Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons^™

Pathways Forward For Onshore Wind Energy In The State Of Maryland: A Gis Multi-Criteria Analysis, George Pisano

Geography and the Environment: Graduate Student Capstones

This study examines pathways forward for onshore wind energy in the State of Maryland. To meet its decarbonization goals, Maryland needs to quickly transition its electric grid away from fossil fuels. The state is currently in the process of developing offshore wind farms that have the potential to represent a significant source of renewable energy. However little progress has been made in expanding Maryland’s onshore wind energy production capacity. Using a multi-criteria GIS analysis, this study found that there is a limited but not inconsiderable area in the state that could be suitable for wind farms of varying scales that …

River Report. State Of The Lower St. Johns River Basin, Florida: Water Quality, Fisheries, Aquatic Life, Contaminants, 2022., Environmental Protection Board, City Of Jacksonville, University Of North Florida, Jacksonville University, Gerry Pinto, Gretchen Bielmyer-Fraser, John Burr, Dale Casamatta, Charles Closmann, Brian P. Zoellner, Ashley Johnson, An-Phong Le, William Penwell, Radha Pyati

State of the River Report

No abstract provided.

Tallgrass Prairie Center 2021-2022 Highlights, University Of Northern Iowa. Tallgrass Prairie Center.

Annual Reports

Contents:

--- Staff
--- From Our Director
--- Iowa Roadside Management: Enhancing our public roadsides
--- Research and Restoration: Improving prairie plantings in agricultural landscapes
--- Plant Materials: Iowa-source genetic diversity for Iowa’s roadsides and beyond
--- Prairie on Farms: Making prairie practical
--- Irvine Prairie: Restoring a piece of the original Iowa landscape
--- Green Iowa AmericCorps: Land and Water Stewards expand TPC capacity
--- Prairie Roots Project: A deeper appreciation of the prairie ecosystem
--- TPC Publications and Outreach
--- Friends of the TPC: Supporting the TPC's mission
--- The Prairie in Art: Erin Anfinson
--- Iowa STEM …

Putting The Fire Out: An Analytical Analysis Into The Bureau Of Land Management’S New Protest Petition Law, Lyndsey Antos

Kentucky Journal of Equine, Agriculture, & Natural Resources Law

No abstract provided.

Application Of Pork Checkoff We Care Sustainability Principles To Pork Production: Water, Nutrition, And Biosecurity, Hannah Miller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Pork Checkoff program was founded in 1986 as a means to strengthen U.S. pork in the market place (Pork Checkoff). Under this program all U.S. pork producers and importers pay $0.40 for every $100 worth of pigs is sold (Pork Checkoff). Funds are then used for pork promotion, research, and education for producers and consumers (Pork Checkoff). The Pork Checkoff program uses the We Care ethical principles as a means to address “continuous improvement in the pork industry’s production practices and promote a strong record of responsible farming to those outside of the industry” (National Pork Board, 2018a). The …

Eastern Redcedar (Juniperus Virginiana L.) Encroachment On South-Central South Dakota Rangelands: Impact On Plant Communities, Austin K. Domeier

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Grasslands historically covered 46 million km2 of Earth’s surface representing nearly 42% of the living vegetation. Encroachment of woody species onto grasslands and savannas is a widely researched global phenomenon, with eastern redcedar (ERC) (Juniperus virginiana L.) trees being the most prominent woody encroacher in the Northern Great Plains (NGP) due to the lack of prescribed fire and planted ERC escaping from shelterbelts. This encroachment poses a threat to native plant communities in terms of their reproduction, regeneration, and diversity. ERC are fierce competitors and can establish in most soil types, are drought tolerant, and prolific seed reproducers. These qualities …

Beyond A Liberal Reading Of Insurgent In Transformative Planning Practices, Efadul Huq

Environmental Science and Policy: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Wetlandology: A Kid's Book About Wetlands, Grace Gaard, Ted Lagrange

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission: Publications

What is a Wetland? You might think that any land that is wet would be a wetland, right? But if the occurrence of water was the only thing that made a wetland a wetland, then deeper parts of oceans and rivers would be considered wetlands. And we know that is not true! So, what actually makes a wetland a wetland? Wetlands are defined by three things:

1. Soil

2. Plants

3. Hydrology

Wetlands are spread throughout Nebraska, but it is useful to identify some of the larger wetland complexes in the state. Wetlands can be found everywhere! All rivers and …

Guide To Nebraska's Wetlands And Their Conservation Needs, Third Edition, 2022, Ted Lagrange

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission: Publications

Wetlands: a source of great interest, and at times conflict. Wetlands represent different things to different people. To some people they may be considered shallow, muddy nuisances whereas to others they are considered to be wonderful, varied, and productive assets. This is because wetlands take on many roles as part of an elaborate and dynamic system. Understanding wetlands requires understanding the complex and varying roles they can play. To aid in this understanding, this guide defines wetlands, discusses their importance and dynamics, identifies threats and losses, describes conservation programs, and takes an in-depth look at Nebraska’s regional wetland complexes.

Nebraska’s …

Water Current, Volume 54, No. 1, Winter 2022

Water Current Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Droughtscape, Winter 2022, National Drought Mitigation Center

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

DroughtScape, Winter 2022

Exploring Visitor Perceptions And Behaviours Related To Ticks And Lyme Disease Risk In An Ontario Protected Area, Ryan Brady

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne zoonosis in North America and over the past decade, reported cases of the disease have been rapidly increasing in many regions throughout Canada. The relative novelty of this public health threat presents nature-based tourism and recreation organizations with a range of policy and management challenges. Currently, there is a limited understanding of public perceptions and behaviours associated with tick and Lyme disease risk, especially within a Canadian parks and protected areas visitation and visitor experience context. To address this practical and scholarly knowledge gap, this study utilized in-situ surveys to explore visitor perceptions, …

Largemouth Bass In The Upper Mississippi River: An Evaluation Of Management Strategies And Understanding Potential Factors Influencing Dynamic Rate Functions, Kylie Beth Sterling

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The Upper Mississippi River (UMR) supports ecologically and economically important commercial and recreational fisheries. One recreational fishery in the UMR is the Largemouth Bass fishery. Recreational fisheries can be effectively managed using information on population dynamics, though little is known about Largemouth Bass population dynamics in large river ecosystems. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to 1) evaluate recruitment, growth, and mortality of three Largemouth Bass populations in the UMR, specifically within Pools 4, 8, and 13, and 2) to use those estimates of recruitment, growth and mortality to inform exploitation models to evaluate best management practices for each …

(Re)Empowering The Community: A Case Study Of Namibia's Legal Evolution Of Wildlife Governance, Stefan Carpenter

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

This Article will introduce the theoretical foundation of the CBC [Community-Based Conservation] approach. It will then use Namibia as a case study to both: (a) illustrate the sort of historical, political, and economic drivers that motivate the adoption of CBC across the global south, and (b) highlight the existence of potential structural weaknesses present in even the most lauded CBC programs. Finally, this Article will present some of the common theoretical and results-based criticisms of CBC and discuss broader lessons that can be drawn from the Namibian experience. The analyses in this Article draw from academic literature, Namibia’s statutes and …

Fine Scale Mapping Of Laurentian Mixed Forest Natural Habitat Communities Using Multispectral Naip And Uav Datasets Combined With Machine Learning Methods, Parth P. Bhatt

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Natural habitat communities are an important element of any forest ecosystem. Mapping and monitoring Laurentian Mixed Forest natural communities using high spatial resolution imagery is vital for management and conservation purposes. This study developed integrated spatial, spectral and Machine Learning (ML) approaches for mapping complex vegetation communities. The study utilized ultra-high and high spatial resolution National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) datasets, and Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Complex natural vegetation community habitats in the Laurentian Mixed Forest of the Upper Midwest. A detailed workflow is presented to effectively process UAV imageries in a dense forest environment …

Application Of Climate-Smart Forestry – Forest Manager Response To The Relevance Of European Definition And Indicators, Euan Bowditch, Giovanni Santopuoli, Boyżdar Neroj, Jan Svetlik Jan Svetlik, Mark Tominlson, Vivien Pohl, Admir Avdagić, Miren Del Rio, Tzetvan Zlatanov Tzetvan Zlatanov, Höhn Maria, Gabriela Jamnická, Yusuf Serengil, Murat Sarginci, Sigríður Júlía Brynleifsdóttir, Jerzy Lesinki, João C. Azevedo

Articles

Climate change impacts are an increasing threat to forests and current approaches to management. In 2020, Climate-smart Forestry (CSF) definition and set of indicators was published. This study further developed this work by testing the definition and indicators through a forest manager survey across fifteen member European countries. The survey covered topic areas of demographics, climate change impacts, definition and indicators assessment, as well as knowledge and communication. Overall, forest managers considered the threat of climate change to their forests as high or critical and 62% found the CSF definition clear and concise; however, the minority suggested greater simplification or …

A Contentious Crop: Exploring The Regulatory Debate Of Solar Power Production Facilities In Kittitas County, Washington, Daphne Condon

All Master's Theses

Between 2010 and 2018, Kittitas County, Washington faced an influx of Solar Power Production Facility (SPPF) proposals that challenged its traditional rural land management governance. Despite state support of decarbonized energy, variegated interpretations of project permitting procedures induced heated contentions amongst stakeholders. To explore this, this research constructs a multijurisdictional legal framework for SPPF advancement. It uses these laws to divulge the permitting processes of three case study projects founded in Kittitas County’s renewable energy history: The Wild Horse Wind Facility, the Iron Horse Solar Project, and the Columbia Solar Projects. Through a mixed methodology of project archival analysis and …

Wilderness And The Geotag: Exploring The Claim That "Geotagging Ruins Nature" In The Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Wa, Mara Gans

All Master's Theses

This research explores the claim that “geotagging ruins nature” by quantifying and qualifying patterns in geotag use and visitors’ experiences in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, in Washington, United States. Many have raised concerns that geotags increase recreational visitation to public lands, which subsequently contributes to negative resource impacts. Others, however, claim that geotagging has made the outdoors more accessible to less privileged communities and raise concerns that condemning geotags will perpetuate the exclusion of certain groups from outdoor recreation. This debate is studied within federally designated Wilderness, which is legally defined as “untrammeled by man,” a definition rooted in problematic …

Essays On Conservation Outcomes On Rented Farmland: Role Of Gender, Diya Ganguly

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The essays in this dissertation explore why female landowners may be less likely than male landowners to achieve long term conservation on their land. In Chapter 1 we develop theory to model the strategic interaction between a landowner and a tenant with a focus on their gender and implementation of conservation practices on land. Within the context of a sequential-move game, we use the principal-agent framework and identity theory to model land-use choice and equilibrium payoffs between landowner and tenant. We consider cash rent lease and discounted lease whereby the tenant pays a reduced rent if they implement conservation practices …

Using Landsat-Based Phenology Metrics, Terrain Variables, And Machine Learning For Mapping And Probabilistic Prediction Of Forest Community Types In West Virginia, Faith M. Hartley

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

This study investigates the mapping of forest community types for the entire state of West Virginia, USA using Global Land Analysis and Discovery (GLAD) Phenology Metrics analysis ready data (ARD) derived from the Landsat time series and digital terrain variables derived from a digital terrain model (DTM). Both classifications and probabilistic predictions were made using random forest (RF) machine learning (ML) and training data derived from ground plots provided by the West Virginia Natural Heritage Program (WVNHP). The primary goal of this study is to explore the use of globally consistent ARD data for operational forest type mapping over a …