Browsing by Author "Poch, Paola"

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    Parameterization proposal to determine the feasibility of geographic areas for the green hydrogen industry under socio-environmental and technical constraints in Chile
    (2024) San Martin, Marco; Poch, Paola; Carmona, Roberto; Rodriguez, Pablo; Rodriguez, Angel; Serafini, Daniel; Garrido, Rene; Mena, Marcelo; Valdes, Javier; Masip, Yunesky
    Chile, abundant in solar and wind energy resources, presents significant potential for the production of green hydrogen, a promising renewable energy vector. However, realizing this potential requires an understanding of the most suitable locations for the installation of green hydrogen industries. This study proposes a quantitative methodology that identifies and ranks potential public lands for industrial use, based on a range of technical parameters (such as solar and wind availability) and socio-environmental considerations (including land use restrictions and population density). The results reveal optimal locations that can facilitate informed, sustainable decision-making for large-scale green hydrogen implementation in Chile. While this methodology does not replace project specific technical or environmental impact studies, it provides a flexible, general classification to guide initial site selection. Notably, this approach can be applied to other regions worldwide with abundant solar and wind resources, such as Australia and Northern Africa,
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    Spatial patterns of congruence or mismatch between taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity and endemism of perennial flora along the aridity gradient of Chile
    (2024) Poch, Paola; Poulin, Elie; Perez, Maria Fernanda; Peralta, Gioconda; Hinojosa, Luis Felipe
    Introduction: Understanding the relationships between taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity and endemism across environmental gradients is essential for elucidating the eco-evolutionary mechanisms that shape local plant communities. Methods: A database was compiled from field surveys, national herbarium records, and virtual records of perennial plant specimens collected in the aridity gradient of northern Chile, between 18 and 32 degrees S. A large-scale dated phylogeny of available perennial plants was used, and 11 functional traits were selected to construct a dendrogram using the Unweighted Pair-Group Method with Arithmetic Mean (UPGMA) method for the species present in our database. We calculated spatial patterns of a-diversity, including taxonomic (TD), functional (FD), and phylogenetic (PD) diversity, as well as weighted (WE), functional (FE), and phylogenetic (PE) endemism. We used multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) to identify spatial congruencies and discrepancies among these dimensions and to test different eco-evolutionary processes. Results: The diversity indices TD, FD and PD showed similar geographic patterns (R2 > 0.93), with lower diversity observed in absolute desert regions. The pattern of weighted endemism (WE) showed a weak association with functional endemism (FE) and phylogenetic endemism (PE) (local R2 < 0.48). The regions with lower FD or PD than expected given the TD (i.e. FDWE and PE>WE), they are found in arid, high Andean and transitional zones, at different altitudes, which would indicate a greater presence of phylogenetic lineages and species with morpho-functional traits related to extreme environmental conditions and transitional biomes (arid-semiarid). Discussion: These spatial discrepancies suggest different eco-evolutionary drivers between the dimensions of diversity and endemism (taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic). Areas of high diversity and high endemism do not necessarily coincide, and both should be addressed by conservation efforts.