Ana Villarroya

Communication gaps in knowledge of freshwater fish biodiversity: implications for the management and conservation of Mexican biosphere reserves.

To detect differences in the information available on freshwater fish species found in Mexican biosphere reserves, the number of species considered in three sources of information: management programmes, Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and the scientific literature were compared. Additionally, management actions for the reserves were evaluated. More than 55% of freshwater fish species registered for the reserves were found only in one of the three sources of information, while just 12% was shared among all the three. Fifteen threatened species were registered in GBIF and the scientific literature that were not found in management programmes. Although all the management programmes described conservation actions, none of them gave details about how they would be implemented. Lack of communication among the sources studied, unawareness of the existence of threatened species and the absence of detailed management actions hinder the development of adequate conservation strategies.

Valuation of residual impacts of roads on landscape ecological units in Navarre, Spain

Road construction generally reduces the ecological value of the environment. To recover it, the value of the residual ecological impacts should be counterbalanced by compensation measures within the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) procedure. Ecological valuation and impact valuation are central to EIA performance. As long as residual impacts are valued, the rationale behind specific compensation proposals may be strengthened. This paper proposes a simple, transparent and adaptable approach to ecological and impact valuation. It aims at improving the perception, compilation and valuation of certain residual ecological impacts, as a means to encourage compensation practice within EIA.