The assessment of drought conditions is important in forestry because it affects forest growth and species diversity. In this study, temporal variability and trends of precipitation (P), potential ...evapotranspiration (PET), and their relationship (P/PET) were examined in two selected forest ecosystems that present different climatic conditions and vegetation types due to their location and hypsometric zone. The study area includes the forests of Pertouli and Taxiarchis, which are managed by the Aristotle University Forest Administration and Management Fund. The Pertouli is a coniferous forest in Central Greece with a maximum elevation of 2073 m a.s.l, and Taxiarchis is a broadleaved forest in Northern Greece with a maximum elevation of 1200 m a.s.l. To accomplish the goals of the current research, long–term (1974–2016) monthly precipitation and air temperature data from two mountainous meteorological were collected and processed. The PET was estimated using a parametric model based on simplified formulation of the Penman–Monteith equation rather than the commonly used Thornthwaite approach. Seasonal and annual precipitation, potential evapotranspiration (PET), and their ratio (P/PET) values were subjected to Mann–Kendall tests to assess the possible upward or downward trends, and Sen’s slope method was used to estimate the trends magnitude. The results indicated that the examined climatic variables vary greatly between seasons. In general, negative trends were detected for the precipitation time series of Pertouli, whereas positive trends were found in Taxiarchis; both were statistically insignificant. In contrast, statistically significant positive trends were reported for PET in both forest ecosystems. These circumstances led to different drought conditions between the two forests due to the differences of their elevation. Regarding Pertouli, drought trend analysis indicated downward trends for annual, winter, spring, and summer values, whereas autumn showed a slight upward trend. In addition, the average magnitude trend per decade was approximately −2.5%, −3.5%, +4.8%, −0.8%, and +3.3% for annual, winter, autumn, spring, and summer seasons, respectively. On the contrary, the drought trend and the associated magnitude per decade for the Taxiarchis forest were found to be as follows: annual (+2.2%), winter (+6.2%), autumn (+9.2%), spring (+1.0%), and summer (−5.0%). The performed statistical test showed that the reported trend was statistically insignificant at a 5% significance level. These results may be a useful tool as a forest management practice and can enhance the adaptation and resilience of forest ecosystems to climate change.
Worldwide, floods are the most common and widespread type of disaster during the 21st century. These phenomena have caused human fatalities, destruction of infrastructures and properties, and other ...significant impacts associated with human socioeconomic activities. In this study, the exposure of infrastructure (social, industrial and commercial, transportation) and residential areas to floods in Greek territory was considered. To accomplish the goal of the current study, freely available data from OpenStreetMap and Corine 2018 databases were collected and analyzed, as well as the flood extent zones derived under the implementation of the European Union’s (EU) Floods Directive. The results will be useful for policy-making and prioritization of prone areas based not only on the extent of flood cover but also on the possible affected infrastructure types. Moreover, the aforementioned analysis could be the first step toward an integrated national-wide flood risk assessment.
Soil is a non-renewable resource essential for life existence. During the last decades it has been threatened by accelerating erosion with negative consequences for the environment and the economy. ...The aim of the current study was to assess soil loss changes in a typical Mediterranean ecosystem of Northern Greece, under climate change. To this end, freely available geospatial data was collected and processed using open-source software package. The widespread RUSLE empirical erosion model was applied to estimate soil loss. Current and future rainfall erosivity were derived from a national scale study considering average weather conditions and RCMs outputs for the medium Representative Concentration Pathway scenario (RCP4.5). Results showed that average rainfall erosivity (R-Factor) was 508.85 MJ mm ha h−1 y−1 while the K-factor ranged from 0.0008 to 0.05 t ha h ha−1 MJ−1 mm−1 and LS-factor reached 60.51. Respectively, C-factor ranged from 0.01 to 0.91 and P-factor ranged from 0.42 to 1. The estimated potential soil loss rates will remain stable for the near future period (2021–2050), while an increase of approximately 9% is expected by the end of the 21th century (2071–2100). The results suggest that appropriate erosion mitigation strategies should be applied to reduce erosion risk. Subsequently, appropriate mitigation measures per Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) categories are proposed. It is worth noting that the proposed methodology has a high degree of transferability as it is based on open-source data.
The main objective of this study is to investigate the supply of ecosystem services (ESs) within peri-urban watersheds (PUWs) across Greece, utilizing earth observation (EO) data and empirical ...models. To achieve these goals, several open-access geospatial datasets were utilized and processed within a GIS environment. Specifically, the supply of soil conservation and water retention services was assessed at the watershed scale. The results indicates that the supply soil conservation service withing the examined PUWs range from 44.41 t ha−1 y−1 to 441.33 t ha−1 y−1 with an average value of 161.99 t ha−1 y−1. Water retention services vary from 35.09 to 154.63 mm within the PUWs, with an average of 91.45 mm. Additionally, the variation in ES values across distinct altitudinal zones and ecosystem types provides useful insights for implementing protection and management measures. It is evident from the analysis that the soil conservation service gradually increases with elevation, with alpine and subalpine areas exhibiting the highest values. Moreover, mountainous and semi-mountainous regions demonstrate higher values compared to the estimated average soil conservation services of the entire study area. Furthermore, the provision of water retention services varies across different altitudinal zones. Specifically, the mountainous and semi-mountainous areas exhibit the highest values, followed by the subalpine and hilly regions, while lower values are observed in the lowland and alpine regions. The analysis also reveals distinct patterns in ecosystem services across various ecosystem types within the PUWs. Woodland and forest, along with heathland and shrubs, demonstrate higher values in terms of both soil conservation and water retention services. Our findings contribute to understanding the dynamics of ESs in PUWs, highlighting their significance for sustainable land management, and informing policy decisions aimed at preserving ecosystem health and resilience.
•RUSLE implementation in a cloud-based (GEE) platform.•Remote sensing data were utilized to capture the burned area perimeter and loggings of damaged trees by the insect infestations.•Erosion ...response to abiotic and biotic disturbances.•Multi-temporal monitoring erosion in Peri-Urban Forest.
During the last decades, the demographic trajectory and the associated urban development have increased the demand for urban and peri-urban green space. Peri-urban forests provide a wide range of goods and services to city dwellers critical to human well-being. However, these ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to biotic and abiotic stresses. This study aimed to assess the effects of forest disturbances on soil erosion dynamics in a peri-urban forest of Northern Greece, between 1995 and 2020. Monitoring of soil erosion dynamic was performed by coupling the Google Earth Engine (GEE) cloud-computing platform and the RUSLE erosion prediction model. The results highlighted the potential of Landsat imagery to efficiently delineate through time forest cover changes due to the influence of biotic and abiotic factors. After a major fire event, average soil erosion showed an increase of 7.7 t/ha/year whilst the emergency hillslope rehabilitation treatments led to a decrease equal to 8.9 t/ha/year. On the contrary, post-fire watershed stabilization measures and selective logging for the removal of the infested individual trees had a negligible effect on soil loss. The temporal changes in soil loss rate are not only justified by forest cover changes but also by the variability in rainfall, which is also considered a dynamic factor of RUSLE model. Monitoring of soil loss and erosion regulation services over peri-urban forests provide essential information for policy-making and management of these valuable natural resources.
Water erosion is a major threat to biodiversity, according to the European Commission’s Soil Thematic Strategy, as it negatively affects soil structure, soil fertility and water availability for ...plants. The island of Crete (Southern Greece) has been characterized as a biodiversity hotspot including several Natura 2000 (N2K)-protected areas. The aim of this study was to model the soil loss rate in Crete regarding species richness, habitat types and their conservation status, as well as the MAES (Mapping and Assessment of Ecosystem and their Services) ecosystem types. To this end, the RUSLE soil erosion prediction model was implemented, using freely available geospatial data and cloud-computing processes. The estimated average soil loss in the study area was 6.15 t ha−1 y−1, while there was no significant difference between the terrestrial N2K (6.06 t ha−1 y−1) and non-N2K (6.19 t ha−1 y−1) areas. Notably, the natural habitats of principal importance for the conservation of biodiversity (referred to as “priority” areas), according to Annex I to Directive 92/43/EEC, are threatened by soil erosion with an estimated mean annual soil loss equal to 8.58 t ha−1 y−1. It is also notable that grasslands, heathland and shrubs and sparsely vegetated areas experienced the highest erosion rates among the identified MAES ecosystem types. The results showed that soil erosion is a serious threat to biodiversity in N2K-protected areas. Therefore, there is a need for systematic spatiotemporal monitoring and the implementation of erosion mitigation measures.
•The ideal material for the enhancement of prolapse surgery is yet to be found.•We examine the efficacy and safety of a porcine small intestinal submucosa graft.•Recurrence rates comparable to native ...tissue repairs are observed.•The complications profile is dominated by pain and urinary tract related symptoms.•There are no clear benefits from the use of this graft in prolapse surgery.
The ideal implant material for the surgical repair of pelvic organ prolapse in women is yet to be found. This retrospective study aims to evaluate a porcine small intestinal submucosa (SIS) graft (Surgisis™).
We reviewed the medical records of women that were operated upon for pelvic organ prolapse using implantation of SIS graft and we examined the short-term complications and recurrence rates.
A total of 155 surgical procedures were reviewed. SIS graft was placed in the anterior, posterior and middle compartments in 93 (60%), 71 (45.8%) and 13 (8.4%) cases, respectively. At three-month follow-up, 22.6% of anterior graft repairs displayed anatomical recurrence (POP-Q stage ≥ 2), compared to 4.8% of posterior and none of the middle compartment graft repairs. During the three postoperative months, 56% of the women were recorded with complications, mostly urinary retention (19%) and pain (12%). The incidence of grade III complications was 5.3%. Persistent complications at three months were observed in 28% of all cases. Logistic regression analysis showed that previous prolapse surgery at the same compartment was a significant predictor for recurrence of prolapse after SIS graft application, whereas lower age, smoking and longer duration of surgery were significant predictors for the development of complications. Younger women had higher risk of developing pain postoperatively.
Pain and urinary tract symptoms hold a central position in the complications profile of SIS graft-augmented prolapse surgery. The relatively high recurrence rates do not suggest a clear benefit from SIS graft use.
Aridity monitoring is critical in forestry as it may affect forest growth, species diversity, and treeline shift. A widely used approach to assess the status of and changes in aridity is the aridity ...index (AI), defined as the ratio of precipitation (P) to potential evapotranspiration (PET). This study investigates the temporal change in the aridity index (AI) at a fir forest site between two distinct climatic periods: 1961–1990 and 1991–2020. To that end, long-term time series of mean monthly air temperature and total monthly precipitation from a forest meteorological station (1180 m a.s.l.) were collected and processed. Furthermore, the PET was estimated using a parsimonious parametric model based on a simplification of the Penman–Monteith formula. The results indicated that AI values slightly changed between the two considered climatic periods, while the climate was classified as humid and remained unchanged.
Soil loss by water is a major form of land degradation with environmental and economic consequences. In particular, erosion rates are sensitive to both climate and land cover changes. The present ...study investigates the temporal changes in soil loss rate over South Europe during the 1980–2018 period. To that end, the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) was applied by integrating information from freely available geospatial datasets to conduct a multi-decadal assessment. In this frame, the temporal variability of the two dynamic RUSLE factors, namely rainfall erosivity (R) and cover management (C), was explored. Specifically, the rainfall erosivity values per decade were acquired from a newly developed dataset from the European Soil Data Center (ESDAC), coupling the Rainfall Erosivity Database at European Scale (REDES) and UERRA regional reanalysis rainfall data. On the other hand, land cover data were retrieved from the CORINE dataset (CLC) through the Copernicus Land Monitoring Service for different reference years. The appropriate values were assigned to each CLC category per country according to the recent literature to determine the C-factor. In terms of the other three static RUSLE factors, namely soil erodibility (K), slope length and steepness (LS) and support practice (P), these were obtained from the ESDAC database by exploiting the results of previous pan-European assessments. The results indicate that the mean annual soil erosion rates in South Europe were 6.82, 4.90, 4.89 and 5.26 t/ha/year for the decades 1981–1990, 1991–2000, 2001–2010 and 2011–2018, respectively.
Precipitation is a key component of the hydrological cycle and directly affects water availability and hydrometeorological hazards. The objective of this study is to evaluate the performance of two ...reanalysis precipitation datasets, ERA5 and ERA5-land, in reproducing precipitation accumulations over Greece. These data are compared against rainfall measurements provided by the dense network of surface-automated weather stations operated by the National Observatory of Athens. The comparisons are performed over a 10-year period (January 2010 to December 2020) at multiple temporal and spatial scales. Several statistical metrics are used to assess the performance of the reanalysis precipitation against rain gauge observations. The suitability of gridded products is tested by capturing the temporal and spatial variability in precipitation using accuracy metrics.
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