Long-range atmospheric transport of trace metals: the need for geoscience perspectives

 The scientific literature of the past 25 years indicates a lack of consensus over the relative significance of anthropogenic and natural sources of metals in rural and remote ecosystems, meaning areas located several hundred to several thousand kilometers from industrial point sources. Geoscience perspectives are needed to address the critical information gaps associated with this issue, particularly where information on the significance and variability of naturally occurring metals is required. Uncertainties in source apportionment need to be addressed by improving methods of fingerprinting sources of airborne particles, and establishing identities of individual particles on the basis of characteristic morphologies and chemical composition. Further research is required to obtain robust estimates of total metal emissions to the atmosphere and to the oceans in order to determine the relative contribution from anthropogenic sources. Such research must involve a systematic attempt to obtain spatially and temporally representative data on the natural release of metals at the global scale. Moreover, a clear understanding of all local natural and anthropogenic loadings to an ecosystem is required before firm conclusions can be drawn about the relative importance of long-range atmospheric transport. Received: 31 October 1996 · Accepted: 27 May 1997     

Safety culture and hazard risk perception of Australian and New Zealand maritime pilots

A survey of the safety culture and hazard risk perception has been carried out involving 77 maritime pilots around Australia and New Zealand, representing more than the 20% of the maritime pilots in each country, in proportional geographic distribution. In 82% of the cases, interviews were carried out face-to-face, based on a questionnaire designed to be completed in less than 1 hour. Questions on 4 different aspects were asked, relating to each pilot's professional background, safety culture and perception of risks, navigation and pilotage hazards and their perception of the pilot's role. The responses indicated that there are issues with regulator identification, commercial pressures on pilots in some locations, incident reporting mechanisms and feedback, training opportunities and improved bridge resource management. In addition to reviewing comments made by pilots, the paper also presents recommendations for consideration in improving operational performance and safety of navigation in ports and regulated waterways. These recommendations can be used by regulators to improve their performance concerning pilotage matters and understand pilots’ concerns.     

Consideration of natural hazards in the design and risk management of industrial facilities

Recent chemical accidents precipitated by natural disasters have prompted governments in the United States, Japan, and Europe, among other countries, to re-evaluate current practices in the design and risk management of industrial facilities. This paper presents an overview of natural hazard design considerations and external events risk management requirements in the industrial sector, with particular emphasis on industrial practices in the United States, Japan, and Europe. The analysis shows that although regulations exist to ensure industrial plant structures are built to resist natural hazards (up to the design level), there are few laws to address the performance of non-structural elements and safety and emergency response measures during a natural disaster. Laws usually also refer to natural hazards only indirectly, and provisions to prevent or respond to simultaneous disasters from single or multiple sources concurrent with the natural disaster are usually not present.

Timing of erosion and satellite data: A multi-resolution approach to soil erosion risk mapping

Erosion reduces soil productivity and causes negative downstream impacts. Erosion processes occur on areas with erodible soils and sloping terrain when high-intensity rainfall coincides with limited vegetation cover. Timing of erosion events has implications on the selection of satellite imagery, used to describe spatial patterns of protective vegetation cover. This study proposes a method for erosion risk mapping with multi-temporal and multi-resolution satellite data. The specific objectives of the study are: (1) to determine when during the year erosion risk is highest using coarse-resolution data, and (2) to assess the optimal timing of available medium-resolution images to spatially represent vegetation cover during the high erosion risk period. Analyses were performed for a 100-km² pasture area in the Brazilian Cerrados. The first objective was studied by qualitatively comparing three-hourly TRMM rainfall estimates with MODIS NDVI time series for one full year (August 2002–August 2003). November and December were identified as the months with highest erosion risk. The second objective was examined with a time series of six available ASTER images acquired in the same year. Persistent cloud cover limited image acquisition during high erosion risk periods. For each ASTER image the NDVI was calculated and classified into five equally sized classes. Low NDVI was related to high erosion risk and vice versa. A DEM was used to set approximately flat zones to very low erosion risk. The six resulting risk maps were compared with erosion features, visually interpreted from a fine-resolution QuickBird image. Results from the October ASTER image gave highest accuracy (84%), showing that erosion risk mapping in the Brazilian Cerrados can best be performed with images acquired shortly before the first erosion events. The presented approach that uses coarse-resolution temporal data for determining erosion periods and medium-resolution data for effective erosion risk mapping is fast and straightforward. It shows good potential for successful application in other areas with high spatial and temporal variability of vegetation cover.     

The residential segregation of San Antonio,Texas in 1910: an analysis of ethno-racial and occupational spatial patterns with the colocation quotient

The segregation of cities can be traced to a time when the compartmentalization of space and people was based on factors other than race. In segregation research, one of the limiting factors has always been the geographic scale of the data, and the limited knowledge that exists of segregation patterns when the household is the unit of analysis. Historical census data provides the opportunity to analyze the disaggregated information, and this paper does so with San Antonio during 1910. A spatial analysis of residential segregation based on race, ethnicity, and occupations is carried out with the colocation quotient to map and measure the attraction of residents. Results reveal the presence of residential segregation patterns on different sectors of the city based on households’ ethno-racial and occupational attributes; therefore, providing evidence of the existence of residential segregation prior to the commonly cited determinants of segregation of the 20th century.     

长春市公共服务设施空间与居住空间格局特征

基于长春市790个居住小区、178所小学、301家社区医院、1681个公交站点等空间数据,引用核密度估计、Riley's K函数、同位区位商等分析方法,对公共服务设施空间与居住空间的形态格局、集聚特性、“临近性”关系等进行了定量分析。研究发现：首先,公共服务设施空间与居住空间分布的形态格局差异显著,同时也表现出较高的相关性,“核心—外围”网点数量的分布特征趋同性与分异性并存;其次,公共服务设施空间与居住空间均呈现出显著的集聚特征,但集聚的规模与强度差异明显,二者空间分布的协调性程度仍需提高;第三,从分布的空间关系来看,居住小区具有较为明显的“临近”公共服务设施布局的倾向,但反之不明显,整体呈现出空间格局的“非对称性”特征。     

泥石流危险范围模型实验*

通过在云南东川蒋家沟现场小规模泥石流堆积过程的68回次标准模型实验,本文探讨泥石流最大堆积长度、最大堆积宽度、最大堆积厚度和堆积面积与泥石流供给方式、堆积区坡度、流通区坡度和泥石流容重的相互关系。得出了特定控制参数下,泥石流危险范围的各类计算公式。     

长江流域综合开发治理中加强防灾体系建设的若干问题

长江流域的开发与经济建设正进入一个新的加速发展时期。这一过程将在流域内灾害风险持续上升,生态环境继续恶化的条件下进行。强化防灾体系的建设,以适应社会经济发展的需求,至关重要。本文提出长江流域在改革开放的新形势下,新的一期流域开发热潮形成时,进一步加强防灾体系建设的若干问题,探讨促使将流域内灾害防治与国土规划、资源开发、经济发展、环境整治等活动有机结合起来的社会运行机制。     

湛江东海岛裂流风险评价

裂流是海滩旅游中重要的安全隐患,国内目前还很少有裂流风险的评价研究。文章基于地形动力学模型对湛江东海岛海滩裂流风险从年平均、逐月平均和逐月常浪向状况下进行了评价。结果表明:(1)东海岛海滩全年平均状态为沙坝消散型海滩,一年四季出现裂流的概率较大,为中等危险性的海滩;(2)逐月平均海滩类型以沙坝消散型为主,但在6—7月海滩类型为低潮沙坝/裂流型,海滩风险等级最高,8月的月平均海滩状态为无沙坝消散型,属于危险性较低海滩,但此时波浪向为SE向时,海滩状态变成低潮沙坝/裂流型,裂流风险等级很高;(3)海滩管理者要重视对海滩裂流风险的管理。     

A conceptual framework for cross-border impacts of climate change

Climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability studies tend to confine their attention to impacts and responses within the same geographical region. However, this approach ignores cross-border climate change impacts that occur remotely from the location of their initial impact and that may severely disrupt societies and livelihoods. We propose a conceptual framework and accompanying nomenclature for describing and analysing such cross-border impacts. The conceptual framework distinguishes an initial impact that is caused by a climate trigger within a specific region. Downstream consequences of that impact propagate through an impact transmission system while adaptation responses to deal with the impact propagate through a response transmission system. A key to understanding cross-border impacts and responses is a recognition of different types of climate triggers, categories of cross-border impacts, the scales and dynamics of impact transmission, the targets and dynamics of responses and the socio-economic and environmental context that also encompasses factors and processes unrelated to climate change. These insights can then provide a basis for identifying relevant causal relationships. We apply the framework to the floods that affected industrial production in Thailand in 2011, and to projected Arctic sea ice decline, and demonstrate that the framework can usefully capture the complex system dynamics of cross-border climate impacts. It also provides a useful mechanism to identify and understand adaptation strategies and their potential consequences in the wider context of resilience planning. The cross-border dimensions of climate impacts could become increasingly important as climate changes intensify. We conclude that our framework will allow for these to be properly accounted for, help to identify new areas of empirical and model-based research and thereby support climate risk management.