Potentially modified hydropower production under climate change in the Italian Alps

We present an assessment of the potential impacts of climate change on hydropower production within a paradigmatic, very highly exploited cryospheric area of upper Valtellina valley in the Italian Alps. Based on dependable and unique hydrological measures from our high‐altitude hydrometric network Idrostelvio during 2006–2015, we set up the Poly‐Hydro model to mimic the cryospheric processes driving hydrological flow formation in this high‐altitude area. We then set up an optimization tool, which we call Poly‐Power, to maximize the revenue of the plant manager under given hydrological regimes, namely, by proper operation of the hydroelectric production scheme (reservoirs, pipelines, and power plants) of the area. We then pursue hydrological projections until 2100, feeding Poly‐Hydro with the downscaled outputs of three general circulation models from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report, under the scenarios Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 2.6, RCP 4.5, and RCP 8.5. We assess hydrological flows in two reference decades, that is, at half century (2040–2049), and end of century (2090–2099). We then feed the so obtained hydrological scenarios as inputs to Poly‐Power, and we project future production of hydroelectric power, with and without reoperation of the system. The average annual stream flows for hydropower production decreases along the century under our scenarios (?21 to +7%, on average ? 5% at half century; ?17 to ?2%, average ? 8%, end of century), with ice cover melting unable to offset such decrease. Reduction in snowfall and increase in liquid rainfall are the main factors affecting the modified hydrological regime. Energy production (and revenues) at half century may increase under our scenarios (?9 to +15%, +3% on average). At the end of century in spite of a projected increase on average (?7 to +6%, +1% on average), under the warmest scenario RCP 8.5 decrease of energy production is consistently projected (?4% on average). Our results provide an array of potential scenarios of modified hydropower production under future climate change and may be used for brain storming of adaptation strategies.     

Impact of ancient metal smelting on arsenic pollution in the Pecora River Valley,Southern Tuscany,Italy

A significant As anomaly has been reported in the literature for stream sediments and unlithified Quaternary deposits of the Pecora River valley in Southern Tuscany, extending from the “Colline Metallifere” pyrite-base metals district to the Tyrrhenian Sea. The As anomaly spreads over several square kilometers around a core that exceeds 500 ppm. Several source contributions (from natural to anthropogenic) have been invoked to explain the observed As distribution in the Pecora Valley, including the metal-working industry which was active in this area, particularly in Etrusco-Roman times and in the Middle Ages. In order to evaluate the contribution of ancient mining and metallurgical activities in the Pecora Valley to elevated As concentrations in the environment, a detailed mineralogical and geochemical survey of metallurgical slags and smelted ore minerals was undertaken from six different sites through the Pecora Valley: Poggio Butelli (Etrusco-Roman iron slags); Sata Creek, Arialla, Marsiliana, Forra and Cascata sites (all Medieval base metals slags). The As content of Etrusco-Roman slags is relatively low (few tens of ppm), whereas Medieval slags show variable, but higher amounts of base metals (±Ag) (ranging from tens to tens of thousands ppm) and As (up to 267 ppm, with average contents of about 40 ppm). Arsenic is mostly partitioned in sulfides disseminated through the glassy groundmass rather than in solid solution with the glassy matrix. Remnants of the ore used for base metal and Ag smelting during the Middle Ages had the highest As contents (up to about 1000 ppm).     

New precipitation and temperature grids for northern Patagonia: Advances in relation to global climate grids

Climate data of mean monthly temperature and total monthly precipitation compiled from different sources in northern Patagonia were interpolated to 20-km resolution grids over the period 1997–2010. This northern Patagonian climate grid (NPCG) improves upon previous gridded products in terms of its spatial resolution and number of contributing stations, since it incorporates 218 and 114 precipitation and temperature records, respectively. A geostatistical method using surface elevation from a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) as the ancillary variable was used to interpolate station data into even spaced points. The maps provided by NPCG are consistent with the broad spatial and temporal patterns of the northern Patagonian climate, showing a comprehensive representation of the latitudinal and altitudinal gradients in temperature and precipitation, as well as their related patterns of seasonality and continentality. We compared the performance of NPCG and various other datasets available to the climate community for northern Patagonia. The grids used for the comparison included those of the Global Precipitation Climatology Project, ERAInterim, Climate Research Unit (University of East Anglia), and University of Delaware. Based on three statistics that quantitatively assess the spatial coherence of gridded data against available observations (bias, MAE, and RMSE), NPCG outperforms other global grids. NPCG represents a useful tool for understanding climate variability in northern Patagonia and a valuable input for regional models of hydrological and ecological processes. Its resolution is optimal for validating data from the general circulation models and working with raster data derived from remote sensing, such as vegetation indices.     

Ficopomatus'Reefs' in the Po River Delta (Northern Adriatic): Their Constructional Dynamics, Biology, and Influences on the Brackish-water Biota

Abstract. The serpulid polychaete Ficopomatus enigmaticus (F auvel , 1923) builds huge aggregates in the "Sacca del Canarin", a brackish inlet of the Po River Delta (Italy). Distribution, structure and development of these 'reefs'. together with their associated biota, were studied by field observations and settlement panels from 1977 to 1979. Some aspects of the serpulid biology (settlement periods, tube growth, life strategy) were also taken into account. Ficopomatus reefs influence in many ways the brackish-water ecosystem: they form the main hard substrate; are major sediment source; help in regulating the trophic status of the lagoon; and act as refuge for many invertebrate species.     

Chandra smells a RRAT

“Rotating RAdio Transients” (RRATs) are a newly discovered astronomical phenomenon, characterised by occasional brief radio bursts, with average intervals between bursts ranging from minutes to hours. The burst spacings allow identification of periodicities, which fall in the range 0.4 to 7 seconds. The RRATs thus seem to be rotating neutron stars, albeit with properties very different from the rest of the population. We here present the serendipitous detection with the Chandra X-ray Observatory of a bright point-like X-ray source coincident with one of the RRATs. We discuss the temporal and spectral properties of this X-ray emission, consider counterparts in other wavebands, and interpret these results in the context of possible explanations for the RRAT population. B.M.G. acknowledges the support of NASA through LTSA grant NAG5-13023 and of an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship.     

Size matters more than method: Visual quadrats vs photography in measuring human impact on Mediterranean rocky reef communities

The performances of two commonly used non-destructive sampling procedures for rocky benthic assemblages (i.e. photography and visually assessed quadrats) were compared. A damaging human activity, date mussel (Lithophaga lithophaga) harvesting (DMH), was chosen. Directly impacted sites were compared with reference conditions (controls). Both visual quadrats and photography were equally able to detect differences between impacted situations and controls. However, visual quadrats showed high variability among replicates and estimated higher species richness for controls, while photography did so for impacts. Pooling photos in a ‘sum photo quadrat’ showed that differences between the two methods are due to sampling unit size rather than sampling procedure itself. As a small sampling unit is unavoidable with photography, visual quadrats should be preferred in investigating shallow rocky reefs for their larger size; however, longer working time underwater with quadrats does not allow for numerous replicates. Pooling many photos to reach sampling sizes comparable with those of quadrats may be a valid alternative to reconcile image resolution and areal coverage.