On species distribution modelling,spatial scales and environmental flow assessment with Multi–Layer Perceptron Ensembles: A case study on the redfin barbel (Barbus haasi; Mertens, 1925)

Inconsistent performance of Species Distribution Models (SDMs), which may depend on several factors such as the initial conditions or the applied modelling technique, is one of the greatest challenges in ecological modelling. To overcome this problem, ensemble modelling combines the forecasts of several individual models. A commonly applied ensemble modelling technique is the Multi–Layer Perceptron (MLP) Ensemble, which was envisaged in the 1990s. However, despite its potential for ecological modelling, it has received little attention in the development of SDMs for freshwater fish. Although this approach originally included all the developed MLPs, Genetic Algorithms (GA) now allow selection of the optimal subset of MLPs and thus substantial improvement of model performance. In this study, MLP Ensembles were used to develop SDMs for the redfin barbel (Barbus haasi; Mertens, 1925) at two different spatial scales: the micro–scale and the meso–scale. Finally, the potential of the MLP Ensembles for environmental flow (e–flow) assessment was tested by linking model results to hydraulic simulation. MLP Ensembles with a candidate selection based on GA outperformed the optimal single MLP or the ensemble of the whole set of MLPs. The micro–scale model complemented previous studies, showing high suitability of relatively deep areas with coarse substrate and corroborating the need for cover and the rheophilic nature of the redfin barbel. The meso–scale model highlighted the advantages of using cross–scale variables, since elevation (a macro–scale variable) was selected in the optimal model. Although the meso–scale model also demonstrated that redfin barbel selects deep areas, it partially contradicted the micro–scale model because velocity had a clearer positive effect on habitat suitability and redfin barbel showed a preference for fine substrate in the meso–scale model. Although the meso–scale model suggested an overall higher habitat suitability of the test site, this did not result in a notable higher minimum environmental flow. Our results demonstrate that MLP Ensembles are a promising tool in the development of SDMs for freshwater fish species and proficient in e–flow assessment.     

人工载体理化性状对附着生物水质修复能力的影响

附着生物初级生产力、叶绿素a含量和碱性磷酸酶活性能够指示其对水质的净化能力.本实验选择了5种具有不同表面结构和理化特性的人工载体(载玻片、PVC片、软性载体、组合载体和立体载体),野外原位测定了不同人工载体上附着生物的初级生产力、叶绿素a含量及碱性磷酸酶活性.结果表明:人工载体的理化性状是影响其上附着生物群落稳定、生产力、叶绿素a含量和碱性磷酸酶活性的重要因素.在野外原位条件下,附着生物通常在8～10 d就可以达到最大附着量,此时,其初级生产力、叶绿素a含量和代谢活性等均处于最佳状态.在所选择的5种人工载体中,立体载体和软性载体上附着生物的初级生产力、叶绿素a含量及碱性磷酸酶活性均显著高于其他3种载体,其中立体载体上附着生物净初级生产力最高可达164.21 mgO2/(g.h),且与软性载体相比,立体载体价格相对经济,因此立体载体是一种比较理想的用于水质修复的人工载体.     

Embedding a Geographic Information System in a Decision Support System for Landslide Hazard Monitoring

In this paper we present an application that exploitsa geographic information system as a front-end of acomplex information system supporting the managementof landslide hazard in Valtellina, an alpine valley inNorthern Italy.A decision support system (EYDENET, operational sinceOctober 1996), incorporating a geographic informationsystem and a data interpreter based on artificialintelligence techniques, processes the readings of the250 most significant instruments of a monitoring netof about 1000 sensors installed on differentlandslides in several alpine valleys.Data gathered by extensometers, clinometers andpluviometers, to check both movements of rocks andclimatic conditions which could affect them, areprocessed by EYDENET, that provides on-lineinterpretation of data, helps the users analyse them,and generates natural language explanations and alarmmessages for the people responsible for theenvironmental management and the civil protection.     

一次飞机播云的微物理效应分析

根据1995年6月29日对辽宁省一次层状云降水过程的飞机探测资料，对人工增雨催化作业前后各高度层云的含水量、云雨滴数密度、谱型等微物理参量进行了分析研究。结果表明：作业云层(高度：4．0～5．5km，温度：-4．5～-13．8℃)的云水含量约为0．02～0．03g／m^3，是整个云体中最大的，但冰雪晶相对较少，特别是5km以上云层，冰晶粒子只有1000～2000m，因此对这一云层作业是适宜的。作业后在作业高度层产生了大量冰晶，由于冰晶和过冷云滴同时存在，导致小云滴的数密度由34．38cm^-3减少到8．97cm^-3，过冷液态含水量由0．015g／m^3减少到0．005g／m^3；大云滴和冰雪晶的数密度由618m^-3增加为2267m^-3、含水量由0．10g／m^3增加为0．17g／m^3；各高度层的云粒子谱也产生了相应的变化。这个实例验证了实施碘化银催化对作业云的微物理结构产生了影响。     

Redox Processes in Groundwater Impacted by Landfill Leachate

Groundwater downgradient from Trandum municipallandfill was investigated in summer 1996, with a viewto assessing the distribution of redox-sensitivespecies. The water table at Trandum is 10–26 metersbelow the surface. Monitoring well filters have beeninstalled at depths of up to 15 m below water table,covering an area of 400 m by 200 m. Groundwaterinfluenced by the landfill seems to be confined tothis area. Pristine groundwater has a chemicalsignature indicative of calcite and pyrite weathering.Groundwater influenced by leachate from the landfillexhibits an excess of alkalinity relative to calcium,which is likely to be derived from degradation oforganic matter in the landfill. Groundwaterimmediately below and downstream of the landfillcontains elevated concentrations of Fe and Mn, largelymobilized under reducing conditions from the aquifermatrix and reflected in depleted HNO₃-extractable Feand Mn in sediment samples from the same area.Groundwater samples allow the tentative identificationof redox zones based on oxidized and reduced forms ofFe, Mn, N and S. A methanogenic zone is notobserved.     

利用包气带环境示踪剂评估张掖盆地降水入渗速率

降水入渗补给速率是干旱半干旱地区地下水资源评价和保护中的重要参数。长期以来在河西走廊中游盆地地下水资源评价中,一直认为地下水位埋深>5m的地带难以产生降水入渗补给。本文在黑河流域中游的张掖盆地分别选择沙丘区和裸地区,综合运用包气带同位素和水化学信息,开展了降水入渗补给研究。包气带氯质量平衡法结果表明:现代气候条件下,张掖盆地地下水位埋深>5m的地带仍存在降水入渗补给,在沙丘覆盖区,地下水位埋深6.3m时,降水入渗补给速率为13.3～14.4mm/a,入渗系数0.10～0.11;在裸地区,地下水位埋深8.6m时,降水入渗补给速率为16.8～18.4mm/a,入渗系数0.13～0.14。     

Groundwater–surface water connectivity in a chain-of-ponds semiarid river

Semiarid rivers are often characterized by chains of small pools connected by riffles and wet meadows. The pools can be maintained by wet season surface runoff, groundwater discharge, or some combination thereof. Using synoptic surveys for several environmental tracers (δD and δ¹⁸O of H₂O, specific electrical conductance at 25°C [EC], chloride and ²²²Rn), we evaluated the groundwater—surface water connectivity of the Light River (South Australia) along an 8 km section in the vicinity of a proposed mining development. In all three surveys (representing spring, summer and winter conditions), the pools were maintained by regional groundwater discharge based on an elevated surface water EC (9–12 dS m⁻¹) similar to regional groundwater, elevated radon-222 activities (0.09–3.0 Bq L⁻¹) and low rainfall. Most pools were perennial, either because they directly received groundwater discharge or, indirectly, had an inflow originating from upstream groundwater-fed pools. The elevated salinity of regional groundwater is a key factor for the maintenance of perennial pools in the Light River because the potential for baseflow depletion by groundwater pumping is more limited.     

Using hydrochemical,stable isotope,and river water recharge data to identify groundwater flow paths in a deeply buried karst system

The deeply buried river‐connected Xishan karst aquifer (XKA) in western Beijing, China, has been suffering from diminishing recharge for several decades, which in turn leads to the disappearing of spring water outflows and continuously lowering of groundwater level in the area. Thus, it is important to correctly recognize the groundwater recharge and flow paths for the sustainable development of the XKA. To investigate these issues, the hydrochemical and isotopic compositions are analysed for both surface water and groundwater samples collected over an area of about 280 km². Results show that (a) the river water is characterized by high Na contents; (b) the δ²H and δ¹⁸O values in the river water are distinctively higher than those of groundwater samples, after experiencing the long‐time evaporative enrichment in the upstream reservoir; (c) the Sr concentrations and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios of groundwater clearly indicated the interaction between water and carbonate minerals but excluded the water–silicate interaction; and (d) the groundwater samples in the direct recharge area of the XKA have the lowest Na concentrations and the δ²H and δ¹⁸O values. Based on the large differences in the Na contents and ¹⁸O values of groundwater and surface water, a simple two‐component mixing model is developed for the study area and the fractions of the river water are estimated for groundwater samples. We find that the distribution pattern of the river water fractions in the XKA clearly shows a change of directions in the preferential flow path of the groundwater from its source zone to the discharge area. Overall, our results suggest that the recharged surface water can be a useful evidence for delineating the groundwater flow path in river‐connected karst aquifer. This study improves our understanding of the heterogeneity in karst groundwater systems.     

Catchment storage and residence time in a periodically irrigated watershed

Understanding anthropogenic impacts on water storage and water flow pathways in catchments is an ongoing challenge in hydrology. Here, we study the dynamics of subsurface storage and residence time of water in a catchment in Berkeley, California, that is within a regional park but contains diverse land use within its perimeter, including a periodically irrigated golf course. Our study combines several isotopic tracers with water budget data to examine sources of water in a stream draining the site. Irrigation water, applied to a small area of the watershed, is a minor component of the water budget. However, geochemical tracers reveal that irrigation water is a significant fraction of stream flow downstream of the golf course during baseflow and during precipitation events. Isotopic tracers indicate that the watershed has a preference to release young water for stream flow generation, resulting in contrasting tritium ages for stream water and groundwater of 1.3 ± 0.5 year and 8.2 ± 1.7 year, respectively. We determined that the older water is a very small component (0.7%) of the stream water in the tail of an assumed exponential distribution. We used the seasonal variation of stable water isotopes in precipitation and stream water over two water years to explain the damping of the isotopic signature of stream water, which yields information about the catchment's response to the input signal. The methods described here may be applicable to other urban or suburban headwater catchments in areas with a component of non-natural recharge from, for example, leaky infrastructure, storm water routing or dry season irrigation.     

Hydrograph separation using tracers and digital filters to quantify runoff components in a semi‐arid mesoscale catchment

Chemical hydrograph separation using electrical conductivity and digital filters is applied to quantify runoff components in the 1,640 km² semi‐arid Kaap River catchment and its subcatchments in South Africa. A rich data set of weekly to monthly water quality data ranging from 1978 to 2012 (450 to 940 samples per site) was analysed at 4 sampling locations in the catchment. The data were routinely collected by South Africa's national Department of Water and Sanitation, using standard sampling procedures. Chemical hydrograph separation using electrical conductivity (EC) as a tracer was used as reference and a recursive digital filter was then calibrated for the catchment. Results of the two‐component hydrograph separation indicate the dominance of baseflow in the low flow regime, with a contribution of about 90% of total flow; however, during the wet season, baseflow accounts for 50% of total flow. The digital filter parameters were very sensitive and required calibration, using chemical hydrograph separation as a reference. Calibrated baseflow estimates ranged from 40% of total flow at the catchment outlet to 70% in the tributaries. The study demonstrates that routinely monitored water quality data, especially EC, can be used as a meaningful tracer, which could also aid in the calibration of a digital filter method and reduce uncertainty of estimated flow components. This information enhances our understanding of how baseflow is generated and contributed to streamflow throughout the year, which can aid in quantification of environmental flows, as well as to better parameterize hydrological models used for water resources planning and management. Baseflow estimates can also be useful for groundwater and water quality management.