MICROPLASTICS POLLUTION MONITORING IN BOTTOM SEDIMENTS OF THE SEVASTOPOL REGION RECREATION ZONES

A study of the concentration of microplastic pollution (MP) in the bottom sediments of the water areas adjoining recreation zones (RZ) of the Sevastopol region in 2018 - 2020 was carried out. An increase in MP was registered practically in all areas, the average values of MP concentration were 13.4 items•kg-1 dry weight. As for the shape of microplastics (MPs) particles, the maximum share was made up by frag-ments (50-83%), fibers were also numerous (33%). A significant increase in the concentration of MP on the 0-20 m section of the underwater coastal slope from the water edge was recorded in zones with an open water area and presence of a cliff. The revealed level of MP is comparable to that in the Mediterra-nean, Caspian, Baltic Seas, but an order of magnitude lower than in other regions of the World Ocean.

Assemblage of wetland bird Species in Purbasthali Oxbow Lake, West Bengal, India: Implications for Management

The present study attempts to assess the composition, abundance and diversity of avifauna with respect to their habitat in and around the Purbasthali wetland, based on both primary data collected through the point count method during 2017–2019 and literature data. Among the total 77 species (encompassing 10 orders and 19 families), 39 species are migrants, 18 are rare and 24 species show declining global trend. According to their habitat, they are sub-divided into three categories i.e. waterfowls (live in open water, 20 species), waders (live in bank areas/water edge area, 45 species) and wetland associated (live in nearby trees, 12 species). The Shannon-Wiener Diversity Index (H’) and the Evenness Index (E’) are used to examine the diversity within and between the habitats. The result reveals higher diversity and evenness of the waders in comparison to others. The maximum diversity (H′=3.02) and evenness (E′=0.79) has been recorded for the waders in 2019, whereas the least values (H′=1.02, E′=0.34) have been found in 2016 for the waterfowls. Relative Diversity Index affirms the dominance of the Anatidae family. The birds of the area have now been seriously threatened by human intervention.

A geographical assessment of Chariganga and Arpara Beel (wetlands) of Nadia, West Bengal as a habitat of wetland birds

The present study attempts to assess the impact of human intervention on the population, distribution, and habitat perspectives of the water birds found in and around Chariganga and Arpara ‘Beel’ wetlands, leftover channels of the River Bhagirathi. The point count method was adopted during field surveys conducted from April 2019 to March 2020. These wetlands are the natural habitats for 37 species of wetland birds belonging to 18 families and 11 orders, of which 26 species are residents, three are summer migrants, and eight are winter immigrants. The wetlands also harbour 10 bird species whose population is globally declining over the last few decades. Relative Diversity index unveils that among waterfowls Ardeidae is the dominant family. Species richness reaches its peak in winter, and is least during the monsoon. Empirical observation documented one Vulnerable (Greater Adjutant) and one Near Threatened (Black-Headed Ibis) species residing on the banks and adjoining paddy fields. Indiscriminate extraction of wetland products by local people, along with agricultural expansion towards the waterfront of the wetlands, has deteriorated the health of those wetlands and threatened the existence of waterbirds, especially shorebirds. Populations of 22 species living in water edge areas has changed conspicuously owing to cultural and economic activities of neighboring human groups. We suggest improving the ecological balance of the wetlands and restraining further degradation through proper management to preserve avian diversity.

THINK BIG, act small

<p>Porirua City is twenty minutes north of Wellington, New Zealand’s capital. The city is fifty years young and is home to the youngest demographic in the country. The city is culturally diverse but lacks a clear architectural representation of this cultural diversity. The city has developed around a beautiful harbour but the waterfront is underutilised in the city’s urban design. THINK BIG, act small proposes a design strategy that re-invents Porirua City’s urban future by bringing people back to its neglected water-edge. The proposition explores how design as process and outcome can empower a community for the future of a city through spatial agency and social engagement. The thesis explores the designer’s role in this process as landscape architect, architect, and social activist. A series of large, medium and small scale interventions are proposed. The Strategy is presented in three parts: 1. The Toolkit: a kit of architectural ideas designed to re-think the city’s urban environment around its relationship to water. These ideas can be deployed over time. 2. Two Temporary Projects: two small interventions from The Toolkit are tested in Porirua. An art installation and a community pop-up space are used to initiate conversations around the future of the city with people of the city. 3. The Big Move: a series of design moves, both big and small, are proposed as a composite vision for the future of Porirua. The proposition includes outcomes from the community pop-up space. The Big Move proposes a constructed wetland park, a series of blue-green streets, public pools, and housing. The aim is to establish new ecosystems that ease flooding, improve water quality, provide catalyst areas for economic growth, and create new social spaces for the city. The design aims to draw the harbour into the city. Polynesian and Maori attitudes towards land and water are integrated in the design: land is boundless and water is a bridge. A park, Te Awaura Park, is proposed as a ‘soft’ edge to the city’s existing boundary. The narrative of the park expresses the neighbourhood characterstics unique to each suburb in Porirua. The park aims to create a true local space, a space celebrating the city’s people.</p>

THINK BIG, act small

<p>Porirua City is twenty minutes north of Wellington, New Zealand’s capital. The city is fifty years young and is home to the youngest demographic in the country. The city is culturally diverse but lacks a clear architectural representation of this cultural diversity. The city has developed around a beautiful harbour but the waterfront is underutilised in the city’s urban design. THINK BIG, act small proposes a design strategy that re-invents Porirua City’s urban future by bringing people back to its neglected water-edge. The proposition explores how design as process and outcome can empower a community for the future of a city through spatial agency and social engagement. The thesis explores the designer’s role in this process as landscape architect, architect, and social activist. A series of large, medium and small scale interventions are proposed. The Strategy is presented in three parts: 1. The Toolkit: a kit of architectural ideas designed to re-think the city’s urban environment around its relationship to water. These ideas can be deployed over time. 2. Two Temporary Projects: two small interventions from The Toolkit are tested in Porirua. An art installation and a community pop-up space are used to initiate conversations around the future of the city with people of the city. 3. The Big Move: a series of design moves, both big and small, are proposed as a composite vision for the future of Porirua. The proposition includes outcomes from the community pop-up space. The Big Move proposes a constructed wetland park, a series of blue-green streets, public pools, and housing. The aim is to establish new ecosystems that ease flooding, improve water quality, provide catalyst areas for economic growth, and create new social spaces for the city. The design aims to draw the harbour into the city. Polynesian and Maori attitudes towards land and water are integrated in the design: land is boundless and water is a bridge. A park, Te Awaura Park, is proposed as a ‘soft’ edge to the city’s existing boundary. The narrative of the park expresses the neighbourhood characterstics unique to each suburb in Porirua. The park aims to create a true local space, a space celebrating the city’s people.</p>

Assessing the Vertical Displacement of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam during its Filling using DInSAR technology and its Potential Acute Consequences on the Downstream Countries

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), formerly known as the Millennium Dam, is currently under construction and has been filling at a fast rate without sufficient known analysis on possible impacts on the body of the structure. The filling of GERD not only has an impact on the Blue Nile Basin hydrology, water storages and flow but also pose massive risks in case of collapse. Rosaries Dam located in Sudan at only 116 km downstream of GERD, along with the 20 million Sudanese benefiting from that dam, would be seriously threatened in case of the collapse of GERD. In this study, through the analysis of Sentinal-1 satellite imagery we show concerning deformation patterns associated with different sections of the GERD&rsquo;s Main Dam (structure RCC Dam type) and the Saddle Dam (Embankment Dam type). We processed 109 descending mode scenes from Sentinel-1 SAR imagery, from December 2016 to July 2021, using the Differential Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry technique to demonstrate the deformation trends of both - the GERD&rsquo;s Main and Saddle Dams. The time-series generated from the analysis clearly indicates different displacement trends at various sections of the GERD as well as the Saddle Dam. Results of the multi temporal data analysis on and around the project area show inconsistent subsidence at the extremities of the GERD Main Dam, especially the west side of the dam where we recorded varying displacements in the range of 10 mm to 90 mm at the crest of the dam. We conducted the current analysis after masking the images with a coherence value of 0.9 and hence, the subsequent results are extremely reliable and accurate. Further decomposition of the subsiding rate has revealed higher vertical displacement over the west side of the GERD&rsquo;s Main Dam as compared to the east side. The local geological structures consisting of weak zones under the GERD&rsquo;s accompanying Saddle Dam adds further instability to its structure. We identified seven critical nodes on the Saddle Dam that match the tectonic faults lying underneath it, and which display a varying degree of vertical displacements. In fact, the nodes located next to each other displayed varying displacement trends: one or more nodes displayed subsidence since 2017 while the other node in the same section displayed uplift. The geological weak zones underneath and the weight of the Saddle Dam itself may somewhat explain this inconsistency and the non-uniform vertical displacements. For the most affected cells, we observed a total displacement value of ~90 mm during the whole study period (~20 mm/year) for the Main Dam while the value of the total displacement for the Saddle dam is ~380 mm during the same period (~85 mm/year). Analysis through CoastSat tool also suggested a non-uniformity in trends of surface water-edge at the two extremities of the Main Dam.

Mathematical models of water surface for geodetic support of construction in agro-industrial complex

The purpose of the study was to analyze the possibilities of using mathematical models of the water (level) surface of rivers and reservoirs for the transfer of elevations. The use of an empirical mathematical model obtained for the Irtysh River near the city of Omsk makes it possible to determine the heights in the investigated area with an accuracy of about 0.1 m. To determine the level of the water edge at the selected area, it is necessary to obtain: the mark of the water edge at the gauging station; the distance along the river from the gauging station to the work site. It is advisable to fix the water level at the gauging station and the work site simultaneously. For the elevation transfer from one river bank to another by the III class leveling program, the authors propose the technology of laying temporary benchmarks on the banks, fixing the level using special devices, and transferring the elevations of the fixed water level to temporary benchmarks. The technology contains the devices of simple design for accurate level fixing. The factors influencing the accuracy of the height transmission are: fixing the water level, the centrifugal forces of the flow, the Coreolis force caused by the rotation of the Earth, and the wind surge. The authors calculated the expected values of errors determining the accuracy: for fixing the level it was about 1 mm according to the proposed method; the height difference at the banks due to the forces of Coreolis was 0.007 m; the influence of centrifugal forces at a turning radius of 500 m causes a difference in heights at opposite banks of 0.1 m. In the result, the authors proposed the recommendations developed for transferring heights from one river bank to another using a class III leveling program, which ensure the specified accuracy.

Evolution of Edges and Porosity of Urban Blue Spaces: A Case Study of Gdańsk

Current waterfront studies focus mainly on a land-based perspective, failing to include the water side. Water is, however, not just a resource for port and industrial purposes and an edge to the waterfront; it is also a feature of the waterfront and the complex relation between water and city. Thus, the article suggests that water-land edges need to be re-contextualised, taking into consideration also their shape, functionality, and evolution over time. This article therefore introduces the concept of urban blue spaces, that is, spaces that include at least one land-water edge, such as a shoreline or river edge. The types and character of these edges define the porosity of urban blue spaces: Spaces with easy connections, such as boulevards or parks, are highly porous, while fenced areas have low porosity. The research first analyses the existing literature on the spatial and functional characteristics of the land-water edge in port cities, and explores existing typologies of urban blue spaces. The results of this investigation are used to examine the most iconic urban blue space of Gdańsk, the Motława river, over the last 1000 years. The case study shows that the porosity of the Gdańsk urban blue space has been increasing over time, in line with its spatial and functional development from an undeveloped riverbank to a ‘gated’ port and industry area, to urban living spaces today. The article thus presents the whole breadth of urban blue spaces through the case study of the Motława river urban blue space. The spatial evolution of the urban blue space is depicted through the transformation of its land-water edge—from a natural sloping edge to the dominance of vertical edged structures or ones overhanging the surface of the water, to the emergence of spatially ‘blurred’ sloping, slanted, terraced, and floating structures, partially independent of the riverbank. The transformation of the structure of the Motława urban blue space edges increased its complexity over time, from a single-edge structure to a double and multiple-edged one.

Development of a Model for Evaluating the Disaster Risk Around a Pier due to Local Scouring Based on the Observed Weather Information

Heavy rainfall disasters frequently damage bridge piers due to scouring, which resulted in collapse of bridges in many areas in Japan. In this study, we developed a model for evaluating the tilting risk of bridge pier due to scouring around the pier, which fluctuates depending on rainfall conditions based on machine learning. For evaluating the risk potential of scouring, we developed a model based on past disaster data due to scouring around the pier using a neural network. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis was conducted using the parameters of explanatory variables of the developed model, river level, and distance from the water edge to the pier. The results showed that the disaster risk around the pier due to scouring increased with the increase in river level and decrease in the distance from the water edge to the pier. Additionally, a river level prediction model was developed using support vector regression with the precipitation time measured 5 – 8 h beforehand and river level measured several hours earlier as an explanatory variable. Furthermore, this study shows that the two developed models can be combined with each other to assess the disaster risk around the jetty due to scouring, which varies with rainfall conditions, based on the observed meteorological information.

Water, Water Everywhere: Destiny, Politics and Commodification on New York’s Water Edge

<p>In 1973, in the midst of an economic downturn, New York City´s waterfront was envisioned as an enterprise for an urban renewal. This paper reflects on the interplay among a set of actors which was key in launching a more open, accessible, diverse and thrilling city´s edge. The intersecting condition among corporate capitalism, real estate, political interests and talented design illustrates the waterfront as particularly instrumental in the representation of a desire city to live in. However, the case study of two relevant built projects, Battery Park City and Gantry Plaza State Park, showcases different results in the challenge of the city´s waterfront strategy giving over its innovation, privileging instead the rapid commodification of the architecture and the unbalance between public and private interests.</p>