A late Holocene paleoenvironmental reconstruction from Agua Caliente,southern Belize,linked to regional climate variability and cultural change at the Maya polity of Uxbenká

We report high-resolution macroscopic charcoal, pollen and sedimentological data for Agua Caliente, a freshwater lagoon located in southern Belize, and infer a late Holocene record of human land-use/climate interactions for the nearby prehistoric Maya center of Uxbenká. Land-use activities spanning the initial clearance of forests for agriculture through the drought-linked Maya collapse and continuing into the historic recolonization of the region are all reflected in the record. Human land alteration in association with swidden agriculture is evident early in the record during the Middle Preclassic starting ca. 2600 cal yr BP. Fire slowly tapered off during the Late and Terminal Classic, consistent with the gradual political demise and depopulation of the Uxbenká polity sometime between ca. 1150 and 950 cal yr BP, during a period of multiple droughts evident in a nearby speleothem record. Fire activity was at its lowest during the Maya Postclassic ca. 950–430 cal yr BP, but rose consistent with increasing recolonization of the region between ca. 430 cal yr BP and present. These data suggest that this environmental record provides both a proxy for 2800 years of cultural change, including colonization, growth, decline, and reorganization of regional populations, and an independent confirmation of recent paleoclimate reconstructions from the same region.     

Statistical and geostatistical investigations into the effects of the Gabcikovo hydropower plant on the groundwater resources of northwest Hungary / Analyses statistiques et géostatistiques des effets de la centrale hydroélectrique de Gabcikovo sur les ressources en eaux souterraines du Nord-Ouest de la Hongrie

Abstract

Abstract The construction of the Gabcikovo hydropower plant and the diversion of the Danube River over 25 km into an artificial channel in 1992 influenced the groundwater regime of the region considerably. Statistical and geostatistical methods are used to quantify changes of different groundwater characteristics on the Hungarian side of the river based on observations in the time period 1960–2000. External drift kriging was used to interpolate groundwater levels and the other related variables. While mean groundwater levels did not change appreciably, there are significant changes in the variability. Standard deviations of the groundwater levels and the amplitude of the annual cycle decreased near the old river bed of the Danube. The water-level fluctuations of the Danube have a decreased influence on the groundwater dynamics. Interrelationships between water levels in wells have also changed.     

Interactions between groundwater and surface water in a virginia coastal plain watershed. 1. Hydrological flowpaths

A field study of surface water and groundwater interactions during baseflow and stormflow conditions was performed at the Reedy Creek watershed in the Virginia Coastal Plain. Three estimates of the average saturated hydraulic conductivity (K_s) of the unconfined aquifer were in reasonable agreement (ranging from 0.0033 to 0.010 cm/s), indicating that baseflow in the creek is entirely from the drainage of shallow groundwater from the relatively thin (1–6 m thick) unconfined aquifer. This relatively permeable surficial aquifer was found to be underlain by dark, olive grey, clay-silt and diatomaceous Miocene deposits of low permeability known as the Calvert Formation, which is believed to function as a confining bed in the area. A chemical hydrograph separation technique was used to resolve the contributions of [old] (pre-event) and [new] (event) water to stormflow. Results from a major rainstorm indicated that old water dominated the stormflow response of the watershed, although the new water contribution approached 40% at the hydrograph peak. Stormflow at Reedy Creek appears to result from saturation overland flow from variable source areas which include the stream channels and a significant part of the riparian wetland area. This response appears to be attributable to the transient dynamics of the shallow groundwater flow system and to the formation of localized groundwater mounds which raise the water-table to the wetland surface.     

Geochronology, Geochemistry, Fluid Inclusion and C, O Isotope Compositions of Calcite Veins in the Paleogene of the Jiangling Basin, South China: Implications for Fluid Evolution and Brine Potash Mineralization

Deep-seated potassium-rich brines were identified in the Jiangling Basin, South China. Although magmatic-hydrothermal sources have been proposed, the relationship between brine-type potash mineralization and volcanism remains unclear. In this study, U-Pb geochronology, geochemistry, fluid inclusion and C-O isotopic compositions of hydrothermal vein minerals in the Jiangling Basin are examined. Laser ablation U-Pb dating of calcite veins indicates that the ages are slightly younger than the formation age of the Balingshan basalt. Fluid inclusions in hydrothermal minerals show medium–low homogenization temperatures (160–220°C) and low salinities (0.14 to 4.9 wt% NaCl eqv.) and densities (0.882–0.944 g/cm3). The liquid compositions of fluid inclusions in calcite veins from sedimentary strata have higher contents of potassium, compared with those from basalt. The coupled negative δ13CPDB (?10.3‰ to ?8.0‰) and positive δ18OSMOW (17.4‰ to 20.7‰) values imply that calcite precipitation resulted from CO2 degassing of the basaltic magmatic fluids, as indicated by the gas composition of these inclusions in hydrothermal minerals. Rare earth element patterns indicate that water-rock interaction between hydrothermal fluids and sedimentary wall rocks contributed to the calcite precipitation in sedimentary strata. It is proposed that high-temperature water-rock interaction between magmatic fluids and sedimentary strata resulted in the potassium enrichment in fluids, interpreted as one of the sources of potassium-rich brines in the Jiangling Basin.