Effects Of Human Activities Research Articles

An Ecocentric Reading of אמת‎, חסד‎, and דעת אלהים‎ in Hosea 4.1-6

Many critics have blamed the current ecological crisis on an interpretation of the biblical text that legitimates human abuse of the earth’s resources, through a misconstruction of the human relationship with the rest of the created order. The Hebrew text of Hosea 4.1-6 documents a tacit knowledge of the consequence of human action on the ecosystem, evidence that has been eclipsed in various English translations due to the contextual gap between the text and the English recipient. This paper attempts a reconstruction of the Hebrew text, and undertakes a fresh translation that exposes the cosmological underpinnings of the text. The passage is then interpreted from an ecocentric perspective in a synchronic reading with other passages. This reveals an awareness of an intricate relationship among humanity, the earth, and non-human inhabitants of the earth, a relationship that Hosea describes with the terms אמת‎, חסד‎, and דעת אלהים‎.

Environmental changes in the Late Glacial and Holocene in the southeast of Belarus

Communicated by Academician Aleksey V. Matveev The reconstruction of environmental changes in the southeast of Belarus during the last 14700 cal. BP is based on the results of palynological, radiocarbon, isotope and lithological studies of Lake Staroje deposits. Climatic fluctuations, fires and human activities played a significant role in the transformation of the vegetation cover. The beginning of the lacustrine sedimentation was dated circa 16000 cal. BP. The intensification of erosion processes on the water catchment area was marked by an increase in the mineral material flow into the lake. These events have a positive correlation with the climate cooling and humidity phases in the Late Glacial and Early Holocene, and in the Late Holocene with anthropogenic impact stages. The traces of the episodic human activity were dated to 5800 cal. BP, while the expansion of farming and pasturing areas began at 3000 cal. BP Currently the consequences of human activities (including drainage of bogs) are reflected in the treeless landscapes adjacent to the lake.

The Fragile State

In his most recent book, James Scott presents us with a ‘deep history’ of the alluvial lowlands of Mesopotamia, from early domestications in the Neolithic to the emergence and consolidation of early states. Although the focus lies on Mesopotamia in these periods, Scott delves into the beginnings of the human use of fire in the Palaeolithic and draws on comparative developments in Southeast Asia, Egypt, Greece, Rome and elsewhere. He poses large questions: Why did people move into densely packed villages—‘Neolithic multispecies resettlement camps’—accompanied by the plants and animals they domesticated, but also by an exponentially increased disease load and a substantial portion of drudgery? Why did states emerge when they did, despite the fact that the main ecological and demographic conditions were present millennia earlier? What accounts for the fragility of these early states, and why do our standard histories obscure that fact? Guiding themes are ecological and demographic, but also draw explicit attention to the unintended consequences of human actions. Indeed, reflections on the Anthropocene underpin the book's arguments, and, like many others who write on this topic, Scott is motivated by deep-seated concerns about the sorry ecological state of our contemporary world and connections to long-term effects of human activity.

Functional redundancy in leaf‐litter‐associated aquatic hyphomycetes: Fine sediment alters community composition but hardly decomposer activity

AbstractThe increase in the flow of fine sediments to the aquatic ecosystems (AH), as a consequence of human activities, is a widespread stressor that may alter the structure of biological communities and ecosystem processes. In this study, the effects of sediments (Ø < 2 mm) on the structure (biomass and composition) and activity (decomposer activity and sporulation rate) of litter‐associated microorganisms (mainly AH) were investigated. For this, leaf discs of in‐stream preconditioned Quercus robur were incubated in microcosms for 30 days under the influence of four different grain‐size (<2, 1–0.5, 0.5–0.063, and <0.063 mm) sediments kept in motion. Fine sediments barely altered microbial decomposer activity and did not affect fungal biomass. Meanwhile, the sporulation rate was enhanced by sediments’ presence, the results being grain‐size‐dependent, and the fungal community composition was affected by the presence of sediments, independently of grain size. These findings evidence the functional redundancy of microbial assemblages involved in leaf litter decomposition in freshwaters.

Changes in archaeal ether lipid composition in response to agriculture alternation in ancient and modern paddy soils

Paddy soil is the consequence of human activity, which has exerted significant anthropogenic impacts on the global carbon cycle in recent earth history, particularly through the production of microbial methane from paddy soils. However, the anthropogenic impact of rice fields on the distribution of methanogenic archaea and methane emission during human history is poorly documented. Isoprenoid glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (iGDGTs) are unique biomarkers for archaea, which can be used to examine changes in climate and environment during human evolution. This study aimed to reconstruct archaeal communities and evaluate how they might have been impacted by human activities during the development of two paddy soil profiles that recorded a cultivation history of over 6300 years in Zhejiang Province, southeastern China. Variations in archaeol, GDGT-0 and crenarchaeol strongly suggest that archaeal ether lipids deeply buried in the ancient paddy soil profiles are mainly fossil records rather than contemporary signals. Cluster analysis based on GDGT compositions revealed two major groups of GDGTs corresponding to different soil types, reflecting the shift of archaeal communities from Thaumarchaeota to methanogens. The archaeal ether lipid-based proxies (MI, archaeol/crenarchaeol and GDGT-0/crenarchaeol) related to methane-producing archaea varied remarkably in different soil types associated with the anthropogenic management. These proxies had significantly higher values in the buried paddy soils than currently cultivated paddy soils, implying that the earlier anthropogenic flooding may have resulted in considerable methane emission from paddy soils in southeastern China.

Reunion overseas: introduced wild boars and cultivated orange trees interact in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

Abstract: Reunion in the overseas: introduced wild boars and cultivated orange trees interact in the Mata Atlântica (Brazil). Novel interactions are attracting a lot of interest, especially those occurring between wild animal species and agricultural crops as a consequence of human activities. Novel interactions usually concern to species that interact only because human activity but that otherwise would not even coexist. Typically novel interactions arise from biological invasions as well as from interactions between native and crop species. Less studied are novel interactions between species that originally interact in their native range but, as consequence of human activity (domestication, game introductions, etc.), are now interacting out of their original distribution under new ecological conditionsIn this article, we study the interaction between orange and wild boar, both species sharing Asian origin but being introduced in America and then subjected to new ecological conditions. Dispersers of sweet orange seeds are unknown. As wild boar consumes fruits frequently in citrus orchards, here we assessed whether i) it consumes orange seeds, ii) they are viable after passing through boar’s digestive tract and iii) orange seedlings may naturalise in the Mata Atlântica of Brazil, in a citrus farm surrounded by a large natural area called Mata da Virgínia. We used camera surveys in the orange orchards and in the jungle to identify orange fruit consumers in two periods in 2014 and 2015. The jungle was additionally surveyed looking for citrus seedlings finding more than 50 seedlings in which it was confirmed that they belong to sweet orange trees by SSR techniques. As the wild boar was identified as the main orange consumer, 19 fresh boar feces were collected and citrus seeds removed and sown to assess their viability. Citrus seeds were also planted in the jungle and their germination and seedling survival were studied. Three years after sowing, just 5% of the seedlings remained alive with an average height of less than 10 cm.

Estimating the benefits of restoration And preservation scenarios of marine biodiversity: An application of the contingent valuation method

Marine biodiversity provides valuable benefits for human beings. Some of these benefits, such as the provision of food, are easily recognized, while some, such as climate regulation, are less well-known. People lack direct experience of the economic value of marine biodiversity, since no relevant market exists. This study reports the results of a contingent valuation study to estimate people’s willingness to pay (WTP) for biodiversity restoration and conservation scenarios in some unique coralligenous habitats in the North Adriatic Sea, Italy.Coralligenous habitat constitutes one of the most important ‘hot spots’ of species diversity in the Mediterranean, notoriously affected by a loss of biodiversity as a consequence of human activities, such as over-fishing and pollution, sediment deposition, recreational fishing, trawling, and diving. A major threat is the increasing frequency of abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded fishing gear at sea.A sample of 4000 Italian people was surveyed, and the results show that people’s WTP for interventions aimed at improving biodiversity through the removal and restoration operations in the area is distinctly higher than is the WTP for the preservation and prevention of further biodiversity loss. The findings suggest that respondents perceive prevention and control activities as being embedded in restoration, the benefits of which can be seen within a certain time frame. Positive and significant determinants of respondents’ WTP are family income, knowledge of biodiversity in coralligenous habitat, previous cognizance and awareness of marine biodiversity issues, environmental friendly behavior, and concern for environmental quality.

Ulva lactuca, A Source of Troubles and Potential Riches

Ulva lactuca is a green macro alga involved in devastating green tides observed worldwide. These green tides or blooms are a consequence of human activities. Ulva blooms occur mainly in shallow waters and the decomposition of this alga can produce dangerous vapors. Ulva lactuca is a species usually resembling lettuce, but genetic analyses demonstrated that other green algae with tubular phenotypes were U. lactuca clades although previously described as different species or even genera. The capacity for U. lactuca to adopt different phenotypes can be due to environment parameters, such as the degree of water salinity or symbiosis with bacteria. No efficient ways have been discovered to control these green tides, but the Mediterranean seas appear to be protected from blooms, which disappear rapidly in springtime. Ulva contains commercially valuable components, such as bioactive compounds, food or biofuel. The biomass due to this alga collected on beaches every year is beginning to be valorized to produce valuable compounds. This review describes different processes and strategies developed to extract these different valuable components.

The recent fossil turtle record of the central plain of Thailand reveals local extinctions

With more than 50 extant turtle species, Southeast Asia is currently a hotspot of turtle biodiversity. However, the distribution areas of most species are decreasing as a consequence of human activities. The causes of this decline are multiple: habitat and natural resources destruction, introduction of invasive species, hunting, etc. Historical data are however still lacking for a detailed understanding of that regional trend as well as for forecasting its evolution in the future. Indeed, while oral testimonies and text data can provide a rather good appreciation of the decline of biodiversity over the last few decades; nothing is known about the dynamic of turtle biodiversity over the Holocene. This lack of data is especially damaging in area where human activities are interacting for a long time with the wild fauna, as the central plain of Thailand, which is now dominated by agricultural landscape. In order to solve these issues, we investigated five Holocene localities in Thai central plain which provided assemblages of turtle remains ranging from Neolithic to Dvaravati periods (4000 to 1000 BP). The studied archaeological assemblages showed a very high species richness. Species such as Malayemys macrocephala, Cuora amboinensis, Heosemys annandalii, Heosemys grandis, Siebenrockiella crassicolis, Amyda ornata were among the most abundant. We also found several plates and a cranial material belonging to a species of the genus Batagur and tortoise remains including Indotestudo elongata and a few plates belonging to the genus Geochelone. The Batagur and Geochelone genera are absent from living turtle assemblages in the central plain but are present in Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia or Southern Thailand for Batagur and far in the West for Geochelone (Myanmar) respectively. Batagur is usually found in coastal areas and its disappearance from central plain is interpreted as resulting from the destruction of a fragile habitat and possibly from the rapid geomorphological evolution of the Chao-Phraya deltaic plain, the disappearance of tortoises could result from deforestation. Cutting traces showed that most turtles were used as food resources at these times, suggesting that turtle hunting was a common practise. Furthermore, occurrence of holes in the margin of the carapace of specimens from Kheed Khin (Saraburi Province) and Promthin Tai (Lopburi Province) suggests that turtles were sometimes kept captive alive or transported. This study shows that investigation of recent fossil localities allows for a better understanding of the role of past human populations in the alteration of the biodiversity through time, and for a more accurate estimation of the rates of species extinction.

Structure, plant diversity and future management of Pentadesma butyracea stands, an endangered oil tree species in Burkina Faso, West Africa

Abstract This paper aims to assess the population structure of Pentadesma butyracea Sabine, a local oil tree species and to analyze the occurrence of woody plants in P. butyracea natural stands. Data were collected in 41 plots of 50 × 20 m across natural stands of P. butyracea in two regions of the south-Sudanian phytogeographic zone of Burkina Faso. Stem diameter, total height and tree health were recorded and the woody plant diversity was assessed. Stand data were calculated and the diameter structure was analyzed at the regional level using the Weibull distribution. Significant differences (P < 0.05) were found in density and basal area between regions. In both regions, 32 per cent of trees show signs of poor health. The diameter distributions of individuals showed a structure close to a reverse J-shape (c < 1). Natural stands of P. butyracea exhibit good natural regeneration, but the large trees in the sampled populations commonly had poor health. The data may indicate early signs of stands of P. butyracea changing into savanna in the Banfora region as a consequence of human activities and climate deterioration. P. butyracea is a dominant species in riparian forest, its conservation has a potential to restore the riparian forest; appropriate management guidance and support that involves local communities is required to ensure sustainable management.

Implications of land use/land cover dynamics and Prosopis invasion on ecosystem service values in Afar Region, Ethiopia

Land use/land cover (LULC) dynamics and the resulting changes in ecosystems, as well as the services they provide, are a consequence of human activities and environmental drivers, such as invasive alien plant species. This study assessed the changes in LULC and ecosystem service values (ESVs) in the Afar National Regional State, Ethiopia, which experiences a rapid invasion by the alien tree Prosopis juliflora (Swartz DC). Landsat satellite data of 1986, 2000 and 2017 were used in Random Forest algorithm to assess LULC changes in the last 31 years, to calculate net changes for different LULC types and the associated changes in ESVs. Kappa accuracies of 88% and higher were obtained for the three LULC classifications. Post-classification change analyses for the period between 1986 and 2017 revealed a positive net change for Prosopis invaded areas, cropland, salt flats, settlements and waterbodies. The rate of Prosopis invasion was estimated at 31,127 ha per year. Negative net changes were found for grassland, bareland, bush-shrub-woodland, and natural forests. According to the local community representatives, the four most important drivers of LULC dynamics were climate change, frequent droughts, invasive species and weak traditional law. Based on two different ESVs estimations, the ecosystem changes caused by LULC changes resulted in an average loss of ESVs in the study area of about US$ 602 million (range US$ 112 to 1091 million) over the last 31 years. With an increase in area by 965,000 ha, Prosopis-invaded land was the highest net change during the study period, followed by grassland (−599,000 ha), bareland (−329,000 ha) and bush-shrub-woodland (−327,000 ha). Our study provides evidence that LULC changes in the Afar Region have led to a significant loss in ESVs, with serious consequences for the livelihoods of the rural people.

Quality-based management for future-ready corporations serving society and planet

The five disquieting environmental phenomena of today are bio-extinction, climate warming, lifestyle diseases, pollution and a looming resource scarcity. These are the consequences of human activities like releasing greenhouse gases, discharging effluents, over-using both renewable and non-renewable resources, chemicalising everything, generating harmful wastes, and causing radiation. Quality has always implied the idea of causing no harm. Nevertheless, products do cause damage – by using fossil energy, releasing chemicals that could impair inter-generational health, by needing incineration, or clogging landfills and water bodies while resisting recycling or bio-degradation. These are ecological and societal problems that cannot be slotted away as ‘externalities’. The definition of quality must now read as fulfilling the needs of customers and society. Quality-based management has the philosophies, systems and techniques to define problems and find causes with long-term customer orientation and respect for humanity. Reduction of wastes is its bread and butter. Corporations have the responsibility to not harm the earth. The twin lack of incentives or coercive regulations and taxes may get rectified soon. Wise businessmen will do well to turn to quality to mitigate harm and thus be future-ready. This paper elaborates the threats and the ways in which corporations can respond through quality.

Explaining links from the past: material distribution in Charco Hondo 2 Acheulian archeological site (Madrid, Spain)

The study of the lithic assemblage from Charco Hondo 2 (Madrid, Spain) indicates the existence of intense activities related to the quarrying of Miocene flint outcrops, within a drainage context inside the interfluvial plateau of the Manzanares and Jarama rivers (Madrid region). This lithic production was oriented to produce the first stages of large flake bifacial shaping, with an important collection of refitted materials of the Lower/Middle Paleolithic. The sedimentological circumstances and the presence of refitted items initially suggest the existence of good preservation conditions for an open-air site. In this contribution, we present a brief analysis of the geoarchaeological sequence with special attention to depositional and post-depositional processes, in order to determine the extent to which tool distribution and the lithic refitting connections were the consequence of human activity or, on the contrary, the combination of different human and natural agents. This site provides us with a good example to discuss the relevance and significance of particular refitted distributions in open-air quarrying contexts.

The conservation of aquatic vascular plants in Asian Russia

We present current information on the conservation of aquatic vascular plants in West and East Siberia and the Russian Far East. This includes the region from the Ural Mountains in the west to the eastern seaboard of Russia from Kamchatka and Chukotka in the north to Vladivostok in the south, including Sakhalin, the Kuril and Commander Islands. A list of aquatic vascular plant species protected in the region is presented with an indication of their conservation status derived from regional Red Data Books, combined with population trend data from the literature, as well as field observations made by the authors. The region as a whole supports a total of 246 aquatic plant species, of which 96 are listed as threatened in regional Red Lists. The main threats to these species are habitat degradation, eutrophication and pollution of water bodies as a consequence of human activity and climate change. Many species which are specialized, relict or endemic, and others occurring here on the edge of their range, are vulnerable because of these factors. The main conservation action needed includes protection of natural habitats, establishment of monitoring protocols for the most severely threatened species and research into the autecology of threatened species. There is also a need to resolve taxonomic questions obstructing conservation.

Analysing the Matter Flows in Schools Using Deleuze’s Method

Using Deleuzian theory for educational research and practice has become an increasingly popular activity (e.g., Cole 2011). However, there are many theoretical complexities to the straightforward application of Deleuze to the educational context. For example, the ‘new materialism’ that Deleuze refers to in the 1960s takes its inspiration from Spinoza, and is an emancipatory (and very human) project. Contrariwise, the ‘new materialism’ of the present moment is frequently applied to educational research and practice specifically as a way out of anthropocentric limits and enclosure. This paper explores the combined forces of humanism and naturalism which are at work in Deleuze’s ‘new materialism’, as type of ‘more-than-human’ emancipation method derived from Bergson and Nietzsche; it is a mode of overcoming human limits, which fully takes into account the connections to and with the non-human world and the ecological consequences of human action. This paper will draw out the specific consequences for educational research and practice in schools of the ‘vitalist-nihilism’ we may derive from Bergson and Nietzsche to analyse matter flows as they enter, mingle with, and exit schools.

Modelling Hazards in Fisheries and Aquaculture Activities in the Mediterranean Sea and the Risk of their Transmission and Dispersion. Is it Feasible?

Modelling approaches in marine science is a controversial issue as no model is, or can be, a perfect representation of nature. Models can provide useful information for the dynamics of ecosystems and inform us about the likely consequences of human activities in fisheries and aquaculture. Applying a suite of dynamic models can be valuable predictive tools for modelling hazards transmission in fisheries and aquaculture activities in the Mediterranean Sea.

Modifications in the gamma dose rate in air due to downward and lateral mobility of 137Cs in the soil

137Cs can be an important environmental contaminant due to fallout from nuclear reactor accidents and atomic weapons testing. Its contribution to the air gamma dose rate at 1 m height above contaminated ground depends on the soil inventory, the migration processes along the soil profile and possible modifications in the spatial distribution. In this paper the diffusion-convection equation is used to approach the 137Cs soil vertical migration transport and standard dose rate factors are jointly applied for estimating the air dose rate. In order to calculate the temporal reduction of the external radiation, an empirical attenuation factor is used and its coefficients are analyzed in terms of the effective diffusion coefficient and downward migration rates. Additionally, it is analyze the corrections that should be introduced in dose rate values attributable to soil redistribution processes. If these processes, natural or as a consequence of human activities, are not taken into account, both the air dose rate values and the attenuation period can be noticeably under or overestimated.

Impact of agrarian practices and some pastoral uses on vegetation in Algerian steppe rangelands

The decline in steppe vegetation in Algeria was first reported in the mid-20th century, and for many years was attributed to recurrent droughts. Hypotheses suggesting that this decline was a consequence of human activities emerged in the 1970s – a time of major socioeconomic trends in the region. Changes such as strong population growth, sedentarisation, herd size increases and use of pasture land for crops, all had considerable impact on rangeland vegetation. The aim of the present work was to identify heterogeneity in the pasture vegetation of a given ‘territory’ (in the sense of a ‘terroir’), or biophysical environment (including meteorological), taking into account rangeland distribution, land use changes and herd management in the Aflou region of Algeria. Characterisation and mapping of the vegetation and its environment in the study area led to the hypothesis that, apart from some very slight soil differences, heterogeneity in rangeland vegetation appeared mainly related to human impacts. Bertin’s Semiology of Graphics was used to analyse the results, and indicated a major decline in vegetation productivity and biodiversity in the steppe rangelands of the study zone. Beyond this general trend in the municipal territory studied, areas were found with contrasting flora communities, with some showing relatively stable plant communities, while other areas had some plant communities that had undergone regressive succession. Grazing conditions and the proximity of ploughed land were responsible for these different vegetation situations.

The extinction of the Catarina pupfish Megupsilon aporus and the implications for the conservation of freshwater fish in Mexico

AbstractExtinctions are occurring at an unprecedented rate as a consequence of human activities. Vertebrates constitute the best-known group of animals, and thus the group for which there are more accurate estimates of extinctions. Among them, freshwater fishes are particularly threatened and many species are declining. Here we report the extinction of an endemic freshwater fish of Mexico, the Catarina pupfish Megupsilon aporus, the sole species of the genus Megupsilon. We present a synopsis of the discovery and description of the species, the threats to, and degradation of, its habitat, and the efforts to maintain the species in captivity before it became extinct in 2014. The loss of the Catarina pupfish has evolutionary and ecological implications, and highlights the crisis of freshwater fish extinctions. It is a warning of the likely fate of more than 200 freshwater fish species threatened with extinction in Mexico. To save these species, the country urgently needs a national strategy to articulate a bold conservation effort, with better policies on ecosystem management and water use.

Removal of Microcystin-LR from spiked natural and synthetic waters by anion exchange

Cyanobacterial blooms are becoming a serious challenge across the globe due to changing climate and rainfall patterns as a consequence of human activities. In the present study, the fundamental interactions involved during the removal of Microcystin-LR (MCLR), one of the most commonly occurring cyanobacterial toxins, were investigated by employing strongly basic anion exchange (IX) resins. Several factors including the stoichiometric coefficients, competitive fractions and solute affinities were determined under various concentrations of inorganic ions and natural organic matter. The results indicated that suphates were the most competitive fractions with high affinity (α (affinity coefficient) values ~ 9) followed by nitrates (α ~ 4.7) and NOM fractions (α ~ 4.5, p < 0.05). The Equivalent Background Concentration Mode (EBC), that arises from the Ideal Adsorption Solution Theory (IAST), indicated a competitive fraction of ~2 μeq/L NOM, which approximates to <10% of the initial NOM concentrations, indicating a small fraction of the NOM resulting in the competitive effect. Further, studies with natural surface waters indicated that the MCLR uptake could be modeled using the IAST-EBC model and the IX resin could simultaneously removal of >90% of NOM, inorganic ions and MCLR at resin dosages of 3.6 meq/L or higher.