FG Rohstoff- und Ressourcenwirtschaft
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Unregulated urban activities significantly impact drinking water quality in many developing communities. This study applied a Water Safety Plan (WSP) to assess water quality, health risks, and the effects of harmful environmental practices in Aba, Nigeria, where the waterworks infrastructure is dysfunctional. The datasets used were collected from physicochemical, chemical, and bacteriological analyses of drinking water samples (natural sources: n = 60, secondary sources: n = 19), along with household surveys (120) and semi-structured expert interviews (10). Findings revealed that groundwater is the primary drinking water source, with most facilities classified as improved sources. However, poor sanitation practices, particularly improper septage disposal, were identified as major contributors to water contamination. Risk assessments based on hazard quotient/index (HQ/HI , 1) indicated low health concerns overall, but higher risks were observed in areas with intense urbanization. Bacteriological analysis showed severe contamination in the Aba River, while sachet water posed significant health risks due to the presence of E. coli and total coliform bacteria in some cases. Despite existing environmental policies in Nigeria, weak institutional frameworks and ineffective local governance hinder effective water quality management. Addressing these challenges requires stronger regulatory enforcement and locally adapted strategies to ensure safe drinking water access.
The Iranian highlands are characterized by very special resource conditions: although being dominated in large parts by aridity, the presence of ecological niches and specific weather phenomena, along with rich deposits of minerals and raw materials, provide livelihoods for pre-modern societies. These conditions have favoured the development of different but also specific practices based on intricate knowledge of individual resources. Ancient communities in this region have developed very special strategies that utilise the originally unfavourable circumstances to their advantage and have thus similarly shaped the landscape accordingly.
Everyday practices of resource acquisition and utilisation can thus be understood as culturally integrating latent factors, which in turn have to be examined diachronically in regards to their particular appearance, their temporal representation as well as their effects on subsistence and exchange systems. Unfavourable soil conditions were exploited, as were extreme winds, and the development of resilience strategies led to the development of new technologies that can also be helpful today in times of extreme climate conditions. Furthermore, resources are not only experienced as mere materials to support physical existence but are often also deeply interwoven with cosmic ideas and the spiritual well-being of humans and communities.
This volume represents the contributions of the international workshop on ‘ResourceScapes in the Iranian Highlands – Water, Wind and Minerals as Factors of Appropriation and Integration’ held on the 12th and 13th September 2022 at the Institute of Archaeological Studies, Ruhr-University Bochum in cooperation with the German Mining Museum.
This book is the third volume of a series published by the German-Iranian research cooperation The Iranian Highlands: Resiliences and Integration in Premodern Societies. The goal of the research project it is to shine a new light on communities and societies that populated the Iranian highlands and their more or less successful strategies to cope with the many vagaries, the constant changes and risks of their natural and humanly shaped environments.
D-MTUC is the identification of the research aircraft of the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg. It was developed in 2012/2013 with international partners at the Chair of Raw Materials and Natural Resource Management under the direction of Prof. Herd as a raw material exploration system. The D-MTUC investigation system is based on a modified ultralight aircraft of the type “VIRUS SW 100” from the Slovenian manufacturer Pipistrel. It was designed as a low magnetic noise multi-sensor system. Depending on the application, various sensors can be installed under the wings, at the wing tips, in the fuselage or under the fuselage. The basic equipment consists of 2 potassium magnetometers, a 4 L cesium iodide gamma spectrometer, a VLF-EM system, a data acquisition and control system as well as a radar and laser altimeter. The aircraft has a number of special features that set it apart from other systems (composite construction, dismount ability, robustness, short take-off and landing distance, long range, very good rudder tuning, low fuel consumption). A special design feature is that the aircraft is equipped with spoilers. These allow contour flights that follow the topography – a significant advantage over other fixed-wing measurement platforms. The overall system has been able to demonstrate its performance capabilities in various projects in different regions under a wide range of conditions. After 5 years working in Mongolia, the investigation system is now available again for use in Germany and Europe.
The Douzlākh salt deposit (region: Māhneshān, Zanjān Province, Iran) is unique for its pure and crystal rock salt and was an important supplier of culinary (‘table’) salt in Achaemenid, Sassanid and Middle Islamic times. At the same time, the site was of central importance to the economic life of the rural populations in the Talkherud Basin. This article focuses on the question of which strategies were decisive for the exploitation of the salt mountain and how a potential supra-regional interest in the culinary salt was perhaps reciprocally connected with a rural hinterland. This hinterland was recently investigated in greater detail by our ongoing research. Did a resource-scape based on salt develop with specific economic and social strategies and practices around the Douzlākh? And was this development triggered by state or imperial control and demand? These questions are being pursued from a perspective utilising a variety of subjects and methods in archaeology, archaeobiology, archaeometry and geoarchaeology. In addition to a detailed on-site artefact study, several on- and off-site datasets have been collected and analysed within a multidisciplinary framework. This article synthesises the results of a major 12-year project to identify the organisational principles and daily practices within this specific salt-scape. The sensational finds of the Douzlākh salt mummies, along with the generally outstanding preservation of organic ecofacts and artefacts, allow insights into antique lifeworlds that are otherwise hard to come by. The multidisciplinary study of on- and off-site data allows far-reaching insights into interdisciplinary topics, such as the social system, supply and logistics, or the presence of non-local or non-indigenous populations.
Urban planning implementation is a crucial process of urban planning to improve, attain, and maintain urban sustainability globally. However, the implementation process for land use demarcated for various urban functions is being confronted by various challenges in the Global South. This study aims to integrate questionnaire surveys of urban and regional planning experts and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), in order to investigate the level of urban planning implementation of land use demarcated for various urban functions to support strategic actions for urban sustainability. Using Abuja, Nigeria, as a case study, an urban plan, urban impervious surface map, and questionnaire data were collected, and an integrated method analysis, including qualitative and quantitative (descriptive, Euclidean Distance Modelling, and Linear Regression Modelling) was deployed. Key findings show that the vast majority of experts in urban and regional planning perceive the implementation of all land use for various urban functions to be between moderate and very high levels, except that of industrial land use perceived to be between moderate and low levels. GIS findings show that, while land uses demarcated for transportation, commercial, educational, and institutional functions are positively and significantly associated with the urban impervious surface, industrial land use and urban green spaces are negatively associated. Findings show that abuse of official privileges by distorting master plans, political interference, compromise by public servants, and inadequate funding are key challenges for urban planning implementation on land use demarcated for various urban functions. The findings in this study are crucial for strategic decision makers in urban planning to improve the implementation process for various urban land-use functions and urban sustainability in the Global South, in general, and in sub-Saharan Africa, in particular.
The poor implementation of urban practices and weak policy enforcement are factors worsening the quality of natural drinking water sources in most urban areas of developing countries. A mixed approach guided by the water safety plan framework was employed. This involved an empirical study carried out among residents to identify the origin of drinking water sources and associated hazards linked to poor environmental practices. Laboratory investigations (physicochemical and chemical– 14 indicators, as well as biological – 2 bacteriological indicator organisms) were used to assess the health risks in selected samples of natural (groundwater, Aba River water, rainwater) and secondary (beverages, packaged water, and piped water) drinking sources in Aba, southeast Nigeria. A concise review of relevant environmental policies and laws was conducted to determine the control measures in place to protect the drinking water sources The results of the study revealed that groundwater is the origin of drinking water sources, the prevailing drinking water facility types are improved sources (i.e., 50 % tube-wells, 48 % secondary drinking sources, and 2 % treated piped water), 76 % of respondents do not pretreat before drinking and some urban practices that harm the quality of water were identified in the area. The chemical risk assessment showed that the mean values of the major and trace substances in the drinking water sources were within the standard limits recommended by the WHO. However, the bacteriological results revealed health risks in samples of natural (17 %) and secondary (14 %) drinking sources, which tested positive for either E. Coli or/and Total Coliform bacteria. It was found that existing control environmental instruments were inefficient due to overlapping duties of implementing government agencies, corruption, and lack of political will to do the things that protect the drinking water sources. The research concludes that deteriorating spatial chemical changes and bacteriological contaminations found in the area were caused by poor environmental practices. To prevent this degree of health risks in drinking water sources, relevant authorities should develop a safe drinking water abstraction plan that protects the groundwater, and more power devolved to local governments to enforce environmental instruments that protect the water sources in the area. Again, the regulatory agencies should ensure that only safe secondary drinking products are sold to consumers.
Within the frame of the 'German-Mongolian Raw Material Partnership', the multi-sensor airborne investigation system D-MTUC was transported 2018 to Mongolia for raw material exploration in cooperation with the German-Mongolian insititute for Resources and Technology (GMIT) and the Mineral Resource and Petroleum Authority for Mongolia. The geoscientific instrumentation of the system comprehends a Csl-y-spectrometer of MEDUSA, Netherlands, 2 K-magnetometer of GEM, Canada, a VLF-EM-receiver of RMS, Canada and a data acquisitation and control system of GeoDuster, RSA with the opinion of further sensor installations, for details see Herd and Holst (2015). The sensor configuration enables the system to operate at low speed and low altitude for mineral exploration, geological mapping, detection of freshwater resources and brine and different enviromental monitoring missions.
Aus verschiedenen Gründen entwickelte der Lehrstuhl Rohstoff und Ressourcenmanagement der Brandenburgischen Technischen Universität Cottbus mit internationalen Partnern ein „low noise“ MultiSensor-Erkundungssystem auf Basis eines Ultraleichtflugzeugs. Die geowissenschaftliche Instrumentierung des Systems umfasst ein CsIySpektrometer, 2 KMagnetometer, einen VLFEMEmpfänger und die Möglichkeit zur Installation weiterer Sensoren, Details siehe bei Herd und Holst (2015).
Im Rahmen der „DeutschMongolischen Rohstoffpartnerschaft“ wurde das System 2018 für Rohstofferkundungen per LKW in die Mongolei verschickt. Partner vor Ort sind die DeutschMongolische Hochschule für Rohstoffe und Technologie und die Mineral Resource and Petroleum Authority of Mongolia.
Bevor die wissenschaftliche Mission starten konnte, mussten in intensiven Gesprächen mit der mongolischen Zivilluftfahrtbehörde (MCAA) administrative Schwierigkeiten ausgeräumt werden. Anschließend musste das Forscherteam diverse Herausforderungen bewältigen: raue Wind und Wetterbedingungen, starke Thermik, begrenzte Verfügbarkeit von 98OktanKraftstoff, verunreinigter Kraftstoff, der zu vorübergehenden Motorausfällen führte, Schotterpisten, die die Propellerblätter beeinträchtigten, usw. Dennoch konnten verschiedene Gebiete in der zentralen Wüste Gobi, im HangaiGebirge und im Großraum Ulan Bator untersucht und akzeptable Ergebnisse erzielt werden. Insgesamt wurden 4600 Linienkilometer bzw. 750 km² beflogen. Die Linienabstände betrugen 100 m und 250 m, die Flughöhe betrug 100 m, trotz teilweise intensiver Topographie. Die durchschnittliche
Fluggeschwindigkeit während der Vermessung betrug 120 km/h mit einer Abtastrate von 10 Hz für die Magnetometer und 1 Hz für das Spektrometer.
Da die Mongolei in Bezug auf zivile Luftfahrt noch recht jungfräulich ist, wurde hier Pionierarbeit geleistet. Für weitere ähnliche Missionen ist das Eis gebrochen. Das VerbundwerkstoffFlugzeug sowie die Sensoren erwiesen sich als sehr robust und zuverlässig. Der Treibstoffverbrauch lag bei 1015 l/h MOGAS 98, was zu niedrigen Kosten führte. Es zeigte sich, dass Vermessungsflüge mit ultraleichten Systemen in der Mongolei möglich sind, aber aufgrund der erwähnten Bedingungen sorgfältig geplant werden müssen. Die Erfahrungen und Eindrücke dieser ungewöhnlichen wissenschaftlichen Mission werden vorgestellt
Aus verschiedenen Gründen entwickelte der Lehrstuhl Rohstoff- und Ressourcenwirtschaft der Brandenburgischen Technischen Universität Cottbus-Senftenberg mit internationalen Partnern ein Multisensor-Airborne-Erkundungssystem auf der Basis eines Ultraleichtflugzeugs. Im Rahmen der Deutsch-Mongolischen Rohstoffpartnerschaft wurde dieses System für aerogeophysikalische Rohstofferkundungen in die Mongolei transportiert. Im Verlauf des Projekts hatte das dreiköpfige Team mit unterschiedlichen technischen, administrativen und klimatischen Bedingungen zu kämpfen. Während einer vierwöchigen Messkampagne wurden zwei Gebiete, ein Gebiet im Bereich Zentralgobi und ein zweites im Hangai-Gebirge beflogen. Die Mongolei, ein Flächenland mit nur gering entwickelter Infrastruktur, ist einerseits prädestiniert für den Einsatz von aerogeophysikalischen Erkundungen, andererseits stellen die klimatischen Bedingungen, starke und früh einsetzende Winde sowie starke vertikale Luftbewegungen (Thermik) aufgrund intensiver Sonneneinstrahlung und geringer Vegetation eine besondere Herausforderung für exakte Messflüge dar. Erschwerend kommt eine gering ausgebildete fliegerische Infrastruktur (häufig unzureichende Qualität von Landepisten, geringe Verfügbarkeit von Flugzeugtreibstoff außerhalb der Hauptstadt, fehlende Hangariermöglichkeit) hinzu sowie eine stark ausgeprägte Topographie mit Gipfelhöhen von 4000 m in den westlichen Landesteilen. Die erfolgreiche Durchführung von aerogeophysikalischen Erkundungen ist, wie der vorliegende Beitrag belegt, dennoch möglich und sinnvoll, sollte aber aufgrund der
besonderen Bedingungen sorgfältig vorbereitet und detailliert geplant werden.
