Evidence for Early Mesoproterozoic (and Older?) Crust in the Southern and Central Appalachians of North America

Limited evidence from Sm-Nd T_DM model ages, U-Pb ages of xenocrystic zircon, and Pb isotopic data indicates the presence of Paleoproterozoic and Mesoproterozoic crust (2.0-1.3 Ga) in the southern and central Appalachian orogen. This apparently unexposed older crust must underlie much of the Blue Ridge, and it was recycled to produce most of the rocks of the Blue Ridge with ages ≤1.3 Ga. In the eastern Blue Ridge and in blocks to the southeast, there also is a significant juvenile Neoproterozoic source component. Going toward the southeast, the central and eastern Piedmont (Carolina terrane) appears to be underlain by progressively less source component older than 1.0 Ga. Late Proterozoic rocks of the Carolina terrane are derived largely from a juvenile source with a Nd isotopic composition that approaches that of depleted mantle.     

Is shrinking groundwater resources leading to socioeconomic and environmental degradation in Central Ganga Plain,India?

In India, agriculture is a source of livelihood for over 64 % of the country's population. Indo-Gangetic Plains of North India support good cultivation and provides livelihood to several hundred million people. The climatic change studies have documented changes in precipitation pattern which can alter the flow pattern discharge to the reservoirs and availability of water for agriculture. The reduction in groundwater recharge through reduced rainfall and irregularity in surface water availability has increased dependence on groundwater resources causing its overexploitation. Consequently, pumping from deeper groundwater conditions need more energy and pump efficiency for abstraction which ultimately requires huge capital investment. Moreover, volatile fuel prices make the agricultural society vulnerable to economic losses. The repercussions of water level decline are likely to disseminate an additional economic burden to the groundwater user community. To cope with higher energy demands, increase in fuel consumption has led to environmental degradation through higher carbon emission. Thus, the groundwater depletion is likely to have far-reaching socioeconomic and environmental impacts which are not confined to the Central Gangetic Plain. In the present study, attempts have been made to analyze the effect of groundwater depletion as a commodity in the social framework of the region.     

Environmental geochemistry in disaster response and planning

Large volumes of solid, gaseous, or liquid materials that are of potential concern from an environmental or public health perspective are commonly produced by natural or anthropogenic disasters, such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, wildfires, urban fires, landslides, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, windstorms, industrial spills, and terrorist attacks. Geochemical processes play key roles in the environmental and health impacts of these materials. Yet, process-focused environmental geochemistry expertise and characterization methods are often underutilized in disaster response and planning. In part, the scientific studies needed for detailed process characterization are difficult to plan and implement while the events are still underway, and delayed responses can miss key transient processes and byproducts. Further, emergency responders are focused primarily on identifying the types, amounts, and health hazards of contaminants produced by the event, thus the responders do not have the time or the need to collect the full range of appropriate geological, geochemical, microbiological and other data necessary to understand the full range of physical and chemical processes that influence contamination from these extreme events. A thorough characterization and understanding of geochemical and environmental processes that occur during specific disasters can be used to better anticipate effects of and plan for similar future disasters. A broad spectrum of environmental geochemistry capabilities can be applied to help emergency response authorities and the public health community in their initial hazardous materials assessments immediately following disasters.     

Formation Waters and Their Relations to Natural Gas Reservoirs in Central Ordos Basin

1IntroductionFormationwaterisanimportantmediumforhydrocarbongenerationandmigration .Thelong termcontactofformationwaterswithoilandgasmustleavesomeorganiccomponentsintheforma tionwaters.Ofcourse,thechemicalcompositionofformationwater (i.e.,oilfieldwater)iscloselyrelatedtotheformationofoilandgasreservoirs (Collins,1 975) .Since 1 970smanyscholarsbothathomeandabroadhavecenteredonthestudyofthecharacteristicsofformationwatersthemselves(Collins,1 975;LiuChongxi,1 988;HuangFutangetal.,1 993 ;GaoX…     

Late Cenozoic Chemical Weathering and Environmental Changes Recorded in the Co Ngoin Sediments,Central Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

A series of faulted inland basins were developed in the central Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, among which the Co Ngoin Basin containing thick lacustrine sediments is located in the peripheral area of the Indian monsoon. In this paper, we present the weathering history and paleoclimatic changes in the last 2.8 Ma based on studies of high-resolution temporal distributions of Sr, Rb and Zr concentrations, Rb/Sr and Zr/Rb ratios and δ ^13C and TOC for the Co Ngoin sediments, in combination with the sediment properties, grain size distribution and clay mineralogy. The sedimentary records indicate three environmental stages in the last 2.8Ma. At the core depth of 197-170m (about 2.8-2.5Ma), low-intensity chemical weathering in the Co Ngoin catchment was experienced under warm-dry to cool-wet climate conditions with relatively low Sr concentration and high Rb/Sr and Zr/Rb ratios. The sudden occurrence of both subalpine coniferous forest and coarses and and gravel sediments in the Co Ngoin core reflects a strong tectonic uplift. The high Sr concentrations and low Rb/Sr and Zr/Rb ratios reflect a relatively strong chemical weathering between 2.5Ma and 0.8Ma (at the core depth of 170-38.5m) under a temperate/cool and wet climate, characterized by mud and silt with fine sand, probably indicating a stable process of denudation and planation of the plateau. Above the depth of 38.5m (about 0.8-0Ma), the coarsening of sediments indicates a strong tectonic uplift and a relatively low intensity of chemical weathering as supported by the record of sediments having relatively low Sr concentrations and high Rb/Sr and Zr/Rb ratios. Since then, the plateau has taken the shape of the modern topographic pattern above 4000m a.s.l.     

Why are there cattle in the conservation area? Social barriers to biofuel governance in Brazil

Amid a rapid expansion of global investments in biofuels there has been an equally rapid proliferation of concerns about the inadequacies of current governance schemes to mitigate the environmental impacts of growing agroenergy production. Managing the land use practices of small producers in a way that ensures their activities are financially and environmentally sustainable is a particularly pressing issue that has been overlooked in research on biofuel governance. I illuminate these challenges through an ethnographic study on the multiple breakdowns of environmental governance in the Southern Goiás region of Brazil, a major expansion region for sugarcane ethanol production. I focus on one of the most pressing compliance issues among small and medium size sugarcane farmers; their persistent use of federally mandated conservation areas for cattle production. I find that while these transgressions are often perceived by administrators and officials as being the result of a lack of “environmental awareness” among rural farmers, they are better understood as a safety net to protect landowners against perceived risks of sugarcane production. These violations are further enabled by continuing ambiguity in the enforcement structure for conservation legislation in the region. Recalibrating regulatory systems to better address these issues of accountability and risk is a critical step toward improving environmental governance of global biofuel commodity chains.     

Responses to the 2011 floods in Central Thailand: Perpetuating the vulnerability of small and medium enterprises?

Natural Hazards - The 2011 flood was the worst in Thailand in decades. Many of the impacts occurred in the Bangkok Metropolitan Region. The floods negatively affected small and medium enterprises...     

Reply to comment on “dynamic topography in South America” by Hechenleitnera,Fiorelli, Larrovere,Grellet-Tinnera,and Carignano

This is a Reply to Hechenleitner and collaborators Comment, who proposed a Cretaceous age for the whole Llanos Formation (central Argentina, Sierras Pampeanas Province), based on neosauropod fossils, instead of Miocene as originally proposed by Ezpeleta et al. (2006) and Dávila et al. (2007). However, red beds that underlay the thick paleosoils of the Llanos Formation provided nine detrital U–Pb Paleogene (62 Ma, earliest Cenozoic) ages on zircon grains (Astini et al., 2009, Ezpeleta, 2009). On the base of this evidence, and other mammal remnant within the Sierras Pampeanas (where the Llanos Formation develops), we proposed this is a condensed unit with Mesozoic ages at the bottom and Mio-Pliocene (likely younger) to the top.     

REDD+ for Red Books? Negotiating rights to land and livelihoods through carbon governance in the Central Highlands of Vietnam

In Vietnam, initial programs to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) have proliferated through international finance and new governance regimes for climate change mitigation. National capacity and legal frameworks have been adjusted to make the country eligible for REDD+ financing. In some local areas, activities have been implemented to ‘produce’ carbon credits intended for the international voluntary carbon market. Through a case study of a pilot REDD+ project in the Central Highlands of Vietnam, we examine how REDD+ has intersected with property rights institutions and agrarian change to influence changing property relations and commodity markets. Our findings show that REDD+ implemented through state and local institutions has articulated with the local political economy to coproduce conditions that embody local norms, needs, and desires. Specifically, local actors negotiate state-sanctioned tenurial instruments used for REDD+ governance, not for the purposes of carbon sequestration but instead in order to reassert their rights to land and forest for the cultivation of boom crops—the antithesis of REDD+ objectives. In the fine balancing act of adjusting local forestland holdings, REDD+ implementation has effectively facilitated increased opportunities for upland villagers to strategically claim land titles from local political authorities in the form of communal land certificates for forests called ‘Red Books’. In securing communal Red Books, villagers redefine or co-constitute the purpose of REDD+ to secure land for cash crop and commercial timber production. As with other forms of environmental governance, REDD+ is thus co-constituted locally in line with state and local institutions and histories and present day realities.     

Indebted to Fair Trade? Coffee and crisis in Nicaragua

This paper explores the following general question: Why are Fair Trade coffee farmers in Nicaragua burdened by debt? Nearly five years from “the end” of the coffee crisis, peasant farming households committed to Fair Trade standards continue to struggle with a legacy of indebtedness caused by years of low farm-gate prices and declining productivity between 2000 and 2004. Through ethnographic observation and interviews with peasant farmers in Nicaragua, I explore how farmers experience a simple reproduction squeeze that hinders them from “bootstrapping” their own economic development. I argue that the effort to raise the Fair Trade minimum price and premium for coffee through Fair Trade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) in 2008 demonstrated a good first step toward improving farm-gate prices, however, these gains must be understood in the context of long-term indebtedness as well as rising production costs and household consumption costs.     

A risk society? Environmental hazards, risk and resilience in the later Middle Ages in Europe

Modern society is said to have restructured in reaction to contemporary hazards with the aim of improving its management of risk. This implies that pre-industrial societies were somehow fundamentally different. In this paper, we challenge that hypothesis by examining the ways in which risks associated with environmental hazards were managed and mitigated during the Middle Ages (defined here as the period from 1000 to 1550 AD). Beginning with a review of the many case studies of rapid onset disasters across Europe, we draw upon both historical and archaeological evidence and architectural assessments of structural damage for what is a pre-instrumental period. Building upon this, the second part of the paper explores individual outlooks on risk, emphasising the diversity of popular belief and the central importance of Christianity in framing attitudes. Despite their religious perspectives, we find that medieval communities were not helpless in the face of serious environmental hazards. We argue instead that the response of society to these threats was frequently complex, considered and, at times, surprisingly modern.     

Land use changes in Central Kenya from the 1950s — A possibility to generalise?

Land use changes in Kenya's central Highlands were examined with the purpose of comparing findings from Murang'a District with a new study carried out in a similar environment, Nyeri District. In addition, a generalisation of the findings was examined and methods were analysed to investigate its use in other areas. Aerial photographs were used to analyse land use and soil and water conservation in form of terraces. Furthermore, farmers were interviewed in order to obtain information about how they perceive environmental changes and how these changes have affected their livelihoods. Interpretation of aerial photographs together with field verification and interviews give information about environmental changes and their effects. Population censuses were investigated and findings were compared. Results from this study show that the two study areas have similar physical conditions with decreasing soil fertility. The main difference is the cultivated cash crops, tea and coffee in Nyeri, but only coffee in Murang'a. Also, more land is terraced in Nyeri than in Murang'a. The reason why there are adequate terraces in Nyeri is because of the multitude of cash crops that require terraces for their establishment. Compared with Murang'a, farmers in Nyeri are more satisfied with their situation, mainly due to regular payment from tea and a lower population pressure. This study shows that generalisation of the findings can be made but in order to extrapolate it further to the whole central Highlands more studies and knowledge about the whole area are required. The study also shows that methods used to examine environmental changes can be used elsewhere. Although the recommendations are to generalise with caution so that the final results are reliable and true.     

Late Variscan “Basin and Range” magmatism and tectonics in the Central Alps: evidence from U-Pb geochronology

Abstract

Towards the end of the Variscan orogeny, volcano-sedimentary basins were formed within the mountain hell. U-Pb age determinations on zircons of volcanic and plutonic rocks from intramontane basins of the Central Alps allows us to define the age of two volcano-sedimentary units: The former one was dated older than 333 Ma (probably Visean), the younger one was deposited in a short time span between 303 and 298 Ma (Stephanien). The latter contains tuffs (303 ± 4 Ma), ignimbrites and microgranites (299 ± 2 Ma) and intrusive rhyolites (300 ± 2 Ma) that are all coeval within analytical precision. Granitoid rocks intruded into the volcano-sedimentary rocks at 333 ± 2 Ma, 310 ± 3 Ma and 298 ± 2 Ma. An angular unconformity between the older and the younger units in the Tö di area (Aar massif) indicates uplift and erosion between 310 and 303 Ma.

Our results suggest the existence of two periods of late Variscan extension (or transtension) in the Alpine realm, both combined with magmatic activity. The extensional event of Stephaniun age is characterized by a short duration of only a few million years, between 303 and 298 Ma, comprising tectonic activity, volcanism and plutonism. The plutonic rocks are characterized by a dominant lithospheric mantle component, which was contaminated by different amounts of crostai material and might have been increasingly influenced by aslhcnos-pherie mantle melts in the course of crostai thinning. The ealc-alkaline geochemical characteristics of the granites may be explained as an inherited source feature.

The overall tectonic style and the mode of magmatism resembles the situation of the Basin-and-Kange Province (eastern USA). Consequently there is no need to invoke a late-Variscan Andean-type subduction to explain the geochemical composition of the magmatic rocks. We conclude that late-orogenic extension is an important tectonic stage of the Variscan orogeny, which lasted for some 50 million years. The extension led to thinning of the crust and upwelling of hot mantle, causing high heat flow, intrusion of mantle melts and formation of huge volumes of acid melts.     

Land sharing not sparing in the “green economy”: The role of livelihood bricolage in conservation and development in the Philippines

In Southeast Asia’s green economy, conservation interventions intensify the production of resources as commodities through land sparing activities and zoning in extensively used landscapes. Such initiatives encounter problems where poor resource users diversify livelihoods in multi-functional landscapes over time. In terms of ‘livelihood bricolage’ – the mixing, matching and building of portfolios – we describe how forest users enhance security by building dynamic livelihood portfolios based on the economic and socio-cultural considerations of place. Philippine case studies show how disrupting livelihood bricolage in multi-functional landscapes with ‘intensifying interventions’ spatially constrains livelihood security and conservation objectives. We conclude that more equitable forest governance supports land sharing with diverse, extensive livelihoods in varied landscapes.     

Kanfenggou UHP Metamorphic Fragment in Eastern Qinling Orogen and Its Relationship to Dabie-Sulu UHP and HP Metamorphic Belts, Central China

In the Central Orogenic Belt, China, two UHP metamorphic belts are discriminated mainly based on a detailed structural analysis of the Kanfenggou UHP metamorphic fragment exposed in the eastern Qinling orogen, and together with previous regional structural, petrological and geochronological data at the scale of the orogenic domain. The first one corresponds to the South Altun-North QaidamNorth Qinling UHP metarnorphic belt. The other is the Dabie-Sulu UHP and HP metamorphic belts. The two UHP metamorphic belts are separated by a series of tectonic slices composed by the Qiniing rock group, Danfeng rock group and Liuling or Foziling rock group etc. respectively, and are different in age of the peak UHP metamorphism and geodynamic implications for continental deep subduction and collision. Regional field and petrological relationships suggest that the Kanfenggou UHP metamorphic fragment that contains a large volume of the coesite- and microdiamond-bearing eclogite lenses is compatible with the structures recognized in the South Altun and North Qaidam UHP metamorphic fragments exposed in the western part of China, thereby forming a large UHP metamorphic belt up to 1000 km long along the orogen strike. This UHP metamorphic belt represents an intercontinental deep subduction and collision belt between the Yangtze and Sino-Korean cratons, occurred during the Paleozoic. On the other hand, the well-constrained Dabie-Sulu UHP and HP metamorphic belts occurred mainly during Triassic time (250-220 Ma), and were produced by the intracontinental deep subduction and collision within the Yangtze craton. The Kanfenggou UHP metamorphic fragment does not appear to link with the DabieSulu UHP and HP metamorphic belts along the orogen. There is no reason to assume the two UHP metamorphic belts as a single giant deep subduction and collision zone in the Central Orogenic Belt situated between the Yangtze and Sino-Korean cratons. Therefore, any dynamic model for the orogen must ac-count for the development of UHP metarnorphic rocks belonging to the separate two tectonic belts of different age and tectono-metamorphic history.     

Environmental governance through “Speaking Like an Indigenous State” and respatializing resources: Ethical livelihood concepts in Bolivia as versatility or verisimilitude?

This research addresses recent environmental governance in Bolivia through its relations to indigeneity and respatializations. It introduces and develops the concept of “speaking like an indigenous state” to examine the Bolivian state’s recent use of a pair of indigenous linguistic concepts, Living Well and Earth Mother, representing the identities of citizens and their rights to resources and livelihoods. State relations to indigenous social movements highlight the use of Living Well and Earth Mother concepts through accommodation, resistance, and protaganism. Six active issues of environmental governance are examined: (1) climate change and justice movement; (2) agrarian reform, agrobiodiversity, and food justice; (3) water resources; (4) indigenous territories; (5) Protected Areas; and (6) extractive industries (mining, hydrocarbons). The usages of Living Well and Earth Mother show versatility as they have been mobilized in the respatializing of the politics and social-power dynamics of environmental issues at scales of the state, global and international institutions, and community and local levels. Analysis also reveals deployment of Living Well and Earth Mother that is discursively influential and yet conceptually reduced and unevenly applied, thus suggesting a characteristic of verisimilitude. My analysis determines that respatialization at various levels, including territorial transitions of sub-national regional spaces, are associated with the heightened articulation of environmental governance through indigeneity and “speaking like an indigenous state” amid resource nationalism. Linkages and logics operating within this conjuncture differ from the prevailing interpretation of the Bolivian state’s use of Living Well and Earth Mother as solely an unwitting contradiction or instrumentalist camouflage.