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Systematic Study On Carbon Emission Reduction Of Municipal Solid Waste Treatment, Jisheng Long, Hailiang Du, Xin Zou, Jingying Huang

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version)

Under the context of China's carbon peak and carbon neutrality, the treatment of municipal solid waste (MSW) is facing new challenge to reduce carbon emission. This study suggests that significant carbon emission reduction and dual cycle of mass and energy can be realized, under the context of MSW classification, by the collaborative treatment of multi-source solid waste in Eco-Industrial Park. Results showed that in 2020, the incineration and landfilling of MSW in China reduced 5.18 million tons of CO2 emission, at the same year, 15 million tons of CO2 emission could have been reduced if the wet waste was treated …

Effects Of Spatially Heterogeneous Lakeside Development On Nearshore Biotic Communities In A Large, Deep, Oligotrophic Lake, Michael F. Meyer, Ted Ozersky, Kara H. Woo, Kirill Shchapov, Aaron W. E. Galloway, Julie B. Schram, Emma J. Rosi, Daniel D. Snow, Maxim A. Timofeyev, Dmitry Yu. Karnaukhov, Matthew R. Brousil, Stephanie E. Hampton

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Sewage released from lakeside development can reshape ecological communities. Nearshore periphyton can rapidly assimilate sewage-associated nutrients, leading to increases of filamentous algal abundance, thus altering both food abundance and quality for grazers. In Lake Baikal, a large, ultra-oligotrophic, remote lake in Siberia, filamentous algal abundance has increased near lakeside developments, and localized sewage input is the suspected cause. These shifts are of particular interest in Lake Baikal, where endemic littoral biodiversity is high, lakeside settlements are mostly small, tourism is relatively high (~1.2 million visitors annually), and settlements are separated by large tracts of undisturbed shoreline, enabling investigation of heterogeneity …

Collateral Damage: Anticoagulant Rodenticides Pose Threats To California Condors, Garth Herring, Collin A. Eagles-Smith, Rachel Wolstenholme, Alacia Welch, Chris West, Barnett A. Rattner

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Anticoagulant rodenticides (ARs) are widespread environmental contaminants that pose risks to scavenging birds because they routinely occur within their prey and can cause secondary poisoning. However, little is known about AR exposure in one of the rarest avian scavengers in the world, the California condor (Gymnogyps californianus). We assessed AR exposure in California condors and surrogate turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) to gauge potential hazard to a proposed future condor flock by determining how application rate and environmental factors influence exposure. Additionally, we examined whether ARs might be correlated with prolonged blood clotting time and potential mortality …

Experimental Infection Of Brazilian Free-Tailed Bats (Tadarida Brasiliensis) With Two Strains Of Sars-Cov-2, Angela M. Bosco-Lauth, Stephanie M. Porter, Karen A. Fox, Mary E. Wood, Daniel Neubaum, Marissa Quilici

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is presumed to have originated from wildlife and shares homology with other bat coronaviruses. Determining the susceptibility of North American bat species to SARS-CoV-2 is of utmost importance for making decisions regarding wildlife management, public health, and conservation. In this study, Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) were experimentally infected with two strains of SARS-CoV-2 (parental WA01 and Delta variant), evaluated for clinical disease, sampled for viral shedding and antibody production, and analyzed for pathology. None of the bats (n = 18) developed clinical disease associated with infection, shed infectious virus, or …

Limited Rigor In Studies Of Raptor Mortality And Mitigation At Wind Power Facilities, Tara J. Conkling, Christopher J.W. Mcclure, Sandra Cuadros, Scott R. Loss, Todd E. Katzner

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Wind power is an expanding source of renewable energy. However, there are ecological challenges related to wind energy generation, including collisions of wildlife with turbines. Lack of rigor, and variation in study design, together limit efforts to understand the broad-scale effects of wind power infrastructure on wildlife populations. It is not clear, however, whether these types of limitations apply to groups of birds such as raptors that are particularly vulnerable to negative effects of wind energy. We reviewed 672 peer-reviewed publications, unpublished reports, and citations from 321 wind facilities in 12 countries to evaluate methods used to monitor and mitigate …

Long-Term Effect Of A Gnrh-Based Immunocontraceptive On Feral Cattle In Hong Kong, Rebecca Pinkham, Ka-Kei Koon, Jason To, Jason Chan, Flavie Vial, Matt Gomm, Douglas C. Eckery, Giovanna Massei

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Increasing human-wildlife conflicts worldwide are driving the need for multiple solutions to reducing “problem” wildlife and their impacts. Fertility control is advocated as a non-lethal tool to manage free-living wildlife and in particular to control iconic species. Injectable immunocontraceptives, such as GonaCon, stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies against the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH), which in turn affects the release of reproductive hormones in mammals. Feral cattle (Bos indicus or Bos taurus) in Hong Kong are an iconic species whose numbers and impacts on human activities have increased over the last decade. Previous studies have proven that a …

Long-Term Effect Of A Gnrh-Based Immunocontraceptive On Feral Cattle In Hong Kong, Rebecca Pinkham, Ka-Kei Koon, Jason To, Jason Chan, Flavie Vial, Matt Gomm, Douglas C. Eckery, Giovanna Massei

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Increasing human-wildlife conflicts worldwide are driving the need for multiple solutions to reducing “problem” wildlife and their impacts. Fertility control is advocated as a non-lethal tool to manage free-living wildlife and in particular to control iconic species. Injectable immunocontraceptives, such as GonaCon, stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies against the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH), which in turn affects the release of reproductive hormones in mammals. Feral cattle (Bos indicus or Bos taurus) in Hong Kong are an iconic species whose numbers and impacts on human activities have increased over the last decade. Previous studies have proven that a …

Evaluating The Potential Effect Of Nitrogen And Toxicological Responses Of Juvenile Lampsilis Reeveiana (Mollusca: Unionidae) In The Buffalo National River, Anna Marie Pieri

Student Theses and Dissertations

The Buffalo National River (BUFF) was established as the first national river in 1972 and later designated as an Extraordinary Resource Water and Natural and Scenic Waterway. This thesis seeks to address the potential threat of elevated nutrients and its association with freshwater mussel declines in the BUFF through laboratory and in situ exposures. Water and sediment chemistry data were collected, and relevant thresholds were used to extrapolate lab-to-field toxicity during low-flow events. Acute toxicity was not observed; however, low-concentration chronic toxicity may be influencing mussel assemblages with rising temperatures. Water quality degradation is likely the result of combined sources …

Assessment Of Water Quality, Fish Diversity, And Lead (Pb) In The Agriculturally Dominated Upper Cache River Watershed, Arkansas, Amelia K. Atwell

Student Theses and Dissertations

Freshwater is an important, finite, commodity necessary for nearly all facets of human life. Due to its vast usage, a large portion of freshwater has become impaired, impacting water quality. Worldwide, pollution from rivers and streams are causing eutrophication in marine environments into which they flow, negatively affecting aquatic life. The hypoxic zone in the Gulf of Mexico has reached record size in the last decade with agricultural activity within the Mississippi River Basin, including the Cache River Watershed of northeast Arkansas, contributing to the cause. Over 70% of the Cache River Watershed is used for agriculture and the upper …

Calcium Bearing Mineral-Hydrogel Composites For Phosphate Removal And Recovery, Albern Xuan-Wei Tan

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

The millions of tons of phosphate rock ore mined every year for use as phosphorus fertilizer have created two challenges. First, phosphate rock is a mined, non-renewable resource that is also heavily geographically concentrated, raising concerns about the long-term sustainability and availability of phosphorus. Second, after it is applied as a fertilizer, phosphorus will also be released to the broader environment. There, it contributes to harmful algal blooms and eutrophication, which threaten surface water quality and can harm aquatic ecosystems and the communities and industries that rely on them. These considerations motivate the coupled development of techniques for removing and …

Global Food Insecurity And Famine From Reduced Crop, Marine Fishery And Livestock Production Due To Climate Disruption From Nuclear War Soot Injection, Lilia Xia, Alan Robock, Kim J. N. Scherrer, Cheryl S. Harrison, Benjamin Leon Bodirsky, Isabelle Weindl, Jonas Jaegermeyr, Charles G. Bardeen, Owen B. Toon, Ryan F. Heneghan

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Atmospheric soot loadings from nuclear weapon detonation would cause disruptions to the Earth’s climate, limiting terrestrial and aquatic food production. Here, we use climate, crop and fishery models to estimate the impacts arising from six scenarios of stratospheric soot injection, predicting the total food calories available in each nation post-war after stored food is consumed. In quantifying impacts away from target areas, we demonstrate that soot injections larger than 5 Tg would lead to mass food shortages, and livestock and aquatic food production would be unable to compensate for reduced crop output, in almost all countries. Adaptation measures such as …

Warming Overcomes Dispersal-Limitation To Promote Non-Native Expansion In Lake Baikal, Larry L. Bowman Jr., Daniel J. Wieczynski, Lev Y. Yampolsky, David M. Post

ETSU Faculty Works

Non-native species and climate change pose serious threats to global biodiversity. However, the roles of climate, dispersal, and competition are difficult to disentangle in heterogeneous landscapes. We combine empirical data and theory to examine how these forces influence the spread of non-native species in Lake Baikal. We analyze the potential for Daphnia longispina to establish in Lake Baikal, potentially threatening an endemic, cryophillic copepod Epischurella baikalensis. We collected field samples to establish current community composition and compared them to model predictions informed by flow rates, present-day temperatures, and temperature projections. Our data and model agree that expansion is currently …

A Methodological Review Of Tools That Assess Dust Microbiomes, Metatranscriptomes And The Particulate Chemistry Of Indoor Dust, Yousef Nazzal, Fares M. Howari, Aya Yaslam, Jibran Iqbal, Lina Maloukh, Lakshmi Kesari Ambika, Ahmed A. Al-Taani, Ijaz Ali, Eman M. Othman, Arshad Jamal, Muhammad Naseem

All Works

Indoor house dust is a blend of organic and inorganic materials, upon which diverse microbial communities such as viruses, bacteria and fungi reside. Adequate moisture in the indoor environment helps microbial communities multiply fast. The outdoor air and materials that are brought into the buildings by airflow, sandstorms, animals pets and house occupants endow the indoor dust particles with extra features that impact human health. Assessment of the health effects of indoor dust particles, the type of indoor microbial inoculants and the secreted enzymes by indoor insects as allergens merit detailed investigation. Here, we discuss the applications of next generation …

Bacterial Diseases Of Tilapia, Their Zoonotic Potential And Risk Of Antimicrobial Resistance, Olga L. M. Haenen, Ha Thanh Dong, Truong Dinh Hoai, Margaret Crumlish, Iddya Karunasagar, Timothy Barkham, Swaine L. Chen, Ruth Zadoks, Andreas Kiermeier, Bing Wang, Esther Garrido Gamarro, Masami Takeuchi, Mohammad Noor Amal Azma, Belén Fouz, Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center, Zeng Wei Wei, Melba G. Bondad-Reantaso

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Tilapia culture is an important source of income and nutrition to many rural families. Since 2000, the production of tilapia increased and reached domestic and global markets. Major farmed species is Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), in earthen ponds and cage cultures. Intensification contributed to global tilapia disease outbreaks, with bacterial infections causing mortalities and morbidities, threatening sustainable production. At tilapia farms, high nutrient concentrations, water temperature and fish densities enhance bacterial growth including virulent bacterial clones and potential zoonotic bacteria. Global warming favours this. This review respectively provides a comprehensive overview of the most common and emerging bacterial …

Spatial Variation Of False Map Turtle (Graptemys Pseudogeographica) Bacterial Microbiota In The Lower Missouri River, United States, Joseph D. Madison, Madeline M. Butterfield, Drew R. Davis, Jacob L. Kerby

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Turtle populations around the world are continually confronted with changing environments that affect their ecology and conservation status. Among freshwater turtles, population dynamics are thought to be mediated by complex yet often cryptic causes. One recent direction of focus in addressing these causes is the turtle-associated microbiota. In turtles, the gut- associated microbiota is of exceptional interest due to its continual association with host species under changing conditions. Diet-based fluctuations and changes in microbial diversity may correspond to varying external environments at both the individual and population level. Environmental responses are of particular interest due to the anthropogenic changes that …

Determining The Effects Of Elevated Carbon Dioxide On Soil Acidification, Cation Depletion, And Soil Inorganic Carbon And Mapping Soil Carbons Using Artificial Intelligence, Jannatul Ferdush

Theses and Dissertations

Soil carbon is the largest sink and source of the global carbon cycle and is disturbed by several natural, anthropogenic, and environmental factors. The global increase of atmospheric CO₂ affects soil carbon cycling through varied biogeochemical processes. The first chapter is a compilation of current information on potential factors triggering soil acidification and weathering mechanisms under elevated CO₂ and their consequences on soil inorganic carbon (SIC) pool and quality. Soil water content and precipitation were critical factors influencing elevated CO₂ effects on the SIC pool. The second chapter examines a detailed column experiment in which six soils …

Improvement Value Of Forest Resources By Use Of Cottonseed Protein Meal As A Bio-Based Wood Adhesive For Hardwood Plywood Products, Edward David Entsminger

Theses and Dissertations

Literature shows that production of cottonseed adhesives is feasible to develop an environmentally friendly and competitive bio-based wood adhesive. Defatted cottonseed and water-washed cottonseed meals were prepared from glandless cottonseed and were used in adhesive formulations to produce three-ply yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) plywood panels as the first objective. These two cottonseed meals were compared with the properties of plywood panels made with an adhesive formulated from a commercial soybean meal, as a control. Adhesive resins were prepared from each protein meal with sodium metabisulfite (Na2S2O5) and one of two polyamido-amine-epichlorohydrin (PAE) wet strength agents, and the plywood panels were …

A Decade Review Of Disease Surveillance Research Trends In The International Journal Of Health Geographics (2009 To 2018), Rose Jimenez, Paradorn Wongchanapai

Publications and Research

The field of health geographics is rapidly growing in its methods and epistemologies. This is a review of the open-source journal International Journal of Health Geographics, and the trends in disease surveillance over ten years (2009-2018). Drawing from research review methodologies, we wrote a Python script to quantify research trends within the field of geographic disease surveillance, finding many articles focusing on population health, techniques of GIS, qualitative techniques, and geospatial technology for health monitoring. This was foundational in conducting an in-depth qualitative lexical analysis of article content and epistemologies. Overall, we concluded that over the time period, the …

Low Levels Of Hybridization Between Sympatric Cold-Water-Adapted Arctic Cod And Polar Cod In The Beaufort Sea Confirm Genetic Distinctiveness, Robert E. Wilson, Sarah A. Sonsthagen, Philip Lavretsky, Andrew Majewski, Einar Árnason, Katrín Halldórsdóttir, Axel W. Einarsson, Kate Wedemeyer, Sandra L. Talbot

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

As marine ecosystems respond to climate change and other stressors, it is necessary to evaluate current and past hybridization events to gain insight on the outcomes and drivers of such events. Ancestral introgression within the gadids has been suggested to allow cod to inhabit a variety of habitats. Little attention has been given to contemporary hybridization, especially within cold-water-adapted cod (Boreogadus saida Lepechin, 1774 and Arctogadus glacialis Peters, 1872). We used whole-genome, restriction-site associated, and mitochondrial sequence data to explore the degree and direction of hybridization between these species where previous hybridization had not been reported. Although nearly identical …

Genetic Freedom Of The Seas In The Age Of Extractivism: Marine Genetic Resources In Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, Irus Braverman

Contributions to Books

Published as Chapter 4 in Laws of the Sea: Interdisciplinary Currents, Irus Braverman, ed.

Areas beyond national jurisdiction are the largest environment on earth and marine genetic resources are its new, and perhaps final, frontier. It is no wonder, then, that the scope and protection of marine genetic resources in this oceanic space have been hotly contested and that a new doctrine for ocean governance has been coined in this context: mare geneticum. This chapter examines different definitions of marine genetic resources debated in the ongoing treaty negotiations over areas beyond national jurisdiction (the BBNJ), the conflicting interests involved, and …

Amphibious Legal Geographies: Toward Land–Sea Regimes, Irus Braverman

Contributions to Books

Published as ine introduction to Laws of the Sea: Interdisciplinary Currents, Irus Braverman, ed.

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book discusses the juridical thinking that has enshrined the land/sea divide into contemporary governmental infrastructures, disciplinary traditions, and regulatory apparatuses, and charts the disastrous implications that such a legal fixation on the land/sea binary has wrought on human and other-than-human lifeworlds. As the collection proceeds, a second broad theme emerges, building on the first: when one rethinks the abstraction of law as played out on the ground, the …

Assessment Of Microplastics In Southeastern Florida Forage Fishes, Maria Kappos

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

Microplastics threaten the health of numerous marine organisms at all trophic levels. Currently, the topic is well studied among larger predators such as marine birds, dolphins, pelagic fishes, and even herbivorous organisms such as manatees. However, knowledge of microplastics present in organisms at lower trophic levels is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to assess the presence of microplastics in lower trophic level forage fishes. To gain a clear depiction of microplastics in the forage fishes of South Florida, four locations were sampled. These locations were classified into two categories, urban (Port Everglades and Northern Biscayne Bay) and …

Heavy Metal Levels And Sources In Suspended Particulate Matters Of The Glacier Watersheds In Northeast Tibetan Plateau, Rui Wu, Zhiwen Dong, Xiping Cheng, Janice Brahney, Xiaoyu Jiao, Lihua Wu

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

This study collected summer meltwater runoff samples from several glacier watersheds of the northeast Tibetan Plateau during June-July 2017, and measured the concentrations of 17 trace elements (Li, Be, Sc, V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, Rb, Mo, Cd, In, Sb, Cs, Ba) in meltwater suspended particulate matter (SPM), in order to reveal the elemental concentration, spatial distribution, and water quality in remote glacier watershed under regional anthropogenic activities. Results showed that, the concentration of heavy metal elements was relatively high in Yuzhufeng Glacier basin, ranging from 0.57 μg/L (In) to 1,551.6 μg/L (Ba), whereas in Qiyi Glacier basin …

Rock Climbing And Conservation In Land Management: Can They Coexist?, Marissa Heller

Geography ETDs

As participation in outdoor recreation is growing in the U.S., a dilemma is presented for conservation planners and land area managers who must manage the increasing demand for recreation while simultaneously working to protect species. Rock climbers and other outdoor recreationalists have asserted that a relationship exists between recreation and the conservation of public lands. However, mounting evidence suggests that rock climbing continues to cause a multitude of negative impacts to ecosystems. Here, I investigate the extent to which land management practices allow for rock climbing and conservation to coexist, and how it is that well developed plans protect ecologically …

Storing Water For The Environment: Operating Reservoirs To Improve California’S Freshwater Ecosystems, Sarah Null, Jeffrey Mount, Brian Gray, Kristen Dybala, Gokce Sencan, Anna Sturrock, Barton Thompson, Harrison Zeff

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

California’s freshwater ecosystems—its lakes, rivers, floodplains, meadows, natural and managed wetlands, and estuaries—are a vital part of the state’s natural infrastructure. These ecosystems provide numerous benefits, including water supply, hydropower, flood control, fisheries, recreation, and cultural and aesthetic value. They are also home to the nation’s most diverse array of plant and animal communities, with numerous freshwater species found only in California (Jensen et al. 1993; Grantham et al. 2017).

An Integrated Gis & Flood Vulnerability Index Approach To Evaluating Risk & Environmental Equity In Urban Karst Communities, Chloe Cooper

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study examines how the usage of an integrated GIS (Geographic Information Systems), flood vulnerability assessment, and management approaches can aid in hazard response planning in karst groundwater systems, particularly in urban environments. In order to also better understand the impacts of flood events on socially vulnerable groups, this research was focused on historically excluded communities. Additionally, place-based vulnerabilities were primarily assessed based upon three main factors in the vulnerability framework and how these components intersect: social, environmental conditions, and economic. By understanding which areas of the City of Bowling Green, an iconic urban karst area, are most vulnerable and …

Fire And Human Management Of Late Holocene Ecosystems In Southern Africa, Benjamin Davies, Mitchell J. Power, David R. Braun, Matthew J. Douglass, Stella G. Mosher, Lynne J. Quick, Irene Esteban, Judith Sealy, John Parkington, J. Tyler Faith

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Globally, fire is a primary agent for modifying environments through the long-term coupling of human and natural systems. In southern Africa, control of fire by humans has been documented since the late Middle Pleistocene, though it is unclear when or if anthropogenic burning led to fundamental shifts in the region's fire regimes. To identify potential periods of broad-scale anthropogenic burning, we analyze aggregated Holocene charcoal sequences across southern Africa, which we compare to paleoclimate records and archaeological data. We show climate-concordant variability in mid-Holocene fire across much of the subcontinent. However, increased regional fire activity during the late Holocene (~2000 …

Analysis Of Seismicity And Related Seismic Risk In Muslim Countries: Case Studies From Afghanistan And Pakistan, Ikramuddin Bahram

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

How communities respond to a natural hazard is influenced by how they perceive it. This dissertation evaluated the gap between intent and action regarding earthquake hazards in Muslim countries with a focus on Afghanistan and Pakistan. Cultural biases provided predictions of risk perceptions and risk-taking preferences that were often more powerful than measures of knowledge and experience. In Muslim communities, perception of risk was influenced by the teachings of Islam and related rituals, traditions, and culture.

This study evaluated the seismicity and earthquake hazard in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Assessments of seismic risk and perception of danger were conducted to examine …

Simulating The Changes Of Invasive Phragmites Australis In A Pristine Wetland Complex With A Grey System Coupled System Dynamic Model: A Remote Sensing Practice, Danlin Yu, Nicholas A. Procopio, Chuanglin Fang

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Biological invasion has been one of the reasons that coastal wetlands gradually lose their ecological services. The current study investigates the spread of a commonly found invasive species in coastal wetlands in Northeastern US, the Phragmites australis. Within a relatively pristine wetland complex in coastal New Jersey, we collected high-resolution multispectral remote sensing images for eight years (2011–2018), in both winter and summer seasons. The land cover/land use status in this wetland complex is relatively simple, contains only five identifiable vegetation covers and water. Applying high accuracy machine learning algorithms, we are able to classify the land use/land cover in …

The History Of Air Quality In Utah: A Narrative Review, Logan E. Mitchell, Christopher Zajchowski

Human Movement Studies & Special Education Faculty Publications

Utah has a rich history related to air pollution; however, it is not widely known or documented. This is despite air quality being a top issue of public concern for the state’s urban residents and acute episodes that feature some of the world’s worst short-term particulate matter exposure. As we discuss in this narrative review, the relationship between air pollution and the state’s residents has changed over time, as fuel sources shifted from wood to coal to petroleum and natural gas. Air pollution rose in prominence as a public issue in the 1880s as Utah’s urban areas grew. Since then, …