CLIMATIC CHANGE AND ECOSYSTEM RESPONSE IN THE MEDITERRANEAN REGION University of Girona 5-23 July, 1999 GIRONA

Under the sponsorship of: Universitat de Girona, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Diputació de Girona I Departament de Medi Ambient de la Generalitat de Catalunya

Introduction       Ý

The Mediterranean Region constitutes a natural and sociocultural framework especially sensitive and vulnerable to climatic change. The fragility of this environment subject to human pressure and natural hazards may lead to important and, to some extent, irreversible changes whose effects may be detected in other ecosystems and in a wide range of human activities. It is therefore important to take into account the role of man, and the way through which external forcing such as climate, market, natural and induced events, agricultural policies affect the man-society-resource system.

The prevention, or at least the minimisation, of the causes of the negative effects on the maintenance of a safe environment and the re-orientation of the human activities towards a policy of sustainability are of concern and require a wider knowledge of the natural processes related to climatic change and the phenomena occurring in ecosystem together with their interactions with traditional activities, modern activities, and the rate of technological advance. This requires very specific approaches by specialised researchers. But, in this way, the overall view of the ecosystem may be lost. In order to maintain and preserve the quality of our Mediterranean environment it is necessary to have and exchange clear information on the relationships between a number of factors acting in the different ecosystems so that the effect of any human activity on environment can be properly judged.

To achieve such an overall view, the International Summer School on Environment of Universitat de Girona  brings together the latest research on the functioning of the Mediterranean environment and climate in presenting its topic for 1999:

CLIMATIC CHANGE AND ECOSYSTEM RESPONSE IN THE MEDITERRANEAN REGION       Ý

The International Summer School on Environment will be held at the Universitat de Girona (Spain) from 5 to 23 of July 1999 and it is organised into three main courses. Each course is divided into five modules in order to promote and emphasise cross-disciplinary links and analyse the interactions between physical (meteorology, hydrology) bio-geo-chemical (soil, vegetation) ecological (ecosystem dynamics), and human (land management) factors that affect interactions in the entire system of the Mediterranean region, with special attention to early warning indicators.

Aim of the School      Ý

The aim of the International Summer School on Environment is to share existing knowledge on recent research on Mediterranean environment. The school presents a truly interdisciplinary programme, engaging teachers from many European universities and public research organisations working in Environmental Sciences and is open to young scientists and graduate students of the European Union and associated countries. The school is planned and conceived to furnish students with the knowledge and skills to better understand the dynamics of interrelated ecosystems and management of natural, societal and human resources. At the same time, the established scientists as well as students will have chances to improve their mutual contacts and to discuss their own ongoing work.

The International Summer School on Environment will function as a normal school with a morning-afternoon timetable based on lectures and practical lessons. Three main interactive courses deal with different topics related to the importance of climate and climatic variability in the Mediterranean region, its impact on different ecosystems and related hydrological implications and water management. Discussion and round tables of the topics dealt with will also be organised at the end of each day, favouring further interaction between students and professors. Course-related material will be available at the start of the programme.

Contents of the School      Ý

Course 1. Climatic variability in the Mediterranean region (July 5-9, 1999)      Ý

The basic processes of climatic changes will be discussed together with the causes of variability, analytical methods, modelling and possible future scenarios for the Mediterranean region.

Modules

-Causes of climatic change and future scenarios in the Mediterranean region (Dr. J. Palutikof)
-Causes of climatic change and the Mediterranean area (Dr. H. Decleir)
-Climatic variability in the Mediterranean region (Dr. J. Martin Vide)
-Climatology and microclimatology (Dr. D. Camuffo)
-C and N cycles, trace gas emissions and environmental implications (Dr. P. Boeckx)

Course 2. Climatic change impact on Mediterranean ecosystem (July 12-16, 1999)      Ý

This course deals with detailed analysis of the effects of climatic change on Mediterranean ecosystems and agriculture, dangers of degradation and desertification, and developing and implementing ecosystem restoration policies.

Modules

-Medalus project: an example of integrated research in the Mediterranean region (Dr. J. Thornes)
-Ecosystem response to climatic stress (Dr. J. Peñuelas)
-Soil degradation and erosion (Dr. A. Solé)
-Desertification (Dr. J. Puigdefabregas)
-Ecosystem restoration (Dr. J. Cortina)

Course 3. Hydrological systems and Mediterranean water resources (July 19-23 1999)      Ý

Water systems, management of and human impact on Mediterranean catchments, flood hazards, hydrological implications of land use change and water resources are the main topics discussed in this course.

Modules

-Watershed management and microcatchments (Dr. F. Gallart)
-Hydrology and hydrological modelling (Dr. F. Gallart)
-Land use change and hydrological implications (Dr. P. Llorens)
-Atmospheric processes and flood hazard (Dr. J.M. Garcia Ruiz)
-Water resources: Assessing the impacts of climatic change (Dr. Chris Kilsby)

Language      Ý

English will be the official language of the International Summer School on Environment.

Site of the School      Ý

The School will be held at: the Faculty of Sciences of the Universitat de Girona. (Campus de Montilivi
17071 GIRONA, Spain)

Application      Ý

The inscription to the school is 100 ECUs per course and the attendance at the three courses will cost 250 ECUs. Travel costs and accommodation are not included. Application is open. Admission will be confirmed before 30 May 1999. Payment of inscription fee must be received by the organisation by June 15 1999.

Application form

Accommodation      Ý

There are two types of accommodation. Participants will have the choice of staying at the Residence of the Montilivi Campus of the Universitat de Girona or at one the different hotels in Girona. Prices for the two types of accommodation are listed in the application form. To reserve accommodation, the organisation requires receipt of your application form. On receipt of your application and our confirmation, we ask for a deposit of 80 ECUs. This is not refundable.

Final registration of the participants will be on Sunday 4 July 1999 starting at 9:00 a.m. Registration will be held at the Faculty of Sciences, Universitat de Girona, Campus de Montilivi, 17071, Girona.

Application form

Certificate of attendance      Ý

Attendance at the International Summer School on Environment entitles you to a certificate of attendance issued by the Universitat de Girona. Students of both the Environmental Technology and the Environment Doctorate Programmes of  Universitat de Girona may validate attendance at each course with three equivalent credits. Attendance at the three courses will allow the validation of the maximum number of equivalents credits foreseen in each doctorate programme. We will also arrange for Doctorate students from national or foreign universities to validate attendance at the school in their own doctorate programme.

Scientific contacts      Ý

The participation by teachers of international prestige in the school will offer the opportunity to establish future scientific co-operation between universities and research organisations in order to intensify contacts in the research into the interactions between environment and culture in the Mediterranean basin.

Girona and its Province      Ý

Girona is outstanding among Catalan cities for its distinct personality, its long history and its architectural heritage. It is an excellent place for working as well for enjoying a pleasant stay. During your free time you can visit various monuments and museums; take a walk in the Jewish quarter and go through different museums and public parks. Its proximity to the Costa Brava beach resorts and the mountains of the Pyrenees offers excellent opportunities for weekend excursions.

List of teachers       Ý

Dr. Jean Palutikof. Climatic Research Unit
University of East Anglia. University Plain. Norwich, U.K.
Tel. +44 1603 593647. Fax +44 1603 507784
e-mail:J.palutikof@ UEA.AC.UK

Dr. Joan Puigdefàbregas. Estación Experimental de Zonas Aridas - CSIC
C/ General Segura 1. 04001 Almeria, Spain
Tel. +34 950 276400. Fax +34 950 277100
e-mail:puigdefa@ eeza.csic.es

Dr. Francesc Gallart Gallego. Institut de Ciències de la Terra J. Almera - CSIC
Marti i Franques s/n. 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Tel. +34 93 4095410. Fax +34 93 4110012
e-mail:fgallart@ ija.csic.es

Dr. Pascal Boeckx. University of Ghent. Dept. Applied Analytical and Physical Chemistry
Coupure Links 653. 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Tel. +32 9 2646000. Fax +32 9 2646230
e-mail:pascal.boeckx@ rug.ac.be

Prof. Dr. M. Martín Vide. Universitat de Barcelona. Dept. de Geografia
Baldiri Reixac, s/n. 08028 Barcelona, Spain
Tel. +34 93 4409200. Fax +34 93 3333466 ext 3210
e-mail:jmartin@ trivium.gh.ub.es

Dr. John B. Thornes. Department of Geography. Strand
London. WC2R 2LS, UK
Tel. +44 171 8732612. Fax +44 171 8732287
e-mail:udfa191@ KCL.ac.uk

Dr. Hugo Decleir. Department of Geography
Vrije Universiteit Brussel. Pleinlan, 2. B 1050 Bruxelles, Belgium
Tel. .Fax
e-mail:hdecleir@ vnet3.vub.ac.be

Dr. Dario Camuffo. CNR - ICTMA
Dept. of Climatology. Corso Stati Uniti, 4. Padova, Italy
Tel. +39 049 8295902. Fax
e-mail:camuffo@ clima.ictr.pd.cnr.it

Dr. Josep Peñuelas. CREAF. Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
08193 Bellaterra. Barcelona, Spain
Tel. +34 93 5812199. Fax +34 93 5811312
e-mail:penuelas@ uab.es

Dr. Albert Solé. CSIC - Estación Experimental de Zonas aridas
General Segura, 1. Almeria, Spain
Tel: +34 950 276400. Fax +34 950 277100
e-mail:albert@ eeza.csic.es

Dr. Jordi Cortina. Universitat d'Alacant. Dept. d'Ecologia
Apartado 99. 03080 Alicant, Spain
Tel. +34 96 5903400. Fax +34 96 5903464
e-mail:jordi@ ua.es

Dr. J.M. García Ruiz. Instituto Pirenaico de Ecologia, CSIC. Estación Experimental Aula Dei
Avda Montañana, 177. Zaragoza, Spain
Tel. +34 976 575883. Fax +34 976 575884
e-mail:humberto@ ipe.csic.es

Dr. Chris Kilsby. Dept. of Civil Engineering. Water Resources System Research Laboratory.
University Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK
Tel. +44 191 222 5614. Fax +44 191 222 6669
e-mail:c.g.kilsby@ newcastle.ac.uk

Dra. Pilar Llorens. Institut de Ciències de la Terra J. Almera CSIC
Marti i Franques s/n. Barcelona, Spain
Tel. +34 93 4095410. Fax +34 93 4110012
e-mail:Pllorens@ ija.csic.es

Scientific Organising Committee      Ý

Dra. J. Bru, Universitat de   Girona
Dr. J.E. Llebot, Universitat Autonòma de Barcelona

Executive Secretariat       Ý

Mrs. Laura Ripoll, Universitat de Girona
Dr. Giovanni Pardini, Universitat de Girona

General Co-ordination and International School on Environment contact address       Ý

International Summer School on Environment
Institut of Environment (IMA-UdG)
Passeig de la Devesa s/n
Girona, Spain
Tel. ++34 972 410935. Fax ++34 972 418230
e-mail: imaudg@ xamba.udg.es

Up-to-date information can be found on our web site http://www.udg.edu/imaudg/

COURSE 1: CLIMATIC VARIABILITY IN THE MEDITERRANEAN REGION (July 5-9, 1999)      Ý

Contents:

-Analysis of long-term temperature and precipitation records from the Mediterranean; what this can tell us about past and present-day climatic trends throughout the region.
-Relationship between climatic variability within the region and indices of large-scale circulation, such as the North Atlantic Oscillation and the Southern Oscillation Indices.
-The Mediterranean Oscillation - is it real? What is its role in the climate of the region?
-Introduction to anthropogenic climatic change: the causes; the latest IPCC emissions scenarios; global projections for climatic change according to climatic model indications.
-Further Information on climatic change as this relates to the Mediterranean region - the projections of the latest generation of models.
-Scenarios for climatic change in the Mediterranean - the requirement for high resolution (in time and space) information for impact studies.
-Three examples of downscaling based on:

Topographic indicator handles within a GIS environment

Free atmosphere variables (sea level pressure and 500 hPa geopotential height) used to predict site-specific daily temperature and precipitation

Regionally-averaged rainfall and temperature used to predict site- specific rainfall and temperature

-Application of the downscaling results to the problem of impact analysis, with the specific example of the change in the frequency and/or severity of extreme events.

Contents:
(i) what are the essential elements of the climate in the Mediterranean area which are subject and characteristic for climatic change.
(ii) overview of theory of climatic change: astronomy,geology, atmosphere, oceans, anthropogenic. Importance of the time scale ( short term fluctuations or long term)
(iii) Concrete aspects of the causes of climatic change in particular areas or of the Mediterranean area as a whole.
(iv) future climatic change in the Mediterranean region according to the IPCC scenario's

Contents:

-Climatic variability in the western Mediterranean
-Rainfall variability in the Mediterranean region
-Temporal distribution of rainfall in Spain
-The NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation) and precipitation in the Iberian Peninsula.
-Analysis of a large series of pressure, precipitation and temperature in Spain
-Climatic reconstruction from documentary information

- How to reconstruct the climate changes in Italy during the last two millennia. The documentary sources and the long instrumental series. Methodology and limits, open problems.

- The climate of central and eastern Mediterranean. The influence of mountains and sea: the different climatic regions of Italy. Seasonal rainfall distribution.

- Climate reconstruction from documentary sources. Objective and subjective data. Establishing an objective scale of severity. Examples of data analysis: Tiber and Po river floods; sea flooding at Venice; freezing the Venice Lagoon, locust invasions etc.

- Problems concerning the long instrumental series (intruments, observational practice, timing, locations). The series of Padova (1725-today). The problem of the present day anthropic disturbance.

1.The C and N cycle
1.1. General explanation of the C and N cycle and the processes involved. I will pay special attention to the human perturbations of these cycles. Special emphasis on CO2, CH4, N2O, NO, NH3 and tropsheric O3
production 
1.2. In order to illustrate the causes of the perturbations of the N cycle, I will expalin the following:
- Agriculture as a sources of NH3 and its effect on forests and the perturbation of the N cycle in forests.
- Quantification of N losses from farms (NH3 volatilization, N2O, N2 en NO emission, Nitrate leaching

2. Greenhouse effect
2.1. What is the greenhouse effect (principle)
2.2. Greenhouse gases: sources and sinks  (focus on CO2, N2O and CH4)
2.3. Implications of the greenhouse effect, Is the greenhouse effect existing ?
2.4. Mitigating options (e.g. Kyoto protocol, ....)

3. Emission (and uptake of) CH4 and N2O from soil ecosystems
3.1. How to measure these emissions (techniques)
3.2. What processes and soil characteristics control these emissions
3.2. data of global emission estimates of N2O and CH4 from soil ecosystems

4. Some case studies
4.1. Methane from wetlands
4.2. Methane emission from landfills and the uptake capacity of their covering soil
4.3.Methane uptake capacity of aerobic soils (soil as sink for atmospheric methane

5. Inventories of biogenic greenhouse gses (example of N2O emission from agriculture in the world and Belgium)
5.1. Explanation of the methodologie
5.2. Historical overview for the world and Belgium
5.3. N2O emission on farm and regional scale

COURSE 2: CLIMATIC CHANGE IMPACT ON MEDITERRANEAN ECOSYSTEM.
July 12-16, 1999       Ý

Contents:

-The history of the Mediterranean desertification problem. The long siesta: agriculture until 1950. Disastrous years, the mid-century droughts and floods, agriculture and environment and agro-environmental policy. Universal concern about desertification and the threat of global climatic change. The Nairobi conference and the International Convention on Combating Desertification.
-The changing concept of desertification. The 1930’s concept of moving front. The UNEP definition of 1992 and its implications. Climatic versus anthropogenic factors in time and space. Revised appraisals and confusions.
-Desertification on the ground. Changing vegetation and soils. Offsite and onsite effects. Sedimentation and flooding. Water resource aspects.
-Mitigating desertification. The water/channel debate. Watershed management and its different implementations. Channel management.
-Developing policy. The human dimensions of desertification. Developing and implementing policy, research needs, frameworks and methodologies.

Ecosystem response to climatic stress (Dr. J. Peñuelas)

Contents:

-Atmospheric and climatic changes in recent and future decades
-The direct effects of increasing concentrations of atmospheric CO₂ and other trace gases on Mediterranean ecosystems and agriculture
-The effects of climatic change on Mediterranean ecosystems and agriculture: drought and fires
-Experimental and monitoring tools to study global change effects on ecosystems
-Practical lessons in remote sensing and spectroradiometry at the ground level

Soil degradation and erosion (Dr. A. Sole)

Contents:

-Basic concepts of Soil Science (soil, clay, organic matter, soil structure, aggregate and structural stability)
-Definition, types and processes of soil degradation
-Criteria for identification of degradation processes
-Physical degradation, biological degradation. Soil pollution. Salinisation and sodification.
-Principal methods of quantitative evaluation
-Soil conservation
-Remediation of degraded soils
-Erosion by water and wind

Contents:

- Implications of global change on desertification. Synergy between climate and policy in triggering desertification. Review of case histories around the world. Global consequences of desertification, effects on the atmospheric system, large scale migrations.
-Approaching desertification from the resource/consumer system perspective. Desertification as a disturbance. Learning from very simple models. Implications, from lumped to spatially distributed systems. Driving forces, thresholds and resilience in the desertification context.
-Quick methods for assessing desertification risk in large areas. The case of the Spanish survey, discriminating past from current desertification, climate and economic data required to identify levels for driving forces, how to assess boundary conditions, (soil, topography, etc.) selection of scales, challenges of using remote sensing as a tool, field work requirements.
-Adaptational traits of land use systems. Degree of intensification and its implications in coping with risk of land degradation. Tolerance and opportunism as complementary strategies. "Sacrifice zone" and minimum land degradation. Land rehabilitation and restoration as management.

Contents:

-General concepts in restoration ecology
-Site and quality assessment
-Emergency restoration
-Afforestation
-Other restoration practices

COURSE 3: HYDROLOGICAL SYSTEMS AND MEDITERRANEAN WATER RESOURCES
July 19-23, 1999       Ý

- Review of main hillslope hydrological processes: precipitation, interception, infiltration, overland flow, percolation, exfiltration. Role of soil and vegetation cover characteristics on hydrological processes.
- Review of the main geomorphic processes: rainsplash, sheet and rill runoff erosion, gully erosion, piping. Mass movements. Interaction between hydrological and erosion processes.
- Erosion control strategies at plot, hillslope, channel and catchment scales. Sediment control strategies. Land use and erosion control.
- Methods for measuring erosion and sediment transport at different scales.

- Runoff generation mechanisms in Mediterranean environments. Dependance on soil characteristics, climate, antecedent conditions and rainfall characteristics.
- Strategies for hydrological modelling. Conceptual models, Process models, Physically-based models. Lumped and distributed models. Hydrological similarity
- The problem of parameterization of models. Representativeness of field measurements. Calibration methods and limitations.
- Validation of models. Validation of models with catchment internal information.

Module 3: (Wednesday 21, from 9:00 a.m. to 17:00 p.m.)

- From traditional land use practices to contemporary ones. Processes, causes and effects on the Mediterranean basin landscapes.
- The effects of land use change on hydrological processes. Role of the different components of the hydrological cycle.
- The experimental catchments as a tool to study land use change. A review and some examples in the Mediterranean area.
- Process studies. The case of rainfall interception. Experimentation and modelling.
- Implications of land use change on water resources, flood hazards and sedimentation.

Atmospheric processes and flood hazards (Dr. J.M. Garcia Ruiz)

–The need for impact assessments; water industry and government requirements;
–Current knowledge : possible Mediterranean, European and global impacts;
–Research into improved methodologies for impact assessment including;
        * frameworks for risk assessment accounting for interannual variability
        * downscaling GCM precipitation output
        * space-time rainfall modelling
        * rainfall-runoff modelling
        * snowmelt modelling
–Cases studies of climate change and water resource impacts including southern Portugal and southern Italy.

   Comentaris: laura.ripoll@pas.udg.es  Última actualització: 2 de febrer de 1999