Nonlocal Static and Dynamical Vacuum Field Correlations and Casimir-Polder Interactions.

In this review, we investigate several aspects and features of spatial field correlations for the massless scalar field and the electromagnetic field, both in stationary and nonstationary conditions, and show how they manifest in two- and many-body static and dynamic dispersion interactions (van der Waals and Casimir-Polder). We initially analyze the spatial field correlations for noninteracting fields, stressing their nonlocal behavior, and their relation to two-body dispersion interactions. We then consider how field correlations are modified by the presence of a field source, such as an atom or in general a polarizable body, firstly in a stationary condition and then in a dynamical condition, starting from a nonstationary state. We first evaluate the spatial field correlation for the electric field in the stationary case, in the presence of a ground-state or excited-state atom, and then we consider its time evolution in the case of an initially nonstationary state. We discuss in detail their nonlocal features, in both stationary and nonstationary conditions. We then explicitly show how the nonlocality of field correlations can manifest itself in van der Waals and Casimir-Polder interactions between atoms, both in static and dynamic situations. We discuss how this can allow us to indirectly probe the existence and the properties of nonlocal vacuum field correlations of the electromagnetic field, a research subject of strong actual interest, also in consequence of recent measurements of spatial field correlations exploiting electro-optical sampling techniques. The subtle and intriguing relation between nonlocality and causality is also discussed.

How do inundation provoke the release of phosphorus in soil-originated sediment due to nitrogen reduction after reclaiming lake from polder.

Different N and P fractions in microcosm incubation experiment was measured using high-resolution in-situ Peeper and DGT techniques combining with sequential extraction procedure. The results showed the synchronous desorption and release of PO43-, S2- and Fe2+ from the solid soil-originated sediment. This trend indicated that the significant reduction of Fe-P and SO42- occurred in the pore water during the inundation. The concentrations of PO43- in the overlying water and pore water increased to more than 0.1 and 0.2 mg/L at the beginning of the incubation experiment. Decreased NO3-concentrations from more than 1.5 mg/L to less than 0.5 mg/L combining with increasing NH4+ concentrations from less than 1 mg/L to more than 5 mg/L suggested the remarkable NO3- reduction via dissimilatory nitrate reduction to ammonia (DNRA) pathway over time. High NH4+ concentrations in the pore water aggravated the release of Fe2+ through reduction of Fe(III)-P as electric acceptors under anaerobic conditions. This process further stimulated the remarkable releasing of labile PO43- from the solid phase to the solution and potential diffusion into overlying water. Additionally, high S2- concentration at deeper layer indicated the reduction and releasing of S2- from oxidation states, which can stimulated the NO3- reduction and the accumulation of NH4+ in the pore water. This process can also provoke the reduction of Fe-P as electric acceptors following the release of labile PO43- into pore water. Generally, inundation potentially facilitate the desorption of labile P and attention should be paid during the reclaiming lake from polder.

Coping with crisis on the coast: The effect of community-developed coping-strategies on vulnerability in crisis-prone regions of the Ganges delta.

Coastal communities are prone to crises. Repeated exposure to crises constrains the ability of residents to access basic needs such as health, water and food, and may increase their vulnerability levels. In response, communities develop coping strategies such as depoldering (temporary breaching of embankments for TRM: tidal rivers management) and anti-aquaculture movements. However, existing research has not adequately explored the relationship between coping strategies and vulnerability. Theoretical literature is characterized by ambiguity on how various geocentric and anthropocentric factors affect vulnerability in the presence of community-developed coping strategies. Therefore, to advance theoretical knowledge in this field, this article first conceptualizes an integrated framework on the association between vulnerability and coping strategies by merging anthropocentric and geocentric approaches. It then uses mixed methods drawn from social science (surveys, semi-structured interviews), geography (spatial tools) and statistics (multiple regression) on data collected from the coastal belt of Bangladesh to demonstrate that coping strategies may have an effect on vulnerability in crisis-prone coastal regions. The significance of this study is that it demonstrates how the association between vulnerability and coping strategies is likely to be nuanced: depending on a) the type of vulnerability (food/water/health), and b) the coping strategy (TRM vs. anti-aquaculture movements). Different coping strategies are associated with different kinds of vulnerability and these relationships depend on local context (other anthropocentric and geocentric variables). Community movements against aquaculture could reduce food vulnerability, whereas TRM may reduce water vulnerability. Reduction in health vulnerability may instead be associated with urbanization and infrastructure development.

A dam or a polder? Stakeholders' dispute over the "right" flood-protection measure in the Czech Republic.

This study focuses on the Skalicka Waterwork (SWW), a largely debated and media-covered water-related/flood-protection project in the Czech Republic. Relying primarily on stakeholder interviews, we traced back and reconstructed the project's development, including its key tipping points reflecting the changing societal preferences for particular measures, yet also the involvement of individual actors/stakeholders, and their differing views. The case eventually crystallized into the "dam versus polder" dispute; concerned by the repercussions for the local landscape, a joint initiative of NGOs, local activists, and politicians not only opposed the dam variant proposed by the state river basin administration but also succeeded in pushing through the alternative scheme of side dry polder. While in many ways specific (e.g. not entailing local resistance), the case exemplifies recent shifts (and respective struggles) within flood risk management, including the increasing importance attributed to complex, catchment-wide perspectives, joint local and scientific knowledge, participatory decision-making processes, or implementation of nature-based and hybrid solutions.

Restore polder and aquaculture enclosure to the lake: Balancing environmental protection and economic growth for sustainable development.

The restoration of lakes and their buffer zones is crucial for understanding the intricate interplay between human activities and natural ecosystems resulting from the implementation of environmental policies. In this study, we investigated the ecological restoration of shallow lakes and buffer zones in the Yangtze-Huaihe River Basin, specifically focusing on the removal of polder and aquaculture enclosure areas within the lakes. By examining data from eight shallow lakes and their corresponding buffer zones, encompassing lake morphology, water quality parameters, and land use/land cover (LULC) data spanning from 2008 to 2022, which shed light on the complex relationships involved. During the process of restoring polder and aquaculture enclosure areas, we observed a general decrease in the extent of polders and aquaculture enclosures within the lakes. Notably, the removal of aquaculture enclosures had a more pronounced effect (reduction rate of 83.37 %) compared to the withdrawal of polders (reduction rate of 48.76 %). Linear regression analysis revealed a significant decrease in the concentrations of seven water quality parameters, including COD, CODMn, TN, TP, NH3-N, Chl-a, and F, while pH and DO factors exhibit a distinct increasing trend. The results of redundancy analysis and Pearson correlation analysis demonstrated significant correlations between the area of polders and aquaculture enclosures and the changes in lake water quality. Encouragingly, the withdrawal of polders and the removal of aquaculture enclosures had a positive impact on the lake water quality improvement. In contrast, the LULC in the buffer zones of the lakes experienced a gradual decline owing to land degradation, resulting in a reduction in ecosystem service value (ESV). These results offer valuable support for policymakers in their endeavors to restore lake water quality, mitigate the degradation of buffer zones land, and promote the sustainable development of land and water resources.

Characterizing the impacts of macrophyte-dominated ponds on nitrogen sources and sinks by coupling multiscale models.

Macrophyte-dominated ponds, widely distributed in lowland areas, play an important role in nitrogen (N) retention for nonpoint source pollution. However, their impacts on N sources and sinks are scarcely quantified at a watershed scale. This study aimed to investigate N dynamics (sources, sinks, transport, etc.) of macrophyte-dominated ponds and their driving factors in a typical lowland artificial watershed (the Zhong River Watershed) in East China. For this purpose, an hourly-scale pond model (nitrogen dynamic model for macrophyte-dominated ponds, NDP-Pond) was developed, and coupled with a daily scale watershed model (Nitrogen Dynamic Polder model, NDP) to simulate N dynamics, and estimate N retention in macrophyte-dominated ponds. A comparison with the measured water level and total nitrogen (TN) revealed an acceptable model performance (coefficient of determination (R2) > 0.53) for these two models. Based on the N source/sink simulations, we found that 1) macrophyte-dominated ponds showed a large TN removal capacity with a rate of 55%, and a TN loading removal rate of 67 kg·ha-1·yr-1. 2) Denitrification was the main pathway for N removal with a contribution of 57.7%, followed by the uptake of macrophytes (35.8%) and sedimentation (6.5%). 3) The optimal coverage of macrophytes (Alternanthera philoxeroides) to enhance N removal is 2-4 kg·m-2. 4) During the macrophyte-growth period, the TN removal capacity of the pond was higher with a retention time of 1-10 days. Increasing the pond retention time would decrease the N removal efficiency. This study revealed the high value of coupling multiscale models to gain in-depth insights into N retention in macrophyte-dominated pond ecosystems.

Probing the dynamic characteristics of aerosol originated from South Asia biomass burning using POLDER/GRASP satellite data with relevant accessory technique design.

The dynamic characteristics of biomass burning aerosol originated from South Asia are investigated in this research using nearly 9 years of POLDER/GRASP satellite aerosol dataset. The POLDER/GRASP remote sensing data can provide global, repeatable, various, and sufficient real-world aerosol information even in the remote ocean region, which can't be offered by the ground measurement, laboratory observation or model simulation. The MODIS thermal anomalies/fire dataset and HYSPLIT backward trajectory are applied to search the aerosol originated from South Asia biomass burning. The biomass burning aerosol originated from South Asia could transport to and influence the north part of Indian Ocean (including Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea), the north part of Indo-China Peninsula, South China, and even far to the Pacific Ocean (including part of East China Sea and South China Sea). The chemical, physical and optical characteristics of biomass burning aerosol over land and over ocean show different features and evolution patterns. Such difference is caused by the different ambient environment and different mixed aerosol during the transport process (urban/industrial aerosol over land and sea salt over ocean). During the 48-hours aging process, the volume fraction of black carbon, AAOD and Angstrom Exponent decrease. Meanwhile, the aerosol sphere fraction and SSA increase. The biomass burning aerosol over land shows a more obvious evolution trend than that over ocean. The biomass burning aerosol over ocean generally have higher SSA and lower volume fraction of black carbon, aerosol sphere fraction, AAOD and Angstrom Exponent. The aerosol radiative forcing efficiency also varies between land and ocean, due to their different features of aerosol and surface properties. In general, a negative clear-sky aerosol radiative forcing efficiency (cooling effect) at the TOA is observed. The aerosol cooling effect at the TOA over ocean (-82 W/m2 on average) is much stronger than that over land (-36 W/m2 on average). During the 48-hours aging process, a significant enhancement of the negative radiative forcing efficiency at the TOA is found over land. Over ocean, the enhancement of the negative radiative forcing efficiency at the TOA is weaker.

Modelling the regulation effects of lowland polder with pumping station on hydrological processes and phosphorus loads.

Exploring the hydrological regulation of a lowland polder is essential for increasing knowledge regarding the role of polders associated with pumping stations in lowlands. In this study, the Lowland Polder Hydrology and Phosphorus modelling System (PHPS) was applied to the Jianwei polder as a case study for quantifying the regulation effects of a lowland polder with pumping on discharge and phosphorus loads. The results indicate that the polder significantly affected the temporal distribution and annual amount of catchment discharge. Compared with a no-pumping scenario, an agricultural polder with pumping stations generated a sharper discharge hydrograph with higher peak-values and lower minimum-values, as well as an 8.6% reduction in average annual discharge. It also decreased the phosphorus export to downstream water bodies by 5.33 kg/hm2/yr because of widespread ditches and ponds, a lower hydraulic gradient, and increased retention times of surface water in ponds.

Impacts of natural and human drivers on the multi-decadal morphological evolution of tidally-influenced deltas.

The world's deltas are at risk of being drowned due to rising relative sea levels as a result of climate change, decreasing supplies of fluvial sediment, and human responses to these changes. This paper analyses how delta morphology evolves over multi-decadal timescales under environmental change using a process-based model. Model simulations over 102 years are used to explore the influence of three key classes of environmental change, both individually and in combination: (i) varying combinations of fluvial water and sediment discharges; (ii) varying rates of relative sea-level rise; and (iii) selected human interventions within the delta, comprising polder-dykes and cross-dams. The results indicate that tidal asymmetry and rate of sediment supply together affect residual flows and delta morphodynamics (indicated by sub-aerial delta area, rates of progradation and aggradation). When individual drivers of change act in combination, delta building processes such as the distribution of sediment flux, aggradation, and progradation are disrupted by the presence of isolated polder-dykes or cross-dams. This suggests that such interventions, unless undertaken at a very large scale, can lead to unsustainable delta building processes. Our findings can inform management choices in real-world tidally-influenced deltas, while the methodology can provide insights into other dynamic morphological systems.

Sources, distribution and export coefficient of phosphorus in lowland polders of Lake Taihu Basin, China.

Identifying phosphorus (P) sources, distribution and export from lowland polders is important for P pollution management, however, is challenging due to the high complexity of hydrological and P transport processes in lowland areas. In this study, the spatial pattern and temporal dynamics of P export coefficient (PEC) from all the 2539 polders in Lake Taihu Basin, China were estimated using a coupled P model for describing P dynamics in a polder system. The estimated amount of P export from polders in Lake Taihu Basin during 2013 was 1916.2 t/yr, with a spatially-averaged PEC of 1.8 kg/ha/yr. PEC had peak values (more than 4.0 kg/ha/yr) in the polders near/within the large cities, and was high during the rice-cropping season. Sensitivity analysis based on the coupled P model revealed that the sensitive factors controlling the PEC varied spatially and changed through time. Precipitation and air temperature were the most sensitive factors controlling PEC. Culvert controlling and fertilization were sensitive factors controlling PEC during some periods. This study demonstrated an estimation of PEC from 2539 polders in Lake Taihu Basin, and an identification of sensitive environmental factors affecting PEC. The investigation of polder P export in a watershed scale is helpful for water managers to learn the distribution of P sources, to identify key P sources, and thus to achieve best management practice in controlling P export from lowland areas.

Hydrology and phosphorus transport simulation in a lowland polder by a coupled modeling system.

Modeling the rain-runoff processes and phosphorus transport processes in lowland polders is critical in finding reasonable measures to alleviate the eutrophication problem of downstream rivers and lakes. This study develops a lowland Polder Hydrology and Phosphorus modeling System (PHPS) by coupling the WALRUS-paddy model and an improved phosphorus module of a Phosphorus Dynamic model for lowland Polder systems (PDP). It considers some important hydrological characteristics, such as groundwater-unsaturated zone coupling, groundwater-surface water feedback, human-controlled irrigation and discharge, and detailed physical and biochemical cycles of phosphorus in surface water. The application of the model in the Jianwei polder shows that the simulated phosphorus matches well with the measured values. The high precision of this model combined with its low input data requirement and efficient computation make it practical and easy to the water resources management of Chinese polders. Parameter sensitivity analysis demonstrates that Kuptake, cQ2, cW1, and cQ1 exert a significant effect on the modeled results, whereas KresuspensionMax, Ksettling, and Kmineralization have little effect on the modeled total phosphorus. Among the three types of uncertainties (i.e., parameter, initial condition, and forcing uncertainties), forcing uncertainty produces the strongest effect on the simulated phosphorus. Based on the analysis result of annual phosphorus balance when considering the high import from irrigation and fertilization, lowland polder is capable of retaining phosphorus and reducing phosphorus export to surrounding aquatic ecosystems because of their special hydrological regulation regime.

Polder maps: improving OMIT maps by excluding bulk solvent.

The crystallographic maps that are routinely used during the structure-solution workflow are almost always model-biased because model information is used for their calculation. As these maps are also used to validate the atomic models that result from model building and refinement, this constitutes an immediate problem: anything added to the model will manifest itself in the map and thus hinder the validation. OMIT maps are a common tool to verify the presence of atoms in the model. The simplest way to compute an OMIT map is to exclude the atoms in question from the structure, update the corresponding structure factors and compute a residual map. It is then expected that if these atoms are present in the crystal structure, the electron density for the omitted atoms will be seen as positive features in this map. This, however, is complicated by the flat bulk-solvent model which is almost universally used in modern crystallographic refinement programs. This model postulates constant electron density at any voxel of the unit-cell volume that is not occupied by the atomic model. Consequently, if the density arising from the omitted atoms is weak then the bulk-solvent model may obscure it further. A possible solution to this problem is to prevent bulk solvent from entering the selected OMIT regions, which may improve the interpretative power of residual maps. This approach is called a polder (OMIT) map. Polder OMIT maps can be particularly useful for displaying weak densities of ligands, solvent molecules, side chains, alternative conformations and residues both in terminal regions and in loops. The tools described in this manuscript have been implemented and are available in PHENIX.

How can we reduce phosphorus export from lowland polders? Implications from a sensitivity analysis of a coupled model.

Phosphorus (P) export from lowland polders has caused severe water pollution. Numerical models are an important resource that help water managers control P export. This study coupled three models, i.e., Phosphorus Dynamic model for Polders (PDP), Integrated Catchments model of Phosphorus dynamics (INCA-P) and Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE), to describe the P dynamics in polders. Based on the coupled models and a dataset collected from Polder Jian in China, sensitivity analysis were carried out to analyze the cause-effect relationships between environmental factors and P export from Polder Jian. The sensitivity analysis results showed that P export from Polder Jian were strongly affected by air temperature, precipitation and fertilization. Proper fertilization management should be a strategic priority for reducing P export from Polder Jian. This study demonstrated the success of model coupling, and its application in investigating potential strategies to support pollution control in polder systems.