No description available.

Stream channelization is a common form of anthropogenic disturbance, whose impacts on cold water salmonid communities have received little attention in comparison to the body of work demonstrating its negative effects on low land, warm water systems. Here, I compared the effects of stream channelization on fish and invertebrate communities and their habitats in disturbed and undisturbed cold-water mountain streams in southern Alberta. I demonstrate that stream channelization has imposed significant alterations to stream habitat, most notably a loss of deep habitat, and that these alterations have led to a statistically significant decline in abundance and biomass of Rainbow Trout and Mountain Whitefish, as well as a significant decline aquatic invertebrate biomass. Because of the importance of monitoring fish abundance in deep pools, I used snorkel surveys instead of electrofishing. In shallow, disturbed streams, however, snorkel surveys may be less effective and should be used with caution. / ix, 104 leaves : col. ill., col. maps ; 29 cm

No description available.

Grassland songbird populations have experienced declines due to habitat loss. In Canada, gas well development continues to fragment and disturb prairie habitat. From 2010-2012, I monitored a total of 374 nests in mixed-grass prairie located in southeastern Alberta. I estimated the probabilities of nesting success relative to gas well infrastructure to test for effects on reproductive success. There was very little effect of well pads on nesting success, while roads had a greater impact. Savannah sparrow and chestnut-collared longspur clutch sizes and fledgling numbers per nest were lower near gas well pads and cattle water sources, suggesting lower quality habitat in these areas. Large-sized predators occurred less in areas with older well pads. Concentrations of new well pads may have greater effects on chestnut-collared longspur reproductive success. Minimizing habitat disturbance surrounding gas well pads, and reducing abundance of roads, should minimize impacts on reproductive success for most grassland songbirds.

The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of mental health nursing instructors and students regarding the one-to-one in mental health contexts. Using person-centered interviewing, nursing instructors and students were asked to share their views related to the one-to-one, the skills and techniques used to conduct the one-to-one, and the teaching and evaluation strategies used in clinical settings. Findings indicate ambiguity surrounding the one-to-one for both instructors and students. Students also feel anxious and uncertain without models to guide their one-to-ones, and instructors feel frustrated with how to teach and evaluate the one-to-one. Finally, findings indicate the need for further articulation of the one-to-one within nursing literature, and the development of guidelines to support student learning of the one-to-one in clinical settings. / vii, 117 leaves ; 29 cm

In December, 2002, the oil sands of Alberta, Canada – earlier seen as an obscure, obstacle-ridden scientific project – were for the first time included in the Oil & Gas Journal’s year-end review of worldwide oil reserves. To explain this decision, the editors of this prestigious international petroleum magazine cited the basic neoclassical economic theory of price-driven resource substitution. This thesis contends, however, that the neoclassical theory in fact explains very little of how it became possible to profitably extract petroleum from Alberta’s bitumen-saturated sands. Merging insights from resources geography on the politics of nature-based production with scholarship on calculation and classification in Science and Technology Studies, this thesis fleshes in much-needed detail and dimension to the neoclassical account by emphasizing the role of key actors and decision-makers, many within the state but also within the private sector, who have actively negotiated supply costs and pursued technological strategies for the oil sands. In doing so, it argues that market prices and supply costs are not independent objects, but are underpinned by a malleable, contingent, and profoundly political process. As evidence, this thesis draws on national and international petroleum statistics, industry publications and public relations campaigns, as well as over 80 years of archived and more contemporary government documents, in order to show that substitution between two materially different resources is rarely an independently propelled or inevitable response.

This study explored the current state of alcohol-impaired driving as well as the changes in alcohol-impaired driving over time among Albertans. Based on self-report data from the annual Alberta Surveys 1991, 1992, 1997, and 2009, this study also traced the shift in the impact of standard demographic factors on alcohol-impaired driving in the province. Furthermore, the study examined social influence in alcohol-impaired driving in a representative sample in Alberta. Results indicated that in the past 12 months, 4% of the respondents had driven a vehicle while impaired, and 6.1% of the respondents had been passengers in a vehicle driven by an impaired driver. Chi-square test indicated that male, single, employed, non-religious, and younger respondents were more likely to have driven while impaired. Logistic regression analyses showed that a one-unit increase in social influence was associated with 5.32 times greater odds of engaging in impaired driving (OR = 5.32, 95% CI = 3.069.24, p < .001), controlling for other variables in the model. Findings also showed that self-reported alcohol-impaired driving has decreased substantially over the years (10.6% in 1991, 8.4% in 1992, 7.2% in 1997, and 3.7% in 2009). However, there had been little changes in designated driving. In addition, there had been a shift in age-related impaired driving, i.e., people aged 55-65+ reported impaired driving more in 2009 (4.8%) compared to 1991 (2.0%) and 1992 (2.2%); while individuals aged 18-34 and 35-54 reported impaired driving less in 2009 (4.8% and 2.6%, respectively) compared to 1991 (12.7% and 13.0%, respectively). The policy implications of the findings are discussed.

Cougars (Puma concolor) have recently begun to reclaim former range and also are expanding into new territory. The Cypress Hills of southeast Alberta and southwest Saskatchewan now hosts the most eastern confirmed breeding population of cougars in Canada. However, with the return of cougars come new issues about human safety and risk of livestock depredation. Using GPS radiocollars, scat analysis, snowtracking and wildlife cameras, I found that the Cypress Hills boasts one of the highest densities of cougars ever reported, yet the large cats avoid human-use areas and have not been documented to prey on livestock. Using aerial ungulate survey data, I also show that the increase in cougar abundance is associated with a shift in distribution of nave ungulate prey to areas outside the park. Provided that cougars continue to avoid humans and cattle, this island habitat could prove to be an important stepping stone to further expansion eastward. / Ecology

Alberta is the third largest economy in Canada and is expected to grow significantly in the coming decade. The energy sector plays a major role in Albertas economy. The objective of this research is to develop various greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigations scenarios in the energy demand and supply sectors for the Province of Alberta. This is done through an energy-environment planning and forecasting tool called Long Range Energy Alternative Planning system model (LEAP). By using LEAP, a sankey diagram for energy and emission flows for the Province of Alberta has been developed. A reference case also called as business-as-usual scenario was developed for a study period of 25 years (2005-2030). The GHG mitigation scenarios encompassed various demand and supply side scenarios. In the energy conversion sector, mitigation scenarios for renewable power generation and inclusion of supercritical, ultra-supercritical and integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) plants were investigated. In the oil and gas sector, GHG mitigation scenarios with carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) option were considered. In Albertas residential and commercial sector 4-6 MT of CO2 equivalents per year of GHG mitigation could be achieved with efficiency improvement. In the industrial sector up to 40 MT of CO2 equivalents per year of GHG reduction could be achieved with efficiency improvement. In the energy conversion sector large GHG mitigation potential lies in the oil and gas sector and also in power plants with carbon capture and storage (CCS) option. The total GHG mitigation possible in the supply side option is between 20 70 MT CO2 equivalents per year. / Engineering Management

Considerable research has been done on conceptions of poverty and on the welfare state; however, there is little research into the relationship between the two the ways in which poverty discourses shape welfare states and how transitions in welfare states influence poverty discourses. Using Critical Discourse Analysis, I explore the underlying construction of poverty in Albertas income-support policy as it has developed within an active social policy framework. In the government documents analyzed, poverty is constructed as an objective and neutral assessment of unmet basic needs and is effectively removed from political debate. Also constructed as a lack of labour-market attachment, the poverty discourse that does exist is subsumed within the market discourse. The thesis argues that we need to expand our conceptions of poverty to improve our poverty alleviation strategies, to revitalize the place of social policy in Alberta, and to enrich the way in which we live together. / Family Ecology and Practice