Identification of critical areas on forest lands for control of nonpoint sources of pollution

Most nonpoint source pollution problems on forest lands can be controlled by careful planning and management of specific critical areas. Critical areas include sites with high mass and surface erosion hazards, overland flow areas, and the riparian zone. Some guides for identifying critical areas are presented along with examples of land-use constraints that might be applied.     

Critique of present wetlands mitigation policies in the united states based on an analysis of past restoration projects in San Francisco Bay

A detailed evaluation of past wetland restoration projects in San Francisco Bay was undertaken to determine their present status and degree of success. Many of the projects never reached the level of success purported and others have been plagued by serious problems. On the basis of these findings, it is debatable whether any sites in San Francisco Bay can be described as completed, active, or successful restoration projects at present. In spite of these limited accomplishments, wetland creation and restoration have been adopted in the coastal permit process as mitigation to offset environmental damage or loss of habitat. However, because the technology is still largely experimental, there is no guarantee that man-made wetlands will persist as permanent substitutes for sacrificed natural habitats. Existing permit policies should be reanalyzed to insure that they actually succeed in safeguarding diminishing wetlands resources rather than bartering them away for questionable habitat substitutes. Coastal managers must be more specific about project requirements and goals before approval is granted. Continued research on a regional basis is needed to advance marsh establishment techniques into a proven technology. In the meantime, policies encouraging or allowing quid pro quo exchanges of natural wetlands with man-made replacements should proceed with caution. The technology and management policies used at present are many steps ahead of the needed supporting documentation.     

REGIONAL MANAGEMENT OF DEPLETED AQUIFERS1

ABSTRACT: Aquifers with pressure head seriously reduced by overdrafting are referred to as depleted. In coastal areas they may be invaded by saltwater. An obvious remedy is to reduce the rate of withdrawal to the permanently available dependable yield. This is being done now in two areas for New Jersey, under the authority of the State's Water Supply Management Act; but it has not previously been accomplished on a regional scale. The dependable yield was estimated by means of detailed hydrogeological modeling. “Water Supply Critical Areas” were delimited on the basis of piezometric pressure, drawn down 30 feet below sea level. Within the depleted area, water withdrawals must be reduced by a fixed ratio (35 to 50 percent) below the amount withdrawn during 1983. This reduction is effective as soon as al alternative source of water can be made available, usually from a surface source. Special arrangements are made whereby ground water users unconnected to the alternative source of supply can pay to withdrawn their full needs from the depleted aquifers, the money being used to purchase additional water from the new surface water source, in return for which some other user will reduce his ground water withdrawal below his reduced allocation.     

400 YEARS OF CENTRAL CALIFORNIA PRECIPITATION VARIABILITY RECONSTRUCTED FROM TREE-RINGS1

ABSTRACT: Coastal central California is a region that has never been the subject of tree-ring studies. New tree-ring chronologies developed from cores of big cone spruce (Pseudotusuga macrocarpa (Torr.) Mayr.) growing in the Transverse Ranges of central Santa Barbara county were used to reconstruct precipitation fluctuations for this region. To verify the new reconstructions, calibration with recorded rainfall using cross-validation, comparison with other reconstructions, and documentary evidence from historical sources were utilized. The precipitation reconstructions show that there have not been fluctuations in mean precipitation on time scales longer than 30 years, but there have been major fluctuations in precipitation variability including changes in the frequency of extremes and rare events that have not occurred in the modern record.     

Soil Gas Volatile Organic Compound Concentration Contours for Locating Vadose Zone Nonaqueous Phase Liquid Contamination

Diffusion of VOC from cylindrical vadose zone domains contaminatedwith distributed nonaqueous phase liquid is examined in the steadystate approximation. The effects of first-order biodegradation and ofan extended underlying pool of LNAPL floating on the water table belowthe cylindrical domain are explored by means of an orthogonal functionsapproach. The distribution of VOC in the vadose zone above a floatingcircular LNAPL pool of finite size is explored by a numerical method.The results provide information useful in estimating the spacing anddepth at which soil gas samples should be taken in order to detect thepresence of such source areas. Comparison of model results with soilgas VOC measurements at various depths also provides insight into theextent to which natural biodegradation of the VOCs is taking place.     

Dissolved oxygen content as an index of water quality in San Vicente Bay,Chile (36 degrees 45'S)

The present report describes some effects of industrial and municipal effluents on the waters of San Vicente Bay. Analyses ofthe main substances contained in the fishing industry effluentsuggest rating criteria based on the oxygen saturation of thewater as an assessment of organic pollution. Six cruises were carried out throughout the Bay, from June to December 1996. Watersamples were analyzed for dissolved oxygen, oil and grease content, and sediment samples for organic matter content. Waterparameters (salinity, temperature) were used to characterize theBay's hydrography, and to calculate values for oxygen saturation. The measurements demonstrated a local broad range of oxygen deficit, with a maximum of 45% in the winter to 95% in the spring. In November more than 65% of the Bay's area showed oxygendeficits greater than 40%. Organic matter was unusually high insediments along the northern sector of the Bay. The results suggest that the oxygen depletion was a representative parameterfor establishing a relative scale of water quality in this Bay.     

Automated Classification of an Environmental Sensitivity Index

Environmental Sensitivity Indices (ESI) composed of many field-data are essential for monitoring and control systems. At the beginning of the last decade an ESI of the German Wadden Sea was developed for use by the relevant authorities. This ESI was derived by experts semi-manually analysing the extensive field data-set. An algorithm is presented here which emulates human expert-decisions on the classification of sensitivity classes. This will permit the necessary regular updates of ESI-determination when new field data become available using automated classifications procedures. After tuning the algorithm parameters it generates decisions identical to those of human experts in about 97% of all locations tested. In addition, the algorithm presented also enables erroneous or extremely seldom field data to be identified.     

塔城市奥布森生态区建设的效益分析及建议

通过介绍塔城市奥布森生态区建设及其产生效益的情况，提出了一些改善生态环境的建议，对塔城的社会经济与生态建设的可持续发展有一定的指导意义。     

Copper, Copper Mining Effluents and Grazing as Potential Determinants of Algal Abundance and Diversity in Northern Chile

We experimentally tested threealternative hypotheses to explain the low algaldiversity and abundance in an intertidal zonereceiving the effluents of the copper mine El Salvadorin northern Chile. Our results demonstrated thatalgae were able to grow at the levels of dissolvedcopper detected in coastal waters of the area. Duringthe assays, growth and regeneration in several red,green and brown adult algae and juvenile Lessonia nigrescens were normal at copper levels of150 g L^-1 or, in some cases, higher. Wealso found that the coastal sea water mixed with theeffluent was not lethal to algae, although in somecases minor effects on growth were detected. Theseresults indicate that today's low algal diversity andabundance can not be explained by the current copperlevels in the area nor by the effect of the effluent.Exclusion of grazers, however, resulted in a fastcolonization by various algal species. This, togetherwith atypically high grazer density at the areas underthe influence of the effluent, strongly suggests thatherbivory, a factor not directly related to the miningoperation, is likely to be responsible for the lowalgal diversity and abundance in the studied locality.     

一条正在发育的中、新生代裂谷带

沿长乐－南澳断裂带分布有非蛇绿岩型的镁铁、超镁铁质岩块；具中、新生代裂谷型岩浆组合；断裂两侧具有相似的变质岩基底及对应显著的地幔隆升地带。说明该断裂带为一条正在发育的中、新生代裂谷带。