The record of historic earthquakes in lake sediments of Central Switzerland

Deformation structures in lake sediments in Central Switzerland can be attributed to strong historic earthquakes. The type and spatial distribution of the deformation structures reflect the historically documented macroseismic intensities thus providing a useful calibration tool for paleoseismic investigations in prehistoric lake sediments.The Swiss historical earthquake catalogue shows four moderate to strong earthquakes with moment magnitudes of M_w=5.7 to M_w=6.9 and epicentral intensities of I₀=VII to I₀=IX that affected the area of Central Switzerland during the last 1000 years. These are the 1964 Alpnach, 1774 Altdorf, 1601 Unterwalden, and 1356 Basel earthquakes. In order to understand the effect of these earthquakes on lacustrine sediments, four lakes in Central Switzerland (Sarner See, Lungerer See, Baldegger See, and Seelisberg Seeli) were investigated using high-resolution seismic data and sediment cores. The sediments consist of organic- and carbonate-rich clayey to sandy silts that display fine bedding on the centimeter to millimeter scale. The sediments are dated by historic climate and environmental records, ¹³⁷Cs activity, and radiocarbon ages. Deformation structures occur within distinct zones and include large-scale slumps and rockfalls, as well as small-scale features like disturbed and contorted lamination and liquefaction structures. These deformations are attributed to three of the abovementioned earthquakes. The spatial distribution of deformation structures in the different lakes clearly reflects the historical macroseismic dataset: Lake sediments are only affected if they are situated within an area that underwent groundshaking not smaller than intensity VI to VII. We estimate earthquake size by relating the epicentral distance of the farthest liquefaction structure to earthquake magnitude. This relationship is in agreement with earthquake size estimations based on the historical dataset.     

Bathymetric distribution patterns of Southern Ocean macrofaunal taxa: Bivalvia, Gastropoda, Isopoda and Polychaeta

The aim of this study is to compare the depth distributions of four major Southern Ocean macrobenthic epi- and infaunal taxa, the Bivalvia, Gastropoda, Isopoda, and Polychaeta, from subtidal to abyssal depth. All literature data up to summer 2008, as well as the unpublished data from the most recent ANDEEP I–III (Antarctic benthic deep-sea biodiversity: colonisation history and recent community patterns) expeditions to the Southern Ocean deep sea are included in the analysis. Benthic invertebrates in the Southern Ocean are known for their wide bathymetric ranges. We analysed the distributions of four of the most abundant and species-rich taxa from intertidal to abyssal (5200 m) depths in depth zones of 100 m. The depth distributions of three macrofaunal classes (Bivalvia, Gastropoda, Polychaeta) and one order (Isopoda) showed distinct differences. In the case of bivalves, gastropods and polychaetes, the number of species per depth zone decreased from the shelf to the slope at around 1000 m depth and then showed stable low numbers. The isopods showed the opposite trend; they were less species rich in the upper 1000 m but increased in species numbers from the slope to bathyal and abyssal depths. Depth ranges of families of the studied taxa (Bivalvia: 31 families, Gastropoda: 60, Isopoda: 32, and Polychaeta: 46 families) were compiled and illustrated. At present vast areas of the deep sea in the Southern Ocean remain unexplored and species accumulation curves showed that only a fraction of the species have been discovered to date. We anticipate that further investigations will greatly increase the number of species known in the Southern Ocean deep sea.     

Accounting for carbon dioxide emissions from international shipping: Burden sharing under different UNFCCC allocation options and regime scenarios

CO₂ emissions from international shipping, which are currently unregulated, are predicted to rise dramatically if no regulations are implemented. International bunker fuel emissions have been excluded from the Kyoto Protocol; the UNFCCC conference in Copenhagen also failed to bring about clear directions on how to proceed with these emissions.     

A pilot-scale field experiment for the microbial neutralization of a holomictic acidic pit lake

A strategy to neutralize acidic pit lakes was tested in an upscaling process using field mesocosms of 26 to ca. 4500 m³ volume in the acidic pit Mining Lake 111 in Germany. After addition of the substrates Carbokalk and straw a neutral sediment layer formed, in which microbial sulfate and iron reduction as well as sulfide precipitation occurred. The net rate of neutralization was limited by the precipitation of iron sulfides rather than by microbial reactions. Oxidation of H₂S by ferric iron in the anoxic sediment lowered the net sulfate reduction rate. Seasonal fluctuations of iron sulfides in the sediment showed that the reaction products were not necessarily stable. The long-term success of the approach depends on the net partition of the precipitated iron-(mono-/di-) sulfide that is permanently buried in the anoxic sediment. It could be shown by field experiments that the long-term success of the neutralization depends on the spatial scale and duration of the experiments. Volumes from 26 to 4500 m³, exposition times from 4 months to 5 years, and increasingly thick coverings of the sediments with straw, from zero to 40 cm, were used. Net neutralization rates decreased from 41 meq m^− 2 d^− 1 in laboratory microcosms to a mean rate of 2.3 meq m^− 2 d^− 1 in the 4500 m³ field experiment. The results show that the success of the microbial treatment of acid pit lakes lastly depends on the limnological conditions in the lake that cannot be simulated by upscaling of simple laboratory experiments.     

Necessary restructuring or globalization failure? Shifts in regional supplier relations after the merger of the former German Hoechst and French Rhône-Poulenc groups

A large part of the work in economic geography and other social sciences surrounding globalization processes has focused on the prospects of economic growth due to the establishment of global production chains and the rise of new clusters of industrial activity. In recent years, much less attention has been paid to former growth industries and regions that have suffered from the negative consequences of internationalization processes. This paper will explore the cases of two chemical regions, i.e. southern Hessen, Germany and Rhône-Alpes, France. Both regions were forced to undergo drastic restructuring since the mid 1990s due to the merger of the chemical groups Hoechst and Rhône-Poulenc into Aventis. The paper argues that it is beneficial to develop a relational perspective of economic action and interaction in order to better understand these regional transformations and restructuring processes and their consequences. Instead of investigating the development of activities, which became the core operations at Aventis, we will focus on other activities that were considered less important and, consequently, split off. In analyzing the logic of restructuring and the associated changes in regional supplier relations, this paper aims to contribute to a relational understanding of economic globalization and its associated threats to regional development by focusing on agents who are subject to negative restructuring consequences.     

True polar wander in mantle convection models with multiple, mobile continents

The geologic record supports numerous instances during which continents apparently moved at speeds significantly faster than any of today's tectonic plates. While the time dependence of convective driving forces likely explains some such observations, rapid motions of large continents in particular are often attributed to true polar wander (TPW). In order to gauge the potential for connections between continents, mantle temperature anomalies, and polar motion, we present the first calculations of TPW derived from models that couple mantle convection with multiple, mobile continents. We find that the aggregation and dispersal of supercontinents can lead to two types of TPW, driven either by a well developed hot upwelling axis that creates a stable maximum moment of inertia, or by the homogenization of mantle thermal structure following continent dispersal that leads to destabilization of the principal axis and possible large magnitude polar wander. These supercontinent-modulated thermal heterogeneities drive model TPW events as large as 90° at rates of up to 2.5° Ma^− 1. Such magnitudes and speeds are greater than those attained in similar models lacking continents, but comparable to those for episodes inferred from paleomagnetic data for some large continents in the past.