Change of winter wheat planting area and its impacts on groundwater depletion in the North China Plain

Journal of Geographical Sciences - The North China Plain is one of the most water-stressed areas in China. Irrigation of winter wheat mainly utilizes groundwater resources, which has resulted in...     

用水计划与水价对华北工业企业用水的影响--以河北省为例

工业是仅次于农业的用水大户,其用水的规模、方式和效率直接影响着华北地区总的用水需求。在对华北地区工业企业问卷调查的基础上,就影响企业效益的主要因素、用水计划对企业用水的影响、水费占总成本的比例、企业对目前和未来水价的看法、企业对提高水价的意愿、企业应对水价上涨的策略、企业对节水的态度和采取的节水措施等问题进行了分析。结果表明:用水计划对限制企业的用水有明显的作用;提高水价也有明显促进企业节水的效应。并选择了两个万元产值耗水量差别大的典型企业,对其13年来的用水情况进行了分析,验证了用水计划和水价对企业用水行为的影响效果。     

History and the question of causation: North Atlantic lessons on environmental and social change

Dealing with processes of environmental change in an anthropological perspective inevitably implicates people. With people come notions of society and history, complicating matters of causation. In this article, I shall present two empirical cases from Icelandic history and current Greenlandic society. These cases shed light on the natural–social entanglements in a long-term historical perspective and in a highly charged present, respectively. My ambition is to open up for a renewed sense of causation in the social domain in view of the manifest complexities with which we are faced in the present era of globalization and rapid social changes. The reasoning is ethnographic rather than conceptual, if not exactly letting the cases speak for themselves, then at least avoiding both linear explanation and other normative stands on causation.     

Effects of Poplar Plantations on the Physical and Chemical Properties of Soils: A Case Study in the North China Plain

In recent years, large areas of farmland in the North China Plain have been converted into short-rotation poplar plantations. To analyze the impacts of poplar plantations on soil, 22 soil samples were collected and assayed from the soil profiles of a corn field and a poplar plantation. The results showed that the average soil moisture content of the soil profile in the poplar field was 2.6 percent lower than that of the arable land. The maximum difference in soil moisture content was found in the upper 0-10 cm of topsoil. Soil organic matter and nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in the cornfield were significantly higher than in the poplar field. Higher nutrient content in the corn field may result from higher fertilizer inputs and the practice of returning straw to the cropped field. The analysis also showed no significant increase in soil organic matter content in deeper soil layers of the poplar field, which means that the conditions are not favorable for the formation of soil organic matter, or that soil organic matter needs a longer time to develop. Elements such as magnesium, iron, manganese and copper in both the corn field and the poplar field had a tendency to accumulate with increasing soil depth. Magnesium, iron, manganese and copper in the 0-80 cm soil layer of the poplar field were higher than those of the cornfield, but the situation was reversed at depths greater than 80 cm. It is concluded that poplar trees consume a large amount of soil moisture and soil nutrients. Local governments should prevent the development of new plantations of fast-growing trees in farmland and help farmers to recover their farmland from forestry plantations.     

Assessing the impacts of climate change on water resources of a West African trans-boundary river basin and its environmental consequences (Senegal River Basin)

The Senegal River Basin (SRB) is a shared watershed in West Africa which includes regions (the upper basin, valley, and delta), characterized by distinct environmental conditions. An important feature of the Senegal River flow volume historically was its inter- annual irregularity, which caused a major water resource constrain. This situation has been accentuated during the long-term drought (1969–1984) in the Sahel zone which highlights the vulnerability of food-producing systems to climate change and variability. SRB is undergoing fundamental environmental, hydrologic, and socioeconomic transitions and represents a good illustration of sensitivity to climatic variations and opportunities for adaptation. This paper aims to study water resources systems under stress from climate variability and change in the Senegal River Basin. The results show (1) through the compilation of available data, information and knowledge (sedimentological, climatical, geological, environmental, archeological, etc.), the chronological consequences of climate change during the past millennium in West Africa, and also (2) an analysis of the recent impacts and vulnerability to climate change in the SRB and finally (3) the adaptation strategies in the SRB in order to identify and resolve problems associated with this water scarcity and to address the potential for guaranteed agricultural production in this narrow geographic area.     

塔里木盆地北缘绿洲土地利用与生态系统服务价值的时空变化研究——以渭干河-库车河三角洲绿洲为例

生态系统服务价值的研究是目前生态学研究的热点之一。应用Costanza生态系统服务价值计算公式,采用谢高地等人的中国陆地生态系统单位面积生态服务价值表,分析了1996—2004年渭干河-库车河三角洲绿洲土地利用的时空变化,并计算由此导致的生态系统服务价值及其结构的时空变化,结果表明:①1996—2004年,渭干河-库车河三角洲绿洲总ESV增加,但生态系统服务价值结构变化较大,生态系统提供某些单项服务的功能相对减弱。②1996—2004年,原材料服务功能价值比例上升最多,废物处理服务功能价值比例下降最多。③1996—2004年,渭干河-库车河三角洲绿洲各县生态系统服务价值结构都发生了不同程度的变化。库车县、沙雅县、新和县水源涵养、废物处理、娱乐休闲服务功能价值比例均减少,其中水源涵养服务功能价值比例下降最多。④敏感性分析表明,ESV对生态价值系数缺乏弹性,研究结果可信,说明本研究采用的谢高地生态价值系数是合理的。     

Impacts of Land Fragmentation and Cropping System on the Productivity and Efficiency of Grain Producers in the North China Plain: Taking Cangxian County of Hebei Province as an Example

Land fragmentation is widely known to have an impact on farm performance. However, previous studies investigating this impact mainly focused on a single crop, and only limited data from China are available. This study considers multiple crops to identify the impact of land fragmentation (LF), as well as cropping system (CS), on farm productivity and the efficiency of grain producers in the North China Plain (NCP), using Cangxian County of Hebei Province as an example. Detailed household- and plot-level survey data are applied and four stochastic frontier and inefficiency models are developed. These models include different sets of key variables in either the production function or the inefficiency models, in order to investigate all possibilities of their influences on farm productivity and efficiency. The results show that LF plays a significant and detrimental role, affecting both productivity and efficiency. A positive effect is evident with respect to the CS variable, i.e., multiple cropping index (MCI), and the wheat-maize double CS, rather than the maize single CS, is usually associated with higher farm productivity and efficiency. In addition to LF and CS, four basic production input variables (labor, seed, pesticide and irrigation), also significantly affect farmers’ productivity, while the age of the household head and the ratio of the off-farm labor to total labor are significantly relevant to technical inefficiency. Policies geared toward the promotion of land transfer and the rational adjustment of cropping systems are recommended for boosting farm productivity and efficiency, and thus maintaining the food supply while mitigating the overexploitation of groundwater in the NCP.     

Tracking a Governance Transition: Identifying and Measuring Indicators of Social Forestry on the Willamette National Forest

Abstract

National Forests in the United States have undergone a spatially and temporally uneven governance transition in response to social and economic pressures and contemporary policy changes, with many national forest units moving from a wholly government-led “dominant federal” model to a more collaborative “social forestry” model in which nonfederal actors have greater influence and authority. Here we report on an effort to develop a suite of indicators designed to capture some of the most tangible elements of a transition from dominant federal to social forestry modes of governance. We pilot test these data on the Willamette National Forest using data from a variety of sources internal and external to the USDA Forest Service. We assess the suitability of these indicators for tracking governance transitions and discuss their applicability to other national forest units nationwide.     

文化旅游地空间生产背景下居民社会空间感知模型与实证研究——基于对周庄古镇的调查

在田野调查基础上,采用SPSS 18.0和AMOS 17.0数据统计软件对周庄文化旅游地空间生产背景下的居民社会空间感知进行了统计和处理,通过探索性因子分析和验证性因子分析,对居民社会空间感知模型以及不同职业和类型居民感知差异进行了测度研究,结果显示:①周庄居民社会空间感知总体上存在由利益关联、价值效能和情感眷恋组成的三维结构.②在感知次序上,呈现“利益关联→价值效能→情感眷恋”递减分异规律,本质上反映了深层结构是一种经济表层→社会感知→心理感知从外而内的感知规律.居民并未因具有参与旅游开发的机会权能而表现出对旅游开发的全面认同,在社会认同感知和心理认同感知层面还未得到深入,反映的居民社会空间感知是一个充满矛盾的感知结构.③不同职业和类型居民因参与旅游内容或程度不同对三维结构同样存在依次递减的分异规律,且每类群体间存在差异状态.研究认为,高质量的社会空间感知具有认知结构的全面性,居民社会空间感知结构的不平衡性对增进旅游空间生产的社会凝聚力提出新的诉求,提高居民空间参与程度和感知需要从有限参与→发展参与→充分参与的路径逐步改善.研究对周庄古镇旅游理性发展和可持续发展具有一定启发.     

Estimating the spatial and temporal impacts of climate change on rainfall reliability: An example in a Mediterranean agricultural region

Rainfall is the major driver of crop growth in Mediterranean agricultural regions and its spatial and temporal distributions determine yield potential. This study uses a long term spatial archive of rainfall observations for the Eyre Peninsula (South Australia) to estimate the spatial and temporal impacts of climate change on wheat yield. The three step process involved: (1) cluster analysis and statistical comparison to spatially distinguish heterogeneous “hazardscapes” (places that represent the physical susceptibility to hazards (Khan, 2012)); (2) using historical rainfall reliabilities to estimate the probability of receiving rainfall within a range of predefined thresholds and season for each hazardscape; (3) applying 2030 and 2070 climate change projections to determine the potential future impacts on rainfall. Nine hazardscapes were spatially differentiated each having temporally different historical seasonal rainfall reliabilities. Variations over space and time mean that the impacts of climate change will be spatially explicit. Projected rainfall reductions for 2030 showed marginal impact on hazardscapes with low seasonal reliabilities, primarily in winter and spring. The 2070 projections showed that some hazardscapes were unlikely to receive past rates of rainfall thus limiting the ongoing prospects of current and perhaps the potential adoption of alternative rain-fed land uses. Reductions in rainfall for hazardscapes with higher historical rainfall reliabilities will cause negative impacts on crop development. The ability to quantify the potential spatial and temporal impacts of climate change on seasonal trends will inform land managers' climate change mitigation and adaptation pathways.     

信息技术对企业空间组织的影响——以诺基亚北京星网工业园为例

最近通信技术的进展引发了对经济活动集聚和扩散力量的争论。本文以坐落于北京经济技术开发区的星网工业园为例 ,探讨在新的信息技术下地方企业集群的动力机制。过去几十年中 ,新的信息技术在经济空间变化中起着越来越重要的作用 ,但是它只是一种提供可能或促成发生的介质 ,并不是决定性的。新的信息技术的应用会导致企业的“虚拟集群” ,这是运用信息技术整合和缩短供应链的必然结果 ,但是零部件厂是否选择在地理空间上与整装厂集中在一起还取决于其他因素。在这个过程中 ,时间成本正成为企业空间组织的重要影响因素     

Land use legacies of the Ohio River Basin: Using a spatially explicit land use change model to assess past and future impacts on aquatic resources

Land uses and their legacies are a major driver of human impacts on the environment. Decision makers have recognized that the legacies of land-use activities continue to influence ecosystems, particularly aquatic ones, for decades or centuries. The main objectives of this paper are to develop land use legacy maps to (1) assess historical and future (predicted) shifts in dominant land use classes (urban, agriculture, forest) in the Ohio River Basin (ORB), and (2) determine the past and future location of catchments in the ORB exceeding critical land use thresholds (10% and 38% urban and agricultural use of catchment respectively) for water quality and other aquatic resources. Our land use legacy simulations show that approximately 80% of the ORB has remained as agriculture (∼37%), forest (∼34%), urban (∼7%) and other classes (∼2%) from 1930 to 1990. Within the remainder of landscape, agriculture to forest (∼16%) and agriculture to urban (∼1.5%) transitions were the most common land use changes between 1930 and 1990. Our forecast model shows that approximately 94% of the ORB will remain as forest (∼47.46%), agriculture (∼35.77%), urban (∼8.84%) and other classes (∼2.07%) between 2000 and 2050. 1.44% and 1.37% of the ORB is predicted to transition from forest to urban and agriculture to urban between 2000 and 2050, respectively. Our results also demonstrate that 13% and 74% of the catchments in the ORB already exceeded critical urban and agricultural land use thresholds in 1930, respectively. We predict that 37% of catchments in the ORB will have exceeded critical urban land use thresholds by 2050, whereas the proportion of catchments to exceed critical agricultural use will decrease to 45%.