Wildfire Suppression – An International Analysis Of Operations, Strategy And Firefighter Safety, 2020 Edith Cowan University
Wildfire Suppression – An International Analysis Of Operations, Strategy And Firefighter Safety, Greg Peter Penney
Theses: Doctorates and Masters
Wildfire suppression remains an inherently dangerous yet increasingly frequent task for fire services throughout Australia and the world. Each year firefighters from career and volunteer agencies respond to wildfires that impact the urban interface. When such an event occurs during a period of intense fire behaviour the conditions are often incompatible with life for persons either caught in the open or those seeking refuge in a vehicle. In order to improve firefighter safety and operational effectiveness at the rural urban interface (RUI) during landscape scale wildfires, this dissertation serves to examine critical components of wildfire response, most notably wildfire suppression …
A Handbook Of Wildfire Engineering: Guidance For Wildfire Suppression And Resilient Urban Design, 2020 Edith Cowan University
A Handbook Of Wildfire Engineering: Guidance For Wildfire Suppression And Resilient Urban Design, Greg Penney, Daryoush Habibi, Marcus Cattani, Steven Richardson
Research outputs 2014 to 2021
A Handbook of Wildfire Engineering (the Handbook) provides firefighters, engineers and town planners with detailed technical approaches and analysis to enhance the resilience of communities in areas prone to wildfire impacts, and enhance the safety and effectiveness of wildfire suppression at the urban interface during catastrophic wildfire conditions
Direct And Indirect Effects Of Temperature And Prey Abundance On Bald Eagle Reproductive Dynamics, 2019 Central Alaska Network, U.S. National Park Service
Direct And Indirect Effects Of Temperature And Prey Abundance On Bald Eagle Reproductive Dynamics, Joshua H. Schmidt, Judy Putera, Tammy L. Wilson
United States National Park Service: Publications
Understanding the mechanisms by which populations are regulated is critical for predicting the effects of large-scale perturbations. While discrete mortality events provide clear evidence of direct impacts, indirect pathways are more difficult to assess but may play important roles in population and ecosystem dynamics. Here, we use multi-state occupancy models to analyze a long-term dataset on nesting bald eagles in south-central Alaska with the goal of identifying both direct and indirect mechanisms influencing reproductive output in this apex predator. We found that the probabilities of both nest occupancy and success were higher in the portion of the study area where …
More Than A Century After Problem Emerged, Manhole Explosions Still Injuring Dozens In New York City, 2019 Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism
More Than A Century After Problem Emerged, Manhole Explosions Still Injuring Dozens In New York City, Gaspard Le Dem, Gabriel Sandoval
Capstones
Since the early days of electrification, New York City has been rattled by manhole explosions –– underground blasts that injure residents, damage buildings, force evacuations, cause power outages and traffic disruptions.
Consolidated Edison, the city's largest electric provider, has for decades blamed manhole issues on bad weather and road salt that erodes underground wires. But some experts and former utility workers say lack of maintenance is at the root of the problem.
Meanwhile, city and state officials have failed to rein in the problem through weak laws and loose oversight. As a result, unsuspecting drivers and pedestrians continue to be …
Natural Resource Condition Assessment, Homestead National Monument Of America, 2019 Colorado State University
Natural Resource Condition Assessment, Homestead National Monument Of America, David S. Jones, Roy Cook, John Sovell, Christopher Herron, Jay Benner, Karin Decker, Andrew Beavers, Johannes Beebee, David Weinzimmer
United States National Park Service: Publications
Executive Summary
The National Park Service (NPS) Natural Resource Condition Assessment (NRCA) Program administered by the NPS Water Resources Division evaluates current conditions for important natural resources and resource indicators using primarily existing information and data. NRCAs also report on trends in resource condition when possible, identify critical data gaps, and characterize a general level of confidence for study findings. This NRCA complements historic resource assessments, is multi-disciplinary in scope, employs a hierarchical indicator framework, identifies and develops reference conditions/values for comparison against current conditions, and emphasizes spatial evaluation of conditions and GIS (map) products.
Congress established the Homestead National …
Plant Community Composition And Structure Monitoring At Wind Cave National Park, 2019 Data Report, 2019 United States National Park Service, Northern Great Plains Inventory & Monitoring Network
Plant Community Composition And Structure Monitoring At Wind Cave National Park, 2019 Data Report, Theresa L. Schaffner, Daniel J. Swanson, Stephanie L. Rockwood
United States National Park Service: Publications
Abstract
This report presents the results of the Northern Great Plains Inventory and Monitoring Network (NGPN) and Northern Great Plains Fire Ecology Program (NGPFire) vegetation monitoring at Wind Cave National Park (WICA) in 2019. This was the ninth year of combined monitoring efforts.
Crew members from NGPN visited 18 long-term monitoring plots to collect data representing the plant communities at WICA. The NGPFire program collected pre- and post-burn data from an additional 37 plant community and forest structure monitoring plots. This work is part of a long-term monitoring effort designed to evaluate the condition of the vegetation community and understand …
Plant Community Composition And Structure Monitoring At Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, 2019 Data Report, 2019 United States National Park Service, Northern Great Plains Inventory & Monitoring Network
Plant Community Composition And Structure Monitoring At Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, 2019 Data Report, Molly B. Davis
United States National Park Service: Publications
Abstract
This report presents the results of vegetation monitoring efforts in 2019 at Agate Fossil Beds National Monument (AGFO) by the Northern Great Plains Inventory and Monitoring Network (NGPN) and the Northern Great Plains Fire Ecology Program (NGPFire). This was the ninth year of combined monitoring efforts.
In 2019, crew members from NGPN visited 6 long-term plant community monitoring (PCM) plots to collect data on the upland mixed-grass prairie plant communities at AGFO. This work is part of a long-term monitoring program established to better understand the condition of the vegetation community and how it changes over time. NGPN staff …
Vegetation Classification And Mapping, Missouri National Recreational River, 2019 Colorado State University - Fort Collins
Vegetation Classification And Mapping, Missouri National Recreational River, Tom Baldvins, Matt Ley, David Jones, Joe Stevens, Hannah Pilkington
United States National Park Service: Publications
Executive Summary
The vegetation inventory project at Missouri National Recreational River (MNRR) classified and mapped vegetation within the park administrative boundary and estimated thematic map accuracy quantitatively. The project was conducted over a four year period from the summer of 2015 to the winter of 2019.
The project follows guidance provided by the National Park Service (NPS) Vegetation Mapping Inventory (VMI) Program. The overall process includes initial planning and scoping, imagery procurement, field data collection, data analysis, imagery interpretation and classification, and accuracy assessment. The initial planning and scoping meetings to support study plan development took place in December, 2009, …
Material And Seismic Assessment Of The Great House At Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, Arizona, 2019 University of Vermont, Burlington
Material And Seismic Assessment Of The Great House At Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, Arizona, Douglas W. Porter, Anjali Mehrotra, Matthew J. Dejong, Angelyn Bass, Matthew Guebard, John Ochsendorf
United States National Park Service: Publications
The authors characterized earthen wall materials and plasters in a mid-fourteenth-century Hohokam great house at Casa Grande Ruins National Monument (Arizona) and assessed the seismic susceptibility of its puddled earth walls. Characterization included determining the microstructure, microcomposition, porosity, aggregate mineralogy, and identification of phases in the binding matrix for each of 36 samples and reconstructing plaster technologies, including material selection, preparation, and application sequences. Findings support the ideas that earthen materials were manipulated to optimize their performance to suit the unique site conditions and needs of the ancient people using the structure and included finishes that were unusual in southwestern …
Exposure And Potential Effects Of Pesticides And Pharmaceuticals In Protected Streams Of The Us National Park Service Southeast Region, 2019 U.S. Geological Survey, South Atlantic Water Science Center
Exposure And Potential Effects Of Pesticides And Pharmaceuticals In Protected Streams Of The Us National Park Service Southeast Region, Paul M. Bradley, Kristin M. Romanok, Jeffrey R. Duncan, William A. Battaglin, Jimmy M. Clark, Michelle L. Hladik, Bradley J. Huffman, Luke R. Iwanowicz, Celeste A. Journey, Kelly L. Smalling
United States National Park Service: Publications
Globally, protected areas offer refugia for a broad range of taxa including threatened and endangered species. In the United States (US), the National Park Service (NPS) manages public lands to preserve biodiversity, but increasing park visitation and development of surrounding landscapes increase exposure to and effects from bioactive contaminants. The risk (exposure and hazard) to NPS protected-stream ecosystems within the highly urbanized southeast region (SER) from bioactive contaminants was assessed in five systems based on 334 pesticide and pharmaceutical analytes in water and 119 pesticides in sediment. Contaminant mixtures were common across all sampled systems, with approximately 24% of the …
Satellite-Based Decadal Change Assessments Of Pan-Arctic Environments, 2019 Michigan Technological University
Satellite-Based Decadal Change Assessments Of Pan-Arctic Environments, Liza K. Jenkins, Tom Barry, Karl R. Bosse, William S. Currie, Tom Christensen, Sara Longan, Robert A. Shuchman, Danielle Tanzer, Jason J. Taylor
United States National Park Service: Publications
Remote sensing can advance the work of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program through monitoring of satellite-derived terrestrial and marine physical and ecological variables. Standardized data facilitate an unbiased comparison across variables and environments. Using MODIS standard products of land surface temperature, percent snow-covered area, NDVI, EVI, phenology, burned area, marine chlorophyll, CDOM, sea surface temperature, and marine primary productivity, significant trends were observed in almost all variables between 2000 and 2017. Analysis of seasonal data revealed significant breakpoints in temporal trends. Within the terrestrial environment, data showed significant increasing trends in land surface temperature and NDVI. In the marine environment, …
Vegetation Classification And Mapping, Niobrara National Scenic River, 2019 Colorado State University
Vegetation Classification And Mapping, Niobrara National Scenic River, Tom Baldvins, Matt Ley, Joe Stevens, David Jones, Hannah Pilkington
United States National Park Service: Publications
Executive Summary
The vegetation inventory project at Niobrara National Scenic River (NIOB) classified and mapped vegetation within the park administrative boundary and estimated thematic map accuracy quantitatively. The project was conducted over a four year period from the summer of 2015 to the winter of 2019. Located in north-central Nebraska, approximately 76 miles of the park is designated as a wild and scenic river. The vast majority of land within the NIOB administrative boundary is private or state-owned.
The project follows guidance provided by the National Park Service (NPS) Vegetation Mapping Inventory (VMI) Program. The overall process includes initial planning …
Natural Resource Condition Assessment, Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, 2019 Colorado State University
Natural Resource Condition Assessment, Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, David S. Jones, Roy Cook, John Sovell, Christopher Herron, Jay Benner, Karin Decker, Andrew Beavers, Johannes Beebee, David Weinzimmer, Rob Schorr
United States National Park Service: Publications
Executive Summary
The National Park Service (NPS) Natural Resource Condition Assessment (NRCA) Program administered by the NPS Water Resources Division evaluates current conditions for important natural resources and resource indicators using primarily existing information and data. NRCAs also report on trends in resource condition when possible, identify critical data gaps, and characterize a general level of confidence for study findings. This NRCA complements historic resource assessments, is multi-disciplinary in scope, employs a hierarchical indicator framework, identifies and develops reference conditions/values for comparison against current conditions, and emphasizes spatial evaluation of conditions and GIS products.
Created in 1996, Tallgrass Prairie National …
Bowling Green, Kentucky - Fire Department (Sc 3489), 2019 Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, Kentucky - Fire Department (Sc 3489), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives
MSS Finding Aids
Finding aid and full-text scan of documents (Click on "Additional Files" below) for Manuscripts Small Collection 3489. Compiled correspondence and documents related to the purchase of fire trucks for the cities of Bowling Green and Smiths Grove in Warren County, Kentucky. Most of the material was scanned and is only available in digital format, but a few original letters and documents were retained.
Relationships Between Soil Macroinvertebrates And Nonnative Feral Pigs (Sus Scrofa) In Hawaiian Tropical Montane Wet Forests, 2019 University of Hawaii at Manoa
Relationships Between Soil Macroinvertebrates And Nonnative Feral Pigs (Sus Scrofa) In Hawaiian Tropical Montane Wet Forests, Nathaniel H. Wehr, Creighton M. Litton, Noa K. Lincoln, Steven C. Hess
United States National Park Service: Publications
Abstract Nonnative feral pigs (Sus scrofa) are recognized throughout the New World as a highly significant introduced species in terms of ecosystem alteration. Similarly, nonnative soil macroinvertebrates (e.g. earthworms, ground beetles) invade and alter the structure and function of native habitats globally. However, the relationship between feral pigs and soil macroinvertebrates remains largely unknown. This study analyzed relationships between these taxa using nine sites located inside and outside of feral pig management units representing a * 25 year chronosequence of removal in tropical montane wet forests in Hawai‘i. Soil macroinvertebrates were sampled from plots categorized as: actively trampled by feral …
Juvenile Hawksbill Residency And Habitat Use Within A Caribbean Marine Protected Area, 2019 the U.S. Geological Survey
Juvenile Hawksbill Residency And Habitat Use Within A Caribbean Marine Protected Area, Thomas H. Selby, Kristen M. Hart, Brian J. Smith, Clayton G. Pollock, Zandy Hillis-Starr, Madan K. Oli
United States National Park Service: Publications
Understanding the spatial ecology of highly mobile marine vertebrates is necessary for informing conservation and management strategies aimed at protecting such species. Buck Island Reef National Monument (BIRNM), off the coast of St. Croix, US Virgin Islands, harbors critical foraging habitat for Critically Endangered juvenile hawksbills Eretmochelys imbricata that exhibit high site fidelity until sexual maturation. Using an array of fixed passive acoustic receivers that covered over 20.2 km2 at its largest configuration and in-water biannual sampling, we analyzed residency patterns and habitat use of 29 hawksbills. High recapture rates allowed for long- term data collection for some individuals, with …
La Sostenibilidad De La Reconstrucción 2014-2019 Tras El Gran Incendio En Valparaíso: Una Mirada Desde La Habitabilidad, Resiliencia Y Preparación En La Gestión De Desastres, 2019 SIT Study Abroad
La Sostenibilidad De La Reconstrucción 2014-2019 Tras El Gran Incendio En Valparaíso: Una Mirada Desde La Habitabilidad, Resiliencia Y Preparación En La Gestión De Desastres, Dana Kulma
Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection
The beautiful port city of Valparaíso, Chile is home to 42 colorful hills that overlook the Pacific Ocean. This unique city, however, is also home to multiple disasters, including urban and forest fires, tsunamis, landslides and earthquakes. This descriptive study explores the case of the 2014 “mega-fire” that destroyed 3,000 homes and affected the lives of 11,000 residents. Through five semi-structured interviews and the review of several academic and official documents, the present study analyzes the process of post-disaster reconstruction, seeking to understand the habitability and the resiliency of the reconstructed houses and neighborhoods. In order to understand the challenges …
Nonlinear Reaction–Diffusion Process Models Improve Inference For Population Dynamics, 2019 Colorado State University, Fort Collins
Nonlinear Reaction–Diffusion Process Models Improve Inference For Population Dynamics, Xinyi Lu, Perry J. Williams, Mevin B. Hooten, James A. Powell, Jamie N. Womble, Michael R. Bower
United States National Park Service: Publications
Partial differential equations (PDEs) are a useful tool for modeling spatiotemporal dynamics of ecological processes. However, as an ecological process evolves, we need statistical models that can adapt to changing dynamics as new data are collected. We developed a model that combines an ecological diffusion equation and logistic growth to characterize colonization processes of a population that establishes long-term equilibrium over a heterogeneous environment. We also developed a homogenization strategy to statistically upscale the PDE for faster computation and adopted a hierarchical framework to accommodate multiple data sources collected at different spatial scales. We highlighted the advantages of using a …
Permafrost Hydrology Drives The Assimilation Of Old Carbon By Stream Food Webs In The Arctic, 2019 National Park Service, Arctic Network
Permafrost Hydrology Drives The Assimilation Of Old Carbon By Stream Food Webs In The Arctic, Jonathan A. O’Donnell, Michael P. Carey, Joshua C. Koch, Xiaomei Xu, Brett A. Poulin, Jennifer Walker, Christian E. Zimmerman
United States National Park Service: Publications
Permafrost thaw in the Arctic is mobilizing old carbon (C) from soils to aquatic ecosystems and the atmosphere. Little is known, however, about the assimilation of old C by aquatic food webs in Arctic watersheds. Here, we used C isotopes (d13C, D14C) to quantify C assimilation by biota across 12 streams in arctic Alaska. Streams spanned watersheds with varying permafrost hydrology, from ice-poor bedrock to ice-rich loess (that is, yedoma). We measured isotopic content of (1) C sources including dissolved organic C (DOC), dissolved inorganic C (DIC), and soil C, and (2) stream biota, including benthic biofilm and macroinvertebrates, and …
Social Interactions Do Not Drive Territory Aggregation In A Grassland Songbird, 2019 Kansas State University & University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Social Interactions Do Not Drive Territory Aggregation In A Grassland Songbird, S.K. Winnicki, S.M. Munguia, E.J. Williams, W.A. Boyle
United States National Park Service: Publications
Understanding the drivers of animal distributions is a fundamental goal of ecology and informs habitat management. The costs and benefits of colonial aggregations in animals are well established, but the factors leading to aggregation in territorial animals remain unclear. Territorial animals might aggregate to facilitate social behavior such as (1) group defense from predators and/or parasites, (2) cooperative care of offspring, (3) extra-pair mating, and/or (4) mitigating costs of extra-pair mating through kin selection. Using experimental and observational methods, we tested predictions of all four hypotheses in a tallgrass prairie in northeast Kansas, United States. Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum) males …