Temporal trends in agricultural water use and the relationships to hydroclimatic factors in the High Plains aquifer region

The High Plains aquifer (HPA) is the primary water source for agricultural irrigation in the US Great Plains. The water levels in many locations of the aquifer have declined steadily over the past several decades because the rate of water withdrawals exceeds recharge, which has been a serious concern to the water resources management in the region. We evaluated temporal trends and variations in agricultural water use and hydroclimatic variables including precipitation, air temperature, reference evapotranspiration, runoff, groundwater level, and terrestrial water storage across the HPA region for different periods from 1985 to 2020 at the grid, county, or region scale. The results showed that water withdrawals decreased from 21.3 km³/year in 1985 to 18.2 km³/year in 2015, while irrigated croplands increased from 71,928 km² in 1985 to 78,464 km² in 2015 in the entire HPA. The hydroclimatic time-series showed wetting trends in most of the northern HPA, but drying and warming trends in the southern region from 1985 to 2020. The groundwater level time-series indicated flat trends in the north, but significant declining in the central and southern HPA. Trends in irrigation water withdrawals and irrigation area across the HPA were controlled by the advancement of irrigation systems and technologies and the management of sustainable water use, but also were affected by dynamical changes in the hydroclimatic conditions.     

Surface clogging process modeling of suspended solids during urban stormwater aquifer recharge

Aquifer recharge,which uses urban stormwater,is an effective technique to control the negative effects of groundwater overexploitation,while clogging problems in infiltration systems remain the key restricting factor in broadening its practice.Quantitative understanding of the clogging process is still very poor.A laboratory study was conducted to understand surface physical clogging processes,with the primary aim of developing a model for predicting suspended solid clogging processes before aquifer recharge projects start.The experiments investigated the clogging characteristics of different suspended solid sizes in recharge water by using a series of one-dimensional fine quartz sand columns.The results showed that the smaller the suspended particles in recharge water,the farther the distance of movement and the larger the scope of clogging in porous media.Clogging extents in fine sand were 1 cm,for suspended particle size ranging from 0.075 to 0.0385 mm,and 2 cm,for particles less than 0.0385 mm.In addition,clogging development occurred more rapidly for smaller suspended solid particles.It took 48,42,and 36 hr respectively,for large-,medium-,and small-sized particles to reach pre-determined clogging standards.An empirical formula and iteration model for the surface clogging evolution process were derived.The verification results obtained from stormwater recharge into fine sand demonstrated that the model could reflect the real laws of the surface clogging process.     

Advancing values-based approaches to climate change adaptation: A case study from Australia

Coastal flooding affects physical and social place attachments. Values-based approaches to climate change adaptation examine how risks to place attachments are distributed within and among communities, with a view to informing equitable adaptation policies. In this nascent body of research, divergent theoretical frameworks and empirical approaches to measuring social values are evolving. While some studies explore the things people value about their everyday lives generally—the lived values approach, others locate specific social and cultural values in geographic space—the landscape values mapping approach. This study aims to compare the explanatory value of these two approaches for understanding the social risks of sea-level rise, and appraise whether either or both approaches are likely to meet local adaptation planning needs. It does this by examining the potential social impacts of sea-level rise in Kingston Beach, Australia, informed by a mail-out survey of the community. The lived values approach identified that the natural environment, scenery, relaxed lifestyle and safety are highly important to local residents, while the landscape values mapping approach revealed that Kingston Main Beach is the most highly valued of eight coastal landscape units. Incorporating the landscape values mapping into the lived values cluster analysis revealed that while Kingston Main Beach is highly important for its recreational value to some members of the community, for others manmade features such as community halls or sports ovals may be of higher importance because they facilitate social interactions. There is potential to further integrate these two approaches to better inform adaptation policy about how lived and landscape values are distributed among communities, where they are located in space and whether they change over time. A deeper understanding of such assigned values can lead to improved engagement with coastal residents to inform adaptation policy now and into the future.     

Evaluating the impacts of sea level rise on coastal wetlands in Languedoc-Roussillon,France

Sea-level rise due to climate change creates new risks of submersion in coastal areas that must be taken into account. Although these are long-term risks for 2100, it is important to anticipate possible consequences in order to identify the most vulnerable areas or issues and develop the appropriate adaptation policies. The aim of this paper is to examine the consequences of such sea-level rise for wetlands in the Languedoc-Roussillon region (France) which is particularly at risk of submersion. The analysis is based on the worst case scenario of a one meter sea level rise by 2100, with a variety of adaptive strategies: denial, laissez-faire and strategic retreat of infrastructure and buildings. This latter strategy assumes that the retreat wetlands is unconstrained. The evaluation examines the losses and transformations of ecological habitats, depending on their distance from salt water. Estimating damages and benefits requires first, to study the evolution of the services supplied by different habitats and second, to estimate the value of the economic impact. This approach demonstrates the superiority of a strategic retreat policy which would halve the damages resulting from submersion.     

基于井口涌水量变化类型判断岩溶含水层厚度

针对含水相对均匀的溶洞-裂隙水含水岩组,为判断岩溶含水层厚度,通过对空气潜孔锤钻进工艺施工钻孔井口涌水量变化进行分析,结果发现:利用该工艺施工的钻孔井口涌水量一般会出现稳定型、降低型和增长型三种变化类型;井口涌水量变化类型反映了岩溶含水层是空间尺度上发育的垂向地下水系统,具有分层特征,其厚度与碳酸盐岩岩溶化程度的不均一性耦合,体现了碳酸盐岩岩体内不同空隙的发育规模、密度及其相互间的联系程度;明确了地下水埋深状况以及含水层的构成条件。故采用空气潜孔锤钻进工艺施工的钻孔,在非干孔情形下,可以利用井口涌水量的变化类型判断岩溶含水层厚度。     

The role of fish and fisheries in recovering from natural hazards: Lessons learned from Vanuatu

Coastal fisheries provide staple food and sources of livelihood in Pacific Island countries, and securing a sustainable supply is recognised as a critical priority for nutrition security. This study sought to better understand the role of fish for Pacific Island communities during disasters and in disaster recovery. To evaluate community impacts and responses after natural disasters, focus group discussions were held with men and women groups at ten sites across Shefa, Tafea, Malampa and Sanma provinces in Vanuatu. The combined impacts of category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam (TC-Pam) in March 2015 and prolonged El-Niño induced drought have had a profound impact across much of Vanuatu. Terrestrial systems had been disproportionately impacted with substantial shortages in drinking water, garden crops, cash crops and damage to infrastructure. Localized impacts were noted on marine environments from TC-Pam and the drought, along with an earthquake that uplifted reef and destroyed fishing grounds in Malampa province. Communities in Malampa and Shefa provinces also noted a crown-of-thorns outbreak that caused coral mortality. The significant reduction in terrestrial-based food and income generation capacity generally led to increased reliance on marine resources to cope and a shift in diets from local garden food to rice. However, limited market access, lack of fishing skills and technology in many sectors of the community reduced the capacity for marine resources to support recovery. A flexible management approach allowed protected areas and species to be utilized as reservoirs of food and income when temporarily opened to assist recovery. These findings illustrate that fish and fisheries management is at the center of disaster preparedness and relief strategies in remote Pacific Island communities. High physical capital (e.g. infrastructure, water tanks and strong dwellings) is key for disaster preparedness, but supporting community social capital for the purpose of natural resource management and human capital for diverse adaptation skills can also improve community resilience. Recognizing the humanitarian value that well managed fisheries resources and skilled fishers can play to disaster relief adds another dimension to the imperative of improving management of coastal fisheries and aligning policies across sectors.     

Water-soluble matter in PM2.5 in a coastal city over China: Chemical components, optical properties, and source analysis

Although marine and terrestrial emissions simultaneously affect the formation of atmospheric fine particles in coastal areas, knowledge on the optical properties and sources of water-soluble matter in these areas is still scarce. In this work, taking Qingdao, China as a typical coastal location, the chemical composition of PM_2.5 during winter 2019 was analyzed.Excitation-emission matrix fluorescence spectroscopy was combined with parallel factor analysis model to explain the component...     

Multi‐strainer model concept for conjunctive pumping of saline and non‐saline groundwater from coastal aquifers

The current paper discusses the multi‐strainer technique developed to augment usable water by the combined use of saline and non‐saline aquifers in locations where a freshwater aquifer is underlain or overlain by a saline water aquifer. The multi‐strainer technique evaluates design criteria for the formulation of multi‐strainer schemes to supply water at an acceptable salinity limit by combined use of the saline and non‐saline aquifers. The design ratio of discharges can be maintained by adjusting the strainers’ lengths in the saline and non‐saline aquifers. The multi‐strainer scheme has been applied in the coastal aquifers of Bangladesh and found to be effective at lowering the water salinity concentrations to acceptable levels, thus increasing the availability of water for sustainable use. The multi‐strainer scheme should be designed based on the thickness of the aquifer layers to be screened, the salinity concentrations of the screened layers, and the level of salinity concentration to be maintained.     

承压含水层脆弱性影响因素分析及评价模型的构建——以山东省济宁市为例

由于浅层地下水的污染以及承压水的开采,导致受到污染的浅层地下水越流补给深层承压水,增大了承压含水层受到污染的风险,如何评价承压含水层受到污染的可能性是迫切需要解决的问题。论文根据承压含水层受污染的特点将承压含水层脆弱性分为固有脆弱性和扰动脆弱性两个方面,同时根据脆弱性大小具有相对性这一特性,将研究区内承压含水层各脆弱性评价指标归一化,根据信息熵反映实测数据的效用值计算评价指标权重,而后加权求和得到反映脆弱性的综合指数,从而避免了构建脆弱性分级和定额的主观性。以济宁市承压含水层脆弱性评价为例,对评价方法的可靠性进行了分析,通过与数值模拟结果进行对比验证了方法的可靠性。该方法具有概念清晰、操作简便等特点,对无法建立地下水流数值模型和溶质运移模型的地区开展承压含水层脆弱性评价有一定的应用前景。     

Storm impacts along European coastlines. Part 2: lessons learned from the MICORE project

This paper describes the MICORE approach to quantify for nine field sites the crucial storm related physical hazards (hydrodynamic as well as morphodynamic) in support of early warning efforts and emergency response.As a first step historical storms that had a significant morphological impact on a representative number of sensitive European coastal stretches were reviewed and analysed in order to understand storm related morphological changes and how often they occur around Europe. Next, an on-line storm prediction system was set up to enable prediction of storm related hydro- and morphodynamic impacts. The system makes use of existing off-the-shelf models as well as a new open-source morphological model. To validate the models at least one year of fieldwork was done at nine pilot sites. The data was safeguarded and stored for future use in an open database that conforms to the OpenEarth protocols.To translate quantitative model results to useful information for Civil Protection agencies the Frame of Reference approach ( [Van Koningsveld et al., 2005] and [Van Koningsveld et al., 2007] ) was used to derive Storm Impact Indicators (SIIs) for relevant decision makers. The acquired knowledge is expected to be directly transferred to the civil society trough partnerships with end-users at the end of the MICORE project.