Industrial Ecosystems and Food Webs＂ An Ecological-Based Mass Flow Analysis to Model the Progress of Steel Manufacturing in China

Materials and energy are transferred between natural and industrial systems, providing a standard that can be used to deduce the interactions between these systems, An examination of these flows is an essen- tial part of the conversation on how industry impacts the environment, We propose that biological sys- tems, which embody sustainability, provide methods and principles that can lead to more useful ways to organize industrial activity, Transposing these biological methods to steel manufacturing is manifested through an efficient use of available materials, waste reduction, and decreased energy demand with cur- rently available technology, In this paper, we use ecological metrics to examine the change in structure and flows of materials in the Chinese steel industry over time by means of a systems-based mass flow analysis, Utilizing available data, the results of our analysis indicate that the Chinese steel manufacturing industry has increased its efficiency and sustainable use of resources over time at the unit process level, However, the appropriate organization of the steel production ecosystem remains a work in progress, Our results suggest that through the intelligent placement of cooperative industries, which can utilize the waste generated from steel manufacturing, the future of the Chinese steel industry can better reflect ecosystem maturity and health while minimizing waste.

Temporal variations of food web in a marine bay ecosystem based on LIM-MCMC model

Climate change has led to significant fluctuations in marine ecosystems,including alterations in the structure and function of food webs and ecosystem status.Coastal ecosystems are critical to the functioning of the earth’s lifesupporting systems.However,temporal variations in most of these ecosystems have remained unclear so far.In this study,we employed a linear inverse model with Markov Chain Monte Carlo(LIM-MCMC)combined with ecological network analysis to reveal the temporal variations of the food web in Haizhou Bay of China.Food webs were constructed based on diet composition data in this ecosystem during the year of 2011 and 2018.Results indicated that there were obvious temporal variations in the composition of food webs in autumn of 2011 and 2018.The number of prey and predators for most species in food web decreased in 2018 compared with 2011,especially for Trichiurus lepturus,zooplankton,Amblychaeturichthys hexanema,and Loligo sp.Ecological network analysis showed that the complexity of food web structure could be reflected by comprehensive analysis of compartmentalized indicators.Haizhou Bay ecosystem was more mature and stable in 2011,while the ecosystem’s self-sustainability and recovery from disturbances were accelerated from 2011 to 2018.These findings contribute to our understanding of the dynamics of marine ecosystems and highlight the importance of comprehensive analysis of marine food webs.This work provides a framework for assessing and comparing temporal variations in marine ecosystems,which provides essential information and scientific guidance for the Ecosystem-based Fisheries Management.

Impact of Low-Impact Development Technologies from an Ecological Perspective in Different Residential Zones of the City of Atlanta, Georgia

Low-impact development （LID） technologies have a great potential to reduce water usage and stormwa- ter runoff and are therefore seen as sustainable improvements that can be made to traditional water infrastructure, These technologies include bioretention areas, rainwater capturing, and xeriscaping, all of which can be used in residential zones, Within the City of Atlanta, residential water usage accounts for 53% of the total water consumption; therefore, residential zones offer significant impact potential for the implementation of LID, This study analyzes the use of LID strategies within the different residen- tial zones of the City of Atlanta from an ecological perspective by drawing analogies to natural ecosys- tems, The analysis shows that these technologies, especially with the addition of a graywater system, work to improve the conventional residential water network based upon these ecological metrics, The higher metric values suggest greater parity with healthy, natural ecosystems.

Building African Ecosystem Research Network for Sustaining Local Ecosystem Goods and Services

A new form of producing and sharing knowledge has emerged as an international(United States of America,Asia,and Europe) research collaboration,known as the Long-Term Ecological Research(LTER) Network.Although Africa boasts rich biodiversity,including endemic species,it lacks the long-term initiatives to underpin sustainable biodiversity managements.At present,climate change may exacerbate hunger and poverty concerns in addition to resulting in ecosystem degradation,land use change,and other threats in Africa.Therefore,ecosystem monitoring was suggested to understanding the effects of climate change and setting strategies to mitigate these changes.This paper aimed to investigate ecosystem monitoring ground sites and address their coverage gaps in Africa to provide a foundation for optimizing the African Ecosystem Research Network(AERN) ground sites.The geographic coordinates and characteristics of ground sites-based ecosystem monitoring were collected from various networks aligned with the LTER implementation in Africa.Additionally,climatic data and biodiversity distribution maps were retrieved from various sources.These data were used to assess the size of existing ground sites and the gaps in description,ecosystems and biomes.The results reveal that there were 1089 sites established by various networks.Among these sites,30.5%,27.5%,and 28.8% had no information of area,year of establishment,current status,respectively.However,68.0% of them had an area equal to or greater than 1 km2.Sites were created progressively over the course of the years,with 68.9% being created from 2000 to 2005.To date,only 41.5% of the sites were operational.The sites were scattered across Africa,but they were concentrated in Eastern and Southern Africa.The unbalanced distribution pattern of the sites left Central and Northern Africa hardly covered,and many unique ecosystems in Central Africa were not included.To sustain these sites,the AERN should be based on operational sites,seeking secure funding by establishing multiple partnerships.