Site-specific Objectives Research Articles

From Kibera to Kalobeyei

Public spaces are key to inclusion and sustainability in urban Africa. Too often, public space is seen as an add-on, to be included at the end when funding or space allows. In this paper, written by two collaborating organisations working on public space in Kenya (and beyond), we argue that public space should be seen less as an optional outcome of sustainable development and more as a necessary and active agent in catalysing such development. We illustrate this with two case studies of public space initiatives in very different settlements. The first case study - in Kibera, Nairobi - demonstrates how a series of co-designed public spaces can address local, site-specific objectives within an informal settlement context, while responding to regional-scale challenges, including the development of stormwater management and infrastructure that improves access to public health, economic opportunities, education, transport, social equity and emergency services. The second case - in the Kalobeyei settlement in Kakuma - represents a paradigm shift in refugee settlement design, demonstrating the critical role of participatory public space design within an integrated planning strategy to promote the socio-economic integration of host and refugee communities. Other benefits include improving the safety of women and children, providing shelter and respite from inclement weather exacerbated by climate change, and improving access to economic opportunities, basic infrastructure and services.A common feature of the projects is the way in which communities have been substantially involved in all stages of planning, design and construction. By analysing the process, we draw lessons for replication in other neighbourhoods facing the challenges posed by the intersection of climate change, social inequality and rapid urbanisation. Overall, we hope to demonstrate the potential of public spaces developed through localised and participatory design approaches as an accelerator of sustainable development in African cities.

Participativni pristop pri pripravi upravljavskih načrtov na primeru izbranih gozdnih habitatnih tipov in živalskih vrst ob Muri

For Natura 2000 areas, the European Commission proposes the drafting of management plans that include site-specific objectives and conservation measures based thereon. In order to avoid potential subsequent conflicts, the process needs to involve all stakeholders early on and in a sensible manner. In the framework of the project GoForMura, management plans for the Natura 2000 forest sites in the study areas of Gornja Bistrica and Murska Šuma in the Prekmurje region were drafted as model plans. The participation of stakeholders, in particular forest owners and managers, was given special attention in the drafting of what were the first such documents.

Urban surface uses for climate resilient and sustainable cities: A catalogue of solutions

In the current scenario of massive urbanization and global climate change, the urban surfaces and their characteristics have a key role, as they significantly influence the quality of life in urban areas, as well as their environmental conditions. To shed light on the role of urban surfaces in fostering climate resilient and sustainable cities, this paper proposes a catalogue of solutions for the urban surface use. The catalogue presents the main surface uses suitable for the built environment, and discusses the potential conflicts and synergies among them in the view of a multiple and integrated utilization of urban surfaces. Reviewing studies published in the last 15 years, this study aims to answer three major questions: (i) which solutions do exist, (ii) where can these be applied, and (iii) which benefits do they provide. The discussion demonstrates that the use of urban surfaces might lead the development of multiple opportunities for improving the existing urban environments and supporting not only environmental, but also social and economic resilience. Finally, it emphasizes the need for specific quantitative and qualitative approaches to address the multi-disciplinary challenges posed by the design and implementation of surface uses, and the evaluation of their contribution to site-specific objectives.

Making operational plans relevant to forest user groups in the Mid-Hills of Nepal

Operational plans are a key element in community forestry in Nepal. However, the relevance of these plans to forest user groups (FUGs) is under scrutiny. This study investigates the usefulness of operational plans against the backdrop of knowledge, capacity and management practices of FUGs. Data were collected from 13 operational plans, 16 group discussions involving forestry professionals, and 218 household interviews in two villages of Lamjung district in Nepal. Whereas operational plans should specifically reflect site specific objectives and activities of forest management, the survey revealed identical objectives across the community forests. Current operational plans are technically complex, poorly linked to the place-based context of livelihood needs and less useful to the FUGs to inform and enhance forest management. This study proposes to differentiate community forests according to their production potentials, and revise the operational plans by shortening the elements that have little or no relevance to the FUGs.

There's always a better way: The application of eDNA to effectively assess biodiversity

Our ecosystem monitoring methodologies focus on data collection for reporting purposes that may not serve to identify the systematic causes of ecological change. Managers need precise and timely information at appropriate scales to build ecosystem resilience. Traditional species detection methodologies offer little information when species abundance are low, especially in large water ecosystems such as the Great Lakes. Species not found during monitoring doesn’t necessarily mean that species are absent. Moreover, even if a change in the ecosystem is detected, it is often not possible to determine its cause at a spatiotemporal scale or a trophic cascade level. As a result, we often find ourselves being reactive in our mitigation measures. Before irreversible change occurs, we must be guided by a better understanding of the actual ecological landscape which Environmental DNA (eDNA) may help provide. eDNA is a potential tool to effectively overcome traditional species survey limitations currently in use at many Parks Canada sites (Supplemental file 1). As various organisms interact with the environment, DNA is expelled and accumulates in their surroundings. Such samples can be analyzed by high-throughput DNA sequencing methods for rapid measurement and monitoring of biodiversity. Access to this genetic information makes a critical contribution to the understanding of population size, species distribution, and population dynamics for species not well documented. Despite the increasing use of eDNA in conservation practice, it requires further methodological improvement for greater influence on management decisions. The tool requires standardized protocols based on site-specific covariates and objectives. We’re working to tackle the challenge with 2 objectives: (1) to combine traditional biomonitoring knowledge and metagenomics to further develop eDNA as a reliable sampling tool for Parks Canada and (2) to support site-specific monitoring objectives for species-at-risk, invasive species, aquatic species inventories, and/or culturally significant species. The overall goal is to increase our capacity to make more informed, timely, regionally-coordinated conservation decisions through the rapid and sensitive species detection methods offered by eDNA.

Riparian-forest buffers: Bridging the gap between top-down and bottom-up restoration approaches in Latin America

The large-scale forest restoration pledges made by many Latin American countries are expected to be mostly implemented in rural areas, where competition for land with agriculture and lack of farmer engagement may prevent forest expansion. Planning for forest restoration actions must combine policy-driven approaches (top-down) that set national and regional targets, with site-specific objectives based on the socio-political context and local needs (bottom-up). Here we present five case studies from projects in Latin America that were conducted in different social and legal contexts, but shared the use of riparian-forest buffers as a focal point for forest restoration in rural landscapes. These cases illustrate how focusing on riparian buffers may help bridge top-down and bottom-up approaches when planning forest restoration in rural landscapes of Latin America. In some cases, restoration actions were motivated by economic incentives and legal compliance whereas in others they were driven by societal demands. We propose that riparian forest buffers deserve special consideration as a suitable place to begin bridging the gap between national-scale restoration commitments and local-scale use and production needs, while facilitating the participation of all stakeholders in both the planning and implementation processes.

Quantification of the potential impact of nature conservation on ecosystem services supply in the Flemish Region: A cascade modelling approach

Ecological networks of protected areas are critical elements to protect biodiversity. To achieve a minimal performance of such networks, measures and investments are necessary for nature restoration and management. The concept of ecosystem service (ES) can provide additional arguments for investments in ecological networks. However, ES delivery processes are embedded in a complex array of ecological processes and there is a need to cope with this complexity in a pragmatic manner. As many assessment studies have already been criticized for using oversimplified indicators, too much pragmatism may foreclose credibility and acceptance of ES assessments. Therefore, a cascade ES modelling approach was developed that incorporated ecological processes, multiple off-site effects, feedbacks and trade-off mechanisms through shared variables. The assessment focused on which services the existing network delivers and how these services are influenced after realization of site specific conservation objectives.

Optimizing high-level nuclear waste disposal within a deep geologic repository

Many countries produce significant quantities of nuclear waste which will have to be permanently and safely placed in a repository. We develop a mixed integer program that determines where to place each waste package of a specific waste type in a given time period with the goal of minimizing heat load concentration within a repository. Operational constraints include: (1) heat load limitations, (2) location and time at which waste packages can be placed, and (3) the number of waste packages that must be placed based on type and time period. Although applicable to other settings, we use the Yucca Mountain repository in Nevada as a case study. Each of the three objectives used for minimizing heat load concentration improves upon existing greedy and sequential filling methods. Existing filling methods give at least a 17 % to an 873 % higher, i.e., worse, heat load concentration in the repository with respect to these objectives than do optimal methods. Enhancements, i.e., symmetry reduction constraints, perturbations, and heuristics, increase the size of solvable problem instances. This research can be applied to any deep geologic repository planned for operation around the world with slight modifications to incorporate site-specific objectives and constraints.

A hybrid extended pattern search/genetic algorithm for multi-stage wind farm optimization

This purpose of this work is to explore means of optimizing multi-stage wind farms using two derivative-free optimization methods: a hybrid Extended Pattern Search/Genetic Algorithm (capitalizing on the benefits of each), and a multi-objective Extended Pattern Search. Large onshore wind farms are often installed in discrete phases, with smaller sub-farms being installed and becoming operational in succession, creating the completed large wind farm in a piece-wise fashion over multiple years. Multi-stage wind farms present a complex and relevant optimization challenge in that in addition to accounting for the site-specific objectives of a wind farm (such as power development and profit), optimization of both the discrete sub-farms and the completed farm must be jointly considered. Two different problem formulations are explored: the first uses the optimal layout of a complete farm and then systematically “removes” turbines to create smaller sub-farms; the second uses a weighted multi-objective optimization over sequential, adjacent land that concurrently optimizes each sub-farm and the complete farm. For both problem formulations, two wind test cases are considered for both a square and a rectangular field: a constant wind speed from a predominant wind direction, and a multidirectional test case with three wind speeds and a defined probability of occurrence for each. The exploration of these resulting layouts indicates the value of the advanced multi-objective EPS and the hybrid EPS/GA, and gives insight into how to approach optimizing both completed wind farms and sub-farm stages. The behavior exhibited in these tests cases suggests strategies that can be employed by wind farm developers to facilitate predictable, optimal performance of multi-stage wind farms throughout their useful life.

Reduction in Observation Unit Length of Stay With Coronary Computed Tomography Angiography Depends on Time of Emergency Department Presentation

Prior studies demonstrating shorter length of stay (LOS) from coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) relative to stress testing in emergency department (ED) patients have not considered time of patient presentation. The objectives of this study were to determine whether low-risk chest pain patients receiving stress testing or CCTA have differences in ED plus observation unit (OU) LOS and if there are disparities in testing modality use, based on the time of patient presentation to the ED. The authors examined a cohort of low-risk chest pain patients evaluated in an ED-based OU using prospective and retrospective OU registry data. During the study period, stress testing and CCTA were both available from 08:00 to 17:00 hours. CCTA was not available on weekends, and therefore only subjects presenting on weekdays were included. Cox regression analysis was used to model the effect of testing modality (stress testing vs. CCTA) on OU LOS. Separate models were fit based on time of patient presentation to the ED using 4-hour blocks beginning at midnight. The primary independent variable was testing modality: stress testing or CCTA. Age, sex, and race were included as covariates. Logistic regression was used to model testing modality choice by time period adjusted for age, sex, and race. Over the study period, 841 subjects presented Monday through Friday. Median LOS was 18.0 hours (interquartile range [IQR] = 11.7 to 22.9 hours). Objective cardiac testing was completed in 788 of 841 (94%) patients, with 496 (63%) receiving stress testing and 292 (37%) receiving CCTA. After age, race, and sex were adjusted for, patients presenting between 08:00 and 11:59 hours not only had a shorter LOS associated with CCTA (p < 0.0001), but also had a greater likelihood of being tested by CCTA (p = 0.001). None of the other time periods had significant differences in LOS or testing modality choice for CCTA relative to stress testing. In an OU setting with weekday and standard business hours CCTA availability, CCTA testing was associated with shorter LOS among low-risk chest pain patients only in patients presenting to the ED between 08:00 and 11:59 hours. That time period was also associated with a greater likelihood of being tested by CCTA, suggesting that ED providers may have intuited the inability of CCTA to shorten LOS during other times.

Elephant spatial use in wet and dry savannas of southern Africa

AbstractThe influence of elephants on woody vegetation cover varies from place to place. In part this may be due to the way elephants utilize space across landscapes and within their home ranges in response to the availability and distribution of food. We used location data from 18 cows at six study sites across an east to west rainfall gradient in southern Africa to test whether wet‐ and dry‐season home‐range sizes, evenness of space use within seasonal home ranges and range overlap between seasons and between years, differed between wet and dry savannas. We then tested whether the quantity, distribution and seasonal stability in vegetation productivity, a coarse measure of food for elephants, explained differences. Elephants in wet savannas had smaller wet‐ and dry‐season home ranges and also returned to a higher proportion of previously visited grid cells between seasons and between years than elephants living in dry savannas. Wet‐season home‐range sizes were explained by seasonal vegetation productivity while dry‐season home‐range sizes were explained by heterogeneity in the distribution of vegetation productivity. The influence of the latter on dry‐season home ranges differed among structural vegetation classes. Range overlap between seasons and between years was related to inter‐seasonal and inter‐annual stability in vegetation productivity, respectively. Evenness of elephant spatial use within home ranges did not differ between savanna types, but it was explained by seasonal vegetation productivity and heterogeneity in the distribution of vegetation productivity during the wet season. Differences in elephant spatial use patterns between wet and dry savannas according to vegetation structure and season may need to be included in the development of site‐specific objectives and management approaches for African elephants.

A New Approach to Water Quality Objectives: Development of a Tissue-Based Site-Specific Objective for a Bioaccumulative Pollutant

A New Approach to Water Quality Objectives: Development of a Tissue-Based Site-Specific Objective for a Bioaccumulative PollutantSince 2004, a group of over 20 stakeholders have been implementing a comprehensive program to address sources of nitrogen and selenium in the Newport Bay watershed in Orange County, California. The collaborative, stakeholder driven effort, the Nitrogen and Selenium Management Program (NSMP), included the development of a site-specific objective (SSO) for selenium. A tissue-based SSO has been...Author(s)Karen CowanEarl ByronSamuel LuomaTheresa PresserGary SantoloHarry OhlendorfSourceProceedings of the Water Environment FederationSubjectSession 13 - Site-Specific Objectives and Appropriate Use DesignationsDocument typeConference PaperPublisherWater Environment FederationPrint publication date Jan, 2009ISSN1938-6478SICI1938-6478(20090101)2009:6L.984;1-DOI10.2175/193864709793958642Volume / Issue2009 / 6Content sourceTMDLS ConferenceFirst / last page(s)984 - 1006Copyright2009Word count137Subject keywordsSeleniumSite-Specific ObjectiveWatershedTMDLNewport BayCaliforniaFishBirdsTissue-Based Standard

How Can Site Specific Objectives (SSOs) Aid in TMDL Compliance?

How Can Site Specific Objectives (SSOs) Aid in TMDL Compliance?

Assessing the Need for Development of Site-Specific Water-Quality Objectives for Selenium for the Newport Bay, California, Watershed

Assessing the Need for Development of Site-Specific Water-Quality Objectives for Selenium for the Newport Bay, California, Watershed

Development of Ammonia Site Specific Objectives in Los Angeles County

Development of Ammonia Site Specific Objectives in Los Angeles County

Determining a Site-specific Objective and Tmdl for Copper in a Historical Mining District, Arizona

Determining a Site-specific Objective and Tmdl for Copper in a Historical Mining District, ArizonaPinto Creek is a predominately intermittent stream that drains approximately 183 mi2 in Gila, Pinal, and Maricopa counties in east central Arizona. The stream extends approximately 33 miles from its headwaters in the Pinal Mountains to Roosevelt Lake. Although much of the creek length is ephemeral or intermittent, it contains several perennial reaches, which are uncommon in this arid region. The...Author(s)Gregory S. OlsenClifton BellSourceProceedings of the Water Environment FederationSubjectArticlesDocument typeConference PaperPublisherWater Environment FederationPrint publication date Oct, 2007ISSN1938-6478SICI1938-6478(20071001)2007:5L.1311;1-DOI10.2175/193864707786619431Volume / Issue2007 / 5Content sourceTMDLS ConferenceFirst / last page(s)1311 - 1325Copyright2007Word count432Subject keywordsCOPPERMININGARIZONAHSPFTMDLSITE SPECIFIC STANDARDSITE SPECIFIC OBJECTIVENATURALBACKGROUND

Long-Term Ecological Monitoring

The intent of long-term ecological monitoring is to document changes in important properties of biological communities. At the least, a long-term monitoring system should be designed to detect long-term trends in three key attributes: soil and site stability, hydrologic function, and the biotic integrity of the system. There are four basic guidelines for developing integrated soil-vegetation monitoring systems for rangelands. These are: (1) identifying a suite of indicators which are consistently correlated with the functional status of one or more critical ecosystem processes and/or properties; (2) selecting base indicators on site specific objectives and resource concerns, and inherent soil and site characteristics; (3) using spatial variability in developing and interpreting indicators to make them more representative of ecological processes; and (4) interpreting indicators in the context of an understanding of dynamic, nonlinear ecological processes. To the extent possible, indicators should reflect early changes in ecological processes and indicate that a more significant change is likely to occur. In addition to these guidelines, measurements included in long-term monitoring systems should be rapidly applied, simple to understand, inexpensive to use, and quantitatively repeatable.

How and why is aquatic quality changing at Nahanni National Park Reserve, NWT, Canada?

Nahanni National Park Reserve is located at southwestern NWT-Yukon border. One of the first UNESCO World Heritage sites, Nahanni lies within Taiga Cordillera and Taiga Shield Ecozones. Base and precious metal mining occurred upstream of Nahanni prior to park establishment. Nahanni waters, sediments, fish, and caribou have naturally elevated metals levels. Baseline water, sediment and fish tissue quality data were collected and analyzed throughout Nahanni during 1988-91 and 1992-97. These two programs characterized how aquatic quality variables are naturally varying in space and time, affected by geology, stream flow, seasonality, and extreme meteorological and geological events. Possible anthropogenic causes of aquatic quality change were examined. Measured values were compared to existing Guidelines and site-specific objectives were established.

Natural Attenuation: How Is Mother Nature Aiding Us to Cleanse Our Environmental Sins?

For a long time, mankind has ~purposely or negligibly! forgotten that we are not alone on this planet, and the ecosystem and its plentiful ~but not unlimited! resources do not exclusively belong to us ~either as a species or as a generation!. Although we may have the ‘‘divine’’ entitlement ~and obligation! to utilize, develop and indeed enjoy these resources for our well-being and prosperity, we have no right whatsoever to alter, abuse, damage, and/or over-exploit such wealth at the expense of the rest of earth’s fellow residents or future human generations. Even if we try, with all of our technological advancement and economic affluence, to remedy our old/new environmental mistakes, we will not be successful without the sustainable aid of nature itself. Nature has the strength to rectify assaults, assimilate alien substances and phenomena, attenuate toxins, mitigate injuries, and purify itself. This compassionate and intrinsic healing power of nature however is not infinite. Natural attenuation ~occasionally designated as intrinsic remediation! is an inherent natural cleanup process achieved when integrated assimilation mechanisms of self-purification are instinctively triggered ~or activated! at a contaminated site. The merits of natural attenuation are often recognized not only by bringing about diminishing ~or neutralization! of contaminants, but also by the nonintrusive nature of its processes. Natural attenuation mechanisms contain a variety of physical, chemical, and/or biological processes that, under favorable conditions, act without human intervention to reduce the mass, toxicity, mobility, bioavailability, volume, or concentration of contaminants in soil and groundwater ~and other media!. Such mechanisms nevertheless can be classified as either destructive or nondestructive. The destructive mechanisms ~mainly biological and chemical! include biodegradation, abiotic oxidation, transformation, hydrolysis, UV destruction ~in surface media!, stabilization and mineralization. The nondestructive mechanisms ~mostly physical! include sorption, dilution, dispersion, and volatilization. The term ‘‘monitored natural attenuation’’ was denoted by the United States Environmental Protection Agency ~USEPA! to indicate: ‘‘the reliance on natural processes to achieve site-specific objectives within a time frame that is reasonable compared to that offered by other more active methods.’’ The USEPA ‘‘does not view Monitored Natural Attenuation to be a no-action or walkaway approach, but rather considers it to be an alternative means of achieving remediation objectives.’’ Accordingly, the successful implementation of natural attenuation entails the need for systematic characterization, monitoring, analyses, risk assessment, and demonstration protocol, to illustrate that degradation and cleanup of contaminants ~and therefore restoration of the site! are occurring at a satisfactory rate to protect human health and the environment. The most important among natural attenuation processes is

Environmental study of the alternatives for the sewer system of a small coastal community in the bay of Biscay

Zumaia is a small tourist community on the northern coast of Spain, situated along the estuary of the Urola river. This ecosystem has been affected by urban discharges coming from the villages surrounding the estuary. According to the 91/271 European Community Directive, regarding wastewater treatment, this situation should be addressed in order to achieve the quality objectives established for the restoration of the natural values of the area. The local Water Authorities of the Basque Country (Spain) have adopted an integrated model for the design of the sewer system of this community. The model was developed specifically for the study of coastal sewerage under dominant wet weather conditions and includes: 1) Establishment of the site specific statutory requirements and environmental objectives; 2) Design of sewer system components with specific reference to influences on marine water quality; 3) Development of monitoring programs. The construction of a sewer pipe alongside the river to collect the foul and the stormwater flow will prevent a large proportion of the discharges of contaminants into the receiving waters. However, the presence of overflows in the system during storms leads to the release of a great deal of pollutants into these waters. The main problems related to this type of discharge in the littoral zone arise from the bacteriological contamination of the bathing waters and from the oxygen depletion over the estuary. These two topics have been the predominant issues conditioning the consideration of different schemes of management of the sewer system. The aim of this paper is to analyze, from an environmental point of view, the structural and functional scheme considered for the sewage management of this community.