Mass and flux distributions from DNAPL zones in sandy aquifers

At three industrial sites in Ontario, New Hampshire, and Florida, tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE), released decades ago as dense nonaqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs), now form persistent source zones for dissolved contaminant plumes. These zones are suspended below the water table and above the bottoms of their respective, moderately homogeneous, unconfined sandy aquifers. Exceptionally detailed, depth-discrete, ground water sampling was performed using a direct-push sampler along cross sections of the dissolved-phase plumes, immediately downgradient of these DNAPL source zones. The total plume PCE or TCE mass-discharge through each cross section ranged between 15 and 31 kg/year. Vertical ground water sample spacing as small as 15 cm and lateral spacing typically between 1 and 3 m revealed small zones where maximum concentrations were between 1% and 61% of solubility. These local maxima are surrounded by much lower concentration zones. A spacing no larger than 15 to 30 cm was needed at some locations to identify high concentration zones, and aqueous VOC concentrations varied as much as four orders of magnitude across 30 cm vertical intervals. High-resolution sampling at these sites showed that three-quarters of the mass-discharge occurs within 5% to 10% of the plume cross sectional areas. The extreme spatial variability of the mass-discharge occurs even though the sand aquifers are nearly hydraulically homogeneous. Depth-discrete field techniques such as those used in this study are essential for finding the small zones producing most of the mass-discharge, which is important for assessing natural attenuation and designing remedial options.     

Climatological distribution of lightning density observed by satellites in China and its circumjacent regions

The 0.5°×0.5°grid resolution distribution of lightning density in China and its circumjacent regions have been analyzed by using the satellite-borne OTD (Apr 1995-Mar 2000) and LIS (Dec 1997-Mar 2003) databases. It is shown that: (i) Firstly, the variability of the lightning density (LD) is particularly pronounced over the different subareas, 9 times greater over the south than the north side of Himalayas Mountains, 2.5 times greater over the eastern than the western area of China. While the maximum and minimum LD are respectively 31.4fl/km2/a (in Guangzhou region) and less than 0.2fl/km2/a (in the desert of western China). Secondly, the LD of China's continent regularly varies with latitude and distance off coast, which is consistent with annual mean precipitation in varying trend. In conclusion, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the China's three-step staircase topography and the latitude are three important factors affecting macro-scale characteristics of the LD distribution, (ii) The regional differences     

Silurian A-type granitoids in the southern margin of the Tongbai-Dabieshan: Evidence from SHRIMP zircon geochronology and geochemistry

The Dabieshan Orogenic belt is well known for the exhumation of early Mesozoic ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) metamorphic rocks and Jurassic–Cretaceous emplacement of voluminous granitoids. However, the tectonic evolution in the orogen during the Paleozoic, especially its magmatic response to tectonism has not received much attention. As indicated by published data, the Dabieshan orogenic belt contains different records of Paleozoic magmatic-tectonic association in different tectonic units. Occ…     

Investigating the presence of organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in wild and farmed gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata) from the Western Mediterranean sea

The presence of organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in wild and farmed gilthead sea bream (Sparus aurata) from the Western Mediterranean, Spain, is investigated. These pollutants were determined in white and red muscle and liver by gas chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry. Contaminant profiles present in both wild and farmed fish tissues include DDTs, PCBs and HCB. The highest concentrations of contaminants were found in liver, and an increase in pollutant levels was observed in autumn, before spawning. This fact is explained in light of increased food intake when sea water temperatures increase. Gilthead sea bream from Western Mediterranean populations showed significantly higher concentrations of DDTs and PCBs than farmed fish from the same area. This fact is attributed to the low level of organochlorine contaminants present in fish feed supplied to the cultured fish. The diet is highlighted as an important factor in understanding differences observed in organochlorine pollutants levels of fish tissues.     

Pathogenic fungi: an unacknowledged risk at coastal resorts? New insights on microbiological sand quality in Portugal

Whilst the potential impact on beach users from microorganisms in water has received considerable attention, there has been relatively little investigation into microbial contaminants in sand. Thirty three beaches across Portugal were analyzed during a five year period (2006-2010) to determine the presence of yeasts, pathogenic fungi, dermatophytes, total coliforms, Escherichia coli and intestinal enterococci in sand.Our results showed that 60.4% of the samples were positive for fungi and that 25.2% were positive for the bacterial parameters. The most frequent fungal species found were Candida sp. and Aspergillus sp., whereas intestinal enterococci were the most frequently isolated bacteria. Positive associations were detected among analyzed parameters and country-regions but none among those parameters and sampling period.Regarding threshold values, we propose 15 cfu/g for yeasts, 17 cfu/g for potential pathogenic fungi, 8 cfu/g for dermatophytes. Eighty four cfu/g for coliforms, 250 cfu/g for E. coli, and 100 cfu/g for intestinal enterococci.     

Do benthic biofilters contribute to sustainability and restoration of the benthic environment impacted by offshore cage finfish aquaculture?

Benthic biofilters were deployed under a cage fish farm and in two reference locations to assess the influence of the farm on the biofilters and the surroundings, as well as to verify the usefulness of this technology as a mitigation tool. The biofilters underneath the farm recruited a fouling community practically identical to that of the control biofilters, which included a variety of trophic strategies. The former showed a higher ¹⁵N enrichment, indicating that fouling beneath the farm was benefiting from the farm waste. The waste retention efficiency was low (0.02 g N m⁻² month⁻¹) beneath the farm. Benthic biofilters aggregated demersal wild fish around and within them. Pelagic wild fish also frequently used the biofilters beneath the farm, forming compact shoals around them. The increased complexity of the habitat below the fish farm enhanced biodiversity, but this improvement did not lead to the recovery of the sediments around the biofilters.     

Physical and chemical effects of ingested plastic debris on short-tailed shearwaters, Puffinus tenuirostris, in the North Pacific Ocean

We investigated the plastics ingested by short-tailed shearwaters, Puffinus tenuirostris, that were accidentally caught during experimental fishing in the North Pacific Ocean in 2003 and 2005. The mean mass of plastics found in the stomach was 0.23 g per bird (n = 99). Plastic mass did not correlate with body weight. Total PCB (sum of 24 congeners) concentrations in the abdominal adipose tissue of 12 birds ranged from 45 to 529 ng/g-lipid. Although total PCBs or higher-chlorinated congeners, the mass of ingested plastic correlated positively with concentrations of lower-chlorinated congeners. The effects of toxic chemicals present in plastic debris on bird physiology should be investigated.     

Flow Characteristics of Large-Scale Liquefaction-Slip of the Loess Strata in Shibei Tableland, Guyuan City, Induced by the 1920 Haiyuan M8 1/2 Earthquake

Based on the dynamic triaxial liquefaction test of the loess samples which are taken from Shibei tableland, Guyuan City, Ningxia, China, the characteristics of dynamic strain, dynamic stress and pore water pressure are studied under cyclic loading. Triaxial shear test is conducted immediately after the sample reaches liquefaction point. During the test, the property of the liquefied soil is analyzed through fluid mechanics method, whereby the fluidity of the liquefied soil is represented by apparent viscosity.The results show that the fluidity of liquefied loess changes from "shear thickening" to "shear thinning" as the shear force continues, and the fluidity of liquefied loess is closely related to its structure. In addition, in the process of forming a new stable state, the apparent viscosity and deviant stress change with axial strain in a similar approach. When the sample reaches its stable state, it meanwhile shows a relatively stable apparent viscosity. According to the fluid mechanics and the law of conservation of energy, the slip distance of the liquefied soil is estimated, and the results are in good agreement with the field investigation results.     

Hazard Assessment of Co-seismic Landslides Based on Information Value Method: A Case in 2018 MW6.6 Hokkaido Earthquake, Japan

An M_W6.6 earthquake occurred in eastern Hokkaido, Japan on September 6^th, 2018. Based on the pre-earthquake image from Google Earth and the post-earthquake image from high resolution (3 m) planet satellite, we manually interpret 9 293 coseismic landslides and select 7 influencing factors of seismic landslide, such as elevation, slope, slope direction, road distance, flow distance, peak ground acceleration (PGA) and lithology. Then, 9 293 landslide points are randomly divided into training samples and validation samples with a proportion of 7:3. In detail, the training sample has 6 505 landslide points and the validation sample has 2 788 landslide points. The hazard risk assessment of seismic landslide is conducted by using the information value method and the study area is further divided into five risk grades, including very low risk area, low risk area, moderate risk area high risk area and very high risk area. The results show that there are 7 576 landslides in high risk area and very high risk area, accounting for 81.52% of the total landslide number, and the landslide area is 22.93 km², accounting for 74.35% of the total area. The hazard zoning is in high accordance with the actual situation. The evaluation results are tested by using the curve of cumulative percentage of hazardous area and cumulative percentage of landslides number. The results show that the success rate of the information value method is 78.50% and the prediction rate is 78.43%. The evaluation results are satisfactory, indicating that the hazard risk assessment results based on information value method may provide scientific reference for landslide hazard risk assessment as well as the disaster prevention and mitigation in the study area.     

Analysis of Anomalous Characteristics of Regional Crustal Deformation before the September 16th, 2019 Zhangye MS5.0 Earthquake, Gansu, China

To study the crustal movement in the vicinity of the epicenter before the Zhangye M_S5.0 earthquake in 2019, the characteristics of crustal deformation before the earthquake are discussed through the GPS velocity field analysis based on the CMONOC data observed from GPS. The baseline time series between two continuous GPS stations and the strain time series of an area among several stations are analyzed in the epicenter area. The resulting time series of baseline azimuth around the epicenter reflects that the energy of the fault in the northern margin of Qilian Mountain is accumulated continuously before 2017. Besides, the movement trend of azimuth slows down after 2017, indicating the stress accumulation on both sides of the seismogenic fault zone has reached a certain degree. The first shear strain and EW-direction linear strain in the epicentral area of the Zhangye M_S5.0 earthquake remain steady after 2017, and the surface strain rate decreases gradually after 2016. It is illustrated that there is an obvious deformation loss at the epicentral region three years before the earthquake, indicating that a certain degree of strain energy is accumulated in this area before the earthquake.