Results based management in fisheries: Delegating responsibility to resource users

While the notion of results based management has been devoted recent attention in the context of reforming European fisheries management, it remains unclear what it entails. A conceptual model of results based management in fisheries is proposed as a way for public authorities to delegate specific management and documentation responsibilities to resource users. The model comprises three defining features: (1) That authorities define measurable objectives for the utilization of fisheries resources; (2) that resource users are made responsible for achieving these objectives and for (3) providing documentation that allows for an audit of the extent to which they are met. Selected cases are used to illustrate these features. Rationales and prospects of introducing results based management as an alternative in a European fisheries management context are discussed, giving consideration to how it may be pursued under the reformed common fisheries policy.     

Ballast water management in Canada: A historical perspective and implications for the future

Non-indigenous species (NIS) can create significant risks when introduced to foreign ecosystems. One of the many vectors facilitating the global transport of NIS is ballast water, and as commercial shipping increases so does the threat of ballast water-mediated introductions. Despite Canadian regulations, consistent with international guidelines put forth by the International Maritime Organization in the early 1990s, ballast water remains a potential vector for the introduction of many NIS to Canadian marine ecosystems: there have been no new introductions in the Laurentian Great Lakes Region since 2006, yet marine ecosystems continue to see the introduction and establishment of NIS. This paper details and analyzes the development of Canadian ballast water management (BWM), in the context of marine ecosystems, and identifies issues therein. BWM in Canada has a number of management gaps that have persisted since large-scale BWM began in the late 1980s. These include BWM exemptions for vessels not exiting the North American continental shelf, and limitations of effectiveness of mid-ocean exchange as the predominant management method in marine ecosystems. In addition, ballast water regulations for the Canadian Arctic may require additional consideration as the Arctic will likely continue to see an increase in both warming and commercial shipping in the future, thereby increasing the potential risk of NIS. In order to adequately protect all Canadian marine ecosystems, it is recommended that the current BWM regime: fill gaps in management to help prevent further introduction and spread of NIS; focus equally on both marine and freshwater regions, and; look to other aggressive BWM strategies such as those being developed by the state of California.     

Learning from the systematic approach to aquaculture zoning in South Australia: A case study of aquaculture (Zones – Lower Eyre Peninsula) Policy 2013

South Australia is among the regions internationally, where there are currently strong drivers for anthropogenic and ecosystem marine planning decisions. Specifically, South Australia, in both State and adjacent Commonwealth Waters, is currently accommodating increasing interests such as oil exploration by multi-national companies in the Great Australian Bight, implementation of recently declared State Marine Parks, an increased public awareness of marine developments, commissioning of a desalinisation plant, government-focused marine science initiatives, long-standing commercial fisheries, a transparent legislative and political stage, and a relatively new aquaculture industry. Amongst this growing diversity in marine-based activities, a dedicated aquaculture legislative framework was created in South Australia with the commencement of the Aquaculture Act 2001 (the Act) to centralise the legislative processes required to underpin aquaculture regulation and administration. This centralisation has helped to create an effective platform to streamline administrative processes, reduce duplication between various government agencies such as planning authorities and environment protection agencies, and ultimately fostered investment in, and growth of, the South Australian aquaculture industry. As such Aquaculture zone policies are a key strategic management tool for sustainable aquaculture development in South Australia into the future. This paper provides a case study (Aquaculture (Zones – Lower Eyre Peninsula) Policy 2013) of the legislated regional marine planning framework for aquaculture development used in South Australia, with a focus on the key functions and processes that may have broader applications.     

Innovation for sustainable energy from a pro-poor perspective

The development and transfer of clean energy technologies to achieve universal energy access is challenging due to the inherent complexities of the energy sector, and the energy governance and financial systems in developing economies. Innovation is an essential part of successfully addressing these difficulties. Duplicating the energy infrastructure models of developed countries will not be sufficient to meet the needs of poor consumers. To the extent that innovation can accelerate energy access, it is important to understand the specific types of innovations that are necessary and how they might be facilitated. The general features of existing international clean energy innovation systems, which are predominantly driven by the markets and emissions reduction mechanisms of developed and rapidly growing emerging economies, are reviewed and the alignment of these systems to the innovation processes required to extend energy access globally is evaluated. Drawing on the innovation policy literature, the attributes of effective international and domestic energy innovation systems that are pro-poor and the associated policy approaches are identified.     

Scientists’ framing of the ocean science–policy interface

Scientists’ ideas, beliefs, and discourses form the frames that shape their choices about which research to pursue, their approaches to collaboration and communicating results, and how they evaluate research outputs and outcomes. To achieve ocean sustainability, there are increasing calls for new levels of engagement and collaboration between scientists and policy-makers; scientists’ willingness to engage depends on their current and evolving frames. Here, I present results about how scientists involved in diverse fields of ocean research perceived their role as scientists working at or near the ocean science–policy interface and how this related to their perceptions regarding ocean research priorities. The survey of 2187 physical, ecological and social scientists from 94 countries showed that scientists held different perspectives about their appropriate level of engagement at the ocean science–policy interface and the relative primacy of science versus politics in formulating ocean policy. Six clusters of scientists varied in their frames; three clusters accounted for 94% of the sample. Of 67 research questions identified from 22 research prioritization and horizon scanning exercises, the top eight were shared among all three clusters, showing consistency in research priorities across scientists with different framings of their role at the science–policy interface. Five focused on the mechanisms and effects of global change on oceans, two focused on data collection and management for long-term ocean monitoring, and one focused on the links between biodiversity and ecological function at different scales. The results from this survey demonstrated that scientists’ framings of the role of ocean science at the science–policy interface can be quantified in surveys, that framing varies among scientists, and that research priorities vary according to the framings.     

Co-productive governance: A relational framework for adaptive governance

Adaptive governance focuses our attention on the relationships between science and management, whereby the so-called ‘gaps’ between these groups are seen to hinder effective adaptive responses to biophysical change. Yet the relationships between science and governance, knowledge and action, remain under theorized in discussions of adaptive governance, which largely focuses on abstract design principles or preferred institutional arrangements. In contrast, the metaphor of co-production highlights the social and political processes through which science, policy, and practice co-evolve. Co-production is invoked as a normative goal (Mitchell et al., 2004) and analytical lens (Jasanoff, 2004a, Jasanoff, 2004b), both of which provide useful insight into the processes underpinning adaptive governance. This paper builds on and integrates these disparate views to reconceptualize adaptive governance as a process of co-production. I outline an alternative conceptual framing, ‘co-productive governance’, that articulates the context, knowledge, process, and vision of governance. I explore these ideas through two cases of connectivity conservation, which draws on conservation science to promote collaborative cross-scale governance. This analysis highlights the ways in which the different contexts of these cases produced very different framings and responses to the same propositions of science and governance. Drawing on theoretical and empirical material, co-productive governance moves beyond long standing debates that institutions can be rationally crafted or must emerge from context resituate adaptive governance in a more critical and contextualized space. This reframing focuses on the process of governance through an explicit consideration of how normative considerations shape the interactions between knowledge and power, science and governance.     

田湾核电站5号、6号机组负挖爆破设计与质量控制

综述了在商业运行的核电站周边进行核岛负挖爆破的设计和质量控制,尤其对负挖预裂爆破和核岛廊道爆破技术及质量控制要点进行了较详细的表述,为类似核电负挖工程提供借鉴。     

白龙江下游涉核地区的放射性环境水平现状调查

通过对白龙江下游涉核地区及周边地区的汽车能谱测量和地面伽玛能谱测量以及空气中的氡浓度的监测,得出区内各地层中的U、Th、K含量均符合当地各地层的特性,与当地本底基本一致,空气氡浓度范围为183.9~305.8 Bq/m3,均属正常,符合当地的天然放射性环境情况,对环境无任何影响。     

XX核电厂附近海域生态环境及潜在致灾生物研究

为了了解XX核电厂周边海域的生态环境状况,筛选潜在威胁核电厂冷源安全的致灾生物,分析影响致灾生物时空分布的主要环境因素,本研究于2018年进行了四个季节的生态调查。结果表明,研究海域浮游植物密度秋季最高,春季优势种为东海原甲藻,其他季节优势种为中肋骨条藻等硅藻。浮游动物密度夏季最高,以桡足类为主,春、夏季优势种还包括球型侧腕水母和薮枝螅水母。底栖动物的密度和生物量在秋季最高,优势种主要为豆形短眼蟹、长吻沙蚕和丝异须虫。浮游植物、浮游动物和底栖动物群落均在夏季最为稳定,群落多样性水平和物种丰度较高,且分布较为均匀。浮游植物群落的细胞丰度与悬浮物和磷酸盐的浓度正相关性最高。浮游动物的密度受温度和盐度的影响较大。底栖动物的群落分布主要受悬浮物和无机营养盐的浓度影响。本研究共筛选出17种威胁XX核电厂冷源安全的潜在致灾生物。海地瓜、棘刺锚参、海葵和球型侧腕水母的风险等级较高,其分布主要受温度和盐度的影响。后续工作中,XX核电厂应根据潜在致灾生物与环境因子的关系加强暴发机制研究、提升监测预警能力,并优化驱赶消杀技术和干扰体系,为核电厂冷源安全提供理论和技术保障。     

Fighting Fire with Fire: Does a Policy of Broad-Scale Prescribed Burning Improve Community Safety?

Wildfires cause enormous damage worldwide, particularly in Victoria, Australia, with growing populations in fire-prone ecosystems. Broad-scale prescribed burning is an established, yet controversial, wildfire management policy in Victoria and Australia. But does broad-scale prescribed burning reduce fire damage? The answer depends on how damage is measured. We propose that different perceptions about the efficacy of broad-scale prescribed burning derive from different disciplinary measures of damage (e.g., biodiversity, area burned, or fatalities). Although broad-scale prescribed burning reduces subsequent wildfire size, there is little evidence that it saves human lives and homes. Evidence suggests that small-scale fuel reduction may be more effective at saving lives. The prescribed burning debate might be better focused on what damage we wish to limit, and which measures are most effective at limiting this damage. In this context, the current policy focus on broad-scale prescribed burning targets may distract efforts from more effective lifesaving strategies.