Habitat, occurrence and conservation of Saharo-Arabian-Turanian element Forsskaolea tenacissima L. in the Iberian Peninsula

The aim of this study is to assess the Iberian populations of Forsskaolea tenacissima L. according to its biogeographical interest, habitat, geographical range and conservation status. Results point out that they are restricted to gravel wadis of Tabernas Desert (SE Spain), are scarcely included in protected areas and represent historically isolated populations with relict behaviour. We also describe a new association, Senecioni-Forsskaoleetum tenacissimae. Conservation status of species is cause for concern and two conservation actions must be carried out. Firstly, protected areas should house Forsskaolea populations and secondly, phytosociological characterization of a community allows inventorying its habitat and directing conservation efforts to community level.     

Flood Damage Reduction Program (FDRP) in Québec: Case Study of the Chaudiére River

This study presents the evolution of agreements between the governments of Canadaand Québec on flood damage reduction. In Québec, the implementation of a regulation about building in floodplains came about in 1983–1984. Today, this regulation takes the form of a policy called ``Policy of shores, littoral and floodplain protection'. Municipalities must adopt rules that concur with the principles of this policy.The Chaudiére River basin was selected for analysis of urban developmentduring the period following the application of building rules in flood-risk areas.Despite the ban on building in the strong current zone (0–20 year return periodflood zone), many buildings, essentially residential, have been erected in thiszone. These new constructions generally account for a low percentage of thetotal property value in the 0–100 year flooding area, but are legal since theyare connected to a water and sewage network that existed prior to the officialfloodplain regulation.Flood damage along the Chaudiére River will tend to increase for two reasons.Firstly, while respecting the policy mentioned above, sites are still available infloodplains for future development. Secondly, no structural flood protection workshave been erected in view of the fact they are only marginally profitable from anbenefit-cost point of view.     

Advances and Practices on the Research,Prevention and Control of Land Subsidence in Coastal Cities

Land subsidence severely threatens most of the coastal plains around the world where high productive industrial and agricultural activities and urban centers are concentrated. Coastal subsidence damages infrastructures and exacerbates the effect of the sea-level rise at regional scale. Although it is a well-known process, there is still much more to be improved on the monitoring, mapping and modeling of ground movements, as well as the understanding of controlling mechanisms. The International G...     

Observation-based blended projections from ensembles of regional climate models

We consider the problem of projecting future climate from ensembles of regional climate model (RCM) simulations using results from the North American Regional Climate Change Assessment Program (NARCCAP). To this end, we develop a hierarchical Bayesian space-time model that quantifies the discrepancies between different members of an ensemble of RCMs corresponding to present day conditions, and observational records. Discrepancies are then propagated into the future to obtain high resolution blended projections of 21st century climate. In addition to blended projections, the proposed method provides location-dependent comparisons between the different simulations by estimating the different modes of spatial variability, and using the climate model-specific coefficients of the spatial factors for comparisons. The approach has the flexibility to provide projections at customizable scales of potential interest to stakeholders while accounting for the uncertainties associated with projections at these scales based on a comprehensive statistical framework. We demonstrate the methodology with simulations from the Weather Research & Forecasting regional model (WRF) using three different boundary conditions. We use simulations for two time periods: current climate conditions, covering 1971 to 2000, and future climate conditions under the Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (SRES) A2 emissions scenario, covering 2041 to 2070. We investigate and project yearly mean summer and winter temperatures for a domain in the South West of the United States.     

Housing strategies in low income urban communities in Accra,Ghana

As the rent-free compound housing system in Ghana gradually became unpopular, there was the need for state intervention in housing provision. Housing became an important part of the country’s developmental policies through state interventions prior to the late 1970s. The economic crises in 1979 forced the country to opt for Structural Adjustment Programme, compelling the state to relax on its efforts to provide housing for the public. The paper uses the mode of economic integration framework to discuss the various housing forms in the country. It argues, housing provision led by the private sector creates remarked differences between housing for the higher and lower income groups. The study uses two low income communities in Accra to explain different ways by which the urban poor in Ghana accommodate themselves amidst the country’s housing problems. The study concludes there is an alternative to the housing crises in the country which could be found in the public-private investments in the rental form of the compound housing system.     

The multi-component Hekla Ö Tephra,Iceland: a complex widespread mid-Holocene tephra layer

Large Plinian eruptions from Hekla volcano, Iceland, produce compositionally zoned tephra used as key markers in tephrochronology. However, spatial variations in chemical composition of a tephra layer may complicate its identification. An example is the 5950–6180 cal a bp Hekla Ö tephra layer, which shows compositional spread from rhyolite, dacite and andesite to basalt. In soil sections north of Hekla, the SiO₂ content of the tephra glass reaches 76 wt% in the lowest unit of the Hekla Ö deposit and decreases to 62–63 wt% in the uppermost unit. Intermingled within the whole deposit are basalt tephra grains having 46–47 wt% SiO₂. The composition of the basalt glass includes primitive basalt and a more evolved basalt (MgO >6 and <6 wt%, respectively). Together with literature data, the Hekla Ö tephra and the so-called T-Tephra/Hekla-T are most likely from contemporaneous eruptions of different vents on the Hekla volcanic system, forming a single important marker tephra (Hekla ÖT) deposited over 80% of Iceland. Identification is complicated by its spatial compositional heterogeneity, such as systematic decrease in SiO₂ content from the east to the west of Hekla volcano. Consequently, an individual tephra layer from a large explosive eruption can have different composition at different locations. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stratigraphy, Chronology, and Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction of the Quaternary Sedimentary Infilling of a Volcanic Tube in Fuerteventura, Canary Islands

La Cueva del Llano is a volcanic tube of Pleistocene age on Fuerteventura Island, in the Canary Islands. Part of it is infilled with sediments of external origin. These deposits are exceptional in stratigraphic complexity and thickness compared with other known tube infillings, and they comprise nine stratigraphic units deposited in five phases. In Phase I, which has not been dated, sedimentation of cinder from a nearby cone occurred. Phase II began ca. 16,830 ± 900 ¹⁴C yr B.P., whereas phase IV dates to 9280 ± 370 ¹⁴C yr B.P. The interpretation of sedimentary features shows that phases III and V correspond to a dry climate, similar to the present one, whereas the climate was much wetter during phases II and IV. This paleoclimatic sequence agrees with those suggested by the study of deposits formed in other sedimentary environments, not only in Fuerteventura but on other islands of the Canary group and the Sud-Maroc region.     

Understanding and managing the morphology of branches incising into sand-clay deposits in the Dutch Rhine Delta

In the Rhine-Meuse delta in the south-western part of the Netherlands,the morphology of the river branches is highly dependent on the erodibility of the subsoil.Erosion processes that were initiated after closure of the Haringvliet estuary branch by a dam(in 1970),caused a strong incision of several connecting branches.Due to the geological evolution of this area the lithology of the subsoil shows large variations in highly erodible sand and poorly erodible peat and clay layers.This study shows how the geological information can be used to create 3D maps of the erodibility of the sub-soil, and how this information can be used to schematize the sub-soil in computational models for morphological simulations.Local incisement of sand patches between areas with poorly erodible bed causes deep scour holes,hence increasing the risk on river-bank instability(flow slides) and damage to constructions such as groynes,quays,tunnels, and pipelines.Various types of mathematical models,ranging from 1D(SOBEK) to quasi-3D(Delft3D) have been applied to study the future development of the river bed and possible management options.The results of these approaches demonstrate that models require inclusion of a layer-bookkeeping approach for sub-soil schematization, non-uniform sediment fractions(sand-mud),tidal and river-discharge boundary conditions,and capacity-reduction transport modeling.For risk-reducing river management it has been shown how the development of the river bed can be addressed on a large scale and small scale.For instance,the use of sediment feeding and fixation of bed can be proposed for large-scale management,while monitoring and interventions at initiation of erosion can be proposed as response to small-scale developments that exceed predefined intervention levels.     

Transfer of fishing effort between areas and fishery units in Spanish fisheries as side effects of the prestige oil spill management measures

This paper shows how post-oil spill management measures can affect the general pattern of fishing effort exerted on two particular species of great commercial value in northern Spanish fisheries: anglerfish (Lophius piscatorius and Lophius budegassa) and mackerel (Scomber scombrus). Data time series of catches and fishing efforts were analysed corresponding to the area and time period affected by the oil spill fishing restrictions (December 2002–June 2003) and similar previous and post-spill periods. This was done to detect shifts that could be due to either the oil spill per se or the management measures taken to minimise pollution effects. Then, analyses and simulations with Arcview GIS module FAST (Fishing Activity Simulation Tool v. 1.1) were carried out with the aim of studying the fishing effort spatial distribution. Changes were observed in the Catch Per Unit Effort (CPUE) of anglerfish and mackerel by area or fishery unit. Results show a spatial displacement of fishing effort to other fishing areas in the case of anglerfish, and the transfer of fishing effort between different fishery units in the case of mackerel. Although both effects were caused primarily by the management measures in force after the oil spill, they are considered side or collateral effects. The management measures that have to be taken after any disaster should also consider these kinds of ancillary effects as well as evaluating the likely positive or negative impact of these side effects.