Environmental Health and Protection Commons^™

Imidacloprid Persistence, Mobility, And Effect On Ecosystem Function, Joanna Hardin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Imidacloprid is a neonicotinoid pesticide used to protect against biting and sucking insects. Land managers rely on its systemic properties, however long-term studies investigating imidacloprid effects on ecosystem function are limited. This study investigated imidacloprid applications to Tsuga caroliniana and Tsuga canadensis over time and compared concentrations to measures of ecosystem function including soil respiration, microbial function, and invertebrate density. Results indicate that imidacloprid is persistent (p0.5). Microbial function and invertebrate density were not significantly different between control and treatment locations nor did imidacloprid concentrations correlate with ecosystem functional indicator activity (p>0.05). It is evident that imidacloprid does not …

Keeping Pace With Relative Sea Level Rise: Marsh Platform Monitoring Shows Minimal Sediment Deficit Along The Louisiana Coast, Kelly Marie Sanks

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Recent reports estimate that the marshes of the Mississippi Delta receive just 30% of the sediment necessary to sustain current land area1. An extensive monitoring campaign by the USGS and LCPRA provides direct measurements of sediment accumulation, subsidence rates, and deposit characteristics along the coast over the past 10 years2, allowing us to directly evaluate this sediment balance. By interpolating bulk density, organic fraction, and vertical accretion rates from 273 sites, a direct measurement of organic and inorganic sediment accumulation can be made. Results show that a total of 82 MT/year of sediment is delivered to the coast. Using a …

Assessment Of Drinking Water/Aquifer Vulnerability To Contamination By Natural Manganese And Anthropogenic Chemicals In The U.S., Ryan Kelly

International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE)

Aquifers in the U.S. store groundwater used by many Americans every day for drinking eating, bathing and cleaning. These underground sources of water are vital to life and may be subject to contamination from both natural and anthropogenic pollution, including manganese (Mn) – especially shallow aquifers (<100 feet to bedrock). Natural sources of Mn are found in soils, surficial deposits, and bedrock, while anthropogenic contamination derives from landfills, waste facilities, or industries that use toxic materials. Pollutants like Mn raise concern because there is no policy in place to enforce regulation of Mn levels in water supplies based on limited information about health effects. Yet studies have shown elevated levels of Mn intake can lead to adverse human health effects. This study uses ArcMap to identify potential sources of Mn and/or toxics contamination in shallow U.S. aquifers based on geologic characteristics of a given aquifer source and proximity to waste sites. The results show approximately 2 million Americans may be at risk of consuming water with natural Mn contamination, and of those 2 million, close to 1.7 million are also vulnerable to additional toxics from anthropogenic waste. …

Desalination Concentrate Disposal: Ecological Effects And Sustainable Solutions, Ryan Hanley

Global Honors Theses

Freshwater availability is a growing global concern, and desalination is often presented as the solution, but from this important technology comes issues of toxic waste. Ecosystems are delicate areas that contain species adapted to that specific location, and any chemical or physical changes can disrupt the fitness of species. The concentrate byproduct waste from desalination plants is toxic to species if the concentrate is not compatible with the receiving water body. A critical review of scientific articles, industry-leading books, conversations with industry experts, and information from the American Membrane Technology Association conference was used to analyze the current knowledge. Species …

Radical Social Ecology As Deep Pragmatism: A Call To The Abolition Of Systemic Dissonance And The Minimization Of Entropic Chaos, Arielle Brender

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper aims to shed light on the dissonance caused by the superimposition of Dominant Human Systems on Natural Systems. I highlight the synthetic nature of Dominant Human Systems as egoic and linguistic phenomenon manufactured by a mere portion of the human population, which renders them inherently oppressive unto peoples and landscapes whose wisdom were barred from the design process. In pursuing a radical pragmatic approach to mending the simultaneous oppression and destruction of the human being and the earth, I highlight the necessity of minimizing entropic chaos caused by excess energy expenditure, an essential feature of systems that aim …

Comparative Analysis Of Survival And Decay Of Fecal Indicator Bacteria In Bovine Feces And Freshwater Microcosms, Reem Tariq

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Agricultural runoff can carry FIB that can pollute surface waters through the soil matrix. This study was designed to inspect the impact of temperature and matrix on the survival of FIB. The FIB were routinely enumerated over an 18-day period from fecal samples and freshwater microcosms maintained at 4oC, 22oC, and 35oC. It was found that the FIB studied underwent a primary growth of up to 1-log10 to 3-log10, highlighting the weakness of conventional FIB as indicators of pathogen contamination. The concentrations of FIB in the water phase were found to be significantly greater than those observed in the fecal …

Sustainability At Sit: A Look At The Past, A Plan For The Future, Taliesin Haugh

Capstone Collection

Climate change threatens our world and way of life. Intelligent development and investment could mitigate the worst threats of climate change, while simultaneously providing continuous growth for the global economy. The New Climate Economy proposes efforts to combat this ecological collapse that would result in $30 trillion in new annual economic growth by 2030. Stockholm Resilience Center agrees, giving a framework based on global ecological systems that calls for five critical tasks that can bring growth and stability: Renewable energy

Sustainable local food production

New development models, based on what has worked globally

Reduction of wealth inequity

Education, health, and …

Examining The Issue Of Compliance With Personal Protective Equipment Among Wastewater Workers Across The Southeast Region Of The United States, Tamara L. Wright

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Wastewater workers are exposed to different occupational hazards such as chemicals, gases, viruses, and bacteria. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is a significant factor that can reduce or increase the probability of an accident from hazardous exposures to chemicals and microbial contaminants. The purpose of this study was to identify wastewater worker’s beliefs and practices on wearing PPE and protections offered by PPE through the integration of the Health Belief Model (HBM). Participants were workers in the wastewater industry, which included wastewater operators, laboratory analysts, maintenance workers, wastewater collection workers, equipment operators, managers, and supervisors (n=272). The instrument was a self-administered …

Presence And Potential Sources Of Pharmaceutical And Personal Care Product Chemicals In Messalonskee Lake, Alyssa T. Kullberg

Honors Theses

Pharmaceuticals and personal care product chemicals (PPCPs) represent a large group of contaminants that are mostly not regulated in surface or drinking water and whose presence and environmental and health impacts are poorly understood. We investigated the presence and potential sources of 18 PPCPs in Messalonskee Lake. We collected samples four times over the summer of 2017 at 13 sites around the lake. Samples were tested for PPCPs using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. We detected five out of the 18 PPCPs we tested for at the ng/L level: caffeine, 1,7-dimethylxanthine, acetaminophen, sulfachloropyridazine, and amphetamine. PPCPs showed a significant positive correlation …