Physical and Environmental Geography Commons^™

Mapping With The Land: Co-Developing A Cumulative Impact Monitoring And Land Stewardship Framework With Sambaa K’E First Nation, Northwest Territories, Canada, Michael S. Mcphee

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Across the Northwest Territories (NWT), Canada, Indigenous populations are striving to achieve effective environmental protection, whilst navigating complex methods, policies, and research relationships within co-management contexts. This thesis seeks to identify how differing cultural systems, environmental change, and fractured partnerships may be unified to align with the needs of the Sambaa K’e First Nation (SKFN), a remote Dehcho Dene community. Indigenous methodologies guided co-development of research questions with SKFN leadership which yielded objectives a) develop a GIS-based method to manage, organize and mobilize cultural and environmental data; b) develop a new stewardship monitoring procedure so that users can apply the …

Lake Huron Shoreline Analysis, Shubham Satish Nandanwar

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Lake Huron is a popular tourist destination and is home to several businesses and residents. Since the shoreline is dynamic and is subject to change over the years due to several factors such as a change in water level, soil type, human encroachment, etc., these locations tend to encounter floods due to increased water levels and wind speed. This causes erosion and loss to the properties along the shoreline.

This study is based on two areas of interest named Pinery Provincial Park and Sauble Beach which are located on the shoreline of Lake Huron where Pinery Provincial Park is a …

Spatial Modelling And Wildlife Health Surveillance: A Case Study Of White Nose Syndrome In Ontario, Lauren Yee

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Wildlife data is often limited by survey effort, small sample sizes, and spatial biases associated with collection and missing data. These factors can create unique challenges from a surveillance perspective when trying to extract spatial patterns of habitat suitability and disease distributions for conservation and management purposes. This thesis examined data quality from a wildlife health database in the context of spatial analysis of wildlife disease. Spatial analysis of the data to predict habitat suitability of bats and white nose syndrome afflicted bats was examined by using the MaxEnt modelling method. Methods to reduce spatial bias were examined and specific …

Identifying Potential Carbon Flux Responses To Shifting Hydroecological And Climactic Regimes In The Peace-Athabasca Delta, Caleb W. Light

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The CO2 flux response of organic carbon stored in lake sediments and littoral peat contained in sensitive, northern wetlands may contribute to accelerating atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Temperature and moisture conditions are important variables that affect the rate and quantity of CO2 released to the atmosphere from organic matter stored in lake sediments and peat. Antecedent hydroecological conditions also influence the direction and magnitude of CO2 fluxes to the atmosphere in a changing environment. To better understand and characterize the role of antecedent conditions on CO2 fluxes, this study combines paleolimnological reconstructions with laboratory incubations of littoral peat and lake sediment …

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 …

An Assessment Of Hybrid Poplar Biomass Plantations For Ontario, Peter Caleb Sturrup

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The search for an alternative to oil dominated political and economic thinking during the 1970’s and continues in this decade. In Ontario, one such alternative is methanol, which could possibly be supplied in large quantities from hybrid poplar biomass plantations. While the nature of these plantations has been debated at greath length, the exact quantity and location of land that could be available for plantations in Ontario has not been identified.

Using the Land Evaluation Model (LEM 2) developed at the University of Guelph an inventory of the land resources and the resulting land use patterns is determined. Throughout the …

Changes In The Forest Composition In The Great Lakes St. Lawrence Forest Region Of Ontario And The Resultant Outbreaks Of The Spruce Budworm Choristoneura Fumiferana (Clem.), John F. Bowen

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The spruce budworm Choristoneura fumiferana Clem. is the foremost forest pest in Canada. The species is endemic to eastern North America. Since the turn of the century the insect has become a major problem in the “Great Lakes St. Lawrence Forest Region” of Ontario, an area where prior to recent times the insect did not occur in damaging numbers.

Analysis of the life cycle of the insect reveals that the only limiting factor capable of controlling outbreaks is a lack of food. The required tree species is balsam fir Abies balsama (L.) Mill. The forests of Ontario have been altered …

A Review And Case Study Of The Effect Of Urbanisation On Streamflow, R.F. Fraser

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

No abstract provided.