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Biodigestor: Rural Power Plant, Felipe Ribeiro Bozza

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Biodigestor: Rural Power Plant

Effect Of Temperature On The Phenology Of Chilo Partellus (Swinhoe) (Lepidoptera, Crambidae); Simulation And Visualization Of The Potential Future Distribution Of C. Partellus In Africa Under Warmer Temperatures Through The Development Of Life-Table Parameters, N. Khadioli, Z. E.H. Tonnang, E. Muchugu, G. Ong'amo, T. Achia, I. Kipchirchir, J. Kroschel, B. Le Ru

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Maize (Zea mays) is a major staple food in Africa. However, maize production is severely reduced by damage caused by feeding lepidopteran pests. In East and Southern Africa, Chilo partellus is one of the most damaging cereal stem borers mainly found in the warmer lowland areas. In this study, it was hypothesized that the future distribution and abundance of C. partellus may be affected greatly by the current global warming. The temperature-dependent population growth potential of C. partellus was studied on artificial diet under laboratory conditions at six constant temperatures (15, 18, 20, 25, 28, 30, 32 and 35 °C), …

It Is Always Possible, Ivan Makino

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

It Is Always Possible

A Call For Congressional Climate Action, Calvin Harman

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

A Call for Congressional Climate Action

Potential Biogas Production On Livestock Operations, Mariana Baia

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Potential Biogas Production on Livestock Operations

Modeling Mussel Mortality: Investigating The Importance Of Swash And The Potential Implications Of Changing Wave Environments, Shadow Leigh Gulledge

Theses and Dissertations

Rising sea level and increases in temperature are causing biogeographic shifts in intertidal zones and can also lead to shifts in the local vertical zonation of organisms due to changes in body temperature during aerial exposure during low tide. Swash is an important determinant of aerial body temperatures, and vulnerability of intertidal zones to changes in climate could potentially depend on how much and how often animals are cooled by waves. While wave heights (and thus swash) are generally expected to increase with climate change, anthropogenic physical structures, such as breakwaters and wave energy converters, can decrease wave height and …

Mitigating The Effects Of Climate Change With Wind Energy And Gis, Rachael Isphording, Richard Snow, Mary Snow

Publications

The climate is changing, and humans are heavily exacerbating these changes. As the effects of climate change are being felt across the planet, scientists and policy makers are uniting to increase mitigation efforts and are researching renewable, clean energy sources to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions released into the atmosphere during energy production. Of the different renewable energy technologies, wind energy is one of the most researched and implemented. Over the past twenty years, researchers have been applying Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to their climate change studies. GIS allows the user to spatially view, manipulate, and analyze data …

Climate-Induced Changes In The Germination Phenology Of Boechera Stricta, Samuel Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Climate change is having demonstrable, worldwide impacts on ecological systems in ways that have modified aspects of organism behavior. Plant phenologies have responded to warmer temperatures in a variety of ways that may have implications for long-term species survival. How germination phenology changes in response to warmer climate is a largely unexplored question yet the ability of a plant to advance or delay germination in unfavorable conditions is critical for survival. Knowing the relative success and timing of germination under different climate regimes is important in understanding whether species can keep pace with the rate of climate change via migration …

Examining The Effectiveness Of Ecotourism As A Funding Source For Protected Area Management In Guyana, Jordan S. Flagel

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Protected areas in tropical rainforests serve many important ecosystem services, including carbon sequestration. These areas are often in need of donor or grant funding to operate as governments in tropical forested countries are not always able to provide adequate funds for protection. This paper focuses on the Iwokrama International Center for Rainforest Conservation and Development in the South American country of Guyana, which has had funding issues since the global economic crisis of 2008 and an accompanying shift in donor country financial priorities. Increasing the amount of sustainable ecotourism in the Iwokrama reserve was identified as a potential source for …

Performance Quantification Of Extensive Green Roof Substrate Blend: Expanded Shale And Biochar, James Sheats

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Urban stormwater management practices often involve the redirection of runoff to local waterbodies. As such, the quality of runoff directly affects the condition of these receiving waters. Green roofs offer many benefits to the urban environment including attractive aesthetics, thermal insulation for buildings and stormwater runoff reduction. Unfortunately, in order to promote the spread of vegetation, fertilization is often practiced that can lead to elevated nutrient concentrations in runoff and, ultimately, nearby streams, rivers and bays. Different amounts of biochar, pyrolyzed biomass, were added to model green roof trays to test for the ability of this charcoal-like substance to prevent …

An Analysis Of U.S./Canadian Fisheries Policy In Regards To Pacific Salmon And The Preservation Of Indigeneity In The Pacific Northwest, Michael James Lockwood

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

For more than 160 years, the Pacific salmon has been an important resource for the United States and Canada. However, it has been overexploited. Proper management of the species is essential not only for maintaining healthy populations but also maintaining the interests of diverse stakeholders. One set of stakeholders consists of the indigenous peoples of North America because the Pacific salmon are crucial to their food, social, and ceremonial traditions.

This thesis explores the impacts of Canadian and U.S. public policies on the cultural integrity of native peoples in the Pacific Northwest, specifically as those peoples rely on wild Pacific …

Polyculture Bioremediation: An Analysis Of Potential Nitrogen Assimilation And Removal By Mya Arenaria, Gracilaria Tikvahiae And Ulva Lactuca Harvests In The Corsica River, Md, Kathleen Hemeon

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

An analysis of nitrogen bioremediation in a tidal tributary of the Chesapeake Bay by the use of a hypothetical bivalve and macroalgae polyculture covering 1%, 3% and 5% of the Corsica River bottom area. This study was performed to illustrate the role ecosystem services play in managing diffuse watershed pollution, particularly nitrogen, resulting in water quality and living resource degradation. Excess concentrations of nitrogen in the Corsica River estuary lead to seasonal eutrophication and subsequent hypoxic events. Mya arenaria L. and Gracilaria tikvahiae (McLachlan, 1979) were chosen for this theoretical study due to their high assimilative capacities for nitrogen and …

The Future Of Direct Potable Reuse In California: Overcoming Public Acceptance Barriers, Allison Chan

Master's Projects and Capstones

Due to the water shortages, population growth, and competing demands for water in California, the possibility of incorporating direct potable reuse technology in the state’s water supply portfolio is being considered by various water resource providers. This paper focuses on public acceptance challenges that may be encountered. By evaluating best practices employed by six different potable water reuse case studies, recommendations for future direct potable reuse projects are developed. It is recommended that future project proponents plan early and conduct public opinion surveys regarding this type of technology, develop and implement public outreach and education plans that include best practices …

Does Thorium Have A Place In The Future U.S. Electricity Mix?, Danny West

Master's Projects and Capstones

Thorium is an alternative fuel source for nuclear energy. Coupled with its use in a new reactor design, called a Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor, the two have the ability to disrupt the nuclear industry and power sector. Nuclear energy is a clean and reliable source of energy; however, it generates hazardous waste that must be stored away for hundreds of thousands of years and power plants are at risk of a catastrophic incident that can lead to a wide scale release of radiation. These drawbacks to nuclear energy can be mitigated using thorium in a Liquid Fluoride Thorium Reactor. These …

Clean Up Techniques Used For Coastal Oil Spills: An Analysis Of Spills Occurring In Santa Barbara, California, Prince William Sound, Alaska, The Sea Of Japan, And The Gulf Coast, Henry R. Walther Iii

Master's Projects and Capstones

An analysis of four spills occurring within the last 50 years to see the progression in clean up techniques used for coastal oil spills. The Santa Barbara, California Oil Spill of 1969, the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill of 1989 occurring in Prince William Sound, Alaska, the Nakhodka Oil Spill of 1997 occurring in the Sea of Japan, and the Deep Water Horizon Oil spill of 2010 occurring in the Gulf of Mexico, are analyzed. The different types of oil, the composition of oil, and the variables that effect spilled oil’s movement, are provided. Oil spill response planning and preparation are …

Remediation Options For Mercury-Contaminated Sediments Within The Yuba River Watershed, Tara Fitzgerald

Master's Projects and Capstones

Historical hydraulic mining activities in the Yuba River watershed have impacted the watershed and the San Francisco Bay. The research evaluates pathways for mercury entry into the watershed and potential remediation technologies to reduce the risk of future mercury contamination from hydraulic mining debris. Remediation technologies for the Yuba Goldfields and Englebright Reservoir are discussed and compared separately. The major pathway for mercury entry into surface water along Yuba Goldfields is within suspended sediment mobilized during flooding conditions. While multiple remediation options are available for the Yuba Goldfields, phytostabilization is the least costly and has the fewest environmental impacts. A …

Spatial Variation In The Littoral Vertebrate Community Of A Reservoir Relative To Physical And Biological Gradients, Nathan Ruhl, Jessica J. Soski, Willem M. Roosenburg

College of Science & Mathematics Departmental Research

Reservoirs possess gradients in conditions and resources along their long (deep-shallow) axis, but the response of littoral vertebrates (fish and turtles) to these gradients is poorly understood. We have quantified the littoral vertebrate communities throughout a small reservoir in Southeastern Ohio during July and August using traps, and related community composition to environmental variables using NMDS ordination. Ordination revealed that fish and turtles were broadly separated in ordination space, and three distinctly different environmental gradients were significantly associated with the underlying observed species abundances. Observed turtle abundance was explained by measurements of bathymetry, turbidity, and benthic resources, but none of …

The Non-Lethal Effects Of Climate Change On The Territoriality Of Lottia Gigantea, Tracey Gunanto, Christina Chavez, Jessica Martinez, William G. Wright

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

The intertidal zone has been described as ground zero for global warming. Here, the owl limpet, Lottia gigantea, adapted to the cool ocean temperatures, must withstand a few hours of baking sun during day-time low tides. This hardship is predicted to increase in frequency and severity in the future as the globe warms. Our research hypothesized that heat events compromise territorial behavior of L. gigantea. All observations and experiments were performed at Inspiration Point near Newport Beach, California. We measured the natural radiant temperature of tagged limpets during day-time low tides using a field-calibrated infrared “thermogun”. We also …

Differences In The Diversity Of Frogspecies Between Sierra Lloronaand El Valle, Panama, Kei Okabe Thurber

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Panama is home to the greatest diversity of species in all of Central America. It is home to 174 species of frogs, 35 of which are endemic to Panama. Frogs are a vital part of many ecosystems. They maintain insect populations and act as food sources for larger predators. Their job of maintaining insect populations is essential to curbing the spread of diseases. Additionally, scientists have found chemical compounds in the skin of frogs that can be used to treat pain and prevent infections. The main threat to the majority of frogs is the deadly fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), or …

College Of Engineering Senior Design Competition Fall 2014, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Fred and Harriet Cox Senior Design Competition Projects

Part of every UNLV engineering student’s academic experience, the senior design project stimulates engineering innovation and entrepreneurship. Each student in their senior year chooses, plans, designs, and prototypes a product in this required element of the curriculum. A capstone to the student’s educational career, the senior design project encourages the student to use everything learned in the engineering program to create a practical, real world solution to an engineering challenge. The senior design competition helps focus the senior students in increasing the quality and potential for commercial application for their design projects. Judges from local industry evaluate the projects on …

Comparing Disease Prevalence In Hard Corals At Four Different Reefs Near The Island Of Narganá In The Guna Yala Comarca Of Panamá, Connor Hinton

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Coral reefs harbor much of the world’s known marine biodiversity. For a number of reasons, coral reefs are becoming increasingly threatened. Large portions of the world’s reefs have already been lost, and the number of degrading reefs is constantly on the rise. One cause for the destruction of coral reefs are coral diseases, ultimately causing coral mortality. With the death of corals, a key species is lost, endangering the entire reef ecosystem. Documenting the presence of such diseases could be useful in assessing current reef health and ameliorating the growing threat of coral diseases. In this project, 18 40m2 belt …

Spartanburg Humane Society Data Analysis: Hotspots And Resource Management, Leigh Robertson

Earth and Environmental Sciences Presentations

A data set from the Spartanburg Humane Society was provided with the hope that the use of GIS could show patterns and hotspots of dog and cat pickup locations. With a better understanding of where the majority of the animals come from, the Humane Society can better distribute their man power and resources to help as many homeless animals as possible. According to Beck (1973) the main reasons for stray and abandoned animals is negligence causing pet releases or escapes, and also breeding. Therefore, finding and targeting areas where there are many strays (potentially as a result of a release, …

Evaluating The Progress Of A Mangrove Reforestation Project On Isla Galeta, Colon, Abigail Hope Outterson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Just off the Atlantic coast of Panama, a dynamic and self-renewing ecosystem takes advantage of the tropical climate and swampy conditions. Guarding Punta Galeta’s shores since before it was a U.S. navy base in the 1930’s, mangroves that have persisted here for centuries now draw scientists and tourists alike from all over the world to the Smithsonian Tropical Research Center. Once viewed as unproductive, distasteful environments, mangroves are increasingly recognized worldwide as critical habitat for endangered and commercially significant species, as well as for their ecological and aesthetic value. Uniquely adapted to survive in saline environments, mangroves combine methods of …

2014 Fall Engr333 Student Seminar Presentation, John Sherwood, Jonathan Crow, Nicolaas Ourensma, Zak Devries, Andy Frandsen, Jack Kregel, Ryan Rhodes, Connor Vandongen, Schieffer Kwong, Jee Myung Kim, Matthew Deyoung, Jeff Demaagd, Tyler Devries, Doug Faber, Garrick Hershberger, Jake Derooy, Dustin Brouwer, David Evenhouse, Patrick Anderson, Thomas Brown, Ed Smit, Joel Smith, Thane Symens, Kaitlyn Weinstein, Seth Koetje, Nick Memmelaar, Austin Juza, Matt Ramaker, Ryan Demeester, Jordan Newhof, Wes Richards, Josh Vanderbyl

ENGR 333

File for student presentation, given by students in the Fall 2014 class of ENGR333.

Biomass Burning Fuel Consumption Rates: A Field Measurement Database, T. T. Van Leeuwen, G. R. Van Der Werf, A. A. Hoffmann, R. G. Detmers, G. Rücker, Nancy H. F. French, S. Archibald, J. A. Carvalho Jr, G. D. Cook, William J. De Groot, C. Hély, Eric S. Kasischke, S. Kloster, Jessica Mccarty, M. L. Pettinari, P. Savadogo, E. C. Alvarado, L. Boschetti, S. Manuri, C. P. Meyer, F. Siegert, L. A. Trollope, W. S. W. Trollope

Michigan Tech Research Institute Publications

Landscape fires show large variability in the amount of biomass or fuel consumed per unit area burned. Fuel consumption (FC) depends on the biomass available to burn and the fraction of the biomass that is actually combusted, and can be combined with estimates of area burned to assess emissions. While burned area can be detected from space and estimates are becoming more reliable due to improved algorithms and sensors, FC is usually modeled or taken selectively from the literature. We compiled the peer-reviewed literature on FC for various biomes and fuel categories to understand FC and its variability better, and …

The Effect Of Weather During Rearing On Morphometric Traits Of Juvenile Cliff Swallows, Erin A. Roche, Mary Bomberger Brown, Charles R. Brown

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Episodes of food deprivation may change how nestling birds allocate energy to the growth of skeletal and feather morphological traits during development. Cliff swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) are colonial, insectivorous birds that regu­larly experience brief periods of severe weather–induced food deprivation during the nesting season which may affect offspring development. We investigated how annual variation in timing of rearing and weather were associated with length of wing and tail, skeletal traits, and body mass in juvenile cliff swallows reared in southwestern Nebraska during 2001–2006. As predicted under conditions of food deprivation, nestling skeletal and feather measurements were generally smaller …

Proper Handling And Transportation Of Eggs For Sale At Kentucky Farmers’ Markets, Anthony J. Pescatore, Jacquie Jacob

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

Regardless of the number of eggs produced, and whether the eggs are for home use or sale, careful egg handling is very important. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) lists eggs as a potentially hazardous food, therefore careful handling is important. In Kentucky, if you sell more than 60 dozen eggs a week you need to purchase a retail license. The same holds true if you want to sell your eggs to a retail store to be re-sold or to a distributor that will sell them for you. If you produce fewer than 60 dozen eggs a week …

Sheep Breeding: Heritability, Ebvs, Epds And The Nsip, Debra K. Aaron

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

Genetic improvement in a flock depends on the producer’s ability to select breeding sheep that are genetically superior for traits of economic importance. This is complicated by the fact that an animal’s own performance is not always a true indicator of its genetic potential as a parent.

Inbreeding In Sheep, Debra K. Aaron

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

Inbreeding is broadly defined as the mating of individuals that are related. Strictly speaking, however, all animals within a breed are related. So, in a sense, every purebred sheep producer practices some degree of inbreeding. In most cases this relationship is very slight. Therefore, inbreeding is more practically defined as the mating of individuals more closely related than the average of the breed. This practice includes mating brother to sister, sire to daughter and son to dam.

An Introduction To Sheep, Debra K. Aaron, Donald G. Ely

Agriculture and Natural Resources Publications

The information in this fact sheet was developed to provide a quick reference to the most frequently asked questions about sheep and sheep production.