Surface aerosol measurements at Barrow during AGASP-II

Measurements at Barrow during the second Arctic Gas and Aerosol Sampling Program (AGASP-II), conducted in April 1986, showed no rapid long-range transport from lower-latitude source regions to Barrow, and only limited vertical transport from above the boundary layer to the surface. New aerosol size distribution measurements in the 0.005–0.1 m diameter size range using a Nuclepore-filter diffusion battery apparatus showed a median diameter of about 0.01 m during times of high condensation nucleus (CN) concentrations. Aerosol black carbon concentrations exceeding 400 ng m^–3 were detected at the surface and were more strongly correlated with CN concentrations than with aerosol scattering extinction (_sp), suggesting that aerosol carbon was generally associated with small particles rather than large particles. Measurements at Barrow during AGASP-I, conducted in March–April 1983, showed a series of aerosol events detected at the ground that were caused by rapid long-range transport paths to the vicinity of Barrow from Eurasia. These events were strongly correlated with aerosol loading in the vertical column (optical depth).     

In Situ Measurement and Numerical Simulation of Oxygen Limited Biotransformation

Enhanced subsurface biorestoration is rapidly becoming recognized as a valuable tool for the restoration of hydrocarbon-contaminated aquifers and sediments. Previous field and laboratory studies at a former wood creosoting facility near Conroe, Texas, have indicated that insufficient oxygen is the primary factor limiting the biotransformation of polynuclear aromatics (PNAs) in sediments and ground water at this site. A series of laboratory experiments and field push-pull injection tests were performed as part of this project to: (1) study the effect of low oxygen concentrations on the biotransformation of PNAs; (2) identify the minimum concentration of PNAs that could be achieved through the addition of oxygen alone; (3) confirm that enhanced subsurface biorestoration is feasible at this site; and (4) test an existing numerical model of the biotransformation process (BIOPLUME). The laboratory studies demonstrated that biotransformation of the PNAs was not inhibited at dissolved oxygen concentrations as low as 0.7 mg/L although this work did suggest that there may be a minimum PNA concentration of 30 to 70 μg/L total PNAs below which biotransformation was inhibited. The field push-pull tests confirmed that addition of oxygen was effective in enhancing the subsurface biodegradation of the PNAs. The minimum concentration achieved using oxygen alone was approximately 60 μg/L total PNAs. Minimal biotransformation of these compounds was observed without oxygen addition. The numerical model BIOPLUME was tested against monitoring data from the field experiments and appears to provide a good approximation of the biodegradation process.     

1990 Watershed Management Symposium Durango, Colorado, USA

Reports

1990 Watershed Management Symposium Durango, Colorado, USA     

The relationship between trends in a condition index of the American oyster,Crassostrea virginica,and environmental parameters in three Virginia estuaries

Oyster Condition Index (CI) was partitioned, using a moving average filter, into seasonal cycles and long-term trends in the James, York, and Rappahannock rivers for the period 1970–1983. Seasonal cyclic fluctuations in CI could be explained partially by changes in salinity and number of days within various temperature regimes. Long-term trends in the James River show a steady increase in CI over the study period, while a concurrent decline was noted in the Rappahannock River. Superimposed on these trends is a 4 to 5 yr cycle that is in synchrony with river discharge (salinity). In the York River, CI peaked in 1975–1976 at all stations. Measured environmental parameters do not sufficiently explain the trends. We speculate that the differences in the Rappahannock and James rivers may be due to a decline in bottom oxygen as a result of gravitational circulation differences.     

Interpretation of metal concentrations in estuarine sediments of Florida using aluminum as a reference element

Metal contamination of estuarine sediments is an increasing problem in Florida and elsewhere as urbanization extends into previously undeveloped areas. Effective estuarine management practices require scientifically valid tools to assess the extent of estuarine contamination. Interpretation of anthropogenic metal contributions has been hampered by the fact that natural metal concentrations in sediments vary by orders of magnitude in different sediments. Normalization of metal concentrations to a reference element, aluminum, appears to be a promising method for comparing estuarine sediment metal concentrations on a regional basis. In this paper we describe an interpretive method based on the relationship between sediment metals and aluminum derived from statewide data on natural estuarine sediments in Florida. We show how the method can be used to interpret metal concentrations with an example using data from the Miami River and Biscayne Bay.     

Age of intrusion and rapid cooling of the Frankenstein gabbro (Odenwald,SW-Germany) evidenced by40Ar/39Ar and single-zircon207Pb/206Pb measurements

The Frankenstein gabbro complex in the northern Odenwald/FR Germany is one of the Hercynian plutonic bodies of the Saxothuringian zone in the Variscan belt.⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr isotopic investigations on pyroxene,⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar age determinations on hornblendes, plagioclases, biotites and pyroxenes and²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb dating on single zircon crystals have been carried out. The⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr initial ratio of the gabbro (0.70380) indicates uncontaminated derivation of the magma from the mantle. The results on hornblendes, plagioclases and zircons establish the isotopic age of intrusion and the mode of cooling. Pyroxene and biotite data indicate disturbed K-Ar systems of these minerals. The average ages of the hornblendes (363±7 Ma), of the plagioclases (359±3 Ma) and of the zircons (362 ±9 Ma) agree within the 1-sigma levels and constrain the early history of the plutonic intrusion at the turn from Devonian to Carboniferous times. These minerals must have been cooled below their closure temperatures within a time-interval shorter than the error margins of 10 Ma. The ages therefore are, unlike those of the neighbouring Bergsträßer Odenwald, not long-time cooling ages due to largescale and slow geological uplift of the crustal segment. Instead, they will closely estimate the time of intrusion of the Frankenstein pluton into a shallow crustal level. The hiatus of about 20 Ma compared to the average ages of the crystalline rocks of the Bergsträßer Odenwald in the south characterizes the mafic Frankenstein pluton as a separated unit of the Odenwald crystalline, and underlines the importance of the Carboniferous tectonic fault zone in-between. The present data set clearly demonstrates the importance of the applied combination of methods and techniques to constrain the history of intrusion and cooling of mafic plutonic rocks.