The key elements analysis of Guangdong & Shenzhen ETS & tips for China national ETS construction

The only joint effort area of provincial and municipal governments resides in Guangdong Province and Shenzhen City in China’s carbon emission trading system (ETS) pilots, which characterize the national carbon ETS plots. The present study on the operating experience from this area has important reference value for the national carbon ETS. Analysis and comparison of the key elements show many differences in coverage, total allowance, allowance allocation, and MRV mechanism between Guangdong and Shenzhen carbon ETS. The present study provides the following explanation: (1) the design characteristics of carbon ETS (e.g. coverage, total quotas, the allocation, and MRV mechanism) depend on the local geographical conditions and policy goals. The differences of economic structure in Guangdong Province and Shenzhen City result in different coverage, which then result in differences in other management elements. (2) The operating state of the carbon market is affected by overall design of carbon ETS: in the case of tighter total allowance, lower proportion of China Certified Emission Reductions, and harsher punishment, the carbon market is relatively active, which intends to produce carbon financial market. Based on deep analysis of operation characteristics of carbon ETS in Guangdong and Shenzhen, the present study suggests that (1) the allowance should be allocated freely at the beginning stage and then gradually transited to the voluntary paid auction; (2) the allowances assigned to companies shall be linked up with their energy-saving objectives; (3) the output fluctuations and economic influence on the allowance allocation should be properly handled to maintain the fairness and consistence of allowance allocation standards; (4) stable public expectation is one of the key elements to maintain the regular operation of carbon ETS; (5) constrained carbon emission behavior outside ETS can contribute to social justice; and (6) the improvement of professional skills of relevant personnel in the enterprise and independent third party can enhance carbon emissions data reliability.     

基于SD和CLUE-S模型的区域土地利用变化对土壤有机碳储量影响研究

土地利用/土地覆被变化改变土壤呼吸条件,进而对土壤有机碳储量变化产生影响,而土壤有机碳储量则是影响农业可持续发展和全球碳平衡领域的重要因素。以上海市崇明岛为例,运用系统动力学模型(System Dynamics Model)预测2020、2030年土地利用需求变化,结合CLUE-S模型(Conversion of Land Use and its Effects at Small region extent Model)得出各种用地类型的空间分布,并引用碳密度法估算三种发展幕景下土地利用变化对土壤有机碳储量的影响。结果表明:2030年三种发展幕景土壤有机碳储量分别为:低速发展幕景为3 093.03×106kg,惯性发展幕景为3 079.47×106kg,高速发展幕景为3 059.81×106kg;研究期内土壤有机碳储量呈现缓慢下降趋势,但人类活动对其扰动较小;SD和CLUE-S耦合模型可以从时间和空间两方面对土壤有机碳储量进行模拟,具有可行性;建议通过加强城镇用地集约利用、农田保护、林地建设来减少人为活动对土壤有机碳储量的影响。     

长江经济带新型城镇化协调性的空间差异与时空演化

从城乡、产城、区域和城镇化与资源环境协调发展4个方面建立指标体系,衡量长江经济带105个地级及以上市新型城镇化的协调性,并运用泰尔系数和探索性空间分析考察协调性的空间差异和时空演化,结果发现:长江经济带新型城镇化协调性存在明显的反地势分布和"城市圈俱乐部"特征;东、中、西部城镇化协调性差异随时间越来越明显,东部城市主要体现在非省会城市之间的差异,中部主要体现在省会城市与非省会城市的组间差异,西部主要体现在省会城市之间以及省会城市和非省会城市之间的组间差异;长江经济带新型城镇化协调性表现出正的全局空间自相关,协调性高的区域开始集聚在一起,这种趋势随时间不断增强并且空间溢出效应明显。     

南方丘陵地区河谷城市用地时空演变与驱动分析——以上饶市城区为例

以揭示中国南方丘陵地区河谷城市的空间演变过程和特征为目的,以上饶市城区为例,在遥感与GIS技术的支持下,对1988~2013年间上饶市城区城市用地的时空演变过程、特征及驱动影响因素进行了研究。结果表明,1988~2013年的25 a间,上饶市城区城市用地呈现出快速增长的态势,城市形态的演变具有明显的时空特征:时间序列上,不论扩展幅度还是扩展速度,2001~2013年间的值均高于1988~2001年间的值,前后两个时段的扩展特征呈现出明显的差异性;空间格局上,上饶市城区以老城区的中心广场为中心向四周扩展,先后经历了放射性扩展、组团式分散扩展两个阶段,同时呈现出明显的方向分异性,西南和西为其主要扩展方向,而其东南方向的扩展速度最为缓慢。自然环境中的地貌对上饶市城区城市用地的扩展起到很大的限制作用,经济社会的发展、政策规划等因素成为城市用地扩张与时空演化的外在驱动因素。     

A method to estimate the impact of clear-cutting on nutrient concentrations in boreal headwater streams

Large-scale forestry operations, like clear-cutting, may impair surface water quality if not done with environmental considerations in mind. Catchment and country level estimates of nutrient loads from forestry are generally based on specific export values, i.e., changes in annual exports due to the implemented forestry operations expressed in kg ha⁻¹. We introduce here a specific concentration approach as a method to estimate the impact of clear-cutting on nutrient concentrations and export in headwater streams. This new method is potentially a more dynamic and flexible tool to estimate nutrient loads caused by forestry, because variation in annual runoff can be taken into account in load assessments. We combined water quality data from eight boreal headwater catchment pairs located in Finland and Sweden, where the effect of clear-cutting on stream water quality has been studied experimentally. Statistically significant specific concentration values could be produced for total nitrogen, nitrate, ammonium, and phosphate. The significant increases in the concentrations of these nutrients occurred between 2 and 6 years after clear-cutting. Significant specific concentration values could not be produced for total phosphorus and total organic carbon with the whole dataset, although in some single studies significant increases in their concentrations after clear-cutting were observed. The presented method enables taking into account variation in runoff, temporal dynamics of effects, and the proportional size of the treated area in load calculations. The number of existing studies considering large site-specific variation in responses to clear-cutting is small, and therefore further empirical studies are needed to improve predictive capabilities of the specific concentration values.     

Adaptive evolution in urban ecosystems

Urban ecologists have demonstrated that cities are functioning ecosystems. It follows then that species living in these contexts should participate in and experience the same suite of biological processes, including evolution, that have occupied scientists for centuries in more “natural” contexts. In fact, urban ecosystems with myriad novel contexts, pressures, and species rosters provide unprecedentedly potent evolutionary stimuli. Here, we present the case for studying adaptive evolution in urban settings. We then review and synthesize techniques into a coherent approach for studying adaptive evolution in urban settings that combines observations of phenotypic divergence, measurements of fitness benefits of novel genetically based phenotypes, and experimental manipulations of potential drivers of adaptation. We believe that studying evolution in urban contexts can provide insights into fundamental evolutionary biology questions on rate, direction, and repeatability of evolution, and may inform species and ecosystem service conservation efforts.     

An Avoidable Tragedy at the Sea Cliff (Rincon) Oil Field

Three men were killed and four others were injured during a well drill operation on Hobson Well C-10A in the Sea Cliff Oil Field (also known as Rincon Oil Field), in Ventura County, California, United States, on August 10, 1994, as a result of errors made by the work supervisors at the site. The oil field was under management by Vintage Petroleum, Ltd., which was sued for negligence by the families of the deceased and injured. The coroner's autopsy examination concluded that the cause of the deaths was due to the inhalation of the toxic gas carbon monoxide (CO). This gas was assumed to have been released from the firing of high-energy guns (HEGs) using carbon-rich explosive pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) in an oxygen-depleted environment, during a fracking operation by Schlumberger Corporation on Well C-10A. The author of this article was appointed as an expert witness by Schlumberger to evaluate if the coroner's conclusion was correct. A series of chemical analytical analyses were conducted on the vapor phase of samples, in addition to dissolved components in water from Well C-10A and two adjacent wells. Stable isotope analyses were also conducted on hydrogen (H₂), methane (CH₄), nitrogen (N₂), CO, and water (H₂O) 3 weeks after the accident, as well as on four additional occasions from September to December 1994. Control test analyses were performed on the products from HEG firings, using the same explosives as those used in the perforation of Well C-10A in control chambers at a Schlumberger facility in Houston, Texas. The conclusion reached was that the dominant products of PETN detonations are H₂, CH₄, CO, and N₂. However, the isotope ratios (D/H and ¹³C/¹²C) of methane in the control experiments were different in Well C-10A, following the detonation on August 10, 1994, than those resulting from controlled PETN explosions. The conclusion reached in this study was that the fracking of the well at a depth of around 2,150 ft had increased the permeability of the sediment layers in the Padres Zone at that depth to allow the rapid release of a large quantity of natural gas, primarily CH₄, which supersaturated the water in the well. This event caused the formation of a large bubble, which ballooned out of the well to the surface, displacing air in the location where the men were working, and thus causing asphyxiation, which resulted in the death of the three men. The judge accepted this interpretation.     

以聚己内酯作为生物反硝化固体碳源的研究

为解决水体因低碳氮比而导致脱氮效率差的问题,将颗粒聚己内酯(PCL)重新塑形为阶梯环状,研究其作为反硝化过程的生物膜载体与固相碳源的反硝化性能。结果表明,在静态实验中,平均反硝化速率为8.57 mg NO3-N/(L·h);反硝化过程为零级反应。连续填充床实验中,超过90%的硝酸盐可被去除,出水NO2-N质量浓度低于0.20 mg/L;出水NH3-N质量浓度略有上升;出水溶解性有机碳(DOC)先上升后降低至1 mg/L左右。电子扫描显微镜扫描显示,PCL阶梯环反应表面空隙率较高,表面生物膜以杆菌为主,反应后被明显腐蚀;液相色谱检测显示PCL阶梯环分子量反应前后略有下降,其结构未受到破坏;表明该材料适合作为反硝化反应的碳源的同时,又可以作为载体供微生物附着生长。     

改性SCAC催化臭氧氧化去除布洛芬效能与反应活性位点研究

采用不同的表面改性方法(去矿化处理、氧化改性、碱改性和还原改性)对污泥基活性炭(SCAC)进行处理,分别获得了表面金属含量低、碱位低、碱性官能团含量高及Lewis碱含量高的4种改性SCAC(SCAC-D、SCAC-S、SCAC-OH和SCAC-N),对比考察了改性前后SCAC催化臭氧氧化去除布洛芬(IBP)的效能,并探讨了SCAC催化臭氧氧化反应的主要活性位点。结果表明,5种SCAC催化活性顺序为:SCAC-N>SCAC-OH>SCAC>SCAC-S>SCAC-D;金属组分减少会直接影响SCAC的催化活性,碱位减少对其催化活性的影响相对较弱,说明SCAC表面较为丰富的金属组分是其催化臭氧氧化反应的主要活性位点;增加SCAC表面碱位(Lewis碱和碱性官能团),减少表面酸性官能团有助于提高其催化活性。     

快腐剂对畜禽粪便堆肥过程中腐熟度的影响

以牛粪、菌糠和鸡粪等为材料按照两种比例调配为混合基质,在添加或不添加快腐剂的条件下在发酵桶中进行为期38 d的堆肥发酵实验,通过对发酵产物的温度、p H值、总有机碳、C/N、硝铵态氮含量和种子发芽指数等指标变化的研究,揭示了快腐剂对发酵过程的影响。结果表明,虽然快腐剂对有机物料的温度、C/N比无显著的影响,但可以促进铵态氮向硝态氮的转化,在16 d时使发酵产物NH+4-N/NO-3-N比值降为0.15,达到腐熟标准(0.16);提升种子发芽指数,在腐解29 d时使种子发芽指数达到82.76%,达到完全腐熟指标(0.8),比不添加快腐剂的处理提前了4 d左右。快腐剂的作用效果受腐解物料配比的影响。