Systematizing local knowledge using GIS: fisheries management in Bang Saphan Bay, Thailand

Although local knowledge is a crucial source of information for fishery development, its generally unsystematic presentation and nebulous content makes use by policy makers or managers difficult. Based on field data obtained using Participatory Rural Appraisal at Bang Saphan Bay, Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, Thailand, we attempt to show here how local knowledge can be effectively systematized, analyzed and displayed visually using a Geographical Information System (GIS) for use in fisheries management. PRA data on location fished, time of fishing, techniques and technology used and species targeted were obtained from local fishers then mapped using Arcview (3.1). In this way local fisheries knowledge can be converted into geo-spatial data form via GIS, and the succinct results used easily to guide fishery management and planning, especially by offering directions for rights-based fisheries and co-management.     

Structural complexity influences the ecosystem engineering effects of in-stream large wood

Large wood (LW) is an ecosystem engineer and keystone structure in river ecosystems, influencing a range of hydromorphological and ecological processes and contributing to habitat heterogeneity and ecosystem condition. LW is increasingly being used in catchment restoration, but restored LW jams have been observed to differ in physical structure to naturally occurring jams, with potential implications for restoration outcomes. This article examines the structural complexity and ecosystem engineering effects of LW jams at four sites with varying management intensity incorporating natural and restored wood. Our results reveal: (i) structural complexity and volume of jams was highest in the site with natural jams and low intensity riparian management, and lowest in the suburban site with simple restored jams; and (ii) that structural complexity influences the ecosystem engineering role of LW, with more complex jams generating the greatest effects on flow hydraulics (flow concentration, into bed flows) and sediment characteristics (D₅₀, organic content, fine sediment retention) and the simplest flow deflector-style restored jams having the least pronounced effects. We present a conceptual model describing a continuum of increasing jam structural complexity and associated hydromorphological effects that can be used as a basis for positioning and evaluating other sites along the management intensity spectrum to help inform restoration design and best practice.     

Geology ‘far from the madding crowd’, along the northern border of Vietnam

To the north of Hanoi, about a day's drive by car, lies Ha Giang Province, the northernmost region of Vietnam. Ha Giang is remote from the hustle and bustle of daily life, and beyond its eponymous provincial capital towards the border with China, mountains rise quickly to Quan Ba, ‘Heaven's Gate’. The mountains form an uneven landscape of steep‐sided karst rising from deep river‐cut gorges and form a formidable barrier on the northern frontier of Vietnam. Beyond ‘Heaven's Gate’ lies the little travelled region of Dong Van, with its majestic mountains of Palaeozoic strata rising precipitously to the sky. Here, a century ago, the French geologists Henri Mansuy and Jacques Deprat documented early finds of fossils from lower Palaeozoic strata on the border with China.     

Density fluctuations measured by ISEE 1–2 in the Earth’s magnetosheath and the resultant scattering of radio waves

Radio waves undergo angular scattering when they propagate through a plasma with fluctuating density. We show how the angular scattering coefficient can be calculated as a function of the frequency spectrum of the local density fluctuations. In the Earths magnetosheath, the ISEE 1–2 propagation experiment measured the spectral power of the density fluctuations for periods in the range 300 to 1 s, which produce most of the scattering. The resultant local angular scattering coefficient can then be calculated for the first time with realistic density fluctuation spectra, which are neither Gaussian nor power laws. We present results on the variation of the local angular scattering coefficient during two crossings of the dayside magnetosheath, from the quasi-perpendicular bow shock to the magnetopause. For a radio wave at twice the local electron plasma frequency, the scattering coefficient in the major part of the magnetosheath is b(2f_p) 0.5–4 × 10^–9 rad²/m. The scattering coefficient is about ten times stronger in a thin sheet (0.1 to IR_E) just downstream of the shock ramp, and close to the magnetopause.     

Does Magnetic Flux Submerge at Flux Cancelation Sites?

Simultaneous measurements of the magnetic fields in the photosphere and chromosphere were used to investigate if magnetic flux is submerging at sites between adjacent opposite polarity magnetic network elements in which the flux is observed to decrease or `cancel'. These data were compared with chromospheric and coronal intensity images to establish the timing of the emission structures associated with these magnetic structures as a function of height. We found that most of the cancelation sites show either that the bipole is observed longer in the photosphere than in the chromosphere and corona (44%) or that the timing difference of the disappearance of the bipole between these levels of the atmosphere is unresolved. The magnetic axis lengths of the structures associated with the cancelation sites are on average slightly smaller in the chromosphere than the photosphere. These observations suggest that magnetic flux is retracting below the surface for most, if not all, of the cancelation sites studied.     

Trace metals and radionuclides reveal sediment sources and accumulation rates in Jordan Cove, Connecticut

Many small estuaries are influenced by flow restrictions resulting from transportation rights-of-way and other causes. The biogeochemical functioning and history of such systems can be evaluated through study of their sediments. Ten long and six short cores were collected from the length of Jordan Cove, Connecticut, a Long Island Sound subestuary, and analyzed for stratigraphy, radionuclides (¹⁴C, ²¹⁰Pb, ²²⁶Ra, ¹³⁷Cs, and ⁶⁰Co), and metals (Ag, Cd, Cu, Pb, Zn, Fe, and Al). For at least 3,800 yr, rising sea level has gradually inundated Jordan Cove, filling it with mud similar to that currently being deposited there. Long-term sediment accumulation in the cove averaged close to 0.1 cm yr⁻¹ over the last three millennia. Recent sediment accumulation rates decrease inland from 0.84 cm yr⁻¹ to 0.40 cm yr⁻¹, and are slightly faster than relative sea-level rise at this site (0.3 cm yr⁻¹). Similarity of depth distributions of trace metals was used to confirm relative sediment accumulation rates. ⁶⁰Co and Ag are derived from sources outside the cove and its watershed, presumably the Millstone nuclear power plant and regional contaminated sediments, respectively. The combined data suggest that Long Island Sound is an important source of sediment to the cove; a minor part of total sediment is supplied from the local watershed. Trace metal levels are strongly correlated with Fe but not with either organic matter or Al. Sediment quality has declined in the cove over the past 60 yr, but only slightly. Cu, Pb, and Zn data correlate strongly with Fe but not with either organic matter or aluminum. Ratios of Ag to Fe and to trace metals suggest that Ag in the cove is derived almost entirely from Long Island Sound. This result supports the notion that Fenormalized Ag can serve as a better tracer of some kinds of contamination than more common and abundant metals, like Cu, Pb, and Zn. *** DIRECT SUPPORT *** A01BY085 00008     

New insights into rare earth element (REE) particulate generated by cigarette lighters: an electron microscopy and materials science investigation of a poorly understood indoor air pollutant and constraints for urban geochemistry

Cigarette smoking is a well-recognized cause of lung cancer and other diseases and is a major contributor to indoor air pollution in numerous settings worldwide. Most cigarette lighters use rare earth element (REE) mischmetal in their flints in order to aid ignition, and these lighters thus have pyrophoric properties. REE particulate emitted from these lighters presents a complexity in the role of health of smokers that has yet to be explored fully. Furthermore, these particles are likely present in numerous urban settings and contribute to the complexities of urban geochemistry. Details of the material properties of rare earth element (REE) particulate derived from smoking lighters are determined first the first time. Particulate was investigated using back-scatter detection scanning electron microscopy techniques and transmission electron microscopy techniques. Several particle types were observed and demonstrate a diverse range of size and textures, many of which are previously not documented and are much smaller than previous basic scanning electron microscopy investigations. These include irregularly shaped fragments of mischmetal, micrometer-scale spherules, aggregates of nanospherules, and platy sponge-like nanoparticles. All of these particles have significant REE content, and most are of a particle size that can be deposited deep in the lung. The available literature regarding toxicity of REEs and the material science data presented here argues very strongly for cause for concern.