Digital Commons Network^™

A Gis Suitability Model Evaluating Habitat Characteristics Influencing Beaver (Castor Canadensis) Lodge Site Selection And Lodge Occupancy In Central Adirondacks, New York, Amanda K. Jacobs

Theses - ALL

The North American beaver (Castor canadensis) represents a quintessential example of an "ecosystem engineer." Yet the species' landscape-scale impacts on hydrology, geomorphology, and ecosystem ecology are not uniformly distributed through landscapes or time. Understanding beaver lodge site selection and lodge fidelity through time can help to predict where the greatest effects of beaver activity may occur. In this research project, I seek to understand the relationships between beaver habitat suitability, the habitat variables that currently define suitable areas, and lodge occupancy over time. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to model habitat suitability, I use hydrologic, vegetative, and physiographic variables to …

Lake Huron Shoreline Analysis, Shubham Satish Nandanwar

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Lake Huron is a popular tourist destination and is home to several businesses and residents. Since the shoreline is dynamic and is subject to change over the years due to several factors such as a change in water level, soil type, human encroachment, etc., these locations tend to encounter floods due to increased water levels and wind speed. This causes erosion and loss to the properties along the shoreline.

This study is based on two areas of interest named Pinery Provincial Park and Sauble Beach which are located on the shoreline of Lake Huron where Pinery Provincial Park is a …

Monitoring Reduction Efforts For Pm2.5 In Ellensburg,Wa Using Community-Based Social Marketing To Examine Behavioral Change, Kelsey Gibbs

All Master's Theses

In 2011, Ellensburg, Washington was labeled by the Washington Department of Ecology as being vulnerable for violating National Ambient Air Quality Standards for particulate pollution (PM_2.5­). In the Kittitas Basin, winter-time frequent air inversions and stagnant air events trap pollution near the ground, elevating pollutant concentrations during winter months. Wood smoke from household burning has been identified by mobile PM_2.5 monitoring completed in 2015 as the primary source of PM­_2.5. This research utilizes community-based social marketing techniques to encourage behavioral change for wood burning in a targeted neighborhood in Ellensburg. Residents of the target neighborhood …

Spatial Distribution And Geomorphic Factors Of Lead Contamination On Floodplains Affected By Historical Mining, Big Rover, S.E. Missouri, David Bower Huggins

MSU Graduate Theses

Historical mining in the Old Lead Belt resulted in lead (Pb) contamination of floodplain soils for over 170 km along the Big River in southeastern Missouri. The overall pattern of contamination are understood. However, Pb distribution across floodplain surfaces has not been investigated at the scale needed for site-level remediation planning. The goal of this project is to examine spatial distribution of Pb with more detail and identify the role of geomorphic processes. Predictive models are needed to evaluate factors affecting Pb distribution such as elevation, distance from the channel, and geochemistry. This study evaluates Pb distribution at three ~1km …

Drone Technology For Low-Cost Precision Mapping On Campus And In The Community, Suresh Muthukrishnan, Mike Winiski

Earth and Environmental Sciences Presentations

Proliferation of consumer grade small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (sUAV) or drones brings many opportunities in the area of mapping and spatial analysis. Although misuse of drone technology is well-chronicled in the media, the important and positive role played by drones at the community level is often overlooked. At Furman University, we have integrated the use of drones into teaching, research, and various sustainability and safety initiatives on campus and with community partners. Using a combination of tools, including drones and GIS, we mapped the sprinkler irrigation network and streetlight locations on campus and in a local community. The general workflow …

Valuing Natural Space And Landscape Fragmentation In Richmond, Va, Lee Wyatt Carpenter

Theses and Dissertations

Hedonic pricing methods and GIS (Geographic Information Systems) were used to evaluate relationships between sale price of single family homes and landscape fragmentation and natural land cover. Spatial regression analyses found that sale prices increase as landscapes become less fragmented and the amount of natural land cover around a home increases. The projected growth in population and employment in the Richmond, Virginia region and subsequent increases in land development and landscape fragmentation presents a challenge to sustaining intact healthy ecosystems in the Richmond region. Spatial regression analyses helped illuminate how land cover patterns influence sale prices and landscape patterns that …

An Assessment Of South China Tiger Reintroduction Potential In Hupingshan And Houhe National Nature Reserves, China, Yiyuan Qin, Philip J. Nyhus, Courtney L. Larson, Charles J.W. Carroll, Jeff Muntifering, Thomas D. Dahmer, Lu Jun, Ronald L. Tilson

Philip J. Nyhus

Human-caused biodiversity loss is a global problem, large carnivores are particularly threatened, and the tiger (Panthera tigris) is among the world’s most endangered large carnivores. The South China tiger (Panthera tigris amoyensis) is the most critically endangered tiger subspecies and is considered functionally extinct in the wild. The government of China has expressed its intent to reintroduce a small population of South China tigers into a portion of their historic range as part of a larger goal to recover wild tiger populations in China. This would be the world’s first major tiger reintroduction program. A free-ranging population of 15–20 tigers …

Assessing The Environmental Justice Implications Of Flood Hazards In Miami, Florida, Marilyn Christina Montgomery

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While environmental justice (EJ) research in the U.S. has traditionally focused on inequities in the distribution of technological hazards, the disproportionate impacts of Hurricane Katrina on racial minorities and socioeconomically disadvantaged households have prompted researchers to investigate the EJ implications of natural hazards such as flooding. Recent EJ research has also emphasized the need to examine social inequities in access to environmental amenities. Unlike technological hazards such as air pollution and toxic waste sites, areas exposed to natural hazards such as hurricanes and floods have indivisible amenities associated with them. Coastal property owners are exposed to flood hazards, but also …

Watershed Forest Management Information System (Wfmis), Yl Zhang, Pk Barten

Environmental Conservation Faculty Publication Series

Maintenance of a sustainable clean water supply is critical for our future. However, watershed degradation is a common phenomenon around the world that leads to poor water quality. In order to protect water resources, the Watershed Forest Management Information System (WFMIS), was developed as an extension of ArcGIS® and is described in this paper. There are three submodels to address nonpoint source pollution mitigation, road system management, and silvicultural operations, respectively. The Watershed Management Priority Indices (WMPI) is a zoning approach to prioritize critical areas for conservation and restoration management. It meets the critical need to spatially differentiate land cover …