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Aluminum Critical Mineral Production Feasibility Via Landfill Mining: Preliminary Study Of Potential Project Locations And Co-Benefits, Anabel M. Needham

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

In 2022, aluminum was named a critical mineral by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and the global demand for aluminum is projected to increase by 40% from 2020 to 2030 (Aleksić 2023). There are currently no large-scale bauxite mines in the United States to contribute to aluminum production, and this study aims to investigate the feasibility of aluminum landfill mining in the United States to produce secondary aluminum. The feasibility of landfill mining for the purpose of recovering materials and energy is a relatively new technology, and often co-benefits are required to make these projects economically viable. Publicly available …

Examining Neighborhood-Level Hot And Cold Spots Of Food Insecurity In Relation To Social Vulnerability In Houston, Texas, Ryan Ramphul, Linda Highfield, Shreela Sharma

Journal Articles

Food insecurity is prevalent and associated with poor health outcomes, but little is known about its geographical nature. The aim of this study is to utilize geospatial modeling of individual-level food insecurity screening data ascertained in health care settings to test for neighborhood hot and cold spots of food insecurity in a large metropolitan area, and then compare these hot spot neighborhoods to cold spot neighborhoods in terms of the CDC's Social Vulnerability Index. In this cross-sectional secondary data analysis, we geocoded the home addresses of 6,749 unique participants screened for food insecurity at health care locations participating in CMS's …

Niche Modeling Of Eight Crayfish Species In Texas, Nathan Schubert

Biology Theses

Freshwater species make up ~10% of all known species and occupy less than one percent of earth’s habitat, which is being degraded by human usage. Crayfish have a large impact on their aquatic or terrestrial environment and can serve as a health indicator of aquatic environments, as they generally require undegraded environments. In many habitats, crayfish make up more than half of the macroinvertebrate biomass, and play important ecological roles, as a food resource for both aquatic and terrestrial species, as predators of fish and invertebrates, and as bioprocessors of vegetation and detritus. The objective of this project was to …

Ethnic Disparities In Early-Onset Gastric Cancer: A Population-Based Study In Texas And California, Anna Tavakkoli, Sandi L Pruitt, Anh Q Hoang, Hong Zhu, Amy E Hughes, Thomas A Mckey, B Joseph Elmunzer, Richard S Kwon, Caitlin C Murphy, Amit G Singal

Journal Articles

BACKGROUND: Incidence rates of gastric cancer are increasing in young adults (age <50 >years), particularly among Hispanic persons. We estimated incidence rates of early-onset gastric cancer (EOGC) among Hispanic and non-Hispanic White persons by census tract poverty level and county-level metro/nonmetro residence.

METHODS: We used population-based data from the California and Texas Cancer Registries from 1995 to 2016 to estimate age-adjusted incidence rates of EOGC among Hispanic and non-Hispanic White persons by year, sex, tumor stage, census tract poverty level, metro versus nonmetro county, and state. We used logistic regression models to identify factors associated with distant stage diagnosis.

RESULTS: Of …

Analysis Of The Electric Power Outage Data And Prediction Of Electric Power Outage For Major Metropolitan Areas In Texas Using Machine Learning And Time Series Methods, Renfeng Wang, Venkata Leela 'Mg' Vanga, Zachary B. Zaiken, Jonathan Bennett

SMU Data Science Review

With growing energy usage, power outages affect millions of households. This case study focuses on gathering power outage historical data, modifying the data to attach weather attributes, and gathering ERCOT energy market conditions for Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston metropolitan areas of Texas. The transformed data is then analyzed using machine learning algorithms including, but not limited to, Regression, Random Forests and XGBoost to consider current weather and ERCOT features and predict power outage percentage for locations. The transformed data is also trained using time series models and serially correlated models including Autoregression and Vector Autoregression. This study also focuses on …

Analysis Of Gentrification And Green Spaces In East Austin, Texas, Carly Fordyce

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Gentrification, the urban process that results from uneven development within cities, can cause unjust displacement of traditional, low-income residents in residential neighborhoods, and inequitable access to community services and benefits. Because of the negative social impacts that gentrification can have, many local governments and agencies have been known to attempt to mitigate changes by initiating different types of planning policies. Such policies usually apply changes in housing or zoning rules to enable lower-income residents to have access to housing and community amenities in the area. Another aspect resulting from gentrification that local government will try to rectify is low access …

Real-Time Geospatial Analysis Identifies Gaps In Covid-19 Vaccination In A Minority Population, Cici Bauer, Kehe Zhang, Miryoung Lee, Michelle Jones, Arturo Rodriguez, Isela De La Cerda, Belinda Reininger, Susan P Fisher-Hoch, Joseph B Mccormick

Journal Articles

COVID-19 vaccination is being rapidly rolled out in the US and many other countries, and it is crucial to provide fast and accurate assessment of vaccination coverage and vaccination gaps to make strategic adjustments promoting vaccine coverage. We reported the effective use of real-time geospatial analysis to identify barriers and gaps in COVID-19 vaccination in a minority population living in South Texas on the US-Mexico Border, to inform vaccination campaign strategies. We developed 4 rank-based approaches to evaluate the vaccination gap at the census tract level, which considered both population vulnerability and vaccination priority and eligibility. We identified areas with …

Persistence Of The Exotic Mirid Nesidiocoris Tenuis (Hemiptera: Miridae) In South Texas, Gabriela Esparza-Diaz, Thiago Marconi, Carlos A. Avila, Raul T. Villanueva

Entomology Faculty Publications

The Rio Grande Valley is one of the most productive agricultural areas in the U.S and is located in the southernmost part of Texas. In October 2013, we detected an exotic plant bug, Nesidiocoris tenuis Reuter (Hemiptera: Miridae: Bryocorinae) occurring in the region. Nesidiocoris tenuis has zoophytophagous habits; however, in the absence of insect prey, it feeds on its plant hosts. After its morphological and genetic identification, this study monitored the population of N. tenuis in its introduction phase in commercial fields and corroborated its establishment in research fields for three years. Populations of N. tenuis were high during the …

The Intensive Cultural Resources Survey For The Tceq Npdes Permitted Location On The Canyon Ranch Tract Comal County, Texas, James J. Hill

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Gram Vikas Partners, Inc. (Sponsor) is proposing the development of the approximate 400-acre Canyon Ranch Tract (Project) in northwest Comal County, Texas. The Project would occur approximately eight miles northeast of Spring Branch, Texas along Farm to Market Road (FM) 306. The Project will consist of a mix of both residential and commercial properties, associated roads, utilities and a wastewater treatment facility. As part of the development, an approximate six-acre wastewater treatment facility will be constructed in the west-central portion of the Project area, approximately 0.9-mi northwest of FM 306 and County Road (CR) 401 intersection.

Under the Memorandum of …

Patterns And Risk Factors Of Opioid-Suspected Ems Overdose In Houston Metropolitan Area, 2015-2019: A Bayesian Spatiotemporal Analysis, Cici Bauer, Tiffany Champagne-Langabeer, Christine Bakos-Block, Kehe Zhang, David Persse, James R Langabeer

Journal Articles

BACKGROUND: Opioid-related overdose deaths are the top accidental cause of death in the United States, and development of regional strategies to address this epidemic should begin with a better understanding of where and when overdoses are occurring.

METHODS AND FINDINGS: In this study, we relied on emergency medical services data to investigate the geographical and temporal patterns in opioid-suspected overdose incidents in one of the largest and most ethnically diverse metropolitan areas (Houston Texas). Using a cross sectional design and Bayesian spatiotemporal models, we identified zip code areas with excessive opioid-suspected incidents, and assessed how the incidence risks were associated …

Factors Affecting Bait Site Visitation: Area Of Influence Of Baits, Jacquelyn E. Mcrae, Peter E. Schlichting, Nathan P. Snow, Amy J. Davis, Kurt C. Vercautern, John C. Kilgo, David A. Keiter, James C. Beasley, Kim M. Pepin

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

ABSTRACT Baiting is a fundamental strategy for the global management of wild pigs (Sus scrofa); however, little information exists on how anthropogenic bait affects wild pig movements on a landscape. We investigated factors that are important in determining the spatial area of attraction for wild pigs to bait (‘area of influence’ of a bait site) using data from Global Positioning System (GPS) collars and locations of bait sites. We monitored movements of wild pigs in 2 distinct study areas in the United States from February to September 2016 and used locational data using GPS collars to analyze the influence of …

Survey Of Latino/Hispanic Adult Immigrants Living In The Colonias Of Hidalgo County, Texas Evaluating Reported Food Insecurity And Immigration-Related Fear, Julia Rosenberg, Sindhu Sudanagunta, Marsha Griffin

Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk

Background:

Colonias in Hidalgo County, Texas are residential communities near the Texas-Mexico border which often lack basic living necessities with high rates of poverty. Due to complex socioeconomic/geopolitical stressors (factors ranging from income inequality to access to transportation to concern regarding safety and legal status), colonia residents have limited access to fresh produce, while processed foods are more readily available, resulting in significant food insecurity.

Objectives:

The aim of this study is to assess levels of food insecurity, current eating habits, barriers of access, and interest in more readily affordable and accessible produce options in colonias of Hidalgo County, Texas. …

What Happened To Mexico's Burgos Shale?, Matthew Fry, Trey Murphy, Andrew Hilburn, Armando Garcia Chiang

Mission Foods Texas-Mexico Center Research

No abstract provided.

Cultural Resources Survey For The Granbury East Wastewater Treatment Plant, City Of Granbury, Hood County, Texas (Twdb Project No. 73813), Kevin Stone, Thomas Chapman

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This report presents the substantive findings of a cultural resources survey for the Granbury East Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) Project, which is a component to the Wastewater Phase I Improvements Project reviewed by the Texas Water Development Board [TWDB] under Project No. 73813. The proposed Granbury East WWTP is located within a 10.6-acre (ac) property located at 3121 Old Granbury Road in the City of Granbury, Hood County, Texas.

As the City of Granbury is a political entity of the State of Texas, the City is required to comply with the Antiquities Code of Texas (ACT). In addition, as the …

Intensive Archeological Survey Of Munson Tract Phase I City Of Sherman, Grayson County, Texas, Caitlin Gulihur, Beth Valenzuela

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The City of Sherman is sponsoring the Munson Tract Phase I project where infrastructure including water lines, wastewater lines, and roadways will be constructed in southwest Sherman, Grayson County, Texas. Terracon Consultants, Inc. was retained by the Munson Realty Company to conduct a systematic, intensive pedestrian cultural resources survey of the approximately 210- acre project area. Because the City of Sherman, a political subdivision of the State of Texas, is controlling the project, the proposed undertaking is subject to compliance with the Antiquities Code of Texas and oversight from the Texas Historical Commission (THC). In addition, the survey meets the …

Cultural Resources Survey Of The City Of Hutto Transmission And Distribution Pumping Stations Phase I Project, City Of Hutto, Williamson County, Texas, Anne Gibson, Joshua Mccormick, Jamie Vandagriff, Kevin Stone

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This report documents the substantive findings and management recommendations of a cultural resource inventory conducted by Integrated Environmental Solutions, LLC (IES) for the City of Hutto (COH) Transmission and Distribution Pumping Stations Phase I Project in the City of Hutto, Williamson County, Texas. As the COH is a political subdivision of the State of Texas, the COH is required to comply with the Antiquities Code of Texas (ACT). The goal of the survey was to locate, identify, and assess any cultural resources, which include standing buildings/structures and archeological sites that could be adversely affected by the proposed development, and to …

Cultural Resources Survey For The Granbury East Wastewater Treatment Plant, City Of Granbury, Hood County, Texas (Twdb Project No. 73813), Kevin Stone, Thomas Chapman

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This report presents the substantive findings of a cultural resources survey for the Granbury East Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) Project, which is a component to the Wastewater Phase I Improvements Project reviewed by the Texas Water Development Board [TWDB] under Project No. 73813. The proposed Granbury East WWTP is located within a 10.6-acre (ac) property located at 3121 Old Granbury Road in the City of Granbury, Hood County, Texas.

As the City of Granbury is a political entity of the State of Texas, the City is required to comply with the Antiquities Code of Texas (ACT). In addition, as the …

Intensive Archeological Survey Of Little River Basin Water And Wastewater Lines City Of Temple, Bell County, Texas, Caitlin Gulihur, Ann M. Scott

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The City of Temple has proposed the Little River Basin Water and Wastewater Lines project where water and wastewater lines will be constructed in southeast Temple, Bell County, Texas. The project engineer, Kasberg Patrick and Associates LP, retained Terracon Consultants, Inc. to conduct a systematic, intensive pedestrian survey of the approximately 73.4-acre project area. Because the City of Temple, a political subdivision of the State of Texas, sponsored the project, the proposed undertaking is subject to compliance with the Antiquities Code of Texas and oversight from the Texas Historical Commission (THC). In addition, the survey meets the standards for compliance …

Cultural Resources Survey For The Granbury East Wastewater Treatmentplant, City Of Granbury, Hood County, Texas (Twdb Project No. 73813), Kevin Stone, Thomas Chapman

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This report presents the substantive findings of a cultural resources survey for the Granbury East Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) Project, which is a component to the Wastewater Phase I Improvements Project reviewed by the Texas Water Development Board [TWDB] under Project No. 73813. The proposed Granbury East WWTP is located within a 10.6-acre (ac) property located at 3121 Old Granbury Road in the City of Granbury, Hood County, Texas. As the City of Granbury is a political entity of the State of Texas, the City is required to comply with the Antiquities Code of Texas (ACT). In addition, as the …

Potential Distribution Of Six North American Higher-Attine Fungus-Farming Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Species, Sarah F. Senula, Joseph T. Scavetta, Joshua A. Banta, Ulrich G. Mueller, Jon N. Seal, Katrin Kellner

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Ants are among the most successful insects in Earth’s evolutionary history. However, there is a lack of knowledge regarding range-limiting factors that may influence their distribution. The goal of this study was to describe the environmental factors (climate and soil types) that likely impact the ranges of five out of the eight most abundant Trachymyrmex species and the most abundant Mycetomoellerius species in the United States. Important environmental factors may allow us to better understand each species’ evolutionary history. We generated habitat suitability maps using MaxEnt for each species and identified associated most important environmental variables. We quantified niche overlap …

Exposures At Day Labor Corners: Using Existing Georeferenced Data To Describe Features Of Urban Environments, Maria Eugenia Fernández-Esquer, Amy E Hughes, Sandi L Pruitt

Journal Articles

PURPOSE: Latino day laborers are male immigrants from mainly Mexico and Central America who congregate at corners, that is, informal hiring sites, to solicit short-term employment. Studies describing the occupational environment of Latino day laborers traditionally measure jobsite exposures, not corner exposures. We sought to elucidate exposures at corners by describing their demographic, socioeconomic, occupational, business, built, and physical environmental characteristics and by comparing corner characteristics with other locations in a large urban county in Texas.

METHODS: We used multiple publicly available data sets from the U.S. Census, local tax authority, Google's Nearby Places Application Programming Interface, and Environmental Protection …

Archeological Survey Report Us 80 Project, Dallas District, Christopher Goodmaster

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Integrated Environmental Solutions, LLC (IES), under contract to Halff Associates, Inc. on behalf of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Dallas District, conducted an archeological survey for the proposed U.S. Highway (US) 80 Project located between Interstate Highway (IH) 30 in Dallas County and Farm-to-Market Road (FM) 460 in Kaufman County, Texas (see Area of Potential Effects on Aerial Photograph Map and Area of Potential Effects on USGS Topographic Map).

The purpose of this investigation is to ensure compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (Section 106) of 1966, as amended, and the Antiquities Code of Texas …

Intensive Archeological Survey Of Pepper Creek Elevated Storage Tank City Of Temple, Bell County, Texas, Caitlin Gulihur, Ann M. Scott

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

The City of Temple has proposed the Pepper Creek Elevated Storage Tank project where an elevated water storage tank and associated driveway will be constructed in western Temple, Bell County, Texas. The project engineer, Kasberg Patrick and Associates LP, retained Terracon Consultants, Inc. to conduct a systematic, intensive pedestrian survey of the approximate 1.3- acre project area. Because the City of Temple, a political subdivision of the State of Texas, sponsored the project, the proposed undertaking is subject to compliance with the Antiquities Code of Texas and oversight from the Texas Historical Commission. In addition, the survey meets the standards …

Cultural Resources Survey For The Legacy Drive Extension Project, City Of Frisco, Denton County, Texas, Anne Gibson, Christopher Goodmaster, Thomas Chapman, Kevin Stone

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This report documents the substantive findings and management recommendations of a cultural resources survey conducted by Integrated Environmental Solutions, LLC (IES) for the Legacy Drive Extension Project in the City of Frisco, Denton County, Texas. The project area or Area of Potential Effects (APE) encompasses approximately 4.8 acres (ac). As the project will require a Section 404 of the Clean Water Act Nationwide Permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), portions of the project will be subjected to the provisions of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) of 1966, as amended. Additionally, the City of Frisco is a …

Archeological Survey For The Port Of Victoria U.S. Army Corp Of Engineers Easement Disposal, Port Of Victoria, Victoria County, Texas, Christopher Goodmaster, Thomas Chapman, Joshua Mccormick, Kevin Stone

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This report documents the substantive findings and management recommendations of an archeological survey conducted by Integrated Environmental Solutions, LLC (IES) in preparation for an easement disposal by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Galveston District (SWG) within property owned by the Port of Victoria (POV), in Victoria County, Texas. An archeological survey was requested by the USACE as part of the overall National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Categorical Exclusion documentation process, which subsequently required compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). Additionally, as the POV is a political subdivision of the State of Texas, the …

Archeological Survey For The Trinity Skyline Trail Phase Ii Project, City Of Dallas, Dallas County, Texas, Christopher Goodmaster, Thomas Chapman, Kevin Stone

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This report documents the substantive findings and management recommendations of the cultural resources survey conducted by Integrated Environmental Solutions, LLC (IES) for the proposed Trinity Skyline Trail Phase II Project in the City of Dallas, Dallas County, Texas. The proposed project pertains to the construction of a 4.9-mile (9.6 acre) trail system within the Dallas Floodway from the Sylvan Avenue/Wycliff Avenue bridge to the Campion Trail within Trinity View Park. As the proposed project will be constructed within federal property regulated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the project is subject to the provisions of the National Historic …

Archeological Survey Report Farm-To-Market Road 549 Improvements Project, Christopher Goodmaster

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

This report documents the substantive findings and management recommendations of an archeological survey conducted by Integrated Environmental Solutions, LLC (IES) for the Farm-to-Market Road (FM) 549 Improvements Project (CSJ 1015-01-024). The proposed project will expand and realign a portion of FM 549 southeast of the City of Rockwall, Rockwall County, Texas. As the project sponsor, the Texas Department of Transportation, is a political subdivision of the State of Texas, the proposed project will require coordination with the Texas Historical Commission (THC) prior to construction, per the provisions of the Antiquities Code of Texas (ACT).

The goal of this survey was …

Predictors Of Cervical Cancer Screening Among Hispanic Women In Texas, Madhu Ravindranath

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Hispanic women in Texas show higher cervical cancer incidence rates as compared to all women in the United States. The rate of cervical cancer in the United States has reduced mostly due to regular cervical cancer screening. However, high cervical cancer among Hispanics in Texas may reflect low cervical cancer screening. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the insurance status (independent variable) and cervical cancer screening (dependent variable) among low-income Hispanic women, living in Texas Health Service Regions (HSRs), after controlling for age, marital status, and personal health care provider. The theoretical framework used in this study …

Intensive Archeological Survey Of The Willrae Tract City Of Florence, Williamson County, Texas, Caitlin Gulihur, Beth Valenzuela, Ann M. Scott

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Georgetown Independent School District (GISD) has proposed the Willrae Tract project where school facilities will be constructed south of Florence, Williamson County, Texas. GISD retained Terracon Consultants, Inc. to conduct a systematic, intensive pedestrian survey of the approximate 100-acre project area. Because GISD, a political subdivision of the State of Texas, sponsored the project, the proposed undertaking is subject to compliance with the Antiquities Code of Texas and oversight from the Texas Historical Commission. In addition, the survey meets the standards for compliance under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, should a US Army …

Intensive Archeological Survey Of Basin G Sanitary Sewer Line City Of Lorena, Mclennan County, Texas, Caitlin Gulihur, Annn M. Scott

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Lorena Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ) #1 East has proposed the Basin G Sanitary Sewer Line project where approximately 7,400-linear-feet of wastewater line will be constructed in northeast Lorena, McLennan County, Texas. The project engineer, Kasberg Patrick and Associates LP, retained Terracon Consultants, Inc. to conduct a systematic, intensive pedestrian survey of the approximate 17-acre project area. Because Lorena TIRZ #1 East, a public private partnership with the City of Lorena, a political subdivision of the State of Texas, sponsored the project, the proposed undertaking is subject to compliance with the Antiquities Code of Texas and oversight from the Texas …