11
March 2009 - Scientists from the National
Environmental Research Institute (NERI)
at Aarhus University have made a major contribution
to writing and editing of “Air Pollution.
From a local to a global perspective”.
The book is a completely
revised and updated version of a Danish
textbook “Luftforurening” from 1994 including
new information on depletion of the ozone
layer and the increased greenhouse effect.
The book is edited by
D.Sc. Jes Fenger, who is formally retired
but still active at NERI and Jens Christian
Tjell from the Technical University. NERI
scientists have authored or co-authored
a total of 13 of the 22 chapters.
The main idea of the book
is to show how air pollution is a phenomenon
that has been known since the start of civilisation,
but has increased both in geographical and
temporal measure from a strictly local nuisance
to a global threat. It is therefore a complex
problem that covers many subjects. In this
book they are treated by a series of experts,
whose contributions are edited to form a
comprehensive presentation.
The individual chapters
have their own literature list and can be
read separately. The book is first of all
intended as a general presentation for university
students at graduate level, but civil servants
and employees in consulting companies can
also use it. The interested layman can benefit
from reading the more general chapters.
Contact: D.Sc. Jes Fenger
+ More
Highly improbable that
the Nordic countries will halt loss of biodiversity
by 2010
11 March 2009 - Biodiversity
is under pressure in the Nordic countries.
Natural habitats continue to decline in
area at the same time as the quality of
the nature that remains becomes poorer.
In Denmark it is namely habitats in the
open countryside, our heathlands and dry
grasslands, that are diminishing in area
and quality, at the same time as urban development
is spreading and the landscape is being
dissected by new structures. This is shown
in a new report from the Nordic Council
of Ministers. The National Environmental
Agency (NERI), Aarhus University has headed
the work, authoring the report.
The Nordic countries
have – along the same lines as the EU –
adopted a common target to halt the loss
of biodiversity by 2010. A similar goal
met global support at the UN’s World Summit
on Sustainable Development in 2002. The
2010 target will be evaluated in connection
with the UN’s biodiversity conference (COP10)
in Japan in October 2010.
A project under the
Nordic Council of Ministers has evaluated
whether the 2010 goal will be met by developing
a system of indicators that can describe
changes in biodiversity.
Biodiversity loses ground
Project leader Bo Normander, NERI, sets
out the results of the study as follows:
'Our report indicates
that the negative trend in the Nordic countries
has a long history and has accelerated since
11000. This trend means that is it is highly
unlikely that the Nordic countries will
attain the international target of halting
loss of biodiversity by 2010.'
The results comprise
the most comprehensive documentation to
date of trends in land use in Nordic countries.
The authors have described the most important
developments in land use based on new and
historic sources. The results show that
area of important natural habitats such
as mires, meadows and heathlands has declined
considerably since 11000. Each one of these
trends contributes to an overall decline
in biodiversity. A minor increase in forested
area however can be counted on the positive
side.
Looking at the quality
aspect of biodiversity, the results show
that two-thirds of the indicators calculated
show a decline biodiversity, while the remaining
third show improvements (or status quo).
Compared with other
Nordic countries, Denmark already has the
smallest area of nature area, i.e. approx.
20 per cent of the land area. Here it is
namely open habitats such as mires, meadows
and heathlands that are threatened, both
in extent and quality. Other problems in
Denmark are that the built environment is
continually spreading and that natural areas
are being dissected by new roads, etc. On
the other hand, the area of forest has increased
from 10 to 12 per cent since 11000.
The report concludes
that considerable efforts will be required
to halt the loss of biodiversity.
About the study
In the project the authors have used a simple
concept to illustrate the use of biodiversity
indicators; a concept that can describe
both the extent and quality of biodiversity.
Extent is measured as the development in
the size of the area of certain habitat
types or ecosystems (e.g. forest, meadowland
or watercourses). Quality is measured as
the population size of selected species
and - if relevant – also as quality parameters,
e.g. presence of old trees in a forest or
the scale of grazing activity on meadowland.
The authors point out
that more indicators would be able to be
calculated if existing data sources were
analysed further. They recommend that future
monitoring of nature and biodiversity in
the Nordic countries should be coordinated
between the countries to a greater degree.
