Parameter sensitivity study of the biogeochemical model in the China coastal seas

In order to develop a coupled basin scale model of ocean circulation and biogeochemical cycling,we present a biogeochemical model including 12 components to study the ecosystem in the China coastal seas（CCS）.The formulation of phytoplankton mortality and zooplankton growth are modified according to biological characteristics of CCS.The four sensitivity biological parameters,zooplankton assimilation efficiency rate（ZooAE_N）,zooplankton basal metabolism rate（ZooBM）,maximum specific growth rate of zooplankton（μ_（20）） and maximum chlorophyll to carbon ratio（Chl2C_m） are obtained in sensitivity experiments for the phytoplankton,and experiments about the parameter μ_（20＇）,half-saturation for phytoplankton NO_3 uptake（K_（NO_3）） and remineralization rate of small detritusN（SDeRRN） are conducted.The results demonstrate that the biogeochemical model is quite sensitive to the zooplankton grazing parameter when it ranges from 0.1 to 1.2 d^（-1）.The K_（NO_3） and SDeRRN also play an important role in determining the nitrogen cycle within certain ranges.The sensitive interval of KNO_3 is from 0.1 to 1.5（mmol/m^3）^（-1）,and interval of SEdRRN is from 0.01 and 0.1 d^（-1）.The observational data from September 1998 to July 2000 obtained at SEATS station are used to validate the performance of biological model after parameters optimization.The results show that the modified model has a good capacity to reveal the biological process features,and the sensitivity analysis can save computational resources greatly during the model simulation.

Distribution of Dissolved Inorganic Arsenic and Its Seasonal Variations in the Coastal Area of the East China Sea

Water samples were collected in the coastal area of the Changjiang Estuary on four cruises from August 2002 to May 2003. The seasonal variations of dissolved inorganic arsenic （DIAs） distributions were analyzed. The results showed that the distributions of DIAs were mainly influenced by Water （KSSW）. The concentration of the total dissolved the terrestrial input and the intrusion of the Kuroshio Subsurface inorganic arsenic （TDIAs） decreased consecutively from winter to summer, while it increased in autumn. The distributions of TDIAs showed some relationships with salinity and suspended particulate matter （SPM）. The relationships between DIAs speciation （including arsenite [ As（ Ⅲ ） ] and arsenate [ As（ Ⅴ ） ]）, biological activity and the availabilities of the phosphate were investigated in the study area for the cruise August 2002. The ratio of As （Ⅲ）/TDIAs increased with the decrease of phosphate concentrations. In the bottom water, the As（ Ⅲ ）/TDIAs ratio decreased with the increasing of N/P. The concentration of TDIAs decreased 28.7% approximately after the occurrence of harmful algal blooms （HAB） because of the uptake of arsenate by algae. Further study is needed about the arsenic source/sink relationships in their vertical or horizontal profiles and the uptake mechanism during the occurrence of harmful algal blooms.

Changes in quality of groundwater with seasonal fluctuations: an example from Ghor Safi area, southern Dead Sea coastal aquifers, Jordan

The demand for water resources in the area south of the Dead Sea due to continued development, especially at the Arab Potash Company （APC） for production and domestic purposes necessitates that water quality in the area be monitored and evaluated based on the local geology and hydrogeology. The objective of this paper is to monitor seasonal fluctuations of groundwater and to determine how fluctuation in the water levels will affect the groundwater quality. Groundwater levels were found to be influenced by rainfall and pumping of water from the wells for domestic and industrial use. Twenty water samples were collected from different wells and analyzed for major chemical constituents both in pre- and post-seasons to determine the quality variation. Chemical constituents are significantly increased after post-season recharge. According to the overall assessment of the area, water quality was found to be useful for drinking, irrigation and industry.

ON FORMATION OF TIDAL FRONTS IN COASTAL SEAS

An energy equation which includes the effects of potential energy, turbulent dissipation, heat flux and density flux due to fresh water discharge from estuaries is derived to evaluate the formation of frontal structures in coastal seas. Two different forms of tidal mixing criteria emerge which are the h/u3 of Simpson and Hunter (1974) for openshallow water and the h/u of Nunes et al (1989) for estuaries. The theory is capable ofpredicting tidal fronts in areas where both surface and lateral input of buoyancy are significant. The theory is applied to a tidal estuary and the locations of haline fronts which result from the influence of the fresh water discharge are predicted. The effect of surface heating on the formation and location of the frontal system is also discussed for the estuary.

What Is the Convenience of Treating a Wetland as an Agricultural Area?

The Gelsari and Lentini marshes, in east-central Sicily, are wetland under heavy anthropogenic pressure. This area is regularly subjected to water withdrawals and agriculture is practiced. Periodic bird census activities had been conducted in this area between 2016 and 2022 with collected data being supplemented with the data from a previous survey conducted between 2010 and 2016. During the censuses, numerous photographs were collected, which were later used for counts. In total, 121 surveys were carried out, with visits occurring approximately 20 times per year, covering all seasons. The data collected, both from bibliography and unpublished observations, were organised in table. 120 species and subspecies have been reported, 41 of which are in Annex I of the Birds Directive. Between 2021 and 2022, a water column measurement was taken in a central area of the Lentini marsh and compared with rainfall data in the area. It was found that water removal, occurring in both marshes in different modes, produced different effects on habitat conservation. Of the two marshes, Lentini is the one in which the existing favorable conditions in its most depressed areas, located below sea level, have allowed for the adequate conservation of the wetland. This environmental improvement having occurred with respect to the previous period has restored to the marsh its historically recognized possibility of not drying up completely during the summer period, allowing permanence of numerous birds. The obtained results suggest total elimination of agriculture and discontinuation of water withdrawals in the Lentini marsh as well as regulation of withdrawals in the Gelsari marsh.

Concentrations and sinking rates of transparent exopolymer particles(TEPs)in a coastal sea:the Changjiang River(Yangtze River)Estuary

Transparent exopolymer particles(TEPs)are ubiquitous throughout the oceans,and their sedimentation is considered an efficient biological carbon sink pathway.To investigate the role of coastal TEPs in sinking carbon from the upper layer,samples were collected in the spring and summer of 2011 in the Changjiang River(Yangtze River)Estuary,a typical coastal water.The concentrations and sinking rates of TEPs were measured,and potential sedimentation flux of TEPs was estimated.TEPs concentrations ranged from 40.00μg/L to 1040.00μg/L(mean=(209.70±240.93)μg/L)in spring and 56.67μg/L to 1423.33μg/L(mean=(433.33±393.02)μg/L)in summer,and they were higher at bloom stations than at non-bloom stations during both cruises.A significant positive correlation between TEPs concentration and chlorophyll a(Chl a)concentration was detected,suggesting that phytoplankton was the primary source of TEPs in this area.TEPs sinking rates ranged from 0.08 m/d to 0.57 m/d with a mean of(0.28±0.14)m/d in spring and 0.10 m/d to 1.08 m/d with a mean of(0.34±0.31)m/d in summer.The potential sedimentation flux of TEP-C ranged from 4.95 mg/(m2·d)to 29.40 mg/(m2·d)with a mean of(14.66±8.83)mg/(m2·d)in spring and 6.80 mg/(m2·d)to 30.45 mg/(m2·d)with a mean of(15.71±8.73)mg/(m2·d)in summer,which was^17.81%to 138.27%(mean=65.15%±31.75%)of sedimentation flux of phytoplankton cells in the study area.Due to the increase of TEPs concentrations and their sinking rates,sedimentation fluxes of TEPs at the bloom station were obviously higher than at the non-bloom station during both cruises.This study indicates that TEPs serve as a carbon sink in the Changjiang River Estuary,especially during bloom events,and their sedimentation should be taken into account when we study the carbon sedimentation in the coastal sea.

Fouling community characteristics in subtropical coastal waters of the southwestern East China Sea

A fouling study was conducted in coastal waters southwest of the East China Sea between December 2013 and November 2014. A total of 84 species of fouling organisms belonging to 69 genera, 49 families, and 10 phyla were recorded over the entire year. The community composition was dominated by coastal warm-water species belonging to typical subtropical inner bay communities. The prosperous stage of settlement lasted from April to September, and the adhesion strength of the fouling organisms was the highest in summer. Sessile suspension feeders constituted the main core of settlement for the fouling community. Amphibalanus reticulatus was the most dominant and representative species of fouling organism, and other dominant species included Caprella equilibra, Ectopleura crocea, Anthopleura nigrescens, Stylochus ijimai, Spirobranchus kraussii, Crassostrea angulata, Perna viridis, Jassa falcata, Stenothoe valida, Sphaerozius nitidus, and Biflustra grandicella. The individuals in the fouling community showed a mutual dependence or constraint relationship due to competition for settlement space and food, and they exhibited a particular spatiotemporal distribution in accordance with adaptation to environmental factors. Temperature was the most important environmental factor determining the geographic distribution of fouling organisms. The temperature characteristics of species essentially reflect the differences in the fouling community composition in various climate zones. The species number, settlement stage, and settlement rate of fouling organisms are closely related to water temperature. Local natural environmental conditions（salinity, water currents, light, etc.） as well as human activity（such as aquaculture production） are all important factors affecting the settlement of fouling organisms.

The sea/land breeze in the northern coastal area of Shandong Peninsula

In this paper the seasonal variation and structural characteristics of the sea/ land breeze in the northern coastal area of' Shandong Peninsula are studied in two ways: one is the analysis of the observed wind data, and the other is numerical simulation and experiments. Firstly, the hour to hour wind data through the year 1984 at Longkou Meteorological Station and Yantai Oceanographic Station are analysed through energy spectra and hodograph. It is revealed from the analysed results that the effects of the sea/ land breeze in the area are notable in spring, summer and fall, especially in May. However, in winter the effects of sea / land breeze are not obvious. because the cold noitherly is prevailing. Secondly, a two-dimensional non- linear model of primitive equations is used to study the sea / land breeze circulation in May in the area. The results of numerical simulation consist basically with the analysed results of the observed sea / land breeze. A reasonable theoretical structure of the sea / land breeze circulation is displayed, and a new undeerslanding of the developmental mechanism of land breeze circulation in that area is obtained. Lastly, numerical experiments about the effects of large scale wind and temperature fields upon the sea / land breeze circulation are performed.

The difference analysis of physical-mechanical properties of sediments in the central South Yellow Sea and Zhe-Min coastal area in China

The difference analysis of physical-mechanical properties of muddy sediments is made in the central South Yellow Sea and the Zhe-Min（Zhejiang Province to Fujian Province of China） coastal area. The results show that sediments in the two regions are both dominated by mud. There are perfect negative power function correlations between the water content and the density, the compression coefficient and the compression modulus; a good positive power function correlation between the liquid limit and the plastic limit, a perfect positive linear correlation between the water content and the void ratio, and a perfect polynomial function correlation between the miniature vane shear strength and the pocket penetration resistance. In general, compared with sediments in the Zhe-Min coastal area, sediments in the central South Yellow Sea possess high water content, high void ratio,low density, high plasticity, high compressibility, low shear strength. The causes of the differences between physical-mechanical properties of sediments are analyzed from the topographic features, material sources,hydrodynamic conditions, deposition rate, and material composition. Compared with the Zhe-Min coastal area,the central South Yellow Sea is far from the Mainland and low-lying; has poor hydrodynamic condition; the materials diffused to the area are less and dominated by fine clay, have the high content of smectite and organic matters. These factors lead to sediments of the central South Yellow Sea has the higher water content, the higher plasticity, the lower density, and the lower strength than sediments in the Zhe-Min coastal area.

Journal of Ocean University of China(Oceanic and Coastal Sea Research) Article Index to Vol.10, 2011

Article Index to Vol.10, 2011 Number I A FVCOM-Based Unstructured Grid Wave, Current, Sediment Transport Model, I. Model Description and Validation WU Lunyu, CHEN Changsheng, GUO Peifang, SHI Maochong, QI Jianhua, and GE Jianzhong

The circulation in the southern Huanghai Sea and northern East China Sea in June 1999

On the basis of hydrographic data and current measurement (the mooring system, vessel-mounted ADCP and toward ADCP) data obtained in June 1999, the circulations in the southern Huanghai Sea (HS) and northern East China Sea (ECS) are computed by using the modified inverse method. The Kuroshio flows northeastward through eastern part of the investigated region and has the main core at Section PN, a northward flow at the easternmost part of Section PN, a weaker anti-cyclonic eddy between these two northward flows, and a weak cyclonic eddy at the western part of Section PN. The above current structure is one type of the current structures at Section PN in ECS. The net northward volume transport (VT) of the Kuroshio and the offshore branch of Taiwan Warm Current (TWCOB) through Section PN is about 26.2 x 10(6) m(3)/s in June 1999. The VT of the inshore branch of Taiwan Warm Current (TWCIB) through the investigated region is about 0.4 x 10(6) m(3)/s. The Taiwan Warm Current (TWC) has much effect on the currents over the continental shelf. The Huanghai Sea Coastal Current (HSCC) flows southeastward and enters into the northwestern part of investigated region, and flows to turn cyclonically, and then it flows northeastward, due to the influences of the Taiwan Warm Current and topography. There is a cyclonic eddy south of Cheju Island where the Huanghai Sea Coastal Current flows to turn cyclonically. It has the feature of high dense and cold water. The uniform and cold water is occurred in the layer from about 30 m level to the bottom between Stations C306 and C311 at the northernmost Section C3. It is a southern part of the Huanghai Sea Cold Water Mass (HSCWM).

Observed characteristics of the North Yellow Sea water masses in summer

In this paper, we characterize the North Yellow Sea （NYS） water masses in summer by analyzing temperature and salinity data surveyed in 2006. The Liaonan Coastal Water is characterized by low salinity westward and southward flow paths. The westward path flows parallel to land, turns to the south, then to the southeast adjacent to the mouth of the Lushun River, where it mixes with other coastal water directly to the southwest. It becomes the main source of low salinity water in the deep water area west of 123°E. The high-salinity Lubei Coastal Water is the remnant of the winter Lubei Coastal Water, which is located mostly in a small area between Yantai and Weihai, and does not originate in the Bohai Sea Coastal Water. The two NYS zones demarcated at 123°E have distinctly different temperature and salinity characteristics. There are two high-salinity centers east of 123°E, whereas there is low-salinity water to the west whose temperature and salinity structures are complex, composed of the coastal water south of Chengshantou, the Liaonan Coastal Water and the Bohai Sea Water.

Evaluation of reanalysis surface wind products with quality-assured buoy wind measurements along the north coast of the South China Sea

Three archived reanalysis wind vectors at 10 m height in the wind speed range of 2-15 m/s,namely,the second version of the National Centres for Environmental Prediction(NCEP)Climate Forecast System Reanalysis(CFSv2),European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting Interim Reanalysis(ERA-I)and NCEPDepartment of Energy(DOE)Reanalysis 2(NCEP-2)products,are evaluated by a comparison with the winds measured by moored buoys in coastal regions of the South China Sea(SCS).The buoy data are first quality controlled by extensive techniques that help eliminate degraded measurements.The evaluation results reveal that the CFSv2 wind vectors are most consistent with the buoy winds(with average biases of 0.01 m/s and 1.76°).The ERA-I winds significantly underestimate the buoy wind speed(with an average bias of-1.57 m/s),while the statistical errors in the NCEP-2 wind direction have the largest magnitude.The diagnosis of the reanalysis wind errors shows the residuals of all three reanalysis wind speeds(reanalysis-buoy)decrease with increasing buoy wind speed,suggesting a narrower wind speed range than that of the observations.Moreover,wind direction errors are examined to depend on the magnitude of the wind speed and the wind speed biases.In general,the evaluation of three reanalysis wind products demonstrates that CFSv2 wind vectors are the closest to the winds along the north coast of the SCS and are sufficiently accurate to be used in numerical models.

The differentiation of iron-reducing bacterial community and iron-reduction activity between riverine and marine sediments in the Yellow River estuary

Rivers are the primary contributors of iron and other elements to the global oceans.Iron-reducing bacteria play an important biogeochemical role in coupling the iron and carbon redox cycles.However,the extent of changes in community structures and iron-reduction activities of iron-reducing bacteria in riverine and coastal marine sediments remains unclear.This study presents information on the spatial patterns and relative abundance of iron-reducing bacteria in sediments of the Yellow River estuary and the adjacent Bohai Sea.High-throughput sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA found that the highest relative abundances and diversities were from the estuary(Yellow River-Bohai Sea mixing zone).Pseudomonas,Thiobacillus,Geobacter,Rhodoferax,and Clostridium were the most abundant putative iron-reducing bacteria genera in the sediments of the Yellow River.Vibrio,Shewanella,and Thiobacillus were the most abundant in the sediments of the Bohai Sea.The putative iron-reducing bacterial community was positively correlated with the concentrations of total nitrogen and ammonium in coastal marine sediments,and was significantly correlated with the concentration of nitrate in river sediments.The riverine sediments,with a more diverse iron-reducing bacterial community,exhibited increased activity of Fe(III)reduction in enrichment cultures.The estuary-wide high abundance of putative iron-reducing bacteria suggests that the effect of river-sea interaction on bacterial distribution patterns is high.The results of this study will help the understanding of the biogeochemical cycling of iron in riverine and coastal marine environments.