Resistance to relocation in flood-vulnerable coastal areas: a proposed composite index

The increasing number of coastal floods in recent years in France has resulted in the design of new adaptation principles for the most endangered coastal areas. The aim of the government is to reduce the vulnerability of these areas by relocating property and infrastructure. These measures have, however, come up against considerable opposition from the population concerned. Using a survey of 421 inhabitants of Hyères, a coastal town in the South of France, this article proposes the study of resistance to relocation through the creation of an index for resistance that incorporates attachment to place, residential mobility and risk perception. The results show a correlation for the index and distance from the sea that highlights the existence of conflicting interests with adaptation measures depending upon population categories.

Key policy insights

• In France, although coastal flooding risk is a key issue in numerous populated coastal areas, coastal dwellers show little willingness to relocate.

• Resistance to relocation can be assessed through a composite index integrating place attachment, residential mobility and risk perception.

• Application of such an index shows a correlation between willingness to relocate and distance from the sea.

• Conflicts of interest with adaptation measures also depend on the age of the dwellers, their standard of living and on home ownership.

     

A dynamo driven by zonal jets at the upper surface: Applications to giant planets

We present a dynamo mechanism arising from the presence of barotropically unstable zonal jet currents in a rotating spherical shell. The shear instability of the zonal flow develops in the form of a global Rossby mode, whose azimuthal wavenumber depends on the width of the zonal jets. We obtain self-sustained magnetic fields at magnetic Reynolds numbers greater than 10³. We show that the propagation of the Rossby waves is crucial for dynamo action. The amplitude of the axisymmetric poloidal magnetic field depends on the wavenumber of the Rossby mode, and hence on the width of the zonal jets. We discuss the plausibility of this dynamo mechanism for generating the magnetic field of the giant planets. Our results suggest a possible link between the topology of the magnetic field and the profile of the zonal winds observed at the surface of the giant planets. For narrow Jupiter-like jets, the poloidal magnetic field is dominated by an axial dipole whereas for wide Neptune-like jets, the axisymmetric poloidal field is weak.     

Evaluation of uncertainties in the CRCM-simulated North American climate

This work is a first step in the analysis of uncertainty sources in the RCM-simulated climate over North America. Three main sets of sensitivity studies were carried out: the first estimates the magnitude of internal variability, which is needed to evaluate the significance of changes in the simulated climate induced by any model modification. The second is devoted to the role of CRCM configuration as a source of uncertainty, in particular the sensitivity to nesting technique, domain size, and driving reanalysis. The third study aims to assess the relative importance of the previously estimated sensitivities by performing two additional sensitivity experiments: one, in which the reanalysis driving data is replaced by data generated by the second generation Coupled Global Climate Model (CGCM2), and another, in which a different CRCM version is used. Results show that the internal variability, triggered by differences in initial conditions, is much smaller than the sensitivity to any other source. Results also show that levels of uncertainty originating from liberty of choices in the definition of configuration parameters are comparable among themselves and are smaller than those due to the choice of CGCM or CRCM version used. These results suggest that uncertainty originated by the CRCM configuration latitude (freedom of choice among domain sizes, nesting techniques and reanalysis dataset), although important, does not seem to be a major obstacle to climate downscaling. Finally, with the aim of evaluating the combined effect of the different uncertainties, the ensemble spread is estimated for a subset of the analysed simulations. Results show that downscaled surface temperature is in general more uncertain in the northern regions, while precipitation is more uncertain in the central and eastern US.     

Le Capelinhos (Faïal,Açores) vingt ans après son éruption: le modèle éruptif «surtseyen» et les anneaux de tufs hyaloclastiques

Phreatomagmatic structures are of two kinds: maars and tuff-rings. Data given by records of Capelinhos activity (Faïal, Açores, 1957–1958), by structures at west point of Faïal island, and by palagonitic breccias of Velay and Cantal areas (France) lead to relate hyaloclastic tuff-rings and shallow subaquatic («surtseyan») eruptions. It is possible to precise causes, characteristics, and mechanism of formation of tuff-rings.     

Grain size dependency in the occurrence of sand waves

Sandy shallow seas, like the North Sea, are very dynamic. Several morphological features are present on the bed, from small ripples to sand waves and large tidal sandbanks. The larger patterns induce significant depth variations that have an impact on human activities taking place in this area. Therefore, it is important to know where these large-scale features occur, what their natural behaviour is and how they interact with human activities. Here, we extend earlier research that compares the results of an idealized model of large-scale seabed patterns with data of seabed patterns in the North Sea. The idealized model is extended with a grain size dependency. The adaptations lead to more accurate predictions of the occurrence of large-scale bed forms in the North Sea. Therefore, grain size dependency and, in particular, critical shear stress are important to explain the occurrence of sand waves and sandbanks in the North Sea. Responsible Editor: Alejandro Souza     

Ecological quality status of coastal benthic ecosystems in the Sea of Marmara

The macrofauna in the north Marmara Sea were identified and evaluated with univariate measures and biotic indices (BENTIX, AMBI). As expected, the diversity and species' variety decreased as the sediments became muddier and as the stress increased. The AMBI index failed to detect the spatial differentiation of the EcoQ between the sites whereas, the BENTIX index succeeded (in 70% of the cases) in producing an ecologically relevant classification reflecting the environmental pressures. Results suggested that risks of reduced species' richness and diversity from organic loading and other associated stressors in sediments should be relatively low at TOC concentrations < about 6 mg/g, high at concentrations>about 22 mg/g, and intermediate at concentrations in-between. It is suggested that these TOC critical points may be used as a general screening-level indicator for assessing the EcoQ in association with reduced biodiversity over coastal areas receiving organic wastes and other pollutants from human activities. It is further suggested that both assignment of species to ecological groups and classification scales for biotic indices (AMBI, BENTIX) for sites in the Mediterranean Sea should be readjusted so as to be closer related to environmental variables.     

Radioactivity and heat production data from several boreholes in the Bohemian Massif

Summary The radiogenic heat production of rock samples from boreholes in the Bohemian Massif has been calculated from gamma-radiometric determinations of Th, U and K contents. The results, in general, fit the heat flow distribution on the territory of Czechoslovakia[1]. The values of heat production are in the range from 1.1µW m^–3 in the eastern part to 4.4µW m^–3 in the north-western part of the Bohemian Massif.