From land cover change to land function dynamics: a major challenge to improve land characterization

Land cover change has always had a central role in land change science. This central role is largely the result of the possibilities to map and characterize land cover based on observations and remote sensing. This paper argues that more attention should be given to land use and land functions and linkages between these. Consideration of land functions that provide a wide range of goods and services makes more integrated assessments of land change possible. The increasing attention to multifunctional land use is another incentive to develop methods to assess changes in land functions. A number of methods to quantify and map the spatial extent of land use and land functions are discussed and the implications for modeling are identified based on recent model approaches in land change science. The mixed use of land cover, land use and land function in maps and models leads to inconsistencies in land change assessments. Explicit attention to the non-linear relations between land cover, land use and land function is essential to consistently address land change. New methods to map and quantify land function dynamics will enhance our ability to understand and model land system change and adequately inform policies and planning.     

Field Evaluation of DRAINMOD 5.1 Under a Cold Climate: Simulation of Daily Midspan Water Table Depths and Drain Outflows1

Abstract: The hydrologic performance of DRAINMOD 5.1 was assessed for the southern Quebec region considering freezing/thawing conditions. A tile drained agricultural field in the Pike River watershed was instrumented to measure tile drainage volumes. The model was calibrated using water table depth and subsurface flow data over a two‐year period, while another two‐year dataset served to validate the model. DRAINMOD 5.1 accurately simulated the timing and magnitude of subsurface drainage events. The model also simulated the pattern of water table fluctuations with a good degree of accuracy. The R² between the observed and simulated daily WTD for calibration was >0.78, and that for validation was 0.93. The corresponding coefficients of efficiency (E) were >0.74 and 0.31. The R² and E values for calibration/validation of subsurface flow were 0.73/0.48 and 0.72/0.40, respectively. DRAINMOD simulated monthly subsurface flow quite accurately (E > 0.82 and R² > 0.84). The model precisely simulated daily/monthly drain flow over the entire year, including the winter months. Thus DRAINMOD 5.1 performed well in simulating the hydrology of a cold region.     

Model-based prediction of long-term leaching of contaminants from secondary materials in road constructions and noise protection dams

In this study, contaminant leaching from three different secondary materials (demolition waste, municipal solid waste incineration ash, and blast furnace slag) to groundwater is assessed by numerical modeling. Reactive transport simulations for a noise protection dam and a road dam (a typical German autobahn), in which secondary materials are reused as base layers, were performed to predict the breakthrough of a conservative tracer (i.e., a salt) and sorbing contaminants (e.g., PAHs like naphthalene and phenanthrene or heavy metals) at the groundwater table. The dam constructions have a composite architecture with soil covers in inclined layers and distinct contrasts in the unsaturated hydraulic properties of the used materials. Capillary barrier effects result in strong spatial variabilities of flow and transport velocities. Contaminant breakthrough curves at the groundwater table show significant tailing due to slow sorption kinetics and a wide distribution of travel times. While conservative tracer breakthrough depends primarily on subsoil hydraulic properties, equilibrium distribution coefficients and sorption kinetics represent additional controlling factors for contaminant spreading. Hence, the three secondary materials show pronounced differences in the temporal development of leached contaminant concentrations with consequences for breakthrough times and peak concentrations at the groundwater table. Significant concentration reductions due to dispersion occur only if the source concentrations decrease significantly prior to the arrival of the contaminant at the groundwater table. Biodegradation causes significant reduction of breakthrough concentrations only if flow velocities are low.     

Compatible Blends of Zein and Polyvinylpyrrolidone

Blends of zein and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) were compared based on their tensile properties, thermal properties and morphology. Zein was blended with polyvinylpyrrolidone of varying molecular weights (10, 55, and 1,300 kDa) and films were cast from ethanol solutions. Films cast using the higher molecular weight polymers showed an improvement in tensile strength, up to a 24% increase, compared to control. Differential scanning calorimetry data for the blends showed single T_m and T_g values of an intermediate value between those of zein and PVP control samples. Field emission scanning electron microscopy images show no obvious inhomogeneities, and confocal fluorescence microscopy showed no decreased uniformity in the PVP/zein films compared to control. Electrospun fibers of the zein/PVP blends were also obtained. These findings suggest that zein and polyvinylpyrrolidone combine to form a compatible blend, the first such blend of zein with a synthetic polymer.     

Implications of turnover and trust for safety attitudes and behaviour in work teams

Turnover potentially leads to a new individual being selected into a work team. This study investigated the safety-specific trust which team members place in their organisation’s selection and induction processes, and related this to the perceived risk from new employees. The research was conducted with teams working in forest harvesting, an occupation which has high-turnover, high risk and a high accident rate. Results indicate that trust in induction processes was negatively correlated with perceived risk from a new employee. Team members also engaged in a number of safety ensuring behaviours when a new individual joined the team, and these were related to the level of perceived risk, and how much they cared about their team members’ safety. It is argued that trust in the safety-specific characteristics of an organisation’s selection and induction process may have negative consequences for safety.     

Spatial modelling of the probability of obtaining a detectable concentration of ammonia in Moreton Bay, Australia

Ammonia is an important water quality variable, which in excess, can be detrimental to waterways and their ecosystems. In the Ecosystem Health Monitoring Program in South-east Queensland ammonia is monitored monthly, however, often more than 50% of the ammonia observations in Moreton Bay are below detection limit, making it difficult to draw useful inferences. In this paper a clipped Gaussian random field is used to spatially model and map the probability of detectable concentration of ammonia. The methodology is applied to the Moreton Bay samples collected in February 2005. The results suggest that for this month the oceanic impacted areas have higher probability of detectable ammonia concentration than the areas closer to the main sources of anthropogenic inputs.     

Temporal and spatial variations of nutrients in the Ten Mile Creek of South Florida, USA and effects on phytoplankton biomass

Water quality throughout south Florida has been a major concern for many years. Nutrient enrichment in the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) is a major surface water issue and is suggested as a possible cause of symptoms of ecological degradation. In 2005-06, water samples were collected weekly from seven sites along Ten Mile Creek (TMC), which drains into the Indian River Lagoon, to investigate and analyze spatial and temporal fluctuations of nutrients nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). The objective of this study was to understand the relationships among chlorophyll a concentration, nutrient enrichment and hydrological parameters in the surface water body.High median concentrations of total P (TP, 0.272 mg L(-1)), PO4-P (0.122 mg L(-1)), and dissolved total P (DTP, 0.179 mg L(-1)); and total N (TN, 0.988 mg L(-1)), NO3(-)-N (0.104 mg L(-1)), NH4+-N (0.103 mg L(-1)), and total Kjeldahl N (TKN, 0.829 mg L(-1)), were measured in TMC. The concentrations of TP, PO4-P, DTP, TN, NO3(-)-N, NH4+-N, and TKN were higher in summer and fall than in winter and spring. However, chlorophyll a and pheophytin concentrations during this period in TMC varied in the range of 0.000-60.7 and 0.000-17.4 microg L(-1), with their median values of 3.54 and 3.02 microg L(-1), respectively. The greatest mean chlorophyll a (10.3 microg L(-1)) and pheophytin (5.71 microg L(-1)) concentrations occurred in spring, while the lowest chlorophyll a (1.49 microg L(-1)) and pheophytin (1.97 mug L(-1)) in fall. High concentrations of PO4-P (>0.16 mg L(-1)), DTP (>0.24 mg L(-1)), NO3(-)-N (>0.15 mg L(-1)), NH4+-N (>0.12 mg L(-1)), and TKN (>0.96 mg L(-1)), occurred in the upstream of TMC, while high concentrations of chlorophyll a (>6.8 mug L(-l)) and pheophytin (>3.9 microg L(-l)) were detected in the downstream of TMC. The highest chlorophyll a (11.8 mug L(-l)) and pheophytin (6.06 microg L(-l)) concentrations, however, were associated with static and open water conditions. Hydrological parameters (total dissolved solid, electrical conductivity, salinity, pH, and water temperature) were positively correlated with chlorophyll a and pheophytin concentrations (P < 0.01) and these factors overshadowed the relationships between N and P concentrations and chlorophyll a under field conditions. Principal component analysis and the ratios of DIN/DP and TN/TP in the water suggest that N is the limiting nutrient factor for phytoplankton growth in the TMC and elevated N relative to P is beneficial to the growth of phytoplankton, which is supported by laboratory culture experiments under controlled conditions.     

Magnesium hydroxide bulk and colloid-associated 152Eu in an alkaline environment: colloid characterisation and sorption properties in the presence and absence of carbonate

The distribution of 152Eu between magnesium hydroxide bulk, colloids and solution has been assessed under alkaline conditions, such as those in nuclear fuel storage ponds. The colloidal phase has been characterised by two complementary methods: coupled ultrafiltration-ICP-AES and scanning electron microscopy. The quantity and the size distribution of the colloidal phase is strongly ionic strength-dependent. A decrease of the quantity of colloids, in particular the larger size ranges, has been observed with increasing ionic strength. Small colloids (1 kDa-10 kDa fraction) are predominant at all ionic strengths. The morphology of colloids, observed by field-emission gun scanning electron microscopy, appears to change from hexagonal prismatic (characteristic to the mineral) to spherical (energetically more favourable) as size decreases. The distribution of 152Eu between the solid and liquid/colloidal phases has been investigated at carbonate concentrations ranging from 0 to 10(-2) M by coupled ultrafiltration and gamma-spectrometry. Mg(OH)2 bulk appears to be a very strong sorbent for 152Eu, since complete sorption onto the bulk happens for carbonate concentrations as high as 10(-3) M. Scavenging of 152Eu by Mg(OH)2 colloids is negligible in the presence of Mg(OH)2 bulk. The distribution of 152Eu between liquid and colloidal phases has been investigated in the absence of bulk at various carbonate concentrations. A significant uptake of 152Eu by the colloids in solution has been observed, which decreases with increasing carbonate concentration. 152Eu appears to be mainly associated to the smallest colloids (1 kDa-10 kDa fraction). There is a strong correlation between the sorption properties and the surface area of the colloids.     

Development and Parameterization of a Rain- and Fire-driven Model for Exploring Elephant Effects in African Savannas

We describe the development and parameterization of a grid-based model of African savanna vegetation processes. The model was developed with the objective of exploring elephant effects on the diversity of savanna species and structure, and in this formulation concentrates on the relative cover of grass and woody plants, the vertical structure of the woody plant community, and the distribution of these over space. Grid cells are linked by seed dispersal and fire, and environmental variability is included in the form of stochastic rainfall and fire events. The model was parameterized from an extensive review of the African savanna literature; when available, parameter values varied widely. The most plausible set of parameters produced long-term coexistence between woody plants and grass, with the tree–grass balance being more sensitive to changes in parameters influencing demographic processes and drought incidence and response, while less sensitive to fire regime. There was considerable diversity in the woody structure of savanna systems within the range of uncertainty in tree growth rate parameters. Thus, given the paucity of height growth data regarding woody plant species in southern African savannas, managers of natural areas should be cognizant of different tree species growth and damage response attributes when considering whether to act on perceived elephant threats to vegetation.