Analysis of bycatch in the South African midwater trawl fishery for horse mackerel Trachurus capensis based on observer data

The South African midwater trawl fishery targets adult horse mackerel Trachurus capensis. The bulk of the catch is taken by a single freezer-trawler, the biggest fishing vessel operating in South African waters. As fishing takes place off the south coast in ecologically sensitive areas, there are concerns about the potential impacts of this fishing operation on non-target species. Fishing behaviour and bycatch of this fishery from 2004 to 2014 were investigated by analysing observer records with regard to catch composition, volume and temporal and spatial patterns. The midwater trawl fishery was estimated to have caught 25 415 tonnes annually, with a bycatch of 6.9% of the total catch, by weight. There are species overlaps with various fisheries, namely the demersal trawl, small-pelagic, line, shark longline and squid fisheries, yet the total bycatch estimates from this fishery are generally small relative to catches taken in the target fisheries. Bycatch species with the highest average annual catches were chub mackerel Scomber japonicus, redeye roundherring Etrumeus whiteheadi, ribbonfish Lepidopus caudatus and hake Merluccius spp. Large-fauna bycatch species included sunfish Mola mola as well as a number of CITES II- and IUCN-listed species, such as Cape fur seal Arctocephalus pusillus, dusky shark Carcharhinus obscurus, smooth hammerhead shark Sphyrna zygaena and thresher sharks Alopias spp. The 97.9% observer coverage is high and the 6.9% bycatch rate low compared to other South African fisheries; however, due to the large size of the individual hauls (average of 46.3 t), the average sampling rate of 1.56% is low. Our analyses suggest that bycatch in the South African midwater trawl fishery has been lower than in other South African fisheries and similar fisheries elsewhere, but due to the combination of high catch volumes and low sampling rates, estimation errors for rare species are high and there is a substantial risk of incidental unmonitored bycatch of rare large fauna and aggregations of small fauna. This could be mitigated by spatio-temporal management of this fishery, to avoid fishing in high-risk areas, and the introduction of an electronic monitoring programme.     

基于生态敏感性和生态系统服务的黑河中游生态功能区划与生态系统管理

生态功能区划是协调生态保护与经济发展的矛盾、实施区域生态系统管理的重要途径。以黑河中游为研究区,基于基础地理信息数据、自然地理数据和土地覆被数据（1986、1995、2000、2010、2011年）,在生态敏感性和生态系统服务重要性分析的基础上,以最小子流域为基本单元,运用二阶聚类法进行生态功能区划;并依据主导生态系统服务对研究区进行分区管理与生态调控。得出结论：（1）黑河中游生态系统类型以荒漠、草地和农田为主,占总面积的90%;森林、水域、城镇与农村居民点零星分布,所占面积不到10%;1986-2010年,农田经历了减少-扩张-再减少的变化,但城镇与农村居民点一直呈现扩张趋势;（2）西北部生态敏感性明显高于东南部,其中极敏感区（约占24%）主要位于张掖-临泽-高台平原北侧、合黎山、祁连山山前戈壁与荒漠、肃南明花区;高度敏感区（约占58%）分布于走廊中部冲洪积平原;（3）各生态系统服务重要性空间分布格局具有一定的相似性,非常重要和极重要综合服务功能区约占3.2%,位于走廊中部的黑河干流缓冲区内;中等和一般重要地区约占20%,分布在山丹和民乐境内祁连山、焉支山、龙首山附近;（4）黑河中游可分为祁连山森林草地生态区、走廊冲洪积平原农田生态区和走廊北部平原灌丛荒漠生态区3个生态区8个生态功能区,依其主导生态系统服务分为生态保育区、生态协调区和生态控制区3类,进而提出了对应的生态系统管理措施。     

适应气候变化研究中的常见术语辨析

适应气候变化在国际公约谈判及国内适应实践中成为重要的关注内容,明晰适应相关的术语含义具有科学参考价值和实践指导意义。本文通过比较适应相关术语认为,适应是行为方式或对策措施的界定,可不需量化数据支持;适应能力需有明确评价指标体系,并最终产生量化性评价结果;适应性更偏重于能力属性,其基本结论是有或无、强或弱的判断,在适应性有量化结论支持或明确强弱确定时则等同于适应能力。脆弱性评价中,暴露度体现主体对象与气候变化相关的基本处境概况,敏感性表明气候变化对主体对象的影响,适应能力则是经济资本、自然资源、技术水平、社会保障四大要素的综合评价,各要素涵盖的具体指标需要酌情依据适应主体属性予以判别和遴选。适应气候变化与灾害风险管理在主体范畴、驱动因子、行动目的上有所区别,但两者共同关注提高对气候变化/气候灾害风险的抵御、承受、恢复能力,以降低不利影响,实现可持续发展为共同目标。     

虚拟地理环境知识工程初探

地理知识在虚拟地理环境（Virtual Geographic Environments,VGE）的科研与应用中发挥着极为重要的作用。现有地理知识工程研究整体处于初步探索阶段,且尚未在虚拟地理环境中展开。作为新一代GIS研究的科学方法和技术,虚拟地理环境具有典型的多领域、多协同、多交互、多模型及多感知的特点,但还亟需系统深入地了解VGE地理知识工程的特点、机理及关键技术。本文首先综述了国内外现有知识工程及地理知识工程研究现状,进而提出了VGE地理知识及VGE知识工程的概念和定义。在此基础上,本文分析了VGE地理知识有别于通用知识的特点,并提出了VGE地理知识的分类。最后,针对VGE地理知识工程的构建阐述了需解决的关键问题。本文基于VGE知识工程的初步探索,尝试为智能虚拟地理环境系统的构建提供理论基础,以促进虚拟地理环境中地理知识的快速转换和融合,为解决地理科学“数据丰富但知识贫乏”的问题提供一个可行的研究方向。     

Seagrass importance for a small-scale fishery in the tropics: The need for seascape management

Small-scale fisheries (SSF) in tropical seascapes (mosaics of interconnected mangroves, seagrasses and corals) are crucial for food and income. However, management is directed mostly to corals and mangroves. This research analyzes the importance of seagrasses compared to adjacent ecosystems in Chwaka Bay, Zanzibar, Tanzania. Using fish landings; the study investigated: location of fishing effort, fish production (biomass and species), and monetary benefits (aggregated value and per capita income). Seagrasses were the most visited grounds providing highest community benefits. Per capita benefits were equivalent to those from corals and mangroves. All three habitats provided income just above extreme poverty levels; however catches from seagrass appeared more stable. Seagrass are key ecosystems supporting SSF and protection and management are urgently needed. Adoption of a seascape approach considering all ecosystems underpinning SSF and the social aspects of fishing and a shift in emphasis from pure conservation to sustainable resource management would be desirable.     

Diving associated coral breakage in Hong Kong: Differential susceptibility to damage

We conducted the first quantitative assessment of coral breakage along a gradient of diving activities in Hong Kong, the most densely populated city in southern China. A survey of six 1 × 25 m transects at seven sites revealed a total of 81 broken corals, among which 44% were branching, 44% plate-like and 12% massive. There were 3–19 broken colonies per site. At most study sites, the percentage of broken corals exceeded the recommended no-action threshold of 4%, suggesting that management intervention is justified. There was a significant positive correlation between the number of broken coral colonies and the number of divers visiting the site. The branching Acropora and the plate-like Montipora suffered from much higher frequency of damage than their relative abundance, raising the concern that the cumulative impact of such differential susceptibility to breakage may affect coral community composition.     

突发性灾害事件信息搜集整理与服务——以汶川地震为例

以汶川地震信息服务为例,从突发性灾害事件不同时期和阶段信息产出的特点、范围以及提供多元化信息综合服务,探索了突发性灾害事件中信息的搜集整理及服务模式。从多角度阐述了突发性灾害事件发生时如何快速捕捉相关信息资料、科学分类整理以及迅速组织起应对性的信息管理与服务,达到为政府和公众赢得减灾实效的目的。     

Riparian responses to reduced flood flows: comparing and contrasting narrowleaf and broadleaf cottonwoods

Abstract

To enable assessment of risks of water management to riparian ecosystems at a regional scale, we developed a quantile-regression model of abundance of broadleaf cottonwoods (Populus deltoides and P. fremontii) as a function of flood flow attenuation. To test whether this model was transferrable to narrowleaf cottonwood (Populus angustifolia), we measured narrowleaf abundance along 39 river reaches in northwestern Colorado, USA. The model performed well for narrowleaf in all 32 reaches where reservoir storage was <75% of mean annual flow. Field data did not fit the model at four of seven reaches where reservoir storage was >90% of mean annual flow. In these four reaches, narrowleaf was abundant despite peak flow attenuation of 45–61%. Poor model performance in these four reaches may be explained in part by a pulse of narrowleaf cottonwood expansion as a response to channel narrowing and in part by differences between narrowleaf and broadleaf cottonwood response to floods and drought.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz; Guest editor M. Acreman

Citation Wilding, T.K., Sanderson, J.S., Merritt, D.M., Rood, S.B., and Poff, N.L., 2014. Riparian responses to reduced flood flows: comparing and contrasting narrowleaf and broadleaf cottonwoods. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 59 (3–4), 605–617.     

Linking local ecological outcomes with basin-wide water planning: a case study of Yanga National Park,an important Australian inland forested wetland

Abstract

Maintaining and restoring the ecological integrity of floodplains remains a priority for many Australian federal and state government agencies. The Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) introduced the Proposed Basin Plan 2012, the Australian government’s latest basin-scale water planning instrument to promote a healthy, working river system. The proposal seeks to limit surface water (consumptive) use to 10 873 GL year^-1 on a long-term average. The controversy prompted by this proposed reduction has underscored a need for rigorous and transparent modelling of ecological benefits. In this paper, we investigate the likely ecological outcomes of the proposal for Yanga National Park, one of the most significant environmental assets in the Murray-Darling Basin, using a decision support system. Our results indicate that the proposal will increase the inundation extent with a 33% (or 7000 ha) increase in median flood. The increase in inundation would improve the hydrological conditions in most wetlands in terms of the frequency and duration of events and inter-flood dry periods and enhance the habitat quality for a range of biota, though benefits are not distributed evenly across the wetland.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Guest editor M. Acreman

Citation Wen, L. and Saintilan, N., 2014. Linking local ecological outcomes with basin-wide water planning: a case study of Yanga National Park, an important Australian inland forested wetland. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 59 (3–4), 904–915.     

Environmental flows in India: towards sustainable water management

Abstract

The strong wet and dry seasons of tropical monsoon hydrology in India necessitate development of storage and flow diversion schemes for utilization of water to meet various social and economic needs. However, the river valley schemes may cause adverse flow-related impacts due to storage, flow diversion, tunnelling and spoil disposal. There may be critical reaches in which altered flows are not able to sustain the river channel ecology and riparian environment that existed prior to implementation of the storage and diversion schemes. In the past, environmental flows in India have usually been understood as the minimum flow to be released downstream from a dam as compensation for riparian rights, without considering the impacts on the river ecosystem. Rivers in India have been significantly influenced by anthropogenic activities over the past 60 years and have great social and religious significance to the vast population. This paper explores various aspects of past, present and future environmental flow assessment (EFA) in India highlighted by case studies from rivers across the nation. It demonstrates that multidisciplinary studies requiring expertise from a range of fields are needed for EFA, and that environmental flows are necessary for aquatic ecosystems to remain in a healthy state and for the sustainable use of water resources. The major focus areas for the development of EFA research in India are the creation of a shareable database for hydrological, ecological and socioeconomic data, developing hydrology–ecology relationships, evaluation of ecosystem services, addressing pollution due to anthropogenic activities and promotion of research on EFA. At the same time, efforts will be needed to develop new methods or refine existing methods for India.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Guest editor M. Acreman

Citation Jain, S.K. and Kumar, P., 2014. Environmental flows in India: towards sustainable water management. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 59 (3–4), 751–769.