Mining in Ecologically Sensitive Landscapes

2015 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Human Ecology ◽  
Positive Outcome ◽  
Mineral Deposits ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Bauxite Mining ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
National Importance ◽  
Mineral Wealth ◽  
Increasing Demand

Mining in Ecologically Sensitive Landscapes explores the interface between geology and botany, and mining and conservation. Many areas of unusual geology that contain ore-bearing bodies also support unique ecological communities of plants and animals. Increasing demand to exploit rich mineral deposits can lead to a conflict between mining and conservation interests in such landscapes. This book brings together experts in the field of mining and conservation to grapple with this pressing issue and to work toward a positive outcome for all. Chapters are grouped into four themes: Introduction, Concepts and Challenges; Endemism in Ironstone Geosystems; Progress in Bauxite Mining; and Ways Forward. The book focuses on natural and semi-natural ecosystems, where landscape beauty, biodiversity and conservation value are at their highest measure and the mineral wealth they contain can bring affluence of regional or even national importance. Examples of conflicts ranging from threatened floristic endemics to human ecology are included, from Africa, the Americas and Australasia. Mining in Ecologically Sensitive Landscapes is an important reference for environmental managers, NGOs, restoration ecologists, academics, undergraduate and postgraduate students of ecology and environmental studies, conservation biologists, as well as mine managers, mining environmental specialists, consultants, regulators and relevant government departments.

scholarly journals Towards a Conceptual Understanding of Groundwater Ecology

2012 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 493
Author(s):  
H.O Nwankwoala
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Understanding ◽  
Chemical Properties ◽  
The Other ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Groundwater Hydrology ◽  
Future Perspectives ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Physico Chemical ◽  
Groundwater Ecology

In recent times, ecohydrology and hydroecology are making a mark on theenvironmental agenda, as evidenced by the proliferation of these terms in theacademic literature. There is an increasing recognition that groundwater is essentialto many ecological communities. Surface ecological processes (such asevapotranspiration) significantly impact hydrological responses and relatedhydrochemical function. Thus, the relation of groundwater hydrology to patternsand processes in ecology is a ‘two-way street’ where understanding the feedback ofone to the other serves as a powerful lens through which to evaluate and explainthe functioning of natural ecosystems. Influxes of groundwater to lakes, rivers, andwetlands can change whole-system physico-chemical properties such astemperature and salinity, while also providing more subtle influences onmicroenvironments and their ecological processes. The recognition of thesignificance and power of this tandem has not always been followed with effectiveinterdisciplinary science. The ecological, hydrological, and physico-chemical linksbetween groundwater, surface water and associated ecosystems are seldom fullyunderstood even though true characterization and wise management will require amultidisciplinary approach. This means biologists need to understand theimportance of magnitude and timing of groundwater flows for their system, whichrequires the skills of hydrogeologists to achieve. Hydrogeologists, in turn, mustunderstand how and why groundwater influences ecological processes so that theirexpertise is brought to bear at a scale commensurate to the ecological researchquestion. In this paper therefore, an overview of general concepts, research effortsand future perspectives are presented. More importantly, the paper asserts that it isnot simply the integration of hydrology and ecology that will determine the futureprospects for ecohydrology/hydroecology, but the way in which this integrativescience is conducted.

Finding’s Keeping

2020 ◽  
pp. 19-45
Author(s):  
Jarod Roll
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Transportation Networks ◽  
Corporate Control ◽  
White Men ◽  
Mineral Deposits ◽  
Mining District ◽  
Market Revolution ◽  
Mineral Wealth ◽  
National Market ◽  
Lead Mining

This chapter explains the discovery of lead mineral deposits and development of lead mining in southwest Missouri in the 1850s. Far from markets and transportation networks, working miners discovered and claimed rich deposits of lead mineral in this isolated region in the midst of a national market revolution that made lead more profitable than ever. Their discoveries soon attracted the attention of lead-starved smelting companies from St. Louis and elsewhere that tried to take control of the mineral wealth from the miners, most of whom were white men. The miners resisted corporate control because they believed that the mines rightfully belonged to them by virtue of discovering and developing them. By the time of the Civil War, miners and the smelting companies had negotiated a compromise based on leasing. Miners worked leasehold mines and sold their lead mineral to smelting companies for favorable prices, thus preserving the rights and privileges of the men who discovered the lead, and also creating good opportunities for miners who moved to the area. While the war devastated mining in the region, the companies rebuilt the mining district after the war by reinstating the favorable terms for working miners.

scholarly journals The evolution of city life

2018 ◽  
Vol 285 (1884) ◽  
pp. 20181529 ◽  
Author(s):  
James S. Santangelo ◽  
L. Ruth Rivkin ◽  
Marc T. J. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Evolutionary Mechanisms

Urbanization represents a dominant and growing form of disturbance to Earth's natural ecosystems, affecting biodiversity and ecosystem services on a global scale. While decades of research have illuminated the effects of urban environmental change on the structure and function of ecological communities in cities, only recently have researchers begun exploring the effects of urbanization on the evolution of urban populations. The 15 articles in this special feature represent the leading edge of urban evolutionary biology and address existing gaps in our knowledge. These gaps include: (i) the absence of theoretical models examining how multiple evolutionary mechanisms interact to affect evolution in urban environments; (ii) a lack of data on how urbanization affects natural selection and local adaptation; (iii) poor understanding of whether urban areas consistently affect non-adaptive and adaptive evolution in similar ways across multiple cities; (iv) insufficient data on the genetic and especially genomic signatures of urban evolutionary change; and (v) limited understanding of the evolutionary processes underlying the origin of new human commensals. Using theory, observations from natural populations, common gardens, genomic data and cutting-edge population genomic and landscape genetic tools, the papers in this special feature address these gaps and highlight the power of urban evolutionary biology as a globally replicated ‘experiment’ that provides a powerful approach for understanding how human altered environments affect evolution.

scholarly journals How Valid are the Biological and Ecological Principles Underpinning Global Change Science?

2002 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 299-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anastassia Makarieva ◽  
Victor G. Gorshkov ◽  
Brendan Mackey ◽  
Vadim V. Gorshkov
Keyword(s):  
Global Change ◽  
Local Environment ◽  
Ecological Crisis ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Biological Productivity ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
Ecological Principles ◽  
Scientific Approach

The prevailing scientific approach to investigating and understanding the environmental consequences of human-induced global change is underpinned by two basic biological principles. First, the principle that species genetically adapt to changing environment conditions. Second, the principle that nutrients present in the environment in the smallest relative concentrations limit biological productivity. We contend that both principles have been formulated based on the results of investigations into either artificially selected organisms, or anthropogenically perturbed landscapes. In both these cases, organisms are studied outside their natural ecological niche. We argue that natural ecosystems do not conform to the above two principles. Non-perturbed biota of natural ecological communities form and maintain optimal environment conditions by buffering the flux of primary environmental resources that would otherwise randomly fluctuate as the result of purely physical processes. In such a biotically-mediated environment the availability of nutrients does not limit biological productivity. Critically, the capacity of the biota to regulate local environment conditions obviates the need for species to continually adapt to random environmental fluctuations. We illustrate how the failure to distinguish between the functioning of perturbed and unperturbed biota prevents the development of policies and strategies that will lead to the long term resolution of the global ecological crisis.

scholarly journals Stability of an adaptive hybrid community

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Mougi
Keyword(s):  
Adaptive Behavior ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Interaction Type ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Interaction Partners ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Interaction Types ◽  
Multiple Interaction ◽  
The Stability

Abstract Contrary to stable natural ecosystems, the classical ecological theory predicts that complex ecological communities are fragile. The adaptive switching of interaction partners was proposed as a key factor to resolve the complexity–stability problem. However, this theory is based on the food webs that comprise predator–prey interactions alone; thus, the manner in which adaptive behavior affects the dynamics of hybrid communities with multiple interaction types remains unclear. Here, using a bipartite community network model with antagonistic and mutualistic interactions, I show that adaptive partner shifts by both antagonists and mutualists are crucial to the persistence of communities. The results show that adaptive behavior destabilizes the dynamics of communities with a single interaction type; however, the hybridity of multiple interaction types within a community greatly improves the stability. Moreover, adaptive behavior does not create a positive complexity–stability relationship in communities with a single interaction type but it does in the hybrid community. The diversity of interaction types is predicted to play a crucial role in community maintenance in an adaptive world.

scholarly journals ELT Graduate Students’ Challenges of Writing for Scholarly Publication: Discursive Perspectives

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-19
Author(s):  
Masyhudi Lathif ◽  
Joko Nurkamto ◽  
Diah Kristina
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
English Language ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Scholarly Publication ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Central Java ◽  
L2 Production ◽  
Increasing Demand ◽  
Perceived Constraints

There has been an increasing demand for postgraduate students to publish their scholarly work as one of their graduation requirements. The present study attempted to explore the graduate students’ challenges in writing for scholarly publication seen from the perspectives of discursive challenges. This qualitative research employed case study to disclose the participants’ perceived constraints. The students participated in this study three final-year female students undertaking their master’s degree in English Language Teaching (ELT) in a university in Central Java. Data were garnered from semi-structured interviews. The findings discovered the discursive challenges that the participants faced in writing for scholarly publication including accuracy, genre understanding, interference of L1 to L2 production, and lexical items. It is expected that this study provides new insights for EAP design for higher education context so that the program addresses the needs of the graduate students.

scholarly journals Review on mathematical modeling of honeybee population dynamics

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (6) ◽  
pp. 9606-9650
Author(s):  
Jun Chen ◽  
◽  
Gloria DeGrandi-Hoffman ◽  
Vardayani Ratti ◽  
Yun Kang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mathematical Modeling ◽  
Population Dynamics ◽  
Mathematical Models ◽  
Computational Models ◽  
Pesticide Exposure ◽  
Colony Growth ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Colony Losses ◽  
Honeybee Population

<abstract><p>Honeybees have an irreplaceable position in agricultural production and the stabilization of natural ecosystems. Unfortunately, honeybee populations have been declining globally. Parasites, diseases, poor nutrition, pesticides, and climate changes contribute greatly to the global crisis of honeybee colony losses. Mathematical models have been used to provide useful insights on potential factors and important processes for improving the survival rate of colonies. In this review, we present various mathematical tractable models from different aspects: 1) simple bee-only models with features such as age segmentation, food collection, and nutrient absorption; 2) models of bees with other species such as parasites and/or pathogens; and 3) models of bees affected by pesticide exposure. We aim to review those mathematical models to emphasize the power of mathematical modeling in helping us understand honeybee population dynamics and its related ecological communities. We also provide a review of computational models such as VARROAPOP and BEEHAVE that describe the bee population dynamics in environments that include factors such as temperature, rainfall, light, distance and quality of food, and their effects on colony growth and survival. In addition, we propose a future outlook on important directions regarding mathematical modeling of honeybees. We particularly encourage collaborations between mathematicians and biologists so that mathematical models could be more useful through validation with experimental data.</p></abstract>

scholarly journals Mechanisms of Diversification in Forest Sector

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 253-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Светлана Морковина ◽  
Svetlana Morkovina ◽  
Иван Торжков ◽  
Ivan Torzhkov
Keyword(s):  
Legal Framework ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Economic Feasibility ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Forest Plantations ◽  
Forest Sector ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Industrial Forest ◽  
Industrial Plantation ◽  
Increasing Demand

In the article substantiates that development of forest complex of the Russian economy is not possible without the implementation of structural reforms and emphasis on diversification of forestry as an important industry segment. Reasons for diversification of forest complex are shown, including: disparities in development of technological chain - forestry-logging-woodworking; technological, territorial and economic fragmentation of forest, harvesting and processing enterprises and industries; infrastructural and economic barriers; low level of Research and Advanced Development and industrial innovation at all stages of technologically related industries. It is proved that diversification of forestry should be carried out at the level of the most significant sub-systems: reforestation and afforestation in order to transfer to the technologies allowing reducing the period of growing of wood and target assortments. Diversification of forestry is possible during the transition from forest crops to plantation afforestation through the establishment of industrial forest plantations on the lands of forest fund. To reduce the risk component in the diversification of forest production, creation of industrial forest plantations must be carried out not far from industrial consumers of wood, which will ensure the economic feasibility of growing, harvesting and delivery of wood raw material. The proposed mechanism of diversification in combination with biotechnology will provide increasing demand for timber, with significant reduction of the environmental load on natural forest stands, allowing you to preserve natural ecosystems for purposes of recreation. Introduction of biotechnology in forestry will reduce the gap in development segments of the forest complex and increase wood supply for diversified industries. Diversification of forestry and development of industrial plantation afforestation is constrained by legal framework and absence of measures of financial support of enterprises of forest complex.

scholarly journals A class of discrete predator–prey interaction with bifurcation analysis and chaos control

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Qamar Din ◽  
Nafeesa Saleem ◽  
Muhammad Sajjad Shabbir
Keyword(s):  
Chaos Control ◽  
Positive Equilibrium ◽  
Ecological Communities ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Predator Prey ◽  
Center Manifold Theorem ◽  
Predator Prey Model ◽  
Boundary Equilibrium ◽  
Prey Interaction ◽  
Positive Equilibrium Point

The interaction between prey and predator is well-known within natural ecosystems. Due to their multifariousness and strong link population dynamics, predators contain distinct features of ecological communities. Keeping in view the Nicholson-Bailey framework for host-parasitoid interaction, a discrete-time predator–prey system is formulated and studied with implementation of type-II functional response and logistic prey growth in form of the Beverton-Holt map. Persistence of solutions and existence of equilibria are discussed. Moreover, stability analysis of equilibria is carried out for predator–prey model. With implementation of bifurcation theory of normal forms and center manifold theorem, it is proved that system undergoes transcritical bifurcation around its boundary equilibrium. On the other hand, if growth rate of consumers is taken as bifurcation parameter, then system undergoes Neimark-Sacker bifurcation around its positive equilibrium point. Methods of chaos control are introduced to avoid the populations from unpredictable behavior. Numerical simulation is provided to strengthen our theoretical discussion.

Investigation of New Zealand’s natural magnetic minerals for application in inroad charging systems

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (01n03) ◽  
pp. 2040018
Author(s):  
William J. Trompetter ◽  
Jérôme Leveneur ◽  
John Kennedy ◽  
Ben Rumsey ◽  
Murray McCurdy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Material ◽  
Magnetic Materials ◽  
Mineral Deposits ◽  
Magnetic Minerals ◽  
Inductive Power Transfer ◽  
The Road ◽  
Material Sources ◽  
Innovative Solutions ◽  
Increasing Demand ◽  
Near Future

There has been a steadily increasing demand for magnetic materials in devices and charging systems over recent decades. The advent of in-road inductive power transfer (IPT) charging systems in the near future will massively increase the demand. Better, nonbrittle and affordable magnetic materials are required so that vehicles can run over charging pads built into the road without destroying them. This will require innovative solutions and new magnetic material sources to meet these needs in an economically viable way. Here, we have scoped New Zealand’s (NZ) natural magnetic materials and their ability to be included as a viable magnetic material for our roads. We have investigated the magnetic permeabilities of NZ natural magnetic mineral deposits for IPT application in roads.

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