Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Environmental Soft Law As A Governance Strategy, Cary Coglianese

All Faculty Scholarship

Soft law governance relies on nongovernmental institutions that establish and implement voluntary standards. Compared with traditional hard law solutions to societal and economic problems, soft law alternatives promise to be more politically feasible to establish and then easier to adapt in the face of changing circumstances. They may also seem more likely to be flexible in what they demand of targeted businesses and other entities. But can soft law actually work to solve major problems? This Article considers the value of soft law governance through the lens of three major voluntary, nongovernmental initiatives that address environmental concerns: (1) ISO 14001 …

Digital Mapping Of Togo’S Soil Fertility: Savannah Region, Aminou Saibou

English Language Institute

A soil assessment was carried out in the savannah region of Togo in 2018, aiming at drawing the digital map of Togo’s soil fertility and making fertilizer recommendations. Soil samples were taken from geo-referenced GPS points and were analyzed for parameters such as water pH, Organic matter, available phosphorus and exchangeable potassium. Thematic maps have been drawn using an ArcGIS package. The results showed that the soils of the Savannah region in Togo are mainly (84%) not very acidic (pH = 5.5 to 6.5), overall poor to very poor (84%) in organic matter (<2% OM), essentially poor to very poor (86%) in available phosphorus (<15 mg/kg of soil) and mostly very poor (87%) in exchangeable potassium (<90 mg / kg of soil). These results allowed the agricultural research institute of Togo to make fertilizer use recommendations and to develop, in partnership with Morocco, a digital platform (fertitogo.tg ) for decision making in crop fertilization.

A Survey Of Dairy-Goat Keeping In Zanzibar, Tiffanie Stone, Charles A. Francis, L. O. Eik

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Dairy goats with improved genetics for milk production were recently introduced onto small-scale farms in Zanzibar through governmental and non-governmental projects. These projects were meant to support small-scale farmers by improving both income and household nutrition through milk production. No follow up had been conducted to understand what effects dairy goat keeping had on these small-scale farms, or how they could be improved. A survey of 193 dairy goat farmers in Zanzibar was conducted, including 30% and 60% of all dairy goat farmers on Unguja and Pemba, the two largest islands, respectively. The objective was to understand the impact keeping …

Tapping The Sweet Spot: Predicting The Suitability Of A Woodlot’S Potential To Transition Into A Productive Sugarbush In Maine, Deven M. Teisl

Non-Thesis Student Work

Through conversations with Dr. Sara Velardi, a postdoctoral research associate who has been doing research on maple producers’ scale management decisions in Maine, most current owners and operators in the maple syrup industry have the common interest of expanding their current operations, but they are unsure of how to approach that problem. Due to these current issues, my research focused on creating a sugarbush assessment tool. This assessment tool consists of a set of guidelines which can be utilized by current or future producers and can be used to easily assess woodlots without having to hire a consulting forester to …

Year Long Water Quality Analysis Of White Horn Brook, Kevin Dyer

Senior Honors Projects

KEVIN DYER (Marine Biology)

Year-long Analysis of the Water Quality of White Horn Brook

Sponsor: Thomas Boving (Geological Sciences)

Water is the foundation for all life on earth and is the most vital resource on this planet. Despite this, oceans and waterways all over the world are being polluted and exploited in ways detrimental to their fundamental hydrologic functions. For instance, excess nitrate levels can lead to eutrophication which gives rise to harmful algae blooms. Low pH can cause the breakdown of CaCO3 exoskeletons of organisms, such mollusks. High temperature variations are major stressors to living things and can cause …

Internet Of Things In Agricultural Innovation And Security, Abdul Salam

Faculty Publications

The agricultural Internet of Things (Ag-IoT) paradigm has tremendous potential in transparent integration of underground soil sensing, farm machinery, and sensor-guided irrigation systems with the complex social network of growers, agronomists, crop consultants, and advisors. The aim of the IoT in agricultural innovation and security chapter is to present agricultural IoT research and paradigm to promote sustainable production of safe, healthy, and profitable crop and animal agricultural products. This chapter covers the IoT platform to test optimized management strategies, engage farmer and industry groups, and investigate new and traditional technology drivers that will enhance resilience of the farmers to the …

Internet Of Things In Water Management And Treatment, Abdul Salam

Faculty Publications

The goal of the water security IoT chapter is to present a comprehensive and integrated IoT based approach to environmental quality and monitoring by generating new knowledge and innovative approaches that focus on sustainable resource management. Mainly, this chapter focuses on IoT applications in wastewater and stormwater, and the human and environmental consequences of water contaminants and their treatment. The IoT applications using sensors for sewer and stormwater monitoring across networked landscapes, water quality assessment, treatment, and sustainable management are introduced. The studies of rate limitations in biophysical and geochemical processes that support the ecosystem services related to water quality …