Toxicities of antifouling biocide Irgarol 1051 and its major degraded product to marine primary producers

Irgarol 1051 (2-methythiol-4-tert-butylamino-6-cyclopropylamino-s-triazine) is an algaecide commonly used in antifouling paints. It undergoes photodegradation which yields M1 (2-methylthio-4-tert-butylamino-6-amino-s-triazine) as its major and most stable degradant. Elevated levels of both Irgarol and M1 have been detected in coastal waters worldwide; however, ecotoxicity effects of M1 to various marine autotrophs such as cyanobacteria are still largely unknown. This study firstly examined and compared the 96 h toxicities of Irgarol and M1 to the cyanobacterium Chroococcus minor and two marine diatom species, Skeletonema costatum and Thalassiosira pseudonana. Our results suggested that Irgarol was consistently more toxic to all of the three species than M1 (96 h EC50 values: C. minor, 7.71 microug L(-1) Irgarol vs. > 200 microg L(-1) M1; S. costatum, 0.29 microg L(-1) Irgarol vs. 11.32 microg L(-1)M1; and T. pseudonana, 0.41 microg L(-1) Irgarol vs. 16.50 microg L(-1)M1). Secondly, we conducted a meta-analysis of currently available data on toxicities of Irgarol and M1 to both freshwater and marine primary producers based on species sensitivity distributions (SSDs). Interestingly, freshwater autotrophs are more sensitive to Irgarol than their marine counterparts. For marine autotrophs, microalgae are generally more sensitive to Irgarol than macroalgae and cyanobacteria. With very limited available data on M1 (i.e. five species), M1 might be less toxic than Irgarol; nonetheless this finding warrants further confirmation with additional data on other autotrophic species.     

Cobble cam: grain‐size measurements of sand to boulder from digital photographs and autocorrelation analyses

A new application of the autocorrelation grain size analysis technique for mixed to coarse sediment settings has been investigated. Photographs of sand‐ to boulder‐sized sediment along the Elwha River delta beach were taken from approximately 1·2 m above the ground surface, and detailed grain size measurements were made from 32 of these sites for calibration and validation. Digital photographs were found to provide accurate estimates of the long and intermediate axes of the surface sediment (r² > 0·98), but poor estimates of the short axes (r² = 0·68), suggesting that these short axes were naturally oriented in the vertical dimension. The autocorrelation method was successfully applied resulting in total irreducible error of 14% over a range of mean grain sizes of 1 to 200 mm. Compared with reported edge and object‐detection results, it is noted that the autocorrelation method presented here has lower error and can be applied to a much broader range of mean grain sizes without altering the physical set‐up of the camera (～200‐fold versus ～6‐fold). The approach is considerably less sensitive to lighting conditions than object‐detection methods, although autocorrelation estimates do improve when measures are taken to shade sediments from direct sunlight. The effects of wet and dry conditions are also evaluated and discussed. The technique provides an estimate of grain size sorting from the easily calculated autocorrelation standard error, which is correlated with the graphical standard deviation at an r² of 0·69. The technique is transferable to other sites when calibrated with linear corrections based on photo‐based measurements, as shown by excellent grain‐size analysis results (r² = 0·97, irreducible error = 16%) from samples from the mixed grain size beaches of Kachemak Bay, Alaska. Thus, a method has been developed to measure mean grain size and sorting properties of coarse sediments. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Vulnerability and adaptation to climate-related fire impacts in rural and urban interior Alaska

This paper explores whether fundamental differences exist between urban and rural vulnerability to climate-induced changes in the fire regime of interior Alaska. We further examine how communities and fire managers have responded to these changes and what additional adaptations could be put in place. We engage a variety of social science methods, including demographic analysis, semi-structured interviews, surveys, workshops and observations of public meetings. This work is part of an interdisciplinary study of feedback and interactions between climate, vegetation, fire and human components of the Boreal forest social–ecological system of interior Alaska. We have learned that although urban and rural communities in interior Alaska face similar increased exposure to wildfire as a result of climate change, important differences exist in their sensitivity to these biophysical, climate-induced changes. In particular, reliance on wild foods, delayed suppression response, financial resources and institutional connections vary between urban and rural communities. These differences depend largely on social, economic and institutional factors, and are not necessarily related to biophysical climate impacts per se. Fire management and suppression action motivated by political, economic or other pressures can serve as unintentional or indirect adaptation to climate change. However, this indirect response alone may not sufficiently reduce vulnerability to a changing fire regime. More deliberate and strategic responses may be required, given the magnitude of the expected climate change and the likelihood of an intensification of the fire regime in interior Alaska.     

The effect of annealing on the luminescence decay-time of synthetic calcite:Mn

Calcite was synthesized by four methods, and the luminescence decay-time was measured for nine samples before and after heating hydrothermally in the temperature range 200–400°C. Decay-time data were collected between room temperature and approximately 15 K. The decay time at room temperature is approximately 50 ms, with little difference between a given calcite before and after hydrothermal treatment. The decay time at 15 K is always greater than at room temperature as the effect of thermal quenching diminishes. Differences in decay time before and after heating are more apparent at low temperature owing to this reduction in thermal quenching. The decay time decreased significantly in two samples, and an increase in decay time was observed in the remaining seven samples following heating. Among the latter group, the change in decay time was insignificant in three samples. The results are compared with previous data in which it was shown that the effect of heating is to increase the intensity of luminescence.     

A stepwise screening system to select storm-sensitive stalagmites: Taking a targeted approach to speleothem sampling methodology

A stepwise stalagmite sample screening process was applied in order to select a stalagmite as a sensitive recorder of recent tropical cyclone rainfall events near Belize. Field and laboratory criteria were combined in series, to screen out candidate stalagmites whose characteristics indicated lower sensitivity to stormwater infiltration. The approach described here was designed to increase the likelihood that selected stalagmites would increase the signal:noise ratio of the target phenomenon in the resulting proxy records. This four-stage method for sample selection may be an important methodological consideration for researchers attempting to use speleothems for stable isotope paleotempestology. Hallmarks of this approach include: (1) establishing a priori scientific targets, (2) applying sample criteria in the form of contra-indicators, and (3) organizing the sample screening protocol into a series of practical stages. The overall approach to stalagmite selection presented here supports cave conservation, and can be adapted readily by others in support of different scientific goals. It is hoped that other investigators will also publish field and laboratory sample selection schemes, as increased transparency will provide new information invaluable to replication efforts and to advancing the field of speleothem paleo-environmental studies.     

Patterns of Plant Diversity in Georgia and Texas Salt Marshes

A fundamental question in ecology is how biological interactions and biogeographic processes interact to determine the biodiversity of local sites. We quantified patterns of plant species diversity on transects across elevation at 59 salt marsh sites in Georgia and 49 sites in Texas. Although these regions have similar climates and floras, we anticipated that diversity might differ because of differences in tidal regime. Diversity was measured at global, regional, site, and plot scales to consider processes occurring at all levels. Species pools were similar between regions. Texas had greater diversity at the site and plot scales, suggesting that processes occurring at the site scale differed. The greater diversity of Texas sites and plots was associated with wider distributions of individual species across the marsh landscape and proportionally more middle marsh (a high diversity zone) and less low marsh (a low diversity zone) than in Georgia marshes. Preliminary data suggested that these differences were not due to differences in salinity regime or standing biomass between regions, leaving differences in tidal regime as the most plausible hypothesis accounting for differences in plant diversity. We speculate that the less-predictable tidal regime in Texas leads to temporal variation in abiotic conditions that limit the ability of any one species to competitively exclude others from particular marsh zones.     

Tectonostratigraphic and geochronologic constraints on evolution of the northeast Paleotethys from the Songpan-Ganzi complex, central China

The Middle to Late Triassic deep-water deposits that form the Songpan-Ganzi complex (SGC) of central China comprise an estimated ~ 2.0 × 10⁶ km³ of detrital material that accumulated in the northeasternmost branch of the Paleotethys. A review of existing data demonstrates significant spatial and temporal variations in the stratigraphic and petrologic character of these turbidites. These variations are used to divide the complex into different depocenters: a northeastern depocenter (SGC-NE), a eastern–central depocenter (SGC-EC) and a northwestern depocenter (SGC-NW). Turbidite strata of the SGC-NE and SGC-EC zones of the Songpan-Ganzi complex are linked to the collision of the North China and South China blocks, whereas turbidite strata of the SGC-NW area are likely to be more closely affiliated with evolution of the Kunlun deformation belt. To test the validity of the Songpan-Ganzi stratigraphic framework and interpretations of its tectonostratigraphic evolution, sixty-eight U–Pb zircon ages were determined from five samples of felsic intrusive igneous rock, two samples from felsic plutonic rock of the adjacent Yidun arc complex, and one sample of volcanic rock interbedded with Middle Triassic turbidites of the SGC using the Sensitive High Resolution Ion Microprobe-Reverse Geometry (SHRIMP-RG). Together these data indicate primarily Late Triassic (~ 214–211 Ma) felsic magmatism in the SGC, with some indication of magmatic activity beginning as early as Middle Triassic (220 Ma). Zircon ages from the Yidun arc complex support Middle–Late Triassic magmatism from 225–215 Ma, prior to deformation of the SGC, suggesting deformation of the SGC was not related to subduction of the SGC substrate southwestward beneath the Yidun arc. Inherited Neoproterozoic (880–740 Ma) zircon ages found in two samples from the SGC-EC indicate either inheritance of zircon crystals from the surrounding SGC turbidite strata or possibly involvement of South China basement during crustal thickening and magma genesis.     

Creating the taste of place in the United States: can we learn from the French?

In the United States, there is a growing awareness of the implications of our globalized food system, a system that incorporates all manner of agriculture, food distribution, food processing and transformation, and consumption. The ever increasing distance between where our food is produced and where it is consumed has helped spur a movement to develop a system of place based foods. Right now multiple models are in play, including farmers markets, community supported agriculture, and the localvore movement. This article will do a close examination of another model from France, the French system of appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC); nationally regulated by the French Ministry of Agriculture it supports and protects foods and drinks with unique links to particular territories. The AOC system is based on geographically distinct and historically specific food and drink found throughout France. By closely examining one AOC product—Comté cheese produced in the rural agricultural region in Jura—the authors consider the possibilities for an AOC-style system in the United States.