Les côtes chiliennes sont parmi les plus productives au monde, ce qui leur permet d'abriter une grande diversité de mammifères marins. En effet, près de la moitié des cétacés observés dans le monde sont présents dans les écosystèmes marins du Chili. Dans un contexte où l’augmentation des activités anthropiques relative à l’exploitation de nos océans s’étend jusqu’aux secteurs éloignés, les nombreux fjords du sud de la Patagonie nécessitent une attention particulière. L’évaluation des enjeux pouvant bouleverser l’équilibre de ces milieux méconnus s’avère indispensable. La répartition spatiale distincte de plusieurs espèces de petits cétacés en Patagonie, la croissance accentuée des activités anthropiques depuis les deux dernières décennies et le peu de savoir sur les enjeux de cohabitations d’habitats, justifient l’urgence de développer des connaissances pouvant démystifier l’abondance de cétacés dans plusieurs écosystèmes marins du Chili. Le projet de recherche suivant met l’emphase sur le développement de connaissances sur la distribution du dauphin chilien (Cephalorhynchus eutropia) dans le secteur Skyring situé au sud du Chili. Il est possible d’observer ce petit cétacé entre Valparaíso (33°S) et Cape Horn (55°15′S). Une étude récente propose une distinction génétique de la population suite à la dernière glaciation. La première population, située au nord du pays, se distingue par son occupation continue près des embouchures de rivières et dans les secteurs peu profonds. La seconde population,située dans la portion sud du pays, est caractérisée par sa présence discontinue dans les nombreux fjords et canaux. Actuellement, il est difficile d’évaluer le nombre total de la population mais tout porte à croire que ce nombre serait en dessous des 10 000 individus matures. La recherche suivante propose donc l’utilisation d’un outil de modélisation d’habitat basé sur une forêt d’arbres décisionnels dans le but d’identifier les différentes composantes écosystémiques qui font de Seno Skyring, un secteur de prédilection pour le dauphin chilien. Enfin, la création d’un catalogue d’identification à l’aide de la photo-identification offre un outil de suivi de la population tout en évaluant la fréquentation du dauphin chilien dans le secteur Seno Skyring. / The Chilean coasts are among the most productive in the world, which allows them to shelter a great diversity of marine mammals. Indeed, almost half of the cetaceans observed in the world are present in Chile. In a context where the increase in human activities relating to the exploitation of our oceans extends to remote areas, the numerous fjords of southern Patagonia require our special attention. It is essential to assess the issues that could upset the balance of these little-known environments. The distinct spatial distribution of several species of small cetaceans in Patagonia, the accentuated growth of anthropic activities over the last two decades and the lack of knowledge surrounding the cohabitation of their habitat, justifies the urgency of developing knowledge that could demystifies the abundancy of cetaceans present in several marine ecosystems of Chile. The following research project focus on developing knowledge about the distribution of the Chilean dolphin (Cephalorhynchus eutropia) in the Seno Skyring area located in southern Chile. It is possible to observe this small cetacean between Valparaíso (33°S) and Cape Horn (55°15′S). A recent study suggests that the population would be genetically divided following the last glaciation. The first population, located in the north of the country, is distinguished by their continuous occupation near rivers mouths and shallow areas. The second population, located in the southern portion of the country, is characterized by its discontinuous presence in the many fjords and canals of Chile. Currently, it is difficult to assess the total number of the population, but recent studies suggests that this number would be below 10,000 mature individuals. The following research proposes a habitat modeling tool based on decision trees with the aim of identifying the different ecosystem components that make Seno Skyring a chosen area for the Chilean dolphin. Finally, the creation of an identification catalog using photo-identification offers a tool for monitoring the population while evaluating the frequentation of the Chilean dolphin in the Seno Skyring sector.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / Gerad D. Middendorf / In the almost 40 years since the passage of the Clean Water Act and 25 years of regulating nonpoint source pollution, and despite countless state and local community projects focused on water quality issues, clean water goals have not been met. To comprehend this failure and understand how water resources are governed and how water quality goals are pursued, I explore how watershed-level governance structures emerged and function in their specific local environment, within the state hierarchy of water governance, and as implementation of state and national policy. To this end, the structure, process, and outcomes of two newly organized and local watershed-level governance structures in Kansas were examined. An actor-oriented political ecology approach informed by environmental governance and watershed management literature was used to guide the study. Attaining water quality goals necessitates recognizing the connections between the political economy of agriculture, the cultural factors acting upon agricultural producers, and the natural, biophysical environment. Thusly, a comparative case study strategy was employed for the overall research design. Documents and interview transcripts were analyzed employing a grounded theory approach for differences and similarities; they were also sorted into topical categories and coded for common themes. The research questions focused on the agency and capacity of local watershed structures to determine the relations regarding water resource use in their watershed. Central questions addressed structure responsiveness to local versus state or national concerns; the underlying interests reflected by community member participation; and the effectiveness of local water-governance in protecting water resources. Governance models that began with holistic, alternative, participatory strategies are evolving into targeted, problem-solution strategies, and what began as watershed management is becoming problem shed management.

Master of Science / Department of Architectural Engineering and Construction Science / Fred L. Hasler / This paper discusses photopic and scotopic vision of the human eye and the implications that could result in the design process of the lighting industry. The incorporation of scotopic vision in lighting effects the perceived illumination in all settings; but these affects and benefits are seen more prevalently at night, as this is when scotopic vision is utilized by the eye the most. The paper will begin with an overview of the eye including discussions of exactly what photopic and scotopic vision are, as well as how the eye works. This will lay a foundation for the paper to help the reader better comprehend and understand the remainder of the content. After the groundwork has been laid, the factors that affect how the eye perceives light will be discussed. These factors include pupil size and color of the light. A discussion of the basis for current lighting industry design and how light levels are measured will follow. Once these topics have been fully explored, there will be a discussion of the changes that could occur in the lighting industry if scotopic vision is taken into account. Increased energy efficiency would result if the scotopic vision is incorporated, resulting from the decrease in needed total lumen output. There have been a few applications that have utilized the effects of the scotopic vision in their design, these cases will be presented. Following the case study discussions, will be a discussion of a survey conducted by myself on the change-out of high pressure sodium (HPS) fixtures to LED fixtures in the downtown Poyntz Avenue area of Manhattan, KS. After all studies have been reviewed, conclusions and correlations among them will be explored. Following this analysis, suggestions will be given to improve the way lighting is designed in the industry.

Master of Arts / Department of Geography / Melinda Daniels / Large woody debris, (LWD), defined as pieces measuring ≥ 1 meter in length and ≥ 10 centimeters in diameter (Swanson and Lienkaemper, 1978; Marston, 1982) is an influential stream component. Once stable LWD obstructs streamflow and regulates key processes, causing increases in storage capacity, scouring, and variations to the bed, the extent contingent upon LWD’s average length of residence time within a system. Several North American studies have acknowledged the effects of interactions between wood, sediment, and flow regimes (Bilby, 1981; Keller, E.A., and Swanson, F.J., 1979; Montgomery et al., 1995; Wohl, E., 2008), linking the triad to geomorphic changes, the redistribution of bed materials, and ecological benefits. A consensual baseline reference for LWD’s function over time does not exist however, partly due to previous research being primarily conducted in the Northeast and Pacific Northwest regions where historic actions of humans, particularly riparian logging and stream clearing, have greatly impacted the condition of the watersheds. Researchers having long-overlooked the Great Plains and other regions not commonly associated with woody vegetation has increased the ambiguity regarding the transferability of LWD findings between regions. By shifting the focus to a non-forested region, the goal of this thesis is to measure the dynamics and influence of a prairie stream’s wood load on sediment storage and bed morphology. The Kings Creek network study area is located on the Konza Prairie Biological Station in northeastern Kansas, and drains one of few remaining unaltered North American watersheds. Results document the ongoing forest expansion into the surrounding pristine grassland, and provide a temporal context of the regions changing climate representative of atypical stream conditions caused by drought. In total, 406 individual pieces of wood were measured. The wood load was lower than most forest streams referenced (13.05 m[superscript]³/100 m), though higher than expected resulting from the absence of streamflow. LWD stored 108 m[superscript]³ of sediment within the channel, and the cumulative volume of LWD-formed pools was 169 m[superscript]³. Additionally, statistical analysis showed longitudinal bed variations to be strongly associated to LWD abundance, further indicating that LWD influences prairie stream processes similarly to those in a forest stream.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Agronomy / Ganga M. Hettiarachchi / The milling and mining operations of metal ores are one of the major sources of heavy metal contamination at earth’s surface. Due to historic mining activities conducted in the Tri-State mining district, large area of land covered with mine waste, and soils enriched with lead (Pb), zinc (Zn) and cadmium (Cd) remain void of vegetation influencing ecosystem and human health. It has been hypothesized that if these minewaste materials are disposed of in the flooded subsidence pits; metals can be transformed into their sulfide forms under reduced conditions limiting their mobility, and toxicity. These mine waste materials are high in pH, low in organic carbon (OC) and sulfur (S). The objective of this study was to examine the effect of OC and S addition on the biogeochemical transformations of Pb, Zn and Cd in submerged mine waste containing microcosms. Advanced molecular spectroscopic and microbiological techniques were used to obtain a detail, mechanistic, and molecular scale understanding of the effect of natural and stimulated redox conditions on biogeochemical transformation and dynamics of Pb, Zn and Cd essential for designing effective remediation and mitigation strategies. The results obtained from these column studies indicated that Pb, Zn and Cd were effectively immobilized upon medium (119-day) and long-term (252-day) submergence regardless of treatment. The OC plus S treatment enhanced sulfide formation as supported by scanning electron microscopy- energy dispersive X-ray technique, and synchrotron based bulk-, and micro-X-ray fluorescence and absorption spectroscopy analyses. Microbial community structure changed with OC and S addition with the enhancement sulfur reducing bacteria genes (dsrA/B), and decreased metal resistance genes over time. The long-term submergence of existing mine tailings with OC plus S addition reduced trace metals mobility most likely through dissimilatory sulfate reduction under stimulated reduced conditions. Colloidal assisted metal transportation (<1% of both Pb and Cd) occurred during initial submergence. Retention filters are suggested to avoid colloidal metal transport in order to meet the maximum concentration limit for Pb and Cd in surface and groundwater. This research enhances our understanding of the redox processes associated with the sequestration of non-redox sensitive metals through dissimilatory reduction of sulfates in mine waste materials and/or waste water and provides regulators with useful scientific evidence for optimizing remediation goals.

Master of Science / Department of Geography / Melinda Daniels / The Lesser Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) is a prairie grouse of conservation concern in the Southern Great Plains. In response to declining population numbers and ongoing threats to its habitat, the Lesser Prairie-Chicken was listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in May 2014. In western Kansas, the Lesser Prairie-Chicken occupies the Sand Sagebrush Prairie, Mixed-grass Prairie, and Short-grass/CRP Mosaic Ecoregions. Since the beginning of the 20th century, the overall range and population has declined by 92% and 97% respectively. Much of this decline is attributed to the loss and fragmentation of native grasslands throughout the Lesser Prairie-Chicken range. Whereas much of the loss and degradation of native grassland have been attributed to anthropogenic activities such as conversion of grassland to cropland and energy exploration, federal legislation since the 1980s to convert cropland on highly erodible soils to perennial grasses through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) may curtail or reverse these trends. My objective was to document changes in the areal extent and connectivity of grasslands in the identified Lesser Prairie-Chicken range in Kansas from the 1950s to 2013 using remotely sensed data. I hypothesized that the total amount of grassland decreased between the 1950’s and 2013 because of an increase in agricultural practices, but predicted an increase of grassland between 1985 and 2013 in response to the CRP. To document changes in grassland, land cover maps were generated through spectral classification of LANDSAT images and visual analysis of aerial photographs from the Army Map Service and USDA Farm Service Agency. Landscape composition and configuration were assessed using FRAGSTATS to compute a variety of landscape metrics measuring changes in the amount of grassland present as well as changes in the size and configuration of grassland patches. Since 1985, the amount of grassland in the Lesser Prairie-Chicken range in Kansas has increased by 210,9963.3 ha, a rise of 11.9%, while the mean patch size and area-weighted mean patch size of grassland increased 18.2% and 23.0% respectively, indicating grassland has become more connected during this time in response to the CRP. Prior to the implementation of CRP, the amount of grassland had been decreasing since 1950, as 66,722.0 ha of grassland was converted to croplands. The loss of grassland had a considerable effect on the patch size of grasslands, as mean patch size and area-weighted mean patch size decreased by 8.8% and 11.1% respectively. The primary driver of grassland loss between 1950 and 1985 was the emergence of center pivot irrigation, which had its greatest impact in western and southwestern parts of the range in Kansas. In particular, while the amount of grassland in Range 5, a region of the Lesser Prairie-Chicken range found in southwest Kansas, has increased overall since the 1950s by 4.7%, the area-weighted mean patch size has decreased by 53.0% in response to center pivot irrigation fragmenting the landscape. While the CRP has been successful in increasing and connecting grassland throughout the Lesser Prairie-Chicken range to offset the loss of grassland since the 1950s, continuation of the CRP faces an uncertain future in the face of rising commodity prices, energy development, and reduction in program scope leaving open the possibility that these areas that have created habitat for Lesser Prairie-Chickens could be lost. As time progresses, a reduction in the scope of the CRP would reduce the amount of habitat available to Lesser Prairie-Chickens, threatening the persistence of their population.

Master of Science / Department of Biology / Craig Paukert / Improperly designed stream crossings may prohibit movement of stream fishes by creating physical or behavioral barriers and may alter the form and function of stream ecosystems. A mark-recapture and geomorphological study was conducted to evaluate fish passage and stream morphology at three types of vehicle crossings (compared to control sites) located on streams in the Flint Hills of Northeast Kansas. We investigated five concrete box culverts, five low-water crossings (concrete slabs vented by one or multiple culverts), and two single corrugated culverts. A total of 6,433 fish were marked April to May 2007 and 709 were recaptured June to August 2007. Fish passage occurred at all crossing types, but upstream movement of recaptured fish was higher at controls (41.1%) than at crossing reaches (19.1%) for low-water crossings. Control sites had more species in common upstream and downstream than did crossings. There was reduced overall abundance of fish upstream at low-water crossings, commonly percids and centrarchids. A comparison of channel and road crossing dimensions showed that box culverts and corrugated culverts would be more effective than low-water crossings at transporting water, sediments, and debris during bankfull flows, and fish passage at base flows. Upstream passage of Topeka shiner (Notropis topeka), green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus), red shiner (Cyprinella lutrensis), and Southern redbelly dace (Phoxinus erythrogaster) was tested through three simulated crossing designs (box culverts, round corrugated culverts, and natural rock) across 11 different water velocities (0.1 m/s to 1.1 m/s) in an experimental stream. Upstream movement did not differ among designs, except natural rock crossings had lower movement than box or corrugated culverts for red shiners. A greater proportion of Topeka shiners moved upstream at higher velocities. These results suggest that crossing type affects fish passage and the morphology of the stream, although water velocity in different crossing designs alone may not be a determining factor in fish passage. Low-water crossings had the greatest impact on fish community and movement, but barriers to fish movement are likely caused by other variables (e.g. perching). Use of properly designed crossing structures has great promise in conserving critical stream habitat and preserving native fish communities.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Chemistry / Kenneth J. Klabunde / For solar environmental remediation, a new generation of nanosized (< 10 nm) titanium dioxide photocatalysts codoped with metals and nonmetals, or metals only were prepared by the xero-gel and aero-gel methods. For silver or cobalt-based xero-gel titanium dioxide photocatalysts, photoactivities tests revealed that codoping of titanium dioxide with a metal (1% Ag or 2% Co) and nonmetals (carbon and sulfur) is necessary to achieve high-activities for acetaldehyde degradation under visible light (wavelength > 420 nm). It was concluded that high visible-light-activities for acetaldehyde degradation over codoped titanium dioxide were attributed to an interplay of anatase crystallinity, high-surface area, reduced band-gap (< 3.0 eV), uniform dispersion of doped metal ions, and suppressed recombination rate of photogenerated electron-hole pairs. Moreover, the nature and amount of codoped metals play a significant role in visible-light-induced photocatalysis. Metals (Al, Ga, and In) doped/codoped titanium dioxide photocatalysts were prepared by the aero-gel method. The photocatalytic studies showed that activities of metal doped/codoped photocatalysts under UV light (wavelength < 400 nm) were found to be dependent on pollutants. Indium demonstrated beneficial effects in both textural and photocatalytic properties. Gallium and indium codoped titanium dioxide photocatalysts displayed even better performance in the CO oxidation reaction under UV light. Notably, titanium dioxide codoped with Ga, In, and Pt, exhibited unique photoactivities for the CO oxidation under both UV and visible light irradiation, indicating that this system could have promise for the water-gas shift reaction for hydrogen production. Silver-based nanostructured titanium dioxide samples were developed for killing human pathogens (Escherichia coli cells and Bacillus subtilis spores). Biocidal tests revealed that silver, carbon, and sulfur codoped titanium dioxide nanoparticles (< 10 nm) possess very strong antimicrobial actions on both E. coli (logarithmic kill > 8) and B. subtilis spores (logarithmic kill > 5) for 30 minute exposures in dark conditions compared with Degussa P25. It was believed that the carbon and sulfur codoped titanium dioxide support and Ag species acted synergistically during deactivation of both E. coli and B. subtilis spores. Thus, titanium dioxide codoped with silver, carbon, sulfur can serve as a multifunctional generic biocide and a visible- light-active photocatalyst.

Master of Science / Department of Agronomy / Jay Ham / The exchange of water, carbon, and energy between grasslands and the atmosphere is an important biogeochemical pathway affecting ecosystem productivity and sustainability. The eddy covariance (EC) technique directly measures this mass and energy exchange. However, questions remain regarding the accuracy of EC-derived H[subscript]2O and CO[subscript]2 fluxes in landscapes with irregular topography and variable vegetation. These concerns stem from the "energy balance (EB) closure problem" (i.e., measured energy in does not equal measured energy out). My main objectives were to examine EB closure at two topographical positions within an annually burned tallgrass prairie watershed and to examine the effect of landscape position and woody encroachment on carbon and water exchanges. In tallgrass prairie, 14 km south of Manhattan, KS, USA, EC towers were deployed at three sites in 2007 and 2008. One upland and lowland tower were within an annually burned watershed dominated by C[subscript]4 grasses. Another lowland tower was deployed in a separate quadrennial-burned watershed where significant woody vegetation occupied the tower's sampling area. All towers measured EB components (net radiation, R[subscript]n; soil heat flux, G; sensible heat flux, H; and latent heat flux, [lambda]E). In the annually burned watershed, landscape position had little effect on G, H, and R[subscript]n with differences [less than] 2% between sites. However lowland [lambda]E was 8% higher, owing to larger plant biomass/leaf area and greater soil moisture. Energy balance closure (i.e., [[lambda]E + H] / [R[subscript]n - G]) was 0.87 and 0.90 at the upland and lowland sites, respectively. A nearby large-aperture scintillometer provided good validation of EC-derived H in 2007. Data suggested that underestimates of [lambda]E may have accounted for the closure problem; sample calculations showed that increasing [lambda]E by 17% would have resulted in near prefect closure. Data from this study suggests that EB closure does not strongly correlate with topographical position; however these data raise questions regarding accuracy of the [lambda]E term. Mass exchange analysis shows that the prairie carbon cycle is highly dependent on burning. The lowland and upland annually burned sites saw carbon gains of 281 to 444 g C m[superscript]-[superscript]2 yr[superscript]-[superscript]1 before burning with the shrub lowland showing the least (e.g. 159 and 172 g C m[superscript]-[superscript]2 yr[superscript]-[superscript]1). After the prescribed burn, the upland and lowland sites remained slight carbon sinks (68 to 191 g C m[superscript]-[superscript]2 yr[superscript]-[superscript]1), whereas the unburned shrub site was a carbon sink in 2007 (159 g C m[superscript]-[superscript]2 yr[superscript]-[superscript]1, because no carbon loss was incurred via burning) and a large carbon source in 2008 when it was burned the following year (336 g C m[superscript]-[superscript]2 yr[superscript]-[superscript]1 loss). Evapotranspiration (ET) was highest at the shrub lowland where greater soil moisture and abundance of deep-rooted C[subscript]3 shrub vegetation allowed greater uptake and loss of water.

This research aims to integrate mathematical water quality models with Bayesian inference techniques for obtaining effective model calibration and rigorous assessment of the uncertainty underlying model predictions. The first part of my work combines a Bayesian calibration framework with a complex biogeochemical model to reproduce oligo-, meso- and eutrophic lake conditions. The model accurately describes the observed patterns and also provides realistic estimates of predictive uncertainty for water quality variables. The Bayesian estimations are also used for appraising the exceedance frequency and confidence of compliance of different water quality criteria. The second part introduces a Bayesian hierarchical framework (BHF) for calibrating eutrophication models at multiple systems (or sites of the same system). The models calibrated under the BHF provided accurate system representations for all the scenarios examined. The BHF allows overcoming problems of insufficient local data by “borrowing strength” from well-studied sites. Both frameworks can facilitate environmental management decisions.