Assessing the Response of Estuarine Intertidal Assemblages to Urbanised Catchment Discharge

Measurement of intertidal rock assemblages was investigated as a potential biological indicator to provide a quantitative estimate of the impact of urbanised catchment discharge on the estuaries of Sydney, Australia, from 1995 to 1999. Based on the presence and characteristics of adjacent human activities, sampling locations were categorised as: Bush; Urban; Urban with Sewer Overflows; and Industry with Sewer Overflows. In Sydney Harbour, variation in assemblage structure was measured between most impact categories, however differences between impact categories were not consistent for each year. Nevertheless, in years of above average rainfall (1998–1999), reference assemblages adjacent to national parks and distant from urbanisation were different to all other putatively impacted assemblages. Variability within assemblages was least at reference locations in each year and greatest at locations adjacent to stormwater canals and sewer overflows, particularly in 1998–1999. Variation in assemblage structure in Sydney estuaries was most strongly correlated with chlorophyll – a concentrations. Univariate analysis also identified highly significant differences for a number of factors, however, interactions between year, impact categories and location for numerous analyses, confounded the differentiation between impact categories. The results suggest that intertidal rock assemblages in Sydney Harbour and surrounding estuaries appear to be responding to the quality and quantity of discharge from urbanised catchments and, furthermore, that assemblages are more suitable than individual taxa to indicate the difference between Bush and anthropogenically disturbed estuarine locations.     

New approach for habitat characterization based on species lists of aquatic and semiaquatic bugs

A new approach is proposed for the environmental impact assessment of fresh waters. New indices and the cenological values of aquatic and semiaquatic bug (Hemiptera) species have been obtained through multivariate analysis based on the species list of 157 localities in Hungary. The 45 species involved in this study can be characterized by their preference for habitat types on a linear scale ranging from small, shallow waters to large, deep waters. The habitats themselves can be characterized by the added cenological values of the species found.     

Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network's Proposed Core Monitoring Variables: An Early Warning of Environmental Change

This article reports on the evaluation of existing ecologicalmonitoring variables from a variety of sources to select a suiteof core variables suitable for monitoring at the Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network (EMAN) sites located acrossCanada. The purpose of EMAN is to promote the acquisition of relevant and consistent data that can be used to report on national trends and provide an early warning of ecosystem change. Existing monitoring variables were evaluated in twosteps. In the first step, three primary criteria were used to pre-screen preliminary variables. In the second step, a moredetailed evaluation considered twenty criteria based on dataquality, applicability, data collection methods, data analysisand interpretation, existing data and programs, and cost effectiveness to select a draft set of core monitoring variables(CMV). An ecological framework was developed to organize the CMVin a manner that permitted a gap analysis to confirm the CMV assessed a wide range of relevant environment components. Thesuite of CMV were then tested to determine their effectiveness in detecting ecosystem change caused by stressors with ecosystemresponses that have been well documented in the literature. Thisproject is part of a process lead by Environment Canada to select CMV to detect and track ecosystem change at EMAN sites. It is anticipated that the proposed CMV will undergo future discussion and development leading to the final selection of asuite of CMV for use at EMAN sites.     

滤毒罐寿命失效指示器的研究进展

滤毒罐寿命失效指示器能保障有毒有害环境下作业人员的生命安全。为了全面了解滤毒罐寿命失效指示器的研究进展,基于滤毒罐失效指示器的概念、原理和政策,介绍滤毒罐对有机蒸气有效防护时间的评估模型及其应用;通过介绍近年来主动式和被动式2类滤毒罐寿命失效指示器的研究进展,指出被动式比色型寿命失效指示器由于成本低廉是目前研究较为广泛、成熟的技术,而成本仍然是制约主动式寿命失效指示器的主要因素;最后,提出滤毒罐寿命失效指示器在职业防护领域和军事领域的发展趋势和应用前景。     

低碳生态城市建设效应评估方法构建及在深圳市的应用

在推进生态文明建设、应对气候变化和解决环境问题的背景下,低碳生态城市已经成为未来城市发展转型的必然趋势.为了指导实现城市有序健康的发展,初步提出了一种低碳生态城市建设效应评估模型.在基于"压力-状态-响应"综合评估模型、系统动力学模拟模型和调控潜力分析的基础上,构建现状水平和未来演变趋势相结合的认知框架,综合考虑当地自然资源安全,定量表达社会活动、低碳经济和生态环境之间的相互依赖、相互制约的关系,确定指标调控方向和潜力.最后,基于该模型对深圳市进行了案例研究,结果表明:深圳市评估指数从2009年"IV级:较低"提升到2013年"III级:中等",在维持现状规模和高速发展速度下,2020年达到"II级:较高"水平(61.7),尽管保持增长趋势,但呈现增长缓慢甚至"饱和"状态.因此,依旧有必要优化调控深圳市低碳生态城市建设中社会经济发展的方向和模式,进一步落实和强化深圳市低碳生态产业结构调整和"海洋强市"等措施.     

土壤物理质量指标研究进展及在矿区环境中的应用展望

对土壤物理质量指标在国内外的研究进展进行了系统总结,在矿区环境中的应用进行了展望,构建了矿区环境土壤物理质量指标体系。常规指标的研究集中于耕作或人为干扰对指标影响的定量研究及物理、化学和生物学指标的相互影响。国外提出并应用了许多非常规指标来对土壤物理质量进行评价,结合常规指标,可以对自然或人为扰动情况下,土壤损伤及退化问题进行深入研究。采煤沉陷对土壤物理质量的影响是一个系统和复杂的过程,我国矿区土壤环境的研究,应该基于不同的研究目的,选择正确的常规和非常规指标来对矿区土壤物理质量进行系统的评价、表征及定量化。构建的矿区环境土壤物理质量指标体系,具有一定的参考和应用价值。     

Exposure,sensitivity, and social adaptive capacity related to climate change: empirical research in China

The present research established a preliminary indicator assessment system satisfying Chinese characters for exposure, sensitivity, and social adaptive capacity related to climate change. The 31 province-level administrative regions in mainland China were considered in our research. We developed three dimensions of indices related to climate change, including primary, secondary, and tertiary indicators. We chose all variables and indicators based on a literature review and used principal component analysis and the varimax method to develop a weighted assessment index system. Districts in central China scored higher on the overall exposure index than other sample districts, western China generally exhibited higher sensitivity, and eastern China exhibited comparatively higher social adaptive capacity than the other regions. This study also provides perspective for adaptation policies that all regions in China could adopt to determine development direction decision-making based on their specific conditions and diversified comparative advantages to enhance adaptive capacity in response to climate change.     

LAND USE AND STREAMWATER NITRATE-N DYNAMICS IN AN URBAN-RURAL FRINGE WATERSHED1

ABSTRACT: Agricultural and residential activities are key non-point sources of nitrogen pollution in urban-rural fringe areas. A GIS-based watershed approach was used to compare land use indicators (septic system and animal unit densities), to streamwater nitrate-N in the Salmon River near Vancouver, B.C., Canada. The density of septic systems was used as an indicator of residential development while animal unit density was used as an indicator of the intensity of agricultural activity. Nitrate-nitrogen (nitrate-N) concentrations as high as 7.1 mg·L^?1 were found in the mid-portion of the watershed during the summer months, when streamflow is low and groundwater comprises a large proportion of water in the stream. The major aquifer supplying water to the midsection of the watershed is contaminated with nitrate-N. A comparison of the relationships between septic system and animal unit density and nitrate-N in the upstream to downstream direction provided evidence that both residential and agricultural activities contribute to elevated nitrate-N in the Salmon River mainstem. In contrast, only septic system density corresponded to the pattern of streamwater nitrate-N in Coghlan Creek, the main tributary to the Salmon River.     

Quantifying the Indicator Power of an Indicator Species

Abstract:  Biodiversity indicator species are needed for classifying biotopes and sites for conservation, and a number of methods have been developed for determining indicator species for this purpose. Nevertheless, in addition to site classification, there is sometimes a need to define an indicator species that indicates the occurrence of another species. For example, when a species of interest (target species) is difficult to detect or identify, a reliable indicator species can function as a tool that saves time and money. We derived a method that provides a quantitative measure of the indicator power (IP) of an indicator species for the target species or any species assemblage. We calculated the measure of IP from a presence–absence matrix that covered several sites. The method provided a list of indicator species, the presence of which reliably indicated the presence of another species (e.g., a threatened or rare species in a given area). The IP of the species was highest when the number of shared occurrences between the indicator species and the target species was high and, simultaneously, when the indicator species and the target species occurred separately in only a few cases. The IP was also positively influenced by the number of sites with no occurrences of either the indicator or the target species. Our method can also be used to quantify different types of species occurrence indications. We refer to these types as presence–presence, presence–absence, absence–presence, and absence–absence indications. To clarify the use of the method, we examined the situation with red-listed polypores in White-backed Woodpecker (Dendrocopos leucotos) habitats in Fennoscandia and found some suitable indicator species. Our method provides a new, objective way to evaluate the IP of an indicator species.     

全面小康社会环境指标初步研究

从全面小康社会对环境质量的需求分析入手,提出全面小康社会环境指标应该针对典型环境要素的质量状况设置代表性指标.就综合性、简明性、可计量性、公平性、衔接性等对现有常用指标进行了评价,结合社会发展和环境演变趋势,针对"水、大气、土壤、生态"四大环境要素,分别选取"环境空气质量在二级以上区域的人口比例"、"国控断面水环境功能区达标率"、"植被覆盖率"、"农业用地土壤环境质量达国家二级标准的比例"等指标,作为全面小康社会环境指标的初步方案.