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Brownfield Sites as Hot Spots of Plant Diversity
Published in Artur Dyczko, Andrzej M. Jagodziński, Gabriela Woźniak, Green Scenarios: Mining Industry Responses to Environmental Challenges of the Anthropocene Epoch, 2022
Ian C. Trueman, Barbara Tokarska-Guzik, Eleanor V.J. Cohn
Biodiversity hotspots associated with natural and semi-natural vegetation have detailed and long-established systems of description and comparison, and hence relatively straightforward processes for evaluation for conservation. In the UK, under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (amended 1985), the government has a duty to notify as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) any land which in its opinion is of special interest by reason of any of its flora, fauna, geological or physiographical features. An SSSI has legal protection against potentially damaging operations including development. Despite the typical predominance of native species, the biodiversity hotspots which develop on the waste products of industry may not closely resemble those seen in the countryside. New combinations of native and alien species often come together in these sites, particularly in urban areas and, at least in theory, have no parallel in natural and semi-natural plant communities. The term “ecological recombination” (Barker 2000; Rotherham 2017) has been coined to encompass these de novo communities.
Flowering Plants of Govind Pashu Vihar Wildlife Sanctuary, Western Himalaya
Published in Parimelazhagan Thangaraj, Phytomedicine, 2020
Ramasamy Manikandan, Chithambaram Murugan, Nithya Sivagami Ponnurangam, Mehala Devi Ramasamy
The Govind Pashu Vihar Wildlife Sanctuary is located between 31° 17' to 35° 55' N latitude and 77° 47' to 78° 37' E longitude in Purola Tehsil of the Uttarakashi District of Uttarakhand, which is situated in the Western Himalayas. The Western Himalayas and the Eastern Himalayas together is one of the largest centers of endemism in India, is one of the 34 biodiversity hotspots of the world (Synge 2005). According to Myers et al. (2000), biodiversity “hotspots” are the regions containing a high proportion of global biodiversity in a small area. Also biodiversity hotspots can be defined as areas having an exceptional concentration of endemic taxa. The sanctuary is situated in the Uttarakashi District of Uttarakhand, a newly formed state from Uttar Pradesh (Figure 12.1: Map 1, 2). As the protected areas are the prime centers of conservation and diversity, scientific information on all taxa needs to be collected and documented. Therefore, it is very important to make an assessment of the existing floristic diversity. Considering these reasons, Govind Pashu Vihar Wildlife Sanctuary was selected for an assessment of floristic diversity.
Conservation priorities and extractive industries in Africa
Published in Saleem H. Ali, Kathryn Sturman, Nina Collins, Africa’s Mineral Fortune, 2018
Mahlette Betre, Marielle Canter Weikel, Romy Chevallier, Janet Edmond, Rosimeiry Portela, Zachary Wells, Jennifer Blaha
Biodiversity hotspots are characterized as large regions with exceptional concentrations of endemic species—specific to an area and not found elsewhere—that are undergoing exceptional loss of habitat.13 Currently, thirty-five biodiversity hotspots have been identified globally, most of them in tropical forests. Collectively, they represent just 2.3 percent of Earth’s land surface, but contain around 50 percent of the world’s endemic plant species and 42 percent of all terrestrial vertebrates. In addition to their exceptional biodiversity, these areas are also home to many vulnerable human populations that are directly dependent on nature to survive: by one estimate, hotspots account for 35 percent of the ecosystem services that vulnerable human populations depend on.14
Human-induced changes and phyto-geomorphological relationships in the historical ravaneti landscape of the Carrara marble basin (Tuscany, Italy)
Published in International Journal of Mining, Reclamation and Environment, 2023
Rodolfo Gentili, Linda Alderighi, Alessandro Errico, Maria Cristina Salvatore, Sandra Citterio, Federico Preti, Carlo Baroni
Finally, another environmental problem derives from the quarrying threat represents to the natural heritage of habitats and endemic species present in the Apuan Alps. This mountain range is part of a Mediterranean biodiversity hotspot [12], while the quarries operate at the boundary of the regional protected area of the Apuan Alps. In this framework, the restoration activities suggested are aimed at restoring exploited and degraded areas so as to recreate ecosystem functionality and to recover landscape integrity [3,13–15]. However, no clear consensus has been reached as to the best measures to be adopted in the context of the Carrara marble quarries. Active restoration includes measures such as re-establishing stockpiled topsoil and conducting seeding or planting with selected plant species [16–18]. Passive restoration takes place when no actions are taken and an area is left to spontaneous vegetation dynamics (i.e. succession; [17,19,20]).
Decadal changes in size, salinity, waterbirds, and fish in lakes of the Konya Closed Basin, Turkey, associated with climate change and increasing water abstraction for agriculture
Published in Inland Waters, 2021
Gültekin Yılmaz, Mehmet Arda Çolak, İbrahim Kaan Özgencil, Melisa Metin, Mustafa Korkmaz, Serhat Ertuğrul, Melisa Soyluer, Tuba Bucak, Ülkü Nihan Tavşanoğlu, Korhan Özkan, Zuhal Akyürek, Meryem Beklioğlu, Erik Jeppesen
The KCB hosts 38 fish species, 74% of which are endemic. This extreme endemism ratio is 1.6 times higher than the average ratio for Turkey, which is already a biodiversity hotspot for fishes (384 species, 47.4% endemic; Çiçek et al. 2020). Of the endemic species in the KCB, 61% are considered threatened or near threatened by IUCN (Supplemental Material 3), and the Beyşehir bleak (Alburnus akili), endemic to Lake Beyşehir and its tributaries, is now extinct (Küçük 2012). Endemic fish populations in the KCB have exhibited major reductions over the last few decades (Meke et al. 2012, Yeğen et al. 2015, Küçük et al. 2016), coinciding with habitat loss, and most of the once widespread endemic fish species are now restricted to small refuges (Freyhof et al. 2020). The distribution range contraction of the declining endemic fish populations is indicative of an ongoing extinction process (Pimm et al. 2014, Ceballos et al. 2015).
Reconceptualising responsible research and innovation from a Global South perspective
Published in Journal of Responsible Innovation, 2021
Kutoma Wakunuma, Fabio de Castro, Tilimbe Jiya, Edurne A. Inigo, Vincent Blok, Vincent Bryce
Innovations addressing sustainability are a case in point. The country houses one of the largest biodiversity hotspot in the world where traditional populations have lived for generations (Balee 2015). Territorial attachment and natural resource-based livelihoods have enabled the development of numerous sustainable production initiatives that have been overlooked in the RRI debates. At the same time, technological innovations for large-scale extractive industries have been targeted in innovation research. However, development of seed biotechnology, agro-energy, and water-based energy has involved low levels of citizens’ participation, anticipation and reflexivity and high levels of social and environmental impacts with local and global consequences (Pereira et al. 2020). In contrast, engagement of local communities in innovation with NGOs, social scientists and private businesses has been vital for the development of innovations that address different societal challenges (Cipolla and Moura 2011). These RRI-like initiatives include institutional and social innovations such as community microcredit and startup grants to small-scale technologies as well as sustainable production practices such as seed banks, agroforestry systems, and community-based practices undertaken by marginalized populations. This process has been supported by a range of social policies that promote civil engagement such as formal recognition of cultural rights, participatory procedures, and ethical guidelines.