Lava flow hazard at Nyiragongo Volcano,DRC

Mt. Nyiragongo is one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world for the risk associated with the propagation of lava flows. In 2002 several vents opened along a huge system of fractures, pouring out lava which reached and destroyed a considerable part of Goma, a town of about 500,000 inhabitants on the shore of Lake Kivu. In a companion paper (Favalli et al. in Bull Volcanol, this issue, 2008) we employed numerical simulations of probable lava flow paths to evaluate the lava flow hazard on the flanks of the volcano, including the neighbouring towns of Goma (DRC) and Gisenyi (Rwanda). In this paper we use numerical simulations to investigate the possibility of significantly reducing the lava flow hazard in the city through the construction of protective barriers. These barriers are added to the DEM of the area as additional morphological elements, and their effect is evaluated by repeating numerical simulations with and without the presence of barriers. A parametric study on barrier location, size, shape and orientation led to the identification of barriers which maximize protection while minimizing their impact. This study shows that the highest hazard area corresponding to eastern Goma, which was largely destroyed by lava flows in 2002, cannot be effectively protected from future lava flows towards Lake Kivu and should be abandoned. On the contrary, the rest of the town can be sheltered from lava flows by means of two barriers that deviate or contain the lava within the East Goma sector. A proposal for the future development of the town is formulated, whereby “new” Goma is completely safe from the arrival of lava flows originating from vents outside its boundaries. The proposal minimizes the risk of further destruction in town due to future lava flows.     

Seasonal variation in di-nitrogen fluxes and associated processes (denitrification, anammox and nitrogen fixation) in sediment subject to shellfish farming influences

Seasonal patterns of di-nitrogen fluxes together with denitrification, anammox, and N-fixation rates were studied in sediment in an area subject to strong human pressure via waste water, tributaries and shellfish farming in the Mediterranean Sea (Carteau Cove, NW area of the Gulf of Lion). Ammonium concentration demonstrated no seasonal variation, however, a large increase in its concentration was observed over a 10 years period due to intense biodeposition of organic matter. In contrast, nitrate concentration demonstrated no seasonal or long-term (10 years) variation. The main processes affecting di-nitrogen flux magnitudes were denitrification and N-fixation. Anammox was only detected occasionally, nevertheless it represented at times up to 39% of the N₂-flux. Nitrate reducing processes were variable and denitrification showed a 20-fold increase over the past 10 years and might actually have reached its potential maximal activity. Rates of N₂ production (denitrification and anammox) were generally higher than those of N-fixation, leading to elimination of nitrogen from the ecosystem.     

Data reporting norms for 40Ar/39Ar geochronology

Data reported in ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar geochronology studies are commonly insufficient to allow computation of ages. This deficiency renders it difficult to compare ages based on different standards or constants, and often hinders critical evaluation of the results. Herein are presented an enumeration of the data that should be reported in all ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar studies, including a discussion in support of these requirements. The minimum required data are identified and distinguished from parameters that are useful but may be derived from them by calculation. Finally, recommendations are made for metadata needed to document age calculations (e.g., from age spectrum or isochron analyses).     

Petrology and geochronology of basalt breccia from the 1996 earthquake swarm of Loihi seamount, Hawaii: magmatic history of its 1996 eruption

 Samples of basalt were collected during the Rapid Response cruise to Loihi seamount from a breccia that was probably created by the July to August 1996 Loihi earthquake swarm, the largest swarm ever recorded from a Hawaiian volcano. ²¹⁰Po–²¹⁰Pb dating of two fresh lava blocks from this breccia indicates that they were erupted during the first half of 1996, making this the first documented historical eruption of Loihi. Sonobuoys deployed during the August 1996 cruise recorded popping noises north of the breccia site, indicating that the eruption may have been continuing during the swarm. All of the breccia lava fragments are tholeiitic, like the vast majority of Loihi's most recent lavas. Reverse zoning at the rim of clinopyroxene phenocrysts, and the presence of two chemically distinct olivine phenocryst populations, indicate that the magma for the lavas was mixed just prior to eruption. The trace element geochemistry of these lavas indicates there has been a reversal in Loihi's temporal geochemical trend. Although the new Loihi lavas are similar isotopically and geochemically to recent Kilauea lavas and the mantle conduits for these two volcanoes appear to converge at depth, distinct trace element ratios for their recent lavas preclude common parental magmas for these two active volcanoes. The mineralogy of Loihi's recent tholeiitic lavas signify that they crystallized at moderate depths (∼8–9 km) within the volcano, which is approximately 1 km below the hypocenters for earthquakes from the 1996 swarm. Taken together, the petrological and seismic evidence indicates that Loihi's current magma chamber is considerably deeper than the shallow magma chamber (∼3–4 km) in the adjoining active shield volcanoes. Received: 21 August 1997 / Accepted: 15 February 1998     

The composition of nutrient fluxes from contrasting UK river basins

Accurate estimates of N and P loads were obtained for four contrasting UK river basins over a complete annual cycle. The fractionation of these loads into dissolved and particulate, and inorganic and organic components allowed a detailed examination of the nutrient load composition and of the factors influencing both the relative and absolute magnitude of these components. The particulate phosphorus (TPP) loads account for 26–75% of the annual total phosphorus (TP) transport and are predominantly inorganic. The inorganic (PIP) and organic (POP) fractions of the TPP loads represent 20–47% and 6–28% of the annual TP transport, respectively. In contrast, the particulate nitrogen loads (TPN) represent 8% or less of the annual total nitrogen (TN) loads and are predominately organic. For dissolved P transport, the dissolved inorganic fraction (DIP) is more important, representing 15–70% of the TP loads, whereas the dissolved organic fraction (DOP) represents only 3–9% of the TP loads. The TN loads are dominated by the dissolved component and more particularly the total oxidized fraction (TON), which is composed of nitrate and nitrite and represents 76–82% of the annual TN transport. The remaining dissolved N species, ammonium (NH₄-N) and organic N (DON) account for 0·3–1·2% and 13–16% of the annual TN transport, respectively. The TPN and TPP fluxes closely reflect the suspended sediment dynamics of the study basins, which are in turn controlled by basin size and morphology. The dissolved inorganic nutrient fluxes are influenced by point source inputs to the study basins, especially for P, although the TON flux is primarily influenced by diffuse source contributions and the hydrological connectivity between the river and its catchment area. The dissolved organic fractions are closely related to the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) dynamics, which are in turn influenced by land use and basin size. The magnitude of the NH₄-N fraction was dependent on the proximity of the monitoring station to point source discharges, because of rapid nitrification within the water column. However, during storm events, desorption from suspended sediment may be temporarily important. Both the magnitude and relative contribution of the different nutrient fractions exhibit significant seasonal variability in response to the hydrological regime, sediment mobilization, the degree of dilution of point source inputs and biological processes. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Kontamination mit coliformen Keimen durch Insektenlarven bei der Aufbereitung von Trinkwasser

Contamination of Drinking Water with Coliform Organisms by the Larves of Gnats in the Water Treatment Plant E. coli and coliform organisms are used to judge the microbial quality of drinking water. The presence of these organisms in water indicates that there is a risk for faecal oral transmitted pathogen organisms. E. coli shows the faecal contamination of men and warm blooded animals (mammalian and birds), coliform organisms may be excreted as well from cold blooded animals. The cold blooded animals normally don’t excrete pathogen organisms relevant for human beings. So coliform organisms don’t have such a high relevance for drinking water microbiology. In this paper an incident is presented with a contamination of drinking water with coliform organisms in the treatment plant by the larves of gnats. The larves of the gnats crawl into the treatment chamber via entrance for ventilation. The larves were kept back on the surface of the filters but they contaminated the water with coliform organisms.     

Flow prediction in high altitude ungauged catchments: A case study in the Italian Alps (Pantano Basin,Adamello Group)

We develop a simple model to evaluate the daily flow discharges in the ablation season for the 11 km² Pantano basin in the Retiche Italian Alps, based upon the data gathered during a three years field campaign. The Pantano basin embeds the Venerocolo debris covered and the Avio debris free glaciers, covering 2.14 km² in the Adamello Group, where the widest Italian glacier Adamello is located. First, degree-day models based upon air temperature are tuned to calculate snow and ice melt at daily scale. Glaciers’ meteorological data are collected from an automatic weather station (AWS), operating on the glacier during summer 2007. The melt factors in the debris covered areas of the glacier are estimated against debris thickness, using a data driven parameterization. The flow discharge from the catchment is estimated using semi distributed flow routing for the ablation seasons of four years, from 2006 to 2009. The predicted discharges are compared to those derived from inverse reservoir's routing at the Benedetto lake, catching the basin outflow. The proposed approach is valuable as a tool to investigate the hydrology of poorly gauged glacierized areas, including those with debris covered ice, widely diffused and yet poorly understood. Pending accurate parameterization the approach is usable for water resources evaluation and for long term assessment of the climate change impact on the glacierized areas within the Alps.     

The Taconite Inlet Lakes Project: a systems approach to paleoclimatic reconstruction

A comprehensive study of meteorological, hydrological, limnological and sedimentological conditions in the watersheds of density-stratified (meromictic) lakes around Taconite Inlet, Northern Ellesmere Island, N.W.T., Canada was carried out from 1990–1992. Lakes C1 and C2 contain seawater trapped by isostatic uplift as the former embayments became isolated from the sea. These lakes, and Lake C3, contain varved sediments which provide an annually resolvable paleoclimatic record. By studing the major systems influencing sedimentation in one of these lakes (Lake C2) a better understanding of the climatic controls on varve formation, and hence on the paleoclimatic signal in the varved sediment record, was obtained. The varves of Lake C2 provide a proxy record of summer temperature for the region.This is the first in a series of papers published in this issue on the Taconite Inlet Lakes Project. These papers were collected by Dr R. S. Bradley.     

Periodicity of magnetic intensities in magnetic anomaly profiles: the Cenozoic of the South Atlantic

Spectral analyses of several published magnetic anomaly profiles from Candé & Kent (1992a) were undertaken prior to analysing, in the same way, raw magnetic anomaly data from similar parts of the South Atlantic. It was found that similar and distinct medium and short wavelengths were present in both the published and raw data. When these are converted into the time domain using the average rate of spreading for each profile, these periodicities appear similar, possibly identical, to those expected from the long-term eccentricity orbital parameters (Fischer, DeBoer & Premoli Silva 1990). While such correlations are not necessarily causative, they suggest that magnetohydro-dynamical processes near the core-mantle boundary may be affected by gravitational changes due to planetary orbital perturbations.