Dynamic Changes of the Bush Encroachment in Low Altitude Area of Ethiopia

Bush encroachment is widely distributed in arid and semi-arid regions, and it has a serious impact on livestock production, especially in Africa where livestock is a primary source for the livelihoods of many people. In this study, methods of supervised classification and decision tree classification, and indexes of a land use change significance index (Ci) and a single land use dynamic degree, were applied to remote sensing imagery of Ethiopia for 1986-2016. The results show the dynamic characteristics of grassland bush encroachment in low altitude areas (pastures <1500 m above sea level) of Ethiopia in the 30 year period studied. The results revealed several interesting features of this phenomenon. (1) The area of bush encroachment showed an increasing trend, with a maximum of 3.74×10³ km² in 2003, which represented 68.97% of the total area, and declined slightly from 2003~2016. (2) Among classification types, the area of severe shrub grassland was the largest, accounting for 28.36-49.10% of the total area, while the area of moderate bush encroachment accounted for 9.77-16.68%, and slight bush encroachment accounted for 5.52-7.57%. (3) The expansion rate of shrubby grassland was 0.74% for the 30 year period, while the average annual expansion rate was 2.16% for the 8 years from 1995-2003. (4) Forest land and grassland were the two main land use types of shrub grassland transformation in low altitude areas and bush encroachment changed large amounts of forest land into grassland due to shrub grassland management. The results of this study provide basic data for revealing the impacts of development processes on subsequent bush encroachment and can inform better management for the sustainable development of grasslands in low altitude systems.     

The effects of wet and dry seasons on concentrations of solutes and phytoplankton biomass in seven Ethiopian rift-valley lakes

The chemical characteristics and phytoplankton biomass (measured as chlorophyll-a concentrations) of seven lakes and one reservoir in the Ethiopian rift-valley were studied during the wet and dry seasons between 1990 and 2000. Mean concentrations of three major plant nutrients (nitrate-nitrogen, soluble reactive phosphorus, and silicate) increased during the wet seasons in four of the seven lakes, presumably as a result of mixing events and input from runoff. The changes in the major nutrient concentrations in the rest of the lakes were variable, but concentrations were usually higher during the dry seasons, most likely as a response to temporal variation in the phytoplankton biomass. pH measurements of the lakes did not show marked differences between the wet and dry seasons. Salinity (measured as conductivity) and total ions seemed to increase during the wet seasons in some of the lakes, possibly as a result of inflows that might carry high concentrations of solutes due to the heavy rains. Chlorophyll-a concentrations were higher during the dry seasons in most lakes except in three relatively more productive lakes. The results suggest that there could be light limitation in some of the Ethiopian rift-valley lakes, and events associated with the wet and dry seasons could bring about contrasting changes in nutrient levels and phytoplankton biomass in lakes, depending on the physical characteristics of the lakes.     

Conductivity as a predictor of a total cations and salinity in Ethiopian lakes and rivers: revisiting earlier models

We used regression analyses of water samples from 18 lakes, nine rivers, and one spring in Ethiopia to (a) test the hypothesis that water bodies of relatively higher salinity (K₂₅>1000 μS cm⁻¹) have a different conductivity to salinity relationship than waters of lower salinity (K₂₅ < 1000 μS cm⁻¹), and (b) develop models to predict total cations and salinity from conductivity that can be used for Ethiopian waters and other African aquatic systems of similar chemical composition. We found no statistical difference in the bilogarithmic relationships (total cations vs. conductivity; salinity vs. conductivity) for waters of higher salinity (K₂₅ > 1000 μS cm⁻¹) and waters of lower salinity (K₂₅ < 1000 μS cm⁻¹). However, comparison among our models and models from the literature suggests that developing separate equations for low and high salinity water bodies has some merit. We believe that the equations developed in this study can be used for Ethiopian waters and other African waters within the range of conductivity in this study.     

基于植被净初级生产力和水分利用效率的埃塞俄比亚土地退化趋势及驱动因素分析

土地退化对减缓和适应气候变化有重要影响,并威胁到全世界的可持续发展,造成一系列社会、经济和生态问题,是目前全球面临的最大环境挑战之一。基于2001—2020年埃塞俄比亚的归一化植被指数（NDVI）、气象数据及土地覆盖数据,通过CASA模型计算获得植被净初级生产力（NPP）和水分利用效率（WUE）,并使用Sen+MK趋势分析方法得到土地退化及其恢复趋势,同时采用多元逐步回归方法分析了土地退化及恢复的驱动因素。结果表明：2001—2020年,埃塞俄比亚土地退化整体呈现恢复趋势,恢复区域占全国面积的34.51%,主要分布在埃塞俄比亚西部以及索马里州;退化区域仅占全国面积的1.63%,主要分布在首都亚的斯亚贝巴。土地退化及恢复的主要驱动因素是人为与气候共同因素和人为单因素。土地退化的主要因素为人口的快速增长以及城市的扩张,土地恢复则与20年来实施的森林景观恢复以及可持续土地管理措施和政策有关。     

Archaean Au−Ag mineralisation at Racetrack,near Kalgoorlie,Western Australia: a high crustal-level expression of the Archaean composite lode-gold system

The Racetrack Au−Ag deposit, in the Archaean Yilgarn Block, Western Australia, is hosted by a porphyritic basalt in a low greenschist facies setting and is associated with a brittle strike-slip fault system. Three distinct and successive stages of hydrothermal activity and late quartz-carbonate veining resulted in multiple veining and/or brecciation: Stages I and II are Au-bearing, whereas Stage III and late veins are barren. The ore shows features of both classic epithermal and mesothermal deposits. Alteration assemblages, typified by sericitization, carbonization, silicification and chloritization, are similar to those of mesothermal gold deposits, wheras the quartz vein-textures including comb, rosette, plumose and banded, ore mineralogyof arsenopyrite, pyrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite, galena, freibergite, tetrahedrite, tennantite, fahlore, electrum and gold, and metal associations (Cu, As, Ag, Sn, Sb, W, Au and Pb) are more characteristics of epithermal deposits. Fluid inclusions related to Stage II are two phase and aqueous with 1–8 (average 4) wt. % NaCl equiv. and CO₂ content of <0.85 molal. Pressure-corrected homogenisation temperatures range from 190°C to 260°C. Mineral assemblages indicate that ore fluid pH ranged between 4.2 and 5.3, f_{O 2} between 10^−38.8 and 10^−39.6 bars, and m_Σs between 10^−3.2 and 10^−3.6. Calculated chemical and stable isotope compositions require a component of surface water in the ore fluid depositing the mineralisation, but evidence for deep crustal Pb indicates that deeply sourced fluids were also involved. The deposit is interpreted to have formed in a shallow environment via mixing of deeply sourced fluids, from at least as deep as the base of the greenstone belt, with surface waters. It therefore represents the upper crustal end-member of the crustal depth spectrum of Archaean lode-gold mineralisation.     

A classification scheme for epigenetic Archaean lode-gold deposits

Recent research has shown that Archaean lode-gold deposits occur in environments that range in their metamorphic grade from prehnite-pumpellyite to lower granulite facies. Based on this data a new classification is proposed for these deposits. In this classification, shallow-level gold deposits are classed as epizonal, the so-called mesothermal deposits are mesozonal, and the deeper deposits, commonly in mid-amphibolite or lower-granulite terrains, are hypozonal.