GRACE satellite monitoring of large depletion in water storage in response to the 2011 drought in Texas

International audienceTexas experienced the most extreme one-year drought on record in 2011 with precipitation at 40% of long-term mean and agricultural losses of ~$7.6 billion. We assess the value of Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite-derived total water storage (TWS) change as an alternative remote sensing-based drought indicator, independent of traditional drought indicators based on in situ monitoring. GRACE shows depletion in TWS of 62.3 ± 17.7 km3 during the 2011 drought. Large uncertainties in simulated soil moisture storage depletion (14-83 km3) from six land surface models indicate that GRACE TWS is a more reliable drought indicator than disaggregated soil moisture or groundwater storage. Groundwater use and groundwater level data indicate that depletion is dominated by changes in soil moisture storage, consistent with high correlation between GRACE TWS and the Palmer Drought Severity Index. GRACE provides a valuable tool for monitoring statewide water storage depletion, linking meteorological and hydrological droughts

Aerosol effect on climate extremes in Europe under different future scenarios

This study investigates changes in extreme temperature and precipitation events under different future scenarios of anthropogenic aerosol emissions (i.e., SO2 and black and organic carbon) simulated with an aerosol-climate model (ECHAM5-HAM) with focus on Europe. The simulations include a maximum feasible aerosol reduction (MFR) scenario and a current legislation emission (CLEmod) scenario where Europe implements the MFR scenario, but the rest of the world follows the current legislation scenario and a greenhouse gas scenario. The strongest changes relative to the year 2000 are projected for the MFR scenario, in which the global aerosol reduction greatly enforces the general warming effect due to greenhouse gases and results in significant increases of temperature and precipitation extremes in Europe. Regional warming effects can also be identified from aerosol reductions under the CLEmodscenario. This becomes most obvious in the increase of the hottest summer daytime temperatures in Northern Europe. © 2013 American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved

Scientific Advice on the estimation of surplus for Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements.

Scientific advice on the concept of surplus, as defined by the UNCLOS, was provided for three types of Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreements (SFPAs): i) Mixed SFPAs in West Africa, ii) Tuna SFPAs and iii) SFPA with Greenland. For Mixed SFPAs in West Africa, methods for surplus computation were defined, including alternatives for cases of data limited stocks. These methods may use as input five parameters that could be obtained from those recent stocks assessments that are representative of the current stock status. Surplus estimates would need to be regularly updated (ideally, yearly), according to every new stock assessments and following the enforcement of a management plan (or, by default, according to a transition scheme towards reaching Fmsy in 2020). In the case of West African transboundary stocks, a theoretical share of the surplus could be calculated using a standard rule based on historical catches within EEZs. The Surplus concept is not applicable for Tuna SFPAs, due to the high migratory character of tuna or tuna-like species, the fact that these stocks are mostly found in areas beyond national jurisdictions, the lack of direct estimates of local abundance and impossibility to calculate the capacity of the coastal States. For the SFPA with Greenland, Surplus is considered as any TAC allocated to Greenland and not utilised by this coastal State

Towards sustainable mining: exploiting raw materials from extractive waste facilities

The focus of the present research is on the exploitation of extractive waste to recover raw materials, considering the technological and economic factors, together with the environmental impacts, associated with extractive waste quarrying and dressing activities. The present study, based on a case history from Northern Italy (Montorfano and Baveno granite quarrying area), was intended to validate the presented interdisciplinary approach for evaluating economic and environmental impacts associated with extractive waste facility exploitation (from granite waste to products for the ceramic industry and by-products for the building industry). A shared methodology was applied to determine extractive waste characteristics (geochemistry, petrography, and mineralogy), waste volume (geophysical, topographic, and morphologic 3D characterization) and potential exploitable products and by-products. Meanwhile, a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was applied to determine the environmental impacts associated with the extraction and processing phases

Life Cycle Assessment of Emerging Technologies

The environmental impacts of emerging technologies are conventionally identified, regulated, and mitigated only after large-scale deployment. As a result, a considerable number of emerging technologies eventually develop into non-optimized systems, which translate into waste of resources and capitals, and hence reduced competitiveness. Therefore, it is paramount to assess emerging technologies during the nascent stages of their development and expand the conventional set of metrics of the assessment, thus enabling unbiased decisions on the deployment of the technology and promoting sustainable innovation. The challenge is to ensure that the outcomes of the assessment are not compromised by the uncertainties existing at such early stages of technology development. Building on these premises, the Thesis lays the foundations for producing high-fidelity and timely projections of environmental impacts and costs of emerging technologies, presenting an overarching framework for prospective assessments, and testing it on four emerging technologies originating from both academic and industrial R&D, at different stages of their process development: 1) production of formate using CO2 captured from the tail gases of power plants; 2) milli-continuous-flow production of gold nanoparticles for healthcare applications; 3) continuous-flow production of Rufinamide, an anticonvulsant drug; 4) intensified continuous-flow production of zeolite A. The results of the LCA of emerging technologies demonstrate that is possible to provide live and timely feedback to technology developers and identify intervention points and potential solutions for the optimization of the technology since the early stages. Furthermore, the proposed assessment allows to benchmark the performances of the system under analysis against the standard industrial practice, hence quantifying the benefits that would stem from the adoption of innovative production technologies in place of conventional ones. On the whole, LCA of emerging technologies offers an opportunity to structure the collaboration between different actors involved in process innovation. The ultimate goal of this approach is to lay the bases for debating and guiding research and development, and to provide a solid platform to discuss with all necessary stakeholders involved in the deployment of the technology, thus promoting sustainable technology innovation

Diversity, distribution and conservation of land mammals in Mauritania, North-West Africa

Funding: National Geographic Society (CRE-7629- 04, CRE-8412-08, GEFNE-53-12, NGS-53336R- 19), Mohammed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund (11052709, 11052707, 13257467), Rufford Foundation (SG-15399-1, SG-36007-1), Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (PTDC/BIA-BEC/ 099934/2008, PTDC/BIA-BIC/118624/2010, PTDC/ BIA-BIC/2903/2012, PTDC/BIA-ECO/28158/2017), FEDER-Operational Programme for Competitiveness Factors - COMPETE (FCOMP-01- 0124-FEDER-008917/028276). Individual support was given by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (CEECINST/00014/2018/CP1512/CT0001, SFRH/ 2020.05054.BD, DL57/2016/CP1440/CT0010, DL57/2016/CP1440/CT0008, DL57/2016/CP1440/ CT[SFRH/BPD/88496/2012], CEECIND/01937/ 2017, SFRH/BPD/84822/2012). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Work supported by National Funds through FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia in the scope of the project UIDB/50027/ 2020.Detailed knowledge about biodiversity distribution is critical for monitoring the biological effects of global change processes. Biodiversity knowledge gaps hamper the monitoring of conservation trends and they are especially evident in the desert biome. Mauritania constitutes a remarkable example on how remoteness and regional insecurity affect current knowledge gaps. Mammals remain one of the least studied groups in this country, without a concerted species checklist, the mapping of regions concentrating mammal diversity, or a national assessment of their conservation status. This work assessed the diversity, distribution, and conservation of land mammals in Mauritania. A total of 6,718 published and original observations were assembled in a spatial database and used to update the occurrence status, distribution area, and conservation status. The updated taxonomic list comprises 107 species, including 93 extant, 12 Regionally Extinct, and 2 Extinct in the Wild. Mapping of species distributions allowed locating concentrations of extant mammal species richness in coastal areas, along the Senegal River valley, and in mountain plateaus. Recent regional extinction of large-sized Artiodactyla and Carnivora has been very high (11% extinct species). From the extant mammals, 11% are threatened, including flagship species (e.g., Addax nasomaculatus and Panthera pardus). Species richness is poorly represented by the current protected areas. Despite the strong advances made, 23% of species categorise as Data Deficient. Persisting systematics and distribution uncertainties require further research. Field surveys in currently unexplored areas (northern and south-eastern regions) are urgently needed to increase knowledge about threatened mammals. The long-term conservation of land mammals in Mauritania is embedded in a complex web of socioeconomic and environmental factors that call for collaborative action and investment in sustainable human development. The current work sets the baseline for the future development of detailed research studies and to address the general challenges faced by mammals and biodiversity in the country.National Geographic Society (CRE-7629- 04, CRE-8412-08, GEFNE-53-12, NGS-53336R- 19)Mohammed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund (11052709, 11052707, 13257467)Rufford Foundation (SG-15399-1, SG-36007-1)Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (PTDC/BIA-BEC/ 099934/2008, PTDC/BIA-BIC/118624/2010, PTDC/ BIA-BIC/2903/2012, PTDC/BIA-ECO/28158/2017)FEDER-Operational Programme for Competitiveness Factors - COMPETE (FCOMP-01- 0124-FEDER-008917/028276)Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (CEECINST/00014/2018/CP1512/CT0001, SFRH/ 2020.05054.BD, DL57/2016/CP1440/CT0010, DL57/2016/CP1440/CT0008, DL57/2016/CP1440/ CT[SFRH/BPD/88496/2012], CEECIND/01937/ 2017, SFRH/BPD/84822/2012)National Funds through FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia in the scope of the project UIDB/50027/ 202

Navigating process evaluation in co-creation: a Health CASCADE scoping review of used frameworks and assessed components

Background: Co-creation is seen as a way to ensure all relevant needs and perspectives are included and to increase its potential for beneficial effects and uptake process evaluation is crucial. However, existing process evaluation frameworks have been built on practices characterised by top-down developed and implemented interventions and may be limited in capturing essential elements of co-creation. This study aims to provide a review of studies planning and/or conducting a process evaluation of public health interventions adopting a co-creation approach and aims to derive assessed process evaluation components, used frameworks and insights into formative and/or participatory evaluation. Methods: We searched for studies on Scopus and the Health CASCADE Co-Creation Database. Co-authors performed a concept-mapping exercise to create a set of overarching dimensions for clustering the identified process evaluation components. Results: 54 studies were included. Conceptualisation of process evaluation included in studies concerned intervention implementation, outcome evaluation, mechanisms of impact, context and the co-creation process. 22 studies (40%) referenced ten existing process evaluation or evaluation frameworks and most referenced were the frameworks developed by Moore et al (14%), Saunders et al (5%), Steckler and Linnan (5%) and Nielsen and Randall (5%). 38 process evaluation components were identified, with a focus on participation (48%), context (40%), the experience of co-creators (29%), impact (29%), satisfaction (25%) and fidelity (24%). 13 studies (24%) conducted formative evaluation, 37 (68%) conducted summative evaluation and 2 studies (3%) conducted participatory evaluation. Conclusion: The broad spectrum of process evaluation components addressed in co-creation studies, covering both the evaluation of the co-creation process and the intervention implementation, highlights the need for a process evaluation tailored to co-creation studies. This work provides an overview of process evaluation components, clustered in dimensions and reflections which researchers and practitioners can use to plan a process evaluation of a co-creation process and intervention.</p