Chemical Characteristics of Stream Draining fromDudu Glacier: An Alpine Meltwater Stream inGanga Headwater, Garhwal Himalaya

I-DtjcrONAlpine environment enjoys a distinct set of physicochemical conditions asl compared to other aqueous systems. Thehydrochemical characteristics of meltwater draining from thisenvironment are different from the other aqueous ecosystemsdue to their mountainous nature and extreme cold climatic conditions. The high concentration of various chemical constitu.ents in meltwater shows the intensive chemical weathering inthe basin. The rapid physical weathering due tO grinding actionof the gl…     

Application of Generalized Likelihood Uncertainty Estimation (GLUE) at different temporal scales to reduce the uncertainty level in modelled river flows

ABSTRACT

In this study, the distributed catchment-scale model, DiCaSM, was applied on five catchments across the UK. Given its importance, river flow was selected to study the uncertainty in streamflow prediction using the Generalized Likelihood Uncertainty Estimation (GLUE) methodology at different timescales (daily, monthly, seasonal and annual). The uncertainty analysis showed that the observed river flows were within the predicted bounds/envelope of 5% and 95% percentiles. These predicted river flow bounds contained most of the observed river flows, as expressed by the high containment ratio, CR. In addition to CR, other uncertainty indices – bandwidth B, relative bandwidth RB, degrees of asymmetry S and T, deviation amplitude D, relative deviation amplitude RD and the R factor – also indicated that the predicted river flows have acceptable uncertainty levels. The results show lower uncertainty in predicted river flows when increasing the timescale from daily to monthly to seasonal, with the lowest uncertainty associated with annual flows.     

Toward an Ecological Explanation of Agricultural Unemployment in Bangladesh

Cultural ecology theoretical framework was found suitable to explain unemployment in agriculture in three villages in Bangladesh. Path analysis and multiple regression statistics were used to examine the direct, indirect, and total effects of eight independent human, social, environmental, and technology variables as well as their aggregate contribution on agricultural unemployment. The multiple regression model explains 86.2% of the total variation in unemployment in agriculture; they were followed by environmental constraints and labor saving technology variables.     

A study of the roughness effects of multiple windbreaks

A wind-tunnel study of the roughness effect of a network of uniformly spaced long parallel windbreaks has been attempted. The roughness parameterZ ₀ in the well-known logarithmic profile has been obtained as a function of the ratio of the spacingL to heightH of the barriers. In one part of the study, a naturally developing boundary layer was used and the windbreaks were not spread on the entire wind-tunnel floor. Spacing ratiosL/H of 1 to 20 were treated. In the other part of the study, spires were used to thicken the boundary layers artificially and the windbreaks were spread throughout the wind-tunnel floor. In this case, spacing ratiosL/H of 1 to 30 were examined.Values of the roughness parameter obtained from the above two cases have been compared to some (though very few) previously published pertinent values.     

Source Sector Contributions to Aerosol Levels in Pakistan

Urban air pollution in Pakistan is a serious challenge and it causes significant damage to human health and ecosystems. This paper presents a modelling study using the Weather Research and Forecasting Model coupled with Chemistry(WRF-Chem) to simulate the spatial distributions and temporal variations of aerosol concentrations over Pakistan, focusing on contributions of domestic emission sectors(transport, industry, residential, and energy) to mass concentrations of sulfate(SO2–4), nitrate(NO–3), ammonium(NH+4), black carbon(BC), and organic carbon(OC) during the months of January, April, July, and October in 2010. Sensitivity studies indicate that, averaged over January, April, July, and October of 2010, energy and industry sectors have the largest contributions to SO2–4 concentrations, each of which contributes about 10%?20% to SO2– 4over the polluted eastern Pakistan. The contributions from residential and transport sectors to NO–3 concentrations reach 40%?50% in central Pakistan. The residential sector has the highest contribution of 50%–80% to BC and OC loading in northeastern and southern Pakistan. Examination of sector contributions to aerosol levels in Lahore, the most polluted city in Pakistan, suggests that reductions in emissions in the residential sector should be an efficient measure for improving particulate matter air quality in this region.     

A multi-proxy reconstruction of spatial and temporal variations in Asian summer temperatures over the last millennium

To investigate climate variability in Asia during the last millennium, the spatial and temporal evolution of summer (June–July–August; JJA) temperature in eastern and south-central Asia is reconstructed using multi-proxy records and the regularized expectation maximization (RegEM) algorithm with truncated total least squares (TTLS), under a point-by-point regression (PPR) framework. The temperature index reconstructions show that the late 20th century was the warmest period in Asia over the past millennium. The temperature field reconstructions illustrate that temperatures in central, eastern, and southern China during the 11th and 13th centuries, and in western Asia during the 12th century, were significantly higher than those in other regions, and comparable to levels in the 20th century. Except for the most recent warming, all identified warm events showed distinct regional expressions and none were uniform over the entire reconstruction area. The main finding of the study is that spatial temperature patterns have, on centennial time-scales, varied greatly over the last millennium. Moreover, seven climate model simulations, from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5), over the same region of Asia, are all consistent with the temperature index reconstruction at the 99 % confidence level. Only spatial temperature patterns extracted as the first empirical orthogonal function (EOF) from the GISS-E2-R and MPI-ESM-P model simulations are significant and consistent with the temperature field reconstruction over the past millennium in Asia at the 90 % confidence level. This indicates that both the reconstruction and the simulations depict the temporal climate variability well over the past millennium. However, the spatial simulation or reconstruction capability of climate variability over the past millennium could be still limited. For reconstruction, some grid points do not pass validation tests and reveal the need for more proxies with high temporal resolution, accurate dating, and sensitive temperature signals, especially in central Asia and before AD 1400.     

Unnoticed but important: revealing the hidden contribution of community-based religious institution of the mosque in disasters

The role of community-based religious institutions has been largely undocumented, underestimated and overshadowed in the disaster studies literature. This paper explores the role of the mosque, a community-based religious institution, in disaster management by documenting and analysing its role in rural settings in the aftermath of the 2005 earthquake in Pakistan. The study examines the role of the mosque in relation to key actors from the state, civil society and private sector during response, relief, recovery, reconstruction and rehabilitation phases of the Pakistan earthquake. Using qualitative research methods and a case study design, this article analyses primary data collected through 5 months of fieldwork (in 2009 and 2010). The findings demonstrate the multifaceted and distinct contribution of the mosque in cultural, economic, social and political aspects of the lives of the earthquake-affected communities. Possible challenges to engagement with the mosque, both gender inclusiveness and political controversy around its role, are also raised. This research suggests that state, civil society and private sector actors involved in disaster management need to understand complex relationships involving people and their religious institutions, and their impact on the social dimension of recovery. The findings of the study contribute to the scarce knowledge about the role of community-based religious institutions including churches, mosques, synagogues and temples and call for engagement: that is, acknowledging and valuing their role for building a synergy between secular and religious efforts for disaster risk reduction and post-disaster recovery.     

Impact of rangeland enclosure and seasonal grazing on protected and unprotected rangelands in Chakwal region,Pakistan

Scrub rangelands support livestock grazing and provide ecosystem services to their inhabitants.The present study was conducted in Chakwal,an important tract of ...