Assessing the visual impact of deep coal-mining

Four methods for assessing the impact of underground coal-mining on the visual landscape are discussed. Objective or physical methods are compared with a subjective landscape value approach. Advantages and disadvantages of the various methods are considered, and some conclusions are made regarding their applicability to land use planning and aesthetic control in mining districts. Of the three objective techniques (‘zones of visibility’, ‘proportion of views visible’ and ‘percentage of view occupied’), only the first has been applied in practice. It shows mine operations to be widely visible, providing one looks for them. But in randomly located views (the basis of the second and third techniques) the chance of sighting mine operations is only 8%, and they occupy less than 1% of the average view. However, all mining-related land uses (which includes the mine communities) occupy 7.3% of the average view. A method for gauging ‘landscape devaluation’ is introduced. This relies on landscape quality ratings made at randomly located field viewing positions. A strong non-linear relationship between mining's visual presence and landscape value is demonstrated, suggesting that objective measures of intrusion may serve as surrogate indicators for devaluation.     

Assessing the impact of conceptual mineral systems uncertainty on prospectivity predictions

The past two decades have seen a rapid adoption of artificial intelligence methods applied to mineral exploration. More recently, the easier acquisition of some types of data has inspired a broad literature that has examined many machine learning and modelling techniques that combine exploration criteria, or ‘features’, to generate predictions for mineral prospectivity. Central to the design of prospectivity models is a ‘mineral system’, a conceptual model describing the key geological elements that control the timing and location of economic mineralisation. The mineral systems model defines what constitutes a training set, which features represent geological evidence of mineralisation, how features are engineered and what modelling methods are used. Mineral systems are knowledge-driven conceptual models, thus all parameter choices are subject to human biases and opinion so alternative models are possible. However, the effect of alternative mineral systems models on prospectivity is rarely compared despite the potential to heavily influence final predictions. In this study, we focus on the effect of conceptual uncertainty on Fe ore prospectivity models in the Hamersley region, Western Australia. Four important considerations are tested. (1) Five different supergene and hypogene conceptual mineral systems models guide the inputs for five forest-based classification prospectivity models model. (2) To represent conceptual uncertainty, the predictions are then combined for prospectivity model comparison. (3) Representation of three-dimensional objects as two-dimensional features are tested to address commonly ignored thickness of geological units. (4) The training dataset is composed of known economic mineralisation sites (deposits) as ‘positive’ examples, and exploration drilling data providing ‘negative’ sampling locations. Each of the spatial predictions are assessed using independent performance metrics common to AI-based classification methods and subjected to geological plausibility testing. We find that different conceptual mineral systems produce significantly different spatial predictions, thus conceptual uncertainty must be recognised. A benefit to recognising and modelling different conceptual models is that robust and geologically plausible predictions can be made that may guide mineral discovery.     

Assessing the impact of flood inundation dynamics on an urban environment

Natural Hazards - This study attempted to examine the complex impact of dynamic inundation process of extreme events on flood hazard assessment (FHA) for the affected urban settings around a local...     

Damage to residential buildings due to flooding of New Orleans after hurricane Katrina

This article analyzes the direct damage to residential buildings caused by the flooding of New Orleans after hurricane Katrina in the year 2005. A public dataset has been analyzed that contains information on the economic damage levels for approximately 95,000 residential buildings in the flooded area. The relationship between the flood characteristics and economic damage to residential buildings has been investigated. Results of hydrodynamic flood simulations have been used that give insight in water depths and flow velocities in the study area. In general, differences between the three polders in the observed distributions of damage estimates are related to differences in flood conditions. The highest damage percentages and structural damage mainly occurred in areas where higher flow velocities occurred, especially near the breaches in the Lower 9th Ward neighborhood. Further statistical analysis indicated that there is not any strong one-to-one relationship between the damage percentage and the water depth or the depth–velocity product. This suggests that there is considerable uncertainty associated with stage-damage functions, especially when they are applied to individual structures or smaller clusters of buildings. Based on the data, a more general approach has been proposed that could be used to distinguish different damage zones based on water depth and flow velocity for an area that is affected by flooding due to breaching of flood defenses. Further validation of existing damage models with the dataset and further inclusion of information on building type in the analysis of damage levels is recommended.     

Poverty, vulnerability and the impact of flooding in the Limpopo Province, South Africa

The article evaluates household vulnerability after the 2000 flood in two poor communities of the Limpopo Province, South Africa. The study analyses the forms of vulnerability which disasters such as floods present. Using data gathered from a survey of households, the study presents the impacts, coping and adapting strategies of households after the 2000 flood. The article argues that beyond the concern over socio-economic circumstances as the major determinant of household vulnerability, the management of the disaster can serve to perpetuate vulnerability.     

Assessing the impact of weir construction on recent sedimentation using cesium-137

Ten cores were obtained from a marsh developed along Mad Island Slough, Texas, USA, upstream of a weir constructed in 1948. The cores were analyzed for cesium-137 to identify time-stratigraphic marker horizons and calculate recent sedimentation rates. The cesium-137 analysis provided a 1954 marker horizon in nine of the ten cores. A second marker horizon, present in all ten cores, consisted of an abrupt downcore change in lithology from dark organic-rich muds to grey organic-poor sands. This transition was tentatively identified as coinciding with 1948 and the beginning of marsh sedimentation. Resulting sedimentation rates show that surprisingly little sedimentation has occurred behind the weir, averaging only 27 cm in almost 50 years. Sedimentation rates in the marsh declined from an average of 2.4 cm yr^–1 in 1948–1954 to 0.32 cm yr^–1 in 1954–1994. A similar trend of declining sedimentation has been documented for adjoining Mad Island Lake, suggesting that land-use changes in the lake's watershed have reduced the sediment supply in recent decades. The results also suggest that the weir is not a very efficient sediment trap in this watershed.     

基于结构性的冻结黄土力学特性试验研究

通过对重塑冻结黄土和人工结构性冻结黄土（通过对重塑黄土添加水泥获取）进行室内三轴剪切试验,研究了围压、含水量、温度、水泥含量等因素对冻结黄土力学行为的影响. 结果表明：不同试验条件下,非饱和土试样和饱和土试样的应力-应变关系呈现不同的特点. 温度和围压是影响冻土体强度的主要因素,温度越低,其破坏强度越高;非饱和土样强度随围压增大而增大,饱和土体强度受围压影响很小. 初始含水量是影响冻土体强度的另一主要因素,对非饱和土样,随着含水量的增加土体强度逐渐增高,达到某一峰值之后随含水量继续增加而减小,饱和土体强度最低. 对非饱和土样,水泥含量越高,对应的破坏强度也就越大;但对饱和土样,水泥含量对冻土的应力-应变行为及强度影响不大. 最后,提出了与所试验土体强度参数相关的综合性系数M,通过回归分析,得出了其与c和tan φ的关系,并验证了其可靠性.     

A laboratory study of collapse behaviour of remoulded loess under controlled wetting and flooding

This paper presents the effect of initial placement conditions and flooding stress (vertical compressive stress at flooding) on the collapse potential of remoulded loess. Compacted specimens of loess were tested in a one-dimensional consolidometer to study the collapse behaviour. Initial water content, dry unit weight and flooding stress were varied. Collapse potential was found to be dependent on initial water content, initial dry unit weight and flooding stress. Partial collapse was studied by allowing measured increments of water into the specimens.     

Assessing the relative packing behaviour of Chandarpur and Khairagarh sandstones of Proterozoic Chhattisgarh Basin

The paper concerns mainly with properties of packing of the Proterozoic Chandarpur and Khairagarh sandstones of Chhattisgarh Basin. An attempt has been made to decipher the nature of boundary between Chandarpur Group and overlying Raipur Group on the basis of grain packing. For the purpose of study based on eight representative thin sections of Chandarpur and Khairagarh sandstones, measurements of grain size distribution, types of grain contacts, packing density (Pd), packing proximity (Pp) and linear regression analysis has been carried out. The relation of packing density with packing proximity of Khairagarh sandstone shows positive correlation coefficient (r) with linear regression equation (y) and no clear trend in packing proximity (Pp) vs grain size (Is) is observed whereas Chandarpur sandstone shows packing density increases and packing proximity decreases with linear regression equation (y) and correlation coefficient (r). Chandarpur grain size tends to increase with packing density (Pd) whereas packing proximity (Pp) increases but Khairagarh sandstone packing density (Pd) decrease with increase of grain size (Is) and packing proximity (Pp) tends to increase with decrease in grain size. Above study indicates that packing behaviour of Chandarpur sandstones and Khairagarh sandstones are entirely different.     

The impact of artificially impounded, residential headwater lakes on downstream water temperature

In the southeastern United States, which has very few natural lakes, developers often impound headwater streams to create esthetic lakes as focal points in the residential landscape. Given the prevalence and increasing abundance of these water features, it is important to assess and quantify the spatial and temporal impacts these lakes have on headwater stream temperatures. Any changes in the downstream thermal regime may influence not only the biological functioning of a stream, but also important physical and chemical water quality characteristics. The purpose of this study was to quantify the magnitude and extent of the downstream temperature disturbance associated with three different, artificially impounded, residential headwater lakes in Greenville, South Carolina. Water temperature loggers were installed upstream, in-lake, and downstream of three surface-release residential lakes and monitored at 5-min intervals from July 2007 to April 2008. In July/August 2007, longitudinal stream temperature profiles were measured at 50-m intervals both upstream and downstream of each lake in order to assess the spatial extent of the lake’s temperature disturbance. The lakes altered the downstream thermal regime at all three sites, increasing temperature by as much as 8.4 °C and decreasing diurnal variability by as much as 3.9 °C within the period of record. Furthermore, the longitudinal profiles of all three stream-lake systems showed no significant signs of downstream recovery to the upstream temperatures. The ecological effects of such temperature disturbances on stream biotic communities were not quantified in this study, but are likely significant. This study considered lakes only in South Carolina, but the observed changes to the downstream thermal regime are presumably similar for impounded residential headwater lakes across the US Southeast given the similar climate regime and comparable design and construction of these lakes across the region.     

The impact of cyclic wetting and drying on the swelling behaviour of stabilized expansive soils

Black cotton soil (BCS) deposits, stabilized with waste materials-wood-ash and organic matter (leaves, grass, etc.) exist in BCS areas of North Karnataka, India. These ash-modified soils (AMS) are apparently stabilized by hydrated lime produced by biochemical, dissolution, and hydration reactions. The influence of cyclic wetting and drying on the swelling behaviour of wood-ash-modified BCS and laboratory lime-treated BCS specimens are examined in this study. Such a study is required to assess the long-term behaviour of chemically stabilized soils in geotechnical applications. Cyclic wetting and drying caused the AMS specimens to become more porous and less saturated. Consequently, the cyclically wetted and dried (or desiccated) AMS specimens collapsed significantly at the experimental flooding pressures. The beneficial effects of lime-stabilization of the BCS specimens were also partially lost in cyclically wetting and drying them. The clay contents of the lime-treated BCS specimens increased on cyclic wetting and drying. The increased clay contents in turn, affected their Atterberg limits and swell–shrink potentials. Partial loss of inter-particle cementation, increased porosity, and reduced degree of saturation, also imparted small to moderate collapse potentials to the desiccated lime-treated BCS specimens.     

Assessing the impact of future climate change on groundwater recharge in Galicia-Costa, Spain

Climate change can impact the hydrological processes of a watershed and may result in problems with future water supply for large sections of the population. Results from the FP5 PRUDENCE project suggest significant changes in temperature and precipitation over Europe. In this study, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was used to assess the potential impacts of climate change on groundwater recharge in the hydrological district of Galicia-Costa, Spain. Climate projections from two general circulation models and eight different regional climate models were used for the assessment and two climate-change scenarios were evaluated. Calibration and validation of the model were performed using a daily time-step in four representative catchments in the district. The effects on modeled mean annual groundwater recharge are small, partly due to the greater stomatal efficiency of plants in response to increased CO₂ concentration. However, climate change strongly influences the temporal variability of modeled groundwater recharge. Recharge may concentrate in the winter season and dramatically decrease in the summer–autumn season. As a result, the dry-season duration may be increased on average by almost 30 % for the A2 emission scenario, exacerbating the current problems in water supply.     

The impact of the parking situation in shopping centres on store choice behaviour

The article discusses the effects of changing the parking situation in the surrounding of shopping centres on consumers store choice behaviour. To get insight into these effects a hierarchical logit model of parking lot and store choice behaviour is estimated and validated. The research is based on before-and-after data of supermarket visitors collected in a major regional shopping centre in a suburban area in The Netherlands. The model is estimated using the before data. At the level of the supermarkets the estimated hierarchical logit model performs very well. The model is less accurate at the level of parking lots but still performs satisfactory. Significant attributes are a constant representing the characteristics of the supermarket, the distance between supermarket and parking lot, the number of parking spaces per parking lot, the location of the parking lot vis-à-vis the origin of the consumer, and the availability of supermarket trolley facilities at the parking lot. Validating the model by reproducing the after data yields less satisfactory results. Especially the model does not perform very well on predicting parking lot choice. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Assessing response behaviour of debris-flows affected communities in Kaohsiung,Taiwan

During Typhoon Morakot which hit Taiwan from 6 to 9 August, 2009, Kaohsiung City was highly affected by devastating debris-flows and flooding. Recorded casualties were 699 deaths and 1,766 damaged homes, mostly in the mountainous areas of Kaohsiung City. Due to a largely malfunctioning or absent early-warning system, residents in those mountainous villages were required to rely on individual- and/or community-based capacities to evacuate and respond to debris-flow-related disasters. Hence, this study investigates the response behaviour of selected debris-flow-affected communities in Kaohsiung City, based on a preparedness awareness action and affect model. Key results from the survey highlight that only 13.8 % of the households received formal (institutional) early warning, whereas 86.2 % households had to rely on their intrinsic senses and indigenous knowledge to recognise the onset of debris-flows in their villages during Typhoon Morakot. Among those households who did not receive formal early warning, 10 % of the households received previous disaster education, 17 % had previous disaster experience, and 73 % did have neither disaster education nor disaster experience. Furthermore, households with disaster education were among those who were best prepared and knew best how to evacuate and respond to debris-flow-related disasters followed by households with disaster experiences. Finally, findings from the survey and selected key informants’ interviews identified that the response behaviour of communities ought to be enhanced through the following measures: conduction of hydro-meteorological-related disaster education, improved participatory risk communication and enhanced recognition of communities as vital actors during a disaster to provide local knowledge and support to relief operations.     

The impact of residential desegregation on social integration: Evidence from a South African neighbourhood

This paper analyses the potential for social integration in post-apartheid urban South Africa by examining the lives of those already living in desegregated spaces. The case study is a low-cost state-assisted housing project situated in the wealthy southern suburbs of Cape Town. In this social housing project, named Westlake village, coloured and Black African (alongside a handful of white and Indian) residents were awarded state housing in 1999 as replacement for their previous homes (informal and formal), which were demolished to make way for a mixed land-use development, of which their new homes form a small component. Westlake’s desegregation is found to extend beyond mere residential abode, affecting resident’s everyday lives to the extent that apartheid’s history and geography are superseded by other factors (such as proximity and affordability) in decision-making. Furthermore, integration at the everyday level of informal neighbourly mixing is prevalent. Although more formal cross-race friendships are rare, discussion reveals this as a consequence of Westlake’s specific socio-historic identity rather than racial divisions per se. Empirical evidence is used to propose a continuum of social integration experience. This continuum addresses the form of integration, for example greeting in the street, visiting homes, inter-marriage; and also the spaces of integration, for example physical space (shared neighbourhood), economic space (common employment-type), social space (cross-race friendship), political space (common involvement in civic organisations) and cultural space (shared sense of belonging).     

贵州珠藏向斜无烟煤孔隙结构特征及其对吸附性的影响

通过压汞、液氮吸附实验对贵州珠藏向斜无烟煤孔隙结构特征进行研究,根据实验结果分析孔隙结构特征,并结合等温吸附试验,探讨了煤孔隙结构特征对其吸附性的影响。结果表明：珠藏向斜无烟煤主要以微孔、小孔为主,比表面积主要由微孔控制;“孔隙遮挡效应理论”能够很好地解释低退汞效率、高滞后环现象;由于测试原理不同,液氮、压汞实验结果有较大差异;研究区Langmuir体积平均为36.70 m³/t,Langmuir压力平均为3.23 MPa,Langmuir体积、Langmuir压力与微孔比表面积、退汞效率均呈现正相关;另外,Langmuir压力受微孔结构影响较大,特别是封闭孔的含量,封闭孔越多,Langmuir压力越高。     

Assessing the impact of modern recharge on a sandstone aquifer beneath a suburb of Doncaster, UK

A major water quality issue in urban areas underlain by a productive aquifer is the impact of modern recharge. Using a variety of sample sources including multi-level boreholes, detectable concentrations of CFCs and SF₆ have been found throughout the upper 50 m of the saturated aquifer beneath a suburb of Doncaster, UK, indicating that modern (<50-year old) recharge has penetrated to at least this depth. Additional support for this deep penetration is provided by the detection of sulphite-reducing clostridia and faecal streptococci. Despite the upper aquifer being a poorly cemented sandstone, the residence time indicators suggest that some modern recharge is travelling via fracture systems in addition to that moving down by simple piston flow. However, the overall impact of 80 years of steady urbanisation on water quality in the aquifer beneath this suburb has in general been limited. This is attributed to a combination of factors including previous land use, dilution by direct recharge of rainfall through green-space areas including gardens, and locally high storage in the friable upper aquifer.