Asia’s Wicked Environmental Problems

The developing economies of Asia are confronted by serious environmental problems that threaten to undermine future growth, food security, and regional stability. This study considers four major environmental challenges that policymakers across developing Asia will need to address towards 2030: water management, air pollution, deforestation and land degradation, and climate change. We argue that these challenges, each unique in their own way, all exhibit the characteristics of “wicked problems”. As developed in the planning literature, and now applied much more broadly, wicked problems are dynamic, complex, encompass many issues and stakeholders, and evade straightforward, lasting solutions.asia environmental problems; food security; water management; air pollution; deforestation; land degradation; climate change; wicked problems

The palaeoceanography of the Leeuwin Current : implications for a future world

Long-term progressive changes of the Leeuwin Current are linked to plate and ocean basin ‘geography’ and Cenozoic global climates and palaeoceanography. Suggestions of the presence of a proto-Leeuwin Current as early as late Middle to Late Eocene times (c. 35–42 Ma) cannot be verified by the fossil record of the western margin of Australia. “Leeuwin Current style” circulation around Australia was certainly established by the early Oligocene, in response to palaeogeographic changes in the Tasman Strait. This, followed by tectonic eorganisation of the Indonesian Archipelago throughout the Miocene, provided a palaeogeographic setting, which by the Pliocene was essentially that of today. The subsequent history of the Leeuwin Current comprises climatically-induced changes operating over orbital and sub-orbital temporal scales. Specifically, the advent of Pleistocene-style climates, especially over the last 800 000 years, and their associated interglacial – glacial states provide the two end-member climate-ocean states that have characterised Leeuwin Current activity during that time. Indications of the nature of these contrasting states is provided by: (i) the Last Interglacial (c. 125 Ka) during which sea level was higher by some +4 m, and with higher sea surface temperatures (SSTs) clearly indicating a more ‘active’ Leeuwin Current; and (ii) the Last Glacial Maximum (21 Ka), during which sea level wassome 130 m lower than today, resulting in massive shelf extensions along the coast of Western Australia, ccompanied by reduced Indonesian Throughflow, lower low latitude SSTs and changes in the Western Pacific Warm Water Pool, and with these changes, possibly reduced Leeuwin Current activity. Sub-orbital scale luctuations in current strength are driven by global climate change associated with El Niño – La Niña events as well as regional climatic changes driven by volcanism. These forcing mechanisms operate at time scales well within the reach of human experience, and provide important comparative data for predicting the response of the Leeuwin Current to climate change predicted for this century. Studies of the impact of changes in the vigour of the Leeuwin Current on shallow marine communities are in their infancy. Coupling climate models with geological analogues provide important research agenda for predicting the trajectory of future changes to the Leeuwin Current and their impacts on the marine biota of coastal Western Australia

Global water: issues and insights

This book brings together some of the world’s leading water researchers with an especially written collection of chapters on: water economics; transboundary water; water and development; water and energy; and water concepts. Introduction Freshwater governance holds a prominent position in the global policy agenda. Burgeoning water demand due to population growth and rising incomes is combining with supply-side pressures, such as environmental pollution and climate change, to create acute conditions of global water scarcity. This is a major concern because water is a primary input for agriculture, manufacturing, environmental health, human health, energy production and just about every economic sector and ecosystem. In addition to its importance, the management of freshwater resources is a complex, multidisciplinary topic. Encompassing a range of fields in the physical and social sciences, the task of sustainably meeting human and environmental water needs requires a depth and breadth of understanding unparalleled by most other policy problems. Our objective in this volume is to provide knowledge and insights into major issues and concepts related to freshwater governance. The book is divided into five themed parts: Economics, Transboundary governance, Development, Energy and Water Concepts. A part addresses each theme and opens with an introduction that provides an overview of key topics. For example, the introduction to the economics section presents two main foci: measuring the value of water and managing trade-offs between different water uses. The thematic case studies discuss issues such as water pricing in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, finance of water supply and irrigation infrastructure and improving agricultural production with enhanced water management. The aim of the volume is to accessibly communicate academic research from the many fields of freshwater governance. Too often, academic research is paywalled and/or written in a style that caters to colleagues in the same field, rather than a broader audience from other disciplines, the policy-making community and the general public. This open-access book presents the research of a range of global experts on freshwater governance in brief, insightful chapters that do not presume a high level of pre-existing knowledge of their respective subjects. This format is intended to present knowledge on the key problems of and solutions to global freshwater challenges. The final part presents research from several United Nations Educational, Social, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) supported water research Chairs and Centres. Support and coordination of the insititutions highlighted in this part of the book is provided by UNESCO. One water research Chair is The Australian National University – UNESCO Chair in Water Economics and Transboundary Governance, which was established in April 2010 and works with partners in southern Africa, UNESCO, the Global Water Partnership and other organisations to: (1) increase the skills, capacity, networks and potential of leaders and prospective water managers and policy-makers; (2) sustain and strengthen institutional capacity (especially in southern Africa) by providing a platform for collaboration and institutional development; and, (3) develop innovative research, tools, case-studies, and insights on water economics, water governance and equity. Established by the ANU–UNESCO Chair, the Global Water Forum (GWF) seeks to disseminate knowledge regarding freshwater governance and build the capacity of students, policy-makers and the general public to respond to local and global water issues. The GWF publishes accessible, subscription-free articles highlighing the latest research and practice concerning freshwater governance. A broad range of water-related topics are discussed in a non-technical manner, including water security, development, agriculture, energy and environment. In addition to publishing articles, reports and books, the GWF is engaged in a range of activities, such as the annual Emerging Scholars Award and hosting a portal to educational resources on freshwater. We hope that you enjoy reading this book and, more importantly, gain an improved understanding of the complex freshwater-governance challenges facing us all on a global scale and at a local level

The Hyden Fault Scarp, Western Australia: Paleoseismic Evidence for Repeated Quaternary Displacement in an Intracratonic Setting

We present new paleoseismicity data for the 30 km long and 2.5 m high Hyden fault scarp in Western Australia, which, when combined with the results of previous research, provides the most extensive record of surface-rupturing earthquakes yet assembled for an 'active' Australian intracratonic fault. The data indicate that four to five surface-rupturing earthquakes have occurred on the Hyden Fault during the Quaternary (E1, ca 20 ka; E2, ca 55 - 50 ka; E3, ca 100 - 90 ka; and two events E4 and E5, 4200 ka). Activity is episodic, with single seismic cycle slip rates varying from 0.03 mm/y to 50.01 mm/y. Paleoearthquake magnitudes are estimated to have been in the order of Mw 6.8. The identification of a similar fault scarp immediately north west of the Hyden scarp, and of two air photo lineaments to the west of the Hyden scarp, indicates that strain is distributed among a family of faults in this region. The presence of multiple nearby active faults suggests that the recurrence of severe ground shaking in the Hyden region is more frequent than indicated by the paleoseismic data presented here

The paradox of water pricing: dichotomies, dilemmas, and decisions

We deliver a public policy perspective on the dichotomies, dilemmas, and decisions of water pricing. First, the dichotomies between price and value, and costs, are defined to explain the paradox of water pricing: the price of water almost never equals its value and rarely covers its cost. Second, the dilemmas of water pricing are highlighted across efficiency and equity, objectives for water pricing, and the instruments available to decision-makers. Third, the challenges of decision-making are evaluated and illustrated in relation to water pricing. Fourth, an adaptive process is provided that includes participatory assessment of risks and options to guide water-pricing decision-making. Keywords: water tariff, costs, equity, efficiency, regulatio

Long‐Wavelength Sinuosity of Linear Dunes on Earth and Titan and the Effect of Underlying Topography

AbstractOn both Earth and Titan, some linear dunefields are characterized by curvilinear patterning atypical of the regularity and straightness of typical longitudinal dunefields. We use remotely sensed imagery and an automated dune crestline detection algorithm to analyze the controls on spatial patterning. Here it is shown that topography can influence the patterning, as dune alignments bend to deflect downslope under the influence of gravity. The effect is pronounced in a terrestrial dunefield (the Great Sandy desert, Australia) where substantial topography underlies, but is absent where the dunefield is underlain by subdued relief (southwestern Kalahari). This knowledge allows the inference of subtle topographic changes underlying dunefields from dunefield patterning, where other sources of elevation data may be absent. This methodology is explored using the Belet Sand Sea of Titan, where likely areas of topographic change at resolutions finer than those currently available from radar altimetry are inferred.</jats:p

See–saw relationship of the Holocene East Asian–Australian summer monsoon

The East Asian–Indonesian–Australian summer monsoon (EAIASM) links the Earth’s hemispheres and provides a heat source that drives global circulation. At seasonal and inter-seasonal timescales, the summer monsoon of one hemisphere is linked via outflows from the winter monsoon of the opposing hemisphere. Long-term phase relationships between the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) and the Indonesian–Australian summer monsoon (IASM) are poorly understood, raising questions of long-term adjustments to future greenhouse-triggered climate change and whether these changes could ‘lock in’ possible IASM and EASM phase relationships in a region dependent on monsoonal rainfall. Here we show that a newly developed nonlinear time series analysis technique allows confident identification of strong versus weak monsoon phases at millennial to sub-centennial timescales. We find a see–saw relationship over the last 9,000 years—with strong and weak monsoons opposingly phased and triggered by solar variations. Our results provide insights into centennial- to millennial-scale relationships within the wider EAIASM regime

See-saw relationship of the Holocene East Asian-Australian summer monsoon

D.E. and N.M. acknowledge support by the Leibniz Association (WGL) under Grant No. SAW-2013-IZW-2. F.H.M.’s research is funded through an Australian Postgraduate Award. I.O. is financially supported from TUBITAK under 2214/A program and by Ege University under the Research Project number 2015FEN028. This study received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 691037. The publication of this article was funded by the Open Access Fund of the Leibniz Association. K.H.W. thank Rhawn F. Denniston for his wider involvement in the northwest Australian monsoon project and the Kimberley Foundation Australia for financial support for this project and Paul Wyrwoll for helpful comments. We are also grateful to Yanjun Cai for providing the Lake Qinghai record.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Pravastatin ameliorates placental vascular defects, fetal growth, and cardiac function in a model of glucocorticoid excess

Fetoplacental glucocorticoid overexposure is a significant mechanism underlying fetal growth restriction and the programming of adverse health outcomes in the adult. Placental glucocorticoid inactivation by 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 (11β-HSD2) plays a key role. We previously discovered that Hsd11b2(−/−) mice, lacking 11β-HSD2, show marked underdevelopment of the placental vasculature. We now explore the consequences for fetal cardiovascular development and whether this is reversible. We studied Hsd11b2(+/+), Hsd11b2(+/−), and Hsd11b2(−/−) littermates from heterozygous (Hsd11b(+/−)) matings at embryonic day (E)14.5 and E17.5, where all three genotypes were present to control for maternal effects. Using high-resolution ultrasound, we found that umbilical vein blood velocity in Hsd11b2(−/−) fetuses did not undergo the normal gestational increase seen in Hsd11b2(+/+) littermates. Similarly, the resistance index in the umbilical artery did not show the normal gestational decline. Surprisingly, given that 11β-HSD2 absence is predicted to initiate early maturation, the E/A wave ratio was reduced at E17.5 in Hsd11b2(−/−) fetuses, suggesting impaired cardiac function. Pravastatin administration from E6.5, which increases placental vascular endothelial growth factor A and, thus, vascularization, increased placental fetal capillary volume, ameliorated the aberrant umbilical cord velocity, normalized fetal weight, and improved the cardiac function of Hsd11b2(−/−) fetuses. This improved cardiac function occurred despite persisting indications of increased glucocorticoid exposure in the Hsd11b2(−/−) fetal heart. Thus, the pravastatin-induced enhancement of fetal capillaries within the placenta and the resultant hemodynamic changes correspond with restored fetal cardiac function. Statins may represent a useful therapeutic approach to intrauterine growth retardation due to placental vascular hypofunction

Accelerating tropicalization and the transformation of temperate seagrass meadows

Climate-driven changes are altering production and functioning of biotic assemblages in terrestrial and aquatic environments. In temperate coastal waters, rising sea temperatures, warm water anomalies and poleward shifts in the distribution of tropical herbivores have had a detrimental effect on algal forests. We develop generalized scenarios of this form of tropicalization and its potential effects on the structure and functioning of globally significant and threatened seagrass ecosystems, through poleward shifts in tropical seagrasses and herbivores. Initially, we expect tropical herbivorous fishes to establish in temperate seagrass meadows, followed later by megafauna. Tropical seagrasses are likely to establish later, delayed by more limited dispersal abilities. Ultimately, food webs are likely to shift from primarily seagrass-detritus to more directconsumption- based systems, thereby affecting a range of important ecosystem services that seagrasses provide, including their nursery habitat role for fishery species, carbon sequestration, and the provision of organic matter to other ecosystems in temperate regions