Spatial distribution of landslides triggered by the 2008 Ms 8.0 Wenchuan earthquake,China

The Ms 8.0 Wenchuan earthquake of May 12, 2008 is one of the most disastrous earthquakes in China. The earthquake triggered tens of thousands of landslides over a broad area, including shallow, disrupted landslides, rock falls, deep-seated landslides, and rock avalanches, some of which buried large sections of some towns and dammed the rivers. The purpose of this study is to investigate correlations between the occurrence of landslides with geologic and geomorphologic conditions, and seismic parameters. Over 56,000 earthquake-triggered landslides, with a total area of 811 km², are interpreted using aerial photographs and remote sensing images taken following the earthquake. The spatial distribution of these landslides is analyzed statistically using both landslide-point density (LPD), defined as the number of landslides per square kilometer, and landslide-area density (LAD), the percentage of the area affected by landslides, to determine how the occurrence of landslides correlates with distance from the epicenter, distance from the major surface rupture, seismic intensity and peak ground acceleration (PGA), slope angle, slope aspect, elevation, and lithology. It is found that both LAD and LPD have strong positive correlations with slope steepness, distance from the major surface rupture and seismic intensity, and that Pre-Sinian schist, and Cambrian sandstone and siltstone intercalated with slate have the most concentrated landslide activities, followed by the Permian limestone intercalated with shale, and Devonian limestone. Statistical analyses also indicate that the major surface rupture has influence on the spatial distribution of landslides, because LAD and LPD are relatively higher on the hanging wall than on the footwall. However, the correlation between the occurrence of landslides with distance from the epicenter of the earthquake is complicated, rather than a relatively simple negative correlation as found from other reported cases of earthquakes. This is possibly due to complicated rupture processes of the earthquake.     

Dynamic analysis of the infiltration rate of artificial recharge of groundwater: a case study of Wanglong Lake,Pingtung, Taiwan

Although Pingtung plain is an agriculturally developed region, its limited hydrologic conditions have restrained the maximization of its surface water resources. Due to the lack of proper management and sustainable utilization, groundwater has been overdrawn, causing serious land subsidence and seawater intrusion. The present paper presents a pilot study for artificially recharging groundwater using high-infiltration basins. Results of the geometric factor show that the large basin is ca. 6.8 times the size of the small one, with the infiltration volume almost approaching 1 m³/day/m². In the groundwater variation, the MW-2 is located immediately below the infiltration basin; therefore, its water level rises more rapidly than that of MW-3. As for the infiltration volume, results of the experiment used the same basin since 2002, which shows that the volumes gradually decreased from 12,136 to 5,555 m³/day. This is particularly evident in 2005 when volume decrease was at a maximum ca. 2,000 m³/day. Finally, the infiltration rate decreased from 22.76 to 7.15 m/day. The difference in infiltration rate between 2003 and 2005 has a maximum variation from to 15.2 to 10.33 m/day. In 2003, the addition of sand caused the infiltration rate to fall to a minimum ca. 5.3 m/day. By extending the recharge time, the infiltration rate fell gradually similar to those identified from 2005 to 2007.     

Sources of dissolved organic carbon in forest soils: evidences from the differences of organic carbon concentration and isotope composition studies

There is considerable discussion and uncertainty in the literature regarding the importance of fresh litter versus older soil organic matter as sources of soil dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in forest floor. In this study, the differences of organic carbon concentration and stable isotope composition were analyzed under different background conditions to identify the origins of DOC in forest soil. The data show that there is no significant difference in SOC content between these collected soil samples (P > 0.05), but the litter-rich surface soils have relatively higher DOC concentration than the litter-lacking (P < 0.01) ones, and the δ ¹³C values of DOC (δ ¹³C_DOC) are closer to δ ¹³C of litter than δ ¹³C values of SOC (δ ¹³C_SOC). In the litter-lacking surface soil samples, the range of δ ¹³C_DOC is between δ ¹³C_SOC and δ ¹³C of dominant plant leaves. These results suggest that DOC mainly derive from litter in the litter-rich surface soil with, and the main path of DOC sources may change with surrounding conditions. In addition, δ ¹³C_SOC and δ ¹³C_DOC become more positive, and the absolute values of Δ (δ ¹³C_DOC − δ ¹³C_SOC) decrease with depth in the soil profiles, which indicate that the percentage of DOC below 5 cm, derived from degradation of humus, may increase with soil depth.     

中原经济区地缘经济关系研究

国家战略明确提出重点推进中原经济区等区域的发展,为中原经济区的发展提供了机遇和广阔的前景.郑州作为中原经济区的核心城市,凭借其作为增长极城市的经济辐射力和带动力,在中原经济区中的地位举足轻重.利用地缘经济关系的测度体系,运用欧氏距离对郑州和中原经济区内其他28个城市的地缘经济关系进行定量分析,将中原经济区内城市分为4类:强竞争型城市,一般竞争型城市,一般互补型城市,强互补型城市;并分析了郑州市地缘经济关系的优势和劣势所在.研究表明,中原经济区地缘经济关系严峻,从整体上看竞争性大于互补性.因此,各城市应根据不同地缘经济关系类型,采取不同发展策略.     

栅格化属性精度损失的评估方法及其尺度效应(英文)

Rasterization is a conversion process accompanied with information loss, which includes the loss of features’ shape, structure, position, attribute and so on. Two chief factors that affect estimating attribute accuracy loss in rasterization are grid cell size and evaluating method. That is, attribute accuracy loss in rasterization has a close relationship with grid cell size; besides, it is also influenced by evaluating methods. Therefore, it is significant to analyze these two influencing factors comprehensively. Taking land cover data of Sichuan at the scale of 1:250,000 in 2005 as a case, in view of data volume and its processing time of the study region, this study selects 16 spatial scales from 600 m to 30 km, uses rasterizing method based on the Rule of Maximum Area (RMA) in ArcGIS and two evaluating methods of attribute accuracy loss, which are Normal Analysis Method (NAM) and a new Method Based on Grid Cell (MBGC), respectively, and analyzes the scale effect of attribute (it is area here) accuracy loss at 16 different scales by these two evaluating methods comparatively. The results show that: (1) At the same scale, average area accuracy loss of the entire study region evaluated by MBGC is significantly larger than the one estimated using NAM. Moreover, this discrepancy between the two is obvious in the range of 1 km to 10 km. When the grid cell is larger than 10 km, average area accuracy losses calculated by the two evaluating methods are stable, even tended to parallel. (2) MBGC can not only estimate RMA rasterization attribute accuracy loss accurately, but can express the spatial distribution of the loss objectively. (3) The suitable scale domain for RMA rasterization of land cover data of Sichuan at the scale of 1:250,000 in 2005 is better equal to or less than 800 m, in which the data volume is favorable and the processing time is not too long, as well as the area accuracy loss is less than 2.5%.     

Identification and assessment of heavy rainfall–induced disaster potentials in Taipei City

With increasing threat to lives and properties, identifying and assessing disaster potentials has become necessary and prior for effective disaster preparation and rescue planning. This study first introduces practical methods currently used in Taipei City, Taiwan, to identify and assess heavy rainfall–induced potential risks on flood, debris flow, and landslide. The identified disaster potential information is further applied to a series of deterministic and probabilistic risk analyses using Shilin District of Taipei City as a case study. The deterministic risk analyses are conducted to evaluate the impact of various heavy rainfall intensities on the residents. The probabilistic risk analyses are performed to establish risk curves for the population affected by heavy rainfall–induced hazards. The risk curve represents the relationships between the affected population and the annual exceedance probability. This study found the annual exceedance probability is very sensitive to the assumed coefficients of variation of the affected population. It is recommended historical statistical data on the correlation between affected population and rainfall intensity should be recorded and compiled in order to assess the actual probability distribution function of the affected population. Risk analysis results are further applied to assess the community evacuation capacity in this district. Last, short-term and long-term mitigation strategies and recommendations are discussed.     

A spatial–temporal analysis of low birth weight prevalence in Georgia, USA

Low birth weight (LBW), defined as a live birth weighing <2,500 g, is a significant public health problem in the United States, especially a few states including Georgia. Although much work has been done to study the epidemiology of LBW in various regions, the spatial–temporal patterns of LBW prevalence in Georgia remain unclear to a large degree. This paper investigates the temporal trend of LBW rates over a time span of 11 years and the spatial clusters of LBW prevalence in the state of Georgia at the county level. Comparison is also made between race and gender groups, and between county groups of different socioeconomic statuses to uncover disparities. Results showed a steady and prevalent increase of LBW rate in the state over the study period. Three counties and two county clusters with significantly higher LBW rates than the state rate were detected for 1999–2001, while one more county and two more county clusters of high LBW rates were detected for 2007–2009. More urbanized counties were found to have a relatively lower LBW rate when compared with the less urbanized ones as groups. The findings from this paper are expected to provide valuable insights to better understanding the etiology of LBW and more effective allocating prenatal health care resources in the future.     

Limited Consequences of Seagrass Decline on Benthic Macrofauna and Associated Biotic Indicators

Marine phanerogams are ecosystem engineers, as their presence induces major environmental changes that impact on the benthic fauna. Consequently, modifications to the structure of benthic communities would be expected to be associated with seagrass decline. Since 2005, Zostera noltii seagrass beds in Arcachon Bay (France), the largest in Europe, have undergone a severe decline. Twelve stations distributed throughout the lagoon were sampled in 2002, and all were found to be densely planted at that time. Subsequently, the same stations were revisited in 2010 and seagrass cover had drastically decreased by that time. Based on benthic macrofauna, multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis identified four groups. Years were separated. In 2002, two groups were distinct in relation to the water body, since in 2010 separation between the two other groups was related to seagrass occurrence. When looking at community structure and dominant species there were moderate differences within and between years, independent of seagrass decline. Seagrass loss did not drastically modify the species composition as they were preserved in the remaining seagrass patches. However, there was a drop in macrofauna abundance in unvegetated muddy compared with abundance in the remaining seagrass areas. Epifauna was particularly affected by seagrass decline. Among biotic indicators based on macrofauna, multivariate indicator MISS (Macrobenthic Index in Sheltered Systems) was in agreement with the similarity of macrofauna structure among groups, while other tested indicators performed badly in relation to seagrass occurrence. However, no index detected seagrass loss, highlighting the necessity of maintaining a separate survey on seagrass cover.     

Geochemistry of soils derived from black shales in the Ganziping mine area, western Hunan, China

The geochemistry of major and trace elements (including heavy metals and rare earth elements) of the fresh and weathered black shales, and the soils derived from black shales in the Ganziping mine area in western Hunan province (China) were studied using the following techniques: X-ray fluorescence (XRF), inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that the black-shale soils are significantly enriched with Al₂O₃ and Fe₂O₃, and depleted of mobile elements CaO, Na₂O and K₂O. The soils are also highly enriched with heavy metals U, V, Ni, Ba, Cu, Zn and Pb, that may cause potential heavy-metal contamination of the soils. Composition of the soils is homogeneous compared to the weathered black shales, for which the concentrations of major elements except CaO and Na₂O, and trace elements except heavy metals (U, V, Ni, Ba, Cu, Zn and Pb) as well as the mobile Sr, show lower variations than in the weathered black shales. Ratios of Zr/Hf, Ta/Nb, Y/Ho, Nd/Sm, and Ti/(Ti + Zr), of the soils are also less variable, with values constantly similar to that of the fresh and weathered black shales correspondingly. Thus, components of the soils are believed to be contributed from the parent black shales through weathering and pedogenesis. It is concluded that the soils were formed by at least two stages of geochemical processes: the early stage of chemical differentiation and the later stage of chemical homogenization. The chemical differentiation that was taken during black-shale weathering might have caused the depletion of CaO and Na₂O, and the enrichment of Al₂O₃ and Fe₂O₃; while the chemical homogenization that was taken during pedogenesis led to the depletion of SiO₂ and K₂O, and to the further enrichment of Al₂O₃ and Fe₂O₃. The heavy-metal enrichment (contamination) of the soils was then genetically related to the enrichment of Al₂O₃ and Fe₂O₃ in the soils.