Characterization of global wildfire burned area spatiotemporal patterns and underlying climatic causes

Wildfires are widespread disasters and are concurrently influenced by global climatic drivers. Due to the widespread and far-reaching influence of climatic drivers, separate regional wildfires may have similar climatic cause mechanisms. Determining a suite of global climatic drivers that explain most of the variations in different homogeneous wildfire regions will be of great significance for wildfire management, wildfire prediction, and global wildfire climatology. Therefore, this study first identified spatiotemporally homogeneous regions of burned area worldwide during 2001–2019 using a distinct empirical orthogonal function. Eight patterns with different spatiotemporal characteristics were identified. Then, the relationships between major burned area patterns and sixteen global climatic drivers were quantified based on wavelet analysis. The most significant global climatic drivers that strongly impacted each of the eight major wildfire patterns were identified. The most significant combinations of hotspots and climatic drivers were Atlantic multidecadal Oscillation-East Pacific/North Pacific Oscillation (EP/NP)-Pacific North American Pattern (PNA) with the pattern around Ukraine and Kazakhstan, El Niño/Southern Oscillation-Arctic Oscillation (AO)-East Atlantic/Western Russia Pattern (EA/WR) with the pattern in Australia, and PNA-AO-Polar/Eurasia Pattern-EA/WR with the pattern in Brazil. Overall, these results provide a reference for predicting wildfire and understanding wildfire homogeneity.

Effect of climatic oscillations on small pelagic fisheries and its economic profit in the Gulf of Cadiz

Several studies have shown the effect of climatic oscillations on fisheries. Small pelagic fish are of special global economic importance and very sensitive to fluctuations in the physical environment in which they live. The main goal of this study was to explore the relationship between the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), the East Atlantic pattern (EA), and the Arctic Oscillation (AO) on the landings and first sale prices of the most representative small pelagic commercial species of the purse-seine fisheries in the Gulf of Cadiz (North East Atlantic), the European anchovy Engraulis encrasicolus and the European sardine Sardine pilchardus. Generalised linear models (GLMs) with different data transformations and distribution errors were generated to analyse these relationships. The best results of the models were obtained by applying a moving average of order 3 to the dataset with a double weighted median. Our results demonstrate relationships between NAO, AO, and EA and European anchovy and sardine landings. These cause an indirect effect on the first sale price in markets through catch variations, which affect the price according to the law of supply and demand. The limitations of this study and management implications are discussed.

Monthly Rainfall Signatures of the North Atlantic Oscillation and East Atlantic Pattern in Great Britain

Atmospheric-oceanic circulations (teleconnections) have an important influence on regional climate. In Great Britain, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) has long been understood as the leading mode of climate variability, and its phase and magnitude have been found to influence regional rainfall in previous research. The East Atlantic Pattern (EA) is also increasingly recognised as being a secondary influence on European climate. In this study we use high resolution gridded rainfall and Standardised Precipitation Index (SPI) time series data for Great Britain to map the monthly rainfall signatures of the NAO and EA over the period January 1950–December 2015. Our analyses show that the influence of the two teleconnections varies in space and time with distinctive monthly signatures observed in both average rainfall/SPI-1 values and incidences of wet/dry extremes. In the winter months the NAO has a strong influence on rainfall and extremes in the north-western regions. Meanwhile, in the southern and central regions stronger EA-rainfall relationships are present. In the summer months opposing positive/negative phases of the NAO and EA result in stronger wet/dry signatures which are more spatially consistent. Our findings suggest that both the NAO and EA have a prominent influence on regional rainfall distribution and volume in Great Britain, which in turn has implications for the use of teleconnection forecasts in water management Decemberision making. We conclude that accounting for both NAO and EA influences will lead to an enhanced understanding of both historic and future spatial distribution of monthly precipitation.

Marine protected areas in the north east Atlantic Ocean and Southern Ocean : the role of regional organisations in areas beyond national jurisdiction

<p>The international community has recognised Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) as an important tool for area-based management of ecosystems. Regional organisations have taken the lead in areas beyond national jurisdiction to create MPAs. This paper will compare the issues facing the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and the relevant Antarctic Treaty bodies in the Southern Ocean, to the North-East Atlantic Ocean where the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR) and the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) are the lead bodies. Many of the issues that face each region in designating MPAs differ due to geopolitical differences; resulting in the North-East Atlantic producing more success in designating a network of MPAs. The North-East Atlantic organisations, however, face more difficulties to ensure the comprehensive management of MPAs. As CCAMLR and the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty sit within the Antarctic Treaty System, the potential exists for a better integrated management framework in the Southern Ocean. The themes from both regions will then be put into a wider global context to provide some guidance and identify issues for other regional organisations seeking to establish MPAs in ABNJ.</p>

Marine protected areas in the north east Atlantic Ocean and Southern Ocean : the role of regional organisations in areas beyond national jurisdiction

<p>The international community has recognised Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) as an important tool for area-based management of ecosystems. Regional organisations have taken the lead in areas beyond national jurisdiction to create MPAs. This paper will compare the issues facing the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and the relevant Antarctic Treaty bodies in the Southern Ocean, to the North-East Atlantic Ocean where the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR) and the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) are the lead bodies. Many of the issues that face each region in designating MPAs differ due to geopolitical differences; resulting in the North-East Atlantic producing more success in designating a network of MPAs. The North-East Atlantic organisations, however, face more difficulties to ensure the comprehensive management of MPAs. As CCAMLR and the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty sit within the Antarctic Treaty System, the potential exists for a better integrated management framework in the Southern Ocean. The themes from both regions will then be put into a wider global context to provide some guidance and identify issues for other regional organisations seeking to establish MPAs in ABNJ.</p>