Equity vs. Efficiency: Public Capital Investment in Ohio, 1988–1992

Recent research on the role of public capital in the economy focuses primarily on assessing its economic, and sometimes spatial economic, impacts. Access to more detailed and disaggregate data than typically used in these analyses allows us to take a fresh perspective on the often conflicting goals of interregional equity and aggregate efficiency. Using the state of Ohio as a case study, and classic definitions of equity and efficiency, we assess the correspondence between distributions of infrastructure investment and the social/economic distress they are intended to alleviate. Traditional map and statistical analysis combined with a graphical device we call the variegated distribution plot reveals that, in both rates and levels, investment is highest in areas of greatest distress. Both patterns are consistent with equity-driven investment distributions.     

Changes in beach water table elevation during neap and spring tides on a sandy estuarine beach, Delaware Bay, New Jersey

A field investigation of temporal and spatial changes in wind and wave characteristics, runup and beach water table elevation was conducted on the foreshore of an estuarine beach in Delaware Bay during neap (April 9, 1995) and spring (April 16, 1995) tides under low wave-energy conditions. The beach has a relatively steep, sandy foreshore and semi-diurnal tides with a mean range of 1.6 m and a mean spring range of 1.9 m. Data from a pressure transducer placed on the low tide terrace reveal a rate of rise and fall of the water level on April 16 of 0.09 mm s⁻¹ resulting in a steeper tidal curve than the neap tide on April 9. Data from three pressure transducers placed in wells in the intertidal foreshore reveal that the landward slope of the water table during the rising neap tide was lower than the slope during spring tide, and there was a slower rate of fall of the beach water table relative to the fall of the tide. Wave heights were lower on April 9 (significant height from 17.1 min records <0.16 m). The water table elevation was 0.08 m higher than the water in the bay at the time of high water, when maximum runup elevation was 0.29 m above high water and maximum runup width was 2.0 m. The elevation of the water table was 0.13 m higher than the maximum elevation of water level in the bay 74 min after high water, when wave height was 0.12 m and wave period was 2.7 s. The use of mean bay water level at high tide will underpredict the elevation of the water table in the beach, and demarcation of biological sampling stations across the intertidal profile based on mean tide conditions will not accurately reflect the water content of the sandy beach matrix.     

Flood tide circulation near beaufort inlet, North Carolina: Implications for larval recruitment

Drifter tracks and shipboard CTD observations have revealed a number of distinct features of the flood tide circulation carrying water through Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina. One of the most noteworthy of these features is a nearshore jet in the flow carrying water to the inlet on a flood tide. Characterized by a shoreward increase in longshore flow, the jet produces a narrow coastal zone over which water is carried into the inlet. The jet appears to be principally a tidal phenomenon, as it is closely reproduced by a tidally-driven barotropic numerical model. The model results also indicate the jet may be a near-inlet feature. Model simulations of spring tide conditions show the jet confined to within 4 km of the inlet mouth. Another observed phenomenon, which is reproduced by the tidal model, is a distinct splitting of the flow entering the inlet, in which water passing through a particular inlet segment tends to move up-estuary along a well-defined path. An observed flow feature not reproduced by the tidal model is an eastward skew of the region over which water is drawn into the inlet on a flood tide. This asymmetry is unrelated to the local wind. Modeling results from a previous study suggest it may be due to convergent flow at the edge of the low salinity plume issuing from the inlet. Taken together, the results of this and other recent studies in the Beaufort Inlet region reveal the importance of nearshore currents on the eastern side of the inlet in delivering oceanic-spawned larvae to the estuarine system connected to the inlet.     

Heavy metals in particulate matter and sediments in the southern Barcelona sedimentation system (North-western Mediterranean)

Concentrations of selected heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) from surface sediments, suspended particulate matter and settling particles in the southern Barcelona continental margin were studied in order to evaluate the environmental impact of the anthropogenic metals discharged by the Llobregat River in this Mediterranean area. The temporal variation of heavy metals discharged by this river onto the continental shelf is clearly related to the river water flow. Part of the fine sediment and associated heavy metals transported by the Llobregat River during periods of low river flow accumulate on the river bed, and they are totally removed and discharged onto the Barcelona continental shelf during sporadic river water flow increases. Metals produce significant anomalies of chromium (×2.5), copper (×3.4) and zinc (×3.7) in the surface sediments of the Llobregat prodelta and tend to be transported along the continental shelf following the mean flow. Metals associated with the finest suspended flocs transferred to the slope are controlled by the shelf-slope density front and are transported along slope by the general geostrophic current, instead of accumulating and becoming concentrated in the slope bottom sediments. Settling particulate matter collected in sediment traps on the Barcelona continental slope offshore of the shelf-slope front shows low heavy metal concentrations except in a few sediment trap samples that are significantly metal-enriched in chromium (×4.5) and zinc (×6.8). This enrichment is associated with very short and sporadic river flow increases and is only recorded inside the Foix submarine canyon, which acts as a preferential conduit for the shelf-slope sediment transfer.     

Effect of storms during drought on post‐wildfire recovery of channel sediment dynamics and habitat in the southern California chaparral,USA

Current global warming projections suggest a possible increase in wildfire and drought, augmenting the need to understand how drought following wildfire affects the recovery of stream channels in relation to sediment dynamics. We investigated post‐wildfire geomorphic responses caused by storms during a prolonged drought following the 2013 Springs Fire in southern California (USA), using multi‐temporal terrestrial laser scanning and detailed field measurements. After the fire, a dry‐season dry‐ravel sediment pulse contributed sand and small gravel to hillslope‐channel margins in Big Sycamore Creek and its tributaries. A small storm in WY 2014 generated sufficient flow to mobilize a portion of the sediment derived from the dry‐ravel pulse and deposited the fine sediment in the channel, totaling ~0.60 m³/m of volume per unit length of channel. The sediment deposit buried step‐pool habitat structure and reduced roughness by over 90%. These changes altered sediment transport characteristics of the bed material present before and after the storm; the ratio of available to critical shear stress (τ_o/τ_c) increased by five times. Storms during WY 2015 contributed additional fine sediment from tributaries and lower hillslopes and hyperconcentrated flow transported and deposited additional sediment in the channel. Together these sources delivered sediment on the order of six times that in 2014, further increasing τ_o/τ_c. These storms during multi‐year drought following wildfire transformed channel dynamics. The increased sediment transport capacity persisted during the drought period characterized by the longer residence time of relatively fine‐grained post‐fire channel sedimentation. This contrasts with wetter years, when post‐fire sediment is transported from the fluvial system during the same season as the post‐fire sediment pulse. Results of this short‐term study highlight the complex and substantial effects of multi‐year drought on geomorphic responses following wildfire. These responses influence pool habitat that is critical to longer‐term post‐wildfire riparian ecosystem recovery. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Offshore aeolian sediment transport across a human‐modified foredune

Concepts derived from previous studies of offshore winds on natural dunes are evaluated on a dune maintained for shore protection during three offshore wind events. The potential for offshore winds to form a lee‐side eddy on the backshore or transfer sediment from the dune and berm crest to the water are evaluated, as are differences in wind speed and sediment transport on the dune crest, berm crest and a pedestrian access gap. The dune is 18–20 m wide near the base and has a crest 4.5 m above backshore elevation. Two sand‐trapping fences facilitate accretion. Data were obtained from wind vanes on the crest and lee of the dune and anemometers and sand traps placed across the dune, on the beach berm crest and in the access gap. Mean wind direction above the dune crest varied from 11 to 3 deg from shore normal. No persistent recirculation eddy occurred on the 12 deg seaward slope. Wind speed on the berm crest was 85–89% of speed at the dune crest, but rates of sediment transport were 2.27 times greater during the strongest winds, indicating that a wide beach overcomes the transport limitation of a dune barrier. Limited transport on the seaward dune ramp indicates that losses to the water are mostly from the backshore, not the dune. The seaward slope gains sand from the landward slope and dune crest. Sand fences causing accretion on the dune ramp during onshore winds lower the seaward slope and reduce the likelihood of detached flows during offshore winds. Transport rates are higher in access gaps than on the dune crest despite lower wind speeds because of flatter slopes and absence of vegetation. Transport rates across dunes and through gaps can be reduced using vegetation and raised walkover structures. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Reanalysing strong-convective wind damage paths using high-resolution aerial images

Natural Hazards - High-resolution aerial imagery may provide very detailed information about strong-convective wind events, which can be very useful to enhance and make more robust severe weather...     

Quantitative elemental mapping of granulite-facies monazite: Textural insights and implications for petrochronology

Texturally complex monazite grains contained in two granulite-facies pelitic migmatites from southern Baffin Island, Arctic Canada, were mapped by laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (using spot sizes ≤5 µm) to quantitatively determine the spatial variation in trace element chemistry (with up to 1,883 analyses per grain). The maps highlight the chemical complexity of monazite grains that have experienced multiple episodes of growth, resorption and chemical modification by dissolution–precipitation during high-grade metamorphism. Following detailed chemical characterization of monazite compositional zones, a related U–Pb data set is re-interpreted, allowing petrologically significant ages to be extracted from a continuum of concordant data. Synthesis of these data with pseudosection modelling of prograde and peak conditions allows for the temporal evolution of monazite trace element chemistry to be placed in the context of the evolving P–T conditions and major phase assemblage. This approach enables a critical evaluation of three commonly used petrochronological indicators: linking Y to garnet abundance, the Eu anomaly to feldspar content and Th/U to anatectic processes. Europium anomalies and Th/U behave in a relatively systematic fashion, suggesting that they are reliable petrochronological witnesses. However, Y systematics are variable, both within domains interpreted to have grown in a single event, between grains interpreted to be part of the same age population, and between samples that experienced similar metamorphic conditions and mineral assemblages. These observations caution against generalized petrological interpretations on the basis of Y content, as it suggests Y concentrations in monazite are controlled by domainal equilibria. The results reveal a c. 45 Myr interval between prograde metamorphism and retrograde melt crystallization in the study area, emphasizing the long-lived nature of heat flow in high-grade metamorphic terranes. Such long timescales of metamorphism would be assisted by the growth, retention and dominance of high-Th suprasolidus monazite, as observed in this study, contributing to the radiogenic heating budget of mid- to lower-crustal environments. Careful characterization of monazite grains suggests that continuum-style U–Pb data sets can be decoded to provide insights into the duration of metamorphic processes.     

Evaluating functional connectivity in a small agricultural catchment under contrasting flood events by using UAV

Concentrated erosion, a major feature of land degradation, represents a serious problem for soil and water resources management and a threat to ecosystems. Understanding the internal mechanisms (de-)coupling sediment pathways can improve the management and resilience of catchments. In this study, concentrated erosion and deposition forms were mapped accurately through field and aerial unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) campaigns, in order to assess the evolution of connectivity pathways over a series of three contrasted and consecutive flood events occurring between October 2016 and January 2017 (return period ranging from 0.5 to 25 years) in a small Mediterranean agricultural catchment (Can Revull, Mallorca, Spain; 1.4 km²). In addition, a morphometric index of connectivity (IC) was used to identify the potential trajectories of different concentrated erosion forms and deposition areas. IC predictions were calibrated by identifying the optimal critical thresholds, i.e. those most consistent with field observations after each of the events studied. The results found that the index performed well in predicting the occurrence and the length/area of the different type of landforms, giving kappa (κ) coefficients of variation ranging between 0.21 and 0.92 and linear correlations R² between 0.33 and 0.72. The type of landform affected the correspondence of IC predictions and field observations, with lower thresholds the greater the magnitude of their associated geomorphic processes. Rainfall magnitude proved to be a very important factor controlling the development of erosion and deposition landforms, with large differences in length/area between the contrasted events. The evolution of the observed trajectories revealed feedback dynamics between the structural and functional connectivity of the catchment, in which morphological changes determined the spatial distribution of the processes’ activity in the successive events and vice versa. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.