Denitrification in a hyporheic riparian zone controlled by river regulation in the Seine river basin (France)

The purpose of this paper is to study denitrification and the conditions for its development in a hyporheic zone. The study site is the riparian zone of a former branch of the Seine River, where the river stage is kept almost constant during the year by hydraulic regulation. Hydrological and geochemical surveys were performed by monitoring four wells, ten shorter piezometers and the river over a 15‐month period. The water fluxes originating from the chalky hillsides and the river converge in a zone parallel to the river that acts as a drainage flow path through the floodplain. The riparian zone between this flow path and the river shows an important depletion of nitrate during the summer and autumn period, which cannot be explained by a simple mixing of waters coming from the river and the chalky hillsides. It can be attributed to denitrification as it occurs when oxygen concentration is below 2 mg l^?1, and goes along with a consumption of dissolved organic carbon and a decrease of redox potential. The river completely controls these hydro‐geochemical conditions. It also keeps the wetness of the riparian zone almost constant, which allowed us to isolate the high temperatures in summer and autumn as an important triggering factor for denitrification through its influence on the reaction rate and oxygen deficits. We also found a small isotopic enrichment of nitrate, suggesting that denitrification occurs after diffusion of nitrate through the sediment and riparian zone matrix, which is consistent with the hyporheic functioning of the study site. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of wild fish and motile epibenthic invertebrates on the benthos below an open water fish farm

A manipulative caging experiment was carried out to evaluate the role of wild fish and motile epibenthic invertebrates on the benthic system influenced by an open water fish farm. Chemical and biological parameters of the sediment were measured as indicators of the ecological benthic status. The combination of wild fish and currents notably lowered aquaculture waste sedimentation below the fish farm. The limited waste sedimentation rate could have limited the scavenger and predation activity of wild fish on the benthos, whose role may be taken over by motile epibenthic invertebrates. The interaction of these motile epibenthic invertebrates with the sediment differed from that observed with fish. The motile epibenthic invertebrates led to more reduced conditions with lower redox values, significantly decreased the number of species of macrofaunal benthic assemblages and significantly modified macrofaunal benthic assemblages. Therefore, epibenthic invertebrates do not seem to have an ameliorative effect on the benthic status produced by fish farming. Since the effects of epibenthic species on the benthic system can greatly vary according to their identity, further experiments should be performed to better understand the drivers that influence the epibenthic species identity that modulate the benthic system affected by fish farming.     

Retention of chloride in soil and cycling of organic matter‐bound chlorine

Chloride (Cl_inorg) is generally considered to be a hydrologically and chemically inert substance. Past research suggests that Cl_inorg participates in a complex biogeochemical cycle involving the formation of organically bound chlorine (Cl_org). The present study examines whether Cl_org cycling is sufficiently extensive as to influence the geochemical cycling of Cl_inorg. Undisturbed soil cores were collected in a coniferous forest soil in SE Sweden. The cores were stored in climate chambers for three months, irrigated with artificial rain, and the leachate was collected and analysed. The water balance of the lysimeters could be well described, and we found that 20–50% of the chlorine leached from the lysimeters was organically bound and that the amounts lost did not decrease with time. This strongly suggests that a substantial amount of Cl_org forms in topsoil, and that subsequent leaching to deeper layers causes a considerable withdrawal of Cl_inorg. The concentration of both organic carbon and Cl_org in the leachate was considerably higher than concentrations observed in the runoff in the actual catchment, suggesting that organic matter precipitates or is mineralized on its way through the soil. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Kwakshua Watersheds Observatory,central coast of British Columbia,Canada

The Kwakshua Watersheds Observatory (KWO) is an integrative watersheds observatory on the coastal margin of a rain-dominated bog-forest landscape in British Columbia (BC), Canada. Established in 2013, the goal of the KWO is to understand and model the flux of terrestrial materials from land to sea – the origins, pathways, processes and ecosystem consequences – in the context of long-term environmental change. The KWO consists of seven gauged watersheds and a network of observation sites spanning from land to sea and along drainage gradients within catchments. Time-series datasets include year-round measurements of weather, soil hydrology, streamflow, aquatic biogeochemistry, microbial ecology and nearshore oceanographic conditions. Sensor measurements are recorded every 5 min and water samples are collected approximately monthly. Additional observations are made during high-flow conditions. We used remote sensing to map watershed terrain, drainage networks, soils and terrestrial ecosystems. The watersheds range in size from 3.2 to 12.8 km², with varying catchment characteristics that influence hydrological and biogeochemical responses. Despite local variation, the overall study area is a global hotspot for yields of dissolved organic carbon, dissolved organic nitrogen and dissolved iron at the coastal margin. This observatory helps fill an important gap in the global network of observatories, in terms of spatial location (central coast of BC), climate (temperate oceanic), hydrology (very high runoff, pluvial regime), geology (igneous intrusive, glacially scoured), vegetation (bog rainforest) and soils (large stores of organic carbon).     

南极菲尔德斯半岛地区地衣和苔藓的生物地球化学特征

利用地衣和苔藓化学分析资料对南极菲尔德斯半岛地区地衣和苔藓中化学元素的分配、相关性及其元素比值关系进行了分析。研究表明，地衣和苔藓促进了土壤与风化壳的发育，但受南极地区恶劣环境条件的限制，生物地球化学过程极其微弱。地衣和苔藓植株体中Ｆｅ、Ａｌ、Ｍｎ等元素丰度主要依赖于土壤与风化壳元素丰度的高背景值。Ｃａ、Ｋ、Ｃｒ等元素是地衣选择性吸收较强的元素，苔藓对Ｍｇ、Ｎａ、Ｚｎ等元素则具有较强的选择性吸收能力。     

南极普里兹湾沉积物中有机碳和总氮的含量与分布

利用中国多次南极科学考察获得的沉积物样品,对普里兹湾沉积物中有机碳(OC)、总氮(TN)的含量和分布以及OC/TN进行了分析。结果表明:普里兹湾表层沉积物中OC和TN的含量变化范围分别为0.14%~1.20%和0.02%~0.20%,平均值分别为0.63%和0.11%。OC/TN的变化范围为5.5~8.2,平均值为6.8。OC和TN含量呈现明显的正相关性,表明有机质来源相同,比值接近6.6,说明有机质主要为海洋生源沉积。两者平面分布趋势非常一致,且与沉积物中泥质含量呈显著正相关,湾内73°E以西区域OC和TN含量较低,而以东区域含量较高,这是上层水体生产过程和冰川携带陆源砂等因素共同作用的结果。垂直分布上,OC和TN含量总体上表层高于深层,OC含量随深度增加逐渐降低,达到一定深度后趋于稳定。较高的沉积速率加速OC的埋藏,5根柱样中OC的埋藏率为39%~91%,平均为66%,表明普里兹湾是重要的碳汇区。     

岩溶生物地球化学研究的进展与问题

在CO2-水-碳酸盐岩活跃的代谢体系中,由于参与岩溶作用过程的二氧化碳来源复杂,因而研究碳酸盐岩环境中二氧化碳在生物介导下所耦联的物质循环过程及其与全球变化的关系成为岩溶生物地球化学学科的主要内容,并使其成为现代岩溶学的重要分支。在分析国内外岩溶学、地球化学、生物学等交叉学科研究成果的基础上,本文简要评述了基于岩溶生物地球化学特性的水土流失与石漠化过程,碳酸盐岩矿物在生物作用下的化学风化、元素释放规律以及控制元素循环的界面过程,碳酸盐岩区土壤－大气界面下的气体循环及其控制因素和过程,碳酸盐岩区有机污染物在环境中的来源、分布规律与降解,微型生物在岩溶水体碳循环过程中的作用等主题的主要研究进展和存在的科学问题。因此,需要以CO2为核心把岩溶环境中不同尺度上生物有机体参与的地球化学过程联系起来,但人们对生物有机体是如何通过协同作用而改变岩溶环境的,还了解得很少。如果能查明碳酸盐岩一土壤一水一生物相互作用产生的功能,岩溶生物地球化学将进一步拓展CO2-水-碳酸盐岩相耦合的岩溶作用过程,并在岩溶资源领域和全球变化领域有广阔的应用前景。因此,岩溶生物地球化学需要多学科的协同研究,特别是加强生物过程与岩溶过程的耦合研究,方能解决岩溶领域存在的生态环境问题。      

草原凋落物的分解及营养元素的释放和累积

草原凋落物的分解是草原生态系统物质循环的主要环节, 其中植物营养元素的释放和累积对退化草场恢复的进程和质量有着重要意义。本文从凋落物自身的性质、外部环境因素(生物及非生物因子)、混合效应等对凋落物分解速率的影响以及凋落物分解时植物营养元素的释放和累积两个方面论述了国内外对草原凋落物的分解及营养元素的生物地球化学行为的研究现状。一般情况下, 草原凋落物分解速率与凋落物自身的N、P、K等元素含量正相关, 与C/N、C/P、木质素、纤维素等的比值或含量值负相关, 而与周围环境中营养元素的组成及含量的关系不大。混合凋落物中不同种类凋落物的N、P含量及物种丰富度影响着非加性效应作用的效果。在凋落物分解过程中, 总体趋势表现为分解初级阶段对N的积累, 对P 和K的释放, 而对Na、Ca、Mg等营养元素来说, 随物种和根茎叶等部位的不同规律也不一样。凋落物中各元素的含量、凋落物分解阶段、物种类型、非加性效应、土壤环境等都是影响其营养元素释放和累积的因素。据此, 本文展望了草原凋落物未来可能的研究方向, 指出多因子的交互作用对草原凋落物分解的影响、凋落物混合分解机制探究、某些大量及微量营养元素的释放和累积可能是未来需要研究的重点。     

汞的环境生物地球化学研究进展

汞是毒性极高的全球性环境污染物.即使在极低剂量下,汞对人类和野生动植物都有相当大的毒性,并导致生态系统功能退化和人类健康风险,有关汞及其化合物的环境生物地球化学研究是目前国际上的热点之一.基于近三十年来的相关研究报道,作者阐述了生态环境中汞的分布特征及化学行为、汞的来源及循环、当前汞的暴露及人类健康风险等方面的最新研究动态.同时,指出生态环境中及环境界面间汞的活化、迁移、转化机制研究、人类活动与汞释放间的关系研究以及生态环境中汞的甲基化作用、生物放大作用等过程和交互作用研究等是今后汞的环境生物地球化学领域内的研究重点.