Partitioning of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons between water and particles compared to bioaccumulation in mussels: a harbour case

Water and particles from three sites located in Halifax Harbour, near and further away from combined municipal sewage effluents (CMSE) were analysed for parental and alkylated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (par and alkPAH). Bioavailability of PAH was compared for inter-tidal mussels collected at the same sites in April and November. The PAH fingerprint determined over 9 sampling times covering a period of 19 months differed more between phases (water and particles) and seasons, than between sites. In the spring, more alkPAH associated with diesel and gasoline were detected in the soluble phase, along with more bioaccumulation of alkPAH in inter-tidal mussels. A broader number of parPAH were detected in mussels collected in the fall. The mean sum of dissolved alkPAH concentrations was higher in water at the site closer to raw CMSE than at the other two sites and particles of that site. However, lowest bioconcentration factors (BCF) were determined in mussels of this more contaminated site. Similar biota-particle accumulation factors (BPAF) were determined for parPAH in mussels from the three sites, all lower than the BCF of alkPAH. The study indicates that sewage treatment plants will reduce the amount of parPAH especially larger than fluoranthene and pyrene from being deposited in the harbour; that alk naphthalenes and fluorenes present in water will continue to be discharged; that the disturbance of sediments can make particle-bound PAH available to mussels.     

Secular variations in the spectrum of solar p-modes

The solar p-mode spectrum of very low I is measured with high accuracy for a long enough period of time so as to allow the search for solar cycle variations. In this paper solar cycle variations of the frequency and energy of the modes are confirmed. Moreover, a slight variation,within errors, of its rotational splitting with the solar cycle, is suggested.     

Diurnal photometric conditions at Teide observatory and long-term solar irradiance variations

Monochromatic extinction coefficients at four wavelengths have been obtained over a period of more than two years at the Observatorio del Teide (Izaña Tenerife) using a full disc, direct sunlight, quadruple photometer devoted to the detection of integral luminosity oscillations of the Sun. The mean extinction coefficients (0.13 at 500 nm) show a seasonal variation of about 15%, the best atmospheric conditions being in winter and autumn. Moreover, in anyone day the extinction coefficient in the afternoon is always lower than the one in the morning by 7%. A one-year period fluctuation, with an amplitude of 0.035 mag, has been identified in the instrumental magnitudes outside the atmosphere, and is interpreted as the variation produced by the different Sun-Earth distance from winter to summer. Finally, the study made to detect periodic time fluctuations in both, Sun's magnitude and extinction coefficients, has given null results at levels of 0.04 and 1.8%, respectively.     

The dayside magnetospheric boundary layer at Mercury

Magnetic field and plasma data from the MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft on the outbound portions of the first (M1) and second (M2) flybys of Mercury reveal a region of depressed magnetic field magnitude and enhanced proton fluxes adjacent to but within the magnetopause, which we denote as a dayside boundary layer. The layer was present during both encounters despite the contrasting dayside magnetic reconnection, which was minimal during M1 and strong during M2. The overall width of the layer is estimated to be between 1000 and 1400 km, spanning most of the distance from the dayside planetary surface to the magnetopause in the mid-morning. During both flybys the magnetic pressure decrease was ∼1.6 nPa, and the width of the inner edge was comparable to proton gyro-kinetic scales. The maximum variance in the magnetic field across the inner edge was aligned with the magnetic field vector, and the magnetic field direction did not change markedly, indicating that the change in field intensity was consistent with an outward plasma-pressure gradient perpendicular to the magnetic field. Proton pressures in the layer inferred from reduced distribution observations were 0.4 nPa during M1 and 1.0 nPa during M2, indicating either that the proton pressure estimates are low or that heavy ions contribute substantially to the boundary-layer plasma pressure. If the layer is formed by protons drifting westward from the cusp, there should be a strong morning–afternoon asymmetry that is independent of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) direction. Conversely, if heavy ions play a major role, the layer should be strong in the morning (afternoon) for northward (southward) IMF. Future MESSENGER observations from orbit about Mercury should distinguish between these two possibilities.     

Assessing the Validity of Seismo-Acoustic Predictor Equations for Obtaining Seabed and Sub-Surface Sediment Physical Properties

The interdependence between the seismo-acoustic properties of a marine sediment and its geotechnical/physical parameters has been known for many years, and it has been postulated that this should allow the extraction of geotechnical information from seismic data. Though in the literature many correlations have been published for the surficial layer, there is a lack of information for greater sediment depths. In this article, a desktop study on a synthetic seafloor model illustrates how the application of published near-surface prediction equations to subsurface sediments (up to several tens of meters burial depth) can lead to spurious predictions. To test this further, acoustic and geotechnical properties were measured on a number of sediment core samples, some of which were subjected to loading in acoustically-equipped consolidation cells (oedometers) to simulate greater burial depth conditions. For low effective pressures (representing small burial depths extending to around 10 meters subsurface), the general applicability of established relationships was confirmed: the prediction of porosity, bulk density, and mean grain size from acoustic velocity and impedance appears generally possible for the investigated sedimentary environments. As effective pressure increases through, the observed relationships deviate more and more from the established ones for the near-surface area. For the samples tested in this study, in some instances increasing pressure even resulted in decreasing velocities. There are several possible explanations for this abnormal behavior, including the presence of gas, overconsolidation, or bimodal grain size distribution. The results indicate that an appropriate depth correction must be introduced into the published prediction equations in order to obtain reliable estimates of physical sediment properties for greater subsurface depths.     

Spatial characteristics of ocean surface waves

The spatial variability of open ocean wave fields on scales of O (10km) is assessed from four different data sources: TerraSAR-X SAR imagery, four drifting SWIFT buoys, a moored waverider buoy, and WAVEWATCH III^? model runs. Two examples from the open north-east Pacific, comprising of a pure wind sea and a mixed sea with swell, are given. Wave parameters attained from observations have a natural variability, which decreases with increasing record length or acquisition area. The retrieval of dominant wave scales from point observations and model output are inherently different to dominant scales retrieved from spatial observations. This can lead to significant differences in the dominant steepness associated with a given wave field. These uncertainties have to be taken into account when models are assessed against observations or when new wave retrieval algorithms from spatial or temporal data are tested. However, there is evidence of abrupt changes in wave field characteristics that are larger than the expected methodological uncertainties.     

Groundwater-level response to land-use change and the implications for salinity management in the West Moorabool River catchment, Victoria, Australia

The connection between the removal of native vegetation, rising water tables and increasing stream salinity has been established for many catchments across Australia. However, the West Moorabool River in south west Victoria is an example of a catchment where there has been little discernable effect on groundwater levels following land clearing. Over the past 150 years, a significant portion of the catchment has been cleared of dense forest for agricultural development. Historic standing water-level records from 1870–1871 and 1881 are compared with contemporary measurements (1970s to 2007) recorded in the government bore databases. The data show that the earliest recorded groundwater levels are well within the seasonal range of values observed today. By integrating geology and hydrogeology with historical observations of groundwater levels, climate data and land use, the contemporary field observations of stream salinity are linked to the changed water use and shift in rainfall. In contrast to the normally accepted axiom, reafforestation as a management strategy to mitigate the rising salinity in the West Moorabool River catchment would seem inappropriate.     

Book reviews

Climate change in contrasting river basins: adaptation strategies for water, food and environment. Edited by J Aerts and P Droogers. Published in 2004 by CABI Publishing, 288 p., hardcover. ISBN: 0–85199–835–6. Price: US$100 (orders: services@dadirect.com.au).

Australian water bugs. Their biology and identification (Hemiptera‐Heteroptera, Gerromorpha &; Nepomorpha). By Nils M Andersen? and Tom A Weir. Published in 2004 by CSIRO Publishing/Apollo Books, P.O. Box 1139, Collingwood, VIC 3066, Australia. 344 p., hardcover. ISBN: 0–643–090517. Price: AU$135.00 (orders: publishing.sales@csiro.au).

The Lakes Handbook. Volume I: Limnology and Limnetic Ecology. Volume II: Lake restoration and rehabilitation. Edited by Patrick O'Sullivan and Colin Reynolds. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 109 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, United Kingdom (http//www.blackwellpublishing.com). Volume I (published in 2003) 712 p., hardcover. ISBN: 0632047976. Price: £125. Volume II (published in 2004) 568 p., hardcover. ISBN: 063204795X. Price: £125.     

Late Pleistocene outburst flooding from pluvial Lake Alvord into the Owyhee River, Oregon

At least one large, late Pleistocene flood traveled into the Owyhee River as a result of a rise and subsequent outburst from pluvial Lake Alvord in southeastern Oregon. Lake Alvord breached Big Sand Gap in its eastern rim after reaching an elevation of 1292 m, releasing 11.3 km³ of water into the adjacent Coyote Basin as it eroded the Big Sand Gap outlet channel to an elevation of about 1280 m. The outflow filled and then spilled out of Coyote Basin through two outlets at 1278 m and into Crooked Creek drainage, ultimately flowing into the Owyhee and Snake Rivers. Along Crooked Creek, the resulting flood eroded canyons, stripped bedrock surfaces, and deposited numerous boulder bars containing imbricated clasts up to 4.1 m in diameter, some of which are located over 30 m above the present-day channel.Critical depth calculations at Big Sand Gap show that maximum outflow from a 1292- to 1280-m drop in Lake Alvord was  10,000 m³ s^− 1. Flooding became confined to a single channel approximately 40 km downstream of Big Sand Gap, where step-backwater calculations show that a much larger peak discharge of 40,000 m³ s^− 1 is required to match the highest geologic evidence of the flood in this channel. This inconsistency can be explained by (1) a single 10,000 m³ s^− 1 flood that caused at least 13 m of vertical incision in the channel (hence enlarging the channel cross-section); (2) multiple floods of 10,000 m³ s^− 1 or less, each producing some incision of the channel; or (3) an earlier flood of 40,000 m³ s^− 1 creating the highest flood deposits and crossed drainage divides observed along Crooked Creek drainage, followed by a later 10,000 m³ s^− 1 flood associated with the most recent shorelines in Alvord and Coyote Basins.Well-developed shorelines of Lake Alvord at 1280 m and in Coyote Basin at 1278 m suggest that after the initial flood, postflood overflow persisted for an extended period, connecting Alvord and Coyote Basins with the Owyhee River of the Columbia River drainage. Surficial weathering characteristics and planktonic freshwater diatoms in Lake Alvord sediment stratigraphically below Mt. St. Helens set Sg tephra, suggest deep open-basin conditions at  13–14 ka (¹⁴C yr) and that the flood and prominent shorelines date to about this time. But geomorphic and sedimentological evidence also show that Alvord and Coyote Basins held older, higher-elevation lakes that may have released earlier floods down Crooked Creek.     

Mixed-function oxygenases as biological monitors around petroleum hydrocarbon development sites: Potential for induction by diesel and other drilling mud base oils containing reduced levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

The use of oil-based drilling muds has been discouraged in hydrocarbon exploration and production in the marine environment but these muds are presently being used to a considerable degree in the United Kingdom and Norwegian sectors of the North Sea. Field studies in the North Sea have demonstrated only localized impacts around individual drilling sites,^1,2 even including those sites where ‘toxic’ diesel oils were employed as base fluids in drilling muds. Yet the question of disposal of cuttings contaminated with oil from drilling muds remains somewhat controversial. The induction of mixed-function oxygenases (MFO) has been validated on a number of occasions in the field as a sensitive index of low level hydrocarbon exposure (reviewed by Payne),³ including sites in the North Sea where diesel-based muds were used.⁴ The present study demonstrates that any potential for induction by hydrocarbon contaminated cuttings will probably be reduced by substitution of low-aromatic base oils for diesel in drilling mud formulations.