Climate change vulnerability of the US Northeast winter recreation– tourism sector

Winter recreation is an important part of the cultural identity of the Northeast United States and is a multibillion dollar contributor to the regional economy. This study examined the vulnerability of the two largest winter recreation industries, snowmobiling and alpine skiing, to four climate change scenarios for the twenty-first century. Under all scenarios, natural snow became an increasingly scarce resource. The diminished natural snow pack had a very negative impact on the snowmobile industry. As early as 2010–2039, 4 to 6 of the 15 snowmobile study areas were projected to lose more than half of the current season. Reliable snowmobile seasons (>50 days) were virtually eliminated in the region under the A1Fi scenarios by 2070–2099. The large investment in snowmaking substantially reduced the vulnerability of the ski industry and climate change posed a risk to only 4 of the 14 ski areas in 2010–2039, where average ski seasons declined below 100 days and the probability of being open for the entire Christmas–New Year’s holiday declined below 75%. Conversely, by 2070–2099 only four ski study areas had not reached these same economic risk criteria. In order to minimize ski season losses, snowmaking requirements are projected to increase substantially, raising important uncertainties about water availability and cost. Climate change represents a notable threat to the winter recreation sector in the Northeast, and the potential economic ramifications for businesses and communities heavily invested in winter tourism and related real estate is sizeable.     

Ascospore appendages of marine ascomycetes: An evaluation of appendages as taxonomic criteria

Ascospore appendages of 18 marine Ascomycetes, belonging to the genera Amylocarpus, Carbosphaerella, Corollospora, Eiona, Emericellopsis, Haligena, Halosphaeria, Lulworthia, Remispora and Torpedospora, were examined with the scanning electron microscope. A number of basic types of spore appendage development are recognised. The significance of these observations to the taxonomy of marine Ascomycetes, and especially the Halosphaeriaceae, is discussed. Remispora is considered a valid genus and not a synonym of Halosphaeria. Both Corollospora and Halosphaeria are considered to be an assemblage of disparate species. The establishment of new genera is considered premature until material of other species has been re-examined. The ontogeny and structure of spore appendages are considered useful taxonomic criteria at the specific and generic level.     

The effects of long-term unemployment on attitudes to employment

This paper is concerned with whether long-term unemployment (6-24 months) affects people's attitudes to employment once they have found a new job. One hundred and forty men aged 25-40 were asked whether they felt various aspects of employment (e.g. job security, pay) are more important to them as a result of being unemployed. The effects of mental well-being when unemployed on attitudes to employment are explored. Unemployment is reported to have made most aspects of employment more important to people. Those whose mental health was worst when unemployed report that job security is most important to them.     

Clinch River Freshwater Mussels Upstream of Norris Reservoir,Tennessee and Virginia: A Quantitative Assessment from 2004 to 2009

The Clinch River is located in northeastern Tennessee (TN) and southwestern Virginia (VA) of the United States, and contains a diverse mussel assemblage of 46 extant species, including 20 species listed as federally endangered. To facilitate quantitative monitoring of the fauna, quadrat data were collected from 2004 to 2009 at 18 sites in the river, including 12 sites in TN and 6 sites in VA. Thirty‐eight mussel species were collected alive in total from quadrat samples taken annually at sites in the TN section of the river. Over the five‐year study period, mussel density averaged 25.5 m^?2 at all sites sampled in TN. In contrast, mussel density averaged only 3.1 m^?2 at sites sampled in VA. The best historical site in VA was Pendleton Island in Scott County, where mussel density was estimated as high as 25 m^?2 in 1979, comparable to current densities recorded in TN. Mussel densities are now <1 m^?2, indicating a collapse of the fauna. A severe reduction in mussel abundance has occurred in a 68‐km section of the river from St. Paul, VA, downstream to approximately Clinchport, VA (river kilometers 411.5‐343.3). While the environmental factors responsible for the faunal decline are largely unknown, they must have been severe and sustained to reduce such large populations to their current low levels. Long‐term water and habitat quality monitoring is needed to determine whether environmental degradation is still occurring in the river.     

Water and Sediment Quality in the Clinch River,Virginia and Tennessee,USA, over Nearly Five Decades

The Clinch River, in eastern United States, supports a diverse freshwater fauna including endangered mussels. Although mussel populations are stable in the Clinch's northeastern Tennessee segment, long‐term declines have been documented upstream in Virginia. We analyzed water and sediment quality data collected by government agencies from the 1960s through 2013 in an effort to inform current management. The river was divided into sections considering data availability and major tributaries. We tested for spatial differences among river sections and for temporal trends, and compared measured values to potentially protective levels if available. Ammonia concentrations approaching and exceeding protective levels were recorded, most often during the 1970s and 1980s in upstream sections. Sediment metals occurred at levels potentially causing biological effects, mainly during the 1980s and 1990s. In the 2000s, water‐column metals have been well below protective levels for general aquatic life. Dissolved solids (DS) increased in most river sections over the study period but mussel‐specific protective levels are not known. Analysis of water pH, total N, and total P did not generate conservation concern. Enhanced monitoring for sediment metals, water‐column metals, and ionic composition of DS; closer alignment of agency water monitoring practices in the two states; and research to determine biological effects of DS at current and anticipated levels can aid future conservation management.     

SOIL MOISTURE VARIATION PATTERNS OBSERVED IN HAND COUNTY,SOUTH DAKOTA1

ABSTRACT: Sail moisture data were taken during nine sampling events (1976-1978) at a test site in South Dakota as part of the ground truth used in NASA's aircraft experiments studying the microwave sensing of soil moisture. This portion of the study dealt only with the spatial variability observed with regard to the ground data. Samples were taken over three surface depths at each point, and the data reported as the mean field moisture content within each of three surface horizons. The results shed additional light on the relationship between ground sampling and remote sensing of soil moisture. First, it was found that it is best to partition data of well drained sites from poorly drained areas when attempting to characterize the surface moisture content throughout an area of varying soil and cover conditions. It was also found that the moisture coefficient of variation within a field decreased as the mean field soil moisture increased, and that the standard deviation was at a maximum in the mid-range of observed moisture conditions (15-25 percent). Within field sample variation also decreases as the sample is integrated over a greater surface depth. It was determined that a sampling intensity of 10 samples per kilometer was adequate to characterize the mean field soil moisture at all three depths along a transect in the areas of moderate to good drainage-.