Sediment Phosphorus Chemistry and Microbial Biomass along a Lowland New Zealand Stream

An evaluation of the distribution of P concentrations in streamflow, P fractions andthe microbial biomass P pool was made of bed and bank sediments along a lowlandstream in New Zealand. Agricultural intensification increased downstream. However,most P fractions decreased downstream (total P decreased from c. 400 to 250 mg kg^-1) in bed sediments, while P in streamflow remained relatively constant (generally < 0.005 mg l^-1) and sediment microbial P increased from 2 to 8 mg kg^-1. An investigation of P release from dried and rewetted sediments showed that solution P (CaCl2-P) increased, on average > 300%, and proportional to the size of the microbial biomass P pool before drying, except in sediments with much organic carbon (OC). When supplied with a P source (1 mg l^-1) and then simultaneously with a C source (glucose, 100 mg l^-1), all sediment behaved similarly and biotic sorption accounted for, on average, 27 and 34% of the total sediment uptake, respectively (maximum of 58%). The quantity of P taken up was related to the initial size of the microbial biomass P pool, and the availability of P as influenced by organic P complexes and OC. The sediment microbial biomass represents a transient, but small store of P could be useful to indicate bioavailable P inputs.     

Uncertainty in Coal Property Valuation in West Virginia: A Case Study

Interpolated grids of coal bed thickness are being considered for use in a proposed method for taxation of coal in the state of West Virginia (United States). To assess the origin and magnitude of possible inaccuracies in calculated coal tonnage, we used conditional simulation to generate equiprobable realizations of net coal thickness for two coals on a 7 min topographic quadrangle, and a third coal in a second quadrangle. Coals differed in average thickness and proportion of original coal that had been removed by erosion; all three coals crop out in the study area. Coal tonnage was calculated for each realization and for each interpolated grid for actual and artificial property parcels, and differences were summarized as graphs of percent difference between tonnage calculated from the grid and average tonnage from simulations. Coal in individual parcels was considered minable for valuation purposes if average thickness in each parcel exceeded 30 inches. Results of this study show that over 75% of the parcels are classified correctly as minable or unminable based on interpolation grids of coal bed thickness. Although between 80 and 90% of the tonnages differ by less than 20% between interpolated values and simulated values, a nonlinear conditional bias might exist in estimation of coal tonnage from interpolated thickness, such that tonnage is underestimated where coal is thin, and overestimated where coal is thick. The largest percent differences occur for parcels that are small in area, although because of the small quantities of coal in question, bias is small on an absolute scale for these parcels. For a given parcel size, maximum apparent overestimation of coal tonnage occurs in parcels with an average coal bed thickness near the minable cutoff of 30 in. Conditional bias in tonnage for parcels having a coal thickness exceeding the cutoff by 10 in. or more is constant for two of the three coals studied, and increases slightly with average thickness for the third coal.     

西天山喇嘛苏铜矿成矿斑岩的岩石学、地球化学特征及成因探讨

位于西天山别珍套-科古琴晚古生代岛弧西段的喇嘛苏铜矿床是区内最大的铜矿床,与成矿作用有着密切关系的斑岩体为英云闪长斑岩、花岗闪长斑岩,是同源岩浆分异演化的产物,且花岗闪长斑岩可能属于岩浆演化晚期的产物。本区成矿斑岩的主量、微量元素和Sr-Nd同位素地球化学特征表明,其富集大离子亲石元素,而相对亏损高场强元素,出现了较为明显的Ta、Nb负异常,初始锶同位素ISr和εNd(t=390Ma)值分别为0.7072～0.7076和-0.32～0.17,显示壳幔混合源的特征,利用Sr和Nd同位素估算其源区物质约有50%来源于地壳。岩石地球化学特征指示了其为典型钙碱性火山弧花岗岩,暗示其形成于大陆弧环境。结合区域地质背景,推测本区成矿斑岩是在洋壳俯冲作用下发生部分熔融,交代原先的地幔楔,并混合了部分下地壳的物质,经历分离结晶作用的产物,其形成可能与晚古生代准噶尔洋板块向南的俯冲作用有关。结合东西天山的成矿斑岩的地球化学特征对比研究,岩浆源区的差别可能导致不同类型斑岩型矿床的形成,斑岩型铜矿床的形成较斑岩型钼矿床可能有更少的地壳物质贡献。     

Adaptation to climate change in glaciated mountain regions

Understanding of the human dimensions of climate change (HDCC) in glaciated mountain regions is limited by a deficit in systematically collated information on where, to what stressors, by whom, at what scale, and with what effect adaptation is occurring. This paper presents a systematic literature review of the recent English language peer-reviewed scholarship on adaptation in glaciated mountain regions. 4050 potentially relevant articles were examined, with 36 included for full review. Results indicate that scholarly investigation into adaptation in glaciated mountains is presently limited to only 40 % of countries with alpine glaciation. Seventy-four discrete adaptation initiatives were identified, with most occurring in Peru (28 %), Nepal (22 %) and India (17 %). Many documented adaptations were initiated in response to intersecting stressors related to cryospheric change and socio-economic development; were autonomous and initiated in reaction to experienced climatic stimuli; and were carried out at the individual, family, or community scale. The study contributes to an emerging literature tracking on-the-ground adaptation processes and outcomes, and identifies a need to raise the profile of human adaptation in glaciated mountain regions within the HDCC scholarship. A research agenda for addressing key knowledge gaps and questions is developed, providing a framework for future investigation.     

Chemistry of the heavily urbanized Bagmati River system in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal: export of organic matter, nutrients, major ions, silica, and metals

Water quality in less-developed countries is often subject to substantial degradation, but is rarely studied in a systematic way. The concentration and flux of major ions, carbon, nitrogen, silicon, and trace metals in the heavily urbanized Bagmati River within Kathmandu Valley, Nepal, are reported. The concentrations of all chemical species increased with distance downstream with the exceptions of protons and nitrate, and showed strong relationships with population density adjacent to the river. Total dissolved nitrogen (TDN), dominated by NH₄, was found in high concentrations along the Bagmati drainage system. The export of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and TDN were 23 and 33 tons km^?2 year^?1, respectively, at the outlet point of the Kathmandu Valley, much higher than in relatively undeveloped watersheds. The cationic and silica fluxes were 106 and 18 tons km^?2 year^?1 at the outlet of the Bagmati within Kathmandu Valley, and 36 and 32 tons km^?2 year^?1 from the relatively pristine headwater area. The difference between headwaters and the urban site suggests that the apparent weathering flux is three times higher than the actual weathering rate in the heavily urbanized Bagmati basin. Fluxes of cations and silica are above the world average, as well as fluxes from densely populated North American and European watersheds. End-member composition of anthropogenic sources like sewage or agricultural runoff is needed to understand the drivers of this high rate of apparent weathering.     

Vulnerability and its discontents: the past,present, and future of climate change vulnerability research

The agri-food sector must adapt to changes in climate variability, while also helping to mitigate climate change. Measures termed ‘triple-win’ mitigate and adapt to climate change, while also improving soil health, thereby increasing yields. These measures might appear to be the easiest to implement, but in practice, barriers prevent full realisation. This study aims to move beyond previous research efforts that identify and categorise barriers by (i) revealing hidden barriers, (ii) understanding the interactions between barriers and (iii) exploring ways to address barriers. A case study focusing on crop rotation as a triple-win strategy in Ukraine demonstrates how a participant-driven iterative research approach can achieve these objectives. During semi-structured interviews with farmers and stakeholders, crop rotation emerged as an area of considerable dissensus with stakeholders commonly citing the greedy behaviour of producers as the problem. Further discussion indicated that the political economy of Ukraine caused financial constraints for producers and Q methodology allowed for additional clarity on the opposing views of crop rotation. Three factors emerged: producer insecurity, national insecurity and business insecurity. These three perspectives reveal contrasting priorities with producer insecurity and business insecurity concerned with the conditions under which producers must operate, while national insecurity has a focus on improving agricultural production to benefit the nation. Consensus statements across all factors could provide first steps to addressing barriers and an opportunity to open discussions amongst stakeholders. Finally, barriers arising from political processes demonstrate that climate policy needs to be integrated with other sector-specific policy decisions.     

The influence of channel morphology on bedload path lengths: Insights from a survival process model

Tracer studies are a commonly used tool to develop and test Einstein-type stochastic bedload transport models. The movements of these tracers are controlled by many factors including grain characteristics, hydrologic forcing, and channel morphology. Although the influence of these sediment storage zones related to morphological features (e.g., bars, pools, riffles) have long been observed to “trap” bedload particles in transport, this influence has not been adequately quantified. In this paper we explore the influence of channel morphology on particle travel distances through the development of a Bayesian survival process model. This model simulates particle path length distributions using a location-specific “trapping probability” parameter (p_i ), which is estimated using the starting and ending locations of bedload tracers. We test this model using a field tracer study from Halfmoon Creek, Colorado. We find that (1) the model is able to adequately recreate the observed multi-modal path length distributions, (2) particles tend to accumulate in trapping zones, especially during large floods, and (3) particles entrained near a trapping zone will travel a shorter distance than one that is further away. Particle starting positions can affect path lengths by as much as a factor of two, which we confirm by modelling “starting-location-specific” path length probability distributions. This study highlights the importance of considering both tracer locations and channel topography in examinations of field tracer studies. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Relationships between molecular bacterial diversity and chemistry of groundwater in the Wairarapa Valley,New Zealand

Groundwater plays an important role in New Zealand water supplies and hence monitoring activities are conducted regularly. Most monitoring programmes aim to evaluate groundwater chemistry and almost completely overlook the microbial component in this ecosystem. In our present study, the bacterial community structure of groundwater in the Wairarapa Valley was examined using the terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP), and relationships between bacterial community structure and groundwater chemistry, aquifer confinement and groundwater usage were explored. In addition, the results from this study were compared with a previous T-RFLP survey of the same area in an attempt to detect changes in bacterial community structure over time. The data obtained suggested that bacterial community structure was related to groundwater chemistry, especially to redox conditions. Species composition showed minimal variation over time if groundwater chemistry remained unchanged. These findings reflect the potential of using bacterial communities as biological indicators to evaluate the health of groundwater ecosystems. We suggest that it is important to include this type of broad bacterial diversity assessment criteria into regular groundwater monitoring activities.     

南天山川乌鲁碱性杂岩体的岩石学和地球化学特征及其岩石成因

位于中国南天山西侧阔克萨彦岭一带的川乌鲁碱性杂岩体,与该区川乌鲁铜金多金属矿床有着直接的成因联系,该杂岩体由早期的辉长岩—闪长岩岩、主期的二长岩—正长岩和晚期的正长花岗斑岩脉组成,各期岩石在矿物组成和化学成分上有明显的变化。从早到晚,SiO2含量增加,变化范围是50.52%～70.64%;全碱含量先增后减,在SiO2含量小于61.69%时,随SiO2含量增加而增加,而当SiO2含量大于61.69%时,与SiO2含量负相关。在AR-SiO2图解上,大多样品落入碱性区间,在A/CNK-A/NK图解上表现出由准铝质向过碱性演化的趋势。微量元素表现为大离子亲石元素相对高场强元素富集,Rb、Ba、Th、Sr等元素的相对富集和Nb、Ta、P、Ti等元素的负异常。稀土元素表现为轻稀土相对富集的特征,其(La/Yb)N为14.13～25.09,具有Eu的正异常或极微弱的Eu负异常。一些元素比值的线性关系暗示了该杂岩体为岩浆混合成因,基性岩浆的源区为富水的岩石圈地幔,而酸性岩浆是中下地壳中性火成岩在含饱和水条件下部分熔融的产物。这些性质指示川乌鲁杂岩体是在后碰撞拉张环境中由岩石圈地幔熔融的基性岩浆的底侵作用导致地壳的熔融以及后期的岩浆混合作用有关。