Scaling and Mapping Regional Calculations of Soil Chemical Weathering Rates in Sweden

Weathering rates of base cations are crucial in critical load calculations and assessments of sustainable forestry. The weathering rate on a single site with detailed geological data can be modelled using the PROFILE model. For environmental assessments on a regional scale, the weathering rates for sites are scaled into regional maps. The step from sites to regional level requires focus on the spatial variation of weathering rates. In this paper, a method is presented by which weathering rates are calculated for 25589 Swedish sites with total elemental analysis for the soil. Based on a part of the results, a methodology for creating area covering maps by geostatistical analysis and kriging is described. A normative reconstruction model was used to transform total elemental analysis to mineralogy. Information from the Swedish Forest Inventory database and other databases were used to derive texture and other important information for the sites, e.g. climate, deposition and vegetation data. The calculated weathering rates show a regional pattern that indicates possibilities for interpolation of data in large parts of Sweden. Geostatistical analysis of an area in southern Sweden shows different properties for different base cations. Kriging was performed for potassium to demonstrate the method. It was concluded that different base cations and different regions have to be analysed separately, in order to optimise the kriging method.     

Evaluating soundscape intentions in landscape architecture: a study of competition entries for a new cemetery in Järva,Stockholm

While soundscape is increasingly acknowledged within landscape planning and design discourse, there is little research that clarifies how soundscapes are actually dealt with in landscape architecture practice – partly owing to methodological insufficiencies. This paper, therefore, describes a model for evaluating soundscape treatment in landscape design proposals, focusing on three key aspects. With the dual aim of testing the model, and learning more about how soundscape is approached in practice, the paper spotlights a major design competition for a new cemetery in Sweden. The model proved fruitful and easy to apply. It showed that only limited attention was paid to soundscape in the competition as a whole, and was a useful means of pinpointing proposals where soundscape was fully considered as a design feature; one competition entry that did so is described in the paper. Discussions cover design practice, trends in the competition and model application.     

Climate Change in the Baltic Sea Region: A Cross-Country Analysis of Institutional Stakeholder Perceptions

Before climate change is considered in long-term coastal management, it is necessary to investigate how institutional stakeholders in coastal management conceptualize climate change, as their awareness will ultimately affect their actions. Using questionnaires in eight Baltic Sea riparian countries, this study examines environmental managers' awareness of climate change. Our results indicate that problems related to global warming are deemed secondary to short-term social and economic issues. Respondents agree that problems caused by global warming will become increasingly important, but pay little attention to adaptation and mitigation strategies. Current environmental problems are expected to continue to be urgent in the future. We conclude that an apparent gap exists between decision making, public concerns, and scientific consensus, resulting in a situation in which the latest evidence rarely influences commonly held opinions.     

A new approach to in-situ determination of roadside particle emission factors of individual vehicles under conventional driving conditions

A method for continuous on-road measurements of particle number emissions for both diesel- and petrol-fuelled vehicles is presented. The setup allows the determination of particle number emission factors on an individual vehicle basis by the simultaneous measurement of CO₂ and particle concentrations. As an alternative to previous measurements on the kerbside, the sample is taken directly in the street, with the advantage of sampling in-situ within the exhaust plumes of passing vehicles, allowing the separation of the individual high-concentration plumes. The method was tested in two experiments that were conducted in the Gothenburg area. In the first study, which was performed at an urban roadside, we were able to determine particle emission factors from individual vehicles in a common car fleet passing the measurement site. The obtained emission factors were of the same order of magnitude (between 1.4 × 10¹² and 1.8 × 10¹⁴ particles km^?1) as values published in the recent literature for light duty vehicles. An additional on-road experiment was conducted at a rural road with four light duty reference vehicles (three of them petrol-powered and one diesel-powered) at driving speeds of 50 and 70 km h^?1, realised with different engine speeds. The results of the traffic emission studies show that the method is applicable provided that instruments with an adequate dynamic range are used and that the traffic is not too dense. In addition, the variability in particle emissions for a specified driving condition was estimated.     

Introduction of a waste incineration tax: Effects on the Swedish waste flows

A tax on waste-to-energy incineration of fossil carbon in municipal solid waste from households was introduced in Sweden on July 1, 2006. The tax has led to higher incineration gate fees. One of the main purposes with the tax is to increase the incentive for recycling of materials, including biological treatment. We investigate whether and to what extent this effect can be expected. A spreadsheet model is developed in order to estimate the net marginal cost of alternative waste treatment methods, i.e., the marginal cost of alternative treatment minus avoided cost of incineration. The value of the households’ time needed for source separation is discussed and included. The model includes the nine largest fractions, totalling 85% (weight), of the household waste currently being sent to waste incineration: food waste, newsprint, paper packaging, soft and hard plastic packaging, diapers, yard waste, other paper waste, and non-combustible waste. Our results indicate that the incineration tax will have the largest effect on biological treatment of kitchen and garden waste, which may increase by 9%. The consequences of an incineration tax depend on: (a) the level of the tax, (b) whether the tax is based on an assumed average Swedish fossil carbon content or on the measured carbon content in each incineration plant, (c) institutional factors such as the cooperation between waste incinerators, and (d) technological factors such as the availability of central sorting of waste or techniques for measurement of fossil carbon in exhaust gases, etc. Information turns out to be a key factor in transferring the governing force of the tax to the households as well improving the households’ attitudes towards material recycling.     

Learning About the History of Landscape Use for the Future: Consequences for Ecological and Social Systems in Swedish Bergslagen

Barriers and bridges to implement policies about sustainable development and sustainability commonly depend on the past development of social–ecological systems. Production of metals required integration of use of ore, streams for energy, and wood for bioenergy and construction, as well as of multiple societal actors. Focusing on the Swedish Bergslagen region as a case study we (1) describe the phases of natural resource use triggered by metallurgy, (2) the location and spatial extent of 22 definitions of Bergslagen divided into four zones as a proxy of cumulative pressure on landscapes, and (3) analyze the consequences for natural capital and society. We found clear gradients in industrial activity, stream alteration, and amount of natural forest from the core to the periphery of Bergslagen. Additionally, the legacy of top-down governance is linked to today’s poorly diversified business sector and thus municipal vulnerability. Comparing the Bergslagen case study with other similar regions in Russia and Germany, we discuss the usefulness of multiple case studies.     

Fungi and wind strongly influence the temporal availability of logs in an old-growth spruce forest.

Coarse woody debris (CWD) is a key habitat for many species in forest ecosystems. To ensure the long-term survival of such species, forest management regimes must include measures that promote dead wood dynamics similar to those of natural forests. Thus, information on CWD dynamics under natural conditions is required, including data pertaining to the underlying agents of disturbance. This study examines modes of mortality, decay rates, and temporal patterns in the availability of Picea abies logs in a Swedish old-growth forest affected by internal, small-scale disturbance. All 684 logs in a 6.6-ha plot were mapped and classified into one of six decay classes. Logs in the early stages of decay were examined for the presence of heart-rot fungi. Six years later all logs were re-inventoried, including newly formed logs. Matrix models based on the transition rates between decay classes showed that it took about 60 years for 90% of the logs to decay beyond class 6 (a deformed trunk with soft wood). Large logs (> 26 cm) decayed 40% more slowly than small logs (< 25 cm). The initial volume of logs was 37.6 m3/ha but increased to 44.8 m3/ha after six years. In addition, there was a large shift in the decay-class distribution. The volume of logs in early and late decay classes increased by 71% and 45%, respectively, while the volume of logs in the intermediate decay classes decreased by 32%. The fluctuations appear to result from pulses in mortality, driven by a combination of strong winds and the heart-rot fungus, Phellinus chrysoloma, which was present in more than 30% of all logs at an early stage of decay. These results show that large temporal fluctuations in dead wood also occur in the absence of large-scale disturbance, and that heart-rot fungi are important factors driving the overall dynamics of dead wood. Since many wood-inhabiting species are naturally rare and have very specific substrate demands, such temporal variability in dead wood availability may have effects on biodiversity and should be taken into account when designing small, protected forest areas.     

Modeling recovery of Swedish ecosystems from acidification

Dynamic models complement existing time series of observations and static critical load calculations by simulating past and future development of chemistry in forest and lake ecosystems. They are used for dynamic assessment of the acidification and to produce target load functions, that describe what combinations of nitrogen and sulfur emission reductions are needed to achieve a chemical or biological criterion in a given target year. The Swedish approach has been to apply the dynamic acidification models MAGIC, to 133 lakes unaffected by agriculture and SAFE, to 645 productive forest sites. While the long-term goal is to protect 95% of the area, implementation of the Gothenburg protocol will protect approximately 75% of forest soils in the long term. After 2030, recovery will be very slow and involve only a limited geographical area. If there had been no emission reductions after 1980, 87% of the forest area would have unwanted soil status in the long term. In 1990, approximately 17% of all Swedish lakes unaffected by agriculture received an acidifying deposition above critical load. This fraction will decrease to 10% in 2010 after implementation of the Gothenburg protocol. The acidified lakes of Sweden will recover faster than the soils. According to the MAGIC model the median pre-industrial ANC of 107 microeq L(-1) in acid sensitive lakes decreased to about 60 microeq L(-1) at the peak of the acidification (1975-1990) and increases to 80 microeq L(-1) by 2010. Further increases were small, only 2 microeq L(-1) between 2010 and 2040. Protecting 95% of the lakes will require further emission reductions below the Gothenburg protocol levels. More than 7000 lakes are limed regularly in Sweden and it is unlikely that this practice can be discontinued in the near future without adverse effects on lake chemistry and biology.