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Upward surface movement above deep coal mines after closure and flooding of underground workings
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After the mass closures of entire coal mine districts in Europe at the end of the last century, a new phenomenon of surface movement was observed—an upward movement. Although most surface movement (i.e., subsidence) occurs in the months and years after mining by the longwall method, surface movement still occurs many decades after mining is terminated. After the closure and flooding of underground excavations and surrounding rock, this movement was reversed. This paper focuses on quantifying the upward movement in two neighboring coal mines (Winterslag and Zwartberg, Belgium). The study is based on data from a remote sensing technique: interferometry with synthetic aperture radar (INSAR). The results of the study show that the rate of upward movement in the decade after closure is about 10 mm/year on average. The upward movements are not linked directly to the past exploitation directly underneath a location. The amounts of subsidence at specific locations are linked mainly to their positions relative to an inverse trough shape situated over the entire mined-out areas and their immediate surroundings. Local features, such as geological faults, can have a secondary effect on the local variation of the uplift. The processes of subsidence and uplift are based on completely different mechanisms. Subsidence is initiated by a caving process, while the process of uplift is clearly linked to flooding.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2018
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Urban rats as carriers of invasive Salmonella Typhimurium sequence type 313, Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo
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RBINS Staff Publications 2022
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Urban-rural integration at ancient Sagalassos (SW Turkey). Archaeological, archaeozoological and geochemical evidence
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Archaeological and archaeozoological data from the antique site of Sagalassos (southwest Turkey) are combined with data from geochemical analyses of trace elements in archaeological animal bones, to document the changing relation between city and countryside from the 1st to the 7th century AD. These data reveal that during the Early to Middle Imperial period (c. 25BC – 300 AD) the city’s subsistence requirements were largely met by the production capacity of its immediate vicinity, found to be a highly polluted area, and that the inhabitants of Sagalassos were relying little on the countryside. The integration of the city and the countryside was strengthened during the Late Roman period (c. AD 300-450), when more rural products seemed to reach Sagalassos. Animal bones are at that time significantly lower in metal content and must have originated from animals that were kept in areas beyond the zone of heavy pollution. At the same time, occupation density in the countryside reached its climax. Then, in the Early Byzantine time (c. AD 450-700), the inhabitants seemed to return to the situation of the Early to Middle Imperial period and were sustained by the exploitation of the land close to the city.
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RBINS Staff Publications
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Urbanization drives community shifts towards thermophilic and dispersive species at local and landscape scales
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RBINS Staff Publications 2017
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Urbanization drives cross‐taxon declines in abundance and diversity at multiple spatial scales
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The increasing urbanization process is hypothesized to drastically alter (semi‐)natural environments with a concomitant major decline in species abundance and diversity. Yet, studies on this effect of urbanization, and the spatial scale at which it acts, are at present inconclusive due to the large heterogeneity in taxonomic groups and spatial scales at which this relationship has been investigated among studies. Comprehensive studies analysing this relationship across multiple animal groups and at multiple spatial scales are rare, hampering the assessment of how biodiversity generally responds to urbanization. We studied aquatic (cladocerans), limno‐terrestrial (bdelloid rotifers) and terrestrial (butterflies, ground beetles, ground‐ and web spiders, macro‐moths, orthopterans and snails) invertebrate groups using a hierarchical spatial design, wherein three local‐scale (200 m × 200 m) urbanization levels were repeatedly sampled across three landscape‐scale (3 km × 3 km) urbanization levels. We tested for local and landscape urbanization effects on abundance and species richness of each group, whereby total richness was partitioned into the average richness of local communities and the richness due to variation among local communities. Abundances of the terrestrial active dispersers declined in response to local urbanization, with reductions up to 85% for butterflies, while passive dispersers did not show any clear trend. Species richness also declined with increasing levels of urbanization, but responses were highly heterogeneous among the different groups with respect to the richness component and the spatial scale at which urbanization impacts richness. Depending on the group, species richness declined due to biotic homogenization and/or local species loss. This resulted in an overall decrease in total richness across groups in urban areas. These results provide strong support to the general negative impact of urbanization on abundance and species richness within habitat patches and highlight the importance of considering multiple spatial scales and taxa to assess the impacts of urbanization on biodiversity.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2019
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Use of digital photogrammetry for the study of unstable slopes in urban areas: Case study of the El Biar landslide, Algiers
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Recent developments in remote sensing techniques provide powerful tools for geomorphological studies. The geometric and kinematic characterization of landslides are key factors in understanding the mechanisms of movement. The purpose of this publication is to show the potential of digital photogrammetry in the spatiotemporal study of landslides in urban areas. The case study focuses on the landslide of El Biar in Algiers. Comparison of digital elevation models generated following an established methodology shows the morphological evolution of the site. Orthophotos are used to measure surface displacements. The analysis of horizontal displacements between 1995 and 2007 shows that the landslide of El Biar can be divided into two zones: a peripheral zone moving at an average speed of about 5 cm per year and a central zone moving at an average speed of about 10 cm per year. Comparing the results with those obtained by traditional survey methods shows a remarkable consistency, thus validating the techniques used. This study demonstrates that digital photogrammetry, when combined with geological and geotechnical data, can improve the characterization and understanding of landslides mechanisms, and thus help defining mitigation solutions.
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Use of high-resolution seismic reflection data for paleogeographical reconstruction of shallow Lake Yamanaka (Fuji Five Lakes, Japan).
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High-resolution seismic profiles, combined with the integration of published drilling data, provide a detailed paleoenvironmental history of Lake Yamanaka (Fuji Five Lakes, Japan). This study presents a detailed analysis of the different depositional stages of the area currently occupied by Lake Yamanaka (floodplain wetland, river and lake). From ca. 5500 cal yr BP to ca. 5050 cal yr BP, the Yamanaka basin was occupied by floodplain wetlands. During that period, the landscape was very stable and erosion on northeastern flank of Mt. Fuji was relatively limited. From ca. 5050 cal yr BP to ca. 3050 cal yr BP, the water level increased and the floodplain wetlands became a lake. From ca. 3050 cal yr BP to ca. 2050 cal yr BP, the water level progressively decreased, leading to a reduction in lake extent. During this lowering of the lake's water level, a 1 km2 mass-transport deposit modified the physiography of the lake floor. From ca. 2050 cal yr BP to ca. 1050 cal yr BP, the lake disappeared and a river flowing towards the northwest occupied the depression. Ponds occupied morphological lows formed by mass-transport deposits. From ca. 1050 cal yr BP to the present day, the lake water level rose again, connecting the ponds with the main lake. Since then, the lake water level has continued to rise to the current level. Lake water level fluctuations are the results of several factors that could be interconnected: (i) changes in precipitation rates; (ii) margin destabilization (the Yamanaka mass-transport deposit), (iii) changes in river inlets and therefore variation in water supplies, (iv) volcanic eruptions (scoria fall-out and lava flows) and (v) changes in vegetation cover. This study highlights the importance of coupling sediment cores and high-resolution seismic reflection profiling to identify lateral variation and modification of sedimentary inputs through time.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2019
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Use of Soil and Litter Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) as Biological Indicators of Soil Quality Under Different Land Uses in Southern Rwanda
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The use of soil and litter arthropods as biological indicators is a way to assess environmental changes, where ant species in particular may serve as important indicators of soil quality. This study aimed at relating the abundance of soil and litter ant species to soil parameters under different tree species, both native and exotic, and varieties of coffee and banana plantations. Variations were found in soil physicochemical parameters. A total of 30 species belonging to 14 genera, and four subfamilies, the Formicinae, Dorylinae, Myrmicinae, and Ponerinae were identified. Higher abundance was found in coffee plantations compared to banana plantations, exotic and native tree species. Species of Camponotus cinctellus and Odontomachus troglodytes occurred in all land uses which is a sign of tolerance to a wide range of soil properties. In addition, these species, together with Myrmicaria SP02, Phrynoponera gabonensis, Camponotus SP06, Myrmicaria opaciventris, Pheidole SP03, Tetramorium simillimum, Pheidole SP01, and Tetramorium laevithorax were not strongly correlated with soil physicochemical parameters. Species of Pheidole SP02 and Camponotus SP05 were restricted to specific soil physicochemical properties, while species of Tetramorium zonacaciae and Bothroponera talpa discriminated between native tree species, coffee plantations, soil organic carbon, sandy soil texture, and aggregate stability. We concluded that these ant species can differently indicate the soil quality depending on the land use. We recommended further studies in order to generalize these findings
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RBINS Staff Publications 2018
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Using DNA barcodes for assessing diversity in the family Hybotidae (Diptera, Empidoidea)
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RBINS Staff Publications
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Using DNA barcodes for diversity assessment in Hybotidae (Diptera, Empidoidea)
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RBINS Staff Publications
