The goal of this project was to develop a recycling program for the Shalom Institute, a multi-use outdoor learning facility located in Malibu, California.

No description available.

The effect of lake acidification was evaluated, in the field, in terms of its impact on both the structural and functional composition of the macrozoobenthic community. The littoral macrozoobenthic community and water chemistry of 45 Canadian Shield lakes was sampled. The water chemistry variables sampled included pH, total dissolved calcium, conductivity, and dissolved organic acid (measured as colour). Partial canonical correlation analysis and partial regression analysis were used to identify those components of the macrozoobenthic community that most directly reflected pH variability. This was done by first removing from the data that portion of the variability attributable to total dissolved calcium, conductivity, and dissolved organic acids. In addition, the spatial structure in the data was removed by identifying the geographic coordinates of the sampling sites. / In general, the results presented here are not consistent with previous studies where the response of the macrozoobenthic community was related to pH without consideration of confounding covariables. Snails, leeches, mayflies and crayfish have all been cited for their sensitivity to acidification. The present study found these taxa to reflect, not pH variability, but rather attributes of water hardness. Similar results were found for both total zoobenthic biomass and functional feeding group abundance.

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references.

Data were collected from natural and introduced fishes present in Ferndale Lake, a small (120 ha) sport fishing reservoir in Camp County, east Texas. Levels of pH measured in the lake during the study period ranged from 3.5 to 5.3. Monthly field surveys and experimental manipulations were designed to evaluate quantitatively the signs of stress at various biological levels. Lethal limits to low pH were quantified for largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) and bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) to be pH 3.8 and 4.0,respectively. Mean blood pH (+ 1 SD) of 59 bluegill was 7.41 (j 0.16), with no significant difference (P-0.05) among groups from Ferndale Lake and Moss Lake (Cooke Co., Texas) under experimental conditions, even when severe stress was externally apparent. In a dual-trough horizontal pH gradient, bluegill behavioral avoidance was observed at pH levels below 7.0. Individual testing of 40 bluegill in pH gradient of 5.2 to 7.6 resulted in median occupation of pH 7.1,with an interquartile range of pH 6.9 to 7.3. Decreased community structure and population "well being" compared to early studies cannot be attributed entirely to recent acidic condition. Separating potential stress due to lake conditions from that due to heavy biotic predation by sport fishing in a small reservoir is difficult.

published_or_final_version / Environmental Management / Master / Master of Science in Environmental Management

No description available.

Published jointly by Ralph M. Parsons Laboratory for Water Resources and Hydrodynamics, Dept. of Civil Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology / Sponsored by Northeast Utilities Service Company, New England Power Service Company under the MIT Energy Laboratory Electric Power Program.

The National Park Service initiated a backcountry campsite restoration project in 1987 to restore native vegetation on severely degraded campsites in three subalpine lake basins in Yosemite National Park. Restoration treatments included soil scarification, transplanting, manual seeding and site protection. Eight of the treated campsites were monitored in 1990 to evaluate changes in percent vegetation cover, species richness and volunteer establishment that had occurred over the three year period beginning prior to treatment application in the summer of 1987, and ending in the summer of 1990. Percent vegetation cover increased slightly across all sampled quadrats ([mean] = 0.71; N = 214) with mean percent cover changes ranging from -0.37 to 4.36 on individual campsites. Three sites had a loss of cover. Percent cover changes differed most among campsites within lake basins. Changes in percent cover did not differ among lake basins or impact strata (barren core, moderately trampled, and peripheral). Transplanting did not appear to be an important influence on changes in percent cover, as cover changes did not differ between planted and unplanted areas. Survival of transplants planted in 1987 was poor (19.2%), but survival of transplants planted in 1988 was higher (70.5%). Species richness increased slightly across all sampled quadrats ([mean] = 0.54 species per quadrat), with species richness changes on campsites ranging from -0.13 to 1.75 species per quadrat. One site had a mean decrease in species richness. Species richness changes differed among campsites, with the largest increases occurring on those campsites that also had the greatest increases in percent cover. Changes in species richness also differed among impact strata, with the largest increases occurring on barren core areas. There were small differences among lake basins, and species richness changes did not differ between planted and unplanted areas. Volunteer establishment occurred on all treated sites. The number of volunteers per site ranged from one to 45, and 29 species were represented. Individual quadrats had from one to four volunteers. Approximately 50% of the volunteers were producing seed, and overall vigor among volunteers was good. Numbers of volunteers per quadrat differed most strongly among campsites. Slight differences were detected among lake basins and impact strata, with numbers decreasing from barren core to peripheral quadrats. Differences in numbers of volunteers per quadrat between planted and unplanted areas were not detected. Soil scarification may enhance increases in cover, species richness and numbers of volunteers. However, the influence of scarification was tested on two sites only, and further study is recommended. The recovery process appeared to be strongly affected by factors operating at the campsite level. For example, sites with the greatest increases in percent cover also had the greatest increases in species richness and the most volunteers. These sites had coarse soils, relatively abundant sunlight and moisture, and were effectively protected from trampling after site treatment. Results indicate revegetation prescriptions should be made on a site-by-site basis. The performances of eleven species used in transplanting or occurring as volunteers were evaluated. Five species, Agrostis humilis, Calamagrostis breweri, Muhlenbergia filifonnis, Trisetum spicatum, and Calyptridium umbellatum show potential as colonizers in unassisted revegetation and may be useful in manual seeding treatments; three species, Calamagrostis breweri, Carex rossii, and Juncus panyi show potential for transplanting and nursery propagation; and two species, Carex spectabilis and Carex straminiformis, require further study to determine their effectiveness in subalpine revegetation treatments. / Graduation date: 1993

The Second-Hand Society tells the stories of people in Portland, Oregon who redefine waste by making use of objects others discard. The author spends time in repair shops watching craftsmen hammer and polish broken typewriters, vacuum cleaners and shoes back to life. She follows book scouts, clothes pickers and liquidators as they gather merchandise to resell and spends hours at nonprofits that collect and redistribute unwanted electronics and building supplies. She watches junk artists and fashion designers assemble found objects into display pieces, accompanies Dumpster divers and "freegans" along their regular collection routes and visits the homeless encampment by the airport to see how an entire community of people survives on nothing but reclaimed materials. The members of the second-hand society challenge the traditional conception of things as "broken" or "unwanted" and assert that forward movement and new-new-new is not always optimal. By examining the motivations and practices of the people who make use of our discards and looking at the contradictions they run up against, this thesis develops a more complete understanding of the reality that's possible if we think differently about our waste.