Diurnal and seasonal measurements of seawater chemistry, temperature and PAR in Hurricane Hole, U.S. Virgin Islands - 2010-2012

Risk analyses indicate that more than 90% of the world's reefs will be threatened by climate change and local anthropogenic impacts by the year 2030 under "business-as-usual" climate scenarios. Increasing temperatures and solar radiation cause coral bleaching that has resulted in extensive coral mortality. Increasing carbon dioxide reduces seawater pH, slows coral growth, and may cause loss of reef structure. Management strategies include establishment of marine protected areas with environmental conditions that promote reef resiliency. However, few resilient reefs have been identified, and resiliency factors are poorly defined. Here we characterize the first natural, non-reef coral refuge from thermal stress and ocean acidification and identify resiliency factors for mangrove-coral habitats. We measured diurnal and seasonal variations in temperature, salinity, photosynthetically active radiation (PAR), and seawater chemistry; characterized substrate parameters; and examined water circulation patterns in mangrove communities where scleractinian corals are growing attached to and under mangrove prop roots in Hurricane Hole, St. John, US Virgin Islands. Additionally, we inventoried the coral species and quantified incidences of coral bleaching, mortality, and recovery for two major reef-building corals, Colpophyllia natans and Diploria labyrinthiformis, growing in mangrove-shaded and exposed (unshaded) areas. Over 30 species of scleractinian corals were growing in association with mangroves. Corals were thriving in low-light (more than 70% attenuation of incident PAR) from mangrove shading and at higher temperatures than nearby reef tract corals. A higher percentage of C. natans colonies were living shaded by mangroves, and no shaded colonies were bleached. Fewer D. labyrinthiformis colonies were shaded by mangroves, however more unshaded colonies were bleached. A combination of substrate and habitat heterogeneity, proximity of different habitat types, hydrographic conditions, and biological influences on seawater chemistry generate chemical conditions that buffer against ocean acidification. This previously undocumented refuge for corals provides evidence for adaptation of coastal organisms and ecosystem transition due to recent climate change. Identifying and protecting other natural, non-reef coral refuges is critical for sustaining corals and other reef species into the future.

Conservation Projects (ConPro) data base from The Nature Conservancy and others about the protected areas with analyzed Conservation Action Plans (CAP) before 2009 (Appendix 1) and after 2009 (Appendix 2)

It is widely recognized that climate change poses significant challenges to the conservation of biodiversity. The need of dealing with relatively rapid and uncertain environmental change calls for the enhancement of adaptive capacity of both biodiversity and conservation management systems. Under the hypothesis that most of the conventional biodiversity conservation tools do not sufficiently stimulate a dynamic protected area management, which takes rapid environmental change into account, we evaluated almost 900 of The Nature Conservancy's site-based conservation action plans. These were elaborated before a so-called climate clinic in 2009, an intensive revision of existing plans and a climate change training of the planning teams. We also compare these results with plans elaborated after the climate clinic. Before 2009, 20% of the CAPs employed the term "climate change" in their description of the site viability, and 45% identified key ecological attributes that are related to climate. 8% of the conservation strategies were directly or indirectly related to climate change adaptation. After 2009, a significantly higher percentage of plans took climate change into account. Our data show that many planning teams face difficulties in integrating climate change in their management and planning. However, technical guidance and concrete training can facilitate management teams learning processes. Arising new tools of adaptive conservation management that explicitly incorporate options for handling future scenarios, vulnerability analyses and risk management into the management process have the potential of further making protected area management more proactive and robust against change.

Extensive management of field margins enhances their potential to mitigate soil erosion

Soil erosion is a widespread problem in agricultural landscapes, particularly in regions with strong rainfall events. Vegetated field margins can mitigate negative impacts of soil erosion by trapping eroded material. In this data set, we present data of sediment trapped by 12 field margins during the monsoon season of 2013 in an agricultural landscape in the Haean-myun catchment in South Korea. Prior to the beginning of monsoon season, we equipped a total of 12 sites representing three replicates for each of four different types of field margins ("managed flat", "managed steep", "natural flat" and "natural steep") with Astroturf mats with a size of 34 cm x 25 cm (850 cm**2). The mats (n = 15 / site) were installed at three levels: upslope, immediately before the field margin to quantify the sediments that reach it, in the middle of the field margin to quantify the locally trapped sediments, and after the field margin at the downslope edge to quantify the sediments that leave the field margin to the next field or to the stream. Sediment was collected after each rain event until the end of the monsoon season.

Agricultural pesticide in sediment cores from the Lac de Saint-André, France

Agricultural pesticide use has increased worldwide during the last several decades, but the long-term fate, storage, and transfer dynamics of pesticides in a changing environment are poorly understood. Many pesticides have been progressively banned, but in numerous cases, these molecules are stable and may persist in soils, sediments, and ice. Many studies have addressed the question of their possible remobilization as a result of global change. In this article, we present a retro-observation approach based on lake sediment records to monitor micropollutants and to evaluate the long-term succession and diffuse transfer of herbicides, fungicides, and insecticide treatments in a vineyard catchment in France. The sediment allows for a reliable reconstruction of past pesticide use through time, validated by the historical introduction, use, and banning of these organic and inorganic pesticides in local vineyards. Our results also revealed how changes in these practices affect storage conditions and, consequently, the pesticides' transfer dynamics. For example, the use of postemergence herbicides (glyphosate), which induce an increase in soil erosion, led to a release of a banned remnant pesticide (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, DDT), which had been previously stored in vineyard soil, back into the environment. Management strategies of ecotoxicological risk would be well served by recognition of the diversity of compounds stored in various environmental sinks, such as agriculture soil, and their capability to become sources when environmental conditions change.

Model parameter

Interannual environmental variability in Peru is dominated by the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). The most dramatic changes are associated with the warm El Niño (EN) phase (opposite the cold La Niña phase), which disrupts the normal coastal upwelling and affects the dynamics of many coastal marine and terrestrial resources. This study presents a trophic model for Sechura Bay, located at the northern extension of the Peruvian upwelling system, where ENSO-induced environmental variability is most extreme. Using an initial steady-state model for the year 1996, we explore the dynamics of the ecosystem through the year 2003 (including the strong EN of 1997/98 and the weaker EN of 2002/03). Based on support from literature, we force biomass of several non-trophically-mediated 'drivers' (e.g. Scallops, Benthic detritivores, Octopus, and Littoral fish) to observe whether the fit between historical and simulated changes (by the trophic model) is improved. The results indicate that the Sechura Bay Ecosystem is a relatively inefficient system from a community energetics point of view, likely due to the periodic perturbations of ENSO. A combination of high system productivity and low trophic level target species of invertebrates (i.e. scallops) and fish (i.e. anchoveta) results in high catches and an efficient fishery. The importance of environmental drivers is suggested, given the relatively small improvements in the fit of the simulation with the addition of trophic drivers on remaining functional groups' dynamics. An additional multivariate regression model is presented for the scallop Argopecten purpuratus, which demonstrates a significant correlation between both spawning stock size and riverine discharge-mediated mortality on catch levels. These results are discussed in the context of the appropriateness of trophodynamic modeling in relatively open systems, and how management strategies may be focused given the highly environmentally influenced marine resources of the region.

Q method factor analysis of stakeholder social perspectives of the effectiveness of Environmental Impact Assessment public participation in the Western Cape, South Africa

Public participation is an integral part of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), and as such, has been incorporated into regulatory norms. Assessment of the effectiveness of public participation has remained elusive however. This is partly due to the difficulty in identifying appropriate effectiveness criteria. This research uses Q methodology to discover and analyze stakeholder's social perspectives of the effectiveness of EIAs in the Western Cape, South Africa. It considers two case studies (Main Road and Saldanha Bay EIAs) for contextual participant perspectives of the effectiveness based on their experience. It further considers the more general opinion of provincial consent regulator staff at the Department of Environmental Affairs and the Department of Planning (DEA&DP). Two main themes of investigation are drawn from the South African National Environmental Management Act imperative for effectiveness: firstly, the participation procedure, and secondly, the stakeholder capabilities necessary for effective participation. Four theoretical frameworks drawn from planning, politics and EIA theory are adapted to public participation and used to triangulate the analysis and discussion of the revealed social perspectives. They consider citizen power in deliberation, Habermas' preconditions for the Ideal Speech Situation (ISS), a Foucauldian perspective of knowledge, power and politics, and a Capabilities Approach to public participation effectiveness. The empirical evidence from this research shows that the capacity and contextual constraints faced by participants demand the legislative imperatives for effective participation set out in the NEMA. The implementation of effective public participation has been shown to be a complex, dynamic and sometimes nebulous practice. The functional level of participant understanding of the process was found to be significantly wide-ranging with consequences of unequal and dissatisfied stakeholder engagements. Furthermore, the considerable variance of stakeholder capabilities in the South African social context, resulted in inequalities in deliberation. The social perspectives revealed significant differences in participant experience in terms of citizen power in deliberation. The ISS preconditions are highly contested in both the Saldanha EIA case study and the DEA&DP social perspectives. Only one Main Road EIA case study social perspective considered Foucault's notion of governmentality as a reality in EIA public participation. The freedom of control of ones environment, based on a Capabilities approach, is a highly contested notion. Although agreed with in principle, all of the social perspectives indicate that contextual and capacity realities constrain its realisation. This research has shown that Q method can be applied to EIA public participation in South Africa and, with the appropriate research or monitoring applications it could serve as a useful feedback tool to inform best practice public participation.

Pollen analysis, particle size analysis, end-member modelling and x-ray fluorescence measurements from sediment cores off Cape Ghir, Morocco

Understanding past human-climate-environment interactions is essential for assessing the vulnerability of landscapes and ecosystems to future climate change. This is particularly important in southern Morocco where the current vegetation is impacted by pastoralism, and the region is highly sensitive to climate variability. Here, we present a 2000-year record of vegetation, sedimentation rate, XRF chemical element intensities, and particle size from two decadal-resolved, marine sediment cores, raised from offshore Cape Ghir, southern Morocco. The results show that between 650 and 850 AD the sedimentation rate increased dramatically from 100 cm/1000 years to 300 cm/1000 years, and the Fe/Ca and pollen flux doubled, together indicating higher inputs of terrestrial sediment. Particle size measurements and end-member modelling suggest increased fluvial transport of the sediment. Beginning at 650 AD pollen levels from Cichorioideae species show a sharp rise from 10% to 20%. Pollen from Atemisia and Plantago, also increase from this time. Deciduous oak pollen percentages show a decline, whereas those of evergreen oak barely change. The abrupt increase in terrestrial/fluvial input from 650 to 850 AD occurs, within the age uncertainty, of the arrival of Islam (Islamisation) in Morocco at around 700 AD. Historical evidence suggests Islamisation led to population increase and development of southern Morocco, including expanded pastoralism, deforestation and agriculture. Livestock pressure may have changed the vegetation structure, accounting for the increase in pollen from Cichorioideae, Plantago, and Artemisia, which include many weedy species. Goats in particular may have played a dominant role as agents of erosion, and intense browsing may have led to the decline in deciduous oak; evergreen oak is more likely to survive as it re-sprouts more vigorously after browsing. From 850 AD to present sedimentation rates, Fe/Ca ratios and fluvial discharge remain stable, whereas pollen results suggest continued degradation. Pollen results from the past 150 years suggest expanded cultivation of olives and the native argan tree, and the introduction of Australian eucalyptus trees. The rapidly increasing population in southern Morocco is causing continued pressure to expand pastoralism and agriculture. The history of land degradation presented here suggests that the vegetation in southern Morocco may have been degraded for a longer period than previously thought and may be particularly sensitive to further land use changes. These results should be included in land management strategies for southern Morocco.

Morphometrics of seagrasses at species level, Moreton Bay, Australia determined from core samples collected in 2012-2013

Seagrass meadows are important marine carbon sinks, yet they are threatened and declining worldwide. Seagrass management and conservation requires adequate understanding of the physical and biological factors determining carbon content in seagrass sediments. Here, we identified key factors that influence carbon content in seagrass meadows across several environmental gradients in Moreton Bay, SE Queensland. Sampling was conducted in two regions: (1) Canopy Complexity, 98 sites on the Eastern Banks, where seagrass canopy structure and species composition varied while turbidity was consistently low; and (2) Turbidity Gradient, 11 locations across the entire bay, where turbidity varied among sampling locations. Sediment organic carbon content and seagrass structural complexity (shoot density, leaf area, and species specific characteristics) were measured from shallow sediment and seagrass biomass cores at each location, respectively. Environmental data were obtained from empirical measurements (water quality) and models (wave height). The key factors influencing carbon content in seagrass sediments were seagrass structural complexity, turbidity, water depth, and wave height. In the Canopy Complexity region, carbon content was higher for shallower sites and those with higher seagrass structural complexity. When turbidity varied along the Turbidity Gradient, carbon content was higher at sites with high turbidity. In both regions carbon content was consistently higher in sheltered areas with lower wave height. Seagrass canopy structure, water depth, turbidity, and hydrodynamic setting of seagrass meadows should therefore be considered in conservation and management strategies that aim to maximize sediment carbon content.