Both native and invasive bark beetles threaten exotic conifers within the spa towns in the Czech part of “The Great Spas of Europe”

Exotic coniferous trees in forests adjacent to spa towns and in parks within spa towns are increasingly being attacked by outbreak populations of native bark beetles in western Bohemia (Central Europe). In the 12 localities in western Czech Republic the current study, we detected a total of 19 native bark beetle species infesting more than 10 % of exotic tree species in the genera Abies, Picea, Pinus, and Pseudotsuga in 1 year. Several exotic tree species were identified as new hosts for native European bark beetles. We also identified three non-native bark beetles, including Phloeosinus aubei, a species that transmits the pathogens that cause cypress canker disease.The numbers of infested trees in the localities were not correlated with the distance from surrounding bark beetle outbreak sites in commercial forests, because all forests adjacent to spas and all forests in spa towns (i.e., “urban forests”) are close to commercial forests with infested trees. Infestations were greater in spa towns than in the forests adjacent to spa towns. We therefore assume that trees within spa towns will be further attacked due to the increasing abundance of native bark beetles.     

Toward estimating the value of stewardship volunteers: A cost-based valuation approach in King County,Washington, USA

Urban forestry professionals are increasingly challenged to find cost-effective strategies for resource conservation and management. Many organizations partner with citizen groups to host events that enlist volunteers to perform stewardship tasks like tree planting and trail maintenance. These volunteer programs incur costs to both the managing agency and partners, such as staffing, tools, and transportation. Volunteers contribute uncompensated time and expertise. Little is known about these contributions, yet citizen stewards and host groups represent an important human dimension of urban forest management. Using a survey administered to volunteers and host organizations at restoration events in King County Parks, WA, USA, we developed a cost-based approach to estimate the value of stewardship activities that occurred in the spring field season of 2011. Expenditures included volunteer and event host time and direct cost of traveling to and from events, on-site labor, equipment, and preparation costs. Results suggest that contributions made by volunteers and hosts are significant; the combined costs associated with the 17 sampled events was approximately $35,700. These efforts represent a small subset of the more than 1000 volunteer environmental stewardship activities that take place annually in King County.     

Green space branding in Denmark in an era of neoliberal governance

City place branding, an entrepreneurial urban development scheme, aims to differentiate cities from their national and international competitors based on strengths and competitive advantage. One such strength is quality urban green space which has been shown to make cities more attractive and liveable places, drawing people and investments to urban centres. Applying a place branding approach, this paper presents the results of a survey of Danish municipalities and their place branding in terms of crafting green city, or environmentally sustainable, profiles. Based on survey responses from both municipal green space and communication staff, an overview is presented of the status of ‘green’ municipal place branding, with emphasis on branding through green spaces such as parks. Findings show that green concepts such as environmentally sustainable policies as well as biophysical assets such as green spaces are not in focus in municipal place branding campaigns. Moreover, survey results demonstrate that creative professionals and local citizens are the main focus of those municipalities that are branding. There is great potential to emphasize green spaces in municipal placing branding campaigns building on partnerships with the private sector and citizen volunteers.     

Evaluating ecological integrity in national parks: Case studies from Canada and South Africa

Many existing parks are currently experiencing difficulties in achieving their conservation aims, yet they remain an important option for maintaining and enhancing the conservation of biological diversity and ecosystem processes. Critics have claimed that many national parks cannot continue to protect the biological resources within their borders, and the sustainability of these areas over the long-term is in question. Ways need to be found to strengthen those that are failing, and to understand and replicate those that are succeeding. This paper presents the empirical results from a systematic evaluation of how effectively six case study national parks and national park reserves in Canada and South Africa have been protecting ecological integrity. Several parks were effective at addressing the priorities for which they had monitoring data, however the effectiveness rating of each park decreased when all indicators, including those identified as priorities but lacking monitoring data, were analysed. This indicates that the parks had generally identified more priority indicators than they were actually able to address (for many reasons, including lack of budget or trained staff, managerial challenges). Overall, a systematic approach to evaluating ecological integrity in national parks is recommended as the managers of protected areas cannot be expected to conserve the biological diversity and ecosystem processes within their borders if they are unaware of the ecological status of the park’s biodiversity. The paper concludes with several practical recommendations for monitoring ecological integrity in national parks.     

Tree crown traits and planting context contribute to reducing urban heat

Urban warming affects many millions of city dwellers worldwide. The current study evaluated the extent to which trees reduce air and surface temperatures in urban settings across Greater Sydney, Australia. Summertime air and surface temperatures were measured directly in the shade of 470 individual trees planted in three contrasting contexts (parks, nature strips, asphalt) and compared with temperatures in paired adjacent areas receiving full sunlight. Differences between shade and sunlit temperatures were evaluated against measured morphological traits (leaf area index [LAI], clear stem height, crown depth, height and diameter at breast height) for all trees. On average, tree shade reduced mean and maximum air temperatures by 1.1 °C and 3.7 °C, respectively. Temperatures of standardised reference surfaces (black and white tiles and artificial grass) in tree shade were up to 45 °C lower compared to full-sun exposure, and were also lower in parks and nature strips compared to asphalt settings. The surface temperature of shaded natural grass was cooler compared to sunlit natural grass, although this difference did not vary between nature strip and park settings. The magnitude of air and surface temperature reductions due to tree shade was significantly, positively related to tree-level LAI and these relationships were stronger in asphalt and park contexts compared to nature strips. These findings can inform decisions made by urban managers and planners around the selection of tree characteristics to enhance cooling benefits in different contexts, as an important step towards more liveable and resilient cities.     

无锡市（藕塘）职教园区信息资源共享构想

无锡（藕塘）职教园从2005年开始建设,目前各个学院已完成基本硬件建设,但是各个学院几乎都是独立建设,信息资源共享工程进展缓慢。针对如何把职教园从空间的整合深化成内部各层次资源的整合作了积极的探讨。     

城市公园绿地空气负离子相关研究

对江门市3个公园的空气负离子浓度做了调查,结果发现：乔木对环境空气负离子数有显著增加作用;利用安倍指数对三个公园空气质量进行评价,以白水带公园的空气质量等级最高;公园中空气负离子与空气温度呈负相关,与空气相对湿度呈正相关,且都达显著水平。     

城市公园免费开放后面临的管理问题与对策——以上海浦东新区为例

介绍了上海浦东新区公园管理现状,分析了公园免费开放带来的管理问题,提出了解决公园免费开放带来的管理问题的相关对策。最后,探讨了公园管理的新思路。     

Did land protection in Silicon Valley reduce the housing stock?

One widely asserted proposition is that land protection in a metropolitan region can contribute to a scarcity of housing by reducing the total housing stock. However, much land protection occurs on land that is less suitable for development, as slopes are too sleep or because the site is too wet. An alternate hypothesis is that development in lands with these characteristics would likely occur at a lower density, and contribute little to housing stock. This study examines these two competing hypotheses for the southern portion of the San Francisco Bay Area, known as the Silicon Valley. We mapped conservation and urban development in the study area from World War II to the present. We created a counterfactual map, using a regression-based model to examine a “what if” proposition - what would the density of development have been in currently preserved lands if they had been developed like other topographically-similar unprotected sites on the landscape? In our study area, there are currently 790 000 housing units. If conserved lands, which total 47 000 ha, were developed there would likely only be an additional 51 000 housing units. Most conserved land is either too wet to be developed or is of steep enough slope that housing density would likely be low. Our results suggest that land protection had a relatively minor role in limiting the total housing stock of the region.     

The value of unprotected habitat in conserving the critically endangered Tana River red colobus (Procolobus rufomitratus)

We determined the importance of unprotected forest habitat outside the Tana River Primate National Reserve (TRPNR), Kenya, in conserving the critically endangered Tana red colobus. We compared colobus and forest attributes inside and outside the reserve and found no significant difference in colobus density or mean group size, although absolute values for both measures were higher outside the reserve. Forests outside TRPNR had a higher basal area of trees, basal area per tree, and basal area of stumps from human use. We also compared data on group size and composition collected inside and outside TRPNR during the period of reserve establishment (1978), 10 years after establishment (1988) and over 20 years after establishment (2000). Mean group size declined by nearly 50% since the reserve was established across all age classes both inside and outside TRPNR. Since the red colobus population is in decline and forests outside TRPNR are as suitable as those inside as colobus habitat, we recommend adopting a community-based conservation strategy of sustainable forest management and use outside TRPNR to enhance conservation goals.