Estimating Sustainable Bycatch Rates for California Sea Lion Populations in the Gulf of California

Abstract:  Commercial and subsistence fisheries pressure is increasing in the Gulf of California, Mexico. One consequence often associated with high levels of fishing pressure is an increase in bycatch of marine mammals and birds. Fisheries bycatch has contributed to declines in several pinniped species and may be affecting the California sea lion ( Zalophus californianus ) population in the Gulf of California. We used data on fisheries and sea lion entanglement in gill nets to estimate current fishing pressure and fishing rates under which viable sea lion populations could be sustained at 11 breeding sites in the Gulf of California. We used 3 models to estimate sustainable bycatch rates: a simple population-growth model, a demographic model, and an estimate of the potential biological removal. All models were based on life history and census data collected for sea lions in the Gulf of California. We estimated the current level of fishing pressure and the acceptable level of fishing required to maintain viable sea lion populations as the number of fishing days (1 fisher/boat setting and retrieving 1 day's worth of nets) per year. Estimates of current fishing pressure ranged from 101 (0–405) fishing days around the Los Machos breeding site to 1887 (842–3140) around the Los Islotes rookery. To maintain viable sea lion populations at each site, the current level of fishing permissible could be augmented at some sites and should be reduced at other sites. For example, the area around San Esteban could support up to 1428 (935–2337) additional fishing days, whereas fishing around Lobos should be reduced by at least 165 days (107–268). Our results provide conservation practitioners with site-specific guidelines for maintaining sustainable sea lion populations and provide a method to estimate fishing pressure and sustainable bycatch rates that could be used for other marine mammals and birds .     

Seismological aspects of the Japan Sea earthquake of 1983

The Japan Sea earthquake of 1983 took place at the eastern margin of the Japan Sea, which is a marginal sea situated west of the island are of Japan and the Japan trench in the Pacific Ocean. Its magnitude of 7.7 is the largest among earthquakes which have been known to occur in the seismic belt along the Japan Sea coast of Northeast Honshu, Japan. Since the seismic activity in the belt is not so high, the earthquake is especially important in the geophysical interpretation of tectonic process in the region. The aftershock distribution and the focal mechanism reveals that the earthquake is a thrust fault on a plane dipping eastwards by about 30°. The waveform analysis shows that the earthquake can be regarded as a double shock to a first approximation. Interestingly, there was a 10-second intermission between the two events. These are preliminary results, and more detailed studies are under development.     

气相分子吸收光谱法测定海水中氨氮的干扰因素识别及预处理方法研究

采用气相分子吸收光谱法测定海水样品中的氨氮,重点考察海水中共存离子对氨氮测定结果的影响规律,识别测定过程中主要的干扰因素,并提出消除干扰的预处理方法.研究结果表明,碘离子会对氨氮的测定产生负干扰,当样品中碘离子质量浓度达到0.0765 g/L时,氨氮的测定结果与标准值相比明显降低,且在碘离子质量浓度达到0.1910 g...     

上海北侧区域海陆风对污染物扩散的影响

利用数值模拟方法研究了上海北侧区域海陆风对污染物扩散的影响,包括上海城郊-崇明岛-启东市区及这三区域之间的北支水道与南支水道.使用当量法表征太阳辐射和长波辐射引起的近地面空气热量变化,模拟结果与ECMWF再分析数据呈现较好的一致性.结果表明,在海风阶段,宽海(南支水道)、窄海(北支水道)区域都能形成海风,前者较后者发生...     

Emerging conservation challenges and prospects in an era of offshore hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation

Globally, extensive marine areas important for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem functioning are undergoing exploration and extraction of oil and natural gas resources. Such operations are expanding to previously inaccessible deep waters and other frontier regions, while conservation‐related legislation and planning is often lacking. Conservation challenges arising from offshore hydrocarbon development are wide‐ranging. These challenges include threats to ecosystems and marine species from oil spills, negative impacts on native biodiversity from invasive species colonizing drilling infrastructure, and increased political conflicts that can delay conservation actions. With mounting offshore operations, conservationists need to urgently consider some possible opportunities that could be leveraged for conservation. Leveraging options, as part of multi‐billion dollar marine hydrocarbon operations, include the use of facilities and costly equipment of the deep and ultra‐deep hydrocarbon industry for deep‐sea conservation research and monitoring and establishing new conservation research, practice, and monitoring funds and environmental offsetting schemes. The conservation community, including conservation scientists, should become more involved in the earliest planning and exploration phases and remain involved throughout the operations so as to influence decision making and promote continuous monitoring of biodiversity and ecosystems. A prompt response by conservation professionals to offshore oil and gas developments can mitigate impacts of future decisions and actions of the industry and governments. New environmental decision support tools can be used to explicitly incorporate the impacts of hydrocarbon operations on biodiversity into marine spatial and conservation plans and thus allow for optimum trade‐offs among multiple objectives, costs, and risks.     

Annual and Diurnal Wind Patterns in the City of São Paulo

The major topographic, mesoscale, and urban influences on the wind patterns of the City of São Paulo are characterized using one year of surface wind velocity data observed at 11 surface stations within its urban limits. The data was used to study the diurnal and annual variations of wind velocity and horizontal wind divergence within the city. Results showed that the circulation over the investigated area is dominated by three major factors: sea breeze; mountain-valley circulations; and urban effects, such as roughness, building-barrier, and urban heat island. The sea breeze was found to be the dominant feature of the monthly-averaged diurnal variation of São Paulo surface winds during the eight warmest months of the year. The sea breeze front induces a velocity minimum at the time of its passage and a post-frontal afternoon velocity maximum. Mountain-valley thermal effects on the flow can be seen in the temporal divergence/convergence patterns. These thermal effects tend to be more important during colder months, at night, and when the wind velocities are low. Nighttime downslope convergent flows are present over the city during winter and spring and daytime upslope divergent flows are present over the city during summer months.     

北极沉积物中硫酸盐还原菌与生物地球化学要素的相关分析

对北极楚科奇海、白令海测区34个沉积物样品的硫酸盐还原菌(SRB)含量与CaCO3、Si、S、P、Cd、Fe、Ti、Pb、Hg等地球化学要素作了相关分析．同时分析了SRB与其所在沉积物粒度与底层水温间的关系．结果表明：SRB与Si、砂及底层水温为正相关；SRB与CaCO3、Fe、Ti、P、Pb、Hg、粉砂、粘土为负相关；而SRB与Cd、S的相关性因海区不同而不同．既有负相关．也有正相关．分析了这些相关状况及其原因．     

钢铁窑炉烟尘PM_(2.5)控制技术与装备

简述了国家863课题"钢铁窑炉烟尘PM_(2.5)控制技术与装备"的目的、意义和研究成果,介绍了细颗粒物预荷电技术、基于海岛纤维的表面超细过滤材料、预荷电袋滤器、"一阀多喷"清灰等技术的最新进展,通过示范工程的成功运行,验证了成果的先进性和实用性。研究成果将为工业窑炉烟尘细颗粒物深度净化提供技术和装备支撑,适用于新建除尘项目和除尘项目改造。     

Sea level rise and eelgrass (Zostera marina) production: A spatially explicit relative elevation model for Padilla Bay, WA

The dynamics that govern the elevation of a coastal wetland relative to sea level are complex, involving non-linear feedbacks among opposing processes. Changes in the balance between these processes can result in significant alterations to vegetation communities that are adapted to a specific range of water levels. Given that current sedimentation rates in Padilla Bay, Washington are likely less than historical levels and that eustatic sea level rise is accelerating, the extensive Zostera marina (eelgrass) meadows in the bay may be at risk of eventual submergence. We developed a spatially explicit relative elevation model and used it to project changes in the productivity and distribution of eelgrass in Padilla Bay over the next century. The model is mechanistic and incorporates many of the processes and feedbacks that govern coastal wetland elevation change. Accretion estimates made using ²¹⁰Pb dating of sediment cores, sediment characteristics measured within cores, and eelgrass productivity and decomposition data were used to initialize and calibrate the model. Validation was performed using an elevation change rate measured with a network of surface elevation tables. Both the field data and model simulations revealed a net accretion deficit for the bay. Simulations using current rates of sea level rise indicated an overall expansion of eelgrass within Padilla Bay over the next century as it migrates from the center of the bay shoreward.     

Perceived Impacts of Ecotourism on Environmental Learning and Conservation: Turtle Watching as a Case Study

Using a case study, involving turtle-based ecotourism, we explore the role of ecotourism in promoting environmental learning and in sustaining conservation of nature. Mon Repos Conservation Park (an important marine turtle rookery involved in ecotourism) in Queensland, Australia, was selected for this study and visitors were surveyed using a structured questionnaire. The reported on-site experiences of respondents are analysed to identify important factors that alter their stated conservation attitudes and behaviours. The impact of these factors (such as the amount of environmental education that respondents claimed they obtained, sighting of sea turtles, nationality) is quantified using regression analyses. There has been little previous quantification of such influences. The study reveals that a considerable amount of environmental knowledge is gained by visitors to Mon Repos. The ecotourism experience, involving environmental education and seeing of turtles, was found to have positive and statistically significant impacts on the visitors' stated desire and intended behaviour to protect sea turtles. The study reveals the importance of learning and the interaction of tourists with wildlife as a contributor to their pro-conservation sentiments and actions. It shows how ecotourism can support nature conservation. Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.