Evaluación crítica de la comprensión y del conocimiento actuales en el contexto de una aproximación ecosistémica a la gestión pesquera en el Mar Mediterráneo y el Mar Negro

A critical review was carried out involving experts from 17 countries, to identify, summarize and evaluate the current understanding related to the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries management (EAF) in the Mediterranean and Black Seas. The existing information available at country level, coming from research and monitoring projects and other types of activities, was explored. The evaluation was done following a standardized protocol and using simple semi-quantitative methods. The results highlighted an overall low-medium degree of fulfilment of the requirements of the EAF, with some differences related to the different issues considered. The highest scores were reported for the knowledge related to fleet structure/ behaviour and species/habitat distribution, whereas the lowest scores were reported for modelling, and socio-economic and management issues. Although only semi-quantitative, these results provided an initial picture at a broad regional level on the state of knowledge with a view to a proper implementation of the EAF in the Mediterranean and Black Seas, and identified gaps in scientific knowledge that should be covered.Se llevó a cabo una revisión crítica con la intervención de expertos de 17 países para la identificación, resumen y evaluación del conocimiento actual en relación a la Aproximación Ecosistémica a la Gestión Pesquera (EAF) en el Mar Mediterráneo y el Mar Negro. Se explora la información existente a nivel de cada país, derivada de proyectos de investigación y seguimiento, así como otros tipos de actividades. Se llevó a cabo una evaluación siguiendo un protocolo estandardizado y el uso de métodos semi-cuantitativos. Los resultados muestran que en general el grado de cumplimiento con los requerimientos de EAF es bajo-medio, con algunas diferencias relacionadas con los distintos aspectos considerados. Las puntuaciones más elevadas correspondieron al conocimiento relacionado con la estructura de flota y su comportamiento, así como con la distribución espacial de hábitats y especies. Las puntuaciones más bajas correspondieron a aspectos relacionados con la modelización, la socio-economía y la gestión. A pesar de su carácter semi-cuantitativo, estos resultados proporcionan una primera imagen a nivel regional del estado de conocimiento del que se parte para una implementación adecuada de EAF en el Mar Mediterráneo y el Mar Negro y ayuda a identificar las carencias en el conocimiento científico que deben ser corregidas

Synthesis and analysis of separation processes for extracellular chemicals generated from microbial conversions

Recent advances in metabolic engineering have enabled the production of chemicals via bio-conversion using microbes. However, downstream separation accounts for 60–80% of the total production cost in many cases. Previous work on microbial production of extracellular chemicals has been mainly restricted to microbiology, biochemistry, metabolomics, or techno-economic analysis for specific product examples such as succinic acid, xanthan gum, lycopene, etc. In these studies, microbial production and separation technologies were selected apriori without considering any competing alternatives. However, technology selection in downstream separation and purification processes can have a major impact on the overall costs, product recovery, and purity. To this end, we apply a superstructure optimization based framework that enables the identification of critical technologies and their associated parameters in the synthesis and analysis of separation processes for extracellular chemicals generated from microbial conversions. We divide extracellular chemicals into three categories based on their physical properties, such as water solubility, physical state, relative density, volatility, etc. We analyze three major extracellular product categories (insoluble light, insoluble heavy and soluble) in detail and provide suggestions for additional product categories through extension of our analysis framework. The proposed analysis and results provide significant insights for technology selection and enable streamlined decision making when faced with any microbial product that is released extracellularly. The parameter variability analysis for the product as well as the associated technologies and comparison with novel alternatives is a key feature which forms the basis for designing better bioseparation strategies that have potential for commercial scalability and can compete with traditional chemical production methods

Estrategias de pesca y Aproximación Ecosistémica de Pesquerías en el Mediterráneo oriental

The sustainable use of aquatic living resources is the cornerstone of the ecosystem approach to fisheries management (EAF). Excess fishing effort leading to the degradation of fishery resources and significant economic waste is globally recognized by resource managers as a major problem for the implementation of the EAF and European’s Union Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). Knowledge of how fishers allocate their fishing effort in space and time is essential to understand how a fishery develops. Understanding fishing strategies is also vital for predicting how a fishery might respond to proposed management changes such as effort/area restrictions and introduction of a marine protected area, and for drawing up a management policy. Random utility models were used to examine the factors affecting fishers’ behaviour in the NE Mediterranean. The probability of selecting a specific fishing rectangle was estimated using monthly purse seine data. The predictive inputs concerned both subjective behavioural and objective seasonal and technical-economic characteristics. The present study provided direct evidence of the important role that the strategic decision-making behaviour of fishers could play in understanding the way the industry will respond to changes in resource availability, market conditions and management measures under the EAF principle.El uso sostenible de los recursos vivos acuáticos es la piedra angular del enfoque ecosistémico en la gestión de pesquerías (EAF). El exceso de esfuerzo pesquero, responsable de la degradación de los recursos pesqueros y pérdidas econocómicas significativas, es generalmente reconocido por los gestores pesqueros como el principal problema para la implementación del EAF y de la Política Pesquera Común Europea (PPC). El conocimiento de la forma en la que los pescadores localizan su esfuerzo pesquero en espacio y tiempo es esencial para comprender como se desarrolla una pesquería. Entender las estrategias pesqueras es vital también para predecir como una pesquería puede responder en función de cambios de gestión propuestos como restricciones esfuerzo/área, introducción de Áreas Marinas Protegidas (MPA) y en la aplicación de la política de gestión. Para examinar los factores que afectan el comportamiento de la elección de los pescadores del Mediterráneo oriental se han utilizado Modelos de Utilidad Aleatorios (RUMs). La probabilidad de seleccionar un rectángulo específico de pesca fue estimada utilizando datos mensuales de cerqueros. Los datos predictivos de entrada incluían ambos comportamientos, tanto subjetivos como objetivos, estacionales y características técnico-económicas. El presente estudio proporciona indicios claros de la importancia que puede tener la estrategia en la toma de decisiones de los pescadores en la forma en que la industria responderá a los cambios en la disponibilidad de los recursos, condiciones del mercado y medidas de gestión basadas en el principio del EAF

El boliche en Grecia: Perfiles de descargas e identificación de potenciales artes menores

Although boat seines have a significant share in the total fish landings in Greece, there is little information on boat seine fisheries. The present study aims to identify boat seine métiers on a national level and contribute to a better understanding of their operation in Greece. We used boat seine landings data collected from a large number of ports in the Aegean and east Ionian Sea between 2002 and 2006. The landings profiles were grouped with a two-step procedure: the first step involved a factorial analysis of the log-transformed landings profiles, and the second step was a classification of the factorial coordinates (hierarchical agglomerative clustering). Six métiers were identified in the Aegean Sea, and three in the Ionian Sea. The ‘picarel-bogue’ métier was the most important in both seas, accounting for 54% and 88% of the fishing trips of the sample in the Aegean and Ionian Seas respectively. Apart from picarel and bogue, other important target species were red mullet, European squid, common pandora, chub mackerel, and European pilchard. Varying spatial (within the Aegean and Ionian Seas) and seasonal patterns were evident for the identified métiers.Aunque la flota de boliche contribuya en una cantidad significativa en las descargas totales de pescado en Grecia, la información que trata de la pesca con boliche es escasa. El presente estudio pretende identificar el arte (métier) del boliche en un nivel nacional y contribuir a una mejor comprensión de su operación en Grecia. Se han utilizado los datos de las descargas de la pesca con boliche, recogidos entre 2002 y 2006 en un gran número de puertos en la costa del Mar Egeo y Mar Jónico oriental. Los perfiles de las descargas fueron agrupados siguiendo un procedimiento en dos etapas: el primer paso consistió en un análisis factorial de los perfiles de descargas transformados logarítmicamente, y el segundo paso en una clasificación de las coordenadas factoriales (agrupamiento aglomerativo jerárquico). Se identificaron seis artes menores en el Mar Egeo, y tres en el mar Jónico. El arte menor “caramel-boga” ha sido el principal en ambos mares, alcanzándose valores del 54% y del 88% respecto al número total de las jornadas de pesca muestreadas en el Mar Egeo y Mar Jónico respectivamente. Aparte de caramel y boga, otras especies objetivo de importancia fueron los salmonetes, el calamar, la breca, el estorino y la sardina. Los artes menores identificados han mostrado unos patrones espaciales (dentro de ambos Mar Egeo y Mar Ionio) y estacionales

Closed-Loop Scheduling for Cost Minimization in HVAC Central Plants

In this paper, we examine closed-loop operation of an HVAC central plant to demonstrate that closed-loop receding-horizon scheduling provides robustness to inaccurate forecasts, and that economic performance is not seriously impaired by shortened prediction horizons or inaccurate forecasts when feedback is employed. Using a general mixed-integer linear programming formulation for the scheduling problem, we show that optimization can be performed in real time. Furthermore, we demonstrate that closed-loop operation with a moderate prediction horizon is not significantly worse than a long-horizon implementation in the nominal case, and that closed-loop operation can correct for inaccurate long-term forecasts without significant cost increase. In addition, we show that terminal constraints can be employed to ensure recursive feasibility. The end result is that forecasts of demand need not be extremely accurate over long times, indicating that closed-loop scheduling can be implemented in new or existing central plants

“Once upon a Time in the Mediterranean”. Long Term Trends of Mediterranean Fisheries Resources Based on Fishers’ Traditional Ecological Knowledge

We investigate long-term changes in the Mediterranean marine resources driving the trawl fisheries by analysing fishers’ perceptions (Traditional Ecological Knowledge, TEK) throughout the Mediterranean Sea for the last 80 years. To this end, we conducted an extended set of interviews with old experienced fishers that enabled us to classify species (or taxa) as 'decreasing' or 'increasing' both in terms of abundance, as well as average size in the catch. The aspect that most clearly emerged in all the investigated areas over time was the notable increase of fishing capacity indicators, such as engine power and fishing depth range. Atlantic mackerel, poor cod, scorpionfishes, striped seabream, and John Dory demonstrated a decreasing trend in the fishers' perceived abundance, while Mediterranean parrotfish, common pandora, cuttlefish, blue and red shrimp, and mullets gave indications of an increasing temporal trend. Although, as a rule, trawler captains did not report any cataclysmic changes (e.g. extinctions), when they were invited to estimate total overall catches, a clear decreasing pattern emerged; this being a notable finding taking into account the steep escalation of fishing efficiency during the past century. The overall deteriorating status of stocks in most Mediterranean regions calls for responsible management and design of rebuilding plans. This should include historical information accounting for past exploitation patterns that could help defining a baseline of fish abundance prior to heavy industrial fisheries exploitation.JRC.G.3-Maritime affair

Identifying four phytoplankton functional types from space: An ecological approach

Deriving maps of phytoplankton taxa based on remote sensing data using bio-optical properties of phytoplankton alone is challenging. A more holistic approach was developed using artificial neural networks, incorporating ecological and geographical knowledge together with ocean color, bio-optical characteristics, and remotely sensed physical parameters. Results show that the combined remote sensing approach could discriminate four major phytoplankton functional types (diatoms, dinoflagellates, coccolithophores, and silicoflagellates) with an accuracy of more than 70%. Models indicate that the most important information for phytoplankton functional type discrimination is spatio-temporal information and sea surface temperature. This approach can supply data for large-scale maps of predicted phytoplankton functional types, and an example is shown

A Case Study of Economic Optimization of HVAC Systems based on the Stanford University Campus Airside and Waterside Systems

Commercial buildings account for $200 billion per year in energy expenditures, with heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems accounting for most of these costs. In energy markets with time-varying prices and peak demand charges, a significant potential for cost savings is provided by using thermal energy storage to shift energy loads. Since most implementations of HVAC control systems do not optimize energy costs, they have become a primary focus for new strategies aimed at economic optimization. Model predictive control (MPC) has emerged as one popular method to achieve this load shifting, while respecting system constraints. MPC uses a model of the system to make predictions and to solve an optimization problem. Much research has shown the benefits of MPC over alternative strategies for HVAC control [1]. However, some industrial applications, such as large research centers or university campuses, are too large to be solved in a single MPC instance. Decompositions have been proposed in the literature, but it is difficult to evaluate and to compare decompositions against one another when using different systems. In this paper, we present a large-scale relevant case study where solving a single MPC optimization problem is neither desirable nor feasible for real-time implementations. The study is modeled after the Stanford University campus, consisting of both an airside and waterside system [2]. The airside system includes 500 zones spread throughout 25 campus buildings along with the air handler units and regulatory building automation system used for temperature regulation. The waterside system includes the central plant equipment, such as chillers, that is used to meet the load from the buildings. Active thermal energy storage is available to the campus in addition to the passive thermal energy storage present in the form of building mass. The airside models describe the temperature dynamics in each of the 500 zones, and the waterside models describe the power consumption of the central plant equipment. The aim of the control system is to minimize costs in the presence of time-varying electricity prices and a peak demand charge as well as environmental disturbances such as weather while meeting constraints on comfort and equipment. We perform an economic optimization of the entire campus using a hierarchical system with distributed airside controllers to demonstrate the potential savings. The models from this case study are made publicly available for other researchers interested in designing alternative control strategies for managing chilled water production to meet airside loads. The aim of the case study release is to provide a standardized problem for the research community. A benchmark is provided for evaluating performance. References [1] A. Afram and F. Janabi-Sharifi. Theory and applications of HVAC control systems—A review of model predictive control (MPC). Building and Environment, 72:343–355, February 2014. [2] J. B. Rawlings, N. R. Patel, M. J. Risbeck, C. T. Maravelias, M. J. Wenzel, and R. D. Turney. Economic MPC and real-time decision making with application to large-scale HVAC energy systems. Computers & Chemical Engineering, 2017. In Press