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Water Quality Monitoring Protocol For Wadeable Streams And Rivers In The Northern Great Plains Network, Narrative Version 1.0, Marcia H. Wilson, Barbara L. Rowe, Robert A. Gitzen, Stephen K. Wilson, Kara J. Paintner-Green

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

Preserving the national parks unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations is a fundamental purpose of the National Park Service (NPS). To address growing concerns regarding the overall physical, chemical, and biological elements and processes of park ecosystems, the NPS implemented science-based management through “Vital Signs” monitoring in 270 national parks (NPS 2007). The Northern Great Plains Network (NGPN) is among the 32 National Park Service Networks participating in this monitoring effort. The NGPN will develop protocols over the next several years to determine the overall health or condition of resources within 13 parks located in Nebraska, North …

Water Quality Monitoring Protocol For Wadeable Streams And Rivers In The Northern Great Plains Network, Standard Operating Procedures Version 1.0, Marcia H. Wilson, Stephen K. Wilson

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

The Water Quality Monitoring Protocol includes two parts: a Narrative and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). The Water Quality Monitoring Protocol Narrative Version 1.0 describes a general overview of the status of water resources throughout the parks in the National Park Service’s Northern Great Plains Network (NGPN), the objectives, the field methods, and the sampling design selected for this long-term monitoring program. This report includes the detailed SOPs for the NGPN’s Water Quality Monitoring Protocol. All water quality monitoring is conducted by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) through Interagency Agreements. The USGS North Dakota Water Science Center …

Water Current, Volume 46, No. 4, Fall 2014

Water Current Newsletter

Nebraska Water Center Symposium and Water Law Conference

June Water Tour Heads to Republican River Basin

From The Director

Meet the Faculty

WRAP Hears Slate of Good News at September Meeting

Kuzelka Receives Kremer Award

Nance Joins DWFI as Director of Communications

New Staff Join Daugherty Water for Food

Researchers Probe Climate's Impact on Groundwater

Dating Drought in Nebraska's Sandhills

Water Center Advances Programming

Water Quality Related Extension Publications

UNL Report Outlines Impact of Climate Change

News Briefs

Spring Seminars Began in January

Franz Engages Students with New Cosmic-Ray

Chemistry meets Biology in Kazakhstan

A Visual Conservation Effort For Wilderness Park, Mariah Lundgren

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Conservation photography has been practiced since the early 1800’s by photographers who had the talent for photography, and passion for protecting our planets most precious resources. The photographical works of many photographers used their images as conservation tools to protect areas of land they intrinsically valued. Like these photographers, I have found a piece of land close to home that I intrinsically value, and this piece of land is Wilderness Park. Wilderness Park is 1,472 acres of riparian woodland and is part of the Salt Creek watershed, which is a tributary of the larger Platte River Basin. However, I am …

The Effect Of Climate Patterns On Fruit Ripening Near Lincoln, Nebraska, Taylor Nissen

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The research for this project was conducted at an orchard 12 miles north of Lincoln, Nebraska. The climate data came from the far north side of Lincoln, Nebraska. This study used a mixed methods approach to combine quantitative and qualitative data retrieved. The purpose of the study was to come to conclusions as to where fruit ripening patterns and production can look for the future, to bring about an estimation of fruit ripening patterns based on climate to help stimulate more production and efficiency for businesses and because knowing what climate trends will allow for new growth in Nebraska down …

Determining Groundwater Flux From Temperature Variance, James Cope

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The purpose of this research is to identify the underlying cause of the atypical temperature oscillation of groundwater temperature within the Ashland-1 nesting well site. Groundwater in this area experiences temperature peaks within the 50-ft screened well, while temperature data from the 15-ft screened well experiences a lesser range of temperature fluctuation. The first phase of the project involves gathering data from these nesting wells can comparing that data to surface water temperature data taken from a USGS gauging station. The second phase was to associate these temperature oscillations with possible geological factors that could be driving this temperature fluctuation. …

The Effects Of Plant Species And Water Table Height On Methane Transport In Wetlands, Cain L. Silvey

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

This paper describes two complementary experiments in which methane flux from individual wetland plants was monitored. The first experiment was designed to explore species-specific differences in methane transport and took place in a greenhouse on the University of Nebraska - Lincoln's east campus during the summer of 2013. The second experiment took place the following summer at a restored wetland near Dayton, OH and investigated the effect of water table height on plant-mediated methane transport and provided supporting data for the first experiment regarding species-specific differences in methane transport.

Religion And Environmental Worldviews, Stephanie Emodi, Madison Hergenrader

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

This study examined religions role in forming an environmental worldview. It was hypothesized that the more religious one is the more anthropocentric their worldview would be. It is imperative to find what influences values so steps can be made to promote pro environmental behavior. If religion is found to influence one’s behavior and worldview, the social structure of religion could be a possible avenue for encouraging an ecocentric worldview. A survey was conducted and dispersed at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, targeting college-aged students. It was found that although religion does influence behavior, it cannot be concluded that religion influences environmental …

Biosafety: Evaluation And Regulation Of Genetically Modified (Gm) Crops In The United States, Richard E. Goodman

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

This review of the safety assessment of genetically modified (GM) crops is focused primarily on the process and progress in the United States (US). It reviews the development of the safety evaluation process from the Asilomar conference in 1975 considering issues relevant to recombinant DNA technology, to discussions between the US government, academic and industrial scientists between 1984 and 1994 when the first GM crops were being field tested and evaluated commercial release for food and feed production. International guidelines were also reviewed for consistency with the US system. The overall process includes consideration of information relating to history of …

An Economic Analysis Of Land Values In The Nebraska Rainwater Basin Using Hedonic Pricing, Hannah Janda

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

This project was designed to determine the significant drivers of land prices near wetlands, with the goal of offering recommendations to landowners that may be trying to choose the best option for their wetland. This process included measuring whether or not the presence of wetlands reduced property values in a section of Seward County within the Nebraska Rainwater Basin. To accomplish this, I use the hedonic pricing method with statistical regression analysis. The results indicate that although there is a bias against wetlands, it accounts for less than half of the change in sale price within these parcels of land. …

Amphibian Conservation In Urban Areas, Emma Trewhitt

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The topic of amphibian decline has become a primary concern partially due to increased urbanization causing habitat loss and fragmentation (Fahrig, 2003). Focusing on this, a project was outlined with the main goal to enhance the conservation and ensure sustainable biodiversity of native amphibians within a substantially urbanized habitat. Currently, there are several storm water retention ponds, and aesthetic ponds around the parking lot and within the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo. Utilization of these ponds by amphibian species will be examined through frog call surveys and visual occurrences. From the results of these surveys, we are better able to understand …

Sandhill Crane Hunting In Nebraska: Predicted Economic Effects, Benjamin Wilson

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Following the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 a major rebound in the Mid-Continent Sandhill Crane population began. States allowing hunting have seemingly profited from this segment of wildlife management, except for Nebraska. Being the only state in the Central Flyway not to allow hunting of Sandhill Cranes, Nebraska has been ignoring possible gains from this economic sector. Although the current economic gain from recreation and tourism of Sandhill Cranes is near $10.33 million, the predicted profits of hunting could add more inflow to the economy. Using the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Status and Harvest Report on Sandhill Cranes from …

Nature Center Preschools: A Teaching Tool For Early Childhood Environmental Education, Blair Kalinski

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The data used in this study was obtained at the Schlitz Audubon Nature Center (SANC) preschool in Milwaukee, WI. The purpose of this study is to qualitatively and quantitatively examine how effective nature center preschools are as a teaching tool for early childhood environmental education. This study is significant for generating new knowledge of the ecological concepts young children do and don’t understand, as well as to the future application of designing curriculum and implementing early childhood environmental education programs in the United States. Children are unhealthy, spending less time outside, and are environmentally illiterate (Louv, 2008; Roberts & Foehr, …

Prairie Restoration: Bridging The Past And The Future, Daryl D. Smith

The Prairie Naturalist

Tallgrass prairie once dominated most of mid-continent North America. Conversion of this prairie to cropland was rapid and extensive. Today, it is the most decimated ecosystem in North America with less than two percent remaining. Prairie reconstruction began at the University of Wisconsin Arboretum in the 1930s. Thirty years later, exemplary initiatives by a group of highly motivated restorationists in Illinois and Iowa became a part of the legacy of restoration ecology. Their work generated widespread public interest in prairie restoration and initiated the ongoing biennial North American Prairie Conference. Since then, practitioners have made significant advances in reconstruction and …

An Interpretive Plan Guide For Wilderness Park In Lincoln, Nebraska, Rachel J. Ward

Community and Regional Planning Program: Professional Projects

Wilderness Park, located in Lancaster County, Nebraska, is a public park of unique ecological and historical value to the city of Lincoln and to the surrounding region. The natural and historical features of the park present an opportunity to communicate environmental and historical topics that are relevant on local, national, and global levels, as well as inspire a lively sense of pride in the community. The problem is that many topics relevant to Wilderness Park are not currently being interpreted at the park, and that there are relatively few interpretive resources available to park visitors.

The purpose of this project …

Project Prairie And Tallgrass Education On The Rice Lake Plains: A Journey From 1870 To Today And Beyond, Todd Farrell, Mark Rupke, Mark Stabb

The Prairie Naturalist

Project Prairie began in 2011 as a curriculum-linked integrated environmental studies program to showcase the Rice Lake Plains (RLP), a tallgrass prairie landscape of sandy rolling hills located at the eastern extent of the Oak Ridges Moraine in southern Ontario. Project Prairie provides educators both indoor and outdoor activities that support their curriculum and share the story of the RLP. Project Prairie provides teacher and student resources that focus on the RLP from the mid-nineteenth century to present day. Learning objectives of Project Prairie are developed from the subjects of science, social science, language arts, geography, history, and Aboriginal culture. …

Students’ Connectedness To Nature In Relation To Academic Major And Learning Style, Brett Kelly

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The purpose of this research is to explore the relation between students’ connectedness to nature, academic major type and learning style. This study categorized student’s academic major into whether it was oriented toward business/advertising or natural resources/agriculture. Understanding students’ relationship with nature is important in a world that faces many environmental challenges. Studying academic major type and learning style provides references for chosen career paths and how students learn most efficiently. By running correlational analyses of these variables, more is understood about how connectedness to nature plays a role in students’ academic choices and learning preferences. Results showed a significant …

Detection Of The Pharmaceuticals Carbamazepine And Diphenhydramine In Tissue Extracts Using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (Gc-Ms), Emily Hoehn

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The increasing occurrence of pharmaceuticals at low concentration and other “emerging contaminants” in the surface and ground water, has led to a critical need for a wide variety of methods for the accurate measurement of chemicals at low concentrations in a cost effective manner. The objective of this study was to develop a sample preparation method that allows the quantification of two pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine and diphenhydramine) commonly reported in treated municipal wastewater in plant tissue (leafy lettuce) extracts using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). Solid phase extraction (SPE) was used to extract analytes while additional sample purification was attempted through the …

Across-Year Social Stability Shapes Network Structure In Wintering Migrant Sparrows, Daizaburo Shizuka, Alexis S. Chaine, Jennifer Anderson, Oscar Johnson, Inger Marie Laursen, Bruce E. Lyon

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Migratory birds often form flocks on their wintering grounds, but important details of social structure such as the patterns of association between individuals are virtually unknown. We analysed networks of co-membership in short-term flocks for wintering golden-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia atricapilla) across three years and discovered social complexity unsuspected for migratory songbirds. The population was consistently clustered into distinct social communities within a relatively small area (~ 7 ha). Birds returned to the same community across years, with mortality and recruitment leading to some degree of turnover in membership. These spatiotemporal patterns were explained by the combination of space …

The Public Perception Of Green Infrastructure Technologies In Omaha, Nebraska, Matthew Spohr

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

This project takes place in two neighborhoods in Omaha, Nebraska: the Saddle Hills neighborhood and the Benson neighborhood. A survey was distributed to neighborhood residents in order to gauge their understanding of stormwater management and green infrastructure technologies. Currently, Omaha uses two types of stormwater/sanitary sewer systems: a combined sewer system (CSS) and a municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4). Approximately half of Omaha operates using the CSS and due to the amount of impermeable surfaces across the city when rainfall events occur the sewer treatment facility discharges untreated excess storm and sewer water into the Missouri River. According to …

Prairie Pines: Water For Life, A Visual Short, Steven Schubert

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Oft defined by the people that inhabit it, land has taken many shapes and forms. The spiritual relationship between indigenous Native Americans and nature preserved the virgin beauty of the New World. Here, life of all kinds throve. However, this measured balance was not to be lasted. With the passing of years and advancement of human technology, social order, and insatiable desire North America was found, claimed, and sullied. European (and American) colonialism brought irreversible change to the land of the Americas. Economic emphasis on the maximization of resources defiled flora and fauna alike and interrupted thousands of years of …

New Insights Into Skeletal Morphology Of The Oldest Known Silicoflagellates : Variramus, Cornua And Gleserocha Gen. Nov. = Nouvelles Connaissances Sur La Morphologie Du Squelette Des Plus Anciennes Silicoflagellés Connus : Variramus, Cornua Et Gleserocha Gen. Nov., Kevin Mccartney, Jakub Witkowski, David M. Harwood

ANDRILL Research and Publications

Two of the oldest known silicoflagellate-bearing sediments, lower Albian at Ocean Drilling Program Site 693 in the Weddell Sea of Antarctica and Santonian in the Devon Island sequence of the Canadian Archipelago, are re-examined with a focus on silicoflagellate genera Variramus, Cornua, and Gleserocha that lack basal rings, a feature appearing during late Santonian/early Campanian time within the genus Corbisema. The extraordinary variability of Variramus aculeifera is studied, and a new genus Gleserocha is proposed for taxa with apical structures made of three struts, but without pikes. This new genus includes previously described Variramus wisei and Cornua …

Assessing The Effects Of Soil Moisture On Germination Of Winter Wheat, Ellie Smith-Eskridge

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Drought is a major issue in wheat production globally and in Nebraska particularly during germination. Rapid germination is important for satisfactory stands whereas late germination may lead to a lower yield. Laboratory experiments were conducted at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) to compare germination of five Nebraska-grown wheat varieties, or cultivars, under water stress conditions.

The cultivars, Anton, Nuplains, Pronghorn, Trego, and Wesley were selected because of their presumed differing water use efficiency (WUE). Tests were conducted on a Nebraska soil to create a soil water release curve and to select soil moisture level or water treatments. The experimental design …

The Restorative Effects Of Natural Decor, Tobias Burnham

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Humans are continually opting to live in urban environments, furthering us from the innate connection to the natural environment we have evolved with over millennia. These urban settings place several stressors on us in the form of stimuli that requires directed attention (cars, billboards, traffic lights, etc.) in which deplete our attentional resources leading to Direct Attention Fatigue (DAF). Attentional Restoration Theory (ART) is based on the ability of natural environments to have restorative effects on these depleted resources due to the relative ease of experiencing nature through involuntary attention. The focus of this study is to determine how nature-based …

Determining Effect Of Defaults On Grid Parity, Jacob M. Smith

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Human activities emitting greenhouse gases (e.g. carbon dioxide) are the main cause of observed warming since the mid-20^th century. Because a large fraction of human emissions are from conventional power sources it will be important to adopt carbon neutral technologies such as alternative energy sources (IPCC, 2013). Grid parity is the point at which alternative energy sources reach a levelized cost of electricity that is less than or equal to conventional power sources (Ueckhardt, 2013). It is thought that once it is reached alternative energy will be adopted en masse (Yang, 2010). But this concept ignores marketplace choice and …

Management Of Invasive Bullfrogs, Jason Martz

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The purpose of the paper was to look at control methods that are being used currently in the field to control the bullfrogs. Also, to see the future of management and control of the bullfrog. Investigate to see if these plans could possibly be used in Lincoln, NE in places like Pioneers Park. The bullfrog has outcompeted many native species when it invades an ecosystem. It is considered one of the worst invaders in the world. Once established it is very hard to eradicate. So it is important to understand and investigate control being used currently. Literature review was used …

College Students’ Use Of Farmers’ Markets In Lincoln, Nebraska, Amber Reinkordt

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The purpose of this study is to develop an understanding of college students’ use of local farmers’ markets in Lincoln, Nebraska and the barriers that prevent college students from attending farmers’ markets, and noting the incentives that could motivate them to attend.

Currently there are no research articles about college students and their attendance at farmers' markets. There are, however, articles pertaining to getting students on the farm, school gardens, low income families and making farmers' markets more accessible and affordable, health benefits for customers who shop locally, and environmental, economic, and societal benefits of local farm operations.

Soil Health After Intense Ponderosa Pine Forest Fire In North Central Nebraska, Amanda Hefner

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

In late July 2012, the Region 24 Complex fire consumed over 76, 000 acres of north central Nebraska. This area consists of ponderosa pine forest with high densities of eastern redcedar, deciduous hardwood forest, and Sandhills prairie. This incredible event provided an occasion to examine the effect of the fire on soil nitrification and soil erosion at The Nature Conservancy’s Niobrara Valley Preserve. Eighteen 900m² plots were established in regions chosen for their topographic location (footslope, midslope, and ridgetop), forest density, and directional slope (north vs. south facing slope). Each plot was split into nine subplots with 25 erosion …

Hand, Wrist, Forearm And Finger Occupational Injuries In Pork Processing: Comparison By Work-Site And Source Of Injury, Autumn Cummings

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

This study looked at injury incident reports from Farmland pork processing plant in Crete, Nebraska. Over a 25-week period in 2012, 300-injury incident reports were analyzed by body part injured. After determining the upper extremities to be the major source of injury, they were then analyzed further with work-sites where injuries occurred, and the source of the injury. Fingers along with hands, wrists and forearms were found to be the majority of the body parts injured. Common among these body parts injured were the location of the incident in the plant. Most of the injuries occurred in the cold work-sites, …

The Impacts Of Environmental Education On Youth And Their Environmental Awareness, Katherine A. Grimmette

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The purpose of this article is to identify the effects of environmental education (EE) programs on youth, including: creating environmental awareness, building a connection to the environment, and changing the perceptions youth has on the environment. The study examines the EE program, Science Camp Explore, hosted at the Cedar Point Biological Station and Lake McConaughy Water Interpretive Center in Ogallala, Nebraska. The camp emphasized two main themes, soil and water. To acquire data the study called for a mixed method of questionnaires, cognitive maps (drawing exercise), and the 3CM model. In order to measure the awareness of the pre and …