The infusion of sustainability into bilateral fisheries agreements with developing countries: The European Union example

The EU's bilateral fishing policy towards developing third countries has evolved over the years to increasingly emphasise sustainability, culminating in 2002 with the release of a ‘fisheries partnership approach’. The Community has begun to operationalise the policy in various West African coastal states, where its new fisheries partnership agreements are intended to function as ‘development vectors’. This paper introduces the EU's new policy, examines its potential implications for the role of sustainability in future bilateral fishing relations and highlights the impetus for it with reference to analysis of the EU's most recent agreement with Senegal based on empirical research.     

Molluscan assemblages of seagrass-covered and bare intertidal flats on the Banc d'Arguin, Mauritania, in relation to characteristics of sediment and organic matter

The Banc d'Arguin, a non-estuarine area of shallows and intertidal flats off the tropical Saharan coast of Mauritania, is characterised by extensive intertidal and subtidal seagrass beds. We examined the characteristics of intertidal seagrass (Zostera noltii) meadows and bare areas in terms of the presence and abundance of molluscs (gastropods and bivalves). To explain observed differences between molluscan assemblages in seagrass and bare patches, some aspects of the feeding habitat (top-5 mm of the sediment) and of food (organic materials) of molluscs were examined. The novelty of this study is that phytopigments were measured and identified to assess source and level of decay (freshness) of organic material in the sediment and to study their importance as an explanatory variable for the distribution of molluscs. Over an area of 36 km² of intertidal flats, at 12 sites, paired comparisons were made between seagrass-covered and nearby bare patches. Within seagrass meadows, dry mass of living seagrass was large and amounted to 180 ±10 g AFDM m^− 2 (range 75–240). Containing twice the amount of silt per unit dry sediment mass, seagrass sediments were muddier than bare areas; the relative amount of organic material was also larger. The total number of species of bivalves and gastropods amounted to 27, 14 of which were found only in seagrass areas, 4 only in bare and 9 in both types of habitat. Among the three numerically most abundant species, the bivalves Anadara senilis, Dosinia hepatica and Loripes lacteus, the first was numerically most abundant in bare and the other two in seagrass-covered areas. Bare intertidal areas had greater mean total biomass of molluscs (80.5 g AFDM m^− 2) than seagrass meadows (30.0 g AFDM m^− 2). In both habitats, the bulk of the biomass was made up by A. senilis. Excluding this species, bare mudflats contained on average only 3.1 g AFDM m^− 2 and seagrass meadows 6.9 g AFDM m^− 2. As compared to previous surveys in 1980–1986, the biomass of A. senilis had increased almost 10-fold and D. hepatica, previously found in very small numbers, had become the most numerous species. However, the total biomass excluding that of A. senilis was similar. Concentrations of phytopigments were similar to those observed at temperate mudflats, indicating that the Banc d'Arguin might not be as oligotrophic as previously thought. Per unit of dry sediment mass, smaller amounts of phytopigments were found in bare than in seagrass areas. Per unit of dry organic material, bare sediments contained most (fresh) phytopigments. This suggests that in seagrass-covered meadows the organic material is more degraded than in bare sediments. Overall, the composition of phytopigments, quite surprisingly, indicated a benthic-diatom-dominated trophic system. Multivariate statistics revealed that patterns of zoobenthic assemblages were correlated with patterns of a combination of four environmental parameters: grain size of the sediment, amount of fresh phytopigments and amounts of leaves and roots of seagrass.     

Mantle plumes and the metamorphism of the lower crust and their influence on basin evolution

Since the stretching model appears to be not applicable to the subsidence of accretionary crust, basins located on this crust type may have an alternative origin. Examples of such basins are the West Siberia Basin and the North German Basin. Both basins showed intensive volcanism and magmatism during the initial phase of their development. Remarkably, the West Siberia Basin is closely located to the (hotspot related) Siberian flood basalts with a similar Permo-Triassic age, and the location of the North German Basin in Permian times is identical with the present day position of the Tibesti hotspot in Northern Africa. These two basins may have specific relations to hotspot heat sources of the Earth's underlying mantle. Due to these heat sources, thermal metamorphism within the lower layers of the (accretionary) crust may occur, resulting in rock density increase and subsequent shrinkage of the affected rock volumes. These shrinkage processes will lead to the development of topographic lows, their filling with sediments, and the subsequent start of an exponentially declining isostatic/metamorphic basin subsidence. In addition to the analyses of metamorphic processes, potential field anomalies, temperature fields, and histories of subsidence have been integrated into one single model that can explain the development of the North German Basin. Similarly, the East African Rift and Eifel Hotspots affected parts of the overriding continental plates. The East African Rift Hotspot can be traced back to the Afar flood basalts and the Dniepr–Donets Basin, whereas the Eifel Hotspot can be linked to the North Sea Basin. Continental drift templates, present day hotspot locations, flood basalt areas, metamorphic facies as function of temperature, and crust categories are taken as published in recent literature.     

甘肃岷县锁龙—马坞一带金矿资源潜力评价

西秦岭“五朵金花”岩体是寨上—马坞金矿整装勘查区一带重要的金矿成矿地质体,围绕“五朵金花”岩体已发现有多达100余处金矿（床）点,是西秦岭重要的金矿集中区。锁龙—马坞一带研究区正好包括了整个教场坝岩体以及中川岩体及柏家庄岩体北部大部分区域,具有良好的形成金矿的潜力。因此本次工作在收集前人1∶5万矿调及锁龙金矿矿产勘查成果资料的基础上,利用MRAS软件对该区域金资源潜力进行了评价,同时预测了23处金成矿的有利区域,为该区下一步工作部署提供了靶区。     

西非被动大陆边缘重力滑脱构造体系下的塑性构造

论述了西非被动大陆边缘深水环境下的重力滑脱构造体系中的塑性构造。研究发现塑性地层在整个西非被动大陆边缘都有分布,且盐岩塑性层主要分布在西非被动大陆边缘的西南部和西北部,发育层位为过渡期(J-K)构造层之内;中部尼日尔三角洲等塑性层主要为泥岩塑性层,发育层位为古近系和新近系。根据重力滑脱构造体系发育特征可划分为:以正断裂和塑性焊接构造为主的上部重力滑脱伸展构造、以底辟构造为主的中部重力滑脱底辟构造、以冲断裂、塑性褶皱和塑性冲断构造为主的下部重力滑脱冲断构造。根据塑性构造上覆地层的变形过程,塑性构造演化主要经历了后生变形期和同生变形期。塑性构造变形机制主要受基底掀斜作用和上覆地层的沉积速率控制。塑性构造中的底辟、褶皱、冲断及塑性焊接构造对油气成藏的控制作用依次减弱。     

Evaluating the effects of catch-and-release angling on Cape stumpnose Rhabdosargus holubi in a South African estuary

Fisheries managers are increasingly promoting catch-and-release (C&R) to manage recreationally angled fish stocks. Despite this, there is a scarcity of information on the effects of C&R on estuarine-dependent species. Cape stumpnose Rhabdosargus holubi dominates the recreational fisheries catch and provides an important source of food for subsistence fishers in some temperate South African estuaries. The health and survival of R. holubi exposed to a C&R event was investigated by examining their physiological stress response (blood glucose and lactate), reflex impairment (reflex action mortality predictors [RAMP]) and short-term (12-hour) survival. Fish were captured and exposed to one of three air-exposure treatments: 0 s, 30 s or 90 s. Stress and health were measured either immediately (immediate) or one hour after (delayed) the C&R event. There was no significant difference in blood glucose between air-exposure treatments, but there was a significant difference between the mean immediate and delayed glucose levels within each treatment (F_(2,143) = 81.8, p < 0.01). In contrast, blood lactate level was significantly higher in the 90-s treatment (p < 0.05). Immediate blood lactate levels were significantly lower than the delayed samples for each treatment (F = 4.29, p = 0.02; n = 169). Although all fish exhibited at least one reflex impairment, the RAMP score was significantly higher in the 90-s air-exposure treatment (H_(2,86) = 9.73, p = 0.007). Also, RAMP scores were significantly lower in the delayed samples (p < 0.01). Although short-term mortality was relatively low (2.3%) for this species, it was highest in the 90-s treatment (7%). These results suggest that physiological stress is higher when R. holubi are exposed to longer periods of air exposure and that the physiological stress of fish subject to a C&R event is best measured after a delay.     

热带西太平洋砂壳纤毛虫的多样性

为了探明热带西太平洋海区砂壳纤毛虫的多样性、垂直分布及纬向变化,我们于2012年11-12月在该海区四个断面采集了0-200 m的水样。共检出砂壳纤毛虫39属124种,多数种类喜好生活在表层和次表层。砂壳纤毛虫种丰富度、丰度以及多样性指数的高值主要出现在比叶绿素浓度最大值稍浅的位置,与温度和叶绿素浓度显著正相关,与盐度和采样深度显著负相关。多数优势种与环境因子间的相关性不显著。热带西太平洋海区砂壳纤毛虫多样性极高,各站种丰富度在25-52之间。在从表层至75 m处的多数采样点香农指数均大于3。该海区砂壳纤毛虫冗余种的比例很高,占砂壳纤毛虫总种类数的87.90%,贡献了砂壳纤毛虫60.38%的丰度,表明热带西太平洋海区砂壳纤毛虫群落对饵料组成和摄食压力改变的应对能力很强,稳定性很高。     

Evaluating coastal scenery using fuzzy logic: Application at selected sites in Western Black Sea coastal region of Turkey

Coastal areas of the world are under treat due to the conflicting requirements of functions such as habitation and/or recreation, which affect the strategic asset of coastal scenery itself. Coastal managers, together with planners, need coastal landscape inventories, where the quality of coastal scenery is a part of the inventory. In order to provide an evidence-based approach for sound coastal management decisions, [Ergin et al., 2004] and [Ergin et al., 2006] developed a novel technique ‘coastal scenic evaluation’ (CSE), which addresses the evaluation of coastal scenery. The CSE technique utilizes fuzzy logic to derive values obtained from a checklist of 26 physical and human parameters. The methodology enables the calculation of an evaluation index (D), which categorizes the scenic values of coastal sites into five distinct classes. Using this technique, coastal scenic evaluations were carried out at 34 selected sites on the Western Black Sea coast of Turkey. Based on the calculated D values, a five-class differentiation was obtained for the selected sites, to provide baseline information for any envisaged subsequent management plans for these areas.     

Structural evolution of the Orange Basin gravity-driven system,offshore Namibia

The Orange Basin records the development of the Late Jurassic to present day volcanic-rifted passive margin of Namibia. Regional extension is recorded by a Late Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous Syn-rift Megasequence, which is separated from a Cretaceous to present day post-rift Megasequence by the Late Hauterivian (ca. 130 Ma) break-up unconformity. The Late Cretaceous Post-rift evolution of the basin is characterized by episodic gravitational collapse of the margin. Gravitational collapse is recorded as a series of shale-detached gravity slide systems, consisting of an up-dip extensional domain that is linked to a down-dip zone of contraction domain along a thin basal detachment of Turonian age. The extensional domain is characterized by basinward-dipping listric faults that sole into the basal detachment. The contractional domain consists of landward-dipping listric faults and strongly asymmetric basinward-verging thrust-related folds. Growth stratal patterns suggest that the gravitational collapse of the margin was short-lived, spanning from the Coniacian (ca. 90 Ma) to the Santonian (ca. 83 Ma). Structural restorations of the main gravity-driven system show a lack of balance between up-dip extension (24 km) and down-dip shortening (16 km). Gravity sliding in the Namibian margin is interpreted to have occurred as a series of episodic short-lived gravity sliding between the Cenomanian (ca. 100 Ma) and the Campanian (ca. 80 Ma). Gravity sliding and spreading are interpreted to be the result of episodic cratonic uplift combined with differential thermal subsidence. Sliding may have also been favoured by the presence of an efficient detachment layer in Turonian source rocks.     

Thermal regime of the northwest Indian rifted margin – Comparison with predictions

We use a simple approach to estimate the present-day thermal regime along the northwestern part of the Western Indian Passive Margin, offshore Pakistan. A compilation of bottom borehole temperatures and geothermal gradients derived from new observations of bottom-simulating reflections (BSRs) allows us to constrain the relationship between the thermal regime and the known tectonic and sedimentary framework along this margin. Effects of basin and crustal structure on the estimation of thermal gradients and heat flow are discussed. A hydrate system is located within the sedimentary deep marine setting and compared to other provinces on other continental margins. We calculate the potential radiogenic contribution to the surface heat flow along a profile across the margin. Measurements across the continental shelf show intermediate thermal gradients of 38–44 °C/km. The onshore Indus Basin shows a lower range of values spanning 18–31 °C/km. The Indus Fan slope and continental rise show an increasing gradient from 37 to 55 °C/km, with higher values associated with the thick depocenter. The gradient drops to 33 °C/km along the Somnath Ridge, which is a syn-rift volcanic construct located in a landward position relative to the latest spreading center around the Cretaceous–Paleogene transition.