Description:    Pesticides are widely used in modern agriculture to minimize financial losses and maintain food supplies. In southeast Asia, where agriculture is the principal economic activity, pesticides are considered essential, particularly in tropical regions seeking to enter the global economy by providing off-season fresh fruits and vegetables. The absence of a strong legal framework for pesticides facilitated a significant increase in the use of low-quality pesticides. Farmers ignore the risks, safety instructions, and protective directives when using pesticides. They are only concerned about the effectiveness of the pesticides for killing pests, without paying attention to the effects on their health and the environment. The improper usage of pesticides and the incorrect disposal of pesticide wastes contributed to the pollution of groundwater, surface water, and soil, and induced health problems in local communities. This paper describes the impact of the exposure of pesticides on human health and water resources in connection with the usage of pesticides and their management. Because of availability, the data are mainly taken for Northern Vietnam, and applied to the water quality in the delta; nevertheless, the problem relates to all countries in the delta, and similar situations may be found in other regions, particularly in Asia. Content Type Journal Article Category ORIGINAL ARTICLE Pages 1-9 DOI 10.1007/s10163-012-0081-x Authors Pham Thi Thuy, Laboratory of Applied Physical Chemistry and Environmental Technology, Department of Chemical Engineering, K.U. Leuven, W. de Croylaan 46, 3001 Leuven, Belgium Steven Van Geluwe, Laboratory of Applied Physical Chemistry and Environmental Technology, Department of Chemical Engineering, K.U. Leuven, W. de Croylaan 46, 3001 Leuven, Belgium Viet-Anh Nguyen, Institute of Environmental Science and Engineering, Hanoi University of Civil Engineering, 55 Giai Phong Road, Hanoi, Vietnam Bart Van der Bruggen, Laboratory of Applied Physical Chemistry and Environmental Technology, Department of Chemical Engineering, K.U. Leuven, W. de Croylaan 46, 3001 Leuven, Belgium Journal Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management Online ISSN 1611-8227 Print ISSN 1438-4957

Description:    Climate change is an issue of great importance for human rights, public health, and socioeconomic equity because of its diverse consequences overall as well as its disproportionate impact on vulnerable and socially marginalized populations. Vulnerability to climate change is determined by a community’s ability to anticipate, cope with, resist, and recover from the impact of major weather events. Climate change will affect industrial and agricultural sectors, as well as transportation, health, and energy infrastructure. These shifts will have significant health and economic consequences for diverse communities throughout California. Without proactive policies to address these equity concerns, climate change will likely reinforce and amplify current as well as future socioeconomic disparities, leaving low-income, minority, and politically marginalized groups with fewer economic opportunities and more environmental and health burdens. This review explores the disproportionate impacts of climate change on vulnerable groups in California and investigates the costs and benefits of the climate change mitigation strategies specified for implementation in the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32). Lastly, knowledge gaps, future research priorities, and policy implications are identified. Content Type Journal Article Pages 1-19 DOI 10.1007/s10584-011-0310-7 Authors Seth B. Shonkoff, Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, Division of Society and Environment, University of California, Berkeley, 137 Mulford Hall, MC 3144, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA Rachel Morello-Frosch, Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management & School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, 137 Mulford Hall, MC 3114, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA Manuel Pastor, Departments of Geography and American Studies and Ethnicity, University of Southern California, 3620 S. Vermont Ave, KAP-462, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0255, USA James Sadd, Department of Environmental Science and Geology, Occidental College, 1600 Campus Rd., Los Angeles, CA 90041, USA Journal Climatic Change Online ISSN 1573-1480 Print ISSN 0165-0009

Description:    The condition of many wetlands across Australia has deteriorated due to increased water regulation and the expansion and intensification of agriculture and increased urban and industrial expansion. Despite this situation, a comprehensive overview of the distribution and condition of wetlands across Australia is not available. Regional analyses exist and several exemplary mapping and monitoring exercises have been maintained to complement the more general information sets. It is expected that global climate change will exacerbate the pressures on inland wetlands, while sea level rises will adversely affect coastal wetlands. It is also expected that the exacerbation of these pressures will increase the potential for near-irreversible changes in the ecological state of some wetlands. Concerted institutional responses to such pressures have in the past proven difficult to sustain, although there is some evidence that a more balanced approach to water use and agriculture is being developed with the provision of increasing funds to purchase water for environmental flows being one example. We identify examples from around Australia that illustrate the impacts on wetlands of long-term climate change from palaeoecological records (south-eastern Australia); water allocation (Murray-Darling Basin); dryland salinisation (south-western Australia); and coastal salinisation (northern Australia). These are provided to illustrate both the extent of change in wetlands and the complexity of differentiating the specific effects of climate change. An appraisal of the main policy responses by government to climate change is provided as a basis for further considering the opportunities for mitigation and adaptation to climate change. Content Type Journal Article Category Effects of Climate Change on Wetlands Pages 1-21 DOI 10.1007/s00027-011-0232-5 Authors C. M. Finlayson, Institute for Land, Water and Society, Charles Sturt University, PO Box 789, Albury, NSW 2640, Australia J. A. Davis, School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia P. A. Gell, Centre for Environmental Management, School of Science and Engineering, University of Ballarat, PO Box 663, Ballarat, VIC 3353, Australia R. T. Kingsford, Australian Rivers and Wetland Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia K. A. Parton, Institute for Land, Water and Society, Charles Sturt University, PO Box 883, Orange, NSW 2800, Australia Journal Aquatic Sciences - Research Across Boundaries Online ISSN 1420-9055 Print ISSN 1015-1621

Description:    Reduce, reuse, and recycle (3R) policies form the basis of waste management and global warming countermeasures globally, so we conducted a comparative study of 3R and waste management policies in the European Union (EU), USA, Korea, Japan, China, and Vietnam. An international workshop for 3R and waste management policymakers was held in Kyoto, Japan, and a bibliographic survey was also conducted to collect data. 3R policies are clearly given priority in the hierarchy of waste management in every country studied. Thermal recovery, which includes power generation from waste heat and methane gas collected from organic waste, is also a priority; this is consistent with the increased use of countermeasures to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In the EU, waste management is characterized by practical and effective 3R policies through the development of realistic regulations and by the policymakers’ desire to simplify management systems. The policy ideal in China, however, is the development of a circular economy that targets reductions in the amount and hazardousness of waste. Limits on the number of final disposal sites, strategies for procuring resources, and GHG emission countermeasures are closely linked with 3R policies, and further development of 3R policies in parallel with such issues is expected. Content Type Journal Article Pages 1-17 DOI 10.1007/s10163-011-0009-x Authors Shin-ichi Sakai, Environment Preservation Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501 Japan Hideto Yoshida, Japan Environmental Safety Corporation, Tokyo, Japan Yasuhiro Hirai, Environment Preservation Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501 Japan Misuzu Asari, Environment Preservation Research Center, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501 Japan Hidetaka Takigami, Research Center for Material Cycles and Waste Management, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Tsukuba, Japan Shin Takahashi, Center for Marine Environmental Studies, Ehime University, Matsuyama, Japan Keijirou Tomoda, Towa Technology, Hiroshima, Japan Maria Victoria Peeler, Hazardous Waste and Toxics Reduction, Washington State Department of Ecology, Olympia, WA, USA Jakub Wejchert, Sector in Unit G.4, Sustainable Production and Consumption, DG Environment, European Commission, Brussels, Belgium Thomas Schmid-Unterseh, Division of Product Responsibility, Avoidance, Recovery and Utilization of Product Waste, Federal Ministry for the Environment, Berlin, Germany Aldo Ravazzi Douvan, Italian Environmental Authority for EU Structural Funds, Ministry for the Environment Land and Sea, Rome, Italy Roy Hathaway, Waste Management Division, Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, London, UK Lars D. Hylander, Department of Earth Sciences, Air and Water Science, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden Christian Fischer, European Topic Centre on Sustainable Consumption and Production, Copenhagen, Denmark Gil Jong Oh, Resource Recirculation Center, National Institute of Environmental Research, Incheon, Korea Li Jinhui, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China Ngo Kim Chi, Union for Scientific Research and Production on Chemical Engineering, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), Hanoi, Vietnam Journal Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management Online ISSN 1611-8227 Print ISSN 1438-4957

Description:    The tree species composition of a forested landscape may respond to climate change through two primary successional mechanisms: (1) colonization of suitable habitats and (2) competitive dynamics of established species. In this study, we assessed the relative importance of competition and colonization in forest landscape response (as measured by the forest type composition change) to global climatic change. Specifically, we simulated shifts in forest composition within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area of northern Minnesota during the period 2000–2400  AD . We coupled a forest ecosystem process model, PnET-II, and a spatially dynamic forest landscape model, LANDIS-II, to simulate landscape change. The relative ability of 13 tree species to colonize suitable habitat was represented by the probability of establishment or recruitment. The relative competitive ability was represented by the aboveground net primary production. Both competitive and colonization abilities changed over time in response to climatic change. Our results showed that, given only moderate-frequent windthrow (rotation period = 500 years) and fire disturbances (rotation period = 300 years), competition is relatively more important for the short-term (〈100 years) compositional response to climatic change. For longer-term forest landscape response (〉100 years), colonization became relatively more important. However, if more frequent fire disturbances were simulated, then colonization is the dominant process from the beginning of the simulations. Our results suggest that the disturbance regime will affect the relative strengths of successional drivers, the understanding of which is critical for future prediction of forest landscape response to global climatic change. Content Type Journal Article Pages 1-31 DOI 10.1007/s10584-011-0098-5 Authors Chonggang Xu, Division of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87544, USA George Z. Gertner, Department of Natural Resources & Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, W-523 Turner Hall, MC-047, 1102 South Goodwin Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, USA Robert M. Scheller, Environmental Science and Management, Portland State University, P.O. Box 751, Portland, OR 97207, USA Journal Climatic Change Online ISSN 1573-1480 Print ISSN 0165-0009

Description:    This paper explores two issues that have been receiving increasing attention in recent decades, climate change adaptation and natural disaster risk reduction. An examination of the similarities and differences between them reveals important linkages but also significant differences, including the spectrum of threats, time and spatial scales, the importance of local versus global processes, how risks are perceived, and degree of uncertainty. Using a risk perspective to analyze these issues, preferential strategies emerge related to choices of being proactive, reactive, or emphasizing risk management as opposed to the precautionary principle. The policy implications of this analysis are then explored, using Canada as a case study. Content Type Journal Article Pages 1-15 DOI 10.1007/s10584-011-0259-6 Authors David Etkin, Disaster and Emergency Management, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies, York University, 4700 Keele St, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M3J 1P3 J. Medalye, Political Science, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada K. Higuchi, Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada Journal Climatic Change Online ISSN 1573-1480 Print ISSN 0165-0009

Description:    The emerging interest in the biological and conservation significance of locally rare species prompts a number of questions about their correspondence with other categories of biodiversity, especially global rarity. Here we present an analysis of the correspondence between the distributions of globally and locally rare plants. Using biological hotspots of rarity as our framework, we evaluate the extent to which conservation of globally rare plants will act as a surrogate for conservation of locally rare taxa. Subsequently, we aim to identify gaps between rarity hotspots and protected land to guide conservation planning. We compiled distribution data for globally and locally rare plants from botanically diverse Napa County, California into a geographic information system. We then generated richness maps highlighting hotspots of global and local rarity. Following this, we overlaid the distribution of these hotspots with the distribution of protected lands to identify conservation gaps. Based on occupancy of 1 km 2 grid cells, we found that over half of Napa County is occupied by at least one globally or locally rare plant. Hotspots of global and local rarity occurred in a substantially smaller portion of the county. Of these hotspots, less than 5% were classified as multi-scale hotspots, i.e. they were hotspots of global and local rarity. Although, several hotspots corresponded with the 483 km 2 of protected lands in Napa County, some of the richest areas did not. Thus, our results show that there are important conservation gaps in Napa County. Furthermore, if only hotspots of global rarity are preserved, only a subset of locally rare plants will be protected. Therefore, conservation of global, local, and multi-scale hotspots needs serious consideration if the goals are to protect a larger variety of biological attributes, prevent extinction, and limit extirpation in Napa County. Content Type Journal Article Category Original Paper Pages 1-12 DOI 10.1007/s10531-011-0137-6 Authors Benjamin J. Crain, Department of Biological Sciences, Humboldt State University, 1 Harpst Street, Arcata, CA 95521, USA Jeffrey W. White, Department of Biological Sciences, Humboldt State University, 1 Harpst Street, Arcata, CA 95521, USA Steven J. Steinberg, Department of Environmental Science and Management, Humboldt State University, 1 Harpst Street, Arcata, CA 95521, USA Journal Biodiversity and Conservation Online ISSN 1572-9710 Print ISSN 0960-3115

Description:    The conversion of biomass waste into resources as a recycling process is receiving increased interest due to the perceived need for a sustainable global carbon cycle and environmental considerations. Several treatment processes are being developed. Hydrothermal treatment is one of the most effective approaches, because water at high temperatures and high pressures behaves as a reaction medium with remarkable properties. In this work, the reaction behavior of guaiacol as a biomass model compound was studied in subcritical water at 483–563 K and in supercritical water at 653–673 K using a batch reactor. Guaiacol can be considered representative of the aromatic ring structures present in lignin, a major component of woody biomass. The chemical species formed in aqueous products were identified by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and quantified using high-performance liquid chromatography. The effect of pressure and reaction time on the conversion process of guaiacol is discussed. The results obtained indicate that this method has potential for efficient organic waste conversion. Content Type Journal Article Pages 68-79 DOI 10.1007/s10163-010-0309-6 Authors Wahyudiono, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Kumamoto University, 2-39-1 Kurokami, Kumamoto, 860-8555 Japan Mitsuru Sasaki, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Kumamoto University, 2-39-1 Kurokami, Kumamoto, 860-8555 Japan Motonobu Goto, Bioelectrics Research Center, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan Journal Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management Online ISSN 1611-8227 Print ISSN 1438-4957 Journal Volume Volume 13 Journal Issue Volume 13, Number 1

Description:    This review reports background information on wetlands in the Northeast Asia and High Asia areas, including wetland coverage and type, significance for local populations, and threats to their vitality and protection, with particular focus on the relationship of how global change influenced wetlands. Natural wetlands in these areas have been greatly depleted and degraded, largely due to global climate change, drainage and conversion to agriculture and silviculture, hydrologic alterations, exotics invasions, and misguided management policies. Global warming has caused wetland and ice-sheet loss in High Asia and permafrost thawing in tundra wetlands in Northeast Asia, and hence induced enormous reductions in water-storage sources in High Asia and carbon loss in Northeast Asia. This, in the long term, will exacerbate chronic water shortage and positively feed back global warming. Recently, better understanding of the vital role of healthy wetland ecosystems to Asia’s sustainable economic development has led to major efforts in wetland conservation and restoration. Nonetheless, collaborative efforts to restore and protect the wetlands must involve not only the countries of Northeast and High Asia but also international agencies. Research has been productive but the results should be more effectively integrated with policy-making and wetland restoration practices under future climatic scenarios. Content Type Journal Article Category Research Article Pages 1-9 DOI 10.1007/s00027-012-0281-4 Authors Shuqing An, The State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, The Institute of Wetland Ecology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 People’s Republic of China Ziqiang Tian, River and Coastal Environment Research Center, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing, 100012 People’s Republic of China Ying Cai, The State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, The Institute of Wetland Ecology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 People’s Republic of China Teng Wen, The State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, The Institute of Wetland Ecology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 People’s Republic of China Delin Xu, The State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, The Institute of Wetland Ecology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 People’s Republic of China Hao Jiang, The State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, The Institute of Wetland Ecology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 People’s Republic of China Zhigang Yao, The Wetland Management Station, Jiangsu Administrate of Forestry, Nanjing, 210036 People’s Republic of China Baohua Guan, The Institute of Geography and Limnology, China Academy of Science, Nanjing, 210008 People’s Republic of China Sheng Sheng, The State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, The Institute of Wetland Ecology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 People’s Republic of China Yan Ouyang, The State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, The Institute of Wetland Ecology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093 People’s Republic of China Xiaoli Cheng, Key Laboratory of Aquatic Botany and Watershed Ecology, Wuhan Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430074 People’s Republic of China Journal Aquatic Sciences - Research Across Boundaries Online ISSN 1420-9055 Print ISSN 1015-1621

Description:    Severe water erosion is notorious for its harmful effects on land-water resources as well as local societies. The scale effects of water erosion, however, greatly exacerbate the difficulties of accurate erosion evaluation and hazard control in the real world. Analyzing the related scale issues is thus urgent for a better understanding of erosion variations as well as reducing such erosion. In this review article, water erosion dynamics across three spatial scales including plot, watershed, and regional scales were selected and discussed. For the study purposes and objectives, the advantages and disadvantages of these scales all demonstrate clear spatial-scale dependence. Plot scale studies are primarily focused on abundant data collection and mechanism discrimination of erosion generation, while watershed scale studies provide valuable information for watershed management and hazard control as well as the development of quantitatively distributed models. Regional studies concentrate more on large-scale erosion assessment, and serve policymakers and stakeholders in achieving the basis for regulatory policy for comprehensive land uses. The results of this study show that the driving forces and mechanisms of water erosion variations among the scales are quite different. As a result, several major aspects contributing to variations in water erosion across the scales are stressed: differences in the methodologies across various scales, different sink-source roles on water erosion processes, and diverse climatic zones and morphological regions. This variability becomes more complex in the context of accelerated global change. The changing climatic factors and earth surface features are considered the fourth key reason responsible for the increased variability of water erosion across spatial scales. Content Type Journal Article Pages 127-143 DOI 10.1007/s11769-012-0524-2 Authors Wei Wei, State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085 China Liding Chen, State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085 China Lei Yang, State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085 China Bojie Fu, State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085 China Ranhao Sun, State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085 China Journal Chinese Geographical Science Online ISSN 1993-064X Print ISSN 1002-0063 Journal Volume Volume 22 Journal Issue Volume 22, Number 2