Fragile Environment Research Articles

Dynamic Simulation of the Probable Propagation of a Disaster in an Engineering System Using a Scenario-Based Hybrid Network Model

With the growing threat of worldwide natural disasters, the safety status of the engineering system is facing serious uncertainties. A small disturbance can cause unexpected serious losses through amplification effects of the fragile environment and unwanted interactions of system elements. The safety status of the disrupted engineering system is subject to profound uncertainty and cognitive ambiguity, which is an impediment to emergency simulation decision making. To analyze the likely future under profound uncertainty, this article develops a scenario-based method to simulate the dynamic evolution process of complex disasters for the engineering system. The complex chain of disasters is segmented into a set of correlated scenarios, and the cascading effects between these scenarios are modeled according to the risk−propagation−consequences process. We applied this method to a mega rail transportation project and established a disaster evolution network in an attempt to traverse all possible future scenarios during operation. The Monte Carlo simulations made it possible to assess the disastrous consequences of the various disturbances and to identify the most vulnerable nodes. This model is expected to reduce uncertainty and provide key information for emergency decision making within the engineering system project.

The Discursive Support of Interethnic Conflicts in Kosovo: Transition from Media to Social Media

In Kosovo, ethnic identity played a central role in sustaining interethnic conflict until the current decade. Despite the efforts of the international community to reconcile the parties and mediate the political dialogue with Serbia, mistrust between ethnicities has been sustained by a history of tensed relations, identity politics, but also, to a significant extent, through the media and after the digitalization of communication – through social media. The paper problematizes on the role that mass media and social media have played in the ethnicization of conflicts and manifestation of ethnic hate speech, arguing that while the former has been subject to regulation and professionalization, the latter remain to a significant extent spaces that support the continuation of conflict and even the mobilization of groups. In describing the framework of interethnic relations in Kosovo, the history of interethnic relations and the dynamics of post-war events are briefly presented. Subsequently, through the case study and the method of documentary analysis, the paper addresses the role played by the media in amplifying conflicts in the case of the events of March 2004 and the more recent contributions of social networks in the unhindered promotion of ethnic hatred in the case of a political subject – the import of Serbian products into Kosovo. Finally, an argument is built in favour of the need for a more proactive approach of international organizations and local institutions in Kosovo in combating ethnic hate speech promoted via social networks, which can increase tensions in the fragile security environment of the Western Balkans.

Susținerea discursivă a conflictelor interetnice în Kosovo: tranziția de la mass-media la rețelele sociale

In Kosovo, ethnic identity played a central role in sustaining interethnic conflict until the current decade. Despite the efforts of the international community to reconcile the parties and mediate the political dialogue with Serbia, mistrust between ethnicities has been sustained by a history of tensed relations, identity politics, but also, to a significant extent, through the media and after the digitalization of communication – through social media. The paper problematizes on the role that mass media and social media have played in the ethnicization of conflicts and manifestation of ethnic hate speech, arguing that while the former has been subject to regulation and professionalization, the latter remain to a significant extent spaces that support the continuation of conflict and even the mobilization of groups. In describing the framework of interethnic relations in Kosovo, the history of interethnic relations and the dynamics of post-war events are briefly presented. Subsequently, through the case study and the method of documentary analysis, the paper addresses the role played by the media in amplifying conflicts in the case of the events of March 2004 and the more recent contributions of social networks in the unhindered promotion of ethnic hatred in the case of a political subject – the import of Serbian products into Kosovo. Finally, an argument is built in favour of the need for a more proactive approach of international organizations and local institutions in Kosovo in combating ethnic hate speech promoted via social networks, which can increase tensions in the fragile security environment of the Western Balkans.

贵州普定土壤酶活性和氮循环功能基因数据集

The karst ecosystem in southwest China is the most fragile ecological environment in China. To protect the ecological environment, the project of "Grain to Green Program" was initiated in the late 1990s for the vegetation restoration in this region. Changes in soil microbial abundance, community composition and functional activity are closely linked to soil nutrient supply and turnover, which are the critical factors influencing vegetation restoration processes. Soils were sampled from five different vegetation types at Chenqi catchment and Tianlong Mountain, and rhizosphere soils were sampled from the typical tree species at Tianlong Mountain. Through rigorous data quality control processes (including survey sampling, sample analysis, and data accuracy checks), we obtained a dataset of soil microbial enzyme activities and nitrogen cycling functional genes in different vegetation types from the karst ecosystem. This dataset consisted of one excel file with eight different sheets, which contains the data on soil microbial enzyme activities, nitrogen cycling functional gene abundance and nitrogen transformation rate, microbial living biomass, microbial residue carbon, and soil physicochemical properties along soil profile ranging from the surface to bedrock layer in various vegetation types of 2016. Furthermore, the dataset also includes the enzyme activity and physicochemical properties of the rhizosphere soils from typical tree species in the primary forest in 2018. The dataset serves as valuable reference data for better understanding the microbial regulation mechanism of soil nutrient cycling in karst areas, and it is also of great practical significance for soil nutrient management in ecologically fragile regions under the background of "Grain to Green Program" policy.

Spatio-temporal evolutionary analysis of surface ecological quality in Pingshuo open-cast mine area, China.

The open-pit mining area is highly affected by human activities, which aggravate soil erosion and disturb surface ecology, bringing many problems and challenges to its environmental management and restoration, which has received widespread attention. The establishment of an objective, timely and quantitative remote sensing monitoring, and evaluation system for the spatio-temporal evolution of the surface ecological environment in the open-pit mining area is of great significance for its environmental protection, management decisions, and sustainable social development. Based on the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform, this paper uses Landsat images to construct and calculate the remote sensing ecological index (RSEI) of the Pingshuo open-cast mine area (POMA) from 1990 to 2020 and monitor and evaluate its surface ecological environment. Combined with the Theil-Sen median, Mann-Kendall test, and Hurst index, the spatio-temporal process was analyzed. The results showed that the ecological environmental quality of the mining area first decreased and then increased from 1990 to 2020. 1990-2000 was a period of serious ecological degradation, followed by improvement. The overall improvement area reached 87.03%, and the degradation was concentrated in the coal mining area. Between 1990 and 2020, the Hurst index of the mining area was 0.452, indicating that the region has a fragile ecological environment and has difficult maintaining its stability. The global Moran's I mean value of the RSEI of the study area is 0.92, which combined with Moran's scatter plot to indicate that there is a strong positive spatial correlation rather than a random distribution of its ecological environment. During the study period, the impact on the climate of the ecological environmental change of POMA was weak, and human factors such as coal mining, land reclamation, and social construction were the main driving forces for the change in ecological quality. The results of this study reveal the changing trend of surface ecology in the mining area over the past 30 years, which is helpful for understanding its impact mechanism on ecological quality and provides support for the management of the region.

Monitoring drought dynamics using remote sensing-based combined drought index in Ergene Basin, Türkiye

Abstract Remote sensing-based approaches have gained widespread usage in drought monitoring studies. However, relying on single-variable drought indices may be inadequate to provide a comprehensive understanding of drought dynamics. In this study, principal component analysis was employed to derive a combined index, namely, the combined drought index (CDI), from multiple indices such as vegetation condition index, temperature condition index, precipitation condition index, and soil moisture condition index. The CDI was subsequently employed to analyze drought occurrences in the Ergene Basin-Türkiye period from 2001 to 2020 (May to October) using MODIS data. Correlations were computed with standardized precipitation index (SPI) and standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI) at 1-, 3-, and 6-month scales and crop yield. The results revealed that drought incidents transpired in the Ergene Basin for at least 1 month annually. May exhibited the wettest, while September stood as the driest month. The severity of drought and its spatial extent displayed an increasing trend followed by a subsequent decline during the aforementioned period. The CDI demonstrated stronger correlations with the 1-month standardized indices than the 3- and 6-month SPI-SPEI. A robust correlation of 0.79 was also observed between the CDI and the crop yield. In general, the CDI performed well in determining the spatial and temporal patterns of the historic droughts. As a result, the CDI could be leveraged to develop effective drought monitoring and management, which could help mitigate the negative impact of drought in the fragile environment of the Ergene Basin.

Impacts of human and herbivorous feces on lake surface sediments of the Tibetan Plateau based on fecal stanol proxies

Lake ecosystems on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) are highly susceptible to external input owing to their fragile environment. However, less study has been done to focus the direct influences of anthropogenic activities on the lake sediments by human activities. In this study, we performed the first large-scale investigation to use the fecal stanol proxies in lake surface sediments to assess the impact of human and herbivorous feces on TP lakes. The 75 investigated lakes were divided into three types (I, II, and III) according to cluster analysis of the fecal stanol ratios R1′ and R2′. Fecal stanols in type I lake surface sediments originate from a mixture of herbivorous and human feces; fecal stanols in type II lake surface sediments primarily originate from herbivorous feces with minimal human feces. In contrast, fecal stanols in type III lake surface sediments are mainly derived from herbivorous feces (coprostanol concentration > 100 ng/g), a mixed source of herbivorous feces and cholesterol reduction (coprostanol concentration of 10–100 ng/g), and in situ reduction of cholesterol (coprostanol concentration < 10 ng/g). Among the TP lakes investigated, 9 % had significant fecal contamination, 48 % had moderate or slight fecal contamination, and 43 % were uncontaminated. Domestic animal feces were the main source of fecal stanols in the surface sediments of moderately and slightly contaminated lakes in the central TP. There were 9 % of investigated lakes with significant fecal contamination from human and herbivorous feces; in contrast, 52 % of investigated lakes did not definitely show the presence of human fecal matter. This study has important implications for fecal contamination assessment in lake ecosystems and provides a reference for early herbivorous change and paleo-human activity research.

Stand spatial structure is more important than species diversity in enhancing the carbon sink of fragile natural secondary forest

Increasing attention for adjusting forest structural and species diversity has been paid to enhance carbon storage. However, the relative importance of stand spatial structural diversity and species diversity to restored stand carbon stocks remains unclear. To address this issue, we conducted a sample plot setup in the Loess Plateau with the aim of exploring the effects of stand spatial structural diversity and species diversity on forest carbon stocks. Therefore, we determined index parameters for species diversity (Simpson, Shannon-Wiener, and Pielou) and spatial structural diversity (Angular scale, Mingling, Aggregation, and Competition) within the oak forest ecosystem. We examined carbon storage in all vegetation organs and different soil layers. Additionally, we employed a structural equation model to develop a model that illustrates the effects of stand spatial structure and species diversity on ecosystem carbon storage. The results reveal that stand spatial structure and species diversity influence the ecosystem carbon storage through biomass (trees and litter) and soil carbon (0–100 cm). Stand spatial structure exhibits positive direct effects (path coefficients: 0.764 and 0.890), while species diversity shows negative direct effects (−0.320 and −0.206) on biomass and soil carbon, respectively. Finally, the total effect of spatial structure diversity on forest carbon storage surpasses that of species diversity. Therefore, stand spatial structure should be adjusted preferentially during forest management in fragile ecological environment. Our results provide important insights into the climate change mitigation potential associated with the structure-based management of forests.

Benthic Foraminifera as Proxies of Paleoenvironmental Changes in the Sant’Elia-Foxi Canyon (Gulf of Cagliari, Italy, Western Tyrrhenian Sea)

Marine coastal areas are highly dynamic and fragile environments characterised by a complex interplay of biological, physical, and chemical factors. These areas are also affected by anthropogenic activities with the discharge of organic and inorganic contaminants that alters the quality of the environment. In this work, the effects of anthropogenic activities (i.e., urban and industrial development) on benthic foraminifera have been investigated along the A2TM core collected from the Sant’Elia-Foxi Canyon (Gulf of Cagliari, Sardinia—western Tyrrhenian Sea). The Gulf of Cagliari has experienced intense urbanisation since the beginning of the twentieth century with the establishment of petrochemical complexes and harbour activities. The A2TM core, dating from 1907 to 2013, was analysed with an integrated approach that includes grain size, organic matter, and benthic foraminifera characterisation compared with geochemical characterisation. The variations in the composition of the benthic foraminiferal assemblages and the Margalef diversity index are related to the altered environmental conditions that reflect the historical development of the area and to the land-based activities surrounding the Gulf of Cagliari. The statistical analysis identifies two main intervals (i.e., the years 1907–1986 and 1986–2013) that are typified by different benthic foraminiferal assemblages and diversity values. Accordingly, the increases in organic matter content and both organic and inorganic contaminants are well mirrored by a major drop in foraminiferal diversity after 1973 and a major foraminiferal turnover after 1989. The composition of the benthic foraminiferal assemblages in the uppermost part of the core (i.e., 1989–2013) might suggest a lowering of the oxygen availability at the seafloor. These changes might be related to the increase in organic matter and the silty fraction in the same interval likely triggered by damming on land and wetland reclamation.

Understanding the Disaster Unconscious: The Marichjhapi Massacre Depicting Precarious Lives and Vulnerable Ecologies in Amitav Ghosh’s The Hungry Tide

The paper situates the massacre of Dalit refugees of Marichjhapi Island (1978-79) in West Bengal, India through a multidisciplinary reading of Amitav Ghosh’s novel The Hungry Tide (2004) along with local history, vernacular literature, reports and experiential narratives. The refugees from East Pakistan/Bangladesh who settled on the island of Marichjhapi at Sundarbans (currently one of the most ecologically endangered places on Earth) were forcefully evicted by the government citing ecological issues. Utilizing a framework that incorporates both ecocriticism and postcolonial theory, this paper reads the vulnerable humans and non-humans, especially the island's unique ecosystem and fauna as victims of anthropocentrism and biopolitics, propelled by ecological and political factors acting together. Taking up from Ghosh’s own interventions on ecological thought and the Sundarbans, the paper further delves into the concept of “the disaster unconscious” in postcolonial literature as suggested by Pallavi Rastogi through a close reading of The Hungry Tide. It describes the co-constitution of precarious lives (both human and non-human) and fragile environments during disaster as what Blanchot would call “outside of temporality” marking the ‘necroeconomy’ of the nation-state, as conceptualized by Achille Mbembe.

A study of the impact of digital technology on industrial ecologisation in the Yellow River Basin of China

The Yellow River Basin is an important ecological barrier and economic core area in China, with problems such as fragile ecological environment and ecosystem degradation, and promoting industrial ecological transformation in resource cities is an important way to protect and improve the ecological and logical environment of the Yellow River Basin. Using panel data of 35 resource-based cities in the Yellow River Basin from 2012 to 2021, the impact of digital technology on industrial colonisation is empirically explored. The study finds (1) digital technology has a driving effect on the industrial ecological transformation of resource-based cities in the Yellow River Basin, and can be a new production tool to stimulate economic vitality; there is obvious regional heterogeneity in the impact of digital technology on industrial ecology, which significantly promotes the industrial ecological transformation of mid-stream and declining resource-based cities, and the facilitating effect is more obvious for declining resource-based cities. (2) From the moderating effect, fiscal decentralisation positively moderates the non-linear relationship between digital technology and industrial ecology. (3) From the perspective of threshold effect, the impact of digital technology on industrial ecologisation has a double threshold effect based on fiscal decentralisation, i.e. at the early stage of digital technology development, a reasonable degree of fiscal decentralisation can significantly promote the industrial ecological transformation of resource cities, but after the development of digital technology to a certain extent, the impact of fiscal decentralisation on industrial ecologisation will be gradually weakened, and will even bring negative effects to industrial transformation. Therefore, improving the development system of digital technology, giving the government moderate financial autonomy, and at the same time adhering to the local conditions and exploring the ecological development road in line with the characteristics of resource cities in the Yellow River Basin have positive significance for the industrial ecological transformation of resource cities in the Yellow River Basin.

Sustainable procurement of medical devices in an international context - Part 2

Background and Objectives: This article describes how sustainable procurement of medical devices (MDs) can be implemented in operational projects in developing countries. It also further details how sustainability principles and the needs assessment can be applied by the biomedical/clinical engineer lead (BCEL) responsible for the technical and quality aspects of the procurement process of MDs. It also emphasizes the importance of the BCEL considering the country’s or region’s specific healthcare context when working on MD procurement projects in developing countries.Material and Methods: This article describes how sustainable procurement of medical devices (MDs) can be implemented in operational projects in developing countries. It also further details how sustainability principles and the needs assessment can be applied by the biomedical/clinical engineer lead (BCEL) responsible for the technical and quality aspects of the procurement process of MDs. It also emphasizes the importance of the BCEL considering the country’s or region’s specific healthcare context when working on MD procurement projects in developing countries.Results: The BCEL has a key role in the sustainable procurement of MDs as an integrator able to understand clinical needs and translate them into requirements while being aware of the sustainability and safety risks linked to technology implemented in the fragile environment of a developing country with limited resources. This context also creates additional challenges that can be managed if the BCEL is conscious of the country’s health expenditure, geopolitical, healthcare, model of care, regulatory, infrastructure, and logistical conditions in which the MDs will be installed. Many equipment may remain unused if the technology implementation is not in line with the needs of the beneficiaries. Therefore, a thorough needs assessment performed by the BCEL to obtain the detailed list of MDs, their technological level and estimated budget is of utmost importance to increase the project’s sustainability and mitigate the risk of unused MDs.Conclusion: Besides traditional disciplines in biomedical and clinical engineering, the BCEL shall also learn at least basic principles in public health, healthcare planning, project management, health infrastructure, and development aid to facilitate the dialogue with stakeholders based on knowledge, flexibility, and capacity to anticipate and solve practical issues on the ground. To this extent, it is advisable for a BCEL new to the environment of developing countries to have progressive exposure to more complex projects and to extensively use the peer review mechanism to assure sustainability and quality during project implementation. A theoretical background based on sustainable procurement principles, analysis of the local and national health context and regulations, and knowledge of lessons learned from past projects should guide the BCEL’s approach to performing the needs assessment while implementing a new project.

Small Microplastics: A yet Unknown Threat in the Svalbard (Norway) Region

The Arctic Ocean is undergoing several transformations because of global climate change. Small microplastics (SMPs) or nanoplastics (NPs) carried by marine aerosols may settle in the land ice and be released to the waters, produced following its melting. As sea ice extent reduces and shipping and fishing activities increase, microplastics (MPs) may enter the region following ocean and maritime transports, with implications on Arctic biota, human health, and socioeconomic issues related to the exploitation of marine resources. First analyses on amphipods collected in Ny-Ålesund confirmed the presence of SMPs. Nevertheless, the threat posed by SMPs/NPs to polar biota and regional human health is not fully understood. This article addresses this issue and the need for organisms as potential bioindicators of plastic pollution, which is currently being carried out in the Svalbard region under the framework of the MICROTRACER project funded by the Italian Arctic Research Program (PRA, Call 2021). The outputs of this research are expected to contribute to deepening the current knowledge of SMPs in Svalbard, providing new insights on their occurrence, distribution, and transfer through the marine trophic web, to realize effective control and regulatory framework measures to implement an integrated multidisciplinary approach for monitoring and to reduce MPs pollution in this fragile polar environment.

Improvement in gravel-mulched land soil nutrient and bacterial community diversity with Lonicera japonica.

Gravel-mulched land in China suffers from poor natural resources and fragile ecological environment, posing a challenge to effective restoration of ecological function. Lonicera japonica, a traditional Chinese herb used for treating human diseases, is a highly adaptable and resilient plant species, can effectively improve the soil properties, and may have important implications for the ecology and economy of gravel-mulched land. A study was conducted in a gravel-mulched field to measure the impact of planting the L. japonica (including control (CK), 1-year, 2-year, and 4-year cultivation of plants) on (i) dynamic changes in soil nutrient and enzyme activity properties, and (ii) soil rhizosphere microbial community structure characteristics. We found that the concentration of soil organic carbon, available nitrogen, available phosphorus and available potassium in L. japonica soil after cultivation for 1-4 years increased by 11-409%. The urease, phosphatase and catalase activities were increased by 11-560%, with the highest nutrient concentration and enzyme activity in 4-year plants. The pH value gradually decreased after cultivation. The improved soil environments increased soil bacterial community diversity. Planting L. japonica significantly increased the bacterial ACE, Chao1 index, Simpson index, and Shannon-Wiener index. The Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes were observed in dominant phyla. The relative abundance of eight genera, including Streptococcus, Veillonella and Rothia, was significantly reduced by more than 1%. Taken together, these soil indicators suggest that planting L. japonica in the short term would be a cost-effective strategy to combat soil degradation in a gravel-mulched ecosystem.

Responses of Vegetation Phenology to Urbanization in Plateau Mountains in Yunnan, China

The process of urbanization alters the distribution of land use and gives rise to certain climatic modifications that have a direct influence on vegetation phenology. Mountainous areas have a fragile biological environment, and vegetation phenology is relatively sensitive to urbanization. However, there is a paucity of research on the impact of urbanization in mountainous areas on vegetation phenology. The Urban Agglomeration of Central Yunnan (UACY) is located on the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau in China. This study explored the vegetation phenological changes in different terrains from 2001 to 2020 in the UACY based on remote sensing data. Using the dynamic gradient method, we examined the response of vegetation phenology to urbanization from three aspects: urban–rural gradient, urbanization intensity (UI), and population density. The results showed that landform has a significant impact on SOS (start of growing season), with a topographic relief difference of 200 m acting as the dividing line. The findings derived from the dynamic gradient analysis indicate that UI has the most significant effect. SOS advances by 5.77 days (R2 = 0.96), EOS (end of growing season) advances by 2.30 days (R2 = 0.83), and LOS (length of growing season) lengthens by 2.59 days (R2 = 0.87) for every 10% increase in UI. This study has the potential to serve as a valuable resource for future urban planning and administration in the UACY. Additionally, it could provide decision-making support for the development of mountainous urban agglomerations in ecological environments.

Past and Present Drivers of Karst Formation of Ciénega de El Mangle, Panama

Tropical coastal karst areas represent dynamic, fragile, and biodiverse environments. Central America’s karst regions have been scarcely studied, with most of the research focused on the northern part of the region and on several larger cave systems. The coastal carbonate zones of the Central American region represent a unique karstic landscape, which, so far, has been insufficiently studied. Therefore, in this paper, we aim to describe the (i) landscape geomorphology and (ii) chemical conditions that define Ciénega de El Mangle in Panama as a distinctive karstic site. Carried geomorphological mapping and the characterization of karstic features have resulted in the identification of the different karstic forms and processes that are present within this unique karstic area. Considering that the chosen karstic study area is located in a marine–coastal fringe on the periphery of a lagoon, it is affected by a combination of several factors and processes, including seawater intrusion (through sinkholes), the formation of conchiferous limestone (CaCO3), and NaCl precipitation related to efflorescence. Due to the seasonally humid tropical climate, the chemical weathering processes are intense, thus forming alkaline soils that are hindering the development of mangrove vegetation. The geomorphology of the area results from intense evaporation combined with an influx of brackish groundwater, due to which a landscape has evolved in the marine–coastal strips, of seasonal tropical climates, that exhibit saline beaches, known as a littoral shott. In total, 24 karstic microdolines have evolved within the shott, of which six represent domical geoforms formed by gradual evaporitic precipitation, while seven other geoforms represent active karstic sinkholes filled with brackish water. These results are key for understanding the past and present climate interactions and conditions that have led to the formation of tropical karst environments.

Temporal and spatial variations of multivariate hot, dry and windy climate extremes in Northwest China

AbstractThe simultaneous occurrence of extreme weather events such as high temperature, low humidity and strong wind speed can cause devastating impacts on the fragile environment and vulnerable ecosystem in arid Northwest China (NW). However, few studies investigate the multivariate compound hot, dry and windy extremes in NW. In this study, we investigate the temporal and spatial variations of the warm‐season trivariate hot, dry and windy (HDW) and bivariate hot and dry (HD), dry and windy (DW), hot and windy (HW) extremes in NW. From 1960 to 2019, we observed more compound HD, DW, HW and HDW days in the hyper‐arid Xinjiang and west Gansu in NW. Simultaneously, DW days, HW days and HDW days consistently declined at rates of −0.48, −0.88 and −0.42 day·10a−1, except for a discernible increasing rate of 0.56 day·10a−1 in HD days. Notably, trends in four multivariate compound extremes all experienced pronounced reversals from a declining to increasing trend in the 1990s. The higher probability of compound HD, DW and HW extremes contributed to a higher probability of HDW in Xinjiang province. Ultimately driven by the significantly rising temperature (0.21°C·10a−1, p &lt; 0.01), four compound extremes suggested increased probability with the largest increase in compound HW probability from 1960–1989 to 1990–2019. Both the rising trends in the occurrence and the increased probability of four compound extremes highlight intense risks of compound extreme weather over NW in recent decades.

Development of safe operation technology of crude oil pipeline in permafrost regions

China Mohe‒Daqing Pipeline is the world first large diameter and positive temperature buried pipeline that crosses the unstable and discontinuous permafrost regions. The permafrost along the pipeline is characterized by its high temperature, large ice content, high sensitivity to external disturbance and extremely poor thermal stability. Thus, it is a great global engineering challenge to lay and operate a stable positive temperature pipeline under the harsh conditions of “permafrost land, frigid environment and fragile ecology” while, at the same time, protecting its fragile ecological environment. Herein, the characteristics of permafrost along the pipeline were systematically analyzed, and the current scientific and technical problems in the phases of pipeline designing, constructing and operating were put forward. This thesis made significant innovative breakthroughs in the coupling mechanism of permafrost and pipelines, the design and control of hydro-thermal stable environment for permafrost and pipeline, and the monitoring, prevention and control of permafrost and pipeline disasters, thus creating a complete set of key technical systems for pipeline construction and operation in frozen soil regions. Through analyzing the performance of this system in recent ten years, it is verified that the technical achievements served to the high-quality construction and stable operation of the pipeline.

The business family as an institutional arbitrageur: Internationalization across institutional contexts

Much research on family business internationalization centers on the firm but is inattentive to the family behind the firm. We examine how business families internationalize from unstable and fragile institutions. Based on a qualitative multi-case study, we theorize business families as institutional arbitrageurs who facilitate international transactions between incompatible institutional contexts to create and preserve value in international markets while adapting to the unstable and fragile home institutional environment. Our findings suggest a three-stage internationalization process representing a cumulative and varied pattern of arbitrage practices at the level of the enterprise, extended family, and individual family members. Thus, we theorize the unique aspects of the family as a hypermobile international structure with international interests, relationships, and presence. Our findings also highlight the role of individual family members during internationalization. Our study contributes to the literature on business family internationalization and institutional arbitrage.

Impact of Long-Term Floods on Spatial Dynamics of Myrmica scabrinodis, a Host Ant of a Highly Threatened Scarce Large Blue (Phengaris teleius).

Extensively used wet meadows with high species diversity are under threat in Europe by anthropogenic pressure. The increasing frequency of prolonged flooding is emerging as an additional threat to this fragile environment. In our study, we investigated how prolonged flooding affects the spatial distribution and temporal dynamics (through mortality and recolonization process) of the host ant species Myrmica scabrinodis, which is essential for the survival of the endangered Scarce large blue (Phengaris teleius). The study was conducted in the flood-prone Ljubljansko barje plain situated on the southern edge of the species' global range. Prolonged flooding in the study area, possibly affecting the past and current distribution of the host ant M. scabrinodis, was recorded in 2010, 2013, and 2017. In 2020, we set 160 ant traps to estimate the distribution of host ants in a system of meadows covering the entire gradient of flood history. Results indicate that M. scabrinodis survives the flooding for up to three days, starting to disappear if flooding persists longer. After the flooding recedes, ants gradually recolonize empty habitats from the surrounding upland refugia. Our spatial analyses predict that the average recolonization speed was about 29 m per year and that in a year, ants compensate for the mortality effects of 1.8 days of flooding by recolonization in a year. These results show that flooding should be considered as an additional (in some areas, a major) threat to the endangered P. teleius through its deleterious effects on the host ant species.