The vegetation of rich fens (Sphagno warnstorfii-Tomentypnion nitentis) at the southeastern margins of their European range

Question: Rich fens of the Sphagno warnstorfii-Tomentypnion nitentis alliance require a specific combination of base richness and climate to occur. Their rarity at the southeastern margins of their European range has previously prevented rigorous vegetation classification. We asked how many associations may be delimited here and whether some of them are restricted to the high Balkan Mountains showing high endemicity. Study area: Entire territories of Bulgaria and Romania. Methods: We compiled all available vegetation-plot records, including some hitherto unprocessed data. We classified them by both divisive (modified TWINSPAN) and agglomerative (beta-flexible clustering) numerical classification method, with OPTIMCLASS1 applied to set the number of clusters. A semi-supervised approach (k-means) was additionally applied to confirm the classification of Southern-Carpathian (Romania) rich fens, where some Balkan taxa occur. Differences in base richness and elevation were tested by one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s pairwise test. Results: Three associations were delimited and all three occur in Bulgaria, from where only one association had been previously reported. Two associations characterised by Sphagnum contortum and Balkan and Southern-European species occur in Bulgaria, but not in Romania, one at lower elevations around 1,200 m, and one at higher elevations around 2,000 m where pH is lower. One lower-elevation (around 1,300 m) association with S. warnstorfii and S. teres is shared between Romania, Bulgaria and Central Europe. Conclusions: We have described a new high-mountain association, with two subassociations that differ by successional stage and dominant peat moss species (S. contortum and S. warnstorfii, respectively). These subassociations could be reconsidered when more data from other Balkan countries are available. Rich fens in southeastern Europe are rare, have a diverse vegetation, and are deserving of the further attention of nature conservation authorities and vegetation scientists. Taxonomic reference: The nomenclature was harmonized following The Euro+Med PlantBase (Euro+Med 2021) for vascular plants and Hill et al. (2006) for bryophytes, except of Angelica pancicii that is accepted as a separate taxon in Bulgaria (Andreev et al. 1992; Delipavlov et al. 2003). Critical taxa, not always reliably differentiated in the field and in literary sources, were merged to aggregates: Alchemilla vulgaris agg. (all Alchemilla species), Anthoxanthum odoratum agg. (A. alpinum, A. odoratum), Molinia caerulea agg. (M. arundinacea subsp. arundinacea, M. arundinacea subsp. freyi, M. caerulea), Palustriella commutata agg. (P. commutata, P. falcata), Plagiomnium affine agg. (P. affine, P. elatum, P. ellipticum), Sphagnum palustre agg. (S. centrale, S. palustre). Syntaxonomic reference: Peterka et al. (2017) for alliances.

The Integration of Conservation and Security

This chapter examines the intersections among violence, security, and the environment. It uses a political ecology lens to analyze the violences that arise from “enforcement-first” approaches in tackling the illegal wildlife trade (IWT) as one aspect of conservation. Growing concern about IWT as a threat to biodiversity and security has led to calls for an urgent response. This has encouraged and facilitated the development of responses that are anchored in law enforcement and militarization. This is in part due to the redefining of IWT as a global security threat because it is deemed as a source of funding for armed groups and involves organized crime networks. The intense focus on the need to tackle IWT has led to shifts in conservation policy, such that anti-poaching operations are often accompanied by considerable levels of violence by conservation authorities.

PERSEPSI MASYARAKAT TERHADAP KONFLIK MACAN TUTUL JAWA DENGAN WARGA SEKITAR SUAKA MARGASATWA GUNUNG SAWAL

Mount Sawal Wildlife Reserve is known as one of the places that has the highest number of conflict cases between Javan leopard and human in Indonesia. There were 38 conflict cases recorded in the period of 2001-2016 with the highest number of cases occurring in Kertamandala and Cikupa Villages, Ciamis District, West Java. This study assessed the community perception of those two villages towards the conflict by using Q-method in combination with the R-Studio statistics to analyze the data. There were 19 participants who were tested with 16 consent statements called Q-sorting were ranked based on approval scale. The results showed that the community perceptions of conflict can be grouped into three, namely: 1) the importance to preserve the existence of javan leopards, 2) wildlife conflict management is a shared responsibility between communities and authorities, and 3) in the future, wildlife conflicts must not take place again. In addition, all participants shared consensus that the community do not accept the existence of javan leopard in their village area and they also agreed that conservation authorities have taken actions to deal with the conflict.

In a fragile state: the Conservation Authorities Branch photograph albums at the Archives of Ontario

The preservation of a large volume of objects is often an examined compromise between the very best options available and appropriate allocation of resources. What, where, and how do institutions make the decisions necessary to properly preserve materials while accounting for constraints in available expertise, resources, funding, and institutional needs? Utilizing a collection of sixty acidic and fragile scrapbook-style albums held by the Archives of Ontario, this applied thesis project discusses preservation options suitable to photographic albums and scrapbooks, and explores the decision-making process required to develop a working method to restore access to the sixty Conservation Authorities Branch albums, which are currently inaccessible due to preservation concerns. While specific to the resources available at the Archives of Ontario, the basic methodology is applicable to a range of institutions both large and small.

In a fragile state: the Conservation Authorities Branch photograph albums at the Archives of Ontario

The preservation of a large volume of objects is often an examined compromise between the very best options available and appropriate allocation of resources. What, where, and how do institutions make the decisions necessary to properly preserve materials while accounting for constraints in available expertise, resources, funding, and institutional needs? Utilizing a collection of sixty acidic and fragile scrapbook-style albums held by the Archives of Ontario, this applied thesis project discusses preservation options suitable to photographic albums and scrapbooks, and explores the decision-making process required to develop a working method to restore access to the sixty Conservation Authorities Branch albums, which are currently inaccessible due to preservation concerns. While specific to the resources available at the Archives of Ontario, the basic methodology is applicable to a range of institutions both large and small.

Assessing the potential use of Envision in the sustainability certification of road projects with conservation authorities in Ontario

Conservation Authorities (CAs) in Ontario are challenged with improving the sustainability of road planning and design through their programs and policies under the Ontario Environmental Assessment Act (OEAA) and the CA Act. This study examines whether CAs should endorse the voluntary Envision Infrastructure Sustainability Rating System to supplement their roles under the OEAA and the CA Act and regulations. This study applied Envision to a sample of 13 municipal road projects through a standardized document review. It found that Envision was able to differentiate between more and less sustainable road projects, that award achievement required sustainable actions beyond those which are standard practice, and that Envision is appropriate to apply to road projects that are planned through the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment process of the OEAA. This study concludes that the Envision framework has the potential to significantly improve the sustainability of road projects and should be endorsed by CAs.

A capacity assessment and legislative review of the Clean Water Act in Ontario : past, present and future

Historically an unequal distribution of capacity existed among local Municipalities and Conservation Authorities with regards to protecting water in Ontario, as well there was no specific legislation pertaining solely to source water protection. The aim of this research project is to present and analyze through a comparative assessment, the financial capacity requirements and the technical, institutional, social and political capacity progress observed among the 19 Source Protection Regions across Ontario in terms of protecting source water following the Walkerton event and the enactment of the Clean Water Act (CWA). The results indicate that through the enactment of the CWA, capacity building initiatives have taken place through a top-down model with the provincial governments' guidance, direction and support to local municipalities and CAs. When the provincial government takes control and provides capacity related assistance, the lower level municipal and CA governments become regulated; functioning more effectively and with a level of consistency across the province.

A capacity assessment and legislative review of the Clean Water Act in Ontario : past, present and future

Historically an unequal distribution of capacity existed among local Municipalities and Conservation Authorities with regards to protecting water in Ontario, as well there was no specific legislation pertaining solely to source water protection. The aim of this research project is to present and analyze through a comparative assessment, the financial capacity requirements and the technical, institutional, social and political capacity progress observed among the 19 Source Protection Regions across Ontario in terms of protecting source water following the Walkerton event and the enactment of the Clean Water Act (CWA). The results indicate that through the enactment of the CWA, capacity building initiatives have taken place through a top-down model with the provincial governments' guidance, direction and support to local municipalities and CAs. When the provincial government takes control and provides capacity related assistance, the lower level municipal and CA governments become regulated; functioning more effectively and with a level of consistency across the province.

Assessing the potential use of Envision in the sustainability certification of road projects with conservation authorities in Ontario

Conservation Authorities (CAs) in Ontario are challenged with improving the sustainability of road planning and design through their programs and policies under the Ontario Environmental Assessment Act (OEAA) and the CA Act. This study examines whether CAs should endorse the voluntary Envision Infrastructure Sustainability Rating System to supplement their roles under the OEAA and the CA Act and regulations. This study applied Envision to a sample of 13 municipal road projects through a standardized document review. It found that Envision was able to differentiate between more and less sustainable road projects, that award achievement required sustainable actions beyond those which are standard practice, and that Envision is appropriate to apply to road projects that are planned through the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment process of the OEAA. This study concludes that the Envision framework has the potential to significantly improve the sustainability of road projects and should be endorsed by CAs.