Assessing the ecological status of the North-western Adriatic Sea within the European Water Framework Directive: a comparison of Bentix, AMBI and M-AMBI methods     

Roberto Simonini  Valentina Grandi  Gloria Massamba-N'Siala  Mirko Iotti  Giuseppe Montanari  & Daniela Prevedelli 《Marine Ecology》2009,30(2):241-254

In this paper we looked for the most suitable method for benthic ecological quality status (EcoQS) assessment of the North-western Adriatic Sea. Taking into account the historical and present information, we inter-compared our expectations in terms of EcoQS, with the Bentix, AMBI and M-AMBI classification metrics results, and investigated the sensitivity of these indices to the spatial, seasonal and inter-annual variability of benthic communities. The sampling sites were located at increasing distances with respect to the Po River mouth, along an (inverse) gradient of eutrophication. Moreover, a 2-year monthly monitoring plan (October 2004–September 2006) was carried out at the CEBEB site, located in a central position with respect to the investigated area. The results highlighted that the three indices differed in the sensitivity to spatial and temporal variability of the benthic communities. The strong seasonal and inter-annual changes in the benthic communities had a significant effect on the Bentix, whereas no relevant modifications were observed on the EcoQS assignation obtained using the M-AMBI and AMBI methods. The environmental quality ratios (EQR) values and EcoQS classification obtained by the Bentix and AMBI did not match expectations, as they were not inversely correlated with the site distances with respect to the Po mouth, whereas the M-AMBI clearly discriminated the most and the least eutrophicated sites. It thus appears that the M-AMBI could be considered to be the most valuable method for the ecological-status assessment of the North-western Adriatic Sea benthic ecosystem.  相似文献   

Evidence of a shallow magma intrusion beneath the NE Rift system of Mt. Etna during 2013          下载免费PDF全文

Valentina Bruno  Carmelo Ferlito  Mario Mattia  Carmelo Monaco  Massimo Rossi  Danila Scandura 《地学学报》2016,28(5):356-363

Continuous GPS (CGPS) data, collected at Mt. Etna between April 2012 and October 2013, clearly define inflation/deflation processes typically observed before/after an eruption onset. During the inflationary process from May to October 2013, a particular deformation pattern localised in the upper North Eastern sector of the volcano suggests that a magma intrusion had occurred a few km away from the axis of the summit craters, beneath the NE Rift system. This is the first time that this pattern has been recorded by CGPS data at Mt. Etna. We believe that this inflation process might have taken place periodically at Mt. Etna and might be associated with the intrusion of batches of magma that are separate from the main feeding system. We provide a model to explain this unusual behaviour and the eruptive regime of this rift zone, which is characterised by long periods of quiescence followed by often dangerous eruptions in which vents can open at low elevation and thus threaten the villages in this sector of the volcano.  相似文献   

Cretaceous-Eocene compression in the central Southern Alps (N Italy) inferred from Ar/Ar dating of pseudotachylytes along regional thrust faults     

Stefano Zanchetta  Paolo D’Adda  Andrea Zanchi  Valentina Barberini  Igor M. Villa 《Journal of Geodynamics》2011

The integration of structural analyses with ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating of fault-related pseudotachylytes provides time constraints for the reconstruction of the Alpine evolution of the central portion of the South Alpine orogenic wedge. In the northern sector of the belt a Variscan basement is stacked southward on the Permian to Mesozoic cover along regional faults (Orobic and Porcile thrusts). Fault zones, slightly postdating a first folding event of Alpine age, experienced a complex evolution through the ductile and brittle deformation regime, showing greenschist facies mylonites overprinted by a penetrative cataclastic deformation. Generation of fault-related pseudotachylyte veins marks the onset of brittle conditions, lasting up to the youngest episodes of fault activity. ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating of the pseudotachylyte matrix of 9 samples give two separated age clusters: Late Cretaceous (80–68 Ma) and latest Palaeocene to Middle Eocene (55–43 Ma). These new data provide evidence that the pre-Adamello evolution of the central Southern Alps was characterised by the superposition of different tectonic events accompanying the exhumation of the deepest part of the belt through the brittle–ductile transition. The oldest pseudotachylyte ages demonstrate that south-verging regional thrusting in the central Southern Alps was already active during the Late Cretaceous, concurrently with the development of a synorogenic foredeep basin where the Upper Cretaceous Lombardian Flysch was deposited.  相似文献   

Assessment of visual impact induced by surface mining with reference to a case study located in Sardinia (Italy)     

Valentina Dentoni  Giorgio Massacci 《Environmental Earth Sciences》2013,68(5):1485-1493

Surface mining and quarrying typically generate a considerable number of environmental impacts among which landscape alteration remains one of the most significant. Although landscape alteration does not directly affect public health, it may produce an adverse reaction among potential observers and compromise the use and potential growth of the surrounding territory. In order to assess the impact produced by surface excavation, some aspects of landscape modification can be objectively measured, such as the extent of the visible alteration, its shape and the chromatic contrast with the surroundings. With reference to a case study located in Sardinia, this article discusses the implementation of two different visual impact assessment methods, one defined by the EC decision 272/02 (Commission Decision 2002), the other previously proposed by the authors of the present article and based on the estimation of the impact indicator Lvi (level of visual impact). The comparison of the results proves that the method established by the EC decision leads to the underestimation of the visual impact for alterations which are significantly wider than their height. On the other hand, the implementation of the Lvi method clearly shows how the indicator is affected by the quarry’s lateral extent and suggests the possibility of calculating a global impact factor LVI to be associated to a given route, considering the variability of the visual impact with the curvilinear abscissa of the route itself.  相似文献   

Energy spectra of particles accelerated in a reconnecting current sheet with the guiding magnetic field     

Valentina V. Zharkova  Mykola Gordovskyy 《Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society》2005,356(3):1107-1116

Electron and proton acceleration by a super-Dreicer electric field is investigated in the non-neutral reconnecting current sheet (RCS) with a non-zero longitudinal component of the magnetic field ('guiding field'). The guiding field is assumed parallel to the direction of electric field and constant within an RCS. The other two magnetic field components, transverse and tangential, are considered to vary with distances from the X null point of an RCS. The proton and electron energy spectra are calculated numerically from a motion equation using the test particle approach for model RCSs with constant and variable densities. In the presence of a strong or moderate guiding field, protons were found fully or partially separated from electrons at ejection from an RCS into the opposite, 'electron' and 'proton', semiplanes. In the case of a weak guiding field, both protons and electrons are ejected symmetrically in equal proportions as neutral beams. The particles ejected from an RCS with a very weak or very strong guiding field have power-law energy spectra with spectral indices of about 1.5 for protons and 2.0 for electrons. For a moderate guiding field, the energy spectra of electrons ejected into the opposite semiplanes are mixed, i.e. in the 'electron-dominated' semiplane power-law energy spectra for electrons and thermal-like for protons, while in the 'proton' semiplane they are symmetrically mirrored.  相似文献   

The geographics of patients transfers: the case of an Italian Regional Health System     

Valentina Evangelista 《GeoJournal》2016,81(5):771-778

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The role of tidal,wave and river currents in the evolution of mixed‐energy deltas: Example from the Lajas Formation (Argentina)          下载免费PDF全文

Valentina Marzia Rossi  Ronald J. Steel 《Sedimentology》2016,63(4):824-864

Many modern deltas show complex morphologies and architectures related to the interplay of river, wave and tidal currents. However, methods for extracting the signature of the individual processes from the stratigraphic architecture are poorly developed. Through an analysis of facies, palaeocurrents and stratigraphic stacking patterns in the Jurassic Lajas Formation, this paper: (i) separates the signals of wave, tide and river currents; (ii) illustrates the result of strong tidal reworking in the distal reaches of deltaic systems; and (iii) discusses the implications of this reworking for the evolution of mixed‐energy systems and their reservoir heterogeneities. The Lajas Formation, a sand‐rich, shallow‐marine, mixed‐energy deltaic system in the Neuquén Basin of Argentina, previously defined as a tide‐dominated system, presents an exceptional example of process variability at different scales. Tidal signals are predominantly located in the delta front, the subaqueous platform and the distributary channel deposits. Tidal currents vigorously reworked the delta front during transgressions, producing intensely cross‐stratified, sheet‐like, sandstone units. In the subaqueous platform, described for the first time in an ancient outcrop example, the tidal reworking was confined within subtidal channels. The intensive tidal reworking in the distal reaches of the regressive delta front could not have been predicted from knowledge of the coeval proximal reaches of the regressive delta front. The wave signals occur mainly in the shelf or shoreface deposits. The fluvial signals increase in abundance proximally but are always mixed with the other processes. The Lajas system is an unusual clean‐water (i.e. very little mud is present in the system), sand‐rich deltaic system, very different from the majority of mud‐rich, modern tide‐influenced examples. The sand‐rich character is a combination of source proximity, syndepositional tectonic activity and strong tidal‐current reworking, which produced amalgamated sandstone bodies in the delta‐front area, and a final stratigraphic record very different from the simple coarsening‐upward trends of river‐dominated and wave‐dominated delta fronts.  相似文献   

Geophysical investigation of the Sandalp rock avalanche deposits     

Laura Valentina Socco  Denis Jongmans  Daniele Boiero  Stefano Stocco  Margherita Maraschini  Ken Tokeshi  Didier Hantz 《Journal of Applied Geophysics》2010,70(4):277-291

In the study of rock avalanche phenomena, numerical modelling makes use of back analyses of the rock avalanche propagation for calibration of the modelling assumptions and parameters. The back analyses require knowledge of the run-out area boundaries and the thickness distribution of the deposit. Geophysical methods can be applied to retrieve the thickness distribution, but, due to strong heterogeneities and logistic problems they are seldom applied. The aim of this work is to assess the potential of integrated geophysical methods to recognise and characterise a deposit created by two rock avalanches which occurred in the Sandalp valley (Switzerland) in 1996. The topography of the site before and after the rock avalanche is known and can be used as a benchmark. Resistivity tomography, seismic P-wave tomography, and active and passive surface wave analysis have been applied on several profiles deployed both on the rock avalanche deposit and in the surrounding area. Innovative approaches for surface wave analysis based on laterally constrained inversion and multimodal inversion have been applied to the data. A comparison of the results of the geophysical investigations with the topographic benchmark has shown the capability of the geophysical methods to locate the bottom of the deposit in the areas where the contrast with the host sediments properties is significant. In these areas, the deposit has higher resistivities and lower seismic velocities than the underlying materials. In the areas where the deposit is thicker and richer in fine-grained materials the geophysical parameters are not able to discriminate between the rock avalanche deposit and the underlying sediments. As a secondary task, the geophysical methods also allowed the bedrock pattern to be outlined.  相似文献   

Intra- and inter-specific variability in total and methylmercury bioaccumulation by eight marine fish species from the Azores   总被引：1，自引：1，他引：0  

Magalhães MC  Costa V  Menezes GM  Pinho MR  Santos RS  Monteiro LR 《Marine pollution bulletin》2007,54(10):1654-1662

We relate fish biological and ecological characteristics to total and organic mercury concentrations to determine whether accumulation is influenced by trophic level, Hg concentration in the diet, and vertical distribution. Levels of total mercury and methylmercury were determined in the muscle tissue of eight species of fish: Pagellus acarne, Trachurus picturatus, Phycis phycis, P. blennoides, Polyprion americanus, Conger conger, Lepidopus caudatus and Mora moro, caught in the Azores. All such fishes are commercially valuable and were selected to include species from a wide range of vertical distributions from epipelagic (<200 m) to mesopelagic (>300 m) environments. Methylmercury was the major form accumulated in all species, comprising an average of 88.1% of total mercury. Concentrations of mercury (total and methylmercury) increased with age, length and weight. Based on data from other studies, mercury concentrations in fish diet were estimated. Mercury levels in food ranged from 0.08 to 0.32 ppm, dry weight. Hg concentrations in the food and in muscle tissue from different species were positively correlated. Total Hg levels in the muscles were approximately nine times those estimated in food. Total mercury concentrations in muscle were positively correlated with both trophic level and median depth. Such enhanced mercury bioaccumulation in relation to depth appears to be determined primarily by concentrations in food and ultimately by water chemistry, which controls mercury speciation and uptake at the base of the food chain.  相似文献   

Distribution of yttrium and rare earths in Florida Bay sediments   总被引：3，自引：1，他引：2  

Valentina G. Caccia  Frank J. Millero   《Marine Chemistry》2007,104(3-4):171-185

The distribution of yttrium and rare earth elements (YREEs) in surface sediments was measured on samples collected from 40 stations in Florida Bay (June 2000 and February 2001). Florida Bay is the largest shallow carbonate estuary in South Florida with nearly pristine conditions. It receives fresh waters from some rivers and several canals from the Everglades which contribute rare earth elements and metals to the Bay. This paper is the first extensive study of YREEs in Florida Bay. Concentrations of YREEs (Y, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb and Lu) were determined by ICP-MS. The YREEs show a similar distribution pattern for the two months studied. The maximum concentrations were found in the western and north-central zones (near the Everglades) and the minimum concentrations were found in the south-central zone near the Florida Keys. The pattern of YREEs in Florida Bay sediments correlated strongly with those in the North American Shale Composite, indicating a dominant crustal source for these elements. However, the REE concentrations in Florida Bay sediments are depleted with respect to NASC. All REEs exhibited a strong correlation with Fe and Al from continental input and river runoff from the Everglades. The heavy REEs and Y showed a strong correlation with Al (R² > 0.84). The light and medium REEs showed a strong correlation with Fe (R² > 0.9). Correlations of all the YREEs with Mn were slightly lower (R²  0.7–0.75). The concentration of all the YREEs, Al and Fe are dependent on the bottom types and zones in the Bay, except Mn which decreases as it moves from the land to the sea.  相似文献