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Coastal Processes And Anthropogenic Factors Influencing The Geomorphic Evolution Of Weedon Island, Florida, Jeanne Lambert

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Weedon Island, a peninsula located on the western inner shoreline of Tampa Bay, Florida, is the location of a collaborative geological and archaeological project that aims to relate the present day geomorphology to natural processes and human occupational activity during the middle to late Holocene. The area is known for extensive archaeological sites, which were originally investigated in the 1920s, although they have received relatively little scientific attention during most of the last century. We hypothesize that activities associated with pre-historic human occupation of Weedon Island at various times during the last ca. 5,000 years influenced the geomorphic evolution of …

Investigation Of Copper Contamination And Corrosion Scale Mineralogy In Aging Drink Water Distributions Systems, Nadja F. Turek

Theses and Dissertations

Research has shown higher levels of copper appear in drinking water conveyed through relatively new copper piping systems; older piping systems typically deliver lower copper levels in their drinking water. This research contributes field data from a real drinking water distribution system, providing a better understanding of this phenomenon, as it relates to treatment considerations and compliance with the Lead and Copper Rule. Copper pipes and copper levels were sampled from drinking water taps of 16 buildings with pipes ranging in age from less than 1 to 48 years. Water samples from each building were collected before and following a …

Modeling Study To Quantify The Benefits Of Groundwater Contaminant Source Remediation, David E. Wagner

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to quantify the benefits of groundwater contaminant source remediation by using a model to simulate how reduction of source mass was related to reduction of contaminant concentration at a receptor. This thesis sought to answer three research questions: (1) how are contaminant source mass reduction and reduction of mass flux leaving the source-zone related; (2) how can we quantify the effect of the important natural attenuation processes that act upon the dissolved contaminant as it travels from the source zone to downgradient receptors, and (3) under specified site conditions, what is the maximum contaminant …

Comparative Analysis Of Biosurveillance Methodologies, David M. Kempisty

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this research is to compare two different biosurveillance methodologies: BioWatch and "A Hot Idea". BioWatch is fielded and operating in major US cities today. Air samples are collected on filter paper and analyzed for the presence of harmful biological agents. "A Hot Idea" is an evolving methodology using the human body's immune response to identify the onset of infection from a harmful pathogen. Detecting a temperature increase, using infrared thermographers, in a statistically significant portion of population would allow earlier identification of a biological release, accelerating initiation of response actions. A selected population including policemen, firemen, and …

Evaluation Of Chlorinated Solvent Removal Efficiency Among Three Wetland Plant Species: A Mesocom Study, Jun Yan

Theses and Dissertations

Different species of plants need to be studied individually to compare the remediation efficiency of each species. This research will study three different wetland plants species and an unplanted control, under a laboratory setting. Each plant has a different characteristic favorable for chlorinated solvent degradation. Eleocharis erythropoda (Spike Rush) are plants with thin tube like leaves and large root mass. Carex comosa (Bearded Sedge) has broad leaves and Scirpus atrovirens (Green Bulrush) are broad leafed wetland plants with a long flowering stem during reproduction. PCE will be injected into the plant mesocosm and any possible PCE degradation will be observed. …

Validation Of Methods To Measure Mass Flux Of A Groundwater Contaminant, Hyouk Yoon

Theses and Dissertations

In this study, flux measurements obtained using two methods are compared with known mass fluxes in a meso-scale three-dimensional artificial aquifer. One method, the tandem recirculating well (TRW) method, is applied using two different techniques. One technique is simple and inexpensive, only requiring measurement of heads, while the second technique requires conducting a tracer test. The second method, the integrated pump test (IPT) method, requires use of one or more pumping and observation wells in various configurations. The results of the experiments in the artificial aquifer show that the most expensive technique, the TRW method using tracers, provides the most …

Nonlinear Dynamics Derived From The Oxyhalogen Oxidation Of Selected Organosulfur Compounds, Edward Chickwana

Dissertations and Theses

Structure, stability, kinetics and mechanisms of oxidation of some physiologically important organosulfur compounds were studied and the results obtained show that oxidation occurs mainly at the reactive sulfur center of the molecules. These results not only display the usual S-oxygenation pathways that have been observed with most thiocarbamides, but also show dimerization and cyclization.

The oxidation of guanylthiourea, GTU, was studied in the presence of mildly acidic iodate and the strong oxidants bromate and bromine. The GTU reaction dynamics with iodate show clock reaction characteristics and oligooscillatory formation of iodine both in excess oxidant and reductant. The major oxidation product …

Selecting Energy Efficient Building Envelope Retrofits To Existing Department Of Defense Building Using Value Focused Thinking, David M. Pratt

Theses and Dissertations

The Department of Defense (DoD) has hundreds of thousands of facilities in its inventory, which consume billions of BTUSs of energy per year. Much of that energy is used to heat and cool the facility, and a great deal of this energy is lost through the building envelope. While new military construction works towards energy efficiency, the majority of DoD facilities were built over forty years ago with little regard to energy efficiency, and it is these facilities that have the greatest potential for energy efficient building envelope retrofits. There are hundreds of various new building envelope technologies available to …

Mercury Concentrations In South Texas Game Fishes, E. Anthony Reisinger

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Mercury (Hg) is one of the most ubiquitous and controversial metals in the world primarily due to the toxicity of the organic form of the metal, methylmercury (MeHg). MeHg is a neurotoxin at high levels, known to manifest its effects on humans primarily through consumption of certain fish and marine mammals, which tend to bioaccumulate MeHg in their tissues over time. Increased fish consumption and, thus, mercury intake in residents of coastal areas necessitates a better awareness of MeHg content in game fish species, thus the subject of this study.

Three hundred thirty-nine tissue samples were taken from 19 south …

Analysis Of Bacterial Population And Distribution In The Developing Strata Of A Constructed Wetland Used For Chlorinated Ethene Bioremediation, Milton J. Clausen Jr.

Theses and Dissertations

Chlorinated hydrocarbons and their degradation products are among of the most common organic groundwater contaminates in the United States. These compounds attack the central nervous system in animals and can affect the photosynthesis of plants. These compounds are also resistant to degradation in the environment and, because of this, pose a risk to any ecosystem in which they are present. This study identified the dominant microbial species in a constructed treatment wetland at Wright-Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio using 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. Samples were taken from three different depths and during each of the four seasons. These samples were …

Development Of Environmentally Benign Microencapsulation With Polymer Microspheres And Liposomes, Baohua Yue

Dissertations

Microencapsulation means applying a shell-like coating to encapsulate the contents of interest in a particle form with a size range of few micrometers or below. In this work, aqueous liposome systems and polymer based encapsulation of fine particles in supercritical CO₂ were studied. Compared to many other microencapsulation methods, these two methodologies feature reduction/prevention of using organic solvents, making them particularly attractive as green technology.

For polymer microencapsulation, a novel in situ polymerization based process to encapsulate various types of fine particles, include drugs, fire retardant, inorganic nanoparticles, and carbon nanotubes, was developed. In the process, host particles, monomers …

Environmental Justice Education And Atmospheric Particulate Analysis In Urban Environmental Health Policy Development : Indoor Airborne Particulate Concentrations In Preschools Of Asthmatic Children In Newark, Rita L. Thornton

Dissertations

Analysis suggests that several residential areas in Newark, New Jersey (USA) have Black/African-American and Hispanic populations, which may be "at high risk" with respect to the adverse health effects of particulate air pollution. This study analyzes the community locations and evaluates literature and other available air pollution data for the target communities in the city of Newark. The study focuses on asthma or reactive airway diseases as a target health risk. It also performs data collection on particulate pollutants and levels of trace metals in particulate matter in target communities and schools of preschool children in two of the five …

The Environmental Effects Of War, Philip Swintek

Student Theses 2001-2013

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Patterns Of Dorm Energy Use And Potential Opportunities For Dorm Energy Conservation At Colby College, Sarah Kelly

Honors Theses

This thesis research began in the fall; around the same time President Adams predicted that the school would pay one million dollars more than budgeted this academic year on energy due to the rising energy prices (Adams, pers. comm.). Students, their families, and the college would bear this monetary burden. Solutions that lower energy costs would benefit many different parties. Dorms use a large amount of energy. Unlike many energy demands on campus that are relatively constant, dorm rooms are flexible in their energy use because students can change their energy use patterns. Many areas of energy waste characterize dorm …

Isolation Of Legionella Pneumophila From Well-Maintained Emergency Showers And Eyewash Stations, Jessica Mae Myers

Theses and Dissertations

Legionella pneumophila is a gram-negative bacterium responsible for Legionnaire's disease, and is commonly transmitted via aerosolized water. Legionella colonization of emergency eyewash and shower stations may pose an exposure hazard to users of these stations. There is little information about the role of these stations as significant reservoirs for Legionella. Samples were collected from 67 stations in an industrial facility. At the time of this study, the stations within this facility were under a routine maintenance program that included at least monthly flushing. This study also included the analysis for other bacterial organisms to determine an association between the presence …

Sauger Population Ecology In Three Missouri River Mainstem Reservoirs, Brian D. S. Graeb

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sauger Sander canadensis populations have experienced widespread declines across much of their range. Factors suspected to contribute to these declines include hybridization, exploitation, loss of spawning areas, and general habitat alterations associated with regulated rivers. Several sauger populations within the Missouri River basin are also experiencing similar declines, particularly in the headwaters of Montana, and the lower basin states of Nebraska and Missouri. However, sauger populations in many of the reservoirs in South Dakota (between Montana and the lower basin) have relatively stable populations. Given the paucity of information on factors influencing sauger population ecology in general, and Missouri River …

A Study Of Environmental Justice In Relation To Air Pollution And Income, Christian A. Malveaux

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this paper is come to a conclusion on whether or not air pollution and income levels are connected. There is an ongoing pollution problem in Las Vegas. The question that will be attempted to answer in this is paper is: Is there a difference in the amount of air pollution in affluent parts of the Las Vegas Valley and the less affluent parts of the valley? Information and data regarding air pollution is gathered from the Clark County website and other literature. Information on income levels is gathered from journals and literature pertinent to the subject and …

Satellite Image Based Classification Mapping For Spatially Analyzing West Virginia Corridor H Urban Development, Chandra L. Inglis-Smith

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The study area for this project is Corridor H, a designated Appalachian Development Highway located in Lewis, Upshur, Barbour Counties which are part of the Appalachian Plateau Province, and Randolph, Tucker, Grant and Hardy Counties which are Part of the Ridge and Valley Province in West Virginia. The region has a long history of occupation and a traditional economic structure consisting of mainly agriculture, timbering and coal mining. The final objective of the study was to perform change detection, using two Landsat datasets obtained from the USGS of the study area from 1987 and 2005 to determine if economic development, …

Determining Biogeochemical Assemblages On The Stony River, Grant County, Wv, Using Fuzzy C-Means And K-Nearest Neighbors Clustering, M. Joseph Hughes

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Periphyton assemblages were assessed on the Stony River, a high-gradient stream in the Potomac drainage of Grant County, WV. Periphyton samples were collected from nine sites along the mainstem and in two tributaries. Chlorophyll-a, dry weight, taxonomic identifications, and bioaccumulated metals concentrations data were compiled. These data were related to water quality parameters measured at each site during the study. Fuzzy C-means and k-nearest neighbor clustering on the combined, normalized dataset produced similar results. Clustering separated species occurring in each tributary from each other and those dominating the mainstem. Nearly every bioaccumulated metal was associated with one of these tributary …

Analysis Of Response Calls To Diverse Ground Predators From Three Geographically Separate Florida Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma Coerulescens) Subpopulations, Sarah A. (Bales) Douglass

Master of Environmental Science (MES) Theses

Dialectic variation occurs in many bird species. Different factors have been investigated regarding dialectic variation, including cultural and genetic transmission of songs or calls, and geographic separation. In this study, the predator alarm call of the Florida Scrub-Jay to ground predators was recorded in three geographically separate subpopulations across Florida—Canaveral National Seashore/Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Lyonia Preserve and Leisure Lakes/Lake June in Winter Scrub State Park—to examine any dialectic occurrence between these three subpopulations. Additionally, many bird species are recognized as having highly evolved predator recognition systems, often with different calls for specific predators. The Florida Scrub Jay has …

Geographical Information System Analysis Of Great Blue Heron (Ardea Herodias) Colony Site Selection In Northeastern Indiana, Jason M. Kauffman

Master of Environmental Science (MES) Theses

Seventeen Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) nesting colonies were studied in northeastern Indiana to determine which natural and human variables, within 15 km of each heronry, correlated with the size and location of this bird’s nesting sites. The data collected in the field and with ArcMap, a Geographical Information System program, included: the types and distances to human disturbances and water/foraging sources; wetland size and type; the height, dbh, and species of nesting trees; and the number of active and total nests. This information was used to produce an individual map for each heronry as well as a …

The Influence Of Predation On The Nesting Ecology Of Diamondback Terrapins (Malaclemys Terrapin) In The Lower Chesapeake Bay, Victoria Ann Ruzicka

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

No abstract provided.

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 …

The H5n1 Avian Influenza Virus: Globalization, Climate Change, And Other Anthropogenic Factors In New Emergent Diseases, Quan Luong

Student Theses 2001-2013

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Sources Of Nitrogen And Phosphorus In Stormwater Drainage From Established Residential Areas And Options For Improved Management, Surasithe Khwanboonbumpen

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

From early April 2002 to June 2003, a study was conducted at Wanneroo and Bannister Creek in Perth's metropolitan area (Western Australia), aiming to quantify major sources of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) entering urban residential catchments on two of the major dunal systems. The export of N and P from these catchments in stormwater discharge was measured, allowing investigation of some of the key pathways through which N and P enter the drainage network from the catchment. This information was then used to recommend catchment management approaches to reduce nutrient discharge into stormwater.

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 …

The Analysis Of Core Competence For Chinese Oil Shipping Company, Binmeng. Mo

World Maritime University Dissertations

During the past decade, China’s crude oil import has risen sharply, which demands the immediately matching shipping capacity of the domestic oil shipping companies. Therefore, how to steer the Chinese oil shipping enterprises towards a promising development is a very big problem facing the Chinese entrepreneurs. This paper has tried to provide some practical suggestion to improve Chinese oil shipping companies’ core competence based on the analysis of Chinese Shipping Tanker Company, which is typical representative for this industry. After having studied the measuring methods of the core competence and the index system building principles, the author constructs a complete …

Contrasting Chemical Response To Experimental Acidification Of Five Acid-Sensitive Streams, Heather Vanessa Goss

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

To evaluate the role of stream water and substrates in response to acidification, we experimentally acidified five first-order streams in 2005: East Bear Brook, Hadlock Brook, and Mud Pond Inlet (Maine, USA); Fernow WS3 (West Virginia, USA); and Lesní Potok (Czech Republic). All have forested catchments and low alkalinity water. We evaluated water samples from a reference site above the point of hydrochloric acid addition and from two or three sites located 16 to 94 m downstream. Just before acid addition we collected streambed sediment samples for sequential extraction of metals. Several sediment-water and aqueous processes contributed to neutralization of …

Effective Inter-Organizational Information And Communication Technology Adoption In Business-To-Business Customer Interface, Sanna Maria Kallioranta

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Past research has found that 80-90 percent of IT investments do not meet corporate performance objectives, primarily due to non-technical reasons such as human and organizational aspects. When Inter-organizational Information and Communication Technology (IICT) implementation is properly managed IICT can help manage the flow of goods, services, and information between business partners in the supplier-customer dyad, thus reducing transaction costs along the entire value chain. Using the underlying Resource-Based View theoretical foundation, this research approaches effective IICT implementation capability as a holistic organizational capability that extends beyond tangible IT resources. This research investigates business outcomes of IICT adoption in the …

An Analysis Of Trap And Translocation Of White-Tailed Deer (Odocoleus Virginianus) Within The Enclosed Park Area Of Duke Farms, Hillsborough, New Jersey, December 2000 To March 2003, Christopher D. Aquila

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Translocation to manage overabundant wildlife populations, (in particularly Odocoileus spp.), is generally viewed as an acceptable method of wildlife removal where more aggressive methods (i.e. hunting, sharp shooting) are not considered viable options, in heavily developed urban areas and residential subdivisions.

From December 2000 to March 2003,1 conducted a large scale White-tailed Deer 0Odocoileus virginianus) translocation study on a 259 ha (640 acres) site at Duke Farms m Hillsborough, New Jersey, a location with high public visitation, over 100 employees, and a significant building infrastructure. Subsequently at the time of the study, the site was not conducive to any of …