Sediment management and the renewability of floodplain clay for structural ceramics

The Netherlands has vast resources of clay that are exploited for the fabrication of structural ceramic products such as bricks and roof tiles. Most clay is extracted from the so-called embanked floodplains along the rivers Rhine and Meuse, areas that are flooded during high-discharge conditions. Riverside clay extraction is-at least in theory-compensated by deposition. Based on a sediment balance (deposition versus extraction), we explore the extent to which clay can be regarded as a renewable resource, with potential for sustainable use. Beyond that, we discuss the implications for river and sediment management, especially for the large engineering works that are to be undertaken to increase the discharge capacities of the Rhine and Meuse. Extraction rates are based on production statistics for clay, as well as those for fired end-products. Deposition rates are estimated from published and unpublished geological data (clay volumes and thicknesses, datings, etc.) and from morphological modeling studies. Comparisons between extraction and deposition are made at three different time-space scales: (1) long term (post-1850)/large scale (all Dutch floodplains), (2) present/large scale, and (3) present/site scale. The year 1850 is relevant because it approximately marks the beginning of the current, fully engineered river systems, in which depositional processes are constrained by dikes and groynes. As the Industrial Revolution began in the same period, post-1850 sediments can be identified by their pollution with heavy metals. (1) We estimate the post-1850 clay volume in situ at about 0.20 km(3), and the total extracted volume in the same period at about 0.17 km(3). This puts the net long-term average deposition rate of clay at similar to 1.3 million m(3)/year and the corresponding extraction rate at similar to 1.1 million m(3)/year. (2) Current accumulation is approximately 0.4 million m(3)/year and expected to increase, and current extraction is about 0.7 million m(3)/year and expected to decrease. (3) Clay extraction creates a depression that has an increased sediment-trapping efficiency. This local effect is not considered explicitly in large-scale morphological modeling. Based on maximum observed sedimentation rates, we estimate that replenishment of a clay site takes in the order of 150 years. As clay extraction lowers some 0.5 km(2) of floodplain yearly, a surface area of approximately 75 km(2) would be required for sustainable clay extraction. This is about 1/6 of the total surface area of the embanked floodplains. On the long term, clay extraction from the embanked floodplain depositional environment has been sustainable. At strongly decreasing deposition rates, the ratio between extraction and replenishment seems to have shifted towards unsustainable. However, current sedimentation is estimated conservatively. The site-scale approach suggests that, even if extraction would currently exceed deposition, this could be resolved with sediment management, that is, with site restoration measures aimed at higher sediment-trapping efficiency. Our results have implications for river engineering, especially where substantial digging is involved (floodplain lowering, high-discharge bypass channels, obstacle removal). First, this inevitably affects the clay resources that we studied, while resource sterilization should be avoided. Secondly, the effect that any form of digging has on subsequent sedimentation-increased rates-relates to long-term river maintenance. We conclude that floodplain clay is a renewable resource, especially if managed accordingly. Beyond that, we established that clay extraction is a significant, lasting factor in floodplain evolution along the Rhine and Meuse Rivers. The interests of the extractive industry and river managers could be served jointly with sediment management plans that are based on sediment-budget analyse

Beastly Bureaucracy\u27 Animal Traceability, Identification and Labeling in EU Law

This contribution discusses animal traceability, identification and labeling requirements in European Union (EU) law. The requirements are lex specialis to more general requirements in EU food law. The aim is to set out this body of EU law and provide some understanding regarding its background. Along with the article by Margaret Rosso Grossman, it enables the reader to compare the EU system to the United States system

Struggle for Leadership: the Competitiveness of the EU and US Food Industry

Globalization is an important issue in the food industry, although most food is still locally produced and consumed. Many small and medium enterprises characterize the industry. Results of WTO negotiations intensify the international competition, in which the EU and USA are the largest players. Countries like Brazil, India and China are gaining market share. This raises the following research questions: 1. How competitive are the EU and US food industry and their sub-sectors? 2. Which role plays innovation and legislation in the competitiveness of the industry? 3. How will the competitiveness develop under future globalization and trade liberalization? The goal of this study is to fill these knowledge gaps.Agribusiness, International Relations/Trade,

Administrative burdens and dairy industry competitiveness

The goal of this paper is to assess the effect of regulatory burdens in the European dairy industry on its competitiveness. A theoretical foundation is provided by transaction cost economics and total quality management insights. The effects of legislation on administrative requirements and competitiveness are supposed to be mediated by impacts on innovativeness, company strategy, food safety system availability, as well as the available information & communication capabilities. We will connect to previous research (Wijnands et al., 2007) and the findings therein. Four sub-questions are addressed: • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, innovation and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, food safety & quality system deployment and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, food labelling requirements and competitiveness? • what is the relationship between administrative burdens, supply chain transparency and competitiveness? In addition to the theoretical framework presented earlier in Bremmers et al., 2008, this paper contains the first results of a survey in the European dairy industry. They are combined with the proceeds from a literature search. The results show that (Q1) especially product innovation is negatively impacted by administrative burdens. Food safety and quality systems (Q2) serve to provide a level playing field in Europe. They would be installed also if no legal requirements would enforce them, because clients ask for it, so that administrative burdens could easily be attributed to business strategy rather than legal obligations. To reduce administrative burdens, we advice to integrate food safety and quality requirements is necessary. It would reduce monitoring and reporting costs, both for private as well as public parties. Food labeling (Q3) (a ‘made in Europe’ origin marking) could work contraproductive with respect to the competitive position of dairy firms and will have an increase of administrative burdens as a net-effect. And last but not least (Q4), increased chain transparency (mentioning the name of intermediary producers on the end-product package) will accelerate administrative burdens, but will only be beneficial for SMEs with a differentiated product. Commodity-producers in the dairy industry which only follow a cost strategy will gradually merge and/or disappear.dairy industry, competitiveness, administrative burdens, food safety, labelling, Livestock Production/Industries,

Visies uit de agrarische praktijk op de landbouwvrijstelling

Dit rapport gaat in op de vraag welke gevolgen in de agrarische praktijk worden verwacht van het eventuele intrekken van de landbouwvrijstelling. Er is daarbij onder meer gekeken naar de gevolgen voor de grondprijs en -mobiliteit, maar ook naar de risico’s die het intrekken van de regeling met zich mee kan brengen, bijvoorbeeld voor de bedrijfsontwikkeling

Heritability of aggression following social evaluation in middle childhood: An fMRI study.

Middle childhood marks an important phase for developing and maintaining social relations. At the same time, this phase is marked by a gap in our knowledge of the genetic and environmental influences on brain responses to social feedback and their relation to behavioral aggression. In a large developmental twin sample (509 7- to 9-year-olds), the heritability and neural underpinnings of behavioral aggression following social evaluation were investigated, using the Social Network Aggression Task (SNAT). Participants viewed pictures of peers that gave positive, neutral, or negative feedback to the participant’s profile. Next, participants could blast a loud noise toward the peer as an index of aggression. Genetic modeling revealed that aggression following negative feedback was influenced by both genetics and environmental (shared as well as unique environment). On a neural level (n 5 385), the anterior insula and anterior cingulate cortex gyrus (ACCg) responded to both positive and negative feedback, suggesting they signal for social salience cues. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) were specifically activated during negative feedback, whereas positive feedback resulted in increased activation in caudate, supplementary motor cortex (SMA), and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Decreased SMA and DLPFC activation during negative feedback was associated with more aggressive behavior aft

Distinctive heritability patterns of subcortical-prefrontal cortex resting state connectivity in childhood: A twin study

Connectivity between limbic/subcortical and prefrontal-cortical brain regions develops considerably across childhood, but less is known about the heritability of these networks at this age. We tested the heritability of limbic/subcortical-cortical and limbic/subcortical-subcortical functional brain connectivity in 7- to 9-year-old twins (N = 220), focusing on two key limbic/subcortical structures: the ventral striatum and the amygdala, given their combined influence on changing incentivised behavior during childhood and adolescence. Whole brain analyses with ventral striatum (VS) and amygdala as seeds in genetically independent groups showed replicable functional connectivity patterns. The behavioral genetic analyses revealed that in general VS and amygdala connectivity showed distinct influences of genetics and environment. VS-prefrontal cortex connections were best described by genetic and unique environmental factors (the latter including measurement error), whereas amygdala-prefrontal cortex connectivity was mainly explained by environmental influences. Similarities were also found: connectivity between both the VS and amygdala and ventral anterior cingulate cortex (vACC) showed influences of shared environment, while connectivity with the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) showed heritability. These findings may inform future interventions that target behavioral control and emotion regulation, by taking into account genetic dispositions as well as shared and unique environmental factors such as child rearing.Development Psychopathology in context: famil