Assessing streams in Germany with benthic invertebrates: selection of candidate metrics

The process of selecting invertebrate-based candidate metrics for the German stream assessment system is described. The aim was to identify metrics indicating degradation types other than organic pollution and acidification (“general degradation”). For 18 out of 24 German stream types a data base of roughly 2,000 benthic invertebrate samples was generated; for each sample 79 metrics were calculated. Data on land use in the catchment were compiled for all sampling sites, together with data on hydromorphology for many sampling sites. Hydromorphological and land use parameters, which describe a clear gradient in the data sets were identified by Non-metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMS). Correlation analyses between land use/hydromorphological parameters and metric results were calculated separately for the individual stream types. Among those metrics best indicating catchment- and hydromorphological degradation in the majority of stream types are: proportion of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera; proportion of Plecoptera (mainly suited for mountain streams); number of Plecoptera taxa; proportion of xenosaprobic taxa; proportion of epirhithral preferring taxa. Differences of metric correlations between stream types and between degradation types are discussed, leading to a list of candidate metrics for assessing German streams.     

Integration of local participatory and regional planning: A GIS data aggregation procedure

This paper presents an approach for GIS integrating local participatory land management information used for regional planning, and contributing to a bottom-up approach to land use planning. In participatory planning, the integration between local and regional levels should facilitate the communication and co-operation among the parties at both levels, for an efficient use of available resources. For coherently linking these two levels it is necessary to transform the data produced at one level, in order to be usable by the other. This transformation consists of a spatial procedure, which allows scaling-up the local participatory rural appraisal (PRA) information for regional purposes and scaling down the regional information for local use, using a GIS. Such an integration procedure is presented and discussed using data from a case study in south-western Burkina Faso.     

Reconstructing the historical changes in Daphnia mean size and planktivorous fish abundance in lakes from the size of Daphnia ephippia in the sediment

The zooplankton community structure in lakes is highly influenced by size-selective predation by fish, with small zooplankton species dominating at high predation pressure. Remains of cladocerans are preserved in the sediment and may be used to trace historical changes in fish predation. We determined how contemporary data on planktivorous fish were related to the size of Daphnia ephippia (dorsal length) in the surface sediment (0-1 cm) of 52 mainly shallow lakes with contrasting densities of fish and nutrients (TP: 0.002-0.60 mg P l^-1). Density of fish expressed as catch per unit effort, in terms of numbers in multiple mesh-sized gill nets (CPUE_n), decreased significantly with increasing mean size of ephippia. The relationship was improved by adding TP as an independent variable, now explaining 90% of the variation in CPUE_n on the full data set covering lakes in Denmark, Greenland and New Zealand, and 78% if only data on Danish lakes were used. CPUE by weight of planktivorous fish and mean weight of Daphnia in the pelagial during summer were also related to ephippial size. By including contemporary data on established relationships between the sizes of egg-bearing female Daphnia and ephippia, we inferred changes in the CPUE_n, mean size of ephippia-bearing Daphnia and summer mean body weight of Daphnia from ephippial size in four lakes during the past 1-2 centuries. In a hypertrophic lake subject to periodic fish kills, Daphnia mean body weight was high and CPUE_n was low compared with those in two eutrophic lakes, while CPUE_n was low and Daphnia body weight was high in the least eutrophic, clearwater lake. Estimated CPUE_n and Daphnia mean weight in the surface sediment of these four lakes corresponded well with contemporary data. Only small changes in ephippial size with time were observed in the clearwater lake and in one of the lakes that had suffered early eutrophication, while major changes occurred in the two other lakes that had been subjected to a major increase in nutrient input or fish kills. We conclude that Daphnia ephippia preserved in the surface sediments of lakes may be a useful and efficient method to quantify the present-day abundance of planktivorous fish and Daphnia mean size. The method is particularly valid in surveys aimed to give a general picture of the fish stock and the ecological state in a set of lakes in a region rather than a precise estimate for a single lake. Though some evidence is provided, more work is needed to evaluate whether the equations are valid for hind-casting in down-core palaeoecological studies.     

What is groundwater and what does this mean to fauna? - An opinion

Many subsurface waters are considered groundwater but are influenced in shallow depths by hyporheic, parafluvial and/or soil interception water to such a degree that groundwater fauna (stygofauna) communities may be significantly altered. Recharge, even if spatially and temporally distinct, delivers input of dissolved oxygen, organic matter (OM), and nutrients that caters sustainably for ubiquists such as stygophiles and hyporheic fauna, but renders the life of uncompetitive stygobites difficult or impossible. The impact of recharge at shallow groundwater thus needs to be taken into account when determining groundwater fauna reference communities and when evaluating monitoring studies.One of the main characteristics of groundwater is low OM concentration. In contrast, high OM concentrations are typical of hyporheic or parafluvial waters, which are enriched by OM from the river, the riparian soils and from interflow, and which contribute significantly to river OM balance. Consequently, for ecological studies on subsurface waters, both the origin of the water and OM, and the intensity of surface water interactions should be considered. Here, we discuss how groundwater spatial and temporal heterogeneity translates into faunal distribution patterns. In terms of the origin of water and OM, and from an ecological point of view, we need to distinguish between (i) shallow groundwater characterized by infiltrating precipitation and soil recharge, (ii) shallow groundwater interacting with surface water bodies such as continuously flowing and ephemeral streams and rivers, and (iii) “old” groundwater which has no recent connections to the surface and is thus largely secluded from input of nutrients and carbon. Water in the first two groups is characterized by high amounts of OM of varying quality, while water in the third group is characterized by low amounts of low quality OM. Consequently, stygophiles dominate in groups 1 and 2, with hyporheic fauna taking up a considerable proportion in group 2, while stygobites only dominate in group 3. Thus, for studies aiming to assess impacts on groundwater, only sampling sites of the third group should be used for reference sites as these are the most likely sites to have little surface impact and a stygofauna representative of the deeper aquifer.     

The effect of climate change on extreme waves in front of the Dutch coast

Coastal safety may be influenced by climate change, as changes in wave conditions (height, period, direction) may increase the vulnerability of dunes and other coastal defences. Dune erosion depends on mean water level, storm surge height and wave conditions. In this paper, we investigate the change in wave conditions in the North Sea in a changing climate. Until now, the effect of climate change on annual maximum wave conditions has been investigated, while events with higher return periods are actually most damaging for the coast (e.g. severe dune erosion). Here, we use the 17-member Ensemble SimulationS of Extreme weather under Non-linear Climate changeE (ESSENCE) change of climate change simulations, to analyse A1b-induced changes in the mean wave climate, the annual maxima and wave conditions with return periods of up to 1:10,000?years in front of the Dutch coast. The mean wave climate is not projected to differ between 1961–1990 and 2071–2100, with both wave height (H _s) and wave period (T _m) remaining unaltered. In the annual maximum conditions, a decrease is projected; especially, the annual T _m maximum decreases significantly by 0.3 to 0.6?s over the whole study area. Furthermore, we find that the direction of the annual maximum wave conditions shifts from north and north-west to west and south-west for both H _s and T _m. This is induced by a similar shift in the direction of the extreme wind speeds. Despite the decrease in annual maximum conditions, the return H _s and T _m are not projected to change significantly as a result of climate change in front of the Dutch coast for the period 2071–2100 relative to 1961–1990.     

Geography and climate policy: a comparative assessment of new environmental policy instruments in the UK and Germany

New environmental policy instruments (NEPIs) (market-based instruments and environmental agreements) have moved to the forefront of environmental policy in recent years. From an economic theory perspective, NEPIs offer substantial benefits over ‘command-and-control’ regulation, yet empirical evaluations of their deployment and performance remain rare. This paper argues for a strong geographical contribution to this research agenda, utilising cross-national comparisons and actor-oriented perspectives to provide critical assessment and refinement of established NEPI theory. To illustrate this potential, this paper examines United Kingdom and German climate policy, using postal surveys and semi-structured interviews to assess corporate, industry association and policy-maker views on the effectiveness of eco-taxes, tradable permits and agreements in curbing greenhouse-gas emissions. Divergences between theoretical and practitioner perspectives on NEPIs are discussed, leading to suggested strategies for enhancing the environmental effectiveness of market-based instruments. The influence of national policy styles on NEPI design and industry reactions to these instruments was also identified as severely under-represented within economic theories of environmental regulation. Whilst industry assessments of environmental policy are unavoidably coloured by vested interests, cross-national and actor-oriented analyses nevertheless provide important insights into processes of policy diffusion and the strengths and weaknesses of different NEPIs.     

‘Modelling the Arctic Boundary Layer: An Evaluation of Six Arcmip Regional-Scale Models using Data from the Sheba Project’

A primary climate change signal in the central Arctic is the melting of sea ice. This is dependent on the interplay between the atmosphere and the sea ice, which is critically dependent on the exchange of momentum, heat and moisture at the surface. In assessing the realism of climate change scenarios it is vital to know the quality by which these exchanges are modelled in climate simulations. Six state-of-the-art regional-climate models are run for one year in the western Arctic, on a common domain that encompasses the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean (SHEBA) experiment ice-drift track. Surface variables, surface fluxes and the vertical structure of the lower troposphere are evaluated using data from the SHEBA experiment. All the models are driven by the same lateral boundary conditions, sea-ice fraction and sea and sea-ice surface temperatures. Surface pressure, near-surface air temperature, specific humidity and wind speed agree well with observations, with a falling degree of accuracy in that order. Wind speeds have systematic biases in some models, by as much as a few metres per second. The surface radiation fluxes are also surprisingly accurate, given the complexity of the problem. The turbulent momentum flux is acceptable, on average, in most models, but the turbulent heat fluxes are, however, mostly unreliable. Their correlation with observed fluxes is, in principle, insignificant, and they accumulate over a year to values an order of magnitude larger than observed. Typical instantaneous errors are easily of the same order of magnitude as the observed net atmospheric heat flux. In the light of the sensitivity of the atmosphere–ice interaction to errors in these fluxes, the ice-melt in climate change scenarios must be viewed with considerable caution.     

Assessing physical vulnerability in large cities exposed to flash floods and debris flows: the case of Arequipa (Peru)

Understanding the physical vulnerability of buildings and infrastructure to natural hazards is an essential step in risk assessment for large cities. We have interpreted high spatial resolution images, conducted field surveys, and utilized numerical simulations, in order to assess vulnerability across Arequipa, south Peru, close to the active El Misti volcano. The emphasis of this study was on flash floods and volcanic or non-volcanic hyperconcentrated flows, which recur on average every 3.5 years across the city. We utilized a geographic information system to embed vulnerability and hazard maps as a step to calculate risk for buildings and bridges along the Río Chili valley and two tributaries. A survey of ~1,000 buildings from 46 city blocks, different in age, construction materials, and land usage, provided architectural and structural characteristics. A similar survey of twenty bridges across the three valleys was based on structural, hydraulic, and strategic parameters. Interpretation of high spatial resolution (HSR) satellite images, which allows for quick identification of approximately 69 % of the structural building types, effectively supplemented field data collection. Mapping vulnerability has led us to pinpoint strategic areas in case of future destructive floods or flows. Calculated vulnerability is high if we examine structural criteria alone. We further consider physical setting with the most vulnerable city blocks located on the lowermost terraces, perpendicular or oblique to the flow path. Statistical analysis conducted on 3,015 city blocks, considering nine criteria identified from HSR images, indicated that building-type heterogeneity and the shape of the city blocks, along with building and street network density, are the most discriminant parameters for assessing vulnerability.     

40Ar‐39Ar and cosmic‐ray exposure ages of nakhlites—Nakhla,Lafayette, Governador Valadares—and Chassigny

Abstract– We present ⁴⁰Ar‐³⁹Ar dating results of handpicked mineral separates and whole‐rock samples of Nakhla, Lafayette, and Chassigny. Our data on Nakhla and Lafayette and recently reported ages for some nakhlites and Chassigny ( Misawa et al. 2006 ; Park et al. 2009 ) point to formation ages of approximately 1.4 Ga rather than 1.3 Ga that is consistent with previous suggestions of close‐in‐time formation of nakhlites and Chassigny. In Lafayette mesostasis, we detected a secondary degassing event at approximately 1.1 Ga, which is not related to iddingsite formation. It may have been caused by a medium‐grade thermal event resetting the mesostasis age but not influencing the K‐Ar system of magmatic inclusions and the original igneous texture of this rock. Cosmic‐ray exposure ages for these meteorites and for Governador Valadares were calculated from bulk rock concentrations of cosmogenic nuclides ³He, ²¹Ne, and ³⁸Ar. Individual results are similar to literature data. The considerable scatter of T₃, T₂₁, and T₃₈ ages is due to systematic uncertainties related to bulk rock and target element chemistry, production rates, and shielding effects. This hampers efforts to better constrain the hypothesis of a single ejection event for all nakhlites and Chassigny from a confined Martian surface terrain ( Eugster 2003 ; Garrison and Bogard 2005 ). Cosmic‐ray exposure ages from stepwise release age spectra using ³⁸Ar and neutron induced ³⁷Ar from Ca in irradiated samples can eliminate errors induced by bulk chemistry on production rates, although not from shielding conditions.