Quota discarding and distributive justice: The case of the under-10 m fishing fleet in Sussex,England

Marine fish discarding has become a contentious environmental issue, but little attention has been paid to the moral grievances that sometimes underlie discarding practices. This article explores such a moral grievance through a case study of the under-10 m fishery in Sussex, England, where discarding of cod (Gadus morhua) has become a highly charged issue, skippers blaming it on unjust quota allocations. The moral claim to a greater quota allocation is analysed using two conceptions of distributive justice, entitlement and desert. The conclusion reached is that the under-10 m fleet’s entitlement arguments for a higher quota are weaker than their desert arguments, but that entitlement arguments weigh more heavily than desert arguments with government when it allocates quota.     

Nitrogen concentration and δN of altered oceanic crust obtained on ODP Legs 129 and 185: Insights into alteration-related nitrogen enrichment and the nitrogen subduction budget

Knowledge of the subduction input flux of nitrogen (N) in altered oceanic crust (AOC) is critical in any attempt to mass-balance N across arc-trench systems on a global or individual-margin basis. We have employed sealed-tube, carrier-gas-based methods to examine the N concentrations and isotopic compositions of AOC. Analyses of 53 AOC samples recovered on DSDP/ODP legs from the North and South Pacific, the North Atlantic, and the Antarctic oceans (with larger numbers of samples from Site 801 outboard of the Mariana trench and Site 1149 outboard of the Izu trench), and 14 composites for the AOC sections at Site 801, give N concentrations of 1.3 to 18.2 ppm and δ¹⁵N_Air of −11.6‰ to +8.3‰, indicating significant N enrichment probably during the early stages of hydrothermal alteration of the oceanic basalts. The N-δ¹⁵N modeling for samples from Sites 801 and 1149 (n = 39) shows that the secondary N may come from (1) the sedimentary N in the intercalated sediments and possibly overlying sediments via fluid-sediment/rock interaction, and (2) degassed mantle N₂ in seawater via alteration-related abiotic reduction processes. For all Site 801 samples, weak correlation of N and K₂O contents indicates that the siting of N in potassic alteration phases strongly depends on N availability and is possibly influenced by highly heterogeneous temperature and redox conditions during hydrothermal alteration.The upper 470-m AOC recovered by ODP Legs 129 and 185 delivers approximately 8 × 10⁵ g/km N annually into the Mariana margin. If the remaining less-altered oceanic crust (assuming 6.5 km, mostly dikes and gabbros) has MORB-like N of 1.5 ppm, the entire oceanic crust transfers 5.1 × 10⁶ g/km N annually into that trench. This N input flux is twice as large as the annual N input of 2.5 × 10⁶ g/km in seafloor sediments subducting into the same margin, demonstrating that the N input in oceanic crust, and its isotopic consequences, must be considered in any assessment of convergent margin N flux.     

A model of the heliospheric magnetic field configuration

A three-dimensional model of the magnetic field configuration in the heliosphere is constructed by assuming that the interplanetary magnetic field consists of four components, (i) the solar dipole, (ii) a large number of small spherical dipoles located along an equatorial circle just inside the Sun (representing the magnetic field line arcade), (iii) the field of the poloidal current system generated by the solar unipolar induction and (iv) the field of an extensive current disc around the Sun lying in the ecliptic plane. The magnetic field intensity at a distance of 1 A.U. (about 20 R⊙ above the ecliptic plane) is normalized to fit the observed spiral configuration.     

Relationships between air mass properties and mesoscale rainfall in New Zealand's Southern Alps

This paper identifies relationships between air mass properties and mesoscale rainfall when moist air blows over New Zealand's Southern Alps from the Tasman Sea. Around 50% of the variance in six-hourly rain volumes summed across three separate cross-mountain raingauge transects and in six-hourly rain volume spilling across the alpine divide are statistically explained by the following properties of the approaching air mass: relative humidity, wind velocity normal to the mountains, air mass stability and synoptically induced upward motion. These factors also explain about 25% (r≈0.5) of the variance in the downwind distance reached by the spillover rainfall. For the highest 10% of six-hourly rainfalls, spillover distance and magnitude are negatively correlated with the 700 or 500 hPa temperature. Multiple linear regression equations suitable for predicting rainfall intensity and spillover are developed. A progression is described in the magnitude and depth of vertical motion and resulting condensation rates over the mountains as the properties of the incoming air mass evolve through a storm. These changes, together with greater downwind advection of ice particles compared to raindrops, explain the observed statistical relationships between the air mass properties and mountain rainfall.     

Stratigraphy and Mesozoic–Cenozoic tectonic history of northern Sierra Los Ajos and adjacent areas,Sonora, Mexico

Geologic mapping in the northern Sierra Los Ajos reveals new stratigraphic and structural data relevant to deciphering the Mesozoic–Cenozoic tectonic evolution of the range. The northern Sierra Los Ajos is cored by Proterozoic, Cambrian, Devonian, Mississippian, and Pennsylvanian strata, equivalent respectively to the Pinal Schist, Bolsa Quartzite and Abrigo Limestone, Martin Formation, Escabrosa Limestone, and Horquilla Limestone. The Proterozoic–Paleozoic sequence is mantled by Upper Cretaceous rocks partly equivalent to the Fort Crittenden and Salero Formations in Arizona, and the Cabullona Group in Sonora, Mexico.Absence of the Upper Jurassic–Lower Cretaceous Bisbee Group below the Upper Cretaceous rocks and above the Proterozoic–Paleozoic rocks indicates that the Sierra Los Ajos was part of the Cananea high, a topographic highland during the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous. Deposition of Upper Cretaceous rocks directly on Paleozoic and Proterozoic rocks indicates that the Sierra Los Ajos area had subsided as part of the Laramide Cabullona basin during Late Cretaceous time. Basal beds of the Upper Cretaceous sequence are clast-supported conglomerate composed locally of basement (Paleozoic) clasts. The conglomerate represents erosion of Paleozoic basement in the Sierra Los Ajos area coincident with development of the Cabullona basin.The present-day Sierra Los Ajos reaches elevations of greater than 2600 m, and was uplifted during Tertiary basin-and-range extension. Upper Cretaceous rocks are exposed at higher elevations in the northern Sierra Los Ajos and represent an uplifted part of the inverted Cabullona basin. Tertiary uplift of the Sierra Los Ajos was largely accommodated by vertical movement along the north-to-northwest-striking Sierra Los Ajos fault zone flanking the west side of the range. This fault zone structurally controls the configuration of the headwaters of the San Pedro River basin, an important bi-national water resource in the US-Mexico border region.     

Nanophase magnetite in matrix of anomalous EL3 chondrite Northwest Africa (NWA) 8785

NWA 8785 is a remarkable EL3 chondrite with a high abundance (~34 vol%) of an Fe-rich matrix. This is the highest matrix abundance known among enstatite chondrites (ECs) and more similar to the matrix abundances in some carbonaceous and Rumuruti chondrites. X-ray diffraction and TEM data indicate that the fine-grained portion of the NWA 8785 matrix consists of nanoscale magnetite mixed with a noncrystalline silicate material and submicron-sized enstatite and plagioclase grains. This is the first report of magnetite nanoparticles in an EL3. The Si content of the metal (0.7 wt%), presence of ferroan alabandite, and its O isotopic composition indicate NWA 8785 is EL3-related. Having more abundant matrix than in other ECs, and that the matrix is rich in magnetite nanoparticles, which are not present in any other EC, suggest classification as an EL3 anomalous. Although we cannot completely exclude any of the mechanisms or environments for formation of the magnetite, we find a secondary origin to be the most compelling. We suggest that the magnetite formed due to hydrothermal activity in the meteorite parent body. Although ECs are relatively dry and likely formed within the nebular snow line, ices may have drifted inward from just beyond the snow line to the region where the EL chondrites were accreting, or more likely the snow line migrated inward during the early evolution of the solar system. This may have resulted in the condensation of ices and provided an ice-rich region for accretion of the EL3 parent body. Thus, the EL3 parent body may have had hydrothermal activity and if Earth formed near the EC accretion zone, similar bodies may have contributed to the Earth's water supply. NWA 8785 greatly extends the range of known characteristics of ECs and EC parent body processes.     

An 1800-yr record of decadal-scale hydroclimatic variability in the upper Arkansas River basin from bristlecone pine

Bristlecone pine trees are exceptionally long-lived, and with the incorporation of remnant material have been used to construct multi-millennial length ring–width chronologies. These chronologies can provide valuable information about past temperature and moisture variability. In this study, we outline a method to build a moisture-sensitive bristlecone chronology and assess the robustness and consistency of this sensitivity over the past 1200 yr using new reconstructions of Arkansas River flow (AD 1275–2002 and 1577–2002) and the summer Palmer Drought Sensitivity Index. The chronology, a composite built from parts of three collections in the central Rocky Mountains, is a proxy for decadal-scale moisture variability for the past 18 centuries. Since the sample size is small in some portions of the time series, the chronology should be considered preliminary; the timing and duration of drought events are likely the most robust characteristics. This chronology suggests that the region experienced increased aridity during the medieval period, as did much of western North America, but that the timing and duration of drought episodes within this period were somewhat different from those in other western locations, such as the upper Colorado River basin.