Predicting the climate impact of aviation for en-route emissions: the algorithmic climate change function submodel ACCF 1.0 of EMAC 2.53

Using climate-optimized flight trajectories is one essential measure to reduce aviation's climate impact. Detailed knowledge of temporal and spatial climate sensitivity for aviation emissions in the atmosphere is required to realize such a climate mitigation measure. The algorithmic Climate Change Functions (aCCFs) represent the basis for such purposes. This paper presents the first version of the Algorithmic Climate Change Function submodel (ACCF 1.0) within the European Centre HAMburg general circulation model (ECHAM) and Modular Earth Submodel System (MESSy) Atmospheric Chemistry (EMAC) model framework. In the ACCF 1.0, we implement a set of aCCFs (version 1.0) to estimate the average temperature response over 20 years (ATR20) resulting from aviation CO2 emissions and non-CO2 impacts, such as NOx emissions (via ozone production and methane destruction), water vapour emissions, and contrail cirrus. While the aCCF concept has been introduced in previous research, here, we publish a consistent set of aCCF formulas in terms of fuel scenario, metric, and efficacy for the first time. In particular, this paper elaborates on contrail aCCF development, which has not been published before. ACCF 1.0 uses the simulated atmospheric conditions at the emission location as input to calculate the ATR20 per unit of fuel burned, per NOx emitted, or per flown kilometre.In this research, we perform quality checks of the ACCF 1.0 outputs in two aspects. Firstly, we compare climatological values calculated by ACCF 1.0 to previous studies. The comparison confirms that in the Northern Hemisphere between 150–300 hPa altitude (flight corridor), the vertical and latitudinal structure of NOx-induced ozone and H2O effects are well represented by the ACCF model output. The NOx-induced methane effects increase towards lower altitudes and higher latitudes, which behaves differently from the existing literature. For contrail cirrus, the climatological pattern of the ACCF model output corresponds with the literature, except that contrail-cirrus aCCF generates values at low altitudes near polar regions, which is caused by the conditions set up for contrail formation. Secondly, we evaluate the reduction of NOx-induced ozone effects through trajectory optimization, employing the tagging chemistry approach (contribution approach to tag species according to their emission categories and to inherit these tags to other species during the subsequent chemical reactions). The simulation results show that climate-optimized trajectories reduce the radiative forcing contribution from aviation NOx-induced ozone compared to cost-optimized trajectories. Finally, we couple the ACCF 1.0 to the air traffic simulation submodel AirTraf version 2.0 and demonstrate the variability of the flight trajectories when the efficacy of individual effects is considered. Based on the 1 d simulation results of a subset of European flights, the total ATR20 of the climate-optimized flights is significantly lower (roughly 50 % less) than that of the cost-optimized flights, with the most considerable contribution from contrail cirrus. The CO2 contribution observed in this study is low compared with the non-CO2 effects, which requires further diagnosis.

The evaluation of government subsidy policies on carbon emissions in the port collection and distribution network: a case study of Guangzhou Port

The collection and distribution network of ports is the main cause of carbon emissions. The carbon peak is a basic policy in China, and the subsidy policy is one of the common measures used by the government to incentivize carbon reduction. We analyzed the transportation methods and the flow direction of a port and proposed a carbon emission calculation method based on emission factors. Based on the transportation time and the cost, a generalized transportation utility function was constructed, and the logit model was used to analyze the impacts of subsidy policies on transportation, thus calculating the effects of the subsidies on carbon reduction. We used Guangzhou Port as a case study, and calculated the carbon reduction effects in six different subsidy policy scenarios and concluded that the absolute carbon reduction value was proportional to the subsidy intensity. In addition, we constructed a subsidy carbon reduction efficiency index and found that the Guangzhou Port collection and distribution network had higher subsidy carbon reduction efficiency in low-subsidy scenarios. Finally, a sensitivity analysis was conducted on the subsidy parameters, and scenario 8 was found to have the highest subsidy carbon reduction efficiency. This achievement can provide decision support for the carbon emission strategy of the port collection and distribution network.

Surface deformation and damage of 2022 (M 6.8) Luding earthquake in China and its tectonic implications

The 2022 (M 6.8) Luding earthquake on the Xianshuihe Fault Zone (XFZ) caused severe casualties and property losses, and surface deformation and damage of which is crucial for studying the earthquake hazard assessment. However, few intensive scientific understanding has obtained to date because of widespread coronavirus transmission, strong vegetation coverage, and post-earthquake paralyzed traffic. By integrating high-resolution satellite images, large-scale geomorphic mapping, and UAV surveys, we constrain coseismic fractures and ruptures along an NW-SE-trending surface deformation zone, with discontinuous geomorphic scarps, en echelon cracks, and bulges concentrated in the areas of Yanzigou, Moxi, Menghugang, and Xingfu villages near the epicenter. Field observation also shows that the zone extends nearly parallel to the pre-existing XFZ with a length of ∼35 km with variable widths and a maximum vertical displacement of ∼100 ± 10 cm. The earthquake-induced surface coseismic effects, such as landslides, rock falls, and collapses, caused damage to the area. The amplification effect of the topography and the improper aseismic design and poor constructions may be responsible for the spatial distribution of MM Intensity IX, which is larger than other previous earthquakes that occurred in the surrounding area with a similar tectonic setting.

Probing environmental and tectonic changes underneath Mexico City with the urban seismic field

The sediments underneath Mexico City have unique mechanical properties that give rise to strong site effects. We investigated temporal changes in the seismic velocity at strong-motion and broadband seismic stations throughout Mexico City, including sites with different geologic characteristics ranging from city center locations situated on lacustrine clay to hillside locations on volcanic bedrock. We used autocorrelations of urban seismic noise, enhanced by waveform clustering, to extract subtle seismic velocity changes by coda wave interferometry. We observed and modeled seasonal, co- and post-seismic changes, as well as a long-term linear trend in seismic velocity. Seasonal variations can be explained by self-consistent models of thermoelastic and poroelastic changes in the subsurface shear wave velocity. Overall, sites on lacustrine clay-rich sediments appear to be more sensitive to seasonal surface temperature changes, whereas sites on alluvial and volcaniclastic sediments and on bedrock are sensitive to precipitation. The 2017 Mw 7.1 Puebla and 2020 Mw 7.4 Oaxaca earthquakes both caused a clear drop in seismic velocity, followed by a time-logarithmic recovery that may still be ongoing for the 2017 event at several sites or that may remain incomplete. The slope of the linear trend in seismic velocity is correlated with the downward vertical displacement of the ground measured by interferometric synthetic aperture radar, suggesting a causative relationship and supporting earlier studies on changes in the resonance frequency of sites in the Mexico City basin due to groundwater extraction. Our findings show how sensitively shallow seismic velocity and, in consequence, site effects react to environmental, tectonic and anthropogenic processes. They also demonstrate that urban strong-motion stations provide useful data for coda wave monitoring given sufficiently high-amplitude urban seismic noise.

Analysis and Countermeasures of the Influence of COVID-19 on the Commodity Category of Port Export in China: Taking Shanghai Port as an Example

Su, B.;Guan, C.;An, Q., and Wang, Q., 2020. Analysis and countermeasures of the influence of COVID-19 on the commodity category of port export in China: Taking Shanghai Port as an example. In: Liu, X. and Zhao, L. (eds.), Today's Modern Coastal Society: Technical and Sociological Aspects of Coastal Research. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 111, pp. 298–301. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208.Since the end of 2019, the novel coronavirus has spread rapidly, which has affected the economy, social interaction, and foreign trade, both in China and around the world. Import and export trade has become an organic part of China's national economy. Import and export trade accounts for nearly 35% of the national economy, which is a major part of China's economic growth. This article takes Shanghai Port as an example, collecting and analyzing the exporters of Shanghai Port in China from January to May 2020. Compared with the relevant data of the same period in 2019, this article discusses the major commodity categories that are affected by the epidemic situation in the export trade volume of Shanghai Port, giving countermeasures according to the influence situation in order to stabilize the quantity of this category in the future and reduce the risk of lower port trade volume of the export commodity categories affected by public health emergencies in China's port trade. At the same time, some suggestions and countermeasures are given to the ecological environment problems affecting the sustainable development of ports.

Two years of volatile organic compound online in situ measurements at the Site Instrumental de Recherche par Télédétection Atmosphérique (Paris region, France) using proton-transfer-reaction mass spectrometry

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have direct influences on air quality and climate. They indeed play a key role in atmospheric chemistry as precursors of secondary pollutants, such as ozone (O3) and secondary organic aerosols (SOA). In this respect, long-term datasets of in situ atmospheric measurements are crucial for characterizing the variability of atmospheric chemical composition, its sources, and trends. The ongoing establishment of the Aerosols, Cloud, and Trace gases Research InfraStructure (ACTRIS) allows implementation of the collection and provision of such high-quality datasets. In this context, online and continuous measurements of O3, nitrogen oxides (NOx), and aerosols have been carried out since 2012 at the SIRTA (Site Instrumental de Recherche par Télédétection Atmosphérique) observatory, located in the Paris region, France. Within the last decade, VOC measurements were conducted offline at SIRTA, until the implementation of real-time monitoring which started in January 2020 using a proton-transfer-reaction quadrupole mass spectrometer (PTR-Q-MS).The dataset acquired during the first 2 years of online VOC measurements provides insights into their seasonal and diurnal variabilities. The additional long-term datasets obtained from co-located measurements (NOx, aerosol physical and chemical properties, meteorological parameters) are used to better characterize the atmospheric conditions and to further interpret the obtained results. Results also include insights into VOC main sources and the influence of meteorological conditions and air mass origin on their levels in the Paris region. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the year 2020 notably saw a quasi-total lockdown in France in spring and a lighter one in autumn. Therefore, the focus is placed on the impact of these lockdowns on the VOC variability and sources. A change in the behaviour of VOC markers for anthropogenic sources was observed during the first lockdown, reflecting a change in human activities. A comparison with gas chromatography data from the Paris city centre consolidates the regional representativity of the SIRTA station for benzene, while differences are observed for shorter-lived compounds with a notable impact of their local sources. This dataset could be further used as input for atmospheric models and can be found at 10.14768/f8c46735-e6c3-45e2-8f6f-26c6d67c4723 (Simon et al., 2022a).

Vessel traffic influences distribution of Aotearoa New Zealand's endemic dolphin (Cephalorhynchus hectori)

Cetacean tourism and vessel traffic have grown considerably around the world in recent decades. At Akaroa Harbor, Aotearoa New Zealand, recreational vessel traffic, dolphin tourism, and cruise ship presence increased substantially between 2008 and 2020. We examined the relationship between vessel traffic parameters and the presence of Hector's dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori) during the austral summer 2019–2020, using automated vessel tracking and autonomous passive acoustic monitoring. Data were collected between December 2019 and May 2020, including the entirety of the first COVID‐19 nationwide lockdown. Generalized additive models revealed that increasing levels of motor vessel traffic, the presence of cruise ships, and high levels of dolphin tour vessel traffic resulted in decreases in acoustic detections of dolphins. Our findings suggest that Hector's dolphins at Akaroa Harbor were displaced from core habitat in response to each of these vessel traffic parameters. We recommend that managers use immediately actionable tools to reduce the impacts of vessels on these dolphins.

Resilience Regulation Strategy for Container Port Supply Chain under Disruptive Events

There are many inevitable disruptive events, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters and geopolitical conflicts, during the operation of the container port supply chain (CPSC). These events bring ship delays, port congestion and turnover inefficiency. In order to enhance the resilience of the CPSC, a modified two-stage CPSC system containing a container pretreatment system (CPS) and a container handling system (CHS) is built. A two-dimensional resilience index is designed to measure its affordability and recovery. An adaptive fuzzy double-feedback adjustment (AFDA) strategy is proposed to mitigate the disruptive effects and regulate its dynamicity. The AFDA strategy consists of the first-level fuzzy logic control system and the second-level adaptive fuzzy adjustment system. Simulations show the AFDA strategy outperforms the original system, PID, and two pipelines for improved dynamic response and augmented resilience. This study effectively supports the operations manager in determining the proper control policies and resilience management with respect to indeterminate container waiting delay and allocation delay due to disruptive effects.

Update on Risk Criteria for Crude Oil Tanker Fleet

In recent years, the maritime trade of crude oil has suffered notable perturbations caused by the unbalanced relationship between supply and demand. The COVID-19 pandemic caused a drop in oil consumption in 2019, followed by a reduction in production in 2020. The seaborne transport of oil accounts for approximately 50–60% of all crude oil in world production. The crude oil market is a crucial regulator of the global economy and instabilities in this market have noticeable effects on collective risks. The immediate risks that the society see are the changes in the cost of living, which are followed by political uncertainties. Less visible are the risks that these uncertainties have on shipping companies and the level of management stability they have to maintain in order to keep seagoing safe. This paper presents an update on the overall state of risk management for the crude oil tanker fleet, evidenced by EMSA and other international marine organisations. The previous paper, entitled Safety Assessment of Crude Oil Tankers, which applied the methodology of the Formal Safety Assessment (FSA), was published in 2018 and covered the historical data related to the fleet size, accident reports, amount of oil spilled on sea and the economic value of the crude oil transport business. The particular focus of this paper is on the evolution of the risk acceptance criteria over the years and the difference in the predictions from 2018 to the present day. The effects of the pandemic on crude oil shipping are discussed through the changes in the risks. Three of them are analysed: PLL (potential loss of lives), PLC (potential loss of containment) and PLP (potential loss of property). The representation of the risk applies the F-N curves among the risk acceptance criteria lines observed for different tanker sizes. Among the three risks, the paper exposes the vulnerability of the loss of containment risk, where the strong economic impact of the oil trade outweighs the environmental concerns. In relation to the PLC, the paper proposes the approach of relating the oil spill acceptability with the spill quantity and ship revenue instead of to the cost of cleaning or the cost of environment recovery.

Antioxidant and Anti-Breast Cancer Properties of Hyaluronidase from Marine Staphylococcus aureus (CASMTK1)

This work studied the antioxidant and anti-breast cancer properties of hyaluronidase, extracted from a potential marine strain, Staphylococcus aureus (CASMTK1), isolated from Parangipettai coastal waters in southeast coast of India. The Staphylococcal enzyme production was tested under different carbon and nitrogen sources;and recorded the maximum production when the microbial strain was cultured with starch as the carbon source and ammonium sulphate as the inorganic nitrogen source with the enzyme production of 92.5 U/mL and 95.0 U/mL, respectively. The hyaluronidase enzyme production was also tested in different pH and temperature;and recorded the maximum yield of 102.5 U/mL in pH 5 and that of 95.5 U/mL in 45 °C. The partially purified enzyme was subjected to FTIR and FT Raman technique and found the presence of the amide- I and II, Carboxyl, N-H bending, C-H stretching and α-helices and β-sheet proteins between wave number 1500–1700 cm−1. The partially purified enzyme also exhibited strong antioxidant and in-vitro breast cancer properties. The enzyme showed the highest hydroxyl radical scavenging activity of 79% at the 50 µg/mL concentration, and this activity increased in a dose-dependent manner. The enzyme inhibited proliferation of the breast cancer cell line of MCF-7, and it caused 100% cell death at the concentration of 80 µg/mL. The enzyme generated capacity of producing free radicles that damage the cancer cells, and this effect was very nearer to the standard drug, paclitaxel. The enzyme damaged the cancer cells and induced apoptosis in 78% of cancer cells as evident by condensed or fragmented chromatin at 40 µg/mL. Further purification of the enzyme, analysis of its molecular aspects, and elucidation of exact mechanisms of its biological activities will throw new light on the utility of staphylococcal hyaluronidase in anticancer chemotherapy.

Analysis of the Chemistry of Municipal Wastewaters for Forecasting the Conditions of Urban Population

The quality of wastewater and the socioeconomic aspects of the life of the population are shown to be interrelated. It is proposed to use municipal wastewater to diagnose the health of the population, to assess the feeding preferences of city dwellers, the use of alcohol, tobacco, medicines, and drugs, to assess the exposure of the population to the effect of hazardous chemicals (PAH, pesticides, preserving agents, plasticizers, etc.), and to timely reveal deceases (including COVID-19). The authors proposed several biomarkers, which are recommended to use to monitor the water-resource system as a component of the urban ecosystem.

Teaching Geology in Higher Education Institutions under COVID-19 Conditions

Teaching geology under COVID-19 pandemic conditions led to teaching limitations for educators and learning difficulties for students. The lockdown obstructed face-to-face teaching, laboratory work, and fieldtrips. To minimize the impact of this situation, new distance learning teaching methods and tools were developed. The current study presents the results of an empirical study, where distance learning teaching tools were constructed and used to teach geology to university students. A mineralogical mobile phone application was used to replace laboratory mineral identification and a flow chart to replace laboratory rock identification. Additionally, exercises on faults and maps were developed to fill the gap that was created as field work was impossible. A university course on geology was designed on the basis of the constructed distance learning teaching tools, and more than 100 students from the Department of Civil Engineering attended the course. The results show that the proposed tools helped the students to considerably understand scientific information on geology and supported the learning outcomes. Thus, it is suggested that the teaching tools, constructed for the purposes of the study, could be used in conditions when distance learning is required, or even under typical learning conditions after laboratories, as well as before or after fieldtrips, for better learning outcomes.

A Review on the Recycling Technologies of Fibre-Reinforced Plastic (FRP) Materials Used in Industrial Fields

Fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) materials are attracting growing interest because of their high specific mechanical properties. These characteristics, in addition to a high level of tailorability and design of freedom, make them attractive for marine, aerospace, automotive, sports and energy applications. However, the large use of this class of material dramatically increases the amount of waste that derives from end-of-life products and offcuts generated during the manufacturing processes. In this context, especially when thermosetting matrices are considered, the need to deeply study the recycling process of FRPs is an open topic both in academic and industrial research. This review aims to present the current state of the art of the most affirmed recycling technologies used for polymeric composites commonly used in industrial applications, such as carbon and glass FRPs. Each recycling method (i.e., chemical, thermal and mechanical) was analysed in terms of technological solutions and process parameters required for matrix dissolution and fibre recovery, showing their advantages, drawbacks, applications and properties of the recycled composites. Therefore, the aim of this review is to offer an extensive overview of the recycling process of polymeric composite materials, which is useful to academic and industrial researchers that work on this topic.

International cruise research advances and hotspots: Based on literature big data

This paper makes a systematic visual analysis of cruise research literature collected in science network database from 1996 to 2019. The results show that: the overall number of published literature on cruise research is growing;North American states, Europe, and Asia are the main regions of cruise research. The evolutionary of theme development of cruise research has three stages, and the current hot topics of cruise research can be summarized as cruise tourism, luxury cruises, cruise passengers, destination ports, environmental and biological conservation, and cruise diseases. Future research in the cruise field are in the areas of cruise supply chain, technology in cruise, children's cruise experience, itinerary design, planning and optimization, brand reputation and luxury cruises, public transportation in destinations, environmental responsibility of passengers and corporate social responsibility, optimization of energy systems, climate change in relation to the cruise industry, the Chinese cruise market and risk management of cruise diseases.

Exclusionary Behaviors Reinforce Historical Biases and Contribute to Loss of Talent in the Earth Sciences

Geosciences remain one of the least diverse fields. Efforts to diversify the discipline need to address the role of hostile and exclusionary work and learning environments. A workplace climate survey distributed to five professional organizations illustrates varied experiences of earth and space scientists over a 12-month period (pre-COVID). A majority experienced positive interactions in the workplace. However, scientists of color, women and non-binary individuals, scientists with disabilities, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, pansexual, and asexual (LGBQPA+) scientists more frequently experienced negative interactions, including interpersonal mistreatment, discriminatory language, and sexual harassment. Geoscientists of color were more likely to experience devaluation of their work than white scientists. More than half of women and non-binary respondents, as well as those who identify as LGBQPA+ experienced identity-based discriminatory remarks. Disabled geoscientists were more likely to hear negative identity-based language than those who did not disclose a disability. Overall, 14% of all respondents experienced sexual harassment in the previous year. Rates were greatest for historically excluded groups: non-binary (51%), LGBQPA+ (33%), disabled (26%), women (20%), and geoscientists of color (17%). A majority of geoscientists reported avoiding their colleagues and almost a third considered leaving their institution or a career change. Historically excluded groups were more likely to report opting out of professional activities with potential career consequences. To address continued exclusion and low retention in the earth and space sciences, recruitment is not enough. We need to create environments that ensure opportunities for all to thrive.

Assessing the viability of estimating baleen whale abundance from tourist vessels

As Southern hemisphere baleen whales recover, they are again becoming dominant consumers in the Southern Ocean. Key to understanding the present and future role of baleen whales in Southern Ocean ecosystems is determining their abundance on foraging grounds. Distance sampling is the standard method for estimating baleen whale abundance but requires specific logistic requirements which are rarely achieved in the remote Southern Ocean. We explore the potential use of tourist vessel-based sampling, as a cost-effective solution for conducting distance sampling surveys for baleen whales. We aimed to determine if tourist vessel-based surveys could be effective in determining baleen whale abundance in the southwest Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean. We did this in two parts. First, we used tourist vessel tracks to estimate the likely whale sightings per tourist's vessel voyage to understand how many voyages are needed to meet the model requirements. Second, we simulated the abundance and distributions of four baleen whale species for the study area and sampled them with both non-standardized tourist vessel-based surveys and standardized line transect surveys. Data were modeled using a generalized additive model and results were compared to the original simulated baleen whale abundance and distributions. We show that for the southwest Atlantic, 12-22 tourist voyages are likely required to provide an adequate number of sightings to estimate abundance for humpback and fin whales, and relative estimates for blue, sei, Antarctic minke, and southern right whales. Our analysis suggests tourist vessel-based surveys are a viable method for estimating baleen whale abundance in remote regions.

Effect of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions on air pollution at a local scale in urban areas affected by high-intensity vehicle traffic in Poland

The lockdown in 2020 implemented due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has resulted in a significant improvement in air quality at a global scale. Nationwide lockdown also considerably improved air quality at a local scale, especially in cities which were almost completely shut down during the first coronavirus wave, with nearly no activity. We tested the hypothesis that a reduction in the intensity of vehicle traffic causes a drastic decrease in urban air pollution at a local scale. We focused on two urban agglomerations, Warsaw and Cracow, in Poland. Data of the concentrations of traffic-related sources, namely NOx, PM10, and PM2.5, obtained from two air pollution monitoring stations were analyzed for the years 2020 and 2021, during which lockdown and pandemic restrictions were in effect, and for 2019, as a reference. In the years 2020–2021, the average annual concentration of NOx was decreased by ~ 19%, PM2.5 by ~ 19%, and PM10 by ~ 18% in Warsaw, while in Cracow the average annual concentration of NOx was decreased by ~ 16%, PM2.5 by ~ 22%, and PM10 by ~ 2%, compared to 2019. The contribution from traffic-related sources to the overall level of air pollution was estimated. The results indicated that ~ 30 µg/m3 of PM10, ~ 15 µg/m3 of PM2.5, and ~ 120 µg/m3 of NOx in Cracow, and ~ 20 µg/m3 of PM2.5 in Warsaw originate from moving vehicles. The nationwide lockdown allowed us to conduct this study to understand how a reduction in local traffic emissions can decrease ambient air pollution levels.

Analyses of Omicron genomes from India reveal BA.2 as a more transmissible variant

In the current study, the phylodynamics and phylogenomics of Omicron variants are being examined to provide insight into their evolution. We analyzed 564 genomes deposited to the GISAID database from various states of India. A Pangolin COVID-19 Lineage Assigner tool was used to assign lineages to all retrieved genomes. Maximum likelihood (MLE) tree construction and Reduced Median Joining (RM) network were performed. For phylodynamic analysis, the basic reproduction number (R0) was estimated. A Maximum likelihood tree (MLE) confirms the separation of genomes into two distinct clades, BA. 1. and BA. 2. A very high reproduction number (R0) of 2.445 was estimated for the lineage BA.2. Telangana has the highest R0 value in the country, indicating a high prevalence of the BA.2 lineage. The construction of the Reduced Median (RM) network reveals an evolution of some autochthonous haplogroups and haplotypes, which further supports the rapid evolution of Omicron as opposed to its previous variants. Phylogenomic analyses using maximum likelihood (ML) and RM also reveal the likelihood of the emergence of sub-sublineages and novel haplogroups respectively. Due to the recombinant nature and high transmissibility of the Omicron virus, we suggest continuous and more widespread genome sequencing in all states of India to track the evolution of SARS-CoV-2.

Low‐Altitude UAV Imaging Accurately Quantifies Eelgrass Wasting Disease From Alaska to California

Declines in eelgrass, an important and widespread coastal habitat, are associated with wasting disease in recent outbreaks on the Pacific coast of North America. This study presents a novel method for mapping and predicting wasting disease using Unoccupied Aerial Vehicle (UAV) with low‐altitude autonomous imaging of visible bands. We conducted UAV mapping and sampling in intertidal eelgrass beds across multiple sites in Alaska, British Columbia, and California. We designed and implemented a UAV low‐altitude mapping protocol to detect disease prevalence and validated against in situ results. Our analysis revealed that green leaf area index derived from UAV imagery was a strong and significant (inverse) predictor of spatial distribution and severity of wasting disease measured on the ground, especially for regions with extensive disease infection. This study highlights a novel, efficient, and portable method to investigate seagrass disease at landscape scales across geographic regions and conditions.Alternate abstract:Plain Language SummaryDiseases of marine organisms are increasing in many regions worldwide, therefore, efficient time‐series monitoring is critical for understanding the dynamics of disease and examining its progression in time to implement management interventions. In the first study of its kind, we use high‐resolution Unoccupied Aerial Vehicle (UAV) imagery collected to detect disease at 12 sites across the North‐East Pacific coast of North America spanning 18 degrees of latitude. The low altitude UAV visible‐bands imagery achieved 1.5 cm spatial resolution, and analysis was performed at the seagrass leaf scale based on object‐oriented image analysis. Our findings suggest that drone mapping of coastal plants may substantially increase the scale of disease risk assessments in nearshore habitats and further our understanding of seagrass meadow spatial‐temporal dynamics. These can be scaled up by searching for environmental signals of the pathogen, for example, with surveillance of wastewater for signs of Covid in human populations. This application could easily apply to other areas to construct a high‐resolution monitoring network for seagrass conservation.

Policy-driven or market-driven? A new perspective on the development of China's cruise industry

The past 15 years have witnessed the rapid development of China's cruise industry from scratch and the formation of a policy system in the cruise industry, reflecting the shift of the Chinese government's attitude towards the cruise industry from wait-and-see, recognition and encouragement to active support. The paper conducts a statistical analysis of 128 policies related to the cruise industry issued by China's administrative departments at all levels. It is found that the release of policies synchronizes with the development of the cruise industry, with each one providing feedback to the other. The policies do not show a time lag with respect to their effects. The evolution of policy types from macro-level guidance to concrete operation is rapid, with the policy structure gradually improving. The themes of the policies concentrate on five areas: cruise tourism services and products, port construction and development, cruise industry chain expansion, cruise industry environment and cruise industry management, which is in line with current characteristics of the development of China's cruise industry. However, there is still a lack of adequate policies to support and guide the industrial upgrading of cruise operation and cruise construction and its green and low-carbon development.