Journal of Geographical Sciences - The goal of our work was to locate and quantify changes that occurred in 66% of the Mexican coastline, based on four land cover maps generated by the Mexican... 相似文献
Chile has a rich, but poorly known history of placer gold mining. At present, this sector is almost nonexistent and there are some restrictions for its revival: disperse and partial information on existing resources and limited technical expertise to assess the potential of placer gold mine sites. This paper presents the background, methodology and results of the prioritization process of known prospects of this kind in Chile. This research was part of a publicly funded project aimed to incentivize the development of this industry. The ranking was carried out using the analytic hierarchy process, which allowed to include different quantitative and qualitative variables related to the economic potential, technical aspects, contextual viability and socioeconomic factors in the analysis. The results show that, despite the increasing relevance of environmental and community issues in mining development, the business potential and the economic/technical aspects are the main factors in the early selection of a site to advance in exploration and development activities. Both variables represented around 40% and 37% of weights in the final selection, respectively. In contrast, contextual viability and local socioeconomic impacts only accounted for the remaining 23%. This study also shows that the inclusion of experts with different backgrounds in the process enriches the analysis and does not significantly distort the final outcome of the prioritization. Finally, the relevance of using MCDM tools when assessing the attractiveness of mine sites for their development is highlighted, particularly when public funds for subsequent exploration activities are committed.
Tubular-shaped concretions and concretionary dykes occur in Holocene fossil beach deposits between the township of El Médano
and Punta Roja in southern Tenerife, Canary Islands. These sediment structures have been interpreted either as the result
of (a) the interaction between hot ignimbrites that overflowed wet beaches; (b) fast accumulation of beach sands on hot and
degassing ignimbrites; (c) paleoliquefaction caused by an earthquake (seismites). Based on the interpretation as seismites,
an intense paleoearthquake with a moment magnitude of M = 6.8 was proposed to be responsible for the generation of the paleoliquefaction structures. However, we here reinterpret
the sedimentary structures in question using the general criteria diagnostic for rhizocretions and root tubules with respect
to their orientation, size, branching system, and style of cementation and, thus, consider them, to be of biogenic origin. 相似文献
The Northern Humboldt Current Ecosystem is one of the most productive in the world in terms of fish production. Its location near to the equator permits strong upwelling under relatively low winds, thus creating optimal conditions for the development of plankton communities. These communities ultimately support abundant populations of grazing fish such as the Peruvian anchoveta, Engraulis ringens. The ecosystem is also subject to strong inter-annual environmental variability associated with the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), which has major effects on nutrient structure, primary production, and higher trophic levels. Here our objective is to model the contributions of several external drivers (i.e. reconstructed phytoplankton changes, fish immigration, and fishing rate) and internal control mechanisms (i.e. predator-prey) to ecosystem dynamics over an ENSO cycle. Steady-state models and time-series data from the Instituto del Mar del Perú (IMARPE) from 1995 to 2004 provide the base data for simulations conducted with the program Ecopath with Ecosim. In simulations all three external drivers contribute to ecosystem dynamics. Changes in phytoplankton quantity and composition (i.e. contribution of diatoms and dino- and silicoflagellates), as affected by upwelling intensity, were important in dynamics of the El Niño of 1997–98 and the subsequent 3 years. The expansion and immigration of mesopelagic fish populations during El Niño was important for dynamics in following years. Fishing rate changes were the most important of the three external drivers tested, helping to explain observed dynamics throughout the modeled period, and particularly during the post-El Niño period. Internal control settings show a mix of predator–prey control settings; however a “wasp-waist” control of the ecosystem by small pelagic fish is not supported. 相似文献
Zooplankton play a key role in the pelagic foodweb by controllingphytoplankton production and shaping pelagic ecosystems. Inaddition, because of their critical role as a food source forlarval and juvenile fish, the dynamics of zooplankton populationshave a significant influence on recruitment to fish stocks.In 1961, ICES convened the First Zooplankton Production Symposiumin Charlottenlund, Denmark. ICES also played a leading rolein the Second Zooplankton Production Symposium on "ZooplanktonProduction: measurement and role in global 相似文献
The recruitment rate of Peruvian anchoveta, Engraulis ringens, was studied to test the hypothesis that long-term environmental variation (regime shifts) had a significant impact on density-dependent processes governing the anchovy recruitment during the period 1963–2004. On the basis of previous defined regimes and turning points for the Humboldt Current System, we identified two groups of years for increased recruitment of anchoveta (1963–1971 and 1986–2004), and one unfavorable period (1972–1985). A common intercept and significantly different slopes were found when the recruitment rate was plotted as a function of the spawning stock biomass during those groups of years, suggesting that density-dependent effects on recruitment were affected during different climate regimes. The favorable (unfavorable) regime was characterized by higher (lower) zooplankton volumes, and with a higher frequency of colder (warmer) waters. Dome-shaped relationships between recruitment rate, spawning stock biomass and SST, were detected with a Generalized Additive Model for the favorable regime. Thus, recruitment could be explained by non-linear effects of environmental variables. Ultimately, climatic regimes are affecting the density-dependent effects on recruitment of anchoveta and the mechanisms involved may be associated with changes in the carrying capacity of the spawning habitat of anchoveta off Peru, which in turn are related with the effects of cold and warm regimes. 相似文献
This paper describes and discusses the palaeobotanical data obtained from organic levels of two exposed deposits on the Atlantic shore of the northwestern Iberian Peninsula. Radiocarbon dating assigns these levels to a period of marine regression at the end of MIS 3 and the beginning of the Last Glacial Maximum. The pollen record shows an initial predominance of tree taxa (mainly deciduous, including the presence of Fagus far from its current limit), followed by an episode of partial forest retraction related to the end of MIS 3 and the beginning of the Last Glacial Maximum. However, the presence of numerous tree taxa in the record, even during the cold intervals associated with Heinrich events, points to the existence of sheltered refugia for these species during this period, in keeping with the conclusions of recent reviews of the vegetation dynamics of this region for the Lateglacial and the Holocene. 相似文献
A geochemical study of groundwater of the pampa in the province of Córdoba, Argentina, was performed; the area covered approximately 10,000 km2.Physical-chemical parameters, dissolved solids, and seven trace elements were determined in 60 selected water samples. Systematic and accurate measurements of arsenic, flourine, and vanadium were performed for the first time. Three trace element contaminants not reported earlier were found: an important one, selenium, and two others of less known effects, uranium and molybdenum.Eighty-four percent of the water analyzed showed arsenic contents over 0.05 mg/L, maximum contaminant level established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (1982). The frequency distribution of trace elements was analyzed, and its fit to the lognormal distribution was proved by means of the Pearson and Kolmogorov-Smirnov test; the geographic distribution of the seven trace elements was mapped and its correlation with the anion-cation composition of the water was studied.The maximum arsenic, fluorine, vanadium, and uranium contents were found in the western part of the area under study, in waters containing dominant alkali metals in the cation composition. Maximum selenium and antimony contents were found in the eastern part of the area, while molybdenum distribution does not show any relationship with the other two groups. In addition, the geographic distribution of the trace elements seems to be related to the subsurface structure, which has been inferred using interactive digital analysis of Landsat imagery. The movements of the subsoil have disturbed surface and subsurface drainage influencing the water salinity and trace element contents.In order to investigate the origin of the contamination, 54 loess samples were collected in wells at depths ranging from the surface down to the water table. This loess, which has a high proportion of volcanic components, mainly rhyolitic glass, exhibits a chemical composition corresponding to that of a dacite.The loess and the volcanic glass show anomalous contents of all contaminant trace elements, mainly arsenic and selenium. For this reason loess is considered the most important contamination source in the groundwater under study. 相似文献
Lacustrine deposits of the Malanzán Formation record sedimentation in a small and narrow mountain paleovalley. Lake Malanzán was one of several water bodies formed in the Paganzo Basin during the Late Carboniferous deglaciation. Five sedimentary facies have been recognized. Facies A (Dropstones-bearing laminated mudstones) records deposition from suspension fall-out and probably underflow currents coupled with ice-rafting processes in a basin lake setting. Facies B (Ripple cross-laminated sandstones and siltstones) was deposited from low density turbidity currents in a lobe fringe environment. Facies C (Massive or graded sandstones) is thought to represent sedimentation from high and low density turbidity currents in sand lobes. Facies D (Folded sandstones and siltstones) was formed from slumping in proximal lobe environments. Facies E (Wave-rippled sandstones) records wave reworking of sands supplied by turbidity currents above wave base level.The Lake Malanzán succession is formed by stacked turbidite sand lobe deposits. These lobes were probably formed in proximal lacustrine settings, most likely relatively high gradient slopes. Paleocurrents indicate a dominant direction from cratonic areas to the WSW. Although the overall sequence shows a regressive trend from basin fine-grained deposits to deltaic and braided fluvial facies, individual lobe packages lack of definite vertical trends in bed thickness and grain size. This fact suggests aggradation from multiple-point sources, rather than progradation from single-point sources. Sedimentologic and paleoecologic evidence indicate high depositional rate and sediment supply. Deposition within the lake was largely dominated by event sedimentation. Low diversity trace fossil assemblages of opportunistic invertebrates indicate recolonization of event beds under stressed conditions.Three stages of lake evolutionary history have been distinguished. The vertical replacement of braided fluvial deposits by basinal facies indicates high subsidence and a lacustrine transgressive episode. This flooding event was probably linked to a notable base level rise during postglacial times. The second evolutionary stage was typified by the formation of sand turbidite lobes from downslope mass-movements. Lake history culminates with the progradation of deltaic and braided fluvial systems 相似文献