Effect of widespread severely acidic soils on spatial features and abundance of trace elements in streams

In the coastal area of western Finland, a large number of streams are strongly acidic and contaminated with metals. The reason for this is not historical and present industrial, mining and urban activities, but a current high rate of weathering and leaching of widespread acid sulphate soils (pH 2.5–4.0) developed in artificially drained Holocene marine and lacustrine sulphide-bearing sediments. Evaluation of existing hydro- and geochemical field and experimental data revealed that: (1) cobalt, Ni and Zn are extensively leached from the acid sulphate soils and thus exist abundantly in streams affected by such soils, (2) copper and Tl are also leached abundantly from the acid sulphate soils, although not to the same extent as are Co, Ni and Zn, (3) vanadium is in general depleted and Cr only weakly enriched in streams draining ‘the average acid sulphate soil’, but they increase substantially in severely acidic streams in catchments underlain with particularly acidic soil, (4) arsenic and Pb are not leached more abundantly from the acid sulphate soils than from the common types of soils and sediments (till, glaciofluvial deposits, peat) resulting in aquatic abundance and distribution patterns unrelated to the acid sulphate soil occurrences.     

Inherited Landforms and Glacial Impact of Different Palaeosurfaces in Southwest Sweden

Landforms are used as analytical tools to separate inherited features from the glacial impact on Precambrian basement rocks in southwest Sweden. The study covers three different palaeosurfaces, the sub-Cambrian peneplain (relative relief (r.r.) 0–20 m) with the character of a pediplain, an uplifted and dissected part of the sub-Cambrian peneplain (r.r. 5–40 m) and an etch-surface (r.r. 20–135 m), presumably sub-Mesozoic. The surfaces were recently re-exposed, probably due to a Neogene upheaval with some pre-glacial reshaping. Strong structural control and no alignment with glacial erosional directions other than those coinciding with structures, are arguments for etch processes as a most important agent for relief differentiation. This is strengthened by the occurrence of saprolite residues and etchforms in protected positions.
The glacial reshaping of the sub-Cambrian flat bedrock surfaces is negligible. The glacial impact becomes more evident in the uplifted and dissected parts of the peneplain and within the hilly sub-Mesozoic surface. The higher the initial relief the more effect of glacial erosion on individual hills, both on the abrading side, with formation of roches moutonnées, and on the plucking side. Detailed etchforms are preserved in protected positions in spite of erosion by a clearly wet-based ice. The magnitude of the Pleistocene glacial erosion is considerably less than the amplitude of the palaeorelief in the entire area.
Landscapes of areal glacial scouring have been described as comprising irregular depressions with intervening bosses scraped by ice and labelled 'knock and lochan' topography, but we suggest that an etched bedrock surface is a prerequisite for this type of landscape to develop.     

Radiometric dating of recent lake sediments from a highly eroded area in semiarid Tanzania

Semiarid regions are vulnerable environments with a series of important and often discussed problems such as land degradation, water scarcity and desertification. These regions are dynamic and respond quickly to climatic and environmental changes. Unlike lakes in temperate zones, lakes in semiarid regions are yet poorly utilized as climatic and environmental indicators. In this study aquatic deposits are used to uncover the environmental history of a severely degraded area in central Tanzania. The ²¹⁰Pb and ¹³⁷Cs chronologies date a 360 cm long sediment sequence to 155 years. The sediments show that lake Haubi basin changed from a seasonally waterlogged depression to a lake at the turn of the century. Calculated sedimentation rates show that the catchment of the lake has been subject to varied and enhanced soil erosion during the last 155 years.     

High-pressure metamorphism and deep-crustal seismicity: evidence from contemporaneous formation of pseudotachylytes and eclogite facies coronas

The metamorphic complex of the Western Gneiss Region (WGR), Norway, constitutes the root of the Caledonian mountain belt and experienced temperatures of 700–800 °C and pressures in excess of 20 kbar during peak metamorphism. Mafic bodies surrounded by strongly banded felsic gneisses commonly exhibit variable reequilibration to granulite and eclogite facies conditions and locally preserve igneous minerals and textures. The Kråkeneset gabbro, located on the island of Vågsøy in the mixed HP/UHP zone of the western WGR, display evidence for extensive metastability through the entire prograde and retrograde P, T histories. Eclogite constitutes less than a few percent of the total volume of the body and high-pressure assemblages typically form thin coronas around magmatic phases or occur along localized zones of brittle deformation and fluid infiltration. The gabbro displays pseudotachylyte vein networks that define subparallel brittle fault zones, <50 cm wide, transecting the gabbro body. The pseudotachylytes contain μm- to mm-scale amoeboid and dendrite-like textures of garnet and plagioclase with inclusions of the eclogite facies minerals orthopyroxene, omphacite, amphibole, and dolomite, suggesting rapid disequilibrium growth of minerals during high-pressure conditions. Textural and petrological evidence from pseudotachylytes and corona structures show that the growth of these unusual textures occurred shortly after pseudotachylyte crystallization by a process of rapid solid-state alteration of a microcrystalline pseudotachylyte matrix. The pseudotachylyte-lined fault zones are in close spatial association with numerous amphibole±carbonate-filled hydrofractures with conspicuous fracture-parallel alteration zones defined by hydrous eclogite facies assemblages. These eclogite facies hydrofractures testify to the existence of high fluid pressures and to fluid infiltration following brittle failure during high-grade metamorphic conditions. Geothermobarometric estimates (ca. T=650–700 °C, P=20 kbar) and petrological data imply that hydrofracturing, pseudotachylyte crystallization, and the subsequent pseudotachylyte alteration process must have occurred during high-pressure metamorphism. Our observations are suggestive of a deep-crustal earthquake scenario where a high-pressurized fluid phase plays a double role by causing both seismic failure through the embrittlement effect and facilitating eclogitization of the metastable anhydrous gabbro. Metamorphic reaction along hydrofractures and fault planes led to the development of eclogite facies foliation fabrics and illustrate the rheological change from brittle to plastic behavior associated with the gabbro to eclogite transition. The formation of weak deep-crustal shear zones following brittle failure represents an arrested initiation of the physical breakup and metamorphic reequilibration of the Kråkeneset gabbro during its residence deep in the former Caledonian collision zone.     

Influence of combined changes in salinity and copper modulation on growth and copper uptake in the tropical green macroalga Ulva reticulata

The influence of salinity on growth and Cu uptake in the green macroalga Ulva reticulata collected from the intertidal area in the Western Indian Ocean was studied under controlled laboratory conditions. Exposure concentrations ranged from 5 to 500 μg Cu l⁻¹ at five salinities (ranging 20–40). The accumulation of Cu increased with decreasing salinity, so that the uptake at 500 μg Cu l⁻¹ was approximately 2.7, 2.4 and 2.0 times higher at salinities of 20, 25, and 30 respectively, than uptake at salinity of 35, and with uptake being lowest at salinity of 40. Ulva maintained a positive growth rate over the whole salinity range (20–40), with highest rates at salinity of 35. When exposing to Cu at low salinities (20 and 25), the growth rate of Ulva was strongly inhibited suggesting an increase in toxicity of Cu with decreasing salinity. EC50 and NOEC increased with increase in salinity, implying a reduced Cu toxicity at high salinities. It was concluded that salinity needs to be considered when using macroalgae, such as U. reticulata, as a bioindicator of heavy metals in areas with heavy rainfall, underground fresh water intrusion or in estuaries, as they might accumulate more metals and be more negatively affected.     

Evolution of the Academician Ridge Accommodation Zone in the central part of the Baikal Rift, from high-resolution reflection seismic profiling and geological field investigations

 New high-resolution seismic reflection data from the central part of Lake Baikal provide new insight into the structure and stratigraphy of Academician Ridge, a large intra-rift accommodation zone separating the Central and North Baikal basins. Four seismic packages are distinguished above the basement: a thin top-of-basement unit; seismic-stratigraphic unit X; seismic-stratigraphic unit A; and seismic-stratigraphic unit B. Units A and B were cored on selected key locations. The four packages are correlated with a series of deposits exposed on the nearby western shores: the Ularyar Sequence (Oligocene); the Tagay Sequence (Lower to Middle Miocene); the Sasa Sequence (Upper Miocene to Lower Pliocene); the Kharantsy Sequence (Upper Pliocene); and the Nyurga Sequence (Lower Pleistocene). Based on stratal relationships, sedimentary geometries, distribution patterns and principal morphostructural elements – both onshore and offshore – we propose a new palaeogeographic evolution model for the area. In this model progressive tectonic subsidence of the Baikal basins and successive pulses of uplift of various segments of the rift margins lead to: (a) formation of the ridge as a structural and morphological feature separating the Central and North Baikal basins during the Middle to Late Miocene; (b) gradual flooding of the main parts of the ridge and establishment of a lacustrine connection between the two rift basins during the Late Miocene; and (c) total submergence of the top parts of the crest of the ridge during the latest Pleistocene. This new model helps to better constrain numerous phases in the structural evolution of the Baikal Rift, in which the Academician Ridge as an accommodation zone plays a crucial role. Received: 26 November 1999 / Accepted: 12 March 2000     

Fake it till you make it—the uncanny art of forging amber

Amber has fascinated people since the Stone Age and as one of the best means of preservation of fossil organisms, it tickles our senses. The animals that are sometimes trapped in amber, like frozen moments of long‐lost ecosystems, can be so incredibly well preserved that they look modern—which, in some cases, has proven to be just the case. Because fossil‐bearing amber not only has a significant scientific value but is also a desired commodity on the open market, fake amber has unfortunately been around for centuries.     

Mapping areas of potential slope failures in cohesive soils using a shadow-casting algorithm – A case study from SW Sweden

When performing landslide susceptibility mapping of rotational slides in fine grained soils, slope algorithms found in common GIS software have two major shortcomings. Firstly, these types of terrain algorithms only consider the slope angle at the surface. Secondly, the algorithm is local by its design i.e. it only considers neighbouring pixels. Due to the behaviour of a retrogressive rotational landslide, it would be more preferable to consider slope information as a predetermined cross-section angle from the base of the slope. This paper presents a new method using shadow casting algorithms for preliminary landslide susceptibility mapping in cohesive soils. A case study from western Sweden is also presented.     

Northern landscapes in transition: Evidence,approach and ways forward using the Krycklan Catchment Study

Improving our ability to detect changes in terrestrial and aquatic systems is a grand challenge in the environmental sciences. In a world experiencing increasingly rapid rates of climate change and ecosystem transformation, our ability to understand and predict how, when, where, and why changes occur is essential for adapting and mitigating human behaviours. In this context, long-term field research infrastructures have a fundamentally important role to play. For northern boreal landscapes, the Krycklan Catchment Study (KCS) has supported monitoring and research aimed at revealing these changes since it was initiated in 1980. Early studies focused on forest regeneration and microclimatic conditions, nutrient balances and forest hydrology, which included monitoring climate variables, water balance components, and stream water chemistry. The research infrastructure has expanded over the years to encompass a 6790 ha catchment, which currently includes 11 gauged streams, ca. 1000 soil lysimeters, 150 groundwater wells, >500 permanent forest inventory plots, and a 150 m tall tower (a combined ecosystem-atmosphere station of the ICOS, Integrated Carbon Observation System) for measurements of atmospheric gas concentrations and biosphere-atmosphere exchanges of carbon, water, and energy. In addition, the KCS has also been the focus of numerous high resolution multi-spectral LiDAR measurements and large scale experiments. This large collection of equipment and data generation supports a range of disciplinary studies, but more importantly fosters multi-, trans-, and interdisciplinary research opportunities. The KCS attracts a broad collection of scientists, including biogeochemists, ecologists, foresters, geologists, hydrologists, limnologists, soil scientists, and social scientists, all of whom bring their knowledge and experience to the site. The combination of long-term monitoring, shorter-term research projects, and large-scale experiments, including manipulations of climate and various forest management practices, has contributed much to our understanding of boreal landscape functioning, while also supporting the development of models and guidelines for research, policy, and management.