Submitted by Izabel Franco (izabel-franco@ufscar.br) on 2016-09-30T13:20:03Z No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseMLSL.pdf: 3654754 bytes, checksum: 169e951fa9cba32cdaabe83552fb2562 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marina Freitas (marinapf@ufscar.br) on 2016-10-04T17:22:15Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseMLSL.pdf: 3654754 bytes, checksum: 169e951fa9cba32cdaabe83552fb2562 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marina Freitas (marinapf@ufscar.br) on 2016-10-04T17:22:21Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseMLSL.pdf: 3654754 bytes, checksum: 169e951fa9cba32cdaabe83552fb2562 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-10-04T17:22:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseMLSL.pdf: 3654754 bytes, checksum: 169e951fa9cba32cdaabe83552fb2562 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-09-09 / Não recebi financiamento / Driven by a social need, the managers of an experimental farm belonging to the Agricultural Science Center at an institution of higher education raised concerns about ongoing support and maintenance of the farm. During the investigation process, the difficulty of filling staff positions for agricultural operations assistants was among the managers’ concerns. The reorganization of the workforce at a public institution is subject to public tenders, protocols and resolutions established by state law, university statute and internal regulations. The qualifications or knowledge contained in the professional profile description (personal competencies for the function) for an agricultural operations assistant established by the institution allow for explicit descriptions which fail to capture the reality of the work. Therefore, the aim of this thesis was to systematize the creation of work competencies for the position of an agricultural operations assistant from the perspective of ergonomic activity in order to improve the performance of the experimental farm. For the study of work and worker competencies unique to this context, an Ergonomic Work Analysis (EWA) research protocol was used, a methodology appropriate for ergonomic activity interventions. The organization of work at the experimental farm allows for flexibility in maneuvers that favor the use and evolution of competencies depending on the sector and individual initiative. The management model that establishes discretionary power and knowledge gained by operations assistant, are unique aspects of the determinants of the labor organization studied. As an experimental farm, the research, independent of any area it advances, uses new technologies and with this, the operational competencies are understood as factors inherent in the work, in the form of actions of the operations assistant, based on the characteristic of the organization (experimental farm - agricultural unit for research and teaching). / A partir de uma demanda social oriunda dos gestores da fazenda experimental pertencente ao Centro de Ciências Agrárias, vinculado a uma Instituição de Ensino Superior, revelou-se a preocupação com a sustentação e manutenção da fazenda. No decorrer do processo de investigação da demanda, constatou-se, entre as preocupações dos gestores, a dificuldade de ingresso de servidores e fixação dos mesmos nos cargos de auxiliar operacional agropecuário. A recomposição do quadro funcional pertencente a uma instituição pública está condicionado a concursos, protocolos e resoluções estabelecidos por leis estaduais, estatuto da universidade e regimentos internos. A qualificação ou saber do auxiliar operacional contidos na descrição do perfil profissiográfico estabelecidos pela instituição (competências pessoais para a função) possibilita descrições explícitas e lacunárias da realidade do trabalho. Assim sendo, o objetivo dessa tese foi sistematizar a construção das competências laborais do auxiliar operacional sob a perspectiva da ergonomia da atividade, visando contribuir para a melhoria do desempenho de uma fazenda experimental de Instituição de Ensino Superior. Para estudos sobre o trabalho e as competências do trabalhador, singulares ao contexto no qual está inserido, utilizou-se como protocolo de pesquisa a metodologia própria de intervenção da ergonomia da atividade, que é a Análise Ergonômica do Trabalho (AET). A organização do trabalho na fazenda experimental, possibilita margens de manobras que favorecem de modo diferenciado a utilização e evolução das competências, dependendo do setor e da iniciativa individual. O modelo de gestão que estabelece o poder discricionário e os saberes apreendidos pelo auxiliar operacional, são aspectos singulares dos determinantes da organização de trabalho estudada. Por ser uma fazenda experimental, a pesquisa, independente de qualquer área que ela avança, se utiliza de novas tecnologias e com isso, as competências operacionais, estão compreendidas aos fatores inerentes ao trabalho, na forma de ações do auxiliar operacional, condicionados sob a característica da organização (fazenda experimental - unidade agrícola de pesquisa e ensino).

A grazing trial investigating the effect of season of grazing and stocking rate initiated at the Nortier Experimental Farm in 1988 provided an opportunity to assess the response of the veld to both grazing and environmental influences in an arid environment. The trial allowed an assessment of the relative influence of internal (equilibrium) and external (non-equilibrium) forces on the dynamics of an arid rangeland. This study involved the analysis of a nine year data set stretching from 1988 to 1996 and served to provide evidence supporting the existence of an equilibrium/non-equilibrium continuum in rangeland dynamics. The most significant implication of this result is that rangeland systems should not be classified as either equilibrial or non-equilibrial, but rather according to a continuum extending between equilibrium and non-equilibrium poles. The exact position of any system on this continuum is a function of the relative influence of internal and external forces on its species dynamics. The dynamics of the veld at the Nortier Experimental Farm showed significant response to both grazing and environmental variables suggesting conformity to both equilibrial and non-equilibrial paradigms. Both ordination and analysis of variance highlighted the importance of rainfall particularly in the fluctuations of the predominant grass species, Ehrharta calycina, which increased in abundance with rainfall. Partial ordination enabled the assessment of species variation following the removal of variation associated with rainfalL Partial ordinations revealed the gradual, directional movement of samples through multivariate space in response to grazing treatments. Individual plant species were also shown to be responding to grazing, the extent of which was influenced by season of grazing and stocking rate. Both the partial ordinations and the ANOVA showed Melothria sp., Tetragonia fruiticosa and Hermannia scordifolia as increasing and Ruschia caroli as decreasing in absolute abundance in response to grazing. Season of grazing was shown to significantly influence the abundance of H. scordifolia over time. The 'shrublherb complex', which constitutes the 'key resource' at the Nortier Experimental Farm displayed an increase in absolute abundance over the duration of the trial. This increase in absolute abundance was accompanied by an increase in the relative abundance of the palatable component of this resource. The application of medium to heavy stocking rates during spring, summer and autumn and low stocking rates during winter resulted in elevated absolute abundances of palatable plants. Furthermore, low stocking rates, when averaged across all season of grazing treatments, resulted in a significantly higher absolute abundance of unpalatable plants. These findings provide the basis for the development of management principles for the Strandveld Vegetation Type. The application of medium to heavy stocking rates within a rotational grazing system, as recommended by the literature dealing with grazing systems in the Karoo, is supported by the results of the Nortier grazing trial. Medium to heavy stocking rates should be applied during spring, summer and autumn and low stocking rates during the winter months. Furthermore, it is recommended that rests of between 12 and 14 months should be afforded to portions of the veld periodically due to the variability in growth, flowering and fruiting times ofdifferent plants in the Karoo. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.

Thesis (MScAgric)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Hillslope hydrology represents a complex system with several interacting processes influencing the movement of water through the landscape. The Western Cape area of South Africa is expected to be impacted on by a change in climate and the importance of water management that will increase in the future. Climate, especially precipitation, is the driving factor behind the hydrological system and there are currently no predictions as to what the impact will be on the hydrological conditions. The main objective of the study is to understand the hydrological responses along a hillslope and secondly to determine the effect of climate change on the hydrology by using hydrological models. The studied system is situated on the Langgewens Experimental Farm, north of Malmesbury in the Swartland region of the Western Cape. Six sites in a range of vegetation, land use and expected soil types along a toposequence were investigated. All sites are rain fed areas with natural vegetation, seasonal or long-term shrubs. Through monitoring different components of the hydrological cycle, including rainfall, overland flow, infiltration, soil water content, base flow and water table depth at the different sites, the movement of water through the landscape can be defined. Hillslope hydrological processes at different positions on the hillslope were investigated. The baseline data obtained during this process was used in hydrological modelling for the different positions on the hillslope to determine the accuracy of model predictions. Expected future climatic conditions were emulated in this model to determine the possible effect of a change in climate on the hydrological system. The research confirmed the complex interaction between different processes within the hydrological system. At each point along the toposequence different components of the hydrological cycle contributed on a different scale to the hydrological system. Soil properties were the most significant factor influencing water movement through the landscape, directly impacting infiltration, overland flow, lateral water flow and deep percolation. This resulted in water table fluctuations through the seasons as the contribution of different components towards the hydrological cycle changed. By comparing soil water content measurements through the season with modelled water content levels, accurate hydrological models were created for different measuring points in the landscape. By using forecasted climate data of two different weather generators, accurate estimations of expected soil water content were possible. This indicated that droughts will occur on a regular basis in the future. This research made it possible to understand water movement through the landscape at hillslope level and contributed towards future water management plans by estimating future soil water content levels based on current predictions. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Heuwelhang hidrologie omskryf die proses van water beweging deur die landskap en dit word deur verskeie prosesse beinvloed. Onder huidige toestande word verwag dat die Weskaap provinsie van Suid-Afrika warmer en droëer sal word in die toekoms as gevolg van klimaatsverandering. Dit sal die noodsaaklikheid van effektiewe waterbestuur verhoog in die toekoms. Klimaat, en in besonder reënval, is die dryfkrag agter die hidrologiese sisteem en huidiglik is daar geen aanduiding van wat die effek van klimaatsverandering op die hidrologiese sisteem gaan wees nie. Die eerste doel van die studie is om die heuwelhang se hidrologiese sisteem te ontleed en tweedens om die impak van klimaatsverandering op die hidrologiese sisteem te bepaal deur gebruik te maak van hidrologiese modelle. Die studie area is geleë op die Langgewens Proefplaas, noord van Malmesbury in die Swartland distrik van die Weskaap. Ses verskillende posisies is op die heuwelhang geselekteer op grond van posisie in die landskap, plantegroei, landgebruik en verwagte grondvorms. Al die studiepunte ontvang slegs water deur reën en die landgebruik wissel ten opsigte van natuurlike plantegroei, en eenjarige- of meerjarige gewasse wat gevestig is. Deur verskillende komponente van die hidrologiese sisteem te monitor, insluitend reënval, oppervlak afloop, infiltrasie, grond water inhoud, laterale water vloei en die diepte van die watertafel, kan die beweging van water deur die landskap gedefinieër word. Die data wat versamel is gedurende die proses word gebruik om die akkuraatheid van die hidrologiese modelle se resultate te bepaal. Tesame met vooruitgeskatte klimaatdata kan die modelle gebruik word om die impak van klimaatsverandering op grondwater toestande vas te stel. Die navorsing toon die komplekse interaksie tussen verskillende prosesse in die hidrologiese sisteem. By elke punt in die landskap dra verskillende komponente op verskillende skale by tot die hidrologiese sisteem. Grondeienskappe het die meeste invloed op die verskillende komponente van die hidrologiese sisteem en beïnvloed die infiltrasie, oppervlak afloop, laterale water vloei en diep dreinering. Soos die verskillende komponente se bydrae tot die hidrologiese sisteem verander, vind daar fluktuasies in die diepte van die water tafel plaas. Deur die vergelyking van gemete grondwaterinhoud teen hidrologiese model voorspelde grondwaterinhoude, is akkurate hidrologiese modelle opgestel vir verskillende punte in die landskap. Deur gebruik te maak van twee moontlike verwagte klimaat toestande, is gevind dat droogtes op ‘n roetine basis in die toekoms sal voorkom. Die navorsing maak dit moontlik om die beweging van water deur die landskap te verstaan en dra by tot die opstelling van toekomstige waterbestuur planne. Dit word moontlik gemaak deur die vooruitskatting van grondwater inhoude gebasseer op verwagte klimaatsveranderinge en huidige grondwater toestande. / Water Research Commission