Protected landscape areas and regional development (the case of the Czech Republic)

The focal point of this article is to discuss whether or not, or to which extent, nature protection can be considered a factor differentiating the level or speed of regional socio-economic development. We decided to use empirical evidence in order to test the historical belief that nature protection poses limits to economic development that may lead to stagnation if not decline in areas where it is applied. We used three large-scale Czech protected areas and tested the hypothesis saying that areas under special regime of management due to nature protection suffer from economic underdevelopment. Based on the analysis both of objective data and subjective reflection of the situation by local popidation we can conclude that protected areas should not be seen as territories a priori handicapped

A decision support system for integrated tourism development: rethinking tourism policies and management strategies

Identifying the most appropriate institutional structures and strategies to integrate the views and coordinate the actions of diverse tourism stakeholders is a key stage in the development of integrated tourism in rural and lagging areas. In this work a Decision Support System (DSS) is developed which combines tools to assist in the analysis of the views, concerns and planned strategies of a wide range of tourism stakeholders in the face of given trends in tourists' expectations. The role and suitability of such an approach is examined in the real situation of three case-study areas in Auvergne (France), umava Mountains (Czech Republic) and Evrytania (Greece). Two major sets of results are discussed. Firstly, there are the impacts of given hypothetical tourism policies developed by simulating the views and strategies of the different tourism stakeholders. Secondly, the paper considers the relative benefits and disadvantages for integrated tourism if collaborative negotiations take place among the different tourism stakeholders. The paper concludes by examining the usefulness of such an approach for tourism planners

Microsatellite-based genetic diversity and differentiation of foreign common carp (Cyprinus carpio) strains farmed in the Czech Republic

This study set out to improve our understanding of the molecular genetic characteristics of imported strains of common carp reared in the Czech Republic. To do this we characterized the genetic diversity and population structure of 11 carp strains including two farmed strains from Germany (Scheuerman and Glinzig mirror carp) and France (Forez and Dombez scaly carp), one farmed population from Amur river basins, and one feral population from the Ebro River (Spain), by microsatellite analysis of 10 loci. Mean heterozygosity within populations ranged from 0.584 to 0.700, and the mean number of alleles per population ranged from 5.0 to 9.8. Of the analysed loci, 92 out of 130 possible tests were found to deviate significantly (P < 0.05) from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium revealing significant heterozygote deficit after Bonferroni correction. Global analysis of hierarchical gene diversity (AMOVA) further revealed that the total genetic variation among populations was 21%, whilst variation within populations was estimated to be 79%. After grouping, the majority of total microsatellite loci variation appeared to be due to variation within populations. A relationship tree based on Nei's DA genetic distance and the UPGMA algorithm grouped the strains and populations into two major clusters, reflecting their affiliation to the European/Central Asian or East-Asian subspecies of common carp, rather than their country of origin. An individual assignment test (self-classification) using a Bayesian method demonstrated 89.6% accuracy in assigning individuals into their correct strains/population of origin at P < 0.05. Thus, the set of 10 highly polymorphic microsatellite markers used in the present study demonstrated significant worth in monitoring the genetic diversity of cultured common carp. Additionally, our results proved the efficiency of the conservation programme and highlighted the need for better control of genetic variability in common carp strains. This could also be useful for the conservation of carp strains in the Czech Republic. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Airbag for the closing of pipelines on explosions and leakages

This paper is a result of international effort aimed at the construction of a device for quick closing of pipelines in the case of explosion propagation and/or chemical leakage. Such a problem exists in industries where flammable substances are transported by pipelines. The basic solution principle was the idea to use airbags similar to those utilized in cars. Two pipeline applications were taken into consideration: a low-pressure module able to suppress explosion propagation and a high-pressure module to stop leakages from, e.g. natural gas pipeline capable to be used for duct diameters up to 0.6 m, pressures up to 5 MPa and reaction times of 50 ms. It was necessary to construct a new airbag, capable of withstanding up to 10 bar pressure. The choice of material was critical to ensure sufficient strength and chemical resistance while retaining impermeability. CFD modeling of the bag deployment into a pipe flow and analysis of the bag shapes was also completed. Two gas generators were constructed and tested with novel propellant materials. Different airbag models were tested to evaluate their effectiveness. Risk analysis approach was applied to evaluate the safety and economic benefits of the new technology in different fields of application

Rising temperature modulates pH niches of fen species

Rising temperatures may endanger fragile ecosystems because their character and key species show different habitat affinities under different climates. This assumption has only been tested in limited geographical scales. In fens, one of the most endangered ecosystems in Europe, broader pH niches have been reported from cold areas and are expected for colder past periods. We used the largest European-scale vegetation database from fens to test the hypothesis that pH interacts with macroclimate temperature in forming realized niches of fen moss and vascular plant species. We calibrated the data set (29,885 plots after heterogeneity-constrained resampling) with temperature, using two macroclimate variables, and with the adjusted pH, a variable combining pH and calcium richness. We modelled temperature, pH and water level niches for one hundred species best characterizing European fens using generalized additive models and tested the interaction between pH and temperature. Fifty-five fen species showed a statistically significant interaction between pH and temperature (adj p ˂.01). Forty-six of them (84%) showed a positive interaction manifested by a shift or restriction of their niche to higher pH in warmer locations. Nine vascular plants and no moss showed the opposite interaction. Mosses showed significantly greater interaction. We conclude that climate significantly modulates edaphic niches of fen plants, especially bryophytes. This result explains previously reported regional changes in realized pH niches, a current habitat-dependent decline of endangered taxa, and distribution changes in the past. A warmer climate makes growing seasons longer and warmer, increases productivity, and may lower the water level. These effects prolong the duration and intensity of interspecific competition, support highly competitive Sphagnum mosses, and, as such, force niches of specialized fen species towards narrower high-pH ranges. Recent anthropogenic landscape changes pose a severe threat to many fen species and call for mitigation measures to lower competition pressure in their refugia