Digital Commons Network^™

Stimulating Students’ Interest In And Curiosity About Nature Through Frequent And Brief Trips Outdoors, Joanne Claire Kornoelje

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This study considers whether frequent and brief trips outdoors can affect students’ interest in and curiosity about nature. Recent research shows that people - and children in specific - are not spending as much time outdoors as in previous generations. This has raised concerns that today’s children will be less likely to champion environmental issues as adults, due to their lack of connection to the environment that surrounds and supports them.

I took my five sixth-grade science classes outdoors eleven times for ten-minute field trips during the 2009-10 school year. Using inquiry-based instruction, the initial trips were focused observation. Subsequent …

Simulation Of Contaminant Transport From Solid Domestic Waste Disposal Sites In The Warri Deltaic Plain Sands, Warri-Effurun, Nigeria, Charles Onoriode Usiaphre

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Protecting the groundwater resource in the Warri Deltaic Plain sand from the impact of anthropogenic contamination requires an understanding and knowledge of groundwater flow paths, transport processes and the source of contamination. This study was carried out to find out contaminant transport from solid domestic waste sites to the groundwater. The U.S. Geological Survey three-dimensional finite-difference code, MODFLOW, was used to simulate the groundwater flow. The flow pattern reveals predominantly downward flow, with major horizontal motion towards towns around Ekurede Urhobo and Ekurede Itsekiri in Warri. Simulation of advective contaminant transport using MODPATE1 for particle tracking indicates local movement of …

Rock Magnetic And Remanence Properties Of Both Synthetic Martian Basaltic Intrusions And Dropstones Along The East Antarctic Margin, To Aid In The Understanding Of The Carriers Of Crustal Magnetic Anomalies, David Michael Cuomo Jr.

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

This thesis examines potential carriers of magnetic anomalies found in remote areas where direct sampling is impossible. The areas examined are the southern hemisphere of Mars and the East Antarctic Margin. We examine the rock magnetic and remanence properties of synthetic Mars basalts and Antarctic dropstones, to predict the type and intensity of anomaly they would produce.

The anomalies measured within the Martian crust are entirely remanent magnetization and are remarkably orders of magnitude stronger than the strongest terrestrial anomaly. Two basalt compositions denoted M-type and T-type, deemed relevant to the crust of Mars, were synthesized to examine contrasts in …

Characterization Of Contaminant And Biomass-Derived Organic Matter In Sediments From The Lower Passaic River, New Jersey, Usa, Nicole Michelle Bujalski

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The lower Passaic River has been heavily contaminated during the twentieth century due to the industrial activity within its watershed. The geochemistry of four deep cores was explored using an environmental forensics approach. Pyrolysis gaschromatography/ mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) and grain size analysis was performed in conjunction with radiometric analysis to understand the sediment and contaminant transport patterns. The distinctive molecular finger prints were identified by employing chromatogram fingerprints, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon distribution, principal component analysis, and chemostratigraphy. Radiometric analysis and observations of chlorinated contaminant patterns allowed for average sample depths to be correlated to approximate ages. Additionally three distinct zones …

Ice Sheet Dynamics Of The Past 17 Myr In Southern Mcmurdo Sound, Antarctica: A Heavy Mineral Analysis, Daniel William Hauptvogel

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The ANtarctic Geologie DRILLing program (ANDRILL) drilled a sediment core from a sea ice platform in the Ross Sea in southern McMurdo Sound (SMS), Antarctica, in late 2007. The core site is located just to the east of the Transantarctic Mountains (TAM) along the western margin of a half graben and is a site of heavy sedimentation from the TAM, the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS), the McMurdo Volcanic Group (MVG), and the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) and Ross Ice Shelf. The upper 650 m of the core were analyzed for heavy minerals in order to interpret ice sheet …

Talus Slope Processes In The Appalachian : An Analysis Of Rock Size And Shape On The Shawangunk Ridge, Northwestern New Jersey, Muhammad Hamidul Haque

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Sphericity, hardness, roundness, and size of talus boulders were analyzed to understand the mass wasting process on the Shawangunk Ridge in northwestern New Jersey. Similar studies have been conducted in other localities (e.g., Lassen Peak, California and Spitsbergen, Sweden) but few works were carried out in the eastern United States, particularly in the Appalachian region. During the Pleistocene, ice sheets advanced in North America, and glacial and periglacial (soil and rock affected by ice) environments existed throughout the Appalachians. Although the periglacial climate is not present in this region right now, rock falls are still active where weak joints are …

Geochemical Investigation Of An Offshore Sewage Sludge Deposit, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, Michael A. Kruge, Albert Permanyer, Jordi Serra, Danlin Yu

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

For 20 years ending in the 1990’s the city of Barcelona discharged the products from a large primary sewage treatment plant directly into the Mediterranean Sea via underwater conduits. About ca. 3 million m³ of relict sewage sludge, rich in organic matter and heavy metals, has spread over an elongated area offshore, due to successive ruptures of the conduits. The use of the discharge pipes ceased, but he sludge deposit remains in place for the time being.

To understand the history and present state of the sludge deposit in advance of future remediation, a program of geophysical mapping, sampling, …

Magnetic And Petrologic Characterization Of Synthetic Martian Basalts And Implications For The Surface Magnetization Of Mars, Julie A. Bowels, Julie E. Hammer, Stefanie A. Brachfeld

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

A suite of synthetic Martian basalts is generated with the objective of providing fundamental material properties data for use in modeling and interpretation of mission data. We systematically evaluate the effects of major element composition, oxygen fugacity (ƒO2), and cooling rate on phase chemistry and magnetic mineralogy, grain size, and intensity of remanent magnetization. The range of experimental compositions and ƒO2 are chosen to bracket the range expected in the Martian crust; our results should therefore span the range of possible mineralogies, textures, and magnetic properties in rapidly cooled Mars crustal materials. Two starting compositions are used for the sample …

Holocene History Of The East Antarctic Ice Sheet Environmental Magnetic Record From Mac. Robertson Land, Kenneth R. Kacperowski Jr.

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

A 24-m jumbo-piston core containing a 14 ka Holocene-Late Pleistocene sedimentary record was collected from Mac.Robertson Land during United States Antarctic Program cruise NBP01-01. This study uses environmental magnetism to trace the Holocene history of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS), which is generally thought of as stable since it is grounded above sea level. Magnetic analyses are used to identify periods of terrigenous sedimentation from the EAIS, for example ice rafted debris layers or meltwater pulses. Terrigenous material contains magnetic minerals, which we expect to stand out from the dominantly biosiliceous sediment deposited along the East Antarctic Margin. Magnetic …

Stratigraphy And Geochemistry Of Squantum Tillite, Boston Bay Group : Using Field Log And Icp Analysis, Efe Junior Erukanure

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The Squantum Tillite has been studied in order to ascertain its depositional history. The Squantum Tillite is part of the Neoproterozoic Boston Bay Group, located in the Boston Basin. Researchers have proposed contradicting hypotheses about the origin of the rocks in the area for over a century. While some believe that the rocks were deposited by glaciers along a prograding submarine margin, others believe the rocks are of volcanic or tectonic origin. Many scientists are inclined to believe the rocks are of tectonic origin because the Squantum Tillite is located in a tectonic Basin (the Boston Basin).

Field logging was …

Paleoenvironment And Paleoclimate Of Coastal East Antarctica During The Middle Miocene : Particle Size Results Of The Andrill Southern Mcmurdo Sound Project, Candice Joy Falk

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The ANDRILL Southern McMurdo Sound (SMS) Project was carried out in December of 2007 by an international interdisciplinary team. The AND-2A core recovered the most complete Neogene stratigraphic record from Antarctica, spanning the past 20.2 million years. Analyzing particle size distributions of samples throughout the core can determine environmental conditions of the past, such as the advance or retreat of glaciers and the rise and fall of sea level. Over 300 samples were taken at approximately 3 m intervals from the 1138.54 m AND-2A core. Samples were processed and analyzed using a Malvern Instruments Mastersizer 2000, laser diffractometer which has …

Geochemical And Petrographic Signatures From Marie Byrd Land And Larsen-B Ice Shelf Sediments : Implications For Provenance Tracing, Cathleen Lauren Dale

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The goal of this study is to trace ice rafted debris in the Southern Ocean back to its most probable terrestrial source from the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS), East Antarctic Ice Sheet (EAIS), or the Antarctic Peninsula Ice Cap (APIC) in order to identify past ice sheet collapses in the geologic record. The bedrock in these areas have characteristic petrographic and geochemical signatures that are preserved in glacially transported and deposited sediment. These signatures may allow us to identify ice rafted debris and fine-grained sediment that originate from these three areas, which have undergone recent ice shelf retreat and …

Ridge Subduction Volcanism In The Zeballos Complex, Southern Patagonian Andes, Michael Joseph Dasilva

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

The Zeballos Complex (47.0°S, 71.4°W) lies on the western side of Meseta del Lago Buenos Aires (MLBA) in the southern Andean backarc region, southeast of the Chile Triple Junction and east of ridge collision that occurred at 6 Ma. The Zeballos Complex is a bimodal, alkaline volcanic complex consisting of multiple lava flows, dikes, volcanic necks, and sub-volcanic intrusives that range from basalt to trachybasalt (47-50% SiO₂; 5-7% Na₂O+K₂O; 3-7% MgO) to highly differentiated trachyandesite, trachydacite, and trachyte (58-65% SiO₂; 8-12% Na₂O+K₂O). Intermediate compositions are relatively rare, but …

A Sedimentary Investigation Of Lineation Patterns Found In The Pinelands Of New Jersey, Jennifer Lynn Lapoma

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Late Pleistocene (-15,000 years ago) geomorphic processes in the Pinelands of southern New Jersey were investigated after odd lineations were found on an Electromagnetic Induction (EMI) survey during the construction of a runway expansion at Lakehurst Naval Air Engineering Station. These lineations roughly matched up with alternating high and low albedo lineations identified on a 1931 aerial photomosaic approximately 17 kilometer (km) south of Lakehurst Navy Base in Davensport Branch, New Jersey. These lineations were initially hypothesized to be relicts from strong katabic winds flowing off the Laurentide Ice Sheet that would have been capable of winnowing magnetic sands from …

Monitoring Protocol For Two New Jersey Ponds With Littoral Zone Vegetative Restoration, Michael Wilson

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Restoration projects are becoming more frequent and commonplace because of increased regulations on development to replace lost ecosystems. Many of these projects have marginal success and rarely achieve the desired results. The mistakes and oversights are sometimes in the planning stages, but more often are made during the installation, primarily due to improper horticultural technique, poor monitoring, education, or lack of follow-up maintenance. Wetland restoration is even more difficult, due to the variable hydrologic patterns and reliance on environmental conditions. The most difficult type of wetland plant to establish is the emergent aquatic that typically grows in water up to …

Physics (Phys), Montclair State University

Course Descriptions

No abstract provided.

Physical Marine Science (Phms), Montclair State University

Course Descriptions

No abstract provided.

Can Non-State Certification Systems Bolster State-Centered Efforts To Promote Sustainable Development Through The Clean Development Mechanism, Jonathan G.S. Koppell, Kelly Levin, Benjamin Cashore

Publications from President Jonathan G.S. Koppell

Increasing economic globalization has coincided with the emergence and escalating influence of non-state actors and organizations in domestic and international policymaking, from shaping policy agendas to promoting private authority. The latter phenomenon has arisen, at least in part, from a critique of states' failures to adopt effective and enduring environmental policies. Rather than contest "command and control" institutions, non-state strategies embrace market approaches built around incentives and price mechanisms. Several forms of non-state authority have emerged, including corporate social responsibility, provision of information through labeling, and self-reporting.

Health (Hlth), Montclair State University

Course Descriptions

No abstract provided.

The Nature Of Boulder-Rich Deposits In The Upper Big Flat Brook Drainage, Sussex County, New Jersey, Gregory A. Pope, Andrew J. Temples, Sean I. Mclearie, Joanne C. Kornoelje, Thomas J. Glynn

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The upper reaches of the Big Flat Brook drainage, northwest of Kittatinny Mountain, contain a variety of glacial, pro-glacial, and periglacial deposits from the Late Quaternary. The area is dominated by recessional moraines and ubiquitous ground moraine, along with meltwater deposits, drumlins, and possible postglacial periglacial features. We have identified a curious boulder-rich deposit in the vicinity of Lake Ocquittunk and Lake Wapalanne on upper Big Flat Brook. The area where these boulder deposits occur is mapped (1:24,000 surficial geology) as till. As mapped and observed, larger cobbles and boulders within the till are quartz-pebble conglomerate, quartzite, sandstone, and shale. …

Economics (Econ), Montclair State University

Course Descriptions

No abstract provided.

Earth And Environmental Studies (Eaes), Montclair State University

Course Descriptions

No abstract provided.

Organic Chemostratigraphic Markers Characteristic Of The (Informally Designated) Anthropocene Epoch, Michael A. Kruge

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Recognizing the tremendous collective impact of humans on the environment in the industrial age, the proposed designation of the current time period as the Anthropocene Epoch has considerable merit. One of the signature activities during this time continues to be the intensive extraction, processing, and combustion of fossil fuels. While fossil fuels themselves are naturally-occurring, they are most often millions of years old and associated with deeply buried strata. They may be found at the surface, for example, as natural oil seeps or coal seam outcrops, but these are relatively rare occurrences. Fossil fuels and their myriad by-products become the …

The Analysis Of The Natural Attenuation Of Chlorinated Solvents In Groundwater At The Former Westinghouse Site In Bloomfield, New Jersey, Deborah J. Katchen

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Data for a contaminated site in Bloomfield, New Jersey were gathered from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP), in order to evaluate the hydrogeological conditions at the site. In particular, the data were analyzed to determine whether: 1) the site is still significantly contaminated, 2) natural attenuation is occurring at the site, and 3) natural attenuation will completely remediate the site in a reasonable period of time. The occurrence and distribution of Trichloroethene (TCE) and its daughter products, Dichloroethene (cis 1,2 DCE) and Vinyl Chloride (VC) show that the site is still contaminated.

It was observed that the …

Organic Geochemical Investigation Of A Highly Contaminated Urban Waterway: The Gowanus Canal, Brooklyn, New York, Usa, Michael A. Kruge, Kevin K. Olsen, Eric A. Stern

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The Gowanus Canal is an industrial waterway constructed in the mid-19^th century by widening and deepening a natural tidal channel. It is ca. 3 km in length and empties into Gowanus Bay, an arm of New York Harbor. Its banks, reinforced by bulkheads and piers, became the site of intensive industrial activity, including oil refining, coal gasification, soap making and tanning. Even though much of the industrial activity along the canal has ceased, its sediments remain highly enriched in organic and inorganic contaminants, with combined sewer outfalls continuing to transport pollutants into the canal. The canal area remains densely …

Mapping Woody Plant Cover In Desert Grasslands Using Canopy Reflectance Modeling And Misr Data, Mark Chopping, Lihong Su, Andrea Laliberte, Albert Rango, Debra P.C. Peters, John V. Martonchik

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

A simplified geometric-optical model (SGM) was inverted using red band reflectance data acquired at 275 m in nine viewing angles from the Multiangle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) flown on NASA's Terra satellite, to provide estimates of fractional woody plant cover for large areas (over 3519 km 2) in parts of the Chihuahuan Desert in New Mexico, USA. The use of the model in these semi-arid environments was enabled by the derivation of a priori estimates of the soil/understory background reflectance response. This was made possible by determining relationships between the kernel weights from a LiSparse-RossThin model adjusted against the same MISR …

Significance Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (Pahs) And Petroleum Biomarker Compounds In Contaminated Passaic River Sediments, Michael A. Kruge

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The lower Passaic River (northeastern New Jersey) flows through one of the most densely populated regions of the United States. The area’s long history of industrial activity is reflected in the complex and variable hydrocarbon composition of the river sediments. Sediments from river bottom grab samples at Newark and a 30 cm deep core at Kearny were subjected to thermal desorption-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (TD-GC/MS). This technique offers a practical alternative for rapid, inexpensive analysis, simply employing milligram quantities of dry, disaggregated sediment, avoiding the use of hazardous organic solvents. For each sample, a total of 181 hydrocarbons and organosulfur compounds …

The Montclarion, June 01, 2006, The Montclarion

The Montclarion

Student Newspaper of Montclair State University

A Habitat Suitability Index Model For Black Bear Living Within The Kittatinny Mountain Range In New Jersey, Brett Callanan

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Throughout the past decade, an increase in urbanization and the population of black bear (Ursus americanus) in New Jersey have caused an overlap of bear habitat and areas of residential and commercial development (Eriksen 1999). Consequently, the close proximity of humans to black bear has resulted in a variety of conflicts (Carr and Burguess 2003). Strategies traditionally used to regulate the numbers and interactions with bear, such as capture and relocation, euthanization, and the utilization of game hunts can be limited by their efficiency and predictability of results. New tools are needed to address the issues of habitat loss, bear …

A Preliminary Benthic Invertebrate Study Of Jun Jaegyu Volcano : An Undersea Volcano In Antarctic Sound, Antarctica, Gina QuiñOnes

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Jun Jaegyu volcano, an Antarctic submarine volcano, was dredged in May 2004 for sediment and marine macroinvertebrates. The objectives of this study were to examine the benthic assemblages and biodiversity present on the newly discovered volcano. The volcano is located on the continental shelf of the northeastern Antarctic Peninsula, where recent changes in surface temperature and ice shelf stability have been observed. This volcano was swath-mapped during cruise 01 -07 of the Research Vessel-Ice Breaker Nathaniel B. Palmer. The volcano was studied using a SCUD video camera and a dredge along the flanks and crest. Results indicate a seafloor surface …