Procreative and performative kinship among residents in Victorian caravan parks

Recent senior anthropologists have heralded a new era where performative social and cultural kinship may eclipse procreational ‘biological kinship’ in contemporary western society. This article takes research on permanent residents in caravan parks as an extreme case that may act as an exemplar for future western contexts. Between 2003 and 2008, interviews with caravan‐park managers, 50 interviews with park residents and short field stays at 17 outer Melbourne and rural Victorian caravan parks, provided multi‐sited ethnographic material for analysis. I argue that contemporary contexts for relatedness give scope for creative development of social performative ties with ‘ex’ spouses and in‐laws, friends and pets. ‘Biological’ kin and family with a material dimension remain central, however, and a response to family need or rupture is often the broadening of the procreative kin links between grandparent and grandchild and between siblings. Childhood institutionalisation and divorce in particular, contributed to pathways towards caravan park housing. Other kin‐based motivations include finding safe accommodation for wives; providing housing for young adult males after injury and family divorce; and arranging for housing succession for children. Ideas of blood and folk biology demonstrate considerable resilience in contemporary kinship arrangements.     

Hydrological responses of a valley‐bottom wetland to land‐use/land‐cover change in a South African catchment: making a case for wetland restoration

Valley‐bottom wetlands are valuable assets as they provide many ecosystem services to mankind. Despite their value, valley‐bottom wetlands are often exploited and land‐use/land‐cover (LULC) change results in trade‐offs in ecosystem services. We coupled physically based hydrological modeling and spatial analysis to examine the effects of LULC change on water‐related ecosystem services in the Kromme catchment: an important water‐providing catchment for the city of Port Elizabeth. LULC scenarios were constructed to match 5 different decades in the last 50 years to explore the potential effects of restoring the catchment to different historic benchmarks. In the Kromme catchment, valley‐bottom wetlands have declined by 84%, driven by key LULC changes: an increase in irrigated land (307 ha) and invasion by alien trees (336 ha). If the wetlands were restored to the relatively pristine extent and condition of the 1950s, riverflow could increase by approximately 1.13 million m³/a, about 6% of the current supply to Port Elizabeth. Wetland restoration would also significantly improve the catchment's ability to absorb extreme rainfall events, decreasing flood damage. We conclude that in the face of the water scarcity in this region, all ecosystem services, particularly those related to water flow regulation, should be taken into account by decision makers in charge of land zonation. Zonation decisions should not continue to be made on the basis of provisioning ecosystem services alone (i.e. food provision or dam yield). We recommend prioritization of the preservation and restoration of valley‐bottom wetlands providing water‐related ecosystem services to settlements downstream.     

Understory vegetation as an indicator for floodplain forest restoration in the Mississippi River Alluvial Valley,U.S.A.

In the Mississippi River Alluvial Valley (MAV), complete alteration of river‐floodplain hydrology allowed for widespread conversion of forested bottomlands to intensive agriculture, resulting in nearly 80% forest loss. Governmental programs have attempted to restore forest habitat and functions within this altered landscape by the methods of tree planting (afforestation) and local hydrologic enhancement on reclaimed croplands. Early assessments identified factors that influenced whether planting plus tree colonization could establish an overstory community similar to natural bottomland forests. The extent to which afforested sites develop typical understory vegetation has not been evaluated, yet understory composition may be indicative of restored site conditions. As part of a broad study quantifying the ecosystem services gained from restoration efforts, understory vegetation was compared between 37 afforested sites and 26 mature forest sites. Differences in vegetation attributes for species growth forms, wetland indicator classes, and native status were tested with univariate analyses; floristic composition data were analyzed by multivariate techniques. Understory vegetation of restoration sites was generally hydrophytic, but species composition differed from that of mature bottomland forest because of young successional age and differing responses of plant growth forms. Attribute and floristic variation among restoration sites was related to variation in canopy development and local wetness conditions, which in turn reflected both intrinsic site features and outcomes of restoration practices. Thus, understory vegetation is a useful indicator of functional progress in floodplain forest restoration.     

Barriers to Promoting Eco‐Industrial Parks Development in China

For at least the past two decades, eco‐industrial parks (EIPs) have been promoted as policy and commercial instruments for achieving industrial sustainable development. Yet, few EIPs have seen successful operational implementation, especially if they begin as standard industrial parks. Rapid economic growth, commensurate with increasing environmental damage in China, has resulted in officials’ further pursuing EIP policy as a significant element of the broader circular economy and ecological modernization efforts. This article examines the barriers for EIP development from industrial park senior manager perspectives. Using resource dependence theory and the resource‐based view as theoretical lenses, we investigate the external and internal barriers for EIP development in 51 Chinese industrial parks. A number of barriers are identified and grouped through a factor analysis. Cluster analysis is utilized to help categorize and evaluate the perceived levels of barriers and hardships experienced by various senior officials that manage the EIPs. It is found that few respondents encounter no significant barriers. Barriers related to technological development and capacity building are the most prevalent. These results highlight the relative importance of various activities that may be necessary by policy makers and other stakeholders to overcome the barriers. For example, cooperation in developing technological solutions for EIPs seems to be a major thrust that should be pursued by EIP development stakeholders. Other policy and managerial insights based on the general findings of this study are also presented.     

Nitrous oxide emissions from surface flow and subsurface flow constructed wetland microcosms: Effect of feeding strategies

The effects of continuous and intermittent feeding strategies on nitrogen removal and N₂O emission from surface flow and subsurface flow constructed wetlands were evaluated in this study. Microcosm wetlands planted with Phragmites australis were constructed and operated with different feeding strategies for the 4-month experiment. Results showed the intermittent feeding strategy could enhance the removal of ammonium effectively in the subsurface flow constructed wetlands, although it had no significant effect for the surface flow wetlands. And the intermittent feeding mode could promote the emission of N₂O. The amount of N₂O-N emission from the subsurface flow constructed wetlands with intermittent feeding mode was about 5 times higher than that with continuous feeding strategy and the emission rate ranged from 0.09 ± 0.03 to 7.33 ± 1.49 mg/m²/h. Compared with the surface flow constructed wetlands, the N₂O emission in the subsurface flow constructed wetlands was affected significantly by the intermittent feeding mode.     

Mountain cheese factory wastewater treatment with the use of a hybrid constructed wetland

This paper describes the activity period of an experimental hybrid wetland system placed in a cold climate region. The aim is to determine the efficiency of the system in reducing TSS, BOD₅, COD and other pollutants. The constructed wetland consists of a fat-removal unit and a basin for the storage and the distribution of the wastewater which precedes three phytoremediation beds: the first two are parallel and they work as submerged vertical flow wetland with gravel medium for an area of 180 m²; the last is a submerged horizontal flow wetland with sand medium and an area of 360 m². The CW was designed to process a total estimated BOD₅ loading rate of about 24 g m⁻² d⁻¹, which was less than half of the average actual loading rate. The wastewater treatment did not meet the required Italian law outflow limits, most likely due to BOD₅ overloading.     

Hydraulic residence time computation for constructed wetland design

Hydraulic residence time (HRT) is one of the key design parameters controlling the removal efficiency of contaminants and nutrients in stormwater and wastewater wetlands. The paper presents a new approach to the estimation of HRT using the variable residence time (VART) model. The VART model is employed to simulate the major processes (including advection, dispersion, and transient storage of contaminants/nutrients in vegetated zones) affecting HRT and thereby to produce a hydraulic residence time distribution (HRTD) for a design wetland. The HRTD in combination with a moment-based method is then utilized to find a mean design HRT for the design wetland. Methods for estimation of parameters governing the HRTD are proposed. The new approach to HRT computation is demonstrated through a case study for the Tres Rios Demonstration (TRD) Wetlands in Arizona, USA. Modeling results show that the design HRTs for the Hayfield wetland (H1) and the Cobble wetlands (C1 and C2) are 4.04, 4.66, and 2.65 days, respectively. The computed HRTs agree well with those reported by previous studies, confirming the efficacy of the new approach to hydraulic design of constructed wetlands.     

Dynamics in the bacterial community-level physiological profiles and hydrological characteristics of constructed wetland mesocosms during start-up

The objective of this work was to study the effect of plant presence (Phragmites australis) and inoculant origin on wetland mesocosm start-up dynamics. Eight mesocosms were studied based on a duplicated 2² factorial design tracking bacterial community and hydrological changes during an 8 month start-up period. The mesocosms were characterized in terms of their hydrological character based on evapotranspiration (ET), porosity, and a dispersion coefficient. The microbiological regime was characterized using a microbial activity measure and community-level physiological profiling (CLPP) employing BIOLOG™ ECO plates. CLPP-related indices such as substrate richness, substrate diversity, over-all community profile, and community divergence are also presented. It was found that mesocosm porosities decreased over time as a result of media-related biofilm development. This biofilm development also contributed to a substantial increase in the dispersion coefficient in the mesocosms over the start-up period. Dispersion coefficients in planted systems reached values of ∼50-55 cm²/min whereas in the unplanted systems values of ∼30-35 cm²/min were observed. Bacterial community divergence in the mesocosms was quantified using a Euclidean-based divergence metric. All mesocosms showed a sharp increase in community divergence until day 75, at which point a steady state was reached. The interstitial communities were also characterized in terms of similarity based on the experimental design treatments. Four stages of mesocosm development were identified that can be described by an initial community state based on the origins of the initial inoculum [days 0-6]; a dynamic period where adjustments and shifts in the bacterial community occurred in all mesocosms [days 7-26]; a period where all interstitial CLPPs were quite similar [days 27-73]; and finally a shift towards unplanted and planted mesocosm CLPP groupings [days 74-232].     

Estimation of nitrogen dynamics in a vertical-flow constructed wetland

The vertical-flow constructed wetland (VFCW) is a promising engineering technique for removal of excess nutrients and certain pollutants from wastewater and stormwater. The aim of this study was to develop a model using the STELLA software for estimating nitrogen (N) dynamics in an artificial VFCW (i.e., a substrate column with six zones) associated with a growing Cyperus alternifolius species under a wetting (wastewater) -to-drying ratio of 1:3. The model was calibrated by our experimental data with a reasonable agreement prior to its applications. Simulations showed that rates of NH₄⁺-N and NO₃⁻-N leaching decreased with increasing zone number (or column depth), although such a decrease was much more profound for NH₄⁺-N. Our simulations further revealed that rate of NH₄⁺-N leaching decreased with time within each zone, whereas rate of NO₃⁻-N leaching increased with time within each zone. Additionally, both the rates of NH₄⁺-N and NO₃⁻-N leaching through zones followed the water flow pattern: breakthrough during wetting period and cessation during drying period. In general, the cumulative amounts of total nitrogen (TN) were in the following order: leaching > denitrification > uptake > settlement. About 54% of the TN from the wastewater flowed out of the VFCW system, 18% of TN lost due to denitrification, 6% of TN was taken up by roots of a single plant (one hill), and the rest of 22% TN from the wastewater was removed from other mechanisms, such as volatilization, adsorption, and deposition. This study suggested that to improve the overall performance of a VFCW for N removal, prevention of N leaching loss was one of the major issues.     

Estimating biogeochemical and biotic interactions between a stream channel and a created riparian wetland: A medium-scale physical model

Straightened channels and altered and drained adjacent riparian wetlands have adversely impacted streams and rivers throughout the US Midwest. This research investigated the biological connection and water quality of a 0.07 ha diversion wetland and adjacent stream at the Olentangy River Wetland Research Park in central Ohio. Before the flowthrough conditions were established, we demonstrated with mark and recapture techniques that the wetland already was a biorefuge for fish under extreme conditions; two species (Centrarchidae) captured in the stream before a total drawdown of the stream were found in the wetland a year later. In addition, water at the bottom remained at around 4 °C over the winter likely due to groundwater input, which possibly provided a warmer shelter for fish. Stream water quality of the lower section, downstream of the wetland outlet, generally improved with hydrologic pulsing in spring after flow-through reconnection due to the trapping of nutrients in the wetland. Mean removal per flood pulse for nitrate-nitrite, total nitrogen (TN), soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP), total phosphorus (TP) were 1.81 g-N m⁻² per pulse, 1.02 g-N m⁻² per pulse, 0.014 g-P m⁻² per pulse, and 0.004 g-P m⁻² per pulse, respectively. The wetland exported 2.8 g-C m⁻² per pulse of organic carbon. A greater attenuation of NO₃⁻ and TP occurred in the marshy outlet channel section of the wetland than the open water section. The diversion wetland successfully removed nitrate and phosphorus during storm pulses in spring. Similar designs should be applied to other locations to examine their function under different climatic and hydrological conditions.