Catch Crop Known to Decrease N-leaching also Counteracts Soil CO2 Emissions

CO₂ emissions to the atmosphere were studied in a fertilized sandy agricultural soil with and without a catch crop sown into the main crop. The catch crop was grown primarily with the purpose to decrease N-leaching but this study also wanted to find out if the catch crop could have an effect in a climate change perspective. Plots with catch crop showed decreased CO₂ emissions from the soil. Since previous results have shown that catch crops effectively decrease N-leaching we recommend growing catch crops as an effective measure for helping both the climate and the eutrophication issue. Seasonal variations in CO₂ emissions were pronounced with maximum emissions from the fertilized agricultural soil in June and from an adjacent unmanaged grassland in August. From the plot with catch crop emissions decreased in July and August but somewhat increased later in the autumn. Fertilized agricultural soil showed a within-soil CO₂ sink after harvest, i.e. within-soil CO₂ uptake. Availability of NH₄⁺ or NO₃^- in the soil seems to influence the within-soil CO₂ sink, with NH₄⁺ enforcing the sink while the same amount of NO₃^- instead increased CO₂ emissions.     

B and Li isotopes as intrinsic tracers for injection tests in aquifer storage and recovery systems

Boron and Li isotopes have been tested as environmental tracers of treated sewage injected into a sandy aquifer (Shafdan reclamation project, Israel). During a 38 days injection test in a newly dug injection well, a conservative artificial tracer (Br⁻) was monitored together with δ¹¹B and δ⁷Li in the injectate, in the unsaturated soil zone (porous cup) and an observation well in the aquifer. In spite of B and Li concentrations in the injectate close to background values, significant shifts of the isotope signatures could be observed over the duration of the injection test. Boron isotope ratios show a breakthrough curve delayed with respect to Br⁻ breakthrough due to some reversible sorption on the aquifer material. No isotope fractionation was observed in the unsaturated or the saturated zone so that B isotopes can be considered as conservative in the investigated part of the aquifer system. Lithium isotopes are strongly fractionated, probably due to sorption processes. Lithium concentrations point to a Li sink in the system, δ⁷Li values vary strongly with a tendency of ⁷Li depletion in the liquid phase over the duration of the experiment. This is opposite to the expected preferential sorption of ⁶Li onto clay minerals. Boron isotopes reveals a valuable tracer of artificial recharge of freshwaters derived from treated sewage, both for short term tracer tests and for long-term monitoring of artificial recharge, even if in aquifers with higher clay contents, sorption-linked isotope fractionation cannot be excluded. More data are needed on Li isotope fractionation in natural groundwater systems to assess the potential of this tracer as monitoring tool.     

Book reviews

Climate change in contrasting river basins: adaptation strategies for water, food and environment. Edited by J Aerts and P Droogers. Published in 2004 by CABI Publishing, 288 p., hardcover. ISBN: 0–85199–835–6. Price: US$100 (orders: services@dadirect.com.au).

Australian water bugs. Their biology and identification (Hemiptera‐Heteroptera, Gerromorpha &; Nepomorpha). By Nils M Andersen? and Tom A Weir. Published in 2004 by CSIRO Publishing/Apollo Books, P.O. Box 1139, Collingwood, VIC 3066, Australia. 344 p., hardcover. ISBN: 0–643–090517. Price: AU$135.00 (orders: publishing.sales@csiro.au).

The Lakes Handbook. Volume I: Limnology and Limnetic Ecology. Volume II: Lake restoration and rehabilitation. Edited by Patrick O'Sullivan and Colin Reynolds. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 109 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, United Kingdom (http//www.blackwellpublishing.com). Volume I (published in 2003) 712 p., hardcover. ISBN: 0632047976. Price: £125. Volume II (published in 2004) 568 p., hardcover. ISBN: 063204795X. Price: £125.     

Comparative risk assessment of permethrin, chlorothalonil, and diuron to coastal aquatic species

The precise application of risk assessment can lead to different conclusions about risk depending on how species are grouped in the assessment. We compared the use of different risk assessment methods for three different classes of pesticide, the herbicide diuron, the fungicide chlorothalonil, and the insecticide permethrin for marine and estuarine species. Permethrin was the most toxic pesticide to marine and estuarine crustaceans. Diuron was the most toxic pesticide to algae, and chlorothalonil was most toxic to early life stages of molluscs and other invertebrates. Toxicity data (96 h LC50/EC50 values) were analyzed using a probability distribution on the ranked toxicity values and 10th centile values were calculated based on different groups of species and for all species combined. Our results indicate that an assessment of risk based on smaller taxonomic groups can be informative, especially for pesticides of less specific modes of action such as chlorothalonil.     

Surface wave array tomography in SE Tibet from ambient seismic noise and two-station analysis – II. Crustal and upper-mantle structure

We determine the 3-D shear wave speed variations in the crust and upper mantle in the southeastern borderland of the Tibetan Plateau, SW China, with data from 25 temporary broad-band stations and one permanent station. Interstation Rayleigh wave (phase velocity) dispersion curves were obtained at periods from 10 to 50 s from empirical Green's function (EGF) derived from (ambient noise) interferometry and from 20 to 150 s from traditional two-station (TS) analysis. Here, we use these measurements to construct phase velocity maps (from 10 to 150 s, using the average interstation dispersion from the EGF and TS methods between 20 and 50 s) and estimate from them (with the Neighbourhood Algorithm) the 3-D wave speed variations and their uncertainty. The crust structure, parametrized in three layers, can be well resolved with a horizontal resolution about of 100 km or less. Because of the possible effect of mechanically weak layers on regional deformation, of particular interest is the existence and geometry of low (shear) velocity layers (LVLs). In some regions prominent LVLs occur in the middle crust, in others they may appear in the lower crust. In some cases the lateral transition of shear wave speed coincides with major fault zones. The spatial variation in strength and depth of crustal LVLs suggests that the 3-D geometry of weak layers is complex and that unhindered crustal flow over large regions may not occur. Consideration of such complexity may be the key to a better understanding of relative block motion and patterns of seismicity.     

SCALES: a large‐scale assessment model of soil erosion hazard in Basse‐Normandie (northern‐western France)

The cartography of erosion risk is mainly based on the development of models, which evaluate in a qualitative and quantitative manner the physical reproduction of the erosion processes (CORINE, EHU, INRA). These models are mainly semi‐quantitative but can be physically based and spatially distributed (the Pan‐European Soil Erosion Risk Assessment, PESERA). They are characterized by their simplicity and their applicability potential at large temporal and spatial scales. In developing our model SCALES (Spatialisation d'éChelle fine de l'ALéa Erosion des Sols/large‐scale assessment and mapping model of soil erosion hazard), we had in mind several objectives: (1) to map soil erosion at a regional scale with the guarantee of a large accuracy on the local level, (2) to envisage an applicability of the model in European oceanic areas, (3) to focus the erosion hazard estimation on the level of source areas (on‐site erosion), which are the agricultural parcels, (4) to take into account the weight of the temporality of agricultural practices (land‐use concept). Because of these objectives, the nature of variables, which characterize the erosion factors and because of its structure, SCALES differs from other models. Tested in Basse‐Normandie (Calvados 5500 km²) SCALES reveals a strong predisposition of the study area to the soil erosion which should require to be expressed in a wet year. Apart from an internal validation, we tried an intermediate one by comparing our results with those from INRA and PESERA. It appeared that these models under estimate medium erosion levels and differ in the spatial localization of areas with the highest erosion risks. SCALES underlines here the limitations in the use of pedo‐transfer functions and the interpolation of input data with a low resolution. One must not forget however that these models are mainly focused on an interregional comparative approach. Therefore the comparison of SCALES data with those of the INRA and PESERA models cannot result on a convincing validation of our model. For the moment the validation is based on the opinion of local experts, who agree with the qualitative indications delivered by our cartography. An external validation of SCALES is foreseen, which will be based on a thorough inventory of erosion signals in areas with different hazard levels. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Contribution of geophysical surveys to groundwater modelling of a porous aquifer in semiarid Niger: An overview

Subsurface geophysical surveys were carried out using a large range of methods in an unconfined sandstone aquifer in semiarid south-western Niger for improving both the conceptual model of water flow through the unsaturated zone and the parameterization of numerical a groundwater model of the aquifer. Methods included: electromagnetic mapping, electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), resistivity logging, time domain electromagnetic sounding (TDEM), and magnetic resonance sounding (MRS). Analyses of electrical conductivities, complemented by geochemical measurements, allowed us to identify preferential pathways for infiltration and drainage beneath gullies and alluvial fans. The mean water content estimated by MRS (13%) was used for computing the regional groundwater recharge from long-term change in the water table. The ranges in permeability and water content obtained with MRS allowed a reduction of the degree of freedom of aquifer parameters used in groundwater modelling.