Corrigenda inside front cover. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 205-232) / xii, 232, [27] leaves : ill., plates ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Soil and Water, 2002

Graduation date: 1995

published_or_final_version / Earth Sciences / Master / Master of Philosophy

The prevailing development pattern of sprawling suburbs prevents sustainability and can no longer be tolerated . Since the end of WWII the "American Dream" to own a single - family home on a large lot away from the blight of downtowns has greatly reduced the quality of life of North Americans. To reverse this trend sustainable development/ sustainability must be society’s goal. This means that the actions of society - particularly where community development/design is concerned - must promote environmental integrity, economic vitality , and social well - being . The recent New Urbanism Movement which focuses on community development/design makes this important realization . In doing so, it has fostered a series of alternative methods of community development/design which promote environmental integrity , economic vitality , and social well-being. The most prominent examples are Traditional Neighbourhood Development, Transit Oriented Development, and, more recently in Canada, the Metropolitain Purlieu . However, these concepts are not panaceas to sustainability and can gain further insight from earlier development/design projects such as Village Homes in California . By combining the best of the ideas from these concepts and supplementing them with further ideas a concept which further enhances environmental integrity , economic vitality , and social well - being is developed. However, such a concept is only useful if it can be successfully implemented. Thus, prominent barriers to sustainable community development/design such as uncertainty over cost and marketability , and inadequate regulations / guidelines to allow for or promote alternative methods of development/design must be overcome. One method of achieving this is through the use of the performance point system which is devised here. Regardless of the method of implementation used to enhance the environmental integrity , economic vitality , and social well-being of a community, it is clear that immediate action is required . Without it, the quality of life of North Americans will continue to deteriorate and sustainability will not be realized .

The work in this thesis demonstrates whether resins are better than conventional soil extractants at predicting plant metal concentrations, and whether low-cost soil treatments can effectively reduce metal content and concentrations in lettuce leaves. / Researchers have shown that ion exchange resins can simulate root metal uptake behaviour by acting as ion sinks. Chemical extractants on the other hand, generally do not behave in this manner. Thus, we would expect resins (in either bead or membrane form) to predict plant metal concentrations better than conventional extractants. For the first study, a procedure using anion exchange resin membranes (AEM) treated with either EDTA or DTPA chelators was chosen, since previous studies showed this method to be effective at predicting plant metal uptake, and practical for routine laboratory use. In addition, several conventional extractants were selected for comparison. / For the second part of the thesis, a study was undertaken to test the effectiveness of various food processing byproducts to stabilize metal contaminants in soils, and compare the results with those of a Na-based aluminosilicate (zeolite). (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

As the world's energy demand increases, it is generally known that conventional energy systems will not sustain future civilizations without repercussions to human and environmental health. Transitioning from current energy systems to those with renewable sources will be challenging and will potentially alter landscape aesthetics. However, the design of renewable technology can minimize adverse effects and can even improve the quality of living in addition to producing electricity. Wind turbines located so that landscape quality is preserved, electricity generators embedded in play equipment, or the use of solar panels to shelter people are examples of how renewable technology has been aesthetically used to improve the quality of life. To test these new ideas, this research thesis searched for examples of how landscape architects can use aesthetics to integrate renewable energy into three types of locations: regions, urban areas, and university campuses. In chapter one, analyses of methods from the Western Renewable Energy Zones (WREZ) initiative in the United States and the South Limburg project in the Netherlands reveal examples of how landscape architects can use aesthetics in visual impact studies and scenarios, which help integrate renewable energy into regions. In chapter two, an analysis of urban renewable energy projects resulted in a series of strategies for using aesthetics and amenities that landscape architects can apply to urban projects which utilize renewable technology. Chapter three presents results from a study of a design for the Ball State University campus in Muncie, Indiana, which produced a method for how landscape architects can use renewable energy products as aesthetic and unique sources of energy generation for a campus community. The subject of renewable energy is developing in the field of landscape architecture, and this research asserts that the use of aesthetics and amenities is a viable method for integrating renewable technology into landscapes. Using readily available products or customizing technology to fit the needs of a project are two options for designers who work with renewable energy to provide aesthetics and amenities. The consideration of both regional and urban scales is important to developing reliable renewable energy systems and a better quality of life. / Renewable energy, aesthetics and landscape architecture -- Aesthetics in regional renewable energy planning -- Strategies for aesthetic applications of renewable energy -- Design method for using renewable energy products -- Conclusions on using aesthetics in renewable energy design. / Access to thesis permanently restricted to Ball State community only / Department of Landscape Architecture

Urban soils are often contaminated with trace metals and the toxicity of the metals depends, in part, on their speciation in soil solutions. The objectives of this project were to estimate the metal speciation in urban soils and to evaluate the predictability of soil metal pools on plant uptake. The chemical speciation of Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn was estimated by using the Windermere Humic Aqueous Model (WHAM). In soil solutions, Cd, Ni and Zn were present mainly as free ions when the solutions were acidic and their organic complexes were dominant as the pH was over 7.5. The other two metals mostly formed complexes with organic ligands. The activities of Cd2+, Cu2+, Ni2+, Pb2+ and Zn 2+ were affected by soil pH and total soil metal burdens. All five metals were under-saturated with respect to the minerals which could potentially control the metal solubility. / Metal uptake by plants in the contaminated railway yards was generally not correlated with free, dissolved and total soil metal pools. A pot experiment demonstrated better correlations between the metal pools and the metal content in wild chicory. Multiple regression analysis showed that the metals in the leaves and roots of wild chicory could be adequately predicted by the soil total metals and soil properties such as pH and exchangeable Ca.

The present thesis deals with the international legal consequences of the Biosafety Protocol. If this Protocol answers the problem of GMOs, by enforcing the application of the precautionary principle to the international trade of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), it does not solve the conflict between the interests of trade and those of the environment. On the contrary, the Biosafety Protocol conflicts with the rules of the GATT and the national norms inspired by it would risk being contested before the dispute-settlement institutions of the World Trade Organisation. The Protocol therefore constitutes a new element in the conflict, pre-existing and unsolved, which sets the implicit supremacy of the GATT against the international environmental norms. It confirms the necessity to find a solution enabling the equal authority and mutual respect of the international environmental and trade rules. / All information is correct as at 14 November 2000.

Trace metal contamination of the air-soil-tree system was examined in southern Quebec, where acid deposition and tree dieback have been recorded in high elevation forests. Mn pollution was emphasized due to its large emission from gasoline combustion in Canada. Airborne Cu, Mn, V, and Zn showed higher concentrations than those reported for other remote locations. Significant fluctuation in Mn concentrations during the winter-spring season was explored by air mass back trajectory analysis. The study suggested that high Mn concentrations resulted from the atmospheric long-range transport from Canadian industrialized and metropolitan regions. Metal concentrations in podzolic topsoils were generally higher than their world-wide average values. Concentrations of trace metals in balsam fir (Abies balsamea (L.) Mill) needles were below their suggested potential phytotoxic levels, except for Mn, which also increased with elevation. The scanning of needles with micro-PIXE showed no significant correlation between metal accumulation and epistomatal distribution on foliar surfaces. / Pathways of trace metals deposited in the soil-tree system were elucidated through application of $ sp{54}$Mn and $ sp{65}$Zn on shoot, bark, and soil surfaces in growth-chamber experiments with balsam fir seedlings. Uptake and accumulation by seedlings 70 days after application on the shoot surface was about 25-30% of the remaining activities for $ sp{54}$Mn and $ sp{65}$Zn. Less than 1% of absorbed isotopes was translocated from the bark surface to other plant organs, whereas more than 50% of the radioisotopes absorbed at the shoot moved to the rest of the seedling. Acidic wetness facilitated the metal absorption through tree surfaces. Downward movement of the radioisotopes in podzolic soils was documented, and accumulation in seedlings by root uptake was 5% of the remaining activity for $ sp{54}$Mn and 3% for $ sp{65}$Zn 70 days after application. No appreciable elemental migration from internal tissues to epicuticular wax layers was found, and the leaching ratio was below 0.5 and 1.0% for $ sp{54}$Mn and $ sp{65}$Zn, respectively. This study helps to understand the links between atmospheric deposition and the elevated levels of Mn in trees, and potential effects of acid deposition on the bioaccumulation of toxic metal pollutants in high elevation forests in southern Quebec.

We examined how fast- and slow-growing families (based on height at 10 years) of Pinus banksiana Lamb. are affected by a climate altered by CO$ sb2$ during their first growing season. Our primary objective was to evaluate the possibility that genotypes performing best under present conditions may not necessarily do best under projected warmer climate. Seedlings were grown for six months in two climatic environments (350 $ mu$L/L CO$ sb2$ x present temperatures and 700 $ mu$L/L CO$ sb2$ x 4$ sp circ$C warmer temperatures) and with 100 ppm and 5 ppm nitrogen. / The CO$ sb2$T$ sp circ$ environment had a significant effect on most biomass components of seedlings and water-use efficiency but not on height and other growth variables. The nitrogen fertilization was generally the most significant effect of the treatments for most growth variables. / All the families responded in a similar way to variations in the growing environments except for WUE. Family differences were more important for measurements of height and growth variables than for biomass components. The architecture of seedlings was also highly variable between families. Norm of reaction graphs were built for several growth variables to outline which families were overall most successful in an enriched CO$ sb2$T$ sp circ$ environment. Of the 15 families studied, four of them were classified as most successful in a projected high CO$ sb2$T$ sp circ$ climate.