SWAT‐simulated hydrological impact of land‐use change in the Zanjanrood basin,Northwest Iran

Understanding the impacts of land‐use changes on hydrology at the watershed scale can facilitate development of sustainable water resource strategies. This paper investigates the hydrological effects of land‐use change in Zanjanrood basin, Iran. The water balance was simulated using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (AVSWAT2000). Model calibration and uncertainty analysis were performed with sequential uncertainty fitting (SUFI‐2). Simulation results from January 1998 to December 2002 were used for parameter calibration, and then the model was validated for the period of January 2003 to December 2004. The predicted monthly streamflow matched the observed values: during calibration the correlation coefficient was 0·86 and the Nash–Sutcliffe coefficient 0·79, compared with 0·80 and 0·79, respectively, during validation. The model was used to simulate the main components of the hydrological cycle, in order to study the effects of land‐use changes in 1967, 1994 and 2007. The study reveals that during 1967 a 34·5% decrease of grassland with concurrent increases of shrubland (13·9%), rain‐fed agriculture (12·1%), bare ground (5·5%) irrigated agriculture (2·2%), and urban area (0·7%) led to a 33% increase in the amount of surface runoff and a 22% decrease in the groundwater recharge. Furthermore, the area of sub‐basins that was influenced by high runoff (14–28 mm) increased. The results indicate that the hydrological response to overgrazing and the replacing of rangelands (grassland and shrubland) with rain‐fed agriculture and bare ground (badlands) is nonlinear and exhibits a threshold effect. The runoff rises dramatically when more than 60% of the rangeland is removed. For groundwater this threshold lies at an 80% decrease in rangeland. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A Methodology for Clustering Lakes in Alberta on the basis of Water Quality Parameters

In this study, a methodology for clustering 18 lakes in Alberta, Canada using the data of 19 water quality parameters for a period of 11 years (1988–2002) is presented. The methods consist of (i) principal component analysis (PCA) to determine the dominant water quality parameters, (ii) cluster analysis techniques to develop the characteristics of the clusters, and (iii) pattern‐match lakes to determine the appropriate cluster for each of the lakes. The PCA revealed that three principal components (PCs) were able to explain ～88% of the variability and the dominant water quality parameters were total dissolved solids, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll‐a. We obtained five clusters for the period 1994–1997 by using the dominant parameters with water quality deteriorating as the cluster number increased from 1 to 5. Upon matching cluster patterns with the entire dataset, it was observed that some of the lakes belonged to the same cluster all the time (e.g., cluster 1 for lakes Elkwater, Gregg, and Jarvis; cluster 3 for Sturgeon; cluster 4 for Moonshine; and cluster 5 for Saskatoon), while others changed with time. This methodology could be applied in other regions of the world to identify the most suitable source waters and prioritize their management. It could be helpful to analyze the natural controlling processes, pollution types, impact of seasonal changes and overall quality of source waters. This methodology could be used for monitoring water bodies in a cost effective and efficient way by sampling only less number of dominant parameters instead of using a large set of parameters.     

Use of remote sensing data in comprehending an extremely unusual flooding event over southwest Bangladesh

Natural Hazards - Flooding is one of the natural disasters that affect the livelihood of the people living in the floodplains, like Bangladesh. Here, we proposed to employ SAR satellite images in...     

Kinematic significance of fold- and fault-related fracture systems in the Zagros mountains, southern Iran

Initiation and formation of folds and the Kazerun high-angle fault zone, in the Zagros fold-and-thrust belt, were related to the continuing SW–NE oriented contraction that probably initiated in the Late Cretaceous, and intensified, starting in Miocene, when the Arabian and Eurasian plates collided. The contraction that led to folding and thrusting of the Phanerozoic sequence in the belt has led to the strike–slip reactivation of basement faults that formed during the Precambrian. Two major systems of fractures have developed, under the same regional state of contraction, during the folding and strike–slip faulting processes. Folding led to the formation of a system of fold-related fractures that comprises four sets of fractures, which include an axial and a cross-axial set that trend parallel and perpendicular to the confining fold axial trace, respectively, and two oblique sets that trend at moderate angles to the axial trace. Slip along high-angle, strike–slip faults formed a system of fractures in the damage zone of the faults (e.g., Kazerun), and deformed folds that existed in the shear zone by rotating their axial plane. This fault-related fracture system is made of five sets of fractures, which include the two sets of Riedel shear fractures (R and R′), P- and Y-shear fractures, and an extensional set.

Remote sensing analysis of both fracture systems, in a GIS environment, reveals a related kinematic history for folding outside of the Kazerun shear zone and faulting and deformation (fracturing and rotation of folds) within the Kazerun fault zone. Rotation of the folds and formation of the five sets of the fault-related fractures in the Kazerun shear zone are consistent with a dextral motion along the fault. The mean trends of the shortening directions, independently calculated for the fold- and fault-related fracture systems, are remarkably close (N53 ± 4°E and N50 ± 5°E, respectively), and are perpendicular to the general NW–SE trend of the Zagros fold-and-thrust belt. Although segments of the Kazerun fault are variably oriented within a narrow range, the angular relationships between sets of fault-related fractures and these segments remain constant.     

The Devonian–Lower Carboniferous succession in Northwest Peninsular Malaysia

A new stratigraphic nomenclature is proposed for the approximately 600 m thick, mainly clastic transitional sequence between the underlying Mempelam Limestone and overlying Kubang Pasu/Singa Formation in northwest Peninsular Malaysia. This sequence represents shallow marine deposits of the continental margin of the Sibumasu Terrane during the Middle Palaeozoic (Devonian–Carboniferous). It is separated into several formations. The Timah Tasoh Formation is an approximately 76 m sequence consisting of 40 m of laminated tentaculitid shales at the base, containing Monograptus yukonensis Jackson and Lenz and Nowakia (Turkestanella) acuaria Alberti, giving an Early Devonian (Pragian–Emsian) age, and about 36 m of rhythmically interbedded, light coloured argillo-arenites. The Chepor Formation is about 90 m thick and consists mainly of thick red mudstone interbedded with sandstone beds, of Middle to Late Devonian age. A new limestone unit is recognized and named the Sanai Limestone, which contains conodonts of Famennian age. The Binjal Formation consists of red and white mudstone interbedded with sandstone beds showing Bouma sequences. The Telaga Jatoh Formation is 9 m thick and consists mainly of radiolarian chert. The Wang Kelian Formation is composed of thick red mudstone beds interbedded with silty sandstone, and contain fossils indicative of an Early Carboniferous (Visean) age. The succession was deposited on the outer shelf, with depositional environments vertically fluctuating from prodelta to basinal marine. The Devonian–Carboniferous boundary is exposed at Hutan Aji and Kampung Guar Jentik, and indicates a major regressive event during the latest Devonian.     

Video‐based gravel transport measurements with a flume mounted light table

The study of bedload transport processes is constrained by an inability to monitor the mass, volume and grain size distribution of sediment in transport at high temporal frequencies. Building upon a previously published design, we have integrated a high‐resolution (1392 × 1024 pixels) video camera with a light table to continuously capture images of 2–181 mm material exiting a flume. The images are continuously recorded at a rate of 15 to 20 frames per second and are post‐processed using LabView^(?) software, yielding continuous grain‐size‐specific transport information on a per second basis. The video capture rate is sufficient to record multiple images of each grain leaving the flume so that particle velocities can be measured automatically. No manual image processing is required. After calibration the method is accurate and precise for sediment in the 2 mm through to 45 mm grain size classes compared with other means of measuring bedload. Based on a set of validation samples, no statistically significant difference existed between the D₁₀, D₁₆, D₂₅, D₅₀, D₇₅, D₈₄, D₉₀ and D₉₅ determined by sieving captured samples and the D_i values determined with the system. On average the system overpredicted transport by 4 per cent (n = 206, SD = 42%). This error can be corrected easily by simply weighing the mass of sediment that leaves the flume. The technology is relatively inexpensive and provides high‐resolution data on coarse sediment transport out of a flume. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Un exemple de volcanisme calco-alcalin de type orogénique mis en place en contexte de rifting (Cambrien de l'oued Rhebar,Meseta occidentale,Maroc)

The Middle Cambrian calc-alkaline Oued Rhebar volcanic complex (western Meseta, Morocco) compares with rocks originated in orogenic contexts. The La/Nb ratios are relatively high (5.2), suggesting a lithospheric mantle origin. The La/Ta ratios, higher than 26, and the negative Nb anomaly indicate a lithospheric source contaminated by the continental crust. These rocks were generated in the Mesetian Mid-Cambrian rift and would have inherited their orogenic signature from the partial melting of a previously metasomatized mantle. To cite this article: H. El Hadi et al., C. R. Geoscience 338 (2006).     

A Risk-Based Technique to Analyze Flyrock Results Through Rock Engineering System

Flyrock is an adverse effect produced by blasting in open-pit mines and tunneling projects. So, it seems that the precise estimations and risk level assessment of flyrock are essential in minimizing environmental effects induced by blasting. The first aim of this research is to model the risk level associated with flyrock through rock engineering systems (RES) methodology. In this regard, 62 blasting were investigated in Ulu Tiram quarry, Malaysia, and the most effective parameters of flyrock were measured. Using the most influential parameters on flyrock, the overall risk of flyrock was obtained as 32.95 which is considered as low to medium degree of vulnerability. Moreover, the second aim of this research is to estimate flyrock based on RES and multiple linear regression (MLR). To evaluate performance prediction of the models, some statistical criteria such as coefficient of determination (R²) were computed. Comparing the values predicted by the models demonstrated that the RES has more suitable performance than MLR for predicting the flyrock and it could be introduced as a powerful technique in this field.     

Flood hydrograph simulation in ungaged basins: modeling linear–nonlinear storage-discharge relationships in a semiarid mountain region

For the purpose of flood mitigation in a mountain region, this study aims to evaluate the degree of nonlinearity in the hydrologic storage-discharge relationship. The study area includes a mesoscale catchment, its headwater subcatchment, and its large-scale parent basin in the Zagros mountain region of southwestern Iran. Rainfall events are divided into two variable classes, Low Temporal (LT) and High Temporal (HT), based on their heterogeneity across time. For Low Temporal rainfall events, the mesoscale catchment and its headwater subcatchment show strong nonlinear behavior, but their responses tend to be less nonlinear for High Temporal rainfall events. Meanwhile, for High Temporal events, soil moisture has a dominant role in catchment response. On the other hand, a different perspective is drawn for the larger basin because a strong nonlinear response is obtained for all events regardless of temporal heterogeneities and soil moisture conditions, emphasizing the filtering effect of catchment extent on the rainfall–runoff process.