藏高原雪冰电导率与降水碱度以及大气粉尘载荷变化的关系

对青藏高原小冬克玛底冰川和古里雅冰帽上的数个雪坑和浅冰芯的观测,得出其碱度(OH-)剖面、雪坑和冰芯的液态电导率(EC)变化与OH-之间呈良好线性相关(r≥0.8).分析表明,无论在季节、年际或百年际时间尺度上,EC与OH-间的相关性以及EC与可溶离子总量(TDS)间的相关程度是大致相当的.EC的波动主要取决于粉尘来源的碱性盐类(尤其Ca2+)的变化.因此,EC参量运用到深冰芯研究中,可反映历史时期大气粉尘载荷的变化,对反演沙漠演化、大气环流有重要意义.古里雅冰芯记录表明,大气粉尘的中、长期变化可能取决于气候参量的组合特征"冷-干"气候阶段粉尘量上升,EC和OH-值高;"暖-湿"阶段粉尘量下降,EC和OH-值低.20世纪初以来,随着藏北高原气候呈现暖湿化趋势,大气粉尘载荷明显下降.因此,EC可作为显示大气尘埃载荷变化的宏观标尺,是气候波动的"指示器".     

Composition and distribution of beach debris in Orange County, California

Many studies have quantified debris collected on beaches around the world. Only a few of those studies have been conducted in the United States, and they are largely limited to semi-quantitative efforts performed as part of volunteer clean-up activities. This study quantifies the distribution and composition of beach debris by sampling 43 stratified random sites on the Orange County, California coast, from August to September 1998. We estimated that approximately 106 million items, weighing 12 metric tons, occur on Orange County beaches. The most abundant items were pre-production plastic pellets, foamed plastics, and hard plastics. Debris density on the remote rocky shoreline was greater than that on high-use sandy beaches for most debris items. This finding partially reflects the periodic clean-up of high-use beaches by local municipalities, and also indicates that a high percentage of the observed debris was transported to the site from waterborne sources.     

ENCORE: the effect of nutrient enrichment on coral reefs. Synthesis of results and conclusions

Coral reef degradation resulting from nutrient enrichment of coastal waters is of increasing global concern. Although effects of nutrients on coral reef organisms have been demonstrated in the laboratory, there is little direct evidence of nutrient effects on coral reef biota in situ. The ENCORE experiment investigated responses of coral reef organisms and processes to controlled additions of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (N) and/or phosphorus (P) on an offshore reef (One Tree Island) at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. A multi-disciplinary team assessed a variety of factors focusing on nutrient dynamics and biotic responses. A controlled and replicated experiment was conducted over two years using twelve small patch reefs ponded at low tide by a coral rim. Treatments included three control reefs (no nutrient addition) and three + N reefs (NH4Cl added), three + P reefs (KH2PO4 added), and three + N + P reefs. Nutrients were added as pulses at each low tide (ca twice per day) by remotely operated units. There were two phases of nutrient additions. During the initial, low-loading phase of the experiment nutrient pulses (mean dose = 11.5 microM NH4+; 2.3 microM PO4(-3)) rapidly declined, reaching near-background levels (mean = 0.9 microM NH4+; 0.5 microM PO4(-3)) within 2-3 h. A variety of biotic processes, assessed over a year during this initial nutrient loading phase, were not significantly affected, with the exception of coral reproduction, which was affected in all nutrient treatments. In Acropora longicyathus and A. aspera, fewer successfully developed embryos were formed, and in A. longicyathus fertilization rates and lipid levels decreased. In the second, high-loading, phase of ENCORE an increased nutrient dosage (mean dose = 36.2 microM NH4+; 5.1 microM PO4(-3)) declining to means of 11.3 microM NH4+ and 2.4 microM PO4(-3) at the end of low tide) was used for a further year, and a variety of significant biotic responses occurred. Encrusting algae incorporated virtually none of the added nutrients. Organisms containing endosymbiotic zooxanthellae (corals and giant clams) assimilated dissolved nutrients rapidly and were responsive to added nutrients. Coral mortality, not detected during the initial low-loading phase, became evident with increased nutrient dosage, particularly in Pocillopora damicornis. Nitrogen additions stunted coral growth, and phosphorus additions had a variable effect. Coral calcification rate and linear extension increased in the presence of added phosphorus but skeletal density was reduced, making corals more susceptible to breakage. Settlement of all coral larvae was reduced in nitrogen treatments, yet settlement of larvae from brooded species was enhanced in phosphorus treatments. Recruitment of stomatopods, benthic crustaceans living in coral rubble, was reduced in nitrogen and nitrogen plus phosphorus treatments. Grazing rates and reproductive effort of various fish species were not affected by the nutrient treatments. Microbial nitrogen transformations in sediments were responsive to nutrient loading with nitrogen fixation significantly increased in phosphorus treatments and denitrification increased in all treatments to which nitrogen had been added. Rates of bioerosion and grazing showed no significant effects of added nutrients. ENCORE has shown that reef organisms and processes investigated in situ were impacted by elevated nutrients. Impacts were dependent on dose level, whether nitrogen and/or phosphorus were elevated and were often species-specific. The impacts were generally sub-lethal and subtle and the treated reefs at the end of the experiment were visually similar to control reefs. Rapid nutrient uptake indicates that nutrient concentrations alone are not adequate to assess nutrient condition of reefs. Sensitive and quantifiable biological indicators need to be developed for coral reef ecosystems. The potential bioindicators identified in ENCORE should be tested in future research on coral reef/nutrient interactions. Synergistic and cumulative effects of elevated nutrients and other environmental parameters, comparative studies of intact vs. disturbed reefs, offshore vs. inshore reefs, or the ability of a nutrient-stressed reef to respond to natural disturbances require elucidation. An expanded understanding of coral reef responses to anthropogenic impacts is necessary, particularly regarding the subtle, sub-lethal effects detected in the ENCORE studies.     

Lysosomal membrane stability and metallothioneins in digestive gland of Mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis Lam.) as biomarkers in a field study

The lysosomal membrane destabilization and the metallothionein content in the digestive gland cells of mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis Lam.), collected along the east coast of the North Adriatic (Istrian and Kvarnerine coast, Croatia), were examined over a period of four years (1996–1999). The lysosomal membrane stability, as a biomarker of general stress, showed that the membrane labilization period in mussels from polluted, urban- and industrial-related areas was significantly decreased (p<0.05) when compared to mussels from control, clean sea water sites. In the harbour of Rijeka, the most contaminated site, the lysosomal membrane stability was reduced by more than 70% compared to the control. This method also proved to be a useful biomarker for detection of additional stress caused by short-term hypoxia that occurred once during this study inside the polluted and periodically quite eutrophic Pula Harbour. The concentration of metallothioneins in the mussel digestive gland, as a specific biomarker of exposure to heavy metals, did not reveal significant differences (p<0.05) between sites covered by this study.     

Marine risk assessment: linear alkylbenzenesulponates (LAS) in the North Sea

The fate of linear alkylbenzenesulponates (LAS) in estuaries and coastal areas of the North Sea has been characterized with simple environmental models. The predicted concentration range in the estuaries around the North Sea (0.9-9 microg LAS l(-1)) was validated by monitoring data (1-9 microg LAS l(-1)). In offshore sites of the North Sea, it is estimated--and experimentally verified for a few sites--that the LAS concentration is below analytical detection limit (i.e., 0.5 microg LAS l(-1)). The effects of LAS on marine organisms have been reviewed. For short-term acute tests, there was no significant difference (p = 0.83) between the mean LC50 values of freshwater and marine organisms (mainly pelagic species tested, 4.1 and 4.3 mg LAS l(-1), respectively). For longer-term chronic tests, it appeared that the sensitivity (mean no-observed effect concentration (NOEC) value) of marine and freshwater organisms (0.3 and 2.3 mg LAS l(-1), respectively) was significantly different pt-test = 0.007). The predicted no-effect-concentrations (PNEC) were 360 and 31 microg LAS l(-1), for freshwater and marine pelagic communities, respectively. Given that the maximum expected estuarine and marine concentrations are 3 to > 30 times lower than the PNEC, the risk of LAS to pelagic organisms in these environments is judged to be low.     

Discovery of A-type Granite Zone and Its Geodynamic Significance in the Western Kunlun Mts., China

l. IntroductionGranite distributes widely in western KunlunMts. Many researches have been conducted byscientists (Wang Yuzhen et.al., l987; Zhang Yuquanet.al., l989, Fang Xilian et.al., I990, Jiang Chunfaet.al., 1992; Pan Yusheng, l992, Xu Ronghua et.al.,l 994; Jing Daogui et.al., l996, Zhang Yuquan et.al.,l998). But all of the researches have been donealong Sino-Pakistan road and Xinjiang-Tibet roadt"ith fOcus on isotopic dating of the intrusion andconducted a few on origin and tect…     

The Relative Impact of Regional Scale Land Cover Change and Increasing CO2 over China

A series of 17-yr equilibrium simulations using the NCAR CCM3 (T42 resolution) were performed to investigate the regional scale impacts of land cover change and increasing CO2 over China. Simulations with natural and current land cover at CO2 levels of 280,355, 430, and 505 ppmv were conducted. Results show statistically significant changes in major climate fields (e.g. temperature and surface wind speed) on a 15-yr average following land cover change. We also found increases in the maximum temperature and in the diurnal temperature range due to land cover change. Increases in CO2 affect both the maximum and minimum temperature so that changes in the diurnal range are small. Both land cover change and CO2 change also impact the frequency distribution of precipitation with increasing CO2 tending to lead to more intense precipitation and land cover change leading to less intense precipitation-indeed, the impact of land cover change typically had the opposite effect versus the impacts of CO2. Our results provide support for the inclusion of future land cover change scenarios in long-term transitory climate inodelling experiments of the 21st Century. Our results also support the inclusion of land surface models that can represent future land cover changes resulting from an ecological response to natural climate variability or increasing CO2. Overall, we show that land cover change can have a significant impact on the regional scale climate of China, and that regionally, this impact is of a similar magnitude to increases in CO2 of up to about 430 ppmv. This means that that the impact of land cover change must be accounted for in detection and attribution studies over China.     

SPECIFIC DEGRADATION OF WATERSHEDS

An extensive database of reservoir sedimentation surveys throughout continental United States is compiled and analyzed to determine specific degradation SD relationships as function of mean annual rainfall R, drainage area A, and watershed slope S. The database contains 1463 field measurements and specific degradation relationships are defined as function of A, R and S. Weak trends and significant variability in the data are noticeable. Specific degradation measurements are log normally distributed with respect to R, A, and S and 95% confidence intervals are determined accordingly. The accuracy of the predictions does not significantly increase as more independent variables are added to the regression analyses.     

STRUCTURE AND COMPOSITION OF A WATERSHED-SCALE SEDIMENT INFORMATION NETWORK

A "Watershed-Scale Sediment Information Network" (WaSSIN), designed to complement UNESCO’s International Sedimentation Initiative, was endorsed as an initial project by the World Association for Sedimentation and Erosion Research. WaSSIN is to address global fluvial-sediment information needs through a network approach based on consistent protocols for the collection, analysis, and storage of fluvial-sediment and ancillary information at smaller spatial scales than those of the International Sedimentation Initiative. As a second step of implementation, it is proposed herein that the WaSSIN have a general structure of two components, (1) monitoring and data acquisition and (2) research. Monitoring is to be conducted in small watersheds, each of which has an established database for discharge of water and suspended sediment and possibly for bed load, bed material, and bed topography. Ideally, documented protocols have been used for collecting, analyzing, storing, and sharing the derivative data. The research component is to continue the collection and interpretation of data, to compare those data among candidate watersheds, and to determine gradients of fluxes and processes among the selected watersheds. To define gradients and evaluate processes, the initial watersheds will have several common attributes. Watersheds of the first group will be: (1) six to ten in number, (2) less than 1000 km2 in area, (3) generally in mid-latitudes of continents, and (4) of semiarid climate. Potential candidate watersheds presently include the Weany Creek Basin, northeastern Australia, the Zhi Fanggou catchment, northern China, the Eshtemoa Watershed, southern Israel, the Metsemotlhaba River Basin, Botswana, the Aiuaba Experimental Basin, Brazil, and the Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed, southwestern United States.