The purpose of this study was to evaluate tourism capacity, the effectiveness of the management plan and the visitors’ willingness to pay (WTP) for increased conservation effort in the Buccoo Reef Marine Park (BRMP) in Tobago. Non-market contingent valuation was applied to estimate tourists’ WTP, using the data from a survey of 164 tourists. Local residents and government agencies were consulted to evaluate the management plan and the tourism capacity. Eighty-eight percent of local residents stated that the park was not well managed and that they lacked trust in the park agency. The density of tourists was 67-97% more than socially acceptable crowding norm. The tourists were willing to pay an additional entry fee of US$11.72 per person, which would generate additional revenue for the park management. In conclusion, the BRMP management needs modification in order to increase stakeholders’ trust, reduce tourists crowding intensity, and generate additional user-based revenue.

No description available.

The goal of this project was to organize and implement an energy conservation program for second and fifth grade students that would increase their overall awareness and understanding of energy concepts and energy conservation.

Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, is a valuable natural resource that suffers summer hypoxic events resulting from over a century of cultural eutrophication. Current efforts to reduce nitrogen loading from wastewater treatment facilities discharging into the Bay and its tributaries hold the promise of working towards ecological restoration. But, the efficacy of these efforts may be limited, or undone, if future changes in climate or land use increase nutrient and sediment loads to the Bay. This study developed a SWAT model of the upper Narragansett Bay watershed to simulate water quantity and quality. The baseline model was calibrated and validated to accurately reflect watershed behavior. I then used the model to simulate water quantity and quality under an altered climate, with an IPCC projected increase in temperature of 3°C and a 10% increase in precipitation by 2080. A second scenario incorporated projected 2080 land use in the absence of climate change. The third scenario combined the climate change and land use change alterations to examine cumulative impacts. A comparison of scenario outputs against the baseline simulation highlighted the expected impacts climate change and land use change will have on the watershed. Both climate change and land use change demonstrated impacts on surface runoff, water yield, PET and ET, streamflow, and loading of sediment, organic N, organic P and nitrate. Climate impacts were much greater than land use impacts, but land use impacts displayed greater regional variation. The results of the combined simulation indicate that future climate and land use change will likely negatively impact the Bay and undermine current efforts at restoration. However, the results also highlight the potential to utilize land use to mitigate some of the impacts of climate change.

Bird migration is a poorly-known yet important phenomenon, as understanding movement patterns of birds can inform conservation strategies and public health policy for animal-borne diseases. Recent advances in wildlife tracking technology, in particular the Motus system, have allowed researchers to track even small flying birds and insects with radio transmitters that weigh fractions of a gram. This system relies on a community-based distributed sensor network that detects tagged animals as they move through the detection nodes on journeys that range from small local movements to intercontinental migrations. The quantity of data generated by the Motus system is unprecedented, is on its way to surpass the size of all other centralized databases of animal detection and requires novel statistical methods. Building from the bsam package in R, I propose two new biologically informed Bayesian state-space models for animal movement in JAGS that include informed assumptions about songbird behavior. I evaluate the models using a simulation study in realistic conditions of data missingness. One of these models is generalized to a hierarchical version that fits population-level movement through joint estimation of movement parameters over multiple animal tracks. To apply the models, I then employ a localization routine on a Motus data set from migrating songbirds (Red-eyed Vireos - Vireo olivaceus) from the Eastern coast of North America. This allows me to apply the new hierarchical model and its predecessor to estimate unobserved locations and behaviors. Migratory flights were observed to occur mostly in the evenings along the coast and directed migratory flights were detected over water over e.g. the Bay of Fundy, the Long Island Sound and the New York Bight. Area-restricted searches were confined to coastal areas, in particular the Gulf of Maine, Long Island and Cape May.

Vernal pools are small, ephemeral wetlands lacking an inlet or outlet. These wetlands, also known as seasonal pools, are found in a wide range of biomes, and their characteristics vary based on location. While the vegetation of western U.S. pools, and amphibians of eastern U.S. pools have been extensively studied, many aspects of vernal pools have not been fully characterized. In particular, although the general seasonal wetting and drying cycle is understood qualitatively, few studies have attempted to quantify the hydrological regime of vernal pools in New England. As water level variation drives many, if not all, of the characteristics unique to these systems, more research on this aspect of vernal pool functioning is needed. The primary objective of this study was to gain a better understanding of vernal pool hydrology through the study of a complex of three pools in South Deerfield, MA. The water level in the South Deerfield pools has been monitored since 2009. For this study, the most recently recorded water year (1 October 2017 to 30 September 2018) was used to characterize the water level fluctuations in the Middle Pool. Water level was monitored manually (weekly intervals) and with pressure transducers (4-hour intervals) in permanently installed wells. The effects of precipitation and evapotranspiration on water level were quantified with a water balance analysis. This analysis also estimated changes in storage by estimated inflow from the uplands and outflow via deep seepage. Water level changes in the Middle Pool were consistent with qualitative descriptions and trends described in earlier studies in the region. We found that the countervailing effects of precipitation and evapotranspiration were the primary drivers of water level fluctuations throughout the year. However, the estimate of storage derived as a water balance residual was not representative of water level in the vernal pools. The storage estimate derived for the Middle Pool was more successful at estimating the water level during spring transition, the high water period most important to amphibian breeding.

Groundwater accounts for approximately 99% of the available freshwater on Earth, and is an important resource for irrigation, potable water, and domestic use in the United States. However, the overuse of groundwater has led to aquifer depletion in several basins across the USA, resulting in storage reduction, contamination, salt water intrusion, and depletion of surface waters. To properly manage groundwater for the future, there is a need for well-informed Groundwater Management Plans (GWMPs) in order to prevent further depletion and erosion of the resource. Previous studies have focused on groundwater management relative to groundwater laws, regulations, and institutional arrangements. This study analyzed GWMPs to better understand how allowable yields are set, how interconnected groundwater conditions are addressed, and how groundwater systems are managed when information on the system is lacking through planning. The findings of this study delineate how groundwater management goals are set across the United States and provides recommendations to inform future GWMPs.

This Master’s Professional Project is focused on the development of a draft Vegetation Management Plan for the City of San Luis Obispo Open Space properties. The purpose of the plan is to provide a comprehensive document which identifies how the city is addressing wildfire preparedness in city-owned open space properties. Methods used in plan development include a literature review, content analysis, geographic information systems (GIS), a course audit, and consultation with city staff and other stakeholders. Each open space property is identified in the plan, describing its location, vegetation, topography, assets, access points, water supply, evacuation routes, historical fire data, predominant risk exposure, current wildfire preparedness plan, priority ranking, and a proposed implementation plan.

This study is an academic research project completed to satisfy the California Polytechnic Master Thesis Requirement for the Master Degree of City and Regional Planning in the College of Architecture and Environmental Design. The County of San Luis Obispo Planning and Building Department is the client for this professional project. The project was requested by the County of San Luis Obispo to assist in its water conservation efforts and to help achieve a 20 percent per capita reduction of water use by the year 2020. The project consists of two documents: A Handbook of Water Conservation Technologies and Practices (Handbook) and the Background Report for the Water Conservation Handbook (Background Report). The Handbook is intended to provide a quick guide to various water conserving fixtures and appliances that developers and residents throughout the County of San Luis Obispo can reference for personal use. The Handbook includes information on the type of technology, the benefits in terms of water saving potential, and the cost of implementation. The Handbook is organized based on Indoor and Outdoor water uses. The Background Report is a supplemental document for the Handbook which provides more in depth descriptions and examples on each technology. The Background Report also provides history on water conservation issues in California and San Luis Obispo. It looks at two case studies: one, on the water conservation efforts in Phoenix, Arizona, and two, on a plumbing retrofit project on the Cal Poly Campus that was awarded LEED certification for its water savings. Furthermore, the Background Report explores case studies in the use of community participatory planning to produce water conservation plans. The studies focused on a Community Plan development in Arroyo Grande, California, and on an Integrated Regional Water Management Plan in the Greater Los Angeles Region. The Background Report concludes by providing some cautionary advice on water conservation technologies and provides future recommendations for the county of San Luis Obispo to improve its water conservation efforts.

During the last century coal extraction has degraded ecosystems in Appalachia, converting forested land into other cover types that have a diminished capacity to naturally progress to later stages of succession. This projects objective was to examine two options for land-use that can assist in returning the reclaimed surface mines to forested cover types, with increased ecosystem services, and a potential for economic gain. This project examined a biomass plantation and an American chestnut trial. In the biomass trial, greatest heights for American sycamore (12.3 m) and black locust (8.0 m) were found in the fertilizer plots. Mean individual tree biomass for American sycamore and black locust was 6.4 Kg and 5.3 Kg, respectively; no significant differences were found among treatments. In the American chestnut trial, experimental wide survival was 47.2% in 2009, dropping to 24.74% in 2017. No significant differences were found by genotype, stock type, or the interaction in 2017. Use of mined land for woody biomass plantations and locales for chestnut restoration shows potential if proper management techniques are followed. Given the vast amounts of land disrupted by mining activities in Appalachia, approaches such as these deserve further attention and additional research.