This article discusses the current problems and issues associated with the implementation of a National System of Marine Protected
Areas in Brazil. MPA managers and higher governmental level authorities were interviewed about their perceptions of the implementation
of a national MPA strategy and the recent changes in the institutional arrangement of government marine conservation agencies.
Interviewees’ narratives were generally pessimistic and the National System was perceived as weak, with few recognizable marine
conservation outcomes on the ground. The following major flaws were identified: poor inter-institutional coordination of coastal
and ocean governance; institutional crisis faced by the national government marine conservation agency; poor management within
individual MPAs; problems with regional networks of marine protected areas; an overly bureaucratic management and administrative
system; financial shortages creating structural problems and a disconnect between MPA policy and its delivery. Furthermore,
a lack of professional motivation and a pessimistic atmosphere was encountered during many interviews, a malaise which we
believe affects how the entire system is able to respond to crises. Our findings highlight the need for a better understanding
of the role of ‘leadership’ in the performance of socio-ecological systems (such as MPA networks), more effective official
evaluation mechanisms, more localized audits of (and reforms if necessary to) Brazil’s federal biodiversity conservation agency
(ICMBio), and the need for political measures to promote state leadership and support. Continuing to focus on the designation
of more MPAs whilst not fully addressing these issues will achieve little beyond fulfilling, on paper, Brazil’s international
marine biodiversity commitments. 相似文献
The aim of this study was to obtain information on the presence and levels of hazardous organic pollutants in groundwater located close to solid waste landfills. Eighty-two environmental contaminants, including 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), 20 volatile organic compounds (VOCs), 29 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), 7 dioxins (polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins, PCDDs) and 10 furans (polychlorinated dibenzofurans, PCDFs) were monitored in areas characterised by different geological environments surrounding three municipal solid waste landfills (Palermo, Siculiana and Ragusa) in Sicily (Italy) in three sampling campaigns. The total concentrations of the 16 PAHs were always below the legal threshold. Overall, the Fl/Fl + Py diagnostic ratio revealed that PAHs had a petrogenic origin. VOC levels, except for two notable exceptions near Palermo landfill, were always below the legal limit. As concerns PCB levels, several samples were found positive with levels exceeding the legal limits. It is worth noting that the % PCB distribution differs from that of commercial compositions. In parallel, some samples of groundwater containing PCDDs and PCDFs exceeding the legal threshold were also found. Among the 17 congeners monitored, the most abundant were the highest molecular weight ones.
A method based on matrix solid-phase dispersion (MSPD) was developed for quantitative extraction of three organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs) from the Mexican axolotl, Ambystoma mexicanum. The determination was carried out using high- performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array spectrophotometric UV detection (DAD). The MSPD extraction with octadecylsilyl (C18) sorbent combined with a silica gel clean-up and acetonitrile elution was optimised for chlorpyrifos, fenthion and methyl parathion. The method was validated, yielding recovery values higher than 90%. The precision, expressed as the relative standard deviation (RSD), was less than or equal to 6% in muscle samples at spiking levels of 10 and 5 ppm. Linearity was studied from 15 to 60 ppm for chlorpyrifos and fenthion, and from 7.5 to 30 ppm for methyl parathion. The limits of detection (LODs) were found to be less than or equal to 0.5 ppm.This method was applied to the analysis of samples from a chlorpyrifos-exposed axolotl, demonstrating its use as an analytical tool for toxicological studies. 相似文献
We report two fossil procyonids, Cyonasua sp. and Chapalmalania sp., from the late Pliocene of Venezuela (Vergel Member, San Gregorio Formation) and Colombia (Ware Formation), respectively. The occurrence of these pre-Holocene procyonids outside Argentina and in the north of South America provides further information about the Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI). The new specimens are recognized in the same monophyletic group as procyonids found in the southern part of the continent, the “Cyonasua group,” formed by species of Cyonasua and Chapalmalania. The phylogenetic analysis that includes the two new findings support the view that procyonids dispersed from North America in two separate events (initially, previous to the first major migration wave—GABI 1—and then within the last major migration wave—GABI 4—). This involved reciprocal lineage migrations from North to South America, and included the evolution of South American endemic forms. 相似文献