Evolution trend of the water quality in Dongping Lake after South-North Water Transfer Project in China

To investigate the evolution trend of water quality in Dongping Lake after South-North Water Transfer Project operation as well as to ensure the safe usage of the water receiving areas, water samples were collected and determined before and after water delivery in different hydrological seasons. Then, comprehensive pollution index method, comprehensive nutrition state index method and health risk assessment model were utilized to evaluate the quality, nutrition, and health risk of Dongping Lake water. Results showed that the quality of Dongping Lake water still met level Ⅲ (light pollution) no matter before or after water delivery. The nutrition state was improved from light eutropher before water delivery to mesotropher after water delivery. The health risk level was reduced from high-medium before water delivery to medium level after water delivery. In summary, the operation of the eastern route of South-North Water Transfer Project is beneficial for water environment improvement of Dongping Lake.     

全球变化背景下暖水珊瑚礁生态系统的适应性与修复研究

暖水珊瑚礁生态系统是热带海域最具生物多样性和代表性的生态系统之一。本研究分析了全球变化背景下暖水珊瑚礁生态系统的变化和风险,开展了受损暖水珊瑚礁生态系统退化和消失的致灾因子归因分析,综述了暖水珊瑚礁生态系统的适应性与修复技术研究。分析表明:①过去几十年来,暖水珊瑚礁生态系统快速退化,包括大面积白化和死亡、多样性明显减少和生态功能显著衰退,主要归因于海洋升温与人类活动等致灾因子的影响;②在温室气体高排放浓度情景下(RCP 8.5),相比工业革命前,到本世纪中叶,南海升温将可能远超过2℃,这表明南海暖水珊瑚礁生态系统正在逼近其气候临界点,即全球升温高于2℃时,90%~99%以上的暖水珊瑚将消失;③1980年代以来,海洋升温、海洋热浪和强热带气旋等海洋气候变化致灾因子对南海暖水珊瑚的危害性(影响的强度、范围和时间)明显增加,对暖水珊瑚礁生态系统产生了严重的影响;与此同时,近岸海域的过度或破坏性捕捞、采挖和潜水等人类活动,对暖水珊瑚造成了严重损害,增加了暖水珊瑚的气候脆弱性,而这种人类活动既是局部的,也是全球性的现象,使得暖水珊瑚更难以适应全球变暖的影响。分析还表明,为了增强暖水珊瑚适应气候与环境变化的恢复力(韧性),人们开展了诸多受损珊瑚礁生态系统的适应性与修复研究,但主要是采用无性繁殖或结合人工基质的修复方式,而应用有性繁殖技术恢复受损珊瑚礁的方式仍较少;最近,暖水珊瑚耐热的基因适应性研究取得了重要进展,为暖水珊瑚适应全球变暖提供了一种新的途径。本研究最后探讨了中国受损珊瑚礁生态系统的修复问题与对策。     

Cognitive and Affective Predictors of Illinois Residents’ Perceived Risks from Gray Wolves

Abstract

Increasing wolf populations are a concern for wildlife managers in the Midwestern U.S. Understanding the psychological mechanisms that contribute to public perceptions of risk will enable development of strategies that seek to mitigate these risks, and suggest where outreach efforts may facilitate acceptance of wolves. We examined the psychological factors that influence Illinois residents’ perceived risks from wolves. We hypothesized that individuals’ perceived risks from wolves were a function of their attitudes toward wolves, negative affect toward wolves, and basic beliefs about wildlife. Data were obtained from a survey of the Illinois public (n?=?784). Negative affect and attitudes toward wolves were direct predictors of perceived risks. Basic beliefs predicted attitudes and negative affect toward wolves. Negative affect predicted attitudes. Basic beliefs had direct and indirect effects on perceived risks.     

Configurations of community in flood risk management

ABSTRACT

Despite a notable increase in the literature on community resilience, the notion of ‘community’ remains underproblematised. This is evident within flood risk management (FRM) literature, in which the understanding and roles of communities may be acknowledged but seldom discussed in any detail. The purpose of the article is to demonstrate how community networks are configured by different actors, whose roles and responsibilities span spatial scales within the context of FRM. Accordingly, the authors analyse findings from semi-structured interviews, policy documents, and household surveys from two flood prone areas in Finnish Lapland. The analysis reveals that the ways in which authorities, civil society, and informal actors take on multiple roles are intertwined and form different types of networks. By implication, the configuration of community is fuzzy, elusive and situated, and not confined to a fixed spatiality. The authors discuss the implications of the complex nature of community for FRM specifically, and for community resilience more broadly. They conclude that an analysis of different actors across scales contributes to an understanding of the configuration of community, including community resilience, and how the meaning of community takes shape according to the differing aims of FRM in combination with differing geographical settings.     

新疆香梨花期霜冻灾害风险评估模型构建及适用性分析

全球变暖和极端气候事件频发背景下,人们更加关注农林业生产面临的灾害风险。构建灾害预警指标,开展风险预警并提前防范,对于有效防灾减灾减损具有重要意义。基于新疆1981-2020年霜冻灾情、气象因子、香梨种植面积资料,计算香梨花期霜冻灾害危险性指数、暴露度和脆弱性指数,构建了霜冻灾害风险评估综合模型,并基于格点预报开展了香梨霜冻风险预警,对评估模型的适用性进行了验证。结果表明,过程最低气温、降温幅度、低温持续时间是霜冻灾害的主要致灾因子。春季霜冻危险性空间分布,总体呈现北部高、南部低的特点。香梨遭受春季霜冻的高风险区,主要分布在北疆西部、天山北坡的西部和中部以及南疆巴州北部、阿克苏市及其南部部分区域。基于气象实况和果园灾害调查结果表明,霜冻灾害风险评估模型和格点预报相结合,能较好地预报香梨霜冻风险分区、影响等级,与香梨霜冻灾害实际发生区域、受冻百分率基本一致,霜冻指标和风险预警模型具有合理性和适用性。     

天地图野外数据采集系统设计与实现

针对传统的地质灾害危险性评估野外调查效率不高和采集数据的正确性较低的问题,提出采用天地图API(Android版)提供的地理信息服务接口、结合Android开发和SQLite数据库技术构建地质灾害危险性评估野外数据采集系统。采用天地图提供的数据服务,解决纸质地图比例尺固定和幅面大小限制的问题,实现野外底图不同级别缩放和无限制的底图范围;基于天地图的功能服务,实现实时定位、经济合理的线路规划以及调查点的分布;采用规范化的电子记录模式,解决室外纸质记录的随意性、室内入库的效率和准确性问题,实现数据的采集与编辑。应用测试表明,有效提高了评估工作效率和质量。     

INTEGRATED RISK ASSESSMENT OF MAJOR METEOROLOGICAL DISASTERS WITH PAPRIKA PEPPER IN HAINAN PROVINCE

Paprika pepper, as one of the main vegetable crops, is originated in the tropics and now widely planted in the world for its dietary therapy and medicinal functions. For its typical physiological properties referring to low tolerances to flood, drought and cold, paprika pepper often suffers from one or several disasters during its growing period, especially under tropical climate. Paprika pepper in Hainan, as a typical region of tropical climate in China, sustains flood, chilling and drought disaster risks induced by varied weather systems. This study was to develop and employ appropriate indices to assess hazard, sensitivity, vulnerability and prevention capability for major disasters during paprika pepper growth period, using long-term meteorological data from 1998 to 2011, actual disasters record from 1999 to 2011, production and socioeconomic statistics from 2002 to 2011 at 18 weather stations. Based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process and Entropy method, the combined weight was given to each disaster factor, thus an integrated disaster risk assessment model was developed and applied at regional level. High flood hazard mainly occurred in eastern Hainan, high chilling hazard in north and central mountain areas, and high drought hazard in the western part of Hainan. Drought and chilling sensitivity had a similar spatial distribution which decreased from central to coastal regions while flood sensitivity was the opposite. High vulnerability of the disasters mainly occurred in central regions, similar to low prevention capability. Eastern Hainan suffered from high integrated damage risk. The predicted damage occurrence showed a good agreement with the occurrence of actual disasters. We concluded that an integrated damage risk assessment model could provide a new tool to assess major meteorological disasters and help farmers and policy makers to alleviate the risks of major meteorological disasters for paprika pepper, which seems also suitable for other crops.     

The exposure of global base metal resources to water criticality,scarcity and climate change

Mining operations are vital to sustaining our modern way of life and are often located in areas that have limited water supplies or are at an increased risk of the effects of climate change. However, few studies have considered the interactions between the mining industry and water resources on a global scale. These interactions are often complex and site specific, and so an understanding of the local water contexts of individual mining projects is required before associated risks can be adequately assessed. Here, we address this important issue by providing the first quantitative assessment of the contextual water risks facing the global base metal mining industry, focusing on the location of known copper, lead, zinc and nickel resources.The relative exposure of copper, lead-zinc and nickel resources to water risks were assessed by considering a variety of spatial water indices, with each providing a different perspective of contextual water risks. Provincial data was considered for water criticality (CRIT), supply risk (SR), vulnerability to supply restrictions (VSR) and the environmental implications (EI) of water use. Additionally, watershed or sub-basin scale data for blue water scarcity (BWS), the water stress index (WSI), the available water remaining (AWaRe), basin internal evaporation recycling (BIER) ratios and the water depletion index (WDI) were also considered, as these have particular relevance for life cycle assessment and water footprint studies. All of the indices indicate that global copper resources are more exposed to water risks than lead-zinc or nickel resources, in part due to the large copper endowment of countries such as Chile and Peru that experience high water criticality, stress and scarcity. Copper resources are located in regions where water consumption is more likely to contribute to long-term decreases in water availability and also where evaporation is less likely to re-precipitate in the same drainage basin to cause surface-runoff or groundwater recharge.The global resource datasets were also assessed against regional Köppen-Geiger climate classifications for the observed period 1951–2000 and changes to 2100 using the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s A1FI, A2, B1 and B2 emission scenarios. The results indicate that regions containing copper resources are also more exposed to likely changes in climate than those containing lead-zinc or nickel resources. Overall, regions containing 27–32% (473–574 Mt Cu) of copper, 17–29% (139–241 Mt Pb + Zn) of lead-zinc and 6–13% (19–39 Mt Ni) of nickel resources may have a major climate re-classification as a result of anthropogenic climate change. A further 15–23% (262–412 Mt) of copper, 23–32% (195–270 Mt) of lead-zinc and 29–32% (84–94 Mt) of nickel are exposed to regional precipitation or temperature sub-classification changes. These climate changes are likely to alter the water balance, water quality and infrastructure risks at mining and mineral processing operations. Effective management of long-term changes to mine site water and climate risks requires the further adoption of anticipatory risk management strategies.     

东津河流域暴雨洪涝灾害风险区划

本文从暴雨致灾机理出发,以东津河流域为例,开展中小河流域暴雨洪涝灾害风险区划技术研究。根据气象资料、水文资料、地理信息资料、社会经济统计资料以及历史灾情资料等,运用TOPMODEL水文模型并结合统计法确定致洪临界面雨量,利用逐步回归法重建区域站资料序列,基于广义极值分布函数计算出不同重现期的致洪面雨量,根据流域内小时降水雨型分布,将不同重现期致洪面雨量以及叠加堤坝信息的DEM、manning系数等数据代人Flood Area模型进行洪水淹没模拟,得到不同重现期下洪水淹没图,再叠加流域内栅格化的人口、GDP以及土地利用信息,最终得到不同重现期下人口、GDP以及土地利用等风险区划图谱。建立的中小河流域暴雨洪涝灾害风险区划技术方法简便可行,区划结果精度高、实用性强,对于面向实时防灾减灾的动态灾害风险管理具有重要意义。     

Oil and gas development exposure and conservation scenarios for Greater sage-grouse: Combining spatially explicit modeling with GIS visualization provides critical information for management decisions

During the last quarter-century, global demand for energy has increased by more than 60%, and a similar increase is anticipated to occur by 2030 (Raymond, Deming, & Nichols, 2007). In the U.S., oil and gas development is projected to continue across western states within sage-grouse habitat. Greater sage-grouse, recently a candidate species for protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), have well documented negative responses to oil and gas disturbance. In this study, we create spatially-explicit oil and gas future development scenarios, baseline and high, and link them to sage-grouse population and habitat maps to quantify future exposure risk within Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) sage-grouse management zones (MZ) I and II. We then analyze recent land use decisions from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) along with enacted policy from the State of Wyoming to estimate how these management actions might minimize the exposure risk of sage-grouse to oil and gas development into the future. Our results show that BLM and Wyoming conservation plans could reduce the exposure of sage-grouse to oil and gas development from 15-27% to 11–17% (31–37% reduction) in MZ I and from 15-27% to 5–9% (64–68% reduction) in MZ II. Our estimates of exposure to future oil and gas development, and conservation measures designed to ameliorate those threats, represent the upper and lower extents of potential impacts within scenarios. Our work demonstrates how spatial modeling and GIS visualization can be used by managers to assess likely outcomes of conservation decisions.