Digital Commons Network^™

Electricity Sector Adaptation To Heat Waves, Sofia Aivalioti

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Electricity is very important for human settlements and a key accelerator for development and prosperity. As heat waves become more frequent and intense the reliability and efficiency of the electricity systems is threatened. Increased temperatures have adverse effects on electricity generation, transmission, distribution and demand. The high temperatures cause intentional or unintentional brownouts and blackouts, which come at high costs for people and economies. The case studies in this analysis highlight the importance of heat wave impacts to the electricity sector and the need for adaptation. The electricity sector requires a holistic approach for adaptation that comprises technological, behavioral and …

Expanding Eco-Visualization: Sculpting Corn Production, Jennifer E. Figg

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation expands upon the definition of eco-visualization artwork. EV was originally defined in 2006 by Tiffany Holmes as a way to display the real time consumption statistics of key environmental resources for the goal of promoting ecological literacy. I assert that the final forms of EV artworks are not necessarily dependent on technology, and can differ in terms of media used, in that they can be sculptural, video-based, or static two-dimensional forms that communicate interpreted environmental information. There are two main categories of EV: one that is predominantly screen-based and another that employs a variety of modes of representation …

An Appraisal Of Experiences Of Climate Change And Adaptive Response To Heat Stress By Farmers In Rural Ghana, Kwasi Frimpong

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

With the increase in average global temperatures, heat-related illnesses and deaths have unfolded as occupational and health issues. Periods of high to extreme temperatures are becoming more common and are a leading cause of weather-related deaths in many countries. In agricultural settings of African countries, heat stress is a major concern as many smallholder farmers work outdoors with limited access to cooling systems even in their resting and living environments. This study, conducted in the Bawku East part of Northern-East Ghana in 2013, examines, in the context of climate change, the trends and impacts of heat stress on smallholder farmers, …

Land Use And Climate Change Bubbles: Resilience, Retreat, And Due Diligence, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

This Article examines events on the ground in several localities where climate change is lowering property values and analyzes how those changes in value can be reckoned with by regulators. It merges practices and principles of real estate transactions and finance with those of land use and environmental regulation.

Climate change is a planetary phenomenon whose environmental implications are far-reaching. Reports on climate change consequences increasingly focus on what is happening locally and presently, while speculation continues about long-term global consequences. In numerous communities, property values are declining because of repeated flooding, continued threats of storm surges, sustained high temperatures, …

The Underlying Current: Climate Change And The Fall Of Rome, Matthew Thomas Finnie

Honors Program Theses and Research Projects

Although historians have debated the various causes of the fall of the Roman Empire for centuries, scholars did not consider the impact of environmental change until the early twentieth century. Initially, environmental historians believed that agricultural decline resultant from soil erosion and deforestation played a dominant role; however, scientific and historical evidence can now be utilized to demonstrate that these two factors were much less prevalent during the third through fifth centuries than they had been during the prosperous Pax Romana. In contrast, recent climatological studies, most notably dendrochronological sequences, have established that a combination of cooling and desertification plagued …

Community Ecology, Climate Change And Ecohydrology In Desert Grassland And Shrubland, Matthew Daniel Petrie

Biology ETDs

This dissertation explores the climate, ecology and hydrology of Chihuahuan Desert ecosystems in the context of global climate change. In coming decades, the southwestern United States is projected to experience greater temperature-driven aridity, possible small decreases in annual precipitation, and a later onset of summer monsoon rainfall. These changes may have profound consequences for ecological systems in the Chihuahuan Desert, which are intensely water-limited and respond to even small pulses of moisture availability. The first chapter (Chapter 2) compares change in the properties of monsoon season precipitation from 1910-2010 in the northern Chihuahuan Desert region to local variability in monsoon …

Spatial And Seasonal Variations In Aridification Across Southwest North America, Shannon Miller Jones

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

The Southwestern region of North America (SWNA) is projected to become more arid throughout the 21st century as precipitation (P) and evaporation (E) rates change with increasing global temperatures. Trends in the regional surface moisture balance (P−E) of SWNA vary between the arid southern subregion (mostly Northern Mexico) and the more temperate northern subregion (Southwest US), depending on the relative contributions of cold and warm season P and E. Interpreting the spatial and seasonal variations of the projected aridification is important for understanding the potential impacts of climate change on SWNA regional hydrology. We compare the projected trends in P, …

A Threat To New Zealand's Tuatara Heats Up, Kristine L. Grayson, Nicola J. Mitchell, Nicola J. Nelson

Biology Faculty Publications

No matter how many times we head to one of New Zealand's offshore islands, the feelings are always a mix of sheer awe at the beauty and biodiversity preserved in these special refuges and lingering nerves. Did we remember all the gear? Do we have enough food and water in case we get stuck? Can the helicopter land on the side of a cliff in these winds? These epic journeys are in pursuit of a lone remnant of the reptile evolutionary tree, with a unique ecology that has big implications under climate change.

Climate Justice Advocacy, Mary Finley-Brook

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

Creating international policy to combat climate change is one of the biggest public diplomacy challenges of our time. With slow progress in “state-led” forums such as the annual Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), advocacy coalitions of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are pressuring decision-makers and working to build global awareness. The power of NGOs is soft since state actors set emissions targets; nonetheless, climate justice organizations persistently broadcast several important messages, including: 1) industrialized nations along with private sector polluters have an obligation to remedy ecological debt; 2) low-income and marginalized populations …

Ecological Biogeography Of The Terrestrial Nematodes Of Victoria Land, Antarctica, Byron Adams, Diana Wall, Ross Virginia, Emma Broos, Matthew A. Knox

Dartmouth Scholarship

The terrestrial ecosystems of Victoria Land, Antarctica are characteristically simple in terms of biological diversity and ecological functioning. Nematodes are the most commonly encountered and abundant metazoans of Victoria Land soils, yet little is known of their diversity and distribution. Herein we present a summary of the geographic distribution, habitats and ecology of the terrestrial nematodes of Victoria Land from published and unpublished sources. All Victoria Land nematodes are endemic to Antarctica, and many are common and widely distributed at landscape scales. However, at smaller spatial scales, populations can have patchy distributions, with the presence or absence of each species …

Developing An Ontario Maple Syrup Sector Profile: A Value Chain Analysis (Executive Summary), Grant Morin, Brenda Murphy

Contemporary Studies

Through a sectorial profile, this study identifies the maple syrup value chain’s key players, processes, activities and inter-intra industry relationships (social capital) providing baseline data on the current status of the industry and an overall picture of the maple syrup value chain for members and new entrants. The study found that a) technological advancements over the years have lead to great efficiencies and eased the labour requirement; b) that strong social connections have great impact on marketing and retail of syrup; c) that innovation is found not only through research and development sectors of large companies but also from a …

Developing An Ontario Maple Syrup Sector Profile: A Value Chain Analysis, Grant Morin

Geography and Environmental Studies Major Research Papers

Through a sectorial profile, this study identifies the maple syrup value chain’s key players, processes, activities and inter-intra industry relationships (social capital) providing baseline data on the current status of the industry and an overall picture of the maple syrup value chain for members and new entrants. The study found that a) technological advancements over the years have lead to great efficiencies and eased the labour requirement; b) that strong social connections have great impact on marketing and retail of syrup; c) that innovation is found not only through research and development sectors of large companies but also from a …

Reduction Of Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions To Mitigate Climate Change Impacts, Mary Snow, Richard Snow

Publications

Weather affects almost all modes of transportation in a modern society, and likewise, transportation has an enormous impact on the weather. Transportation greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) impact climate change, which impacts transportation in return. Reduction of transportation impacts on climate change can mitigate the reverse climate change impacts on transportation. This paper examines the relationship between transportation and climate change and establishes prospective solutions to reduce transportation greenhouse gas emission impacts on climate change and mitigate the reverse climate change impacts on transportation.

Effects Of Climate Change On The Potential Distribution Of 12 Endemic Lizards Of The Genus Plestiodon Of Mexico, Mayra Oyervides

Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA

Anthropogenic global climate change is a large scale threat to biodiversity. Species distribution models (SDMs) were created to assess the possible effects of climate change on the distribution of 12 Plestiodon lizards of Mexico. Species presence data was obtained from online databases, literature, and field data. Occurrences were correlated with 19 climatic variables from www.worldclim.org to model species' current suitable habitat. These models were then projected to future (2050) conditions for which bioclimatic information was downloaded from the CCAFS website. Forecasts were made using 4 General Circulatory Models, 2 IPCC scenarios, and the software MaxEnt. Models were replicated 10 times …

Changing Forest Water Yields In Response To Climate Warming: Results From Long-Term Experimental Watershed Sites Across North America, Irena F. Creed, Adam T. Spargo, Julia A. Jones, Jim M. Buttle, Mary B. Adams, Fred D. Beall, Eric G. Booth, John L. Campbell, Dave Clow, Kelly Elder, Mark B. Green, Nancy B. Grimm, Chelcy Miniat, Patricia Ramlal, Amartya Saha, Stephen Sebestyen, Dave Spittlehouse, Shannon Sterling, Mark W. Williams, Rita Winkler, Huaxia Yao

New Hampshire EPSCoR

Climate warming is projected to affect forest water yields but the effects are expected to vary. We investigated how forest type and age affect water yield resilience to climate warming. To answer this question, we examined the variability in historical water yields at long-term experimental catchments across Canada and the United States over 5-year cool and warm periods. Using the theoretical framework of the Budyko curve, we calculated the effects of climate warming on the annual partitioning of precipitation (P) into evapotranspiration (ET) and water yield. Deviation (d) was defined as a catchment's change in actual ET divided by P …

Climate Change And The Westhampton Lake, Kendel Ahnell, Yaz Nuñez, Natasha Rathlev

Geography and the Environment Capstone Projects

The Westhampton Lake is a cultural monument on campus and one of the University of Richmond's most prominent features. Prospective students have made college decisions based on the lake's beauty and alumni look forward to returning to the waterfront to reminisce about their college experience. The significance of place attachment that members of the Richmond community hold toward the lake imbues great value on the lake as a key geographic element of campus (Devine-Wright, 2013). However, our community suffers from a lack of knowledge around the health and sustainability of this dearly beloved body of water. Over the course of …

Attitudes Towards Climate Change And Sustainability, Sammy Easby, Tess Manning

Geography and the Environment Capstone Projects

The University of Richmond has made great strides as a community to decrease our carbon emissions and live in a more sustainable way. In November of 2007 President Ayers signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, which resolves Richmond to mitigate climate change. In response to this action, the Environmental Studies Senior Seminar of 2008 created a report outlining the view of our community about these issues, as well as, offer recommendations for our campus. We, the Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Class of 2014 have chosen to focus our capstone on climate change. We recognize that climate change …

Measuring The Support For Climate Change Researchers At The University Of Richmond, Adam Forrer, Brianna Miller, Hunterr Payeur

Geography and the Environment Capstone Projects

Climate change has been recognized globally as one of the leading issues of our generation. In order for the United States to make an appropriate response to climate change there is a need to facilitate climate change research in institutions of higher learning. Making climate change research available to undergraduate students has the potential for positive results for the issue of climate change and the undergraduates who choose to participate in research (Seymor et. al. 2004). As an institution of higher learning and the resources at our disposal, the University of Richmond should be at the forefront of climate change …

Sex Ratio Bias And Extinction Risk In An Isolated Population Of Tuatara (Sphenodon Punctatus), Kristine L. Grayson, Nicola J. Mitchell, Joanne M. Monks, Susan N. Keall, Joanna N. Wilson, Nicola J. Nelson

Biology Faculty Publications

Understanding the mechanisms underlying population declines is critical for preventing the extinction of endangered populations. Positive feedbacks can hasten the process of collapse and create an ‘extinction vortex,’ particularly in small, isolated populations. We provide a case study of a male-biased sex ratio creating the conditions for extinction in a natural population of tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) on North Brother Island in the Cook Strait of New Zealand. We combine data from long term mark-recapture surveys, updated model estimates of hatchling sex ratio, and population viability modeling to measure the impacts of sex ratio skew. Results from the mark-recapture …

Climate Change In The Zambian Mind: Communicating Risk Perception Of Climate Change And Variability In Zambia, Libert Mweemba

Zambia Social Science Journal

No environmental issue has been of such truly global magnitude as the issue of climate change. And no other global environmental issue has been so controversial, not because of lack of scientific knowledge, but rather because it is a result of every human action and will have a direct impact on all human endeavour everywhere. We assessed whether Zambians perceive climate change as a significant threat and whether their risk perceptions of climate change influence their awareness of the degradation of the environment. The paper also examines the affective images Zambians have of global warming and whether these images can …

Water At The Centre Of Environmental Issues – Research At The Ucd Dooge Centre For Water Resources Research, Zeinab Bedri, Eva M. Mockler, Michael Bruen, Yaqian Zhao, Pj Purcell, John O'Sullivan, M. Alsaji, Aisling Corkery, Liam Doherty, M. Dzakpasu, M. Martins, A. Rymszewicz, L. Willuwet

Conference papers

Since 1988, the UCD Dooge Centre for Water Resources Research has been conducting research in a wide range of water topics including hydraulics, hydrology, coastal dynamics and wastewater with an emphasis on multi-disciplinary collaboration. This paper presents an overview of this research, both past and present, and provides an outlook to the future research directions of the Centre.

Climate Change And The Westhampton Lake: Review And Recommendations, Kendel Ahnell, Yazmeen Nuñez, Natasha Rathlev

Geography and the Environment Capstone Projects

The Westhampton Lake is a campus icon and one of the University of Richmond's most prominent features. The significant attachment that members of the University community hold toward the lake imbues great value on the lake as a key geographic element of campus (Devine-Wright, 2013). However, the lake’s status as a campus monument does not absolve it from the greater effects of climate change, a phenomenon which will continue to transform the geography and ecology of the lake. Without a concrete understanding of the implications of current and future climate change on campus, the community may leave the Westhampton Lake …

Measuring Support For Climate Change Research At The University Of Richmond, Adam Forrer, Brianna Miller, Hunterr Payeur

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

This study investigated the possibility of hiring new faculty at the University of Richmond whose area of expertise incorporates climate change. The study used a survey of Richmond students to gauge interest in academic areas such as climate change classes and research with faculty. In depth interviews with faculty members from various departments within the University were also conducted. Further research showed that although 12 of the top 25 liberal arts schools in the United States offered two or more classes specifically on the issue of climate change, the University of Richmond intermittently offers one climate change class, located in …

Attitudes Towards Climate Change And Sustainability, Sammy Easby, Tess Manning

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

Climate change is an important issue in the world today and the University of Richmond has the ability to make a difference. The purpose of this project was to gain information about University of Richmond students’ awareness, attitudes, and behaviors related to climate change and sustainability on campus. A short survey was composed and sent to students via email. Over the course of two weeks, 274 students completed the survey. The data from the survey was composed and analyzed. Based on the data, for the most part our community’s behaviors have stayed consistent. Student awareness has slightly increased but they …

Library Journal Book Reviews, Michal Strutin

Staff publications, research, and presentations

Reviews of the following books: Fukushima: The Story of a Nuclear Disaster. 2014 Zero Waste Solution: Untrashing the Planet One Community at a Time. 2013 A Thousand Deer: Four Generations of Hunting and the Hill Country. 2012 The Last Lost World: Ice Ages, Human Origins, and the Invention of the Pleistocene. 2012 The Mindful Carnivore: A Vegetarian's Hunt for Sustenance. 2012 The Great Disruption: How the Climate Crisis Will Change Everything. 2011 Dinosaur Odyssey: Fossil Threads in the Web of Life. 2009 Eco Barons: The Dreamers, Schemers and Millionaires Who Are Saving Our Planet. 2009 Nature's Clocks: How Scientists Measure …

Identifying Legal, Ecological And Governance Obstacles, And Opportunities For Adapting To Climate Change, Barbara Cosens

Articles

No abstract provided.

From Alarm To Action: Closing The Gap Between Belief And Behavior In Response To Climate Change, Kathryn Laing Doherty

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The degree to which the climate continues to change will largely be determined by choices made by individuals and nations regarding greenhouse gas emissions. Many Americans engage in energy conservation actions. But, the political will in the United States to adopt emissions reduction policies is unlikely to exist without public demand. Therefore, public mitigation actions of individuals (e.g., contacting elected officials in support of emissions reduction) are critical to induce legislative response. The majority of individuals who are most concerned about climate change (the “Alarmed” segment) do not engage in public mitigation actions, but some do. The purpose of this …

The Role Of Politics And Proximity In Sea Level Rise Policy Salience: A Study Of Virginia Legislators’ Perceptions, Juita-Elena (Wie) Yusuf, Burton St. John Iii, Ivan K. Ash

School of Public Service Faculty Publications

The acceleration of sea level rise (SLR) has become a threat to the stability of nation-states worldwide and associated with risks to environmental sustainability, economic infrastructure, and public health. However, from both an international and U.S. perspective, there is a lack of research examining legislative decision makers’ perceptions about policies regarding SLR. This study addresses that gap by examining how politics and proximity affects Virginia state legislators’ perceptions of the saliency of SLR. A survey of these legislators reveals their perceptions of credible sources of information, SLR-related risk, and who should take the lead to address SLR. While this study …

Climate Change Triage, Noah M. Sachs

Law Faculty Publications

Climate change is the first global triage crisis. It is caused by the overuse of a severely limited natural resource—the atmosphere’s capacity to absorb greenhouse gases—and millions of lives depend on how international law allocates this resource among nations.

This Article is the first to explore solutions for climate change mitigation through the lens of triage ethics, drawing on law, philosophy, moral theory, and economics. The literature on triage ethics—developed in contexts such as battlefield trauma, organ donation, emergency medicine, and distribution of food and shelter—has direct implications for climate change policy and law, yet it has been overlooked by …

Changing Forest Water Yields In Response To Climate Warming: Results From Long-Term Experimental Watershed Sites Across North America, Irena F. Creed, Adam T. Spargo, Julia A. Jones, Jim M. Buttle, Mary B. Adams, Fred D. Beall, Eric G. Booth, John L. Campbell, Dave Clow, Kelly Elder, Mark B. Green, Nancy B. Grimm, Chelcy Miniat, Patricia Ramlal, Amartya Saha, Stephen Sebestyen, Dave Spittlehouse, Shannon Sterling, Mark W. Williams, Rita Wrinkler, Huaxia Yao

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Climate warming is projected to affect forest water yields but the effects are expected to vary. We investigated how forest type and age affect water yield resilience to climate warming. To answer this question, we examined the variability in historical water yields at long-term experimental catchments across Canada and the United States over 5-year cool and warm periods. Using the theoretical framework of the Budyko curve, we calculated the effects of climate warming on the annual partitioning of precipitation (P) into evapotranspiration (ET) and water yield. Deviation (d) was defined as a catchment’s change in actual ET divided by P …