Distribution and source of tar on the Pacific Ocean

Petroleum residues, or tar lumps, are concentrated in the northwestern portion of the Pacific Ocean, particularly in the Kuroshio current system. The source of the tar appears to be tank washings from tankers on the very large Middle East to Japan route. Tar pollutants apparently are discharged by tankers south of Japan, become entrained in the Kuroshio current, and create a plume of contamination which extends downstream for 7000 km across the Pacific.     

Ferromanganese Nodules and Crusts from the Christmas Island Region,Indian Ocean

A sampling expedition has shown that largely hydrogenetic marine ferromanganese deposits occur in the Christmas Island region south of Java (~10°S), as small nodules on seamount slopes and abyssal plains (red clay), and as thick crusts on volcanic ridges and seamounts. Vernadite is dominant, with birnessite, jacobsite and todorokite common. Nodules were recovered in 25% of free-fall grab stations in water 4600-5900 m deep, and are not abundant where present. The nodules average 9.6% Fe, 19.7% Mn, 0.51% Ni, 0.49% Cu, and 0.12% Co. Crusts are common in water 1450-3700 m deep, with average deposition rates of 1-1.5 mm / m.y. The crusts average 13.9% Fe, 16.2% Mn, 0.35% Ni, 0.11% Cu, and 0.44% Co. Cobalt grades are higher (~0.8%) in shallower water ( < 2500 m), so future exploration should concentrate on depths of 500-1500 m near the oxygen minimum zone.     

The spatial and temporal patterns of aggradation in a temperate,upland, gravel‐bed river

Intensive field monitoring of a reach of upland gravel‐bed river illustrates the temporal and spatial variability of in‐channel sedimentation. Over the six‐year monitoring period, the mean bed level in the channel has risen by 0·17 m with a maximum bed level rise of 0·5 m noted at one location over a five month winter period. These rapid levels of aggradation have a profound impact on the number and duration of overbank flows with flood frequency increasing on average 2·6 times and overbank flow time increasing by 12·8 hours. This work raises the profile of coarse sediment transfer in the design and operation of river management, specifically engineering schemes. It emphasizes the need for the implementation of strategic monitoring programmes before engineering work occurs to identify zones where aggradation is likely to be problematic. Exploration of the sediment supply and transfer system can explain patterns of channel sedimentation. The complex spatial, seasonal and annual variability in sediment supply and transfer raise uncertainties into the system's response to potential changes in climate and land‐use. Thus, there is a demand for schemes that monitor coarse sediment transfer and channel response. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigation of Possible Contamination of Shallow Ground Water by Deeply Injected Liquid Industrial Wastes

The objective of this study was to assess the possible impact of deep well disposal operations, conducted between 1958 and 1974, on the ground water quality in a shallow fresh water aquifer beneath Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. Because of the breakout of formation fluids in Sarnia and Port Huron, Michigan, in the early 1970s, it had been hypothesized that liquid waste from the disposal zone in bedrock had leaked through numerous abandoned oil, gas, and salt wells in the area up to the shallow fresh water aquifer and from there to the surface.
A monitoring well network of 29 5cm (2 inch) diameter piezometers was established in the thin sand and shale aquifer system, which exists between 30 and 70m (100 and 230 feet) below ground surface. In addition, a 300m (1000 foot) deep borehole was drilled and instrumented with a Westbay multilevel casing, which permitted sampling of the disposal zone.
Ground water samples from the shallow monitoring wells and the Westbay multilevel casing were analyzed for volatiles by GC/MS. Those volatile aromatics that were conspicuously present in the deep disposal zone, e.g., ethyl toluenes and trimethyl benzene, were not detected in the shallow monitoring wells. Thus, if contaminants from the disposal zone did indeed migrate to the shallow aquifer, contamination was not widespread and probably consisted mostly of displaced chloride-rich formation waters.     

Biota: sediment partitioning of aluminium smelter related PAHs and pulp mill related diterpenes by intertidal clams at Kitimat, British Columbia

The question of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) bioavailability and its relationship to specific PAH sources with different PAH binding characteristics is an important one, because bioavailability drives PAH accumulation in biota and ultimately the biochemical responses to the PAH contaminants. The industrial harbour at Kitimat (British Columbia, Canada) provides an ideal location to study the bioavailability and bioaccumulation of sediment hydrocarbons to low trophic level biota. Samples of soft shell clams (Mya arenaria) and intertidal sediment collected from multiple sites over six years at various distances from an aluminium smelter and a pulp and paper mill were analysed for 106 PAHs, plant diterpenes and other aromatic fraction hydrocarbons. Interpretation using PAH source ratios and multivariate data analysis reveals six principal hydrocarbon sources: PAHs in coke, pitch and emissions from anode combustion from the aluminium smelter, vascular plant terpenes and aromatised terpenes from the pulp and paper mill, petroleum PAHs from shipping and other anthropogenic activities and PAHs from natural plant detritus. Harbour sediments predominantly contain either pitch or pyrogenic PAHs from the smelter, while clams predominantly contain plant derived PAHs and diterpenes from the adjacent pulp mill. PAHs from the smelter have low bioavailability to clams (Biota-Sediment Accumulation Factors; BSAFs <1 for pitch and coke; <10 for anode combustion, decreasing to ∼0.1 for the mass 300 and 302 PAHs), possibly due to binding to pitch or soot carbon matrices. Decreases in PAH isomer ratios between sediments and clams likely reflect a combination of variation in uptake kinetics of petroleum PAHs and compound specific metabolism, with the importance of petroleum PAHs decreasing with increasing molecular weight. Plant derived compounds exhibit little natural bioaccumulation at reference sites, but unsaturated and aromatised diterpenes released from resins by industrial pulping processes are readily accumulated by the clams (BSAFs >500). Thus while most of the smelter associated PAHs in sediments may not be bioavailable to benthic organisms, the plant terpenes (including retene, totarol, ferruginol, manool, dehydroabietane and other plant terpenes that form the chemical defence mechanism of conifers) released by pulp mills are bioavailable and possess demonstrated toxic properties. The large scale release of plant terpenes by some of the many pulp mills located in British Columbia and elsewhere represents a largely undocumented risk to aquatic biota.     

Identifying and Preventing Biopiracy in Australia: patent landscapes and legal geographies for plants with Indigenous Australian uses

There are legal and moral imperatives to protect biological resources and the ‘traditional knowledge’ associated with them. These imperatives derive from complex legal geographies: international law (such as the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Nagoya Protocol), State and federal laws, Indigenous customary law, codes of ethics and research protocols. This paper reports on a ‘patent landscape’ analysis of patents that refer to Australian plant species for which there is Indigenous Australian knowledge. We have identified several patents of potential new biopiracy concern. The paper highlights the way in which actors can gain private property monopolies over biological resources and associated traditional knowledge, even though there are overlapping sovereign rights and Indigenous rights claims. Regulatory gaps need to be closed nationally to fully govern the diverse human–plant bio-geographies in Australia. Further, Indigenous laws and governance have largely been ignored by these actors. We suggest that the introduction of ‘disclosure of origin’ requirements in patent applications, sui generis Indigenous knowledge protections, the development of biocultural protocols, and a more nationally consistent system for ‘access and benefit-sharing’ are required to ensure more ‘fair and equitable’ use of plants and Indigenous knowledge in/from Australia, and to ensure the recognition of Indigenous rights to knowledge.     

Towards good governance of urban greening: insights from four initiatives in Melbourne,Australia

ABSTRACT

Urban greening can enhance sustainability and liveability, through conserving biodiversity, mitigating urban heat and enhancing people’s health and wellbeing. However, urban greening is complex, as it occurs in unique ecological settings, with social, cultural and economic factors shaping the forms it takes. This raises questions about the governance of urban greening, including what counts as ‘good governance’. In this paper, we first outline principles of good governance drawn from the natural resource management context. We then present four urban greening initiatives from Melbourne Australia representing different scales, land tenures and organising structures. Following this, we analyse how governance of the four initiatives addresses good governance principles. Our analysis shows that there are diverse ways in which urban greening can be practiced and governed. The importance of more ‘informal’ initiatives should not be discounted relative to formalised initiatives, as a spectrum of approaches can be seen as strength. Further, in determining what constitutes good governance, the standards against which initiatives are assessed should be tailored to their specific circumstances, and consider impacts to the environment itself. These findings point to good urban greening governance being both situated and principled.