Nordic Geoscience and the 33rd International Geological Congress： Introduction

Geology has been of profound importance for the Nordic countries since the Middle Ages. Strong economies were built on an understanding of the occurrence in bedrock of minerals containing metals, e.g., silver, copper, zinc and iron, and eventually led to the establishment of the first Geological Surveys in Norway and Sweden in the middle of the nineteenth century. The geology of Norden ranges from the oldest to youngest rocks on the planet. Based on the papers in this special issue, this introduction provides a brief summary of the geological evolution of Norden, from the Archean of Greenland and northern Fennoscandia to the on-going volcanicity in Iceland on the MidAtlantic Ridge. It also refers to aspects of Geoscience that are particularly important for society in Norden, including geo-resources （petroleum, geothermal energy, nuclear energy, metals, industrial minerals and groundwater） and environmental geology （including natural and anthropogenic processes, medical geology, geo-hazards and climate）. Information on the early history of geology in Norden and the geological surveys is also included and, finally, an outline of the 33rd International Geological Congress with its main theme “Earth System Science： Foundation for Sustainable Development”.     

It＇s 126 years old, but it doesn＇t look it：The 32^nd International Geological Congress

While attendance at previous IGC‘s was remarkable, the more than 7,000 earth scientists, exhibitors and guests who met in Florence for the 32^nd International Geological Congress set an all-time record as the highest number of participants. They came from 120 countries and 75% were not Italian. This proportion of foreign attendees was the largest ever; in line with a trend of increasing nonlocal participation, it testifies to the vitality and international character of the IGCs.     

Geoscience and high-level nuclear waste disposal： the Nordic scene

In Norden, two countries, Sweden and Finland, are actively engaged in site investigations for the location of deep repositories for spent nuclear fuel from powerproducing nuclear reactors. These investigations are being carried out in crystalline rocks of the Fennoscandian Shield. In Sweden, a long history of site selection has led to the identification and investigation of two sites, Forsmark and Laxemar/Simpevarp, based on a strategy of combining favourable bedrock with consent by the local population. Surface-based geoscientific investigations of the two candidates, with extensive deep drilling, are now drawing to a close. A proposal as to which of the sites would be most suitable for the development of a deep repository will be submitted to the governmental regulatory authorities in 2009. In Finland, the site selection process was shorter and less politically controversial, and led to a ＂Decision in Principle＂ by the Finnish parliament, in May 2001, to develop a deep repository at the Olkiluoto site. The access tunnel to an underground rock characterisation facility at 400-500 m depth is at present under construction, accompanied by extensive geoscientific investigations in the subsurface. An application for a construction licence for a deep repository will be submitted in 2012. Although all sites are located in Precambrian crystalline rocks, the Swedish homogeneous granitic rocks, sites both lie in relatively whilst the Finnish site is located in an heterogeneous migmatite complex. The Nordic approach to high-level nuclear waste disposal in crystalline rock will be the theme of a Topical Symposium at the 33rd International Geological Congress at Oslo, in August 2008, and the three sites mentioned above will be the focus of Congress Excursion no. 14.     

History of Geology in Norden

The Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden have been closely connected for many centuries, not least from a geological point of view. Scientific cooperation as well as contentions have been common. The earliest known records of ＂geological＂ treatises are from the 16th century, but especially in the 18th century, when the natural sciences flourished all over Europe, Nordic scholars were in the forefront in geochemistry, mineralogy, and paleontology. This was also the century when ＂geology＂ started to be taught at the universities, and science academies were founded in Norden, adding greatly to ＂geological＂ studies. In the 19th century, like in so many other countries, national geological survey organizations and geological societies were founded. In Norden, geological research has long traditions within mineralogy and ore geology, paleontology and stratigraphy, tectonics and structural geology. During the last century, focus has turned also to Quaternary and glacial geology, igneous and metamorphic petrology, geochemistry, micropaleontology, petroleum geology, sedimentology, marine geology, geophysics, geochronology, and research related to geothermal energy and deposition of radioactive waste products. In many of these research areas, Nordic geoscientists have contributed greatly over the years to the development of the science of geology.     

Jurassic--climate and biodiversity： The 6th International IGCP 506 Symposium

August was an intense and busy month for many geologists as the large 33rd IGC meeting was held in Oslo, Norway, from 6 to 14 August. Over 6,000 scientists from 113 countries contributed talks, posters and discussions at the IGC on a broad range of geo- logical topics. The congress was preceded and followed by as many as 30 fieldtrips coveting Scandinavian geology.     

Characteristics, development and utilization of geothermal resources- a Nordic perspective

Geothermal energy is classified as a renewable energy source and it utilizes the heat generated in the earth primarily from the natural radioactive decay of isotopes of uranium, thorium and potassium. Heat is extracted from the earth to generate geothermal energy via a carrier, usually water occurring either in the liquid or steam phase. In the late 19th century and the early 20th century, the first developments of geothermal resources for power generation and household heating got underway successfully. Many of these geothermal fields are still being utilized today, proving their sustainability. Today geothermal energy is being utilized in more than 72 countries around the world and of the Nordic countries Iceland and Sweden have been in the forefront in each of their respective fields. While geothermal heat pumps are widely used for space heating in Sweden, geothermal energy covers 55% of the primary energy consumption in Iceland where it is used for space heating, power generation and industrial purposes. Future developments aim at expanding the range of viable geothermal resources by improving the capabilities to generate electricity from geothermal resources at temperatures as low as 100℃, as well as developing geothermal resources where water needs to be introduced, so-called hot dry rock resources. But the biggest expansion is expected to continue to be in the installations of geothermal heat pumps.     

Second Hemispheric Conference on Medical Geology

The Second Hemispheric Conference on Medical Geology was organised in Atibaia, State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. The conference was linked to the annual meeting of Geo- sciences for Environmental Management, GEM, a short course in medical geology organised by the International Medical Geol- ogy Association and the X1 Brazilian Geo- chemical Congress. The host was the Brazilian Geochemical Society-SBGq.     

Deep Tectonic Processes and Superaccumulation of Metals Related to Granitoids in the Nanling MetaUogenic Province,China

The Nanling region is an important nonferrous and rare metal metallogenic province in South China, in which most of the deposits are related to granitoids in genesis. It covers southern Hunan, southern Jiangxi, Guangxi, Guangdong and Fujian provinces, with a total area of about 550,000 km2. This metallogenic province is well known in the world for its rich tungsten and tin resources. In the past 40-odd years, a vast amount of mineral exploration activities and studies of the geology of mineral deposits have been carried out and great achievements obtained in the province. This paper is focused on a discussion about the deep tectonic processes in the orogenic belt during the Mesozoic and their contribution to the superaccumulation of metals. Tectonically, this metallogenic province is composed of three units: (1) the marginal continental orogenic belt in the Southeastern Coast fold system in the Yanshanian; (2) the intercontinental orogenic belt in the collision suture belt between the Yangtze and Cathay     

北极圈数据库及为何需要

Many factors, such the great changes of temperature, which will be expected at the high latitudes, increased pressure from humans to extract the natural resources in cold regions, seriously affect the cold environment. Many meetings have been held about the classification of cold soils, ideas and concepts of cold soils. These facilitate the need for developing a database of soils of the circumpolar region. The database can help offering information for potential problems in cold regions and for selecting the best areas for placement of new road and towns.     

Current Status of the Research on Coal Geology in China

Coal is the main energy in China, which has already played and will continue to play an important role in the national economy. Coal geology, as a practical science, has an access to gradual development with the growth and prosperity of China. From the meaning of the coalfield geology, this paper introduces the research progress and status of coalfield geology, including the research on coal basin, stratigraphy of coal-bearing stratigraphic sequences, coal-forming process, structural geology of coalfields, and exploration and development status of coal resources. The paper specially focuses on coal-forming process, including coal formation in terrestrial facies and transgressive / regression events, and introduces new technology which has been applied to research progress in structural geology of coalfield. This paper puts forward a new comprehensive exploration system for coal exploration and reviews regional coal geological exploration results in recent years, such as coal-poor regions of seven provinces in southern China and the coal resources area in northwest China, which will be an important coal-producing area in the future.     

Foreword

The International Geological Congress held every four years is a grand event for displaying the latest achievements in geological science and technology and carrying out academic exchange.After the 31st IGC, the Chinese geologists, like their counterparts in the rest of the world, started to pay more attention to the issues facing the world today, including the shortage of energy and resources, geological hazards, environmental degradation and sustainable socio-economic     

Foreword

The International Geological Congress held every four years is a grand event for displaying the latest achievements in geological science and technology and carrying out academic exchange.After the 31st IGC, the Chinese geologists, like their counterparts in the rest of the world, started to pay more attention to the issues facing the world today, including the shortage of energy and resources, geological hazards, environmental degradation and sustainable socio-economic     

Water Resource Development in the Quaternary Ryukyu Limestone Regions of Japan:Application of the GIS to the Site Selection of Underground Dams

Based on the natural and social conditions as well as hydrogeological characteristics of the Ryukyu limestone, a major aquifer in the Ryukyu Islands, a conception of underground dam, was proposed in the early 1970s in order to develop ground water resources in the Quaternary Ryukyu limestone regions of Japan. The practice of nearly thirty years has shown that the underground dam is an environment-friendly and effective way for developing ground water in these regions.To further improve the technology associated with underground dam, the authors introduced related analytic methods. The application of the geographical information system technology to site selection of the underground dam is reported in this paper.     

Swedish workshop on Ediacaran Acritarch taxonomy （SWEATshop）

Following the 33rd International Geological Congress in Oslo, Norway, a group of twelve geoscientists gathered at the Geocentrum of Uppsala University in Sweden on 18-21 August 2008 to discuss the taxonomy and biostratigraphic significance of Ediacaran acritarchs. This workshop--the Swedish Workshop on Ediacaran Acritarch Taxonomy （SWEATshop）--was conceived during email discussion on the subdivision and correlation of Ediacaran and Cryogenian successions, which was initiated by IGCP 512 ＇Neopro- terozoic Ice Ages＇ led by Graham Shields and the ICS Subcommission on Neoproterozoic Stratigraphy chaired by Jim Gehling. The main goals of this workshop were to examine and compare Ediacaran acritarchs preserved in different taphonomic windows （i.e., car- bonaceous compression,     

A strategic vision for the Eart Sciences

The following article sets forth the conceptual strategic framework that guided the organization and planning of the recent, highly successful 32nd International Geological Congress, held in Florence, Italy, August 20-28, 2004. This vision of the desired future state of the Earth sciences is presented here in order to extend significantly its distribution beyond the 7000+ Congress participants. Earth scientists around the worm are encouraged to consider, digest, and discuss its observations, conclusions, and recommendations to improve the relevance and sharpen the focus of current and future activities in the Earth sciences. [Originally published in the daily newspaper of the Congress, ““32nd IGC INFORMS,““ No. 9, August 28, 2004, and distributed to Congress participants. Available also on the lUGS website.]     

The Altun Fault: Its Geometry, Nature and Mode of Growth

The Altun (or Altyn Tagh) fault displays a geometry of overlapping of linear and arcuate segments and shows strong inhomogeneity in time and space. It is a gigantic fault system with complex mechanical behaviours including thrusting, sinistral strike slip and normal slip. The strike slip and normal slip mainly occurred in the Cretaceous-Cenozoic and Plio-Quaternary respectively, whereas the thrusting was a deformation event that has played a dominant role since the late Palaeozoic (for a duration of about 305 Ma). The formation of the Altun fault was related to strong inhomogeneous deformation of the massifs on its two sides (in the hinterland of the Altun Mountains contractional deformation predominated and in the Qilian massif thrust propagation was dominant). The fault experienced a dynamic process of successive break-up and connection of its segments and gradual propagation, which was synchronous with the development of an overstep thrust sequence in the Qilian massif and the uplift of the Qinghai-T     

The Calabrian Stage redefined

The name Calabrian was introduced in the geological literature by the French stratigrapher Maurice Gignoux in 1910, and later described in his important monograph （633 pages） ＂Les formations marines pliocknes et quaternaires de l＇ltalie du sud et de la Sicile ＂published in 1913. Detailed data were provided on several sections （Santa Maria di Catanzaro, Caraffa, Monasterace, Palermo） and on their fossil content. The Calabrian Stage has commonly been used for over fifty years as the oldest subdivision of the Qua- ternary, notably in the time scales of Berggren ＆ van Cou- vering （1974） and Haq ＆ Eysinga （1987）. However, after the GSSP for the Pliocene/Pleistocene boundary （P/P） was approved by INQUA in 1982 and ratified by lUGS in 1984 at the Vrica section of Calabria, there was a decline in the usage of the stage name, and an increasing tendency by many Quaternary workers to question the boundary stratotype. This was because there was increasing evidence that it did not correspond to the beginning of the ＂ice age＂. In doing so, they were not complying with the recommendations presented at the 18th International Geological Congress （IGC） in London, 1948 （Oakley, 1950）.     

Experimental research on adsorption/desorption for petroleum pollutants in the soil in Daqing oilfield

The Daqing oilfield is one of the biggest oilfields in the world. It has been exploited for several decades, which brings serious pollution to local natural environment. The crude oil on ground which is produced in the process of oil production contains various organic pollutants. The petroleum pollutants tend to adsorb, desorb, biodegrade and photolyze and so on in the soil, but adsorption/desorption is a pair of extremely important environment geochemistry behavior. In order to master the rule of petroleum pollutants migration and transformation in the soil environment, and provide scientific evidence for the prevent research project on petroleum pollution treatment in the Daqing oilfield, the chemozem was selected as the experimental sample, which is a kind of representative soil in the Daqing oilfield. The factors affecting adsorbent and desorption＇s characteristics were discussed, including pH of the soil, the concentrations of suspended particulates and temperature. The oscillation-equity was used in the experiment. The mechanism and dynamics process of the adsorption/desorption were researched. The results showed that adsorbing of the petroleum pollutants on the chemozem sediment is a kind of physical adsorption phenomenon. The adsorption function comes from the hydrophobic and sticky character of the petroleum its self. The velocity of adsorption and desorption is almost equivalent, both concentrations of water in the soil are close to the balance in two hours, thus they achieve homeostasis in three hours. The process of adsorption of the petroleum pollutants responses to Herry isothermal model, with increasing pH, concentration of suspended particulates and temperature, the quantity of adsorption show a descending trend. However, desorption is a contrary course of adsorption in the experiment. Due to various influenced phenomena reflect that the soil in the Daqing oilfield has factors, the quantity of desorption shows an ascending trend. These strong adsorption ability to petroleum pollutants.     

Temporo-spatial Coordinates of Evolution of the Ordos Basin and Its Mineralization Responses

The Ordos basin was developed from Mid-Late Triassic to Early Cretaceous, and then entered into its later reformation period since the Late Cretaceous. Its main body bears the features of an intra-cratonic basin. The basin also belongs to a multi-superposed basin which has overlapped on the large-scale basins of the Early and Late Paleozoic. Currently, Ordos basin has become a residual basin experienced reformation of various styles since the Late Cretaceous. It＇s suggested that there were at least four obvious stages of tectonic deformations existing during the basin＇s evolution, dividing the evolution and sedimentation into four stages. The prior two stages were of the most prosperous, during which the lake basin was broad, the deposition range was more than twice larger than the current residual basin, resulting in major oil- and coal-bearing strata. The two stages were separated by regional uplift fluctuations in the area. At the end of the Yan＇an Stage, the depositional interruption and erosion were lasting for a short period of time. The third one is the Mid- Jurassic Zhiluo-Anding stage, in which the sedimentation extent was still broad but the lake area was obviously reduced. In the Late Jurassic tectonic deformation was intensive. A thrust-nappe belt was formed on the basin＇s western margin while conglomerate of different thickness were accumulated within the foredeep of the eastern side. The central and eastern parts of the basin were subject to erosion and reformation. A regional framework with ＂uplift in the east and depression in the west＂ took shape in the area west of the Yellow River. In the Early Cretaceous sediments were widely distributed, unconformably overlapping the former western margin thrust belt and the ridges on the northern and southern borders. There are abundant energy resources such as oil, natural gas, coal and uranium deposits formed in Ordos Basin. The main stages of generation, mineralization and positioning of the multiple energy resources have obvious responding co