Natural Resources and Conservation Commons^™

Construction Cost Models, Barry Dikeman

Economics and Finance

The following are a series of cost estimate models similar in format to a typical engineer’s estimate that were developed in support of our financial impact assessment report for LD 1725. The models us current material costs, labor costs, and equipment costs for the region to provide a comparative cost analysis of seven culvert replacement scenarios. The models provide information about what the cost impact of LD 1725 would be for typical culvert replacements in Maine. However, due to the inherent restrictions of the cost modeling framework we were not able to include the abundance of variables that would be …

Welcome To The Second Annual Nevada Renewable Energy Consortium Meeting, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Nevada Renewable Energy Consortium Meeting

The second annual Nevada Renewable Energy Consortium meeting took place at UNLV on August 20. The meeting focused on the current three NVREC program areas: Solar, Biomass and Geothermal. Presentations were made by participating entities and a poster session followed.

Environmental Sustainability: Challenges And Opportunities Of Greening Your Study Abroad Program, Sylvia M. Seger Mim, Academic Director

Fostering Multicultural Competence and Global Justice: an SIT Symposium

World Learning’s mission to “… create a more peaceful and just world” by necessity encompasses environmental dynamics, considering that the root causes of most social justice issues and violent conflicts can be traced to environmental degradation and disproportional access to shrinking natural resources. Thus our mission mandates that we employ an ethic of environmental stewardship in all our pursuits and put in place mechanisms to mitigate our environmental impacts.

“We shall never achieve harmony with land, any more than we shall achieve absolute justice or liberty for people. In these higher aspirations, the important thing is not to achieve but …

End Of Program Evaluation On Catchment Demonstration Initiative (Cdi), Urs

Natural resources commissioned reports

In 2003 the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia, developed a Catchment Demonstration Initiative (CDI) Project as a contribution to the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality. Joint Commonwealth and State funding allocated $6 million towards a project aimed at demonstrating viable salinity management systems in the agricultural area of Western Australia. The CDI sought to deliver its outcomes in partnership with NRM Regions by co-investment in targeted, large-scaled, catchment-based demonstrations of integrated salinity management practices.

Submissions were invited from interested groups to provide proposals, and following an assessment process at the local, state/Commonwealth level against predetermined …

Scraping Behavior In Male White-Tailed Deer As A Potential Means Of Transmitting Chronic Wasting Disease, Travis C. Kinsell

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

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) has become a concern for wildlife managers and hunters across the United States. High prevalence of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in older male white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) suggests that sex-specific social behavior may contribute to the spread of the disease among males. Scraping is a marking behavior performed by male white-tailed deer during the rut in which a pawed depression and associated over-hanging branch are marked with saliva, glandular secretions, urine, and feces. We placed 71 and 35 motion-activated cameras on scrapes in DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge in western Nebraska and eastern Iowa from …

Seasonal Energy And Water Balance Of A Phragmites Australis-Dominated Wetland In The Republican River Basin (Southwestern Nebraska, Usa), Gregory J. Cutrell

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

Climate and vegetation can dramatically alter the water cycle on local to regional scales. A change in the surface energy and water balance, especially in arid regions, can have significant impacts on local water availability and, therefore, water resource management. The purpose of this study is to understand the role of climate and vegetation in the energy and water balance of a riparian wetland in the central Great Plains. The site is located near the Republican River in southwestern Nebraska, where decreases in streamflow have been observed in recent decades. In an effort to reduce consumptive use from evapotranspiration (ET), …

Evaluating Hydroperiod Response In The Rainwater Basin Wetlands Of South-Central Nebraska, Richard D. Wilson

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

A collection of wetlands in south-central Nebraska make up a region called the Rainwater Basin. This basin contains closed-basin wetlands formed in loess. The wetlands receive water from precipitation and irrigation runoff. Since the early 1900s, wetland area in the basin has decreased dramatically due to intensive agriculture which either altered or removed the wetlands. The Rainwater Basin wetlands provide many ecological services and thus, should be preserved, but are most noted for the resting, breeding, and feeding habitat they provide for millions of migratory birds that is not provided elsewhere in this region along the continental flyway.

Given the …

Take Pride In America In Southern Nevada: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Covering April 5, 2010 – July 4, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Anti-littering Programs

• With Board approval, the next phase of the Don’t Trash Nevada marketing campaign began.
• The Hector’s Helpers program with the Clark County School District began curriculum development.
• The team participated in the strategic planning process for Keep Las Vegas Beautiful.
• The team met with the Education Director of Keep America Beautiful to begin the process of developing a statewide program.
• The team continued to develop the GIS database.
• A total of 15 clean-up events were conducted this quarter.

Remote Estimation Of Gross Primary Production In Maize, Yi Peng, Anatoly A. Gitelson, Galina Keydan, Donald C. Rundquist, Bryan Leavitt, Shashi B. Verma, Andrew E. Suyker

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

There is a growing interest in the estimation of gross primary productivity (GPP) in crops due to its importance in regional and global studies of carbon balance. We have found that crop GPP was closely related to its total chlorophyll content, and thus chlorophyll can be used as a proxy of GPP in crops. In this study, we tested the performance of various vegetation indices for estimating GPP. The indices were derived from spectral data collected remotely but at close-range over a period of eight years, from 2001 through 2008. The results show that chlorophyll indices, based on near infrared …

Baselines Newsletter, No. 6, Summer/Fall 2010, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center

Baselines: The Natural Resources Law Center Newsletter (2007-2011)

No abstract provided.

Climate Change, Its Effect On Migration Patterns Of The Cackling Goose And White-Fronted Goose In The Willamette Valley, And Implications For Goose Management, Kelly Warren

Environmental Science and Management Professional Master's Project Reports

This thesis considers the question of whether climate change is affecting the migration patterns of geese in the Pacific Flyway, specifically cackling geese (Branta hutchinsii minima) and Pacific white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons frontalis). Ancillary questions that are considered are as follows:

• If global warming is affecting these species, what is the nature of the effects?

• How are the changes affecting the human environment and what can be done about these effects?

In 1994, the majority of the cackler population in the Pacific Flyway began to winter in Oregon's Willamette Valley rather than in their …

Droughtscape, Summer 2010, Kelly Smith

DroughtScape: Quarterly Newsletter of the National Drought Mitigation Center (2007–2023)

Upcoming Workshops

Mild Drought Season Likely to Persist

Drought Impacts Intensify in Upper Midwest

Visiting Scientists

North Carolina Takes Drought Monitor Seriously

International Work- Murcia, Spain, June

River Sediment Sampling Methods: Causeway Building And Removal, Dillon Dittmer

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Abstract The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) suspect that causeways have a negative impact on river ecology both when installed and when removed. The Nebraska Department of Roads routinely uses causeways as a tool in the construction and repair of bridges. Although research has not been conducted on the impact of causeway building and removal data has been collected about the impact of dams, causeways, etc. on estuaries. This data is considered subjective and authors often cite sampling methods as a source of error. Currently there are no widely used handheld sampling methods that …

A Life Cycle Cost Analysis Of Large-Scale Thermal Energy Storage Technologies For Buildings Using Combined Heat And Power, Kenneth Gaine, Aidan Duffy

Conference Papers

Buildings account for approximately 40% of energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in developed economies, of which approximately 55% of building energy is used for heating and cooling. The reduction of building-related GHG emissions is a high international policy priority. For this reason and because there are many technical solutions for this, these polices should involve significant improvements in the uptake of small-scale energy efficient (EE) systems. However the widespread deployment of many technologies, must overcome a number of barriers, one of which is a temporal (diurnal or seasonal) mismatch between supply and demand. Costeffective thermal storage solutions have …

Ecology, Stable Isotopes, And Management Of Grassland Songbirds At National Park Service Properties On The Great Plains, Sarah E. Rehme

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

Grassland ecosystems have been severely reduced and grassland bird populations have experienced consistent declines. National Park Service (NPS) properties on the Great Plains provide breeding habitat for grassland songbirds, though little is known about the quality of this habitat. A short-term study on songbirds at three NPS properties complemented current monitoring, providing an among park comparison addressing grassland bird productivity and fidelity relative to NPS property size. During 2008-2009, I assessed avian species richness, and estimated bird density and grassland songbird nest success. Bird species richness was greatest at small and medium sites, while number of nesting obligate species was …

Chloroacetamid Spray Drift And Leaf Tatters In Hackberry, Ariana P. Miller

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

During the last decade, leaf tatters has been reported in white oak and hackberry across several Midwestern states. Herbicide spray drift studies have shown that chloroacetamides can induce leaf tatters. The objectives of this research were to: 1) identify vulnerable bud developmental stages in hackberry and 2) determine if different commercial chloroacetamides affect severity of leaf tatters. In 2008, a preliminary spray drift experiment was conducted on mature trees from a former hackberry provenance test stand. Acetochlor (Harness), S-metolachlor (Dual II Magnum), and dimethenamid (Outlook) were applied at concentrations approximating 27%, 54%, 81%, or 108% of the recommended field rate. …

Evaluating Efficacy Of Restoration Techniques, Keys View Road Reconstruction, Joshua Tree National Park, California, U.S.A, Scott R. Abella, E. Cayenne Engel

Public Policy and Leadership Faculty Research

Keys View Road in Joshua Tree National Park (JOTR) was recently repaved, resulting in a buffer of vegetation and soil disturbance along the road corridor. In order to mitigate the effects of the repaving, JOTR designed an experimental framework to test various revegetation strategies. They outplanted salvaged and nursery grown native plant species in conjunction with vertical mulch in a fully crossed design (outplanting only, vertical mulch only, outplanting + vertical mulch, bare ground) to examine if any of the treatments most efficiently establish native plant communities.

Tips To Taper Energy Costs In The Kitchen, Lou Mueller

All Current Publications

This publications gives suggestions on how to save on energy costs in the kitchen.

Limnological Assistance For Lake Mead National Recreation Area: Quarterly Report, Period Ending June 30, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Limnological Studies

Project 1

• Technical assistance with the implementation of the Interagency Monitoring Action Plan (I-MAP) for Quagga Mussels is ongoing. During this quarter, analysis was completed for 14 adult/juvenile samples from the fall 2009 – spring 2010 sampling.
• Sampling for the first of two small-scale research projects funded by this task agreement (Abundance and settlement at different depths of Lake Mead) was initiated on June 16, 2010.

Project 2

• Topics and proposed analyses have been drafted for annual report development as prescribed by the Plan.
• A plan for developing and organizing NPS limnology-related web pages has been documented and content has …

Nevada Interagency Volunteer Program: Helping Hands Across Public Lands – Phase Ii: Annual Progress Report, Period Covering July 1, 2009 - June 30, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Get Outdoors Nevada

• From July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010 the Volgistics database has increased the number of records from 6,226 to a total of 6,536 records at the end of this period.
• Website activity this year averaged 109,216 hits per month, with an average of 10,443 pages viewed per month.
• The team attended 14 community outreach events resulting in 2,588 direct contacts and 300 new mailing list records.
• The Interagency Volunteer Program (IVP) completed a total of 67 volunteer events contributing a total of 15,195 volunteer hours.
• A total of 131 volunteers completed orientations and trainings with the IVP.
• A total …