Fishing rights and small communities: Alaska halibut IFQ transfer patterns

In the Alaska halibut individual fishing quota (IFQ) fishery, small remote fishing communities (SRFCs) have disproportionately lost fishing rights. Our analysis of quota market participation from 1995 to 1999 confirms that SRFC residents are more likely to sell than buy quota. Alaska Native heritage is another important predictor of quota market behavior. Residents of Alaska Native villages have an increased likelihood of selling quota. Loss of fisheries participation in small indigenous communities can be an unintended consequence of quota systems. Mitigation measures should take into account the social factors that can lead to such a redistribution of fishing rights in privatized access fisheries.     

Atlantic meridional overturning circulation and phosphate-classified bottom-up control of Atlantic pelagic ecosystems through the 20th century

Both the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) and the North Atlantic Ocean (NA) biosphere have recognized associations with the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). These multidecadal physical–biological affinities inspired a closer look at AMOC influences on bottom-up control of NA and South Atlantic Ocean (SA) pelagic ecosystem variability. Various ocean models associate changes in the AMOC with sea surface temperature (SST) differences in the western subpolar NA and SA represented as the Atlantic Dipole SST Anomaly (ADSA) index. The Extended Reconstructed SST version 2 (ERSSTv2) dataset for 2° quadrangles from 1890 to 2007 was used here to represent Atlantic Ocean SST patterns and to gauge 20th century AMOC variability using an Atlantic Dipole SST (ADS) index, an un-normalized version of ADSA index. Temperature–phosphate (T–PO₄) linear regressions were used to convert temperature to phosphate concentration ([PO₄]). The interannual stability of T–PO₄ linear regressions first was examined using 26 Bermuda area T–PO₄ datasets between 1958 and 2001. Within the constraints provided by the Bermuda analysis, climatological T–PO₄ linear regressions based on GEOSECS-derived slopes and NODC-derived X-intercepts supported the conversion of monthly Atlantic Ocean ERSSTv2 temperatures for each 2° quadrangle to monthly surface [PO₄]. A representative annual surface phosphate utilization (SPU) was calculated for each 2° quadrangle by subtracting monthly minimum surface [PO₄] from monthly maximum surface [PO₄] to determine the annual surface [PO₄] ranges from 1890 to 2007. Annual average SST tended to increase and overall annual average SPU tended to decrease through the 20th century in both the NA and SA, but the NA exhibited more temporal variability. An Atlantic Dipole Phosphate Utilization (ADPU) index related to the ADS index was calculated for each year from 1890 to 2007. The ADS and ADPU indices were inversely correlated with about 57% of the variability in the ADPU index explained by the ADS index. The ADPU index exhibited three distinct cycles through the 20th century. Cross-correlation analysis showed that the NAO led the ADS and ADPU indices by about 14 years. Differences in annual average SPU for each Atlantic Ocean 2° quadrangle between the three high and four low years of the ADPU cycles yielded six maps that, when averaged, clearly exhibited reversed east–west patterns distributed in alternating latitudinal bands in both the NA and SA. The east–west patterns spatially corresponded to the NA and SA surface circulation and temporally resembled NA patterns previously associated with the NAO. AMOC variability, mediated by Kelvin and Rossby waves associated with changes in both deep and surface arm circulation, likely contributed to meridional continuity of phosphate-classified, NA, and SA pelagic ecosystem variability, including fisheries, through the 20th century. Based on the results, future global warming influences on the AMOC, well short of shutdown, likely will have complex pelagic ecosystem impacts throughout the Atlantic Ocean.     

Degradation and utilization of protein derived from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas aeruginosa</Emphasis> by marine microbial community

Microbial degradation and utilization of proteins derived from bacterial detritus were investigated in a microcosm experiment using Pseudomonas aeruginosa detritus as a substrate. To assess the effects of natural marine microbial communities on degradation and utilization of protein derived from P. aeruginosa cells, four microcosms were prepared: natural seawater (containing the natural microbial community) with P. aeruginosa detritus (N+Pa), autoclaved seawater with P. aeruginosa detritus (A+Pa), natural seawater (N) and autoclaved seawater (A) without adding anything as a control. The numbers of total and growing bacterial cells, protease activity, and transition of P. aeruginosa proteins were monitored in the four microcosms. Changes in the numbers of total and growing bacterial cells and protease activities indicated that bacterial detritus significantly stimulated the microbial community in the microcosms. Both the surviving P. aeruginosa in A+Pa and natural microbial community in N+Pa microcosms were able to degrade and utilize P. aeruginosa detritus; however, the community in N+Pa including various microbes maintained high activity longer, indicating that diversity is an important factor in keeping the community active. Even under the very high protease activity in N+Pa, 39-kDa and 48-kDa proteins from P. aeruginosa remained in the microcosm during the entire experiment (150 days). Immunoblotting suggested the 48-kDa protein was an intact molecule of OprP, which had been detected from the dissolved fraction of natural seawater in previous studies. This result suggests that the protein molecules that had been detected from natural seawater actually had a high tolerance to microbial degradation.     

Effects of mass source/sink at the western boundary on the wind-driven gyres: Implications for the ventilation of the north pacific intermediate layer through convection in the Okhotsk Sea and tidal mixing at the Kuril Straits

A steady quasi-geostrophic 2.5-layer model, forced by both Ekman pumping and a mass source/sink situated at the western boundary has been constructed to investigate the effect of diapycnal transport due to convection in the Okhotsk Sea and tidal mixing at the Kuril Straits on the intermediate layer in the North Pacific. The model illustrates a combined effect of the wind-driven and mass-driven circulations. First, net mass input induces a “barotropic” mode inter-gyre flow along the western boundary through the dynamical influence of Kelvin waves. This flow creates characteristic curves (geostrophic contours) that facilitate inter-gyre communication through the western boundary layer from the location of the mass source to the subtropical gyre. Due to the effect of wind-driven circulation, the offshore part turns eastward into the interior, encircles the outer rim of the region (which would otherwise be the pool region in the absence of mass input), and then encounters the western boundary. Eventually, the water fed into the lower layer flows mostly along this path and later flows away to the equatorial region. Conversely, in the upper layer, water is fed from the equator to the subtropics, and to the subpolar interior region through the western boundary current. The water then circulates along the outer rim and is absorbed into the mass sink. The model is controlled mainly by three nondimensional parameters: (1) the ratio of net mass input rate to the maximum Sverdrup transport (Q/T _Sv ^max ), which affects the inter-gyre communication by altering the paths of geostrophic contours, (2) the ratio of a mass input rate into the lower layer to that in total (Q ₂/Q), which controls the vertical structure of the inter-gyre flow, and (3) the measure of the wind forcing effect relative to the β effect, which determines the horizontal extent of the area influenced by the mass input. The other parameter regimes with respect to Q/T _Sv ^max and Q ₂/Q are also presented.     

Impact of Alaskan Stream eddies on chlorophyll distribution in the North Pacific

The impact of the Alaskan Stream (AS) eddies on the chlorophyll a (chl-a) distribution in the central subarctic North Pacific was investigated through analysis of chl-a and altimetry data from satellite observations. Altimetry observations provided the locations of mesoscale eddies in time and space within the maps of chlorophyll distributions. The climatological chl-a distributions averaged in the area and time showing presence of AS eddies suggested that AS eddies contributed significantly to the chl-a distribution in the deep-sea region of the subarctic North Pacific. The chl-a distribution was closely related to the AS eddies regardless of whether the eddy was located in or detached from the AS. A combination of two or three AS eddies sometimes formed high chl-a concentration belts that injected chlorophyll and coastal nutrient-rich waters southward from the Aleutian Islands far into the deep-sea region of the subarctic North Pacific. These results indicate that chl-a distribution in the central subarctic North Pacific was strongly impacted by AS eddies.     

Bathymetry enhancement by altimetry-derived gravity anomalies in the East Sea (Sea of Japan)

The gravity-geologic method (GGM) was used to enhance the bathymetry of the East Sea (Sea of Japan) with satellite altimetry-derived free-air gravity anomalies and shipborne depth measurements. By comparison with the bathymetry model of Smith and Sandwell’s (SAS) approach (1994), GGM was found to have an advantage with short wavelength (≤12 km) components, while SAS better predicts longer wavelength (≥25 km) components, despite its dependency on density contrast. To mitigate this limitation, a tuning density contrast of 10.25 g/cm³ between seawater and the seafloor was primarily estimated by the downward continuation method and then validated by the check points method with GGM. Similarly, SAS is limited by the “A” value in low-pass part of the Wiener filter, which defines the effective range of the wavelength components on bathymetry. As a final result, we present an enhanced GGM bathymetry model by integrating all available data.     

The marine and coastal access act—A hornets' nest?

The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 is now enacted into law. This paper looks at predictions made about new law by one of the authors, Peter Jones, in his paper The Marine Bill: Cornucopia or Pandora's Box [1] and assesses how successful the Act has been in turning aspirations into law. The paper focuses on the following areas: ecosystem protection, stakeholder engagement, marine spatial planning and the provision of a network of highly protected marine reserves, and raises concerns that the ecosystem approach has progressively been dropped in the drafting process of the legislation. Concerns are raised that the new Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities have similar inherent conflicts of interest to those exhibited by Sea Fisheries Committees, which they sought to replace. The effectiveness of marine planning is questioned, as there appear to be inbuilt loopholes for public authorities to avoid complying with the marine plans. The draft marine policy statement (MPS), published in July 2010, includes appropriate environmental safeguards, but the MPS has not yet been formally adopted. The absence of a concrete target for highly protected marine reserves means there is a danger that designations under the Act may have little effect on the ground. In conclusion the Act provides some new mechanisms for marine protection, but arguably does not yet provide a framework for implementing the ecosystem approach and is not an end in itself.     

Decadal-scale variation in COD and DIN dynamics during the summer in the inner area of the Ariake Sea,Japan

More than 30 years of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) data for the inner area of the Ariake Sea were analyzed with a box model to show the changes in the average seasonal budget and the decadal-scale variation during the summer. The COD peaked in August and March on average. This summertime peak can be explained by an enhanced riverine load and increased primary production. The peak in March suggested additional organic matter production. There were also two peaks in DIN concentration on average: a summertime peak that could be explained by an enhanced riverine load, and a peak in December that was more complicated to explain. From the 1970s to the early 1990s, the bottom water in this area became increasingly hypoxic due to increased COD during the summer, even though there were minimal increases in terrestrial COD and nutrient loads and there were tidal flats covering a widespread area during this period. The increase in COD was caused by increased net ecosystem production, which was due to enhanced primary production induced by an increased freshwater residence time and decreased bivalve grazing. There was a negative feedback control in which hypoxia progressively increased, leading to declines in bivalve biomass, which in turn decreased the grazing pressure limiting primary production, meaning that primary production increased and the area became even more hypoxic. The net DIN production decreased during the 1980s and the 1990s. This was consistent with the change in net ecosystem production according to the COD.     

Habitability analyses of aquatic bacteria

Habitability is defined as an ability of an organism to inhabit different environments. Habitability of organisms, however, cannot be inferred from analyses such as a whole genome or community structures. A recently developed database, the MetaMetaDB, gives us information from what kind of environments one particular 16S rRNA sequence data has ever been obtained, and thus enables us to infer the habitability of the bacterium in question. In order to check the applicability of this database to study the habitability of aquatic bacteria, samples collected at two Naka River stations, one estuarine station from Naka River Estuary, two coastal stations at Oarai in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan and one station in the Kuroshio Current of the western North Pacific were examined. The phylotypes were tracked against the MetaMetaDB and it was reasonably found that the low-salinity stations were dominated by sequences with “freshwater and groundwater”, “human” and “wastewater” habitat identities, while the high-salinity stations were dominated by those with a “marine” identity. The phylotypes of low-salinity stations with a particular habitat identity were absent or rare in the high-salinity stations and vice versa. The MetaMetaDB also showed that sequences of Cyanobacteria or related phylogenetic groups may be present in the human gut, as well as the probable distribution of the relatives (ancestors/descendants/siblings) of some bacteria. These overall findings proved that the MetaMetaDB is useful as a new tool to infer microbial habitability and it gives us new information on the possible origin and ecology of microorganisms in the environments.     

A near-inertial current event in the homogeneous deep layer of the northern Sea of Japan during winter

Under strong surface wind forcing during winter, direct current observations in the northern Sea of Japan show the existence of strong near-inertial currents in the deep water that is characterized by the extremely homogeneous vertical structures of temperature and salinity. However, the mechanism generating internal waves in the deep water of the northern Sea of Japan has not been well understood. In this study, to clarify the dynamical link between the surface wind forcing and near-inertial currents in the deep water of the northern Sea of Japan, we drive a general circulation model taking into account realistic wind stress, ocean bottom and land topography. In the northern Sea of Japan, the numerical results show that vertically coherent horizontal currents with a speed of ~ 0.05 m s^?1 are excited throughout the homogeneous deep water. A two-layer model successfully reproduces the pattern of the horizontal current velocities shown by the general circulation model, indicating that internal waves emanate westward from the northwestern coast of Japan through coastal adjustment to the strong wind forcing event and, while propagating into the ocean interior, they excite evanescent near-inertial response throughout the lower layer below the interface.