Land User Participation in Developing a Computerised Decision Support System for Combating Desertification

Combating desertification in natural rangelands has recently become a priority in large parts of southern Africa. Rangeland managers, farmers, scientists, conservationists and land users have been applying a variety of restoration technologies to address this problem. Bush encroachment, as part of the desertification process, involves the natural replacement of the herbaceous plant cover by undesirable problem woody species. The active and passive restoration technologies that are applied, are mainly based on indigenous knowledge and include the chemical, mechanical or manual reclamation of unproductive rangelands, as well as the combating of woody and alien species encroachment. Indigenous practices and knowledge play a major role in the effectiveness and success rate of these technologies. This project faces the challenge of bringing together both local and scientific knowledge in a single user-friendly, computerised Decision Support System (DSS) which is directly accessible by land users to support them in the process of decision making, concerning the combating of desertification. Case studies from central and northern Namibia were used to combine qualitative and quantitative data to develop this Decision Support System. The DSS currently consists of two databases and an expert system, which evaluates the results of land users’ management practices, and provides easily accessible information and advice for participants in the system, based on the incorporated data. The DSS is also linked to national and international web sites and databases to offer a wider range of information on technologies concerning agricultural and conservation practices.     

锑的淡水水质基准及其对我国水质标准的启示

针对我国锑水生生物水质基准缺乏的问题，收集筛选了锑对淡水水生生物的急性和慢性毒性数据，使用评价因子法、毒性百分数排序法和物种敏感度分布法分别推导我国锑的淡水水质基准，通过综合分析和比较，选择物种敏感度分布法推导的急性和慢性的水质基准值（466.62μg/L和88.71μg/L）作为最终的基准推荐值.通过与国内外现有锑相关水质标准进行比较，提出在我国相关水质标准修订中分别制定保护水生生物和人体健康水质标准的建议，避免水质标准对水生生物的"过保护"问题.     

浅谈水体中硫化物保存、分离和测定方法的选择

水体中的硫化物是环境监测和工厂验收监测的一个重要参数.由于水中硫化物的不稳定性和水体中的干扰物质较多,保存常用技术为醋酸锌-氢氧化钠保存技术,但由于测定的手段不同,可根据不同的测定方法选用不同的保存和分离技术.比色法和碘量法时选用锌盐保存技术,分离技术有吹气分离、负压抽气分离或酸性溶液加锌产生氢气分离,选用不同的吸收液后测量;用间接测定技术时,可选用不同的金属盐进行沉淀后测定金属离子;选用电化学方法测定时,可选用使用于电化学的保存技术.为了准确地测定水体中的硫化物,宜选择最好的保存技术、分离技术和测定方法,并且必须使保存技术和测定方法相匹配,获得完善的监测技术和准确的监测结果.     

Insights into reactive oxygen species formation induced by water-soluble organic compounds and transition metals using spectroscopic method

Ambient particulate matter (PM) can cause adverse health effects via their ability to produce Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS). Water-Soluble Organic Compounds (WSOCs), a complex mixture of organic compounds which usually coexist with Transition Metals (TMs) in PM, have been found to contribute to ROS formation. However, the interaction between WSOCs and TMs and its effect on ROS generation are still unknown. In this study, we examined the ROS concentrations of V, Zn, Suwannee River Fulvic Acid (SRFA), Suwannee River Humic Acid (SRHA) and the mixtures of V/Zn and SRFA/SRHA by using a cell-free 2′,7′-Dichlorodihydrofluorescein (DCFH) assay. The results showed that V or Zn synergistically promoted ROS generated by SRFA, but had an antagonistic effect on ROS generated by SRHA. Fluorescence quenching experiments indicated that V and Zn were more prone to form stable complexes with aromatic humic acid-like component (C1) and fulvic acid-like component (C3) in SRFA and SRHA. Results suggested that the underlying mechanism involving the fulvic acid-like component in SRFA more tending to complex with TMs to facilitate ROS generation through π electron transfer. Our work showed that the complexing ability and complexing stability of atmospheric PM organics with metals could significantly affect ROS generation. It is recommended that the research deploying multiple analytical methods to quantify the impact of PM components on public health and environment is needed in the future.     

Degradation of Populus euphratica community in the lower reaches of the Tarim River, Xinjiang, China

IntroductionRiparian systems are aquatic-terrestrial ecotones withunique biotic , biophysical and landscape characteristics(Gregory, 1991 ; Naiman, 1997 ; Wiens , 2002) and areshaped by fluvial geomorphic processes . Riparian plantcommunities perform an i…     

Human appropriation of net primary production as determinant of avifauna diversity in Austria

The relationship between land-use induced changes in production ecology and avifauna diversity was analysed using a GIS land cover dataset on a 0.25 km × 0.25 km grid covering Austria's national territory. Considering only aboveground processes, the “human appropriation of net primary production” (HANPP = potential NPP − NPP_t), actual NPP (NPP_act), harvest (NPP_h) and NPP_t (= NPP_act − harvest) were recalculated based on existing datasets. Elevation as well as indicators of land cover heterogeneity and landscape heterogeneity were also considered. Correlation analyses were performed between these potential determinants of avifauna diversity and breeding bird species richness data as well as the percentage of endangered breeding birds included in the Austrian red list. Four spatial scales—0.25 km × 0.25 km, 1 km × 1 km, 4 km × 4 km and 16 × 16 km, were analysed. It was shown that breeding bird species richness was more strongly correlated with production ecological indicators and elevation than with heterogeneity indicators. A residual analysis in which the effect of elevation (a proxy for climate) on species richness and its potential determinants was removed confirmed the importance of the availability of trophic energy (NPP) for bird diversity patterns. The results support the species-energy hypothesis, thus confirming the notion that HANPP could be a useful pressure indicator for biodiversity loss.     

几种重金属对皱纹盘鲍血细活性氧产生的影响

体外条件下利用化学发光法定量地研究了不同种类和不同浓度的重金属:Cr、Cd、Hg、Pb、C和Zn对皱纹盘鲍血细胞吞噬时活性氧产生的影响。结果表明,不同种类和不同浓度的重金属浸泡急性处理皱纹盘鲍血细胞都不同程度地抑制了血细胞吞噬时的化学发光,表明重金属能够抑制皱纹盘鲍血细胞吞噬活动中的活性氧(ROS)的产生,而且这种抑制作用随着重金属浓度的增加而加强。不同的重金属抑制强度不同,从强到弱以次为Hg>Cd>Cu>Pb>Cr>Zn。研究表明六种重金属中,Hg对皱纹盘鲍血细胞的免疫毒性最大。     

土壤溶液中镉的化学形态及化学平衡研究

据土壤溶液的实际情况建立简便的平衡模式,研究了红壤、黄棕壤、黄潮土三种典型土壤溶液中Cd的化学形态和化学平衡.结果表明,溶液中Cd的主要形态为Cd~(2+)、CdCl~+和CdSO_4~6.黄潮土还有一定量的CdHCO_3~+,其它形态Cd很少,其中游离Cd~(2+)占绝大部分.红壤最高,黄棕壤次之.红壤施石灰后游离Cd~(2+)下降,CdSO_4~6增加;添加氯化物后,溶液pH下降,大量Cd进入溶液中,CdCl~+比例明显升高.溶液中Cd的形态分布与土壤Cd的生物有效性有一定关系.此外,溶解度图证明,供试土壤中不可能有Cd的矿物生成.Cd在固液相间的平衡受吸附解吸反应控制.     

中国南方主要防火树种的防火特性及开发利用研究

本文采用多目标决策法对我国南方的主要防火树种进行初步筛选。在此基础上,以易燃的杉木（Ｃｕｎｎｉｎｇｈａｍｉａｌａｎｃｅｏｌａｔａ）、马尾松（Ｐｉｎｕｓｍａｓｓｏｎｉａｎａ）为对照,对其代表性树种---木荷（Ｓｃｈｉｍａｓｕｐｅｒｂａ）、火力楠（Ｍｉｃｈｅｌｉａｍａｃｃｌｕｒｅｉ）、细柄阿丁枫（Ａｌｔｉｎｇｉａｇｒａｃｉｌｉｐｅｓ）等的防火特性进行比较研究。结果表明,防火树种具有着火温度高、水分含量高,且析出速率快、活化能高、挥发分发热量低等特点。主成分分析表明,树叶的着火温度、含水率、水分析出速率、活化能及挥发分发热量等可作为判断树种防火性能优劣的主要指标,而苯-乙醇抽取物和粗灰分含量等可作为辅助性判断指标。文章最后提出了主要防火树种的开发利用途径和对策。