Comments:"The University of Hong Kong - Department of Earth Sciences"
URL:http://www.earthsciences.hku.hk/index.php/people/profile/42
Prof. Zong, Yongqiang | ||||||||||||
 | Professors
| Address: Department of Earth Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, James Lee Sciences Building, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong |
Education
PhD, 1993, University of Durham, UK
PhD is my only academic degree. I gained academic (BSc and MSc equivalent) training through self learning when I worked as a worker in a butcher shop and a technician in Guangzhou Institute of Geography in China before 1987.
Teaching
Coordinator for Environmental Science Major
ENVS0001 Introduction to Environmental Science
ENVS2007 Natural Hazards and Mitigation
ENVS2004 Environment and Society
ENVS2013 Environmental Oceanography
Research Interests
Sea-level and coastal change, Monsoon climate change, environmental geoarchaeology, storm and flood hazards
Research Projects
As Principal Investigator:
2009-2012 Tibets’ palimpsest lake system: a chronicle of Quaternary climate change
Funded by GRF (HKU700109P)
This project aims to reconstruct monsoon climate history from a number of lakes in Tibet.
2008-2011 Holocene sea-level and environmental change in the Pearl River delta
Funded by HKU seed funds and GRF (HKU707109P)
This project investigates the detailed history of relative sea-level change and deltaic progradation in the Pearl River delta by examining sediment cores with analyses of microfossils and organic carbon signatures of environmental change. The history will be linked to human activity in the deltaic region in order to reveal the reasons for the late development of rice-based agriculture in the study area.
2007-2010 Monsoon climate change during Late Quaternary
Funded by a NERC UK studentship and isotopic facilities
This project aims to reconstruct from a maar lake sedimentary sequence the history of productivity (organic carbon isotope records), the strength of evaporation (oxygen isotope records) and the intensity of winter monsoon over East Asia. Results from these records will help examine the influence of orbital (Obliquity and precession cycles) and non-orbital (Dansgaard-Oeschger cycles, Heinrich events and solar radiations) forcing over Asian monsoon climate variability, and be used to constrain climate models.
2006-2008 The mid-Holocene cultural collapse in the Yangtze lowlands
Funded by The Leverhulme Trust, with a PDRA
This project aims to discover the reason(s) behind the collapse of the once vibrant Neolithic community on the southern flank of the Yangtze deltaic plain. Sediment cores from a number of sites and sediments from archaeological sites across the study area are examined for microfossils to reconstruct the ecological conditions for the mid-Holocene when the community disappeared from the region. Results will help to test two hypotheses: that the collapse of Neolithic culture was caused by (1) a spell of cold climate, or (2) by sea-level rise.
2005-2008 Monsoonal driven freshwater discharge from the Pearl River
Funded by a NERC UK studentship and isotope facilities
This project aims to reconstruct the history of freshwater discharge from the Pearl River during the Holocene by examining organic carbon isotopes and diatoms from estuarine sediment sequences. Results from this project indicate a progressive weakening of monsoon-driven freshwater discharge which closely followed the precession cycle of orbital forcing. Results also reveal the existence of c. 1000-year cycles in freshwater discharge, possibly linked to variations in solar radiation.
As Co-Principal Investigator:
2007-2009 Environmental change during the Holocene in the Pearl River Estuary
Funded by NSF China (with Professor G. Huang, Guangzhou)
This project aims to reconstruct the environmental history of the Pearl River estuary for the Holocene, and to analyse factors such as freshwater and sediment discharge and human activity. This research will employ a multi-proxy approach and examine several sediment cores from the estuary.
2007-2009 Coastal change in the past 1000 years in Suffolk, UK
Funded by CEFAS through British Energy (with Dr J.M. Lloyd, Durham)
This project aims to examine the effects of coastal storms on the coastline and to assess the suitability of a specific location for the new generation of nuclear power stations.
2004-2007 Postglacial history of the barrier systems of Irt-Mite-Esk estuaries, UK
Funded by Halcrow Ltd through British Energy (with Dr J.M. Lloyd, Durham)
This project reconstructs the history of the barrier systems, examines their current state and predicts future changes, to provide understanding of the long-term stability of the coastline. This is part of an assessment of the suitability of the Sellafield site for reprocessing nuclear materials.
Research Students
As first supervisor:
2012-2014, MPhil, Xiaoyun Li, Environmental change reconstructions
2012-2015, PhD, Yiying Sun, Sea-level and coastal change
2010-2013, PhD, Man-ching Cheung, Monsoon climate change in Tibet
2010-2013, PhD, Tengteng Yang, Environmental science
2010-2012, MPhil, Kwok-Chuen Chau, Geochemistry
2010-2012, MPhil, Mongsin Wu, Organic bio-markers for reconstructing coastal salinity history
2009-2013, PhD, Ning Wang, Organic bio-markers for monsoon climate reconstruction
2008-2010, MPhil, Annie Lau, Tsunami hazards in the south coast of China (completed and awarded)
2007-2008, MSc, Ashley Woods, Polution in the Pearl estuary, China (completed and awarded)
2005-2009, PhD, Fengling Yu, Asian Monsoon climate change (completed and awarded)
2005-2007, MSc, Catherine Thompson, Sea-level reconstruction (completed and awarded)
1997-2001, PhD, Kamaludin bin Hassan, Sea-level history of Peninsular Malaysia (completed and awarded)
1996-1998, MSc, Zhigang Zhou, Spatial analysis of urban expansion of Guangzhou, China (completed and awarded)
As second supervisor:
2009-2013, PhD, Yexin He, Palaeoenvironmental change in semihumid areas
2006-2007, MSc, Sarah Petchey, GISapplication and information management (completed and awarded)
2006-2007, MSc, John Andrews, Organic carbon isotopes and coastal wetlands (completed and awarded)
1999-2003, PhD, Sarah Hamilton, Seismic related coastal changes (completed and awarded)
1999-2003, PhD, Maria Papathoma, GIS and tsunami hazard assessment (completed and awarded)
1996-2003, PhD, Charles Galdies, Environmental risk assessment using GIS and Remote Sensing (completed and awarded)
Selected Publications
Yu F, Zong Y, Lloyd JM, Leng MJ, Switzer AD, Yim WWS, Huang G. 2012. Mid-Holocene variability of the East Asian monsoon based on bulk organic ?13C and C/N records from the Pearl River estuary, southern China. The Holocene 22, 705-715.
Zong Y, Chen Z, Yu Z. 2012. Multidisciplinary studies in environmental archaeology with particular reference to China: An introduction to the special issue. The Holocene 22, 609-611.
Zong Y, Innes JB, Wang Z, Chen Z. 2012. Environmental change and Neolithic settlement movement in the lower Yangtze wetlands of China. The Holocene 22, 659-673.
Zong Y, Wang Z, Innes JB, Chen Z. 2012. Holocene environmental change and Neolithic rice agriculture in lower Yangtze region of China: a review. The Holocene 22. 623-635.
Zong Y., Innes JB., Wang Z., Chen Z. 2011. Mid-Holocene coastal hydrology and salinity changes in the east Taihu area of the lower Yangtze wetlands, China. Quaternary Research 76, 69-82.
Brodie RC., Leng MJ., Casford JSL., Kendrick CP., Lloyd JM., Zong Y., Bird MI. 2011. Evidence for bias in C and N concentrations and C13 composition of terrestrial and acquatic organic materials due to pre-analysis acid preparation methods. Chemical Geology 282, 67-83.
Yang S., Tang M., Yim WWS., Zong Y., Huang G., Switzer AD., Saito Y. 2011. Burial of organic carbon in Holocene sediments of the Zhujiang (Pearl River) and Changjiang (Yangtze River) estuaries. Marine Chemistry 123, 1-10.
Zong Y., Yu F., Huang G., Lloyd JM., Yim W. (2010). Sedimentary evidence of Late Holocene human activity in the Pearl River delta, China. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 35, 1095-1102.
Zong Y., Yu F., Huang G., Lloyd JM., Yim W. 2010. The history of water salinity in the Pearl River estuary, China, during the Late Quaternary. Earth Surface processes and Landforms 35, 1221-1233.
Zong Y., Kemp AC., Yu F., Lloyd JM., Huang G., Yim W. 2010. Diatoms from the Pearl River estuary, China and their suitability as water salinity indicators for coastal environments. Marine Micropaleontology 75, 38-49.
Yu F., Zong Y., Lloyd JM., Huang G., Leng MJ., Kendrick C., Lamb AL., Yim W. 2010. Bulk organic d13C and C/N as indicators for sediment sources in the Pearl River delta and estuary, southern China. Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science 87, 618-630.
Lau AYA., Switzer AD., Dominey-Howes D., Aitchison JC., Zong Y. 2010. Written records of historial tsunamis in the northeastern South China Sea - challenges associated with developing a new integrated database. Natural Hazardss and Earth System Sciences 10, 1793-1806.
Innes JB, Zong Y, Chen Z, Chen C, Wang Z, Wang H. 2009. Environmental history, palaeoecology and human activity at the early Neolithic forager/cultivator site at Kuahuqiao, Hangzhou, eastern China. Quaternary Science Reviews 28, 2277-2294.
Zong Y, Yim WW-S, Yu F, Huang G. 2009. Late Quaternary environmental changes in the Pearl River mouth region, China. Quaternary International 206, 35-45.
Zong Y., Huang G., Switzer A.D., Yu F., Yim W.W.-S. 2009. An evolutionary model for the Holocene formation of the Pearl River delta, China. The Holocene 19, 129-142.
Lloyd JM., Norddahl H., Bentley MJ., Newton AJ., Tucker O., Zong Y. 2009. Lateglacial to Holocene relative sea-level changes in the Bjarkarlunder area near Reykholar, North West Iceland. Journal of Quaternary Science 24, 816-831.
Chen Z., Zong Y., Wang Z., Wang H., Chen J. 2008. Migration patterns of Neolithic settlements on the abandoned Yellow and Yangtze River deltas of China. Quaternary Research 70, 301-314.
Zong Y., Chen Z., Innes J.B., Chen C., Wang Z., Wang H. 2007. Fire and flood management of coastal swamp enabled first rice paddy cultivation in east China. Nature 449, 459-462 (doi:10.1083/nature06135)
Zong Y. 2007. Sea-levels, Late Quaternary, tropics. Encyclopaedia of Quaternary Science, Elservier, pp3087-3094.
Horton B.P., Zong Y., Hillier C., Engelhart S. 2007. Diaoms from Indonesian mangroves and their suitability as sea-level indicators for tropical environments. Marine Micropaleontology 63, 155-168.
Zong Y., Lloyd J.M., Leng M.J., Yim W.W-S., Huang G. 2006. Reconstruction of Holocene monsoon history from the Pearl River estuary using diatoms and carbon isotope ratios. The Holocene, 16(2): 251-263
Chen X., Zhang E., Mu H., Zong Y. 2005. A preliminary analysis of human impacts on sediment discharges from the Yangtze, China, into the sea. Journal of Coastal Research, 21(3): 515-521.
Zong Y. 2004. Mid-Holocene sea-level highstand along southeast coast of China. Quaternary International. 117, 55-67.
Huang Z., Zong Y., Zhang W. 2004. Coastal inundation due to sea-level rise in the Pearl River delta. Natural Hazards, 33: 247-264.
Zong Y., Kamaludin B.H. 2004. Diatom assemblages from two mangrove tidal flats in Peninsular Malaysia. Diatom Research, 19(2): 329-344.
Zong Y., Shennan I., Combellick R.A., Hamilton S., Rutherford M. 2003. Microfossil evidence of pre-seismic land submergence related to the 1964 earthquake in Alaska. The Holocene, 13(1): 7-20.
Papathoma M., Dominey-Howes D., Zong Y., Smith D. 2003. Assessing tsunami vulnerability, an example from Herakleio, Crete. Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, 3: 377-389.
Zong Y., Tooley M.J. 2003. Historical coastal floods in Britain: storm track patterns. Natural Hazards. 29: 13-36.
Chen X., Zong Y., Zhang E., Xu J., Li S. 2001. Human impacts on the Changjiang (Yangtze) River Basin, China, with special reference to the impacts on dry season water discharges into the sea. Geomorphology, 41: 111-123.
Plater A.J., Horton B.P., Haworth E.Y., Appleby P.G., Zong Y., Wright M.R., Rutherford M.M. 2000. Holocene tidal levels and sedimentation rates using a diatom-based palaeo-environmental reconstruction: the Tees estuary, northwestern England. The Holocene, 10(4): 441-452.
Zong Y., Chen X. 2000. The 1998 flood on the Yangtze, China. Natural Hazards 22 (2): 165-184.
Zong Y., Chen X. 1999. Typhoon hazards in the Shanghai area, China. Disasters 23 (1), 66-80.
Zong Y., Horton B.P. 1999. Diatom-based tidal level transfer function and its applications to palaeo-sea-level reconstruction. Journal of Quaternary Science, 14(2), 153-167.
Zong Y., M.J. Tooley 1999. Evidence of mid-Holocene storm-surge deposits from Morecambe Bay, northwest England: a biostratigraphical approach. Quaternary International, 55, 43-50.
Shennan I., Scott D., Rutherford M.M., Y. Zong 1999. Microfossil analysis of sediments representing the 1964 earthquake, exposed at Girdwood Flats, Alaska. Quaternary International, 60: 55-73.
Chen X., Y. Zong 1999. Impacts of sea-level rise on agriculture in the Shanghai area, China. Applied Geography, 19, 69-84.
Wilkins B.T., Green N., Haslam I.K., Huntley D.A., Dyer K.R., Carrot D., Tooley M.J., Zong Y. 1999. Potential incursion of marine sediment inland during storms: the radiological importance of actinides. Journal of Environmental Radioactivity, 44: 371-388.
Zong Y. 1998. Diatom records and sedimentary responses to sea-level changes during the last 8000 years in Roudsea Wood, northwest England. The Holocene, 8(2), 219-228.
Zong Y., Horton B.P. 1998. Diatom zones across intertidal flats and coastal saltmarshes in Britain. Diatom Research, 13 (2), 375-394.
Huntley DA, Dyer KR, Cavrot D, Tooley MJ, Zong Y, Haslam IK, Green N., Wilkins BT 1998. Potential incursion of marine sediment inland in north-west England. Radiation Protection Dosimetry, 75, 105-106.
Chen X., Y. Zong 1998. Coastal erosion along the Changjiang deltaic shoreline, China: a perspective study. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Sciences, 46(5), 733-742.
Zong Y. 1997b. Mid- and Late-Holocene sea-level changes in Roudsea Marsh, northwest England: A diatom biostratigraphical investigation. The Holocene, 7(3), 309-321.
Zong Y. 1997a Implications of Paralia sulcata abundance in Scottish isolation basins. Diatom Research, 12(1), 125-150.
Zong, Y., M.J. Tooley 1997. Potentials of the application of Geographical Information Systems for assessment of sea flooding risk in the East Asian coastal lowlands. In: Jablonski N.G. (ed.), The Changing Face of East Asia During the Tertiary and Quaternary, Hong Kong, Centre of Asian Studies, pp 138-149.
Tooley, M.J., Y. Zong, J.B. Innes 1997. Holocene storm surge signatures. In: Jablonski N.G. (ed.), The Changing Face of East Asia During the Tertiary and Quaternary, Hong Kong, Centre of Asian Studies, pp 125-137.
Zong, Y., M.J. Tooley 1996. Holocene sea-level changes and crustal movements in Morecambe Bay, NW England. Journal of Quaternary Science, 11(1): 43-58.
Shennan I., Long A.J., Rutherford M.M., Green F.M., Innes J.B., Lloyd J.M., Zong Y., K. Walker 1996. Tidal marsh stratigraphy, sea-level change and large earthquakes, 1: a 5000 year record in Washington, U.S.A. Quaternary Science Reviews, 15, 1023-1059.
Zong, Y., M.J. Tooley, D.M.N. Donoghue 1995. Geographical Information Systems and sea flooding risk assessment in the Thames Lowlands. Journal of the Society of Fellows, 9(2): 3-18.
Shennan I., Innes J.B., Long A.J., Y. Zong 1995. Late Devensian and Holocene relative sea-level changes in northwest Scotland: new data to test existing models. Quaternary International, 26: 97-123.
Shennan I., Innes J.B., Long A.J., Y. Zong 1995. Holocene relative sea-level changes at Kentra Moss, Argyll, northwestern Scotland. Marine Geology, 124: 43-60.
Donoghue D.M.N., Reid-Thomas D.C., Y. Zong 1994. Mapping and monitoring the intertidal zone of the east coast of England using remote sensing techniques and a coastal monitoring GIS. MTS Journal, 28(2): 19-29.
Shennan I., Innes J.B., Long A.J., Y. Zong 1994. Late Devensian and Holocene relative sea-level changes at Loch nan Eala, near Arisaig, northwest Scotland. Journal Quaternary Science, 9: 261-283.
Shennan I., Innes J.B., Long A.J., Y. Zong 1993. Late-Glacial and Holocene sea-level changes at Rumach, northwest Scotland. Norsk Geologisk Tidsskrift, 73: 161-174.
Zong Y. 1992. Postglacial stratigraphy and sea-level changes in the Han River Delta, China. Journal of Coastal Research, 8 (1): 1-28.
Editorial Responsibilities
Guest editor:
Special issue on environmental geoarchaeology with The Holocene (2011)
Member of the editorial advisary board:
Journal of Quaternary Science, 2011-
Tropical Geography (in Chinese), 2009-