The effect of varied dam release mechanisms and storage volume on downstream river thermal regimes

Temperature plays an essential role in the ecology and biology of aquatic ecosystems. The use of dams to store and subsequently re-regulate river flows can have a negative impact on the natural thermal regime of rivers, causing thermal pollution of downstream river ecosystems. Autonomous thermal loggers were used to measure temperature changes downstream of a large dam on the Macquarie River, in Australia’s Murray-Darling Basin to quantify the effect of release mechanisms and dam storage volume on the downstream thermal regime. The magnitude of thermal pollution in the downstream river was affected by different release mechanisms, including bottom-level outlet releases, a thermal curtain (which draws water from above the hypolimnion), and spill-way release. Dam storage volume was linked to the magnitude of thermal pollution downstream; high storage volumes were related to severe thermal suppressions, with an approximate 10 °C difference occurring when water originated from high and low storage volumes. Downstream temperatures were 8 ̶ 10 °C higher when surface releases were used via a thermal curtain and the spillway to mitigate cold water pollution that frequently occurs in the river. Demonstrating the effectiveness of engineering and operational strategies used to mitigate cold water pollution highlight their potential contribution to fish conservation, threatened species recovery and environmental remediation of aquatic ecosystems.     

A DEVICE FOR MEASURING GULLY HEADWALL MORPHOLOGY

This paper describes a low-cost device for measuring the three-dimensional morphology of a gully headwall. The device was designed to operate in a gully system with the following characteristics: overhanging banks caused by a thick, dense root mat; retreat of the underlying unconsolidated sediments through small slab failures, leading to a considerable variation in retreat rate at each point on the headwall; and changes in the orientation of the headwall owing to changes in sediment properties and the topographical and hydrological controls of gully growth. The device is used to measure a series of closely spaced vertical profiles of the headwall, and the collected data are combined to draw a contour map showing the distance from the plane of the instrument to the headwall. Comparing maps for sequential times enables retreat rates for the diffferent proportions of the headwall to be quantified.     

我国土壤中铜的污染现状与修复研究进展

铜是动植物必需的微量营养元素,但过量的铜会严重影响动植物的生长。近年来,随着工农业的迅速发展,土壤铜污染已成为重要的土壤环境污染问题之一。土壤铜污染不仅降低土壤环境质量,而且影响植物、土壤微生物、土壤酶活性等的平衡稳定发展,并威胁农产品质量安全。文中综述现阶段我国土壤铜污染的来源、污染现状,分析了土壤铜污染的特点及对土壤生态系统的危害,介绍土壤铜污染的预防方法,分析并总结目前用于治理土壤铜污染的修复技术原理、适用性及其国内外研究与发展动态,进一步提出未来我国土壤铜污染修复技术有待深入研究的相关问题,以期为我国土壤铜污染的研究和修复治理提供参考。     

Hydraulic properties of concentrated flow of a bank gully in the dry‐hot valley region of southwest China

To quantify spatiotemporal variation in hydraulic properties of bank gully concentrated flow, a series of scour experiments were run under water discharge rates ranging from 30 to 120 l min^?1. Concentrated flows were found to be turbulent and supercritical in the upstream catchment area and downstream gully beds. As discharge increased, values of the soil erosion rate, Reynolds number (Re), shear stress, stream power, and flow energy consumption (ΔE) increased while values of the Froude number (Fr) and the Darcy–Weisbach friction factor (resistance f ) did not. With the exception of gully headcut collapse under discharge rates of 60, 90, and 120 l min^?1, a declining power function trend (P < 0.05) in the soil erosion rate developed in the upstream catchment area, headcuts, and downstream gully beds. However, increasing trends were observed in temporal variations of hydraulic properties for downstream gully beds and the upstream catchment area. Despite significant differences in temporal variation between the soil erosion rate and hydraulic property values, relative steady state conditions of the soil erosion rate and ΔE were attained following an initial period of adjustment in the upstream catchment area, headcuts, and downstream gully beds under different discharge rates. A logarithmic growth of flow energy consumption per unit soil loss (ΔE_u) was observed in bank gullies and the upstream catchment area as the experiment progressed, further illustrating the actual reason behind the discrepancy in temporal variation between soil erosion rates and ΔE. Results demonstrate that ΔE can be used to estimate headcut erosion soil loss, but further quantitative studies are required to quantify coupling effects between hydraulic properties and vertical variation in soil mechanical properties on temporal variation for bank gully soil erosion rates. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Uncertainty assessment of ephemeral gully identification,characteristics and topographic threshold when using aerial photographs in agricultural settings

Manual digitizing on aerial photographs is still commonly used for characterizing gully erosion over large areas. Even when automated detection procedures are implemented, manual digitizing is frequently being resorted to in order to constitute reference datasets used for training and validation. In both cases, manual digitizing entails some subjective decisions on behalf of the operator, which introduces uncertainty into the resulting datasets. To assess the magnitude of this uncertainty, 11 experienced operators were asked to digitize and classify ephemeral gullies (EGs) on cropland following a standardized methodology. The resulting 11 datasets were compared in terms of number, type and location of EGs. Furthermore, for EGs located on a well‐defined runoff flow concentration axis, the slope versus contributing area topographic thresholds required for initiating gully channels were assessed using four thresholding methods, and compared across the 11 datasets. The operators identified 259 different EGs. However, the number (52–139) and sum total length (8.9–23.7 km) of EGs varied widely across operators. Only 34% of the EGs were digitized by more than half of the operators, and 7% were identified by all. Identification of EGs located on a well‐defined flow concentration axis proved least subjective. The longer the EG and the more fields the EG crossed, the larger the number of operators that were able to identify it. EGs were also most easily identified when located in sugar beet fields as compared to other crops. EG classification and topographic threshold lines were also found to be strongly operator‐dependent. Quantile regression appeared to be one of the most robust thresholding methods. Operator subjectivity when digitizing EGs on orthophotographs introduces uncertainty that should be taken into account in future remote sensing‐based studies of EG erosion whenever they rely, in part or in full, on manual photograph interpretation. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

安宁河断裂带勒帕沟泥石流发育特征及防治建议

2011年6月17日,勒帕沟发生近50年来最大的一次泥石流,经计算泥石流断面平均流速为2.03 m/s,峰值流量为200.11 m3/s,为大型泥石流,对帕勒村村民生命财产造成了巨大危害。勒帕沟上游岸坡前缘不稳定斜坡体及勒帕沟沟道内松散堆积的卵砾石为勒帕沟泥石流的主要物源。上游支沟中碎屑物块度较小,易被水流冲走,不会形成堰塞湖和溃决型泥石流。勒帕沟流域现今仍有再次暴发泥石流的可能,建议于流域中上游进行人工植树造林,在下游清理河道,进行监测预警,以实现泥石流综合防治。      

黄土高原丘陵沟壑区切沟侵蚀与地形关系分析——以纸坊沟流域为例

沟蚀是土壤侵蚀研究的主要内容之一,地形地貌是沟蚀的一个重要影响因子。本文以安塞纸坊沟流域作为研究区域,选择土地利用方式、土壤类型、坡度坡长因子、平面曲率、坡向和地形湿度指数6个因子,通过因子内切沟所占比重/整个研究区切沟所占比重计算各个因子的权重值,通过空间叠加分析土壤侵蚀敏感性,并通过重分类的方法把土壤侵蚀敏感性分为基本无侵蚀、轻度侵蚀、中度侵蚀、强度侵蚀、剧烈侵蚀5个等级,来研究切沟侵蚀与地形的关系。结果表明：切沟多发生在坡度坡长较大、地表湿度较高的林草地区域和更容易发生侵蚀的黄绵土区域,并且多分布在阴坡的凹面;对比分析切沟侵蚀和土壤侵蚀敏感性,切沟大多分布在中等侵蚀敏感性以上的区域,约占总切沟的90%;实验权重值对验证区冲沟的响应精度为82.43%（中度侵蚀及其以后阶段）,与实际值90.53%相差不大,说明此种方法对黄土丘陵沟壑区具有一定适用性,对黄土丘陵沟壑区水土保持工作有重要意义。