The integrated project AquaTerra of the EU sixth framework lays foundations for better understanding of river-sediment-soil-groundwater systems

The integrated project "AquaTerra" with the full title "integrated modeling of the river-sediment-soil-groundwater system; advanced tools for the management of catchment areas and river basins in the context of global change" is among the first environmental projects within the sixth Framework Program of the European Union. Commencing in June 2004, it brought together a multidisciplinary team of 45 partner organizations from 12 EU countries, Romania, Switzerland, Serbia and Montenegro. AquaTerra is an ambitious project with the primary objective of laying the foundations for a better understanding of the behavior of environmental pollutants and their fluxes in the soil-sediment-water system with respect to climate and land use changes. The project performs research as well as modeling on river-sediment-soil-groundwater systems through quantification of deposition, sorption and turnover rates and the development of numerical models to reveal fluxes and trends in soil and sediment functioning. Scales ranging from the laboratory to river basins are addressed with the potential to provide improved river basin management, enhanced soil and groundwater monitoring as well as the early identification and forecasting of impacts on water quantity and quality. Study areas are the catchments of the Ebro, Meuse, Elbe and Danube Rivers and the Brévilles Spring. Here we outline the general structure of the project and the activities conducted within eleven existing sub-projects of AquaTerra.     

Environmental risk perception, environmental concern and propensity to participate in organic farming programmes

This paper aims to identify the factors underlying farmers' propensity to participate in organic farming programmes in a Romanian rural region that confronts non-point source pollution. For this, we employ structural equation modelling with latent variables using a specific data set collected through an agri-environmental farm survey in 2001. The model includes one 'behavioural intention' latent variable ('propensity to participate in organic farming programmes') and five 'attitude' and 'socio-economic' latent variables ('socio-demographic characteristics', 'economic characteristics', 'agri-environmental information access', 'environmental risk perception' and 'general environmental concern'). The results indicate that, overall, the model has an adequate fit to the data. All loadings are statistically significant, supporting the theoretical basis for assignment of indicators for each latent variable. The significance tests for the structural model parameters show 'environmental risk perception' as the strongest determinant of farmers' propensity to participate in organic farming programmes.     

农业土地利用转变对土壤团聚体组成及碳、氮含量的影响

为探究农业土地利用转变对土壤团聚体组成、稳定性及有机碳（SOC）、全氮（TN）含量变化的影响,选取玉米地、玉米地转变为姜地、稻田和稻田转变为姜地4种农业土地利用类型为研究对象,对土壤水稳性团聚体的组成、稳定性及SOC、TN含量进行测定与分析.结果表明： ①玉米地转变为姜地后,>0.25 mm粒级的大团聚体减少21.48%（p<0.01）,>0.25 mm稳定性团聚体的含量（DR_0.25）显著降低53.39%;稻田转变为姜地后,大团聚体差异不显著,<0.053 mm粒级的粉黏团聚体增加8.93%（p<0.01）;冗余分析和相关分析表明,土壤含水量是团聚体组成和 稳定性的重要影响因素;②玉米地转变为姜地后,0.25~1 mm粒级团聚体中SOC、TN含量分别减少52.68%、50.98%,粉黏团聚体（<0.053 mm）中SOC和TN含量增加约2倍（p<0.01）;稻田转变为姜地后,>0.25 mm的大团聚体和0.053~0.25 mm的微团聚体中的SOC、TN含量均减少（p<0.05）,其中,大团聚体碳氮比与团聚体组成和稳定性存在相关关系（p<0.05）;③所有处理均为大团聚体SOC、TN贡献率最高,转变后的姜地较玉米地、稻田的土壤粉黏团聚体的SOC、TN贡献率显著增加,尤其是较玉米地的粉黏团聚体SOC、TN贡献率增加3倍（p<0.01）;④平均质量 直径（MWD）和几何平均直径（GMD）与大团聚体的SOC、TN含量呈显著正相关（p<0.05）,分形维数（D）与MWD及1~2 mm粒级大团聚体的SOC、TN含量呈显著负相关（p<0.01）,DR_0.25与大团聚体的SOC、TN含量呈显著正相关（p<0.01）.总体上,玉米地和稻田两种用地转变为姜地后,土壤团聚体的组成发生较大变化,团聚体稳定性变化虽不显著,但大团聚体中SOC、TN含量降低,粉黏团聚体中SOC、TN含量增加.本研究的开展对农田科学管理和可持续生产具有重要的指导意义.     

基于InVEST-PLUS模型的碳储量空间关联性及预测——以广东省为例

构建土地利用碳储量数据库,基于InVEST模型Carbon模块,得到广东省1990~2020年碳储量时空分布情况.用Moran’s I指数和Getis-Ord Gi^*分析格网尺度下碳储量时空分布特征,用Anselin Local Moran’s I得到LISA集聚图.然后运用PLUS模型和14个土地利用驱动因子预测2050年土地利用及其碳储量分布.结果表明,土地利用变化直接影响区域碳储量高低,林地、草地等具有生态服务功能地类碳密度最高,分别是188.44,329.34Mg/hm².碳储量空间格局整体呈现出中部低、北部高、东西中等的特点.碳储量空间分布特征与土地利用特征一致,碳储量显著高值集聚区域分布在建设用地少、生态用地多且连片的粤北地区,显著低值区域分布在国土开发强度和生态用地破碎化程度高的珠三角地带.在自然发展情景下,到2050年广东省土地利用碳储量将减少4327.21万Mg,随着国土空间进一步开发,环珠江口沿岸城市碳储量持续下降.增加植被生态系统碳储量,是实现碳中和的重要手段之一.要继续维持粤北山区生态保护屏障的重要地位,减缓珠三角城市土地开发强度,提高建设用地集约节约能力,形成平衡协调的土地利用和碳储量格局.     

过去两千年长江干流历史洪水事件的时空变化研究

理解极端洪水事件活动特征及其与气候变化、人类活动的相互关系一直是全球变化研究的热点问题。现代器测数据较短对洪水事件变化规律预测存在不足,而利用历史文献记录研究百年-千年尺度洪水事件的发生规律则成为一个较好的选择。洪水灾害是长江流域最为严重的自然灾害之一。本文以官方现存历史记载为依据,构建了过去2000年长江干流上、中、下游洪水事件序列,并将其与气候和人类活动代理指标进行对比。结果表明,1350年之前,长江干流洪水事件受东亚季风(EASM)、西南季风(ISM)、厄尔尼诺-南方涛动(ENSO)、热带辐合带(ITCZ)移动等多种气候因素驱动,且气候驱动机制在同期不同区、同区不同期存在显著差异。此外,1350年之后人类活动的增强可能明显加剧了长江干流洪水事件的频率和强度。     

探索性数据分析在西藏气候变化趋势研究中的应用

为了减少小样本时间序列资料中个别异常值对气候变化趋势分析的破坏性影响,采用探索性数据分析方法之一的三组耐抗线对西藏近30年气温、云量资料进行线性趋势分析,研究了西藏地区气温和云量的变化趋势及其区域分布,并讨论了二者的相关特征。通过与传统的最小二乘法相比,表明三组耐抗线用于西藏气候变化趋势分析具有明显优势,而用最小二乘法得到的西藏气候变暖估计偏高。分析认为,西藏气候变暖主要由最低气温增高显著所致,最低气温变暖趋势在春、夏季较明显,冬季相对不明显;西藏各地增温幅度在空间分布上不一致,中、西部地区呈较强的增温趋势,东部相对较弱;西藏高原总云量和低云量总体呈减少趋势,总云量和低云量变少分别与西部和中部地区的升温之间存在显著负相关关系。     

Towards Rio + 10 – Trend of Environmentalism and Implications for Sustainable Livelihoods in the 21st Century, The Context of Southern African Region

Since the Rio conference, many countries and organisations, including the environmental movement, bilateral and multilateral institutions have endeavoured to carry out activities related to the implementation of Agenda 21. These have mostly been done with or without other outcomes of the conference. Several environmental management and sustainable development agenda have been pursued to halt the continually degrading environment. Other programmes have concentrated on outburst of economic development at the expense of the environment and the worsening poverty especially in the South. This paper therefore seeks to examine a paradigmatic shift in environmentalism, emphasising the link between agenda 21 and sustainable livelihoods. It seems though the history of the environmental movement has been forgotten after the Rio conference by the whole world. This might probably be due to complacency with the results of the UNCED conference. However, it is now obvious that clear objectives to implement the results of UNCED are almost lacking with little or no proper supervision, and further threatening the existence of mankind. The environmental movement and associated milestones have had significant impacts on the current status of the global commons. Regionally in most of southern Africa, livelihood issues are in the forefront of efforts to sustain environmental resources, and minimising proximate causes of global environmental change.     

南方丘陵山地带土壤保持功能及其经济价值时空变化特征

土壤保持是生态系统提供的重要调节服务之一,在区域侵蚀控制以及生态安全的维持方面具有不可替代的作用。以全国主体生态功能区划中"两屏三带"的南方丘陵山地带为研究对象,在遥感和地理信息系统的支持下,以2000、2005和2010年3期生态系统类型数据为主要数据源,运用通用土壤流失方程(Universal Soil Loss Equation, USLE)分析了南方丘陵山地带生态系统土壤保持功能,并对其经济价值进行动态核算。结果表明:10 a间,南方丘陵山地带土壤保持总量呈上升趋势,土壤保持总量上升了76.79×10⁷ t,森林、灌丛和农田生态系统是研究区土壤保持功能的主要贡献者,总贡献率3个年份分别为82.29%、82.59%和80.58%,不同生态系统土壤保持总量排序为森林> 灌丛> 农田> 草地> 湿地> 人工表面> 稀疏地,土壤保持能力排序为湿地> 草地> 灌丛> 森林> 农田> 人工表面> 稀疏地;10 a间,研究区土壤保持功能总经济价值增加了270.34×10⁸元,总经济价值中以保持土壤肥力价值为主;土壤保持功能经济价值的变化以轻微增加为主,其呈现增加的区域面积和价值增幅大于经济价值减少的区域面积和价值减幅。在对该区域生态系统进行保护的基础上,因地制宜地合理增加植被盖度对防治土壤侵蚀、保持土壤养分可以起到良好效果。     

陕西绥德地区黄土-古土壤序列地球化学特征及其环境指示意义

黄土高原北部的绥德地区处于干旱-半干旱地区,对环境变化的响应十分敏感,通过对黄土-古土壤的研究对比可以探索该区的古环境气候特征、环境变化信息等相关问题.本文对绥德黄土-古土壤进行常量、微量、稀土元素测试分析,并与其他地区黄土的地球化学特征进行了对比.结果 表明:绥德地区黄土-古土壤的主要化学成分以SiO2、Al2O3、...     

Effects of Land Use and Climate Change on Stream Temperature I: Daily Flow and Stream Temperature Projections

Freshwater mussels (order Unionida) are a highly imperiled group of organisms that are at risk from rising stream temperatures (T). There is a need to understand the potential effects of land use (LU) and climate change (CC) on stream T and have a measure of uncertainty. We used available downscaled climate projections and LU change simulations to simulate the potential effects on average daily stream T from 2020 to 2060. Monte Carlo simulations were run, and a novel technique to analyze results was used to assess changes in hydrologic and stream T response. Simulations of daily mean T were used as input to our stochastic hourly T model. CC effects were on average two orders of magnitude greater than LU impacts on mean daily stream T. LU change affected stream T primarily in headwater streams, on average up to 2.1°C over short durations, and projected CC affected stream T, on average 2.1‐3.3°C by 2060. Daily mean flow and T ratios from Monte Carlo simulations indicated greater variance in the response of streamflow (up to 55%) to LU change than in the response of stream T (up to 9%), and greater variance in headwater stream segments compared to higher order stream segments for both streamflow and T response. Simulations indicated that combined effects of climate and LU change were not additive, suggesting a complex interaction and that forecasting long‐term stream T response requires simulating CC and LU change simultaneously.