Biodiversity and Conservation of Plants in Brazil

Abstract:  With more than 56,000 species (excluding fungi), Brazil has one of the richest floras in the world—nearly 19% of the world flora. Our knowledge of the diversity and status of nonvascular plants in Brazil is still fragmentary, although localized studies on algae have revealed loss of species resulting from environmental pollution. Emphasis on local floral surveys, rather than wider taxonomic studies, has obscured estimates of national totals for most taxonomic groups. Knowledge of angiosperms, especially monocotyledons (of which 45% of the species are endemic), is more complete than most. For this group figures are more reliable, with some distribution patterns, endemism levels, and centers of diversity identified. Much, however, still awaits discovery. Coordinated efforts to catalog Brazil's flora are in progress and include projects such as the conservation priority-setting workshops of the Brazilian Ministry of the Environment, which have identified key conservation areas in the major biomes; development of threatened species lists for plants; and the assembly of type data on species of northeastern Brazil through the Darwin Initiative—all of which greatly assist in increasing our knowledge. These initiatives also underline the urgent need to expand the numbers and geographic spread of projects on plant systematics and taxonomy in Brazil, a measure that demands adequate provision of funding and training programs for plant specialists. Finally, Brazil's environmental agency (IBAMA) could play a proactive role in opening protected areas under its jurisdiction, thereby facilitating botanical research by university departments and research institutes.     

ASSAULT PREVENTION AS SOCIAL CONTROL: WOMEN AND SEXUAL ASSAULT PREVENTION ON URBAN COLLEGE CAMPUSES

Sexual assault on U.S.A. college campuses is increasingly recognized as an urgent and pervasive national problem. To prevent assault, school administrators and individual women promote and adopt safety strategies that often compromise women's free and independent use of the campus environment. Such strategies may fail to correspond to the actual nature of sexual assault on campus. Based on open-ended interviews with college personnel and women students, this study examines sexual assault and personal crime prevention strategies at two midwestern, urban universities. School and individual strategies are characterized according to type, goals, and orientation. Findings explore the relationship of strategies to sexual assault on campus, and implications of strategies for women's use of public space. Conclusions suggest means to increase real safety while enhancing women's freedom and mobility on and near campus.     

Transport of ammonium perfluorooctanoate in environmental media near a fluoropolymer manufacturing facility

In order to understand better the pathways for transport of ammonium perfluorooctanoate (APFO) from a point source, a focused investigation of environmental media (water and soil) near a fluoropolymer manufacturing facility (Site) was undertaken. Methods were developed and validated at 2 microg kg(-1) [the limit of quantitation (LOQ)] in soil, and at 50 ng l(-1) in water. Environmental media were sampled from a public water supply well field located north of the Site, across a river. The data suggest that APFO air emissions from the Site are transported to the well field, deposited onto the soil, and then migrate downward with precipitation into the underlying aquifer.