Digital Commons Network^™

Albedo Estimates For Land Surface Models And Support For A New Paradigm Based On Foliage Nitrogen Concentration, David Y. Hollinger, S. V. Ollinger, A. D. Richardson, T. P. Meyers, D. B. Dail, M. E. Martin, N. A. Scott, T. J. Arkebauer, D. D. Baldocchi, K. L. Clark, P. S. Curtis, K. J. Davis, A. R. Desai, D. Dragoni, M. L. Goulden, L. Gu, G. G. Katul, S. G. Pallardy, K. T. Pawu, H. P. Schmid, P. C. Stoy, Andrew E. Suyker, Shashi Verma

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Vegetation albedo is a critical component of the Earth’s climate system, yet efforts to evaluate and improve albedo parameterizations in climate models have lagged relative to other aspects of model development. Here, we calculated growing season albedos for deciduous and evergreen forests, crops, and grasslands based on over 40 site-years of data from the AmeriFlux network and compared them with estimates presently used in the land surface formulations of a variety of climate models. Generally, the albedo estimates used in land surface models agreed well with this data compilation. However, a variety of models using fixed seasonal estimates of albedo …

An Extraordinary Example Of Photokarren In A Sandstone Cave, Cueva Charles Brewer, Chimantá Plateau, Venezuela: Biogeomorphology On A Small Scale, Joyce Lundberg, Donald A. Mcfarlane, Charles Brewer-Carias

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

A distinctive suite of small-scale erosional forms that are oriented towards the light occur close to the entrance of Cueva Charles Brewer, a large cave in a sandstone tepui, in SE Venezuela. These are the third example of photokarren ever studied in the world, the other two being from Borneo and Ireland. They are the only photokarren ever described from sandstone, and the only example from a non-carbonate environment. The host rock is a poorly-lithified unit of the Precambrian quartz arenite of the Roraima Supergroup. The forms are all oriented towards the light at 30° regardless of rock surface orientation. …

A Unique Population Of Cave Bears (Carnivora: Ursidae) From The Middle Pleistocene Of Kents Cavern, England, Based On Dental Morphometrics, Donald A. Mcfarlane, Martin Sabol, Joyce Lundberg

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

The ‘breccia’ stratum from Kents (we follow local tradition in using the form ‘Kents’, without an apostrophe) Cavern, England, has been well known for its rich yield of cave-bear material since excavations began in the mid-19th century. Recent work has established that the bears are of latest MIS 12 or earliest MIS 11 age. A life table based on a collection of 67 molariform teeth is consistent with the use of the cave as a hibernaculum. Univariate and morphological assessment of the teeth shows an unusual range of primitive and more derived characters. Multivariate morphometric analysis of cave-bear teeth from …

Children's Perceptions Of An Environmental Leadership Program: Camp 2 Grow, Karla Henderson, Barry Garst, M. Deborah Bialeschki, David Santucci

Research in Outdoor Education

Nature-deficit disorder has been highlighted as a concern for today's children. Organized camps for children have traditionally been associated with nature-based opportunities. However, the role that camps have in developing an appreciation for the outdoors and environmental stewardship has not been documented. The purpose of this study was to evaluate youths' perceived connections to nature resulting from a pilot test of a leadership and environmental stewardship program (i.e., Camp 2 Grow) undertaken at organized resident camps during the summer of 2009. Qualitative analyses of personal reflection journals were used. Campers recognized through this program that having the freedom to enjoy …

The Evolution Of Natural Resources Law And Policy, Lawrence J. Macdonnell, Sarah F. Bates

Books, Reports, and Studies

This digital resource contains only an abstract, cover image and table of contents information from the published book.

Print copy of book is available in the University of Colorado’s Wise Law Library: http://lawpac.colorado.edu/record=b444104~S0

Contents: Introduction / Bruce Babbitt -- PART I : REFLECTIONS ON NATURAL RESOURCES LAW AND POLICY: Historical evolution and future of natural resources law and policy / Sally Fairfax, Helen M. Ingram, Leigh Raymond -- Ethical perspectives on resources law and policy : global warming and our common future / Sarah Krakoff -- Why care about the polar bear? : economic analysis of natural resources law and …

Does Self Management In Fisheries Enhance Profitability? Examination Of Korea’S Coastal Fisheries, Hirotsugu Uchida, Emi Uchida, Jung-Sam Lee, Jeong-Gon Ryu, Dae-Young Kim

Environmental and Natural Resource Economics Faculty Publications

Self management of natural resources has started to gain increasing attention as an alternative tool to command-and-control and market-based tools, but the fundamental question remains: is self management economically beneficial such that it should be promoted in the first place? This article uses a unique set of survey data from South Korea and applies an empirical strategy to provide some of the first quantitative evidence that self management is benefiting the fishermen. We find that positive benefits of fishery self management—an increase in fishery revenue and reduction in cost—are perceived by member fishermen, which is a good start considering the …

A Review Of Emerging Pollutants Of Concern In Drinking Water And Wastewater, Rebekah Corinne Guill

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this project is to identify emerging pollutants of concern in wastewater and drinking water and the challenges associated with their discovery. The most frequently detected contaminants taking the spotlight included pharmacueticals, personal care products, and endocrine disprupting chemicals at ultra trace levels.

An Applied Investigation Of Nafion Membranes In Pem Fuel Cells: Durability Issues, Amanda Rose Rodriguez

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this study was to perform ex-situ tests and observe the degradation behavior of PEM fuel cells in transportation applications. Improving the efficiency of fuel cells could lead to greatly reduced vehicle energy consumption and similarly reduced vehicle emissions.

Sustainability Initiatives In East Bayside Neighborhood Portland, Maine, Garvan Donegan, Henry Heyburn, Caitlyn Horose, Matt Klebes, Jennifer Riley, Damon Yakovleff, New England Environmental Finance Center

Planning

This is a bundle containing research on sustainability initiatives that could be implemented in the East Bayside neighborhood of Portland, ME. These six essays were prepared by the Spring, 2010 Sustainable Communities Class known as CPD 602 at the University of Southern Maine. The class is part of the core curriculum of the Community Planning and Development program of the Muskie School of Public Service at the university. The instructor for the class was Samuel Merrill, Ph. D. who is also director of the New England Environmental Finance Center at the University. These papers were prepared in conjunction with Alan …

Fire Disturbance, Forest Structure, And Stand Dynamics In Montane Forests Of The Southern Cascades, Thousand Lakes Wilderness, California, Usa, Matthew F. Bekker, Alan H. Taylor

Wasatch Dendroclimatology Research

We examined tree diameter, age structure, and successional trends in 100 montane forest plots to identify the effects of variation in the return interval, severity, and extent of fires on forest structure and dynamics in the southern Cascade Range, California. We classified 100 forest plots into 8 groups based on stand structural characteristics. Median point fire return intervals were shortest in lower montane mixed conifer and Jeffrey pine–white fir stands (13-25 y) and upper montane red fir–white fir stands (14.5-19.5 y), intermediate in lodgepole pine stands (50-76.5 y), and longest in high-elevation red fir–mountain hemlock stands (100 y). Fire severity …

Ua12/13 2010 Sustainability Report [Western Kentucky University], Wku Office Of Sustainability

Sustainability Publications and Resources

As I reflect on the past year, I am filled with pride and hope by our progress in becoming a more sustainable WKU. The milestones are significant: completion of our first building for which we will seek LEED certification, sustainability included as a core commitment in the WKU Strategic Guide for 2010-2012 and a Resolution for Education for Sustainability adopted, the first Education for Sustainability faculty retreat, the Energy Savings Performance Contract project initiated and nearly completed, and WKU included in the Princeton Review’s Guide to 286 Green Colleges. These are but a few of the accomplishments made in 2010. …

Effects Of Drought On Avian Community Structure, Thomas P. Albright, Anna M. Pidgeon, Chadwick D. Rittenhouse, Murray K. Clayton, Curtis H. Flather, Patrick D. Culbert, Brian D. Wardlows, Volker C. Radeloff

National Drought Mitigation Center: Faculty Publications

Droughts are expected to become more frequent under global climate change. Avifauna depend on precipitation for hydration, cover, and food. While there are indications that avian communities respond negatively to drought, little is known about the response of birds with differing functional and behavioral traits, what time periods and indicators of drought are most relevant, or how response varies geographically at broad spatial scales. Our goals were thus to determine (1) how avian abundance and species richness are related to drought, (2) whether community variations are more related to vegetation vigor or precipitation deviations and at what time periods relationships …

Bacteria Monitoring And Assessment Project At Canyon Lake, California, Natasha Marie Krupnak

Theses Digitization Project

This study was conducted in response to a cooperative request by the Lake Elsinore and Canyon Lake Total Maximum Daily Load Task Force and the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board to characterize and assess the bacterial water quality conditons in Canyon Lake, California which is a fresh water recreational lake.

Estimated Area Of Impervious Parking Surfaces And The Potential Groundwater Recharge Increase Through Permeable Pavement Retrofit In The Chino Basin, Zablon Afera Adane

Theses Digitization Project

California recently declared a state of emergency over drought followiing three years of below average rain and snowfall. There is a consensus among many involved in water supply in California for finding new sources of water, conservation, and increasing recharge to replenish the groundwater with surface water that would have been lost to run off. This study investigates the amount of stormwater that could potentially be reinvested as groundwater recharge by simply transforming selected impermeable parking lots of the commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors into pervious pavement that allow water to infiltrate rather than be lost as urban runoff.

Emergent Geographies In Green Energy, Sean Tierney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A consensus on climate change is spurring an energy transition, but the geography of this transition is uneven and this paper evaluates the energy landscape globally, in the United States and in Colorado. Developed countries have taken the lead in installations and of next generation energy technology ownership. Green electricity has still not achieved parity with fossil fuels, which puts their adoption in the hands of policy makers who are trying to spur innovation with minimal financial disruption. Yet the future of green electricity is in question due to weak and fragmented policy regimes, but also because of inadequate R&D …

An Inventory And Condition Survey Of The Western Australian Part Of The Nullarbor Region, Peter-Jon A. Waddell, A K. Gardner, P Hennig

Technical Bulletins

The inventory and condition survey of the Western Australian part of the Nullarbor region, undertaken by the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) between 2005 and 2007, describes and maps the natural resources of the region. This survey report provides a baseline record of the existence and condition of the area's natural resources, to assist with the planning and implementation of land management practices. The report identified and described the condition of soils, landforms, vegetation, habitat, ecosystems, and declared plants and animals. It also assessed the impact of pastoralism and made land management recommendations. The Nullarbor region has …

Mapping Riparian Vegetation In The Lower Colorado River Using Low Resolution Satellite Imagery, Kelly J. Amundsen

ETD Archive

In the Western United States, monitoring water usage is a complex task carried out by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). It may be argued that USBR's greatest challenge is equitably distributing the waters of the Colorado River, particularly the Lower Colorado River, where water rights have been established and contested several times. To help meet the demands of water management in the Lower Colorado River Basin, USBR estimates the amount of water lost from the basin each year via evapo-transpiration by riparian vegetation in the Lower Colorado River riparian zone. Key components of those estimates include maps of the …

Correlation Between Normalized Ddifference Vvegetation Index And Malaria In A Subtropical Rain Forest Undergoing Rapid Anthropogenic Alteration, Nicole M. Wayant, Diego Maldonado, Antonieta Rojas De Arias, Blanca Cousino, Douglas G. Goodin

Center for Advanced Land Management Information Technologies: Publications

Time-series of coarse-resolution greenness values derived through remote sensing have been used as a surrogate environmental variable to help monitor and predict occurrences of a number of vector-borne and zoonotic diseases, including malaria. Often, relationships between a remotely-sensed index of greenness, e.g. the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and disease occurrence are established using temporal correlation analysis. However, the strength of these correlations can vary depending on type and change of land cover during the period of record as well as inter-annual variations in the climate drivers (precipitation, temperature) that control the NDVI values. In this paper, the correlation between …

A Mixed-Model Moving-Average Approach To Geostatistical Modeling In Stream Networks, Erin E. Peterson, Jay M. Ver Hoef

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Spatial autocorrelation is an intrinsic characteristic in freshwater stream environments where nested watersheds and flow connectivity may produce patterns that are not captured by Euclidean distance. Yet, many common autocovariance functions used in geostatistical models are statistically invalid when Euclidean distance is replaced with hydrologic distance. We use simple worked examples to illustrate a recently developed moving-average approach used to construct two types of valid autocovariance models that are based on hydrologic distances. These models were designed to represent the spatial configuration, longitudinal connectivity, discharge, and flow direction in a stream network. They also exhibit a different covariance structure than …

Adapting Modis-Derived Lai And Fractional Cover Into The Rams In East Africa, Nathan Moore, Nathan Torbick, Brent Lofgren, Jing Wang, Bryan Pijanowski, Jeffrey Andresen, Dong-Yun Kim, Jennifer Olson

United States Department of Commerce: Staff Publications

Land cover and its associated biophysical parameters govern many land–atmosphere interactions. Several previous studies have demonstrated the utility of incorporating satellite-derived observations of land cover into climate models to improve prediction accuracy. In the developing world where agriculture is a primary livelihood, a better understanding of seasonal variability in precipitation and near-surface temperature is critical to constructing more effective coping strategies for climate changes and food security. However, relatively few studies have been able to assess the impacts of improved surface parameterisation on these variables and their seasonality. Using moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS)-derived products, we sought to address this …

Geochemical And Mineralogical Evidence For Sahara And Sahel Dust Additions To Quaternary Soils On Lanzarote, Eastern Canary Islands, Spain, Daniel R. Muhs, James Budahn, Gary Skipp, Joseph M. Prospero, Deanna Patterson, E. Arthur Bettis Iii

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Africa is the most important source of dust in the world today, and dust storms are frequent on the nearby Canary Islands. Previous workers have inferred that the Sahara is the most important source of dust to Canary Islands soils, with little contribution from the Sahel region. Soils overlying a late Quaternary basalt flow on Lanzarote, Canary Islands, contain, in addition to volcanic minerals, quartz and mica, exotic to the island!s bedrock. Kaolinite in the soils also likely has an exotic origin. Trace-element geochemistry shows that the soils are derived from varying proportions of locally derived basalt and African dust. …

Development And Application Of A Pollen-Based Paleohydrologic Reconstruction From The Lower Roanoke River Basin, North Carolina, Usa, Debra Willard, Christopher Bernhardt, Roger Brown, Bryan Landacre, Philip A. Townsend

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

We used pollen assemblages to reconstruct late-Holocene paleohydrologic patterns in floodplain deposits from the lower Roanoke River basin (North Carolina, southeastern USA). Using 120 surface samples from 38 transects, we documented statistical relationships between pollen assemblages, vegetation, and landforms. Backswamp pollen assemblages (long hydroperiods) are dominated by Nyssa (tupelo) and Taxodium (cypress) and have high pollen concentrations. Sediments from elevated levees and seasonally flooded forests (shorter hydroperiods) are characterized by dominant Pinus (pine) pollen, variable abundance of hardwood taxa, and low pollen concentrations. We apply the calibration data set to interpret past vegetation and paleohydrology. Pollen from a radiocarbon-dated sediment …

The Role Of Adaptive Capacity In Creating Fire-Adapted Human Communities, Pamela J. Jakes, Matthew S. Carroll, Travis B. Paveglio, Soren Newman

Joint Fire Science Program Research Project Reports

In this research we sought answers to the question: What are the social characteristics and conditions of human communities that promote adaptive capacity for wildfire? The Quadrennial Fire Review (USDA and USDI 2009) promotes a goal of “achieving fire-adapted communities” in the wildland urban interface (WUI), and identifies metrics for determining whether a community is fire-adapted. While these metrics address some of the biophysical conditions necessary for fire-adapted human communities, they offer little insight into the social elements that promote or sustain adaptive capacity. Adaptive capacity refers to the individual and collective resources, capabilities, and actions that alleviate the risk …

Fire Regimes Of The Southern Appalachian Mountains: Temporal And Spatial Variability Over Multiple Scales And Implications For Ecosystem Management, Charles W. Lafon, Henri D. Grissino-Mayer, Sally P. Horn, Robert N. Klein

Joint Fire Science Program Research Project Reports

Information about historic fire regimes and the departure of current fire regimes from historic conditions is essential for guiding and justifying management actions, such as prescribed burning programs for ecosystem process restoration and fuel reduction. Such information is noticeably lacking for the southern Appalachian Mountains, where human populations are encroaching onto wildland areas, and where decades of fire exclusion have contributed to the decline of fire-associated communities and also to altered fuel loads. We address this knowledge gap via a multi-scale investigation of the variability in fire regimes over time and space using tree-ring reconstructions of fire history and stand …

Modeling Whole-Tree Carbon Assimilation Rate Using Observed Transpiration Rates And Needle Sugar Carbon Isotope Ratios, Jia Hu, David J. P. Moore, Diego Andrés Riveros-Iregui, Sean P. Burns, Russell K. Monson

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

• Understanding controls over plant–atmosphere CO₂ exchange is important for quantifying carbon budgets across a range of spatial and temporal scales. In this study, we used a simple approach to estimate whole-tree CO₂ assimilation rate (A_Tree) in a subalpine forest ecosystem.
• We analysed the carbon isotope ratio (δ¹³C) of extracted needle sugars and combined it with the daytime leaf-to-air vapor pressure deficit to estimate tree water-use efficiency (WUE). The estimated WUE was then combined with observations of tree transpiration rate (E) using sap flow techniques to estimate A_Tree. …

A Continuous Measure Of Gross Primary Production For The Conterminous United States Derived From Modis And Ameriflux Data, Jingfeng Xiao, Qianlai Zhuang, Beverly E. Law, Jiquan Chen, Dennis D. Baldocchi, David R. Cook, Ram Oren, Andrew D. Richardson, Sonia Wharton, Siyan Ma, Timothy A. Martin, Shashi Verma, Andrew E. Suyker, Russell L. Scott, Russell K. Monson, Marcy Litvak, David Y. Hollinger, Ge Sun, Kenneth J. Davis, Paul Bolstad, Sean Burns, Peter S. Curtis, Bert G. Drake, Matthias Falk, Marc L. Fischer, David R. Foster, Lianhong Gu, Julian L. Hadley, Gabriel G. Katul, Roser Matamala, Steve Mcnulty, Tilden P. Meyers, J. William Munger, Asko Noormets, Walter Oechel, Kyaw Tha Paw U, Hans Peter Schmid, Gregory Starr, Margaret S. Torn, Steven C. Wofsy

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The quantification of carbon fluxes between the terrestrial biosphere and the atmosphere is of scientific importance and also relevant to climate-policy making. Eddy covariance flux towers provide continuous measurements of ecosystem-level exchange of carbon dioxide spanning diurnal, synoptic, seasonal, and interannual time scales. However, these measurements only represent the fluxes at the scale of the tower footprint. Here we used remotely sensed data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) to upscale gross primary productivity (GPP) data from eddy covariance flux towers to the continental scale. We first combined GPP and MODIS data for 42 AmeriFlux towers encompassing a wide …

The Kentucky Mesonet: Perspectives On Data Access, Distribution, And Use For A Meso-Scale Surface Network, D. M. Grogan, S. Foster, Rezaul Mamood

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Scwds Briefs: Volume 26, Number 1 (April 2010), Gary L. Doster , Editor, Scwds Briefs, Michael J. Yabsley

Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study: Publications

Table of Contents:

AI Diagnostics Research

White Nose Syndrome Update

More CWD News

Pneumonia Kills Bighorn Sheep

MCF in a Key Deer

National Feral Swine Mapping System

Brucella suis in North America

Sam Hamilton

New Insights On The Sequence Stratigraphic Architecture Of The Dakota Formation In Kansas-Nebraska-Iowa From A Decade Of Sponsored Research Activity, G. A. Ludvigson, B. J. Witzke, Robert Matthew Joeckel, R. L. Ravn, P. L. Phillips, L. A. Gonzalez, R. L. Brenner

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Auswertung Der In Den Jahren 1993-2009 Im Östlichen Altai (Russland) Und Südöstlichen Altai (Tyva) Gesammelten Federn Und Rupfungen, W.-D. Busching

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

Determination-results of birds from Russian Altai-Mountains and Tyva based on plucked and moult-feathers.

This paper deals with plucked- and moult-feathers of different Central-Asian birds collected by STEPHAN ERNST, DANIEL MICHELE LINDNER and JENS HERING in the Russian Altai- Mountains and Tyva 1993 - 2009.