Inundation,sea-level rise and transition from Neolithic to Bronze Age cultures,Yangtze Delta,China

Petrological, faunal and floral information derived from a new drill core taken in the Yangtze delta, coupled with data from borings recovered earlier, record a marked transition to warmer, wetter conditions which resulted in widespread inundation of the delta about 4000 years ago. Also identified for that time on the delta plain is a major discontinuity between the Neolithic Liangzhu and Bronze age Maqiao cultures. The cultural discontinuity is indicated by: (1) absence of in situ material between the two at ∼4000 yr B.P.; (2) missing Maqiao material in strata above many Liangzhu sites; (3) less sophisticated Maqiao material than in the older Neolithic phase; and (4) notably fewer Maqiao sites in more restricted areas of the delta plain. It is of note that the change from the Liangzhu to the younger Maqiao does not show an increasingly complex cultural advancement of the type generally associated with the foundation of Chinese civilization. We propose that this cultural discontinuity was caused by the interplay of increased environmental stress and new population migrations into the delta. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The rise and fall of the estuarine intertidal zone

Water level records from two study sites in Indian River Lagoon, along Florida’s Atlantic Coast, are used to characterize the vertical displacement of the estuarine intertidal zone in response to subtidal frequency forcing. A 22-year water level record indicates that the seasonal cycle has a range approximately one-quarter greater than the mean tidal range. The intertidal zone thus rises and falls to such an extent that over time scales in excess of several weeks there is no layer which consistently experiences an alternating exposure and inundation. Six-year sets of high and low tide extremes from the second study site are expressed in the form of cummulative histograms to determine the probabilities with which high tide and low tide levels lying outside of median values will occur in response to the interaction of tidal constituents and low-frequency forcing. High and low water values are then stratified by month, and probability distributions are recomputed for each subset. In this study area, unpredictable, low-frequency water level fluctuations perturb the intertidal zone to such an extent that the probabilities of extreme high and low water levels, in addition to mean high and low water, must be determined to characterize the stuarine intertidal zone adequately. *** DIRECT SUPPORT *** A01BY034 00002     

长江三角洲晚第四纪地层沉积物源特征及其对季风气候变化的响应

物源分析可以反演河流系统演化过程中,构造运动、气候变化与海平面升降等因素的影响。选择长江三角洲现代、中全新世和末次盛冰期3个代表性时代的沉积物样品,进行重矿物组合、锆石U—Pb年龄谱系等分析,以揭示不同气候条件下长江三角洲河口沉积物源的变化。与末次盛冰期相比,中全新世沉积物中榍石、锆石含量较低,重矿物GZi指数较大,古元古代锆石含量较高,但白垩纪、新元古代锆石含量较低。这些特征表明中全新世长江河口沉积物有更多源自上游地区的物质,这种变化可能与流域受夏季风影响的降雨量变化有关。初步分析认为,末次盛冰期研究区季风很弱,降雨量和径流量均下降,上游物质较少被搬运至河口;全新世季风加强后,降雨量和径流量均上升,此时河口沉积物更多源自上游,尤其是在中全新世夏季风最强盛期。     

The fall and rise of metropolitan government in Copenhagen

In this paper it is argued that the re-establishment of a metropolitan government in the Greater Copenhagen Area in 2000 (Greater Copenhagen Authority) is not to be seen as a return to the kind of regional, coordinative authority (Greater Copenhagen Council) that was abolished in the Thatcherite climate of the 1980s. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s new forms of urban governance, entrepreneurialism and a higher national priority to the capital region were introduced, which changed the conditions under which the new metropolitan government is operating. This `contextualization' of the analysis of the two generations of metropolitan government points to the fact that typologies of metropolitan government, such as the one put forward by Sharpe (1995), often lacks analytical cogency. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Migration patterns of Neolithic settlements on the abandoned Yellow and Yangtze River deltas of China

Archaeological records of the Neolithic settlements on the eastern China coast between 35°N and 30°N, an area covering the abandoned Yellow River and the Yangtze River delta plains, reveal that Neolithic people moved from the Yellow River basin onto the northern coast for fishing, hunting and dry-land agriculture ~ 7000 yr ago. Marine transgression interrupted their activities on the low-lying (2-5 m in elevation) coastal wetlands between 6000 and 5000 yr ago, after which they reclaimed their land near the river mouths. Their migration routes on the southern Yangtze delta plain indicate another scenario: early Neolithic communities moved onto the plain for wet-rice cultivation. Despite relative sea-level rise from 7000 to 4000 yr ago, a large number of settlements were established on the lowlands between the eastern Chenier Ridges and the western Taihu Lake depression. The Chenier Ridges, with ~ 1.0 m higher topography than the adjacent coastal area, played a role in sheltering the Neolithic people. Subsequently, settlements waned considerably, possibly due to further marine inundation combined with cold climate. The present study shows that migration patterns of the Neolithic settlements are closely associated with a gradually rising sea level between 7000 and 4000 yr ago.     

Yangtze Delta, China: Taihu lake-level variation since the 1950s, response to sea-level rise and human impact

 Hydrological records collected from water gauge stations since the 1950s demonstrate that the Taihu lake level is rising. The average rate of the lake-level rise is 0.4–1.1 mm/year during the non-flood season, resulting directly from a rise in sea level. High rates of 3.0–5.0 mm/year of rise are even recorded during the wet season. This indicates increasing human activities such as reclamation, sluicing and embanking, which significantly hinder the expulsion of extra lake water to the coast shortly after a rainfall. Generally, the lake level of the western inlet is higher than that of the eastern outlet. However, the lake-level difference between the west and east has been diminished annually from ∼10–15 cm in the 1950s to <3 cm at the present time. During non-flood seasons, the lake-level difference even appears to be reversed, indicating a retrogression of the lake flow from east to west. It is predicted that the Taihu drainage basin will lose much of its natural water-expelling ability in the next 50 years as the sea level continues to rise, and retrogression will likely occur during the flood season in the near future. Received: 13 March 1998 · Accepted: 21 July 1998     

Catastrophic early Holocene sea level rise,human migration and the Neolithic transition in Europe

The collapse of the Laurentide Ice Sheet and release of freshwater 8740–8160 years ago abruptly raised global sea levels by up to 1.4 m. The effect on human populations is largely unknown. Here we constrain the time of the main sea level rise and investigate its effect on the onset of the Neolithic across Europe. An analysis of radiocarbon ages and palaeoshoreline reconstruction supports the hypothesis that flooding of coastal areas led to the sudden loss of land favoured by early farmers and initiated an abrupt expansion of activity across Europe, driven by migrating Neolithic peoples.     

Neolithic agriculture, freshwater resources and rapid environmental changes on the lower Yangtze, China

Analyses of sedimentary evidence in the form of spores, pollen, freshwater algae, dinoflagellate cysts, phytoliths and charcoal from AMS ¹⁴C-dated, Holocene-aged sequences provide an excellent opportunity to examine the responses of Neolithic agriculturalists in the lower Yangtze to changing environments. Evidence from two sites close to the southern margin of the Yangtze delta and separated by what is now Hangzhou Bay attests the critical importance to early attempts at food production of access to freshwater resources. More readily, if episodically, available freshwater resources during the early to mid-Holocene on the Hangjiahu plain may have encouraged an early reliance on rice-based agriculture, which in turn facilitated the accumulation of agricultural surpluses and cultural diversification. Cultural change was relatively attenuated and human population pressures possibly lower on the Ningshao plain, seemingly because of much more profound environmental impacts of variations in local hydrological conditions, and because predominantly saline conditions, associated with rising relative sea level, hampered the early development of irrigated agriculture. The evidence, although largely dating to the early and middle parts of the Holocene, provides a timely warning of the complexity of vulnerability to climate change-induced processes of agriculture, and indeed human activities more generally, on megadeltas in Asia.     

Human damage assessments of coastal flooding for Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta due to climate change-related sea level rise in the twenty-first century

Natural Hazards - The adverse impact of climate change-associated extreme weather events is becoming more significant globally, particularly the flood impact on coastal and low-lying areas such as...     

长江三角洲南部地面沉降与地裂缝

过量开采地下水导致长江三角洲南部产生严重的地面沉降和地裂缝,造成巨大的经济损失.地面沉降和地裂缝的发生和发展在时空上与地下水开采具有密切联系,在地下水开采高峰期,地面沉降速率明显增加,在地下水位稳定期和回升期,地面沉降速率显著减小,甚至出现少量回弹.平面上,地面沉降分布形态与主采层地下水位分布形态具有很强的关联性;垂向上,地面沉降分布形态与沉降层、主采层及土层的厚度、压缩性等有关,弱透水层和含水层都可能成为主要沉降层.开采地下水条件下土层的变形与其经历的地下水位变化过程有关,不仅弱透水层存在塑性和粘塑性变形,在一定水位变化条件下含水砂层也存在塑性和粘塑性变形.地面沉降是地表下所有受影响土层的变形之和,为了控制地面沉降和地裂缝的发展,应限制地下水的开采量,尤其是避免出现地下水位低于土层历史上曾经达到的最低水位.     

Stratigraphy and paleoenvironmental changes in the Yangtze Delta during the Late Quaternary

The Yangtze Delta area may be subdivided into paleo-valley and paleointerfluves of the last glaciation. The postglacial transgressive sedimentary cycle (PTSC) on the front zones of the paleointerfluves is composed of marsh-nearshore and barrier-lagoon, shallow marine and nearshore-tidal flat units, with a basement in stiff clay. The PTSC in back zones of the paleointerfluves consists of lacustrine-marsh deposits. The PTSC in the incised valley contains river channel, floodplain-estuary, estuarine-shallow marine and deltaic units, with an erosional surface at its bottom. The stiff clay and the erosional surface constitute the PTSC lower boundary.The stiff clay, consisting of a paleosol, experienced deposition alternating with pedogenesis during the falling of sea-level during δ¹⁸O stage 3; ongoing pedogenesis in the sea-level lowstand of δ¹⁸O stage 2; and early diagenesis after paleointerfluve inundation by the sea-level rise of δ¹⁸O stage 1. The climate during the paleosol formation was temperate with more than 500-mm a⁻¹ rainfall and frequently fluctuating groundwater.The Yangtze River incised its course during falling sea level of stage 3, and a huge incised valley was formed during the sea-level lowstand (stage 2). The filling of the incised valley took place during the postglacial sea-level rise, and delta formation occurred at a late stage of PTSC development.     

Sea-level rise and shoreline retreat of the Nile Delta promontories, Egypt

Studies of the Nile Delta coast have indicated wide values of local subsidence, ranging from 0.4 to 5 mm/yr. Trend analysis of sea-level rise and shoreline retreat at two Nile Delta promontories have been studied. Records from tide gauges at Alexandria (1944–1989) and Port Said (1926–1987), north of the Nile delta coast, indicate a submergence of the land and/or a rise of the sea-level of 2 and 2.4 mm/yr, respectively.Dramatic erosion has occurred on some beaches of the Nile Delta. This is greatest at the tips of the Rosetta and Damietta promontories, with shoreline retreat up to 58 m/yr. Relationship between the shoreline retreat and sea level trends in terms of correlation analysis and application of the Bruun Rule indicates that the sea level rise has, by itself, a relatively minor effect on coastal erosion. The sea-level trend at the Nile delta coast is found to be only one of several effects on shoreline retreat. Major recent effects include a combination of cut-off of sediment supply to the coast by damming the River Nile and local hydrodynamic forces of waves and currents. Estimates of local future sea-level rise by the year 2100 at Alexandria and Port Said, respectively, is expected to be 37.9 and 44.2 cm. These expectations, combined with other factors, could accelerate coastal erosion, inundate wetlands and lowlands, and increase the salinity of lakes and aquifers.     

Sea-level rise and shoreline retreat of the Nile Delta promontories,Egypt

Studies of the Nile Delta coast have indicated wide values of local subsidence, ranging from 0.4 to 5 mm/yr. Trend analysis of sea-level rise and shoreline retreat at two Nile Delta promontories have been studied. Records from tide gauges at Alexandria (1944–1989) and Port Said (1926–1987), north of the Nile delta coast, indicate a submergence of the land and/or a rise of the sea-level of 2 and 2.4 mm/yr, respectively. Dramatic erosion has occurred on some beaches of the Nile Delta. This is greatest at the tips of the Rosetta and Damietta promontories, with shoreline retreat up to 58 m/yr. Relationship between the shoreline retreat and sea level trends in terms of correlation analysis and application of the Bruun Rule indicates that the sea level rise has, by itself, a relatively minor effect on coastal erosion. The sea-level trend at the Nile delta coast is found to be only one of several effects on shoreline retreat. Major recent effects include a combination of cut-off of sediment supply to the coast by damming the River Nile and local hydrodynamic forces of waves and currents. Estimates of local future sea-level rise by the year 2100 at Alexandria and Port Said, respectively, is expected to be 37.9 and 44.2 cm. These expectations, combined with other factors, could accelerate coastal erosion, inundate wetlands and lowlands, and increase the salinity of lakes and aquifers.     

长江三角洲区域性暴雨的统计诊断分析

利用1954年～1983年5月～8月气象资料,统计了影响长江三角洲地区的区域性暴雨类型。分析了1962年14号强台风的路径、暴雨落区以及产生暴雨的气象条件。诊断结果表明,有利大气环流形势、台风倒槽辐合线、低空东南急流、上升运动和强大的水汽通量与通量辐合是产生"6214"台风大暴雨的重要条件。     

长江三角洲地区地面沉降监测

该文是由中国地质调查局部署,江浙沪地调院开展的“长江三角洲(长江以南)地区环境地质综合研究”项目之子课题——地面沉降监测网络规划方案研究之初步成果的介绍,着重介绍该地区地面沉降现状、地面沉降监测的技术方法和分布,并对今后监测工作做了一定的思考。     

Relative sea-level rise and climate change over the last 1500 years

We constructed a detailed relative sea-level rise curve for the last 1500 years using a novel approach, i.e. charting the rate of relative sea-level rise using microfaunal and geochemical data from a coastal salt marsh sequence (Clinton, CT, USA). The composition of benthic foraminiferal assemblages and the iron abundance in peats were used to describe shifts in marsh environment through time quantitatively. The resulting sea-level rise curve, with age control from ¹⁴C dating and the onset of anthropogenic metal pollution, shows strong increases in the rate of relative sea-level rise during modern global warming (since the late nineteenth century), but not during the Little Climate Optimum (ad 1000–1300). There was virtually no rise in sea-level during the Little Ice Age (ad 1400–1700). Most of the relative sea-level rise over the last 1200 years in Clinton appears to have occurred during two warm episodes that jointly lasted less than 600 years. Changes from slow to fast rates of relative sea-level rise apparently occurred over periods of only a few decades. We suggest that changes in ocean circulation could contribute to the sudden increases in the rate of relative sea-level rise along the northeastern USA seaboard. Relative sea-level rise in that area is currently faster than the worldwide average, which may result partially from an ocean surface effect caused by hydrodynamics. Our data show no unequivocal correlation between warm periods (on a decaal to centennial time-scale) and accelerated sea-level rise. One period of acclerated sea-level rise may have occurred between about ad 1200 and 1450, which was the transition for the Little Climate Optimum to the Little Ice Age, i.e. a period of cooling (at least in northwestern Europe). Local changes in tidal range might also have contributed to this apparent increase in the rate of relative sea-level, however. The second period of accelerated sea-level rise occurred during the period of modern global warming that started at the end of the last century.     

Holocene climate variability in Sicily from a discontinuous stalagmite record and the Mesolithic to Neolithic transition

Fabric and stable isotopic composition of a Holocene stalagmite (CR1) from a cave in northern Sicily record changes in paleorainfall in the early Holocene. High δ¹³C stable isotope values in the calcite deposited from ca. 8500 to ca. 7500 yr ago are interpreted as reflecting periods of high rainfall. The wet phase was interrupted by two periods of multi-century duration characterized by relatively cool and dry winters centered at ca. 8200 and ca. 7500 yr ago, highlighted by low δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O values. A high variability of δ¹³C values is recorded from ca. 7500 to ca. 6500 yr ago and indicates that the transition from a pluvial early Holocene to the present-day climate conditions was punctuated by decadal-scale periods of relatively dry winters. In northern Sicily, the traditional elements of the Neolithic appear at ca. 7700 yr ago. It is possible that changes in rainfall influenced the passage from hunter-gathering to farming and sheep-herding economies.     

长江与尼罗河三角洲晚第四纪沉积对比研究

对比研究显示了长江径流潮流型和尼罗河波浪型三角洲的沉积特征：1）两地三角洲都始于距今7500－7000a；2）距今7000a以来的海平面上升速率趋于缓慢；3）晚更新世末期都发育了硬土泥，为冲湖积沉积。但长江多为暗绿色，含菱、钙质结核，反映了阴冷的古气候特点；尼罗河呈黄褐色，含大量钙、石膏结核和咸水生物，指示干燥性气候背景；4）两地三角洲全新世沉积相似，在早期海侵层以上都发育了中后的前三角洲、三角洲前缘和三角洲平原沉积环境；5）罗尼河三角洲沉积物普遍粗于长江。前以沙质为主，后以泥质粉砂占优，显示了波浪型三角洲强烈的沿岸搬运沉积动力。此外，径流潮流型三角洲的特点以潮坪沉积为主，泥质含量高，常见水平、波状和包卷层理组合类型和芦苇等植物根系。淡水湖沼沉积发育；波浪型则显示了沙坝－泻湖沉积体系；沙质含量高。泻湖沉积以泥和泥质砂为主，含许多咸水生物和黄铁矿；见较多的石膏等蒸发性矿物；上覆大型槽状交错层理的滨海沙。     

长江三角洲地区土壤地球化学基准值及其应用探讨

通过对基准值、背景值概念的进一步分析,确定了以沉积环境作为土壤地球化学基准值求取的基本单元,以各基本单元的面积加权法求取区域土壤地球化学基准值的方法。利用长江三角洲地区完成的多目标区域地球化学调查数据,求取了该区的土壤地球化学基准值,并对基准值特征进行了分析和应用探讨。结果表明:各沉积环境有其特征的指示元素或组合,F、Cl、Br、I、Ca和Mg元素组合可反映海相沉积物的新老和比例;N、S、OrgC组合,I、Hg组合和Y、Ce、La等稀土和稀有元素组合分别指示湖相、泻湖相和陆相沉积环境。Hg、Cd等为全区富集的污染元素;土壤中亲石元素、稀有和稀土元素稳定;I和CaO易流失。部分元素的土壤清洁级界限值采用X0+2S0能较好地反映土壤污染的分布。研究区土壤中养分Co、Na2O几乎全部为适宜区,K、N、Fe、B、Cu、Cl、Mg、S含量丰富,Zn、Mn和P、Mo、Si相对缺乏。     

Analysis of the Geomorphology and Environmental Geological Problems of Huzhou on the Yangtze River Delta

Geomorphically, Huzhou, which is on the Yangtze River delta is characterized mainly by plains, with small hills. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the environmental geological hazards both natural and those incurred by human activities in different morphologic units. The authors point out that most of the regional environmental geological problems in the natural geologic-morphologic conditions, such as crustal stability, foundation of soft soil, soil waterlogging and soil erosion, have insignificant effects to the society, or related countermeasures of prevention and control have been adopted. But environmental geological problems incurred by human being's economic activities become more and more severe, for example, water and soil pollution and land subsidence in plain areas resulting from overexploitation of groundwater, and landslides, karst collapses and water and soil loss etc. caused by quarrying in hilly areas.