Biodiversity and conservation in the Tibetan Plateau

The Tibetan Plateau (Qinghai-Xizang Plateau) is a unique biogeographic region in the world, where various landscapes, altitudinal belts, alpine ecosystems, and endangered and endemic species have been developed. A total of 26 altitudinal belts, 28 spectra of altitudinal belts, 12,000 species of vascular plant, 5,000 species of epiphytes, 210 species of mammals, and 532 species of birds have been recorded. The plateau is also one of the centers of species formation and differentiation in the world. To protect the biodiversity of the plateau, about 80 nature reserves have been designated, of which 45 are national or provincial, covering about 22% of the plateau area. Most of the nature reserves are distributed in the southeastern plateau. Recently, the Chinese government has initiated the “Natural Forests Protection Project of China,” mainly in the upper reaches of the Yangtze and Yellow rivers. “No logging” policies have been made and implemented for these areas.     

African Neoproterozoic Mineral Deposits and Pan African Metallogenesis

Amalgamation of a number of continental fragments during the Late Neoproterozoic resulted in a united Gondwana continent. The time period in question, at the end of the Precambrian, spans about 250 million years between ∼800 and 550 Ma. Geological activity focused along orogenic belts in Africa during that time period is generally referred to as “Pan African.” We identify three age-related classes of tectonic terranes within these orogenic belts, differentiated on the basis of the formation-age of their crust: juvenile (e.g. mantle derived at or near the time of the orogenesis, ∼0.5–0.8 Ga), Paleoproterozoic (∼1.8–2.5 Ga), Archean (>2.5 Ga). We combine African mineral deposits data of these terranes on a new Neoproterozoic tectonic map of Africa. The spatial correlation between geological terranes in the belts and mineral occurrences are determined in order to define the metallogenic character of each terrane, which we refer to as their “metallogenic fingerprint.” We use these fingerprints to evaluate the effectiveness of mobilization (“recycling”) of mineral deposits within old crustal fragments during Pan African orogenesis. This analysis involves normalization factors derived from the average metallogenic fingerprints of pristine older crust (e.g. Palaeoproterozoic shields and Archean cratons not affected by Pan African orogenesis) and of juvenile Pan African crust (e.g. the Nubian Shield). We find that mineral deposit patterns are distinctly different in older crust that has been remobilized in the Pan African belts compared to those in juvenile crust of Neoproterozoic age, and that the concentration of deposits in remobilized older crust is in all cases significantly depleted relative to that in their pristine age-equivalents. Lower crustal sections (granulite domains) within the Pan African belts are also strongly depleted in mineral deposits relative to the upper crustal sections of juvenile Neoproterozoic terranes. A depletion factor for all terranes in Pan African orogens is derived with which to evaluate the role of mineral deposit recycling during orogenesis. We conclude that recycling of old mineral deposits in younger orogenic belts contributes, on average, to secular decrease of the total mineral endowment of continental crust. This could be of value when formulating exploration strategies.     

长江上游山地垂直带谱及其空间分布模式

长江上游包括青藏高原东南部、秦巴山地、四川盆地与云贵高原部分地区,在地理、地貌、气候、生物多样性方面都表现得极为复杂和丰富多彩,在世界山地中也占有举足轻重的位置。特别是复杂多样的山地垂直带谱更是欧亚大陆乃至世界山地垂直带研究中至关重要的组成部分。在地学信息图谱和数字山地垂直带体系的基础上,本文系统地收集和分析了长江上游共50个山地垂直带谱所体现的空间规律,河源区、横断山区、秦巴山区及贵州高原的垂直带谱类型多样并各具特色,且在经度和纬度方向又具有统一的分布规律,如雪线、林线、针叶林及阔叶林等的分布界线变化规律比较符合二次曲线规律,验证了大陆尺度上山地垂直带二次曲线模式假说。另外,山地垂直带分布规律又具有尺度效应,中小尺度上地形的影响作用表现得极为显著。     

Mineral waters of the projected specially protected natural territory “Istoki Amura”

We examine the various types of mineral waters occurring on the projected specially protected transboundary natural territory “Istoki Amura”, on the Hentei-Dauria neotectonic high. We suggest the pattern of rational utilization of the mineral springs according to the nature conservation status of the terrain (nature reserves, national parks, and public access areas).     

青藏高原植被垂直带与气候因子的空间关系

集成了青藏高原气候区149个山地植被垂直带数据,利用国家基本气象台站自建站以来到2001年的地面观测日气象数据,计算了地面的温暖(WI)、寒冷(CI)、湿润(MI)、吉良龙夫(Kira)干湿指数、干燥度(Idm)等水热指数,运用GIS的空间分析模块,模拟了青藏高原水热条件的空间分布形势,探讨山地植被垂直带谱分布规律与制约因子的定量指标.结果表明:在高原的东北部、西北边缘,以荒漠、荒漠草原、山地森林、山地草原、灌丛、草甸为组合的半干旱、干旱结构向高原腹地以高寒草原、高山草甸、荒漠带组合的高寒干旱带谱结构的变化;东南、南部边缘,以温暖湿润为特征的以森林带为优势带谱组合结构逐渐向寒冷的高原中心变化;高原的地势效应,致使的水热形势旱现从中央向边缘变化的趋势是致使青藏高原植被垂直带谱分布的重要原因.     

An assessment of oil supply and its implications for future prices

This paper examines three issues related to both the U.S. and world oil supply: (1) the nature of the long-term, postpeak production profile for the U.S. and, by inference, other regions (the Hubbert curve is used as a “strawman” model); (2) implications on U.S. energy security of using a modified Hubbert-type conceptual model of prepeak production, testing the adequacy of Latin America to be the primary source of U.S. oil imports; and (3) the cyclic behavior of oil prices. it shows that U.S. production will exhibit a more attenuated decline than that simulated by the Hubbert curve and not decline to zero. it asserts that U.S. production is better predicted by past reserves than past production, but that this argument does not apply to nations that keep a much larger proportion of reserves in the ground. Such nations could considerably expand production without any growth in reserves. The paper concedes that the potential total production for these nations could be examined with a Hubbert curve model linked to reserves, but with great uncertainty. Such an uncertain optimistic forecast predicts that the cumulative production of Latin America could far exceed that of the United States. Nevertheless, a statistical model of oil prices since 1870 implies that real wellhead oil prices in the United States are on a long-term upward path, underlying a much more “noisy” cyclical pattern estimated to include 22- and 27-year cycles. The statistical model predicts a severe oil shock within a few years (of 1998) but also predicts that through 2030, real oil prices will not reach 1981 levels again. The paper examines U.S. and world trends in seismic exploration, drilling locations and depths, drilling costs, oil/gas reserves, oil/gas use rates, and oil demand. After taking these factors into consideration, it concludes that the statistical model of oil prices cannot be disputed, despite its lack of basis in economic theory.     

“Greatest lake period” and its palaeo-environment on the Tibetan Plateau

The “greatest lake period” means that the lakes are in the stage of their maximum areas. As the paleo lake shorelines are widely distributed in the lake basins on the Tibetan Plateau, the lake areas during the “greatest lake period” may be inferred by the last highest lake shorelines. They are several, even tens times larger than that at present. According to the analyses of tens of lakes on the Plateau, most dating data fell into the range of 40-25 ka BP, some lasted to 20 ka BP. It was corresponded to the stage 3 of marine isotope and interstitial of last glaciation. The occurrence of maximum areas of lakes marked the very humid period on the Plateau and was also related to the stronger summer monsoon during that period.     

Implications of mass elevation effect for the altitudinal patterns of global ecology

The varied altitudinal gradient of climate and vegetation is further complicated by mass elevation effect (MEE), especially in high and extensive mountain regions. However, this effect and its implications for mountain altitudinal belts have not been well studied until recently. This paper provides an overview of the research carried out in the past 5 years. MEE is virtually the heating effect of mountain massifs and can be defined as the temperature difference on a given elevation between inside and outside of a mountain mass. It can be digitally modelled with three factors of intra-mountain base elevation (MBE), latitude and hygrometric continentality; MBE usually acts as the primary factor for the magnitude of MEE and, to a great extent, could represent MEE. MEE leads to higher treelines in the interior than in the outside of mountain masses. It makes montane forests to grow at 4800–4900 m and snowlines to develop at about 6000 m in the southern Tibetan Plateau and the central Andes, and large areas of forests to live above 3500 m in a lot of high mountains of the world. The altitudinal distribution of global treelines can be modelled with high precision when taking into account MEE and the result shows that MEE contributes the most to treeline distribution pattern. Without MEE, forests could only develop upmost to about 3500 m above sea level and the world ecological pattern would be much simpler. The quantification of MEE should be further improved with higher resolution data and its global implications are to be further revealed.     

青藏高原不同时段气候变化的研究综述

1 Introduction The annual mean world temperature increased by about 0.6℃ from the late 1800s to the 1980s (Wang, 1994). The global environmental change is marked with “global warming” and its possible effects on the ecosystem as well as the production …     

青藏高原维管植物物种丰富度分布的情景模拟

如何充分利用离散的观测数据,通过对维管植物物种分布丰富度及其与生境因子之间的相互作用和影响机理的定量分析,实现维管植物物种丰富度的空间分布及其情景模拟,是目前生物多样性研究前沿和核心内容之一。针对这一问题,在实现青藏高原37个国家自然保护区的维管植物物种数量收集和边界数据矢量化的基础上,分别进行维管植物物种数量与土地覆盖类型、环境因子和景观生态指数等三大类生境因子之间的相关关系的定量计算和对比分析,筛选和确定最佳相关分析方程,进而构建青藏高原维管植物物种丰富度的空间模拟分析模型。该模型中,维管植物物种丰富度与生境因子之间的复相关系数为0.94,模型验证结果表明,青藏高原的维管植物物种的平均丰富度为496.79种/100 km²,其空间分布格局整体上呈东南向西北逐渐减少趋势;另外,除柴达木盆地荒漠区域以外,维管植物物种的空间分布随海拔的升高而减少。基于CMIP5 RCP 2.6、RCP 4.5和RCP 8.5三种气候情景模拟获得的青藏高原维管植物物种丰富度未来情景结果显示,在T0-T4（2010-2100）时段内,青藏高原维管植物物种丰富度整体将呈减少趋势。RCP 8.5情景下青藏高原维管植物物种丰富度的变化幅度最大,而RCP 2.6情景下的维管植物物种丰富度的变化幅度最小。研究表明,本文构建的模型能够对青藏高原维管植物物种丰富度的空间分布格局及其未来情景进行模拟分析,模拟结果可为青藏高原生物多样性及其对气候变化响应的综合评估和情景模拟提供方法和技术支持。     

秦岭中部山地落叶阔叶林超级垂直带的发现与意义

山地垂直带谱是气候和植被水平地带变化和更替的缩影,垂直带的带幅、带间过渡方式、带内结构和垂直带组合方式都表现出高度的异质性和复杂性。本文发现在中国南北过渡带中部太白山发育了世界上最宽的山地垂直带——山地落叶阔叶林垂直带。该垂直带从基带到典型垂直带再到先锋性垂直带皆为山地落叶阔叶林,3种本来可以独立存在的垂直带,连续分布形成了包含3个栎林亚带、2个桦林亚带的“三层五亚带”超级垂直带,远远超过正常情况下山地垂直带1000 m的阈值,且其上限达到了海拔2800 m。它的形成与秦岭所处的过渡性地理位置、秦岭中部垂直带谱的完整性、丰富的落叶木本植物种群及其形成的强大群落竞争优势等因素紧密相关。超级垂直带的发现有多方面的意义：它是中国南北过渡带又一重要的标志性自然地理特征;它表明山地垂直带在特殊的山地环境中可以具有非常复杂的内部结构和宽大带幅,这扩展了我们对山地垂直带谱结构及机理认识的广度,对于创建山地垂直带谱结构理论具有十分重要的意义;超级垂直带的发现,也说明中国南北过渡带还有很多科学内容有待我们去探索和发现,希望本文能起到抛砖引玉的作用,引起学界对超级垂直带形成的气候和生物多样性因素、地理过渡带的结构和生态效应等重大问题进行深入研究。     

Sustainable development and mine management

The sustainable development concept has generated a large body of literature. It has also divided economists into numerous schools of thought. The neoclassical, London, and other schools are painted in broad strokes in the first part of this paper. They debate the extent to which manufactured capital and “natural” capital are believed to be substitutes or complements in a macroeconomics context. The problem stems from the difficulty to measure “natural” capital. The second part of the paper looks at sustainable development in mining at the firm level. First, it is argued that the capital value of the mineral reserves can be maintained by discovering reserves or by saving part of the rent. Second, we show that mine manager actions can be induced to follow efficiency and equity principles when proper limits or constraints are imposed by the legislator. It is concluded that a set of indicators need to be defined and calibrated to ensure that the economic, environmental, and social limits imposed on the mine manager become a framework inside which he competes for the best interest of the firm.     

Paleoecological and paleoenvironmental record of the Late Pleistocene record of Lake Khubsugul (Mongolia) based on ostracod remains

This paper deals with the investigation of the upper 11.6 m portion of a long drill core (KDP-01) taken from the bottom sediments of Lake Khubsugul. Ostracod species and their assemblages recovered from the core were analyzed. The data are compared with the carbonate and sulfate values obtained from bulk sediment, as well as with the flux of the coarse terrigenous fraction (>200 m) from the same core. Based on the previously calculated depth-age sedimentary model, the oldest age of the core studied here is about 230 ka. The four ostracod species recovered in the core are Cytherissa lacustris, Candona lepnevae, Limnocythere inopinata and Leucocythere sp. According to the distribution of those ostracods, we distinguish four main periods, each of about 50 ka long. Based on the ecological requirements of extant ostracods, two assemblages typifying a low water level and high salinity, on the first hand, and another representing freshwater and high lake level are recognized. The first “high salinity” ostracods correspond to “cold” periods as seen globally, while “freshwater” ostracods are associated with interglacials. Ostracod valves are absent during interglacial optima. This may be due to chemical dissolution of calcium carbonate related to organic matter decay at the initial stages of diagenesis, probably because during interglacials, in contrast to glacials, organic matter flux reaching the lake bottom were significantly higher. The periodicity in the development of ostracod species assemblages follows 17, 24 and 47 ka cycles related to orbital forcing. Its diversity is correlated with summer temperature fluctuations in northern altitudes for the past 230 ka. The maximum in species diversity follows the temperature maxima, by about 1.5 and 2 ka. Overall, the data obtained demonstrate a correlation between climatic changes and variations in specific and quantitative ratios of ostracod species during the last 230 ka.     

天山数字垂直带谱体系与研究

对6个全国性山地垂直带谱体系进行评述。认为区域性的数字垂直带谱的详细研究也是建立中国山地垂直带信息图谱的重要一环。只有通过这样的工作，才能进一步发现问题和解决问题，才能逐步趋于完成山地垂直带谱集大成的工作。分析了天山垂直带谱形成的因素，建立了包括北坡、南坡、西部伊犁谷地、天山腹地(巴音布鲁克盆地)的天山数字垂直带谱体系，分析了各垂直带的特点，总结了垂直带谱的区域分异规律。     

The “Three-Component” Digital Prospecting Method: A New Approach for Mineral Resource Quantitative Prediction and Assessment

Stimulated by the exceeding progress of information technology, the development of mineral exploration has entered a new period of digitization and quantification. The “three components” approach of mineral prediction is suggested as a new approach to the “digital mineral prospecting,” which is based on the geoanomaly analysis, directed by the research on the diversity of mineralization and on the spectrum of mineral deposits. Close combination of these three aspects of quantitative study makes a new starting point to the digital prospecting. In this paper, the basic theories of the “three components” approach of mineral prediction are discussed. In addition, based on the new achievements in the studies on the prediction and assessment of solid minerals and gas–oil resources, we have centered our discussion on the thought of analysis of geoanomaly evolution and on the “5P” method for approaching the target area in the “three components” approach of mineral prediction.     

珠穆朗玛峰国家级自然保护区湿地分布研究

利用2000～2009年覆盖珠穆朗玛峰国家级自然保护区的MOD09A1和MOD13Q1数据集的相关数据,该保护区1：5万DEM,并结合2008年9月采集的野外湿地数据,进行了基于增强型植被指数（EVI）、改进型调整植被指数（MSAVI）、地表水分指数（LSWI）、海拔和坡度5个参数的保护区湿地分布特征研究。结果表明,珠穆朗玛峰国家级自然保护区的湿地类型主要为河流、湖泊、沼泽和沼泽化草甸;湿地主要分布在海拔4100～4700m且坡度≤4°的佩枯错、浪强错、多布扎等湖泊密集的高原湖盆地区、佩枯错与浪强错之间的平原地带和保护区中部及北部坡度较缓的河谷地区,大部分湿地分布在保护区的实验区内;2000～2008年保护区湿地以季相变化为主,6～9月（湿季）湿地面积约占保护区总面积的11．2％;6～9月湿地面积年际变化幅度小于保护区总面积的0．1％;坡度和海拔是影响保护区湿地空间分布的关键因素和提取该地区湿地空间分布范围的有效参数。     

Structural-typological characteristics and ecological potential of the Baikal region’s geosystems

We outline the methods and results of cartographic analysis and assessment the present state of a large region’s geosystems: their structural, functional and functional-value characteristics have been revealed. Drawing on the notion of epiformations, we determined the ecological potential of geosystems at the regional level for nature management purposes. A fragment of the typological general-purpose interpretation map “Ecological potential of the Baikal region’s geosystems” is presented.     

Fishing for diatoms: fish gut analysis reveals water quality changes over a 75-year period

Defining the reference state of some perturbed streams and rivers is challenging since their non-altered state is undocumented. Despite the near-absence of pristine sites in highly anthropogenic areas, information about aquatic communities that existed prior to human disturbance can be obtained from historic sources. Sediment coring is commonly used in paleolimnology to estimate past environmental conditions of lakes, but this technique is often not appropriate for studies of lotic systems. An alternative is to use diatom assemblages present in the guts of fish that were captured in the streams prior to significant human disturbance. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the biological integrity of several streams in Ontario and Québec during the early twentieth century based on “paleo” diatom assemblages extracted from the guts of fish stored in museums. The Eastern Canadian diatom index (IDEC: Indice Diatomées de l’Est du Canada) was used to evaluate the biological status of “paleo” and “modern” diatom assemblages. The IDEC shows the position of diatom assemblages on a general pollution gradient. The comparison of IDEC values calculated for the 1925–1948 and the 2003–2007 periods showed that several streams were severely polluted in the early 1900s. In general, present water quality has declined compared to the early 1900s. The biological integrity of only three of the 22 sites has increased. IDEC values were not influenced by the species of fish studied.     

青藏高原沼泽合理利用与生态环境保育

青藏高原有沼泽约491.3万hm2,是世界上最高的湿地。通过概要介绍高原沼泽湿地基本类型及其分布,重点阐述沼泽湿地利用、环境变化现状与存在的问题,为了保护高原生态环境,并持续利用湿地资源,提出了初步的看法和建议。     

中国山地垂直带的数字集成与基本规律分析

首次归纳出我国63类垂直带(包括31类基带)；在ArcGIS 8．3平台上,以山地垂直带谱“数字引擎”为内核,成功研制了“中国山地垂直带谱信息系统(1．0)”,将我国约239个山地垂直带谱进行了数字集成,使我们对我国垂直带谱数据的掌握从残缺上升为相对完备。该研究工作不仅为我国山地垂直带谱规律的数字分析提供了强大的手段,也为世界山地垂直带谱的数字集成提供了必要的理论和技术方法。还利用该系统,对重要垂直带界线如雪线、林线、高山草甸进行了空间规律分析。结果表明,除高山草甸经向变化缺乏明显规律外,其他垂直带界线的经、纬向变化的二次曲线(抛物线)模式比其他模式具有更高的相关系数。因而,抛物线模式应是我国山地垂直带宏观尺度上的基本空间模式。今后垂直带谱研究应在界线精度、带谱结构的地理学／生态学解释等方面继续深入。