Environmental Studies Commons^™

Sustainable Energy Transition In Thailand: Drivers, Barriers And Challenges Of Waste-To-Energy At Krabi Province, Chariya Senpong, Dawan Wiwattanadate

Applied Environmental Research

Waste-to-Energy (WtE) has been considered as an option to eliminate Krabi’s problems of municipal solid waste (MSW) management. A survey on WtE potential as well as key drivers, barriers, and challenges to overcome the barriers was conducted in this study. The study found high WtE potential due to huge amount of many years accumulated MSW in couple with the increasing trend of new daily waste generation. Meanwhile, Krabi is an island having land limitation for landfill. The urgent need to eliminate the huge amount of MSW has become a key driver for WtE implementation. One more key driver of WtE …

Biochar From Empty Date Fruit Bunch As An Adsorbent To Remove Eriochrome Black T And Methylene Blue From Aqueous Solution, Houari Bella, Hayet Bendaikha

Applied Environmental Research

Date fruit has a significant role in Sahara countries' economies. In this study, a bunch of empty dates waste was used to produce biochar, which will be used to adsorb Eriochrome black T (EBT) and methylene blue (MB) dyes from aqueous solution. The dates bunch was washed, dried, and ground into small particles. Then it was heated in a muffle furnace at 850 °C. The biochar from empty date bunches (BEDB) characteristics before and after adsorption was determined by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The experiment has used different parameters notably initial concentration (25 …

Ecological And Human Health Risk Assessment Of Heavy Metals By Consuming The Aquatic Plant Species Near An Electronic Waste Open Dumpsite In Thailand, Thitima Parkpoom, Somsak Intamat, Uraiwan Phoonaploy, Lamyai Neeratanaphan

Applied Environmental Research

Heavy metals from electronic waste (e-waste) accumulate in the environment and can affect human health. The purpose of this study was to determine As, Cd, Cr and Pb concentrations in water, sediment and three species of edible aquatic plants (Ottelia alismoides, Ipomoea aquatic and Marsilea crenata) near an e-waste open dumpsite. Samples were collected from six sampling points surrounding an e-waste open dumpsite and heavy metal concentrations were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). Bioaccumulation factors (BAFs), estimated daily intake (EDI), hazard quotient (HQ), hazard index (HI) and carcinogenic risk (CR) were evaluated in …

Spatial Distribution Of Bioavailable Metal Concentrations And Total Metal Concentration-Depth Relationship Along The Sediment Profile Within Phuket Bay, Pensiri Akkajit, Danai Tipmanee, Kaimook Jaileak

Applied Environmental Research

Heavy metals in coastal sediments can adversely affect human health and the environment. The distribution and metal bioavailability of Pb and Zn in 21 sediment samples collected from Phuket Bay, Phuket, Thailand using the first-two steps of sequential extraction proposed by the Standards, Measurements and Testing programme (known as BCR) was determined. The results showed that Pb formed weak complexes contributing up to 11.2% to 33% of its total concentration (1.7 to 7.5 mg kg-1) in the first fraction (BCR1), while Zn in the BCR1 fraction ranged from 4.9% to 9.9%. The results suggest that Pb could easily enter the …

Assessing Vegetation Cover Change Using Remote Sensing: Case Study At Binh Duong Province, Vietnam, Nguyen Thi Huyen, Le Hoang Tu, Le Truong Ngoc Han, Vuong Thi Thuy, Dang Nguyen Dong Phuong, Nguyen Kim Loi

Applied Environmental Research

This study aims to present the application of remote sensing in monitoring vegetation change in Binh Duong Province, Vietnam. The study used Landsat 5 images in the year 2010 and Landsat 8 images in the years 2015 and 2020 to investigate the area of vegetation. The maximum likelihood classification method (MLC) was used to classify land cover and an accuracy matrix was computed to validate the classification results. The references data were collected to support classification and accuracy assessment processes including land use maps in 2010, 2015, and 2020. In addition, collected field points and UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) in …

Performance Of Porous Substrates For Domestic Wastewater Treatment Under Prolonged Hydraulic Retention Time, Pakawat Janyasupab, Arunothai Jampeetong

Applied Environmental Research

Physicochemical characteristics of porous substrates (longan biochar, corn biochar, and pumice) including specific surface area (SSA), pore volume (Vp), and cation exchange capacity (CEC) were determined. Longan biochar had the highest SSA, Vp, and CEC, followed by corn biochar and pumice. Then, columns filled with each of these 3 substrates together with gravel as a control treatment, were evaluated to compare wastewater treatment efficiency under different hydraulic retention times (HRTs). Each system had been acclimatized with wastewater for 8 weeks. Then, influent and effluent were analyzed at 1, 3, 5, and 7 day intervals. Water analysis revealed that biochar-based systems …

Advances In Chemotactic And Non-Chemotactic Bioremediation Of Water: A Comprehensive Review, Sheetal Pardeshi, Prafulla Shede

Applied Environmental Research

Pollution has reached to a critical threshold affecting the climate and diversity of the planet Earth. All global authorities have included pollution control in their agenda for near future. Most of the environmental research nowadays is focused on removing waste generated by anthropogenic activities, may it be solid, liquid or gaseous waste. Bioremediation is believed to be the most eco-friendly approach for reducing or removing pollutants contaminating different matrices of the environment. There are various methods covered under the umbrella term of bioremediation. Chemotaxis-mediated bioremediation attracted attention of several research groups since early decade of twenty first century due to …

Soil Contamination And Risk Assessments On Selected Dumpsites Within The Basement Complex And Sedimentary Formations Of Ogun State, South-Western Nigeria, Akintayo O. Ojo, Oluwaseun T. Olurin, Oluseyi O. Adeleke

Applied Environmental Research

The concentrations of inorganic elements in soils of Saje, Ita-Oshin, Premier, and Oke-Diya dumpsites were determined using an X-Ray Fluorescence spectrometer to assess the soil quality through chronological changes with depths. A soil core sampler collects 56 samples at 20, 40, 60, and 80 cm depths. Saje showed high mean concentrations of Ca, K, Fe, Rb, and Ti at all depths, while Oke-Diya revealed high mean concentrations of Ca, K, Fe, Rb, Ti, Mn, Zn, V, Cr, and Ni at all depths. These concentrations were in a closed range suggesting a build-up of elements in the soil profiles. Oke-Diya had …

A Framework For Inland Cities To Prevent Marine Debris: A Case Study From Durham, North Carolina, Nancy Lauer, Michelle B. Nowlin

Faculty Scholarship

Land-based sources of litter are increasingly recognized as significant contributors to marine debris, and rivers can carry debris to the coast from far-inland sources. In this paper, we demonstrate the important role inland cities can play in the marine debris crisis by reducing their own marine debris contributions. Given this role, we provide a framework for inland cities to prevent plastic pollution along with the lessons learned from introducing these strategies in Durham, North Carolina, a mid-sized, inland city that drains to the ocean through the Cape Fear and Neuse River watersheds. This framework guides city officials, resource managers, and …

Traversing Paradigms: An Environmental Journey To Body And Mind, Martin Ceja Mejia

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Traumatic life experiences altered the way I perceive the world. As a result, I embark on a journey to reshape my relationship to self, the built and natural world; to environment. In this thesis I ask: How do I want to relate to the environment? Considering I am a doubly colonized agent, I also aim to decolonize my relationship to environment along the process. Therefore, this work aims to formulate a new, personal, relationship to environment through academic literature, history, psychology, Indigenous knowledge and science, and literary studies, among other fields of knowledge. This work is interdisciplinary in nature; life …

Voices Of The Often Unheard: The Environmental Impacts Of Catastrophic Wildfire Events On Individuals With Developmental Disabilities, Mary Madison Mckenzie

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The Thomas Fire for a time was the largest wildfire in California history, burning 281,893 acres and destroying 1,063 structures. Within three years, the August Complex Fire, at 1,032,649 acres, almost quadrupled that record. Climate related disasters such as these have impelled social science researchers to heed calls for a paradigm shift in understanding the risks climate change poses to the social world, in particular, disaster risks for vulnerable groups. Existing research tends to focus on disasters such as hurricanes, featuring risks for vulnerable populations by race, class, and/or individuals with disabilities in general, but not for individuals with developmental …

Keeping What You Sow: Intellectual Property Rights For Plant Breeders And Seed Growers, Paulina B. Jenney

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Over the last 150 years, the food system in the present-day United States has undergone a transformational restructuring, from a diversified, decentralized, network of farmers and seed growers, to one in which the majority of crop production is controlled by a few industrial corporations. The consolidation of power has been under-girded by the application of intellectual property rights (IPR)—especially utility patents—to plant varieties and genetic traits, which are leveraged to exclude small-scale seed growers from accessing quality germplasm. Patents and restrictive licensing agreements recapitulate colonial structures by appropriating common and traditionally community-held resources for profit, and by creating reliance on …

A Thinking Person's Guide To Immigration And Environmental Racism At The Us - Mexico Border, Emma H. Kiefer

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In recent years, more attention has been paid to the immigration crisis at the US-Mexico border thanks in part to the strict immigration restrictions from the Trump administration, such as the family separation policy. Immigration remains a widely misunderstood issue and arguments against increased immigration are often laced with racist stereotypes and perceptions that find their roots in centuries of US policy, court cases, and administrative rules. Similarly, the concept of environmental racism can be difficult for the American public to understand when modern-day racism alone has become more insidious. Intersectionality, a concept coined by sociologist Kimberlé Crenshaw, asks us …

Conserving And Sharing Freshwater In The West, Kelsea Harris-Capuano

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

There are infinite stories to be told about water in the West. As an essential and finite resource, countries, states, tribal nations and neighbors must figure out how to manage this shared resource, whether for ecosystem sustainability, agricultural, household, or recreational use.

The Flathead Lake Biological Station in Polson, MT is one of the oldest active biological research stations in the United States. One of its former faculty, Dr. Mark Lorang, has been working on Flathead Lake’s erosion problem for over 30 years. As a result of seasonal lake level fluctuations controlled by the dam, erosion over the years has …

Sustainability In The New England Ski Industry, Sydney E. Gendreau

Honors Theses and Capstones

The goal of this study is to explore the extent to which sustainable investments are worthwhile for the New England ski industry. Research has shown that the New England ski industry will be greatly impacted by the effects of climate change within the near future. Anthropogenic climate change over the next several decades will cause frequent low snow winters, increases in night time winter temperatures, and overall shorter winters. Detailed economic analysis has shown that low snow and warm winters result in roughly $54 million in lost revenue for the New Hampshire ski industry in the past (Burakowski, Magnusson, 2012). …

“The Real Cost Of Mining: How Digging For Rare Earth Metals Could Pose A Greater Cost Than Evs Can Save”, Brahim Khalil Yatim

Honors Theses and Capstones

The Paris Climate Agreement proposes to have 20% of all road transport vehicles be electric by the year 2030. Implementation of this policy is critical to help obtain a 2 degrees Celsius reduction in the increase of global temperatures by 2030. This paper dives into the true costs of taking on a project that large scale. This study finds that though the benefits of this project would result in a 351,785,600 tons of GHG saved by the electric conversion there are significant environmental and human costs associated with the mining necessary to complete the agreement's goal. With current technologies and …

Youth Systemic Advocacy And Collective Care Program Report, Kylie Wrigley

Reports accepted as research outputs

Climate Justice Union trained 13 diverse participants aged 12-18 across Noongar Boodja in systemic advocacy and collective care. The program was co-designed by CJU and 5 young people and delivered online over 7 weeks. It emphasised critical reflection, collective care and identifying climate (in)justice in our communities. Participants said they enrolled because they want to learn how to create change, and wanted to create that change by getting involved, learning skills and sharing them with their peers. This report provides an overview of the program, it's aims and why this program and more like it are needed. We report on …

Walking In Both Worlds: Learning About Youth Priorities And Indigenous Food Sovereignty With DéLįNę’S Youth Council, Neala Macleod Farley

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Indigenous food sovereignty is vital to the protection and restoration of Indigenous food systems and to many Indigenous peoples’ health, culture, and traditions. Working towards Indigenous food sovereignty can also help to enable the protection and continued development of Indigenous knowledge and worldviews, which are becoming increasingly recognized for their potential to help transform unsustainable food systems and combat climate change. In Délįnę, Northwest Territories (NWT), re-establishing intergenerational knowledge transfer to today’s youth is an essential aspect of food sovereignty and the continuation of Dene worldviews. However, this is challenging for many youth as they face conflicting pressures from Western …

Political Culture: An Unexplored Factor In Climate Change Diplomacy, Alexander Suen

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

As climate change continues to ravage the world, mitigation efforts continue to be insufficient to rise to the challenge. Inaction on climate change has been traditionally explained by economic incentives, but some of the variability in climate policies cannot be explained by economics alone. Some variations could be accounted for by the deeply rooted national political culture of Anglo-settler colonies. This political culture may inhibit the willingness of such states to cooperate on climate change. In this dissertation, I describe the political philosophy of the Anglo-settler colony, and the histories of domination of its white settlers over the indigenous peoples …

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, …