Type Of Human Intervention Research Articles

Morpho-arrangement study of the anthropogenic landform for potential exposure of tsunami hazard identification in parangtritis, yogyakarta

This research was conducted in the tsunami prone area of Parangtritis, Yogyakarta. The purpose of this study is to classify and analyse the distribution of anthropogenic landforms, as preliminary information to identify the potential exposure to tsunami. The method used in this research is descriptive-comparative, i.e. by comparing the variations of anthropogenic landforms typology within the present management zones (core, restricted, supporting zone). For each zone, the type of human intervention were identified with regard to the following classification: industrogenic, urbanogenic, traffic, agrogenic, water management, tourism, and sports. The anthropogenic landforms are then classified into excavation, planation, and accumulation types. The results of the study were presented in the form of tables and maps of anthropogenic landforms in each management zone. Assessment of the level of exposure to tsunami hazard is carried out qualitatively for each anthropogenic landform in the different management zones. This research revealed that type of intervention in each management zone are varied. The supporting zone and restricted zone have the most complex interventions, i.e. industrogenic, urbanogenic, traffic, water management, tourism, and sports. The excavation, planation, and accumulation forms are very diverse, depend on the people activities in each management zone. A particular human activity in the study area has a certain level of exposure to tsunami hazard. It is necessary to consider for reducing the specific risk to tsunami.

Ecological Strategies for Designing Urban River Banks\ Abu Nuwas Buffer Zone in Baghdad as a Case Study

The riverbank is an effective component of the city-river interconnection, and any damage that occurs to it affects its natural structure and particularly its ecological values. Most of these problems are diagnosable and observable in the riverside space, and many studies have focused on them. The emergence of these problems may appear in varying proportions in the riverbank environment depending on the type of human intervention, both in urban and non-urban spaces, which may have a negative impact on the riverbank space. In light of this, studies have been directed towards exploring different ecological strategies that should be applied on the urban riverbank space, which work in an integrated manner with many other values to restore the natural characteristics of landscape and riverbank space and reduce the impact of negative human intervention in them. The main research problem is defined in the loss of the ecological value of riverbanks in cities in general and Baghdad city in particular, and the lack of knowledge concerning the ecological strategies in riverbanks on the planning and design levels. The main objective of the research was thus to draw the theoretical framework that extracts the strategies and indicators of the landscape ecology.The theoretical framework was then applied to the edge of the Tigris River in Baghdad (as a case study), that resembles the area and park of Abu Nuwas region in Baghdad, with the aim of further diagnosing the reality of the riverbank and the extent to which ecological strategies can be applied.The results of the research in both its theoretical and practical aspects have revealed a clear approach to ecological strategies that achieve riverbank ecology and the development of specific mechanisms to provide a safe and effective river environment that accommodates various events and uses in the river bank, and enhances public awareness of its importance

Epigenetic and transcriptional signatures of ex situ conserved golden snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana)

Extremely endangered wildlife can be effectively protected by ex situ conservation programs. Despite that, the effects of human activity on the health of captive populations are still unclear. Using reduced representation bisulfite sequencing and RNA-seq, we assessed epigenetic and gene transcriptional variations between different types of human intervention (“Custodial” and “Sanctuary” groups) and a “Wild” group of golden snub-nosed monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana), which is one of the most endangered primates worldwide. Consequently, we found striking genome-scale divergence of both DNA methylation and gene expression for the Custodial group, which agreed with stronger human interventions on the food supply and management of the group. KEGG pathway analyses indicated that the differentially expressed genes were enriched in a wide range of physiologically functional pathways, most of which are involved in immune and metabolic functions. In particular, a group of core genes in autophagy related pathways, e.g., ATP6V0A1 and PPM1D, were both differentially expressed and methylated. Our findings revealed that the ex situ conserved golden snub-nosed monkey exhibited significant epigenetic and transcriptional adaptation to human intervention, thereby may provide a foundation for future biomarker development that can be used to evaluate the unintended risks of ex situ conservation programs for endangered animal species.

Microfluidic generation of self-contained multicomponent microcapsules for self-healing materials

Bioinspired self-healing carriers can cost-effectively repair crack damage in functional materials without detection, analysis, or any type of human intervention. In this study, an effective structured self-healing microcarrier is prepared through a single-step microfluidic method. These microcarriers are self-contained core-shell microcapsules with the healant and the curing agent encapsulated in separate chambers of a single capsule. Because microfluidics are versatile, our fabrication method generates unique structures in which the ratio of the agents can be precisely adjusted, and thus, the reaction kinetics and the cost can be well controlled. Such carriers can be embedded into various material matrices, including bulk pellets and film materials, which maintain satisfactory mechanical properties after being damaged and repaired. These attractive features may establish an approach for microfluidic preparation of self-healing materials and may open up avenues for the development of intelligent self-healing materials for military equipment, electronic products, architectural materials, etc.

Paisaje, transformaciones y sociedad: la zona de Boca de las Sierras, Azúl, Pcia. de Buenos Aires (Argentina)

Este trabajo se propone reflexionar sobre los factores sociales que influyen en diferentes tipos de intervenciones humanas del espacio a partir de presentar el análisis de un caso actual: paisaje Boca de las Sierras (Azul, Pcia. de Buenos Aires). Dicho paisaje, correspondiente a la zona serrana de Tandilia, ha sido relevante para los grupos humanos desde hace por lo menos 10.000 años constituyéndose, actualmente, en un palimpsesto que incluye actores, valoraciones y estructuras de diferentes épocas. Mediante un estudio cuali-cuantitativo se indagaron las razones por las que prosperaron proyectos de transformación del espacio antes que el de una Reserva Natural que lo conservara. Se obtuvo que la capacidad de la materialidad para influir las percepciones sociales, así como las negociaciones entre diferentes grupos con poder político, económico o simbólico son la clave para su explicación. El arqueólogo, al situarse en dicho contexto, amplía sus posibilidades para comprender la construcción del paisaje cultural como para intervenir en su gestión.

Terroir and intensification in the Spanish wine-growing territories

Since the definition of terroir is relatively open, and it lends itself to various interpretations, it is necessary to analyse its consistency and operability facing the major changes in the wine sector. One of the most important in Spain is the radical transformation of the wine model, due to the process of intensification of its production in the last two decades. This communication analyses the evolution at regional level and examines its relationship with the expansion of irrigation and the modernizing and restructuring activities of the vineyard. The results show a very strong increase in yields, especially in some of the largest producing regions, as Ciudad Real, and that the most associated factor with intensification is irrigation, produced in the new espalier vineyards and in the traditional bush-trained ones. One of the consequences is the consolidation of different productive models in the different regions. In this context, if it is interpreted that the “terroir wine“ is obtained by minimizing those types of human intervention that substantially alter the natural factors throughout the productive process, due to the intensity of the changes and their results, it is necessary to consider the desirability of revising the concept to make it operational.

Sand quarrying activities in an alluvial reach of Damodar River, Eastern India: towards a geomorphic assessment

ABSTRACTRiver is a system in which it always tries to make a balance between input and output. Any type of human intervention may affect the whole system and alluvial rivers give response to this interference through changes in its morphology. This concept has serious implications on the present study of Damodar River (Eastern India). Though the hydrology and morphology of Damodar river have been controlled by human activities over the last 50 years, large-scale excavation of river sand from the Damodar riverbed was initiated in the mid-1990s due to increasing urbanization and industrialization. Mainly, the alluvial reach of lower Damodar river is highly affected by uncontrolled sand excavation. To identify the status of sand mining and assess the geomorphic impacts due to indiscriminate and unscientific sand mining, we select Damodar river in between Sillaghat and Sadarghat of West Bengal. It has been estimated that 8, 35,000 ft3/ day (in peak season) of sand is extracted through 71 sand mining areas only from the 40.625 km channel between Sillaghat and Sadarghat. With the help of Geographic Information System (GIS) and field survey, we tried to identify the effects of this huge extraction of sand on this river, which we mapped through Arc GIS software. From the prepared maps, we have identified that Thalweg dynamics, riverbank erosion, instability of river bars; channel bifurcation and pool-riffle sequence change are the major geomorphic impacts of sand mining. Keeping the above concept in the backdrop, it is essential to have a process-based understanding as well as in-depth study of the river for the sustainable management of this threatened river.

Climate engineering: The way forward?

The deliberate large-scale manipulation of the climate is increasingly being discussed as a potential tool to ensure the basic condition for a sustainable future: a habitable climate. While far from the ideal solution, the rate of climate change continues to outpace our attempts at a response, prompting some scientists and politicians to call for the consideration of climate engineering or geoengineering to avoid catastrophic climate change, while political processes to reduce greenhouse gases catch up. A November 2010 expert meeting was held at UNESCO to raise awareness of geoengineering, its potential to counteract climate change and its risks, and to broaden the discussion within the international community. Potential geoengineering methods include solar radiation management and carbon dioxide removal techniques that are largely theoretical and remain untested, despite a long history. Responsible research can only proceed, and informed decisions be made, once governance structures have been developed beyond mere principles insufficient to guide researchers and policy makers. At the same time, realistic communication on these activities must increase and improve so that civil society can play a role in determining acceptable levels and types of human intervention. Appropriate geoengineering research should be considered for solar geoengineering methods that promise to quickly and affordably decrease global mean temperature, and for carbon geoengineering methods that target the core problem of climate change by directly removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. A small cadre of scientists and policy makers has advanced the discussion of geoengineering and its likely impacts, but the path to a sustainable future cannot be charted until the wider international community asks some fundamental questions about what kind of regulation is appropriate, how it should be implemented and by whom and at what cost. This task is urgent, and only by raising awareness of geoengineering can we secure the participation of the international community in developing governance structures and ensuring that responsible research on geoengineering proceeds in a timely and consensual manner.

Application of remote sensing video systems to coastline management problems

This contribution evaluates the application of coastal video systems to monitoring and management of coastal stability problems on sandy coastlines. Specifically, video-derived parameters (coastal state indicators or CSIs) are developed which facilitate the measurement of the shoreline evolution (erosion/accretion) and response to storms, seasonal cycles and anthropogenic interventions like beach/shoreface nourishment and dredging. The primary variable which forms the basis for all the CSIs discussed in this contribution is the shoreline position derived from time-averaged video images. These waterlines are used to generate secondary products including shoreline contours at a constant pre-defined level, (intertidal) beach volumes, and momentary shoreline positions which reflect the sand volume in a meter wide section of the intertidal coast. Video-derived coastal state indicators were verified via comparisons with traditional topographical/bathymetric surveying techniques and a good agreement was found in all cases. CSIs were computed for three contrasting sandy coastal environments including an unprotected natural beach, a protected beach and a spit. Firstly, results are presented which demonstrate the advantages of coastal video systems over and above infrequent traditional topographic/bathymetric surveying methods. Namely, the ability of video-derived CSIs to quantify the magnitude, accurate location, precise timing and rates of change associated with individual extreme events and seasonal variability in the wave climate. Secondly, video-derived coastal state indicators were used to monitor two different types of human intervention, including beach nourishments and a dredged pit in a navigation channel. The video-derived datasets of coastal state indicators offered significant improvement to current CZM practices, facilitating better timing of management interventions as well as more effective monitoring of the spatial impact and longevity of these actions.

Comparison of understory plant community composition and soil characteristics in Quercus pyrenaica stands with different human uses

The species composition of the plant community and the soil characteristics in Quercus pyrenaica ecosystems according to the degree of disturbance and the type of human intervention (burning, cutting, livestock grazing) were compared. Four types of oak communities were selected, each with five replicates: oak shrublands (SL), dehesas (DE) or open woodlands used for grazing, and two types of mature oak forest, one with abundant shrub biomass in the understory (FS) and the other with little shrub biomass in the understory (FO). A total of 175 species were found in the 20 sites studied, 52 appeared in a single site. The dehesas were the most different regarding species composition, with 30 species only found there. This was verified by a qualitative similarity analysis, in which the five dehesas formed a group clearly distinguishable from the other sites; the oak shrublands also formed a group, but it was not possible to distinguish between the mature oak forests with and without a shrubby understory. However, the soil characteristics were similar across all sites and differences could only be detected in organic matter and nitrogen content, which were significantly higher in the mature forests without a shrubby understory. When the plant community and soil characteristics were analysed as a whole using a canonical correspondence analysis, the separation of the dehesas was observed on the first axis, due to its greater richness and abundance in herb species, especially annuals. The other sites were ordered on the second axis, with greater differences between the oak shrublands, associated with higher shrub species cover, and the mature open forests, associated with forest herb species and a soil with a higher nitrogen, organic matter and cation exchange content. The mature forests with abundant shrub biomass were in an intermediate position. Therefore, although the differences in soil were not important and many species were common to all types of Q. pyrenaica communities, the type of human intervention did determine changes, as shown by the results of the multifactorial analyses. In addition, given that all the community types presented some species which were not found in the other types, greater biodiversity would be attained by preserving all of them.

Morphological response to river engineering and management in alluvial channels in Italy

In response to various types of human disturbance, most Italian rivers have experienced considerable channel adjustment during the last centuries and in particular in the last decades. This paper reviews all existing published studies and available data, and aims to reconstruct a general outline of the main channel adjustments that have occurred in Italian rivers during the past 100 years. Two main types of channel adjustment have been recognized: (a) incision, which is commonly on the order of 3–4 m, but in some cases is even more than 10 m; (b) narrowing, with channel width reduction up to 50% or more. In some reaches, these adjustments have led to changes in channel pattern in particular from braided to wandering. Such channel adjustments are due to several types of human intervention, particularly sediment extraction, dams and channelization. A strong temporal relationship (specifically, short reaction times) between human disturbance and channel adjustment can be inferred, but trends of adjustment are available for only a few rivers (e.g. the Po, the Arno and the Piave Rivers). These trends show that incision and/or narrowing are more intense immediately after the disturbance and then slow and become asymptotic; the same trends also suggest that larger rivers could have longer relaxation times. The results of this study are synthesised in a general classification scheme that summarises the main styles of adjustment observed in Italian rivers. According to the scheme, braided rivers adjust through prevalent narrowing with varying rates of incision, whereas single-thread rivers adjust mainly through a more pronounced incision accompanied by various amounts of narrowing. The scheme, representing initial and final (present) morphologies and not including intermediate stages of channel adjustment, will need to be tested on the basis of more detailed data to have a wider application both to the Italian context and to fluvial systems elsewhere, affected by similar types of human disturbance causing a reduction of sediment supply.

Drainage basin morphology: a starting point for balancing water needs, land use and fishery protection

The drainage basin, including the coastal zone, may be seen as a large‐scale system of interlinked natural resources and ecosystem services which support human activities on land and in the sea. Social and economic activities in the drainage basin have to be consistent with the hydrological and ecological needs for human well‐being. Proper attention must also be paid to the impacts of these factors on ecosystems further downstream. A macro‐scale ecosystem approach to a basin has to consider: (1) direct uses of water both instream and after extraction when pollutants may be added to the return flow; and (2) indirect use of water for agriculture and forestry where the river may be depleted as a result of evapotranspiration from land surface, crops and trees. Both uses have repercussions on the quantitative flow and quality of water, which may damage water‐based instream ecosystem services. The present paper addresses relationships between different types of human intervention in a drainage basin and their consequences. Two analytical models are introduced: (1) a conceptual model which distinguishes between urban and rural water uses, and their respective tools; and (2) a conceptual model for handling spatially ordered land/water use segments subject to different types of interference. Finally, the present paper comments on the need to develop methodologies for cross‐disciplinary dialogue, and for balancing water needs, land use and fishery protection.

Sustainable Forest Ecosystems and Management: A Review Article

Abstract Concerns about the sustainability of forest resources and ecosystems have been expressed almost from the beginning of modern studies of forest management by ecologists, biologists, economists, and other specialists. However, the focus of this concern has gone through several transformations. Environmental scientists have emphasized the maintenance of forest ecosystems in the face of different types of human intervention. Economists and forest managers, on the other hand, have emphasized the capacity of forest systems to provide valued ongoing flows of goods and services for human societies. This paper takes stock of forest resource and ecosystem sustainability from both ecological and economic perspectives. It seeks to identify how these disciplinary perspectives contribute to a better understanding of sustainability, and where the most significant conceptual and factual gaps are found. Of particular interest are two related themes: how economic efficiency and sustainability may differ in their implications for forest system management, and how criteria for forest system sustainability are related to the scale of management decisions (e.g., individual forest site versus region versus the global biosphere). For. Sci. 42(3):366-377.