Open Water Bodies Research Articles

Some problems of biotechnology for growing of larvae of giant freshwater prawn <i>Macrobrachium rosenbergii </i>(Decapoda: Palaemonidae)

Giant freshwater prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii (De Man, 1879) is cultivated in Crimea since 2000 and technology of complete cycle of its cultivation from planting material to saleable product is successfully applied nowadays. This area is located beyond of the species native habitat and has other environments, so the larvae and juveniles can harvested in controlled conditions only: the open water bodies with the water temperature above 20 о C are recommended. Growing of the larvae in artificial conditions is the most difficult stage of the biotechnological process, with high mortality because of diseases, grazing by planktophages, and poor water quality. These factors were studied in conditions of spawn farm in 2001-2013 and the main reasons of the prawn mortality at the larval stage were revealed. They were the gas-bubble disease, low oxygen content in tanks, and penetration of predatory hydromedusae Sarsia tubulosa to tanks. All these problems were caused by failures in the cultivation technology. Measures for prevention of the prawn larvae disease because of external factors are proposed.

TO THE ISSUE OF WASTE WATERS PURIFICATION IN WEST SIBERIA OIL AND GAS FIELD FACILITIES

The article considers the problems of anthropogenic environmental pollution in the oil and gas fields in West Siberia. Taking into account the experience of wells drilling and statistical reports data there was drawn a map of average many-years pollution of open water bodies in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug. It is shown that the major pollution is related with drilling wastes in the process of increasing the volumes of drilling and oil and gas production. To reduce the pollution it is offered to use modular plants for treatment of waste waters of BT and BTF type. These plants use will permit to discharge the treated waste waters into the water bodies of fishery purpose.

Comparative Analysis of Survival Capacity among Typical and Genovariant Strains of <i>Vibrio cholerae</i>, Biovar El Tor <i>in vivo</i> and <i>in vitro</i>

Objective of the study was to conduct experiments on survival capacity of toxigenic genovariant strains as compared to typical strains of V. cholerae , biovar El Tor in autoclaved river water and in the organism of laboratory animals. Consequently, it was determined that both, genovariant and typical El Tor vibrios, sustained for a significant period of time (more than 5 months) in the river water, though a number of the bacterial cells in the population of the typical ones gradually decreased, while in the genovariant strains - the growth was observed in between the 7 th and 21 st day. CFU of the genovariants was 1.5-2.5 and 1.8-3.0 times higher than the amount of typical strain bacteria on the day 7 and day 21, respectively. Selective advantage of genovariants was also confirmed by competitive test in vitro . Furthermore, genovariants dominated over typical strains of V. cholerae , biovar El Tor in the mixed population in vivo (bioassay animals): CFU of the genovariants 1.25-84.0 times exceeded that of the typical strains when seeding out the contents of intestine and gastrointestinal wall homogenate. Put forward was an assumption that one of the factors for genovariant selective advantage might be enhanced adaptation ability affected by changes of cell metabolic activity. Identified capacity of genovariant toxigenic strains - not only to sustain in open water bodies of our country, but also to propagate in there, creates unfavorable epidemiological situation on cholera.

WATER QUALITY INDEX AND CORRELATION STUDY FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF GROUND WATER QUALITY OF ALLAHABAD CITY

Water, the Nectar of Life’, is fundamental resource which is essential for the survival of different sectors, such as agricultural sector, industrial sector and small business units. In the absence of proper planning, urbanization and industrial/agricultural activities have adversely affected many regions around the world. This has led to indiscriminate actions, including dumping of wastes into the water and washing and bathing in open surface water bodies. In the present study groundwater samples from five sampling locations were collected and the analyses were done for nine physicochemical parameters. Water quality index assessment was carried out by using physicochemical analysis results. Water quality index of the sampling locations of Allahabad city has been divided into five categories. Good water quality index has been put into location 1 while locations 2, 3 and 4 indicate bad quality index. Very bad water quality index has been denoted in location 5. Correlation, the descriptive relationship among the physicochemical parameters, were also studied and it was found that the highly positively correlated values were among the parameters TDS vs EC (r=1.00), TS vs TSS (r=0.91), Temp vs TSS (r=0.87), Phosphate vs TSS (r=0.823) and highly negatively correlation was shown among TA vs Chloride. The result shows that the water quality of Allahabad city is not good and there is an urgent need for the preliminary treatment of water before it is used for the drinking purposes. There is also the need for the proper waste disposal and treatment system for the contaminants which seep in the groundwater and deteriorate groundwater quality. Awareness programmes should also be organized to educate the masses for the conservation and management of groundwater resources and the need to reduce of overuse and wastage of the groundwater resources should be emphasized. Sustainable water development in the city is needed to fulfill the demand of water for future.

Strengths and weaknesses of multi-year Envisat ASAR backscatter measurements to map permanent open water bodies at global scale

Abstract The mapping of water bodies at global scale has been undertaken primarily using multi-spectral optical Earth Observation data. Limitations of optical data associated with non-uniform and temporally variable spectral signatures suggested investigating alternative approaches towards a more consistent and reliable detection of water bodies. Multi-year (2005–2012) observations of SAR backscattered intensities at moderate resolution from the Envisat Advanced Synthetic Aperture Radar (ASAR) instrument were used in this study to generate an indicator of open permanent water bodies (SAR-WBI) for the year 2010 time frame and for all land surfaces excluding Antarctica and the Greenland ice sheet. A first map of potential water bodies with a spatial resolution of 150 m was obtained with a global detection algorithm based on a set of thresholds applied to multi-temporal metrics of the SAR backscatter (temporal variability, TV, and minimum backscatter, MB). Local refinements were then used to reduce systematic commission and omission errors (4.6% of the total area mapped) due to the similarity of TV and MB over open water bodies and other land surface types primarily in cold and arid environments. The refinement rules are here explained by means of a detailed signature analysis of the SAR backscatter in such environments. The accuracy of the SAR-WBI was 80% when compared against 2078 manually interpreted footprints with a size of 150 × 150 m2. Omission errors were primarily observed along coast- and shorelines whereas commission errors were associated with (i) ephemeral water bodies, (ii) seasonally inundated areas, and (iii) an incorrect choice of the local refinement.

Laboratory study of a novel marsh shoreline protection structure: Wave reduction, silt-clay soil collection, and mathematical modeling

Shoreline erosion along open water bodies and waterways is a major cause in the conversion of wetlands and uplands to open water habitat. Conventional shoreline protective structures are expensive to construct in these environments, and may impede environmental exchanges essential for connectivity and functionality. The structure, Wave Suppression and Sediment Collection (WSSC) System that contains multiple Wave Robber™ units, is an alternative for shoreline protection that maintains environmental connectivity. The primary goals of this study are to evaluate the wave reduction and sediment collection performance of the unit as well as optimize its design. This study showed that the unit reduces 84 to 90% of the wave energy while collecting and retaining fine-grained sediment. A mathematical model fits the sediment collection data reasonably well with average correlation coefficients of about 0.87. Modeling results show that the sediment collection efficiency of the unit for fine-grained sediment is about 14%. Total area of flow through the unit was determined to be more important than the area distributed among the number and size of pipes. The sensitivity study shows that wave height and initial concentration are the most important factors effecting sediment collection.

A high-resolution map of direct and indirect connectivity of erosion risk areas to surface waters in Switzerland—A risk assessment tool for planning and policy-making

Off-site effects of soil erosion are becoming increasingly important, particularly the pollution of surface waters. In order to develop environmentally efficient and cost effective mitigation options it is essential to identify areas that bear both a high erosion risk and high connectivity to surface waters. This paper introduces a simple risk assessment tool that allows the delineation of potential critical source areas (CSA) of sediment input into surface waters concerning the agricultural areas of Switzerland. The basis are the erosion risk map with a 2m resolution (ERM2) and the drainage network, which is extended by drained roads, farm tracks, and slope depressions. The probability of hydrological and sedimentological connectivity is assessed by combining soil erosion risk and extended drainage network with flow distance calculation. A GIS-environment with multiple-flow accumulation algorithms is used for routing runoff generation and flow pathways. The result is a high resolution connectivity map of the agricultural area of Switzerland (888,050ha). Fifty-five percent of the computed agricultural area is potentially connected with surface waters, 45% is not connected. Surprisingly, the larger part of 34% (62% of the connected area) is indirectly connected with surface waters through drained roads, and only 21% are directly connected. The reason is the topographic complexity and patchiness of the landscape due to a dense road and drainage network. A total of 24% of the connected area and 13% of the computed agricultural area, respectively, are rated with a high connectivity probability. On these CSA an adapted land use is recommended, supported by vegetated buffer strips preventing sediment load. Even areas that are far away from open water bodies can be indirectly connected and need to be included in planning of mitigation measures. Thus, the connectivity map presented is an important decision-making tool for policy-makers and extension services. The map is published on the web and thus available for application.

Estimation of daily global solar radiation as a function of routine meteorological data in Mediterranean areas

Solar radiation is the main responsible of many processes of the biophysical environment. Temperature changes, snow melt dynamics, carbon sequestration, evaporation from soils, plants, and open water bodies are explained by the amount of radiation received in a surface. Lack of direct observations and insufficient record length limit the ability to use global solar radiation information for resource use management and planning. Based on the general equation of Bristow and Campbell, we propose a modification that allows us to better represent atmospheric transmissivity as a function of routine meteorological variables and improve estimates of global solar radiation in Mediterranean and semi arid areas. The improved Bristow-Campbell model (IBC) is easy to use in any location where measurements of temperature, precipitation, and relative humidity are available, and present a simple solution that can be used as proxy for relative humidity in case that variable is not been measured.

Population structure of Legionella spp. from environmental samples in Gabon, 2013

Aquatic environments are the most important source for Legionella spp. infections such as Legionnaires’ disease and Pontiac fever. The reservoirs of Legionella spp. are mostly unclear in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim of this study, conducted in 2013, was to identify geographical areas of an increased risk for exposure to Legionella spp., and to describe the population structure of Legionella spp. from different water sources in a cross-sectional study in Gabon. Fresh water samples (n=200) were cultured on Legionella selective agar; species were confirmed by MALDI-TOF, a Legionella pneumophila specific real-time PCR and 16S RNA gene sequencing. Serogroups were identified by agglutination test. The population structure was assessed by multilocus sequence typing (MLST).Legionella spp. isolates (n=29) were frequently found in the hospital setting particularly in hot water systems. Open water bodies (i.e. rivers, lakes) were not contaminated with Legionella spp. Isolated L. pneumophila mainly belonged to serogroups 2–14 (n=19) and MLST sequence type ST1, ST75 (and related STs) and ST1911.In conclusion, hospitalized patients might have an increased risk to become infected with Legionella spp. in the studied areas in Gabon, particularly if they have risk factors such as comorbidities. Both broadly extended (ST1, ST75) and local lineages (ST1911) were present in our setting.

Multi-year global land cover mapping at 300 m and characterization for climate modelling: achievements of the Land Cover component of the ESA Climate Change Initiative

Abstract. Essential Climate Variables were listed by the Global Climate Observing System as critical information to further understand the climate system and support climate modelling. The European Space Agency launched its Climate Change Initiative in order to provide an adequate response to the set of requirements for long-term satellite-based products for climate. Within this program, the CCI Land Cover project aims at revisiting all algorithms required for the generation of global land cover products that are stable and consistent over time, while also reflecting the land surface seasonality. To this end, the land cover concept is revisited to deliver a set of three consistent global land cover products corresponding to the 1998-2002, 2003-2007 and 2008-2012 periods, along with climatological 7-day time series representing the average seasonal dynamics of the land surface over the 1998-2012 period. The full Envisat MERIS archive (2003-2012) is used as main Earth Observation dataset to derive the 300-m global land cover maps, complemented with SPOT-Vegetation time series between 1998 and 2012. Finally, a 300-m global map of open permanent water bodies is derived from the 2005-2010 archive of the Envisat Advanced SAR imagery mainly acquired in the 150m Wide Swath Mode.

Urban Growth Monitoring and Analysis of Environmental Impacts on Bankura-I and II Block using Landsat Data

This study put forward a technique to estimate and monitor the urban built-up land features from Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) imagery taking into account of two blocks in Bankura District, West Bengal as examples. In this study three indices have been selected, viz., Normalized Difference Built-up Index (NDBI), Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), and Normalized Differences Vegetation Index (NDVI) to represent three major urban land-use classes, built-up land, open water body and vegetation respectively. Consequently, the seven bands of an original Landsat image were reduced into three thematic-oriented bands derived from above indices. The three new bands were then combined to compose a new image. This considerably reduced data correlation and redundancy between original multispectral bands, and thus significantly avoided the spectral confusion of the above three land-use classes. As a result, the spectral signatures of the three urban land-use classes are more distinguishable in the new composite image than in the original seven-band image as the spectral clusters of the classes are well separated. Through logic calculation on the new image, the urban built-up lands were finally extracted with overall accuracy ranging from 91.5 to 98.5 percent. Therefore, the technique is effective and reliable. In addition, the advantages of over NDVI and over NDWI in the urban study are also discussed in this paper.

Urban poor, economic opportunities and sustainable development through traditional knowledge and practices

The population of a city grows through birth as well as migration. The economy has not been able to provide employment and an income for the vast majority of rural migrants, including the urban poor. Significantly, a large number of urban poor work in the informal sector as they have less skill, less education and less capital. In many developing countries, including India, due to the fast pace of urbanization, many rural areas are gradually becoming part of urban areas, where urban amenities are lacking and open spaces, cultivable lands and water bodies remain, at least in the initial stages of urbanization. Due to growing environmental concerns, there is often a demand to preserve such open spaces to protect the environment. This provides an opportunity for some people to earn a livelihood by following traditional occupations like agriculture and thereby providing fresh vegetables for the urban population. However, these people do not enjoy some of the urban amenities and continue to be connected to the rural world through visits, remittances and social, cultural and economic networks, sometimes recruiting people from their rural areas. Thus, the indigenous, traditional knowledge of cultivation and its practice in urban areas, not only helps a group of people, the poor, to survive in urban situations but it also helps to achieve sustainable development with better environmental conditions.

Effect of water quality on species richness and activity of desert-dwelling bats

Natural bodies of open water in desert landscapes are important resources for survival of desert-dwelling animals and in recent years artificial bodies of water may have become equally important. In the present study we are testing if species richness and activity of bats are related to the water chemistry both in natural and artificial bodies of water, and if these measures can indicate water quality in desert habitats where water is scarce. We combined acoustic monitoring of bat activity and species richness in artificial and natural bodies of water in the Negev desert, Israel and measured 27 variables of water chemistry and quality at each site. Significant differences in water chemistry and quality were found between natural and artificial bodies of water. Species richness and activity of bats did not differ between artificial and natural bodies of water, indicating that desert-dwelling bats may benefit from artificial bodies of water, however activity within species differed between natural and artificial bodies of water. Some species of bats were only recorded at natural bodies of water, suggesting that these species are not tolerant to lower quality of water and emphasizes the importance of natural bodies of water in desert ecosystems. Our results demonstrate that community measures, such as total bat activity and species richness of bats in desert habitats, may not be sufficient to indicate changes in water chemistry and quality. Rather it is recommended and applicable to use the activity of specific species as indicators of water quality in desert habitats.

Estimation of Winter Crops and Open Water Bodies in the Brahmaputra Floodplain of Northern Bangladesh using MODIS Imageries

Winter crops and open water bodies have a crucial role for agriculture as well as socio-economic development in the Brahmaputra floodplain of northern Bangladesh. In this paper, two multi-date MODIS Aqua imageries of 2003 and 2014 were analysed to classify winter crops and open water bodies during winter periods. Mainly two NDVI images of 2003 and 2014 were used to extract spectral profiles of winter crops and open water bodies that were classified by density slicing and iso-cluster methods. Finally, the classified results show increased trends of winter crops while other crops have decreased tendency. Moreover, an annual growth rate of winter crops and open water was 4% and 1.4% respectively, whereas other crops have negative decreased rate (-2.1%).

Water Quality Analysis of Surface Water Sources near Tindivanam Taluk

The physico chemical parameters of surface water in Tindivanam Taluk, Tamil Nadu, India were analyzed by APHA standards (2012). The surface water is one of the sources of drinking and household use water in this area and monthly variation of water quality parameters such as pH, Dissolved oxygen, TDS, Alkalinity, COD as well as trace amount of metal concentration were measured. This had led to indiscriminate actions, including dumping of wastes into the water washing and bathing in open surface water bodies. The analytical results indicated considerable variation among the analyzed samples with respect to their chemical composition. The result shows that the water quality of Tindivanam city is not good and there is an urgent need for the preliminary treatment of water before it is used for the drinking purpose. Sustainable water development in the city is needed to fulfill the demand of water for future.

Winds, waves and shorelines from ancient martian seas

We consider under what environmental conditions water waves (and thus eventually shorelines) should be expected to be produced on hypothetical ancient martian seas and lakes. For winds and atmospheric pressures that are too small, no waves should be expected, and thus no shorelines. If the winds and atmospheric pressure are above some threshold, then waves can be formed, and shorelines are possible. We establish these criteria separating conditions under which waves will or will not form on an ancient martian open body of water. We consider not only atmospheric pressure and wind, but also temperature and salinity, but find these latter effects to be secondary. The normal criterion for the onset of water waves under terrestrial conditions is extended to recognize the greater atmospheric viscous boundary layer depth for low atmospheric pressures. We used terrestrial wave models to predict the wave environment expected for reasonable ranges of atmospheric pressure and wind for end-member cases of ocean salinity. These models were modified only to reflect the different fluids considered at Mars, the different martian surface gravity, and the varying atmospheric pressure, wind and fetch. The models were favorably validated against one another, and also against experiments conducted in a wave tank in a pressure controlled wind tunnel (NASA Ames MARSWIT). We conclude that if wave-cut shorelines can be confirmed on Mars, this can constrain the range of possible atmospheric pressures and wind speeds that could have existed when the open water was present on Mars.

Modeling of a Groundwater Mound in a Two-Dimensional Heterogeneous Unconfined Aquifer in Response to Precipitation Recharge

AbstractThe paper deals with the transient semi-analytical solution of linearized Boussinesq equations characterizing the development of groundwater mound in an unconfined two-dimensional heterogeneous aquifer under vertical recharge conditions. The finite aquifer consists of two rectangular basins surrounded by open water bodies and shares a common impermeable or permeable boundary at the mid plane. The governing equations are solved by applying the Laplace transform and finite Fourier sine transform techniques. Accordingly, analytical expressions for water heads for two rectangular basins are obtained for various scenarios. The applicability of the solutions has been illustrated with the help of a case study and numerical examples, considering various cases. The region wise development of the groundwater mound indicates that the effect of heterogeneity becomes significant for small time duration whereas for long time it becomes insignificant. This result can have application in land reclamation problems...

A new empirical procedure for estimating intra-annual heat storage changes in lakes and reservoirs: Review and analysis of 22 lakes

Evaporation is an important component of the water and energy balance of lakes and reservoirs. The energy balance combination method for estimating evaporation requires the heat storage changes (Qt) to be known. The lack of data on water temperature profiles and water depth fluctuations hinders routine computations of Qt. Following successful estimation of the soil heat flux density of land surfaces (G) and heat storage change of urban areas and wetlands from net all wave radiation (Rn), we investigated in this paper whether a similar generic Qt(Rn) empirical relationship can be developed for lakes and reservoirs. A comprehensive literature survey was conducted and experimental datasets for 22 lakes with different characteristics were collected. A linear Qt(Rn) model with a hysteresis function to describe seasonal warming and cooling effects was developed (Qt=a∗Rn+b+c∗dRn/dt) that fits the 22 independently gathered datasets satisfactory (R2 of 0.83 and RMSE of 22Wm−2) for bi-weekly and monthly time scales. Predictive models for the coefficients a, b and c were also developed, using Rn and water surface temperature measurements that can be retrieved from routine earth observation measurements. The average R2 between measured and modeled Qt was 0.84 and the RMSE was 37Wm−2 if predictive models were used for the assessment of lake specific Qt(Rn) functions. Two independent satellite-derived products were explored: the ARC-Lake (ATSR Reprocessing for Climate) product for water surface temperature using the ATSR (Along Track Scanning Radiometer) series data, and the CM SAF (Satellite Application Facility on Climate Monitoring) product for solar radiation Rs based on the AVHRR (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer) data. The proposed procedure using purely satellite-derived data as inputs resulted in comparably good Qt estimates as those using in-situ measurements. The new Qt hysteresis model can thus be applied together with satellite measurements for supporting the computation of evaporation from open water bodies based on energy balance equations.

Oxygen isotope analysis of multiple, single ostracod valves as a proxy for combined variability in seasonal temperature and lake water oxygen isotopes

Paleoclimate studies in lakes typically use oxygen isotopic ratios in samples that consist of multiple ostracod specimens, to obtain an average δ18O value that reflects the mean temperature and δ18O of lake water over the life spans of the combined individuals measured. This approach overlooks potential information on seasonal climate variability that is recorded in the single valves of short-lived ostracods. Here we estimate seasonal variability in ostracod δ18O by measuring 10–30 individual carapaces of Cyprideis torosa in selected stratigraphic levels of a sediment core from paleolake Riwasa in Haryana, India. The mean δ18O values of ostracod populations show a general decrease from 9.6 to 8.3 kyr BP, which was interpreted previously as resulting from strengthening of the Indian summer monsoon during the early Holocene. The δ18O measurements of single ostracods within samples show a large range (up to ~15 ‰) and standard deviation (up to ±3.3), suggesting high seasonal variability in the hydrology of this playa lake. The great variability is ascribed to changes in both seasonal temperature (16 °C) and δ18O of lake water in a drying water body. The latter is attributable to the Rayleigh distillation process, described using a Craig–Gordon model for isotopic fractionation during evaporation from an open water body. Our results suggest that the range of δ18O values measured in single ostracod carapaces is useful to evaluate seasonal changes in lake temperature and hydrology. Even with great intra-sample δ18O variability, however, the mean δ18O of multiple (more than 10) ostracods can be used to infer long-term climate trends.

Measurement and numerical modeling studies of the highest bottom shear stress in the Randle Reef area

The purpose of this study was to investigate the highest bottom shear stress, induced by wind in an area of Hamilton Harbour, Ontario, Canada known as Randle Reef. The study was conducted in support of a component of a contaminated sediment remediation plan utilizing a thin layer of sand to manage contaminated sediments. Toward this end, four acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) were deployed at two locations in the study region to measure velocity profiles for the purpose of indirectly measuring bottom shear stress (BSS) and model verification. There is no easy way to directly measure BSS in the field. As a result, the use of the logarithmic-profile method from the ADCP measured high resolution velocity profiles in the bottom layer was explored. This approach, according to our best knowledge, has not been published for a wind driven flow in a small open water body. To use the indirectly measured BSS to estimate the highest BSS in the study area, a three-dimensional hydrodynamic model was adopted to provide the spatial and temporal information of the bottom flow. The results showed that the modeled and measured flow velocity components agreed reasonably well at most of the water depths with the correlation coefficients being greater than 0.6. However, agreements between the modeled and measured bottom flow speeds were worse than expected due to the error contributions from both the modeled velocity components. Therefore, the modeled flow speed required rescaling based on ADCP velocity measurements before it could be deemed reliable. This is especially important in estimation of the BSS with a quadratic formula because the calculated BSS is proportional to the square of the speed.