Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

On The Frontlines - The Fishermen Of Ibrahim Hyderi, Muhammad Haris Aslam Khan

MSJ Capstone Projects

Climate change has become a matter of recent debate for much of the world. According to a report published by a German watch, a non-governmental organization, in 2019, Pakistan among the five countries at severe risk of climate change disasters.

During the last two decades, Pakistan saw more than 141 extreme climatic catastrophes. Only in 2016, more than 566 people died due to these conditions.

A report published by Asian Development Bank in 2017 indicates Pakistan’s climate change profile. It states that more than 1,600 people have lost their lives in the super flood of 2010 alone. A loss of …

Beavers Alter Stream Macroinvertebrate Communities In Northeastern Utah, Susan E. Washko, Brett B. Roper, Trisha Brooke Atwood

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

1. Understanding changes in macroinvertebrate communities is important because they play a large role in stream ecosystem functioning, and they are an important food resource for fish. Beaver‐induced changes to stream morphology could alter macroinvertebrate communities, which in turn could affect food webs and ecosystem function. However, studies investigating the effects of North American beaver activities on macroinvertebrates are rare in the inter‐mountain west, an area with high potential for beaver‐assisted restoration.
2. The aim of this study was to quantify differences in the macroinvertebrate community between unaltered segments of streams and within beaver ponds in north‐eastern Utah, U.S.A. We assessed macroinvertebrate …

Cytotoxicity And Mutagenicity Of Disinfection Byproduct Mixtures Formulated Using Free Chlorine And Monochloramine, Yonas Ghebremedhin

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bioassays have been used extensively to assess various toxicity endpoints of drinking water disinfection byproducts (DBPs), but an emphasis on single compounds prevails. In this research, DBP mixtures were assessed using a cytotoxicity test with Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) cells and an Ames fluctuation test with Salmonella typhimurium TA-98 and TA-100 with and without S9 rat liver homogenate. Seven whole mixture DBP concentrates were formulated using reconstituted natural organic matter (NOM) extracts from the Upper Mississippi River using scaled disinfectant dosing protocols with free chlorine and monochloramine in the presence and absence of added bromide. DBPs were identified by gas …

Umphlett Qci Dec 2019, Natalie A. Umphlett

HPRCC Personnel Publications

Highlights for the Basin

Temperature and Precipitation Anomalies

Soil Moisture Conditions

Agriculture

Energy

Infrastructure

Temperature

Precipitation

Vegetation Classification And Mapping, Missouri National Recreational River, Tom Baldvins, Matt Ley, David Jones, Joe Stevens, Hannah Pilkington

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

The vegetation inventory project at Missouri National Recreational River (MNRR) classified and mapped vegetation within the park administrative boundary and estimated thematic map accuracy quantitatively. The project was conducted over a four year period from the summer of 2015 to the winter of 2019.

The project follows guidance provided by the National Park Service (NPS) Vegetation Mapping Inventory (VMI) Program. The overall process includes initial planning and scoping, imagery procurement, field data collection, data analysis, imagery interpretation and classification, and accuracy assessment. The initial planning and scoping meetings to support study plan development took place in December, 2009, …

Turbidity And Ion Concentrations Vary With Land Use And Underlying Geology At The West Fork Of The White River, Erin E. Scott, Brian E. Haggard

Technical Reports

The West Fork of the White River (WFWR) watershed in northwest Arkansas is a trans-ecoregion watershed and is experiencing land-use changes, especially in the downstream portion of the watershed. The entire 54-km long river has been on the State’s 303(d) list of impaired waterbodies for turbidity, total dissolved solids (TDS), and sulfate for many years. The purpose of this study was to identify which part(s) of the river fail to meet applicable water quality standards (WQS) and to investigate possible sources of pollutants, whether human-caused or naturally occurring. Water samples were collected once or twice a month at 9 sites …

Stream Water Quality To Support Huc 12 Prioritization In The Lake Wister Watershed, Oklahoma: August 2017 Through May 2019, Bradley J. Austin, Brina A. Smith, Brian E. Haggard

Technical Reports

Nonpoint source pollution associated with human land use (agriculture and urbanization) is one of the leading causes of impairment to waterways in the United States (EPA 2000). The primary pollutants associated with agricultural and urban land use are sediment and nutrients which enter nearby streams during rain events and are then carried downstream. These sediments and nutrients may result in water quality issues in the downstream water bodies like increased algal growth or decreased water clarity (e.g. Smith et al., 1999). Best management practices (BMPs) are often used to mitigate the effects of nonpoint source pollution in the watershed. Practices …

Numerical Climate Model Simulations Investigating The Role Of Arctic Sea Ice Export Events In Modulating Deglacial Climate, Anthony J. Joyce

Doctoral Dissertations

Periods of abrupt climate cooling during the last deglaciation (20,000-8,000 yrs ago) are often attributed to glacial outburst floods slowing the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC). Yet, despite over 40 years of research, conclusive evidence that such events significantly impact climate remains elusive. This study uses a climate model to investigate an alternative freshwater forcing mechanism in which the episodic break-up and mobilization of thick perennial Arctic sea ice might have disrupted large-scale climate. The results presented here show the first evidence that (1) the Arctic Ocean stored enormous volumes of freshwater during colder periods as thick masses of sea …

Hydrologic Structure And Function Of Vernal Pools In South Deerfield, Massachusetts, Charlotte Axthelm

Masters Theses

Vernal pools are small, ephemeral wetlands lacking an inlet or outlet. These wetlands, also known as seasonal pools, are found in a wide range of biomes, and their characteristics vary based on location. While the vegetation of western U.S. pools, and amphibians of eastern U.S. pools have been extensively studied, many aspects of vernal pools have not been fully characterized. In particular, although the general seasonal wetting and drying cycle is understood qualitatively, few studies have attempted to quantify the hydrological regime of vernal pools in New England. As water level variation drives many, if not all, of the characteristics …

Optimizing Water Quality And Temperature Parameters To Increase Survival Rates Of Anotheca Spinosa (Anura: Hylidae) Eggs At The El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center, Morgan Oestereich

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Amphibians globally are facing extinction due to the fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd). This has resulted in a worldwide push for increased conservation efforts. These efforts include those of the El Valle Amphibian Conservation Center (EVACC) in El Valle de Antón, Panama, where captive assurance colonies of many native amphibian species are housed. Among these species is Anotheca spinosa, a species of tree frog native to mountainous regions of Central America. This study was performed to analyze the relationship between water quality parameters and egg survival and reproductive success of EVACC’s captive population of A. spinosa and assess how related husbandry …

Coastal Stream Salinity And Its Impacts On Pemba Agriculture, Sara Mccormack

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The extent of saltwater inundation of coastal streams was assessed on Pemba Island near agricultural areas in northeastern and northwestern regions of the island. Conductivity and pH were measured from water samples collected at various distances along the stream to determine the extent of salinity at different points in the tidal cycle. This salinity data, as well as the context of recent weather events, runoff, and geological characteristics of the region were used to determine the primary factors that influence changes in surface water salinity. The primary factor that influences surface water salinity was determined to be changes in stream …

The Relationship Between Forest Management And Stream Discharge In Mazumbai And Baga Ii Forest Reserves, Tanga Region, Tanzania, Shannon Duffy

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Deforestation is known to alter hydrology by reducing interception, transpiration and infiltration capacity, and increasing runoff which all leads to higher stream discharge. For rural Tanzanian communities, surface water resources are crucial for meeting basic needs, so the integrity of headwater catchments need to be maintained to ensure their reliability. The objectives of this study were to a) map the streams in the two forests because none currently exist and b) determine the effect of deforestation on discharge variability. Over fifteen days of data collection, this study analyzed variability of discharge and the degree of correlation between discharge and rainfall …

A Delicate Balance: The Effects Of Habitat Type On Frog Communities: A Three-Pronged Study Examining The Effects Of Differing Habitat Characteristics On Anuran Diversity At El Centro De Investigación Sumak Kawsay In Situ, Ecuador, Zane Libke

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

We conducted 60 hours of visual encounter surveys and 3 hours of calling surveys on 6 different habitat types near Sumak Kawsay in situ Reserva (SKIS) near Mera, Pastaza, Ecuador. We defined habitat types defined by two variables: type of forest and proximity to water. The aim of the study was to determine what effect each variable has on anuran community composition. We compared the effectiveness of the two survey methods as well. High anuran community dissimilarity was found between each habitat type surveyed, indicating that both forest type and proximity to water are important factors that shape species richness …

The Stability Of Temperate Lakes Under The Changing Climate, Aleksey Paltsev

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

There is a collective prediction among ecologists that climate change will enhance phytoplankton biomass in temperate lakes. Yet there is noteworthy variation in the structure and regulating functions of lakes to make this statement challengeable and, perhaps, inaccurate. To generate a common understanding on the trophic transition of lakes, I examined the interactive effects of climate change and landscape properties on phytoplankton biomass in 12,644 lakes located in relatively intact forested landscapes. Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentration was used as a proxy for phytoplankton biomass. Chl-a concentration was obtained via analyzing Landsat satellite imagery data over a 28-year period (1984-2011) and using …

Removal Of Selected Pharmaceuticals And Personal Care Products In Wastewater Treatment Plant In Jordan, Othman Al-Mashaqbeh, Diya Alsafadi, Sahar Dalahmeh, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Daniel D. Snow

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

The largest wastewater treatment plant in Jordan was monitored in the summer to determine the removal of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). Grab samples were collected from the influent and effluent of As-Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP). Liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) were utilized to determine the concentrations of 18 compounds of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs). The results showed that 14 compounds were detected in the collected samples from the influent and effluent of As-Samra WWTP. These compounds are 1,7-dimethylxanthine, amphetamine, acetaminophen, caffeine, carbamazepine, cimetidine, cotinine, diphenhydramine, methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), morphine, phenazone, sulfamethazine, sulfamethoxazole, thiabendazole, and …

Umphlett Qci Sept 2019, Natalie Umphlett

HPRCC Personnel Publications

Highlights for the Basin

Temperature and Precipitation Anomalies

Soil Moisture Conditions

Delayed/Prevented Planting

Forage Production

Infrastructure

Temperature

Precipitation

A Technical Overview Of The Kentucky Mesonet, Rezaul Mahmood, Megan Schargorodski, Stuart Foster, Andrew Quilligan

HPRCC Personnel Publications

The Kentucky Mesonet is a research-grade weather and climate observing network with redundant sensors that monitors the near-surface atmosphere at 71 locations across Kentucky. The network measures temperature, precipitation, solar radiation, relative humidity, barometric pressure, and wind speed and direction every 5 min, with soil moisture and soil temperature measured every 30 min. In addition, it operates a camera at selected locations. All observations are transmitted via cellular modem every 5 min and become available to the general public through the World Wide Web within seconds after arrival at Kentucky Mesonet’s Network Operations Center. In between arriving at the IT …

Life's Passion For Odu Alum Is To Be "Water's Voice", Joe Garvey

News Items

No abstract provided.

Global Sinusoidal Seasonality In Precipitation Isotopes, Scott T. Allen, Scott Jasechko, Wouter R. Berghuijs, Jeffrey M. Welker, Gregory R. Goldsmith, James W. Kirchner

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Quantifying seasonal variations in precipitation δ²H and δ¹⁸O is important for many stable isotope applications, including inferring plant water sources and streamflow ages. Our objective is to develop a data product that concisely quantifies the seasonality of stable isotope ratios in precipitation. We fit sine curves defined by amplitude, phase, and offset parameters to quantify annual precipitation isotope cycles at 653 meteorological stations on all seven continents. At most of these stations, including in tropical and subtropical regions, sine curves can represent the seasonal cycles in precipitation isotopes. Additionally, the amplitude, phase, and offset parameters of …

Improved Estimates Of Tributary Nitrogen Load To Casco Bay, Maine, Whitley J. Gray

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past two decades, total nitrogen (TN) concentrations have increased in Casco Bay (CBEP 2015). The sources of the increased nitrogen are poorly understood but occur with simultaneous population growth and land use changes. The total riverine nitrogen load to Casco Bay was previously estimated by Liebman and Milstead (2012) using the United States Geologic Survey’s (USGS) SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes (SPARROW) model. The SPARROW model uses watershed characteristics, regional monitoring data and nitrogen source data to estimate nitrogen loading but was not validated using measurements of nitrogen in the Casco Bay watershed. This study attempts to …

Perchlorate Behavior In The Context Of Black Carbon And Metal Cogeneration Following Fireworks Emission At Oak Lake, Lincoln, Nebraska, Usa, Manish Kumar, Daniel D. Snow, Yusong Li, Patrick Shea

Nebraska Water Center: Faculty Publications

The imprints of fireworks displays on the adjacent water body were investigated from the perspective of cogeneration of black carbon, metals and perchlorate (ClO₄^–). In particular, the mixing and dissipation of ClO₄^– were studied at Oak Lake, Lincoln, Nebraska, following fireworks displays in 2015 and 2016. Following the display, ClO₄^– concentration in the water increased up to 4.3 μg/L and 4.0 μg/L in 2015 and 2016, respectively. A first-order model generally provided a good fit to the measured perchlorate concentrations from which the rate of dissipation was estimated as 0.07 d^–1 in …

Component Microenvironments And System Biogeography Structure Microorganism Distributions In Recirculating Aquaculture And Aquaponic Systems, Ryan Bartelme, Osvaldo J. Sepulveda-Villet, Ryan J. Newton, Matthew C. Smith

Freshwater Faculty Articles

ABSTRACT Flowthrough and pond aquaculture system microbiome management practices aim to mitigate fish disease and stress. However, the operational success of recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) depends directly on system microbial community activities. In RAS, each component environment is engineered for a specific microbial niche for waste management, as the water continuously flowing through the system must be processed before returning to the rearing tank. In this study, we compared waste management component microbiomes (rearing tank water, pH correction tank, solid-waste clarifier, biofilter, and degassing tower) within a commercial-scale freshwater RAS by high-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing. To assess consistency among …

Where People Meet The Muck: An Integrated Assessment Of Beach Muck And Public Perception At The Bay City State Recreation Area, Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron, Donna R. Kashian, Avik Basu, Joseph Depinto, Jason Duvall, Ray Fahlsing, Darrin Hunt, Frank Lupi, Bretton Joldersma

Biological Sciences Faculty Research Publications

In several regions of the Great Lakes, including Saginaw Bay, the proliferation of muck, decaying organics largely from aquatic plants such as Cladophora, has washed ashore, and is blamed for negatively affecting water quality and economic losses in the region. The current view is that excess nutrient loading into the system is a leading cause of this type of organic debris, though changes in food web dynamics may also be a contributing factor. Through an Integrated Assessment (IA) framework, we summarized the current state of knowledge on the causes and consequences of muck conditions at the Bay City State Recreation …

Droughtscape- 2019 Fall, Cory Matteson

Droughtscape, Quarterly Newsletter of NDMC, 2007-

Contents

From the Director........ 2

Quarterly drought summary........ 3

Quarterly drought impacts........ 6

Ranchers delayed response to drought....... 8

Drought Monitor celebrates 20 years............ 9

Drought Monitor state impact tables........... 11

Directorcontributesto U.N.droughtproject........... 12

Updated Drought Risk Atlas........... 13

New fact sheet lists recovery resources........... 14

Droughtscape- 2019 Summer, Cory Matteson

Droughtscape, Quarterly Newsletter of NDMC, 2007-

Contents

From the Director.......... 2

Quarterly drought summary........... 3

Quarterly drought impacts.......... 5

NDMC welcomes African visitors.......... 7

Ready for Drought game debuts............ 8

U.S. Virgin Islands added to USDM.......... 9

Australian programmer visits NDMC......... 10

Upcoming events......... 10

Partnerships with NDMC extended............ 11

Sediment Monitoring To Support Modeling A Reservoir Sediment Flush On A Sand-Bed River In Northern Nebraska, Nathaniel J. Schaepe, Paul M. Boyd

United States Geological Survey: Water Reports and Publications

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), monitored a sediment flush event from Spencer Dam located on the Niobrara River near Spencer, Nebraska, during the fall of 2014. Data collected during the flush was used to validate a one-dimensional sediment transport model developed by the USACE. The USACE surveyed 26 cross sections within the reservoir and as far as 1 kilometer (km) upstream from the reservoir pool to about 10 km downstream from the dam before and after the flushing event to measure erosion and deposition. They also collected surficial …

Groundwater Movement And Interaction With Surface Water Near The Confluence Of The Platte And Elkhorn Rivers, Nebraska, 2016–18, Christopher M. Hobza, Mason J. Johnson, Paul W. Woodward, Kellan R. Strauch, Aaron R. Schepers

United States Geological Survey: Water Reports and Publications

Document abstract

The State of Nebraska requires a sustainable balance between long-term water supplies and uses of groundwater and surface water and requires Natural Resources Districts to include the effect of groundwater use on surface-water systems as part of their respective integrated management plans. Recent droughts in Nebraska (2000–6; 2012–13) have amplified concerns about the long-term sustainability of groundwater and surface-water resources in the state, and concerns about the effect of groundwater irrigation on both streamflow and the water supplies needed to meet wildlife, recreational, and municipal needs. The lower Platte River provides nearly 100 percent of drinking-water supplies to …

Incorporating Antecedent Soil Moisture Into Streamflow Forecasting, Abdoul Oubeidillah, Glenn Tootle, Thomas Piechota

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

This study incorporates antecedent (preceding) soil moisture into forecasting streamflow volumes within the North Platte River Basin, Colorado/Wyoming (USA). The incorporation of antecedent soil moisture accounts for infiltration and can improve streamflow predictions. Current Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) forecasting methods are replicated, and a comparison is drawn between current NRCS forecasts and proposed forecasting methods using antecedent soil moisture. Current predictors used by the NRCS in regression-based streamflow forecasting include precipitation, streamflow persistence (previous season streamflow volume) and snow water equivalent (SWE) from SNOTEL (snow telemetry) sites. Proposed methods utilize antecedent soil moisture as a predictor variable in addition …

Estuarine Dissolved Organic Carbon Flux From Space: With Application To Chesapeake And Delaware Bays, Sergio R. Signorini, Antonio Mannino, Marjorie A.M. Friedrichs, Pierre St-Laurent, John Wilkin, Aboozar Tabatabai, Raymond G. Najjar, Eileen E. Hofmann, Fei Da, Hanqin Tian, Yuanzhi Yao

CCPO Publications

This study uses a neural network model trained with in situ data, combined with satellite data and hydrodynamic model products, to compute the daily estuarine export of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) at the mouths of Chesapeake Bay (CB) and Delaware Bay (DB) from 2007 to 2011. Both bays show large flux variability with highest fluxes in spring and lowest in fall as well as interannual flux variability (0.18 and 0.27 Tg C/year in 2008 and 2010 for CB; 0.04 and 0.09 Tg C/year in 2008 and 2011 for DB). Based on previous estimates of total organic carbon (TOCexp) exported by …

Evaluating Visible Derivative Spectroscopy By Varimax-Rotated, Principal Component Analysis Of Aerial Hyperspectral Images From The Western Basin Of Lake Erie, Joseph D. Ortiz, Dulci M. Avouris, Stephan J. Schiller, Jeffrey C. Luvall, John D. Lekki, Roger P. Tokars, Robert C. Anderson, Robert Shuchman, Michael Sayers, Richard Becker

Michigan Tech Publications

The Kent State University (KSU) spectral decomposition method provides information about the spectral signals present in multispectral and hyperspectral images. Pre-processing steps that enhance signal to noise ratio (SNR) by 7.37–19.04 times, enables extraction of the environmental signals captured by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Glenn Research Center's, second generation, Hyperspectral imager (HSI2) into multiple, independent components. We have accomplished this by pre-processing of Level 1 HSI2 data to remove stripes from the scene, followed by a combination of spectral and spatial smoothing to further increase the SNR and remove non-Lambertian features, such as waves. On average, …