Coastal Urban Flood Resislience versus Climate Change

Processes of founding and expanding cities in coastal areas have undergone great changes over time driven by environmental conditions. Coastal settlements looked for places above flood levels and away from swamps and other wetlands whenever possible. As populations grew, cities were extending trying to avoid low and wet lands. No city has been able to limit its growth. The risk of flooding can never be eliminated, but only reduced to the extent possible. Flooding of coastal areas is today dramatically attributed to eustasic sea level rise caused by global climate change. This can be inaccurate. Current climate change is generating an average sea level upward trend, but other regional and local factors result in this trend being accentuated in some places or attenuated, and even reversed, in others. Then, the intensity and frequency of coastal flooding around the planet, although not so much as a unique result of this general eustasic elevation, but rather of the superposition of marine and crustal dynamic elements, the former also climate-related, which give rise to a temporary raising in average sea level in the short term. Since the Little Ice Age the planet has been suffering a global warming change leading to sea level rise. The idea of being too obeying to anthropogenic factors may be attributed to Arrhenius (1896), though it is of much later highlight after the sixties of the last century. Never before, the human factor had been able of such an influence on climate. However, other types of changes in sea levels became apparent, resulting from vertical movements of the crust, modifications of sea basins due to continents fracturing, drifting and coming together, or to different types of climate patterns. Coastal zones are then doubly susceptible to floods. Precipitation immediately triggers pluvial flooding. If it continues upland or when snow and glaciers melt eventually fluvial flooding can occur. The urban development presence represents modifying factors. Additional interference is caused by river and waste water drainage systems. Climate also influences sea levels in coastal areas, where tides as well as the structure and dynamic of the geoid and its crust come into play. From the sea, waters can flood and break or push back berms and other coastline borders. The sea level, controlling the mouth of the main channel of the basin's drainage system, is ultimately what governs flood levels. A temporary rise in sea level acts as a dam at the mouth. Even in absence of that global change, so, floods are likely going to increase in many urban coastal areas. Some kind of innovative methodologies and practices should be needed to get more flood resilience cities

Responses of riparian guilds to flowalterations in a Mediterranean stream

Questions: Do Mediterranean riparian guilds show distinct responses to stream water declines? If observed,which are the most sensitive and resilient guilds and theirmost affected attributes? Location: Tie��tar river below the Rosarito dam, central-western Spain. Methods: We identified riparian guilds based on key woody species features and species distribution within this Mediterranean river corridor, and evaluated similarity of their responses to long-term flow alteration (i.e. stream water declines since dam construction in 1959). Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to group surveyed vegetation bands according to species composition. The groups were designated as riparian guilds where each vegetation group comprising a guild: (1) contains species sharing similar features (using PCA); and (2) shares a similar environment (using DCA). Changes in several guild attributes (i.e. dominance and species composition, diversity and establishment patterns) during the regulated period were compared statistically. We used pre- and post-dam established vegetation bands identified based on old (1956) and modern (2006) aerial photographs and field measurements of woody species diameter. Results: Responses to flow alterations varied between guilds according to ecological requirements of their species. The ability to survive water stress (i.e. ?Xeric? guilds) and drag forces caused by floods (?Torrential? guilds) allowed certain pioneer shrub-dominated guilds (e.g. Flueggea tinctoria and Salix salviifolia) to spread on newly emerged surfaces downward to the main channel after flow alterations, although new shrubland had less species diversity than pre-dam shrubland. In contrast, new hydromorphological conditions following damming limited recruitment of native late-successional tree guilds sensitive to floods (to drag forces, inundation and anoxia; i.e. ?Slow-water? and ?Flood-sensitive?, respectively) and those with greater water requirements (i.e. ?Hydric?) (e.g. Alnus glutinosa and Celtis australis), although species diversity increased in this mature forest through co-existence of remaining riparian species and new arrival of upland species. Conclusions: Changes in several riparian attributes after flow alterations differed between guilds. Stream water declines after damming caused shifts in species-poor pioneer shrubland downwards to the watered channel, resulting in severe declines ofmaturenative forest.Understanding vegetation guild responses provides information about general trends in plant populations and assemblage structures expected to occur during river development and flow regulation, increasing our capacity to detect and synthesize complex flowalteration?riparian ecosystem response relationships, and anticipate irreversible impacts.

Implications of agricultural production, policy and land use changes on water resource assessment

Una gesti��n m��s eficiente y equitativa del agua a escala de cuenca no se puede centrar exclusivamente en el recurso h��drico en s��, sino tambi��n en otras pol��ticas y disciplinas cient��ficas. Existe un consenso creciente de que, adem��s de la consideraci��n de las cambiantes condiciones clim��ticas, es necesaria una integraci��n de ��mbitos de investigaci��n tales como la agronom��a, planificaci��n del territorio y ciencias pol��ticas y econ��micas a fin de satisfacer de manera sostenible las demandas de agua por parte de la sociedad y del medio natural. La Pol��tica Agr��cola Com��n (PAC) es el principal motor de cambio en las tendencias de paisajes rurales y sistemas agr��colas, pero el deterioro del medio ambiente es ahora una de las principales preocupaciones. Uno de los cambios m��s relevantes se ha producido con la expansi��n e intensificaci��n del olivar en Espa��a, principalmente con nuevas zonas de regad��o o la conversi��n de olivares de secano a sistemas en regad��o. Por otra parte, el cambio de las condiciones clim��ticas podr��a ejercer un papel importante en las tendencias negativas de las aportaciones a los r��os, pero no queda claro el papel que podr��an estar jugando los cambios de uso de suelo y cobertura vegetal sobre las tendencias negativas de caudal observadas. Esta tesis tiene como objetivo mejorar el conocimiento de los efectos de la producci��n agr��cola, pol��tica agraria y cambios de uso de suelo y cobertura vegetal sobre las condiciones de calidad del agua, respuesta hidrol��gica y apropiaci��n del agua por parte de la sociedad. En primer lugar, el estudio determina las tendencias existentes de nitratos y s��lidos en suspensi��n en las aguas superficiales de la cuenca del r��o Guadalquivir durante el periodo de 1998 a 2009. Desde una perspectiva de pol��tica agraria, la investigaci��n trata de evaluar mediante un an��lisis de datos de panel las principales variables, incluyendo la reforma de la PAC de 2003, que est��n teniendo una influencia en ambos indicadores de calidad. En segundo lugar, la apropiaci��n del agua y el nivel de contaminaci��n por nitratos debido a la producci��n del aceite de oliva en Espa��a se determinan con una evaluaci��n de la huella h��drica (HH), teniendo en cuenta una variabilidad espacial y temporal a largo de las provincias espa��olas y entre 1997 y 2008. Por ��ltimo, la tesis analiza los efectos de los cambios de uso de suelo y cobertura vegetal sobre las tendencias negativas observadas en la zona alta del Turia, cabecera de la cuenca del r��o J��car, durante el periodo 1973-2008 mediante una modelizaci��n ecohidrol��gica. En la cuenca del Guadalquivir cerca del 20% de las estaciones de monitoreo muestran tendencias significativas, lineales o cuadr��ticas, para cada indicador de calidad de agua. La mayor��a de las tendencias significativas en nitratos est��n aumentando, y la mayor��a de tendencias cuadr��ticas muestran un patr��n en forma de U. Los modelos de regresi��n de datos de panel muestran que las variables m��s importantes que empeoran ambos indicadores de calidad del agua son la intensificaci��n de biomasa y las exportaciones de ambos indicadores de calidad procedentes de aguas arriba. En regiones en las que el abandono agr��cola y/o desintensificaci��n han tenido lugar han mejorado las condiciones de calidad del agua. Para los nitratos, el desacoplamiento de las subvenciones a la agricultura y la reducci��n de la cuant��a de las subvenciones a tierras de regad��o subyacen en la reducci��n observada de la concentraci��n de nitratos. Las medidas de modernizaci��n de regad��os y el establecimiento de zonas vulnerables a nitratos reducen la concentraci��n en subcuencas que muestran una tendencia creciente de nitratos. Sin embargo, el efecto de las exportaciones de nitratos procedente de aguas arriba, la intensificaci��n de la biomasa y los precios de los cultivos presentan un mayor peso, explicando la tendencia creciente observada de nitratos. Para los s��lidos en suspensi��n, no queda de forma evidente si el proceso de desacoplamiento ha influido negativa o positivamente. Sin embargo, los mayores valores de las ayudas agrarias a��n ligadas a la producci��n, en particular en zonas de regad��o, conllevan un aumento de las tasas de erosi��n. Aunque la cuenca del Guadalquivir ha aumentado la producci��n agr��cola y la eficiencia del uso del agua, el problema de las altas tasas de erosi��n a��n no ha sido mitigado adecuadamente. El estudio de la huella h��drica (HH) revela que en 1 L de aceite de oliva espa��ol m��s del 99,5% de la HH est�� relacionado con la producci��n de la aceituna, mientras que menos del 0,5% se debe a otros componentes, es decir, a la botella, tap��n y etiqueta. Durante el per��odo estudiado, la HH verde en secano y en regad��o representa alrededor del 72% y 12%, respectivamente, del total de la HH. Las HHs azul y gris representan 6% y 10%, respectivamente. La producci��n de aceitunas se concentra en regiones con una HH menor por unidad de producto. La producci��n de aceite de oliva ha aumentado su productividad del agua durante 1997-2008, incentivado por los crecientes precios del aceite, como tambi��n lo ha hecho la cantidad de exportaciones de agua virtual. De hecho, las mayores zonas productoras presentan una eficiencia alta del uso y de productividad del agua, as�� como un menor potencial de contaminaci��n por nitratos. Pero en estas zonas se ve a la vez reflejado un aumento de presi��n sobre los recursos h��dricos locales. El aumento de extracciones de agua subterr��nea relacionadas con las exportaciones de aceite de oliva podr��a a��adir una mayor presi��n a la ya estresada cuenca del Guadalquivir, mostrando la necesidad de equilibrar las fuerzas del mercado con los recursos locales disponibles. Los cambios de uso de suelo y cobertura vegetal juegan un papel importante en el balance del agua de la cuenca alta del Turia, pero no son el principal motor que sustenta la reducci��n observada de caudal. El aumento de la temperatura es el principal factor que explica las mayores tasas de evapotranspiraci��n y la reducci��n de caudales. Sin embargo, los cambios de uso de suelo y el cambio clim��tico han tenido un efecto compensatorio en la respuesta hidrol��gica. Por un lado, el caudal se ha visto afectado negativamente por el aumento de la temperatura, mientras que los cambios de uso de suelo y cobertura vegetal han compensado positivamente con una reducci��n de las tasas de evapotranspiraci��n, gracias a los procesos de disminuci��n de la densidad de matorral y de degradaci��n forestal. El estudio proporciona una visi��n que fortalece la interdisciplinariedad entre la planificaci��n hidrol��gica y territorial, destacando la necesidad de incluir las implicaciones de los cambios de uso de suelo y cobertura vegetal en futuros planes hidrol��gicos. Estos hallazgos son valiosos para la gesti��n de la cuenca del r��o Turia, y el enfoque empleado es ��til para la determinaci��n del peso de los cambios de uso de suelo y cobertura vegetal en la respuesta hidrol��gica en otras regiones. ABSTRACT Achieving a more efficient and equitable water management at catchment scale does not only rely on the water resource itself, but also on other policies and scientific knowledge. There is a growing consensus that, in addition to consideration of changing climate conditions, integration with research areas such as agronomy, land use planning and economics and political science is required to meet sustainably the societal and environmental water demands. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is a main driver for trends in rural landscapes and agricultural systems, but environmental deterioration is now a principal concern. One of the most relevant changes has occurred with the expansion and intensification of olive orchards in Spain, taking place mainly with new irrigated areas or with the conversion from rainfed to irrigated systems. Moreover, changing climate conditions might exert a major role on water yield trends, but it remains unclear the role that ongoing land use and land cover changes (LULCC) might have on observed river flow trends. This thesis aims to improve the understanding of the effects of agricultural production, policies and LULCC on water quality conditions, hydrological response and human water appropriation. Firstly, the study determines the existing trends for nitrates and suspended solids in the Guadalquivir river basin���s surface waters (south Spain) during the period from 1998 to 2009. From a policy perspective, the research tries to assess with panel data analysis the main drivers, including the 2003 CAP reform, which are having an influence on both water quality indicators. Secondly, water appropriation and nitrate pollution level originating from the production of olive oil in Spain is determined with a water footprint (WF) assessment, considering a spatial temporal variability across the Spanish provinces and from 1997 to 2008 years. Finally, the thesis analyzes the effects of the LULCC on the observed negative trends over the period 1973-2008 in the Upper Turia basin, headwaters of the J��car river demarcation (east Spain), with ecohydrological modeling. In the Guadalquivir river basin about 20% of monitoring stations show significant trends, linear or quadratic, for each water quality indicator. Most significant trends of nitrates are augmenting than decreasing, and most significant quadratic terms of both indicators exhibit U-shaped patterns. The panel data models show that the most important drivers that are worsening nitrates and suspended solids in the basin are biomass intensification and exports of both water quality indicators from upland regions. In regions that agricultural abandonment and/or de-intensification have taken place the water quality conditions have improved. For nitrates, the decoupling of agricultural subsidies and the reduction of the amount of subsidies to irrigated land underlie the observed reduction of nitrates concentration. Measures of irrigation modernization and establishment of vulnerable zones to nitrates ameliorate the concentration of nitrates in subbasins showing an increasing trend. However, the effect of nitrates load from upland areas, intensification of biomass and crop prices present a greater weight leading to the final increasing trend in this subbasins group, where annual crops dominate. For suspended solids, there is no clear evidence that decoupling process have influenced negatively or positively. Nevertheless, greater values of subsidies still linked to production, particularly in irrigated regions, lead to increasing erosion rates. Although agricultural production has augmented in the basin and water efficiency in the agricultural sector has improved, the issue of high erosion rates has not yet been properly faced. The water footprint (WF) assessment reveals that for 1 L Spanish olive oil more than 99.5% of the WF is related to the olive fruit production, whereas less than 0.5% is due to other components i.e. bottle, cap and label. Over the studied period, the green WF in rainfed and irrigated systems represents about 72% and 12%, respectively, of the total WF. Blue and grey WFs represent 6% and 10%, respectively. The olive production is concentrated in regions with the smallest WF per unit of product. The olive oil production has increased its apparent water productivity from 1997 to 2008 incentivized by growing trade prices, but also did the amount of virtual water exports. In fact, the largest producing areas present high water use efficiency per product and apparent water productivity as well as less nitrates pollution potential, but this enhances the pressure on the available water resources. Increasing groundwater abstractions related to olive oil exports may add further pressure to the already stressed Guadalquivir basin. This shows the need to balance the market forces with the available local resources. Concerning the effects of LULCC on the Upper Turia basin���s streamflow, LULCC play a significant role on the water balance, but it is not the main driver underpinning the observed reduction on Turia's streamflow. Increasing mean temperature is the main factor supporting larger evapotranspiration rates and streamflow reduction. In fact, LULCC and climate change have had an offsetting effect on the streamflow generation during the study period. While streamflow has been negatively affected by increasing temperature, ongoing LULCC have positively compensated with reduced evapotranspiration rates, thanks to mainly shrubland clearing and forest degradation processes. The research provides insight for strengthening the interdisciplinarity between hydrological and spatial planning, highlighting the need to include the implications of LULCC in future hydrological plans. These findings are valuable for the management of the Turia river basin, as well as a useful approach for the determination of the weight of LULCC on the hydrological response in other regions.

The late Miocene macroflora of the La Cerda��a Basin, Eastern Pirenees, Spain. Towards a Synthesis

The fossil plant-bearing beds of the Tortonian (late Miocene) intramontane basin of La Cerdanya (Eastern Pyrenees, Catalonia, Spain) have been investigated for more than a century, and 165 species from 12 outcrops have been described in previous publications. The sediments with rich plant fossil assemblages, which correspond to lacustrine diatomitic deposits, contain large numbers of plant remains, mainly leaf compressions and impressions. These assemblages are well preserved, a consequence of the rapid accumulation of plant remains in the sediments of the basin's ancient lake, and the often close proximity of its shores to wetland and upland vegetation. This paper provides a comprehensive taxonomic and nomenclatural review of the historic and new collections of late Miocene macroflora for the La Cerdanya Basin. Examination of the newer materials allowed emendments to be made to the diagnoses ofAbies saportana, Acer pyrenakum,Alnus occidentalis, Quercus hispanka and Tilia vidali provided by REROLLE for the basin at the end of the 19th century. In addition, 24 species of vascular plants are identified for the basin for the first time, including one horsetail, three conifers, 19 arboreal or bushy dicotyledonous angiosperms, and one monocotyledonous angiosperm. Indeed, this is the first time that Cedrela helkonia (UNGER) KNOBLOCH, Decodon sp��� Hedera cf multinervis KOLAKOVSKII, Mahonia cf pseudosimplex KVACEK & WALTHER, Smilax cf. aspera L. vm.fossilis and Ulmus cf. plurinervia UNGER have been recorded anywhere in the Iberian Peninsula. The La Cerdanya Basin plant assemblages of the late Miocene mainly consisted of conifers and deciduous broadleaved taxa of Arctotertiary origin; evergreen Palaeotropical elements were less well represented. This flora is similar to those recorded at coeval sites in northern Greece, northern Italy and central and eastern France. Within the Iberian Peninsula, the late Miocene macroflora reported for the nearby Seu d'Urgell Basin is the most similar.

Polyploid formation created unique avenues for response to selection in Gossypium (cotton)

A detailed restriction fragment length polymorphism map was used to determine the chromosomal locations and subgenomic distributions of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) segregating in a cross between cultivars of allotetraploid (AADD) Gossypium hirsutum (���Upland��� cotton) and Gossypium barbadense (���Sea Island,��� ���Pima,��� or ���Egyptian��� cotton) that differ markedly in the quality and quantity of seed epidermal fibers. Most QTLs influencing fiber quality and yield are located on the ���D��� subgenome, derived from an ancestor that does not produce spinnable fibers. D subgenome QTLs may partly account for the fact that domestication and breeding of tetraploid cottons has resulted in fiber yield and quality levels superior to those achieved by parallel improvement of ���A��� genome diploid cottons. The merger of two genomes with different evolutionary histories in a common nucleus appears to offer unique avenues for phenotypic response to selection. This may partly compensate for reduction in quantitative variation associated with polyploid formation and be one basis for the prominence of polyploids among extant angiosperms. These findings impel molecular dissection of the roles of divergent subgenomes in quantitative inheritance in many other polyploids and further exploration of both ���synthetic��� polyploids and exotic diploid genotypes for agriculturally useful variation.

Extreme clonal uniformity of Phoxinus eos/neogaeus gynogens (pisces: Cyprinidae) among variable habitats in northern Minnesota beaver ponds.

Genetic surveys of parthenogenetic vertebrate populations have demonstrated a common pattern of relatively high degrees of clonal variation and the coexistence of numerous clones. In striking contrast, the Phoxinus eos/Phoxinus neogaeus/hybrid gynogen complex of cyprinid fishes exhibits no clonal variation within a northern Minnesota drainage characterized by successional beaver ponds. Gynogens were sampled from three habitats in each of four different pond types in a single drainage in Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota. The abundance of gynogens relative to sexual dace varied with pond type, being least common in deep upland ponds and most common in shallow, collapsed, lowland ponds (13.4% and 48.6%, respectively). Simple-sequence multilocus DNA fingerprinting of 464 individual gynogens detected one, and only one, clone. DNA fingerprints, generated sequentially by using three oligonucleotide probes, (CAC)5, (GACA)4, and the Jeffreys' 33.15 probe, all revealed the same unprecedented lack of variation. The extreme lack of clonal diversity in these gynogens across a range of habitat types does not fit the general pattern of high clonal diversity found within populations of other vertebrate parthenogens.

Os impactos ambientais no meio f��sico: eros��o e assoreamento na bacia hidrogr��fica do rio Taquari, MS, em decorr��ncia da pecu��ria

O aumento da inunda����o em ��reas do baixo curso do rio Taquari, no Pantanal do estado do Mato Grosso do Sul, tem transformado a pecu��ria desta regi��o numa atividade com baixa rentabilidade, �� medida que extensas ��reas de campo passaram a ser inundadas v��rios meses durante o ano a partir da d��cada de 70. A pecu��ria realizada em campos naturais de regi��es ��midas do Pantanal indica que h�� necessidade de se investigar metodologias apropriadas para avalia����o de impacto ambiental, que abordem impactos diretos, indiretos, cumulativos e processos do meio f��sico que alteram, de maneira prejudicial, o meio ambiente. Sup��e-se que a inunda����o na plan��cie do rio Taquari esteja relacionada com a ocupa����o antr��pica nas ��reas de planalto da bacia do rio Taquari. O presente trabalho tem por objetivo avaliar os impactos ambientais na plan��cie de inunda����o do baixo curso do Taquari, decorrentes da ocupa����o antr��pica da bacia hidrogr��fica do rio Taquari em sua totalidade, considerando os impactos ambientais causados pela pecu��ria �� medida que se configura como principal atividade econ��mica da bacia bem como os processos erosivos e de assoreamento no quadro atual do regime de inunda����es. As etapas de caracteriza����o da ��rea, de an��lise dos impactos e as propostas de a����es mitigadoras, previstas num Estudo de Impacto Ambiental, foram aqui analisadas. Foram utilizadas informa����es sobre as caracter��sticas do meio f��sico, bi��tico e socioecon��mico, selecionadas a partir do levantamento dos dados existentes com recorte efetuado para a bacia hidrogr��fica do rio Taquari. Na maior parte dos temas, este foi um processo de levantamento, ordenamento e recupera����o de informa����es, na escala original de 1:250.000, do Plano de Conserva����o da Bacia do Alto Paraguai-PCBAP, gerenciado no SPRING. Foram tamb��m realizadas viagens de campo para a complementa����o dos dados e para o levantamento de atividades antr��picas com verifica����es \"in loco\" da ocorr��ncia de impacto ambiental. A maioria dos dados socioecon��micos compilados para o presente trabalho teve por base os censos agropecu��rios e demogr��ficos realizados pelo IBGE. Os resultados obtidos demonstram que os impactos ambientais decorrentes da pecu��ria no planalto interferem no regime de inunda����o na plan��cie da bacia, o que s�� foi poss��vel de ser identificado a partir de an��lises integradas em toda a bacia hidrogr��fica do rio Taquari. Verificou-se que os m��todos de EIA s��o adequados para identificar os impactos diretos decorrentes da pecu��ria, mas n��o s��o adequados para identificar os processos e seus efeitos cumulativos na extens��o da bacia hidrogr��fica do rio Taquari. Al��m disto, a abordagem da avalia����o ambiental estrat��gica, como procedimento para an��lise ambiental em pol��ticas, planos e programas, mostra-se adequada para as an��lises na BHRT �� medida que est�� centralizada nos efeitos do ambiente sobre as necessidades e oportunidades de desenvolvimento. Contudo, somente a recupera����o de danos ambientais, o controle das origens dos impactos no ambiente e um sistema de gest��o consciente de seus compromissos podem levar, juntamente com a melhora dos procedimentos t��cnicos e administrativos para an��lises ambientais, �� uma maior proximidade da sustentabilidade ambiental na BHRT.

Recent landscape evolution at the "Barranco del R��o Dulce Natural Park" (Spain). Landscape units and mapping

Landscape units based on the visual features of the relief have been distinguished in the ���Barranco del R��o Dulce Natural Park��� (Spain). These units are geomorphic entities composed of several elementary landforms and characterized by a visual internal homogeneity, and contrast with other landscape units in their location, height, profile and gradients, reflecting their different evolution and genesis. Landscape units bear some subjectivity in their definition and in their boundary location due to the overlapping of geomorphic processes along time. Visual, compositional and conventional boundaries have been used for mapping. Neogene landscape evolution mainly occurred through thrust faulting at the Iberian Ranges-Tagus Basin boundary, driving tectonic uplift and erosion of the Ranges and correlative sedimentation in the Basin. Erosion of the Ranges occurred with the development of planation surfaces, leaving minor isolated reliefs in the upland plains landscape. The lowering of the base level, caused by the endorheic���exorheic transition of the Tagus Basin in the Pliocene, originates fluvial entrenchment and water table lowering with development of the first fluvial valleys and the capture of karstic depressions. Two subsequent phases of renewed fluvial incision (Pleistocene) lead to abandonment of some Pliocene valleys, fluvial captures, and development and reincision of tributaries