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oceansAugust 26, 2013, 11:51 am47 Comments
Papers Find Mixed Impacts on Ocean Species from Rising
CO2
By ANDREW
C. REVKIN


Royal Society
A detail from the cover of a Royal Society journal issue focused on the
impacts of rising carbon dioxide levels on ocean ecosystems. The image is of CO2
bubbles rising from a volcanic vent near Naples.
Britain’s Royal Society has published a helpful new collection of papers in
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B that provide fresh insights on
how the global buildup of carbon dioxide released by human activities could
affect ocean ecology.


The work adds to a growing body of science pointing to large changes, with
some types of marine organisms and ecosystems seemingly able to adjust and even
thrive, while others ail. And it’s quite clear that regions already heavily
affected by other human activities (coastal pollution, overfishing, etc.) are —
no surprise — likely to feel more stress from acidification.


The nine new studies in the Royal Society journal provide valuable detail and
find a mix of impacts. Experiments transplanting certain worms around a volcanic
carbon dioxide vent in the sea floor near Naples show remarkable adaptability in
these organisms, both through shifts in metabolism and genetics. A
poles-to-tropics assay of sea urchins shows significant impacts on larvae.


One study demonstrated that not all shifts in species’ prospects are the
result of changing pH. Competition matters. In this analysis, mat-forming algae
appeared to thrive in CO2-enriched marine conditions, to the detriment of corals
and kelp (an echo of how some forests studies show vines thriving at the expense of
trees
).


A year-long laboratory study of coccolithophores — an important type of phytoplankton — found they
remained capable of forming their calcium carbonate skeletons even in warmer,
more acidic water. The study, which propagated 700 generations of the
coccoliths*, pointed out the value of longer-duration experiments.


Most of the work is accessible only with a subscription but an excellent
summary is provided in an overview paper written by the two scientists, Jasmin
A. Godbold of University of Southampton and Piero Calosi of Plymouth University,
who assembled the package of studies. A link to their overview is below, along
with excerpts from university news releases on two of the papers.


As Bryan Walsh summarized nicely in Time today, a
separate review of existing research on marine animals in acidifying
conditions
, published on Sunday in Nature Climate Change, found
uniformly negative impacts.


It’s great to see this emerging body of work given that the oceans, despite
occupying two thirds of Earth’s surface and showing signs of substantial change
driven by the buildup of carbon dioxide emitted by human activities, have
remained a secondary scientific focus.


The vast majority of research in recent decades on the carbon dioxide buildup
has been focused on the atmospheric impacts of the accumulating greenhouse-gas
blanket even though the vast majority of the heated trapped by these gases has
gone first into the seas — and the drop in seawater pH driven by CO2 has been a
clear signal of substantial environmental change.


In 2005, Britain’s Royal Society issued “Ocean acidification due to increasing atmospheric carbon
dioxide
,” a helpful report summarizing the state of knowledge at
the time.


Despite its climate-centric name and mission, the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change
has been focusing increasing attention on direct ocean impacts of carbon
dioxide
, most notably in an excellent 2011 report, “IPCC Workshop on Impacts of Ocean Acidification on Marine
Biology and Ecosystems
.” The workshop summarized the state of
understanding, key uncertainties and next research steps on the shifting
chemistry of the oceans and the impacts on species and ecosystems, with a focus
on ecosystems of particular interest to humans.


You’ll see fresh detail, and fresh questions, in the panel’s fifth assessment
of climate science, which starts rolling out in late September.


Please click here to read the overview of the newly published studies by
Godbold and Calosi: “Ocean acidification and climate change: advances in ecology and
evolution
.”


Here’s an excerpt from the San Francisco State University news release on the
laboratory experiment with diatoms:



A year-long experiment on tiny ocean organisms called coccolithophores
suggests that the single-celled algae may still be able to grow their calcified
shells even as oceans grow warmer and more acidic in Earth’s near future.


The study stands in contrast to earlier studies suggesting that
coccolithophores would fail to build strong shells in acidic waters. The world’s
oceans are expected to become more acidic as human activities pump increasing
amounts of carbon dioxide into the Earth’s atmosphere.


But after the researchers raised one strain of the Emiliania huxleyi
coccolithophore for over 700 generations, which took about 12 months, under high
temperature and acidified conditions that are expected for the oceans 100 years
from now, the organisms had no trouble producing their plated shells. [Read the rest.]


Here’s an excerpt from the news release on the fascinating work examining the
response of certain worm species when transplanted in and around the
1,850-year-old seabed CO2 vent off Naples:



Researchers have discovered that some species of polychaete worms are able to
modify their metabolic rates to better cope with and thrive in waters high in
carbon dioxide (CO2), which is otherwise poisonous to other, often
closely-related species.


The study sheds new light on the robustness of some marine species and the
relative resilience of marine biodiversity should atmospheric CO2 continue to
cause ocean acidification….


A team of scientists led by Plymouth University, and including colleagues
from the Naples Zoological Station in Ischia; the Marine Ecology Laboratory ENEA
in La Spezia, Italy; the University of Texas Galveston; and the University of
Hull, conducted a three-year research project into the potential mechanisms that
species of worm polychaetes use to live around the underwater CO2 vent of Ischia
in Southern Italy.


The researchers collected specimens found in waters characterised by either
elevated or low levels of CO2, and placed them in specially-constructed
‘transplantation chambers’, which were then lowered into areas both within and
away from the volcanic vent.


They monitored the responses of the worms and found that one of the species
that had been living inside the CO2 vent was physiologically and genetically
adapted to the acidic conditions, whilst another was able to survive inside the
vent by adjusting its metabolism.


Project leader Dr. Piero Calosi, of Plymouth University’s Marine Institute,
said: “Previous studies have shown that single-cell algae can genetically adapt
to elevated levels of carbon dioxide, but this research has demonstrated that a
marine animal can physiologically and genetically adapt to chronic and elevated
levels of carbon dioxide.


“Furthermore, we show that both plasticity and adaptation are key to
preventing some species’ from suffering extinction in the face of on-going ocean
acidification, and that these two strategies may be largely responsible to
defining the fate of marine biodiversity.”


The results revealed that species normally found inside the CO2 vent were
better able to regulate their metabolic rate when exposed to high CO2
conditions, whilst species only found outside the CO2 vent were clearly impaired
by acidic waters. In fact, their metabolism either greatly decreased, indicating
reduced energy production, or greatly increased, indicating a surge in the basic
cost of living, in both cases making life inside the vent unsustainable.


Dr. Maria-Cristina Gambi, of the Naples Zoological Station in Ischia,
explained: “Despite some species showing the ability to metabolically adapt and
adjust to the extreme conditions that are found inside the CO2 vents, others
appear unable to physiologically cope with such conditions.


”In this sense, our findings could help to explain mass extinctions of the
past, and potential extinctions in the future, as well as shed light on the
resilience of some species to on-going ocean acidification.”


The team also found that those species adapted to live inside the CO2 vent
showed slightly higher metabolic rates and were much smaller in size – up to 80%
smaller – indicating that adaptation came at a cost of energy for growth.


Dr. Calosi concluded that: ”Ultimately, species’ physiological responses to
high CO2, as those reported by our study, may have repercussions on their
abundance and distribution, and thus on the structure and dynamics of marine
communities. This in turn will impact those ecosystem functions that humans rely
upon to obtain goods and services from the ocean.” [Read the rest.]


Here’s the full list of studies, with summaries:



Adaptation and acclimatization to ocean acidification in marine
ectotherms: an in situ transplant experiment with polychaetes at a shallow
CO2 vent system



Calosi, Piero; Rastrick, Samuel; Lombardi, Chiara; de Guzman, Heidi;
Davidson, Laura; Jahncke, Marlene; Giangrande, Adriana; Hardege, Joerg;
Schultze, Anja; Spicer, John; Gambi, Maria Cristina



To investigate the extent to which nature or nurture determines marine
animals’ responses to Ocean Acidification (OA) we carried out in-situ
transplants using tolerant and sensitive worms living around a natural
CO2 vent. Two tolerant species respond
differently. One shows adaptation, evolving higher metabolism and smaller size
(nature) but the other responds using acclimation, maintaining its size
(nurture). The metabolism of sensitive species altered greatly but
unpredictably. Marine animals can respond to OA by evolving or being plastic,
the response being species-specific. This work throws light on sensitivity of
species to past mass extinctions, and resilience to ongoing acidification.


Long-term effects of warming and ocean acidification are
modified by seasonal variation in species responses and environmental
conditions



Godbold, Jasmin; Solan, Martin


Over the last decade, the impacts of warming and ocean acidification have
received considerable attention, and there is clear consensus that these
stressors will have far-reaching consequences for species and ecosystems. Much
of the evidence, however, is based on short-term experiments that ignore
long-term variation in how species and ecosystems respond. Using the longest
study to date, we show that species can take much longer times to respond than
previously thought and that the impact of these responses on important ecosystem
properties varies with season. These findings suggest that the ecological
consequences of climate change may diverge from present expectations.


The other ocean acidification problem: CO2 as a resource among
competitors for ecosystem dominance



Connell, Sean; Kroeker, Kristy; Fabricius, Katharina; Kline, David;
Russell, Bayden

We explore how ocean acidification combines with
complex environmental changes across a number of scales, highlight the
multiplicity of factors and complexities that cause variation, and raise
awareness of CO2 as a resource whose change in
availability could have wide ranging community consequences beyond its direct
effects.  The positive effects of CO2 on
producers are likely to be highly variable among species. Accordingly, there is
an enormous potential for shifts in species dominance, as some species gain a
relative advantage in a high CO2 world.


Short- and long-term conditioning of a temperate marine diatom
community to acidification and warming



Tatters, Avery; Roleda, Michael; Schnetzer, Astrid; Fu, Feixue; Hurd,
Catriona; Boyd, Phillip; Caron, David; Lie, Alle; Hoffmann, Linn; Hutchins,
David



Ocean acidification and greenhouse warming will interactively influence
competitive success of key phytoplankton groups such as diatoms, but how
long-term responses to global change will affect community structure is unknown.
We incubated a natural diatom community from coastal New Zealand waters in a
short-term incubation experiment using a factorial matrix of temperature and
CO2, and measured effects on community
structure. Our results support the use of short-term manipulative experiments
spanning weeks as proxies to understand the potential effects of global change
forcing on diatom community structure over longer timescales such as years.


Ocean acidification and rising temperatures may increase biofilm
primary productivity but decrease grazer consumption




Russell, Bayden; Connell, Sean; Findlay, Helen; Tait, Karen; Widdicombe,
Stephen; Mieszkowska, Nova

Warming and acidifying oceans, a
consequence of carbon dioxide emissions, are changing coastal ecosystems; we
know this. Our experiment shows that these changes may be unpredictable because
the combination of temperature and acidification changes the amount and type of
biofilm, green rock slime at the base of the intertidal food web, while reducing
the ability of marine snails to eat it. This inability of snails to compensate
for higher maintenance costs, likely to be a stress response as they are pushed
beyond their normal functioning range, warns us that these ecosystems are likely
to change beyond what we currently know.


Bioturbation determines the response of benthic ammonia
oxidising microorganisms to ocean acidification




Laverock, Bonnie; Kitidis, Vassilis; Tait, Karen; Gilbert, Jack; Osborn,
A; Widdicombe, Stephen

Nitrification is a key process in coastal
sediments, contributing to the breakdown of organic matter and the recycling of
nutrients in both the sediments and the overlying water. However, microbial
nitrification rates in seawater are dramatically inhibited by ocean
acidification. We show that, in coastal sediments, the response may be dependent
upon animals living within the sediment. Under normal conditions, mud shrimps
enhance sediment nitrification rates, but at reduced seawater pH, this
functionality rapidly declines. Ocean acidification therefore has the potential
to significantly alter coastal nutrient cycling and productivity through
knock-on effects on animal-microbe interactions.


Effects of acidification on olfactory-mediated behaviour in
freshwater and marine ecosystems: a synthesis




Leduc, Antoine; Munday, Philip; Brown, Grant; Ferrari,
Maud

Aquatic ecosystem acidification has significant detrimental
consequences to olfaction and chemosensory abilities of aquatic organisms. This
loss of sensory function may lead to impaired behavioural responses of
potentially far-reaching consequences in population dynamics and community
structure. Whereas the ecological impacts of such impairments may be similar
between freshwater and marine ecosystems, the underlying mechanisms are quite
distinct. Molecular change to chemicals at low pH is the primary cause of
impaired olfactory-mediated behaviour of fishes in freshwater conditions. In
contrast, interference of high CO2 with brain
neurotransmitter functions is the primary cause of such impaired behaviour in
experiments simulating future ocean acidification.


The stunting effect of a high CO2 ocean on calcification and
development in sea urchin larvae, a synthesis from the tropics to the
poles




Byrne, Maria; Lamare, Miles; Uthicke, Sven; Dworjanyn, Symon; Winter,
David



The ocean is warming, acidifying and decreasing in mineral saturation,
compromising the ability of larvae to make shells and skeletons. We analysed
responses of the calcifying larvae of sea urchins, an ecologically important
group, to ocean change stressors in a synthesis of data from species from
tropical to polar environments and from intertidal to subtidal habitats.
Acidification impairs calcification and growth while warming promotes growth. We
need to understand the effects of both stressors. Responses of larvae from
across world regions indicate overall trends despite disparate environments and
ecology as well as differences in the sensitivities of tropical and polar
species.


Emiliania huxleyi increases calcification but
not expression of calcification-related genes in long-term exposure to elevated
temperature and pCO2

Benner, Ina; Diner, Rachel;
Lefebvre, Stephane; Li, Dian; Komada, Tomoko; Carpenter, Edward; Stillman,
Jonathon


We cultured a globally important calcifying phytoplankton, the
coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi, for >700 generations under present
and future ocean conditions of carbon dioxide and temperature, and analyzed
their physiological and genomic response.  We found that cells produced more
calcium carbonate under future ocean conditions, but had the same amount of
organic carbon as in present conditions.  Surprisingly, they did this without
altering the expression of genes thought to be involved with the calcification
process.  Our findings have significance for global carbon cycling, oceanic
carbon sequestration, and the cellular biology of
coccolithophores.


Updated, 10:41 p.m. |  At
the asterisk above, I originally used diatoms as a synonym for coccolithophores.
A reader pointed out the mistake.






 
We are specialist in
ESA Phase I and ESA Phase II Environmental Reports, as required for many
banking commercial transactions, as property purchase, commercial loans for
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Reports for all bank institutions as Banco Popular and Doral, among others.  As
part of our vision & mission we avoid hidden costs or include any overhead
cost in our proposals that other companies applies to their prices.  If you want
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We are specialist in ESA Phase I and ESA Phase II Environmental Reports, as required for many banking commercial transactions, as property purchase, commercial loans for properties upgrades and other transactions loans. We provide ESA Phase I and II Reports for all bank institutions as Banco Popular and Doral, among others.  As part of our vision & mission we avoid hidden costs or include any overhead cost in our proposals that other companies applies to their prices.  If you want to have a real economy in your environmental budget, confidentiality, professionalism and agility tailor fit to your projects, call us at 787-967-3611,939-358-8396 or write us at [email protected].   We are the best cost effective alternative for your environmental issues.  Success!
   
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EPA toma acción para prohibir 12 productos D-Con para el control de ratas y ratones / Acción evitará miles de exposiciones accidentales entre niños cada añoWASHINGTON – La Agencia de Protección Ambiental de EE.UU. (EPA, por sus siglas en inglés) está tomando acción para prohibir la venta de 12 venenos para ratones y ratas de la marca D-Con producidos por Reckitt Benckiser Inc. porque estos productos no han cumplido con las normas de seguridad de EPA vigentes. Aproximadamente 10,000 niños cada año son accidentalmente expuesto a los cebos para ratones y ratas. EPA ha trabajado de manera cooperativa con compañías para asegurar que los productos sean tanto seguros para el uso alrededor de niños como eficaces para los consumidores. Reckitt Benckiser Inc, fabricante de los productos de la marca D-Con, es el uno productor de raticidas que se ha negado a adoptar los estándares de seguridad de EPA para todos sus productos usados por consumidores.

“El continuar los esfuerzos para prohibir estos productos prevendrá completamente los riesgos evitables para los niños”, declaró James Jones, administrador adjunto interino de EPA para la Oficina de Seguridad Química y Prevención de Contaminación. “Con esta acción, EPA está asegurando que los productos en el mercado sean tanto seguros como eficaces para consumidores”.

La agencia ha trabajado con varias compañías durante los últimos cinco años para desarrollar productos para el control de roedores que sean eficaces, de precio módico, y ampliamente disponibles, para cumplir con las necesidades de los consumidores. Entre los productos que cumplen con las normas de seguridad de EPA figuran los productos Tomcat de los Laboratorios Bell, los productos de la marca Assault fabricados por PM Resources y los productos Chemsico.

La EPA requiere que los productos raticidas para uso por consumidores estén contenidos en un sistema de cebo de seguridad protegido que no puede ser alterado y prohíbe que los gránulos de veneno y otras formas de cebo no estén asegurados dentro de estos sistemas de cebo de seguridad. Además, EPA prohíbe la venta para consumidores residenciales de productos que contengan brodifacoum, bromadiolona, difetialona y difenacoum debido a su toxicidad para la vida silvestre.

Para las compañías que han cumplido con los nuevos estándares en el 2011, EPA no ha recibido ningún informe de niños que hayan sido expuestos a los cebos contenidos en las estaciones de cebos de seguridad. EPA espera ver una reducción considerable en exposiciones de niños cuando los 12 productos D-Con que no cumplen con los estándares vigentes sean removidos del mercado de consumidores ya que millones de hogares usan estos productos cada año.

Para una lista completa (en inglés) de productos para el control de ratas y ratones en viviendas que cumplen con las normas de seguridad de EPA, visite: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/mice-and-rats/rodent-bait-station.html.

Para una lista completa de los productos de Reckitt Benckiser Inc. que no cumplen con las normas, visite:http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/mice-and-rats/cancellation-process.html#cancellation.

La Notificación Final de EPA sobre su Intención de Cancelar estará disponible en el registro EPA número EPA-HQ-OPP-2013-0049 en www.regulations.gov Después de la publicación en el Registro Federal (Federal Register) de la Notificación de la Intención de Cancelar, Reckitt Benckiser tendrá 30 días para solicitar una audiencia ante un Juez de Ley Administrativa de EPA. Si una audiencia no es solicitada, las cancelaciones serán finales y vigentes.

Información (en inglés) sobre los productos raticidas y la revisión de EPA están disponibles en:http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/reregistration/rodenticides/

Más información (en español) sobre la prevención y control de roedores está disponible en:http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/controlling/rodents-sp.html


 
El Código de Construcción entró en vigor el 1 de marzo. (Archivo / El Nuevo Día )

Por Rebecca Banuchi /[email protected]

Aunque no lleva ni dos meses vigente, ya se vislumbran enmiendas para el nuevo código de construcción, que entró en vigor en marzo y dispone los parámetros que regirán los trabajos de infraestructura.

Edwin Irizarry Lugo, director ejecutivo de la Oficina de Gerencia de Permisos (OGPE), precisó ayer que ya se conformó un comité de revisión con miras a que pronto se le realicen enmiendas a la reglamentación.

Según la ley, el código debía revisarse cada tres años.

Los cambios serán necesarios si se aprueba una medida legislativa relacionada con la contaminación lumínica que trasladaría la jurisdicción sobre ese asunto de la Junta de Calidad Ambiental a la OGPE.

“Como está la propuesta legislativa, sería que la OGPE establecería las reglas, y habría que enmendar (el código) para incorporarlas”, explicó el funcionario.

Irizarry Lugo hizo las declaraciones tras reunirse con los directivos del Consejo de Códigos Internacionales (ICC, por sus siglas en inglés), que podría intervenir activamente en el proceso que iniciará el Gobierno durante las próximas semanas para orientar sobre el código, que se estrenó en marzo.

El principal oficial ejecutivo del ICC, Rick Weiland, y el presidente de la Junta de Directores, James Brothers, también se reunieron durante la tarde con el gobernador Luis Fortuño.

“Hemos estado en conversaciones con el gobierno federal, específicamente con FEMA, y con el grupo de ICC para que vengan a Puerto Rico y den adiestramientos relacionados con los códigos de construcción adoptados. Ellos tienen el peritaje, el conocimiento técnico”, comentó Irizarry Lugo en entrevista con El Nuevo Día.

Aún no se ha concretado un acuerdo. El titular de OGPE estimó que eso ocurrirá “durante estos días”, y destacó que a eso obedece la visita de los directivos de la organización internacional.

Sin embargo, preliminarmente se estableció que serían entre 15 y 20 adiestramientos, y se ofrecerían entre mayo y octubre.

La ICC es una entidad sin fines de lucro fundada en 1994 con el propósito de desarrollar un conjunto de medidas que sirvieran de modelo de códigos de construcción en Estados Unidos.

El código aprobado en Puerto Rico se implementó el 1 de marzo, y durante su elaboración se adoptaron nueve de los códigos internacionales del ICC ajustados a las particularidades geográficas, geológicas, topográficas, climáticas y sociales de la Isla.

 
Japan quake data should be stored in the cloudSource: Locus TechnologiesApr. 26, 2011      (0 votes)0 0 NewShareAdd to FavoritesOne of the chief complaints as the crisis at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant unfolds is the paltry amount of information that the Tokyo Electric Power Co. and the Japanese government have shared with the citizens of Japan and of the world.

In an attempt to understand the severity of the crisis, the nuclear community is piecing together a forensic analysis from thousands of miles away. It does not need to be this way.

Using cloud-computing technology to store data on faraway networks that are accessible to all stakeholders will help us all make decisions on the cleanup. Fukushima is not just Japan's problem: We're all going to be dealing with the fallout from this situation for years.

Yet the tsunami of data needed makes collection and management a challenge, unless the proper information management system is put in place. Samples of air, soil, groundwater and seawater, as well as of crops and fish, will be collected from potentially affected areas. That data will need to be evaluated for both short- and long-term impacts on humans and the environment.

BP never did this during the gulf oil spill, and Soviet and Russian authorities never did this for Chernobyl, so the public still does not know the exact extent of those disasters' effects on human health and the environment.

Placing all data in a centralized management system in the cloud would allow us to know where samples were taken, who collected them, how the samples were analyzed, what the levels of radionuclides were and what the long-term effects of each isotope are likely to be. The public lacks the sophistication to deal with most of this data, but scientists and engineers could use their combined knowledge to advise on the next steps at Fukushima and improve safety at the rest of the planet's nuclear power plants.



Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/04/24/INC41J1V8V.DTL#ixzz1KZkfXNy5
 
Martin Pena Community Group Receives EPA Environmental Justice Award

 

Contact:  Brenda Reyes 787-977-5869[email protected]

(San Juan, P.R. – April 7, 2011) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Regional Administrator Judith Enck and Lisa Garcia, the Agency’s Senior Advisor on Environmental Justice, today presented an award for outstanding work to further environmental justice to the ENLACE Cano Martin Pena Project. The group was recognized for work developing a comprehensive and environmentally sustainable economic development plan for the Cano Martin Pena, with the full engagement of the communities along the canal.

“ENLACE Cano Martin Pena has done outstanding work to build partnerships and develop a comprehensive redevelopment plan for this beleaguered canal,” said Judith Enck.  “Thanks to ENLACE’s land use plan, there is a strategy to improve economic, public health and environmental conditions in the communities along the canal.”

“The recipients of this year’s environmental justice awards have developed projects that empower communities to participate in environmental decision-making and serve as models for other communities working to address environmental justice concerns,” said Lisa Garcia, Senior Advisor for Environmental Justice to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson. “These types of community driven partnerships help advance efforts to make our most overburdened communities healthier, and more sustainable.” 

The mission of ENLACE Cano Martin Pena is to rehabilitate theMartin Pena Canal and its bordering communities by building partnerships between the communities and the public and private sector.  ENLACE has established and implemented a land use and comprehensive development plan that works to improve social, economic, and environmental conditions for eight communities in the Cano Martin Pena Special Planning District. The canal is a 3.5-mile long natural tidal channel located in the heart of the San Juan National Estuary. It provides a connection between the San Juan Bay and the San Jose Lagoon. Impoverished residents who migrated to San Juan during the first half of the 20th Century built their houses in the mangroves bordering the canal. For decades, the canal has struggled with urban poverty and environmental degradation.

ENLACE has led and participated in many projects aimed at improving quality of life and environmental conditions in the Martin Pena communities.  ENLACE partnered with the San Juan Bay Estuary Program, part of EPA’s national estuary program, to work with a school in the Martin Pena community on a volunteer water quality monitoring program.  Recently, ENLACE assisted EPA in water quality sampling along the channel and in areas adjacent to the channel.  In addition, ENLACE has compiled information and contracted for studies related to the preparation of a feasibility report and Environmental Impact Statement for the dredging of the channel.  ENLACE has also partnered with the Ponce School of Medicine, which is conducting an epidemiological study on the effects of the residents' repeated exposure to water and sediment contaminated by sewage.  ENLACE also provides support and guidance to Martin Pena Recycles, a community-based recycling effort  run out of a formerly abandoned home that was restored and converted into a community Recycling Center.

Each year, EPA recognizes partnerships that address local environmental justice concerns and result in positive environmental and human health benefits in communities through its National Achievements in Environmental Justice Awards program.

For more information about the award program, visithttp://www.epa.gov/compliance/ej/awards/index.html.

 
Cuánto se ha deformado la Tierra tras el terremoto de Japón?

La comunidad científica está utilizando los datos generados por el radar de apertura sintética (SAR) instalado a bordo del satélite Envisat de la ESA para medir la deformación de la superficie terrestre causada por el terremoto de magnitud 9 en la escala de Richter que azotó Japón a principios de marzo.

Comparando las imágenes tomadas los días 19 de febrero y 21 de marzo, un equipo de investigadores del laboratorio JPL de la NASA ha podido detectar un desplazamiento del terreno de 2.5 m en dirección este, y el hundimiento de la costa oriental de la isla Honshū, la mayor del archipiélago japonés. Científicos del Instituto Nacional Italiano de Geofísica y Vulcanología han utilizado las mismas observaciones de Envisat para trazar un mapa del desplazamiento del terreno en la región; las zonas coloreadas en rojo en la imagen de arriba se corresponden con un desplazamiento máximo de 2.5 m. Estos primeros resultados, que cubren una franja de 800 km sobre Sendai y Tokio, demuestran que la deformación del terreno se extiende a gran distancia del epicentro del seísmo, en el océano Pacífico.

La técnica empleada para analizar los datos de Envisat se conoce como ‘InSAR’ – interferometría con radar de apertura sintética – y se basa en la comparación de imágenes radar tomadas antes y después de la catástrofe desde el mismo ángulo, lo que permite detectar desplazamientos del terreno de hasta unos pocos milímetros. Como la órbita de Envisat sólo se repite cada treinta días, fue necesario esperar hasta el pasado día 21 de marzo para que el satélite se encontrase en la misma posición que ocupaba cuando tomó la imagen del 19 de febrero, de forma que los resultados fuesen comparables empleando esta técnica. Envisat continúa tomando imágenes de la región para ampliar el área de estudio.

Colaboración internacional
Este desastre natural constituye la primera vez que varias agencias espaciales – la ESA, el Centro Aeroespacial Alemán (DLR) y la Agencia de Exploración Aeroespacial Japonesa (JAXA) – comparten libremente los datos obtenidos por sus satélites SAR para ayudar a comprender mejor los procesos tectónicos de nuestro planeta, dentro de la iniciativa Geo-Hazard Supersites, coordinada por el Grupo de Observación de la Tierra (GEO). 

Geo-Hazard Supersites facilita el acceso de los científicos a las observaciones realizadas in-situ y desde el espacio, contando con un archivo de 20 años de observaciones radar. Este esfuerzo internacional, que recopila todos los datos disponibles hasta la fecha, es una forma eficaz de evaluar la vulnerabilidad de la región mientras se avanza en su reconstrucción, aseguran desde la ESA.

Elena Sanz31/03/2011 Etiquetas:terremotojapónsatéliteESA
 
CONTACT: 
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 
March 22, 2011 

Radiation Monitors Continue to Confirm That No Radiation Levels of Concern Have Reached the United States 

WASHINGTON
 – During a detailed analysis of four west coast RadNet air monitor filters, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) identified trace amounts of radioactive iodine, cesium, and tellurium consistent with the Japanese nuclear incident. These levels are consistent with the levels found by a Department of Energy monitor last week and are to be expected in the coming days. 

EPA’s samples were captured by three monitors in California and one in Washington State on Friday, March 18 and sent to EPA scientists for detailed laboratory analysis. The data was reviewed over the weekend and the analysis was completed Monday night.  The radiation levels detected on the filters from California and Washington monitors are millions of times below levels of concern. 

In addition, last night preliminary monitor results in Hawaii detected minuscule levels of an isotope that is also consistent with the Japanese nuclear incident. This detection varies from background and historical data in Hawaii. This isotope was detected at our fixed monitor in Hawaii, and it is far below any level of concern for human health.  The sampling filter from this monitor is being sent to our national radiation lab for further analysis.  

In a typical day, Americans receive doses of radiation from natural sources like rocks, bricks and the sun that are about 100,000 times higher than what we have detected coming from Japan. For example, the levels we’re seeing coming from Japan are 100,000 times lower than what you get from taking a roundtrip international flight. 

EPA is in the process of conducting detailed filter analyses for fixed monitors located in Oregon. 

EPA’s RadNet filter results for San Francisco, Seattle, Riverside and Anaheim, California detected minuscule quantities of iodine isotopes and other radioactive particles that pose no health concern at the detected levels. Below are the results of the detailed filter analysis. All of the radiation levels detected during the detailed filter analysis are millions of times below levels of concern. 

All units are in Picocuries per meter cubed. 

- Filter results for Anaheim, Calif. found: 
            Cesium-137: 0.0017 
            Tellurium-132: 0.012 
            Iodine-132: 0.0095 
            Iodine-131: 0.046 

- Filter results for Riverside, Calif. found: 
            Cesium-137: 0.00024 
            Tellurium-132: 0.0014 
            Iodine-132: 0.0015 
            Iodine-131: 0.011 
- Filter results for Seattle, Wash. found: 
            Cesium-137: 0.00045 
            Tellurium-132: 0.0034 
            Iodine-132: 0.0029 
            Iodine-131: 0.013 

- Filter results for San Francisco, Calif. found: 
            Cesium-137: 0.0013 
            Tellurium-132: 0.0075 
            Iodine-132: 0.0066 
            Iodine-131: 0.068 

EPA’s RadNet system is designed to protect the public by notifying scientists, in near real time, of elevated levels of radiation so they can determine whether protective action is required. In addition, an analysis of the filters in the monitors can identify even the smallest trace amounts of specific radioactive isotopes.

As part of the federal government’s continuing effort to make our activities and science transparent and available to the public, EPA will continue to keep RadNet data available at:http://www.epa.gov/japan2011/