Other Environmental Sciences Commons^™

Estimation Of The Virtualwater Content Of Main Crops On The Korean Peninsula Using Multiple Regional Climate Models And Evapotranspiration Methods, Chul-Hee Lim, Seung Hee Kim, Yuyoung Choi, Menas Kafatos, Woo-Kyun Lee

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Sustainable agriculture in the era of climate change needs to find solutions for the retention and proper utilization of water. This study proposes an ensemble approach for identifying the virtual water content (VWC) of main crops on the Korean Peninsula in past and future climates. Ensemble results with low uncertainty were obtained using three regional climate models, five potential evapotranspiration methods, and the Environmental Policy Integrated Climate (EPIC) crop model. The productivity results of major crops (rice and maize) under climate change are likely to increase more than in the past based on the ensemble results. The ensemble VWC is ...

Environmental Impacts Of Holiday Gift Giving Of Books And Movies, Benjamin Shaffer

DePaul Discoveries

This project examines the relationship between gift giving deadweight loss (when the cost of a gift exceeds it value to the recipient) or welfare gain (when the value of a gift to a recipient exceeds the cost of a gift), and the environmental impact of gifts. Surveys of American adults were used to determine the economic welfare losses or gains created by holiday gift giving, comparing gifts of traditional (paper) books and DVD or Blu-ray format movies. Both products showed overall welfare gains as gifts, with books averaging a larger welfare gain than movies. An ANOVA was done to determine ...

Fish And Macroinvertebrate Response To Restored Off Channel Habitats On The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Caleb Uerling

Dissertations & Theses in Natural Resources

Anthropogenic alterations to large rivers ranging from impoundments to levees have caused many rivers to no longer access the floodplain. The ecological integrity of floodplain rivers depends on the interaction between main-channel and floodplain habitats. Fish communities inhabiting floodplain habitats are often dictated by the type of habitat and conditions within that habitat. As restoration projects are undertaken it is imperative that managers understand how fish and macroinvertebrates respond to these events. We collected fish, macroinvertebrates, and habitat parameters on two restored floodplain habitats on the lower Platte River, Nebraska to answer questions about aquatic community response to floodplain restoration ...

The Spatiotemporal Distribution Of Air Pollutants And Their Relationship With Land-Use Patterns In Hangzhou City, China, Sheng Zheng, Xueyuan Zhou, Ramesh Singh, Yuzhe Wu, Yanmei Ye, Cifang Wu

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Air pollution contributes to a large fraction of the total mortality estimated under the global burden of disease project (GBD) of the World Health Organization (WHO). This paper discusses an integrated study to obtain the spatiotemporal characteristics of particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) and trace gases (O3, SO2, NO2, and CO) pollutants in Hangzhou City (China) for the years 2014–2016. Our detailed analysis shows a relationship between air pollutants and land-use/land-cover change. Air quality parameters (PM2.5 and PM10) and trace gases (SO2, NO2, and CO) show strong monthly variations in the months of January (higher values ...

Reversing Inequality, Combatting Climate Change: A Climate Jobs Program For New York State, J. Mijin Cha, Lara Skinner

Research Studies and Reports

[Excerpt] Economic inequality in New York is rising. Currently, the state has the second highest level of economic inequality in the country. Unequal job growth across the state and stagnant wages in several sectors are two of the main contributors to rising inequality. While the state overall has seen several years of employment growth, there are stronger employment gains in New York City than in other parts of the state still suffering from job losses and stagnant employment levels. Additionally, in many sectors, such as construction and manufacturing, wages are not increasing at the same pace as inflation, leaving many ...

Embodied Carbon: A Framework For Prioritizing And Reducing Emissions In The Building Industry, Natalie C. Wheating

Master's Projects and Capstones

Global climate change is one of the most impactful environmental issues in modern times, and the construction industry is known to be one of the largest contributors to carbon emissions—one of the key causes of climate change. Embodied carbon emissions of buildings are an often overlooked, but significant, influencer of a building’s overall carbon footprint. This gives rise to the need for improved life cycle analysis of buildings and identification of opportunities to reduce the total carbon footprint of a building throughout its life cycle. This paper analyzes the current state of the building industry that limits the ...

The Relationship Between Carbon Emissions, Land Use Change And The Oil Palm Industry Within Southeast Asia, Savanna L. Booth

Master's Projects and Capstones

Tropical forests store the largest amount of carbon globally by sequestering up to 2.7 Gt of carbon every year in soils and vegetation. Deforestation and the conversion of tropical peatland soil have contributed to global anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions, as well as significantly hindering tropical ecosystems and the natural carbon sequestration potential that could potentially help mitigate atmospheric CO₂ levels. Deforestation has increased rapidly since the 1970’s across Southeast Asia with oil palm contributing to 61% of deforestation between 2010 and 2015 with emissions reaching 22.1 million tons CO₂-eq during that time. The conversions ...

Groundwater Vulnerability Assessment For Nitrate Pollution In The Salinas Valley Using A Modified Drastic Model, Bernadette Boyle

Master's Projects and Capstones

Groundwater is an integral piece of California’s groundwater resources. One of the most common contaminants present in groundwater is nitrate. Nitrate contamination is often a result of agricultural land use activities on the ground surface. The study area for this analysis is the Salinas Valley Groundwater Basin, an agriculturally dominated basin in coastal California. The Salinas Valley Basin is both one of the most agriculturally productive areas of the state, as well as one of the most nitrate-contaminated basins in the state. The purpose of this research was to develop a groundwater vulnerability map for nitrate pollution in the ...

Environmental Health, Tessa Oliaro

Student Research Day Abstracts and Posters

There is a very important intersection between the environment, public health, and socioeconomic factors (Braveman, 2014). These include waste disposal, water use and quality, road safety, ecosystem services, and many more. Environmental health stresses, “the health impacts of physical, chemical, and biological agents in the environment and workplace, and learns to develop strategies to measure and control major environmental health problems both locally…and in settings around the globe” (UC Berkeley School of Public Health, 2017). This overarching umbrella can have emphases in environmental epidemiology, exposure science, climate change, ergonomics, home and industrial hygiene, and molecular epidemiology. Exploring each of ...

A Market Analysis On Green Production Lines Penetrating Into Original Equipment Manufacturers (Oems), Guiping Hu, Lizhi Wang, Bopaya Bidanda

Lizhi Wang

Fierce market competition has been big obstacle in the growth process of sustainable/green production industry. Sustainable production lines often come into play by penetrating into traditional Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). This is due to the high setup cost and opportunity risks. In this study, we look into the scenario when traditional Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) introduce green production lines into their production systems. We want to address the questions whether and how the green production lines can survive in the market competitions. Analyses are conducted between ordinary and green production sectors which produce a similar type of product with ...

Problematizing Socio-Scientific Issues: An Approach To Understanding Student Decision-Making Using Construal Level Theory, Ashley M. Peterson

Dissertations & Theses in Natural Resources

Socio-scientific issues (SSIs) are challenges at the intersection of science and everyday life that require use of scientific knowledge, argumentation skills, personal values, and morals to articulate science-informed decisions. While addressing SSIs, the ways in which individuals define a problem will influence the solution or decision reached. The problem definition can differ along many dimensions, including content and construal level. A construal is a mental construction of the past and future, other places and people, and unlikely events. Construal Level Theory (CLT) suggests pro-environmental intentions are associated with abstract situations. I explore the application of CLT to teaching and learning ...

Integration Of Hydrogeophysical Datasets For Improved Water Resource Management In Irrigated Systems, Catherine E. Finkenbiner

Dissertations & Theses in Natural Resources

Water scarcity is predicted to be the major limitation to increasing agronomic outputs to meet future food and fiber demands. With the agricultural sector accounting for 80 – 90% of all consumptive water use and an average water use efficiency (WUE) of less than 45%, major advances must be made in irrigation water management. Precision agriculture, specifically variable-rate irrigation (VRI) and variable-speed irrigation (VSI) systems, offers the technologies to address and manage for infield variability and incorporate that into management decisions. The major limitation to implementing this technology often lies in the management of spatial datasets and the development of irrigation ...

Dispersal Rate Of The Asian Clam (Corbicula Fluminea): A Study With Pit Tagging, Tommy Cianciolo

University of Tennessee Honors Thesis Projects

No abstract provided.

Assessment And Characterization Of Microbial Communities In Salt Affected Soils On Galveston Island, Elaine Fowler

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

After Hurricane Ike in 2008, Galveston Island was flooded with sea water that left the soil and groundwater of the island with elevated sodium concentrations. As part of a long-term study that aims to restore plant life to the island, various soil amelioration techniques are being evaluated. Samples from bedded and non- bedded plots treated with gypsum, mulch, or both were assessed for microbial populations. Samples collected in July and October 2016 were cultured on Tryptic Soy Agar (bacteria enumeration), Pseudomonas Agar, Actinomycete Agar, and Rose Bengal Agar (fungi enumeration). Bacteria populations ranged from 4.07 to 5.12 log ...

Is It Rational To Care About The Natural Environment?, Joshua Brown

Theses and Dissertations

This paper helps address the question of how people who currently care about the natural environment, or nature, might rationally persuade those who do not currently have such concern. Philosophers have largely ignored this question, but it is important outside philosophy. For instance, many environmental advocates seem to believe that others should care about nature. At least much writing that falls under the broad category of environmentalism intends to persuade us to care about nature in one way or another.

In this paper, I argue that people should care about nature to the extent that they have three other, rationally ...

Climate Forecasts For Corn Producer Decision Making, Eugene S. Takle, Christopher J. Anderson, Jeffrey Andresen, James Angel, Roger W. Elmore, Benjamin M. Gramig, Patrick Guinan, Steven Hilberg, Doug Kluck, Raymond Massey, Dev Niyogi, Jeanne M. Schneider, Martha Shulski, Dennis Todey, Melissa Widhalm

Eugene Takle

Corn is the most widely grown crop in the Americas, with annual production in the United States of approximately 332 million metric tons. Improved climate forecasts, together with climate-related decision tools for corn producers based on these improved forecasts, could substantially reduce uncertainty and increase profitability for corn producers. The purpose of this paper is to acquaint climate information developers, climate information users, and climate researchers with an overview of weather conditions throughout the year that affect corn production as well as forecast content and timing needed by producers. The authors provide a graphic depicting the climate-informed decision cycle, which ...

Plant Diversity Influences The Structure And Function Of A Restored Prairie And Its Responses To Added Disturbances, Rebecca Bevans

Dissertations & Theses in Natural Resources

As global warming, human conversion of natural landscapes to agricultural uses, and widespread biodiversity losses continue to alter the ecosystems we depend on, an understanding of the relationship between ecosystem structure, composition, and function is needed to maintain valuable ecosystem states and their associated functions. Research testing the limits of an ecosystem’s ability to maintain essential structure and functioning under disturbance conditions can aid in this goal.

In this study, I measured the relationship between plant diversity, community structure and functional traits, and their responses to added disturbances. I added disturbances representing those either caused or intensified by human ...

A Market Analysis On Green Production Lines Penetrating Into Original Equipment Manufacturers (Oems), Guiping Hu, Lizhi Wang, Bopaya Bidanda

Guiping Hu

Fierce market competition has been big obstacle in the growth process of sustainable/green production industry. Sustainable production lines often come into play by penetrating into traditional Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). This is due to the high setup cost and opportunity risks. In this study, we look into the scenario when traditional Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) introduce green production lines into their production systems. We want to address the questions whether and how the green production lines can survive in the market competitions. Analyses are conducted between ordinary and green production sectors which produce a similar type of product with ...

Stakeholder Involvement In Strategic Adaptation Planning: Transdisciplinarity And Co-Production At Stake?

Christine Wamsler

Techno-Economic Approach For Solar Energy Concept Onboard Marine Vehicles, Ibrahim S. Seddiek

MARENER 2017

No abstract provided.