Strategies for sustainable development of the small-scale gold and diamond mining industry of Ghana

The small-scale gold and diamonds mining industry is of great importance to Ghana. Since its regularization in 1989 the sector has produced and sold over 1.5 million troy ounces of gold and 8.0 million carats of diamonds. During the same period the sector also provided direct employment to over 100,000 people and improved the socioeconomic life of many individuals and communities. However, these were largely achieved at a cost to the environment in areas where mining is carried out and there is the need to develop the industry in a sustainable manner. This paper looks at the developments in the small-scale gold and diamonds mining industry in Ghana and proposes some strategies on how the concepts of sustainable development could be applied to the industry.     

INTEGRATING HUMANS IN ECOSYSTEM MANAGEMENT USING MULTI‐CRITERIA DECISION MAKING1

ABSTRACT: The Ecosystem Management (EM) process belongs to the category of Multi‐Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) problems. It requires appropriate decision support systems (DSS) where “all interested people” would be involved in the decision making process. Environmental values critical to EM, such as the biological diversity, health, productivity and sustainability, have to be studied, and play an important role in modeling the ecosystem functions; human values and preferences also influence decision making. Public participation in decision and policy making is one of the elements that differentiate EM from the traditional methods of management. Here, a methodology is presented on how to quantify human preferences in EM decision making. The case study of the National Park of River Nestos Delta and Lakes Vistonida and Ismarida in Greece, presented as an application of this methodology, shows that the direct involvement of the public, the quantification of its preferences and the decision maker's attitude provide a strong tool to the EM decision making process. Public preferences have been given certain weights and three MCDM methods, namely, the Expected Utility Method, Compromise Programming and the Analytic Hierarchy Process, have been used to select alternative management solutions that lead to the best configuration of the ecosystem and are also socially acceptable.     

活性灭火剂(ACP)的发展和存在的问题

介绍了活性灭火剂(ACP)的历史发展、灭火原理、配方原则、对配方要求和使用场合。可使读者对ACP获得较全面的了解。     

重庆城区地貌灾害的发展趋势及减灾研究

根据对重庆城区20世纪80年代以来发生的地貌灾害的分析研究，认识到其地貌灾害的成因及变化趋势，即时间上的周期性、空间上的分散性、地域上的转移性，并针对其发展趋势提出了相应的防治措施。     

泥石流输沙对小江中下游河床演变的影响

对小江中下游近90km河床及两岸泥石流进行了调查研究。得到：泥石流输沙年际和季节变化大；泥石流高强度的输沙造成小江河床特殊的平面和剖面特征；泥石流堵塞小江河道，对纵比降有再造作用；泥沙使小江河床以年均20cm～50cm速度抬升。     

水库中长期径流预报系统的开发研究

水库中长期径流预报系统采用PowerBuilder作为系统主要开发工具，集水情信息查询、检索、监视、预报与管理等功能于一体，实现了中长期水文预报和信息管理的各种功能要求。该系统具有功能全面，技术基础坚实，通用性和开放性强，自动化程度高，界面友好，全菜单操作等特点。     

性能化防火设计方法的发展及其实施建议

针对目前各国性能化防火设计的发展状况，对性能化防火设计的产生背景、优点、基本组成和结构进行了初步论述，讨论了性能化防火设计未来的发展及其对我国消防体系的冲击。最后，参考国外一些成功的经验，对我国防火性能化设计的具体实施提出了一些有益的建议。     

顺德城市化进程的障碍、优势、目标与对策

文章对加快顺德市城市化进程的障碍因子和优势条件进行了分析，认为“滞后城市化”是经济增长和产业发展的主要瓶颈，并提出加快顺德城市化进程的优势条件已成熟，必须抓住机遇，确立发展目标，走可持续发展的城市化道路。     

徐州市历史文化资源的开发与利用

徐州市具有特色鲜明的历史文化资源和极其优越的开发条件。作者根据旅游资源可持续发展的相关原则，分析了徐州市在历史文化资源开发中存在的问题，提出了充分，合理开发利用当地历史文化资源的主要对策。     

我国硒资源产业现状及创建产业发展基金构想

文章总结了国内外硒资源开发现状，分析了硒资源的发展趋势，提出了我国硒资源产业存在的问题：产品趋同、技术创新不足、缺乏规划、政策引导不力、全民硒意识薄弱及资金匮乏。针对资金瓶颈问题提出创建我国硒资源产业发展基金的构想，探讨了发展基金的运作战略、经营思路及发展步骤。