The Effectiveness of Flood Damage Reduction Measures in the Montreal Region

The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of two flood damage reduction measures – designation and dyking of floodplains. The study was carried out in four Quebec municipalities located on the shores of Lac des Deux-Montagnes and Riviére des Mille-Iles, namely Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac, Saint-Eustache, Rosemére and Bois-des-Filion. Criteria for selecting the study areas were: area of the flood-risk zone, presence or absence of dykes, presence or absence of buildings, and availability of data. The study areas were selected with the help of flood risk maps of the Greater Montreal region. In each area, information on the number of buildings and their economic value was taken from the municipality's property assessment database. Trends in the occupancy and value of floodplains were identified and compared. The results of the study show that, as in other regions of Canada, flood damage reduction measures based on designation and mapping of floodplains have had no impact on occupancy, have failed to reduce flood damages, and have not even halted increases in such damages.     

Analysis of karst hydrodynamics through comparison of dissolved and suspended solids' transport

In karst systems, rain events often result in a decrease of the conductivity (a tracer of dissolved phase transport) and an increase in turbidity (a tracer of suspended solids transport) at wells and springs. This study shows that the comparison of suspended solids and solute transport by the coupled approach of $T\text{–}C$ curves (Turbidity–Conductivity) and autocorrelations gives evidence of the transport processes in the karst network and allows understanding the karst hydrodynamics. To cite this article: D. Valdes et al., C. R. Geoscience 337 (2005).     

Embryonic exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of PCB126 affect prey capture ability of Fundulus heteroclitus larvae

Early life stages from a marine fish species, Fundulus heteroclitus, were exposed to sublethal doses of 3,3',4,4',5 pentachlorobiphenyl (PCB126) to evaluate its effects on ecologically relevant responses: growth and behavior. A few hours after fertilisation, eggs were treated topically with PCB126 (2.5-50 pg egg?1). Four days post-hatching (dph), morphological changes (body length and malformations), spontaneous locomotor activity (active swimming speed, rate of travel, % inactivity), prey capture ability (Artemia franciscana nauplii) and whole body EROD activity were evaluated in larvae. Untreated larvae collected at 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4 dph were also examined. PCB126 did not increase the mortality or malformation rates. Body length and spontaneous locomotor activity were altered only in larvae treated with the highest dose. Treatment with PCB126 caused a dose-responsive reduction in prey capture ability (rate of decline in the number of Artemia) and induction of EROD activity. The lowest observed effective dose for both of these responses was 5.0 pg PCB126 egg?1 or 5.0 TCDD-toxic equivalents pg g?1 egg, using a TCDD-toxic equivalent factor of 0.005 and an egg mass of 5 mg. Prey capture efficiency (number of Artemia captured per feeding strike) was reduced at ≥ 10.0 pg egg?1. In untreated developing larvae, prey capture ability and efficiency increased as post-hatching development progressed and EROD activity remained low. The pattern of behavioral responses observed in PCB126-exposed Fundulus larvae differed from that observed in less-developed larvae indicating that other mechanisms than retarded development were involved. Behavioral dysfunction was a more sensitive response to PCB126 than morphological alterations and it occurred at environmentally relevant concentrations.     

Sulfur isotope and trace element data from ore sulfides in the Noranda district (Abitibi,Canada): implications for volcanogenic massive sulfide deposit genesis

We examine models for volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) mineralization in the ~2.7-Ga Noranda camp, Abitibi subprovince, Superior Province, Canada, using a combination of multiple sulfur isotope and trace element data from ore sulfide minerals. The Noranda camp is a well-preserved, VMS deposit-rich area that is thought to represent a collapsed volcanic caldera. Due to its economic value, the camp has been studied extensively, providing a robust geological framework within which to assess the new data presented in this study. We explore previously proposed controls on mineralization within the Noranda camp and, in particular, the exceptional Au-rich Horne and Quemont deposits. We present multiple sulfur isotope and trace element compositional data for sulfide separates representing 25 different VMS deposits and “showings” within the Noranda camp. Multiple sulfur isotope data for this study have δ³⁴S_V-CDT values of between ?1.9 and +2.5?‰, and Δ³³S_V-CDT values of between ?0.59 and ?0.03?‰. We interpret the negative Δ³³S values to be due to a contribution of sulfur that originated as seawater sulfate to form the ore sulfides of the Noranda camp VMS deposits. The contribution of seawater sulfate increased with the collapse and subsequent evolution of the Noranda caldera, an inference supported by select trace and major element analyses. In particular, higher concentrations of Se occur in samples with Δ³³S values closer to 0?‰, as well as lower Fe/Zn ratios in sphalerite, suggesting lower pressures and temperatures of formation. We also report a relationship between average Au grade and Δ³³S values within Au-rich VMS deposits of the Noranda camp, whereby higher gold grades are associated with near-zero Δ³³S values. From this, we infer a dominance of igneous sulfur in the gold-rich deposits, either leached from the volcanic pile and/or directly degassed from an associated intrusion.     

Relations quantitatives entre les craies à silex et les formations résiduelles à silex de l’ouest du bassin de Paris

Résumé

Depuis plus d’un siècle, l’origine autochtone ou allochtone des formations résiduelles à silex (en abrégé RS : résidus à silex) par rapport aux craies a fait l’objet de multiples discussions. Pour répondre à ce problème, un bilan d’altération entre ces deux formations a été effectué. Il repose sur une connaissance précise des âges des craies-mères des RS et sur des comparaisons granulométrique et chimique entre craie et RS. Ces comparaisons s’appuient sur les quantités de silex contenues dans les craies et les RS, sachant que les silex sont reconnus comme autochtones et que leur degré de dissolution est calculé. Les résultats apportent des informations sur l’évolution crétacée du Bassin anglo-parisien, avec la mise en évidence de la craie du Maastrichtien dans le bassin de Paris et la reconstitution des épaisseurs de craie dissoutes. De plus, ils indiquent que la stratigraphie des craies est conservée dans les profils de RS. Ils montrent également que les silex, éléments autochtones des RS, sont faiblement altérés. Les matrices des RS sont, quant à elles, en grande partie allochtones, notamment dans les dix mètres supérieurs de la formation. L’allochtonie diminue avec la profondeur, avec des RS pouvant être considérés comme des résidus d’altération de la craie au sens strict à partir de 20 mètres de profondeur. © Elsevier, Paris     

Ecomorphodynamics of rivers with converging boundaries

Many rivers worldwide show converging sections where a characteristic limiting front for vegetation establishment on gravel bars is observed. An important conceptual model was advanced in 2006 by Gurnell and Petts, who demonstrated that for the convergent section of the Tagliamento River the downstream front of vegetation establishment can be explained by unit stream power. We introduce a theoretical framework based on 1D ecomorphodynamic equations modified to account for the biological dynamics of vegetation. We obtain the first analytical result explaining the position and river width where vegetation density is expected to vanish in relation to a characteristic streamflow magnitude and both hydraulic and biological parameters. We apply our model to a controlled experiment within a convergent flume channel with growing seedlings perturbed by periodic floods. For a range of timescales where hydrological and biological processes interact, we observe the formation of a front in the convergent section beyond which vegetation cannot survive, the location of which is explained by flow magnitude. This experiment confirms that the timescales of the involved processes and the unit stream power determine the existence and the position of the front within convergent river reaches, respectively. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

How does the bed surface impact low-magnitude bedload transport rates over gravel-bed rivers?

Bedload transport is a complex phenomenon that is not well understood, especially for poorly sorted sediment and low transport rates, which is what is typically found in alpine gravel-bed rivers. In this paper, the interaction between bedload rate, bed stability and flow is investigated using flume experiments. Significant differences in bedload rates were observed for experiments conducted on beds formed with the same gravel material but presenting diverse arrangements and bedforms. Tests were performed under regimes of low transport rate, which are mainly controlled by gravel-bed roughness. Different scales of roughness were identified using the statistical characteristics of detailed bed elevation measurements: grain, structure and large bedform scales. The role played by these different roughness scales in bedload dynamics was examined. For quasi-flat beds, bed stability was quantified using a combination of bed surface criteria describing grain and structure scales. It was found that bed stability affects the bedload rate directly and not only through its influence on the flow or on the incipient motion. For beds with large bedforms, the analysis of bedload dynamics also showed the importance of accounting for effective bed shear stress distributions. An empirical bedload model for low transport regimes was suggested. Compared with previous formulae developed for alpine rivers, this model accounts for bed stability and distribution of effective bed shear stress. It significantly improves the understanding of gravel dynamics over complex beds such as arranged beds or those with large bedforms. However, further tests are needed to use the model outside the range of conditions of this study. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mineralogy, geochemistry and petrogenesis of the recent magmatic formations from Mbengwi, a continental sector of the Cameroon Volcanic Line (CVL), Central Africa

The Mbengwi recent magmatic formations consist of volcanics and syenites belonging to the same magmatic episode. Lavas form a bimodal basanite-rhyolite alkaline series with a gap between 50 and 62?wt.% SiO₂. Mafic lavas (basanite-hawaiite) are sodic while felsic rocks (trachyte-rhyolite-syenites) are sodi-potassic, slightly metaluminous to peralkaline. The geochemical and isotopic characteristics (0.7031?<?(⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr)_initial?<?0.7043; 1.03?<?ε_Ndi?<?5.17) of these rocks are similar to those of other rocks from the CVL. The main differentiation process is fractional crystallization with two trends of fractionation. Their Rb/Sr isochron age of 28.2?Ma, almost similar to 27.40?±?0.6?Ma?K/Ar age obtained in a trachyte from neighboring Bamenda Mountains system, precludes any local age migration of an hypothetic hotspot. Mafic lavas have OIB features displaying an isotopic signature similar to that of HIMU mantle source different from FOZO known as source of most parental magmas along the CVL.     

Textural and geochemical constraints on eruptive style of the 79 <Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">ad</Emphasis> eruption at Vesuvius

The 79 ad Plinian eruption of Vesuvius produced first a white pumice fallout from a high steady eruptive column, and then a grey pumice fallout originating from an oscillatory eruptive column with several partial column collapse events after which there was a total column collapse. This first total collapse was followed by renewed Plinian activity and produced the last grey pumice (GP) fallout deposit of the eruption. Textural characteristics (vesicularity and microcrystallinity) of a complete sequence of the pumice fallout deposits are presented along with the major element compositions and residual volatile contents (H₂O, Cl) to constrain the degassing processes and the eruptive dynamics. Large variations in residual volatile contents exist between the different eruptive units. Textural features also strongly differ between white and grey pumices, but also within the grey pumices. The degassing processes were thus highly heterogeneous. We propose a new model of the 79 ad eruption in which pre-eruptive conditions (H₂O saturation, magma temperature and viscosity) are the critical controls on the diversity of the syn-eruptive degassing processes and hence the eruptive dynamics. Cl contents measured in melt inclusions show that only the white pumice and the upper part of the grey pumice magma were H₂O saturated prior to eruption. The white pumice eruptive units represent a typical closed-system degassing evolution, whereas the first grey pumice one, stored under similar pre-eruptive saturation conditions, follows a particular open-system degassing evolution. We suggest that the oscillatory regime that dominated the grey pumice eruptive phase is linked to pre-eruptive water undersaturation of most of the grey magma, and the associated time delays necessary for H₂O exsolution. We also suggest that the high residual H₂O content of the last grey pumice, deposited after the renewal of Plinian activity following the first total column collapse event, is due to syn-eruptive saturation of GP magma and reduced H₂O exsolution efficiency resulting from speciation of dissolved H₂O in the melt.