The presence of Holocene cryptotephra in Wales and southern England

There have been few detailed studies into the tephrostratigraphy of southern Britain. We report the tephrostratigraphy of two sites, one in southern England (Rough Tor, Cornwall) and one in Wales (Cors Fochno, west Wales). Our study extends the known southernmost reach of Icelandic cryptotephra in northern Europe. Given the large distance between sites in southern England and eruptive sources (e.g. Iceland 1500–1700 km distant), most of the cryptotephra layers consist of sparse numbers of shards, even by the standards of distal tephrostratigraphy (as low as 3 shards cm⁻¹), each layer spanning only 1 or 2 cm in depth. We identify multiple cryptotephra layers in both sites, extending the known distribution of several tephra layers including the MOR‐T4 tephra (∼AD 1000) most probably of Icelandic origin, and the AD 860 B tephra correlated to an eruption of Mount Churchill, Alaska. The two sites record contrasting tephrostratigraphies, illustrating the need for the inclusion of multiple sites in the construction of a regional tephrostratigraphic framework. The tephra layers we describe may provide important isochrons for the dating and correlation of palaeoenvironmental sequences in the south of Britain. 2017 The Authors. Journal of Quaternary Science Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

     

The role of geography in education in England and Wales

Geography within England and Wales has undergone several important changes since its development as a school and university subject during the 19th century. The 1960s were an especially important period of major change with the introduction of scientific, conceptual elements to the field. Those changes were accompanied by several curriculum projects of national scope that brought the new geography to the classroom. In the 1980s, geography was recognized as a foundation subject, giving it renewed importance within the curriculum of the secondary schools. Government intervention has increased within most aspects of education, especially with regard to examinations and training for employment, thus placing greater strains upon the teaching force. Within the general framework of education, geography provides a unique perspective. As a discipline, it infuses a global dimension at the macro-level and a sense of place at the micro-level. That perspective is important since it bridges general knowledge of the discipline to social and environmental issues at various scales.     

超级火山喷发及其环境效应SCIEI北大核心CSCD

超级火山喷发可以在极短时间内剧烈改变区域地形地貌,引起全球性气候巨变,是人类赖以生存的地球宜居环境的严重威胁。因此,剖析地质历史上的超级火山喷发事件及其环境效应,将有助于我们预测和应对未来可能的超级火山喷发及其造成的自然灾难。本文从超级火山和超级喷发的定义入手,重点介绍超级火山喷发的固相和气相产物、如何鉴别地质历史上的超级火山喷发、以及超级火山喷发可能带来的环境和社会影响。由于最近一次超级火山喷发发生在2.6万年前的新西兰,人类文明并没有经历过超级火山喷发,科学家们主要通过二十世纪以来有记录的小型火山喷发、冰芯和年轮记录、火山-环境-气候模型等来推测、反演和模拟超级火山喷发对气候和环境的影响。已有的研究表明,超级火山喷发产生的碎屑熔岩流和岩浆房塌陷产生的破火山口给周边地区环境造成直接的摧毁;进入平流层的火山气体经过物理化学变化形成气溶胶,有效的反射和吸收太阳辐射,从而导致长达数年的区域甚至全球性的剧烈降温和降水减少。尽管科学家们已经做了很多数值模拟和推演,但超级火山喷发的影响仍然是难以估计的。特别是超级火山喷发发生的季节和地点会带来不同的火山-海洋-大气-植被耦合效应,导致不同规模的气候和环境变化,未来应当加强这方面的研究。     

The management of sewage sludge by the water industry in England and Wales

Summary The legislative framework within which the disposal of sewage sludge is managed in England and Wales and the methods employed are outlined. Those factors which affect management decisions are analysed and consideration is given to the environmental implications of those decisions. Sewage processes and sludge disposal are considered, and the problems, especially those of heavy metal contamination, are addressed. An indication is given as to how the Water Services Companies are likely to implement the more stringent controls on disposal. Finally, the future of sludge management in England and Wales is discussed.Abbreviations BAT Best available technology - BATNEEC Best available technology not entailing excessive cost - BOD₅ Biochemical oxygen demand - BPEO Best practicable environmental option - CBI Confederation of British Industry - CEST Centre for Exploitation of Science and Technology - COD Chemical oxygen demand - CSC Customer Services Committee - DAF Dissolved air flotation - DG Director General - DoE Department of the Environment - DS Dried solids     

Late Dinantian palaeokarst of England and Wales: implications for exposure surface development

Palaeokarst is an important feature of late Dinantian exposure surfaces. Soil-filled depressions are widely developed. These are comparable to modern day solution dolines and were probably interspersed by areas of relatively bare limestone pavement. The palaeokarst primarily exhibits a smooth, mamillated to potholed surface form, consistent with its formation beneath a soil cover. Areas between the depressions have been extensively stylolitised and would likely have originally been characterized by small-scale fretted and sculpted karren forms typical of subaerial karstification. Palaeokarst pits making up the depressions are thought to have been initiated through stem-flow drainage from trees. Rain water, intercepted by the crown of the tree, was concentrated at specific sites on the emergent surface and dissolution beneath the trunk produced cylindrical pits that propagated vertically downwards. Trees responsible for concentrating drainage may also have enhanced the acidic nature of the rain water through leaching of organic acids from foliar and woody tissues. Downward propagation of the pits was limited to the uppermost 1–2 m and enlargement primarily occurred through lateral amalgamation of adjacent pits. Once initiated, continued development of the depressions would have been self perpetuating; the preferential accumulation of volcanic ash and organic matter enhancing water retention and encouraging further vegetation growth. In contrast, intervening areas would have been characterized by slow vertical denudation only. Karstification likely took of the order of a few hundred years in the case of potholed palaeokarstic surfaces formed solely by stem-flow drainage, to a few tens of thousands of years where the palaeokarst is more mature.     

Gender-specific local labour market areas in England and Wales

Local labour market areas (LLMAs) are usually defined on the basis of total commuting flows between constituent ‘building block’ areas. Indeed the 1984 revision of Travel-To-Work Areas (TTWAs) was based on aggregate flows between 1981 Census wards. It is widely recognized, however, that various sub-groups of the population have distinctive commuting patterns. TTWAs therefore represent the outcome of an ‘averaging’ of the journey-to-work patterns of different gender, socio-economic and occupational groups. In this preliminary review, the self-containment of TTWAs in England and Wales, which have been generated using aggregate data, is assessed at the simplest level of disaggregation of the commuting data: disaggregation by gender. In accordance with expectations, it is found that TTWAs defined on the basis of total commuting flows are generally more self-contained for females than for males, and that those TTWAs which are insufficiently self-contained to be considered as LLMAs for males are overwhelmingly concentrated in the most urbanized regions. These findings are reinforced by the results of re-running the TTWA regionalization algorithm against 1981 flow data for males and females in order to create gender-specific TTWAs; disparities between Male and Female TTWAs are greatest in the most urbanized regions. Such differences are investigated in greater detail for two Metropolitan Regions (MRs): the combined Liverpool and Manchester MRs in the north-west and the London MR in the south-east.     

Climate change impacts on environmental geosciences: Introduction

正Climate change and its impacts have become topical issues of global news, scientific research and conferences. Environmental Geosciences incorporate the various disciplines of geosciences and their multifaceted interactions with life. Research discussions on the interaction of climate change, geosciences and environment may often be blur, and Schmidt-Thoméet al.(2010) stated that"Often past climate changes that can be deduced from geological records may help in understanding the speed of potential climate change effects, i.e. how quickly have sea levels changed, how drastic has nature reacted to ups and downs in temperature, etc. These analyses of past events help in giving outlooks on potential changes in our living environment. It is also of important to understand the magnitude and potential effects of extreme events, such as droughts and floods".     

Risk, rescue and emergency services: The changing spatialities of Mountain Rescue Teams in England and Wales

This paper considers the role of the emergency services in society and, in particular, their role in controlling, mitigating and resolving risk. Using a network approach, Mountain Rescue Teams are studied in order to examine how people, agencies, animals, technology and knowledge are deployed to resolve emergencies. The paper traces the changing nature of risk in rural places and the impact of state regulation on the deployment, spatialities and practices of the emergency services. In doing so, it argues that greater attention should be paid to the emergency services by geographers.     

Identifying environmental impacts of underground construction

Dewatering of the groundwater resource and associated reduced flow of surface water features are potential negative impacts when constructing underground facilities. Little work has been done to develop methods for the early detection of environmental impacts on water resources where major underground construction is being undertaken. Recognizing this, prior to construction of two rock tunnels in the southwestern USA, a 3-year preconstruction program was implemented to monitor over 100 wells, springs, and streams in the project area that might be affected. This preconstruction monitoring phase has established data for a hydrologic reference which indicates a high degree of spatial and temporal variability. This variability must be accounted for when trying to identify construction-related impacts. The project area was subdivided into areas of similar characteristics based on geologic and hydrologic features. Measurements from features within each unit were then normalized and aggregated to derive a single representative flow parameter. This representative flow was then correlated to precipitation and major stream flow records to allow for a method of estimating unimpacted flow and groundwater levels during and after construction. Application of this method proved useful in determining and enabling a quick response to construction-related impacts.     

National-scale Assessment of Current and Future Flood Risk in England and Wales

In recent years, through the availability of remotely sensed data and other national datasets, it has become possible to conduct national-scale flood risk assessment in England and Wales. The results of this type of risk analysis can be used to inform policy-making and prioritisation of resources for flood management. It can form the starting point for more detailed strategic and local-scale flood risk assessments. The national-scale risk assessment methodology outlined in this paper makes use of information on the location, standard of protection and condition of flood defences in England and Wales, together with datasets of floodplain extent, topography, occupancy and asset values. The flood risk assessment was applied to all of England and Wales in 2002 at which point the expected annual damage from flooding was estimated to be approximately £1 billion. This figure is comparable with records of recent flood damage. The methodology has subsequently been applied to examine the effects of climate and socio-economic change 50 and 80 years in the future. The analysis predicts increasing flood risk unless current flood management policies, practices and investment levels are changed – up to 20-fold increase in real terms economic risk by the 2080s in the scenario with highest economic growth. The increase is attributable primarily to a combination of climate change (in particular sea level rise and increasing precipitation in parts of the UK) and increasing economic vulnerability.     

Climate impacts of environmental degradation in Sudan

There exists an impressive amount of work for Sudan showing the anthropogenic degradation of natural vegetation cover. However, there are few examples of consequent climatic changes in literature. This work, thus, seeks to assess such effects of environmental forcing on various climatic patterns over the past few decades. Within the frame of the present analysis, the results are quite striking and are in concordance with scientific contentions that such land degradation could result in climatic modification. Higher temperature and less rainfall, sunshine duration and global radiation have been noticed. Evapotranspiration has responded more to the warming and drying conditions, thus showed signs of increasing rates, especially during the wet season. However, the extent of increase seems to have been suppressed by the decrease in sunshine duration and solar radiation as well as the inconsistent behaviour of wind speed. Changes in the variability of the within-year monthly observations have also occurred, thus suggesting an increase in the occurrence of extremes. The observed climatic modification in the country has exaggerated the insidious drought conditions. The present findings are hoped to contribute to our understanding of the effects of environmental problem and assist in considering policy responses. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

累积环境影响研究进展

首先从累积影响的概念和分类两方面对累积影响的内涵进行了总结,回顾了累积影响概念产生、发展的过程,提出了定义累积影响必须包括的核心内容;对国内外累积影响的研究现状进行了概括:国外对累积影响的研究开展得较早,但仍然存在累积影响定义不一致、方法定量性差、结论没有公信力等问题。国内于20世纪90年代开始对累积影响进行研究,主要集中于方法研究,对定义和实例探讨较少;对一些具有代表性的累积影响分析方法进行归类,并指出了各种方法的适用条件;特别对累积影响在水利学科中应用的情况进行了介绍,并指出了流域梯级开发背景下累积影响分析的特点;最后提出了累积影响研究的几点趋向。     

Environmental influences on the yield of spring Barley in England and Wales

Using data on crop yields and soil conditions derived from reports of the Soil Survey of England and Wales, and incorporating a variety of climatic and topographic data, relationships were identified between the yield of spring barley and edaphic and climatic conditions. Yields are highest on fine loamy and silty soils and on freely to imperfectly drained soils. Multiple regression analysis indicated that yields are related to sand contents, drainage conditions and available water capacity of the soil, potential summer soil moisture deficit and annual accumulated temperature.     

Aspects of magmatism and plate tectonics in the Precambrian of England and Wales

The geological features of igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks comprising the Precambrian of England and Wales suggest formation in one or more Precambrian orogenic cycles. They are now interpreted in terms of plate tectonics. Evidence for Late Proterozoic plate subduction in the Mona Complex of Anglesey is suggested by the association of pillow lavas, cherts, high P/T metamorphic rocks and by the occurrence of gabbros and serpentinites with similar features to rocks believed to comprise the oceanic crust. Precambrian rocks in England and South Wales include calc-alkaline plutonic complexes (Malvern and Johnston Complexes), calc-alkaline lavas (Uriconian and Charnian) and basic and intermediate intrusions of tholeiitic affinity (dykes in the plutonic complexes and granophyric diorites in Charnwood Forest). The features of these rocks indicate formation in a continental margin setting and this is consistent with features of the Rushton Schist and Primrose Hill “gneiss” which suggest that they predate the Late Proterozoic orogenic activity. This evidence is consistent with plate tectonic models involving oceanic plate subduction below the Mona Complex from an ocean to the northwest, or from a small ocean basin southeast of the complex. The Warren House lavas show some affinities to ocean floor basalts and are problematic with regard to the Precambrian history of the area.     

Landscape protection and development control: An appraisal of planning in rural areas of England and Wales

Landscape protection has been a well-established policy in British rural planning for the past 30 yr, through National Parks, Areas of Outstanding National Beauty, Green Belts and other similar designations. The main way in which these policies are implemented is through the development control system, but there has been little monitoring to establish how far it has been effective in achieving the landscape conservation objectives. Opinions vary about the extent to which urban development has been contained in England and Wales through planning control. Detailed studies have shown that in certain circumstances development can be directed to specific locations, but that there are definite limits on the scale of any such management.     

The Petrology of an Adamellite-Porphyrite from the New England Bathylith (New South Wales)

The paper presents an account of the occurrence, petrography,mineralogy, and geochemistry of several intrusions of adamellite-porphyrite,an early member of the New England Bathylith (N.S.W.). The rockis composed of phenocrysts of quartz, andesine, hornblende,biotite, augite (and minor orthopyroxene) which are set in afine-grained quartzofeldspathic groundmass. Compositions ofsilicate phenocrysts (which reveal widespread evidence of cataclasis)accord with coexisting phases of an assemblage appropriate tointermediate rocks. Xenolith mineralogy is similar to equivalentminerals occurring as phenocrysts. The recalculated bulk compositionof a rock represented by the modal andesine, hornblende, biotite,augite, and magnetite of the adamellite-porphyrite is similarto the composition of a biotite–diorite; the compositionof the quartzo-feldspathic groundmass plots in the low-meltingregion of the NaAISi₃O₈-KAISi₃O₈-SiO₂-H₂O system. Evidence ispresented to indicate a hybrid origin for the adamellite-porphyritewhereby disrupted biotite-diorite was invaded and mixed withlow-melting silicic alkalic liquid.