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Tropical forests are suffering from increasing intensities and frequency of disturbances. As a result, non-native species accidentally introduced or intentionally planted for farming, plantations, and ornamental purposes may spread and potentially invade undisturbed native forest. It is not known if these introduced species will become invasive, as a result of recurrent natural disturbances such as hurricanes. Using data from three censuses (spanning 15 years) of a 16-ha subtropical wet forest plot, we investigated the impact of two hurricanes on populations of plant species that were planted in farms and plantations that were then abandoned and from the natural spread of species introduced into Puerto Rico in the past. The populations of four species (Citrus paradis, Mangifera indica, Musa sp., and Simarouba glauca) changed little over time. Six species (Artocarpus altilis, Calophyllum calaba, Genipa americana, Hibiscus pernambucensis, Syzygium jambos, and Swietenia macrophylla) declined between the first two censuses after Hurricane Hugo, then increased again in Census 3 after Hurricane Georges. Spathodea campanulata gradually increased from census to census, while Coffea arabica declined. These introduced species represent only a small part of the forest basal area and few show signs of increasing over time. The number of stems per plant, new recruits, and the growth rates of these introduced species were within the ranges of those for native plant species. The mortality rates over both census intervals were significantly lower for introduced species (

This book is an outcome and an important part of the legacy of COST Action 735, whose overall aim was to develop tools for estimating air-sea fluxes of compounds important for climate, air quality and ocean productivity. The action was closely allied with the SOLAS (Surface Ocean – Lower Atmosphere Study) project of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP), with both having very similar objectives. Because of this, they were mutually supportive in many ways. The action ran for 5 years, starting in September 2006 and ending in September 2011. It involved more than 300 scientists mainly from Europe (77 % from the following 18 countries: Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom) but with a significant number from outside Europe, so that in total scientists from 30 countries participated. One third of the participants were female. The action had a reciprocal agreement with New Zealand. Additional information about the action can be found at http://www.cost-735.org/.

Global warming and extreme weather events reported in the past years have attracted a lot of attention in academia, industry, and media. The ongoing debate around the observed climate change has focused on three important questions: will occurrence of extreme weather events increase in the future, which geographical locations will be most affected, and to what degree will climate change have impact on future ship traffic and design of ships and offshore structures? The present study shortly reviews the findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fourth Assessment Report, AR4, (IPCC 2007), the IPCC SREX ‘‘Summary for Policymakers’’ report (IPCC 2012) and other relevant publications regarding projections of meteorological and oceanographic conditions in the twenty-first century and beyond with design needs in focus. Emphasis is on wave climate and its potential implications on safe design and operations of ship structures.

Several mechanisms have been used to acquire land for tropical-forest reservations. Legislative designation of National Parks on government-owned land, condemnation of private land, debt swaps, and outright purchase of private lands for reserves may, however, be inappropriate strategies in areas occupied by extant indigenous populations. In areas where indigenous peoples have a strong conservation ethic, the creation of reserves under partial or complete aboriginal control represents a viable alternative to the more traditional forms of land acquisition. Recently, three significant rain-forest reserves were created in Samoa using alternative strategies. 1) A US National Park in American Samoa involves the long-term lease of customary lands with local chiefs forming an advisory board on park policy; 2) in the Falealupo peninsula in Western Samoa, a covenant was established between the villagers who pledged to preserve and manage a large rain forest and private donors who provided funds for the construction of an elementary school; 3) in Tafua, Western Samoa, a covenant was established between the village, which vowed to preserve and manage the forest, and the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SNF) which provided funds for an elementary school and public works. These reserves suggest that under indigenous control robust solutions to the problems of rain-forest preservation can be achieved.