Effect of treatment with reserpine on the change in filtration rate of Mytilus edulis subjected to dissolved copper

Exposure of specimens of Mytilus edulis to dissolved copper leads to a fall in the filtration rate measured in whole animals. The copper concentration leading to a 50% reduction in the filtration rate was found to be 0.094 mg I⁻¹. This effect was abolished on depletion of the monoamine content of the animal using reserpine. It is suggested that there may be a chemosensory mechanism present in the animals which responds to increased levels of metals in the seawater leading to a reduction in the rate of ciliary beating and mediated via the branchial nerve.     

Conventional Oil—The Forgotten Part of the Water-Energy Nexus

The impacts of unconventional oil and gas production via high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) on water resources, such as water use, groundwater and surface water contamination, and disposal of produced waters, have received a great deal of attention over the past decade. Conventional oil and gas production (e.g., enhanced oil recovery [EOR]), which has been occurring for more than a century in some areas of North America, shares the same environmental concerns, but has received comparatively little attention. Here, we compare the amount of produced water versus saltwater disposal (SWD) and injection for EOR in several prolific hydrocarbon producing regions in the United States and Canada. The total volume of saline and fresh to brackish water injected into depleted oil fields and nonproductive formations is greater than the total volume of produced waters in most regions. The addition of fresh to brackish “makeup” water for EOR may account for the net gain of subsurface water. The total amount of water injected and produced for conventional oil and gas production is greater than that associated with HVHF and unconventional oil and gas production by well over a factor of 10. Reservoir pressure increases from EOR and SWD wells are low compared to injection of fluids for HVHF, however, the longer duration of injections could allow for greater solute transport distances and potential for contamination. Attention should be refocused from the subsurface environmental impacts of HVHF to the oil and gas industry as a whole.     

Variations in Cr content of magnetite from the upper zone of the Bushveld Complex — evidence for heterogeneity and convection currents in magma chambers

Mineral separates of pure magnetite from the upper zone of the Bushveld Complex have been analysed for Cr. Detailed sampling within layers of massive magnetite indicates that the Cr content frequently shows an extremely rapid but regular depletion with height (for example, by a factor of seven over 85 cm of massive magnetite), with sudden reversals of variable magnitude. Rayleigh Law fractionation, from a homogeneous liquid of the volume now seen as cumulate rocks overlying the sampled horizons, cannot satisfy these observed concentration gradients. A diffusion-controlled crystallization model is preferred. In another vertical section of massive magnetite the Cr content remains constant with increasing height, and is interpreted as indicating a steady state situation where the rate of depletion of Cr by magnetite fractionation is balanced by the rate of diffusive addition into the crystallization zone. Reversals in Cr content sometimes occur in the middle of pure magnetite layers and are attributed to convective overturn in the magma chamber. These results provide geochemical support for the model of convection cells and bottom crystallization in large magma reservoirs as proposed by Jackson [20]. Depletion of compatible elements in this bottom layer causes chemical inhomogeneity in the magma.Sections, composed of several layers of magnetite sandwiched between magnetite-bearing gabbro, have also been studied. In one case, a steady decrease in Cr content with increasing height in the separated magnetite was observed; in another, several irregular reversals were found. There appears to be no systematic relation between convection cycles, the depletion in Cr and the formation of pure magnetite layers, indicating that the chemical composition of the magma does not control the production of monomineralic layers. The fluctuating pressure model envisaged by Cameron [16] for the formation of such layers is entirely consistent with these data.     

RbSr and KAr ages of paleozoic glauconites from Ohio—Indiana and Missouri,U.S.A.

Glauconite pellets from the Lower Silurian Brassfield Formation on both limbs of the Cincinnati Arch in Ohio and Indiana give a RbSr age of 370 ± 11 Ma, which is substantially younger than the stratigraphic age of the formation. The age is concordantcwith conventional KAr ages of 355 ± 6 and 368 ± 5 Ma for two of the same glauconites. Concordant ages were also obtained from the Viburnum Trend in Missouri, where glauconite pellets from the Davis Formation in an ore-zone collapse structure into the underlying Bonneterre Formation give a RbSr age of 387 ± 21 Ma and conventional KAr ages of 368 ± 5 and 369 ± 5 and 369 ± 5 Ma. A third suite of glauconite from the Bonneterre Formation in the Old Lead Belt ～ 10 km from the nearest ore body has given a RbSr age of 423 ± 7 Ma and slightly older conventional KAr ages of 434 ± 6, 445 ± 6 and 441 ± 11 Ma.Because these glauconite-bearing rocks have been buried to depths of less than 1 km, thermal resetting of the RbSr and KAr systematics appears unlikely. The initial ${}^{87}\text{Sr}{}^{86}\text{Sr}$ ratios of the RbSr isochrons are similar to the ratios for vein- and vug-filling dolomite and calcite. This is consistent with resetting of the RbSr and KAr systems during diagenetic changes which included the isotopic equilibration (perhaps by cation exchange) of the Sr in the glauconite with that in the diagenetic and Mississippi Valley-type ore fluids. This interpretation implies that the age of the Mississippi Valley-type mineralization in the Viburnum Trend is Devonian rather than Carboniferous—Permian as has been inferred from paleomagnetic measurements.Cation-exchange experiments with a dilute Sr-bearing solution and an artificial oilfield brine indicate that glauconite adsorbs large amounts of Sr, some of which is sufficiently strongly attached to the glauconite lattice as to resist leaching with ammonium acetate. The introduction of this strongly attached Sr may be the first step in the resetting of the RbSr systematics of glauconite by cation exchange.     

Propagation of coastal‐trapped waves under an ice cover in Hudson Bay*

Abstract

Three arrays of current‐meter moorings were deployed under landfast sea ice in southeast Hudson Bay for eight weeks in spring 1986. Spectral analysis shows low‐frequency signals with periods of 3 to 11 days. These signals are interpreted as being due to coastal‐trapped waves propagating cyclonically in Hudson Bay; their theoretical dispersion relations and corresponding modal structures are presented for winter stratification and are compared with observations. At a period of 3 days both the modified external Kelvin wave and higher mode continental shelf waves may be important in describing the observed low‐frequency variability, whereas at a period of 10 days the Kelvin wave appears to be the dominant mode. The generation mechanisms for these coastal trapped waves are also investigated. Two sources have been studied: the longshore atmospheric pressure gradient and the average atmospheric pressure over the ice cover in Hudson Bay. Coherence and phase analyses performed with time series of longshore current and atmospheric forcing data reveal that both the average atmospheric pressure and the longshore atmospheric pressure gradient are important in explaining the observed low‐frequency variability, without indicating which one is the most important.     

Timing of advance and basal condition of the Laurentide Ice Sheet during the last glacial maximum in the Richardson Mountains,NWT

This study presents new ages for the northwest section of the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) glacial chronology from material recovered from two retrogressive thaw slumps exposed in the Richardson Mountains, Northwest Territories, Canada. One study site, located at the maximum glacial limit of the LIS in the Richardson Mountains, had calcite concretions recovered from aufeis buried by glacial till that were dated by U/Th disequilibrium to 18,500 cal yr BP. The second site, located on the Peel Plateau to the east yielded a fossil horse (Equus) mandible that was radiocarbon dated to ca. 19,700 cal yr BP. These ages indicate that the Peel Plateau on the eastern flanks of the Richardson Mountains was glaciated only after 18,500 cal yr BP, which is later than previous models for the global last glacial maximum (LGM). As the LIS retreated the Peel Plateau around 15,000 cal yr BP, following the age of the Tutsieta phase, we conclude that the presence of the northwestern margin of the LIS at its maximum limit was a very short event in the western Canadian Arctic.     

Hydrogeology of the Winnipeg Formation in Manitoba, Canada

The Winnipeg Formation is the basal sedimentary unit throughout much of southern and central Manitoba, Canada, where it forms a regional aquifer over most of its extent. This aquifer is an important source of water in southeastern Manitoba and in Manitoba’s Interlake area, but in most other areas, groundwater within the aquifer is saline. Chemical and isotopic evidence indicate the presence of groundwaters of three different origins: (1) basin brines; (2) modern meteoric recharge; and (3) subglacial recharge that occurred during the late Pleistocene. Hydraulic head and sedimentary facies distributions indicate that the flow system in parts of the area is not in a state of equilibrium and saline waters will encroach on areas currently occupied by freshwater in some areas, while in other areas, freshwater will replace saline water. These features must be considered in groundwater resource management, as groundwater withdrawals will likely hasten these processes.

---

Resumen La Formación Winnipeg es la unidad sedimentaria basal en la mayor parte de Manitoba central, Canadá, donde forma un acuífero regional en la mayor parte de su extensión. Este acuífero es una fuente importante de agua en el Sureste de Manitoba y el área de entrelagos de Manitoba, pero en la mayoría de las otras zonas del acuífero, el agua es salina. Las evidencias químicas e isotópicas indican que existen aguas subterráneas de tres orígenes diferentes: (1) salmueras de cuenca; (2) recarga meteórica actual; y (3) recarga subglacial ocurrida durante el Pleistoceno Superior. Los niveles piezométricos y la distribución de las facies sedimentarias indican que el sistema de flujo no se encuentra en estado de equilibrio en parte del área y las aguas salinas irán invadiendo áreas actualmente ocupadas con aguas dulces, mientras que en otras zonas el agua dulce está reemplazando al agua salina. Estos hechos deben ser considerados en la gestión de las aguas subterráneas como recurso, ya que las extracciones de agua acelerarán probablemente estos procesos.

---

Résumé La Formation de Winnipeg est l’unité sédimentaire de base sur la plus grande partie du Sud et du centre du Manitoba au Canada, où elle forme un aquifère régional sur pratiquement toute son extension. Cet aquifère représente une ressource en eau importante dans le Sud-Est du Manitoba et dans les zones d’entre les lacs, mais salée dans la plus part des autres zones. Les indications isotopiques et chimiques permettent de distinguer trois différentes origines des eaux souterraines: (1) les saumures de bassin; (2) la recharge météoritique moderne; (3) la recharge sub-glaciaire qui est apparue durant le Pléistocène récent. Les charges hydrauliques et la distribution des faciès sédimentaires indiquent que le système d’écoulement dans certaines zones n’est pas dans un état d’équilibre et que les eaux salées empièteront sur des zones d’eau douce, tandis que dans d’autres zones l’eau douce remplacera les eaux salées. Ces aspects doivent être considérés dans la gestion des ressources en eau souterraine, car le prélèvement des eaux souterraines pourrait accentuer ces processus.