Application of matrix analysis in delineating sinkhole risk areas along highway (I-70 near Frederick,Maryland)

Sinkhole collapse in the area of Maryland Interstate 70 (I-70) and nearby roadways south of Frederick, Maryland, has been posing a threat to the safety of the highway operation as well as other structures. The occurrence of sinkholes is associated with intensive land development. However, the geological conditions that have been developing over the past 200 million years in the Frederick Valley control the locations of the sinkholes. Within an area of approximately 8 km², 138 sinkholes are recorded and their spatial distribution is irregular, but clustered. The clustering indicates the existence of an interaction between the sinkholes. The point pattern of sinkholes is considered to be a sample of a Gibbsian point process from which the hard-core Strauss Model is developed. The radius of influence is calculated for the recorded sinkholes which are most likely to occur within 30 m of an existing sinkhole. The stochastic analysis of the existing sinkholes is biased toward the areas with intensive land use. This bias is adjusted by considering (1) topography, (2) proximity to topographic depressions, (3) interpreted rock formation, (4) soil type, (5) geophysical anomalies, (6) proximity to geologic structures, and (7) thickness of overburden. Based on the properties of each factor, a scoring system is developed and the average relative risk score for individual 30-m segments of the study area is calculated. The areas designated by higher risk levels would have greater risk of a sinkhole collapse than the areas designated by lower risk levels. This risk assessment approach can be updated as more information becomes available.     

Paleoenvironmental evolution of the Paratethys in the Slovenian Basin during the Late Paleogene

Several sections from the uppermost Eocene and Oligocene of northern Slovenia have been investigated with respect to sedimentary facies, foraminiferal assemblages, stable isotopes, carbonate microfacies, and palynology. The main objective was to reconstruct the paleoenvironmental history of the Paleogene Paratethys in this region of the eastern Alpine realm. The sediments exhibit a transgressive succession beginning with conglomerates, sandstones, and mudstones of fluvial and lacustrine origin followed by carbonates and muddy marls indicating marine conditions. The foraminiferal faunal changes from brackish to shallow marine to deeper marine assemblages and the distribution of the palynofloras corroborate the sedimentological results. Microfacies analysis of the limestones shows a wide variation of shallow water, generally mud-rich facies dominated by coralline algae, foraminifera, and corals. Microfaunas adapted to low-oxygen conditions indicate temporal sluggish bottom-water circulation which can be associated with high fresh-water fluxes. These results are discussed as reflecting both the global sea-level rise during the Early Oligocene and the regional tectonic and climatic evolution.     

Trees as riparian engineers: the Tagliamento river,Italy

Pristine river corridors were characterized by island and floodplain development driven by the inter‐play of flows, sediments and woody vegetation. Here we explore these relationships within topographically controlled settings within the upper, middle and lower reaches of a large, semi‐natural alpine to mediterranean river. These reaches have expanding or contracting valley floors within which we show that there are more or less predictable patterns of stream power and rates of vegetation growth, reflecting water availability during dry periods and also the availability of sand and finer sediment. We relate these to the pattern of island distribution that is repeated within the three reaches and is indicative of the engineering role of riparian trees. Islands are shown to develop within thresholds defined by stream power, rates of woody vegetation growth and rates of sedimentation, and to develop most quickly where riparian species include those capable of sprouting from driftwood. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analytical study of the energy rate balance equation for the magnetospheric storm-ring current

We present some results of the analytical integration of the energy rate balance equation, assuming that the input energy rate is proportional to the azimuthal interplanetary electric field, E_y, and can be described by simple rectangular or triangular functions, as approximations to the frequently observed shapes of E_y, especially during the passage of magnetic clouds. The input function is also parametrized by a reconnection-transfer efficiency factor (which is assumed to vary between 0.1 and 1). Our aim is to solve the balance equation and derive values for the decay parameter compatible with the observed Dst peak values. To facilitate the analytical integration we assume a constant value for through the main phase of the storm. The model is tested for two isolated and well-monitored intense storms. For these storms the analytical results are compared to those obtained by the numerical integration of the balance equation, based on the interplanetary data collected by the ISEE-3 satellite, with the values parametrized close to those obtained by the analytical study. From the best fit between this numerical integration and the observed Dst the most appropriate values of are then determined. Although we specifically focus on the main phase of the storms, this numerical integration has been also extended to the recovery phase by an independent adjust. The results of the best fit for the recovery phase show that the values of may differ drastically from those corresponding to the main phase. The values of the decay parameter for the main phase of each event, _m, are found to be very sensitive to the adopted efficiency factor, , decreasing as this factor increases. For the recovery phase, which is characterized by very low values of the power input, the response function becomes almost independent of the value of and the resulting values for the decay time parameter, _r, do not vary greatly as varies. As a consequence, the relative values of between the main and the recovery phase, _m/_r, can be greater or smaller than one as varies from 0.1 to 1.     

Process identification at a slow‐moving landslide in the Vorarlberg Alps

A fine‐grained slope that exhibits slow movement rates was investigated to understand how geohydrological processes contribute to a consecutive development of mass movements in the Vorarlberg Alps, Austria. For that purpose intensive hydrometeorological, hydrogeological and geotechnical observations as well as surveying of surface movement rates were conducted during 1998–2001. Subsurface water dynamics at the creeping slope turned out to be dominated by a three‐dimensional pressure system. The pressure reaction is triggered by fast infiltration of surface water and subsequent lateral water flow in the south‐western part of the hillslope. The related pressure signal was shown to propagate further downhill, causing fast reactions of the piezometric head at 5·5 m depth on a daily time scale. The observed pressure reactions might belong to a temporary hillslope water body that extends further downhill. The related buoyancy forces could be one of the driving forces for the mass movement. A physically based hydrological model was adopted to model simultaneously surface and subsurface water dynamics including evapotranspiration and runoff production. It was possible to reproduce surface runoff and observed pressure reactions in principle. However, as soil hydraulic functions were only estimated on pedotransfer functions, a quantitative comparison between observed and simulated subsurface dynamics is not feasible. Nevertheless, the results suggest that it is possible to reconstruct important spatial structures based on sparse observations in the field which allow reasonable simulations with a physically based hydrological model. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Diet of Haplognathia ruberrima (Gnathostomulida) in a Caribbean marine mangrove

Haplognathia ruberrima is a cosmopolitan gnathostomulid species found in sulfur bacterial mats in mangroves in Guadeloupe (French West Indies). Haplognathia ruberrima presents a δ¹³C value lower than all measured meiofaunal grazers and lower than the available measured food sources of this environment. This low δ¹³C value can not be due to specific ingestion of ¹³C‐depleted methanogenic bacteria because abundances of those bacteria are reduced in surficial and deep sediments as revealed by δ¹³C of bacterial fatty acid. According to scanning electron microscope observations, no bacterial ectosymbionts were observed at the surface of the gnathostomulids, and transmission electron microscope views revealed the absence of bacterial endosymbionts. Energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy analysis detected low levels of sulfur (0.32%±0.8) in biological tissues of H. ruberrima, confirming the absence of thioautotrophic bacterial symbionts in these animals. Consequently, the low δ¹³C value of H. ruberrima can not be due to the presence of sulfur‐oxidizing symbionts but more probably to the selective and exclusive consumption of free‐living, sulfur‐oxidizing bacteria.     

Stramonita haemastoma as a bioindicator for organotin contamination in coastal environments

Stramonita haemastoma was investigated as a suitable bioindicator of TBT and TPhT contamination in the tropical Atlantic Ocean by: 1. Imposex induction in healthy females after inoculation with TBT and TPhT in the laboratory; and 2. Determining incidence of imposex in S. haemastoma collected from areas with various levels of tributyltin (TBT) and triphenyltin (TPhT) and determining the concentrations of these chemical in its tissues and that of its prey, the mussell Perna pernas. Imposex intensities and organotin concentrations in tissues showed good correlation, indicating S. haemastoma as a reliable bioindicator of TBT and TPhT contamination in coastal waters. Body burden threshold of TBT and TPhT for imposex induction was estimated to be 10-20 ng g(-1).     

Probable Neolithic footprints preserved in inter-tidal peat at Kenfig, South Wales (UK)

Holocene footprints have been reported from several locations around the UK coast preserved within inter-tidal sediments. These sediments are normally fine-grained silts, sands and clays. Here we report potential human footprints preserved in the lower of two inter-tidal peat units exposed on the foreshore at Kenfig in South Wales. The lower peat layer pre-dates 3810 ± 40 BP and its maximum age is constrained by two dates, one of 4930 ± 50 BP and another of 5110 ± 50 BP. The prints may have formed at any point within this time interval. Both peat units formed in a salt marsh, or fen environment, as indicated by the analysis of both diatoms and pollen and have been tentatively assigned to the middle Wentlooge Formation within the Holocene lithostratigraphy established for the Severn Estuary Holocene sequence. The footprints were digitised using an optical laser scanner and are compared to other Holocene human footprints exposed on the Sefton Coast in North West England. In comparison the Kenfig prints have poor anatomical form which may be the result of both the substrate and post-depositional modification. The paper demonstrates the value of using optical laser scanning in the data capture and analysis of transitory archaeological and geological trace evidence.     

Settling and resuspended particles: A source or a sink of phosphate in two contrasting oligotrophic high mountain lakes?

This study focuses on two Mediterranean oligotrophic high mountain lakes located in the Sierra Nevada National Park (southern Spain): Río Seco (RS) and La Caldera (LC). A combination of field measurements and laboratory experiments is used: (i) to quantify in situ settling fluxes; (ii) to study the soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) release or uptake by settling and resuspended particles; and (iii) to discriminate between the biotic and abiotic contribution for such patterns. In general, all suspensions (lake water untreated and lake water enriched with settling and with resuspended matter) in both study lakes release significantly more SRP to the solution when biological activity was suppressed. Biological uptake from settling and resuspended matter is likely to be limited by the bacterial consumption of P. Despite of these similarities, this study has revealed notable differences in the effect of sediment resuspension on SRP dynamics in both study lakes, when simulating natural conditions (biotic and abiotic processes). While in LC, the enrichment of lake water with settling and with resuspended matter did not cause an increase in SRP concentrations in lake water, SRP concentrations in RS at the end of the experiment were significantly higher (probability P < 0.05) in lake water enriched with resuspended matter (3.2 μg/l) than in natural lake water (lower than the detection limit). Accordingly, it is reasonable to expect that sediment resuspension, which occurs more frequently in RS compared with LC, affects drastically the SRP availability in the water column in RS.