Recent trends of extreme temperature indices for the Iberian Peninsula

Climate change and extreme climate events have a significant impact on societies and ecosystems. As a result, climate change projections, especially related with extreme temperature events, have gained increasing importance due to their impacts on the well-being of the population and ecosystems. However, most studies in the field are based on coarse global climate models (GCMs). In this study, we perform a high resolution downscaling simulation to evaluate recent trends of extreme temperature indices. The model used was Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) forced by MPI-ESM-LR, which has been shown to be one of the more robust models to simulate European climate. The domain used in the simulations includes the Iberian Peninsula and the simulation covers the 1986–2005 period (i.e. recent past). In order to study extreme temperature events, trends were computed using the Theil-Sen method for a set of temperature indexes defined by the Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices (ETCCDI). For this, daily values of minimum and maximum temperatures were used. The trends of the indexes were computed for annual and seasonal values and the Mann-Kendall Trend test was used to evaluate their statistical significance. In order to validate the results, a second simulation, in which WRF was forced by ERA-Interim, was performed. The results suggest an increase in the number of warm days and warm nights, especially during summer and negative trends for cold nights and cold days for the summer and spring. For the winter, contrary to the expected, the results suggest an increase in cold days and cold nights (warming hiatus). This behavior is supported by the WRF simulation forced by ERA-Interim for the autumn days, pointing to an extension of the warming hiatus phenomenon to the remaining seasons. These results should be used with caution since the period used to calculate the trends may not be long enough for this purpose. However, the general sign of trends are similar for both simulations despite some differences in their magnitudes.     

Shallow groundwater temperature response to climate change and urbanization

Groundwater temperatures, especially in shallow (quaternary) aquifers respond to ground surface temperatures which in turn depend on climate and land use. Groundwater temperatures, therefore, are modified by climate change and urban development. In northern temperate climate regions seasonal temperature cycles penetrate the ground to depths on the order of 10–15 m. In this paper, we develop and apply analytic heat transfer relationships for 1-D unsteady effective diffusion of heat through an unsaturated zone into a flowing aquifer a short distance below the ground surface. We estimate how changes in land use (urban development) and climate change may affect shallow groundwater temperatures. We consider both long-term trends and seasonal cycles in surface temperature changes. Our analysis indicates that a fully urbanized downtown area at the latitude of Minneapolis/St. Paul is likely to have a groundwater temperature that is nearly 3 °C warmer than an undeveloped agricultural area at the same geographic location. Pavements are the main cause of this change. Data collected by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) in the St. Cloud, MN area confirm that land use influences groundwater temperatures. Ground surface temperatures are also projected to rise in response to global warming. In the extreme case of a doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide (2 × CO₂ climate scenario), groundwater temperatures in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area could therefore rise by up to 4 °C. Compounding a land use change from “undeveloped” to “fully urbanized” and a 2 × CO₂ climate scenario, groundwater temperatures are projected to rise by about 5 °C at the latitude of Minneapolis/St. Paul.     

区域气候模式RegCM3对华北地区未来气候变化的数值模拟

采用高水平分辨率区域气候模式进行区域未来气候变化预估,对理解全球增暖对区域气候的潜在影响和科学评估区域气候变化有很好的参考价值.这里对国家气候中心使用25 km高水平分辨率区域气候模式RegCM3单向嵌套全球模式MIROC3.2_hires在观测温室气体(1951—2000)和IPCC A1B温室气体排放情景下(2001—2100)进行的共计150年长时间模拟结果,进行华北地区未来气温、降水和极端气候事件变化的分析.模式检验结果表明:模式对当代(1981—2000)气温以及和气温有关的极端气候事件(霜冻日数、生长季长度)的空间分布和数值模拟较好;对降水及和降水有关的极端气候事件(强降水日期、降水强度、五日最大降水量)能够模拟出它们各自的主要空间分布特征,但在模拟数值上存在偏大、偏强的误差.和全球模式驱动场相比,区域模式模拟的气温、降水和极端气候事件有明显的改进.2010—2100年华北地区随时间区域平均气温升高幅度逐渐增大,随之霜冻日数逐渐减少,生长季长度逐渐增多;同时随温室效应的不断加剧,未来降水呈增加的趋势,强降水日期和五日最大降水量逐渐增多、降水强度逐渐增大.从空间分布看,21世纪末期(2081—2100)气温、降水以及有关的极端气候事件变化比21世纪中期(2041—2060)更加明显.     

区域气候模式RegCM3对华北地区未来气候变化的数值模拟

采用高水平分辨率区域气候模式进行区域未来气候变化预估,对理解全球增暖对区域气候的潜在影响和科学评估区域气候变化有很好的参考价值.这里对国家气候中心使用25 km高水平分辨率区域气候模式RegCM3单向嵌套全球模式MIROC3.2_hires在观测温室气体(1951—2000)和IPCC A1B温室气体排放情景下(2001—2100)进行的共计150年长时间模拟结果,进行华北地区未来气温、降水和极端气候事件变化的分析.模式检验结果表明:模式对当代(1981—2000)气温以及和气温有关的极端气候事件(霜冻日数、生长季长度)的空间分布和数值模拟较好;对降水及和降水有关的极端气候事件(强降水日期、降水强度、五日最大降水量)能够模拟出它们各自的主要空间分布特征,但在模拟数值上存在偏大、偏强的误差.和全球模式驱动场相比,区域模式模拟的气温、降水和极端气候事件有明显的改进.2010—2100年华北地区随时间区域平均气温升高幅度逐渐增大,随之霜冻日数逐渐减少,生长季长度逐渐增多;同时随温室效应的不断加剧,未来降水呈增加的趋势,强降水日期和五日最大降水量逐渐增多、降水强度逐渐增大.从空间分布看,21世纪末期(2081—2100)气温、降水以及有关的极端气候事件变化比21世纪中期(2041—2060)更加明显.     

Phytoplankton and periphyton production and its relation to temperature in a humic lagoon

To analyse the existence of interactive competition between phytoplankton and periphyton, we studied their photosynthesis–irradiance (P–E) response during one year in a humic lagoon. Lake production was dominated by phytoplankton, which followed seasonal changes in temperature. Periphyton primary production and algae biomass increased in winter, when phytoplankton biomass and production were lower. In this study we show that even in conditions of phytoplankton dominance, the habitat coupling between phytoplankton and periphyton can still be noticed.     

Phytoplankton dynamics and cyanobacterial dominance in Murchison Bay of Lake Victoria (Uganda) in relation to environmental conditions

Murchison Bay is a shallow embayment in the north-western part of Lake Victoria, strongly influenced by urban pollution from the Ugandan capital Kampala. Two stations, representing the semi-enclosed innermost part of the bay and the wider outer part of the bay, were sampled in the period from April 2003 to March 2004, in order to assess the phytoplankton community and the nutrient status in the bay. Murchison Bay was highly eutrophic with average concentrations (n=25) of total phosphorous >90 μg L⁻¹ and total nitrogen >1100 μg L⁻¹ in the inner part of the bay. The phytoplankton community was dominated by a variety of cyanobacterial species and diatoms. Cyanobacteria were dominant in the whole bay, whereas diatoms were more abundant in the outer part of the bay. Moreover, the proportion of N-fixing species like Anabaena sp. was higher in the outer part of the bay, whereas species like Microcystis sp. were more abundant in the inner part of the bay. The phytoplankton community, especially in the outer part of the bay, may be influenced by light limitation. Low NO₃-N concentrations in the bay may also indicate a possible N-limitation, thus favouring growth of N-fixing cyanobacteria. The open bay is, however, a complex system, and additional environmental factors and loss processes most likely affect the phytoplankton community.     

极端气候事件综合危险性等级指标构建及近60年来长江流域极端气候综合分析

本文利用经过均一化订正的长江流域共669个气象站近60年(1961—2020年)逐日观测资料,采用相对阈值和绝对阈值相结合的极值分析方法,对长江流域近60年极端高温事件、极端低温事件、极端干旱事件和极端降水事件进行识别,分析了年发生频率和线性变化趋势.在此基础上,考虑到全国极端气候事件发生情况,构建了多个极端气候事件综合危险性等级指标,比较客观地给出了长江流域极端气候事件综合危险性等级.研究结果表明,相对于全国其他地区,长江流域大部分地区极端气候综合危险性等级较高,虽然自1961年以来综合年发生频率呈现弱的线性减少趋势,但自20世纪90年代以来,长江流域极端气候事件发生的危险性相对于全国其他地区明显偏高.通过对不同极端气候事件危险性和变化规律研究,结果表明：长江流域近60年极端干旱事件年发生频率呈现线性减少趋势,与全国他其区域相比较,长江流域大部分地区极端干旱发生的危险性等级都在中级以上,说明长江流域容易发生极端干旱事件;长江流域近60年极端降水事件年发生频率呈现弱的增加趋势,危险性等级指数分析表明,高危险区主要位于长江中下游地区,湖南西部、江西大部、湖北南部等地发生极端降水事件的危险性很高;近60年长江流域大部分地区极端高温事件显著增加,尤其进入21世纪以来发生更加频繁,但相对于全国其他地区,危险性等级较低;近60年长江流域极端低温事件显著减少,但相对于全国其他地区,极端低温事件发生的危险性增加明显.进入21世纪以来,长江流域极端气候事件的综合危险性不断增加,极端高温和极端干旱相伴而生的高温干旱复合型事件频繁发生,极端降水事件和极端低温事件在全国的占比不断升高,造成的社会经济影响越来越严重,说明长江流域加强极端气候事件风险防范的重要性和紧迫性.

     

城市化对北京气象站极端气温指数趋势变化的影响

利用5个乡村气象站和北京气象站(简称北京站)1960~2008年日最高、最低气温资料,比较分析了北京地区城市和乡村极端气温指数年、季节的时间变化以及城市化对北京站各极端气温指数趋势变化的影响.结果表明:1960~2008年北京站霜冻日数、冷夜日数、冷昼日数和平均日较差均显著减少,暖夜日数、暖昼日数、平均最高气温和平均最低气温均显著上升,这些指数的趋势变化全部通过了0.01显著性水平检验,其中霜冻日数、冷夜日数、暖夜日数、平均最低气温、平均气温日较差等与最低气温有关的极端气温指数比冷昼日数、暖昼日数、平均最高气温等基于最高气温记录的极端气温指数变化趋势更明显;城市化因素已致使北京站1960~2008年期间霜冻日数、冷夜日数和平均气温日较差显著减少,暖夜日数和平均最低气温显著增加,这些与最低气温有关的极端气温指数序列,其城市化影响都通过了0.01显著性水平检验.在北京站的霜冻日数、冷夜日数和平均气温日较差长期减少趋势中,城市化影响分别达到-5.78 d/10a、-17.83 d/10a和-0.73 ℃/10a,而在北京站暖夜日数和平均最低气温增加趋势中,城市化影响分别为14.76 d/10a和0.70 ℃/10a.在所有与最低气温有关的年平均极端气温指数的趋势变化中,城市化影响贡献率均达到100%,即观测到的趋势变化完全是由城市化因素造成的.城市化致使四季北京站冷夜日数、平均气温日较差均显著减少,暖夜日数、平均最低气温均显著增加,其中平均最低气温和平均气温日较差序列中的城市化影响在冬季最大,暖夜日数序列中的城市化影响在夏季最显著.     

Statistical analysis of extreme events in a non-stationary context via a Bayesian framework: case study with peak-over-threshold data

Statistical analysis of extremes currently assumes that data arise from a stationary process, although such an hypothesis is not easily assessable and should therefore be considered as an uncertainty. The aim of this paper is to describe a Bayesian framework for this purpose, considering several probabilistic models (stationary, step-change and linear trend models) and four extreme values distributions (exponential, generalized Pareto, Gumbel and GEV). Prior distributions are specified by using regional prior knowledge about quantiles. Posterior distributions are used to estimate parameters, quantify the probability of models and derive a realistic frequency analysis, which takes into account estimation, distribution and stationarity uncertainties. MCMC methods are needed for this purpose, and are described in the article. Finally, an application to a POT discharge series is presented, with an analysis of both occurrence process and peak distribution.     

MM5V3模式对IPCCA1B情景下中国地区极端事件的模拟和预估

利用MM5V3区域气候模式单向嵌套ECHAM5全球环流模式,对中国地区1978—2000年及IPCC A1B情景下2038—2070年气候分别进行了水平分辨率为50 km的模拟试验.文章首先检验了模式模拟的当代极端气候结果,在此基础上对6个极端温度指数和6个极端降水指数的未来变化进行了预估.检验结果表明:MM5V3模式对中国地区当代日最高、最低温度及强降水(大雨和暴雨)日数的空间分布和概率特征均具有一定的模拟能力,但模拟的日最高温度在大部分地区偏低,日最低温度在南方地区偏低、西北地区偏高.概率统计结果显示日最高温度向低值频段偏移,日最低温度在0℃的峰值附近明显偏高.模式对大雨和暴雨年平均日数的模拟在东部地区偏多,概率统计结果则为一致偏大.未来中国地区极端气候预估结果表明:极端高温、极端低温和相对高温在全国范围内都将升高,且线性趋势均为上升;霜日日数则为减少,并具有下降趋势;暖日日数和相对低温在青藏高原和新疆部分地区有所减少、其它地区均为增加,且线性趋势暖日日数为上升,相对低温不明显.极端降水指数的变化具有区域特征,其中单日最大降水、连续五日最大降水、最长无雨期、强降水日数、简单降水强度和极端降水总量均在江淮、华南及西南地区有所增多,而在东北及内蒙古地区有所减少,未来中国南方地区降水的极端化趋势将更加显著.极端降水指数的线性趋势除最长无雨期外其它均为上升.     

Climate change and North Sea storm surge extremes: an ensemble study of storm surge extremes expected in a changed climate projected by four different regional climate models

The coastal zones are facing the prospect of changing storm surge statistics due to anthropogenic climate change. In the present study, we examine these prospects for the North Sea based on numerical modelling. The main tool is the barotropic tide-surge model TRIMGEO (Tidal Residual and Intertidal Mudflat Model) to derive storm surge climate and extremes from atmospheric conditions. The analysis is carried out by using an ensemble of four 30-year atmospheric regional simulations under present-day and possible future-enhanced greenhouse gas conditions. The atmospheric regional simulations were prepared within the EU project PRUDENCE (Prediction of Regional scenarios and Uncertainties for Defining EuropeaN Climate change risks and Effects). The research strategy of PRUDENCE is to compare simulations of different regional models driven by the same global control and climate change simulations. These global conditions, representative for 1961–1990 and 2071–2100 were prepared by the Hadley Center based on the IPCC A2 SRES scenario. The results suggest that under future climatic conditions, storm surge extremes may increase along the North Sea coast towards the end of this century. Based on a comparison between the results of the different ensemble members as well as on the variability estimated from a high-resolution storm surge reconstruction of the recent decades it is found that this increase is significantly different from zero at the 95% confidence level for most of the North Sea coast. An exception represents the East coast of the UK which is not affected by this increase of storm surge extremes.     

Temperature and heat wave trends in northwest Mexico

Increase in temperature extremes is one of the main expected impacts of climate change, as well as one of the first signs of its occurrence. Nevertheless, results emerging from General Circulation Models, while sufficient for large scales, are not enough for forecasting local trends and, hence, the IPCC has called for local studies based on on-site data. Indeed, it is expected that climate extremes will be detected much earlier than changes in climate averages. Heat waves are among the most important and least studied climate extremes, however its occurrence has been only barely studied and even its very definition remains controversial. This paper discusses the observed changes in temperature trends and heat waves in Northwestern Mexico, one of the most vulnerable regions of the country. The climate records in two locations of the region are analyzed, including one of the cities with extreme climate in Mexico, Mexicali City in the state of Baja California and the Yaqui River basin at Sonora State using three different methodologies. Results showed clear trends on temperature increase and occurrence of heat waves in both of the study zones using the three methodologies proposed. As result, some policy making suggestion are included in order to increase the adaptability of the studied regions to climate change, particularly related with heat wave occurrence.     

Relative scales of time and effectiveness of climate in watershed geomorphology

Peak rainfalls and peak runoff rates per unit area are comparable over a worldwide spectrum of climates. However, while the magnitude of the external contribution of energy or force in diverse regions is similar, the impact on the landscape varies markedly between regions. Absolute magnitudes of climatic events and absolute time intervals between such events do not provide satisfactory measures of the geomorphic effectiveness of events of different magnitudes and recurrence intervals. Although geomorphic processes are driven by complex sets of interrelated climatic, topographic, lithologic, and biologic factors, the work done by individual extreme events can be scaled as a ratio to mean annual erosion and the effectiveness of such events in forming landscape features can be related to the rate of recovery of channel form or mass wasting scars following alteration by the extreme event. Thus, a time scale for effectiveness may relate the recurrence interval of an event to the time required for a landform to recover the form existing prior to the event. River channels in temperate regions widened by floods of recurrence intervals from 50 to more than 200 years may regain their original width in matters of months or years. In semi-arid regions, recovery of channel form depends not only upon flows but upon climatic determinants of the growth of bottomland vegetation resulting in variable rates of recovery, on the order of decades, depending upon coincidence of average flows and strengthened vegetation. In truly arid regions the absence of vegetation and flow precludes recovery and the width of channels increases in drainage areas up to 100 km² but remains relatively constant at larger drainage areas. Area as well as time controls the effectiveness of specific events inasmuch as the likelihood of simultaneous peak discharges or rainfalls and large areas is less, particularly in arid regions where events spanning areas of more than several thousand km² are extremely rare if experienced at all. To some extent a decrease in area in a humid region is comparable with a regional change from humid toward more arid climate reflected in the increase in importance of episodic as contrasted with more continuous processes. Exceedingly rare floods of extreme magnitudes, estimated recurrence intervals of 500 years or longer, may exceed thresholds of competence otherwise unattainable in the ‘normal’ record resulting in ‘irreparable’ transformations of valley landforms. Denudation of hillslopes by mass wasting during relatively rare events can also be related to mean rates of denudation and to recovery of hillslope surfaces after scarring by different kinds of landslides. Measured recovery times described in the literature vary from less than a decade for some tropical regions to decades or more in temperate regions. Recurrence intervals of high magnitude storms which trigger mass wasting range from 1 to 2 years in some tropical areas, to 3 or 4 per hundred years in some areas of seasonal rainfall and to 100 or more years in some temperate regions. The effectiveness of climatic events on both hillslopes and rivers is not separable from gradient, lithology or other variables which control both thresholds of activity and recovery rate.     

长江中下游典型湖泊营养盐历史变化模拟

湖泊营养盐变化在自然条件下受到气候水文因素控制,同时受到湖泊生态系统生物群落作用和反馈.作为动力机制探讨,本文试图基于水文和生态动力学方法,分别构建气候-流域水文作用于湖泊营养盐的外源模式和湖泊生物群落作用于湖泊营养盐的內源模式.针对长江中下游典型湖泊,经过控制实验和率定,发现营养盐模拟与观测数据在时间序列上达到90%百分位的正相关,因此用来模拟1640 1840 A.D.期间的营养盐演变历史.研究表明:(1)模拟的湖泊营养盐变化与沉积钻孔揭示的历史营养盐变化基本一致,沉积记录与模式模拟的7个湖泊的营养盐变化均显著相关;(2)气候因素是湖泊营养盐历史演变的主控因子,来自于湖泊生物群落的反馈作用贡献约占40%;(3)在温度和降水因子的驱动下,湖泊营养盐历史变化主要受降水控制,在极端干旱时期,60%的营养盐变化同步响应于降水变化.同时,面积在400 km2以下的湖泊营养盐对气候变化的响应比2000 km2以上的大湖更为敏感.研究结果对长江中下游湖泊营养状态的长期变化机理认识和趋势控制提供科学依据.     

Temporal and spatial changes of soil moisture and its response to temperature and precipitation over the Tibetan Plateau

ABSTRACT

The temporal and spatial characteristics of soil moisture over the Tibetan Plateau (TP) were analysed to explore the relative contributions of temperature and precipitation to soil moisture change. Non-significant changes in soil moisture were observed for the TP over the period 1950–2010, while a seasonal cycle was evident, with higher values in summer and smaller values in winter. The soil moisture showed obvious spatial heterogeneity, with higher values in the south than in the north of the TP. The soil moisture fluctuated with time, jointly influenced by precipitation and temperature changes, with precipitation the dominant factor, while temperature regulated the relationship between soil moisture and precipitation. The relative contribution of precipitation to soil moisture changes was over 80%, except for winter in which temperature was the dominant factor, with a relative contribution of more than 70%. Because of the sharp increase in temperature in winter, the uneven spatial distribution of soil moisture over the TP might harm the fragile ecological environment.     

Changes in the thermal structure of moderate to large sized lakes in response to changes in air temperature

Interannual variability in the thermal structure of lakes is driven by interannual differences in meteorological conditions. Dynamic or mechanistic models and empirical or statistical methods have been used to integrate the physical processes in lakes enabling the response of the thermal structure to changes in air temperature to be determined. Water temperature records for Lake Mendota, WI., are possibly the most extensive for any dimictic lake in the world and allowed both approaches to be used. Results from both techniques suggest the mixed layer temperature increases with increasing air temperature. Results from the empirical approach suggested epilimnion temperatures increase 0.5 to 1.0°C per 1.0°C increase in air temperature compared to 0.4 to 0.85°C estimated from a dynamical model (DYRESM). Increased air temperatures are related to significant warming in deep water temperatures in the absence of stratification; however, mid summer hypolimnion temperatures are expected to change very little or increase only slightly in response to climatic warming. Both approaches suggest increases in air temperatures increase the length of summer stratification; results from the dynamic model suggest an increase of approximately 5 days per 1°C increase in air temperature. Longer stratification is reflected in shallower late summer thermocline depths. With these quantitative relationships and forecast increases in air temperature for the 2 × CO₂ climatic scenario (Greenhouse Effect) from three General Circulation Models, projections are made describing the changes in the future mean thermal structure of moderate to large sized lakes.     

Changes in the epipelic diatom assemblage in nutrient rich streams due to the variations of simultaneous stressors

Benthic diatoms are often used for assessing environmental conditions, such as water quality and habitat conditions in stream and river systems. Although laboratory experiments have shown that each diatom species have different levels of tolerance to different stressors, few studies have been conducted in laboratory settings that analyze the responses of the diatom assemblage to the effects of multiple simultaneous variables. The aim of this study was to evaluate some structural responses (such as species composition and diversity) of the diatom assemblage on a short time scale to the effects of the simultaneous increase in four variables that are directly linked to the environmental changes affecting the Pampean streams: turbidity, nutrients (phosphorous and nitrogen), water velocity and temperature. To this end we conducted a five-week laboratory experiment using artificial channels where we simulated two environmental conditions (LOW and HIGH) employing epipelic biofilm from a mesotrophic stream. The results obtained in the experiment show that the structure of the diatom assemblage in the epipelic biofilm is affected by the simultaneous modification of temperature, water velocity, nutrient concentration and turbidity. These modifications in the assemblage included moderate decreases in diversity, small decreases in the proportion of species sensitive to eutrophication and saprobity, moderate increases in the IDP (Pampean Diatom Index) values and moderate changes in the percentages of the stalked growth-forms. The relative abundance of species such as Luticola mutica, Navicula cryptocephala and Navicula lanceolata were negatively affected by both treatments; other species such as Planothidium lanceolatum, Caloneis bacillum, Encyonema minutum, Humidophila contenta, Luticola kotschyi, Nitzschia amphibia, Navicula veneta, Pinnularia subcapitata var. subcapitata were positively affected by the HIGH treatment; and Nitzschia fonticola was positively affected by both treatments. The results suggest that, in the very short term of the bioassay conducted, the diatom assemblage can modify its structure to respond in a sensitive manner to the abrupt changes in multiple physical–chemical variables.     

Runoff response to multiple land-use changes and climate perturbations

Runoff response to multiple land-use changes and climate perturbations is distinct, and the main influencing factors vary significantly in different regions. However, few have simultaneously considered the effects of multiple land use changes (vegetation cover changes, terraces and check-dams construction, and urban expansion) and climatic perturbations (precipitation, potential evapotranspiration, and temperature) on runoff and constructed separate expressions for distinct study areas. This article attempted to determine the main influencing factors of runoff according to the fitting function in the eight subregions of the middle Yellow River (MYR), construct the expressions between the controlling parameter in the Budyko framework and the main factors, and quantify the contribution of climate factors and land use changes to runoff by combining the elasticity coefficient in each subregion. The results indicated that climate factors and land use changes could significantly impact controlling parameters, and there were differences between regions. Climate change promoted an increase in runoff, while land use change promoted its reduction, and the reduction value outweighed its increase. In terms of land use changes, increasing vegetation coverage could suppress runoff reduction, while constructing terraces and check-dams could promote its reduction. The urban expansion benefited runoff collection and, therefore, could suppress runoff reduction. Its absolute contribution rate exceeded 200% in apparent urban expansion areas. In addition, the contribution rates of land use to runoff changes in the northern arid and semi-arid regions were significantly higher than those in the southern, and they were more sensitive to land use changes. The research results can provide a reference for analysing the runoff response to different land-use changes and can further advance people's understanding of the water cycle.     

Sonication of bacteria, phytoplankton and zooplankton: Application to treatment of ballast water

We investigated the effect of high power ultrasound, at a frequency of 19 kHz, on the survival of bacteria, phytoplankton and zooplankton, in order to obtain estimates of effective exposure times and energy densities that could be applied to design of ultrasonic treatment systems for ballast water. Efficacy of ultrasonic treatment varied with the size of the test organism. Zooplankton required only 3-9s of exposure time and 6-19 J/mL of ultrasonic energy to realize a 90% reduction in survival. In contrast, decimal reduction times for bacteria and phytoplankton ranged from 1 to 22 min, and decimal reduction energy densities from 31 to 1240 J/mL. Our results suggest that stand-alone ultrasonic treatment systems for ballast water, operating at 19-20 kHz, may be effective for planktonic organisms >100 microm in size, but smaller planktonic organisms such as phytoplankton and bacteria will require treatment by an additional or alternative system.     

Effect of nutrient supply on photosynthesis and pigmentation to short-term stress (UV radiation) in Gracilaria conferta (Rhodophyta)

The effects of increased photosynthetic active radiation (PAR), UV radiation (UVR), and nutrient supply on photosynthetic activity, pigment content, C:N ratio and biomass yield were studied in tank cultivated Gracilaria conferta (Rhodophyta). Electron transport rate (ETR) and biliprotein content were higher under high nutrient supply (HNS), obtained from fishpond effluents, compared to low nutrient supply (LNS), in contrast to mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs) dynamic. The high MAA content in LNS-algae could be explained by higher UVR penetration in the thallus and by the competition for the use of nutrients with other processes. Effective quantum yield decreased after short-term exposure to high irradiance whereas full recovery in shade was produced only under slightly heat shock. UVA radiation provoked an additional decrease in photosynthesis under high water temperature. UVB radiation reversed UVA’s negative effect mainly with HNS. Results support that nutrient-sufficiency help G. conferta to resist environmental changes as short-term temperature increase.