We have some comments about the article by Calladine et al. 1 that we would like to share with the authors. First, one factor that might cause the difference in architecture between hydrated clear corneal incisions (CCIs) and nonhydrated CCIs is the corneal stromal edema at the incision site induced by hydration. 2 The authors might have to record the grade of edema at the CCIs before hydration under the surgical microscope. This measurement could serve as the baseline status of the CCI edema before hydration. The difference in the baseline status between the 2 study groups might contribute to the architectural differences detected by anterior segment optical coherence tomography.Second, Calladine et al. might consider the cataract nucleus grading of the patients when interpreting the data. This is because the harder the lens nucleus, the more ultrasound energy would be used and the more damage to the corneal endothelium, leading to more corneal edema; even a phaco burn might occur at the CCIs.Third, the authors might have to adjust for factors other than stromal hydration that could influence the development of Descemet membrane detachment (DMD); ie, specifying every abnormal finding at the cornea before the surgeries, especially those at the CCI sites. In our clinical practice, we found that patients with arcus senilis were prone to developing DMD during phacoemulsification surgery. We also discovered that local DMD was more common in phacoemulsification surgery done by junior surgeons than in those done by senior surgeons. This may be due to the junior surgeons having less skill in controlling the phaco handpiece, which might accidentally ''shave off'' a piece of Descemet membrane. Even senior surgeons may have different styles of controlling the phaco handpiece. Therefore, Calladine et al. might consider comparing the architectural features in 2 groups of patients whose surgeries were done by the same surgeon. A hard lens nucleus might be another factor causing more local DMD due to more manipulation to the CCIs by the handpiece. Patient compliance might also affect the occurrence of DMD. When the patients have poor compliance, the surgeons might have to control the eye and adjust the eye's position using the handpiece and chopper from time to time, possibly leading to excessive manipulation of the CCIs. Six patients in the Calladine et al. study 1 had surgery under topical anesthesia, and they were in the nohydration group. We are interested in knowing their compliance. If most of them had poor compliance during surgery, the actual difference in DMD might be more than the data provided in the article.Fourth, we wonder why the authors did not remove the ophthalmic viscosurgical device (OVD) from the posterior chamber at the end of surgery. As we all know, residual OVD can cause postoperative intraocular pressure (IOP) elevation. The high postoperative IOP in this study might be due to the residual OVD in the posterior chamber. Since the authors claimed that hydration of the CCIs ''tends to leave the eye wit...

Ecosystem valuation can serve as a basis of scientific support for decision-making. So far, the most popular methods for ecosystem valuation are ecosystem service valuation (ESV), which is based on the utility of ecosystem to human beings rather than on the objective value of the ecosystem. After more than 10 years' application, it has been found that all losses of ESV were about 10% of the benefits of human activities. In this paper, the ecosystem intrinsic value (EIV) is defined. EIV is an objective value that emerges from the existence, structures, functions and processes of ecosystem, but independent with man, man's will and preferences. The valuating approach and methods used for EIV were developed by using energy approach and the methods of emergy analysis and eco-exergy analysis. The EIV calculated by emergy from the substance, energy and information of ecosystem and by eco-exergy from the structure and function of ecosystem represents the existent value and the externally working capacity of ecosystem, respectively. The approach and methods of EIV evaluation were applied to Xiamen Bay, China. The results showed that the marine EIV in Xiamen Bay was 209 billion RMB, including 116 billion RMB of emergy and 92.4 billion RMB of eco-exergy in 2010, nearly 30 times of ESV and 8.5 times of the GDP of Xiamen marine industry in 2010. The EIV in unit area of Xiamen Bay is more than 10 times higher than the average global ESV in estuaries. It implied a potential undervaluation to ecosystem value by ESV calculation, which may mislead decisions-making processes.

Eco-compensation for Coastal Principal Function Zoning (CPFZ) is a novel and important research topic. This paper chooses the coastal area of Xiamen Bay as the study area, and attempts to research on the eco-compensation under the framework of CPFZ. At first, the paper discusses the connotation of eco-compensation for CPFZ, and points out that the main consideration should be given to two aspects: the compensation for losses of coastal ecosystem services caused by the leading industry, and the compensation for losses of the restricted or prohibited industries due to the leading industry priority. Then, based on the framework of CPFZ in Xiamen Bay, this article estimates the losses of ecosystem services caused by the leading industries and the corresponding eco-compensation amount, as well as the losses of the restricted or prohibited industries and the reference amount of the claim, using the valuation of ecosystem services combined with the expert judgment method, and the market price method, respectively. Finally, the compensation approaches and the relevant policy are suggested. This work will be helpful to promote the operability of CPFZ and provide reference for further related researches.

The coastal zone is a dense human activity area, and has been under the heavy pressure from large population centers and various human activities. The scarcity and the use conflicts of coastal resources have become increasingly prominent problems. Coastal principal function zoning is an effective approach to solving these problems, and a helpful way to optimize resources allocation and support sustainable development. Determining the principal function is a key step in coastal principal function zoning. In this paper we make an attempt to apply economic analysis to the principal function selection in the coastal area of Xiamen Bay. Based on the distribution and characteristics of coastal resources, and the opinion of local residents revealed by a questionnaire investigation, we set two scenarios as alternative principal functions, i.e. to develop coastal tourism as a priority or to fully develop commercial port transportation in the research area. The net benefits of Scenario 1 and 2 are calculated by the constructed formulas, and the results are 3.4×1010 RMB Yuan/a and 7.4×109 RMB Yuan/a, respectively. Based on the economic analysis, we propose that coastal tourism should be chosen as the principal function in the coastal area of Xiamen Bay.

This paper chooses a land reclamation project of Dadeng sea area, Xiamen as a case, and put emphasis on discussing how to calculate the marine eco-compensation standard of land reclamation from sea based on the losses of ecosystem services. It starts with the classification of coastal ecosystem services and the analysis of adverse impacts caused by the reclamation project, and then builds the relevant valuation models of ecosystem service losses under the above classification framework and estimates the losses of coastal ecosystem services incurred by the project. On the basis of these, the paper puts forward a method for calculating the theoretical compensation standard and applies it to the case study. The results show that, the total loss of ecosystem services caused by the land reclamation project amounts to 40.88 million yuan/a, in which the loss of space resources (i.e. mariculture space) in provisioning services is the largest, amounting to 30.71 million yuan/a, and the loss of per unit sea area is about 4.19 yuan/m2a. The estimated compensation standards are 209.6 yuan/m2 with discounting rate of 2% and 93.2 yuan/m2 with discounting rate of 4.5%, respectively. It is proposed that the compensation amount can be determined through bargaining between compensators and compensation receivers in practice, based on the theoretical compensation standard as well as the compensation receivers’ willingness to accept, the economic level of land reclamation area, and the local cultures et al.