Age and origin of subvolcanic rocks from NE Iran: Link between magmatic “flare-up” and mineralization

Paleogene igneous rocks from ～600?km Quchan-Sabzevar-Torud magmatic belt include a thick pile of volcanic and pyroclastic rocks which intruded by younger felsic-mafic plutons. Various types of mineralization including Iron Oxide-Copper-Gold (e.g., Firouzeh mine) and porphyry Cu-Au deposits (e.g., Jalambadan mine) are associated with the Quchan-Sabzevar magmatism. In this study, we describe new zircon U-Pb ages and geochemical-isotopic data of the subvolcanic rocks from near the Firouzeh mine. The Firouzeh subvolcanic rocks consist of (quartz-bearing) monzosyenites, monzodiorites and monzonites. These rocks have typical calc-alkaline signature and are mainly metaluminous in nature. Subvolcanic rocks display enrichment in Light Rare Earth Elements (LREEs) with negative Eu anomaly. Enrichment in Large Ion Lithophile Elements (LILEs) and depletion in High-Field Strength Elements (HFSEs) are geochemical characteristics of these rocks. The Firouzeh volcanic rocks also display calc-alkaline signature and are metaluminous to peraluminous. Volcanic rocks show both enrichment in LREEs and LILEs, associated with negative Eu anomaly. Zircon U-Pb indicates ages of 43.2?±?0.4, 42.1?±?0.4 and 41.8?±?0.4 Ma for monzosyenites, monzodiorites and monzonites respectively. Zircon epsilon Hf_(t) shows average values of ?1.49 for monzonites, +9.07 for monzodiorites and ?1.06 for monzosyenites. The Hf model ages for these rocks are in the range of 850–730, 270–180 and 3150–450 Ma, respectively. Inherited zircons are abundant in monzonites and have variable Hf isotope values. The wide range of zircon εHf_(t) values and abundance of inherited/xenocrystic zircons suggest a multiple source(s) for the generation of the Firouzeh subvolcanic rocks, including a mantle melt and an old crustal component. Xenocrystic zircons indicate complex crustal components. We suggest the NE Iran subvolcanic rocks including the Firouzeh igneous rocks, generated above the Sabzevar subduction zone. This subduction zone was active since Late Cretaceous time.     

Pn wave velocity and Moho geometry in north eastern India

Pn velocity has been computed across the NE India and Moho geometry constrained, using regional earthquake travel times recorded by a network of 30 seismological stations operated during February-May 1993. Using an appropriate velocity model and the arrival times at the network stations, preliminary hypocentres of 16 regional earthquakes provided by NEIC were also improved. The average Pn wave velocity in NE India has been found to be 8.5 ±0.2 km/s. It varies from 8.3 to 8.5 km/s beneath the Shillong Plateau, Mikhir hills and Assam valley, which is significantly higher than those in other parts of India. The crustal thickness in NE India is also high, varying from 45–49 km under the Shillong plateau and the adjoining region to 55–65 km in the convergence zone. The presence of a thick crust and high Pn velocity suggests that the lithosphere in NE India is colder, as also indicated by the observed deeper level (45-51 km) seismicity of the region.     

Planview Geometry and morphological characteristics of pocket beaches on the Catalan coast (Spain)

Coastal planform studies are a relevant initial stage before launching detailed dynamic field experiments. The aim of this study is to define the planform characteristics of 72 Catalan pocket beaches, natural and man-made, and to determine their sheltering effect, embaymentization and their status of equilibrium. Planform measurements were performed on SIGPAC, 1:5000 orthophoto sets and wave climate was provided by Puertos del Estado (Wana model). Planform parameters were applied and coastal planview indexes were determined.The study shows that the Catalan pocket beaches display a wide range of indentation, suggesting that no single structural, tectonic or morphological control dominates their planform. The man-made pocket beaches typically display indentations which are smaller than those shown by natural pocket beaches. Headland spacing and beach area are positively correlated. The more indented bays are, the shorter their beaches become. Low-indented pocket beaches are the widest and the longest ones.Deep indentation contributes towards beach protection and energy dissipation which counteracts rip efficiency and inhibits the formation of mega-rips. Pocket beaches often show gradual and moderate alongshore changes in texture and beach morphology. One third of the Catalan pocket beaches are “sediment starved”, i.e., 60% and more of their embayed shorelines are deprived of beach sediments. Examination of the status of equilibrium demonstrates that most of the Catalan pocket beaches are in an unstable mode, with indentation ratios that are unrelated to the wave obliquity.     

CHANGING CONCEPTIONS OF SUSTAINABILITY IN BARCELONA'S PUBLIC PARKS*

ABSTRACT. In this article we explore the relationships between public parks and a broad interpretation of sustainability, taking as a case study the city of Barcelona, Spain. Recent official discourses in Barcelona insist on sustainability as one of the fundamental assets of public parks. Yet whether these urban artifacts actually contribute to sustainability objectives in environmental and social terms remains to be examined. We compare two public parks in Barcelona‐the Parc Joan Miró (1983), and the Parc de Diagonal Mar (2002)–and show how, in the former, the integration of the social, political, and environmental dimensions of sustainability was largely achieved, whereas in the latter, only the environmental dimension appears to have been considered.     

Atmospheric chloride deposition in continental Spain

The atmospheric bulk deposition rate of chloride in continental Spain was studied to get basic information in order to help in the evaluation of diffuse recharge to aquifers through an environmental chemical balance. Both new, recent data and bibliographic data have been used. Most sampling records are less than 5 years long and often only 1 year long. This means that the calculated mean yearly bulk deposition rate of chloride is quite uncertain by 30% on average, and larger than the values derived form records up to 15 years long. A map of atmospheric bulk deposition of chloride has been drawn using ordinary kriging. The mean bulk deposition rate of chloride varies from 1 to 30 g m^?2 year^?1 in coastal areas, with strong negative landward gradients between 0·1 and 1 g m^?2 year^?1 km^?1. In the centre of the Iberian Peninsula, chloride deposition rates vary from 0·2 to 0·5 g m^?2 year^?1, with gradients around or less than 5 × 10^?3 g m^?2 year^?1 km^?1. The coefficient of variation of the mean bulk atmospheric deposition rate of chloride, for any place, ranges from 0·1 to 1. Values larger than ～0·5 are not a good indicator of natural uncertainty for this series of data that has a skewed distribution. The map of bulk deposition rate and its error is one of the terms needed for aquifer recharge estimation by means of the chloride ion balance. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparison of the role of two Spartina species in terms of phytostabilization and bioaccumulation of metals in the estuarine sediment

In the joint estuary of the Odiel and Tinto rivers (SW Spain), the invasive Spartina densiflora Brongn. and the native Spartina maritima (Curtis) Fernald are growing over sediments with extreme concentrations of heavy metals. The contents of As, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb and Zn were determined in sediments, rhizosediments and different tissues of both species, from Odiel and Tinto marshes. S. densiflora showed a higher capability to retain metals around their roots and to control the uptake or transport of metals, mediated by a higher formation of plaques of Fe/Mn (hydro) oxides on the roots. At the Tinto marsh, there were no differences between the metal concentrations of the sediment and those of the rhizosediment, a fact that could be explained by the extremely high concentrations of metals which can pass over a threshold value, altering the properties of root cells and preventing roots from acting as a ‘barrier’ to the uptake or transport of metals.     

Organic matter accumulation during the Holocene in the Guadalquivir marshlands (SW Spain)

The distribution of biomarker compounds and magnetic susceptibility observed in the sediment from a 20 m core drilled in the marshlands of the estuarine region of the Guadalquivir River (southwest coast of Spain) has allowed us to reconstruct the palaeoenvironmental evolution of this area during the Holocene. Several organic compounds (n‐alkanes, n‐ketones, n‐alkanols, n‐alkanoic acids and organic sulphur), as well as different biomarker ratios, have been used to show changing environmental conditions through time. These geochemical proxies suggest good preservation of the organic matter, although some diagenesis has occurred to particular organic compounds, especially the n‐alkanoic acids. Our data indicate a major allochthonous supply of terrestrial plants, with less influence from aquatic plants or algae through the core. There are markedly different palaeoenvironmental conditions between the uppermost 5 m (last 6 ka cal. B.P.) and the rest of the core. From 5 m (ca 6 ka cal. B.P.) to 19 m (ca 8 ka cal. B.P.) depth the palaeoenvironmental conditions were almost constant. Based on organic sulphur content and n‐alkane content logs, anoxic conditions prevailed from 8 to 6 ka cal. B.P., while oxic conditions with enhanced convection of water (prevalence of fluvial input), and consequently a greater organic matter supply, predominated in the upper 5 m of the core. Similarly, little variation in the magnetic susceptibility profile below 5 m indicates stable environmental conditions, while in the upper 5 m conditions shifted to one with elevated water input and clastic sediment supply. This is linked to palaeofloral alterations in the Guadiamar/Guadalquivir drainage basins and/or anthropogenic effects. We propose that from ca 8 to 6 ka cal. B.P. a stable landscape physiognomy in the surroundings of the estuarine area of the Guadalquivir River, with a predominance of pines and grassland. However, over the last 6 ka cal. B.P. a variation in the terrestrial plant biomarker compounds suggests an alternation of relatively dry and humid phases and/or the impact of human populations on altering the vegetation community have occurred. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cenozoic tectonic and sedimentary evolution of southern Qaidam Basin,NE Tibetan Plateau and its implication for the rejuvenation of Eastern Kunlun Mountains

The Eastern Kunlun Mountains play an important role in the growth and eastward extrusion of the Tibetan Plateau. Tectonic and sedimentary study of the Cenozoic Qaidam Basin, especially the southern part, provides key evidence for understanding their evolution. Here we present evidence including isopach maps, seismic sections and sedimentary analysis of single well to illustrate the sedimentary development of the basin and the structural features of its southern margin. The Qaidam Basin extended across Qiman Tagh-Eastern Kunlun Mountains in the early Cenozoic and withdrew northward at ca. 35.5 Ma, and then buckled as an EW striking elliptical depression since ca. 14.9 Ma, with the main depocenter migrating eastward. Our results support the view that the Kumukol and Hoh Xil basins joined the Qaidam Basin in the early Cenozoic time and we propose the Eastern Kunlun Mountains uplifted in the mid-Miocene.     

黔东桂北加里东期两类构造变形特征与成因机制探讨

早古生代加里东运动造成华南强烈的构造变形,此次构造运动在黔东桂北地区主要表现为都匀运动和广西运动两幕。综合构造变形与沉积环境的研究认为,都匀运动作为局部的构造运动在凯里-三都断裂以西的黔中南地区影响明显;广西运动源于扬子地块和华夏地块沿江山-绍兴断裂带陆内挤压作用,形成自南东向北西的挤压应力的远程效应,向NW影响的范围止于凯里-三都断裂带。两幕构造运动在时空格局联合影响下形成了以断裂为界的两类构造特征：断裂以西主要受都匀运动的影响,发育EW向平缓褶皱、正断层等构造;断裂以东主要受广西运动的影响,发育NE向的褶皱、剪切带等构造。采自高武地区NE向韧性剪切带中的样品,其白云母⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar测年坪年龄为(416.4±1.8) Ma,等时线年龄为(417.7±1.8) Ma;采自黎平地区NE向劈理带中的样品,其绢云母⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar测年坪年龄为(426.5±2.3) Ma,等时线年龄为(437±10) Ma,这些变形年龄代表了广西构造运动发生的时限。     

Miocene magmatism and tectonics within the Peri-Alboran orogen (western Mediterranean)

The aim of this paper concerns Miocene igneous activity in the Alboran Sea and Peri-Alboran area (northern Morocco, western Algeria and Betic Cordilleras in Spain), considering its age and its location with regard to major tectonics structures.We have compiled previous K-Ar isotopic ages of lavas and plutonic boulders and intrusives with an error of ±1σ and completed this set by a new K-Ar isotopic age for andesitic tuffites from Alboran Island. Geochemistry of most of these samples has been considered after previous analyses completed with new data for Spain magmatism. These two sets of data allow us to place the magmatic activity within the regional stratigraphy and tectonics and their chronological framework of the three major tectonic phases of the Maghrebian orogen, at 17 Ma (Burdigalian), 15 Ma (Langhian) and 9 Ma (Tortonian). Petro-geochemical characteristics are compared through time and geographical locations. A major goal of this coupled approach is to help the elaboration of possible geodynamical processes.As an application, we present the case study of the Dellys, Djinet and Thenia region (east of Algiers) where the successive magmatic events between 19.4 ± 1 and 11.6 ± 0.5 Ma are closely related to the local tectonics and sedimentation.The Peri-Alboran igneous activity is placed in a multidisciplinary framework. Timing of activity is defined according to the ages of the neighbouring sedimentary units and the K-Ar ages of igneous rocks.In Spain, the Cabo de Gata-Carboneras magmatic province displays late Oligocene and early Miocene leucogranitic dikes, dated from 24.8 ± 1.3 to 18.1 ± 1.2 Ma; three following andesitic to rhyolitic events took place around 15.1 ± 0.8 to 14.0 ± 0.7 Ma, 11.8 ± 0.6 to 9.4 ± 0.4 Ma, 8.8 ± 0.4 to 7.9 ± 0.4 Ma; this last event displays also granitic rocks. Lamproitic magmas dated between 8.4 ± 0.4 and 6.76 ± 0.04 Ma were emplaced after the Tortonian phase.In Morocco, after the complex building of the Ras Tarf volcanic edifice, major calc-alkaline to shoshonitic volcanoes were built between 9.0 ± 0.5 and 4.8 ± 0.5 Ma, in particular the large Gourougou volcanic complex. Near Oujda, volcanic activity of alkaline affinity leads to multiple emissions of basalts throughout Pliocene times until the beginning of Pleistocene, between 6.2 ± 0.3 and 1.5 ± 0.1 Ma.In the Alboran domain, an age of 19.7 ± 0.8 Ma is reported (this study) for the andesitic tuffites that form the emergent part of the Alboran Island. This age is comparable to that of the Algerian tuffites and cherts “silexites” and the Malaga ones in Spain. Younger activity, completely separated from the previous one, forms the low-K basaltic andesitic dikes from Alboran Island, dated between 9.1 ± 0.5 and 7.5 ± 0.3 Ma. Along the Alboran Ridge both low-K and high-K andesites to dacites were emitted in the estimated range of 10.7–8.7 Ma. Low-K and high-K andesites to dacites sampled at ODP sites 977 and 978 into the East Alboran Basin, are dated between 12.1 ± 0.2 and 9.3 ± 0.1 Ma.We propose to relate with the Trans-Alboran lineament only the post-Tortonian igneous activity younger than 9 Ma.