Natural Resources and Conservation Commons^™

Potential Of Using Spectral Vegetation Indices For Corn Green Biomass Estimation Based On Their Relationship With The Photosynthetic Vegetation Sub-Pixel Fraction, Luan Peroni Venancio, Everardo Chartuni Mantovani, Cibele Hummel Do Amaral, Christopher M.U. Neale, Ivo Zution Gonçalves, Roberto Filgueiras, Fernando Coelho Eugenio

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Crop biomass (Bio) is one of the most important parameters of a crop, and knowledge of it before harvest is essential to help farmers in their decision making. Both green and dry Bio can be estimated from vegetation spectral indices (VIs) because they have a close relationship with accumulated absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (APAR), which is proportional to total Bio. The aims of this study were to analyze the potential capacity of spectral vegetation indices in estimating corn green biomass based on their relationship with the photosynthetic vegetation sub-pixel fraction derived from spectral mixture analysis and to analyze the best …

Ferrihydrite Reduction Increases Arsenic And Uranium Bioavailability In Unsaturated Soil, Arindam Malakar, Michael Kaiser, Daniel D. Snow, Harkamal Walia, Banajarani Panda, Chittaranjan Ray

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Redox driven mobilization and plant uptake of contaminants under transiently saturated soil conditions need to be clarified to ensure food and water quality across different irrigation systems. We postulate that solid-phase iron reduction in anoxic microsites present in the rhizosphere of unsaturated soil is a key driver for mobilization and bioavailability of contaminants under nonflooded irrigation. To clarify this, two major crops, corn and soybean differing in iron uptake strategies, were grown in irrigated synthetic soil under semiarid conditions with gravimetric moisture content ∼12.5 ± 2.4%. 2-line ferrihydrite, which was coprecipitated with uranium and arsenic, served as the only iron …

Use Of Multiple Environment Variety Trials Data To Simulate Maize Yields In The Ogallala Aquifer Region: A Two Model Approach, Vaishali Sharda, Mesfin Mekonnen, Chittaranjan Ray, Prasanna H. Gowda

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

With a long-term goal to optimize use of groundwater in the Ogallala Aquifer Region (OAR) to sustain food production systems, this study was conducted to calibrate Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) and AquaCrop crop modeling platforms to simulate maize production at a regional scale using historic datasets. Calibration of the models with local crop growth data and crop management practices is important, but usually this in-season crop growth information is not available. This study determined the possibility of using maize variety trial data for the evaluation of the CSM-Crop Estimation through Resources and Environmental Synthesis-Maize and AquaCrop models …

Investigating The Phenomenon Of Increasing Surface Air Temperatures Using A Global Climate Modeling Approach, D. Bhattacharya, K. Carroll-Steward, M. Chandler, C. Forbes

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Similar Bird Communities Across Grazing Systems In The Nebraska Sandhills, M. Sliwinski, L.A. Powell, W. Schacht

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Changes In Students’ Mental Models From Computational Modeling Of Gene Regulatory Networks, Jenny Dauer, Heather E. Bergan-Roller, Gretchen P. King, Mckenzie Kjose, Nicholas Galt, Tomas Helikar

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Background: Computational modeling is an increasingly common practice for disciplinary experts and therefore necessitates integration into science curricula. Computational models afford an opportunity for students to investigate the dynamics of biological systems, but there is significant gap in our knowledge of how these activities impact student knowledge of the structures, relationships, and dynamics of the system. We investigated how a computational modeling activity affected introductory biology students’ mental models of a prokaryotic gene regulatory system (lac operon) by analyzing conceptual models created before and after the activity.

Results: Students’ pre-lesson conceptual models consisted of provided, system-general structures (e.g., activator, repressor) …

Drought Monitoring In The Middle East And North Africa (Mena) Region: Participatory Engagement To Inform Early Warning Systems, Stephen Russell Fragaszy, Theresa Jedd, Nicole Wall, Cody Knutson, Makram Belhaj Fraj, Karim Bergaoui, Mark D. Svoboda, Michael J. Hayes, Rachael Mcdonnell

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

When drought hits water-scarce regions, there are significant repercussions for food
and water security, as well as serious issues for the stability of broader social and environmental systems. To mitigate these effects, environmental monitoring and early warning systems aimed at detecting the onset of drought conditions can facilitate timely and effective responses from government and private sector stakeholders. The study uses multi-stage, participatory research methods across more than 135 interviews, focus groups, and workshops to assess extant climatic, agricultural, hydrological, and drought monitoring systems, key cross-sector drought impacts, and drought monitoring needs in four MENA-region countries: Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon, and …

Gateways-Nd: Demonstrating Institutional Change In Stem Teaching And Learning Within North Dakota State University, J.M.D. Motsenbacher, E. A. Berg, J. Ladbury, R. Reichenbach, M. Hanson, P. Kelter, L. Montplaisir, J. Nyachwaya

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

Ires Track I: Usa-China: International Research Experience For Native American Students In Iot-Enabled Environmental Monitoring Technologies., J. Wang, J.M.D. Motschenbacher

School of Natural Resources: Documents and Reviews

No abstract provided.

What Is Happening To Our Common Home: Reflections From One Catholic Scientist And One Theological Ethicist, M. Shulski, D.R. Dileo

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Geographic Distribution Of Chronic Wasting Disease Resistant Alleles In Nebraska, With Comments On The Evolution Of Resistance, H. Vazquez-Miranda, R. M. Zink

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Gulls As Sources Of Environmental Contamination By Colistin-Resistant Bacteria, Alan B. Franklin, Andrew M. Ramey, Kevin T. Bentler, Nicole L. Barrett, Loredana M. Mccurdy, Christina A. Ahlstrom, Jonas Bonnedahl, Susan A. Shriner, Jeffrey C. Chandler

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

In 2015, the mcr-1 gene was discovered in Escherichia coli in domestic swine in China that conferred resistance to colistin, an antibiotic of last resort used in treating multi-drug resistant bacterial infections in humans. Since then, mcr-1 was found in other human and animal populations, including wild gulls. Because gulls could disseminate the mcr-1 gene, we conducted an experiment to assess whether gulls are readily colonized with mcr-1 positive E. coli, their shedding patterns, transmission among conspecifics, and environmental deposition. Shedding of mcr-1 E. coli by small gull flocks followed a lognormal curve and gulls shed one strain >101 …

Piscivorous Bird Use Of Aquaculture And Natural Water Bodies In Mississippi, Paul C. Burr, Jimmy I. Avery, Garrett M. Street, Bronson K. Strickland, Brian S. Dorr

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Double crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus) and great egrets (Ardea alba) have an extensive history of human wildlife conflict with the aquaculture industry of western Mississippi, USA, due to

their depredation of cultured catfish (Ictalurus spp.). Although aquaculture is abundant, western Mississippi also contains naturally occurring water bodies that offer alternative forage opportunities to these species. How cormorants or egrets distribute themselves among these 2 foraging options is unknown, but it has been generally assumed each species uses aquaculture disproportionately more because of the high density of available prey. To test this assumption, we surveyed these …

Control Or Eradication: Problems In The Management Of Invasive Birds, Michael L. Avery, Chris J. Feare

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Humans have captured, transported and intentionally released wild birds for centuries (Blackburn et al., 2009). Motivations for such purposeful introductions include food (West and Zhou, 2007), religion (Agoramoorthy and Hsu, 2007), sport (McDowall, 1994), biocontrol (Bennett and Hughes, 1959; Kurdila, 1995) and aesthetics (Ryan, 1906; Thomson, 1922). Many purposeful bird introductions were the work of acclimatization societies, particularly in North America, New Zealand and Australia. These societies were formed in the 19th century by European settlers to transport bird species from their homelands in efforts to establish them in the newly settled regions (Thomson, 1922; Dunlap, 1997). As a result …

Increasing Atmospheric Co2 Concentrations Outweighs Effects Of Stand Density In Determining Growth And Water Use Efficiency In Pinus Ponderosa Of The Semi-Arid Grasslands Of Nebraska (U.S.A.), Giovanna Battipaglia, Tala Awada, Rahel Aus Der Au, Michele Innangi, Matthias Saurer, Paolo Cherubini

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

This study investigated the impacts of environmental (e.g., climate and CO2 level) and ecological (e.g., stand density) factors on the long-term growth and physiology of pon- derosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) in a semi-arid north American grassland. We hypothesized that ponderosa pine long-term growth patterns were positively influenced by an increase in atmospheric CO2 concentrations and a decrease in stand density. To test this hypothesis, comparison of long-term trends in tree-ring width and carbon and oxygen stable isotopic composition of trees growing in dense and sparse forest stands were carried out at two sites located in the Nebraska National Forest. Results …

Linking Drought Impacts To Drought Severity At The State Level, M. Noel, K. Smith, D. Bathke, B. Fuchs, D. Gutzmer, T. Haigh, M. Hayes, M. Podebradska, C. Shield, M. Svoboda

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Diurnal Activity Patterns Of Walia Ibex (Capra Walie) In Simien Mountains National Park, Ethiopia, D. Ejigu, A. Bekele, L.A. Powell

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Biotic And Abiotic Factors Influencing Arsenic Biogeochemistry And Toxicity In Fluvial Ecosystems: A Review, Laura Barral-Fraga, María Teresa Barral, Keeley L. Macneill, Diego Martiñá-Prieto, Soizic Morin, María Carolina Rodríguez-Castro, Baigal-Amar Tuulaikhuu, Helena Guasch

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

This review is focused on the biogeochemistry of arsenic in freshwaters and, especially, on the key role that benthic microalgae and prokaryotic communities from biofilms play together in through speciation, distribution, and cycling. These microorganisms incorporate the dominant iAs (inorganic arsenic) form and may transform it to other arsenic forms through metabolic or detoxifying processes. These transformations have a big impact on the environmental behavior of arsenic because different chemical forms exhibit differences in mobility and toxicity. Moreover, exposure to toxicants may alter the physiology and structure of biofilms, leading to changes in ecosystem function and trophic relations. In this …

Remediation Strategies To Reduce Heavy Metal Uptake In Lettuce Grown In Contaminated Urban Soil, Ryley Thomas

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Urban soils are increasingly used to produce food for local consumption, which requires at the same time management strategies that prevent the plant uptake of potentially present contaminants. This study was conducted to test different soil amendments for their ability to retain lead (Pb) and arsenic (As) within the soil matrix. The analyzed soil was taken from a potential community garden lot near a railroad in Lincoln, NE where elevated concentrations in Pb and As had been detected. Ponderosa pine biochar and spent coffee grounds were used as soil additives because of their documented chemical reactivity towards soil cations or …

Abatement Of Per- And Polyfluoroalkyl Substances With Electrochemical Oxidation, Elise Webb

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Throughout the United States, there is a growing concern for contamination of groundwater with harmful per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). These forever chemicals have no natural degradation pathways and the science community has not had any significant breakthroughs to remediate contaminated sites. Electrochemical oxidation using a boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrode shows excellent potential for becoming an effective therapy for such PFAS contaminated sites. The objective of this research is to provide proof-of-concept that electrochemical oxidation can degrade PFAS, ensure analysis is accurate, and controls of experimental design are optimal. Electrochemical oxidation degraded 10 mg/L perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) under a series …

The Role Of University Of Nebraska–Lincoln’S Biodigester On Sustainable Food Waste Reduction Within Selleck Dining Center, Jennifer Gilbert

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln took a major step toward sustainability this past fall when Dining Services installed their first ever biodigester on November 8, 2019 within Selleck Dining Center. The impact this biodigester has had, thus far, is observable in the form of quantitative data collected in the amount of food waste digested by this technology. This study focuses on analyzing collected data from the LFC Cloud database, while also searching for trends and patterns that could further suggest substantial impact and efficiency of the biodigester on food waste reduction and sustainability initiatives within UNL Dining Services. Data Tables and …

Effect Of Urban Green Space On Urban Populations., Jack Mensinger

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

As the world's population continues to urbanize, population density increases and people endure the ever-increasing speed of the urban environment. The need to focus on mental and physical health becomes ever more critical as daily routines may not fulfill urban residents' basic needs. The bulk of work studying the relationship between green space, mental, and physical wellness, have had a narrow scope in their assessment of the benefits of green space. Previous studies focused either on the human interaction or the spaces utilities as a corridor and a habitat for flora and fauna. We utilized a systematic literature review to …

Diatom Morphology In Light Of A Changing Climate: A Focus On Aulacoseira Crenulate, Brighid Welchans

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Fossilized diatoms are arguably the most vital proxy record utilized in paleolimnology. Diatoms are unicellular microalgae that are the basis of countless food webs, are invaluable bioindicators, and generate nearly a quarter of global net primary productivity. Diatoms are affected by a variety of environmental factors but there is relatively little research on how environmental conditions impact diatom valve morphology, and in particular whether there is a correlation between incoming light and diatom pore morphology. This report focuses on the Amazon lowland lake Garzacocha, and analyzes the relationship between light levels and the corresponding size of Aulacoseira crenulata pores. We …

Adventuring In The Winds: An Exploration Of Water Accessibility, Keystone Species, Environmental Justice, And Forest Fires In The Wind River Range, Rhianna Giron

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

This thesis is a braided narrative that incorporates personal experience, ecological research, and poetry to explain some of the impacts of human interaction in wild spaces and of climate change. The specific areas of study in this essay are the Wind River Range, Wyoming and Nebraska. The purpose of this paper is to discuss topics related to water availability and quality, forest fires, keystone species, and social injustices related to people and environments in the Wind River Range. It is important to learn about other places than the ones we are already familiar with as it helps to instill a …

Use Of Otolith Chemistry To Assess Recruitment And Habitat Use Of A White Bass Fishery In A Nebraska Reservoir, Matthew A. Perrion, Mark A. Kaemingk, Keith D. Koupal, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Nate A. Bickford

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Managing fisheries that exhibit variable annual recruitment is challenging, and maintenance stockings are often prescribed to minimize interannual population variation. Maintenance stockings are costly and may not be necessary if sufficient natural recruitment is occurring. Therefore, developing tools and techniques that can collectively assess hatching origin and subsequent habitat use of individuals would be valuable. Herein, we aimed to assess the efficacy of otolith chemistry techniques to (1) determine whether there was evidence of natural recruitment within an annually stocked white bass population and (2) examine the potential to describe spatial reservoir use of these age-0 fish. A sample of …

Flash Drought Development And Cascading Impacts Associated With The 2010 Russian Heatwave, J. Christian, J. B. Basara, E. D. Hunt, J. A. Otkin, X. Xiao

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Heigh-Ho, They Blow, Husker Balloons Have Got To Go, Zowie Vincent

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

One petition, one billboard, one lawsuit, and a 52% majority vote. Multiple attempts have been made to challenge the balloon releases at Memorial Stadium. Though there are mild surges of advocacy against this action during the football season and the annual spring semester vote, this issue, despite numerous attempts, continues to fall on deaf ears.

Lincoln’S Brightest Policy On Solar Energy, Jerin Tekolste

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

The push towards renewable energy is ubiquitous, with reasons varying from greater independence from foreign energy markets to environmental considerations or sustainable futures. Many countries, states, and cities all around the world are pursuing different ways to better their energy generation and Lincoln is no different. The current policy provides some incentive towards residential solar power but can be improved upon. There are typically three mechanisms used for residential photovoltaic (PV) solar generation: Feed-In Tariffs (FITs), Net Metering, and Net Purchase and Sale. This paper will compare the options Lincoln could use and will conclude with what would be the …

Save The Tax Break, Megan Bilstein

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

Saving 26% on inputting a clean form of energy sounds pretty good to me. According to the U.S. Department of Energy by inputting a solar panel into your house, property, or shop you could have 30% of the cost to install a solar panel system deducted from your federal income taxes, that was in 2019. Come 2020 it decreased to 26% and 22% in 2021 then completely gone in 2022. Unless something is done to save the tax credit this form of renewable energy may be completely forgotten about or put to the side in Nebraska while other forms will …

Public Power’S Addiction To Coal, Drew Havens

Op-Eds from ENSC230 Energy and the Environment: Economics and Policies

A benefit of living in Nebraska is the accessibility and reliability of our electricity. It powers our homes and businesses and allows us to be productive, hard-working people. But public power and its addiction to coal is not the path forward. Our state’s insistence on burning coal for electricity leaves us physically dependent, economically vulnerable, and financially burdened.