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2006

Environmental Sciences

Theses/Dissertations

Wilfrid Laurier University

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Modeling Uncertainty In Mountain Pine Beetle Management Systems, Anthony L. Alfano Jan 2006

Modeling Uncertainty In Mountain Pine Beetle Management Systems, Anthony L. Alfano

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study attempts to introduce elements of data uncertainty into the Shore and Safranyik model for approximating risk and susceptibility ratings for Mountain Pine Beetle attack in the Morice Forest District of British Columbia, Canada. Data uncertainty is introduced into the modeling procedure by introducing attribute uncertainty and spatial (boundary) vagueness into representations of Forest Inventory Polygon data, an essential component of the Shore and Safranyik modeling system, for the purposes of assessing the effects of uncertainty on the results of the Shore and Safranyik susceptibility modeling procedure. Introducing uncertainty into the forest inventory data is done by introducing spatial …


An Analysis Of Community Forest Implementation In British Columbia, Canada, Ryan C. Bullock Jan 2006

An Analysis Of Community Forest Implementation In British Columbia, Canada, Ryan C. Bullock

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The community forest is increasingly seen as an alternative to industrial forestry for its perceived potential to mitigate conflict in forest resource management and planning. Theoretically, a community-based approach affords the chance to assert local values, provide local benefits, and manage resources differently than established top-down approaches. Yet practical examples of community forest initiatives in Canada reveal a host of constraints. This research uses a multiple case study design to investigate the motivations for and challenges to implementing community forests in British Columbia, Canada. Observations are drawn from four case studies (Denman Island, Malcolm Island, Cortes Island, and Creston) in …


Assessment And Classification Of A Modified Urban Stream: Schneider Creek, Kitchener, Ontario, J. Andrew Carnegie Jan 2006

Assessment And Classification Of A Modified Urban Stream: Schneider Creek, Kitchener, Ontario, J. Andrew Carnegie

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study has produced an assessment framework and classification designed specifically for urban modified streams. While many stream assessment frameworks do exist, most are designed for natural streams and as such have no provision for characteristics of urban streams such as concrete channelization, storm drains, and urban debris. Building upon previous assessment and classification schemes, both urban and natural, this framework satisfies this need. It strengths lie in its user-friendly, visual-based approach to assessment by employing representative photographs and qualitative information to aid the user. A total of ten variables were employed that are scaled on a spectrum of categories, …


Implementing The Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan: A Case Study Of Initial Implementation Experiences, Ryan Dore Jan 2006

Implementing The Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan: A Case Study Of Initial Implementation Experiences, Ryan Dore

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Implementing an ecologically-based land use plan presents a variety of challenges. To gain insight into these challenges, this study focuses on the experiences of actor intimately involved in implementing the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan. To begin, a conceptual overview of regional planning/growth management, ecosystem-based management, and policy implementation literature and concepts are presented, along with a contextual overview of the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan. Following the conceptual and contextual overviews, Hanna’s (2006) framework addressing eight obstacles to policy implementation is used to discuss and analyze the information collected during the interview process. Lastly, seven lessons for implementing an …


Detecting Hot Spots Of Mountain Pine Beetle Infestations In The Forests Of British Columbia: An Approach Using Local Spatial Autocorrelation, Rodrigo Tapia-Mcclung Jan 2006

Detecting Hot Spots Of Mountain Pine Beetle Infestations In The Forests Of British Columbia: An Approach Using Local Spatial Autocorrelation, Rodrigo Tapia-Mcclung

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) is an endemic species in the forests of British Columbia that has become epidemic and reached infestation levels like never before. Different approaches have been taken in order to try and manage the forest and understand the processes affecting the behavior of mountain pine beetle. No single model has been entirely successful in unearthing the complexity of mountain pine beetle behavior. In this thesis, large spatial data sets of mountain pine beetle attacks, obtained from helicopter and ground surveys, and further adjusted for the incorporation of uncertainty, are studied using a spatial autocorrelation approach …


Seasonal Variability Of Carbon Dioxide Fluxes Over A Heterogeneous Low Tundra Ecosystem, Ronald P. Van Haarlem Jan 2006

Seasonal Variability Of Carbon Dioxide Fluxes Over A Heterogeneous Low Tundra Ecosystem, Ronald P. Van Haarlem

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The seasonal carbon dioxide (CO2) budget and its associated environmental controlling parameters, soil moisture, soil temperature and depth to frost were investigated throughout the growing period during the summer of 2004. The study site is located within the low arctic tundra environment at Daring Lake, NWT (62⁰52’N, 111⁰35’W). The CO2 fluxes from an area of heterogeneous tundra composition were intensely monitored. The net seasonal CO2 budget was approximated to be 10.2 g C-CO2 m-2 for 100 days (DOY 159-259) of the 2004 snow-free study period. The CO2 flux dynamic was found to differ between 4 identified seasonal periods—melt, pre-green, green …


Of Fish And People: Managerial Ecology In Newfoundland And Labrador Cod Fisheries, Dean Louis Yelwa Bavington Jan 2006

Of Fish And People: Managerial Ecology In Newfoundland And Labrador Cod Fisheries, Dean Louis Yelwa Bavington

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This dissertation aims to understand the history of, and possible alternatives to, managerial responses to socio-ecological issues by examining one of the largest natural resource management failures of the twentieth century—the collapse of the Northern cod fisheries off Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. In 1992, the Northern cod fishery off Newfoundland and Labrador (the world's largest ground fishery) was shut down. The Northern cod had been reduced to 1% of their historic spawning biomass and cod fishing as a way of life had come to an end after a 500 year history. The dissertation develops and applies a critical theory of …