Biological response to circulation driven by mean summertime winds off central Chile: A numerical model study

A coupled physical-biological model of the waters off central Chile is used to investigate the nitrogen-phytoplankton-zooplankton response to ocean circulation driven by mean summertime winds. The circulation drives the upwelling of middepth water onto the continental shelf and reaches a quasistable rate between days 40 and 60 of the simulation. High-nutrient, low-phytoplankton biomass water is upwelled at the coast, with nutrients being converted to phytoplankton within 3-10 days. A lagged response in zooplankton occurs after 6-30 days, by which time the water has been advected offshore. The magnitude and spatial distribution of phytoplankton biomass and export of organic matter off the continental shelf is sensitive to the zooplankton mortality term. For low zooplankton mortality, phytoplankton biomass on the continental shelf is limited by grazing pressure due to zooplankton, phytoplankton and zooplankton biomass remains low, and the nitrogen advected off the continental shelf in the surface waters is primarily dissolved inorganic nitrogen. When the mortality rate is increased fourfold, an approximately fourfold to fivefold increase is seen in the continental shelf phytoplankton biomass, phytoplankton productivity, and export of organic matter to the deep ocean. This dependence on zooplankton mortality illustrates the potential of top-down control of the shelf production and export of organic matter off the central Chile continental shelf. Copyright 2007 by the American Geophysical Union

Sediment distribution and transport in the shallow coastal waters along the west coast of Denmark

Until recently, studies of the regional distribution of seabed sediments off the littoral zone of the Danish North Sea coast had been concentrated on the Jutland Bank area (Fig. 1; Leth 1996, 1998). Knowledge on the sedimentary conditions and processes along the entire west coast of Jutland has, however, significantly increased as a result of 2000 km of newly acquired high-resolution seismic and side-scan sonar data, supplemented by about 100 vibrocores. These data were collected by the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) during joint projects with the Danish Coastal Authority between 1998 and 2001 (Leth et al. 1999; Larsen & Leth 2001). The coastal zone off west Jutland displays a highly dynamic environment, where sediment transport is governed by strong tidal and wave-induced currents. The net wave-generated current is south going, while the coastal current has a net direction towards the north (Knudsen et al. 2002). The direction of the net littoral drift is southward from the outlet of Limfjorden to Blåvands Huk, with net erosion north of Nymindegab and aggregation to the south; the offshore part of this depositional system has recently been studied (Larsen & Leth 2001)

Mapping of raw materials and habitats in the Danish sector of the North Sea

In the summer of 2010, the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) mapped the potential raw materials and substrate types, over large parts of the Danish economic sector of the North Sea, in cooperation with Orbicon A/S. The mapping was carried out for the Danish Nature Agency; it is part of the general mapping of raw material resources within the territories of the Danish state and forms part of the input for the implementation of the European Union’s Marine Strategy Framework Directive. The purpose was (1) to provide an overview of the distribution, volume and composition of available raw materials and (2) to identify, describe and map the distribution of the dominant marine bottom types

Comparative environmental life cycle analysis of stone wool production using traditional and alternative materials

The mineral wool sector represents 10 % of the total output tonnage of the glass industry. The thermal, acoustic and fire protection properties of mineral wool make it desirable for use in a wide range of economic sectors especially in the construction industry for the creation of low energy buildings. The traditional stone wool manufacturing process involves melting raw materials, in a coke-fired hot blast cupola furnace, fiberization, polymerization, cooling, product finishing and gas treatment. The use of alternative raw materials as torrefied biomass and sodium silicate, is proposed as an alternative manufacturing process to improve the sustainability of stone wool production, particularly the reduction of gas emissions (CO2 and SO2). The present study adopts a life cycle analysis (LCA) approach to measure the comparative environmental performance of the traditional and alternative stone wool production processes; process data are incorporated into a LCA model using SimaPro 8 software with the Ecoinvent version 3 life cycle inventory database. The CML 2000 and Eco-Indicator99 methods are used to estimate effects on different impact categories. The Minerals and Land use impacts in Eco-Indicator99 and the Eutrophication impact in CML2000 increase between 2 and 4 % for the alternative process instead of the traditional one. Similarly, the ecotoxicity-related impacts increase between 9 and 24 % with the use of the alternative process. However these increases are compensated by concomitant impact decreases in other categories of impact; consequently, the three areas of impact grouped by individual Eco-indicator 99 impacts, show environmental benefits improvements between 6 and 15 % when using the alternative process based on torrefied biomass and silicate instead of the traditional process based on coke and cement use

Lipid Profiles in HIV-Infected Patients Receiving Combination Antiretroviral Therapy: Are Different Antiretroviral Drugs Associated with Different Lipid Profiles?

Levels of triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), as well as the TC:HDL-c ratio, were compared in patients receiving different antiretroviral therapy regimens. Patients receiving first-line regimens including protease inhibitors (PIs) had higher TC and TG levels and TC:HDL-c ratios than did antiretroviral-naive patients; patients receiving 2 PIs had higher levels of each lipid. Ritonavir-containing regimens were associated with higher TC and TG levels and TC:HDL-c ratios than were indinavir-containing regimens; however, receipt of nelfinavir was associated with reduced risk of lower HDL-c levels, and receipt of saquinavir was associated with lower TC:HDL-c ratios. Patients receiving nonnucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitors had higher levels of TC and LDL-c than did antiretroviral-naive patients, although the risk of having lower HDL-c levels was lower than that in patients receiving a single PI. Efavirenz was associated with higher levels of TC and TG than was nevirapin

Are European Blue Economy ambitions in conflict with European environmental visions?

We report the outcomes of a comprehensive study of the potential consequences of the implementation of the EU Maritime Spatial Planning Directive (MSPD) in Danish waters. The analyses are anchored in a framework developed in support of data-driven Ecosystem-Based Maritime Spatial Planning. The data for the models include not only human stressors but also information on the distribution of ecosystem components ranging from planktonic communities over benthic communities to fish, seabirds and marine mammals. We have established a baseline, based on state-of-the-art data sets, with respect to combined effects upon ecosystem components. Future scenarios for the developments in human stressors were estimated for 2030 and 2050 based on information on existing policies, strategies and plans and were compared to the baseline. In addition, we developed a scenario for implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), i.e. working towards meeting the objectives of Good Environmental Status. Our results indicate that (1) combined human stressors will possibly increase in 2030 and 2050 compared to the baseline, (2) increased combined human stressors are likely to lead to a worsening of the environmental and ecological status sensu the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the Water Framework Directive (WFD), and (3) the MSPD implementation process appears to conflict with the MSFD and WFD objectives. Accordingly, we are sceptical of claims of an untapped potential for Blue Growth in Danish marine waters.publishedVersio