scholarly journals Spring fuelling by arctic Dunlins Calidris a. alpina in the southern Baltic and the potential role of a changing climate

Ornis Svecica ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 22 (3–4) ◽  
pp. 80-92
Author(s):  
Johan Stedt ◽  
Åke Lindström

In spring, Dunlins Calidris a. alpina put on substantial fuel stores in the North Sea region before a long flight to breed in northwest Russia. There are hitherto no well-described fuelling sites in the Baltic region. In May and early June in 2004–2010 we trapped more than 1000 Dunlins at Ottenby, south-east Sweden. Most birds carried substantial fuel loads already when first trapped (much more than in autumn) and, more importantly, 37 within-season re-traps increased in mass at an average rate of 1.2 g/d. This corresponds to a fuelling rate of about 2.6% of lean body mass per day, among the highest recorded for this species. Stopover times were short; only 3.5% of the birds were re-trapped and they stayed on average only 2.2 days. Since the late 1970s, increasing numbers of Dunlins stop over at successively earlier dates. This coincides with an increase in spring temperature of 1.1–2.0°C in 1977–2010. Possibly, a warming climate has facilitated and selected for a gradual shift of the final fuelling sites closer towards the breeding grounds.

Author(s):  
Anders Galatius ◽  
Carl Christian Kinze ◽  
Jonas Teilmann

The harbour porpoise is seriously depleted and threatened with extinction in the Baltic Sea. It is usually assumed that Baltic porpoises form a separate population unit, although the evidence for this has been disputed lately. Here, a 3-D geometric morphometric approach was employed to test a number of hypotheses regarding population structure of the harbour porpoise in the Baltic region. 277 porpoise skulls from Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Germany and Poland were measured with a suite of 3-D landmarks. Statistical analyses revealed highly significant shape differences between porpoises from the North Sea, Belt Sea and the inner Baltic Sea. A comparison of the directionalities of the shape vectors between these units found differences that cannot be attributed to a general, continual shape trend going from the North Sea to the inner Baltic Sea. These vectors indicate a morphological adaptation to the specific sub-areas. Such adaptation may be the result of the topographic peculiarities of the area with variable topography and shallow waters, e.g. in the Belt Sea porpoises, there may be a greater reliance on benthic and demersal prey. The present results show that isolation by distance alone is an unlikely explanation for the differences found within the Baltic region and thus support previously reported molecular indications of a separate population within the inner Baltic Sea.


The development of the area, of the Thames Estuary is briefly traced since the late Cretaceous period, with its present outline being due to a combination of factors. The overall subsidence of the North Sea area, the ‘Alpine5 fold movements, and the transgression of the sea since the retreat of the Weichselian icesheets have all contributed. The positions of the shore-line during the critical phase, 9600 b.p. to 8000 b.p., of this last transgression of the sea are shown. Subsequent to this main transgressive phase, erosion of the shoreline has been rapid due to storm-waves and tidal current action. An estimation of the average rate of subsidence and/or sea-level rise is given based on the concept of sedimentary equilibrium in which a figure of 12.7 cm (5 in) per century is arrived at.


2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 3219-3230 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Kuliński ◽  
J. Pempkowiak

Abstract. This paper presents the results of a comprehensive study of the Baltic Sea carbon budget. The Baltic Sea is very much influenced by terrestrial carbon input. Rivers are the largest carbon source, and their input amounts to 10.90 Tg C yr−1 (Tg = 1012 g) with a 37.5% contribution of organic carbon. On the other hand, carbon is effectively exported from the Baltic to the North Sea (7.67 Tg C yr−1) and is also buried in bottom sediments (2.73 Tg C yr−1). The other sources and sinks of carbon are of minor importance. The net CO2 emission (1.05 Tg C yr−1) from the Baltic to the atmosphere was calculated as the closing term of the carbon budget presented here. There is a net loss of organic carbon, which indicates that the Baltic Sea is heterotrophic.


AmS-Skrifter ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 133-143
Author(s):  
Aoife Daly

The precise dating and determination of the source of timbers in shipwrecks found around the coasts of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, through dendrochronology allows us to see connections between north and  south, east and west throughout the region and to a high chronological precision. In this paper we take a look at results of recent analyses of timber from ships, and timber and barrel cargoes, to try to draw a chronological picture, from the twelfth to seventeenth centuries, of links between regions, through transport in oak ships and trade of timber. Archaeological finds of oak from timber cargos in shipwrecks and fine art objects (painted panels and sculpture) show the extent to which timber was shipped from Hanseatic towns along the southern Baltic coast, to western and north-western Europe.


2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (15) ◽  
pp. 21943-21974 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. E. Jonson ◽  
J. P. Jalkanen ◽  
L. Johansson ◽  
M. Gauss ◽  
H. A. C. Denier van der Gon

Abstract. Land-based emissions of air pollutants in Europe have steadily decreased over the past two decades, and this decrease is expected to continue. Within the same time span emissions from shipping have increased, although recently sulphur emissions, and subsequently particle emissions, have decreased in EU ports and in the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, defined as SECAs (Sulphur Emission Control Areas). The maximum allowed sulphur content in marine fuels in EU ports is now 0.1%, as required by the European Union sulphur directive. In the SECAs the maximum fuel content of sulphur is currently 1% (the global average is about 2.4%). This will be reduced to 0.1% from 2015, following the new IMO rules (International Maritime Organisation). In order to assess the effects of ship emissions in and around the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, regional model calculations with the EMEP air pollution model have been made on a 1/4° longitude × 1/8° latitude resolution, using ship emissions in the Baltic Sea and the North Sea that are based on accurate ship positioning data. The effects on depositions and air pollution and the resulting number of years of life lost (YOLL) have been calculated by comparing model calculations with and without ship emissions in the two sea areas. The calculations have been made with emissions representative of 2009 and 2011, i.e. before and after the implementation of stricter controls on sulphur emissions from mid 2010. The calculations with present emissions show that per person, an additional 0.1–0.2 years of life lost is estimated in areas close to the major ship tracks with present emission levels. Comparisons of model calculations with emissions before and after the implementation of stricter emission control on sulphur show a general decrease in calculated particle concentration. At the same time, however, an increase in ship activity has resulted in higher emissions and subsequently air concentrations, in particular of NOx, especially in and around several major ports. Additional model calculations have been made with land based and ship emissions representative of year 2030. Following a decrease in emissions, air quality is expected to improve, and depositions to be reduced. Particles from shipping are expected to decrease as a result of emission controls in the SECAs. Further controls of NOx emissions from shipping are not decided, and calculations are presented with and without such controls.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 66-87
Author(s):  
JOHANS C.G. KREEK

The emergence and early development of Kampen The town Kampen, at the mouth of the river IJssel (The Netherlands), seems to have originated in the 12th century ex nihilo. To explain this enigmatic start, many theories have been proposed. This article attributes its origin to a series of events, that started with the silting up of the Limjefjord after 1120 in the north of Jutland. This fjord was an important connection between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea for the small boats of the Frisian trade. The silting up of the fjord was a direct reason for the creation of the cog, a larger bulk carrier, that could circumnavigate Cape Skagen. Moreover, it could also take a shortcut over high seas to the mouth of the Vlie, and over the Almere to the mouth of the river IJssel. From there, the smaller Frisian ships used to sail over the IJssel to the German Rhine area, which was impossible for the seagoing cog. Therefore, the introduction of the cog prompted the foundation of a port for transshipment in the first half of the 12th century. This means Kampen did already exist as a settlement, when a storm surge in 1170 turned the Almere into the Zuiderzee and the settlement could take advantage of this environmental change.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (12) ◽  
pp. 7509-7530 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lin Tang ◽  
Martin O. P. Ramacher ◽  
Jana Moldanová ◽  
Volker Matthias ◽  
Matthias Karl ◽  
...  

Abstract. Ship emissions in and around ports are of interest for urban air quality management in many harbour cities. We investigated the impact of regional and local ship emissions on urban air quality for 2012 conditions in the city of Gothenburg, Sweden, the largest cargo port in Scandinavia. In order to assess the effects of ship emissions, a coupled regional- and local-scale model system has been set up using ship emissions in the Baltic Sea and the North Sea as well as in and around the port of Gothenburg. Ship emissions were calculated with the Ship Traffic Emission Assessment Model (STEAM), taking into account individual vessel characteristics and vessel activity data. The calculated contributions from local and regional shipping to local air pollution in Gothenburg were found to be substantial, especially in areas around the city ports. The relative contribution from local shipping to annual mean NO2 concentrations was 14 % as the model domain average, while the relative contribution from regional shipping in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea was 26 %. In an area close to the city terminals, the contribution of NO2 from local shipping (33 %) was higher than that of road traffic (28 %), which indicates the importance of controlling local shipping emissions. Local shipping emissions of NOx led to a decrease in the summer mean O3 levels in the city by 0.5 ppb (∼2 %) on average. Regional shipping led to a slight increase in O3 concentrations; however, the overall effect of regional and the local shipping together was a small decrease in the summer mean O3 concentrations in the city. In addition, volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from local shipping compensate up to 4 ppb of the decrease in summer O3 concentrations due to the NO titration effect. For particulate matter with a median aerodynamic diameter less than or equal to 2.5 µm (PM2.5), local ship emissions contributed only 3 % to the annual mean in the model domain, while regional shipping under 2012 conditions was a larger contributor, with an annual mean contribution of 11 % of the city domain average. Based on the modelled local and regional shipping contributions, the health effects of PM2.5, NO2 and ozone were assessed using the ALPHA-RiskPoll (ARP) model. An effect of the shipping-associated PM2.5 exposure in the modelled area was a mean decrease in the life expectancy by 0.015 years per person. The relative contribution of local shipping to the impact of total PM2.5 was 2.2 %, which can be compared to the 5.3 % contribution from local road traffic. The relative contribution of the regional shipping was 10.3 %. The mortalities due to the exposure to NO2 associated with shipping were calculated to be 2.6 premature deaths yr−1. The relative contribution of local and regional shipping to the total exposure to NO2 in the reference simulation was 14 % and 21 %, respectively. The shipping-related ozone exposures were due to the NO titration effect leading to a negative number of premature deaths. Our study shows that overall health impacts of regional shipping can be more significant than those of local shipping, emphasizing that abatement policy options on city-scale air pollution require close cooperation across governance levels. Our findings indicate that the strengthened Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECAs) fuel sulphur limit from 1 % to 0.1 % in 2015, leading to a strong decrease in the formation of secondary particulate matter on a regional scale was an important step in improving the air quality in the city.


2018 ◽  
Vol 212 ◽  
pp. 05004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vahe Davtyan

The issues of transport policy of Armenia in the context of integration into the international corridors (ITC) TRACECA and the "North-South" are considered. The key geopolitical factors impeding the integration process are identified. The basic threats to Armenia’s transport safety as an important component of national security are determined. The potential role of Armenia in the implementation of the TRACECA transport corridor at the opening of the Armenian-Turkish border is identified. The possibility of Armenia’s integration into the international transport corridor "North-South" through the implementation of the project of construction of Iran-Armenia is revealed.


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