scholarly journals Forest harvesting impacts on the peak flow regime in the Columbia Mountains of southeastern British Columbia: An investigation using long-term numerical modeling

2004 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Markus Schnorbus ◽  
Younes Alila
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Numerical Modeling ◽  
Flow Regime ◽  
Peak Flow ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Columbia Mountains

To log or not to log? How forestry fits with the goals of First Nations in British Columbia

2015 ◽  
Vol 45 (6) ◽  
pp. 639-646 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Nikolakis ◽  
Harry Nelson
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
First Nations ◽  
Forest Harvesting ◽  
Effective Governance ◽  
Forest Tenure ◽  
Expected Benefits ◽  
The Government ◽  
Forest Values ◽  
The Individual

Commercial forestry has played an important role in the Canadian economy. Yet, First Nations (FNs) communities have not shared equitably in the benefits. Since 2002, the government of British Columbia (BC) has actively sought to address this inequity by increasing the volume of forest harvesting tenures to FNs. The rationale is that rights to harvest will also enhance economic and then social outcomes, as well as address broader legal and political disputes. However, whether these rights can translate into the expected benefits has received little attention. This paper seeks to help address this knowledge gap by interviewing FNs experts and forestry professionals in BC to understand the long-term goals of FNs in forestry, to strategically evaluate how (and if) opportunities from forestry arise, and to identify institutional factors that influence successful participation in forestry. What we found is that forest tenure can promote economic outcomes, but it often comes at the expense of other intrinsic forest values. We conclude that a rights-based approach alone will not achieve the diverse outcomes related to forestry without effective governance by FNs to evaluate and capitalize on the opportunity in ways that are legitimate to the individual community’s values.

Bedforms, bed material, and bedload transport in a salt-wedge estuary: Fraser River, British Columbia

1989 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 1440-1452 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. A. Kostaschuk ◽  
M. A. Church ◽  
J. L. Luternauer
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
River Discharge ◽  
Bedload Transport ◽  
Fraser River ◽  
Seasonal Fluctuations ◽  
Salt Wedge ◽  
Migration Rates ◽  
Material Load ◽  
Bed Material

The lower main channel of the Fraser River, British Columbia, is a sand-bed, salt-wedge estuary in which variations in velocity, discharge, and bedform characteristics are contolled by river discharge and the tides. Bed-material composition remains consistent over the discharge season and in the long term. Changes in bedform height and length follow but lag behind seasonal fluctuations in river discharge. Migration rates of bedforms respond more directly to river discharge and tidal fall than do height and length. Bedform characteristics were utilized to estimate bedload transport in the estuary, and a strong, direct, but very sensitive relationship was found between bed load and river discharge. Annual bedload transport in the estuary is estimated to be of the order of 0.35 Mt in 1986. Bedload transport in the estuary appears to be higher than in reaches upstream, possibly because of an increase in sediment movement along the bed to compensate for a reduction in suspended bed-material load produced by tidal slack water and the salt wedge.

A methodology for optimizing modeling configuration in the numerical modeling of oil concentrations in underwater blowouts: a North Sea case study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrés Martínez
Keyword(s):  
Sensitivity Analysis ◽  
Numerical Modeling ◽  
High Resolution ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Data Bases ◽  
Lagrangian Trajectory ◽  
Number Of Particles

<p><strong>A METHODOLOGY FOR OPTIMIZING MODELING CONFIGURATION IN THE NUMERICAL MODELING OF OIL CONCENTRATIONS IN UNDERWATER BLOWOUTS: A NORTH SEA CASE STUDY</strong></p><p>Andrés Martínez<sup>a,*</sup>, Ana J. Abascal<sup>a</sup>, Andrés García<sup>a</sup>, Beatriz Pérez-Díaz<sup>a</sup>, Germán Aragón<sup>a</sup>, Raúl Medina<sup>a</sup></p><p><sup>a</sup>IHCantabria - Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria, Avda. Isabel Torres, 15, 39011 Santander, Spain</p><p><sup>* </sup>Corresponding author: [email protected]</p><p>Underwater oil and gas blowouts are not easy to repair. It may take months before the well is finally capped, releasing large amounts of oil into the marine environment. In addition, persistent oils (crude oil, fuel oil, etc.) break up and dissipate slowly, so they often reach the shore before the cleanup is completed, affecting vasts extension of seas-oceans, just as posing a major threat to marine organisms.</p><p>On account of the above, numerical modeling of underwater blowouts demands great computing power. High-resolution, long-term data bases of wind-ocean currents are needed to be able to properly model the trajectory of the spill at both regional (open sea) and local level (coastline), just as to account for temporal variability. Moreover, a large number of particles, just as a high-resolution grid, are unavoidable in order to ensure accurate modeling of oil concentrations, of utmost importance in risk assessment, so that threshold concentrations can be established (threshold concentrations tell you what level of exposure to a compound could harm marine organisms).</p><p>In this study, an innovative methodology has been accomplished for the purpose of optimizing modeling configuration: number of particles and grid resolution, in the modeling of an underwater blowout, with a view to accurately represent oil concentrations, especially when threshold concentrations are considered. In doing so, statistical analyses (dimensionality reduction and clustering techniques), just as numerical modeling, have been applied.</p><p>It is composed of the following partial steps: (i) classification of i representative clusters of forcing patterns (based on PCA and K-means algorithms) from long-term wind-ocean current hindcast data bases, so that forcing variability in the study area is accounted for; (ii) definition of j modeling scenarios, based on key blowout parameters (oil type, flow rate, etc.) and modeling configuration (number of particles and grid resolution); (iii) Lagrangian trajectory modeling of the combination of the i clusters of forcing patterns and the j modeling scenarios; (iv) sensitivity analysis of the Lagrangian trajectory model output: oil concentrations,  to modeling configuration; (v) finally, as a result, the optimal modeling configuration, given a certain underwater blowout (its key parameters), is provided.</p><p>It has been applied to a hypothetical underwater blowout in the North Sea, one of the world’s most active seas in terms of offshore oil and gas exploration and production. A 5,000 cubic meter per day-flow rate oil spill, flowing from the well over a 15-day period, has been modeled (assuming a 31-day period of subsequent drift for a 46-day modeling). Moreover, threshold concentrations of 0.1, 0.25, 1 and 10 grams per square meter have been applied in the sensitivity analysis. The findings of this study stress the importance of modeling configuration in accurate modeling of oil concentrations, in particular if lower threshold concentrations are considered.</p>

scholarly journals Spatially varying constraints of human-caused fire occurrence in British Columbia, Canada

2017 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip E. Camp ◽  
Meg A. Krawchuk
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Spatial Patterns ◽  
Fire Management ◽  
Fire Occurrence ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
Human Footprint ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Key Drivers ◽  
Spatially Varying

Human-caused wildfires are controlled by human and natural influences, and determining their key drivers is critical for understanding spatial patterns of wildfire and implementing effective fire management. We examined an array of explanatory variables that account for spatial controls of human-caused fire occurrence from 1990 to 2013 among six ecosystem zones that vary in human footprint and environmental characteristics in British Columbia, Canada. We found that long-term patterns of human-caused fire in ecosystem zones with a larger human footprint were strongly controlled by biophysical variables explaining conditions conducive to burning, whereas fire occurrence in remote ecosystem zones was controlled by various metrics of human activity. A metric representing the wildland–urban interface was a key factor explaining human-caused fire occurrence regardless of ecosystem zone. Our results contribute to the growing body of research on the varying constraints of spatial patterns of fire occurrence by explicitly examining human-caused fire and the heterogeneity of constraints based on human development.

scholarly journals Patterns and trends in long-term opioid use for non-cancer pain in British Columbia, 2005–2012

2016 ◽  
Vol 107 (4-5) ◽  
pp. e404-e409 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Smolina ◽  
Emilie J. Gladstone ◽  
Kimberly Rutherford ◽  
Steven G. Morgan
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Cancer Pain ◽  
Opioid Use

Geochemistry and Sr–Nd isotopic composition of Eocene lamphrophyre dykes, southeastern British Columbia

2003 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 853-864 ◽  
Author(s):  
J H Sevigny ◽  
R J Thériault
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Limited Range ◽  
Calc Alkaline ◽  
Lithospheric Thinning ◽  
Enriched Mantle ◽  
Mantle Enrichment ◽  
Mantle Reservoir ◽  
Geochemical Analyses ◽  
Alkaline Lamprophyres

Mineral compositions, geochemical analyses, and Sr–Nd isotopic compositions are reported for alkaline and calc-alkaline lamprophyres collected along the southern margin of the Valhalla Complex, southeastern British Columbia. The lamprophyres were emplaced during Eocene extension and lithospheric thinning associated with tectonic denudation of the Valhalla Complex. SiO2 contents range from 44.4–51.6 wt.%, K2O from 1.3–3.7 wt.%, and volatile contents (H2O + CO2 + SO3) from 0.8–4.6 wt.%. MgO and Cr contents are 9.5–7.6 wt.% and 540–130 ppm, respectively, for samples with Mg#s between 0.69 and 0.65. Chrondrite-normalized rare-earth element patterns are strongly fractionated with Cen = 120–375 and Ybn = 8.4–12.7. Alkaline lamprophyres contain biotite ± kaersutite ± calcic plagioclase and exhibit a limited range in initial 87Sr/86Sr (0.7051–0.7057), initial εNd (–3.7 to –4.3), and TDM (766–796 Ma). Calc-alkaline lamprophyres contain F-rich phlogopite and sodic plagioclase, and exhibit a wider range in initial 87Sr/86Sr (0.7064–0.7090), initial εNd (–6.3 to –11.9), and TDM (917–1,614 Ma). Alkaline lamprophyres are interpreted as uncontaminated melts derived from a long-term, volatile, and incompatible element-enriched mantle reservoir. Mantle enrichment coincided with continental rifting of western North America (ca. 760 Ma). The enriched mantle reservoir remained isolated for ~700 Ma. Lamprophyres were generated by partial melting of the mantle reservoir in response to adiabatic decompression and lithospheric thinning during Eocene extension.

scholarly journals Adjacency to a harvest trail increases drought resistance of interior Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca) in partially harvested stands in central British Columbia

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (7) ◽  
pp. 809-820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neil P. Thompson ◽  
Kathy J. Lewis ◽  
Lisa M. Poirier
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Drought Tolerance ◽  
Pseudotsuga Menziesii ◽  
Growth Rates ◽  
Habitat Management ◽  
Odocoileus Hemionus ◽  
Douglas Fir ◽  
Ring Analysis ◽  
The Relationship

Drought tolerance of trees may be affected by competition, but most studies quantifying the relationship do not consider the effect of stem clustering. Trees are often clustered in interior Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca (Mayr) Franco) forests near the grassland interface in central British Columbia due to past harvesting practices or habitat management for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus hemionus (Rafinesque, 1817)). Climate change projections indicate continued increases in temperature, an outcome that would stress trees growing in dry environments. Trees placed in different states of competition by mechanical harvesting in the 1970s were sampled to provide a 40-year comparison of three levels of competition during 1–2 year droughts. Tree-ring analysis was used to assess the reduction in growth during drought years and resumption of growth in subsequent years. A clear separation of growth rates was evident between open-growing trees, trees on the edge of harvesting trails, and trees within the unharvested interior. Edge trees had intermediate growth rates but no differences were found in the long-term climate–growth relationship compared with open-growing trees. Both Edge and Open classes showed less relative growth reduction during droughts than Interior trees growing between harvest trails. Precipitation throughfall rates and competition for resources are likely driving short-term drought tolerance in combination with other factors.

scholarly journals Investigation of the Effects of Surrounding Media on the Distributed Acoustic Sensing of Helically-Wound Fiber-Optic Cable with Application to the New Afton Deposit, British Columbia

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sepidehalsadat Hendi ◽  
Mostafa Gorjian ◽  
Gilles Bellefleur ◽  
Christopher D. Hawkes ◽  
Don White
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Numerical Modeling ◽  
Analytical Model ◽  
Field Data ◽  
Fiber Optic ◽  
Incident Angle ◽  
Acoustic Sensing ◽  
Distributed Acoustic Sensing ◽  
Straight Fiber

Abstract. Fiber optic sensing technology has recently become popular for oil and gas, mining, geotechnical engineering, and hydrogeology applications. With a successful track record in many applications, distributed acoustic sensing using straight fiber optic cables has become a method of choice for seismic studies. However, distributed acoustic sensing using straight fiber optic cables is not able to detect off-axial strain, hence a helically wound cable design was introduced to overcome this limitation. The helically wound cable field data in New Afton deposit showed that the quality of the data is tightly dependent on the incident angle (the angle between the ray and normal vector of the surface) and surrounding media. We introduce a new analytical two-dimensional approach to determine the dynamic strain of a helically wound cable in terms of incident angle in response to elastic plane waves propagating through multilayered media. The method can be used to quickly and efficiently assess the effects of various materials surrounding a helically wound cable. Results from the proposed analytical model are compared with results from numerical modeling obtained with COMSOL Multiphysics, for scenarios corresponding to a real installation of helically wound cable deployed underground at the New Afton mine in British Columbia, Canada. Results from the analytical model are consistent with numerical modeling results. Our modeling results demonstrate the effects of cement quality, and casing installment on the quality of the helically-wound cable response. Numerical modeling results and field data suggest that, even if reasonably effective coupling achieved, the soft nature of the rocks in these intervals would result in low fiber strains for the HWC. The proposed numerical modeling workflow would be applied for more complicated scenarios (e.g., non-linear material constitutive behaviour, and the effects of pore fluids). The results of this paper can be used as a guideline for analyzing the effect of surrounding media and incident angle on the response of helically wound cable, optimizing the installation of helically wound cable in various conditions, and to validate boundary conditions of 3-D numerical model built for analyzing complex scenarios.

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