Boron Isotopic Analysis of Representative Atmospheric Aerosols Derived From Long-Range Transported/Local Emission on an Islet Offshore NE Taiwan

To identify pollutant origins and their potential sources from either long-range transported (LRT) or local emissions, the Boron (B) concentrations and the B isotopic compositions (δ11B) in the water-soluble fraction of aerosols were determined. These aerosols were collected from an islet offshore in northeastern Taiwan, Peng Chia Yu (PCY), a non-residential islet, from January 1998 to March 2000. This islet may be influenced by various pollutants or chemical transport during monsoon periods, but suffers minimal human perturbation locally. The B in the specimens falls to 0.3–1.63 ng m−3 during the SW monsoon seasons when compared to 0.46–2.56 ng m−3 in the NE monsoon. However, the δ11B results show no clear variations in both monsoon seasons (10.7–24.3‰), regardless of differences in air mass origin. A two end-member mixing scenario is proposed to explain our observations using the obtained δ11B and 1/[B] results. The ocean endmember is characterized by high 1/[B] and high δ11B; while other endmember is from continental endmember or anthropogenic contributions that are characterized by of 1/[B] and lowδ11B (δ11B < 10‰). Based on these chemical and isotopic results, we found aerosol emissions in northern Taiwan are characterized as low B with nearly constant δ11B, when compared with long-range transported continental endmembers derived from nearby regions. This study provides preliminary B and δ11B levels in aerosols derived from LRT/local emissions and discusses potential monsoonal effects on aerosols offshore of NE Taiwan.

COBRA: A Research Accelerator for the Crustal Ocean Biosphere

The deep seafloor covers two-thirds of Earth's surface area, but our understanding of the ecosystems and resources found in the deep ocean, as well as the ability of deep-sea ecosystems to withstand human perturbation, is limited. These deep-sea habitats demand urgent study as there are emergent human uses in the form of deep-sea mining and carbon sequestration that will fundamentally alter physical, chemical, and biological conditions that took millions of years to establish. We propose the international network COBRA, a research accelerator for the crustal ocean biosphere. COBRA will bring together diverse stakeholders and experts, including interdisciplinary academic and government scientists, private institutions, policy makers, data systems engineers, industry experts, and others to coordinate efforts that generate new knowledge and inform decision making about activities that could affect the deep ocean and, by extension, all of society. We will also train the next generation of leaders in ocean exploration, science, and policy through an innovative virtual program to carry this effort into future generations of ocean and earth science research. COBRA will inform policies relating to emergent industrial uses of the deep ocean, decrease the likelihood of serious harm to the environment, and maintain ecosystem services for the benefit of society.

Common ground: The foundation of interdisciplinary research on bat disease emergence

Human perturbation of natural systems is accelerating the emergence of infectious diseases, mandating integration of disease and ecological research. Bats have been associated with recent zoonoses, but our bibliometric analysis of coauthor relationships identified a separation of bat ecologists and infectious disease researchers with few cross-disciplinary relationships. Of 5,645 papers, true interdisciplinary collaborations occurred primarily in research focused on White Nose Syndrome (WNS). This finding is important because it illustrates how research with outcomes favoring both bat conservation and disease mitigation promotes domain integration and network connectivity. We advocate for increased engagement between ecology and infectious researchers to address such common causes and suggest that efforts focus on leveraging existing activities, building interdisciplinary projects, and networking individuals and networks to integrate domains and coordinate resources. We provide specific opportunities for pursuing these strategies through the Bat One Health Research Network (BOHRN).

Fire effects on soils: the human dimension

Soils are among the most valuable non-renewable resources on the Earth. They support natural vegetation and human agro-ecosystems, represent the largest terrestrial organic carbon stock, and act as stores and filters for water. Mankind has impacted on soils from its early days in many different ways, with burning being the first human perturbation at landscape scales. Fire has long been used as a tool to fertilize soils and control plant growth, but it can also substantially change vegetation, enhance soil erosion and even cause desertification of previously productive areas. Indeed fire is now regarded by some as the seventh soil-forming factor. Here we explore the effects of fire on soils as influenced by human interference. Human-induced fires have shaped our landscape for thousands of years and they are currently the most common fires in many parts of the world. We first give an overview of fire effect on soils and then focus specifically on (i) how traditional land-use practices involving fire, such as slash-and-burn or vegetation clearing, have affected and still are affecting soils; (ii) the effects of more modern uses of fire, such as fuel reduction or ecological burns, on soils; and (iii) the ongoing and potential future effects on soils of the complex interactions between human-induced land cover changes, climate warming and fire dynamics. This article is part of the themed issue ‘The interaction of fire and mankind’.

Regional Analysis on Decadal Variation in Aspects of Water Quality in Three Contrasting Coastal Systems of Ishikawa Coast, Japan

This study examines drivers and trends of change in time and space in some coastal water quality parameters and management/cultural practices on the Ishikawa coast, Japan, between 1984 and 2009. Generally, chemical oxygen demand (COD) and dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations varied significantly () across the three coastal compartments (Kanazawa area (KNA), Noto area (NTA), and Nanao area (NNA)), and pH and DO concentrations varied significantly () over the last three decades, suggesting that human perturbation within the last three decades varied along the coast and may be more relative than environmental change impact. Other water quality variables showed different spatial and temporal patterns and implications across the coastal compartments. Although there is a uniform approach to the development of water quality standards in Japan, these results suggest that setting stricter standards may be required by the prefectural government in collaboration with industry, stakeholders groups, and coastal community resource users.