Life Sciences Commons^™

Proposed Greenway Of Hatfield, Massachusetts - La497c - Senior Studio, Matthew G. Bent, Henry A. Hess, Andre E. Belperron

Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Studio and Student Research and Creative Activity

This is one of five reports submitted for the LA497C Spring 2011 Senior Studio project.

This proposed greenway plan will be assessing the features of Hatfield such as, History, natural features, and open space within the town. After a thorough assessment of the towns features the report will cover the extensive proposed greenway plan, focusing mostly on the town center of Hatfield. The town center is the hub of the town where the major community buildings are such as the elementary and high schools, town hall, the town library, and most of the public recreation fields. Once the overall greenway …

Bioretention: Evaluating Their Effectiveness For Improving Water Quality In New England Urban Environments, Mary Dehais

Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014

Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is one of the leading causes of water quality problems in the United States. Bioretention has become one of the more frequently used stormwater management practices for addressing NPS pollution in urbanized watersheds in New England. Yet despite increased acceptance, bioretention is not widely practiced. This study explores and evaluates the efficacy of bioretention for protecting urban water quality.

This research found that numerous monitoring methods are used by researchers and industry experts to assess the effectiveness of stormwater best management practices (BMPs) and low impact development (LID) practices that include bioretention. The two most common …

Status, Movements, And Habitat Use Of Moose In Massachusetts, David W. Wattles

Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014

Moose (Alces alces) have been re-established in much of the historic range in the northeastern United States. Recently the southern edge of the species ranges has been extended southward into southern New England and northern New York from established populations in northern New England. The southern expansion raised questions as to the ability of this northern species to cope with higher temperatures, areas densely populated by humans, and different forest types further south. In light of these recent developments, we conducted a literature search on moose in the northeastern United States and distributed a questionnaire and conducted phone …

Evaluating The Influence Of Disturbance And Climate On Red Spruce (Picea Rubens Sarg.) Community Dynamics At Its Southern Range Margin, Relena R. Ribbons

Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014

Picea rubens(red spruce) populations experienced a synchronous rangewide decline in growth and vigor starting in the 1960’s, which was likely caused by climate change or environmental disturbances (e.g., acid deposition); However, it is yet unknown if populations continue to decline or have recovered. In the context of global warming, red spruce is a species of concern because it is at its southern continuous range margin in Massachusetts. This study uses tree-ring data coupled with population data from permanent plots to quantify the status of red spruce in Massachusetts. Tree cores were extracted from red spruce and used to examine …