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A Comprehensive Survey Of Artificial Intelligence Applications In Predicting Mining-Induced Subsidence, Deformation, And Landslides: Strengths, Limitations, And Future Trends, Long Quoc Nguyen, Dung Ba Nguyen, Minh Tuyet Dang

Journal of Sustainable Mining

Mining activities often cause mining-induced ground deformation, including subsidence and landslides, and related geo-environmental impacts, posing significant risks to infrastructure and safety. This study conducts a systematic assessment to identify, categorize, and evaluate AI-based methods (machine learning, deep learning, and hybrid models) for predicting and monitoring mining-induced ground deformation. The literature search was performed across major scientific databases, using predefined keywords and selection criteria, resulting in a final dataset of relevant peer-reviewed studies. The reviewed works were classified into three methodological groups: traditional machine learning, deep learning-based approaches, and hybrid methods. The results show that ML still dominates in terms …

Micro-Hyperspectral Imaging Of Phytoplankton Enables Deconvolution Of Mixed Communities For Spaceborne Hyperspectral Remote Sensing, Chisom Okwuchi Emeghiebo

Masters Theses

Characterizing phytoplankton diversity is critical for large-scale biodiversity monitoring and harmful algal bloom (HAB) detection. Here, we present a micro hyperspectral imaging method to characterize reflectance signatures, for the first time across major phytoplankton groups. Spectral variability among taxa in laboratory cultures is interpreted using algal pigment and absorption analyses, demonstrating that pigment composition and absorption govern reflectance features. Chlorophytes and cryptophytes exhibit distinct spectral signatures and are readily distinguishable, whereas diatoms and dinoflagellates show greater spectral similarity, with differentiation relying on subtle reflectance features associated with chlorophyll c₁c₂ near ~463 nm and within 620–650 nm. We further applied this …

Linking Greenhouse Gas Fluxes And Plant Responses To Saltwater Intrusion Events Using Remote Sensing, Madeline Jean Moore

Masters Theses

As sea level rise and coastal subsidence increase coastal Louisiana's vulnerability to saltwater intrusion (SWI) events, accurate and rapid monitoring of vegetation responses to these events is becoming increasingly important. In this study, we utilized unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) multispectral imagery to assess short-term vegetation responses to simulated SWI events in the Visser’s Experimental Wetland Complex in Saint Martinville, Louisiana. Vegetation patches of two common freshwater wetland species, Panicum hemitomon (Maidencane) and Typha domingensis (Southern Cattail), were exposed to 5 ppt salinity for 6-, 10-, and 17-day durations. Multispectral imagery of both species was collected before and after each SWI …

Classifying Storm Surges Along Louisiana Coast Using Machine Learning, Faith Ewere Okunbor

Masters Theses

Storm surges are among the most significant threats to coastal wetlands, causing flooding and saltwater intrusion that alter hydrology, vegetation structure, and long-term ecosystem resilience. Along the Louisiana coast, storm surge effects vary depending on storm behavior, shoreline geometry, and marsh hydrologic connectivity, yet are commonly characterized using broad storm metrics rather than site-specific environmental responses. This study develops a data-driven framework to classify storm surges across coastal Louisiana wetlands using observations from the Coastwide Reference Monitoring System (CRMS). Hourly water-level and salinity time series from twelve hurricanes (2007-2024) were analyzed using a 40-day storm-centered window. Hydrologic and salinity metrics …

Exploring Regenerative Vegetable Systems On The Central Coast Of California, Una S. O'Connell

Master's Theses

As climate change and current agricultural practices place pressure on the long term sustainability and resilience of food production systems, there is growing interest in whether existing agricultural systems can adapt to maintain productivity while improving environmental outcomes.

This study evaluated the effects of regenerative versus standard organic vegetable production systems on yield, insect communities, and weed suppression across three field trials conducted on California's Central Coast. In addition, I collected baseline soil health data for all trials. Trials 1 and 2 were carried out at the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Organic Farm using cabbage and broccoli as cash …

Western Kentucky University Stormwater Utility Survey 2026, Warren Campbell

SEAS Faculty Publications

In the U.S., more than 2200 stormwater utilities have been enacted. This year, we have expanded the survey to include stormwater utilities in other countries. Many of these stormwater assessments are called taxes, but if the assessment is recurring, is not an ad valorem tax, and is dedicated to stormwater purposes, we call it a stormwater utility. With the help of ChatGPT we have been able to identify 25 stormwater fees in Australia. We were also able to identify 3 in New Zealand, and some in Europe as well.

Incipient: Contemporary Wildfire Management In The American West, Carlyn A. Mcaleer

Environmental Studies Senior Theses

The frequency, severity, and total area burned by wildfires has escalated dramatically alongside a similar increase in federal suppression spending. However, contemporary management remains rooted in a suppression‑centric framework that originated in the early‑20th‑century. Our current wildfire management practices are unsustainable in the face of this growing threat. Using an approach that blends historical analysis and spatial analysis, this thesis asks how current spatial patterns of burn probability (BP) overlap with existing fire-response infrastructure and population in eight states (Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming) in the American West and which barriers inhibit the adoption of proactive …

Multimodal Machine Learning For Soil Burn Severity Mapping Across California Wildfires, Sanjana Checker

Master's Theses

Accurate mapping of soil burn severity (SBS) is critical for post-fire watershed management, erosion risk assessment, and ecological recovery planning, yet traditional field-based approaches remain costly, time-intensive, and spatially limited. This thesis presents a machine learning pipeline for wall-to-wall SBS classification across California wildfires using multi-sensor satellite imagery, terrain derivatives, and bioclimatic covariates. Field-collected SBS observations (n = 2,180) from 52 wildfires occur- ring between 2013 and 2025, sourced from the U.S. Forest Service and CAL FIRE, were used to train and evaluate multiple classification architectures within a Google Earth Engine and Google Cloud-based prediction framework. After upsampling the unburned …

Climate-Driven Stochastic Modelling Of Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever Transmission In Uganda, P. G. Kpatchana, J. Aduda, K. M. Agboka

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a climate-sensitive tick-borne zoonosis that remains a significant public health concern in Uganda, where temperature and vapour pressure deficit influence tick ecology and consequently disease transmission. This study aimed to develop and analyse a climate-driven stochastic model for CCHF transmission among ticks, livestock, and humans under environmental variability in Uganda. A compartmental transmission model was formulated and extended into a stochastic differential equation framework by incorporating multiplicative environmental noise. Climate-dependent tick recruitment, development, and mortality were parameterized using district-level temperature and vapour pressure deficit data to capture spatial heterogeneity in transmission risk. Theoretical analyses based …

Public Acceptance Of Meat-Reduction Policies Across Cultures: Comparing Singapore And Switzerland, Bianca Wassmann, Shu Tian Ng, Mark Chong, Angela K. Y. Leung, Michael Siegrist

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

Purpose – As meat-reduction policies are discussed across the globe, many are met with public resistance. Cultural values may help explain this pushback, yet their role in shaping support for food policy remains poorly understood. This study is the first to apply cultural cognition theory to food policy by examining how cultural worldviews shape the acceptance of meat-reduction interventions in Singapore and Switzerland—two economically developed countries with contrasting cultural profiles. Design/methodology/approach – In an online survey, participants (Singapore: n = 357; Switzerland: n = 495) rated their acceptance of 11 meat-reduction interventions (e.g. taxes, subsidies, labelling). We then analysed to …

Spatiotemporal Dynamics Of Riparian Land-Cover Change And Impervious-Cover Expansion In A Rapidly Urbanising Himalayan Capital City, Karma Jamtsho, Tashi Dorji, David Blake, Mark A. Lund, Eddie Van Etten

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Urbanisation and impervious-cover expansion are reshaping riparian landscapes, particularly in mountain cities where steep terrain concentrates development along valley floors. This study examined spatiotemporal land-cover change within the regulated riparian corridors of Thimphu City, Bhutan, over a 25-year period from 1997 to 2022 using Landsat imagery, Random Forest classification and Google Earth Engine. Results show substantial transformation of riparian land cover, with impervious cover increasing from 26.14% to 32.63%, equivalent to an overall increase of 24.83%, while agriculture/barren/low-vegetation declined from 30.59% to 26.01%, equivalent to an overall decrease of 14.98%. A modest increase in detectable vegetation cover was also observed, …

Re: Conditional Approval Letter For The Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit (Bpsou) 2026 Revised Draft Final Backfill And Cover Soil Quality Assurance Project Plan (Qapp) (Dated May 13, 2026), Molly Roby

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Butte Priority Soils Operable Unit Diggings East Final 100% Remedial Design Package Submittal, Josh Bryson

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Re: Comment Letter For Bpsou Blacktail Creek Riparian Actions Uniform Federal Policy Quality Assurance Project Plan Addendum (Dated April 24, 2026), Emma Rott

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Evaluating Soil Health And Crop Yield In Louisiana Agricultural Systems: Impacts Of Best Management Practices And Prediction Models, Hector J. Mendoza Lagos

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The adoption of conservation management practices is critical for improving soil health, enhancing nutrient use efficiency, and sustaining crop productivity in row crop systems in Louisiana. This study evaluated the role of conservation agronomic practices, soil biochemical indicators, and machine learning predictive models to improve soil nutrient dynamics, soil health indicators, microbial communities (MC), and crop productivity on a corn (Zea mays L.) research plot scale and in a commercial forty-hectare cotton (Gassypium hirsutum L.)-corn-soybean (Glycine max L.) rotation system in northeast Louisiana. The objectives of the study were to evaluate soil nutrient dynamics and MCs under …

Mining And Sustainable Development In Sierra Leone: The Role Of Institutional Quality, Ibrahim Massaquoi

Journal of Sustainable Mining

While mining can drive economic growth, create jobs, and promote infrastructural development, it also poses risks to the environment, human health, and social well-being. Therefore, to achieve sustainable development, responsible mining is crucial. This study empirically examines the role of institutional quality in the mining-sustainable development nexus in Sierra Leone. With the use of the planetary pressures-adjusted human development index (PHDI) as a comprehensive measure of sustainable development, the study is able to integrate economic, social, and environmental dimensions. The autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model confirms the existence of both short-run and long-run dynamics. The results of the study show …

Advances In Research On Eco-Geological Environment Monitoring Of Underground Coal Mining Areas Based On Airborne Remote Sensing, Li Jun, Zou Zhaohui, Zhang Chengye, Wang Yi, Cheng Yang, Xu Lianhang, Zhang Jinhe, Liu Chuanrui, Liang Lixia

Coal Geology & Exploration

Background Timely and effective monitoring of the current status of eco-geological environment holds great significance for scientific decision-making regarding both geological environment protection and ecological restoration in underground coal mining areas. Owing to its advantage of large-scale and rapid monitoring, airborne remote sensing technology has emerged as an important approach to the eco-geological environment monitoring of mining areas. Advances This study first clarifies relevant concepts of eco-geological environment monitoring, as well as the monitoring requirements and contents specific to underground coal mining areas. Accordingly, it presents a summary of the advances in research on airborne remote sensing technology for the …

Key Techniques And Application Of The Zdy15000ldk High-Power Automatic Directional Drilling Rig, Li Quanxin, Zhang Gang, Fang Peng, Xing Wang, Yao Ke, Zhang Rui, Zhang Boyang, Zhao Xuefeng, Shi Yang, Sun Hanyu, Jia Qian

Coal Geology & Exploration

Objective For deep mining of coal mines, conventional directional drilling rigs face challenges including high labor intensity, limited control accuracy, a low intelligence level, and failure to meet the demand for efficient gas drainage. Meanwhile, high-power automatic drilling rigs encounter technical bottlenecks in automation, control accuracy, and process intelligence in this context. To address these issues, this study proposed an integrated and systematic solution—the ZDY15000LDK high-power automatic directional drilling rig. Methods Using a compact structural layout, a drill rod handling system was developed, consisting of a drill rod loading/unloading manipulator with four degrees of freedom and an automatic drill rod …

Stoker-Fired Laboratory Boiler As A Tool For Optimising The Solid Fuel Combustion Process, Przemysław Rompalski, Justyna Guzy-Proc, Mariusz Kieczek

Journal of Sustainable Mining

This paper presents the results of quality testing performed on a stoker-fired laboratory boiler to present the technical potential of the boiler as a tool for optimising the combustion process of prepared solid fuels (granulate, energy blend) in the context of current demands related to the decarbonisation policy. The comprehensive testing of such fuels at a laboratory scale makes it possible to gain deep insights into the quality parameters of the fuel, flue gas and combustion waste, as well as to determine the combustion process parameters before the fuel is introduced for combustion in broader power engineering and household boilers. …

Productive Armature, Gabriel Ofem Peter

Masters Theses

What if water was all you had, what if your only source of survival was a body of water? I shudder to think that some people get to be put in this situation in the world we live in. As I understand the importance of water to survival, it is obvious that water can be the only lifeline of survival for a community. This is the experience for residents of Makoko, Lagos. Their survival depends on the Lagos Lagoon, a large body of water flowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. This research looks beyond the surface of what this community …

Innovation Strategies For Small And Medium-Sized Construction Companies In Nigeria, Olabode Akinkunmi Akindele

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No abstract provided.

Unquaint Pigs’ Stakeholder Perspectives On Wild Swine In Central Western Florida, Tyler Koerner

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Anthropocene presents important questions for how to address the continuous transferal of new species into new spaces and the cascading impacts of environmental transformations. Novel ecosystems present one such outline for conservation that acknowledges the modification of historic ecosystems and the social entanglements that arrive with new species. I argue that novel ecosystems can benefit from further anthropological integrations that aid in describing the entanglements of introduced species and the pursuit of best managerial outcomes. For wild swine in Florida, the adoption of a novel approach is especially relevant because of entanglements with historic and modern Floridian stakeholders and …

Quantifying Co2 And Ch4 Fluxes In A Semi-Arid Floodplain: Assessing Spatial And Temporal Drivers, Miles E. Kelsey

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Rivers transport sediment and carbon across Earth’s surface, and their floodplains can store carbon over decades to millennia, making them important to terrestrial carbon management. While soil carbon can persist long term, it may be released as greenhouse gases through processes like methanogenesis and heterotrophic respiration. Environmental controls on these fluxes remain poorly constrained across floodplains in different climate and geomorphic setting, but especially in semi-arid systems where measurements are limited. To address this gap, we quantified CO₂ and CH₄ fluxes along the Middle Rio Grande (New Mexico, USA) using 227 chamber measurements collected May to November 2025 at three …

From Flight To Hatching: Adult Sexual Dimorphism, Life History, And Egg-Stage Ecology Of Pseudocotalpa Giulianii, Mandylene Mountain

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Nevada endemic dune beetle Pseudocotalpa giulianii is currently known only from two dune systems in Amargosa Valley, Nevada, yet much of its life cycle occurs below the sand surface and remains poorly documented. This thesis addresses key gaps in adult-stage biology and egg-stage development that are relevant to understanding reproduction, vulnerability, and habitat requirements in this dunerestricted species.

To characterize adult sexual dimorphism and life history, I quantified morphological differences between males and females and measured sex-specific adult survival under laboratory conditions relative to the aboveground flight season. Males and females overlapped broadly in external body size, but tarsal …

Shelters In Motion, Erin Nicole Vallido Trasmano

Hospitality Design Graduate Student Capstones

Shelters in Motion is a modular temporary shelter system for festival and outdoor events that replaces disposable tents with reusable, durable design. Overall reducing environmental impact while significantly improving comfort and user experience.

Harnessing Backcasting To Identify Drivers Of Critical Warming At Hoover Dam Using Hydrodynamic And Machine Learning Models, Eunice Ledres

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Elevated water temperatures can pose a significant threat to dam infrastructure, potentially damaging turbines, overheating internal components, and forcing generator shutdowns. This study uses a backcasting framework to evaluate how future scenarios may result in elevated water temperatures. Backcasting defines undesirable outcomes and works backward to identify the conditions that lead to them. The developed backcasting framework integrates 3D physics-based simulations with a Long-Short Term Memory (LSTM)surrogate model and SHapely Additive exPlanations (SHAP) interpretation. The combination captures temporal water temperature dynamics and quantifies the contributions of different drivers to elevated water temperature releases. As proof of concept, these methods are …

Assessment Of Local Ecological Knowledge, Oyster Predation, And Habitat Function To Improve Management Of Nearshore Habitats, Cynthia Evelyn Marie Lupton

Theses and Dissertations

Coastal ecosystems along the northern Gulf of Mexico are ecologically and economically vital yet increasingly threatened by environmental change, habitat degradation, and knowledge gaps that complicate restoration and management efforts. This dissertation integrates social and ecological approaches to improve understanding of predator dynamics, stakeholder perceptions, and habitat function related to nearshore habitats. Thereby, providing information that can inform adaptive management and restoration in the region through addressing three overarching objectives: 1) evaluate stakeholder perceptions of oyster (Crassostrea virginica) predation and management practices; 2) quantify environmental and habitat factors influencing oyster drill (Stramonita haemastoma complex) abundance; and, 3) assess the influence …

2026 Revised Draft Final Bpsou Backfill And Cover Material Quality Assurance Project Plan (Qapp), Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.

Urban Conflagrations: Structural Ash And Soil Metal(Loid) Contamination After California’S Eaton And Palisades Fires, S. Anselme Dossou, Leon Kelly, P. Louis Lu, Robin Jones, Oliver O'Donnell, Justin St. P. Walsh, Daniel D. Richter

Art Faculty Articles and Research

In the weeks after California’s Eaton-Palisades wildfires, structural ash of burned homes and soils from yards and curbsides were sampled for analysis of Pb, As, and eight metals from 32 burned residences. About six months after fires and after US Army Corps of Engineers’ Phase 2 cleanups removed 15 cm from structural ash footprints, 17 properties were resampled within about a meter of original sampling sites. Concentrations of metal(oid)s in structural ash and residential soils varied between and within properties with significant spatial and temporal patterns. Lead concentrations were highest in structural ash and soil of yards of select pre-1970s …

Draft Final Annual Operations And Maintenance (O&M) Report: Butte Treatment Lagoon (Btl) System – 2025, Pioneer Technical Services, Inc.

Silver Bow Creek/Butte Area Superfund Site

No abstract provided.