Generation of pyroclastic flows and surges by hot-rock avalanches from the dome of Mount St. Helens volcano,USA

Several hot-rock avalanches have occurred during the growth of the composite dome of Mount St. Helens, Washington between 1980 and 1987. One of these occurred on 9 May 1986 and produced a fan-shaped avalanche deposit of juvenile dacite debris together with a more extensive pyroclastic-flow deposit. Laterally thinning deposits and abrasion and baking of wooden and plastic objects show that a hot ash-cloud surge swept beyond the limits of the pyroclastic flow. Plumes that rose 2–3 km above the dome and vitric ash that fell downwind of the volcano were also effects of this event, but no explosion occurred. All the facies observed originated from a single avalanche. Erosion and melting of craterfloor snow by the hot debris caused debris flows in the crater, and a small flood that carried juvenile and other clasts north of the crater. A second, broadly similar event occured in October 1986. Larger events of this nature could present a significant volcanic hazard.     

Increasing Flash Floods in a Drying Climate over Southwest China

In a globally warming world,subtropical regions are generally expected to become drier while the tropics and mid–high latitudes become wetter.In line with this,Southwest China,close to 25?N,is expected to become increasingly prone to drought if annual mean precipitation decreases.However,despite this trend,changes in the temporal distribution of moisture supply might actually result in increased extreme rainfall in the region,whose climate is characterized by distinct dry and wet seasons.Using hourly and daily gauge observations,rainfall intensity changes since 1971 are examined for a network of 142 locations in the region.From the analysis,dry season changes are negligible but wet season changes exhibit a significantly strong downward trend [-2.4%(10 yr)~(-1)],particularly during the past 15 years [-17.7%(10 yr)~(-1)].However,the intensity of events during the wettest of 5% hours appears to steadily increase during the whole period [1.4%(10 yr)~(-1)],tying in with government statistical reports of recent droughts and flooding.If the opposing trends are a consequence of a warming climate,it is reasonable to expect the contradictory trend to continue with an enhanced risk of flash flooding in coming decades in the region concerned.     

Preempting to nothing: neoliberalism and the fight to de/re-regulate agricultural biotechnology

On August 31th, 2006 the California Senate shelved SB1056, a bill which would have granted the State jurisdiction over the regulation of seed and nursery stock. Ostensibly proposed to ensure “a level playing field” for agricultural and food producers, SB1056 is one of a host of legislation drafted across the United States to preempt county and municipal bans on genetically engineered crops. In California, the heated struggle around “preemption” exemplifies the interweaving of neoliberal ideology with industry attempts to prevent an unfavorable regulatory environment, but more importantly the contingencies and vulnerabilities of this strategy. After reviewing SB1056’s history, this paper examines how a diverse opposition movement capitalized on the friction between the neoliberal arguments mobilized by supporters and dominant Californian political philosophies. The paper then highlights the ultimate effect of SB1056 through a critical exploration of current state and federal regulation and the entrenched interests of the California government. I argue that more than simply opening new spaces for accumulation, SB1056 would have muted opposition voices and transferred power to institutions financially committed to the technology’s commercialization.     

Potential collapse of the upper slope and tsunami generation on the Great Barrier Reef margin, north-eastern Australia

Analysis of high-resolution multibeam bathymetry and seismic profiles in the Noggin Passage region, north-eastern Australia, has identified a small area (Noggin block) in the upper-slope offshore Cairns that may potentially collapse and generate a tsunami wave. The Noggin block extends from 340 to 470 m depth covering a roughly circular (2.4 km long and 3.7 km wide) area of about 5.3 km². The well-defined margins of the block correspond to different bounding seabed features. These features include steep headscarps, small landslides and a group of aligned circular pockforms up to 500 m wide and 20 m deep. Slope stability simulations indicate that the Noggin block is stable under normal present-day gravitational conditions on the upper slope. However, block failure may result under external loads, such as those produced by earthquakes. Failure modelling shows that critical peak horizontal accelerations of 0.2–0.4 g could lead to the collapse of the Noggin block. In north-eastern Australia, these acceleration values would involve earthquakes generated at short hypocentral distances and short periods. The collapse of the potential sediment slide mass of about 0.86 km³ (162 m average thickness) may lead to the formation of a landslide-generated tsunami wave. Semi-empirical equations indicate the collapse of this mass would yield a 7–11-m high three-dimensional tsunami wave. These waves could reach an estimated run-up height at the coast of 5–7 m. Our first-order approach highlights the potential consequences for nearby coastal communities, the need for better sediment characterisation in the study area, and the systematic identification of other areas prone to slope failures along the Great Barrier Reef margin.     

The geology and geochemistry of the Lumwana Cu (± Co ± U) deposits, NW Zambia

The Lumwana Cu (± Co ± U) deposits of NW Zambia are large, tabular, disseminated ore bodies, hosted within the Mwombezhi Dome of the Lufilian Arc. The host rocks to the Lumwana deposits are two mineralogically similar but texturally distinct gneisses, a granitic to pegmatitic gneiss and a banded to augen gneiss which both comprise quartz–feldspar ± biotite ± muscovite ± haematite ± amphibole and intervening quartz–feldspar ± biotite schist. The sulphide ore horizons are typically developed within a biotite–muscovite–quartz–kyanite schist, although mineralization locally occurs within internal gneiss units. Contacts between the ore and host rocks are transitional and characterized by a loss of feldspar. Kinematic indicators, such as S-C fabrics and pressure shadows on porphyroblasts, suggest a top to the north shear sense. The sulphides are deformed by a strong shear fabric, enclosed within kyanite or concentrated into low strain zones and pressure shadows around kyanite porphyroblasts. This suggests that the copper mineralization was introduced either syn- or pre-peak metamorphism. In addition to Cu and Co, the ores are also characterized by enrichments in U, V, Ni, Ba and S and small, discrete zones of uranium mineralization, occur adjacent to the hanging wall and footwall of the copper ore bodies or in the immediate footwall to the copper mineralization. Unlike typical Copperbelt mineralization, unmineralized units show very low background copper values. Whole rock geochemical analyses of the interlayered schist and ore schist, compared to the gneiss, show depletions in Ca, Na and Sr and enrichments in Mg and K, consistent with replacement of feldspar by biotite. The mineral chemistry of muscovite, biotite and chlorite reflect changes in the bulk rock chemistry and show consistent increases in X _Mg as the schists develop. δ³⁴S for copper sulphides range from +2.3?‰ to +18.5?‰, with pyrite typically restricted to values between +3.9?‰ and +6.2?‰. These values are atypical of sulphides precipitated by bacteriogenic sulphate reduction. δ³⁴S data for Chimiwungo (Cu + Co) show a broader range and increased δ³⁴S values compared to the Malundwe (Cu) mineralization. The Lumwana deposits show many characteristics which distinguish them from classical Copperbelt mineralization and which suggests that they are formed by metasomatic alteration, mineralization and shearing of pre-Katangan basement. Although this style of mineralization is reported elsewhere in the Copperbelt, sometimes associated with the more widely reported stratiform ores of the Lower Roan, none of the previously reported occurrences have so far developed the tonnages of ore reported at Lumwana.     

Vapor Intrusion Screening at Petroleum UST Sites

Detailed site investigations to assess potential inhalation exposure and risk to human health associated with the migration of petroleum hydrocarbon vapors from the subsurface to indoor air are frequently undertaken at leaking underground storage tank (UST) sites, yet documented occurrences of petroleum vapor intrusion are extremely rare. Additional assessments are largely driven by low screening‐level concentrations derived from vapor transport modeling that does not consider biodegradation. To address this issue, screening criteria were developed from soil‐gas measurements at hundreds of petroleum UST sites spanning a range of environmental conditions, geographic regions, and a 16‐year time period (1995 to 2011). The data were evaluated to define vertical separation (screening) distances from the source, beyond which, the potential for vapor intrusion can be considered negligible. The screening distances were derived explicitly from benzene data using specified soil‐gas screening levels of 30, 50, and 100 µg/m³ and nonparametric Kaplan‐Meier statistics. Results indicate that more than 95% of benzene concentrations in soil gas are ≤30 µg/m³ at any distance above a dissolved‐phase hydrocarbon source. Dissolved‐phase petroleum hydrocarbon sources are therefore unlikely to pose a risk for vapor intrusion unless groundwater (including capillary fringe) comes in contact with a building foundation. For light nonaqueous‐phase liquid (LNAPL) hydrocarbon sources, more than 95% of benzene concentrations in soil gas are ≤30 µg/m³ for vertical screening distances of 13 ft (4 m) or greater. The screening distances derived from this analysis are markedly different from 30 to 100 ft (10 to 30 m) vertical distances commonly found cited in regulatory guidance, even with specific allowances to account for uncertainty in the hydrocarbon source depth or location. Consideration of these screening distances in vapor intrusion guidance would help eliminate unnecessary site characterization at petroleum UST sites and allow more effective and sustainable use of limited resources.     

Chronostratigraphy,composition, and origin of Ni‐rich spinel from the Late Eocene Fuente Caldera section in Spain: One impact or more?

Abstract— Here we report on the stratigraphic distribution and chemical composition of Ni‐rich spinel, a specific mineral tracer of meteorite impacts, in the Fuente Caldera section in Spain. A major peak in spinel abundance is observed in a biostratigraphic interval defined by the last occurrence of the planktic foraminifera Porticulasphaera semiinvoluta and the first occurrence of the planktic foraminifera Turborotalia cunialensis. Two other peaks of lower abundances are observed higher up in the same biostratigraphic interval, but geochemical considerations suggest that they likely originate from redeposition by turbiditic currents. Biostratigraphic correlations with the global stratotype section and point for the Eocene/Oligocene boundary of Massignano in Italy give an age of 35.4 ± 0.2 Ma (1s?) for the major peak. This age is indistinguishable from the age of the impact horizon at Massignano (35.5 ± 0.2 Ma) and within the age uncertainties for the Popigai (35.7 ± 0.2 Ma) and Chesapeake Bay (35.5 ± 0.5 Ma) craters. The Fuente Caldera spinel, as the Massignano spinel, is assumed to be a relic mineral of microkrystites, which are believed to derive from a unique source related to the Popigai impact crater. The morphologies and Cr compositions of the Fuente Caldera and Massignano spinel crystals are markedly different, however: the Fuente Caldera spinel occurs mostly as octahedral and skeletal crystals with 85% of the grains belonging to the Cr‐rich magnetite series and 15% to the Fe‐rich chromite series, whereas the Massignano spinel occurs mostly as dendritic crystals with 90% of the grains belonging to the Cr‐poor magnetite series. It is unlikely that these differences are the result of post‐depositional alteration processes because the compositions of the crystals, as well as their morphologies, are in general very similar to those reported for primary spinel crystals, i.e., spinel crystals present in meteorite fusion crust or synthetized from meteoritic material. In addition, spinel crystals have quite homogeneous compositions except for a few grains (<10%) showing Cr zonations, but these are assigned to primary crystallization processes. One possible explanation that is consistent with a single impact event producing spatial variations in spinel compositions and morphologies is that microkrystites are locally generated by the ablation in the atmosphere of impact debris. An alternative explanation is that Fuente Caldera and Massignano microkrystites derive from two closely spaced impact events, which however requires another, so‐far unknown source crater for microkrystites.     

Geochemical evidence of hydrothermal recharge in Lake Baringo,central Kenya Rift Valley

Lake Baringo, a freshwater lake in the central Kenya Rift Valley, is fed by perennial and ephemeral rivers, direct rainfall, and hot springs on Ol Kokwe Island near the centre of the lake. The lake has no surface outlet, but despite high evaporation rates it maintains dilute waters by subsurface seepage through permeable sediments and faulted lavas. New geochemical analyses (major ions, trace elements) of the river, lake, and hot spring waters and the suspended sediments have been made to determine the main controls of lake water quality. The results show that evaporative concentration and the binary mixing between two end members (rivers and thermal waters) can explain the hydrochemistry of the lake waters. Two zones are recognized from water composition. The southern part of the lake near sites of perennial river inflow is weakly influenced by evaporation, has low total dissolved species (TDS), and has a seasonally variable load of mainly detrital suspended sediments. In contrast, waters of the northern part of the lake show evidence for strong evaporation (TDS of up to eight times inflow). Authigenic clay minerals and calcite may be precipitating from those more concentrated fluids. The subaerial hot‐spring waters have a distinctive chemistry and are enriched in some elements that are also present in the lake water. Comparison of the chemical composition of the inflowing surface waters and lake water shows (1) an enrichment of some species (HCO₃^?, Cl, SO₄^2?, F, Na, B, V, Cr, As, Mo, Ba and U) in the lake, (2) a depletion in SiO₂ in the lake, and (3) a possible hydrothermal origin for most F. The rare earth element distribution and the F/Cl and Na/Cl ratios give valuable information on the rate of mixing of the river and hydrothermal fluids in the lake water. Calculations imply that thermal fluids may be seeping upward locally into the lake through grid‐faulted lavas, particularly south of Ol Kokwe Island. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.