A Screening Procedure for Heavy Metals in Soil Extracts by Alcohol Dehydrogenase and Urease Inhibition Eine Screening-Methode für Schwermetalle in Extrakten aus Bodenproben,basierend auf der Inhibierung der Enzyme Alkoholdehydrogenase und Urease

A screening method for heavy metals in aqueous extracts of soil is presented which is based on inhibition of the enzymes urease and alcohol dehydrogenase. The method is suitable to detect cupric and mercury ions in concentrations below 0.01 mg/L and several other heavy metal ions in 1000 fold higher concentration. It is shown that the test may be used for screening of mercury ion concentrations exceeding 0.03 mg/L in aqueous solution when copper chelators are added to the test system. The usefulness of the presented tests to detect heavy metals eluted from soil was verified with samples from ore mining waste. The concentration of copper, lead, and zinc eluted from these samples to different amount was determined by atomic absorption spectrometry and was in good agreement with the enzyme inhibition data obtained with these samples.     

The main issues affecting coasts of the Indian and western Pacific Oceans: a meta-analysis from Seas at the Millennium

A review of the world oceans in three volumes by 365 scientists, provides scope for several ‘meta-analyses' of the main problems affecting over 100 areas in the year 2000. This article summarises the main issues affecting a sub-set of the reviewed areas, covering Asian, African and Arabian countries dealt with in Volume 2, which included over 50 articles. From all issues raised, assessment is made of the nature of the major ones, including evaluation of reasons why so many of them remain important issues after so much attention to them. These include long standing problems, several problems more newly flagged as becoming particularly important, the issue of global warming and no less than three related issues connected with fishing and over exploitation. One or two issues such as industrial pollution and sewage, previously considered of almost universal concern, almost traditional pollution issues even, continue to feature strongly for some countries, but while these were almost always referred to in Seas chapters, by and large these categories appear not to be the most pressing of issues today, except in localized areas (albeit areas where huge numbers of people live). Perhaps other issues have simply taken over. They are excluded from this article.     

Partitioning of heavy metals on soil samples from column tests

In this study, column tests were used to determine the retention capability of three types of estuarine alluvia collected adjacent to landfill sites in South Wales. Selective sequential extraction (SSE) was used to study the retention mechanisms of heavy metals in the soil columns obtained from leaching experiments. Acid digestion was later used to check the validity of the SSE results. Breakthrough curves show good retention of heavy metal ions (Pb, Cu, and Zn) by all soils, where almost 99% of heavy metals were retained with the C_e/C_o values in the order of 10⁻³. The retention strength of these soils was observed to be constant up to five pore volumes (PV). This corresponds with the pH of the effluents and pore water of soil slices, which also show good buffering capacity against very acidic leachate up to 5PV. The heavy metal extraction profiles from SSE show very similar trends with the retention profiles from the leaching experiments, where heavy metals were retained mainly at the top part where the leachate entered the column. SSE indicates qualitatively that heavy metals precipitated with carbonates and amorphous materials (oxides/hydroxides) are higher than heavy metal retention via exchangeable mechanisms. The mass balance calculation gives range of deviation of 1–16% of the total soil extraction. The distribution of the heavy metals with various soil constituents are ranked in the following order: Carbonates>Amorphous oxides hydroxides>Organic matter>Exchangeable phases.     

基于不同权重的栖息地指数模型预报阿根廷滑柔鱼中心渔场

本文根据2003-2009年1-5月和2011年1-5月西南大西洋海域阿根廷滑柔鱼(Illex argentinus)的生产数据,结合遥感获得的海表面温度(SST)和海表面高度(SSH)数据,利用不同权重的栖息地指数模型来预报阿根廷滑柔鱼的中心渔场。采用外包络法,利用作业次数与SST、SSH建立适应性指数(SI)模型,依据作业次数比重和产量比重来比较不同权重的算术加权模型(AWM),从而筛选出最佳模型,并对最佳模型进行验证。结果显示,确定AWM(a=0.3,SST权重为0.3,SSH的权重为0.7)为最佳模型,当栖息地适应性指数(HSI)大于0.6时,作业次数的比重为93.23%,产量比重为89.28%,当HSI小于0.4时,作业次数的比重为2.12%,产量比重为3.35%。利用2011年1-5月的生产数据和环境数据对AWM(a=0.3)进行验证,结果显示,在HSI大于0.6的海域,各月作业次数比重均在91%以上,产量比重均在95%以上。研究表明,在阿根廷滑柔鱼渔场形成中SSH比SST更为重要,基于SST和SSH的AWM(a=0.3)能够较好地预测西南大西洋阿根廷滑柔鱼的中心渔场。     

Evaluation of the “fishing down marine food web” process in the north-west of Persian Gulf(Khuzestan Province) during the period of 2002–2011

The worldwide increase in commercial fisheries and its impact on ecosystems as well as inefficient fishery management have led to overfishing and frequent breakdown of traditional fish stocks.In this context,an analysis of Khuzestan inshore fisheries data covering the years 2002–2011,was conducted in reliance on testing for occurrence of the fishing down marine food webs(FDMFW) phenomenon in the North of Persian Gulf Large Marine Ecosystem(LME).In this study,the mean trophic level(m TL) and the fishing-in-balance(FIB)-index of Khuzestan landings during this period of time were estimated using the trophic level of 47 fishery resources.Increase in total landings(Y) was observed,which explained the high fishing yield in major fishery resources(especially demersal).Moreover,the moderates decreasing trend in m TL per decade,and the increasing trend in FIB-index were observed.The status of fishery resources in Khuzestan inshore waters(under exploited but not overexploited),the rise in Y,FIB and slightly drop in m TL can be considered as indirect indicators of the fishing impacts on the trophic structure of marine communities.Based on this result,probability occurrence of FDMFW process in Khuzestan inshore waters is low to some extent.However,we suggest that the goal of management programs in Khuzestan inshore waters should prevent the continuance of this trend in the long-term using an ecosystem-based approach.     

Factors affecting local permit ownership in Bristol Bay

Since the first limited entry Bristol Bay drift and set gillnet permits were issued in 1975, many local residents have sold their permits to non-resident fishermen. Declining local permit ownership destabilizes the main economic base of the region. Previous studies have documented the decline of locally owned permits and have proposed social and economic hypotheses that could explain why local permit ownership is declining in limited entry fisheries in Alaska. To stem the outward flow of permits, the Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation operates a Permit Loan Program to assist Bristol Bay watershed residents in buying permits. Despite its generous benefits, it has not reversed the decline in local permit ownership. This paper examines why residents enter or exit the fishery. Hypotheses on permit retention were tested through interviews with Bristol Bay fishery participants. Interviewees indicate stronger cultural and familial ties than economic factors to fishing. As local permit ownership has declined, these ties are being lost, leading to declining interest in the fishery. Commercial fishing is a competitive and costly enterprise. Successful participants in the fisheries, especially the drift gillnet fishery, are financially savvy with supplemental non-fishing income that outcompete residents by catching most of the fish. The Bristol Bay Economic Development Corporation Permit Loan Program appears unable to stop the local loss of permits. There are no obvious ways to expand local permit ownership and retaining local permits remains a major challenge for the region. However, it is important for local residents to participate in the fishery because it keeps communities economically and socially healthy, gives residents access to their local resources and strengthens their voice in managing their local resources.     

History,effort distribution and landings in an artisanal bottom longline fishery: An empirical study from the North Atlantic Ocean

Commercial fishing data were used to reconstruct historical spatio-temporal patterns of fishing effort and landings in the bottom longline fishery of the Azores. Key events during an important 15-year period were charted, through fisher interviews together with GIS analysis. While effort distribution varied over time, the prevailing pattern was a shift in focus from eastern to western areas and from shelf/slope to offshore banks and seamounts in response to policy measures (e.g. banning bottom longline inside 3 NM, public aids for modernization of the fleet) and reduced fishing yields. Areas 12–50 NM from shore represented the most vital fishing grounds in terms of fishing effort and production. Declining landings of the major demersal species, in recent years, indicate that present catch levels are not sustainable and further measures need to be taken in order to sustain fisheries resources. Knowledge of fleet behavior and the distribution of fishing effort, particularly in patchy environments, provide valuable insights into the impacts of past management decisions and help predict the outcome of new policies both in this region and elsewhere.     

The status of artisanal fishing in El Salvador

El Salvador is one of the most environmentally degraded nations in Latin America, but the declining fishing industry is under-studied compared with deforestation and landuse. This paper examines the reactions to fish stock decline of two generations of fishers in La Union, El Salvador on the Golfo de Fonseca, one of the most important fishing areas in Latin America, using face to face interviews and questionaires. Both older (>35 years) and younger (<36 years) fishers supplemented their income with trading, farming and loans from their relatives in the United States. All older fishers reported larger fish catches five and ten years previously than at present. Previously, fishers caught more fish, but significantly more younger fishers than older fishers reported their fathers caught more fish than they did, indicating an increasing gap in fish catches in recent decades. More younger fishers than older fishers had fathers or male kin who were also fishers, indicating young men were less likely to join fishing without a parent or kin already involved. Minorities of both older and younger fishers engaged in supplementary activities. Environmental degradation disuaded fishers from switching to farming or hunting. The findings are similar to findings elsewhere on the decline of fish resources and generational gaps in environmental knowledge, but differ in that some other studies report fewer opportunities for fishers to access alternative or complementary activities. These findings are relevant to Latin American studies, considering the great value of the Golfo de Fonseca to the livelihoods of Central America.     

Stated preferences for size and bag limits of Alaska charter boat anglers

Over the last several years, significant regulatory changes related to Pacific halibut Hippoglossus stenolepis have occurred in the for-hire recreational charter boat fishing sector in Alaska. In addition to limited entry restrictions and adoption of a catch sharing plan that provides a formal means of determining allocation between the commercial and charter boat fishing sectors, more restrictive harvest regulations were placed on anglers fishing from charter boats. This article provides insights into how the value anglers place on charter boat fishing is affected by these regulations, principally bag and size limits. Such information is helpful in assessing the trade-offs in economic benefits associated with different regulatory tools used to manage angler harvest levels. Stated preference choice experiment data from a 2012 survey are analyzed using a panel rank-ordered mixed logit model to estimate the economic value, or willingness to pay (WTP), non-resident anglers place on saltwater charter boat fishing trips in Alaska and to assess how changes in characteristics of fishing trips, particularly harvest restrictions related to Pacific halibut, affect this value. The model specification accounts for a wide array of size and bag limit restrictions that have been recently implemented or are under consideration by Pacific halibut fishery managers. The results indicate that very strict harvest restrictions have the effect of driving WTP to zero, while allowing at least one (potentially) large fish to be caught is valuable to anglers. The results also suggest that WTP for fishing trips with bag limits that allow two or more fish to be harvested with no size restrictions on the first fish harvested are not statistically different from the value for trips for larger bag limits or for the case where all the fish in the limit can be any size. This suggests that fishery managers can restrict the size of the second fish in a two-fish bag limit and still maintain economic values for fishing trips.     

虹鳟(Oncorhynchus mykiss)选育群体的血清类固醇激素周年变化

采用放射性免疫(RIA)和组织学切片技术,系统地研究了虹鳟(Oncorhynchus mykiss)选育群体的血清性类固醇激素周年变化与性腺发育特点的关系,以及血清中性类固醇激素雌二醇(E2)和睾酮(T)在雌雄亲本中的周年变化规律和生理作用。结果表明,虹鳟性腺发育可划分为6期。雌鱼血清中E2在10月(V期性腺)达到峰值,T浓度在11月达到峰值,而进入繁殖期后(11—12月)E2开始下降。雄鱼血清T浓度在11月达到最大值,E2在6月份达到峰值,在11月之后T开始下降。在各月份,雌鱼E2浓度水平远高于雄鱼,而雄鱼T浓度个别月份低于雌鱼。这些研究揭示出,测定血清性类固醇激素浓度水平可用于准确判断鱼类的生殖状态,且可为虹鳟家系选育出早熟亲本群体提供重要技术依据。