Environmental Health and Protection Commons^™

A Review Of The Hyporheic Zone, Stream Restoration, And Means To Enhance Denitrification, Leanne Merill, David J. Tonjes

Technology & Society Faculty Publications

The hyporheic zone is the subsurface area below and adjacent to a stream where groundwater mixes with stream water, through vertical, lateral, and longitudinal flows. The hyporheic zone connects the stream to uplands and other terrestrial environments. It is a zone of distinct faunal communities, high biological diversity and ecological complexity, and is the site of chemical processing and transformations of ground- and stream waters. The hyporheic zone is important to the overall ecosystem ecology of the stream, and it can influence stream water chemistry. Flows, reactions, and biota in the hyporheic zone are heterogeneous and patchy, making it difficult …

The Spread Of Exotic Plant Species At Mount St. Helens: The Roles Of A Road, Disturbance Type And Post-Disturbance Management, Lindsey Karr

Environmental Science and Management Professional Master's Project Reports

The landscape of Mount St Helens was dramatically transformed when it erupted on May 18, 1980, creating an outstanding opportunity for ecologists to study succession following a large, intense, natural disturbance. Within the expansive (600 km²) blast area there is varied ownership and a mix of management objectives for the post-eruption landscape. On lands administered by the U.S. Forest Service, there are portions of the blast area that have been designated as a National Volcanic Monument, where the primary management objective is to allow for natural succession to proceed substantially unimpeded. In other areas outside the Monument, salvage …

Closing The Knowing-Doing Gap In Invasive Plant Management: Accessibility And Interdisciplinarity Of Scientific Research, Virginia Matzek, Justin Covino, Jennifer L. Funk, Martin Saunders

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Like many conservation disciplines, invasion biology may suffer from a knowing-doing gap, where scientific research fails to inform management actions. We surveyed California resource managers to evaluate engagement with scientific research and to identify research priorities. We examined managers' access to information, judgment of the usefulness of existing research, ability to generate scientific information, and priorities for future research. We found that practitioners rely on their own experience, and largely do not read the peer-reviewed literature, which they regard as only moderately useful. Less than half of managers who do research carry out experiments conforming to the norms of hypothesis …

Modeling Effective Shade To Prioritize Riparian Restoration Efforts In The Johnson Creek Watershed, Or, Brittany Sahatjian

Environmental Science and Management Professional Master's Project Reports

The influence of stream temperature on the survival and reproductive success of anadromous salmonid populations has become an increasingly concerning issue in the Pacific Northwest. Enhancing the height, density and extent of riparian vegetation is widely accepted as one of the most effective strategies for reducing stream temperatures, while also providing numerous ancillary benefits. Effective shade is defined as the percentage of direct beam solar radiation attenuated and scattered by riparian vegetation before reaching the stream surface and is a commonly used criterion for choosing where to restore riparian vegetation. This project aims to prioritize sites for riparian restoration through …

2014 Nebraska Water Monitoring Programs Report, Marty Link, Ryan Chapman

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality: Reports

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) is charged with monitoring, assessing, and to the extent possible, managing the state’s water resources. The purpose of this work is to protect and maintain high quality water and encourage or execute activities to improve poor water quality. Monitoring is done on nearly 17,000 miles of flowing rivers and streams, more than 134,000 acres of surface water in lakes and reservoirs, as well as the vast storage of groundwater in Nebraska’s aquifers.

2014 Nebraska Groundwater Quality Monitoring Report

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality: Reports

The 2001 Nebraska Legislature passed LB329 (Neb. Rev. Stat. §46-1304) which, in part, directed the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) to report on groundwater quality monitoring in Nebraska. Reports have been issued annually since December 2001. The text of the statute applicable to this report follows: “The Department of Environmental Quality shall prepare a report outlining the extent of ground water quality monitoring conducted by natural resources districts during the preceding calendar year. The department shall analyze the data collected for the purpose of determining whether or not ground water quality is degrading or improving and shall present the …

Nebraska Water Center Annual Report 2014, Nebraska Water Center

Nebraska Water Center: Administrative Materials

Letter from the Director

I am pleased to present this annual report on the activities, finances and many accomplishments of the Nebraska Water Center (NWC) during 2013 and 2014, a time when the NWC is celebrating its Golden Anniversary. More than being a simple look back at where we’ve been and what we have accomplished over the past year, this report looks forward to the complex challenges and exciting opportunities that lie ahead of us. We are now an integral part of the Robert B. Daugherty Water for Food Institute (DWFI), a growing global institute focused on one of the …

Missing Voices, Hidden Fields: The Gendered Struggles Of Female Farmworkers, Keiko A. Budech

Pitzer Senior Theses

Known for its fertile soil and ideal climate, California has been one of the most agriculturally productive areas in the world. Often left out of this picture are the farmworkers who make it possible. Within this farmworker community, females are a sub-class that has been even more marginalized. This thesis investigates the gendered aspects of fieldwork and exposes female leadership working towards changing these specific struggles, such as sexual harassment in the fields, domestic abuse, pesticide exposure, and the perpetuation of submissive gender roles in the household and workplace. An in-depth case study of Lideres Campesinas, a community- based grassroots …

Improving Human Health By Increasing Access To Natural Areas: Opportunities And Risks, Bradford S. Gentry, David Krause, Karen A. Tuddenham, Sarah Barbo, Benjamin D. Rothfuss, Christopher Rooks

Yale School of the Environment Publications Series

Report of the 2013 Berkley Workshop

Held at the Pocantico Center of the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Tarrytown, NY - July 2013

Winter Survival Strategies Of Benthic Invertebrates In Temporary Habitats In A Northern Minnesota Lake, Cal Oldenburg

Journal of Earth and Life Science

During the winter months in the northern hemisphere, above 40 degrees latitude, a freezing event occurs that can last several months. Some lakes may have large portions of the shallow littoral zone frozen completely solid down into the sediments. Invertebrates affected by these events have developed survival strategies to cope with the harsh environment. The two main strategies for invertebrates in these areas are to either migrate to a different area and recolonize the original area when it becomes available again, or to burrow into the sediments and withstand the freezing. A 1- month study took place on Lake Bemidji …

New Mexico Water Law Capsules, Stephanie Tsosie

Water Matters!

This article contains a list some of the key cases decided in the state and federal courts of New Mexico with very brief descriptions of the rulings. The finalized cases have been arranged by topic. This chapter is intended to be a quick and handy reference guide and not a thorough summary of the facts and law of each case. This year we have also included a list of water law statutes.

Water Conservation, Consuelo Bokum

Water Matters!

New Mexico always has had periods of water shortages, some far more long lasting and devastating than others. As warming temperature and changing weather patterns continue to develop, the likelihood that water shortages—like those felt throughout the state from 2010 through 2013—will occur with greater frequency. These changes can and have caused significant economic and environmental damage, and the risk of more harm will not improve unless we improve our water management significant.

Drought, Adrian Oglesby

Water Matters!

New Mexico is renowned for its high deserts, mild climate, and abundant sunshine. Incidentally, these physical attributes, which make New Mexico so unique and beautiful, are also characteristic of a naturally dry environment. The state has been subjected to severe drought conditions in the past, alternating with times of uncharacteristically high supplies of moisture upon which its population has at times over-relied.

This article will provide various definitions of drought and a short history of drought in New Mexico; discuss impacts of drought on the state’s human water user communities and environment; discuss in brief the priority call and water …

Priority Administration, Ed Merta

Water Matters!

Since the turn of the twenty first century, drought conditions have frequently stricken much of New Mexico. Such intervals of extreme dryness have been a permanent, recurring feature of the state’s climate for at least two thousand years, according to tree ring data and other scientific evidence. Some of these past droughts lasted for decades, exceeding in severity the Dust Bowl of the 1930sand the great New Mexico drought of the 1950s. Today, climate change models indicate that the Southwest will likely become even hotter, potentially making future droughts in New Mexico more extreme. Managing water shortages promises to become …

Active Water Resource Management, Paul Bossert, Gregory C. Ridgley

Water Matters!

For decades, most of the waters of the State of New Mexico have been the subject of water rights adjudications to establish all the water rights. Stream systems and sub-basins geographically define the adjudications. There are twelve active cases. However, complete adjudication of all New Mexico water rights is still many years away. Meanwhile, water use in the state has evolved.New water users increasingly look to acquire existing water rights rather than developing new rights. Decisions on administration, distribution, and redistribution of water have to be made.

It was widely held, though not unanimously, that the State Engineer needed greater …

Domestic Wells, Paul Bossert, Sarah Armstrong

Water Matters!

The domestic well statutes direct that the State Engineer “shall” issue a permit for certain types of temporary or low volume wells, including wells for household use. For the past fifty-five years, the Office of the State Engineer (OSE) has interpreted this to mean that such permits are granted with no evaluation, public notice, or hearing.

Water For New Mexico Rivers, Beth Bardwell, Adrian Oglesby

Water Matters!

The Rio Grande, the Pecos, the Gila, the San Juan, the Canadian—New Mexico’s rivers are synonymous with the state’s culture and natural heritage. New Mexicans overwhelmingly care about the health of the state’s rivers and that includes flows to support fish and river dependent wildlife. Rivers, wetlands, and riparian areas comprise a very small part of our landscape—a mere 1 percent. This 1 percent plays an essential role in renewing the state’s water supply for its two million residents; for sustaining the state’s second largest industry—tourism; for producing food and fiber; and for sustaining New Mexico’s web of life. Eighty …

Inter-Basin Water Transfers, Anne Minard

Water Matters!

Inter-basin water transfers move water from one watershed to another. As droughts constrict the availability of water, and cities grow larger and thirstier, such transfers are increasingly being eyed as a solution. Although inter-basin transfers usually do not increase the overall availability of water in a state, they can move water to where it is needed most. Some of the main proponents of inter-basin transfers are pro-growth city and state governments as the re-allocation of water across watersheds allows for flexibility in planning for future growth.

Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, Jerold Widdison, Pat Page

Water Matters!

In March of 2009, the Congress passed and President Obama signed into law the“Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009". The Project is a major endeavor for northwestern New Mexico. In one sense,authorization of the project culminates years of work. In another sense, it means the beginning of many additional years of effort. There is much to be done to construct and carry the project forward to reality, including work for the federal government,the State of New Mexico, the Navajo Nation, and the city of Gallup. In view of the Project’s magnitude, this article reviews only its major aspects

The Nambé, Pojoaque, San Ildefonso, And Tesuque Pueblos Settlement, Paul Bossert, Sarah Armstrong

Water Matters!

The “Aamodt case” is a complex, long-running adjudication of water rights in the Pojoaque River watershed northwest of Santa Fe. In 1966,it was filed in federal court as State of New Mexico, ex rel. State Engineer,et al. v. Aamodt, et al. The parties include the State, through the State Engineer, about 5,600 non-Indian claimants, the Pueblos of Nambé, Pojoaque,San Ildefonso, and Tesuque, and governmental entities such as the county of Santa Fe, many acequias, the Pojoaque Valley Irrigation District, and several federal and state agencies.

Taos Pueblo Water Rights Settlement, Paul Bossert, Darcy S. Bushnell

Water Matters!

In November of 2010, the Congress passed the Claims Resolution Act and on December 8, President Obama signed it into law. Title V of the Claims Act, the Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement Act, settles the Pueblo portion of the Abeyta case and approves an agreement signed in 2006 by officials from Taos Pueblo, the State of New Mexico, and other interested water rights owners in the Taos area. The settlement act also helps resolve the non-Indian portion of Abeyta. The measure quantifies Taos Pueblo’s water rights and protects the interests of local acequias, the Town of Taos, and …

Salt Basin, Jerold Widdison, Stephanie Tsosie

Water Matters!

The Salt Basin of south-central New Mexico presents several problems of resource utilization. The basin is a large but little-known area—dry, inhospitable—but it has a sought-after supply of groundwater and perhaps a supply of natural gas and oil. In addition, the basin features vast stretches of grassland in an essentially intact natural environment. The“hows” and the “whethers” of using and conserving these resources have been vigorously argued for several years.

Water Trust Board, Joanne Hilton, Darcy S. Bushnell

Water Matters!

In 2001, the New Mexico legislature passed the Water Project Finance Act. The stated purpose of the Water Project Finance Act is to provide a financing mechanism to promote water use efficiency, water resource conservation and protection, and fair distribution and allocation of water to all users. The Water Trust Board was created in the Act. Its purpose is to: 1) oversee and administer the Water Trust Fund and Water Project Fund; 2) review and recommend funding for qualifying water projects to the legislature; and 3)pursue additional funding opportunities.

Strategic Water Reserve, Brigette Buynak, Stephanie Tsosie

Water Matters!

The Strategic Water Reserve (Reserve) established in 2005 transforms New Mexico’s policies regarding river management. The Reserve is a pool of publicly held water rights dedicated to keeping New Mexico’s rivers flowing to meet the needs of river-dependent endangered species and to fulfill our water delivery obligations to other states. It is a tool for New Mexico to achieve sensible and sustainable water policies by balancing water use between cities, industry, agriculture, and the rivers of the state.

Food Safety Knowledge And Self-Reported Practices Of Food Handlers In Jamaica, Marcia Annmarie Thelwell-Reid

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Food-borne illnesses are responsible for disease globally. One of the most important strategies for combating food-borne diseases is the training of food handlers. Using social cognition theory as a framework, the purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of the mandatory training program for food handlers in a rural parish in Jamaica. A cross-sectional survey, using self-administered questionnaires, was used to assess and compare food safety knowledge and self-reported practices of food handlers trained in 2 government training programs, while using untrained food handlers as controls. Descriptive and inferential statistics such as t test, chi-square test, and ANOVA …

Classification Of The Waxy Condition Of Durum Wheat By Near Infrared Reflectance Spectroscopy Using Wavelets And A Genetic Algorithm, Barry K. Lavine, Nikhil Mirjankar, Stephen Delwiche

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Near infrared (NIR) reflectance spectroscopy has been applied to the problem of differentiating four genotypes of durum wheat: ‘waxy’, Wx A1 null null, wx-B1 null and wild type. The test data consisted of 95 NIR reflectance spectra of wheat samples obtained from a USDA-ARSwheat breeding program. A two-step procedure for pattern recognition analysis of NIR spectral data wasemployed. First, thewavelet packet transform [14,15] was applied to the NIR reflectance data usingwavelet filters at different scales to extract and separate low-frequency signal components from high frequency noise components. By applying these filters, each reflectance spectrum was decomposed into wavelet coefficients that …

Finding Them Before They Find Us: Informatics, Parasites, And Environments In Accelerating Climate Change, Daniel R. Brooks, Eric P. Hoberg, Walter A. Boeger, Scott Lyell Gardner, Kurt E. Galbreath, David Herczeg, Hugo H. Mejía-Madrid, S. Elizabeth Rácz, Altangerel Tsogtsaikhan Dursahinhan

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty Publications

Parasites are agents of disease in humans, livestock, crops, and wildlife and are powerful representations of the ecological and historical context of the diseases they cause. Recognizing a nexus of professional opportunities and global public need, we gathered at the Cedar Point Biological Station of the University of Nebraska in September 2012 to formulate a cooperative and broad platform for providing essential information about the evolution, ecology, and epidemiology of parasites across host groups, parasite groups, geographical regions, and ecosystem types. A general protocol, documentation–assessment–monitoring–action (DAMA), suggests an integrated proposal to build a proactive capacity to understand, anticipate, and respond …

Addressing Public Health Risks Of Persistent Pollutants Through Nutritional Modulation And Biomimetic Nanocomposite Remediation Platforms, Bradley J. Newsome

Theses and Dissertations--Chemistry

Due to their relative chemical stability and ubiquity in the environment, chlorinated organic contaminants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) pose significant health risks and enduring remediation challenges. Engineered nanoparticles (NPs) provide a novel platform for sensing/remediation of these toxicants, in addition to the growing use of NPs in many industrial and biomedical applications, but there remains concern for their potential long-term health effects. Research highlighted herein also represents a transdisciplinary approach to address human health challenges associated with exposure to PCBs and NPs. The objectives of this dissertation research are two-fold, 1) to develop effective methods for capture/sensing and remediation …

Effects Of Crop Residue Burning On Aerosol Properties, Plume Characteristics, And Long-Range Transport Over Northern India, D. G. Kaskaoutis, S. Kumar, D. Sharma, Ramesh P. Singh, S. K. Kharol, M. Sharma, A. K. Singh, Atinderpal Singh, D. Singh

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Aerosol emissions from biomass burning are of specific interest over the globe due to their strong radiative impacts and climate implications. The present study examines the impact of paddy crop residue burning over northern India during the postmonsoon (October-November) season of 2012 on modification of aerosol properties, as well as the long-range transport of smoke plumes, altitude characteristics, and affected areas via the synergy of ground-based measurements and satellite observations. During this period, Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) images show a thick smoke/hazy aerosol layer below 2-2.5 km in the atmosphere covering nearly the whole Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP). The air …

Wetlands And Greenhouse Gas Fluxes: Causes And Effects Of Climate Change – A Meta-Analysis, Robert E. Ventura

Pomona Senior Theses

Climate change is one of the largest problems facing this generation. Anthropogenically caused increases of greenhouse gas emissions is a significant culprit to this problem. Although the obvious problems such as cars, industry, and urbanism garnish a significant amount of the criticism, natural sources such as wetlands are also beginning to contribute to this issue. This is becoming increasingly significant as wetlands shift from being sinks of greenhouse gases to becoming sources as various anthropogenic impacts, including global warming itself, begin to affect the health of the wetlands. The aim of this project is to look at four common types …