Human induced salinisation and the use of quantitative methods

Sustainable development of the earth's limited water and land resources is of paramount importance because of rising world population and existing conflicting demands for these resources. Enormous capital investment has been made in developing these resources, but now there is irrefutable evidence that such developments have led to major resource degradation. This includes problems of salinisation and damages to ecosystems. The countries predominantly affected by human induced salinisation are located in arid and semi-arid regions of the world and include Australia, China, Egypt, India, Pakistan, USSR, and USA. This paper describes the processes of salinisation, its impacts and the use of quantitative methods in salinity investigation and management. Australia is used as a case study of typical salinity problems and as a demonstration of the fruitful application of quantitative methods. The paper concludes that quantitative methods such as surface water and groundwater models are powerful design, management and predictive tools in salinity investigation. However, application of some models, such as those for unsaturated flow and transport and groundwater solute transport, are not widespread due to uncertainties in describing the complexity of the processes and the lack of hydrodispersive data.     

Mangrove Mapping Using Landsat Imagery and Aerial Photographs: Kemaman District, Terengganu, Malaysia

Classification and distribution of mangrove vegetation are vital information for the proper development of a mangrove management plan. In this study, classification for the mangroves of the district of Kemaman were done using both 1 : 5000 aerial photographs and Landsat TM imageries. The coverage by aerial photographs is limited to the coastal and estuarine areas only. Thus, for areas further upstream of the aerial photo coverage, Landsat TM imageries were used. Analysis of aerial photographs and remote sensing images revealed that the mangroves of Kemaman could be classified into 14 different classes of vegetation. All the 14 classes were identified from areas covered by the aerial photographs. For areas covered by the Landsat images only 7 classes of vegetation were identified. The accuracy for aerial photograph and Landsat images are 91.2% and 87.8%, respectively. It can be concluded that although both techniques are useful in determining the mangrove vegetation classes, the large 1 : 5000 aerial photographs are more accurate and provided more detailed information comparatively.     

Assessment of environmental changes in the Orinoco River delta

Major anthropogenic driven changes in the hydrologic and sedimentation patterns of the Orinoco River have had an impact on environmental conditions in the delta. The abrupt water flow reduction from 3,600 to 200 m³ s^–1 in one of its major distributaries resulting from dam construction forced its transformation from a fresh-water body into a tidal channel with an increase in salinity level (as far as 100 km upstream) and with well-mixed water at the mouth and estuarine connection to the Paria Gulf. Three different sectors along this distributary can be identified (indicated by the Na/Cl ratio in the water). As a result, noticeable changes have occurred in the mangrove community which moved about 60 km further upstream. The changes have also promoted the formation of new islands of sediment progradation at the mouth of this distributary, where successional colonization and species replacement by different species of grasses and mangroves take place. Electronic Publication     

Active capping demonstration in the Anacostia river,Washington, D.C.

An active capping demonstration project in Washington, D.C., is testing the ability to place sequestering agents on contaminated sediments using conventional equipment and evaluating their subsequent effectiveness relative to conventional passive sand sediment caps. Selected active capping materials include: (1) AquaBlokTM, a clay material for permeability control; (2) apatite, a phosphate mineral for metals control; (3) coke, an organic sequestration agent; and (4) sand material for a control cap. All of the materials, except coke, were placed in 8,000‐ft test plots by a conventional clamshell method during March and April 2004. Coke was placed as a 1.25‐cm layer in a laminated mat due to concerns related to settling of the material. Postcap sampling and analysis were conducted during the first, sixth, and eighteenth months after placement. Although postcap sampling is expected to continue for at least an additional 24 months, this article summarizes the results of the demonstration project and postcap sampling efforts up to 18 months. Conventional clamshell placement was found to be effective for placing relatively thin (six‐inch) layers of active material. The viability of placing high‐value or difficult‐to‐place material in a controlled manner was successfully demonstrated with the laminated mat. Postcap monitoring indicates that all cap materials effectively isolated contaminants, but it is not yet possible to differentiate between conventional sand and active cap layer performance. Monitoring of the permeability control layer indicated effective reductions in groundwater seepage rates through the cap, but also showed the potential for gas accumulation and irregular release. All of the cap materials show deposition of new contaminated sediment onto the surface of the caps, illustrating the importance of source control in maintaining sediment quality. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Barriers Beyond the Partners: Bureaucratic and Political Constraints to Implementing Joint Forest Management in Tamil Nadu,India

Whereas past research has treated co-management of common pool resources as if villagers and project implementing authorities were the only relevant actors, numerous external factors beyond the control of these two partners create barriers to successful co-management. This paper draws on discussions with Forest Department officials to examine the influence of these forces on the outcomes of Joint Forest Management (JFM) in Tamil Nadu, India. An empirical inquiry into the operational aspects of JFM indicates the important roles of political parties, powerful people, and other state institutions and functionaries as well as the flow of foreign funding. Further, the strong demand by local people for socio-economic development interventions as opposed to improvement of degraded forests belittles the role of the Forest Department relative to other departments. Numerous other conditioning factors and relationships are explored. The authors call for reforms in public governance to allow better participation of all the actors involved for this participatory management approach to succeed and sustain.