Rivers Project Research Articles

Correlations Between Spatiotemporal Variations in Phytoplankton Community Structure and Physicochemical Parameters in the Seungchon and Juksan Weirs

The Yeongsan River is one of the four major rivers in South Korea. Since the construction of two weirs as part of the Four Major Rivers Project to secure water resources in 2011, issues with algal blooms have frequently arisen, prompting the Ministry of Environment of Korea to conduct continuous monitoring of water quality and algal outbreaks. This study, conducted between 2019 and 2023, examined the relationship between the phytoplankton community structure and physicochemical factors at the Seungchon and Juksan weirs. Phytoplankton were categorized into four groups (Bacillariophyceae, Chlorophyceae, Cyanophyceae, and other phytoplankton), and 20 dominant genera were selected for analysis. As microalgal species vary depending on environmental conditions, understanding the specific relationships among the microalgae observed in the study area can help explain their occurrence mechanisms and contribute to the development of effective management strategies. Therefore, we used principal component analysis (PCA) to analyze the seasonal variation patterns of the four microalgal groups and visualize key data features through dimensionality reduction. Additionally, PCA was employed to identify and visualize environmental factors related to seasonal variations in phytoplankton communities. PCA helped elucidate how different environmental factors influence phytoplankton fluctuations across seasons. We used canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) to investigate the relationships among the 20 dominant genera in each group and environmental factors. Additionally, CCA was used to analyze the relationship between the distribution of the top five dominant phytoplankton taxa in each group and various environmental factors. CCA allowed for a detailed examination of how these dominant taxa interact with environmental conditions. PCA revealed significant correlations between other phytoplankton and Chl-a in spring and Cyanophyceae and water temperature in summer. Bacillariophyceae was positively correlated with nitrogen-based nutrients but negatively with phosphate phosphorus (PO4-P). CCA revealed significant correlations between dominant genera and environmental factors. Stephanodiscus sp. was associated with nitrogen-based nutrients, whereas Microcystis sp. and Dolichospermum sp. were associated with water temperature and PO4-P. Stephanodiscus sp. affected water treatment through filtration and sedimentation issues, whereas Microcystis sp. and Dolichospermum sp. produced the toxin microcystin. These findings offer valuable insights for water quality management.

Longitudinal Study of Motivation, Attitude, and Knowledge of Citizen Scientists Monitoring Plastic Pollution On Dutch Riverbank

Across the world, the number of citizen science projects focusing on plastic pollution is increasing. These projects often last for multiple years, which makes retaining volunteers challenging. However, our knowledge is limited regarding the effect of long-term involvement on citizen scientists’ motivation, attitude, and knowledge, especially for plastic pollution projects. Therefore, this study measured citizen scientists’ motivation, attitude, and knowledge in the Dutch Clean Rivers project before and during monitoring plastic pollution on riverbanks between 2017 and 2021. In total, 403 Clean Rivers participants completed a pre-survey, and a portion of them participated in one or multiple post-surveys throughout the years of monitoring. They were especially driven by Project Action motivations and Environmental motivations like tackling the source of pollution and doing something about the plastic soup, rather than being motivated by an Interest in Scientific Research like the desire to learn about scientific research. Project Action motivations increased significantly, especially within the first year of participation. Participants’ attitudes towards nature and science were initially high and did not increase significantly. Furthermore, while participants’ knowledge of plastic pollution was already high at the start, their knowledge of scientific research was not, and both increased significantly, especially in the first year of participation. The findings of this longitudinal study can contribute to improving the recruitment and retention of volunteers in current and future citizen science projects.

Groundwater Level Forecasting Using Machine Learning: A Case Study of the Baekje Weir in Four Major Rivers Project, South Korea

AbstractUnderstanding the impact of human‐made structures on groundwater levels is essential, with structures like dams or weirs presenting unique challenges and opportunities for study. The Baekje weir in South Korea presents an interesting case as the weir has undergone full gate opening, which is generally not the case for weirs and reservoirs, providing valuable opportunity for simulating weir removal conditions. The main objectives are investigation of groundwater level fluctuations under various weir operations, distances from the weir, and seasonal variations. The study utilizes observed data that simulates conditions with and without the weir, including scenarios of full gate opening. Multiple machine learning algorithms—Random Forest (RF), Artificial Neural Network, Support Vector Regression (SVR), Gradient Boosting, and Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost)—are used to develop accurate groundwater level prediction models. The models' performance is assessed using coefficient of determination, Root mean square error (RMSE), Mean Absolute Error (MAE) indices, and visualized through Taylor diagrams. Results indicate that XGBoost outperforms other models in all three groups during both training and testing phases. Specifically, XGBoost surpasses RF by 2.09% (R2), 5.66% (RMSE), and 10.1% (MAE) in training, and outperforms SVR by 11.2% (R2), 42.0% (RMSE), and 129.2% (MAE) in testing. Additionally, the study generates groundwater level maps, providing a practical tool for managing groundwater systems and informing decision‐making in weir operations. This study not only sheds light on the dynamic relationship between weir operations and groundwater levels but also provides actionable insights for effective water management in similar hydrological settings.

Causal impact analysis of weir opening on cyanobacterial blooms and water quality in the Yeongsan River, Korea: A bayesian structural time-series analysis and median difference test

The construction of weirs in Korea's Four Major Rivers Project has led to an increase in cyanobacterial blooms, posing environmental challenges. To address this, the government began opening weirs in 2017. However, interpreting experimental results has proven to be complex due to the multifaceted nature of blooms. This study aimed to assess the impact of opening the Juksan Weir on cyanobacterial blooms and water quality in the Yeongsan River. Using a median difference test (MDT) and causal impact analysis (CIA) with Bayesian structural time-series (BSTS) models, changes in cyanobacterial cell density (Cyano) and chlorophyll a concentration (Chl-a) before (January 2013 to June 2017) and after (July 2017 to December 2021) the weir-opening event were analyzed. The MDT revealed no significant change in Cyano post-weir opening (p = 0.267), but Chl-a significantly increased by 48.1 % (p < 0.01). As a result of CIA, Cyano decreased, albeit statistically insignificantly (p = 0.454), while Chl-a increased by 59.0 % (p < 0.01). These findings contradict the expectation that Cyano decrease due to the increased flow velocity resulting from weir opening. The absence of changes in Cyano and the increase in Chl-a can be attributed to several factors, including the constrained and inadequate duration of full weir opening combined with conducive conditions for the proliferation of other algae such as diatoms and green algae. These findings suggest that the effectiveness of weir opening in controlling Cyano may have been compromised by factors influencing the overall aquatic ecosystem dynamics. Further analysis revealed that factors such as elevated water temperatures (≥ 30 °C) and reduced flow rates (< 37 m3/s) contributed to the flourishing of cyanobacteria, whose concentrations exceeded 10,000 cells/mL. In analyzing causal relationships in environmental management, especially when there are complex causal interactions, the application of MDT and CIA provides valuable insights.

The Arctic Rivers Project: Using an Equitable Co‐Production Framework for Integrating Meaningful Community Engagement and Science to Understand Climate Impacts

AbstractAs the Arctic and its rivers continue to warm, a better understanding of the possible future impacts on people would benefit from close partnership with Indigenous communities and scientists from diverse fields of study. We present efforts by the Arctic Rivers Project to conduct community‐engaged research to increase collective understanding of the historical and potential future impacts of climate change on rivers, fish, and Indigenous communities. Working in central to northern Alaska and the Yukon Territory in Canada, the project seeks to engage with Indigenous communities in ethical and equitable ways to produces science that is useful, useable, and used that may serve as an example for future research efforts. Toward this goal, we formed an Indigenous Advisory Council and together developed project‐specific knowledge co‐production protocols. This paper provides a novel model of design and implementation to co‐produce knowledge with communities across a large study domain.

A Study on the Occurrence Characteristics of Harmful Blue-Green Algae in Stagnant Rivers Using Machine Learning

Several changes have occurred in the river environment of Nakdong river due to the construction of multifunctional weirs as part of the Four Major Rivers Project. This river currently exhibits characteristics that are similar to those of a stagnant water area in which the river depth increases and the flow velocity decreases. Consequently, blue-green algae are frequently observed. Toxic substances secreted by blue-green algae are harmful to aquatic ecosystems and the human body; therefore, ensuring the stability of the water quality of Nakdong river is of utmost importance. Various factors are associated with the occurrence of blue-green algae. Therefore, the causal relationship between these causative factors must be identified. In this study, we investigated factors influencing algal growth, such as water quality, hydraulics, and weather, and algal occurrence patterns by site were analyzed. Recent studies have used data mining and machine-learning techniques in algal management to quantitatively identify the characteristics of blue-green algae. In machine learning, the prediction results differ depending on the selection of parameters, which are an important aspect in the management of blue-green algae with complex causes. In this study, we quantitatively analyzed the conditions for the occurrence of cyanobacteria according to the influencing factors using decision trees and random forests, which are machine-learning techniques, along with an analysis of the major complex factors influencing the occurrence of blue-green algae in the Nakdong river weirs. Considering the water quality and hydraulic factors, we analyzed the characteristics of algal generation in each weir at different hydraulic volume times. In addition, we investigated the possibility of improving the accuracy of cyanobacterial prediction according to the learning factors. Through these analyses, we attempted to study the characteristics of blue-green algae in stagnant rivers.

Citizen science against the plastic soup: background, motivation and expectations of volunteers studying plastic pollution on Dutch riverbanks

In the field of investigating and addressing plastic pollution, the public is increasingly involved in research as citizen scientists. Long-term monitoring for this topic is needed, and recruiting and retaining volunteers is challenging. Therefore, it is important to learn more about the demographic background, motivations and expectations of involved citizen scientists, and if these change during participation. Our research studied these aspects of the citizen scientists in the Dutch Clean Rivers project, who monitor plastic pollution on riverbanks. Participants (n = 122) completed pre- and post-survey after one year of the project. While there was no gender bias, the participants were mostly middle-aged and highly educated, and almost half had previous experience with scientific research. Their motivation to participate was mostly activistic, as they wanted to tackle the source of plastic pollution and contribute to solutions. More personal motivations, such as wanting to learn more and because it is fun to do scientific research, decreased significantly after one year of participation. Their expectations were in line with the main motivations. Understanding the background, motivations and expectations of volunteers helps this project, and the field of citizen science in plastic pollution research.

The Wild Rivers Program: Development of a “Wild Rivers” Conservation Label to be used by River Management

A wild river is a living river, which is at baseline, well-preserved, and which runs freely and is home to a rich biodiversity in its high quality waters and on its banks. In Europe there are very few rivers which could be considered “wild”, which function at a high ecological level, since wild rivers, in the true sense of the term, no longer exist. Based on the fact that these rivers remain threatened, and that the existing tools (technical, regulatory, and financial) are insufficient and not adapted to ensure their preservation over the long term, the Wild Rivers project was founded in 2007, through a meeting of environmental defenders, scientists, fishermen, managers of land and river natural resources, and elected officials, all of whom were anxious to save the last of the French rivers which were still preserved, with a human impact that would be compatible with the conservation of the ecosystem. In 2014 the “Wild Rivers Site” label was created in France, as a conservation tool for rivers, both voluntary and non-regulatory, which allows the support necessary to enable the territorial players to preserve their rivers in harmony with the activity in the surrounding valleys. It also identifies and highlights these unique watercourses. The Valserine in the Ain region was the first river to obtain the Wild Rivers Site label. Today 28 rivers in France are labelled “Wild Rivers Sites” and the 22 management structures of these rivers are members of the Wild Rivers Site Network. To obtain the label, a river must fulfill two sets of criteria 1. The criteria grid: The watercourse must obtain a mark over 70/100. The grid is composed of 47 criteria evaluating the quality of the area, of which 12 are eliminatory, 8 are unrated, and 9 are under a bonus/penalty scheme 2. The program of actions taken by local players: The local managers must put in place a system of governance built around actions to be taken over a period of years, shared among them, and ambitious, going beyond the regulatory objectives of the European Directive Framework. It allows for the restoration of penalty points and the establishment of innovative conservation activities. The Wild Rivers Sites are also an open air laboratory for the development and use of innovative methods in order to provide new information on aquatic environments, and to improve their management and conservation. Numerous steps have already been taken within the network, such as the Ecosystem Services Study (Costa and Hernandez 2019); on the study of the genetic makeup of the brown trout population. Recently, the use of genetic study using environmental DNA to complete biodiversity inventories has also been deployed to study benthic diatoms (DNA of Diatoms Project 2020-2022). This project seeks to use DNA metabarcoding to respond to a number of objectives: i) inventory of the species of diatoms and their community structure in these watercourses which are generally seldom studied; ii) complete ecological status studies; iii) develop new genetic metrics and taxonomies adapted to the conservation of wild river watercourses. It is in this spirit that the Wild Rivers program was developed, and has received numerous positive responses on the behalf of watercourse management in France. Thanks to this impetus, work has been conducted to extend this conservation label to water sources in other countries (Switzerland, Ireland, Spain), with the future plan of building a European network dedicated to the conservation of Wild Rivers.

Case study: On hydrological function improvement for an endemic plant habitat in Gangcheon wetland, Korea

Wetlands are one of the most important ecosystems for the biodiversity of plants and animals. Especially, Gangcheon wetland in NamHan river, Korea is a very valuable one because Aster altaicus var. uchiyamae, which is one of endemic plants is inhabited. However, Gangcheon wetland was impaired by a river improvement project called ‘Four Major Rivers Project’. After the project, Gangcheon wetland restoration work was performed, for the rehabilitation of wetland functions but the habitat of Aster altaicus var. uchiyamae could not be restored. Actually, Aster altaicus var. uchiyamae can grow in a habitat made by mixing of gravel and sand from flood inundation of the river but there was no inundation after the project because of the rise of levee height. Therefore, this study evaluated wetland functions using Hydrogeomorphic(HGM) approach and analyzed flood inundation using HEC-GeoRAS model after the project for diagnosis of the functions and the habitat. Then we proposed a plan to improve the functions of Gangcheon wetland as a habitat for Aster altaicus var. uchiyamae. The reference wetland is Gangcheon wetland before the project and the wetland functions after the project were compared with the reference one. As a result of the function assessment, hydrological, biogeochemical, and plant habitat functions were deteriorated. The study wetland has three zones of A, B, and C for Aster altaicus var. uchiyamae habitats and particularly, hydrologic functions for zone C which is poor as the habitat should be improved. In particular, the habitat of Aster altaicus var. uchiyamae was adversely affected by the decrease in inundation depth and water level of the river. These hydrologic functions should be improved and the levee height be lowered for obtaining more proper habitat of Aster altaicus var. uchiyamae. This suggestion might be helpful for establishment of the habitat of Aster altaicus var. uchiyamae. Also, it could be expected that the overall function of Gangcheon wetland will be improved because biogeochemical and plant habitat functions are rehabilitated by the improved hydrological function.

DO ANTROPOCENTRISMO AO ECOCENTRISMO: O PROJETO RIOS NA MUDANÇA DE ATITUDES AMBIENTAIS

In a society where anthropocentrism prevails in relation to ecocentrism, it is important to focus on didactic strategies that lead to the change of attitudes toward an ecocentric vision of the world. The Rivers Project is an Iberian project of public participation in action in our country for 12 years and uses an effective methodology for changing environmental attitudes in children in the first years of schooling. The present study aimed to assess the influence of the Rivers Project on the change of anthropocentric vision for an ecocentric vision in children of the primary school. For this, a questionnaire with open and closed questions was applied to two groups of the 4th year of primary school in the city of Bragança, namely a focus group (121 students) and a control group (33 students). The questionnaire was applied to the focus group before and after an educational intervention (pre and post-test), namely two field trips within the Rivers Project, and the control group in the same time periods, with students who did not make this field trips to the river. The question concerning the purpose of this communication was the drawing up of a drawing that mirrored its representation of a river and its banks. The resulting drawings were analyzed and categorized and were subsequently checked for statistically significant changes through the Wilcoxon test between pre and post-test in both groups. The results show that changes occurred in the focal group. The majority of the children went from an anthropocentric vision to an ecocentric vision after leaving the Rivers Project, thus evidencing the effectiveness of this Project in changing environmental attitudes.

A new framework for integrated, holistic, and transparent evaluation of inter-basin water transfer schemes

Water shortages are forecast to affect 50% of the world's population by 2030, impacting developing nations most acutely. To increase water security there has been a significant increase in Inter-basin Water Transfer (IBWT) schemes, engineering mega-projects that redistribute water from one basin to another. However, the implementation of these schemes is often contested, and evaluation of their complex impacts inadequate, or hidden from full public scrutiny. There is an urgent need to develop more integrated, holistic, and transparent ways of evaluating the multiple interlinking impacts of IBWT schemes of this scale. In this paper, we address this gap by outlining an experimental methodology to evaluate IBWT schemes using a multidisciplinary and transparent methodology which utilises publicly available data. We illustrate the method using a case study from the Inter-Linking Rivers Project in Northern India, comparing the results of the experimental approach against the official analysis of the proposed scheme produced by the State Government of Jharkhand. The results demonstrate that the proposed experimental method allows more detailed evaluation of spatial and temporal variability in water availability and demand, as well as holistic evaluation of the functioning of the proposed scheme under different future scenarios. Based on these results we propose a flexible framework for future evaluation of proposed water transfer schemes which embeds the principles of integrated assessment, transparency, and sound science which can be adapted to other IBWT projects across the world.

Rivers beyond Romanticism and Mechanism - Biopolitics of Four Rivers Project and Bluegreen Algae -

Rivers beyond Romanticism and Mechanism - Biopolitics of Four Rivers Project and Bluegreen Algae -

Harmful algal blooms and liver diseases: focusing on the areas near the four major rivers in South Korea

Freshwater harmful algal blooms (HABs) have become a global concern because blooms contain cyanotoxins that can cause liver damage and other negative health impacts. In South Korea, HABs have been frequently observed along the major rivers (Han, Geum, Nakdong, and Youngsan) in recent years. However, there are hardly any studies that report a linkage between HABs and human health, especially along the four major rivers where dams, weirs, and reservoirs were constructed, and sediments were dredged under the Four Major Rivers Project (FMRP) that ended in 2012. The goals of this study were to summarize spatial distribution patterns of HABs and investigate a potential association between HABs and liver diseases. Chlorophyll-a concentration was used to estimate bloom intensity since it was the only available bloom-related parameter that covers the entire rivers. Liver disease data (ICD-10 codes: K71–K77) were sorted by administrative districts. Generalized linear mixed model was used to analyze the bloom, liver diseases, and population data (2005–2016). The results show that chlorophyll-a levels significantly increased since 2013, except Han River region. There was a significant association between HAB intensity and incidence rate of liver diseases, except Han River area, and the extent of association significantly increased after the completion of the FMRP. For future studies, more in-depth epidemiological investigations are warranted in those areas to accurately determine more specific associations between HABs and liver diseases as well as other bloom-related diseases and symptoms. In addition, identification of major exposure pathways to cyanotoxins is needed to better protect public health in those bloom-affected areas.

Analysis of Environmentally Friendly Dredging Season for a Waterway Shared by South Korea and North Korea Considering Ecosystem Protection

Recently, a survey was conducted of the waterway shared by South Korea and North Korea. In the Han River Estuary, the need for dredging emerged due to serious riverbed aggradation. Dredging is the most efficient way to remove deposited sediment. However, it is expensive and has negative impacts on society and the environment. The negative impacts of dredging occur both in water and on land, causing huge disturbances to ecosystems. In this study, an environmentally friendly dredging season was proposed using the non-structured method of environmental windows to minimize the negative impacts of dredging. To establish environmental windows, the growth stages of six species in the Han River Estuary were used. Results showed that dredging in November could minimize its negative impacts and that dredging between October and December would be appropriate when it had to persist for more than two months. The negative perception of dredging has been increasing from the Four Rivers Project. This study will be applied to this situation, to mitigate the negative impacts of dredging, provide basic data pertaining to river construction considering the ecosystem, and support decision-making. Keywords: Shared Waterway, Dredging, Ecosystem Protection, Han River Estuary

Analysis of Environmental Factors Associated with Cyanobacterial Dominance after River Weir Installation

Following the installation of 16 weirs in South Korea’s major rivers through the Four Rivers Project (2010–2012), the water residence time increased significantly. Accordingly, cyanobacterial blooms have occurred frequently, raising concerns regarding water use and the aquatic ecosystem health. This study analyzed the environmental factors associated with cyanobacterial dominance at four weirs on the Nakdong River through field measurements, and parametric and non-parametric data mining methods. The environmental factors related to cyanobacterial dominance were the seven-day cumulative rainfall (APRCP7), seven-day averaged flow (Q7day), water temperature (Temp), stratification strength (ΔT), electrical conductivity (EC), dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, and NO3–N, NH3–N, total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorous (TP), PO4–P, chlorophyll–a, Fe, total organic carbon (TOC), and SiO2 content, along with biological and chemical oxygen demands. The results indicate that site-specific environmental factors contributed to the cyanobacterial dominance for each weir. In general, the physical characteristics of EC, APRCP7, Q7day, Temp, and ΔT were the most important factors influencing cyanobacterial dominance. The EC was strongly associated with cyanobacterial dominance at the weirs because high EC indicated persistent low flow conditions. A minor correlation was obtained between nutrients and cyanobacterial dominance in all but one of the weirs. The results provide valuable information regarding the effective countermeasures against cyanobacterial overgrowth in rivers.

Pity the Nation

Pity the Nation by Wang Ping after Ferlinghetti Pity the nation whose freedom melts faster than Arctic ice Whose justice defends sex predators & puts children in jail. Pity the nation that sells academia into corporate fiefdoms Whose presidents scream “Not enough” with their million-dollar package Who hike up tuitions to shackle students with debts Who turn professors into adjuncts and intellectual slaves. Pity the nation branding youths with Divide & Conquer logos Who learn how to get rewards by ordering WOC professors to “take down the syllabi!” Calling them “racists & appropriators” as public shaming. Pity the nation whose education becomes “just business” Its giant machine squeezing hefty tuitions from Chinese and other Asians Who sell blood and kidneys to send their children to America for a degree. Oh pity the nation whose president churns lies like popcorn Whose students get presidential awards for libeling Grandpas from the Rez For yelling “you should feel lucky I find your words good enough to plagiarize” To her professors who try to teach academic integrity. Pity the nation as her Lady weeps for children filling up the cages along the border Her torch stolen to slow-burn the soles, palms, and tongues of defiant students. Pity the nation that bans professors from campus and rewards cheaters and mediocrity That condemns poetry for “manipulating emotions” That bullies truth into silence That gags science, deletes data, exiles facts into deserts That wires classrooms with eyes and ears to break spirits. Oh pity the nation that builds its high tower upon the bones of the Natives, slaves, coolies, Asian American scholars, LGTBQ artists, immigrant poets . . . Oh pity! Oh let’s pity the nation with actions! Let’s stand together for truth. Freedom is never free. Freedom takes courage, our flesh and spirit. But it’s worth it. It’s our reason to live—with tears of joy, joy of pride In this land of the free and brave. Wang Ping has published thirteen books of poetry and prose. She’s the recipient of NEA, Bush, Lannan, and McKnight fellowships, director of the Kinship of Rivers project, and professor of English at Macalester College. Her multimedia exhibitions include Behind the Gate: After the Flood of the Three Gorges and We Are Water: Kinship of Rivers. WORLDLIT.ORG 73 PHOTO: HULLEAH TSINHNAHJINNIE ...

Determining factors for the occurrence and richness of submerged macrophytes in major Korean rivers

The natural flow regime in Korean rivers is approaching that of a lentic environment, and submerged macrophytes have become widely distributed throughout the river systems. To manage river ecosystems, it is important to identify the key environmental factors that affect species occurrence and richness of submerged macrophytes. Here, we examined the environmental factors that affect species occurrence and richness of submerged macrophytes after the major rivers project in Korea. We collected data for species presence/absence and species richness from 197 surveyed sites (from 2014 to 2015) along the five major rivers in Korea. Water environmental variables were obtained from the Ministry of Environment’s national water quality measurement network (from January 2012 to October 2015). We used a boosted regression model and generalized additive model to identify the crucial water environmental factors related to occurrence and diversity of submerged macrophytes. The boosted regression model indicated that submerged macrophytes were abundant in waters with low concentrations of suspended solids and chlorophyll a. The generalized additive model showed that suspended solids, chlorophyll a, and water current velocity had the greatest effects on species richness, which declined with increasing water turbidity and flow velocity. Our results confirm observations in other impacted river systems and ask for a better understanding of the underlying environmental factors affecting macrophytes abundance and species richness.

Prayer Flags and Kinship Rivers: A Conversation with Wang Ping

74 WLT MAY–AUGUST 2016 photo : sara rubenstein cover feature four asian voices WORLDLITERATURETODAY.ORG 75 W ang Ping emigrated to the US from China in 1986 and is currently a professor of English at Macalester College. She is a writer, poet, translator, photographer, and a lover of rivers . Her Kinship of Rivers project was created for people living near the Mississippi River and the Yangzi River to make river flags, signifying a connection between the two river communities. The project soon grew, with communities from all over the world contributing river flags. Some of Wang Ping’s notable works include American Visa: Short Stories, Foreign Devil: A Novel, and The Magic Whip: Poems. Her most recent verse collection, Ten Thousand Waves, features diverse voices that discuss issues facing modern China. While her native language is Chinese, Wang Ping writes in English, making her works easily accessible to US readers. We sat down together when she visited the University of Oklahoma in October 2015 to serve on the 2016 Neustadt Prize jury. Her nominee was Ghassan Zaqtan. Amy Lantrip: Welcome to Norman, and thank you for agreeing to this interview. Wang Ping: Thanks for having me; I am happy to be here. AL: The collection Ten Thousand Waves is written in English, and many of your other works are as well. Why do you choose to write in English? WP: I do write poetry in Chinese, but now I live in America. I have been living here since 1986. So English is actually becoming almost my first language. I think and dream in English, and my audience speaks English. AL: So would you say that your audience is mostly American? WP: Americans or Chinese who can read English. And some of the stuff really can’t be translated into Chinese. AL: So you think it is easier . . . more freeflowing ? WP: Yes, and some of the content is not suitable, especially when it concerns Tibet. I do talk a lot about Chinese migrant workers in Ten Thousand Waves, which concerns me a lot. I was a peasant for three years in China, and when I went back to China, I traveled along the Yangzi River. I visited villagers and factory workers who used to be farmers. So I recorded their stories and tried to bring out their voices. AL: Yes, and some of those voices are in the poem “The Price of a Finger,” where you quote factory workers and owners about workplace safety. You also include a poster that shows how much pay a worker will lose depending on what body part they lose. What were you trying to convey with that poem? WP: I want to tell what is going on in China. The interesting thing is, I met a Chinese poet from NYU who read the book and grew up in that city, Yongkang [the city in which “The Price of a Finger” takes place]. She grew up with all those workers, and her mother owned a few workshops like that. AL: So she was surprised at the conditions, which she did not know about? WP: She knew about it, but she kind of suppressed it. And [after reading the poem] everything just came back to her. She was very touched, and even wrote a book review. AL: “The Price of a Finger” is actually one of my favorites. I first saw it in another publication , an anthology of Chinese poetry. WP: Really? I did not know that. People use my work without letting me know, which is fine. I am so against the idea of private property in literary works. I think literature should belong to the public. Of course I am all for making a living. But at the same time, when money is involved, when you have to protect your work as a kind of private property, it is kind of against the very nature of poetry and literature. Great literature belongs to everyone, you know? It belongs to the heart and the soul. You are talking to the soul of the public. AL: In Ten Thousand Waves, the title poem is based on a true story about Chinese immigrants who drowned in the UK...

4대강 사업 이전 낙동강 하구 철새 도래지의 주요 조류 현황

낙동강 하구의 생태적 역할과 서식하는 조류종을 바탕으로 한 체계적이고 지속가능한 하구 관리를 위해서는 이곳을 이용하는 조류현황에 대한 이해가 필요하다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 부산발전연구원 조류모니터링 자료(2003-2011)를 활용하여 4대강 사업 이전의 낙동강 하구의 조류 현황을 파악하고자 하였다. 낙동강 하구에서 관찰된 조류 중 겨울새의 비중이 종수에서는 38.36%, 개체수에서는 63.14%로 가장 많은 비율을 차지하여, 낙동강하구가 겨울철새의 도래지임을 보여주었다. 조사권역별로는 명지(208,651개체), 서낙동강(202,444개체), 을숙도(153,232개체), 백합 도요등(150,595개체) 순으로 누적개체수가 많았으며, 을숙도(171종), 서낙동강(141종), 일웅도(124종), 명지(123종), 삼락둔치(121종) 순으로 종수가 많은 것으로 나타났다. 낙동강하구에서 기록된 232종 중 청둥오리가 197,870개체, 전체의 17.71%로 가장 많이 관찰되었으며, 다음으로 흰뺨검둥오리(8.85%), 괭이갈매기(6.48%), 큰기러기(6.09%), 홍머리오리(5.16%), 민물도요(4.22%) 순으로 우점하고 있는 것으로 조사되었다. 혹부리오리류를 제외한 대부분의 분류군들이 연간 변동은 보였지만 조사 기간 중 점차 증가하는 추세를 보였다. 가마우지류, 고니류, 갈매기류 등은 다른 분류군의 조류 보다 조사 기간 동안의 연간 변동 폭이 큰 것으로 나타났는데, 특히 고니류의 경우 5차년도(2007-2008)와 7차년도(2009-2010)에 개체수가 전년도에 비해 크게 감소하였으며, 또한 8차년도(2010-2011)에는 도요 물떼새류, 갈매기류, 할미새류, 기타 새류에서 개체수의 감소가 관찰되어 이들 분류군의 서식에 영향을 줄 수 있는 환경변화가 있었던 것으로 보인다. 전체적으로는 서식지의 특성이 우점종의 분포와 연관성이 있는 것으로 조사되었다. Understanding bird status is essential for the systematic and sustainable management of the Nakdong River Estuary, taking into consideration the relationship between ecosystems and the bird species. In this study, bird status in the Nakdong River Estuary Bird Sanctuary prior to the Four Major Rivers Project was analyzed using the bird monitoring data (2003-2011) from surveys conducted by the Busan Development Institute. The high percentage of winter visitors in terms of both species diversity (38.36%) and individual bird numbers (63.14%) suggest that the Nakdong River Estuary is an important wintering site for migratory birds. Cumulative numbers of individual birds were higher in Myungji (208,601), West Nakdong River (202,444), Eulsukdo (153,232), and Baekhap Doyodeung (150,595). The total numbers of migratory species were higher in Eulsukdo (171), Ilungdo (124), Myungji (132), and Samrak (121). Among the 232 species found in the Nakdong River Estuary, Anas platyrhynchos (17.71%) was the most common species, followed by Anas poecilorhyncha (8.85%), Larus crassirostris (6.48%), Anser fabalis (6.09%), Anas penelope (5.16%), and Calidris alpina (4.22%). Most bird taxa, except shelducks, showed annual fluctuations in individual numbers, with increasing frequency during survey periods. Of these, cormorants, swans, and gulls showed higher fluctuations than other taxa. Swans decreased drastically in numbers in 2007-2008 and 2009-2010 compared to previous years. Shore birds, gulls, wagtails, and other forest birds were also less common in 2010-2011. These results suggest that there were some environmental changes that might have affected the birds in the Nakdong River Estuary. Overall, the results suggest that habitat types affect the distribution of dominant species.

수리학적 모형을 이용한 낙동강 하류구간에서의 홍수도달시간 시나리오 분석

Modification of travel time is necessary in all Nakdong river basin because hydrological conditions of Nakdong river basin were changed after major rivers project. Also calculation of flood travel time at between sections of weirs is necessary. In this study, flood travel time was calculated using hydraulic model and the latest topographical data from Changnyeong-Haman weir to Nakdong river estuary bank. Analysis of discharge and stage conditions were carried out. 84 of the scenarios were organized according to flow rate, discharge type, boundary conditions, and tributary conditions. Flood travel time of initial and peak were calculated with discharge and stage conditions, respectively. The results of this study will be available in practical business work such as flood forecast warning and weir operation on algae removal.