Environmental Policy Commons^™

Remaking Nature In Montana: Topophilic Considerations Of Wolves And Wolf Trapping, Andrew Myers

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

In 2011, after nearly forty years of federal protection, the gray wolf was removed from the Endangered Species List in Montana and its management entrusted to the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. The implementation of public trapping seasons in 2012 as a method to control wolf populations has further inflamed an already embroiled debate. The purpose of this research was to investigate how the presence of wolves and wolf trapping impacts human attachments to landscapes of “nature” in Montana by focusing on the following questions: What are the public’s social constructions of wolves? What are the public’s social constructions of …

Perceptions Of Climate Change And Water Governance Vulnerability In The Aysén Region Of Chile, Michal I. Helman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

While the majority of Chile’s intact watersheds are located in the largely uninhabited southern Patagonia regions of the country, the majority of the Chilean population lives in the nation’s parched central regions. In the face of recent trends in climatic change, including dramatic decreases in snowpack, diminishing glaciers, and shifts in precipitation cycles and seasons, mountain contributions to local watersheds are predicted to continue dwindling as aridification worsens around the world and throughout Chile. Problems associated with aridification are further complicated by Chile’s water history, which has largely revolved around the nation’s fresh water caches subject to private claims and …

Bits Of Belonging: Information Technology, Water, And Neoliberal Governance In India, Simanti Dasgupta

Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work Faculty Publications

India’s global success in the Information Technology industry has also prompted the growth of neoliberalism and the re-emergence of the middle class in contemporary urban areas, such as Bangalore. BITS of Belonging shows that this economic shift produces new forms of social inequality while reinforcing older ones. The study investigates this economic disparity by looking at IT and water privatization to explain how these otherwise unrelated domains correspond to our thinking about citizenship, governance, and belonging.

The ethnographic study in this book shows how work and human processes in the IT industry intertwine to meet the market stipulations of the …

Using A Community-Based Strategy To Address The Impacts Of Globalization On Underwater Cultural Heritage Management In The Dominican Republic, Lydia Barbash-Riley

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This Note addresses the management of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (UCH) in the Dominican Republic as a case study of the effects of two aspects of globalization on cultural and environmental resource management in the developing world: the international convergence of values and the horizontal delegation of state power to private actors due to economic constraints. This Note posits that even as the global community of states moves toward a consensus on the ethical management of the UCH, this convergence combined with the global trend of horizontal delegation may incentivize some lesser-developed countries to deal with the economic pressures of …

Volume Reduction Of Municipal Solid Wastes Contaminated With Radioactive Cesium By Ferrocyanide Coprecipitation Technique, Y. Fujikawa, H. Ozaki, H. Tsuno, P. Wei, A. Fujinaga, R. Takanami, S. Taniguchi, S. Kimura, R.R. Giri, Paul Lewtas

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Municipal solid wastes (MSW) with elevated concentrations of radioactive cesium (rad-Cs hereafter) have been generated in some areas of Japan in the aftermath of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (F1 hereafter) accident. Both recycling and final disposal of the contaminated MSW have become a difficult problem in the affected areas, resulting in accumulation of treated residues in the treatment facilities. The rad-Cs in MSW, especially fly ash, often showed a high leaching rate. Extraction of contaminated MSW with water or hot oxalic acid followed by selective removal of rad-Cs from the extract using ferrocyanide (Fer hereafter) coprecipitation technique could …

Coastal Environmental Policies And Water: Environmental Values In Ghana And Senegal, Molly R. Loftus

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis provides a comparative analysis of the environmental values present in Ghana’s and Senegal’s coastal regions, and the implications that those have for the surrounding environment. The countries approaches to urban farming, mining and oil and gas extraction, fishing, marine debris and municipal waste management are assessed in order to reach a greater understanding of these environmental issues. In undertaking this thesis, I attempted to draw a correlation between the handling of these issues and how people perceive their environment. Through the comparison of environmental degradation and the level of effort to achieve a more sustainable developmental framework in …

California's Foreign Relations, Christopher Gaarder

CMC Senior Theses

Globalization has significantly increased the number of stakeholders in transnational issues in recent decades. The typical list of the new players in global affairs often includes non-state actors like non-governmental organizations, multinational corporations, and international organizations. Sub-national governments, however, have been given relatively little attention even though they, too, have a significant interest and ability to shape the increasing flow of capital, goods, services, people, and ideas that has so profoundly influenced the global political economy in recent decades. California, arguably the most significant among sub-national governments – its economy would be seventh or eighth in the world at $2.2 …

Would You Like It Hot Or Cold? An Analysis Of U.S.-China Climate Policy, Alice Chang

CMC Senior Theses

As the world’s largest emitters and economies, the United States and China play a critical role in global climate mitigation. Using Putnam’s two-level game showcases how the domestic political context of each country impacts their international policies. However, Putnam’s framework does not differentiate between bilateral and multilateral circumstances. The clarity and concentration of perceived costs and benefits for the United States and China from climate policies lead to differing outcomes on the multilateral and bilateral stage. Fear of the free-rider effect makes players assume payoffs that resemble the Prisoner’s Dilemma during multilateral climate negotiations, whereas bilateral negotiations usually result in …

Promoting Bold Investment In Renewable Energy Research And Development, Melanie C. Paty

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis discusses the potential for private investment to fund ambitious renewable energy research and development to help mitigate climate change. I begin by discussing the threat of global warming and a brief history of renewable energy development in the United States. Next, I discuss existing avenues for private investment in renewable energy, potential methods of increasing corporate participation, and the belief that businesses must maximize only financial profits. Then I perform an in-depth case study of pension funds that have incorporated a social or environmental mission, existing environmentally focused mutual funds, and liquidated clean energy mutual funds. Finally, I …

Feasibility Analysis And Strategic Measures For Promoting Viable New Urban Development, Elizabeth J. Farr

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis demonstrates that New Urbanism is both an advisable and feasible method for reducing carbon emissions to mitigate global climate change. New Urban areas commonly generate lower carbon emissions compared to conventional suburban development due to lower car use and higher levels of walking and use of other forms of transportation. Economic and political feasibility of New Urban development is determined by analyzing case studies, housing price premia, financing, and fiscal impact. The many contexts and perspectives involved in the planning process are analyzed to determine if New Urbanism is advisable in the larger setting in which developers, advocates, …

The Commander In Chief's Authority To Combat Climate Change, Mark P. Nevitt

Faculty Articles

This Article first outlines the myriad national security threats posed by a changing climate, addressing the President’s and Congress’s powers to plan, study, and invest in climate-resilient infrastructure at military installations that are vulnerable to a rise in sea levels. Second, this Article asserts that climate change will stress and test persistent separation of powers concerns at home and abroad. Specifically, the President has less authority to protect military infrastructure domestically in the face of congressional intransigence, but has comparably greater authority as Commander in Chief to respond to climate-induced events abroad. Third, this Article argues that the threat of …

Roots Versus Wells: Grassroots Activism Against Fracking In New York And California, Shannon J. Leap

Pitzer Senior Theses

The reliance upon and depletion of fossil fuels as an energy source puts pressure on individuals, communities, energy companies, and policy-makers. Hydraulic fracturing – known colloquially as fracking – as a method of drilling for oil and natural gas temporarily alleviates this pressure since it allows for the extraction previously inaccessible fossil fuels in shale rock deposits deep beneath the Earth’s surface. This has resulted in a nationwide “fracking boom,” which has come with its share of economic benefits. However, the process of fracking can be detrimental to human and environmental health. In reaction to the increasing development of this …

Did Beijing's Vehicle Use Restriction Policy Reduce Smog In 2014? A Time Series Analysis Using Chinese Government And Us Embassy Data, Ning Li

MPA/MPP/MPFM Capstone Projects

Objective:

The analysis in this paper is designed to find out whether the vehicle use restriction policy issued by Beijing Municipal Government contributed to a change of air quality in 2014. I analyze both Chinese data and data collected by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing in order to determine whether the type of data used makes a difference to the findings.

Method:

I conduct a regression analysis with time series data. The analysis unit is the day. The main independent variable is the holiday schedule during 2014 that determined whether the restriction policy was in place or not. There are …

What’S Political About Solar Electric Technology? The User’S Perspective, Chelsea Schelly

Department of Social Sciences Publications

Scholars in science and technology studies have debated the various ways in which technologies are (or are not) political. Here, I examine how users themselves understand and articulate the politics of a specific technology—residential solar electric technology—and how understandings of politics interact with motivations to adopt. Based on interviews with 48 individuals in 36 households across the state of Wisconsin who have adopted residential solar electric technology, I consider the user’s perspective on the question: “What’s political about residential solar electric technology use?” These users were asked about the politics of this technology and how their understanding of the technology’s …

Writing A Community Guidebook For Evaluating Low-Grade Geothermal Energy From Flooded Underground Mines For Heating And Cooling Buildings, Edward Peace Louie

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

When underground mines close they often fill with water from ground and surface sources; each mine can contain millions to billions of gallons of water. This water, heated by the Earth’s geothermal energy, reaches temperatures ideal for heat pumps. The sheer scale of these flooded underground mines presents a unique opportunity for large scale geothermal heat pump setups which would not be as economically, socially, and environmentally feasible anywhere else. A literature search revealed approximately 30 instances of flooded underground mines being used to heat and cool buildings worldwide. With thousands of closed/abandoned underground mines in the U.S. and a …

Stakeholder Perceptions Of Sustainable Value And Water Conservation: A Case Study Of Social, Environmental, And Economic Concerns In The Rookery Bay Estuary, Bruce Victor Lilyea

Department of Conflict Resolution Studies Theses and Dissertations

Stakeholders’ perceptions of social, environmental, and economic concerns in the Rookery Bay Estuary were examined through this research. The purpose of this study was to discover the shared value and common resolution responses for the people of the Rookery Bay area that can extend to other local environmental management scenarios. Using Stakeholder Theory, Rational Choice Theory, Symbolic Interactionism, and Systems Theory as theoretical foundation, the following research questions were considered: RQ1) What are the points of shared value of community stakeholders facing environmental management issues? RQ2) How do the perspectives of the community stakeholders toward the social, environmental, and economic …

Evaluation Of A Formula That Categorizes Female Gray Wolf Breeding Status By Nipple Size, Shannon M. Barber-Meyer, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

The proportion by age class of wild Canis lupus (Gray Wolf) females that reproduce in any given year remains unclear; thus, we evaluated the applicability to our long-term (1972–2013) data set of the Mech et al. (1993) formula that categorizes female Gray Wolf breeding status by nipple size and time of year. We used the formula to classify Gray Wolves from 68 capture events into 4 categories (yearling, adult non-breeder, former breeder, current breeder). To address issues with small sample size and variance, we created an ambiguity index to allow some Gray Wolves to be classed into 2 categories. We …

Gray Wolf (Canis Lupus) Dyad Monthly Association Rates By Demographic Group, Shannon M. Barber-Meyer, L. David Mech

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Preliminary data from GPS-collared wolves (Canis lupus) in the Superior National Forest of northeastern Minnesota indicated wolves had low association rates with packmates during summer. However, aerial-telemetry locations of very high frequency (VHF)-radioed wolves in this same area showed high associations among packmates during winter. We analyzed aerial-telemetry-location data from VHF-collared wolves in several packs (n=18 dyads) in this same area from 1994-2012 by month, and found lowest association rates occurred during June. While other studies have found low association among wolf packmates during summer, information on differences in association patterns depending on the wolf associates’ demographics is …

From The Jungles Of Washington To The Wilderness Of America: The Effects Of Federal Grants On Wildlife Conservation In The States, Kayla Samuelson

Masters Theses

This thesis research looks at whether federal grant award dollars influence state spending on wildlife conservation. Partisan control of the state legislatures also is examined to see if Democratic-controlled, Republican-controlled, and Split-Party Status affects spending on wildlife conservation. Five states were chosen to represent major regions in the United States and to serve as case studies of wildlife conservation spending patterns. The Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program is used as a case study to investigate whether funds received by states affected state government spending on wildlife conservation. The research finds that the amount of money allocated to states does not affect …

Examining Policy Capacity Initiatives Within Climate Change Frameworks In Three Us And Canadian Sectors Using Nvivo Content Analysis, Mehjabeen Rahman

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

The climate change narrative has changed from one of mitigation to one of adaptation. Governments around the world have created climate change frameworks which address how the country can better cope with the expected and unexpected changes due to global climate change. In an effort to do so, federal governments of Canada and the United States, as well as some provinces and states within these countries, have created detailed documents which outline what steps must be taken to adapt to these changes. However, not much is mentioned about how these steps will be translated in to policy, and how that …