Spatial Distribution of Water Supply in the Coterminous United States1

Abstract: Available water supply across the contiguous 48 states was estimated as precipitation minus evapotranspiration using data for the period 1953‐1994. Precipitation estimates were taken from the Parameter‐Elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM). Evapotranspiration was estimated using two models, the Advection‐Aridity model and the Zhang model. The evapotranspiration models were calibrated using precipitation and runoff data for 655 hydrologically undisturbed basins, and then tested using estimates of natural runoff for the 18 water resource regions (WRR) of the 48 contiguous states. The final water supply coverage reflects a mixture of outputs from the two evapotranspiration models. Political, administrative, and land cover boundaries were mapped over the coverage of mean annual water supply. Across the entire study area, we find that 53% of the water supply originates on forested land, which covers only 29% of the surface area, and that 24% originates on federal lands, including 18% on national forests and grasslands alone. Forests and federal lands are even more important in the West (the 11 western contiguous states), where 65% of the water supply originates on forested land and 66% on federal lands, with national forests and grasslands contributing 51%.     

High-impact conservation: invasive mammal eradications from the islands of western México

Islands harbor a disproportionate amount of the earth's biodiversity, but a significant portion has been lost due in large part to the impacts of invasive mammals. Fortunately, invasive mammals can be routinely removed from islands, providing a powerful tool to prevent extinctions and restore ecosystems. Given that invasive mammals are still present on more than 80% of the world's major islands groups and remain a premier threat to the earth's biodiversity, it is important to disseminate replicable, scaleable models to eradicate invasive mammals from islands. We report on a successful model from western México during the past decade. A collaborative effort between nongovernmental organizations, academic biologists, Mexican government agencies, and local individuals has resulted in major restoration efforts in three island archipelagos. Forty-two populations of invasive mammals have been eradicated from 26 islands. For a cost of USD 21,615 per colony and USD 49,370 per taxon, 201 seabird colonies and 88 endemic terrestrial taxa have been protected, respectively. These conservation successes are a result of an operational model with three main components: i) a tri-national collaboration that integrates research, prioritization, financing, public education, policy work, capacity building, conservation action, monitoring, and evaluation; ii) proactive and dedicated natural resource management agencies; and iii) effective partnerships with academic researchers in Mexico and the United States. What is now needed is a detailed plan to eradicate invasive mammals from the remaining islands in the region that integrates the needed additional financing, capacity, technical advances, and policy issues. Island conservation in western Mexico provides an effective approach that can be readily applied to other archipelagos where conservation efforts have been limited.     

The evaluation of stability and maturity during the composting of cattle manure

We examined chemical, microbiological and biochemical parameters in order to assess their effectiveness as stability and maturity indicators during the composting process of cattle manure. The composting material obtained after 15 d in trenches and at different times during the maturation phase (i.e. 80, 180 and 270 d) were analyzed. We found that the material collected at the end of the active phase was inadequate to be applied to soil as organic amendment due to its high content of NH4+, its high level of phytotoxicity and the low degree of organic matter stability. After a maturation period of 80 d, the stability of the sample increased. This was shown by a reduction in the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content and NH4+ concentration and also by a reduction in the microbial activity and biomass; however, 180 d of composting were not sufficient to reduce the phytotoxicity to levels consistent for a safe soil application. Among the various parameters studied, the change in DOC with composting time gave a good indication of stability.     

Screening the phytoremediation potential of desert broom (Baccharis sarothroides Gray) growing on mine tailings in Arizona, USA

The metal concentrations in a copper mine tailings and desert broom (Baccharis sarothroides Gray) plants were investigated. The metal concentrations in plants, soil cover, and tailings were determined using ICP-OES. The concentration of copper, lead, molybdenum, chromium, zinc, arsenic, nickel, and cobalt in tailings was 526.4, 207.4, 89.1, 84.5, 51.7, 49.6, 39.7, and 35.6mgkg(-1), respectively. The concentration of all elements in soil cover was 10-15% higher than that of the tailings, except for molybdenum. The concentration of copper, lead, molybdenum, chromium, zinc, arsenic, nickel, and cobalt in roots was 818.3, 151.9, 73.9, 57.1, 40.1, 44.6, 96.8, and 26.7mgkg(-1) and 1214.1, 107.3, 105.8, 105.5, 55.2, 36.9, 30.9, and 10.9mgkg(-1) for shoots, respectively. Considering the translocation factor, enrichment coefficient, and the accumulation factor, desert broom could be a potential hyperaccumulator of Cu, Pb, Cr, Zn, As, and Ni.     

Experimental analysis and modeling of a stormwater perlite filter

This paper presents the study of a mixed porous media composed of expanded perlite and a nonwoven needle-punched geotextile used to reduce the suspended solids load and concentration in urban runoff. Laboratory procedures were designed to quantify the suspended solids removal efficiency and variation in time of filtration rate. Different grain-size distributions of expanded perlite, diverse suspended solids concentrations, and different hydraulic and geometric conditions were tested to determine the most effective filter media. A dimensionless parameter, termed Global Performance Index (GPI), was developed to reach this objective. Measured data were also used to build a dimensional and a regression model to represent the performance of the filter media mathematically. The theory, derivation, and performance of both models are presented and compared with an existent empirical model. The dimensional model better reproduces the observations, becoming a useful tool for the design, operation, and evaluation of commercial porous media filters.     

Octyl and nonylphenol ethoxylates and carboxylates in wastewater and sediments by liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry

This work presents an LC–MS–MS-based method for the quantitation of nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEOs) and octylphenol ethoxylates (OPEOs) in water, sediment, and suspended particulate matter, and three of their carboxylated derivatives in water. The alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEOs) were analyzed using isotope dilution mass spectrometry with [¹³C₆]-labeled analogues, whereas the carboxylated derivatives were determined by external standard quantitation followed by confirmation using standard additions. The method was used to study APEO’s behavior in a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), where total dissolved NP0-16EO concentration was reduced by approximately 99% from influent (390 μg l⁻¹) to final effluent (4 μg l⁻¹), and total OP0-5EO concentration decreased by 94% from 3.1 to 0.2 μg l⁻¹. In contrast, the carboxylated derivatives were formed during the process with NP0-1EC concentrations increasing from 1.4 to 24 μg l⁻¹. Short-chain APEOs were present in higher proportions in particulate matter, presumably due to greater affinity for solids compared to the long-chain homologues. NP (0.49 μg l⁻¹) and NP0-1EC (4.8 μg l⁻¹) were the only APEO-related compounds detected in a surface water sample from a WWTP-impacted estuary; implying that 90% of the mass was in the form of carboxylated derivatives. Sediment analysis showed nonylphenol to be the single most abundant compound in sediments from the Baltimore Harbor area, where differences in homologue distribution suggested the presence of treated effluent in some of the sites and non-treated sources in the rest.     

Using FTIR to corroborate the identity of functional groups involved in the binding of Cd and Cr to saltbush (Atriplex canescens) biomass

Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) studies were performed to confirm the chemical modification of saltbush (Atriplex canescens) biomass and to provide information about the identity and binding characteristics of the chemical groups responsible for the binding of Cd(II), Cr(III), and Cr(VI). In addition, studies were performed to determine the optimum time for the binding of the three ions by saltbush biomass, and to study the efficiency of HCl and sodium citrate as stripping agents. The metal quantification was performed using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). The results showed that 10 min or less is enough to achieve the maximum metal binding, and that aqueous solutions of 0.1 mM HCl or sodium citrate were enough to strip more than 80% of the bound Cd. It was determined that more than 70% of the bound Cr(III) was stripped using 0.1 mM HCl. Chemical modification of carboxyl and ester groups on the biomass was performed. The FTIR results confirmed that the esterification of carboxyl groups and hydrolysis of ester groups in the native biomass had occurred. The direct effect of these modifications on the binding properties of the biomass provided strong evidence that the carboxyl functionality is the main group responsible for binding Cd and Cr(III). However, the IR data showed that for Cr(VI), a different type of functional group is involved.     

Prediction of potential areas of species distributions based on presence-only data

We introduce a methodology to infer zones of high potential for the habitat of a species, useful for management of biodiversity, conservation, biogeography, ecology, or sustainable use. Inference is based on a set of sites where the presence of the species has been reported. Each site is associated with covariate values, measured on discrete scales. We compute the predictive probability that the species is present at each node of a regular grid. Possible spatial bias for sites of presence is accounted for. Since the resulting posterior distribution does not have a closed form, a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithm is implemented. However, we also describe an approximation to the posterior distribution, which avoids MCMC. Relevant features of the approach are that specific notions of data acquisition such as sampling intensity and detectability are accounted for, and that available a priori information regarding areas of distribution of the species is incorporated in a clear-cut way. These concepts, arising in the presence-only context, are not addressed in alternative methods. We also consider an uncertainty map, which measures the variability for the predictive probability at each node on the grid. A simulation study is carried out to test and compare our approach with other standard methods. Two case studies are also presented.     

Carbon storage in Amazonia during the last glacial maximum: secondary data and uncertainties

The Amazonian forest is, due to its great size, carbon storage capacity and present-day variability in carbon uptake and release, an important component of the global carbon cycle. Paleo-environmental reconstruction is difficult for Amazonia due to the scarcity of primary palynological data and the mis-interpretation of some secondary data. Studies of lacustrine sediment records have shown that Amazonia has known periods in which the climate was drier than it is today. However, not all geomorphological features such as dunes, and slope erosion, which are thought to indicate rainforest regression, date from the time of the Late Glacial Maximum (LGM) and these features do not necessarily correspond to episodes of forest regression. There is also uncertainty concerning LGM carbon storage due to rainforest soils and biomass estimates. Soil carbon content may decrease moderately during the LGM, whereas rainforest biomass may change considerably in response to changes in the global environment. Biomass per unit area in Amazonia has probably been reduced by the cumulative effects of low CO2 concentration, a drier climate and lower temperatures. As few paleo-vegetation data are available, there is considerable uncertainty concerning the amount of carbon stored in Amazonia during the LGM, which may have corresponded to 44-94% of the carbon currently stored in biomass and soils.