No description available.

No description available.

In recent decades, the prevalence of physical activity has declined considerably in many high-income countries, and this has been linked to rising levels of obesity and several weight-related medical conditions such as coronary heart disease, diabetes and cancer. There is some evidence that areas experiencing the lowest levels of physical activity tend to be those which have undergone a particularly strong transition away from employment in physically demanding occupations. It is proposed that such processes of industrial restructuring may be causally linked to unexplained geographical variations in activity patterns. Although the socio-cultural correlates of activity behaviours have been well studied, none have explicitly attempted to identify components of industrial change that may impact physical activity. This thesis addresses the gap in knowledge surrounding the socio-cultural context of industrial restructuring by investigating where, how and why dimensions of industrial change may impact current levels of physical activity in England. The research applies a mixed methods approach using GIS techniques, multilevel modelling and qualitative research interviewing. Firstly, the current literature on socio-cultural correlates of health behaviours is reviewed to present a novel conceptual framework that hypothesises how processes between physical activity and industrial restructuring may be linked in context. Subsequently, measures of industrial restructuring as well as physical activity are developed to analyse spatial variations in activity patterns across England. The analyses focus on how employment decline in physically demanding occupations may affect current levels of physical activity across different activity domains and relevant macroeconomic time periods. Finally, this research aims to get an insight in the mechanisms underlying the relationship between physical activity and industrial restructuring. Results from this research showed geographical variations with distinctive urban-rural disparities in levels of predominantly recreational physical activity across England. Processes of industrial restructuring appeared to be associated with patterns of physical activity, although the nature of the association differed across areas, time periods and employment types. The results also highlighted the plausible impact of inherited cultures and regional identities on health-related behaviours. Socio-cultural factors relevant in the context of industrial restructuring are likely to provide valuable context in activityrelated research.

Katavi National Park (KNP) is a stronghold for hippopotami in Tanzania. To predict the probable effects of future changes in water availability, annual variations in rainfall, river level, river discharge, ground water levels and the lateral extent of swamps used by hippopotami, were related to annual variations in their behaviour, distribution and abundance in aquatic shelter sites. Rainfall did not change consistently between 1950 and 2010. In contrast river levels and flow decreased over between 1990 and 2010. It is concluded that these reductions have been caused by an increase in irrigation of rice fields increasingly planted in upstream regions of the catchment area. Rainfall fell in a pronounced annual cycle. The wet season started in December, increased in January, decreased in February reaching an annual peak in March. The dry season lasted from May to November. Variation in height, biomass and greenness of ground layer swards used by feeding hippopotami, closely mirror this annual pattern of rainfall. As the dry season progresses hippopotami become increasingly aggregated in remaining aquatic shelter sites by day, to wallow and thermoregulate with concomitant depletion of the nocturnal feeding grounds close to remaining shelter sites. Five observation sites were chosen, representing a gradient in the amount of water persisting through the dry season. Hippopotami showed spatial differences in their activity budgets and the frequency of behavioural events at these sites, which were consistent with the way they responded to variation in water availability between seasons. Extrapolating these findings to predict responses to future changes in global climate and land use, I conclude consistent implementation of existing national laws governing diversion of water from rivers up-stream of the park will be crucial for maintaining vigorous populations of hippopotami in KNP. Similar problems of a catchment area scale occur in other National Parks in Africa.

Land-use change and associated habitat loss and species invasions are two of the greatest threats to global biodiversity. In Europe, changes in farmland management practices driven in part by the European Union (EU) Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) have caused dramatic declines in associated biodiversity. This thesis studied avian land-use associations to understand the relative importance of different habitat and landscape elements to the farmland bird community, with particular emphasis on priority species for conservation, in Cyprus, a recently acceded EU Member State, as a case study for the eastern Mediterranean. Results provide the first evidence base to inform CAP agri-environment measures in the region. A wide range of habitats and land-uses were important for bird species and assemblages and local habitat diversity was of key value. Farmland habitats, particularly viticulture and groves, and remnant scrub were the most important, demonstrating the high value of heterogeneous farmland mosaics to breeding and wintering avian biodiversity in Cyprus. The area of land under agriculture in Cyprus has substantially decreased, with much of this attributable to declines in marginal low-intensity crops on which much avian biodiversity depends. Building development appears to be one important driver behind these trends. Changes observed in the distributions of Sardinian Warbler Sylvia melanocephala, a recently established breeder in Cyprus, and the endemic Cyprus Warbler Sylvia melanothorax are more likely mediated by changing land-use patterns relating to grazing intensity of scrub, as there was no evidence of competitive displacement. The complex Mediterranean farmland mosaic was created by traditional farming practices that are usually economically marginal. Agri-environment mechanisms to support this heterogeneity are necessary for effective conservation of priority species and bird biodiversity in the eastern Mediterranean.

The accurate measurement of marine plankton production is required to constrain the global carbon balance. Traditional methods rely on bottle incubations, which are thought to underestimate plankton production. This study presents in situ measurements of gross oxygen production (G) derived from triple oxygen isotope analysis and of net community oxygen production (N) derived from O2/Ar ratios at station L4, which is part of the Western English Channel Observatory (WECO) and a latitudinal transect through the subtropical gyres in the Atlantic Ocean in October/November 2010. G and N were determined at weekly intervals between September 2009 and September 2010 at station L4. Annual N was positive (net autotrophic) at (0.88±0.24) mol m-2 a-1 O2. The triple oxygen isotope method overestimated G during winter months due to entrainment of waters from below the mixed layer. N of (3.8 ± 3.1) mmol m-2 a-1 O2 in the North Atlantic Gyre (NAG) and (2.9 ± 2.4) mmol m-2 a-1 O2 in the South Atlantic Gyre (SAG) show both gyres to be net autotrophic at the time of sampling. G values of (169±106) mmol m-2 a-1 O2 in the NAG and (250±130) mmol m-2 a-1 O2 in the SAG were higher than published results. Diapycnal mixing was found to contribute about 20% to apparent mixed layer N in both gyres and to G in the NAG. In order to achieve these results, a gas extraction line was built and tested. A method to halt biological activity in triple oxygen isotope and discrete O2/Ar samples was assessed. Benzalkonium chloride was found to be a less toxic alternative to mercuric chloride on short time scales of three days. Our results of N agree with previous in situ productivity measurements in these regions and highlight the importance of including physical effects in the estimates of G.

Energy policy is being driven by two predominant themes: climate change; and energy security. In response, the built environment needs to develop sustainable, decarbonised, low energy systems and approaches that are socially acceptable and economically beneficial. The UK mainstream house construction industry is being driven, through policy and regulation, towards achieving this end without evidence of how these new systems of provision are used by passively adopting households. This thesis considers the outcomes of this policy drive and questions the ability of the approaches taken to meet policy targets in the real world. A case study, comprising 14 newly constructed low energy affordable homes in Norfolk, is used to evaluate the real world energy and carbon outcomes of the house building industries response to policy. The interdisciplinary study included: the embodied energy and carbon of construction; energy and consequential carbon from occupation; the influence of household attitudes and behaviour; and how passively adopting households adopt and adapt to new technologies. Four different energy technologies and design approaches were compared: conventional high efficiency gas boiler; active solar (thermal and photovoltaic); passive solar design and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery; and ground sourced heat pumps. The study found there were significant savings compared with conventional housing. This was attributed to the improvements in built fabric and the technical aspects of the homes. Yet, there was a significant performance gap between design and actual. The occupants were found to be a critical factor in determining the energy and carbon emissions. The findings pose significant questions on the capacity of policy to deliver the projected reductions in emissions of CO2. Ultimately, it is how these new homes and technologies are used that will become increasingly important in the successful implementation of low carbon aspirations.

This study assesses the physiological responses of copepods to variations in the quality of their diet and temperature and explores the variability of food quality in the field. Laboratory experiments were used to constrain the effects of food quality in terms of phytoplankton organic ratios N:P, C:N and C:P and fatty acid content, on Temora longicornis feeding, respiration, and egg production rates (EPR). Maximum metabolic rates, assimilation efficiency and gross growth efficiency coincided with an optimum diet of ~16N:1P defining it as the copepod threshold nutrient ratio. In the field, a response of zooplankton biomass to temporal variations in seston N:P ratio was found in the North Sea and in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. Field measurements revealed latitudinal and temporal changes in food quality at the chlorophyll maximum along an Atlantic Meridional Transect (AMT). Better quality food was found in the Temperate and Upwelling domains and included seston with lower C:N ratios, N:P ratios closer to Redfield values and a higher proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), essential fatty acids such as 20:5(n-3) and 22:6(n-3), high (n-3):(n-6) ratios and lower proportion of saturated fatty acids (SAFA). Time-series data showed that food quantity and quality declined over time in the temperate North region of the Atlantic Ocean. Ship-board experiments were undertaken to determine the effects of temperature on respiration and EPR of some mesopelagic copepod species along an AMT. 75-85% of the variation in routine metabolic rates was explained by allometric and thermodynamic relationships. Within the range of temperatures measured, estimates of Ea (activation energy) and Q10 suggested high sensitivity to temperature variation. Our results highlight the importance of quantifying the effects of a variety of ecological parameters on the physiological responses of copepods to understand the processes that regulate zooplankton dynamics and their effects on biogeochemical cycles and trophic transfer of energy.

No description available.

The geochemistry of surface soils and stream sediments from two areas in the north-western Nigeria Schist Belt was studied in order to assess the environmental impact of artisanal mining of quartz-gold-sulfide mineralization. XRF determination of total elemental concentration was carried out, along with sequential extraction procedures (SEPs) and in vitro bioaccessibility tests using ICP-AES. The results show that the soils in both the Anka and Birnin-Gwari area are highly enriched in silica, zirconium and markedly depleted in base cations due to intense tropical weathering. The results further show that artisanal mining has only caused severe contamination, especially with respect to Pb and Cu, in the Anka area, highlighting the importance of mineralogical differences in the ore deposits. Most trace elements partition strongly into the carbonate and Fe/Mn oxides fractions in samples from the Anka area, indicating possible risk of mobilization under reducing, slightly acidic conditions; the exchangeable phase being the least significant in both areas. Very high bioaccessibility values, which correlate strongly with the sums of the SEP steps, were obtained for Pb, Cu and to a lesser extent, As and Mn in soils of the Anka area and the minimal risk levels and tolerable daily intakes are greatly exceeded. Low pH was found to enhance the bioaccessibility of Pb, Cr and Cu, while rising pH appears to favour the release of As. Only the bioaccessibility of Cr was found to change with the length of extraction time and the ratio of the mass of sample to extraction fluid volume only affects the extraction of As. The results show significant human health risks, mostly in the Anka area due to processing of ores and improper disposal of tailings. Ore processing at the mine sites and an end to using the tailings as construction materials may reduce the exposure of the local population to potentially toxic elements.