<Emphasis>H</Emphasis>ydrological variability of the <Emphasis>S</Emphasis>oummam watershed <Emphasis>(N</Emphasis>ortheastern <Emphasis>A</Emphasis>lgeria<Emphasis>)</Emphasis> and the possible links to climate fluctuations

The long-term variability of rainfall in the Soummam watershed (NE Algeria) has been analysed over the past 108 years using continuous wavelet method in order to identify the interannual modes controlling the rainfall variability. Statistical analyses of rainfall timeseries have shown its distribution following five periods of time, limited by a series of discontinuities around 1935, 1950, 1970 and 1990. The continuous wavelet transform have demonstrated different low frequency modes: 2–4, 4–8, 8–16 and 16–32 years.The annual band is expanded during the full study period with some pics around 1905, 1920–1935 and 1960; it shows a negative long-term trend, in particular since the period 1970–1990 when a major change has been identified. Then, the relationships between climate patterns of North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and Southern Oscillation Index (SOI) and the hydrological variability in the frequency domain have been investigated; they have shown a mean explained variance of 40 and 24 %, respectively. Such variances are less obvious for the annual mode and increase for the interannual frequencies. The coherence suffer from high perturbations since the period 1970–1990 when the NAO (SOI) shifts from negative (positive) phases to positive (negative) ones. Such anomalies are responsible for significant changes of rainfall variability, emphasising the global warming effects.     

Co-simulated Size Number: An Elegant Novel Algorithm for Identification of Multivariate Geochemical Anomalies

Natural Resources Research - Identification of geochemical anomalies is of particular importance for tracing the footprints of anomalies. This can be implemented by advanced techniques of...     

Mineral potential mapping for rare earth elements mineralization with AHP method in the Kerman-Kashmar Tectonic Zone,Central Iran

One of the major strengths of a GIS is the ability to integrate and combine multiple layers of geoscience data for producing mineral potential maps showing favorable areas for mineral exploration. Once the data is prepared properly, the GIS, jointly with other statistical and geostatistical software packages, can be used to manipulate and visualize the data in order to produce a mineral prospectivity map. Many spatial modeling techniques can be employed to produce mineral potential maps. This paper demonstrates a technique to define favorable areas for REE mineralization with AHP technique using geological, geochemical, geophysical, alteration and faults density spatial data in the Kerman-Kashmar Tectonic Zone of central Iran. The AHP is a powerful and flexible multi-criteria decision-making tool for dealing with complex problems where both qualitative and quantitative aspects need to be considered. This approach is knowledgedriven method and can be applied in other areas for conventional use in mineral exploration.     

Geostatistical Algorithm Selection for Mineral Resources Assessment and its Impact on Open-pit Production Planning Considering Metal Grade Boundary Effect

Mine planning is influenced by many sources of uncertainty. Significant sources of geological uncertainty in mine planning include uncertainty in layout of geological domains and uncertainty in metal grades. These two sources of uncertainty cannot be modeled separately because the distribution of the grade is controlled usually by geological domains. Two approaches exist for combining these two sources of uncertainty: the joint simulation approach and the cascade approach. In this paper, these two approaches were compared using a real case study. To this end, uncertainty in iron grade (quantitative variable) and ore zones (qualitative variable) was modeled using both approaches. There were some considerable differences in the results obtained by each approach, which confirm the importance of choosing the most appropriate approach with consideration of the dominate features of a deposit.

     

Road condition assessment by OBIA and feature selection techniques using very high-resolution WorldView-2 imagery

Accurate information on the conditions of road asphalt is necessary for economic development and transportation management. In this study, object-based image analysis (OBIA) rule-sets are proposed based on feature selection technique to extract road asphalt conditions (good and poor) using WorldView-2 (WV-2) satellite data. Different feature selection techniques, including support vector machine (SVM), random forest (RF) and chi-square (CHI) are evaluated to indicate the most effective algorithm to identify the best set of OBIA attributes (spatial, spectral, textural and colour). The chi-square algorithm outperformed SVM and RF techniques. The classification result based on CHI algorithm achieved an overall accuracy of 83.19% for the training image (first site). Furthermore, the proposed model was used to examine its performance in different areas; and it achieved accuracy levels of 83.44, 87.80 and 80.26% for the different selected areas. Therefore, the selected method can be potentially useful for detecting road conditions based on WV-2 images.     

Evaluating an Analytical Model to Predict Subsurface LNAPL Distributions and Transmissivity from Current and Historic Fluid Levels in Groundwater Wells: Comparing Results to Numerical Simulations

A recent analytical model predicts free, entrapped, and residual LNAPL saturations and the LNAPL transmissivity in the subsurface from current and historic fluid levels in groundwater wells. As such, the model accounts for effects of fluid level fluctuations in a well. The model was developed to predict LNAPL specific volumes and transmissivities from current fluid level measurements in wells and either recorded historic fluid level fluctuations in wells or estimates. An assumption is made in the model that the predictions are not dependent on whether the historic highest or lowest fluid level elevations in a well occur first. To test the assumption, we conduct two simulations with a modified multiphase flow numerical code TMVOC that incorporates relative permeability‐saturation‐capillary head relations employed in the model. In one simulation, the initial condition is for fluid levels in a well at the historic highest elevations. In the other simulation, the initial condition is for fluid levels in a well at the historic lowest elevations. We change the boundary conditions so both historical conditions occur followed by generating the current condition. Results from the numerical simulations are compared to model predictions and show the assumption in the analytical model is reasonable. The analytical model can be used to develop/refine conceptual site models and for assessing potential LNAPL recovery endpoints, especially on sites with fluctuating fluid levels in wells.     

The Wadden Sea in transition - consequences of sea level rise

The impact of sea level rise (SLR) on the future morphological development of the Wadden Sea (North Sea) is investigated by means of extensive process-resolving numerical simulations. A new sediment and morphodynamic module was implemented in the well-established 3D circulation model GETM. A number of different validations are presented, ranging from an idealized 1D channel over a semi-idealized 2D Wadden Sea basin to a fully coupled realistic 40-year hindcast without morphological amplification of the Sylt-Rømøbight, a semi-enclosed subsystem of the Wadden Sea. Based on the results of the hindcast, four distinct future scenarios covering the period 2010–2100 are simulated. While these scenarios differ in the strength of SLR and wind forcing, they also account for an expected increase of tidal range over the coming century. The results of the future projections indicate a transition from a tidal-flat-dominated system toward a lagoon-like system, in which large fractions of the Sylt-Rømøbight will remain permanently covered by water. This has potentially dramatic implications for the unique ecosystem of the Wadden Sea. Although the simulations also predict an increased accumulation of sediment in the back-barrier basin, this accumulation is far too weak to compensate for the rise in mean sea level.     

Assessing building vulnerability to tsunami using the PTVA-3 model: A case study of Chabahar Bay,Iran

Chabahar Bay, in southeastern Iran, lies at the north of the Gulf of Oman and close to the Makran Subduction Zone, which makes it a region that is susceptible to tsunamis. This bay has an increasingly important role in Iran’s international trade, and therefore the assessment of the regional vulnerability to the effects of a tsunami is vital. Based on both the details of historical events and the results of numerical modeling of the propagation pattern of a tsunami in this region, this study assessed the vulnerability of buildings within the Chabahar Bay region to a tsunami event. The Papathoma Tsunami Vulnerability Assessment (PTVA) model was used to calculate a relative vulnerability index (RVI) for the affected buildings based on their physical and structural characteristics. The results showed that in a postulated worst-case-scenario tsunami event in the Chabahar Bay area, approximately 60 % of the residential buildings would be affected, a level of damage that is categorized as “Average” in the RVI classification. Overall, the economic losses related to the damage of residential buildings due to a tsunami in the Chabahar Bay area are anticipated to be the equivalent of US$ 16.5 million.     

Spatial and temporal variability of groundwater quality of an Algerian aquifer: the case of Soummam Wadi

ABSTRACT

Five-year monitoring of physicochemical parameters was performed with two campaigns in low and high water periods of the Lower Soummam catchment. Data from 18 wells were processed by multivariate statistical tools in order to identify the principal factors influencing groundwater chemistry. Two matrices of 14 and 8 physicochemical parameters with 18 groundwater samples collected in wells were obtained. The correlation matrix showed strong associations between nine variables: K⁺, Ca²⁺, Na⁺, SO₄^2?, Cl^?, Mg²⁺, NO₂^?, Zn²⁺ and Sr²⁺. Principal component analysis and factor analysis showed that the cumulated variance of high and low water periods was of 83.19% and 78.55%, respectively. The variables assigned to the mineralization effect or to pollution indicators were presented by the factor analysis. The bivariate plots confirmed a mineralization model, ascribed to dissolution of geological materials, and to high levels of saline contamination attributed to leakages from sanitary systems. They also showed an increase “upstream to downstream” of the mineralization, visualization of temporal variations, and a dilution process identification of the natural mineralization during the recharge of the aquifer.

EDITOR D. Koutsoyiannis; ASSOCIATE EDITOR X. Chen