A Geografia desde a sua concepção como ciência tem no espaço geográfico, o seu principal objeto de estudo, o que nos permite analisar a dinâmica existente entre as relações que se estabelecem entre os diferentes grupos sociais, ao longo do tempo, e a sua materialização no espaço. Através de sua evolução histórica, a ciência geográfica contribuiu de forma significativa para a compreensão das consequências das ações que o homem como agente atuante e modificador do espaço pode acarretar sobre o ambiente natural, buscando analisar e orientar o seu planejamento. Sobre essa perspectiva, esta pesquisa toma como unidade de análise as Bacias Hidrográficas dos Arroios Juá e Caracol. A área de estudo está localizada na região nordeste do estado do Rio Grande do Sul, a Sub-Bacia do Arroio Juá possui uma área de 12487,27 ha, com altitudes que variam entre 200 e 980 metros, abrange os municípios de Caxias do Sul e São Francisco de Paula. O arroio Juá é afluente direito do Rio Caí. O Arroio Caracol, com uma área total de 6631,89 ha, também integra a Bacia hidrográfica do Caí tem sua sub-bacia estendida pelos municípios de Canela e Gramado. Área de estudo desse projeto insere-se na região do Alto Caí sob influência dos remanescentes do Bioma Mata Atlântica no nordeste do estado Rio Grande do Sul. Objetivo principal deste estudo é avaliar e comparar, através da análise de fragilidade ambiental, o nível de intervenção antrópica e a situação ambiental das sub-bacias do Arroio Juá e Caracol, afluentes do Rio Caí, RS. Dessa forma a pesquisa busca fornecer, através de técnicas cartográficas, uma caracterização detalhada das fragilidades de cada sub-bacia. Fez-se uso dos procedimentos operacionais descritos por Ross (1994), quanto ao estudo das fragilidades potencial e emergente. O mapa de fragilidade ambiental gerado é resultado da interpolação dos mapas de uso da terra, declividade e tipo de solo. Por meio desse produto cartográfico pretende-se fornecer subsídios para identificação das áreas com fragilidade potencial e emergente e dessa forma, colaborar com um melhor planejamento do uso dor recursos naturais. / Geography since its conception as science has in geographic space, its main object of study, allowing us to analyze the dynamics between the relationships established between different social groups, over time, and its materialisation in space. Through their historical, geographical science has contributed significantly to the understanding of the consequences of actions the man acting as an agent and modifier of space can have on the natural environment, seeking to analyze and guide your planning. About this perspective, this research takes as its unit of analysis of the Basin Streams Juá and Caracol, a systemic and integrated approach of the various elements, processes and interactions. The study area is located in the northeastern state of Rio Grande do Sul, the Sub-Basin Brook Juá covers the cities of Caxias do Sul and São Francisco de Paula. It has an area of 12487.27 ago, with altitudes ranging between 200 and 980 meters. Juá The stream is a tributary of the River Fall. Arroyo Caracol which also includes the Fall River Basin sub-basin has its extended by the municipalities of Gramado and Canela, with a total area of 6631.89 for. Study area is part of this project in the Upper Fall under the influence of the remnants of Atlantic Forest biome in northeastern Rio Grande do Sul state goal of this study is to evaluate and compare, through analysis of environmental fragility, the level of intervention anthropogenic and environmental situation of the sub-basins and Juá Arroyo Caracol, Fall River tributaries, RS. Thus the research seeks to provide mapping techniques through a detailed characterization of the weaknesses of each sub-basin. Was use of the operating procedures described by Ross (1994), and the study of emerging and potential weaknesses. The map of environmental vulnerability is the result of interpolation generated maps of land use, slope and soil type. Through this cartographic product is intended to provide a basis for identifying areas with potential and emerging weakness and therefore, collaborate with a better plan to use pain natural resources.

The purpose of this study is to examine the logging industry found along, the upper Cumberland River from the 1870s to the 1930s. Because the industry was very much a part of the economic lifeblood of the people of the region, the study will focus upon the loggers and raftsmen who worked with the timber. Any attempt to describe the lumber business alone would be futile due to the nature of the industry. It is impossible to separate the logging industry of the Cumberland from the general folk life of the area, because of the involvement of the people in the business. This study then is as much a description of the folk life of the Cumberland River Valley as it is a consideration of the logging industry.

Though some researchers have argued that the Big Barrens grasslands of Kentucky were the product of anthropogenic land clearing practices by Native Americans, heretofore, this hypothesis had not been tested archaeologically. More work was needed to refine chronologies of fire activity in the region, determine the extent to which humans played a role in the process, and integrate these findings with the paleoenvironmental and archaeological record. With these goals in mind, I conducted archaeological and geoarchaeological investigations at Crumps Sink in the Sinkhole Plain of Kentucky. The archaeological record and site formation history of Crumps Sink were compared with environmental and archaeological data from the Interior Low Plateaus and Southern Appalachian Mountains for an understanding of how the site fits into the larger story of human-environmental interactions in the Eastern Woodlands. Based on the data recovered, I argue that through land burning Archaic hunter-gatherers were active managers of ecosystems to a greater degree than previously acknowledged. Excavations at Crumps Sink revealed stratified archaeological deposits spanning the late Middle Archaic to Terminal Late Archaic periods. Radiocarbon dates and an analysis of projectile point typologies provided information on the chronological and cultural history of the site. Magnetic susceptibility, loss-on-ignition, plant available phosphorous, and soil micromorphological analyses were conducted to examine landform dynamics in response to environmental change and to trace the anthropogenic signature created by human activities at the site. Masses of lithic debitage, animal bone, and burned sediment nodules per ten-cm-level provide an indication of human occupation intensity and shifting activities over time. Radiocarbon dates were used to reconstruct rates of sediment accumulation in the sink. These varying datasets were considered together for a holistic understanding of localized environmental and anthropogenic impacts on the landform. Between 7200 and 5600 cal. BP, during the Middle Holocene Thermal Maximum and corresponding with the late Middle Archaic period, sediment accumulation was sustained with one identifiable episode of very weak soil development. Background magnetic and chemical signatures in the soils were greater than they were at pre-occupation levels, demonstrating that human activities left a lasting imprint in soils as early as the late Middle Archaic period. Between 5600 and 3900 cal. BP, periods of diminished sedimentation led to more pronounced episodes of soil formation. However, these soil horizons are interposed by pulses of enhanced sediment accumulation. These soil data may signal shifting environmental regimes during the Middle to Late Holocene transition. Between 5600 and 3900 cal. BP scattered plant ash, elevated masses of burned sediment nodules, and pestle fragments in Late Archaic deposits suggest that hunter-gatherers were intensively processing nut mast, potentially in association with early forest clearance and silviculture. Botanical assemblages from a coincident archaeological sequence at the Carlston Annis site in the nearby middle Green River region has demonstrated woodland disturbance and potential silviculture in central Kentucky during this time. During the Late Archaic and Terminal Late Archaic periods (3900-3000 cal. BP), substantial plant ash deposition occurred in a stratum that accumulated relatively quickly. Very low burned sediment nodule masses in this deposit indicate that combustion features were not common in the immediate vicinity and that elevated frequencies of plant ash were the result of burning on a broader expanse of the surrounding landform. Chronologically, the zone with enhanced plant ash deposition is coeval with previously demonstrated occurrences of increased forest fires, grassland expansion, and a shift to early horticultural economies throughout the region. Soil development occurred after 3000 cal. BP, and this episode of landform stability may have lasted for over two millennia until being capped by sediment accumulation from historic agriculture. The late Middle Archaic through Terminal Late Archaic data from Crumps Sink demonstrate that hunter-gatherer activities left lasting signatures in soils in Kentucky. The data from the Late Archaic to Terminal Late Archaic periods (ca. 5600-3000 cal. BP) may indicate intentional land burning by hunter-gatherers to create anthropogenic environments, first for silviculture and then for early plant domestication. This forces a rethinking of labor and subsistence systems within hunter-gatherer societies. Thus, if hunter-gatherers were utilizing long-term forest management methods, they were employing a delayed-return economic system relying on labor investment and negotiated understandings about land tenure. Further characterization of the origin of fire management activities will help us to elucidate the nature of incipient indigenous plant domestication in the Eastern Woodlands.

Several studies in hydrology have reported differences in outcomes between models in which spatial autocorrelation (SAC) is accounted for and those in which SAC is not. However, the capacity to predict the magnitude of such differences is still ambiguous. In this thesis, I hypothesized that SAC, inherently possessed by a response variable, influences spatial modeling outcomes. I selected ten watersheds in the USA and analyzed them to determine whether water quality variables with higher Moran’s I values undergo greater increases in the coefficient of determination (R²) and greater decreases in residual SAC (rSAC) after spatial modeling. I compared non-spatial ordinary least squares to two spatial regression approaches, namely, spatial lag and error models. The predictors were the principal components of topographic, land cover, and soil group variables. The results revealed that water quality variables with higher inherent SAC showed more substantial increases in R² and decreases in rSAC after performing spatial regressions. In this study, I found a generally linear relationship between the spatial model outcomes (R² and rSAC) and the degree of SAC in each water quality variable. I suggest that the inherent level of SAC in response variables can predict improvements in models before spatial regression is performed. The benefits of this study go beyond modeling selection and performance, it has the potential to uncover hydrologic connectivity patterns that can serve as insights to water quality managers and policy makers.

Climate changes brought on by global warming are expected to have a significant affect on the Pacific Northwest hydrology during the 21st Century. Current research anticipates higher mean annual temperatures and an intensification of the hydrological cycle. This is of particular concern for highly urbanized basins, which are considered more vulnerable to changes in climate. Because the majority of previous studies have addressed the influences of either climate or urban land cover changes on runoff, there is a lack of research investigating the combined effect of these factors. The Rock Creek basin (RCB), located in the Portland, OR, metropolitan area, has been experiencing rapid urban growth throughout the last 30 years, making it an ideal study area for assessing the affect of climate and land cover changes on runoff. Methods for this assessment include using a combination of climate change and land cover change scenarios for 2040 with the semi distributed AVSWAT-X (Arc View Soil and Water Assessment Tool) hydrological model to determine changes in mean runoff depths at the monthly, seasonal, and annual scales. Statistically downscaled climate change results from the ECHAM5 general circulation model (GCM) found that the region would experience an increase of 1.2°C in the average annual temperature and a 6% increase in average annual precipitation between 2030 and 2059. The model results revealed an amplification of runoff from either climate or urbanization. Projected climate change plus low-density, sprawled urban development for 2040 produced the greatest change to mean annual runoff depth (+5.5%), while climate change plus higher-density urban development for 2040 resulted in the smallest change (+5.3%), when compared to the climate and land cover of 2001. The results of this study support the hypothesis that the combination of both climate change and urbanization would amplify the runoff from the RCB during the 21st Century. This has significant implications for water resource managers attempting to implement adaptive water resource policies to future changes resulting from climate and urbanization.

Agriculture contamination is very common in karst systems due to the vulnerability of these aquifers. Animal waste is often spread across crop land to enrich the soil with nitrates and phosphates. Herbicides and pesticides are also applied to the crops. The transport of these pollutants through the soil and epikarst is a difficult process to monitor due to the complex, heterogeneous behavior of the groundwater as it makes its way down to the aquifer below. An experimental site at Crumps Cave lended a unique opportunity to monitor the vadose zone at a waterfall in the cave below. A previous dye trace established the connection between an 11.15 m2 grass plot and this underground waterfall. The field design used here, utilizing a rainfall simulator, allowed control of the input of precipitation and tracers to understand more about the movement of stormwater infiltrating the soil and the differences in transport of solute particles and bacteria in the epikarstic zone. Two particle transport experiments were used to better understand these processes. The first trace involved injection of fluorescein dye and sodium chloride. The 2,650 liters of solution were injected over a period of 3.6 hours at a rate of 6.6 cm/hr. An electrical resistivity traverse, perpendicular to the hypothesized straight-line path of the established dye trace connection, showed a peak in lower resistance at the upper epikarst layers 4 hours and 15 minutes after the beginning of the injection. Dye concentrations reached a peak of 1,600 ppb 3 hours and 15 minutes after the beginning of the injection. The conductivity also peaked at this time with a value of 814 µS. This first trace showed that rapid transportation of solutes happened in localized conduits causing a peak of both solutes in the cave before the widespread mobilization of sodium chloride was seen in the epikarst by the resistivity images an hour later. In the second trace, 2,605 liters of a sulphorhodamine dye solution was injected over 180 kg of dairy cattle manure spread on the 11.15 m2 plot of grass for a period of 3.6 hours at a rate of 6.6 cm/hr. Dye concentrations reached a peak of 27 ppm 4 hours and 15 minutes after the beginning of the injection. Fecal coliform reached its first peak of 2,755 MPN (most probable number of viable cells per 100 mL of water) 90 minutes prior to the dye peak and a second peak of 2,481 MPN occurred 15 minutes prior to the dye peak. These results showed that solutes travelling through the soil and epikarst follow similar paths while bacteria prefer conduits that offer more rapid transmission to the underground waterfall.

With increasing levels of motor vehicle ownership, automobile crashes have become a serious public issue in the U.S. and around the world. Knowing when, where, and how traffic accidents happen is critical in order to ensure road safety and to plan for adequate road infrastructure. There is a rich body of literature pertaining to time-related fatal crashes, most of which focuses on non-spatial factors such as a driver’s visibility at night, drinking and drug use, and road conditions. These studies provide a theoretical basis for understanding the causes of crashes from a non-spatial perspective, and a number of traffic laws and policies consequently have been enacted to minimize the impacts of non-spatial factors. Over the past few years, advances in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have greatly enhanced our ability to analyze traffic accidents from a spatial perspective. This study aims to fill a void in traffic safety studies by comparing and analyzing the differences in the spatial distribution of fatal crashes based on temporal factors, specifically in three periods: 1) day and night; 2) A.M. rush hours and P.M. rush hours; and 3) weekdays and weekends. With the Nashville Metropolitan Area as the study area, the research utilized a number of spatial point-pattern analysis (SPPA) methods, including planar KDE, planar global auto K function, network global cross K functions, and network local cross K functions. All fatal crashes in the Nashville area were found to be clustered and generally follow the patterns of average daily traffic flow. All time-based subtypes of fatal crashes also were found to be concentrated within the central urban area of Nashville, mostly along major roads, and especially near major road intersections and highway interchanges. No notable spatial differences were detected among the subtypes of fatal crashes when applying network global cross K function. However, with the help of the network local cross K function, some localized spatial differences were identified. Some specific locations of hotspots of nighttime and P.M. rush hour fatal crashes were found not to be at the same locations as those at of daytime and A.M. rush hour fatal crashes, respectively. The approach adopted in this study not only provides a new way to analyze spatial distribution of spatial point events such as fatal crashes, but it also can be applied readily to real-world applications. A good understanding of where these spatial differences are should help various agencies practice effective measures and policies in order to improve road conditions, reduce traffic accidents, and ensure road safety.

Cette thèse interroge la place des habitants et de leur jardin dans la gestion de la biodiversité ordinaire, à partir de trois communes situées au cœur de l'agglomération parisienne. Cette question nous conduit à nous intéresser à la sensibilité des habitants-jardiniers au monde vivant, à évaluer le lien entre cette sensibilité et les modes de jardiner et, plus fondamentalement, à envisager le rapport entre cette sensibilité au vivant, ces modes de jardinage et la biodiversité dans les jardins privés. Cette recherche s'appuie sur une base de données constituée d'une enquête par questionnaires (585), enrichie d'un matériau iconographique (110 photos prises par les enquêtés) et de 59 relevés botaniques effectués par des écologues. Nous montrons ainsi que les habitants développent une relation multidimensionnelle avec leur jardin dans laquelle la nature, l'ordre et l'esthétique occupent des places centrales. Au sein de ces rapports pluriels, on identifie comme biophiles des répondants qui justifient leur intérêt pour le jardin par une sensibilité à l'égard du vivant. Les jardins sont ainsi le support d'une relation particulière à la biodiversité caractérisée par des modes de jardinage plus respectueux du vivant. L'indicateur mis en place pour mesurer l'état de la Biodiversité Potentielle dans les Jardins (IBPJ) indique que les jardins forment aussi des espaces de biodiversité, surtout lorsque leurs gestionnaires sont considérés comme biophiles. Dans l'objectif d'améliorer la biodiversité dans les espaces verts privés, nous proposons de dépasser la connexion à la nature souvent préconisée, et d'encourager une connexion au vivant ainsi qu'une nouvelle esthétique du jardin. / This thesis investigates the role of inhabitants and their garden in the management of ordinary biodiversity, based on three towns located within the Greater Paris. This core issue leads us to explore the inhabitants-gardeners' sensitivity towards the living world, to assess the connection between this sensitivity and gardening techniques and, more fundamentally, to consider the link between this sensitivity towards the living, gardening practices and the biodiversity that exists in domestic gardens. This study is based on a database mainly composed of a questionnaire survey (585), enriched by iconographic material (110 pictures taken by the respondents) and by 59 botanical surveys conducted by ecologists. Thus, we demonstrate that inhabitants develop a multidimensional connection with their garden in which nature, order and aesthetics play a central role. Within these plural connections, we identify as biophilic the respondents who justify their interest for the garden by a specific care for the living. Domestic gardens are thus the support to a particular connection to biodiversity distinguished by gardening techniques more considerate of the living. We implement an Index to gauge the state of the Potential Biodiversity in Gardens (IPBG). This index reveals that gardens, areas undertaken by inhabitants-gardeners, are also areas of biodiversity, furthermore when their owners are considered as biophilic. With the aim of improving biodiversity in private green areas, we propose to overstep the connection to nature advocated in several scientific work and by governmental policies, and to encourage a connection to the living and a new aesthetic of the garden.

A Geografia desde a sua concepção como ciência tem no espaço geográfico, o seu principal objeto de estudo, o que nos permite analisar a dinâmica existente entre as relações que se estabelecem entre os diferentes grupos sociais, ao longo do tempo, e a sua materialização no espaço. Através de sua evolução histórica, a ciência geográfica contribuiu de forma significativa para a compreensão das consequências das ações que o homem como agente atuante e modificador do espaço pode acarretar sobre o ambiente natural, buscando analisar e orientar o seu planejamento. Sobre essa perspectiva, esta pesquisa toma como unidade de análise as Bacias Hidrográficas dos Arroios Juá e Caracol. A área de estudo está localizada na região nordeste do estado do Rio Grande do Sul, a Sub-Bacia do Arroio Juá possui uma área de 12487,27 ha, com altitudes que variam entre 200 e 980 metros, abrange os municípios de Caxias do Sul e São Francisco de Paula. O arroio Juá é afluente direito do Rio Caí. O Arroio Caracol, com uma área total de 6631,89 ha, também integra a Bacia hidrográfica do Caí tem sua sub-bacia estendida pelos municípios de Canela e Gramado. Área de estudo desse projeto insere-se na região do Alto Caí sob influência dos remanescentes do Bioma Mata Atlântica no nordeste do estado Rio Grande do Sul. Objetivo principal deste estudo é avaliar e comparar, através da análise de fragilidade ambiental, o nível de intervenção antrópica e a situação ambiental das sub-bacias do Arroio Juá e Caracol, afluentes do Rio Caí, RS. Dessa forma a pesquisa busca fornecer, através de técnicas cartográficas, uma caracterização detalhada das fragilidades de cada sub-bacia. Fez-se uso dos procedimentos operacionais descritos por Ross (1994), quanto ao estudo das fragilidades potencial e emergente. O mapa de fragilidade ambiental gerado é resultado da interpolação dos mapas de uso da terra, declividade e tipo de solo. Por meio desse produto cartográfico pretende-se fornecer subsídios para identificação das áreas com fragilidade potencial e emergente e dessa forma, colaborar com um melhor planejamento do uso dor recursos naturais. / Geography since its conception as science has in geographic space, its main object of study, allowing us to analyze the dynamics between the relationships established between different social groups, over time, and its materialisation in space. Through their historical, geographical science has contributed significantly to the understanding of the consequences of actions the man acting as an agent and modifier of space can have on the natural environment, seeking to analyze and guide your planning. About this perspective, this research takes as its unit of analysis of the Basin Streams Juá and Caracol, a systemic and integrated approach of the various elements, processes and interactions. The study area is located in the northeastern state of Rio Grande do Sul, the Sub-Basin Brook Juá covers the cities of Caxias do Sul and São Francisco de Paula. It has an area of 12487.27 ago, with altitudes ranging between 200 and 980 meters. Juá The stream is a tributary of the River Fall. Arroyo Caracol which also includes the Fall River Basin sub-basin has its extended by the municipalities of Gramado and Canela, with a total area of 6631.89 for. Study area is part of this project in the Upper Fall under the influence of the remnants of Atlantic Forest biome in northeastern Rio Grande do Sul state goal of this study is to evaluate and compare, through analysis of environmental fragility, the level of intervention anthropogenic and environmental situation of the sub-basins and Juá Arroyo Caracol, Fall River tributaries, RS. Thus the research seeks to provide mapping techniques through a detailed characterization of the weaknesses of each sub-basin. Was use of the operating procedures described by Ross (1994), and the study of emerging and potential weaknesses. The map of environmental vulnerability is the result of interpolation generated maps of land use, slope and soil type. Through this cartographic product is intended to provide a basis for identifying areas with potential and emerging weakness and therefore, collaborate with a better plan to use pain natural resources.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-07T17:12:02Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2015-02-12. Added 1 bitstream(s) on 2016-06-07T17:16:34Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 000865768.pdf: 4597038 bytes, checksum: 6145374d51abf0be79d5150f87ad6967 (MD5) / O presente estudo é fruto de investigação acerca da percepção da população que possui vivência em dois bairros na área rural do município de São José do Rio Pardo-SP, atentando para o meio em que vivem pela perspectiva da experiência, identificando situações de riscos ambientais que permeiam seu modus vivendi. O conceito de percepção, alicerce da aplicação e abordagem da metodologia de mapeamento ambiental participativo, abrange o arcabouço conceitual e teórico, pautado nas relações culturais, interligadas neste estudo sui generis, que estabelece uma nova relação entre as discussões culturais e sistêmicas. A integração participativa da população, no que tange às ações de cunho socioambiental, é um fator de prima importância no que se refere à qualidade de vida e permanência na área rural, uma vez que são inexpressivas as ações do poder público municipal no que se refere à atenção para criar condições para sua fixação no campo. Assim, questões ambientais, necessidades básicas, como saneamento, infraestrutura e acesso à saúde, relacionados a pequenos produtores são esquecidos por programas municipais - também esmiuçados neste estudo - através da análise crítica do Plano Diretor Municipal e de Desenvolvimento Rural Sustentável. Para concretizar tal trabalho, a parceria da Secretaria Municipal de Educação e Secretaria de Agricultura foi essencial para estabelecer elos com a população local. Em 2014 e 2015 foram realizadas reuniões públicas, nos bairros Água Fria e Sítio Novo de diferentes características socioeconômicas, onde riscos, potencialidades locais, bem como as necessidades de intervenção, conferiram dados identificados em depoimentos e questionários, culminando em uma construção cartográfica dos próprios participantes, produzindo um mapa final de riscos ambientais da área rural sudoeste do município. Diante das informações obtidas nas reuniões de mapeamento... / The current study is result of investigation about the perception of the population living in two districts at the municipality of São José do Rio Pardo-SP, attempting to the environment that they live in by the perspective of experience, identifying situations of environmental risks that permeate their modus vivendi. The concept of perception, basis of application and approach of participative environmental mapping methodology, covers the conceptual and theoretical outline, guided in cultural relations, interconnected in this sui generis study, that establish a new relation between cultural and systemic discussions. The population's participative integration, with respect to socio-environmental actions, it's a factor of prime importance about life quality and the countryside permanence, once the municipal public power actions as regards attention to create conditions for their setting in the field are meaningless. Therefore, environmental issues, basic needs such as sanitation, infraestructure and access to health, related to small producers are forgotten by municipal programs - also scrutinized in this study - through the critical analysis of the Master Plan Municipal and Rural Sustainable Development. To concretize this work, the partnership with the Education Municipal Secretary and the Agriculture Secretary was essential to establish links with the local population. In 2014 and 2015 public meetings were held in the districts Água Fria and Sítio Novo with different socioeconomic characteristics, where risks, local potential, such as the needs of intervention, conferred data in testimonials and questionnaires, culminating in a cartographic construction by the participants themselves, producing a environmental risks final map from the municipality southwest rural area. In face of the informations obtained at the participative mapping meetings were done field works,that presented important results, by which was possible to understand...