Scientific Annals of "Alexandru Ioan Cuza" University of Iasi
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THE POTENTIAL FOR WATER DIFFUSE POLLUTION WITH HEAVY METALS IN ARIEȘ RIVER BASIN
Get PDFThe potential for water diffuse pollution with heavy metals in Arieș river basin. Arieș river basin is found mostly in the area of mining extractions from Apuseni Mountains. Its position causes a high vulnerability of water courses to pollution with heavy metals derived from mine waters. In this sutdy, in order to determine the potential for water diffuse pollution in Arieș river basin, two main factors were integrated in GIS software, respectively: the potential for surface runoff and the localization of the sources of water pollution with heavy metals (quarries, mines, blank depositions, decantation ponds). The highlighting of the potential for water diffuse pollution was achieved by computing the DPPI index for each river sub-basin. The index was computed by multiplying the average values of the Flash-Flood Susceptibility Index for each river sub-basin by the number of difuse pollution sources (quarries, mines, blank depositions, decantation ponds) within the sub-basin units. The results relieved that the most exposed areas to pollution correspond to water courses from Valea Șesei, Roșia Montană, Valea Buciumanilor river basins and implicitly Abrud river basin, which contains the last two mentioned river basins. The validation of the results was performed by consulting the data reports offered by the Agency for Environmental Protection from Alba county, which confirm the severe water pollution with heavy metals
URBAN ACCOMMODATION INFRASTRUCTURE IN CLUJ NAPOCA (ROMANIA)
No full textThe accommodation infrastructure is an essential part in the tourism sector, together with the communication infrastructure and the restaurants infrastructure. In the urban centers from Romania, the typology of the accommodation establishments is very diversified. On the tourism market the accommodation establishments are represented by hotels, pensions, urban villas, apartments and rooms to rent, hostels and camping. Cluj-Napoca gathers all the above mentioned accommodation types within the accommodation infrastructure. The specialized studies on this subject, mainly rely on the research on the accommodation establishments of hotel type, the other establishments being placed on a secondary level, since the hotel is predominant both as accommodation capacity and amount of establishments. Within the urban centers the accommodation infrastructure is very important as it has to correspond to many typologies of visitors: leisure guests, business guests, guests staying at the hotel in view of participating to a conference or different events, etc. Other destinations include accommodation establishment that are specialized on just one typology of guests, such as seaside resorts or mountainside resorts. The classification of the accommodation establishments on certain criteria is the first stage when determining the characteristics of the accommodation establishments, and for the researchers it is absolutely mandatory to have full knowledge of them in order to understand the tourism market in the urban center
« SINGULARITÉS » GÉOTOPIQUES DE L’IMAGO MUNDI - I
Get PDFNous tentons d’arraisonner le réel cartographique à travers le «mapping», cette géographie avant la lettre où l’esprit prend la place des cartes et les précède, par l’exploration de «singularités» géotopiques et les structurations de l’Imago Mundi. C’est en particulier par l’analyse des expressions cartographiques de l’origine, du centre et de la périphérie ou encore la notion de marginalité, en regard de l’histoire des representations cartographiques, principalement ici à l’époque grecque archaïque, que nous pouvons discuter des ambivalences de ces notions et les replacer dans une modélisation ternaire qui éclaire leur statut épistémologique autant que géographique.
FORMATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE VALLEY SIDE GULLIES IN CENTRAL UGANDA
Get PDFThe dry subhumid area of Central Uganda forms part of the ‘cattle dry corridor’ characterized by relatively low but unpredictable rains, poor resource development, high livestock population and increasing human population densities leading to environmental degradation problems including gully erosion. This paper examines the characteristics of gullies and the main intrinsic and extrinsic variables affecting their spatial distribution in the central drylands of Uganda. A field survey was used. Preliminary studies were done covering two sub counties in the district of Nakasongola, and then more detailed studies narrowed to 2 sub catchments close to Migera town. Ten gullies were sampled for detailed measurements. The spatial distribution of all gully scars were identified in the field and their positions recorded using a Global Position System. This data was imported in Geographical Information System in ILWIS 3.2 environment. Field measurement of gully dimensions (lengths, width and depth) was done and the data used for computing the volume of soil loss from gully erosion. Results revealed that in general land degradation by gullies in this dry sub humid area is an increasing problem, which is mainly attributed to human activities of livestock grazing and movement. The extent and magnitude of erosion by gullies, however, is controlled by soil characteristics and topographic variations. The gullies were largely discontinuous, dominantly of linear pattern and rarely exceeded 2 m depth. There is urgent need to address the problem of degradation by gullies, while taking into consideration the controlling factors, in order to ensure sustainable rangeland management
POPULATION EXPLOSION, RESOURCE EXTRACTION AND ITS IMPACT ON THE URBAN ENVIRONMENT: A CASE STUDY OF KOLKATA METROPOLITAN AREA
Get PDFPopulation explosion in the cities has a direct impact on the space, environment and quality of life. The growing population in cities consumes more resources and generates more waste. The expansion of urban areas is reflected over space in the form of increase of built up area and more concentration of population draws more and more resources from with in and the surrounding areas to satisfy its needs.In the past the size and the economic base of the city was limited and the cities ecological footprint remained relatively local, but today’s context is completely different from the past. Recently most of the megacities of the world particularly in the developing countries are under the phase of rapid expansion, globalization and development. The city’s population as a result bears the capacity to draw resources from far beyond its immediate region and have increasingly appropriated the carrying capacity of the rural region, with little apparent regard for the environment.Kolkata is one of the mega cities of the world, experiencing the huge population pressure. In this paper an attempt has been made to quantify the resources used by the Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA) and assess its impact with respect to the supply and demand
ROAD ACCIDENTS IN RUSSIA: STATISTICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL ANALYSIS
Get PDFRoad transport is the most dangerous means of modern transportation. About 1.24 million people die annually on the world’s roads. Middle-income countries including the Russian Federation have the highest road traffic fatality rates. The author analyzed the main causes of road accidents in the Russian Federation, their temporal variation and spatial distribution as well as temporal change in the number of road accidents, fatalities and injuries over the last 10 years at national and regional level using official statistics data and information of the database created by the author. The main purpose of the study is to trace regional differences in road (un-)safety, to find out the most critical points and to reveal areas most at risk. The study was done at the level of the main administrative units of the Russian Federation (federal regions). As the leading cause of road accidents in Russia, rank traffic violations by drivers, including drink-driving that accounts for one-fifths of car crashes in some regions. In some regions, as the most severe problem remains the poor state of roads and streets causing 40-50 per cent of accidents there
DISCONTINUITIES AND SPATIAL MUTATIONS AS A MARK OF URBAN RESILIENCE IN BACAU MUNICIPALITY (ROMANIA)
Get PDFThe paper tries to identify the spatial structure and dynamics of Bacau city by reconsidering the concept of geographical discontinuity as a tool within the general framework of urban resilience. Based on the native heterogeneity of urban environment, the discontinuities are fractures that divide the city’s tissues, but also lines of convergence where different morphological and social (micro) identities join and complete each other. The existing (geographical) literature identifies axialisation, heterogeneity and deficient spatial management as inherited features of Bacau municipality, all creating visible and “sustainable” discontinuities. The purpose of our study is to identify different types of urban discontinuities that shape the urban habitat. We assess and try to integrate natural and human induced, linear and areal, elementary, structural and functional, morphological and social discontinuities, also by analysing their historical evolution and effect upon the city’s functionality. The final outcomes of the paper refer to drawing some general lines in overcoming the drawbacks of discontinuities in Bacau in order to have a resilient and liveable urban space
REPUBLIC OF SRPSKA: SOCIO-GEOGRAPHIC CHALLENGES
Get PDFThis paper presents possible socio-geographic challenges and solutions of NUTS standards implementation. Republic of Srpska has ambitions to be a part of ordered European space and, as a part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regulate its territory organization according to EU criteria. Author of this paper autonomously emphasizes some of their biggest geographical problems in domain of population and structure of economy according that offers possibilities to facilitate them through the process of regionalization on the basic NUTS standard
ANTHROPOGENIC TRANSFORMATION OF LANDSCAPES OF EASTERN GEORGIA AND THE CURRENT ECOLOGICAL SITUATION
Get PDFThe landscapes of eastern Georgia are increasingly exposed to anthropogenic impacts and are replaced by natural-anthropogenic or completely transformed landscapes. These processes can be observed worldwide, though with different intensity. The underlying causes include the construction of hydro energy facilities, uncontrollable (illegal) felling of trees, pasture overload, and so on, which inevitably have a serious impact on the environment and cause frequent and increasingly intensive geodynamic processes such as erosions, landslides and mudflows.The study of the impacts of particular anthropogenic factors on Eastern Georgian landscapes made it possible to design a model of the region – a landscape-ecological map showing ecological factors characteristic of a particular landscape zone and highlighting ecologically hazardous areas
METHODS FOR DETECTION OF TORNADOES IN POLAND (CASE STUDY)
Get PDFThe purpose of this paper is to specify potential meteorological conditions characteristic for a day (14th July 2012) when dangerous whirlwinds occured in Poland, as well as to evaluate the possibility to detect them by means of available methods and devices. Based on ESWD reports, a set of tornado-type occurrences was selected. Several radar products were analysed in time intervals of 10 minutes. The following parameters were considered: maximum values of reflectivity, vertical wind profile, as well as echo height. Based on satellite images the altitude of storm cloud tops was defined. The data concerning radar products comes from the Institute of Meteorology and Water Management. The satellite images were acquired from the website. Additionally, vertical aerological soundings and synoptic maps were used. In order to analyse thermodynamic instability, convective indices were calculated