Environmental Studies Commons^™

Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, Paleontological Resources Management Plan (Public Version), Scott Kottkamp, Vincent L. Santucci, Justin S. Tweet, Jessica De Smet, Ellen Stark

United States National Park Service: Publications

Executive Summary

Since Agate Springs Ranch was founded by James H. Cook in 1887, exquisite examples of transitional Miocene mammalian fauna have been found along this stretch of the Niobrara River valley. Collectively these paleontological discoveries, along with the existing archeological and historical Native American collection, were the basis for establishing Agate Fossil Beds National Monument (AGFO) as a unit of the National Park System (NPS). The fossil remains from the Harrison and Anderson Ranch formations span a short, but important, time period within the Miocene Epoch. AGFO has provided science with an intimate look into North American mammalian evolution …

Data And Information As Our New Transport Infrastructure: An Exploration Into How The Modern Transport System Is Being Shaped By Information Communication Technology, Adam Davidson

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation is focuses on the role that data and information has in creating and altering behavior related to transportation. To do so, it lays out a theoretical model of technological transition and then follows it up with three case studies. The theoretical model provides a structure to consider how different actors in our transportation ecosystem – users, firms, policy actors – mix with technological evolution to uphold or incrementally recreate our transportation landscape. The case studies stand on their own to highlight important findings about how data and information are impacting transportation scenarios, but collectively reinforce the theoretical models. …

Many Forms Of Black Death: Coal Extraction, Transnational Activism And The Value Of Life In Colombia, Oscar H. Pedraza Vargas

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

After the murder of the president and vice president of the coal union by paramilitaries in the department of Cesár, Colombia, the union is left adrift. Its fragility is only heightened when the person who decides to take over, is killed six months later. The union has been vocal on their critique of environmental destruction produced by coal and argues that their criticism is part of the reasons why they were targeted. Not far from there, in the department of Guajira, the conglomerate in charge of Cerrejón, the largest open-pit coal mine of South America, wants to divert a creek …

Views That Matter: Race And Opinions On Climate Change Of Boston Area Residents, Lorena M. Estrada-Martínez, Paul Watanabe, Katsyris Rivera-Kientz

Sustainable Solutions Lab

A growing body of research finds that climate change places a disproportionate burden on communities of color in the United States. In spite of this evidence, important discussions taking place about climate change- such as how it is experienced, which policy solutions are most critical, and how we can prepare for and adapt to its impacts- often leave out the voices of the very communities most affected. In Massachusetts, for instance, numerous statewide surveys have gathered information about residents ' attitudes and beliefs about climate change, but to date, no studies have been designed to include the views of a …

The Emergence Of Ecosystems-Based Fisheries Management From The Groundfish Crisis In New England: An Actor-Network Theory Analysis, Catherine King

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This research investigates the emergence of ecosystems-based fisheries management (EBFM) for New England's marine fisheries in the context of the "crisis" that is escalating in its groundfish fishery. Close observations of the practices of fisheries scientists in coordination with managers at the New England Fisheries Management Council, with focus on how knowledge is being produced and employed, allows for understanding EBFM as an emergent construction produced by networks of associations between actants, human and non-human, material and semiotic, and not strictly as a policy prescription informed by experts on biology, ecology, and socio-economics. This analysis identifies and elucidates the multiplicity …

Locke’S Rebellious Progeny: Phenomenology And Ethics Of Leopardi’S A-Dialectical Materialism, Paolo Pellecchia

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

With this study I reconstruct a genealogy of the a-dialectic materialism that defines the production of 19^th-century Italian author Giacomo Leopardi and with which he criticizes canonical metaphysical stances. In this regard, I consider John Locke as the first instance of a philosophical outlook that stands as an alternative to the anthropocentrism demanded by traditional metaphysics. By focusing on An Essay Concerning Human Understanding and its significant influence on Leopardi’s philosophical and aesthetic work, I emphasize how Locke’s system finds a synthetic formulation in the hypothesis, at the time highly contested yet groundbreaking, that matter might be endowed …

Characterization Of Pm2.5 - Bound Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons In Chiang Mai, Thailand During Biomass Open Burning Period Of 2016, Duangduean Thepnuan, Somporn Chantara

Applied Environmental Research

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) bounded to ambient fine particles (PM2.5) were determined for enabling health risk assessment and source identification of ambient aerosols. Daily PM2.5 samples (24 h) were collected on quartz fiber filters by using a low volume air sampler (16.7 L min-1) during smoke haze period (March - April 2016) in Chiang Mai, Thailand. An average concentration of PM2.5(n=54) was 65.3±17.6 μg m-3. The samples were extracted with dichloromethane using ultrasonication prior to PAHs analysis by GC-MS. Average concentrations of 16-PAHs, non-carcinogenic (nc) PAHs and carcinogenic (c) PAHs were 10.23±2.49, 5.48±1.70 and 4.75±1.43 ng m-3, respectively. Ratio values …

Effect Of Mixture Ratio Of Food Waste And Vetiver Grass On Biogas Production, Mayura Srikanlayanukul, Parinda Suksabye

Applied Environmental Research

The objectives of this research were to study the optimum percentage ratios of food waste and vetiver grass (Vetiveria zizaniodes(L.) Nash) for biogas production and process stability in anaerobic digestion system. The nine mixture ratios of food waste (FM) and vetiver grass (VG) were 100:0, 80:20, 75:25, 66.67:33.33, 50:50, 33.33:66.67, 25:75, 20:80 and 0:100. The biogas production was subjected to anaerobic batch with working volume of 1.8 L and had digestion time 60 d at 35 ± 2 °C. High specific methane yield of 0.30 L g-1 VS removed was obtained from the fermentation at ratio of FW:VG at 80:20 …

Potential Degradation And Kinetics Of Melanoidin By Using Laccase From White Rot Fungus, Wittawat Toomsan, Pinthita Mungkarndee, Sophon Boonlue, Nguyen Thanh Giao, Sumana Siripattanakul-Ratpukdi

Applied Environmental Research

This study was attempted to use laccase extracted from white rot fungus to removemelanoidin in the ethanol production wastewater. The isolated fungus producing the highest laccase was identified as Megaspororiasp. The highest degradation efficiencies of the purified and crude laccases were 48.00% and 44.60%, respectively. Both degradation kinetics well fit Michaelis-Menten model. The Michaelis constant (Km) and maximum rate of reaction (Vmax) were 0.82% melanoidin and 0.0045% melanoidin h-1 for the degradation by the purified laccase and 0.71% melanoidin and 0.0037% melanoidin h-1 for the degradation by the crude laccase. Turnover number (Kcat) of purified and crude laccases were 0.00023 …

Mpirically Derived Equation From Simple Heat Index For Calculating Wet Bulb Globe Temperature: A Case Study Of Thailand, Wutthichai Paengkaew, Atsamon Limsakul, Rittirong Junggoth, Somsak Pitaksanurat

Applied Environmental Research

The Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) index is a standard for assessing environmental heat stress, but the requirement of expensive instrument with specialized maintenance is limited its use. This study aims to develop the empirical equation to estimate the WBGT from Heat Index (HI) calculated from portable temperature and humidity recorder (THR), based on the data collected at seven sites covering all regions of Thailand. Comparative analysis shows that the HI values calculated from THR (HITHR) are consistent well with those measured from the thermal environmental monitor (HIQT36) as evidenced by a highly positive correlation between them (r=0.97; p<0.01; n=4,303). These results suggest high reliability of the portable THR and its acceptance to be used instead of the standard QT36 device. Based on a simple linear regression developed to estimate WBGT from the HITHR, it was found that the model accounts for at least 90% of the variance of the observed WBGT (dependent variable). In addition, validation of the model with the statistical methods shows relatively small errors of the estimated WBGT values in comparisonto the observed values. With this evidence, the developed empirical regression equation can be used to estimate WBGT with high accuracy and confidence. Simple and easier to use for the practitioners who are involved in public health works at community level, a heat monitoring tool kit consisting of a THR, WBGT chart and recommended actions were further developed based on the results obtained. This tool kit is a low-cost and simple device which can be used by various community-level stakeholders to prevent and reduce heat injuries and deaths of risk groups, especially the elderly. This tool is necessary in light of anthropogenic-induced warming and Thailand's aging society.

Assessments Of Nipa Forest Using Landsat Imagery Enhanced With Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Photography, Tantus Piekkoontod, Bhumiphat Pachana, Karnjana Hrimpeng, Kitsanai Charoenjit

Applied Environmental Research

Nipa palms are exposed by the transformation of land use and land cover changes (LULCC) due to changes to aquaculture and orchards. Modern remote sensing for environmental monitoring of LULCC has been made easier by the use of high spatial resolution images, innovative image processing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The expense of high-resolution satellite imagery has resulted in investigators moving to open sources (e.g., Landsat), therefore, the interpretation of images at a medium resolution can be classified simply as LULCC classes and are constrained by the detection of small-scale disturbances. This research applied Landsat imagery with very high-resolution imagery …

Optimizing The Extraction Of Phenolic Compounds With High Antioxidant Activity From Mango Seed Kernel Wastes Using Response Surface Methodology, Francis D.C Siacor, Camila F.Y. Lobarbio, Evelyn B. Taboada

Applied Environmental Research

Mango seed kernels (MSK), which are waste streams in the mango processing industry, are good sources of phenolic compounds with high antioxidant, anti-bacterial, and anti-viral properties. These phenolic compounds are reported to have an increasing demand over the years in the quest for healthy ready-to-eat food and nutraceuticals. To recover these compounds from MSK, solid-liquid extraction (SLE) can simply be applied, although there is a knowledge gap in the systematic exploration of this process for mango-based phenolic compounds. In this work, phenolic compounds were extracted from MSK through SLE using ethanol-water solvent system. A statistical-based approach was used to evaluate …

Analysis And Modeling Of Physiologic Equivalent Temperature Of An Outdoor Environment, Adinife P. Azodo, Salami O. Ismaila, Femi T. Owoeye, Titus Y. Jibatswen

Applied Environmental Research

This study developed a model that depicts the relationship, strength, and direction of the causality between the predictor variables (microclimatic variables) and a response variable (ambient temperature) interpreted for the physiologic equivalent temperature of an environment. Data collected were microclimatic variables which include air circulation, relative humidity, mean radiant and ambient temperatures over land cover materials namely tarmac, grass, soil and concrete at the premises of Federal University Wukari, Taraba state of Nigeria at a guided height of 1.1 m. The data was collected using physical measurements with respect to time of the day; morning (8:00 - 9:00 am), afternoon …

Radar Quality Index For A Mosaic Of Radar Reflectivity Over Chao Phraya River Basin, Thailand, Nattapon Mahavik, Sarintip Tantanee

Applied Environmental Research

The weather radar is one of the tools that can provide spatio-temporal information for nowcast which is useful for hydro-meteorological disasters warning and mitigation system. The ground-based weather radar can provide spatial and temporal information to monitor severe storm over the risky area. However, the usage of multiple radars can provide more effective information over large study area where single radar beam may be blocked by surrounding terrain Even though, the investigation of the sever storm physical characteristics needs the information from multiple radars, the mosaicked radar product has not been available for Thai researcher yet. In this study, algorithm …

Relationship Between Humidity And Physiology In Warm And Humid Conditions – A Literature Review, Yuliya Dzyuban

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Change in precipitation patterns caused by global warming will likely increase humidity in some areas of the world. Moreover, populations in tropical climates with already high humidity levels can experience an added stress on their health and thermal comfort due to an amplifying effect of heat and moisture. Humidity is a generic term commonly used to describe moisture in the air. However, there are numerous variables that describe different properties of humid air that can be used in scientific studies. While relative humidity remains the most used, it has several shortcomings associated with its high correlation with air temperature. Thus, …

African Wildlife, Eco-Tourism & Covid, Andrew N. Rowan

WellBeing News

African wildlife conservation faces increasing economic pressure as a result of the loss of tourism due to the pandemic and other looming threats.

Navigation Risk Evaluation Of The Northeast Passage Based On The Entropy Weight Topsis Model, Fengde Qu

Maritime Safety & Environment Management Dissertations (Dalian)

No abstract provided.

Economic Analysis Of Vessel Sox Emission Reduction Measures In The Context Of China, Peng Guan

World Maritime University Dissertations

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Cost, Scale, And Property Attributes In Landowner Choice Of Stormwater Management Option., W. Bowman Cutter, Alexander Pusch

Pomona Economics

Cities throughout the world are experimenting with Low Impact Development (LID) strategies to replace ecosystem services degraded by urbanization. Stormwater management may need both centralized/publicly-managed infrastructure and decentralized provision by landowners. For landowners to participate in these programs they will need some latitude in the choice of techniques and siting. However, these landowner choices will affect the bundle of ecosystem services provided (such as infiltration, aesthetics, pollution filtering, and others) as well as their spatial distribution. We studied the Santa Monica (CA) stormwater regulations that require stormwater management on a large portion of development and redevelopment but allow a significant …

An Analysis Of Irrigation Policy In The Mississippi Delta, Brooklyn Mooney

Honors Theses

This thesis aims to provide a sustainable irrigation alternative that could be easily adopted by farmers in the Mississippi Delta in order to improve water resource management. The Mississippi Alluvial Valley Aquifer, the groundwater system that lies under the Mississippi Delta, is being depleted at rapid rates due to industrial farming and unsustainable, outdated irrigation methods. The intent of this research is to evaluate the water scarcity problem in the Mississippi Delta by assessing water extraction rates and the progression of agriculture in the region. Then, various irrigation methods will be evaluated before a final suggestion is made. Through extensive …