The project DIGSTER - Map and Go (Digital Based Terrain Mapping) aims at the technical aspects of digital terrrain mapping. For many questions in administration, planning and expertise terrrain mappings are indispensable. The whole process starting with the data acquisition in the field and ending with map products will be digitally performed by the system. Therefore, a platform appropriate for the use in the field (PDA) is combined with technologies from the disciplines of satellite navigation, remote sensing, communication, and mobile geoinformation systems. For DIGSTER a lot of practical applications already exist in connection with policies and directives on the national and also European level.
Existing models of soil organic matter (SOM) formation consider plant material as the main source of SOM. Recent results from nuclear magnetic resonance analyses of SOM and from own incubation studies, however, show that microbial residues also contribute to a large extent to SOM formation. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the soil mineral sur-faces are covered by numerous small patchy fragments (100 - 500 nm) deriving from microbial cell wall residues. We will study the formation and fate of these patchy fragments as continuously produced interfaces in artificial soil systems (quartz, montmorillonite, iron oxides, bacteria and carbon sources). We will quantify the relative contributions of different types of soil organisms to patchy fragment formation and elucidate the effect of redox con-ditions and iron mineralogy on the formation and turnover of patchy fragments. The develop-ment of patchy fragments during pedogenesis will be followed by studying soil samples from a chronosequence in the forefield of the retreating Damma glacier. We will characterize chemical and physical properties of the patchy fragments by nanothermal analysis and microscale condensation experiments in an environmental scanning electron microscope. The results will help understanding the processes at and characteristics of biogeochemical interfaces.
Farm structures are often characterized by regional heterogeneity, agglomeration effects, sub-optimal farm sizes and income disparities. The main objective of this study is to analyze whether this is a result of path dependent structural change, what the determinants of path dependence are, and how it may be overcome. The focus is on the German dairy sector which has been highly regulated and subsidized in the past and faces severe structural deficits. The future of this sector in the process of an ongoing liberalization will be analyzed by applying theoretical concepts of path dependence and path breaking. In these regards, key issues are the actual situation, technological and market trends as well as agricultural policies. The methodology will be based on a participative use of the agent-based model AgriPoliS and participatory laboratory experiments. On the one hand, AgriPoliS will be tested as a tool for stakeholder oriented analysis of mechanisms, trends and policy effects. This part aims to analyze whether and how path dependence of structural change can be overcome on a sector level. In a second part, AgriPoliS will be extended such that human players (farmers, students) can take over the role of agents in the model. This part aims to compare human agents with computer agents in order to overcome single farm path dependence.
In recent years science has taken an increased interest in mineralization processes in tropical soils in particular under minimal tillage operations. Plant litter quality and management strongly affect mineralization-nitrification processes in soil and hence the fate of nitrogen in ecosystems and the environment. Plant secondary metabolites like lignin and polyphenols are poorly degradable and interact with proteins (protein binding capacity) and hence protect them from microbial attack. Nitrification, a microbiological process, directly and indirectly influences the efficiency of recovery of N in the vegetation as well as the loss of N (through denitrification and leaching) causing environmental pollution to water bodies and contributes to global warming (e.g. the greenhouse gas N2O is emitted as a by-product of nitrification and denitrification). Nitrifiers comprise a relatively narrow species diversity (at least as known to date) and are generally thought to be sensitive to low soil pH and stress. Despite these properties nitrification occurs in acid tropical soils with high levels of aluminium and manganese. Thus the main objective of the project will be the identification of micro-organisms and mechanisms responsible for mineralization-nitrification processes in acid tropical soils and the influence of long-term litter input of different chemical qualities and minimal tillage options. The project will include the use of stable isotopes (15N, 13C), mass spectrometry, gas chromatography (CO2, N2O), biochemical methods (PLFA) and molecular biology (16s rRNA., PCR, DGGE)
It is well established that reduced supply of fresh organic matter, interactions of organic matter with mineral phases and spatial inaccessibility affect C stocks in subsoils. However, quantitative information required for a better understanding of the contribution of each of the different processes to C sequestration in subsoils and for improvements of subsoil C models is scarce. The same is true for the main controlling factors of the decomposition rates of soil organic matter in subsoils. Moreover, information on spatial variabilities of different properties in the subsoil is rare. The few studies available which couple near and middle infrared spectroscopy (NIRS/MIRS) with geostatistical approaches indicate a potential for the creation of spatial maps which may show hot spots with increased biological activities in the soil profile and their effects on the distribution of C contents. Objectives are (i) to determine the mean residence time of subsoil C in different fractions by applying fractionation procedures in combination with 14C measurements; (ii) to study the effects of water content, input of 13C-labelled roots and dissolved organic matter and spatial inaccessibility on C turnover in an automatic microcosm system; (iii) to determine general soil properties and soil biological and chemical characteristics using NIRS and MIRS, and (iv) to extrapolate the measured and estimated soil properties to the vertical profiles by using different spatial interpolation techniques. For the NIRS/MIRS applications, sample pretreatment (air-dried vs. freeze-dried samples) and calibration procedures (a modified partial least square (MPLS) approach vs. a genetic algorithm coupled with MPLS or PLS) will be optimized. We hypothesize that the combined application of chemical fractionation in combination with 14C measurements and the results of the incubation experiments will give the pool sizes of passive, intermediate, labile and very labile C and N and the mean residence times of labile and very labile C and N. These results will make it possible to initialize the new quantitative model to be developed by subproject PC. Additionally, we hypothesize that the sample pretreatment 'freeze-drying' will be more useful for the estimation of soil biological characteristics than air-drying. The GA-MPLS and GA-PLS approaches are expected to give better estimates of the soil characteristics than the MPLS and PLS approaches. The spatial maps for the different subsoil characteristics in combination with the spatial maps of temperature and water contents will presumably enable us to explain the spatial heterogeneity of C contents.
Non wood fuels for small-scale furnaces have attracted increasing interest in several European countries. New technological approaches are on the way, but the verification of any such developments is difficult and there is a large uncertainty about testing procedures and equipment. While for wood combustion standardized European measuring regulations are available and broadly applied, the testing of cereal fuel combustion is generally not following a commonly accepted procedure. Consequently the results of such measurements are not fully comparable. This applies particularly for the international level, which is here of particular relevance due to the fact that a combustion technology development for a niche application can only be economically viable if a sufficiently large marketing area can be taken into focus. The overall objective of the proposal is therefore to contribute through research to the development of uniform and comparable European procedures for testing of small-scale boilers up to a power out of 300 kW for solid biomass from agriculture like straw pellets and energy grain. The driving forces and barriers will be worked out; existing legal regulation for the installation (approval by the local authorities) in the participating countries will be collected. The state of the art of the non wood biomass boiler technology will be identified; the need for standardized tests for type approval tests and the measures to establish a European Standard will be shown. Measurement methods with special emphasis on efficiency and emissions will be worked out and the requirements and specifications of test fuels will be proposed. Test runs will be carried out following preliminary test procedures based on existing European standards for wood boilers. Based on the results of these test runs a draft for a Europe-wide uniform test procedure will be proposed. Preparatory work for a European standardization process including a round robin test will be done.
The final goal of the EUROWET project is to integrate the substantial multidisciplinary European research in wetlands to help attain the sustainable management of the water cycle. This will be achieved by the translation of state-of-the art science developed at both national and European levels, into practical guidance for end-users. This will be achieved by a comprehensive review, expert assessment and a focussed dissemination strategy. There is considerable scientific knowledge and technical experience gained in diverse aspects of wetland science and management including hydrology, biogeochemistry, ecology restoration, socio-economic and policy analysis. However the results of research and management experience are still too fragmentary and not sufficiently orientated to problem-solving or simply inadequately framed to be effectively transferred to, or used by, stakeholders and policy-makers. Simultaneously the general outcome of the scientific research has been increased awareness of the significance of wetlands in delivering goods and services important for human welfare including quality of life, biodiversity conservation and maintenance or enhancement of environment quality. Despite this wetlands continue to be degraded and lost throughout Europe without adequate consideration of the wider benefits to be achieved from this management. The new Water Framework Directive (WFD) promotes a unique opportunity to redress this problem by means of the holistic, integrated approach to water management. There is currently in preparation horizontal guidance on Wetlands as part of the Common Implementation Strategy (CIS) process. There is however work still to be done on providing more specific scientific and technical guidance on the effective implementation of the Directive with respect to wetlands. This is particularly the case in relation to Integrated River Management, the CIS cluster within which wetlands are being considered in the WFD.
Especially during the last decades, the natural forests of Ethiopia have been heavily disturbed by human activities. Some forests have been totally cleared and converted into fields for agricultural use, other suffered from different influences, such as heavy grazing and selective logging. The ongoing research in the Shashemane-Munessa-study area (Gu 406/8-1,2) showed clearly that, in spite of interdiction and control, forests continue to be cleared and degraded. However, it is not yet sufficiently known, how and why these processes are still going on. Growing population pressure and economic constraints for the people living in and around the forests contribute to the actual situation but allow no final answers to the complex situation. Concerning a sustainable management of the forests there is to no solid basis for recommendations from the socioeconomic and socio-cultural view. Therefore, a comprehensive analysis of the traditional needs and forms of forest use, including all forest products, is necessary. The objective of this project is, to achieve this basis by carrying out intensive field observations, the consultation of aerial photographs, satellite imagery and above all semi-structured interviews with the population in the study area in order to contribute to the recommendations for a sustainable use of the Munessa Shasemane forests.
Arsenic-contaminated ground- and drinking water is a global environmental problem with about 1-2Prozent of the world's population being affected. The upper drinking water limit for arsenic (10 Micro g/l) recommended by the WHO is often exceeded, even in industrial nations in Europe and the USA. Chronic intake of arsenic causes severe health problems like skin diseases (e.g. blackfoot disease) and cancer. In addition to drinking water, seafood and rice are the main reservoirs for arsenic uptake. Arsenic is oftentimes of geogenic origin and in the environment it is mainly bound to iron(III) minerals. Iron(III)-reducing bacteria are able to dissolve these iron minerals and therefore release the arsenic to the environment. In turn, iron(II)-oxidizing bacteria have the potential to co-precipitate or sorb arsenic during iron(II)- oxidation at neutral pH followed by iron(III) mineral precipitation. This process may reduce arsenic concentrations in the environment drastically, lowering the potential risk for humans dramatically.The main goal of this study therefore is to quantify, identify and isolate anaerobic and aerobic Fe(II)-oxidizing microorganisms in arsenic-containing paddy soil. The co-precipitation and thus removal of arsenic by iron mineral producing bacteria will be determined in batch and microcosm experiments. Finally the influence of rhizosphere redox status on microbial Fe oxidation and arsenic uptake into rice plants will be evaluated in microcosm experiments. The long-term goal of this research is to better understand arsenic-co-precipitation and thus arsenic-immobilization by iron(II)-oxidizing bacteria in rice paddy soil. Potentially these results can lead to an improvement of living conditions in affected countries, e.g. in China or Bangladesh.
This subproject aims to analyze the fragmentation of forest policy at both an international and national level for the selected countries, employing a discourse analysis approach. It is split into two sub-subprojects (SSPs). 'SSPa' conducts an analysis of discursive genealogies of forest policy in Germany, Sweden, and the US. 'SSPb' investigates the history of forest related discourses in three global environmental policy processes (UNFF, CBD, and UNFCCC). In doing so, both SSPs follow a three step procedure: In the first work package, relevant literature is reviewed and a theoretical and analytical framework is developed. In the second work package, empirical data (mostly formal and informal policy documents) are gathered and analyzed. In the third work package, emphasis is placed on the role of political 'elites' in the creation of fragmented forest policy discourses at different levels; in-depth interviews with policy stakeholders and experts add another perspective to the analysis in this work package. The project is expected to develop a new understanding not only of the fragmentation of multi-level and multi-sector forest policy discourses, but also of the way in which 'discourse elites' interact with and within these discourses. The results of the work packages will be published in peer reviewed journals and discussed with policy stakeholders and scientists in conferences and workshops.
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