Simulating study on the effect of acid precipitation on forest soil weathering

The effect of acid rain on the forest soils in China was discussed on the basis of simulating studies. The soils were collected from five typical areas, including Chongqing in Sichuan Province and Guiyang in Guizhou Province, where there has been heavier acid rain in southwest China, and Huitong in Hunan Province, Zhouzhi in Shaanxi Province, and Xinglong in Hebei Province, all of which were selected as control. Field investigation and sampling were made in the typical forests in all the above five areas. The relationship between pH values in precipitation and rates of soil weathering, the difference between the rates of soil weathering in different areas, and the cause of such a difference, have been worked out. The prediction was also conducted on the supply dynamics of nutrient and toxic elements in various forest ecosystems which were affected by acid deposition in order to understand the long-term effects of acid precipitation on the forest ecosystems studied.     

青海省1998—2012年草地生态系统服务功能价值评估

由于人类活动对草地生态系统的干扰,草地退化加剧,科学评估草地生态系统服务功能的价值对于草地保护与管理决策具有重要意义。论文通过整合青海省多源、多尺度、多过程的生态环境数据,结合大规模的野外调查数据,构建各类专项和综合数据库,以千年生态评估生态系统服务分类系统和Costanza等的分类方法为基础,结合青海省生态系统特征及生态地位,选取了青海省生态系统服务指标评估体系。开发定量核算青海省生态系统服务功能及其价值的数据-模型融合平台,对青海省1998—2012年的草地生态系统固碳释氧、水文调节、土壤保持、生物多样性等16种生态系统服务功能价值进行了全面的评估,成功实现了草地生态系统服务价值评估的动态化、精细化和智能化。结果表明：1998—2012年草地生态系统服务功能总价值在2 349.97~3 374.49亿元之间,均值为2 935.63亿元,是青海省2012年全省GDP的1.55倍,平均每公顷达92.87万元。最后,以此为基础,提出青海省草地生态系统适应性管理策略,为青海省生态立省战略提供决策支持和依据。     

Assessment of spatial distribution of submerged vegetation in the Orbetello lagoon by means of a mathematical model

Coastal lagoons are characterized by a constant threat of eutrophication and a critical coexistence of differing submerged vegetation forms. This paper investigates the competitive equilibrium of macroalgae and phanerogams in the Orbetello lagoon in relation to physico-chemical and environmental factors, including wind, nutrients in the water column, and sediment characteristics. A mathematical model describing the evolution of the submerged vegetation as a function of the abiotic parameters is used here in conjunction with specific experimental studies to explain the relationship between phanerogams (seagrasses) prairie expansion, water movements, and sediment characteristics. The combination of specific sediment sampling and mathematical modelling shows that water circulation and the state of the upper sediment are both dominant factors in determining the phanerogams distribution in the lagoon and the mutually exclusive growth of these groups in differing parts of the lagoon. Water currents control the distribution of floating macroalgae, resulting in an uneven accumulation of decomposing biomass and phanerogams seed dispersal. The oxygenation provided by the rooted phanerogams affects the sediment characteristics, making them suitable for further prairie expansion. In addition to sediment analysis the use of a mathematical model combining the hydrodynamics and the water quality of the lagoon provides a thorough explanation of the expansion of the rooted vegetation in critical areas. A further result of this research is the validation of the model, originally calibrated with the lagoon central stations’ data, with the newly acquired data from several other parts of the ecosystem. The model predictions are in good agreement with the field observations under a number of environmental conditions and explain the observed expansion trend of phanerogams, which are beneficial for the lagoon ecology, more thoroughly than by relying on the sediment observations alone.     

A simulation model for projecting changes in salinity concentrations and species dominance in the coastal margin habitats of the Everglades

Sharp boundaries typically separate the salinity tolerant mangroves from the salinity intolerant hardwood hammock species, which occupy the similar geographical areas of southern Florida. Evidence of strong feedback between tree community-type and the salinity of the unsaturated (vadose) zone of the soil suggests that a severe disturbance that significantly tilts the salinity in the vadose zone might cause a shift from one vegetation type to the other. In this study, a model based upon the feedback dynamics between vegetation and salinity of the vadose zone of the soil was used to take account of storm surge events to investigate the mechanisms that by which this large-scale disturbance could affect the spatial pattern of hardwood hammocks and mangroves. Model simulation results indicated that a heavy storm surge that completely saturated the vadose zone at 30 ppt for 1 day could lead to a regime shift in which there is domination by mangroves of areas previously dominated by hardwood hammocks. Lighter storm surges that saturated the vadose zone at less than 7 ppt did not cause vegetation shifts. Investigations of model sensitivity analysis indicated that the thickness of the vadose zone, coupled with precipitation, influenced the residence time of high salinity in the vadose zone and therefore determined the rate of mangrove domination. The model was developed for a southern Florida coastal ecosystem, but its applicability may be much broader.     

Mass balanced and dynamic simulations of trophic models of kelp ecosystems near the Mejillones Peninsula of northern Chile (SE Pacific): Comparative network structure and assessment of harvest strategies

Mass balanced trophic models for kelp ecosystems which include subsystems dominated by Macrocystis integrifolia, Lessonia trabeculata and areas of barren ground (BG) were constructed for subtidal areas near the Mejillones Peninsula (SE Pacific), Chile. Information on biomass, P/B ratios, catches, food spectrum, consumption and dynamics of commercial and non-commercial populations was obtained and examined using Ecopath with Ecosim software analyses. The biomass of blades of L. trabeculata and M. integrifolia represented the compartments most relevant to the subsystems studied. Within the herbivores, the sea urchin Tetrapigus niger was dominant, followed by the snails Turritella sp. and Tegula sp. The fishes Pinguipes chilensis and Cheilodactylus variegatus were the dominant predators, followed by the asteroids Heliaster helianthus and Meyenaster gelatinosus. The highest system throughput (72,512 g wet weight m⁻² year⁻¹) was calculated for the subsystem dominated by M. integrifolia. The mean trophic level of the catch ranged from 1.1 (subsystem dominated by L. trabeculata) to 1.3 (subsystem dominated by M. integrifolia) to 3.2 (barren ground subsystem), showing that harvesting in each system was concentrated either on primary producers (blades of kelp species) or top predator fishes. Although the values for the Relative Ascendency (A/C) fluctuated from 36.5 to 45%, suggesting that all the systems were immature, the subsystem dominated by M. integrifolia emerged as the least resistant to external disturbances (e.g. fisheries). This result agreed with the high value of the system recovery time (SRT) for the M. integrifolia subsystem as a response to combined fisheries scenarios. The results obtained using mixed trophic impact (MTI) and Ecosim [increasing the fishing mortality F_i by 4×] showed that in most of the cases the predictions had the same qualitative tendencies. One of the most important results obtained in this study was that exploitation of kelp blades as an alternative strategy to harvesting the whole plants appeared to be ecologically sustainable, since harvesting the blades propagated only small effects on the entire subsystem. The fish P. chilensis may be considered as a top predator species with a strong top-down control since an increase in its fishing mortality in the subsystem dominated by M. integrifolia produced a high SRT value, and the F_MSY was less than the originally entered F_i in Ecopath. Based on the results obtained, it was concluded that the trophic mass balanced models and simulated management scenarios offered good possibilities for the planning of interventions and manipulations or the planning of more sustainable management strategies in highly disturbed natural systems.     

滇池沉积物有机磷形态分级特征

考察沉积物磷对湖泊富营养化贡献时,大量研究涉足无机磷,对有机磷的研究十分薄弱.针对滇池的33个沉积物样品,采用有机磷分级提取方法,将沉积物有机磷分为活性磷、中等活性磷、非活性磷等三种具有不同稳定性的有机磷.结果表明:排除滇池西北部外源污染严重的样品后,沉积物有机磷与总磷有自北向南逐渐降低的变化趋势,有机质与总磷、活性有机磷、中等活性有机磷以及非活性有机磷都表现出了显著相关关系.沉积物活性有机磷和中等活性有机磷与NaHCO3提取无机磷均显著相关,说明二者具有潜在的生物有效性.     

Lag Effects in the Impacts of Mass Coral Bleaching on Coral Reef Fish, Fisheries, and Ecosystems

Abstract:  Recent episodes of coral bleaching have led to wide-scale loss of reef corals and raised concerns over the effectiveness of existing conservation and management efforts. The 1998 bleaching event was most severe in the western Indian Ocean, where coral declined by up to 90% in some locations. Using fisheries-independent data, we assessed the long-term impacts of this event on fishery target species in the Seychelles, the overall size structure of the fish assemblage, and the effectiveness of two marine protected areas (MPAs) in protecting fish communities. The biomass of fished species above the size retained in fish traps changed little between 1994 and 2005, indicating no current effect on fishery yields. Biomass remained higher in MPAs, indicating they were effective in protecting fish stocks. Nevertheless, the size structure of the fish communities, as described with size-spectra analysis, changed in both fished areas and MPAs, with a decline in smaller fish (<30 cm) and an increase in larger fish (>45 cm). We believe this represents a time-lag response to a reduction in reef structural complexity brought about because fishes are being lost through natural mortality and fishing, and are not being replaced by juveniles. This effect is expected to be greater in terms of fisheries productivity and, because congruent patterns are observed for herbivores, suggests that MPAs do not offer coral reefs long-term resilience to bleaching events. Corallivores and planktivores declined strikingly in abundance, particularly in MPAs, and this decline was associated with a similar pattern of decline in their preferred corals. We suggest that climate-mediated disturbances, such as coral bleaching, be at the fore of conservation planning for coral reefs.     

北京市区公路旁尘土中铂族元素的化学形态

用ICP-MS 法检测北京市区公路旁尘土中铂、铑和钯各种形态的含量及总含量.结果表明,北京市区采样点公路旁土壤中铂,铑和钯的总量分别为154.23 ng·g-1,62.77 ng·g-1和 77.97 ng·g-1,其中非残留态的百分比含量为铑(37.82%) ＞钯(27.45%) ＞铂(26.87%);在自然条件作用下可进入地下水和可被植物吸收部分的百分比为铑(29.14%)＞钯(23.87%)＞＞铂(7.92%).     

城市污泥中铜锌的化学形态及其去除

利用连续提取法研究了城市污泥中铜和锌的化学形态,结果表明:污泥中铜和锌都以稳定性较好的硫化物及有机结合物、残渣态形式存在,生物毒性较小,通过适当处理后可以安全加以利用;在此基础上,研究了利用乙酸和双氧水去除污泥中铜和锌的适宜工艺条件,结果表明:在室温条件下,在pH值为4的环境中,利用添加H_2O_2的浓度为2mol/L的乙酸溶液,反应时间为4h,就可以将污泥中超过95%以上的铜和锌淋滤去除。     

大气颗粒物中重金属元素在不同粒径上的形态分布

采用DFJ 1型五段分级采样器 ,对衡阳市区冬、夏两季空气中不同粒径颗粒物中重金属元素的组成和化学形态进行了分析。应用ICP AES法测定了各形态中元素的含量 ,计算了元素在各种形态中的分配比例。结果表明 ,衡阳市大气环境中多数重金属元素的含量冬季明显高于夏季。对人体危害较大的金属元素主要富集在小于 2 0 μm的细颗粒上 ,Mn、Zn、Cu和Co主要分布在氧化态、水可溶态、碳酸盐态和有机态中 ,Pb和V主要分布在不溶态中