Selective border permeability: Governing complex environmental issues through and beyond COVID-19

Spatiotemporal patterns and influencing factors of coupling coordination development of ecosystem services and urbanization: a case of western border counties in China

Introduction

The spatial distribution of border regions highly overlaps with key ecological function zones and economically underdeveloped areas, making the coordination between urbanization and ecosystem service value (ESV) crucial.

Methods

Taking China's western border counties as a case study, this study explores the spatiotemporal variation characteristics of ESV, urbanization levels, and their coupling coordination relationship. By applying the Obstacle Degree Model and the geodetector analysis, we identify the factors that obstruct and drive the coordinated development of the ESV-urbanization coupling system from both internal and external perspectives.

Results

(1) From 2000 to 2020, ESV in China's western border counties declined gradually, while the urbanization increased with significant spatial imbalances in development. (2) In most border counties, the coupling coordination degree (CCD) of ESV and urbanization was either mildly or severely unbalanced, and a growing number of counties experienced lagging ESV. In particular, some counties exhibited synchronous declines in both ESV and urbanization, posing a significant threat to regional sustainable development. (3) The main obstacle factors of CCD include social security, industrial structure and ecological regulation functions, while the primary driving factors are precipitation, temperature, and net primary productivity (NPP). (4) The interaction of tourism, stable ecological areas and government actions with other factors significantly enhances the driving effect on CCD in border counties.

Conclusion

This study provides policy recommendations and a practical basis for promoting synergistic development between ESV and urbanization in China's western border counties and other similar border regions.

Wastewater surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 genomic populations on a country-wide scale through targeted sequencing

SARS-CoV-2 surveillance of viral populations in wastewater samples is recognized as a useful tool for monitoring epidemic waves and boosting health preparedness. Next generation sequencing of viral RNA isolated from wastewater is a convenient and cost-effective strategy to understand the molecular epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 and provide insights on the population dynamics of viral variants at the community level. However, in low- and middle-income countries, isolated groups have performed wastewater monitoring and data has not been extensively shared in the scientific community. Here we report the results of monitoring the co-circulation and abundance of variants of concern (VOCs) of SARS-CoV-2 in Uruguay, a small country in Latin America, between November 2020-July 2021 using wastewater surveillance. RNA isolated from wastewater was characterized by targeted sequencing of the Receptor Binding Domain region within the spike gene. Two computational approaches were used to track the viral variants. The results of the wastewater analysis showed the transition in the overall predominance of viral variants in wastewater from No-VOCs to successive VOCs, in agreement with clinical surveillance from sequencing of nasal swabs. The mutations K417T, E484K and N501Y, that characterize the Gamma VOC, were detected as early as December 2020, several weeks before the first clinical case was reported. Interestingly, a non-synonymous mutation described in the Delta VOC, L452R, was detected at a very low frequency since April 2021 when using a recently described sequence analysis tool (SAM Refiner). Wastewater NGS-based surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 is a reliable and complementary tool for monitoring the introduction and prevalence of VOCs at a community level allowing early public health decisions. This approach allows the tracking of symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals, who are generally under-reported in countries with limited clinical testing capacity. Our results suggests that wastewater-based epidemiology can contribute to improving public health responses in low- and middle-income countries.

Priorities to inform research on marine plastic pollution in Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia is considered to have some of the highest levels of marine plastic pollution in the world. It is therefore vitally important to increase our understanding of the impacts and risks of plastic pollution to marine ecosystems and the essential services they provide to support the development of mitigation measures in the region. An interdisciplinary, international network of experts (Australia, Indonesia, Ireland, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam) set a research agenda for marine plastic pollution in the region, synthesizing current knowledge and highlighting areas for further research in Southeast Asia. Using an inductive method, 21 research questions emerged under five non-predefined key themes, grouping them according to which: (1) characterise marine plastic pollution in Southeast Asia; (2) explore its movement and fate across the region; (3) describe the biological and chemical modifications marine plastic pollution undergoes; (4) detail its environmental, social, and economic impacts; and, finally, (5) target regional policies and possible solutions. Questions relating to these research priority areas highlight the importance of better understanding the fate of marine plastic pollution, its degradation, and the impacts and risks it can generate across communities and different ecosystem services. Knowledge of these aspects will help support actions which currently suffer from transboundary problems, lack of responsibility, and inaction to tackle the issue from its point source in the region. Being profoundly affected by marine plastic pollution, Southeast Asian countries provide an opportunity to test the effectiveness of innovative and socially inclusive changes in marine plastic governance, as well as both high and low-tech solutions, which can offer insights and actionable models to the rest of the world.