Exploration on the Sustainable Management of Scenic and Recreational Forest: A Case Study of the Thousand-Island Lake National Forest Park

Sustainable management of scenic and recreational forest based on the integration of forest landscape beauty and recreational functions is the foundation of forest tourism. Adhering to the principles of structural optimization, healthy and vital, beautiful landscape, sound function, and comprehensive benefi t, the hotspot and core task in the current construction of scenic and recreational forest is to conserve, transform and improve forest landscape. The ThousandIsland Lake National Forest Park is endowed with peculiar island scenery, it is necessary to construct a stable threedimensional comprehensive protection system covering "mountain, land and lake", enhance the ecological environment conservation of the lake as well as the lakefront wetland, promote the ecological restoration and coloring construction of forest, protect integrality and diversity of the biosystem, and construct ecological urban-rural system using regional scenic spot concept, so as to build the lake into a model of the sustainable operation of scenic and recreational forest.

Blockchain in Smart Grid for Sustainable Management of Environmental Resources Usage

Blockchain is a distributed database that is shared among the nodes of a computer network.Blocks have certain storage capacity and,when filled,they are closed,and linked to the previously filled block,forming a chain.Blockchains are typically managed by a peer-to-peer method where nodes collectively adhere to a consensus algorithm protocol to add and validate new transaction blocks.The author makes a review of Blockchain applications in different areas,considerable challenges,her own experience with Blockchain in Smart Grid and other researchers`contributions.The paper presents the first stage of project“Smart Grid for Sustainable Management of Environmental Resources Usage”-describing Managed Objects classes for selected functional areas of Blockchain life cycle:Configuration,Security,and Performance.The author uses the life cycle of telecommunication networks as a reference.The models are designed for user interface developers,university professors,and students.

Cassava Groundnut Intercropping: A Sustainable Land Management Practice for Increasing Crop Productivity and Organic Carbon Stock on Smallholder Farms

Cassava-groundnut intercropping is not a common practice among smallholder farmers in Sierra Leone even though both crops are well suited for intercropping. On-farm trials were conducted in three locations (Bai Largor, Bassah, and Njala Kanima) in the Moyamba district during the 2021 cropping season to investigate the efficacy of cassava-groundnut intercropping for increasing crop productivity and soil organic carbon stock on smallholder farms in the Moyamba district, Southern Sierra Leone. The experimental design was a randomized complete block design in three replications with treatments of sole groundnut, sole cassava and cassava-groundnut intercropping. Data on the yield and yield components of cassava and groundnut were analysed using the PROC MIXED procedure of SAS 9.4 and means were compared using the standard error of difference (SED). The above-ground biomass, number of roots per plant, and fresh root yield of cassava were not significantly (p > 0.05) affected by the cassava-based cropping system. Averaged across locations, intercropping cassava with groundnut decreased the above-ground biomass, the number of roots per plant, and fresh root yield of cassava by 17%, 11%, and 17%, respectively. The above-ground biomass, number of pods per plant and fresh pod yield of groundnut were significantly (p 1), the highest net revenue and benefit-cost ratio. The benefit-cost ratio was also favourable for the sole cassava (BCR > 1) but not favourable for the sole groundnut (BCR < 1). Averaged across locations, intercropping cassava with groundnut increased the benefit-cost ratio by 121% and 13% when compared to the sole groundnut and sole cassava. In the event of a 40% yield loss for the cassava and groundnut, the benefit-cost ratio was favourable (1.12) only for the cassava groundnut intercropping system. The net soil organic carbon stock was favourable only for the cassava-groundnut intercrop. Averaged across locations, the net soil organic carbon for the cassava-groundnut intercropping increased by 3.4% when compared to the baseline within one cropping cycle of the cassava (12 months). The results confirm that cassava-groundnut intercropping is a sustainable land management practice that could enhance crop productivity and soil organic carbon stock on smallholder farms.

Sustainable Management of Planted Forests in China: Comprehensive Evaluation, Development Recommendation and Action Framework

China is one of the largest countries in the world in terms of planted forests area. Planted forests play an important role in soil and water conservation, food source, timber supply and energy security, but there are still many problems waiting for immediate resolution. Based on the current development status of planted forest in China, the paper made an comprehensive analysis for the positive impact and existing problems with regard to planted forests, and then came up with policy recommendations for promoting sustainable management of planted forests, mainly including: 1) to accelerate planted forests development and improve the quality; 2) to strengthen the protection and management, and quicken the development of planted forests; 3) to enhance the scientific planning for planted forests; 4) to reinforce the management for forests harvesting so as to promote the reasonable utilization of planted forests; 5) to perfect the management system for planted forest resources and improve the managerial capacity; 6) to complete related laws and regulations and improve the policy guarantee system; 7) to reinforce the forest tenure reform and establish a sound planted forest land transference system. Finally, the paper presented the future action framework for guiding the sustainable management of planted forests in China.

Evaluation of Sustainable Land Management and Diagnosis of Obstacle at County Scale in Sichuan Basin:Taking Lezhi County as Example

This paper established sustainable land resources evaluating indicators fit for hilly area in Sichuan Basin, Southwest of China, and evaluated the case of sustainable land management of Lezhi County from 1990 to 2001. The result showed that the land resource sustainable utilization ability in Lezhi County is belong to Second level （better sustainable）. Secondly, this paper diagnosed some years obstacles of sustainable land management of Lezhi County from base period to goal period and compared the obstacles factors in the indicators system. There were 16 indexes orderly become major affect factor to land sustainable utilization of Lezhi county in indicator system, of which there are 8 obstacles indexes exist both in 1990 and 2001. The value of obstacles degree of five indicators exceeded 5 in 1990, but in 2001, only two indicators＇ values were more than 5.

Goal programming approach for sustainable forest management(case study in Iranian Caspian forests)

We used a goal programming technique to determine the optimal harvest volume for the Iranian Caspian forest. We collected data including volume, growth, wood price at forest roadside, and variable harvesting costs. The allometric method was used to quantify seques- trated carbon. Regression analysis was used to derive growth models. Expected mean price was estimated using wood price and variable harvesting costs. Questionnaire was used to determine the constraints and the equation coefficients of the goal programming model. The optimal volume was determined using the goal programming method according to multipurpose forest management. LINGO software was used for analysis. Results indicated that the optimum volumes of species were 250.25 m3.ha-1 for beech, 59 m3.ha-1 for hornbeam, 73 m3.ha-1 for oak, 41 m3.ha-1 for alder, and 32 m3.ha-1 for other species. The total optimum volume is 455.25 m3.ha-1.

Emergency Plan for Water Supply in Consecutive Droughts and Sustainable Water Resources Management in Beijing

Beijing, the capital city of China, has suffered from acute water shortage, with only 300 m3/a of water resources available per capita. In addition, Beijing has experienced a prolonged period of consecutive droughts from 1999 to 2010. Water crisis has constrained the socio-economic development of Beijing. Meanwhile, the national "South-to-North Water Transfer"（STNWT） project, which is expected to provide some relief to the water crisis in Beijing, is still under development. In order to ensure the security of water supply in Beijing before the completion of the STNWT project, several measures have been implemented to cope with droughts, including pumping groundwater from emergency well fields,water saving, recycling of water, rain and flood water harvesting, and the diversion of water from neighboring rivers and groundwater basins. Groundwater from four emergency well fields contributes the most to the public and domestic water supplies in Beijing, supplying a total volume of 1.8×10;m;.The water crisis is supposed to be mitigated by the completion of the STNWT project. After the completion of this project, more sustainable management of water resources will be implemented,including the use of aquifers as groundwater reservoirs and conjunctive use of surface water and groundwater resources.

Integrated environmental education for sustainable forest management: the case of Nandi Hills Forests, Kenya

Environmental education （EE） is a vital dimension of modern day acumen that portends a great promise in solving the myriad environmental resource management challenges at global, regional and local levels. A study was carried out in 18 locations in the Nandi North, Nandi South and Nandi Hills districts of Kenya, which cover the Nandi Hills and Nandi Forests in Nandi County, major water catchments for Lake Victoria. A mixed methodological approach, incorporating both qualitative and quantitative data obtained from focus group discussions, key informant interviews, household survey and observations was embraced in data collection and analysis. The study reveals that there are several strategies that have been adopted by the local population and institutions involved in the management of the Nandi Hills Forests （NHFs） and that these strategies have contributed to an improvement in the perceptions of the local population in terms of the importance of environmental management of the forests. This paper highlights EE as a vehicle for ensur- ing a sustainable management of the Nandi Hills Forests. As such, it illuminates the great potential that lies in sustainably managing the NHFs by integrating formal and informal EE approaches. It further points out the functional gaps in the management of NHFs and proposes best-practices that could be adopted and/or domesticated in NHFs management regimes.

Comparison of sustainable forest management (SFM) trends at global and country levels: case study in Iran

Sustainable Forest Management （SFM） is an integral component of sustainable development. Iran is a Near East country with low forest cover. Iran uses 7 criteria and 65 indicators for regional and national monitoring of forest management. We evaluated the status of SFM in Iran, and a location imaging in its path towards SFM was provided by existing validation data and library references for the Criteria and Indicators （C＆I） adopted in the Near East, We identify challenges and opportunities associated with SFM in Iran. Although the information to evaluate the trend of SFM in Iran was incomplete, we compiled some information on the basis of C＆I. Comparison of some indicators with the values for the rest of the world revealed that the situation in Iran is very different. Although some indicators revealed a better situation in Iran, Iran lags the rest of the world in the implementation of SFM. Iran, like many countries, is trying hard to find ways to sustainably use its forests. Not all C＆I for assessment of SFM in Iran have been determined or defined. However, a consistent and comprehensive framework of criteria and indicators to monitor progress towards SFM is being applied. Defining some C＆I is still at an early stage.

Towards Sustainable Urban Environmental Management in Jiangyin city, East China

Dramatic economic and social changes have taken place in Jiangyin city due to rapid and uneven urbanization and industrialization. The environmental degradation has followed driven by these changes since the 1980's. With the pressures and effects of environmental deterioration, the city has implemented environmental management to hold back the trends of negative environmental changes. From the viewpoint of systems, DPSER is a good model for urban environmental changes to understand the causes, pressure, state, effect, existing responses and future action strategies. We took Jiangyin city, a developed city in South Jiangsu province, East China, as an example, and analyzed the characteristics of environmental changes and urban responses using DPSER model. Some operational strategies have been put forward to direct the city environmental management towards a sustainable road step by step.

Assessment of Institutional and Legal Framework for Sustainable Land Use Management Practices in Ashi River Watershed,China

Nonpoint source(NPS)pollutants resulting from land degradation(LD)have been a key influential factor on the deterioration of water quality.Consequently,sustainable land use management(SLM)practices have been employed to reduce the impacts of LD globally.However,the adoption of SLM practices is often not effective to protect water resources despite its capability of improving water quality.Empirically,evidence shows that activities of land users directly influence SLM practices and NPS pollution of water resources in watersheds,but invariably this has not been clearly understood.Understanding how SLM practices adoption could prevent NPS pollution of water resources in watershed is a necessity.Therefore,the primary aim of the investigation is to comprehend the status of SLM practices with the legal framework supporting the adoption of such practices in the Ashi River watershed.A survey instrument involving structured questionnaire was implemented to collect data.A randomly based lottery method was applied to sample information from 150 land users in two control units’communities.Descriptive and inferential statistics was used to analyze the data.This research revealed that there is low adoption of SLM practices of the study site.The low adoption is due to weak capacity building and enforcement of regulations in the watershed.Occupation and age of the residents are the strongest predictors of SLM adoption rate.Residents connected with farming are more sensitive to the adoption status of SLM.It is our recommendation that policy makers should ensure capacity building,and enforcement of regulations can specifically compel farmers to adopt SLM technologies.This approach would complement other strategies to solve the NPS pollution issue of Ashi River.

How Much Tourism Is Too Much? Stakeholder’s Perceptions on Overtourism, Sustainable Destination Management During the Pandemic of COVID-19 Era in Santorini Island Greece

The newly adapted concept of“overtourism”based on the old concept of carrying capacity has emerged in various destinations worldwide and it seems to be one of the most important issues on destination management literature.Santorini is one of the most picturesque islands globally and at the same time one of the destinations that have been incorporated into the discourse of overtourism.However,Santorini is different to many of the destinations exposed to overtourism as an island destination with specific limitations in physical space,natural and physical resources.For many years we have experienced the rapid growth of tourism worldwide until the emergence of the COVID pandemic that stopped almost every economic activity.The rapid increase of visitors in Santorini had various impacts on the island’s economy,society,and environment.This paper is about overtourism on the Aegean Island of Santorini,where overtourism has been a fact for several years.In the island tourism development is evident but sustainability is a critical theme for the locals,the entrepreneurs,and the tourism industry of the destination.In this paper the perceptions of the destination’s stakeholders are examined on issues like sustainability,overtourism,and the impacts of the pandemic.Finally,the paper examines the stakeholders’thoughts on the possibility of the pandemic might become the springboard for redefining tourism on the island.

Evaluation of Plant Diversity for Sustainable and Inclusive Management in Rural Areas:A Case Study from Daressalam,Niger

Plant biodiversity plays a major role for sustaining livelihood of rural population.However,unsustainable exploitation of woody plants for firewood in Niger is creating ecological challenges.This study aims to evaluate plant species composition,richness and equitability for sustainable and inclusive management in rural areas.Plot vegetation inventory method was employed.Forty-eight plots each measuring 2500 m^(2)were laid down systematically on a transect with the village at the centre.On each plot,plant species were identified and the number of each species counted.A total of twenty-five(25)plant species belonging to thirteen(13)families were identified among which Guiera senegalensis J.F.Gmel.accounted for 61%.The Shannon index was low(H’=0.45)as well as species equitability(E=0.14).Species richness differed significantly(p<0.000)with land use type with agroforestry parklands recording significantly higher species compared to plateaus.For effective plant biodiversity restoration and management,irrigated agroforestry is recommended to restore ecological balance and to assure and improve the quality of plant biodiversity in the study area.

Hydrogeochemical Studies in Drought Scenarios: Canelones, Uruguay Case Study

The water scarcity in quality and quantity is becoming more noticeable and an urgent concern around the world. In Uruguay, these issues become exacerbated by the need to obtain drinking water in coastal areas, influenced by the climate change. Basic and structural geologies are strong conditioners in heterogeneous coastal aquifers. The objective of this study is to characterize the hydrochemistry of the fractured aquifers after having identified the main bearing fractures and the causes of aleatoreous water scarcity and quality problems, for hydric resources sustainable management. Identification of water bearing fracture, hydrogeochemical analysis and water quality evaluation are specific objectives. Some strategies were performed: 1) a base map in QGIS Software;2) fracture photointerpretation;3) geological correlation;4) statistical analysis of the background geochemistry data;5) ions analysis of strategically located wells. There were found water bearing fractures corresponding to 28 m3/h maximum flow rate for the NW-SE and 12 m3/h maximum flow rate for the NE-SW fracture direction, respectively. Besides, there could be a problem related to the high Sodium (Na) and Chloride (Cl) levels. In this respect, having previous data from 25 well samples, ions geochemical analysis has been carried out for 14 wells from Costa Azul and surrounding to have a first approach about the possible cause for the high values of Na (max. 385 mg/L) and Cl (max. 381 mg/L). The selected area for this study has a particular characteristic, because it corresponds to a heterogeneous fractured aquifer, which makes it difficult to catch water with enough flow rates and water quality to meet the population demand.

Sustainable food waste management using modified fuzzy improved analytic hierarchy process:a study of Malaysia

Food waste generation is a pressing issue that requires urgent attention and concerted efforts worldwide.The staggering amount of food wasted each year not only wastes valuable resources but also exacerbates environmental,economic,and social challenges.Food Waste Management(FWM)consists of a complex array of criteria and sub-criteria,and treatments which seems interdependent.There is a need to evaluate the FWM with the help of important criteria and sub-criteria and treatments to address this challenge.In this study,we identified four important criteria,21 sub-criteria,and four alternatives of FWM for the case of Malaysia using the integrated approach of literature review and expert opinions.Further,we employed the approach of Modified Fuzzy Improved Analytical Hierarchy Process(IAHP)to corroborate the interrelationships among the identified criteria and sub-criteria,and their associated treatments.This study undertakes linear normalization methods to transform data into comparable numerical values and the Geometric Mean method to handle uncertainty in human judgments.Moreover,the Centroid method is employed to convert fuzzy weights into crisp sets for ease of interpretation.The results indicate that environmental is the most essential criterion,followed by social,economic,and technical.In addition,air and water pollution is identified as the most critical sub-criteria.Black Soldier Fly is discovered as the most sustainable FWM treatment,since it performs the best while meeting all the criteria and sub-criteria assessed.Sensitivity analysis demonstrates that the outputs from the proposed method are robust and reliable.The finding suggests a proper and robust approach to help decision-makers select suitable FWM treatments to tackle various criteria and alternatives especially when handling inconsistent and uncertain judgments during evaluation.

Modelling Land Use/Land Cover Change of River Rwizi Catchment, South-Western Uganda Using GIS and Markov Chain Model

Analysis of catchment Land use/Land cover (LULC) change is a vital tool in ensuring sustainable catchment management. The study analyzed land use/land cover changes in the Rwizi catchment, south western Uganda from 1989-2019 and projected the trend by 2040. Landsat images, field observations, key informant interviews and focus group discussions were used to collect data. Changes in cropland, forestland, built up area, grazing land, wetland and open water bodies were analyzed in ArcGIS version 10.2.2 and ERDAS IMAGINE 14 software and a Markov chain model. All the LULC classes increased in area except grazing land. Forest land and builtup area between 2009-2019 increased by 370.03% and 229.53% respectively. Projections revealed an increase in forest land and builtup area by 2030 and only built up area by 2040. LULCC in the catchment results from population pressure, reduced soil fertility and high value of agricultural products.

Conceptual models of forest dynamics in environmental education and management:keep it as simple as possible,but no simpler

Background：Conceptual models of forest dynamics are powerful cognitive tools,which are indispensable for communicating ecological ideas and knowledge,and in developing strategic approaches and setting targets for forest conservation,restoration and sustainable management.Forest development through time is conventionally described as a directional,or ＂linear＂,and predictable sequence of stages from ＂bare ground＂ to old forest representing the ＂climax-state＂.However,this simple view is incompatible with the current knowledge and understanding of intrinsic variability of forest dynamics.Hypothesis：Overly simple conceptual models of forest dynamics easily become transformed into biased mental models of how forests naturally develop and what kind of structures they display.To be able to communicate the essential features and diversity of forest dynamics,comprehensive conceptual models are needed.For this end,Kuuluvainen（2009） suggested a relatively simple conceptual model of forest dynamics,which separates three major modes of forest dynamics,and incorporates state changes and transitions between the forest dynamics modes depending on changes in disturbance regime.Conclusions：Conceptual models of forest dynamics should be comprehensive enough to incorporate both longterm directional change and short-term cyclic forest dynamics,as well as transitions from one dynamics mode to another depending on changes in the driving disturbance regime type.Models that capture such essential features of forest dynamics are indispensable for educational purposes,in setting reference conditions and in developing methods in forest conservation,restoration and ecosystem management.

An Assessment of Saltwater Intrusion in Coastal Regions of Lagos, Nigeria

This paper explains various factors that contribute to saltwater intrusion, including overexploitation of freshwater resources and climate change as well as the different techniques essential for effective saltwater intrusion management. The impact of saltwater intrusion along coastal regions and its impact on the environment, hydrogeology and groundwater contamination. It suggests potential solutions to mitigate the impact of saltwater intrusion, including effective water management and techniques for managing SWI. The application of A.I (assessment index) serves as a guideline to correctly identify wells with SWI ranging from no intrusion, slight intrusion and strong intrusion. The challenges of saltwater intrusion in Lagos and the salinization of wells were investigated using the hydro-chemical parameters. The study identifies four wells (“AA”, “CMS”, “OBA” and “VIL”) as having high electric conductivities, indicating saline water intrusion, while other wells (“EBM”, “IKJ, and “IKO”) with lower electric conductivities, indicate little or no salt-water intrusion, and “AJ” well shows slight intrusion. The elevation of the wells also played a vital role in the SWI across coastal regions of Lagos. The study recommends continuous monitoring of coastal wells to help sustain and reduce saline intrusion. The findings of the study are important for policymakers, researchers, and practitioners who are interested in addressing the challenges of saltwater intrusion along coastal regions. We assessed the SWI across the eight (8) wells using the Assessment Index to identify wells with SWI. Wells in “CMS” and “VIL” has strong intrusions. A proposed classification system based on specific ion ratios categorizes water quality from good (+) to highly (-) contaminated (refer to Table 4). These findings underscore the need for attention and effective management strategies to address groundwater unsuitability for various purposes.

Establishment of Community-Based Dissemination Model and Its Effective Function for Sustainable Food Security and Poverty Reduction

Vietnam ranks as one of the largest rice exporters in the world.Two major deltas,the Mekong River Delta and the Red River Delta,contribute around 70%of the country’s rice production and 90%of its rice exports,while people in the mountainous areas of Central Vietnam still suffer from food shortage for three to four months per year.To combat this incongruous situation,the Foundation for International Development/Relief(FIDR),a Japan-based non-governmental organization(NGO),launched a project to introduce system of rice intensification(SRI)methods and developed the community-based dissemination(CBD)model.One of the difficulties that the government and aid agencies generally face is to create an effective and sustainable dissemination model,when the newly-introduced technology is totally unfamiliar to targeted region and residents.Vietnam consists of 54 ethnic groups,and 14%of the population is comprised of 53 ethnic minorities,mainly living in mountainous areas.Almost 50%of them still live below the poverty line and are threatened by food shortage.Within their cultural context,it is hard to adapt to the new concepts of farming,and they are not used to paddy rice cultivation yet.As the result of the project,the model successfully reduced the food shortage of 1.5 months less in average with more than 4,000 households involved.The model is now turned over to the local government as a case of sustainable management practices.This paper aimed to examine what made the model effectively function.