Getting elections right? Measuring electoral integrity

Holding elections has become a global norm. Unfortunately, the integrity of elections varies strongly, ranging from “free and fair” elections with genuine contestation to “façade” elections marred by manipulation and fraud. Clearly, electoral integrity is a topic of increasing concern. Yet electoral integrity is notoriously difficult to measure, and hence taking stock of the available data is important. This article compares cross-national data sets measuring electoral integrity. The first part evaluates how the different data sets (a) conceptualize electoral integrity, (b) move from concepts to indicators, and (c) move from indicators to data. The second part analyses how different data sets code the same elections, seeking to explain the sources of disagreement about electoral integrity. The sample analysed comprises 746 elections in 95 third and fourth wave regimes from 1974 until 2009. I find that conceptual and measurement choices affect disagreement about election integrity, and also find that elections of lower integrity and post-conflict elections generate higher disagreement about election integrity. The article concludes with a discussion of results and suggestions for future research

Secondary Metabolites of Pseudomonas fluorescens CHA0 Drive Complex Non-Trophic Interactions with Bacterivorous Nematodes

Non-trophic interactions are increasingly recognised as a key parameter of predator–prey interactions. In soil, predation by bacterivorous nematodes is a major selective pressure shaping soil bacterial communities, and many bacteria have evolved defence mechanisms such as toxicity. In this study, we show that extracellular secondary metabolites produced by the model soil bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens CHA0 function as a complex defence strategy against bacterivorous nematodes. Using a collection of functional mutants lacking genes for the biosynthesis of one or several extracellular metabolites, we evaluated the impact of bacterial secondary metabolites on the survival and chemotactic behaviour of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Additionally, we followed up the stress status of the nematodes by measuring the activation of the abnormal DAuer Formation (DAF) stress cascade. All studied secondary metabolites contributed to the toxicity of the bacteria, with hydrogen cyanide efficiently repelling the nematodes, and both hydrogen cyanide and 2,4-DAPG functioning as nematicides. Moreover, these metabolites elicited the DAF stress response cascade of C. elegans, showing that they affect nematode physiology already at sublethal concentrations. The results suggest that bacterial secondary metabolites responsible for the suppression of plant pathogens strongly inhibit bacterivorous nematodes and thus likely contribute to the resistance of bacteria against predators in soil

Managed aquifer recharge in farming landscapes using large floods: an opportunity to improve outcomes for the Murray-Darling Basin?

Conjunctive use of surface and groundwater through managed aquifer recharge (MAR) is underway in Australia, principally to reuse urban wastewater. The opportunity for MAR in farming landscapes has received less attention, and the extent this might occur using water from large flood events or dam releases has not been examined. This paper addresses that gap by providing an overview of the potential benefits and challenges to implementing MAR using water from large floods, examining the social acceptability of MAR amongst groundwater licence holders in the Namoi Valley, and identifying future research needed to assess this opportunity. The appeal of MAR using water from large flood events is the opportunity it affords to replenish aquifers, return linkages between depleted groundwater and surface flows, and buffer the impacts of drought on irrigators and aquatic ecosystems. Most of the respondents to the Namoi survey agreed that MAR has merit. However, some research informants were concerned about the impact of recharge on groundwater quality and the possibility that MAR would be another intervention that would lead to over-exploitation of a scarce resource. A number of ways to implement MAR using large flood events are also canvassed and we identify next steps for the assessment of those options.</p

Acquiring water for the environment: lessons from natural resources management

Over-allocation of water resources to irrigation, industry, and cities has severely impacted flow-dependent riverine ecosystems and led to growing interest in ways to restore water to the environment; one increasingly popular approach is water buybacks. This paper reviews US and Australian experiences in buying back water, focusing on the conditions which enable and inhibit environmental water acquisitions in each country. We also compare experiences with buyback efforts in fisheries, another natural resource sector. Lessons from these experiences provide important insights into how future water buyback programmes to acquire environmental water could be operated more effectively. The review suggests that the overall success of an environmental water buyback is likely to be enhanced by (1) legal and institutional settings which clearly define water rights and lower administrative and other barriers to water transfers, (2) non-governmental organizations and community groups which play a complementary role to government, (3) creation of a system that will fairly distribute future risk of water availability and provide choices for a variety of ways of obtaining water, and (4) efforts that minimize negative community impacts, thus helping to maximize irrigator participation.Chelsea C. Lane-Miller, Sarah Wheeler, Henning Bjornlund & Jeffrey Conno