This study investigated the transplantation of understory plants within the Cu-Ni smelterdamaged urban forest of Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, to increase plant biodiversity in an area where natural colonization of understory species is delayed. The goal of my study was to evaluate establishment of 16 m2 vegetation mats along a gradient of smelter disturbance and to relate successful establishment to abiotic and biotic site characteristics. Specific investigations were conducted to determine whether soil quality influenced root growth and transplant establishment. Variables associated with smelter emissions and soil temperature were the best predictors of successful transplant establishment of understory plant species, but relationships were species specific. Also, root growth was not limited to organic soils of the transplant mat and roots were able to grow into receptor site soil. Knowledge of environmental factors influencing establishment will help to determine site locations and to select species to introduce when transplanting understory species in future reclamation projects.

Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) survival, habitat use, and nest-site characteristics were studied on Malmaison Wildlife Management Area, Mississippi, 2003-2004. Survival rates were 0.55, 0.0004, 0.26, and 0.30 for jakes, adult gobblers, juvenile hens, and adult hens, respectively for the entire study. Spring survival for all groups was 0.51 (95% CI 0.36, 0.65) and was least among seasons. Predation (65%) and harvest (21%) were major causes of mortality. Brood hens used bottomland hardwood stands, pine plantations, and old fields more than expected during the post-nesting period. Non-brood hens used bottomland hardwood stands more than expected during the pre- and post-nesting periods. Forbs were the predominant vegetation type at nests. Vegetation height was 0.3-0.6 m for all nest sites. Vertical screening cover for all nests was in the 21-40% obscurity category at 1 m and 41-60% category at 3 and 5 meters. Vine composition differed between successful (2%) and unsuccessful (20%) nests (P = 0.03).

Three tern species, Roseate Tern (Sterna dougalli), Bridled Tern (Sterna anaethetus) and Crested Tern (Sterna bergii) co-bred at Baisha islet, east-north of Penghu, in the summer of 2006. Each species favored different kind of environment for nesting. All Crested Terns nested in the flat plane with vegetation; Roseate Terns in the cliff near the vegetation, and Bridled Tern primarily nested near the vertical rock or under a rocky roof. The Crested Tern had the highest nesting density, and Bridled Tern nested loosely. The hatching success of Roseate (75%) and Crested Tern (73%) were significantly higher than that of Bridled Tern (30%). Roseate and Crested Tern laid eggs synchronously and had apparently two wave of egg laying and the breeding performances between early- and late-laying period were quite different. The relationship between hatching success and nest-site characteristics of the three species was investigated. The results revealed that hatching success of Roseate Tern increased with the number of walls and neighbors. Early-laying nests (79%) and central nests (72%) were more successful than late (11%) and edge nests (45%) of Roseate Terns. The laying-period was also important factors affecting hatching success of Crested Tern. Overall, the low hatching success of the late-laying nests may be due to the change of environmental conditions and the losing advantage of group breeding in the late season. The low hatching success of Bridled Tern was considered owing to the asynchronous laying pattern, loosely built nesting and weak parental behaviors.

Erosion and weed dominance often limit the recovery of burned piñon-juniper woodlands. Soil water repellency (SWR) is one factor that may contribute to this by increasing overland flow and impeding seedling establishment. In spite of these effects, the extent of SWR within piñon-juniper woodlands is unknown. In this study, the extent, severity and thickness of SWR were sampled across 41 1,000 m2 plots within three 2009 Utah wildfires. Predictive models of SWR were built from ecological site characteristic data collected at each site. Across the study, SWR was found at 37% of the points sampled. SWR extent was strongly related to piñon-juniper canopy cover (r2 = 0.60) and was found to be significantly higher in tree/shrub mound zones (71%) as compared to interspaces (16%). Endorsed predictive models of SWR extent and severity had R2 adj values of 0.63 and 0.61; both models included piñon-juniper canopy cover and relative humidity the month before the fire as coefficient terms. These results suggest that as piñon-juniper canopy cover increases due to infilling processes in the coming years, post-fire SWR extent and severity will increase. As the effects of a changing climate in the Intermountain West link additively with infilling processes to increase the frequency and intensity of wildfires, the net effect will be stronger SWR over a greater spatial extent. To cope with these changes, land managers can apply the predictive models developed in this study to prioritize fuel control and post-fire restoration treatments with respect to SWR.

Underground Coal Gasification (UCG), although not a new concept, is now attracting considerable global attention as a viable process to provide a "clean" and economic fuel from coal. Climate change legislation and the declining position of coal reserves (i.e., deeper and thinner seams) in many parts of the world are promoting and fueling the UCG renaissance. This research presents an analysis of operational parameters of UCG technology to determine their significance and to evaluate the effective range of values for proper control of the process. The study indicates that cavity pressures, gas and water flow rates, development of linkage between wells, and continuous monitoring are the most important operating parameters. A protocol for the selection of suitable sites for UCG projects is presented in this study. The site selection criteria are developed based on successes and failures of previous experiments and pilot studies. The criteria take into account the site characteristics, coal quality parameters, hydrology of the area, availability of infrastructure and regulatory and environmental restrictions on sites. These criteria highlight the merits and demerits of the selected parameters, their importance in site selection and their economic and environmental potentials. Based on the site selection criteria, a GIS model is developed to assist in selecting suitable sites for gasification in any given area of interest. This GIS model can be used as a decision support tool as well since it helps in establishing the tradeoff levels between factors, ranking and scaling of factors, and, most importantly, evaluating inherent risks associated with each decision set. The potential of UCG to conform to different frameworks defined to assess the capability and potential of any project that merits the label, "sustainable," has been evaluated. It has been established that UCG can integrate economic activity with ecosystem integrity, respect for the rights of future generations to the use of resources and the attainment of sustainable and equitable social and economic benefits. The important aspects of UCG that need to be considered for its sustainable development are highlighted. In addition, the environmental benefits of UCG have been evaluated in terms of its potential for reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The findings indicate that UCG significantly reduces GHG emissions compared to other competitive coal exploiting technologies. A model to compute the life cycle greenhouse emissions of UCG has been developed, and it reveals that UCG has distinctive advantages in terms of GHG emissions over other technologies and competes favorably with the latest power generation technologies. In addition to GHG emissions, the environmental impacts of these technologies based on various impact assessment indicators are assessed to determine the position of UCG in the technology mix. It is clear from the analysis that UCG has prominent environmental advantages and has the potential to develop and utilize coal resources in an environmentally friendly and economically sound manner. / Ph. D.

In the Intermountain West, aspen (Populus tremuloides) has declined mainly due to a combination of successional processes, fire suppression and long-term use of ungulates which has led to replacement by conifers, sagebrush or other shrub communities. Conifer encroachment is believed to cause critical changes in the ecosystem properties. In order to understand the impacts of conifer encroachment on soil properties such as soil organic carbon (SOC) storage, soil morphology, and soil chemical properties, and the implications of such changes, it is very important to assess the soil properties under the two vegetation types. The objectives of this study were to i) quantify SOC stocks and their variability in pure aspen forests; ii) evaluate the role of various biotic and abiotic site parameters as drivers of this SOC; iii) evaluate the effect of conifer encroachment on SOC storage, soil morphology, soil microclimate and soil chemical properties. The study was conducted in three catchments in Northern Utah in two phases: i) a transect study with 33 sampling points in a pure aspen community; ii) a paired plot study based on comparing six plots in to aspen and nearby conifer plots as representatives of end-member communities. Soils under aspen were mainly Mollisols, whereas the soils associated with conifers were classified as Alfisols, Inceptisols and Entisols. Even under pure aspen there was a significant SOC variability among sampling points and aspects, and SOC was negatively correlated with soil moisture index and average tree diameter and positively correlated with vegetation density. The paired plot comparison showed that SOC in the mineral soil (0-60 cm) was significantly higher under aspen, while O horizon thickness and C content was higher under conifers. The total SOC (O layer + mineral soil) was not significantly different among the vegetation types, suggesting an upward redistribution of SOC in conifer soils. The soil moisture in summer was also higher under aspen compared to conifers. Other chemical properties were not affected by vegetation types. Our study indicates that i) no differences in SOC can be detected in surface soil horizons (<20 >cm); ii) SOC is highly variable and greatly influenced by soil moisture and forest characteristics; iii) conifer encroachment is likely to alter soil microclimatic and SOC amount and distribution.

The work aims to evaluate rock slope including static assessment and to estimate the financial cost. Static analysis is done manually and the program GEO 5. The proposal remediation is performed in 6 combinations of which one is selected and processed into project documentation.

No description available.