Physical and Environmental Geography Commons^™

Plastic Bags: Hazards And Mitigation, Jessica Sutton, Brittany Turner

Social Sciences

No abstract provided.

Landscape History In The G.K. Warren Missouri River Maps, Graham Alan Callaway

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In 1855 and 1856, military surveyor Gouverneur K. Warren and his assistants produced what was at the time the most accurate map ever made of the Missouri River. This series of highly detailed sketch maps records numerous cultural features and an extraordinary level of environmental detail, making it an invaluable resource for research on the history of the region. This paper represents the first attempt to comprehensively interpret the content of these maps, identifying the features recorded where possible and assessing the probability of archaeological preservation of those not previously known. A subset of the recorded environmental data, from roughly …

Assessment Of Land Use Suitability Based On Water Erosion Susceptibility In Medium-Sized Urban Areas Of The Metropolitan Region Of Santiago, Central Chile, Roberto Fernandez

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Urban areas constitute complex spatial entities where biophysical and socioeconomic environments interact through processes that determine the distribution of land use in the territory. Given Chile's variety of landscapes, water erosion, and mass movement, and rapid expansion of its medium-sized cities, straightforward techniques for assessment of land use suitability are essential. Through evaluation of water erosion susceptibility, it is possible to efficiently determine suitability of land use in medium-sized cities and their adjacent environments. The adaptation and application of the Erosion Response Units (ERU) concept (Märker et al., 2001) in the cities of Colina and Melipilla, Metropolitan Region of …

Prospects For An International Charter "Space And Major Disaster" Remote Sensing Response To Drought Disasters - An Anhui, China Case Study, Joseph Burkhead

Masters Theses

Remote sensing is often leveraged during the response phase of disaster management to improve the situational awareness of decision-makers. The International Charter "Space and Major Disaster" (Charter) provides remote sensing support to non-spacefaring nations facing disasters such as earthquakes, floods and tsunamis. However, the Charter has never activated for a major drought disaster. Since droughts affect over half of the nearly 3 billion people that suffer from natural disasters annually, this study seeks to determine whether satellite remote sensing can be effectively employed according to the intent, capabilities, and limitations of the Charter to benefit officials responding to a major …

Accuracy Of Boulder County’S Gis Parcel Mapping: An Examination Of Gis Cadastral Mapping Compared To Land Surveys, Kayce D. Wohlman

Geography and the Environment: Graduate Student Capstones

This research outlines land surveying in the State of Colorado and discusses the formation of parcel maps in the state. GIS continues to grow in various industries and government entities since it is able to best streamline copious amounts of geospatial information. Following suit, County Assessor Offices throughout the country have benefited from the use of a GIS to organize their data. The cost, implementation and maintenance of a GIS is a costly endeavor however it benefits both the County, State and the general public. County Assessor Office GIS systems have directly influenced the field of Land Surveying both positively …

Sensitivity Analysis Of The Gems Soil Organic Carbon Model To Land Cover Land Use Classification Uncertainties Under Different Climate Scenarios In Senegal, Amadou M. Dieye, David P. Roy, N. P. Hanan, S. Lui, M. Hansen, A. Toure

GSCE Faculty Publications

Spatially explicit land cover land use (LCLU) change information is needed to drive biogeochemical models that simulate soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics. Such information is increasingly being mapped using remotely sensed satellite data with classification schemes and uncertainties constrained by the sensing system, classification algorithms and land cover schemes. In this study, automated LCLU classification of multi-temporal Landsat satellite data were used to assess the sensitivity of SOC modeled by the Global Ensemble Biogeochemical Modeling System (GEMS). The GEMS was run for an area of 1560km2 in Senegal under three climate change scenarios with LCLU maps generated using different Landsat …

Scotts Bluff National Monument, Plant Community Resource Brief, Isabel Ashton, Mike Prowatzke

United States National Park Service: Publications

2011 Monitoring Status

Overview

In 2011, the first year of vegetation monitoring by the Northern Great Plains Network Inventory and Monitoring staff at Scotts Bluff National Monument, efforts resulted in the documentation of 79 plant species. This was the lowest number of species among parks sampled in 2011. Graminoid (grass and grass-like plant) species accounted for only 21 (27%) of the total species, but graminoid cover was much higher than that of any other plant type. Forbs were much more diverse, but did not provide as much foliar cover.

The 5 most abundant native non-graminoids were winterfat (Krascheninnikovia lanata …

Plant Community Composition And Structure Monitoring Protocol For The Northern Great Plains I&M Network - Standard Operating Procedures, Version 1.01, Amy J. Symstad, Robert A. Gitzen, Cody L. Wienk, Michael R. Bynum, Daniel J. Swanson, Andy D. Thorstenson, Kara J. Paintner-Green

United States National Park Service: Publications

Introduction

The Northern Great Plains Inventory and Monitoring Network (NGPN) includes thirteen park units located in five northern Great Plains states across six ecoregions. Plant community composition and structure monitoring comprises the core of the vegetation monitoring effort for the NGPN, covering the “Riparian Lowland Plant Communities” and “Upland Plant Communities” vital signs (Gitzen et al. 2010). The narrative portion of the plant community protocol can be found in Symstad et al. 2012. The narrative includes the rationale for vegetation monitoring, an overview of sample design, field methods, data management, and program requirements. This document contains the standard operating procedures …

Vulnerability To Extreme Heat In Metropolitan Phoenix: Spatial, Temporal, And Demographic Dimensions, Winston T. L. Chow, Wen-Ching Chuang, Patricia Gober

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This study assessed the spatial distribution of vulnerability to extreme heat in 1990 and 2000 within metropolitan Phoenix based on an index of seven equally weighted measures of physical exposure and adaptive capacity. These measures were derived from spatially interpolated climate, normalized differential vegetation index, and U.S. Census data. From resulting vulnerability maps, we also analyzed population groups living in areas of high heat vulnerability. Results revealed that landscapes of heat vulnerability changed substantially in response to variations in physical and socioeconomic factors, with significant alterations to spatial distribution of vulnerability especially between eastern and western sectors of Phoenix. These …

Un Análisis Multi-Escalar Del Sistema Forestal Peruano, J. Boettner, G. Sager-Gellerman, E. Strickler, C. Courtenay, R. Gilb, W. Gordon, G. Leonard, J. Marconi, M. Mcgovern, M. Nagle, C. Paiz Tejada, Andrew Pericak, M. Price, D. Vassallo, R. Yowell, David S. Salisbury

Geography and the Environment Poster Presentations

Perú tiene 67 millones de hectáreas de bosque, que viene a ser más del 53% de la superficie total del país (OIMT, 2010). La extracción maderera es la propulsora principal de la economía dentro de la Amazonía Peruana, generando empleos para comunidades rurales y urbanas (Sears y Pinedo-Vásquez, 2011). Sin embargo, a menudo los empresarios madereros explotan a sus trabajadores a través de un sistema de préstamos (De la Rosa Tincopa, 2009). Alrededor de 1354 comunidades indígenas poseen títulos de propiedad en la región (OIMT, 2010), pero muchas comunidades no tienen los títulos para su territorio que muchas veces se …

Alternative Methods To Predict Actual Evapotranspiration Illustrate The Importance Of Accounting For Phenology: The Event Driven Phenology Model Part Ii, V. Kovalskyy, G. M. Henebry

Natural Resource Management Faculty Publications

Evapotranspiration (ET) flux constitutes a major component of both the water and energy balances at the land surface. Among the many factors that control evapotranspiration, phenology poses a major source of uncertainty in attempts to predict ET. Contemporary approaches to ET modeling and monitoring frequently summarize the complexity of the seasonal development of vegetation cover into static phenological trajectories (or climatologies) that lack sensitivity to changing environmental conditions. The Event Driven Phenology Model (EDPM) offers an alternative, interactive approach to representing phenology. This study presents the results of an experiment designed to illustrate the differences in ET arising from various …

A New Concept For Simulation Of Vegetated Land Surface Dynamics: The Event Driven Phenology Model Part I, V. Kovalskyy, G. M. Henebry

Natural Resource Management Faculty Publications

Phenologies of the vegetated land surface are being used increasingly for diagnosis and prognosis of climate change consequences. Current prospective and retrospective phenological models stand far apart in their approaches to the subject. We report on an exploratory attempt to implement a phenological model based on a new event driven concept which has both diagnostic and prognostic capabilities in the same modeling framework. This Event Driven Phenological Model (EDPM) is shown to simulate land surface phenologies and phenophase transition dates in agricultural landscapes based on assimilation of weather data and land surface observations from spaceborne sensors. The model enables growing …

The Detection Of Forest Structures In The Monongahela National Forest Using Lidar, Dominique Norman

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The mapping of structural elements of a forest is important for forestry management to provide a baseline for old and new-growth trees while providing height strata for a stand. These activities are important for the overall monitoring process which aids in the understanding of anthropogenic and natural disturbances. Height information recorded for each discrete point is key for the creation of canopy height, canopy surface, and canopy cover models. The aim of this study is to assess if LiDAR can be used to determine forest structures. Small footprint, leaf-off LiDAR data were obtained for the Monongahela National Forest, West Virginia. …

Systematics, Biogeography And Leaf Anatomy And Architecture Of Bursera Subgen. Bursera (Burseraceae) In The Greater Antilles And The Bahamas, María Cristina Martínez-Habibe

CGU Theses & Dissertations

This dissertation presents a comprehensive study on the origin and evolutionary relationships of the species of Bursera in Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica and the Bahamas. The goals of the first chapter were to test monophyly of the group, revisit a recent transfer of two species of Bursera to Commiphora, and place recently discovered mainland species using the reconstructed phylogenies. Additionally, divergence estimations using fossils were used as independent tests of several hypotheses regarding the arrival of the modern biota to the Greater Antilles and Bahamas (GAB). I conclude that all endemic taxonomic entities of the genus in this region belong …

Review Of Daniel Mockli's "Strategic Trends 2012: Key Developments In Global Affairs, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Scholarship and Research

This review essay describes and analyzes the content of this annual compilation of international affairs essays published by the Zurich-based Center for Strategic Studies.

Grts And Graphs: Monitoring Natural Resources In Urban Landscapes, Todd R. Lookingbill, John Paul Schmit, Shawn L. Carter

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

Environmental monitoring programs are an important tool for providing land managers with a scientific basis for management decisions. However, many ecological processes operate on spatial scales that transcend management boundaries (Schonewald-Cox 1988). For example, adjacent lands may influence protected-area resources via edge effects, source-sink dynamics, or invasion processes (Jones et al. 2009). Hydrologic alterations outside management units also may have profound effects on the integrity of resources being managed (Pringle 2000). The impacts of climate change are presenting challenges to resource management at local-to-global scales (Karl et al. 2009). This potential disparity between ecological and political boundaries presents an interesting …

Land Abandonment And Wild Ungulates: Maintaining Open Spaces In Catalan Pre-Pyrenees, Joan M. Welch, Josep Vila Subiros, Diego Varga Linde

Geography & Planning Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Potential Wolverine Habitat Vs. Winter Recreation. Conflict In Colorado!, Paul Quigley

Geography and the Environment: Graduate Student Capstones

The Global list of endangered species of flora and fauna is growing, with the most highly specialized species often at ‘critically endangered’ status. Managing these populations effectively involves numerous and varied organizations, conflicting motivations, arbitrary anthropogenic boundaries and often most importantly, data compilation and management. We are seeing many more reintroductions of locally extirpated species back into habitats of historical prevalence – and as extreme a method of conservation as this is, there is still a need for more extreme methods. High profile and highly specialized endangered species are often managed in a ‘crisis’ mode, where complex behaviors and interactions …

Transboundary Political Ecology In The Peru-Brazil Borderlands: Mapping Workshops, Geographic Information, And Socio-Environmental Impacts, David S. Salisbury, A. William Flores De Melo, Pedro Tipula Tipula

Geography and the Environment Faculty Publications

Development, resource, and settlement frontiers inspired by national policies and global demand continue to expand into the international boundary lands of Amazonia. National policies promote development and conservation projects on lands already inhabited and managed. Regional governments are increasingly frustrated by the inadequate and outdated geographic information available to solve overlapping claims and improve planning in sensitive border regions. The resulting combination of inappropriate policies, contested resources, and poor geographic information in the borderlands create impacts not only for national, regional, and local landscapes and livelihoods but also foreign relations due to transboundary effects. This article uses a transboundary political …

Análisis De Los Impactos Socio-Ambientales De Las Carreteras En La Amazonía: Carretera De Puerto Esperanza A Iñapari En Perú, George Appling, David S. Salisbury

Geography and the Environment Poster Presentations

La Cuenca del Purús está situada en las regiones de Ucayali y Madre de Dios en el sudeste del Perú. Además del Rio Alto Purús, la cuenca abarca un parque nacional, una reserva comunal, reservas territoriales para pueblos indígenas aislados, territorios indígenas y un pueblo pequeño (Figura 1). En el año 2004, el Gobierno Peruano creó el Parque Nacional Alto Purús, el más grande en el Perú, para preservar una de las secciones mejor conservadas del bosque tropical en el bioma Amazónico. Como se demuestra en la Figura 1, la Reserva Comunal Purús colindante, sirve como zona de amortiguamiento entre …