AndreaBozzo/ceres-open-data-index huggingface dataset:
Desalination Plants: Potential impacts of brine discharge on marine life.

This is a report written under the auspices of the University of Sydney Ocean Technology Group.  The report contains a good collection of data and content from other sources.  The abstract on USYD's eprints repository described the report as follows:

"Water has always been the earth's most valuable natural resource for human beings and ecosystems. Reductions in water quality and quantity have serious negative impacts on ecosystems. Over the past several decades, a tremendous growth in human populations and industrial activities has resulted in a significant demand for fresh and clean water. To meet these challenges and meet the pressures of demand it is critical to find a new alternative of water resource as the natural water resources have almost vanished. In spite of the high cost of desalinated water, an important quantity is already produced to meet the necessity for fresh water worldwide. 

Desalination could hold the key for new fresh water resources. Some arguments will be raised
against building desalination plants on the grounds of environmental impacts to the surrounding
area, especially to marine life due to the high concentrated brine discharge that diffuses back into
the ocean. The impacts of the brine discharge are due to the high level of salinity and total alkalinity and alteration to the temperature. These impacts could be considerable in terms of the influence on the marine organisms such as the development of species, survival of larva and breeding and reproductive traits. However this paper provides some evidence that the influence of discharge for desalination plant can be neglected in terms of any environmental impact to the
aquatic flora and fauna species."

Tags: Alkalinity, Oceans, Salinity, Water Quality, Water Temperature
Organization: Ocean Technology Group (OTG), The University of Sydney (USYD)
Detached macrophyte accumulations in surf zones: significance of macrophyte type and volume in supporting secondary production

Feeding experiments on collected amphipods and fish sampling were conducted from surf zones of sandy beaches in southwestern Australia to determine the influence of detached macrophytes (seagrass and macroalgae) on secondary production.

Tags: Biosphere, Community Structure, Ecological Dynamics, Feeding Habitat, Fish, Invertebrates, Macrophyte, Marine Biology, Oceans, Secondary Production, Vegetation, Zoology
Organization: BMT Oceanica
Determining main carbonate mineralogy, and the primary components of the non carbonate fraction, at four depths in core GC12, collected from the Capricorn Channel.

A gravity core (GC12) was collected from a depth of 990.5 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Analysis of other parameters revealed the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) sitting at a depth of ~175cm into the core. Four samples were collected for X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis; the top two, at the sediment surface (GC12-0) and at 30cm (GC12-30) represent interglacial sediment, while the lower two, at 210cm (GC12-210) and 330cm (GC12-330) represent glacial sediment. XRD analysis suggests that the majority of the carbonate is calcite during the interglacials, primarily from pelagic carbonate production. During the glacials and transitions more quartz, feldspar, aragonite and Mg calcite are present. This suggests that there is a changing dominance of pelagic, terrigenous and reef platform material within the core related to sea-level variations.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Paleoclimate, Sediment Composition, Sediments
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining main carbonate mineralogy, and the primary components of the non carbonate fraction, at two depths in core GC09, collected from the Capricorn Channel

A gravity core (GC09) was collected from a depth of 166m within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Analysis of other parameters revealed the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) sitting at a depth of ~60cm's into the core. For this reason two samples were collected for X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis, the first at a depth of 5cm (GC09-5) representing interglacial sediment, and the second from a depth of 60cm (GC09-60) representing glacial sediment. Both samples exhibited high Mg calcite and aragonite, compared with calcite, suggesting that the primary carbonate influx to the core is from the surrounding reef platform, rather than pelagic influences. There was also a 10% increase in non carbonate material during the glacial, and this was primarily made up of feldspars and quartz indicating a relative increase in terrestrial sediment during the LGM.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Paleoclimate, Sediment Composition, Sediments
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining main carbonate mineralogy, and the primary components of the non carbonate fraction, at two depths in core GC13, collected from the Capricorn Channel.

A gravity core (GC13) was collected from a depth of 1482 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Analysis of other parameters revealed the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) sitting at a depth of ~90cm into the core. Two samples were collected for X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis; from the sediment surface (GC13-0) representing interglacial sediment, while the second sample, from 90cm (GC13-90) represents glacial sediment. XRD analysis of these samples show a slight increase in carbonate percentage during the interglacial compared to the glacial, with increased clay and quartz during the glacial. During the interglacial there are minor amounts of Mg calcite, which suggests that there is little influence from the reef platform on the sediments during the present sea-level, or that the core is presently below the Mg calcite compensation depth.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Paleoclimate, Sediment Composition, Sediments
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Distributions of rainforest vertebrates in the Australian Wet Tropics (MTSRF, JCU)

The purpose of this data set was to compile distributional, general life-history characteristics and phylogenies for Australian tropical rain forest vertebrates to inform a wide range of comparative studies on the determinants of biodiversity patterns and to assess the impacts of global climate change. We provide three distinct data sets: (1) a table of species-specific distributional and life-history traits for 242 vertebrate species found in the rain forests of the Australian Wet Tropics; (2) species distribution maps (GIS raster files) for 202 of the species displaying both the realized and potential distributions; and (3) phylogenies for these species. These species represent 93 birds, 31 amphibians, 31 mammals (including one monotreme), and 47 reptiles. Where information exists, the distributional and life-history data compiled here present information on: indices of environmental specialization (ENFA), habitat specialization, average body mass and size, sexual dimorphism, reproductive characteristics such as age at first reproduction, clutch/litter size, number of reproductive bouts per year and breeding seasonality, longevity, time of day when most active, and dispersal ability; distributional characteristics such as range size (potential and realized for both total and core ranges) and observed ranges in temperature, precipitation, and elevation; and niche attributes such as environmental marginality and specialization. The distribution maps provided represent a combination of presence-only ecological niche modeling (using MaxEnt) to estimate the potential distribution of a species followed by biogeographic clipping by expert opinion based on extensive field data and a subregional classification relevant to the topography and biogeographic history of the region to produce best-possible estimates of the realized distribution. Our assemblage contains many species with a shared evolutionary history, and thus many analyses of these data will need to account for phylogeny. Although a comprehensive phylogeny with branch length information does not exist for this diverse group of species, we present a best-estimate composite phylogeny constructed primarily from recently published molecular phylogenies of included groups. 

This metadata record is an extract from the authorive metadata records maintained by the tropical data hub (http://tropicaldatahub.org/data/6e58cda4-a2c9-4193-bb22-708e25054e3c).

Organization: Centre for Tropical Biodiversity & Climate Change, James Cook University (CTBCC/JCU)
Determining main carbonate mineralogy, and the primary components of the non carbonate fraction, at two depths in core GC14, collected from the Capricorn Channel.

A gravity core (GC14) was collected from a depth of 2004 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Analysis of other parameters revealed the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) sitting at a depth of ~80cm into the core. Two samples were collected for X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis; from the sediment surface (GC14-0) representing interglacial sediment, while the second sample, from 80cm (GC14-80) represents glacial sediment. XRD analysis of these samples show a slight increase in carbonate percentage during the interglacial compared to the glacial, with increased clay and quartz during the glacial. During the interglacial there are minor amounts of Mg calcite, which suggests that there is little influence from the reef platform on the sediments during the present sea-level, or that the core is presently below the Mg calcite compensation depth.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Paleoclimate, Sediment Composition, Sediments
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining main carbonate mineralogy, and the primary components of the non carbonate fraction, at two depths in core GC10, collected from the Capricorn Channel.

A gravity core (GC10) was collected from a depth of 335 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Analysis of other parameters revealed the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) sitting at a depth of ~130cm into the core. Three samples were collected for X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analysis; at the sediment surface (GC10-0) representing interglacial sediment, 100cm depth (GC10-100) and 270cm (GC10-270) - both of which represent glacial sediment. XRD analysis shows that during the interglacials aragonite increases relative to calcite, presumably as a result of shelf carbonate transported down the channel. During the glacials there is a higher percentage of quartz and feldspar, but reduced clay content in the non-carbonate fraction. This suggests that the terrigenous fraction is dominant within the sediments, however the energy in the environment is possibly too high for the clays to settle.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Paleoclimate, Sediment Composition, Sediments
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining the grainsize of sediment with increasing depth in core GC09, located in the Capricorn Channel

A gravity core (GC09) was collected from a depth of 166m within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Samples were separated into different size fractions to determine the % of each grainsize at each sample depth. Although not overly accurate, the information is correlated with analyses of other parameters to impart clues to the environmental changes within the core. This assembly of information suggests that the core reaches the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) at ~60cm depth, with one indicator being the increase in fine grain material (<100µm). The results also indicate fine grain dominance at a depth of 90cm.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Sediment Grain Size
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining the grainsize of sediment with increasing depth in core GC10, located in the Capricorn Channel

A gravity core (GC10) was collected from a depth of 335 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Samples were separated into different size fractions to determine the % of each grainsize at each sample depth. Although not overly accurate, the information is correlated with analyses of other parameters to impart clues to the environmental changes within the core. This assembly of information suggests that the core reaches the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) at ~130cm depth. The smallest size fraction (<100µm) dominates at all depths, with the shallowest sample (5cm) exhibiting 93% of material within this size range.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Sediment Grain Size
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining the grainsize of sediment with increasing depth in core GC11, located in the Capricorn Channel

A gravity core (GC11) was collected from a depth of 502 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Samples were separated into different size fractions to determine the % of each grainsize at each sample depth. Although not overly accurate, the information is correlated with analyses of other parameters to impart clues to the environmental changes within the core. The smallest size fraction (<100µm) dominates at all depths, and is particularly pronounced during glacial periods, at 460cm (MIS 10) and at 330cm (MIS 8).

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Sediment Grain Size
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining the grainsize of sediment with increasing depth in core GC12, located in the Capricorn Channel

A gravity core (GC12) was collected from a depth of 990.5 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Samples were separated into different size fractions to determine the % of each grainsize at each sample depth. Although not overly accurate, the information is correlated with analyses of other parameters to impart clues to the environmental changes within the core. The smallest size fraction (<100µm) dominates at all depths, with an average of 95% in this size bracket at the base of the core. A peak in the larger grainsize fraction at 490cm is the result of a pteropod layer within the sediments. These pteropod accumulations are regular features within the cores. The exact reason for their occurence is unknown.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Sediment Grain Size
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining the grainsize of sediment with increasing depth in core GC13, located in the Capricorn Channel

A gravity core (GC13) was collected from a depth of 1482 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Samples were separated into different size fractions to determine the % of each grainsize at each sample depth. Although not overly accurate, the information is correlated with analyses of other parameters to impart clues to the environmental changes within the core. The smallest size fraction (<100µm) dominates at all depths. Peaks in the larger grainsize fractions correlate with pteropod accumulations in the sediment, especially in the lower half of the core at 260cm and 290cm. The absence of complete pteropods at the top of the core may be related to the fact that GC13 is presently situated below the aragonite lysocline. This suggests that the aragonite lysocline was probably deeper during the glacials.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Sediment Grain Size
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Determining the grainsize of sediment with increasing depth in core GC14, located in the Capricorn Channel

A gravity core (GC14) was collected from a depth of 2004 mbsl within the Capricorn Channel, southern Great Barrier Reef (GBR). Samples were separated into different size fractions to determine the % of each grainsize at each sample depth. Although not overly accurate, the information is correlated with analyses of other parameters to impart clues to the environmental changes within the core. The smallest size fraction (<100µm) dominates at all depths. There are small peaks in the coarser grained material at the bottom of the core which relate to pteropod layers in the sediment.

Tags: Marine Sediments, Oceans, Sediment Grain Size
Organization: National Institute of Water and Atmosphere (NIWA)
Detox Your Home Disposal Points (VIC)

    

Victorian Locations where unwanted household chemicals can be disposed of
safely. Locations comprise permanent drop-off points and a schedule for a
mobile service.

Copyright statement a A(c) Sustainabilty Victoria 2010 To the extent the
material is protected by copyright it is licensed on the applicable terms



Tags: chemicals, detox, disposal, facilities, home, toxic, waste
Organization: Sustainability Victoria
Diatom recovery from core MD88-779: Raw counts

Core MD88-779 was taken during the 1988 French ASPARA IV cruise in the South East Indian Ocean aboard the Marion Dufresne. The core is situated on the South Tasman Rise (47º50.690S, 146º32.750E) at a depth of 2260m. Although the core recovered was 6.7m long, only the top 2.6m were studied as preliminary investigations had indicated that this section covered the last two glacial cycles. 

A total of 37 diatom species and taxa were observed in the core samples, comprising predominantly warm-water fauna. The majority of samples were poorly preserved and showed high levels of dissolution making identification to species level often difficult. Species with greatest abundances were those more heavily silicified (e.g. Fragilariopsis kerguelansis), and to a lesser extent the warm-water forms (e.g. Fragilariopsis doliolu).

The complete loss of a diatom record at 170cm and 210/220cm in the core is extremely unusual. The diatom signal is interpreted as having been removed by increased water mass velocity, extreme post-depositional silica dissolution or decreased productivity. There is no sedimentological evidence from the core which provides further interpretation.

The diatom recovery from this core is considerably low when compared to samples from the Southern Ocean.

Tags: 53001900, 53120000, 53150900, Azpeitia tabularis, Biosphere, Diatoms, Fragilariopsis doliolus, Hemidiscus cuneiformis, Microbiota, Roperia tesselata, Thalassionema nitzschioides, Thalassiosira lineata
Organization: Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University
Diatom recovery from core MD88-784: Raw counts

Core MD88-784 was recovered during the French ASPARA IV cruise in 1988, aboard the Marion Dufresne. The core was located on the Tasman Fracture Zone of the Mid-Ocean Ridge, within the Polar Front Zone. 

Diatoms were found in abundance through the core, with a total of 57 diatom species and taxa recorded. This data set provides the raw diatom counts from sediment samples prepared every 10cm down the core.

Tags: 53001900, 53120000, Biosphere, Diatoms, Fragilariopsis kerguelensis, Microbiota, Thalassiosira lentiginosa
Organization: Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University
Diatom recovery from core MD88-787: Raw counts

Core MD88-787 was recovered during the French ASPARA IV cruise in 1988, aboard the Marion Dufresne. The core was located on the Tasman Fracture Zone of the Mid-Ocean Ridge, within the Polar Front Zone.  

A total of 69 diatom species and taxa were recorded in core MD88-787. Over time, the core indicates a reduction in the number of diatom valves in the sediments for the last glacial. This trend is not observed during the previous 'glacial' period in isotope-stage 4, but is again noted in isotope-stage 6. Interglacial isotope-stages 3 and 5 indicate higher- or equivalent-diatom content comparable to isotope-stage 1. The reduced diatom signal during the glacials appears odd since the expectation was for an enhanced diatom signal produced by the northward shifting fronts. The decrease in signal could be interpreted as being affected by sea-ice cover and the resulting change towards more lightly silicified diatom species.

Tags: 53001900, 53120000, Biosphere, Diatoms, Fragilariopsis kerguelensis, Fragilariopsis separanda, Microbiota, Thalassiosira lentiginosa
Organization: Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University
GBR - Effects of the 2004 Great Barrier Reef rezoning on recreational fishers, 2006 - 2008 (MTSRF 4.8.5, JCU)

This dataset contains telephone (n=1743), mail (n=800), and face-to-face (n=132) survey data collected from the recreational fishing community in the Great Barrier Reef region. The surveys were aimed primarily at understanding fishers' attitudes and perceptions regarding the 2004 rezoning of the GBR and the impacts of the new zoning plan on recreational fishing activity and the spatial distribution of recreational fishing effort.

Data units:
Quantitative attitudinal and perception data plus extensive spatial data on recreational fishers' pre- and post-rezoning fishing locations.

References:
- Sutton, S.G.and R. Tobin. 2009. Recreational fishers' attitudes towards the 2004 rezoning of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. Environmental Conservation. Published on-line December 18, 2009.

Tags: marine
Organization: James Cook University
Diurnal rhythms of activity, sediment egestion and cryptic behaviour of Holothuria whitmaei (sea cucumber) at Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia

The diurnal rates of activity and sediment egestion on three seperate occasions in January, April and August, 2003, and the cryptic behaviour on one occasion in August, 2003 were measured to determine diurnal patterns of holothurian behaviour.

Tags: 25 416033, Biosphere, Cryptic behaviour, Diurnal Movements, Ecological Dynamics, Feeding Habitat, Holothuria whitmaei, Marine Biology, Marine Invertebrates, Oceans, Sediment egestion, black teatfish
Organization: BMT Oceanica
Diets of four shrimp species in eelgrass habitats, Western Port Bay, Victoria

This study examined stomach contents of shrimp sampled in the beam trawls in Western Port Bay from July 1977 to January 1980 (see parent record 'The ecology and trophic role of caridean shrimps in the eelgrass community of Western Port, Victoria', File identifier: 268431c0-f18e-11dc-aaae-00188b4c0af8). An evaluation was made of summer and winter diets of Macrobrachium.intermedium, Pontophilus intermedius and Hippolyte caradina. Chlorotocella leptorhyncus was not present in the summer samples, so only the winter diet of this species was determined. Food items in the stomach were identified and the size of intact specimens was measured. All items were counted and assigned to a taxonomic category at the lowest possible level. The relative volume of individual prey items and taxonomic groups was also estimated.
 
During summer, M.intermediaum fed on a mix of animals (small crustaceans, gastropods, and polychaetes) and plant matter, and during winter, the diet was mostly plant matter. Polychaetes were the abundant prey items in the stomachs of P.intermedius, representing close to 70% of the diet in summer and winter. Almost 70% of the overall volume of food consumed by H.caradina was plant matter with small crustaceans, gastropods and insects making up the remaining proportion of the food consumed. The amount of plant matter in the diet increased in the winter months. C.leptorhyncus was found to ingest approximately equal volumes of animal and planter material with polychaetes the most abundant animal prey. The plant matter found in all samples was mostly dead eelgrass tissue.

Tags: 28 756901, 28 767018, 28 770020, 28 781018, 63 619003, 63 619004, Aquatic Habitat, Benthic Habitat, Biosphere, Chlorotocella leptorhyncus, Community Structure, Ecological Dynamics, Flowering Plants, Heterozostera tasmanica, Hippolyte caradina, Invertebrates, Macrobrachium spp., Malacostraca, Marine Biology, Marine Invertebrates, Oceans, Phillip Island, Pontophilus candidus, Population Dynamics, Predation, Rhyll, Trophic Dynamics, Vegetation, Western Port Bay, Zoology, Zostera muelleri, carid prawn, carid shrimp, carid shrimps, eelgrass, hump-backed shrimp, tidal flats
Organization: Cliffs Natural Resources