Seasonal fluctuations of zooplankton biomass in Lake Xolotlán (Managua)

Seasonal fluctuations of zooplankton biomass (dry weight) were determined during a year in two localities of Lake Xolotlán (Managua). Biomass estimations of the most common species of rotifers, cladocerans and copepods were made. The maximal zooplankton biomass was observed in February–April (dry season) in coincidence with the period of highest phytoplankton abundance. Copepods contributed with 78% and 84% to the mean zooplankton biomass at points 1 and 7, respectively. Cladocera biomass was lowest during most of the year, and it was probably controlled by fish predation. Development of rotifer biomass was more intense during the rainy season, when detritus particles were more abundant. Daily fluctuations of zooplankton biomass were not pronounced.     

The influence of biomass and structure of the crustacean plankton on the water transparency in the Saidenbach storage reservoir

Planktonic crustacean biomass as well as structure are important factors influencing water transparency. The significant dependence of the water quality (Secchi depth) on the concentration and the share of the Daphnia biovolume and not on the total Crustacea biovolume in the Saidenbach reservoir indicates that the density of the Crustacea is only a measure of the cleaning performance, if Daphnia dominates. Using the mean size, the influence of the crustacean structure on the Secchi depth can be recorded. If big size categories prevail (like Daphnia) the water transparency is high. The mainly occurrence of little species (Mesocyclops, Bosmina) results in lower Secchi depths. However, a well defined (significant) relationship is being prevented by the different feeding behaviour of the several species.     

云南松形态和叶片碳氮磷化学计量及其海拔变化特征

云南松(Pinus yunnanensis Franch.)是我国西南地区特有的物种,在当地的经济、生态和水土保持功能方面占有重要地位。本研究以云南东北部不同海拔的云南松天然次生林为对象,测定了成年植株的胸径、株高、叶片长度、干重、比叶长及叶片碳、氮、磷含量,分析了不同海拔下叶片碳氮磷化学计量特征。结果表明:随海拔升高,胸径、株高、叶P含量和叶C∶N呈现"中间高,两头低"的趋势,而叶C∶P和N∶P呈现的趋势与叶P和叶C∶N的相反;云南松叶片单束松针长、比叶长、叶C、N随海拔升高呈明显降低的趋势,而单束松针重呈增加的趋势;各海拔的N∶P值(平均值为5.82±0.10)均小于14,且与植株胸径、株高呈显著负相关;该地区云南松对海拔具有较强的适应性,植株生长主要受N元素的营养限制,该结果支持生长速率假说。本研究揭示了云南松化学计量特征的空间格局变化规律,为云南松林的经营管理提供科学依据。     

Novel Miscanthus hybrids: Modelling productivity on marginal land in Europe using dynamics of canopy development determined by light interception

New biomass crop hybrids for bioeconomic expansion require yield projections to determine their potential for strategic land use planning in the face of global challenges. Our biomass growth simulation incorporates radiation interception and conversion efficiency. Models often use leaf area to predict interception which is demanding to determine accurately, so instead we use low-cost rapid light interception measurements using a simple laboratory-made line ceptometer and relate the dynamics of canopy closure to thermal time, and to measurements of biomass. We apply the model to project the European biomass potentials of new market-ready hybrids for 2020–2030. Field measurements are easier to collect, the calibration is seasonally dynamic and reduces influence of weather variation between field sites. The model obtained is conservative, being calibrated by crops of varying establishment and varying maturity on less productive (marginal) land. This results in conservative projections of miscanthus hybrids for 2020–2030 based on 10% land use conversion of the least (productive) grassland and arable for farm diversification, which show a European potential of 80.7–89.7 Mt year⁻¹ biomass, with potential for 1.2–1.3 EJ year⁻¹ energy and 36.3–40.3 Mt year⁻¹ carbon capture, with seeded Miscanthus sacchariflorus × sinensis displaying highest yield potential. Simulated biomass projections must be viewed in light of the field measurements on less productive land with high soil water deficits. We are attempting to model the results from an ambitious and novel project combining new hybrids across Europe with agronomy which has not been perfected on less productive sites. Nevertheless, at the time of energy sourcing issues, seed-propagated miscanthus hybrids for the upscaled provision of bioenergy offer an alternative source of renewable energy. If European countries provide incentives for growers to invest, seeded hybrids can improve product availability and biomass yields over the current commercial miscanthus variety.     

在矿山废弃地上发展可再生能源的潜力——以辽宁省为例

在国内外碳减排压力和我国能源结构调整需求下,我国可再生能源的开发压力较大.矿山具有丰富的废弃土地,发展可再生能源的潜力巨大,在矿山废弃地上开发可再生能源对我国的能源战略具有重要意义.本研究以辽宁省矿山废弃地为例,提出矿山废弃地的生物质能与太阳能发展预案,估算辽宁省矿山废弃地的可再生能源发展潜力.结果表明:辽宁省1227.6 km2的矿山废弃地面积发展可再生能源的潜力较大,不同预案的潜力差异显著.预案1以光伏发电最大化为目标模式,总计可发电量为79.4 TWh,折标煤量32.1 Mt,碳减排量为79.1Mt CO2.预案2以生物质能源利用最大化为目标模式,光伏与生物质能总的发电量可达到31.2~33.1 TWh,折标煤量12.7~13.4 Mt,碳减排量为31.1~33.0 Mt CO2.预案3以矿山能源综合利用最大化为目标并兼顾生态修复的发展模式,光伏与生物质能总的发电量可达到62.3~63.7 TWh,折标煤量25.1~25.7 Mt,碳减排量为62.1~63.5 Mt CO2.3种预案的发电量在31.2~79.4 TWh,占辽宁省2016年总电力消费量的15.3%~38.9%,折标煤量12.7~32.1 Mt,碳减排量为31.1~79.1 Mt CO2.本研究对在矿山废弃地上发展可再生能源潜力及其替代化石能源能力的评估,对于碳减排、能源结构的调整以及矿山废弃地的生态修复具有重要的研究意义.     

A large impact of tropical biomass burning on CO and CO2 in the upper troposphere

A large interannual variation of biomass burning emissions from Southeast Asia is asso-ciated with the ENSO events. During 1997/98 and 1994 El Nino years, uncontrolled wildfires of tropical rainforests and peat lands in Indonesia were enlarged due to a long drought. EnhancedCO injection into the upper troposphere from the intense Indonesian fires was clearly observed in the 8-year measurements from a regular flask sampling over the western Pacific using a JAL air-liner between Australia and Japan. This airliner observation also revealed that upper tropospheric CO_2 cycle largely changed during the 1997 El Nino year due partly to the biomass burning emis-sions. Widespread pollution from the biomass burnings in Southeast Asia was simulated using aCO tracer driven by a 3D global chemical transport model. This simulation indicates that tropical deep convections connected to rapid advection by the subtropical jet play a significant role in dis-persing biomass-burning emissions from Southeast Asia on a global scale.     

Carbon pools recover more quickly than plant biodiversity in tropical secondary forests

Although increasing efforts are being made to restore tropical forests, little information is available regarding the time scales required for carbon and plant biodiversity to recover to the values associated with undisturbed forests. To address this knowledge gap, we carried out a meta-analysis comparing data from more than 600 secondary tropical forest sites with nearby undisturbed reference forests. Above-ground biomass approached equivalence to reference values within 80 years since last disturbance, whereas below-ground biomass took longer to recover. Soil carbon content showed little relationship with time since disturbance. Tree species richness recovered after about 50 years. By contrast, epiphyte richness did not reach equivalence to undisturbed forests. The proportion of undisturbed forest trees and epiphyte species found in secondary forests was low and changed little over time. Our results indicate that carbon pools and biodiversity show different recovery rates under passive, secondary succession and that colonization by undisturbed forest plant species is slow. Initiatives such as the Convention on Biological Diversity and REDD+ should therefore encourage active management to help to achieve their aims of restoring both carbon and biodiversity in tropical forests.     

Multispectral image analysis for algal biomass quantification

This article reports a novel multispectral image processing technique for rapid, noninvasive quantification of biomass concentration in attached and suspended algae cultures. Monitoring the biomass concentration is critical for efficient production of biofuel feedstocks, food supplements, and bioactive chemicals. Particularly, noninvasive and rapid detection techniques can significantly aid in providing delay‐free process control feedback in large‐scale cultivation platforms. In this technique, three‐band spectral images of Anabaena variabilis cultures were acquired and separated into their red, green, and blue components. A correlation between the magnitude of the green component and the areal biomass concentration was generated. The correlation predicted the biomass concentrations of independently prepared attached and suspended cultures with errors of 7 and 15%, respectively, and the effect of varying lighting conditions and background color were investigated. This method can provide necessary feedback for dilution and harvesting strategies to maximize photosynthetic conversion efficiency in large‐scale operation. © 2013 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 29:808–816, 2013     

Wildfire Smoke,Fire Management,and Human Health

Burning landscapes under controlled conditions to reduce the risk of wildfires is a controversial land management practice. The health risks of smoke generated from controlled burning relative to wildfire remain uncertain. Recent work in the Australian monsoon tropics provided a unique opportunity to study the health effects of smoke pollution at and well below national air quality standards. It found that for each increase in the atmospheric mass of particles 10 g or less in aerodynamic diameter (PM₁₀) per cubic meter of air per 24-hour period, there was a 26% increase in daily asthma presentations to the emergency department of the Royal Darwin Hospital, with an apparent threshold at 40 g/m³ PM₁₀ (lower than the Australian PM₁₀ air quality standard of 50 g/m³). This finding was unaffected by adjusting for weekly rates of influenza, weekday vs. weekends, and school holiday periods. Although further research is being undertaken to substantiate these findings, the upshot of the study suggests that for airsheds containing large human populations, fire managers should strive to keep smoke pollution less than 40 g/m³ PM₁₀.     

Rates of net nitrogen mineralization in disturbed and undisturbed soils

Quantification of net nitrogen mineralization (NNM) in soils is indispensable in order to optimize N fertilization of crops. Two long-term laboratory incubation methods were applied to determine rates of net nitrogen mineralization (r_NNM) of soils from two sites of arable land (sandy loam soil, silty loam soil) at four temperature levels (2°C, 8°C, 14°C, 21°C). Since variability within replicates was small, the modified 12-week incubation method of Stanford and Smith (1972) using disturbed soils allowed to establish reliable Arrhenius functions with reasonable expenditure. The fit of the functions derived from the 5-month incubation of 23 undisturbed soil columns (4420 cm³) was worse. This was caused by greater variability and less differentiation between temperature levels. Results of both experiments could be described best by zero-order kinetics. Mean mineralization rates of disturbed samples were approximately twice as high than those of undisturbed samples. The suitability of both methods for the prediction of NNM at site conditions is discussed. Actual respiration (AR) at incubation temperatures and substrate induced respiration (SIR) were measured at the end of the incubation of undisturbed soil columns. The results presented reveal that soil microbial communities develop in a different manner during long-term incubation at different temperatures. This behavior offends the underlying assumption that soil microbes remain in steady-state during incubation and that rising rates are physiological reactions to temperature enhancement. Therefore soil microbial biomass (SMB) dynamics during the experiment has to be accounted for when rates of NNM and Arrhenius functions are established. R Merck Section editor