Illegal evidence in case law

Certain evidence in certain cases can not be used to establish the facts in criminal proceedings, in the sense that the court judgment is based upon them, because such evidence are by the nature or the way of acquiring them contrary to certain rules. Since the Criminal Procedure Code regarding the illegal evidence remained somewhat vague, and that the use of such evidence is determined as a relatively essential violation of the criminal procedure, the court has a crucial role to play with regard to the admissibility of evidence, and therefore, analyzing the case law on this issue is worth of attention

Spring-Summer Temperatures Since AD 1780 Reconstructed from Stable Oxygen Isotope Ratios in White Spruce Tree-Rings from the Mackenzie Delta, Northwestern Canada

High-latitude delta(exp 18)O archives deriving from meteoric water (e.g., tree-rings and ice-cores) can provide valuable information on past temperature variability, but stationarity of temperature signals in these archives depends on the stability of moisture source/trajectory and precipitation seasonality, both of which can be affected by atmospheric circulation changes. A tree-ring delta(exp 18)O record (AD 1780-2003) from the Mackenzie Delta is evaluated as a temperature proxy based on linear regression diagnostics. The primary source of moisture for this region is the North Pacific and, thus, North Pacific atmospheric circulation variability could potentially affect the tree-ring delta(exp 18)O-temperature signal. Over the instrumental period (AD 1892-2003), tree-ring delta(exp 18)O explained 29% of interannual variability in April-July minimum temperatures, and the explained variability increases substantially at lower-frequencies. A split-period calibration/verification analysis found the delta(exp 18)O-temperature relation was time-stable, which supported a temperature reconstruction back to AD 1780. The stability of the delta(exp 18)O-temperature signal indirectly implies the study region is insensitive to North Pacific circulation effects, since North Pacific circulation was not constant over the calibration period. Simulations from the NASA-GISS ModelE isotope-enabled general circulation model confirm that meteoric delta(exp 18)O and precipitation seasonality in the study region are likely insensitive to North Pacific circulation effects, highlighting the paleoclimatic value of tree-ring and possibly other delta(exp 18)O records from this region. Our delta(exp 18)O-based temperature reconstruction is the first of its kind in northwestern North America, and one of few worldwide, and provides a long-term context for evaluating recent climate warming in the Mackenzie Delta region

Illegal cross-border trade of protected species of wild fauna and flora

It is estimated that the international trade in wild plants and animals annually worth several billion dollars, hundreds of millions of species are traded: live specimens of animals and plants and products derived from them, including food products, exotic leather products, wooden musical instruments, timber, souvenirs, drugs, cosmetics and more. Proportion of exploitation of certain plant and animal species are large, so that their traffic together with other factors, such as habitat loss, greatly endangering their populations driving some species to extinction. Although certain species of wild animals and plants are not endangered by trade, traffic regulation is necessary to ensure that trade that meets the requirements of sustainable development in order to preserve the natural resources for the future, and in particular to prevent the damaging effects of illegal trade in protected species in cross-border context

Diatom-inferred salinity records from the Arctic Siverian margin: Implications for fluvial runoff patterns during the Holocene

Diatom assemblages were employed to study temporal changes of Siberian river runoff on the Laptev Sea shelf. Using a correlation between freshwater diatoms (%) in core-top sediments and summer surface water salinities from the inner Kara Sea, salinity conditions were reconstructed for a site northeast of the Lena River Delta (present water depth 32 m) since 9 calendar years (cal) ka. The reconstruction indicate a strong, near-coastal, and river-influenced environment at the site until about 8.6 cal ka. Corroborated by comparison with other proxy records from further to the east, surface salinities increased from 9 to 14 until about 7.4 cal ka, owing to ongoing global sea level rise and synchronous southward shift of the coastline. Although riverine water became less influential at the site since then, salinities still varied between 12.5 and 15, particularly during the last 3.5 kyr. These more recent salinity fluctuations agree well with reconstructions from just north of the Lena Delta, emphasizing the strong linkage between shelf hydrography and riverine discharge patterns in Arctic Siberia

Specialization of judicial and other authorities in the fight against environmental crime

The detection, investigation and prosecution of crimes against the environment has its specificity compared to other forms of crime, because of the nature of these crimes, the manner of execution (modus operandi) and the characteristics of their perpetrators. Although there is no objective need for modification of the rules of criminal procedure with regard to these offenses, there is an obvious need for a specialized body of the procedure (prosecutors, judges and authorized officers of the internal affairs). This is due the fact that only specific additional, specialized knowledge about the environmental issues, which is usually multidisciplinary, can provide high-quality, professional and competent research and detection of crimes against the environment. In this paper, the authors deal with the problems of specialization of judicial and other authorities in connection with criminal proceedings for offenses against the environment, of reasonableness and necessity, given the current situation in domestic practice, as well as some comparative solutions and experiences

Postglacial Reconstruction of Fire History Using Sedimentary Charcoal and Pollen From a Small Lake in Southwest Yukon Territory, Canada

Previous research suggests climate warming during the current century is likely to lead to an increase in the frequency and severity of wildfire. Recent wildfire seasons in northern Canada generally support these studies, with some of the worst fire seasons on record occurring during the past decade. While we can readily track the spatial and temporal distribution of these events during recent decades using satellite-derived data, these records of past fire activity are relatively short. Proxy records of past fire activity are needed to fully understand how fire regimes may be shifting in response to changing climatic conditions. A high-resolution fire record for the full Holocene was developed using a 539.5-cm sediment core collected from a small lake in southwest Yukon Territory, Canada. Macroscopic charcoal was counted throughout the core at contiguous 0.5-cm intervals. The core was also analyzed for loss-on-ignition and magnetic susceptibility. Fossil pollen preserved in the lake sediment was analyzed to determine vegetation change throughout the Holocene. Macroscopic charcoal analysis indicates an active fire history throughout the record, with 91 fires recorded during the Holocene. Results suggest the fire regime in this region responds to both top-down (climate) and bottom-up (vegetation) factors. Fire return intervals changed in response to shifts in precipitation and temperature as well as the expansion of lodgepole pine into the region. The shifts in precipitation and temperature were attributed to the oscillation of the Aleutian Low pressure system and fluctuations in climate associated with the Medieval Climate Anomaly and the Little Ice Age

Climate change and the long-term viability of the World’s busiest heavy haul ice road

Climate models project that the northern high latitudes will warm at a rate in excess of the global mean. This will pose severe problems for Arctic and sub-Arctic infrastructure dependent on maintaining low temperatures for structural integrity. This is the case for the economically important Tibbitt to Contwoyto Winter Road (TCWR)—the world’s busiest heavy haul ice road, spanning 400 km across mostly frozen lakes within the Northwest Territories of Canada. In this study, future climate scenarios are developed for the region using statistical downscaling methods. In addition, changes in lake ice thickness are projected based on historical relationships between measured ice thickness and air temperatures. These projections are used to infer the theoretical operational dates of the TCWR based on weight limits for trucks on the ice. Results across three climate models driven by four RCPs reveal a considerable warming trend over the coming decades. Projected changes in ice thickness reveal a trend towards thinner lake ice and a reduced time window when lake ice is at sufficient thickness to support trucks on the ice road, driven by increasing future temperatures. Given the uncertainties inherent in climate modelling and the resultant projections, caution should be exercised in interpreting the magnitude of these scenarios. More certain is the direction of change, with a clear trend towards winter warming that will reduce the operation time window of the TCWR. This illustrates the need for planners and policymakers to consider future changes in climate when planning annual haulage along the TCWR

A 12.5-kyr history of vegetation dynamics and mire development with evidence of Younger Dryas larch presence in the Verkhoyansk Mountains, East Siberia, Russia

A 415 cm thick permafrost peat section from the Verkhoyansk Mountains was radiocarbon-dated and studied using palaeobotanical and sedimentological approaches. Accumulation of organic-rich sediment commenced in a former oxbow lake, detached from a Dyanushka River meander during the Younger Dryas stadial, at ∼12.5 kyr BP. Pollen data indicate that larch trees, shrub alder and dwarf birch were abundant in the vegetation at that time. Local presence of larch during the Younger Dryas is documented by well-preserved and radiocarbon-dated needles and cones. The early Holocene pollen assemblages reveal high percentages of Artemisia pollen, suggesting the presence of steppe-like communities around the site, possibly in response to a relatively warm and dry climate ∼11.4–11.2 kyr BP. Both pollen and plant macrofossil data demonstrate that larch woods were common in the river valley. Remains of charcoal and pollen of Epilobium indicate fire events and mark a hiatus ∼11.0–8.7 kyr BP. Changes in peat properties, C31/C27 alkane ratios and radiocarbon dates suggest that two other hiatuses occurred ∼8.2–6.9 and ∼6.7–0.6 kyr BP. Prior to 0.6 kyr BP, a major fire destroyed the mire surface. The upper 60 cm of the studied section is composed of aeolian sands modified in the uppermost part by the modern soil formation. For the first time, local growth of larch during the Younger Dryas has been verified in the western foreland of the Verkhoyansk Mountains (∼170 km south of the Arctic Circle), thus increasing our understanding of the quick reforestation of northern Eurasia by the early Holocene

Forests, fire histories, and futures of Columbian and Rocky Mountain forests, western Canada

Throughout the past few decades, shifting perspectives on fire management have led to the recognition that disturbance by fire is critical in maintaining ecological resilience in fire-adapted forests and grasslands. Long-term fire histories provide important information for land and resource managers seeking to understand the controls on wildfire dynamicsin western North America. In this paper we summarize fire history research that has recently been undertaken in the Canadian Cordillera. Using proxy records to reconstruct fire activity and vegetation change, these studies shared the overarching goal of identifying factors that control long-term fire regimes.A further aim was to identify how human activity has measurably altered various aspects of fire regimes. Looking to the future, these studies highlight the need to continue integrating information about local fire regimes and historical land-use activities when developing responsible fire and resource management strategies and identifying conservation priorities.Foothills Research Institute (fRI), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC