Other Environmental Sciences Commons^™

Cellulosic Ethanol: The Benefits, Obstacles, And Implications For Nebraska, Cassidee Lin Thompson

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Abstract Ethanol is a biofuel that has unique capabilities to mitigate global climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions while simultaneously supporting rural economies and decreasing the United States’ dependence on foreign oil. Currently, the state of Nebraska depends on corn ethanol, which may be unsustainable. Cellulosic ethanol is a promising alternative but it is not without its problems, including high production costs and potential environmental damage. This thesis is an attempt to understand the benefits, downfalls, and processes of corn-based and cellulosic ethanol and the potential implications to Nebraska. This research should shed some light on the current obstacles …

Distribution Of Dioecious Eastern Red Cedar (Juniperus Virginiana) Along An Environmental Gradient In Ogallala, Ne, Taylor Sloey

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to study the sex distribution and energy allocation of dioecious Eastern Red Cedars (Juniperus virginiana) along an environmental resource gradient. The trees surveyed were growing in a canyon located at the University of Nebraska’s Cedar Point Biological Research Station in Ogallala, Nebraska. Due to the geography of this canyon, environmental factors necessary for plant growth should vary depending on the tree’s location within the canyon. These factors include water availability, sun exposure, ground slope, and soil nitrogen content, all of which are necessary for carbon acquisition.

Juniperus virginiana is a dioecious conifer. Dioecious …

Nebraska Wind Power: A Comparative Study Of Knowledge And Attitudes, Cameron Helgren

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Abstract The goal of this project is to assess the knowledge and attitudes of Nebraskans on the issue of wind power. The point of this research is to learn whether the presence of wind power has a positive effect on a person’s knowledge about and attitudes toward wind power and wind turbines. Using mail surveys, qualitative and quantitative data were collected from the towns of Pierce and Ainsworth Nebraska. The surveys aided in seeing patterns of knowledge about wind power and wind turbines and positive and negative attitudes and major concerns regarding wind power.

Applications And Potentials For Biogenic Methane Recovery Operations In Nebraska Agriculture, Industry, And Economic Development, David Micheal Dingman

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

ABSTRACT: This thesis report illustrates the applications and potentials of biogenic methane recovery in Nebraska’s agricultural and industrial sectors and as a means for increasing sustainable economic development in the state’s rural communities. As the nation moves toward a new green economy, biogenic methane recovery as a waste management strategy and renewable energy resource presents significant opportunities for Nebraska to be a national and world leader in agricultural and industrial innovation, advanced research and development of renewable energy technology, and generation of new product markets. Nebraska’s agricultural economy provides a distinct advantage to the state for supporting methane recovery operations …

Changes In Producer Attitudes Towards Windbreaks In Eastern Nebraska, 1983 To 2009, Kim Tomczak

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Abstract Windbreaks are rows of trees or shrubs arranged on the landscape to reduce wind speed. In agricultural landscapes we find them as farmstead windbreaks, livestock windbreaks and field windbreaks. While farmstead and livestock windbreaks are well accepted by the agricultural community, field windbreaks are often viewed differently. A 1982 study of the attitudes of farmers in Eastern Nebraska indicated that many of the producers were around the age of 50 and that they used different types of windbreaks. This study repeated that survey in the same. When compared to data from 1982, farmers today are not educated about the …

Water Quality Variability In A Bioswell And Concrete Drainage Pipe, Southwest Lincoln, Nebraska, Jessica Shortino

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Abstract The goal of this project is to evaluate the effectiveness of bioswells in protecting water quality from urban runoff. The hypothesis tested in this project is that water in bioswells improves water quality. Water quality in both a bioswell and an underground concrete lined ditch, both containing ground and surface water, were tested for certain water quality parameters. These parameters consisted of: Dissolved Oxygen, pH, water temperature, weather temperature, Total Dissolved Solids, Specific Conductivity, Alkalinity, Total Dissolved Carbon, Chemical Oxygen Demand, and depth and width of the sampling site. An additional contaminant that was looked at was motor oil. …

Development Of A Healthy Farm Index To Assess Ecological, Economic, And Social Function On Organic And Sustainable Farms In Nebraska's Four Agroecoregions., James R. Brandle

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

First Record Of Pseudorabies In Feral Swine In Nebraska, Sam Wilson, Alan R. Doster, Justin D. Hoffman, Scott E. Hygnstrom

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

In 2007, two new populations of feral swine were discovered in Nance and Valley counties, Nebraska, USA. Necropsies and serologic testing was done on two individuals from the Nance County herd. Results indicated that a lactating sow had positive antibodies for pseudorabies virus (PRV). Investigations conducted by Nebraska Game and Parks Commission Law Enforcement division confirmed that the infected individual was transported illegally to Nebraska, USA, from Texas, USA. All domestic swine herds located within an 8 km radius of the infected individual tested negative for antibodies to PRV. Our results provide a clear example of how diseases can spread …

Application Of A Routing Model For Detecting Channel Flow Changes With Minimal Data, Jozsef Szilagyi, Nicholas Pinter, Rob Venczel

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Factors Affecting Songbird Nest Survival And Brood Parasitism In The Rainwater Basin Region Of Nebraska, Max Post Van Der Burg

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Mesopredator Movement, Abundance, And Habitat Selection In The Rainwater Basins Of Nebraska, Christina J. Kocer

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Late Albian Dinosaur Tracks From The Cratonic (Eastern) Margin Of The Western Interior Seaway, Nebraska, Usa, R. M. Joeckel, J. M. Cunningham, R. G. Corner, P. L. Phillips, G. A. Ludvigson

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Applications Of Remote Sensing And Gis To The Studies Of Groundwater–Lake Interactions In The Nebraska Sandhills, Evgueni N. Tcherepanov

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Movements And Habitat Use By Shovelnose And Pallid Sturgeon In The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Benjamin D. Swigle

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Survival Rates And Recovery Distributions Of Canada Geese Banded In Nebraska, Larkin A. Powell, Mark Vrtiska, Nick Lyman

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

We analyzed banding and recovery data for Canada geese (Branta canadensis) banded in Nebraska during 1990–2000. Survival rates were lower during 1996–2000 (adult: 0.688, SE = 0.016; juvenile: 0.611, SE = 0.029), than 1990–1995 (adult: 0.727, SE = 0.011; juvenile: 0.639, SE = 0.024). Average juvenile-to-adult ratio from banding data was 0.834 (SD = 0.485), resulting in an annual population growth rate (λ) estimate for 1990–1995 of 0.995 (95% CI = 0.021), and 0.922 (0.018) for 1996–2000. Our recovery analysis suggests that 67% of geese banded in Nebraska are shot in Nebraska. Over 30% of both juvenile and adult recoveries …

Silvopastoral Systems In The Pine Ridge Of Nebraska, James R. Brandle

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Oxygen Budget For Lake Ogallala, Kyle D. Hoagland, John C. Holz, Tadd M. Barrow, Richard J. Ruane

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Lake Ogallala, located below Kingsley Dam which impounds Lake McConaughy in Keith County, Nebraska, is a 260-surface hectare lake with an average depth of approximately eight meters. The lake provides mUltiple uses including a sport fishery and a hydropower and irrigation regulation basin. Since the installation of the hydroelectric generating plant in 1984 (Kingsley Dam was constructed in 1942) and the continued eutrophication of Lake McConaughy, dissolved oxygen concentrations have generally declined in Lake Ogallala. Hypolimnetic withdrawal from Lake McConaughy results in depressed oxygen levels in Lake Ogallala during the mid to latter part of the summer, particularly in certain …

Ecology Of Elk In Northwestern Nebraska: Demographics, Effects Of Human Disturbance, And Characteristics Of Calving Habitat, Bruce A. Stillings

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Streamflow Depletion Investigations In The Republican River Basin: Colorado, Nebraska, And Kansas, Jozsef Szilagyi

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Relative Importance Of Patch Area And Perimeter–Area Ratio To Grassland Breeding Birds, Christopher J. Helzer, Dennis E. Jelinski

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Habitat fragmentation has been implicated as a major cause of population decline in grassland birds. We tested the hypothesis that a combination of area and shape determines the use of grassland patches by breeding birds. We compared both species richness and individual species presence in 45 wet meadow grasslands in the floodplain of the central Platte River, Nebraska. Bird data were collected through the use of belt transects and supplemented by walking and listening outside transects. Our data supported our primary hypothesis that perimeter–area ratio, which reflects both the area and shape of a patch, is the strongest predictor of …

The Nebraska Earth Science Education Network Electronic Communication Project, D. C. Gosselin, R. Feurer, S. Frack, A. Musson, L. Mayo, C. Karel, E. Schaefer, C. Snyder, J. Sarchett, M. L. Alfieri

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Biology Of Shovelnose Sturgeon, Scaphirhynchus Platorynchus, In The Lower Platte River, Nebraska, Robin L. Hofpar

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Application And Evaluation Of A Biotic Index To Sand Hills And Streams Of Nebraska, Gregory T. Michl

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Riparian Habitats Of The Central Platte As A Corridor For Dispersal Of Small Mammals In Nebraska, Thomas D. Silvia

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Tectonic And Paleoclimatic Significance Of A Locally Prominent Upper Pennsylvanian (Virgilian/Stephanian) Weathering Profile, Iowa And Nebraska, U.S.A, R.M. Joeckel

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Nebraska Earth Science Education Network Initiative, D. C. Gosselin, D. R. Mohlman, F. V. Belohlavy, A. M. Matherne, J. L. Wright

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Avian Use Of Riparian Corridors And Adjacent Cropland In East-Central Nebraska, Rebecca L. Fitzmaurice

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.

Virgilian (Upper Pennsylvanian) Paleosols In The Upper Lawrence Formation (Douglas Group) And In The Snyderville Shale Member (Shawnee Group, Oread Formation) Of The Northern Midcontinent, U.S.A., R. M. Joeckel

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Epa's Map Of Radon Zones, Nebraska, Sharon W. White, Lisa Ratcliff, Kirk Maconaughey, R. Thomas Peake, Dave Rowson, Steve Page, Linda C. S. Gundersen, R. Randall Schumann, James K. Otton, Doug Owen, Russell Dubiel, Kendell Dickinson, Sandra L. Szarzi

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Sections 307 and 309 of the 1988 Indoor Radon Abatement Act (IRAA) direct EPA to identify areas of the United States that have the potential to produce elevated levels of radon. EPA, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the Association of, American State Geologists (AASG) have worked closely over the past several years to produce a series of maps and documents which address these directives. The EPA Map of Radon Zones is a compilation of that work and fulfills the requirements of sections 307 and 309 of IRAA. The Map of Radon Zones identifies, on a county-by-county basis, areas of …

Logistic Regression Models Of Habitat Use By Three Cyprinids In The Platte River, Nebraska, Shyi-Liang Yu

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

No abstract provided.