Roger H. Charlier

Anaerobic Digestion of Ulva sp. 3. Liquefaction Juices Extraction by Pressing and a Technico-Economic Budget

In many countries, the algae of “green tides” are harvested in the fight against pollution. Ulva often represents the main component of the tide, and intensive research has been conducted on the possibility to use the algae as a methanisation substrate. However, methanisation is hampered by various practical obstacles, which requires a compromise between productivity and biological yield.The process described here calls upon a pre-digestion phase of Ulva which, besides the economy of time and volume of the digestion, makes it possible to obtain a biogas of good quality. The methanisation substrate is the hydrolysis juice collected by draining, followed by pressing. The cake resulting from the pressing process can be used as organic enriching or fertilizing agent in agriculture. Various presses were tested. The screw press was found the most suitable to recover a great quantity of sufficiently loaded pressing juice after only a short hydrolysis time. For a 3 month hydrolysis period, the different fractions amounted to 158 L of hydrolysis juice, 192 L of pressing juice, and 0.075 m3 of cake per m3 of initial algae.The bi-phasic anaerobic digestion with forced recuperation of juices offers interesting pollution abatement perspectives, with total and soluble chemical oxygen demand cleaning rates of respectively 79 and 95% during the methanogenic phase, for a volume productivity of 1.5 m3 CH4 m−3digester day−1. The quality of the Ulva juice also makes it suitable for use as substrate for industrial processes or co-substrate of methanisation in pre-existing reactors, so that subsequent investment could be avoided.

Sustainable multiple‐use and management of the coastal zone

Population migration to the coastal zone has increased by 50 to 70 per cent. Conflicts of inhabitation and use are escalating rapidly. Single use is economically risky if not unsound. In traditional societies multiple‐use has been exercised successfully. Concentration among today′s users should lead to an acceptable balance and to sustainable situations. Physical, biological and geological equilibria and conservation should be maintained. For this to happen communication approaches should be fine‐tuned.

Water for the desert—a viewpoint

The dwindling water resources combined with climatological conditions which severely affected several areas of the world, particularly those where subsistence agriculture and nomadic animal husbandry are the mainstay of the way‐of‐life, require immediate action. Some schemes have been proposed which at first sight were to be considered engineers’ dreams. From seawater conversion, to iceberg towing and long distance piping, solutions are edging from the realm of fantasy to conceivable achievements. Perhaps the mighty Zaire River may be one day tapped to quench the thirst of parched Central Africa or fill the jugs of Arabia.

The Geographic Distribution of Polar Desert Soils in the Northern Hemisphere

The soil of Arctic areas is generally said to be Tundra. Recent research indicates that the zonal diagram depicting a Podzol-Tundra-firn sequence northward from the fringes of the northern forest does not realistically reflect physical conditions in the northern extremities of ice-free land. These extremities are primarily mantled with Polar Desert soils. The Polar Desert soils are at times only sparsely colonized by vascular plants. They are typical of regions of low temperature, rather dry soil conditions, mildly acid to alkaline in reaction with salt efflorescences. In the western hemisphere, all land north of Viscount Melville and Lancaster sounds falls into the geographical area of Polar Desert soils, and so do the ice-free portions of Greenland north of 78° to 80° N. The Franklin district of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago is rather a transition zone between Tundra soil and Polar Desert soil. In the eastern hemisphere, portions of Svalbard lie within the Polar Desert soil area. On the other hand, Novaya Zemlya, Savernaya Zemlya, Novo Sibirskie, Wrangel Islands, and portions of the Northern Tamal and Taimyr peninsulas constitute more of a transition zone between Tundra and true Polar Desert. The extension of this transition zone has been outlined by Gerasimov in 1956. Geologists such as Cailleux, Taylor, Troll, and Washburn have contributed substantially to the study of Arctic soils through their work on physical and chemical weathering, ground patterns, and perennially frozen ground. A substantial effort should be made by scientists o t unify soil nomenclature in the Arctic or at least to establish equivalent terminology. Fundamental studies on Arctic soil are long overdue with cartography not one of the least important.

Coastal environment: EC‐cost 48 bioconversion projects and economic aspects

Seaweed has proved to be both a potential resource and a problem for coastal areas. In the framework of the European Communities, a scientific commission was created some 8 years ago, in order to address the matter of seaweed bioconversion in Europe. A book, recently published, represents a fair review and survey of seaweed as a resource in Europe. The matter of seaweed problems and expanded use is now under study in a new programme. This paper traces back the development and growth of this inter‐European effort and also provides an overview of achievements.

THE TANGUE, A “NONCONFORMING” SEDIMENT

The tangue has been observed as a relatively shallow-water sediment along the French Atlantic coast, and especially in Brittany. It has a very high calcium carbonate content. The tangue was originally thought to be a recent deposit, but the discovery of considerable layers of old tangue made this original hypothesis untenable. Tangue beds are characterized by thin layers reminiscent of varves. The tangue does not conform to the traditional deposit patterns inasmuch as, if one progresses seaward, the size distribution of grains is contrary to the distribution observed normally in other sediments.

Land recovery : brownfields : A viewpoint

Market specialists who hold that Brownfields are the hottest item in real estate in the United States, predict that the European market is following suit, and praise them as a realistic approach to recover thousands of acres of properties irremediably, or economically, lost because of pollution. The redevelopment of such properties rates both US Federal and State governments incentives. However, potential developers feel the legal guarantees fall short of balancing the risks involved in many an undertaking. Do recovery schemes cause health or other problems?

Lowlands Sixteenth Century Cartography: Mercator's Birth Pentecentennial

Abstract Charlier, R. H. and Charlier, C. P., 2016. Lowlands sixteenth century cartography: Mercators birth pentecentennial. The 500th anniversary of Mercators birth ought to be celebrated as a milestone in the history of cartography and navigation. Not because he is one of the mapmakers of the 16th century, but because he contributed perhaps most significantly to the progress of navigation. Although he was born in a small Flandrian town, his name remains associated with Antwerp. His studies at the famed university of Louvain (Leuven-Lovanium) were financed by a clerical relative, and his work was buttressed by that of Ortelius, his associate. The Mercator projection proved to be a priceless gift to ship captains. Earlier in the same century a painter of renown, Peter Pourbus, in the service of the Sire of Moerbeke and of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, engaged in mapmaking using an approach worthy of modern cartographers. In the northern Lowlands, mapmaking had already made great steps forward in earlier times.

Beach accretion with erosive waves: “beachbuilding” (proposal for coastal defence)

A new method of beach preservation, the Beachbuilder Technique, proposes to harness the energy of normally erosive waves to produce beach accretion. A “flow‐control sheet” located in the surf zone directs the flow of swash and backwash causing net transport of sediment onto the beach. Beach and surf zone profiles created by the wave‐tank tests show that the technique leads to accretion on this beach, during every test run with erosive waves. The successful wave tank results should reproduce on actual beaches; rapid accretion on real beaches can be expected from the scaled wave‐tank results. It is anticipated that by use of this new technique, costs of beach preservation would be cut by as much as 66%. Furthermore, rapid beach accretion, quick reaction, high mobility, good durability, and provision of employment for making the installations are major benefits to be derived.

The European Union EIAS, EMAS and audits

Although EU directives were issued quite some time ago, implementation progresses slowly and at an unequal pace in Union member states. Certification of assessors, auditors and verifiers differs widely and is sometimes inordinately complicated; in some instances accountants have stepped into the “vacuum”, in others “certification” documents are issued by private organizations. Uniformity is far from being the rule. This paper takes Belgium as a case study. In opposition to what has developed in the USA where federal authority can be completed, even toughened by US regulations, but remained national (viz. federal), in our example responsibility has nearly entirely been devolved to the next (regional) level of authority. A survey was conducted of EMAS implementation in 11 European States: its results are disclosed and commented on.