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The physical geography of Northern Eurasia
ARTICLE IN PRESS
Quaternary Science Reviews 23 (2004) 213–222
Book reviews The physical geography of Northern Eurasia Maria Shahgedanova (Ed.); Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2003, 571pp., price d80.00, ISBN 0-19-823384-1
This is a full-length treatise on the physical geography of Northern Eurasia, written by a distinguished team of scholars mainly from the former Soviet Union. The third volume to appear in The Oxford Regional Environments Series, it covers most of the territory of the former USSR and presents a detailed and up-to-date body of scientific knowledge. The book is an integrative approach, combining various aspects of physical environments with the environmental implications of human land use. The book consists of 24 chapters, of which the first seven establish a framework by considering individual components of the physical environment of Northern Eurasia. Chapter 1, by Nikolay Koronovsky, describes the tectonic regions with consideration of seismic activity and non-renewable resources. It sets out to overview the geological structure of a major part of the huge continent within the context of an immensely long and intriguing history of the present relief. The most essential components and events in the evolution of the natural environment since the early Cenozoic are reviewed in Chapter 2 by Andrey Velichko and Irina Spasskaya. Cryogenic phenomena, the development of the hydrographic network and the history of vegetation are implemented to reveal climatic change as the main power in landscape development, especially during the Last Glaciation and Holocene. In Chapter 3, Maria Shahgedanova provides an overview of the main characteristics of present climate and its verification in the historical past. This chapter looks at general atmospheric circulation with individual temperature, precipitation and evaporation varying strongly between winter and summer in different climatic regions. The source of information for climate change within the historical period is discussed, as well as recorded droughts and associated climatic hazards and snow cover duration. Chapter 4 covers the soils of the region. After a short introduction into the principles used in the Russian pedological school, Igor Zamotaev describes the soil-forming factors and processes and discusses the main types of soil and soil geography. A short Holocene history of soil cover is given as well. The fifth chapter, by Nikolay Koronkevich, builds on hydrological research
on the quite unique hydrological conditions and water bodies of the former Soviet Union. It discusses aspects of water balance, the hydrology of the largest rivers and lakes, briefly discusses wetlands and artificial reservoirs and addresses the issue of human impacts on water regimes and quality. After a short overview of a long tradition in permafrost studies (geocryology) by Russian scientists, Nelly Tumel, in Chapter 6, reviews the state of knowledge on distribution, geothermal regime and thickness of permafrost, also characterizing its active layer and ground ice. A discussion of relief originated by cryogenic processes, the dependence on climate change and the engineering aspects of these processes, completes this chapter. Chapter 7, by Roman Zlotin, looks at biodiversity and productivity of ecosystems. The present and future spatial patterns of biomes, and the diversity of the plant and animal communities under discussion, are naturally linked to the thermal belts of Northern Eurasia and to climate change. The following 11 chapters concentrate on regional analysis under the framework described already. Thus, Chapters 8–18 deal with various aspects of environments in the Arctic (by Maria Shahgedanova and Mikhail Kuznetsov), boreal forests (by Arkardy Tishkov), mixed and deciduous forests (by Leonid Serebryanny), steppe and forest-steppe (by Alexander Chibilyov), arid areas (by Elena Lioubimtseva), the mountains of Northern Russia (by Maria Shahgedanova, Veniamin Perov, and Yury Mudrov), the mountains of Southern Siberia (by Nikolay Mikhailov, Sergey Larin, and Aleksandr Bredikhin), the Caucasus (by Natalya Volodicheva), the mountains of Central Asia and Kazakhstan (by Irina Merzliakova), Lake Baikal (by Anson Mackay, Roger Flower, and Liba Granina) and the Far East (by Andrey Ivanov). These chapters summarize a wealth of detailed up-to-date scientific material on areas discussed. The last six chapters constitute a concluding section of the book in which the effects of anthropogenic activities on the physical environment are discussed. Philip R. Pryde, in Chapter 19, reviews the nuclear fuel cycle in both civilian and military atomic energy and the state of related radioactive contamination in the region; Gregory Vilchek does the same for the environmental impact of oil and gas development in Chapter 20. Some prospect for the future is provided. Air pollution is discussed by Maria Shahgedanova in Chapter 21. The climatology of air pollution and industrial development
ARTICLE IN PRESS 214
Book reviews / Quaternary Science Reviews 23 (2004) 213–222
related air quality studies are illustrated with data from case studies. As a case of special interest, related with the effects of human activities on the environment, Nick Middleton studies the Aral Sea in Chapter 22. He discusses the changes in what was formerly the fourth largest lake in the world, its delta areas and environmental problems such as climatic effects and desertification in the area, related to the abrupt acceleration in water extraction due to an expansion of irrigation. Chapter 23, by Leonid Serebryanny and Igor Zamotaev, provides an overview of the history, scale and causes of deforestation and the degradation of forest, with emphasis on the protection and management of forests as means of carbon storage. Finally, Arkady Tishkov reviews nature protection and conservation, disclosing the territorial forms of nature protection used in the region and the state of biodiversity and conservation. Only a minor part of an abundant literature existing for the most topics on the physical geography of Northern Eurasia is presented in the references following each chapter. However, it is in Russian and other East European languages and this will limit the number
of readers of these sources. The material is presented in a very readable fashion with high-quality diagrams and photographs. Tribute must to be paid to the editor of the volume, especially for the presentation of semantically clear terminology from different source languages. Contributors to the book are experts in their fields and provide the most comprehensive and complete evaluation of the physical environment of Northern Eurasia available to date. The volume summarizes, at an international level, the most significant achievements in classic and contemporary geographical research. Thus professional geographers and environmentalists, advanced students of geography and environmental studies, and readers interested in the history of the region’s development are all potential readers of this book.
Petras Sinkunas Department of Quaternary Research, Institute of Geology and Geography, T.Sevcenkos str. 13, Vilnius, Lithuania E-mail address: [email protected]
doi:10.1016/S0277-3791(03)00216-6
Geoenvironmental mapping: methods, theory and practice Peter T. Brobowsky; A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, 2002, 725pp, $139, ISBN 90 5410 4872
This is an excellent text that should be on the shelf of every university and company library that needs to offer state of the art material on geological, Quaternary and environmental science. It will serve both as an instructional resource at under- and post-graduate level and as an aid to continuing professional development for those working in the many areas of expertise encompassed by environmental science. However, it must be recognised that, priced at $139, it is unlikely to be purchased by many individuals other than the most ardent practitioners. Although not mentioned specifically in the title, Quaternary geology is a strong thread that runs through most of the papers in this collection. Indeed it is difficult to conceive of any aspect of the environment that is not inextricably bound up with Quaternary deposits and processes. Indeed, it is the editor’s stated objective that this text should complement senior undergraduate instruction in engineering geology, Quaternary geology and environmental geology. At least half the papers deal directly with Quaternary deposits and their significance such as landslide hazard mapping, understanding alluvial landscapes, flood plain hazard assessment and
aggregate potential mapping. Others have important aspects that are linked to Quaternary deposits, such as the assessment of seismic hazard. It is not always realised that the presence of unlithified, saturated Quaternary deposits may liquefy or that thick Quaternary deposits can cause ground motion amplification that may enhance the destructive power of an earthquake with devastating results. Even those papers that do not in themselves relate directly to the Quaternary may offer techniques or information that can be used within Quaternary studies. The editor has taken great care to ensure that all the significant areas of environmental science, and the methods that can be employed to express them in map form, have been adequately covered. Care has also been taken by the editor and his team of reviewers to maintain a high quality of content and presentation in the papers contained within this book. Thus, they have ensured that the information contained is both accurate and readable. The authorship and subject areas of the case histories are strongly biased to North America, with over 50% from Canada and the USA, which reflects both the editorship and the amount of environmental mapping that is being done in those countries. Nevertheless, 17 countries are represented ensuring a good international coverage but with some surprising omissions such as
Quaternary Science Reviews 23 (2004) 213–222
Book reviews The physical geography of Northern Eurasia Maria Shahgedanova (Ed.); Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2003, 571pp., price d80.00, ISBN 0-19-823384-1
This is a full-length treatise on the physical geography of Northern Eurasia, written by a distinguished team of scholars mainly from the former Soviet Union. The third volume to appear in The Oxford Regional Environments Series, it covers most of the territory of the former USSR and presents a detailed and up-to-date body of scientific knowledge. The book is an integrative approach, combining various aspects of physical environments with the environmental implications of human land use. The book consists of 24 chapters, of which the first seven establish a framework by considering individual components of the physical environment of Northern Eurasia. Chapter 1, by Nikolay Koronovsky, describes the tectonic regions with consideration of seismic activity and non-renewable resources. It sets out to overview the geological structure of a major part of the huge continent within the context of an immensely long and intriguing history of the present relief. The most essential components and events in the evolution of the natural environment since the early Cenozoic are reviewed in Chapter 2 by Andrey Velichko and Irina Spasskaya. Cryogenic phenomena, the development of the hydrographic network and the history of vegetation are implemented to reveal climatic change as the main power in landscape development, especially during the Last Glaciation and Holocene. In Chapter 3, Maria Shahgedanova provides an overview of the main characteristics of present climate and its verification in the historical past. This chapter looks at general atmospheric circulation with individual temperature, precipitation and evaporation varying strongly between winter and summer in different climatic regions. The source of information for climate change within the historical period is discussed, as well as recorded droughts and associated climatic hazards and snow cover duration. Chapter 4 covers the soils of the region. After a short introduction into the principles used in the Russian pedological school, Igor Zamotaev describes the soil-forming factors and processes and discusses the main types of soil and soil geography. A short Holocene history of soil cover is given as well. The fifth chapter, by Nikolay Koronkevich, builds on hydrological research
on the quite unique hydrological conditions and water bodies of the former Soviet Union. It discusses aspects of water balance, the hydrology of the largest rivers and lakes, briefly discusses wetlands and artificial reservoirs and addresses the issue of human impacts on water regimes and quality. After a short overview of a long tradition in permafrost studies (geocryology) by Russian scientists, Nelly Tumel, in Chapter 6, reviews the state of knowledge on distribution, geothermal regime and thickness of permafrost, also characterizing its active layer and ground ice. A discussion of relief originated by cryogenic processes, the dependence on climate change and the engineering aspects of these processes, completes this chapter. Chapter 7, by Roman Zlotin, looks at biodiversity and productivity of ecosystems. The present and future spatial patterns of biomes, and the diversity of the plant and animal communities under discussion, are naturally linked to the thermal belts of Northern Eurasia and to climate change. The following 11 chapters concentrate on regional analysis under the framework described already. Thus, Chapters 8–18 deal with various aspects of environments in the Arctic (by Maria Shahgedanova and Mikhail Kuznetsov), boreal forests (by Arkardy Tishkov), mixed and deciduous forests (by Leonid Serebryanny), steppe and forest-steppe (by Alexander Chibilyov), arid areas (by Elena Lioubimtseva), the mountains of Northern Russia (by Maria Shahgedanova, Veniamin Perov, and Yury Mudrov), the mountains of Southern Siberia (by Nikolay Mikhailov, Sergey Larin, and Aleksandr Bredikhin), the Caucasus (by Natalya Volodicheva), the mountains of Central Asia and Kazakhstan (by Irina Merzliakova), Lake Baikal (by Anson Mackay, Roger Flower, and Liba Granina) and the Far East (by Andrey Ivanov). These chapters summarize a wealth of detailed up-to-date scientific material on areas discussed. The last six chapters constitute a concluding section of the book in which the effects of anthropogenic activities on the physical environment are discussed. Philip R. Pryde, in Chapter 19, reviews the nuclear fuel cycle in both civilian and military atomic energy and the state of related radioactive contamination in the region; Gregory Vilchek does the same for the environmental impact of oil and gas development in Chapter 20. Some prospect for the future is provided. Air pollution is discussed by Maria Shahgedanova in Chapter 21. The climatology of air pollution and industrial development
ARTICLE IN PRESS 214
Book reviews / Quaternary Science Reviews 23 (2004) 213–222
related air quality studies are illustrated with data from case studies. As a case of special interest, related with the effects of human activities on the environment, Nick Middleton studies the Aral Sea in Chapter 22. He discusses the changes in what was formerly the fourth largest lake in the world, its delta areas and environmental problems such as climatic effects and desertification in the area, related to the abrupt acceleration in water extraction due to an expansion of irrigation. Chapter 23, by Leonid Serebryanny and Igor Zamotaev, provides an overview of the history, scale and causes of deforestation and the degradation of forest, with emphasis on the protection and management of forests as means of carbon storage. Finally, Arkady Tishkov reviews nature protection and conservation, disclosing the territorial forms of nature protection used in the region and the state of biodiversity and conservation. Only a minor part of an abundant literature existing for the most topics on the physical geography of Northern Eurasia is presented in the references following each chapter. However, it is in Russian and other East European languages and this will limit the number
of readers of these sources. The material is presented in a very readable fashion with high-quality diagrams and photographs. Tribute must to be paid to the editor of the volume, especially for the presentation of semantically clear terminology from different source languages. Contributors to the book are experts in their fields and provide the most comprehensive and complete evaluation of the physical environment of Northern Eurasia available to date. The volume summarizes, at an international level, the most significant achievements in classic and contemporary geographical research. Thus professional geographers and environmentalists, advanced students of geography and environmental studies, and readers interested in the history of the region’s development are all potential readers of this book.
Petras Sinkunas Department of Quaternary Research, Institute of Geology and Geography, T.Sevcenkos str. 13, Vilnius, Lithuania E-mail address: [email protected]
doi:10.1016/S0277-3791(03)00216-6
Geoenvironmental mapping: methods, theory and practice Peter T. Brobowsky; A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, 2002, 725pp, $139, ISBN 90 5410 4872
This is an excellent text that should be on the shelf of every university and company library that needs to offer state of the art material on geological, Quaternary and environmental science. It will serve both as an instructional resource at under- and post-graduate level and as an aid to continuing professional development for those working in the many areas of expertise encompassed by environmental science. However, it must be recognised that, priced at $139, it is unlikely to be purchased by many individuals other than the most ardent practitioners. Although not mentioned specifically in the title, Quaternary geology is a strong thread that runs through most of the papers in this collection. Indeed it is difficult to conceive of any aspect of the environment that is not inextricably bound up with Quaternary deposits and processes. Indeed, it is the editor’s stated objective that this text should complement senior undergraduate instruction in engineering geology, Quaternary geology and environmental geology. At least half the papers deal directly with Quaternary deposits and their significance such as landslide hazard mapping, understanding alluvial landscapes, flood plain hazard assessment and
aggregate potential mapping. Others have important aspects that are linked to Quaternary deposits, such as the assessment of seismic hazard. It is not always realised that the presence of unlithified, saturated Quaternary deposits may liquefy or that thick Quaternary deposits can cause ground motion amplification that may enhance the destructive power of an earthquake with devastating results. Even those papers that do not in themselves relate directly to the Quaternary may offer techniques or information that can be used within Quaternary studies. The editor has taken great care to ensure that all the significant areas of environmental science, and the methods that can be employed to express them in map form, have been adequately covered. Care has also been taken by the editor and his team of reviewers to maintain a high quality of content and presentation in the papers contained within this book. Thus, they have ensured that the information contained is both accurate and readable. The authorship and subject areas of the case histories are strongly biased to North America, with over 50% from Canada and the USA, which reflects both the editorship and the amount of environmental mapping that is being done in those countries. Nevertheless, 17 countries are represented ensuring a good international coverage but with some surprising omissions such as