Linking Pan-European data to the local scale for decision making for global change and water scarcity within water resources planning and management

[EN] This study focuses on a novel type of methodology which connects Pan-European data to the local scale in the field of water resources management. This methodology is proposed to improve and facilitate the decision making within the planning and management of water resources, taking into account climate change and its expected impacts. Our main point of interest is focused on the assessment of the predictability of extreme events and their possible effects, specifically droughts and water scarcity. Consequently, the Júcar River Basin was selected as the case study, due to the ongoing water scarcity problems and the last drought episodes suffered in the Mediterranean region. In order to study these possible impacts, we developed a modeling chain divided into four steps, they are: i) data collection, ii) analysis of available data, iii) models calibration and iv) climate impact analysis. Over previous steps, we used climate data from 15 different regional climate models (RCMs) belonging to the three different Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) coming from a hydrological model across all of Europe called E-HYPE. The data were bias corrected and used to obtain statistical results of the availability of water resources for the future (horizon 2039) and in form of indicators. This was performed through a hydrological (EVALHID), stochastic (MASHWIN) and risk management (SIMRISK) models, all of which were specifically calibrated for this basin. The results show that the availability of water resources is much more enthusiastic than in the current situation, indicating the possibility that climate change, which was predicted to occur in the future has already happened in the Júcar River Basin. It seems that the so called Effect 80 , an important decrease in water resources for the last three decades, is not well contemplated in the initial data.The authors thank the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments, suggestions and positive feedback. All remaining errors, however, are solely the responsibility of the authors. We would also like to express our gratitude to the Jucar River Basin Authority - Confederacion Hidrografica del Jucar (Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fishery, Food and Environment) for providing data to develop this study. The authors wish to thank the Spanish Ministry of Economyand Competitiveness for its financial support through the NUTEGES project (CGL2012-34978) and ERAS project (CTM2016-77804-P). We also value the support provided by the European Community's Seventh Framework Program in financing the projects ENHANCE (FP7-ENV-2012, 308438), AGUAMOD (Interreg V-B Sudoe 2016), SWICCA (ECMRWF-Copernicus-FA 2015/C3S_441-LOT1/SMHI) and IMPREX (H2020-WATER-2014-2015, 641811).Suárez-Almiñana, S.; Pedro Monzonís, M.; Paredes Arquiola, J.; Andreu Álvarez, J.; Solera Solera, A. (2017). Linking Pan-European data to the local scale for decision making for global change and water scarcity within water resources planning and management. The Science of The Total Environment. 603-604:126-139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.05.259S126139603-60

Explaining the rank order of invasive plants by stakeholder groups

Debates surrounding the use of policies to avoid further spread of invasive species highlight the need to establish priorities in public resource allocations. We explore the consistency or discrepancy among stakeholder groups involved in the risk and control management of invasive species to identify the extent to which different factors influence stakeholder choices of major relevant plant invaders. Based on stakeholder ranking of invasive plants, we explore the reasons behind stakeholders' support for policy management. Data were collected in Galicia, Spain, where a catalogue of prohibited entry and trade of invasive species is currently under debate. We estimate a rank ordered logit model using information from semi-structured interviews conducted with respondents from four stakeholder groups: public administration sector, ornamental sector, research and social groups. The characteristics of plant invaders that provoke stakeholders to rank a species more highly are wide distribution of plant invaders, existence of public control programmes, use and sale of species in the ornamental sector and media coverage. The influence these aspects have in the selection of top-ranked invaders varies across different stakeholder groups and with stakeholders' level of knowledge, awareness and attitudes towards different potential policy measures. A small group of invaders are perceived as top rated by all stakeholder groups

Spatial and temporal variations of trace element distribution in soils and street dust of an industrial town in NW Spain: 15years of study

Extensive spatial and temporal surveys, over 15 years, have been conducted in soil in urban parks and street dusts in one of the most polluted cities in western Europe, Avilés (NW Spain). The first survey was carried out in 1996, and since then monitoring has been undertaken every five years. Whilst the sampling site is a relatively small town, industrial activities (mainly the steel industry and Zn and Al metallurgy) and other less significant urban sources, such as traffic, strongly affect the load of heavy metals in the urban aerosol. Elemental tracers have been used to characterise the influence of these sources on the composition of soil and dust. Although PM10 has decreased over these years as a result of environmental measures undertaken in the city, some of the “industrial” elements still remain in concentrations of concern for example, up to 4.6% and 0.5% of Zn in dust and soil, respectively. Spatial trends in metals such as Zn and Cd clearly reflect sources from the processing industries. The concentrations of these elements across Europe have reduced over time, however the most recent results from Avilés revealed an upward trend in concentration for Zn, Cd, Hg and As. A risk assessment of the soil highlighted As as an element of concern since its cancer risk in adults was more than double the value above which regulatory agencies deem it to be unacceptable. If children were considered to be the receptors, then the risk nearly doubles from this element

Patterns of presence and concentration of pesticides in the main course of the Júcar River (Eastern Spain)

The Júcar River, in a typical Mediterranean Basin, is expected to suffer a decline in water quality and quantity as a consequence of the climate change. This study is focused on the presence and distribution of pesticides in water and fish, using the first extensive optimization and application of the QuEChERS method to determine pesticides in river fish. Majority pesticides in water -in terms of presence and concentration- were dichlofenthion, chlorfenvinphos, imazalil, pyriproxyfen and prochloraz (associated with a frequent use in farming activities), as well as buprofezin, chlopyriphos and hexythiaxoz. In fish, the main compounds were azinphos-ethyl, chlorpyriphos, diazinon, dimethoate and ethion. The analysis of bio-concentration in fish indicated differences by species. The maximum average concentration was detected in European eel (a critically endangered fish species). The wide presence of pesticides in water and fish suggests potential severe effects on fish populations and other biota in future scenarios of climate change, in a river basin with several endemic and endangered fish species. The potential effects of pesticides in combination with multiple stressors require further research to prioritize the management of specific chemicals and suggest effective restoration actions at the basin scale.This study was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness with the project SCARCE (Consolider-Ingenio 2010 CSD2009-00065). Authors also thank the help of the confederacion Hidrografica del Jucar (Gobierno de Esparia) which provided environmental data, and to all the colleagues who collaborated in sampling campaigns, R. Munoz-Mas, R.M.S. Costa and J.D. Alcaraz-Hernandez.Belenguer, V.; Martinez-Capel, F.; Masiá, A.; Picó, Y. (2014). Patterns of presence and concentration of pesticides in the main course of the Júcar River (Eastern Spain). Journal of Hazardous Materials. 265:271-279. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2013.11.016S27127926

A multi-regional input-output analysis of ozone precursor emissions embodied in Spanish international trade

Higher levels of ozone in the troposphere is a severe threat to both environment and human health. Many countries are concerned about the effects that critical levels of ozone have on them. Countries pollute to satisfy their domestic and external demand (production perspective) and, at the same time, these countries also generate emissions abroad indirectly via their imports and via their domestic production (consumption perspective). Spain is one of the EU countries with the highest pollution records in the emissions of tropospheric ozone precursor gases. A multiregional input-output model (MRIO) allows us to analyze the total emissions embodied in Spanish international trade in 35 sectors within the EU area and the rest of the world. MRIO models, are commonly chosen as they provide an appropriate methodological framework for complete emissions footprint estimates at the national and supranational level The results show that the most polluting sectors involved in Spanish trade are Agriculture, Basic Metals, Coke and Refined Petroleum Production. Some policy recommendations follow these results; for example, a higher number of environmental regulations focused on the Agricultural sector, such as the introduction of codes of good practices in the use of fertilizers and the promotion of cleaner production technologies might lead to less burden to the environment.Ministerio de economía y competitividad (España) ECO 2014-56399-R. Claves para Desacoplar Crecimiento y Emisiones de Co2 en EspañaCátedra de economía de la energía y del medio ambiente (Universidad de Sevilla)Fundación Roger TornéJunta de Andalucía. SEJ 13

Application of Probabilistic Neural Networks to microhabitat suitability modelling for adult brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) in Iberian rivers

Probabilistic Neural Networks (PNN) have been tested for the first time in microhabitat suitability modelling for adult brown trout (Salmo trutta L.). The impact of data prevalence on PNN was studied. The PNN were evaluated in an independent river and the applicability of PNN to assess the environmental flow was analysed. Prevalence did not affect significantly the results. However PNN presented some limitations regarding the output range. Our results agreed previous studies because trout preferred deep microhabitats with medium-to-coarse substrate whereas velocity showed a wider suitable range. The 0.5 prevalence PNN showed similar classificatory capability than the 0.06 prevalence counterpart and the outputs covered the whole feasible range (from 0 to 1), but the 0.06 prevalence PNN showed higher generalisation because it performed better in the evaluation and it allowed a better modulation of the environmental flow. PNN has demonstrated to be a tool to be into consideration.The authors would like to thank the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness for its financial support through the SCARCE project (Consolider-Ingenio 2010 CSD2009-00065). We are grateful to the colleagues who worked in the field and in the preliminary data analyses, especially Marta Bargay, Aina Hernandez and David Argibay. The works were partially funded by the Confederacion Hidrografica del Jucar (Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment), that also provided hydrological and environmental information about the study sites. The authors also thank the Direccion General del Agua and INFRAECO for the cession of the microhabitat data. Finally, we also thank Javier Ferrer, Teodoro Estrela and Onofre Gabaldo (Confederacion Hidrografica del Jucar) for their help and the data provided. Thanks to Grieg Davies for the academic review of English.Muñoz Mas, R.; Martinez-Capel, F.; Garófano-Gómez, V.; Mouton, A. (2014). Application of Probabilistic Neural Networks to microhabitat suitability modelling for adult brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) in Iberian rivers. Environmental Modelling and Software. 59:30-43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsoft.2014.05.003S30435

Irrigation uniformity under different socio-economic conditions: evaluation of centre pivots in Aragon (Spain) and Utah (USA)

? Pags., Tabls., Figs.[EN] This study is an analysis of the influence that the socio-economic context may have on irrigation performance. The main objective is to provide useful information to support the decision-making processes of farmers, water user associations, policy-makers and agritech companies. For this purpose, 34 centre pivots were evaluated in Aragon (Spain) and Utah (USA). Utah has a lower agricultural production potential than Aragon, and crop production is a secondary activity with respect to livestock production on many farms. In Aragon, farms are mainly devoted to crop production. These and other features may bias farmers' decisions regarding investment, operation and maintenance of their irrigation systems. This bias may be the underlying cause of the lower irrigation uniformity obtained in Utah. Coefficients of uniformity (CU) averaged 90% in Aragon and 80% in Utah. The gap between the actual and potential (90%) CU translates into an estimated net land productivity reduction of −18% (€66 ha-1, US$89 ha-1) in Utah. Measures aimed at closing this gap could cost less than €15 ha-1 (US$20 ha-1). Multidisciplinary approaches are required to quantify these gaps and to understand their causes in order to bridge them in a cost-effective manner.[FR] Cette étude est une analyse de l'influence que le contexte socio-économique peut avoir sur les performances de l'irrigation. L'objectif principal est de fournir des informations utilisables pour appuyer les processus de prise de décision des agriculteurs, des associations d'usagers de l'eau, des responsables politiques et des entreprises de l'agrotechnologie. Dans cet objectif, 34 pivots ont été évalués en Aragon (Espagne) et en Utah (États-Unis). L'Utah présente un potentiel de production agricole inférieur à celui de l'Aragon, et la production agricole est une activité secondaire par rapport à l'élevage de bétail dans de nombreuses exploitations. En Aragon, les exploitations sont principalement consacrées à la production agricole. Ces caractéristiques entre autres peuvent influencer les décisions des agriculteurs à l'égard des investissements, du fonctionnement et de la maintenance de leurs systèmes d'irrigation. Cette influence peut être la cause sous-jacente d'une uniformité de l'irrigation inférieure en Utah. Les coefficients d'uniformité (CU) sont en moyenne de 90% en Aragon et de 80% en Utah. L'écart entre les CU réel et potentiel (90%) se traduit par une réduction de la productivité des terres nette estimée à −18% (€66 ha-1, $US89 ha-1) en Utah. Les mesures visant à réduire cet écart pourraient coûter moins de €15 ha-1 ($US20 ha-1). Des approches multidisciplinaires sont nécessaires pour quantifier ces lacunes et comprendre leurs causes afin de les combler d'une manière rentable.Peer reviewe