A depth average SPH model including μ(I) rheology and crushing for rock avalanches

Classical depth-integrated smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) models for avalanches are extended in the present work to include a μ(I)− rheological model enriched with a fragmentation law. With this improvement, the basal friction becomes grain distribution dependent. Rock avalanches, where grain distribution tends to change with time while propagating, are the appropriate type of landslide to apply the new numerical proposal. The μ(I)− rheological models considered in the present work are those of Hatano and Gray, combined with two different fragmentation laws, a hyperbolic and a fractal-based law. As an application, Frank avalanche, which took place in Canada in 1903, is analyzed under the scope of the present approach, focusing in the influence of the rheological and fragmentation laws in the evolution of the avalanche.     

Permeable Asphalt: A New Tool to Reduce Road Salt Contamination of Groundwater in Urban Areas

Chloride contamination of groundwater in urban areas due to deicing is a well‐documented phenomenon in northern climates. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of permeable pavement on degraded urban groundwater. Although low impact development practices have been shown to improve stormwater quality, no infiltration practice has been found to prevent road salt chlorides from entering groundwater. The few studies that have investigated chlorides in permeable asphalt have involved sampling directly beneath the asphalt; no research has looked more broadly at surrounding groundwater conditions. Monitoring wells were installed upgradient and downgradient of an 860 m² permeable asphalt parking lot at the University of Connecticut (Storrs, Connecticut). Water level and specific conductance were measured continuously, and biweekly samples were analyzed for chloride. Samples were also analyzed for sodium (Na), calcium (Ca), and magnesium (Mg). Analysis of variance analysis indicated a significantly (p < 0.001) lower geometric mean Cl concentration downgradient (303.7 mg/L) as compared to upgradient (1280 mg/L). Concentrations of all alkali metals increased upgradient and downgradient during the winter months as compared to nonwinter months, indicating that cation exchange likely occurred. Despite the frequent high peaks of chloride in the winter months as well as the increases in alkali metals observed, monitoring revealed lower Cl concentrations downgradient than upgradient for the majority of the year. These results suggest that the use of permeable asphalt in impacted urban environments with high ambient chloride concentrations can be beneficial to shallow groundwater quality, although these results may not be generalizable to areas with low ambient chloride concentrations.     

Slopewash,surface runoff and fine-litter transport in forest and landslide scars in humid-tropical steeplands,luquillo experimental forest,Puerto Rico

Rainfall, slopewash (the erosion of soil particles), surface runoff and fine-litter transport steepland sites in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico (18° 20’ N, 65° 45’ W) were measured from 1991 to 1995. Hillslopes underlain by (1) Cretaceous tuffaceous sandstone and silstone in subtropical rain (tanonuco) forest with vegetation recovering from Hurricane Hugo (1989), and (2) Tertiary quartz diorite in subtropical lower mantone wet (colorado and dwarf) forest with undisturbed forest canopy were compared to recent landslide scars. Monthly surface runoff on these very steep hillslopes (24° to 43°) was only 0·2 to 0·5 per cent of monthly rainfall. Slopewash was higher in sandy loam soils whose parent material is quartz diorite (averaging 46 g m⁻² a⁻¹) than in silty clay loam soils derived from tuffaceous sandstone and siltstone where the average was 9 g m⁻² a⁻¹. Annual slopewash of 100 to 349 g m⁻² on the surfaces of two recent, small landslide scars was measured initially but slopewash decreased to only 3 to 4 g m⁻² a⁻¹ by the end of the study. The mean annual mass of fine litter (mainly leaves and twigs) transported downslope at the forested sites ranged from 5 to 8 g m⁻² and was lower at the tabonuco forest site, where post-Hurricane Hugo recovery is still in progress. Mean annual fine-litter transport was 2·5 g m⁻² on the two landslide scars. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Constraining Holocene sea levels using U‐Th ages of phreatic overgrowths on speleothems from coastal caves in Mallorca (Western Mediterranean)

Phreatic overgrowths on speleothems (POS) are carbonate formations deposited at the water table of caves in unique karstic coastal settings having morphologies that can be directly related to sea level at the time of formation. The U‐Th ages of calcite and aragonite overgrowths collected from the modern water table in coastal caves on Mallorca (Cova de Cala Varques A and Cova des Pas de Vallgornera) were determined using high‐precision MC‐ICPMS techniques. U‐Th ages indicate that phreatic carbonate deposition occurred between ca 2·8 and at least 0·6 ka BP and are in accord with an archeologically estimated age of 3·7–3·0 ka BP for a drowned prehistoric construction at a depth of 1 m below current sea level in a cave from the same area. Speleothem δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O and chemical composition of cave pools provide supportive evidence that POS reflect mixing between seawater and brackish water table. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The contribution of physical geography to environmental public policy development in Mexico

In recent years, physical geography in Mexico has contributed to the enterprise of geographical science by integrating with fields of study closely related to topics of sustainable development. This paper outlines the contribution of the discipline to environmental public policy development, particularly ecological land use planning and integrated watershed management. In terms of applications, physical geography appears to have reached a stage of maturity in Mexico. However, it must offer a stronger leadership in areas such as ecoregional analysis (in an integrated fashion, and not only from the biological‐ecological perspective) and regional vulnerability to global change processes. An excellent opportunity exists for scientists and decision makers to develop a common agenda.     

Hydrostratigraphic framework and hydrogeological behaviour of the Mancha Oriental System (SE Spain)

The Mancha Oriental System (MOS) has a surface area of 7,260 km², making it one of the largest carbonate aquifer systems in Spain. The system sustains about 1,000 km² of irrigated crops and supplies groundwater to 275,000 inhabitants. The economic transformation brought about by the development of extensive irrigated cropland has led to a water-balance disequilibrium of about 75 million m³/year. This input–output deficit has negative consequences in the quantity and quality of the available resources, in the river–aquifer relationship, and in the associated ecosystems as well. To understand the hydrogeological behaviour of the system, it is necessary to design a conceptual model. Further, the conceptualisation of a groundwater flow system is a requirement of the European Water Framework Directive for the characterisation of groundwater bodies. The robustness of the conceptual model depends heavily on the user capability of representing the real system. In this work, a multidisciplinary approach has been used to represent the three-dimensional geological framework and the groundwater flow conceptualisation of the MOS. Data management and three-dimensional visualisation have been carried out by means of geographical information system (GIS) tools and software for contouring and three-dimensional surface mapping.     

Erodibility of soft freshwater sediments in Markermeer: the role of bioturbation by meiobenthic fauna

The Markermeer is a large and shallow man-made freshwater lake in the Netherlands, characterized by its high turbidity. As part of a study aiming to mitigate this high turbidity, we studied the water–bed exchange processes of the lake’s muddy bed. The upper centimeter’s–decimeter’s of the lake bed sediments mainly consists of soft anoxic mud. Recent measurements have proved the existence of a thin oxic layer on top of this soft anoxic mud. This oxic layer, which is much easier to be eroded than the anoxic mud, is believed to be related with Markermeer’s high-turbidity levels. Our hypothesis is that the thin oxic layer develops from the anoxic mud, enhanced by bioturbation. Actually, we will demonstrate that it is the bioturbated state of the bed that increases its erodability, and not the oxidation state of the sediments. In particular, we will refer to bioturbation caused by meiobenthic fauna. The objective of this study is therefore to determine the influence of the development of the thin oxic layer on the water–bed exchange processes, as well as to establish the role of bioturbation on those processes. This is done by quantifying the erosion rate as a function of bed shear stresses, and at different stages of the development of the oxic layer. Our experiments show that bioturbation increases the rate at which Markermeer sediments are eroded by almost an order of magnitude. The short-term fine sediment dynamics in Markermeer are found to be driven by the complex and highly dynamic interactions between physics, chemistry, and biology. Finally, the long-term fine sediment dynamics are driven by the erosion of the historical deposits in the lake’s bed, which is only possible after bioturbation, and which leads to an increase of the stock of sediments in the lake’s muddy bed.     

Response of single benthic metrics and multi-metric methods to anthropogenic pressure gradients, in five distinct European coastal and transitional ecosystems

In recent times many benthic indices have been proposed to assess the ecological quality of marine waters worldwide. In this study we compared single metrics and multi-metric methods to assess coastal and transitional benthic status along human pressure gradients in five distinct environments across Europe: Varna bay and lake (Bulgaria), Lesina lagoon (Italy), Mondego estuary (Portugal), Basque coast (Spain) and Oslofjord (Norway). Hence, 13 single metrics (abundance, number of taxa, and several diversity and sensitivity indices) and eight of the most common indices used within the European Water Framework Directive (WFD) for benthic assessment were selected: index of size spectra (ISS), Benthic assessment tool (BAT), Norwegian quality index (NQI), Multivariate AMBI (M-AMBI), Benthic quality index (BQI), (Benthic ecosystem quality index (BEQI), Benthic index based on taxonomic sufficiency (BITS), and infaunal quality index (IQI). Within each system, sampling sites were ordered in an increasing pressure gradient according to a preliminary classification based on professional judgement. The different indices are largely consistent in their response to pressure gradient, except in some particular cases (i.e. BITS, in all cases, or ISS when a low number of individuals is present). Inconsistencies between indicator responses were most pronounced in transitional waters (i.e. IQI, BEQI), highlighting the difficulties of the generic application of indicators to all marine, estuarine and lagoonal environments. However, some of the single (i.e. ecological groups approach, diversity, richness) and multi-metric methods (i.e. BAT, M-AMBI, NQI) were able to detect such gradients both in transitional and coastal environments, being these multi-metric methods more consistent in the detection than single indices. This study highlights the importance of survey design and good reference conditions for some indicators. The agreement observed between different methodologies and their ability to detect quality trends across distinct environments constitutes a promising result for the implementation of the WFD’s monitoring plans. Moreover, these results have management implications, regarding the dangers of misclassification, uncertainty in the assessment, use of conflicting indices, and testing and validation of indices.     

Tectonic evolution of the Málaga Basin (Betic Cordillera). Regional implications

Abstract

During the Neogene (uppermost Aquitanian-Lower Burdigalian, Tortonian and Pliocene), three successive marine episodes took place in the present-day Malaga Basin. The first of these affected a wide area of the Belic Internal Zones and was brought to an abrupt conclusion by the westward displacement of these Zones, together with important horizontal movements associated with N70-100 direction strike-slip faults and the superposition of materials from the Campo de Gibraltar. The two other marine episodes were clearly controlled by vertical movements of NW-SE and NK-SW faults, caused by a clear E-W distension which, according to regional data, was associated with some compression in an approximately N-S direction. The area has also been affected, although to a lesser extent, by the uplift of the Betic Cordillera from the Upper Miocene to the present day.