ABSTRACT Public participation in the development of flood risk management and river basin managem... more ABSTRACT Public participation in the development of flood risk management and river basin management plans are explicit components of both the Water Framework and Floods Directives. At the local level, involving communities in land and water management has been found to (i) aid better environmental decision making, (ii) enhance social, economic and environmental benefits, and (iii) increase a sense of ownership. Facilitating the access and exchange of information on the local environment is an important part of this new approach to the land and water management process, which also includes local community stakeholders in decisions about the design and content of the information provided. As part of the Natural Environment Research Council's pilot Environment Virtual Observatory (EVO), the Local Level group are engaging with local community stakeholders in three different catchments in the UK (the rivers Eden, Tarland and Dyfi) to start the process of developing prototype visualisation tools to address the specific land and water management issues identified in each area. Through this local collaboration, we will provide novel visualisation tools through which to communicate complex catchment science outcomes and bring together different sources of environmental data in ways that better meet end-user needs as well as facilitate a far broader participatory approach in environmental decision making. The Local Landscape Visualisation Tools are being evolved iteratively during the project to reflect the needs, interests and capabilities of a wide range of stakeholders. The tools will use the latest concepts and technologies to communicate with and provide opportunities for the provision and exchange of information between the public, government agencies and scientists. This local toolkit will reside within a wider EVO platform that will include national datasets, models and state of the art cloud computer systems. As such, local stakeholder groups are assisting the EVO's development and participating in local decision making alongside policy makers, government agencies and scientists.
Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2013
Local remediation measures, particularly those undertaken in historical mining areas, can often b... more Local remediation measures, particularly those undertaken in historical mining areas, can often be ineffective or even deleterious because erosion and sedimentation processes operate at spatial scales beyond those typically used in point-source remediation. Based on realistic simulations of an hybrid landscape evolution model combined with stochastic rainfall generation, we demonstrate that similar remediation strategies may result in differing effects across three contrasting European catchments depending on their topographic and hydrologic regimes. Based on these results we propose a conceptual model of catchment-scale remediation effectiveness based on three basic catchment characteristics: the degree of contaminant source coupling, the ratio of contaminated to non-contaminated sediment delivery, and the frequency of sediment transport events. Response to Reviewers: We greatly appreciate the thorough second reading by the reviewer and his comments. Here is the list of responses: 1)Most of the changes recommended made were carried out and the text is 99% fine. The answer to R1 point 6 is identical to R1 point 7... though point 6 was more of a recommendation than a necessary change. (It would improve the paper though). This is interesting-so its apparent that the TIMING as well as the DISTRIBUTION is controlled by the geomorphology-or the shape of the catchment. I think this is really really interesting and should be flagged up more in the discussion. Its also a good answer to the issue I raised about using the stochastic data-you can make more of this timing finding I think. We truly apologise for the mistake in giving the same answer to two different questions. It was obviously an editing confusion. Now, we have added in Conclusions: "While floodplain geomorphology greatly
Technological advances in hyperspectral remote sensing have been widely applied in heavy metal so... more Technological advances in hyperspectral remote sensing have been widely applied in heavy metal soil contamination studies, as they are able to provide assessments in a rapid and cost-effective way. The present work investigates the potential role of combining field and laboratory spectroradiometry with geochemical data of lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu) and cadmium (Cd) in quantifying and modelling heavy metal soil contamination (HMSC) for a floodplain site located in Wales, United Kingdom. The study objectives were to: (i) collect field- and lab-based spectra from contaminated soils by using ASD FieldSpec® 3, where the spectrum varies between 350 and 2500 nm; (ii) build field- and lab-based spectral libraries; (iii) conduct geochemical analyses of Pb, Zn, Cu and Cd using atomic absorption spectrometer; (iv) identify the specific spectral regions associated to the modelling of HMSC; and (v) develop and validate heavy metal prediction models (HMPM) for the aforementioned contaminan...
Project aims Defra is seeking to understand the magnitude of risks (e.g. to aquatic ecology and h... more Project aims Defra is seeking to understand the magnitude of risks (e.g. to aquatic ecology and human health) or impacts (e.g. on the way that water bodies are managed) posed by contaminated sediment in England, as part of its work towards meeting its environmental objectives. In the context of this project, in-situ contaminated sediment is defined as: Chemically contaminated sediment within the water column, bed, banks and floodplain of a surface water body that has been transported alongside the normal sediment load and deposited by fluvial or coastal processes. This project considers the risk posed by non-agricultural diffuse pollution sources in England that result in the contamination of in-situ sediments (for example, contamination from toxic metals, hydrocarbons and surfactants). The scope encompasses both freshwater and marine sediments in England and extends to one nautical mile off-shore (the seaward limit of coastal waters under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) in Engl...
A better understanding of the behavior of individual grazing dairy cattle will assist in improvin... more A better understanding of the behavior of individual grazing dairy cattle will assist in improving productivity and welfare. Global positioning systems (GPS) applied to cows could provide a means of monitoring grazing herds while overcoming the substantial efforts required for manual observation. Any model of behavioral prediction using GPS needs to be accurate and robust by accounting for inter-cow variation as well as atmospheric effects. We evaluated the performance using a series of machine learning algorithms on GPS data collected from 40 pasture-based dairy cows over 4 mo. A feature extraction step was performed on the collected raw GPS data, which resulted in 43 different attributes. The evaluated behaviors were grazing, resting, and walking. Classifier learners were built using 10 times 10-fold cross validation and tested on an independent test set. Results were evaluated using a variety of statistical significance tests across all parameters. We found that final model selection depended upon level of performance and model complexity. The classifier learner deemed most suitable for this particular problem was JRip, a rule-based learner (classification accuracy = 0.85; false positive rate = 0.10; F-measure = 0.76; area under the receiver operating curve = 0.87). This model will be used in further studies to assess the behavior and welfare of pasture-based dairy cows.
The solid state partitioning of metals and As in river channel sediments has been investigated al... more The solid state partitioning of metals and As in river channel sediments has been investigated along an 828 km study reach comprising the rivers Lapus¸, Somes¸and Tisa, using a 4-stage sequential extraction procedure (SEP) that identified 4 chemical phases: (1) exchangeable, (2) Fe and Mn oxides, (3) organic matter/sulphides and (4) residual. Peak total concentrations of As (240 mg kg À1), Cd (95 mg kg À1), Cu (24,500 mg kg À1) and Pb (21,100 mg kg À1) were found in the River Lapus¸immediately downstream of Ba˘iut¸base-metal mine, with Zn concentrations (23,000 mg kg À1) peaking 2 km further downstream. Contaminant metals and As within samples close to Ba˘iut¸mine were largely bound to sulphides (> 92%). Ten km downstream from Ba˘iut¸mine, however, Cd and Zn were found to be environmentally significant due to their strong association with the exchangeable phase (73 and 47%, respectively). Lead was found to be predominantly associated with Fe and Mn oxides (71%), but concentrations in the residual phase were relatively high in the upper Tisa. Copper was more evenly distributed between the 4 phases than the other 4 elements analysed. Elevated metal and As concentrations were found in the rivers Lapus¸and Somes¸downstream of polluted tributaries, but sites on the River Tisa had total metal concentrations below Dutch guideline values. The implications of the river sediment metal partitioning results on the environment are considered in light of Cd and Zn 'exchangeable hotspots' at sites on the Lapus¸and Somes¸Rivers.
Technological advances over the past two decades in remotely-sensed and ground-based topographic ... more Technological advances over the past two decades in remotely-sensed and ground-based topographic surveying technologies have made the rapid acquisition of topographic data in the fluvial environment possible at spatial resolutions and extents previously unimaginable. Consequently, monitoring geomorphic changes and estimating fluvial sediment budgets through comparing repeat topographic surveys (DEM differencing) has now become a tractable, affordable approach for both research purposes and long-term ...
" At sites where dense concentrations of palaeoliths are found within river gravels, such as... more " At sites where dense concentrations of palaeoliths are found within river gravels, such as many of the sites in the Solent area... it can be assumed that they have not travelled far from their place of discard."(Wessex Archaeology 1992: 12) " Despite the recognition and importance of abrasion very little work has been presented to establish both how it occurs and the rate of its occurrence. Similarly, the dispersal of artefactual material and its behaviour within a river has received little attention."(Rarding et al. 1987: 115)
In fluvial-estuarine systems, three main physical processes zones can be identified: a) river-dom... more In fluvial-estuarine systems, three main physical processes zones can be identified: a) river-dominated; b) tide- dominated; and c) wave-dominated. In the river-dominated zone, water and sediment transport is directed seaward, whilst in the marine-forced zones, water and sediment fluxes may be bi-directional. Although the spatiotemporal dynamics of water and sediment fluxes in both river and marine-forced systems have been comprehensively
Groundwater, accessed using wells and municipal springs, represents the major source of potable w... more Groundwater, accessed using wells and municipal springs, represents the major source of potable water for the human population outside of major urban areas in northwestern Romania, a region with a long history of metal mining and metallurgy. The magnitude and spatial distribution of metal contamination in private-supply groundwater was investigated in four mining-affected river catchments in Maramureş and Satu Mare Counties through the collection of 144 groundwater samples. Bedrock geology, pH and Eh were found to be important controls on the solubility of metals in groundwater. Peak metal concentrations were found to occur in the Lapuş catchment, where metal levels exceed Dutch target and intervention values in up to 49% and 14% of samples, respectively. A 700 m wide corridor in the Lapuş catchment on either side of the main river channel was identified in which peak Cd (31 lg l-1), Cu (50 lg l-1), Pb (50 lg l-1) and Zn (3,000 lg l-1) concentrations were found to occur. Given the generally similar bedrock geologies, lower metal levels in other catchments are believed to reflect differences in the magnitude of metal loading to the local environment from both metal mining and other industrial and municipal sources. Sampling of groundwater in northwestern Romania has indicated areas of potential concern for human health, where heavy metal concentrations exceed accepted environmental quality guidelines. The presence of elevated metal levels in groundwater also has implications for the implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) and achieving 'good' status for groundwater in this part of the Danube River Basin District (RBD).
ABSTRACT Today's world is dominated by a wide range of informatics tools that are readily... more ABSTRACT Today's world is dominated by a wide range of informatics tools that are readily available to a wide range of stakeholders. There is growing recognition that the appropriate involvement of local communities in land and water management decisions can result in multiple environmental, economic and social benefits. Therefore, local stakeholder groups are increasingly being asked to participate in decision making alongside policy makers, government agencies and scientists. As such, addressing flooding issues requires new ways of engaging with the catchment and its inhabitants at a local level. To support this, new tools and approaches are required. The growth of cloud based technologies offers new novel ways to facilitate this process of exchange of information in earth sciences. The Environmental Virtual Observatory Pilot project (EVOp) is a new initiative from the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) designed to deliver proof of concept for new tools and approaches to support the challenges as outlined above (http://www.evo-uk.org/). The long term vision of the Environmental Virtual Observatory is to: • Make environmental data more visible and accessible to a wide range of potential users including public good applications; • Provide tools to facilitate the integrated analysis of data, greater access to added knowledge and expert analysis and visualisation of the results; • Develop new, added-value knowledge from public and private sector data assets to help tackle environmental challenges. As part of the EVO pilot, an interactive cloud based tool has been developed with local stakeholders. The Local Landscape Visualisation Tool attempts to communicate flood risk in local impacted communities. The tool has been developed iteratively to reflect the needs, interests and capabilities of a wide range of stakeholders. This tool (assessable via a web portal) combines numerous cloud based tools and services, local catchment datasets, hydrological models and novel visualisation techniques. This pilot tool has been developed by engaging with different stakeholder groups in three catchments in the UK; the Afon Dyfi (Wales), the River Tarland (Scotland) and the River Eden (England). Stakeholders were interested in accessing live data in their catchments and looking at different land use change scenarios on flood peaks. Visualisation tools have been created which offer access to real time data (such as river level, rainfall and webcam images). Other tools allow land owners to use cloud based models (example presented here uses Topmodel, a rainfall-runoff model, on a custom virtual machine image on Amazon web services) and local datasets to explore future land use scenarios, allowing them to understand the associated flood risk. Different ways to communicate model uncertainty are currently being investigated and discussed with stakeholders. In summary the pilot project has had positive feedback and has evolved into two unique parts; a web based map tool and a model interface tool. Users can view live data from different sources, combine different data types together (data mash-up), develop local scenarios for land use and flood risk and exploit the dynamic, elastic cloud modelling capability. This local toolkit will reside within a wider EVO platform that will include national and global datasets, models and state of the art cloud computer systems.
ABSTRACT Today's world is dominated by a wide range of informatics tools that are readily... more ABSTRACT Today's world is dominated by a wide range of informatics tools that are readily available to a wide range of stakeholders. There is growing recognition that the appropriate involvement of local communities in land and water management decisions can result in multiple environmental, economic and social benefits. Therefore, local stakeholder groups are increasingly being asked to participate in decision making alongside policy makers, government agencies and scientists. As such, addressing flooding issues requires new ways of engaging with the catchment and its inhabitants at a local level. To support this, new tools and approaches are required. The growth of cloud based technologies offers new novel ways to facilitate this process of exchange of information in earth sciences. The Environmental Virtual Observatory Pilot project (EVOp) is a new initiative from the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) designed to deliver proof of concept for new tools and approaches to support the challenges as outlined above (http://www.evo-uk.org/). The long term vision of the Environmental Virtual Observatory is to: • Make environmental data more visible and accessible to a wide range of potential users including public good applications; • Provide tools to facilitate the integrated analysis of data, greater access to added knowledge and expert analysis and visualisation of the results; • Develop new, added-value knowledge from public and private sector data assets to help tackle environmental challenges. As part of the EVO pilot, an interactive cloud based tool has been developed with local stakeholders. The Local Landscape Visualisation Tool attempts to communicate flood risk in local impacted communities. The tool has been developed iteratively to reflect the needs, interests and capabilities of a wide range of stakeholders. This tool (assessable via a web portal) combines numerous cloud based tools and services, local catchment datasets, hydrological models and novel visualisation techniques. This pilot tool has been developed by engaging with different stakeholder groups in three catchments in the UK; the Afon Dyfi (Wales), the River Tarland (Scotland) and the River Eden (England). Stakeholders were interested in accessing live data in their catchments and looking at different land use change scenarios on flood peaks. Visualisation tools have been created which offer access to real time data (such as river level, rainfall and webcam images). Other tools allow land owners to use cloud based models (example presented here uses Topmodel, a rainfall-runoff model, on a custom virtual machine image on Amazon web services) and local datasets to explore future land use scenarios, allowing them to understand the associated flood risk. Different ways to communicate model uncertainty are currently being investigated and discussed with stakeholders. In summary the pilot project has had positive feedback and has evolved into two unique parts; a web based map tool and a model interface tool. Users can view live data from different sources, combine different data types together (data mash-up), develop local scenarios for land use and flood risk and exploit the dynamic, elastic cloud modelling capability. This local toolkit will reside within a wider EVO platform that will include national and global datasets, models and state of the art cloud computer systems.
ABSTRACT Public participation in the development of flood risk management and river basin managem... more ABSTRACT Public participation in the development of flood risk management and river basin management plans are explicit components of both the Water Framework and Floods Directives. At the local level, involving communities in land and water management has been found to (i) aid better environmental decision making, (ii) enhance social, economic and environmental benefits, and (iii) increase a sense of ownership. Facilitating the access and exchange of information on the local environment is an important part of this new approach to the land and water management process, which also includes local community stakeholders in decisions about the design and content of the information provided. As part of the Natural Environment Research Council's pilot Environment Virtual Observatory (EVO), the Local Level group are engaging with local community stakeholders in three different catchments in the UK (the rivers Eden, Tarland and Dyfi) to start the process of developing prototype visualisation tools to address the specific land and water management issues identified in each area. Through this local collaboration, we will provide novel visualisation tools through which to communicate complex catchment science outcomes and bring together different sources of environmental data in ways that better meet end-user needs as well as facilitate a far broader participatory approach in environmental decision making. The Local Landscape Visualisation Tools are being evolved iteratively during the project to reflect the needs, interests and capabilities of a wide range of stakeholders. The tools will use the latest concepts and technologies to communicate with and provide opportunities for the provision and exchange of information between the public, government agencies and scientists. This local toolkit will reside within a wider EVO platform that will include national datasets, models and state of the art cloud computer systems. As such, local stakeholder groups are assisting the EVO's development and participating in local decision making alongside policy makers, government agencies and scientists.
Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2013
Local remediation measures, particularly those undertaken in historical mining areas, can often b... more Local remediation measures, particularly those undertaken in historical mining areas, can often be ineffective or even deleterious because erosion and sedimentation processes operate at spatial scales beyond those typically used in point-source remediation. Based on realistic simulations of an hybrid landscape evolution model combined with stochastic rainfall generation, we demonstrate that similar remediation strategies may result in differing effects across three contrasting European catchments depending on their topographic and hydrologic regimes. Based on these results we propose a conceptual model of catchment-scale remediation effectiveness based on three basic catchment characteristics: the degree of contaminant source coupling, the ratio of contaminated to non-contaminated sediment delivery, and the frequency of sediment transport events. Response to Reviewers: We greatly appreciate the thorough second reading by the reviewer and his comments. Here is the list of responses: 1)Most of the changes recommended made were carried out and the text is 99% fine. The answer to R1 point 6 is identical to R1 point 7... though point 6 was more of a recommendation than a necessary change. (It would improve the paper though). This is interesting-so its apparent that the TIMING as well as the DISTRIBUTION is controlled by the geomorphology-or the shape of the catchment. I think this is really really interesting and should be flagged up more in the discussion. Its also a good answer to the issue I raised about using the stochastic data-you can make more of this timing finding I think. We truly apologise for the mistake in giving the same answer to two different questions. It was obviously an editing confusion. Now, we have added in Conclusions: "While floodplain geomorphology greatly
Technological advances in hyperspectral remote sensing have been widely applied in heavy metal so... more Technological advances in hyperspectral remote sensing have been widely applied in heavy metal soil contamination studies, as they are able to provide assessments in a rapid and cost-effective way. The present work investigates the potential role of combining field and laboratory spectroradiometry with geochemical data of lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu) and cadmium (Cd) in quantifying and modelling heavy metal soil contamination (HMSC) for a floodplain site located in Wales, United Kingdom. The study objectives were to: (i) collect field- and lab-based spectra from contaminated soils by using ASD FieldSpec® 3, where the spectrum varies between 350 and 2500 nm; (ii) build field- and lab-based spectral libraries; (iii) conduct geochemical analyses of Pb, Zn, Cu and Cd using atomic absorption spectrometer; (iv) identify the specific spectral regions associated to the modelling of HMSC; and (v) develop and validate heavy metal prediction models (HMPM) for the aforementioned contaminan...
Project aims Defra is seeking to understand the magnitude of risks (e.g. to aquatic ecology and h... more Project aims Defra is seeking to understand the magnitude of risks (e.g. to aquatic ecology and human health) or impacts (e.g. on the way that water bodies are managed) posed by contaminated sediment in England, as part of its work towards meeting its environmental objectives. In the context of this project, in-situ contaminated sediment is defined as: Chemically contaminated sediment within the water column, bed, banks and floodplain of a surface water body that has been transported alongside the normal sediment load and deposited by fluvial or coastal processes. This project considers the risk posed by non-agricultural diffuse pollution sources in England that result in the contamination of in-situ sediments (for example, contamination from toxic metals, hydrocarbons and surfactants). The scope encompasses both freshwater and marine sediments in England and extends to one nautical mile off-shore (the seaward limit of coastal waters under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) in Engl...
A better understanding of the behavior of individual grazing dairy cattle will assist in improvin... more A better understanding of the behavior of individual grazing dairy cattle will assist in improving productivity and welfare. Global positioning systems (GPS) applied to cows could provide a means of monitoring grazing herds while overcoming the substantial efforts required for manual observation. Any model of behavioral prediction using GPS needs to be accurate and robust by accounting for inter-cow variation as well as atmospheric effects. We evaluated the performance using a series of machine learning algorithms on GPS data collected from 40 pasture-based dairy cows over 4 mo. A feature extraction step was performed on the collected raw GPS data, which resulted in 43 different attributes. The evaluated behaviors were grazing, resting, and walking. Classifier learners were built using 10 times 10-fold cross validation and tested on an independent test set. Results were evaluated using a variety of statistical significance tests across all parameters. We found that final model selection depended upon level of performance and model complexity. The classifier learner deemed most suitable for this particular problem was JRip, a rule-based learner (classification accuracy = 0.85; false positive rate = 0.10; F-measure = 0.76; area under the receiver operating curve = 0.87). This model will be used in further studies to assess the behavior and welfare of pasture-based dairy cows.
The solid state partitioning of metals and As in river channel sediments has been investigated al... more The solid state partitioning of metals and As in river channel sediments has been investigated along an 828 km study reach comprising the rivers Lapus¸, Somes¸and Tisa, using a 4-stage sequential extraction procedure (SEP) that identified 4 chemical phases: (1) exchangeable, (2) Fe and Mn oxides, (3) organic matter/sulphides and (4) residual. Peak total concentrations of As (240 mg kg À1), Cd (95 mg kg À1), Cu (24,500 mg kg À1) and Pb (21,100 mg kg À1) were found in the River Lapus¸immediately downstream of Ba˘iut¸base-metal mine, with Zn concentrations (23,000 mg kg À1) peaking 2 km further downstream. Contaminant metals and As within samples close to Ba˘iut¸mine were largely bound to sulphides (> 92%). Ten km downstream from Ba˘iut¸mine, however, Cd and Zn were found to be environmentally significant due to their strong association with the exchangeable phase (73 and 47%, respectively). Lead was found to be predominantly associated with Fe and Mn oxides (71%), but concentrations in the residual phase were relatively high in the upper Tisa. Copper was more evenly distributed between the 4 phases than the other 4 elements analysed. Elevated metal and As concentrations were found in the rivers Lapus¸and Somes¸downstream of polluted tributaries, but sites on the River Tisa had total metal concentrations below Dutch guideline values. The implications of the river sediment metal partitioning results on the environment are considered in light of Cd and Zn 'exchangeable hotspots' at sites on the Lapus¸and Somes¸Rivers.
Technological advances over the past two decades in remotely-sensed and ground-based topographic ... more Technological advances over the past two decades in remotely-sensed and ground-based topographic surveying technologies have made the rapid acquisition of topographic data in the fluvial environment possible at spatial resolutions and extents previously unimaginable. Consequently, monitoring geomorphic changes and estimating fluvial sediment budgets through comparing repeat topographic surveys (DEM differencing) has now become a tractable, affordable approach for both research purposes and long-term ...
" At sites where dense concentrations of palaeoliths are found within river gravels, such as... more " At sites where dense concentrations of palaeoliths are found within river gravels, such as many of the sites in the Solent area... it can be assumed that they have not travelled far from their place of discard."(Wessex Archaeology 1992: 12) " Despite the recognition and importance of abrasion very little work has been presented to establish both how it occurs and the rate of its occurrence. Similarly, the dispersal of artefactual material and its behaviour within a river has received little attention."(Rarding et al. 1987: 115)
In fluvial-estuarine systems, three main physical processes zones can be identified: a) river-dom... more In fluvial-estuarine systems, three main physical processes zones can be identified: a) river-dominated; b) tide- dominated; and c) wave-dominated. In the river-dominated zone, water and sediment transport is directed seaward, whilst in the marine-forced zones, water and sediment fluxes may be bi-directional. Although the spatiotemporal dynamics of water and sediment fluxes in both river and marine-forced systems have been comprehensively
Groundwater, accessed using wells and municipal springs, represents the major source of potable w... more Groundwater, accessed using wells and municipal springs, represents the major source of potable water for the human population outside of major urban areas in northwestern Romania, a region with a long history of metal mining and metallurgy. The magnitude and spatial distribution of metal contamination in private-supply groundwater was investigated in four mining-affected river catchments in Maramureş and Satu Mare Counties through the collection of 144 groundwater samples. Bedrock geology, pH and Eh were found to be important controls on the solubility of metals in groundwater. Peak metal concentrations were found to occur in the Lapuş catchment, where metal levels exceed Dutch target and intervention values in up to 49% and 14% of samples, respectively. A 700 m wide corridor in the Lapuş catchment on either side of the main river channel was identified in which peak Cd (31 lg l-1), Cu (50 lg l-1), Pb (50 lg l-1) and Zn (3,000 lg l-1) concentrations were found to occur. Given the generally similar bedrock geologies, lower metal levels in other catchments are believed to reflect differences in the magnitude of metal loading to the local environment from both metal mining and other industrial and municipal sources. Sampling of groundwater in northwestern Romania has indicated areas of potential concern for human health, where heavy metal concentrations exceed accepted environmental quality guidelines. The presence of elevated metal levels in groundwater also has implications for the implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) and achieving 'good' status for groundwater in this part of the Danube River Basin District (RBD).
ABSTRACT Today's world is dominated by a wide range of informatics tools that are readily... more ABSTRACT Today's world is dominated by a wide range of informatics tools that are readily available to a wide range of stakeholders. There is growing recognition that the appropriate involvement of local communities in land and water management decisions can result in multiple environmental, economic and social benefits. Therefore, local stakeholder groups are increasingly being asked to participate in decision making alongside policy makers, government agencies and scientists. As such, addressing flooding issues requires new ways of engaging with the catchment and its inhabitants at a local level. To support this, new tools and approaches are required. The growth of cloud based technologies offers new novel ways to facilitate this process of exchange of information in earth sciences. The Environmental Virtual Observatory Pilot project (EVOp) is a new initiative from the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) designed to deliver proof of concept for new tools and approaches to support the challenges as outlined above (http://www.evo-uk.org/). The long term vision of the Environmental Virtual Observatory is to: • Make environmental data more visible and accessible to a wide range of potential users including public good applications; • Provide tools to facilitate the integrated analysis of data, greater access to added knowledge and expert analysis and visualisation of the results; • Develop new, added-value knowledge from public and private sector data assets to help tackle environmental challenges. As part of the EVO pilot, an interactive cloud based tool has been developed with local stakeholders. The Local Landscape Visualisation Tool attempts to communicate flood risk in local impacted communities. The tool has been developed iteratively to reflect the needs, interests and capabilities of a wide range of stakeholders. This tool (assessable via a web portal) combines numerous cloud based tools and services, local catchment datasets, hydrological models and novel visualisation techniques. This pilot tool has been developed by engaging with different stakeholder groups in three catchments in the UK; the Afon Dyfi (Wales), the River Tarland (Scotland) and the River Eden (England). Stakeholders were interested in accessing live data in their catchments and looking at different land use change scenarios on flood peaks. Visualisation tools have been created which offer access to real time data (such as river level, rainfall and webcam images). Other tools allow land owners to use cloud based models (example presented here uses Topmodel, a rainfall-runoff model, on a custom virtual machine image on Amazon web services) and local datasets to explore future land use scenarios, allowing them to understand the associated flood risk. Different ways to communicate model uncertainty are currently being investigated and discussed with stakeholders. In summary the pilot project has had positive feedback and has evolved into two unique parts; a web based map tool and a model interface tool. Users can view live data from different sources, combine different data types together (data mash-up), develop local scenarios for land use and flood risk and exploit the dynamic, elastic cloud modelling capability. This local toolkit will reside within a wider EVO platform that will include national and global datasets, models and state of the art cloud computer systems.
ABSTRACT Today's world is dominated by a wide range of informatics tools that are readily... more ABSTRACT Today's world is dominated by a wide range of informatics tools that are readily available to a wide range of stakeholders. There is growing recognition that the appropriate involvement of local communities in land and water management decisions can result in multiple environmental, economic and social benefits. Therefore, local stakeholder groups are increasingly being asked to participate in decision making alongside policy makers, government agencies and scientists. As such, addressing flooding issues requires new ways of engaging with the catchment and its inhabitants at a local level. To support this, new tools and approaches are required. The growth of cloud based technologies offers new novel ways to facilitate this process of exchange of information in earth sciences. The Environmental Virtual Observatory Pilot project (EVOp) is a new initiative from the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) designed to deliver proof of concept for new tools and approaches to support the challenges as outlined above (http://www.evo-uk.org/). The long term vision of the Environmental Virtual Observatory is to: • Make environmental data more visible and accessible to a wide range of potential users including public good applications; • Provide tools to facilitate the integrated analysis of data, greater access to added knowledge and expert analysis and visualisation of the results; • Develop new, added-value knowledge from public and private sector data assets to help tackle environmental challenges. As part of the EVO pilot, an interactive cloud based tool has been developed with local stakeholders. The Local Landscape Visualisation Tool attempts to communicate flood risk in local impacted communities. The tool has been developed iteratively to reflect the needs, interests and capabilities of a wide range of stakeholders. This tool (assessable via a web portal) combines numerous cloud based tools and services, local catchment datasets, hydrological models and novel visualisation techniques. This pilot tool has been developed by engaging with different stakeholder groups in three catchments in the UK; the Afon Dyfi (Wales), the River Tarland (Scotland) and the River Eden (England). Stakeholders were interested in accessing live data in their catchments and looking at different land use change scenarios on flood peaks. Visualisation tools have been created which offer access to real time data (such as river level, rainfall and webcam images). Other tools allow land owners to use cloud based models (example presented here uses Topmodel, a rainfall-runoff model, on a custom virtual machine image on Amazon web services) and local datasets to explore future land use scenarios, allowing them to understand the associated flood risk. Different ways to communicate model uncertainty are currently being investigated and discussed with stakeholders. In summary the pilot project has had positive feedback and has evolved into two unique parts; a web based map tool and a model interface tool. Users can view live data from different sources, combine different data types together (data mash-up), develop local scenarios for land use and flood risk and exploit the dynamic, elastic cloud modelling capability. This local toolkit will reside within a wider EVO platform that will include national and global datasets, models and state of the art cloud computer systems.
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Papers by P. Brewer