Heat Wave Hazards: An Overview of Heat Wave Impacts in Canada

Extreme heat events are natural hazards affecting Canada and many other regions of the world. This paper presents an overview of the issues involved in defining heat waves and harmful hot weather events, followed by a spatial and historical overview of heat waves across Canada, and an assessment of heat wave adaptation potential in selected cities. The Prairies, Southern Ontario, and areas in the St. Lawrence River Valley of both Ontario and Quebec demonstrate the highest temperatures and most frequent occurrences of heat waves, with minimal effects in the North, Pacific Coast, and Maritimes. Montreal frequently experiences extreme heat, and based on its low air conditioning rates and older, high-density housing, it demonstrates limited potential for adaptation to heat events. A scientific assessment was done to identify the effects of heat waves on various sectors of Canadian life including agriculture, livestock, fisheries, construction, transportation, utilities, the environment, and human health. Heat stress has been linked to excess human mortality and illness, violent behaviour, drought, forest fires, tornadoes, decreased agricultural and livestock productivity, construction and transportation difficulties, and reduced electrical power supply. Despite limited research on heat waves in Canada, this study demonstrates that the impacts of heat are profound and far-reaching.     

中国陆地生态系统碳收支集成研究的e-Science系统构建

全球/区域生态系统碳循环研究具有多台站联网观测、多源异构数据、多模型综合分析、跨领域科学家协同工作等特点。以中国陆地生态系统通量观测研究网络(ChinaFLUX)为基础平台,论述建立碳循环科研信息化环境(e-Carbon Science)的迫切性,系统阐述e-Carbon Science的目标、组成、关键技术及研究进展,构建了由"四环境(碳循环数据集成与服务环境、模型模拟环境、可视化分析环境、科研协同工作环境)、三系统(站点、区域、全国尺度陆地生态系统碳收支评估应用系统)"组成的ChinaFLUX e-Carbon Science,形成ChinaFLUX通量数据采集—传输—存储—管理—处理—可视化—共享服务的一体化系统,实现不同尺度的碳收支快速评估与模拟,支撑并促进我国陆地生态系统碳循环研究和生态信息学发展,对我国野外台站网络信息化起到引领和示范作用。     

Characteristics of Karst Ecosystems of Vietnam and Their Vulnerability to Human Impact

Karst in Vietnam covers an area of about 60,000 km2, i.e. 18 % of the surface of the country. The country has an annual average temperature of 24@, an annual average rainfall of 2300 mm and a relative humidity of about 90%. Karst in Vietnam is typified by peak cluster-depression landscapes ranging in elevation from 200 to over 2000 m. Tower and coastal karst landscapes also exit. Because of naturally favourable conditions, karst ecosystems are diverse and very rich. Higher plants (cormophytes) are abundant. They are represented by approximately 2000 species, 908 genera, 224 families, 86 orders and 7 phyla. They form a thick vegetation cover of evergreen tropical rainforest. Knowledge about lower plants is limited. The fauna is rich and diverse. Phyla such as Protozoa, Vermes, Mollusca and Arthropoda are yet ill known. Preliminary results show that the phylum Chordata is represented by 541 species from 80 families, 40 orders and 5 classes. There exist many precious and rare mammals, in particular some en     

鄱阳湖流域赣江下游水化学特征及人类健康风险评价

人类活动对鄱阳湖赣江流域水质的影响受到广泛关注,厘清流域内污染水体对人类的健康风险状况有利于更好地保护和利用水资源。本研究于赣江下游采集39个地下水和16个地表水样,在分析其水化学特征和影响因素的基础上,对地下水水化学成分演变进行反向模拟,并对地下水水质以及潜在非致癌风险进行评价。结果表明,研究区地下水呈弱酸性-中性(pH=5.47~7.60),以HCO₃-Ca-Mg型水为主,部分为Cl-Ca-Mg型水,硅酸岩风化和矿物溶解-沉淀作用是水化学类型形成的主要控制因素;地表水呈中性-弱碱性(pH=6.94~8.19),主要为HCO₃-Cl-Ca-Na型水,其形成与硅酸岩风化、大气降水和人类活动有关。PHREEQC模拟计算结果表明,地下水中大部分矿物饱和指数(SI)为负数,其中岩盐的SI为-7.80~-9.53,指示该矿物溶解剧烈;白云石、石膏和方解石的SI分别为-1.72~-6.39、-1.65~-3.96、-0.51~-3.09,表明三种矿物呈溶解趋势。反向模拟结果显示,赣江干流地下水化学特征演变过程经历了Ca-蒙脱石、岩盐、白云石溶解和方解石沉淀,同时消耗CO₂;支流中命名为NCGW-3的路径表现为高岭石、方解石、玉髓和白云石溶解,石膏、Ca-蒙脱石、黑云母和斜长石沉淀,同时产生CO₂,可能与人为作用的干扰有关。其余支流地下水反向模拟结果与干流结果相似。熵权水质指数(EWQI)计算结果表明,干流地下水水质优于支流地下水,沿赣江受Mn、N {\mathrm{O}}_3^{-}影响水质降低;地下水非致癌潜在风险主要为对婴儿存在严重风险,其次是儿童,对成年男性和成年女性风险相对较小,支流水质存在的潜在风险相较于干流更为显著。     

The Role of Aerosol in Climate Change, the Environment, and Human Health

Aerosol is an important component of the atmosphere, and its source, composition, distribution, and effects are highly complicated. Governments and scientists have given much attention to aerosol problems, and it has become a hot topic due to the important role it plays in climate change and the Earth’s environment. In this paper, 1) the importance of aerosol in climate change, the atmospheric environment, and human health is summarized; 2) the recent serious problems of aerosol pollution and the shortage of current aerosol research in China are pointed out; and 3) the necessity to enhance aerosol research in China is emphasized.     

Inducing Unstable Grassland Equilibrium States Due to Nonlinear Optimal Patterns of Initial and Parameter Perturbations: Theoretical Models

Due to uncertainties in initial conditions and parameters,the stability and uncertainty of grassland ecosystem simulations using ecosystem models are issues of concern.Our objective is to determine the types and patterns of initial and parameter perturbations that yield the greatest instability and uncertainty in simulated grassland ecosystems using theoretical models.We used a nonlinear optimization approach,i.e.,a conditional nonlinear optimal perturbation related to initial and parameter perturbations (CNOP) approach,in our work.Numerical results indicated that the CNOP showed a special and nonlinear optimal pattern when the initial state variables and multiple parameters were considered simultaneously.A visibly different complex optimal pattern characterizing the CNOPs was obtained by choosing different combinations of initial state variables and multiple parameters in different physical processes.We propose that the grassland modeled ecosystem caused by the CNOP-type perturbation is unstable and exhibits two aspects:abrupt change and the time needed for the abrupt change from a grassland equilibrium state to a desert equilibrium state when the initial state variables and multiple parameters are considered simultaneously.We compared these findings with results affected by the CNOPs obtained by considering only uncertainties in initial state variables and in a single parameter.The numerical results imply that the nonlinear optimal pattern of initial perturbations and parameter perturbations,especially for more parameters or when special parameters are involved,plays a key role in determining stabilities and uncertainties associated with a simulated or predicted grassland ecosystem.     

气候变化与人体健康

综述了气候变化与人类健康的关系,着重分析了气候变化对人体健康影响的主要方面与途径、适应气候变化的主要措施,提出了气候变化与人体健康关系研究中的科学问题及优先研究领域。并从国家层面上探讨了如何加强能力建设与制度建设等保障措施。     

地表面物理过程与生物地球化学过程耦合反馈机理的模拟研究

利用大气—植被相互作用模式（AVIM）研究地表面物理过程与生物地球化学过程耦合的机理和实现方法,其基础是植物与非生物环境之间物质和能量交换等物理过程影响植物的生理生长过程,使得植被宏观形态和相应的地表的动力学参数上发生显著变化,又反过来作用于植被与大气、土壤之间的物理交换过程。这种气候与生物圈双向反馈过程是在季节和年际时间尺度上的主要相互作用机理。应用AVIM于内蒙古半干旱草原,模拟了在大气状况强迫下,草原生态系统初级生产力,植被与大气之间CO2、潜热和感热的交换,揭示了地表物理和生物学过程耦合反馈机理。     

The Sea Empress oil spill (Wales, UK): effects on Common Scoter Melanitta nigra in Carmarthen Bay and status ten years later

Carmarthen Bay, UK, regularly supports internationally important numbers (>16,000) of non-breeding Common Scoters Melanitta nigra. The spill of 72,000 tonnes of crude oil from the Sea Empress in 1996 affected birds both through direct mortality and likely pollution of key food resources. Numbers were greatly reduced following the spill, whilst changes in the distribution of birds within Carmarthen Bay suggested that potentially sub-optimal foraging zones were used. However, ten years after the incident, numbers of Common Scoter were no different to those recorded immediately before the spill. Compared to some other spills, rapid revival is evident. Numbers increased to pre-spill levels within three winters and distributional changes suggested a concurrent return to previously contaminated feeding areas, implying that the ecosystem had regenerated sufficiently to support its top predator. The importance of prolonged, standardised monitoring of bird numbers and distribution as indicators of ecological recovery from environmental damage is emphasised.     

不同出露时间下洞庭湖洲滩土壤及生态系统呼吸特征

于2015年1月洞庭湖枯水期,针对不同出露时间下的洲滩,调查其土壤理化性质,并利用LI-8100便携式二氧化碳气体分析仪监测其生态系统呼吸.结果表明：在洞庭湖枯水期,洲滩出露后,洲滩土壤有机质、硝态氮、铵态氮和全氮含量随出露时间增长而先升高后降低.土壤溶解性有机碳含量是影响洞庭湖枯水期洲滩生态系统呼吸强度的最重要影响因子.溶解性有机碳含量随出露时间增长而提高,洲滩生态系统呼吸强度随之提高,并在洲滩出露约60天后达到最高值.出露洲滩生态系统呼吸通量均值为0.72±0.55 μmol/（m²·s）,超过杨树林地、芦苇地和农田地,成为洞庭湖区冬季CO₂排放最活跃的区域.