Protection Of Natural Vegetation Research Articles

An Assessment of Environmental Sustainability Factors in the Development of Tourism in Swaraj Dweep (Havelock Island) of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The core intent of the paper is to study the different environmental sustainability factors in relation to the development of tourism in Swaraj Dweep of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The study is limited and based on the different perceptions of tourists concerning different environmental sustainability factors effecting tourism development on the island. Consequently, from various literatures, a listing of different environmental sustainability factors of tourism development has been carried out. A convenient sample survey has been conducted among 400 tourists who have visited the islands to find out their perceptions on the environmental factors. The average perception of tourists shows that “Protection of Natural Vegetation and Marine life” is the most important environmental sustainability factor for tourism development in the islands. The paired sample “t-test analysis” that has been applied by the researcher to find out the degree of influence amongst the different listed environmental sustainability factors in the course of the development of tourism on the islands. The outcome of this paper will help policymakers to devise and execute policies related to sustainable tourism development on the basis of tourists’ viewpoint in Swaraj Dweep (Havelock Island) - one of the promising tourist destinations of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The effect of natural infrastructure on water erosion mitigation in the Andes

Abstract. To expand the knowledge base on natural infrastructure for erosion mitigation in the Andes, it is necessary to move beyond case by case empirical studies to comprehensive assessments. This study reviews the state of evidence on the effectiveness of interventions to mitigate soil erosion by water and is based on Andean case studies published in gray and peer-reviewed literature. Based on a systematic review of 118 case studies from the Andes, this study addressed the following research questions. (1) Which erosion indicators allow us to assess the effectiveness of natural infrastructure? (2) What is the overall impact of working with natural infrastructure on on-site and off-site erosion mitigation? (3) Which locations and types of studies are needed to fill critical gaps in knowledge and research? Three major categories of natural infrastructure were considered: restoration and protection of natural vegetation, such as forest or native grasslands, forestation with native or exotic species and implementation of soil and water conservation measures for erosion mitigation. From the suite of physical, chemical and biological indicators commonly used in soil erosion research, two indicators were particularly relevant: soil organic carbon of topsoil and soil loss rates at plot scale. The protection and conservation of natural vegetation has the strongest effect on soil quality, with 3.01±0.893 times higher soil organic carbon content in the topsoil compared to control sites. Soil quality improvements are significant but lower for forestation and soil and water conservation measures. Soil and water conservation measures reduce soil erosion to 62.1 % ± 9.2 %, even though erosion mitigation is highest when natural vegetation is maintained. Further research is needed to evaluate whether the reported effectiveness holds during extreme events related to, for example, El Niño–Southern Oscillation.

Negative effects of long-term moderate salinity and short-term drought stress on the photosynthetic performance of Hybrid Pennisetum

Plants are always suffering periods of soil water deficit and sustained soil salinity during their life cycle. Unraveling the mechanisms underpinning the responses of plants, especially the photosynthesis, to drought, salinity, and co-occurring stresses is critical for both the protection of natural vegetation and the stabilization of crop production. To better understand the downregulation of photosynthetic capability induced by soil salinity and drought, gas exchange parameters, leaf pigment contents, and chlorophyll (Chl) a fluorescence transients were analyzed in leaves of Hybrid Pennisetum. Our results showed that long-term moderate salinity, short-term drought, and the combination of these stressors decreased leaf pigment content by 11.4–31.5% and net photosynthetic rate (Pn) by 14.6–67.6% compared to those in untreated plants. The reduction of Pn in Hybrid Pennisetum under long-term salinity stress mainly occurred by stomatal limitation, whereas non-stomatal limitation played a dominant role under short-term drought stress. The changes in Chl a fluorescence kinetics (especially the appearance of the L-band and K-band) in both stress treatments showed that salinity and drought stress damaged the structural stability of photosystem II (PSII) and disturbed the equilibrium between the electrons at the acceptor and donor sides of PSII. Furthermore, although the negative effect of drought stress on leaf photosynthesis was much greater than that of salinity stress, moderate salt stress alleviated the negative effect of drought stress on the photosynthetic performance of Hybrid Pennisetum after long acclimation times.

Soil C, N, and P distribution as affected by plant communities in the Yellow River Delta, China.

Soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are important soil properties linked to nutrient limitation and plant productivity in terrestrial ecosystems. Up to 90% of the Yellow River Delta (YRD), China has been affected by soil salination due to groundwater overdraft, improper irrigation, land use and land cover change. The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of different plant communities on soil quality in a saline-alkaline system of the YRD. We investigated the vertical distribution and seasonal variation of soil C, N, and P, and C:N ratio by choosing four dominant plant communities, namely, alfalfa grassland (AG), Chinese tamarisk (CT), locust forest (LF) and cotton field (CF). The results showed that the concentrations of soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) in CT and LF were always higher than that in AG and CF, especially in the topsoil layer (p<0.05), then gradually decreased with soil depth increasing (p<0.05). The C:N ratio was generally lower, and the average C:N ratio was higher in LF (11.55±1.99) and CT (11.03±0.47) than in CF (10.05±1.25) and AG (9.11±1.11) (p<0.05). The available phosphorus (AP) was highest in CT in Spring, while it was highest in CF in Summer and Autumn. It is worth noting that the soil AP concentrations were always low, particularly in AG (< 6.29 mg kg-1) and LF (< 4.67 mg kg-1), probably linked to P poorly mobile in the saline-alkaline region. In this study, soil nutrients in natural plant communities are superior to farmland, and are significantly affected by the types of plant community; therefore, we suggest that protection of natural vegetation and development of optimal vegetation are critical to restoring land degradation in the YRD.

Landscape Design of Urban Green Space Adaptive to Global Climate Change a Review

Low-carbon city provide both opportunity and challenge for landscape architecture. Urban green space planning and design are the most important way to achieve the landscape adaptive to globe climate change. In this paper, we introduced importance and significance of urban green space in low-carbon landscape, and reviewed many new design solutions, such as construction of green infrastructure, protection of natural vegetation and ecosystems, use of phytoremediation and application of urban productive landscape. Via innovative design solution and ecological principle, landscape architects would create a substantially new aesthetics to ensure the survivance of humanity.

Photosynthesis under drought and salt stress: regulation mechanisms from whole plant to cell.

Plants are often subjected to periods of soil and atmospheric water deficits during their life cycle as well as, in many areas of the globe, to high soil salinity. Understanding how plants respond to drought, salt and co-occurring stresses can play a major role in stabilizing crop performance under drought and saline conditions and in the protection of natural vegetation. Photosynthesis, together with cell growth, is among the primary processes to be affected by water or salt stress. The effects of drought and salt stresses on photosynthesis are either direct (as the diffusion limitations through the stomata and the mesophyll and the alterations in photosynthetic metabolism) or secondary, such as the oxidative stress arising from the superimposition of multiple stresses. The carbon balance of a plant during a period of salt/water stress and recovery may depend as much on the velocity and degree of photosynthetic recovery, as it depends on the degree and velocity of photosynthesis decline during water depletion. Current knowledge about physiological limitations to photosynthetic recovery after different intensities of water and salt stress is still scarce. From the large amount of data available on transcript-profiling studies in plants subjected to drought and salt it is becoming apparent that plants perceive and respond to these stresses by quickly altering gene expression in parallel with physiological and biochemical alterations; this occurs even under mild to moderate stress conditions. From a recent comprehensive study that compared salt and drought stress it is apparent that both stresses led to down-regulation of some photosynthetic genes, with most of the changes being small (ratio threshold lower than 1) possibly reflecting the mild stress imposed. When compared with drought, salt stress affected more genes and more intensely, possibly reflecting the combined effects of dehydration and osmotic stress in salt-stressed plants.

Sand drift control of selected coastal and desert dunes in Egypt: case studies

The present work focused on the study of the morphology and aerodynamic characteristics of the aeolian land-forms representing coastal and desert areas. For this purpose, the following case studies were selected: (i) the lower reaches ofWadiEl Arish (north-east Sinai); El Khanka dunes (east Cairo); the Western fringes of Siwa Oasis (Northern Western Desert).In these localities, shifting sands cause tangible damages to agricultural projects, population centers and other infrastructures.On the bases of field and laboratory investigations, as well as previous experience, practical and economic methods of sand drift control in each case study are recommended.In the lower reaches ofWadiEl Arish, the protection of natural vegetation through range management, especially in the western side, is the most reliable measure of sand drift control. However, the establishment of shelter belts and plantation in both Siwa and El Khanka are more effective.