the structural element design and the sustainable selection of materials.     

可持续性约束下开放流域系统氮磷环境承载力研究

随着我国有机污染物控制力度不断加大,氮磷营养盐逐步凸显为流域环境质量改善与经济社会发展的重要约束因子.如何以流域氮磷环境承载力为约束,实现经济社会优化发展已成为我国流域环境管理面临的主要难题.传统的环境承载力研究局限于流域内部的自然资源约束和经济社会优化,忽略了流域内外物质交换对承载力的影响,结果往往以牺牲外部可持续性为代价.基于开放系统视角,本研究提出可持续性约束下的流域氮磷环境承载力概念与测度方法,认为流域氮磷环境承载力是指在流域内外氮磷营养盐交换平衡的前提下,流域水环境氮磷含量达标情况下所能承载的最大人口规模.以氮磷污染严重的滇池流域为例,构建了氮磷环境承载力优化模型,得到滇池湖体氮磷达标和流域内外氮磷交换平衡约束下流域的最大人口承载能力为538万人,相对于现状2010年可提升32%;此外,外流域调水、氮磷循环利用率和污水外排等措施对承载力有显著影响.     

异龙湖湿地功能可持续性评价及PSR模型时滞性研究

基于压力-状态-响应(PSR)框架模型理念,构建了异龙湖湿地生态系统功能可持续性评价的指标体系;同时,基于生态系统健康原理和模糊数学提出了湿地生态系统退化及其可持续性评价方法,研究了20世纪50年代至今异龙湖湿地生态系统功能可持续性变化的过程,包括压力、状态、响应和可持续能力4个方面,并使用偏相关分析和时间平移的方法修正了PSR模型的滞后性.研究结果表明:20世纪50年代至今,异龙湖湿地生态系统的功能可持续能力不断下降,目前逐渐趋于平缓;异龙湖湿地生态系统功能的变化滞后于压力约1～5a,滞后于响应约1～15a.     

略论土壤重金属污染及防治

在我国土壤重金属污染已经比较严重,本文简要介绍了重金属的危害及其对土壤造成污染的来源,分析当前土壤重金属污染防治技术,对做好土壤重金属污染防治工作提出建议。     

A dynamic simulation model to support reduction in illegal trade within legal wildlife markets

Sustainable wildlife trade is critical for biodiversity conservation, livelihoods, and food security. Regulatory frameworks are needed to secure these diverse benefits of sustainable wildlife trade. However, regulations limiting trade can backfire, sparking illegal trade if demand is not met by legal trade alone. Assessing how regulations affect wildlife market participants’ incentives is key to controlling illegal trade. Although much research has assessed how incentives at both the harvester and consumer ends of markets are affected by regulations, little has been done to understand the incentives of traders (i.e., intermediaries). We built a dynamic simulation model to support reduction in illegal wildlife trade within legal markets by focusing on incentives traders face to trade legal or illegal products. We used an Approximate Bayesian Computation approach to infer illegal trading dynamics and parameters that might be unknown (e.g., price of illegal products). We showcased the utility of the approach with a small-scale fishery case study in Chile, where we disentangled within-year dynamics of legal and illegal trading and found that the majority (∼77%) of traded fish is illegal. We utilized the model to assess the effect of policy interventions to improve the fishery's sustainability and explore the trade-offs between ecological, economic, and social goals. Scenario simulations showed that even significant increases (over 200%) in parameters proxying for policy interventions enabled only moderate improvements in ecological and social sustainability of the fishery at substantial economic cost. These results expose how unbalanced trader incentives are toward trading illegal over legal products in this fishery. Our model provides a novel tool for promoting sustainable wildlife trade in data-limited settings, which explicitly considers traders as critical players in wildlife markets. Sustainable wildlife trade requires incentivizing legal over illegal wildlife trade and consideration of the social, ecological, and economic impacts of interventions.     

Measuring sustainability performance of local food production in home gardens

The growing interests in “local food” in recent years in public discussions, research and practice highlight its significant importance as a part of overall food system. This research compares spatially local food production potential of home gardens in nine residential neighbourhood case studies with varying physical densities at a local scale using geographic information systems and mathematical methods. This paper develops a “local food energy model” for measuring sustainability potential of growing local food mainly vegetables in the home gardens. The outcomes indicate that potential of the home gardens in supplying vegetables demand as a share of total dietary energy would depend on the morphological characteristics of urban forms, total resident population, total food demand and other related factors. Local food production in the home gardens could meaningfully contribute towards building a sustainable food future.     

Wild meat trade over the last 45 years in the Peruvian Amazon

The trade in wild meat is an important economic component of rural people's livelihoods, but it has been perceived to be among the main causes of the decline of wildlife species. Recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to light an additional concern of wildlife markets as a major human-health challenge. We analyzed data from the largest longitudinal monitoring (1973–2018) of the most important urban wild-meat markets in Iquitos, Peru, to examine the trends in and impacts of these markets on people's livelihoods. Over the last 45 years, wild meat sales increased at a rate of 6.4 t/year (SD 2.17), paralleling urban population growth. Wild meat sales were highest in 2018 (442 t), contributing US$2.6 million (0.76%) to the regional gross domestic product. Five species of ungulates and rodents accounted for 88.5% of the amount of biomass traded. Vulnerable and Endangered species represented 7.0% and 0.4% of individuals sold, respectively. Despite growth in sales, the contribution of wild meat to overall urban diet was constant: 1–2%/year of total meat consumed. This result was due to greater availability and higher consumption of cheaper meats (e.g., in 2018, poultry was 45.8% cheaper and was the most consumed meat) coupled with the lack of economic incentives to harvest wild meat species in rural areas. Most wild meat was sold salted or smoked, reducing the likelihood of foodborne diseases. Community-based wildlife management plans and the continued trade bans on primates and threatened taxa may avoid biodiversity loss. Considering the recent COVID-19 pandemic, future management plans should include potential viral hosts and regulation and enforcement of hygiene practices in wild-meat markets.     

黄土高原沟道农业系统与优化模式

黄土高原沟道农业是现代人地关系耦合发展的一种新兴农业地域类型，其可持续发展对于区域农业提质增效、乡村振兴和黄河流域高质量发展具有重大现实意义。本文基于人地系统科学原理阐述了沟道农业的概念内涵、科学认知、优化模式及其保障政策。结果表明：（1）沟道农业可持续性应遵从“要素—系统”到“结构—功能”，注重“沟坡水土保持、流域生态建设与区域乡村振兴”的多目标有机结合。同时，处理好宏观与微观效益的关系以及不同尺度的沟道水土构型、农田景观、农业系统的层次体系，深化贯通式研究，全面揭示沟道农业发展演变过程及其微观作用机理。（2）总结了沟道农业优化模式，搭建了不同模式的框架图，建议完善相关的技术与制度保障体系，以支撑实现区域乡村振兴和黄河流域高质量发展目标。（3）新时期黄土高原现代沟道农业高质量发展应立足于人地系统科学前沿，全面构建现代沟道农业系统理论与方法，深入探究优化沟道农业生产方式和创新经营管理模式的新途径。（4）基于要素流、产业链、流通网，面向SDGs目标和乡村振兴、粮食与生态安全，深入探究不同尺度沟道农业状态评估与情景模拟，服务支撑区域现代化建设决策。黄土高原沟道农业系统特征与优化模式研究，是推动农业地理学研究理论与方法创新，进而为黄土高原农业高质量发展提供科学依据的重要途径。     

Environmental sustainability assessment of food waste valorization options

Food waste can be valorized through different technologies, such as anaerobic digestion, incineration, and animal feed production. In this study we analyzed the environmental performance of two food waste valorization scenarios from a company of the retail sector in Belgium, through exergy analysis, exergetic life cycle assessment (ELCA), and a traditional life cycle assessment (LCA). In scenario 1 all food waste was considered to be valorized in an anaerobic digestion (producing electricity, heat, digestate and sorting the packaging material to be used as fuel for cement industry), while in scenario 2 a bread fraction was valorized to produce animal feed and a non-bread fraction was valorized in an anaerobic digestion (producing the same products on scenario 1, but in lower amounts). Scenario 2 was 10% more efficient than scenario 1 in the exergy analysis. For the ELCA and the single score LCA, scenario 2 presented lower environmental impacts than scenario 1 (32% and 26% lower, respectively). These results were mainly due to the avoided products from traditional supply chain (animal feed produced from agricultural products) and lower exergy loss at the feed production plant. Nevertheless, the high dry matter content of the bread waste played an important role on these results, therefore it should be pointed out that valorizing food waste to animal feed seems to be a better option only for the fractions of food waste with low water content (as bread waste).