Four Large River Project ill S. Korea: Ecological Problems, Consequences and Challenges

Article信州大学山地水環境教育研究センター研究報告 6: 10-10(2010)departmental bulletin pape

A Survey of the natural vegetation and flora along the South Saskatchewan River Valley within and near Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

Increasing urbanization is exerting heavy pressure on natural places. This is especially true in urban centres that cover large areas. These centres are expanding to take over more natural areas, causing their degradation. In urban centres with large riparian corridors, this degradation of sites has a substantial effect on the natural conditions expected along these corridors. This study was undertaken to determine the extent of deterioration of riparian habitat along the South Saskatchewan River valley near Saskatoon. The vegetation at 10 locations along the riparian corridor within and near the city of Saskatoon was quantitatively sampled over a two-year period from 1995 to 1996. This added to a previous three-year study that described the flora of the riparian corridor, by qualitatively sampling 23 sites. Of the over 700 species identified in the floristic survey, 495 were found in the quantitatively studied plots. Of these, 22% were introduced species that indicate a negative effect on the natural state of the riparian corridor. Within the study area, several mostly natural and some introduced community types were identified. Those communities that possessed introduced species were most prevalent in the central core of the city, which has been exposed longer and more intensively to human impacts. This centralized disturbance pattern will likely ripple outward from the central core of the city unless mediative measures are taken. Also incorporated within the study, was an attempt to determine the effectiveness of using qualitative zonation as a tool for classifying riparian slope plant communities. It was found that the vertical zonation of a slope was a useful means for the classification of riparian communities. This study revealed the presence of two general types of communities in the study area: upland types and wetland types. The wetland types were: Carex lanuginosa, Agrostis stolonifera, Eleocharis palustris, Phalaris arundinacea, Elaeagnus commutata, Salix exigua, and Alnus tenuifolia. The upland types were: Koeleria gracilis, Carex siccata, Agropyron cristatum, Aralia nudicaulis, Rhamnus cathartica, Amelanchier alnifolia, Caragana arborescens, Rosa woodsii and Populus balsamifera. Data gathered in this study present an information database regarding the current status of natural riparian areas within and near Saskatoon that could be used to assess impacts from existing and future urbanization. With increasing public pressure to maintain natural diversity and health of ecosystems, more effort should be placed on minimizing our impacts on the places we see and use everyday

Talking about Climate Change and Global Warming.

The increasing prevalence of social networks provides researchers greater opportunities to evaluate and assess changes in public opinion and public sentiment towards issues of social consequence. Using trend and sentiment analysis is one method whereby researchers can identify changes in public perception that can be used to enhance the development of a social consciousness towards a specific public interest. The following study assessed Relative search volume (RSV) patterns for global warming (GW) and Climate change (CC) to determine public knowledge and awareness of these terms. In conjunction with this, the researchers looked at the sentiment connected to these terms in social media networks. It was found that there was a relationship between the awareness of the information and the amount of publicity generated around the terminology. Furthermore, the primary driver for the increase in awareness was an increase in publicity in either a positive or a negative light. Sentiment analysis further confirmed that the primary emotive connections to the words were derived from the original context in which the word was framed. Thus having awareness or knowledge of a topic is strongly related to its public exposure in the media, and the emotional context of this relationship is dependent on the context in which the relationship was originally established. This has value in fields like conservation, law enforcement, or other fields where the practice can and often does have two very strong emotive responses based on the context of the problems being examined

Change in relative search volume (RSV) for “global warming” and “climate change” as search terms (2007–2013); dash line represents the mean for the RSV for each period.

<p>Change in relative search volume (RSV) for “global warming” and “climate change” as search terms (2007–2013); dash line represents the mean for the RSV for each period.</p

The Spatial Distribution and Morphological Characteristics of Chum Salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) in South Korea

Chum salmon (Oncorhyncus keta) is a cold-water species reported to migrate within a wide range of habitats, including Korea, Japan, North America, and Russia, playing important roles in the river&ndash;sea nutrient cycle and food web. However, research on this species has not been widely performed in South Korea owing to its geographical location at the southern edge of migration. In this study, we analyzed the spatial distribution and morphological characteristics of chum salmon migrating to South Korea using the length&ndash;weight relationship. We also analyzed 3 years of catch, sex ratio, and individual information (total length (cm), weight (kg), n = 4400) from ten rivers (eight in the East coast and two on the South coast) with a total of 17 years of water quality and the distance they traveled (n = 50) using multivariate analysis. As a result, we discovered a trend of less migration in the southern part of South Korea for all individuals migrating to South Korea. Furthermore, the weight ratio of males/females was significantly different (p &lt; 0.05). Based on the length&ndash;weight relationship analysis, the a and b values were between 0.0011 and 0.038 and 2.65 and 3.49, respectively. In the correlation analysis, catch is negatively correlated with distance traveled and temperature (p &lt; 0.05), and positively correlated with pH, dissolved oxygen, distance, and female ratio (p &lt; 0.05). This is possibly the result of differences in water quality during early life stages or the presence of an estuarine barrage at the mouth of the Nakdong River. This research may be used as fundamental distribution and morphological variations of chum salmon in South Korea

The Spatial Distribution and Morphological Characteristics of Chum Salmon (<i>Oncorhynchus keta</i>) in South Korea

Chum salmon (Oncorhyncus keta) is a cold-water species reported to migrate within a wide range of habitats, including Korea, Japan, North America, and Russia, playing important roles in the river–sea nutrient cycle and food web. However, research on this species has not been widely performed in South Korea owing to its geographical location at the southern edge of migration. In this study, we analyzed the spatial distribution and morphological characteristics of chum salmon migrating to South Korea using the length–weight relationship. We also analyzed 3 years of catch, sex ratio, and individual information (total length (cm), weight (kg), n = 4400) from ten rivers (eight in the East coast and two on the South coast) with a total of 17 years of water quality and the distance they traveled (n = 50) using multivariate analysis. As a result, we discovered a trend of less migration in the southern part of South Korea for all individuals migrating to South Korea. Furthermore, the weight ratio of males/females was significantly different (p a and b values were between 0.0011 and 0.038 and 2.65 and 3.49, respectively. In the correlation analysis, catch is negatively correlated with distance traveled and temperature (p p < 0.05). This is possibly the result of differences in water quality during early life stages or the presence of an estuarine barrage at the mouth of the Nakdong River. This research may be used as fundamental distribution and morphological variations of chum salmon in South Korea