Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Xuanmei Fan, Anja Dufresne, Jim Whiteley, Ali P. Yunus, Srikrishnan Siva Subramanian, Chukwueloka A. U. Okeke, Tomas Panek, Reginald L. Hermanns, Peng Ming, Alexander Strom, Hans-Balder Havenith, Stuart Dunning, Gonghui Wang, Carlo Tacconi Stefanelli
Summary: River-damming by landslides is a common phenomenon worldwide, with recent advances in remote sensing technology and multi-method dating campaigns providing more accurate inventories and monitoring options. Geophysical methods offer non-invasive ways to investigate landslide dams, while knowledge of sedimentology is essential for verifying results and understanding interior structures. Combining insights from all these methods in multi-disciplinary research projects is crucial for advancing landslide dam research, assessment, and monitoring.
EARTH-SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Murat Utkucu, Talas Fikret Kurnaz, Yigit Ince
Summary: The earthquake hazard of the wide plateau around the East Anatolian Fault Zone in eastern Turkiye, which includes significant dams, is studied using seismicity assessment and probabilistic seismic hazard analysis. The fault segments in the east of Kahramanmaras city, previously considered a seismic gap, are found to produce earthquakes with a minimum magnitude of M-w = 7.4. The study reveals significant temporal and spatial variations in seismicity, indicating a short recurrence time estimation of as low as 90 years for earthquakes comparable to the 2020 Sivrice earthquake. The results suggest a higher seismic hazard than previously known, necessitating alertness in terms of seismic safety and preparedness in the study area.
ENVIRONMENTAL EARTH SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Green & Sustainable Science & Technology
Christopher Schulz, William M. Adams
Summary: Planning and constructing dams are notoriously difficult due to their complex impacts on social, environmental, and economic aspects. A study using Q methodology analyzed different viewpoints on dam development principles, resulting in three idealised perspectives which offer insights into alternative visions for future dam planning.
SUSTAINABILITY SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Development Studies
Anja Nygren
Summary: Water-related disasters have become more unpredictable due to human-induced climatic and hydroecological changes, leading to profound effects on people living in fragile river basins. This article analyses the drastic transformation of waterscapes in the lower basin of the Grijalva River in southeastern Mexico and how state authority is reinforced through these alterations. By examining the interlinkages between state-making, resource-making, hazard-making, and the dynamics of socionature, the study contributes to discussions on environmental vulnerability. The study illustrates the cumulative effects of state-making, politics of scale, and socionature dynamics on socially differentiated vulnerability, highlighting the challenges of controlling hazards provoked by massive waterscape changes.
Article
Engineering, Multidisciplinary
Yiqing Sun, Zhenzhong Shen, Liqun Xu, Lei Gan, Wenbing Zhang, Jinmeng Yang, Hongwei Zhang, Zhangxin Huang, Baotai Ma, Jiaao Yu, Shuo Wang
Summary: The study found that the displacement variation of homogeneous Earth dams follows the general rule for Earth and rock dams during completion and operation periods. Additionally, certain parameters such as R-f, phi(0), and Delta(phi) were found to be more sensitive to dam deformation, while other parameters like m, n, and K showed lower sensitivity to deformation.
MATHEMATICAL PROBLEMS IN ENGINEERING
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Mechanical
Rodrigo Jose de Almeida Torres Filho, Rocio L. Segura, Patrick Paultre
Summary: This study proposes a machine learning-based transformation function that improves the results obtained with a simplified method by converting low-fidelity data into high-fidelity data. The proposed method is applied to analyze the seismic response of a dam-reservoir-foundation system considering geometric uncertainty. The results show that the proposed methodology is capable of correlating methods with different hypotheses, precision levels, and outputs.
PROBABILISTIC ENGINEERING MECHANICS
(2023)
Article
Environmental Studies
Max Ritts, Sarah M. Wiebe
Summary: This paper examines how systems of interspecies knowing and care in Hawai'i challenge state-supported frameworks of liberal biopolitical governance. By analyzing a specific lawsuit, the authors argue that marine mammal care serves as a regulatory device for ordering interspecies relations in Hawai'i. Additionally, the paper considers the relationship between liberal recognition and biopolitics in governing more-than-human actors and environments.
ENVIRONMENT AND PLANNING E-NATURE AND SPACE
(2021)
Article
Development Studies
Ian G. Baird
Summary: There is increasing interest in organic lowland rice cultivation in Thailand due to concerns about human health and environmental impacts. However, a government project aimed at promoting organic rice farming has faced obstacles because the certification standards do not align with international standards. This has created unrealistic expectations for farmers and hindered the development of organic farming structures.
Review
Environmental Sciences
Rachael D. Garrett, Federico Cammelli, Joice Ferreira, Samuel A. Levy, Judson Valentim, Ima Vieira
Summary: The ongoing deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon is the result of a federal project to occupy, integrate, and modernize the region. The region has experienced periods of deforestation control, but the overall trajectory since colonial times has been one of forest loss and degradation. The lack of consolidation of a sustainable economy has left forest conservation and development dependent on external programs, making progress toward a forest transition vulnerable to changes in political leadership and global market signals.
ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENVIRONMENT AND RESOURCES, VOL 46, 2021
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Chao Liang, Jianyun Chen, Qiang Xu, Jing Li
Summary: Constructing a multicomponent hazard consistency conditional spectrum (CS) is crucial for evaluating the nonlinear response of ultrahigh concrete arch dams under strong or extreme earthquakes. Neglecting the vertical (V) component hazard consistency can lead to significant biases in estimating the response dispersion of arch dams under extreme earthquakes, but has little effect on the mean response. By selecting appropriate scaling factor (SF) values, the response bias caused by neglecting V component hazard consistency can be diminished.
ENGINEERING STRUCTURES
(2023)
Article
Development Studies
Charlotte Wiederkehr, Tobias Ide, Ralf Seppelt, Kathleen Hermans
Summary: Researchers and policy makers have expressed concerns about the relationship between migration and conflicts over renewable resources in destination areas, but there is currently no conclusive evidence to support this link. This study combines qualitative and quantitative data from 20 cases in rural Asia, Latin America, and Sub-Saharan Africa to investigate resource-related conflicts in areas hosting migrants. The findings suggest that resource conflicts involving migrants in destination areas occur when there is a high reliance on natural resources and negative perceptions of migrants' resource use, or when government policies support certain migrant groups but restrict resource access due to conservation efforts or industrial activities. The study highlights the role of grievances related to resource access and the influence of government actions on local migrant-host dynamics.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Casey Walsh
Summary: In the past 150 years, access to underground water has increased worldwide due to advancements in drilling technology, pumps, and cheap energy. However, the widespread use of deep wells has caused a redistribution of groundwater sources, depriving springs, wells, and oases of the water that sustains local communities. The concept of groundwater has emerged within this context, characterized by its heterogeneity, ubiquity, and visibility. Efforts to address the depletion by focusing on cultural factors have proven ineffective due to a limited understanding of culture as a set of rules and norms. Reevaluating our cultural, political, and economic engagements with groundwater is necessary.
WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS-WATER
(2022)
Article
Geography
Michelle Ann Miller
Summary: Research suggests that volcanic eruptions can produce sand to replace the overexploitation of natural sand resources, yet there are still significant gaps in this field. Collaborative environmental governance measures are needed to bridge the knowledge gap about industry practices and address the environmental impacts caused by volcanic sand trade.
ANNALS OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF GEOGRAPHERS
(2022)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Robert Coates
Summary: This paper uses the case of the Brazil flood disaster to discuss the governance of disaster events, narratives, and the potential of infrastructures in mitigating urban futures. The author argues that addressing urban disaster risk requires reframing disasters as infrastructural events and challenging dominant natural hazard narratives.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF DISASTER RISK REDUCTION
(2022)
Article
Geography
Asif Mehmood, Joshua J. Cousins
Summary: This article examines how political-ecological questions are transferred to the courts and form judicial ecologies. The aim is to understand how judicial and legal systems intersect in different political-ecological contexts.