Relationship between anthropogenic sewage discharge, marsh structure and bird assemblages in an SW Atlantic saltmarsh

One of the main effects of urbanization on coastal areas is through the discharge of sewage, which increases nutrient concentrations in the receiving environment. Salt marshes, like other coastal marine environments, are limited by nutrients, mainly nitrogen, and thus increasing nutrient loadings to a marsh may have consequences on marsh characteristics. We evaluated how the effects of nutrient enrichment in the form of sewage input, affected the vegetation structure and bird assemblages in a Spartina alterniflora salt marsh system near Bahía Blanca, Argentina (39° 01' S - 56° 25' W). Surveys of nutrient concentration, vegetation and birds were made at three different distances from the sewage discharge source. The concentration of ammonium, phosphate, and nitrate and the percent organic matter was higher in marshes nearest to the sewage discharge source. Bird composition and abundance, and vegetation physiognomy changed along a gradient of nutrient concentration. The increased habitat complexity found near the areas of higher nutrient concentration was exploited by birds that use neighboring interior and coastal habitats, including Spartina densiflora marshes, freshwater marshes and upland shrubby habitats. Our results show that local increases of nutrient inputs directly changed the vegetation physiognomy, and indirectly the composition and abundance of bird assemblages.     

Effects of shoreline discharge of iron mine tailings on a marine soft-bottom community in northern Chile

This study evaluates the magnitude and extension of the impact produced by the discharge of inert allochthonous materials, including clays and particulate iron, on macrobenthic soft-bottom assemblages in the subtidal zone of a coastal bay in north-central Chile. An average of 118 Ton h(-1) of finely divided solids were discharged into the rocky intertidal zone of the bay for a period of over 16 years, producing continuous turbidity in the water column and sedimentation in the subtidal zone. Data obtained four months before cessation of the discharge showed that the macrofauna present at 20 and 50 m depth in the bay suffered an important decrease in abundance and species richness, low diversity/high dominance, and deep changes in community structure related to the discharge. The faunal assemblages present at 110 m depth did not show effects from the discharge, suggesting that the impact was limited to the inner part of the bay. The impoverished faunal aggregates at 20 and 50 m depth showed exclusive domination by the Lumbrineris bifilaris (polychaete)-Diastylis tongoyensis (cumacean) association, representing a simple trophic guild of deposit feeders. The complete absence of opportunistic species such as capitellid, spionid, and/or cirratulid polychaetes may be associated with the turbidity and sedimentation levels in the bay.     

The Greenhouse Climate Records from Organic Carbon Isotope Excursions During the Toarcian (Early Jurassic) Sediments in the Shuanghu Area,Qianghai-Tibetan Plateau

正Objective The organic-matter-rich oil shales outcropped at the Biluo Co area of the Qiangtang Basin in Tibet are of the Toarcian(Early Jurassic) based on the ammonite fauna(Yi et al., 2003). We first proposed its sedimentary age to be the Early Toarcian and correlated with the Posidonia shales and the early Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event(TOAE)(Chen et al., 2005). The carbon isotopes excursions     

The use of the deposit-refund framework in port reception facilities charging systems

The European Union set in place Directive 2000/59/EC with the aim of substantially reducing discharges of ship-generated waste into the sea by improving the availability and use of port reception facilities. According to the Directive, port administrations shall ensure that the cost recovery system must aim to discourage ships from discharging their waste into the sea, while simultaneously placing the burden of costs on ships, in line with the "polluter pays principle". The present paper examines the extent to which the deposit-refund framework could be used in charging systems of port reception facilities. This has been realized through a case study involving a Greek port. Specifically, the charging system proposed here seems to approach quite close to the primary target, i.e. to a charging system that motivates ships to act more environmentally responsible manner regarding their waste, without significantly affecting their total cost nor the competitiveness of the port.     

Chemo- and Biostratigraphy of the Jurassic Oil Shales from the Qiangtang Basin, Northern Tibet, China: A Case Study of the Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event

The marine oil shales of the Qiangtang Basin, northern Tibet, exposed in the Biluo Co, Tuonamu, Shenglihe and Changsheshan areas are believed to be important petroleum source rocks. This work comprehensively analyzed the carbon isotopes, trace elements, and calcareous nannofosills, ammonites and bivalves of the Biluo Co section in the Qiangtang Basin. The organic carbon isotopes show a positive excursion close to 2.17‰(relative to PDB), which, albeit significantly smaller, may also be associated with other Early Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Events(T-OAE) in the European epicontinental seas and the Tethyan continental margins. Coinciding with the Early Toarcian transgression, the oxygen deficiency in bottom water had led to dysoxic-anoxic conditions and deposition of black shales lacking benthic fauna. Under such condition, the redox-sensitive trace metals such as Mo, V, Ni, Cr, and U were enriched, in conjunction with high planktonic productivity of Watznaueriaceae calcareous nannofossils. Comparison of the results with the records of chemo-and biostratigraphy, as well as the palaeogeography during the Early Jurassic suggests that the anoxia linked to the Early Toarcian oceanic anoxic event was mainly caused by the high surface water temperature, sea-level rise and an increase of surface water productivity.     

MODFLOW/MT3DMS-based reactive multicomponent transport modeling

This paper presents a three-dimensional, MODFLOW/MT3DMS-based reactive multicomponent transport model for saturated porous media. Based on a split-operator technique, the model, referred to as PHT3D, couples the transport simulator MT3DMS and the geochemical modeling code PHREEQC-2. Through the flexible, generic nature of PHREEQC-2, PHT3D can handle a broad range of equilibrium and kinetically controlled reactive processes, including aqueous complexation, mineral precipitation/dissolution, and ion exchange. The diversity of potential applications is demonstrated through simulation of five existing literature benchmarks and a new three-dimensional sample problem. The model might be applied to simulate the geochemical evolution of pristine and contaminated aquifers as well as their cleanup. The latter problem class includes the natural and enhanced attenuation/remediation schemes of a wide range of organic and inorganic contaminants. Processes/reactions not included in the standard PHREEQC-2 database but typical for this type of application (e.g., NAPL dissolution, microbial growth/decay) can be defined and included via the extensible PHREEQC-2 database file.