Large wood inhibits debris flow runout in forested southeast Alaska

Due to their potentially long runout, debris flows are a major hazard and an important geomorphic process in mountainous environments. Understanding runout is therefore essential to minimize risk in the near-term and interpret the pace and pattern of debris flow erosion and deposition over geomorphic timescales. Many debris flows occur in forested landscapes where they mobilize large volumes of large woody debris (LWD) in addition to sediment, but few studies have quantitatively documented the effects of LWD on runout. Here, we analyze recent and historic debris flows in southeast Alaska, a mountainous, forested system with minimal human alteration. Sixteen debris flows near Sitka triggered on August 18, 2015 or more recently had volumes of 80 to 25 000 m³ and limited mobility compared to a global compilation of similarly-sized debris flows. Their deposits inundated 31% of the planimetric area, and their runout lengths were 48% of that predicted by the global dataset. Depositional slopes were 6°–26°, and mobility index, defined as the ratio of horizontal runout to vertical elevation change, ranged from 1.2 to 3, further indicating low mobility. In the broader southeast Alaskan region consisting of Chichagof and Baranof Islands, remote sensing-based analysis of 1061 historic debris flows showed that mobility index decreased from 2.3–2.5 to 1.4–1.8 as average forest age increased from 0 to 416 years. We therefore interpret that the presence of LWD within a debris flow and standing trees, stumps, and logs in the deposition zone inhibit runout, primarily through granular phenomena such as jamming due to force chains. Calibration of debris flow runout models should therefore incorporate the ecologic as well as geologic setting, and feedbacks between debris flows and vegetation likely control the transport of sediment and organic material through steep, forested catchments over geomorphic time. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Temporal distributions of anthropogenic Al, Zn and Pb in Hong Kong Porites coral during the last two centuries

A 182-year long record of trace metal concentrations of aluminum, zinc and lead was reconstructed from a massive Porites coral skeleton from southeastern Hong Kong to evaluate the impacts of anthropogenic activity on the marine environment. Zn/Ca and Pb/Ca ratios fluctuate synchronously from the early 19th century to the present, indicating that the marine environment has been anthropogenically influenced since industrialization. Additionally, land reclamation, mining, and ship building activities are recorded by elevated Al/Ca ratios from 1900 to 1950. The coral record indicates that high levels of Zn, Pb and Al occur coincidentally with local wars, and may have contributed to partial colony mortality. Pb/Ca does not correlate well with hemispheric proxy records after 1950, indicating that coastal corals may be recording local rather than hemispheric contamination. Pb/Ca levels in Hong Kong, Guangdong and Hainan corals imply a continuous supply of Pb-based contamination to southern China not reflected in hemispheric signals.     

Changes since the onset of acid deposition among calcium-sensitive cladoceran taxa within softwater lakes of Ontario, Canada

Aqueous calcium (Ca) concentrations are currently decreasing in many softwater lakes on the Boreal Shield. As the onset of these declines often pre-date direct monitoring programs, indirect techniques are required to examine the impacts of reduced Ca availability on aquatic communities with relatively high Ca demands such as the Cladocera (Class: Branchiopoda). Among the Cladocera, the family Daphniidae has been identified as a taxonomic group potentially useful for inferring past Ca concentrations due to their high Ca demands and preservation in lake sediments. Here, we use a ??top/bottom?? paleolimnological analysis to compare present-day cladoceran communities preserved in the surface sediments of 36 softwater lakes in south-central Ontario, Canada, which are potentially vulnerable to Ca decline (i.e. small headwater systems with present-day lakewater [Ca]?<?3?mg?L^?1), with the communities present in lake sediments deposited prior to the onset of regional acid deposition. To distinguish the potential impacts of lake acidification from those of Ca availability (as Ca and pH trends are strongly correlated in this region), the study lakes were chosen to be evenly distributed about a present-day lakewater pH of 6 and Ca concentration of 1.5?mg?L^?1 (threshold values). Despite the importance of pH as an explanatory variable for the present-day assemblages, a comparison of the sedimentary remains from the two time periods indicate there have been large declines since pre-industrial times in the relative abundances of Ca-rich Daphnia spp. (particularly of the Daphnia longispina species complex), regardless of present-day pH, accompanied by increases in the Ca-poor species Holopedium glacialis. These observations suggest that recent declines in Ca concentration may have already fallen below baseline conditions, with marked implications for ecosystem function due to the differential responses among cladoceran taxa.