Environmental Changes and Human Impacts on Landscapes near Medieval Steklyanukha-2 Fortress in Russia from Early Iron Age to Modern Times

The development of landscapes in one of the most populated river basins of the southern Russian Far East was studied using pollen and diatom data. The study sites were a multi-layered mountain fortress, Steklyanukha-2, and an Upper Holocene high floodplain sequence of the Steklyanukha River. Buried soil from the fluvial section acts as an environmental archive of the time in which people from the Yankovskaya archeological cultures settled in the river basin. The soil was formed under conditions of decreasing water supply in the valley and prolonged droughts. Findings of pollen Fagopyrum and Urtica signal economic activity in the Early Iron Age.Floodplain lake sediments accumulated from 1.6 to 0.5 kyr, when the valley was actively developed during the Middle Ages. There are signals of the development of secondary birch and oak forests. In the cultural layer of the fortress and lake sediments formed in the Middle Ages, Ambrosia and Xanthium pollens were found and are reliable evidence of agricultural activity in the valley. The pollens of plants typically seen in human-disturbed areas were also found. Indirect evidence of human activity includes non-pollen palynomorphs.The study of diatoms in a depression near a rampart confirmed the archaeologists' assumption that it was used as a water reserve. Pollen spectra from surface soils reflect agricultural activity in the river basin since the second half of the 19th century. The largest amount of pollen of alien and synanthropic plants and weeds, as well as spores of pathogenic fungi and fire indicators, were found here.

Tree sapling vitality and recovery following the unprecedented 2018 drought in central Europe

Background:Ongoing climate change is anticipated to increase the frequency and intensity of drought events,thereby affecting forest recovery dynamics and elevating tree mortality.The drought of 2018,with its exceptional intensity and duration,had a significant adverse impact on tree species throughout Central Europe.However,our understanding of the resistance to and recovery of young trees from drought stress remains limited.Here,we examined the recovery patterns of native deciduous tree sapling species following the 2018 drought,and explored the impact of soil depth,understory vegetation,and litter cover on this recovery.Methods:A total of 1,149 saplings of seven deciduous tree species were monitored in the understory of old-growth forests in Northern Bavaria,Central Germany.The vitality of the saplings was recorded from 2018 to 2021 on 170 plots.Results:Fagus sylvatica was the most drought-resistant species,followed by Betula pendula,Acer pseudoplatanus,Quercus spp.,Corylus avellana,Carpinus betulus,and Sorbus aucuparia.Although the drought conditions persisted one year later,all species recovered significantly from the 2018 drought,albeit with a slight decrease in vitality by 2021.In 2018,the drought exhibited a more pronounced adverse effect on saplings in deciduous forests compared to mixed and coniferous forests.Conversely,sapling recovery in coniferous and mixed forests exceeded that observed in deciduous forests in 2019.The pivotal factors influencing sapling resilience to drought were forest types,soil depth,and understory vegetation,whereas litter and forest canopy cover had a negative impact.Conclusion:Long-term responses of tree species to drought can be best discerned through continuous health monitoring.These findings demonstrate the natural regeneration potential of deciduous species in the context of climate change.Selective tree species planting,soil management practices,and promoting understory diversity should be considered when implementing adaptive management strategies to enhance forest resilience to drought events.

Methodological Framework for a Multi-Scale Study on Hydrological Processes and Soil Erosion in Subtropical Southeast China

This paper introduces and illustrates the concepts of geoecological process combinations and geographical or landscape dimensions by outlining the methodology of a Sino-German cooperative project in Southeast China and presents the first results of the modelling process for the catchment scale. The project equipped a catchment in subtropical Southeast China from plot scale to catchment scale in order to study the hydrological and soll erosion processes. Distinct spatial differences in principal water and soil material fluxes were quantified. Deep drainage peaks occurred in May, June and July and even in August and November. Measurements in erosion plots as well as sedimentary deposits revealed that there was soil erosion connected with overland flow. Consistent with the results from the regular catenary variations of soil colors, textural stratification and hydrograph analysis, there was also a clear indication of interflow from measured soil moisture data. The experimental set up has the potential to further deepen the understanding of small-scale processes involved in lateral water fluxes and soil erosion. The expected results and interpretations will lead to a further integration of the collected data. In the future, to understand matter transfer in and between landscape ecological units, agricultural influence on nutrient status and flux data will be incorporated.

Anisotropy of Soil Hydraulic Properties Along Arable Slopes

The spatial variations of the soil hydraulic properties were mainly considered in vertical direction. The objectives of this study were to measure water-retention curves, θ（ψ）, and unsaturated hydraulic conductivity functions, K（ψ）, of the soils sampled at different slope positions in three directions, namely, in vertical direction, along the slope and along the contour, and to determine the effects of sampling direction and slope position of two soil catenas. At the upper slope positions, the surface soils （0-10 cm） sampled in the vertical direction had a lower soil water content, 0, at a certain soil water potential （-1 500 kPa 〈 ψ 〈 -10 kPa） and had the greatest unsaturated hydraulic conductivity, K, at ψ 〉 -10 kPa. At the lower slope positions, K at ψ〉 -10 kPa was smaller in the vertical direction than in the direction along the slope. The deep soils （100 110 cm） had similar soil hydraulic properties in all the three directions. The anisotropic variations of the hydraulic properties of the surface soils were ascribed to the effects of natural wetting and drying cycles on the structural heterogeneity. These results suggested that the anisotropy of soil hydraulic properties might be significant in influencing soil water movement along the slope and need to be considered in modeling.

Interactions between water-land resources and oasis urban development at the northern slopes of the Tianshan Mountains,Xinjiang,China

Urban development in arid and semi-arid regions is largely constrained by fragile physical environ- ments. The characteristics of an urban settlement are different from those in other regions of China. This paper analyses the coupling characteristics and spatio-temporal variations for oasis urban development and water-land resources at the northern slopes of the Tianshan Mountains by principal component analysis and a coupling degree model. The result shows that the degree and change in regional use of water and land resources are different among the studied cities/counties during their development. The built-up areas of these cities/counties have changed little with increasing populations and urbanization levels, which well reflects that the urban development in arid and semi-arid regions is limited by oasis areas. Per capita amount of water supplied, however, presented a trend of slowed growth with increasing levels of urbanization. Water consumption gradually increased with urban development and the improvement of people＇s living standards, accompanied by enhanced water use efficiency. The level of urbanization can be assessed through the coupling degree between oasis urban development and the use of water and land resources. A high coupling degree represents a high level of comprehensive urban devel- opment and use of water-land resources. Alternatively, a low coupling degree denotes a low level of urban devel- opment and water-land resource use.

Topographic and lithologic controls behind mountain depopulation in Zlatibor District(Western Serbia)

Mountain depopulation is a worldwide phenomenon observed in all continents. It has varied socio-economic reasons;among others, the low profitability of traditional agriculture, the better job possibilities and the higher level of services in urban settlements. However, it is often recognized that depopulation is related to natural factors such as elevation, slope or lithology. It is also observed that protected areas are frequently established in depopulated mountain regions. Their primary aim is the conservation of nature, but they may help tourism development as well. Tourism, in turn, may slow down or even reverse the process of depopulation. In this study, we investigate the impact of topographic and lithologic factors, namely of karst settings, on mountain demographic processes and the relationship of protected areas and tourism through the example of the northern part of Zlatibor District(Western Serbia). The study area is characterized by mountains and hills at elevations from 200 to 1600 m a.s.l. Our aim is to find GIS-based statistical relationships between topographic, lithologic factors and demographic characteristics. In this area, mountain depopulation started after WWII, and weproved that this process was strongly controlled by topographic factors. The higher and more dissected the area, the more significant is the decrease of the population and the more advanced is the ageing. As a result, population density contrasts are much more pronounced now than 70 years ago. After WWII, depopulation and ageing became gradually more serious on karstic terrains than on non-karst. However, by using compound topographic and lithologic types, we proved that it is not the effect of karst, but the effect of topography. The flow of population from hills and mountains to valleys and basins are closely related to the restructuring of the economic sectors. At present, for the study area, the development of tourism is unequivocally naturebased and connected to protected areas, namely to Tara National Park, Zlatibor Nature Park and ?argan–Mokra Gora Nature Park. In this paper, we also demonstrate how lithology influences tourism possibilities. The leading role of Zlatibor in tourism development is largely thanks to its favourable position on a main transit route.

The Pleistocene Glaciation in the Karakoram Mountains:Reconstruction of Past Glacier Extensions and Ice Thicknesses

Geomorphological and Quaternarygeological field- and laboratory data (Fig.1) are introduced and interpreted with regard to the maximum Ice Age (LGM) glaciation of the Central-and South Karakoram in the Braldu-, Basna-, Shigar-and Indus valley system as well as on the Deosai plateau between the Skardu Basin and the Astor valley (Fig.2). These data result from two research expeditions in the years 1997 and 2000. They show that between c. 60 and 20 Ka the Central Karakorum and its south slope were covered by a continuous c. 125,000 km2 sized ice stream network. This ice stream network flowed together to a joint parent glacier, the Indus glacier. The tongue end of the Indus glacier reached down to 850 ～ 800 m a.s.l. In its centre the surface of this Indus ice stream network reached a height of a good 6000 m. Its most important ice thicknesses amounted to c. 2400 ～ 2900 m.

Torrential flood prevention in the Kolubara river basin

One of the most vulnerable parts to natural hazards in Serbia is Kolubara river basin. In the past, during the period from 1929 to 2013, 121 torrential flood events in the Kolubara river basin were recorded which show that this territory is extremely vulnerable to the torrential floods. The extreme event which occurred in May 2014 causing the catastrophic material damages and casualties was the latest and historical flood. The analysis of natural conditions in the Kolubara basin uniformly showed that this area is predisposed to a greater number of torrential floods due to its geomorphological, hydrological and land use properties. Torrential floods are closely related to the intensity and spatial distribution of erosive processes in the upper part of the Kolubara basin. The estimation of soil erosion potential is generally achieved by Erosion Potential Model(EPM). For the purposes of determining the degree of torrential properties in various water streams in the Kolubara basin, the calculation ofsusceptibility to torrential floods was assessed by Flash Flood Potential Index(FFPI). More than half of the basin area(57.2%) is located within the category of very weak and weak erosion(Z_(sr) = 0.35), but the category of medium erosion is geospatially very common. Such a distribution of medium erosion category provides conditions for generating, i.e. production of sediment which would boost torrential properties of water streams. After the classification of the obtained FFPI values it was determined that 25% of the Kolubara basin is very susceptible to torrents and this data should be seriously taken into consideration. Based on the analyses, the best and most successful manner of defence is prevention which consists of the integrated river basin management system(integrated torrent control system) so that technical works in hydrographic networks of torrents and biological and biotechnical works on the slope of the basin would be the best solution. Permanent control of erosive and torrential processes in the river basin will be not only important for flood control but it can also protect the existing and future water reservoirs and retentions fromsiltation with erosion sediment which is of great significance to the water management, agriculture, energy sector, and the entire society.

Spatial prediction of landslide susceptibility in western Serbia using hybrid support vector regression(SVR)with GWO,BAT and COA algorithms

In this study,we developed multiple hybrid machine-learning models to address parameter optimization limitations and enhance the spatial prediction of landslide susceptibility models.We created a geographic information system database,and our analysis results were used to prepare a landslide inventory map containing 359 landslide events identified from Google Earth,aerial photographs,and other validated sources.A support vector regression(SVR)machine-learning model was used to divide the landslide inventory into training(70%)and testing(30%)datasets.The landslide susceptibility map was produced using 14 causative factors.We applied the established gray wolf optimization(GWO)algorithm,bat algorithm(BA),and cuckoo optimization algorithm(COA)to fine-tune the parameters of the SVR model to improve its predictive accuracy.The resultant hybrid models,SVR-GWO,SVR-BA,and SVR-COA,were validated in terms of the area under curve(AUC)and root mean square error(RMSE).The AUC values for the SVR-GWO(0.733),SVR-BA(0.724),and SVR-COA(0.738)models indicate their good prediction rates for landslide susceptibility modeling.SVR-COA had the greatest accuracy,with an RMSE of 0.21687,and SVR-BA had the least accuracy,with an RMSE of 0.23046.The three optimized hybrid models outperformed the SVR model(AUC=0.704,RMSE=0.26689),confirming the ability of metaheuristic algorithms to improve model performance.

GEODESY AND DIGITAL CARTOGRAPHIC SURVEY IN FILDES PENINSULA,REY JORGE ISLAND,ANTARCTICA

The present paper summarizes a joint effort undertaken by the Instituto Geográfico Militar de Chile (IGM) and the Instituto Antártico Chileno (INACH) in order to obtain digital cartography of the Fildes Peninsula, Rey Jorge Island, Antarctica. This peninsula constitutes the prototype project area for the main IGM-INACH project No 153 “Cartographic Survey and Geographic Information System of the South Shetlands Islands” The Digital Cartography was implemented at the 1:5 000 scale, using geodetic GPS control points referenced to ITRF 92 and WGS 84 Data. The UTM Projection was used. All products were produced in compliance with the cartographic standards of the IGM. This cartography was designed in order to satisfy the requirements of a Geographic Information System developed by INACH. This geo-referenced database incorporates a variety of thematic information, enabling it to support scientific investigations, environmental and multi-disciplinary studies, and other applications. As a result of this project the Instituto Geográfico Militar de Chile produced a map at 1:5 000 scale in digital format, and also a 1:10 000 topographic map, in paper format, with two editions: first edition of two charts and a second edition with one chart covering the whole project area. Chile and other countries have a number of important permanent activities in this area. These maps are designed to support several and diverse geo-spatial studies related to these activities.

New findings concerning the Pleistocene Glaciation of the Leh Basin,Ladakh(34°03'N/77°38'E)

Like for most parts of High Asia,researches concerning the Pleistocene landscape evolution of the Leh Basin(34°03' N/77°38' E) have also left contradictions.To push this topic,three up to now unexplored Ladakh Range tributaries of the Leh Basin(Stagmo-,Arzu-and Nang-Valley) have been investigated.U-shaped profiles,transfluence passes,moraine mantled and glacially rounded peaks and ridges,roches moutonnées,glacial flank polishings and ground moraines document the former glaciation of the study area.The ice fillings of these tributaries reached a minimum thickness up to 540 m.Even at the valley outlets and on the orographic right side of the Leh Basin,the glaciation was more than 350 m thick.Based on these empirically extracted results,theoretical snow line considerations lead to the conclusion that the whole Leh Basin was filled up by a former Indus-Valley glacier.An ice injection limited to the nourishment areas of the Ladakh Range valleys could not have caused the reconstructed ice cover(down to 3236 m a.s.l.),which is proved by extended ground moraine complexes.Only an Indus ice stream network(most likely during the LGP),nourished by inflowing glaciers of the Ladakh-and Stok Range,explains the widespread existence of the glacial sediments at the outlets of the investigated valleys.

Flood Risk Analysis and Flood Potential Losses Assessment

The heavy floods in the Taihu Basin showed increasing trend in recent years. In this work, a typical area in the northern Taihu Basin was selected for flood risk analysis and potential flood losses assessment. Human activities have strong impact on the study area’s flood situation (as affected by the polders built, deforestation, population increase, urbanization, etc.), and have made water level higher, flood duration shorter, and flood peaks sharper. Five years of different flood return periods [(1970), 5 (1962), 10 (1987), 20 (1954), 50 (1991)] were used to calculate the potential flood risk area and its losses. The potential flood risk map, economic losses, and flood-impacted population were also calculated. The study’s main conclusions are: 1) Human activities have strongly changed the natural flood situation in the study area, increasing runoff and flooding; 2) The flood risk area is closely related with the precipitation center; 3) Polder construction has successfully protected land from flood, shortened the flood duration, and elevated water level in rivers outside the polders; 4) Economic and social development have caused flood losses to increase in recent years.

Assessment of hybrid geoids in Chile and Spain,combining GGM and GNSS/Leveling observations

This research presents the results for analyses done to five geopotential global models(GGM),comparing them with ground data from GNSS and leveling in heterogenic zones from the geodetic perspective,in Chile and Spain.While the official and complete implementation of the International Height Reference Frame(IHRF)has not yet been established,the vertical geodetic system of many countries is not calculated on a global scale;instead,it is calculated by the variation of relative heights between one or more local tide gauges,such as in the case of Spain and Chile.This aspect creates regional and specific altimetry data,which disables the use of GGM to directly obtain the orthometric height of the vertical reference system(VRS)from the GNSS heights.Global models currently reach centimetric precision due to their high resolution but are directly incompatible for a local level.To solve this,we expose in this article the contrast between geometric geoidal undulation(ellipsoidal heights and orthometric data from the leveling networks in Spain and Chile)with the geoidal undulation in more recent models and higher resolution:Earth Gravitational Model 2008(EGM08),European Improved Gravity model of the Earth by New techniques(EIGEN6 C4),Gravity Observation Combination(GOCO05 C),Experimental Gravity Field Model(XGM2016),and Ultra-High Resolution Global Geopotential Model(SGG-UGM),adjusting the residual between both referential heights by different parametric models and polynomials of determined order.Once evaluated,their geoidal undulations are combined with GNSS/leveling data from the corresponding VRS to generate a correcting surface,which is also known as a hybrid geoid,resulting in a model of optimal adjustment for the combination of five parameters of the EIGEN-6 C4 with orthometric heights and ellipsoids of both Chile and Spain.The results show 2-3 cm precisions,which were statistically analyzed to determine the suitability for use.The final products are three grids of independent hybrid geoids,one for northern Spain and two for Chile(central and north),which allow continuous access to the VRS of each country using the GNSS’s full potential until the IHRF is available and ready for use.

A New Criterion for Distinguishing <i>Yendonia</i>Kylin and <i>Mikamiella</i>M.J. Wynne (Delesseriaceae, Rhodophyta)

An additional morphological criterion is presented to distinguish vegetative samples of the genera Yendonia and Mikamiella (Delesseriaceae, Rhodophyta). The undescribed earlier feature of Y. crassifolia is the presence of abundant lightrefracting cells in the tissues of the blades of both fertile and vegetative plants. This feature was never observed in Mikamiella, namely, in M. ruprechtiana. Additional data amending the description of the genus Yendonia are presented.

The IGN MEMS Accelerographs Record the First Accelerograms in Different Locations in the Lorca City

A recent earthquake (13 December 2018, Mag. 3.5) has allowed the recording 11 accelerograms from a network microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) low-cost accelerograph Silex. The National Geographic Institute of Spain (IGN) has built this kind of equipment and has installed in the Lorca City. The epicenter of the earthquake is only approximately 6 km from Lorca. This is important because an earthquake hit this city on 11th May, 2011. This earthquake caused nine deaths, more than 400 injured people and a loss estimated about $1 billion. We have also got records from two commercial accelerograhs GeoSig GMSPlus and GeoSig GSR-18 in two different stations in Lorca and we have been able to compare these signals with signals from Silex. We have studied carefully the records from places where peak accelerations are noticeably higher than in other locations. We have seen that the waveforms of these records have different features and we think that the effect sites are very important. Finally we have also compared the peak acceleration with macroseismic intensity obtained from questionnaries. We have checked there is no clear correlation between instrumental acceleration and macroseismic intensity at least for earthquake with small magnitudes.

Avalanche Warning Service without Frontiers in the Karawanks along the Slovenian-Austrian Border

The avalanche warning service was established within the operational European territorial cooperation program Slovenia-Austria （SI-AT） 2007-2013 project ＂Natural Hazards without Frontiers＂. Four institutes, two from Austria and two from Slovenia, work together to publish an avalanche report during the winter season. The first regular season was the winter 2012/2013. The avalanche and the slab avalanche situation in the transnational area along the 160 km border between the south of Austria and north of Slovenia show major differences of avalanche building weather situations. Because of the nearby sea in the southwest of Slovenia, the prevailing weather situations for high precipitation are coming from southwest or southeast. Nevertheless sometimes a lot of fresh snow occurs at northerly weather situations, which is unusual for Slovenian Alps and is therefore poorly forecasted for this region. Austrian avalanche experts are facing the same problems at southerly weather situations. Hence, an exchange of experience, weather data as well as model information improves the avalanche warning on both sides of the Austrian-Slovenian border.

Adsorption of Metal Ions by Sorbents Composed of Marine Alga Saccharina bongardiana and Poriferous Aluminosilicates

The development of gold and cobalt-copper-nickel deposits in Kamchatka threatens the loss of biodiversity in spawning rivers and lakes and has negative effects on coastal ecosystems. To reduce pollution by mining wastes, filters with dried marine alga Saccharina bongardiana in combination with zeolite and pumice are recommended. Combined Saccharina-based sorbents remove heavy metal ions more effectively, increasing adsorption capacity by five times compared to mineral （pumice） sorhents. As a result of desorption, a tenfold increase of the solution concentration is reached after the first sorption cycle. Valuable elements （Ni, Co, Cu etc.） can then be extracted from concentrates by any known method. It increases economic efficiency of the mining industry due to recycling of non-ferrous metals. Saccharina-based sorbents can be also utilized for purification of polluted natural waters. It may serve as environmental protection measure and provide for ecological safety of the unique natural environment of Kamchatka and its bioresources.

Zoning of Far Eastern Seas of Russia for Integrated Nature Management

On the Pacific coast of Russia implementation of the methodology of the integrated nature management has a number of peculiarities. On the one hand, these districts are characterized by severe hydrometeorological conditions. On the other hand, Russia has no applicable legislation on coastal issues. Thus, to prepare informational, theoretical and methodical bases for organization of sustained nature management in coastal zones of the Russian Federation, we developed hierarchy structure of delimitation of coastal areas and recommendations for their development on the basis of nature resource and social-economic zoning. Zoning of the Russian Far East is suggested to include two major directions： （1） planning of sustainable development of the region and （2） solving contradictions between fisheries and productions of oil and gas in the coastal zones.