This study developed and applied a field test to evaluate the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE)/Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE)/United States Green Building Council (USGBC) Performance Measurement Protocols (PMP) for Commercial Buildings in a case-study office building in central Texas. As the first integrated protocol on building performance measurement, the ASHRAE PMP accomplished its goal of providing the standardized protocols for measuring and comparing the overall performance of a building, including energy, water, thermal comfort, Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), lighting, and acoustics. However, several areas for improvement were identified such as conflicting results from different procedures or benchmarks provided in the ASHRAE PMP; limited guidelines for performing the measurements; lack of detailed modeling techniques, graphical indices, and clear benchmarks; and some practical issues (i.e., high cost requirements and time-intensive procedures). All these observations are listed as the forty issues, including thirteen for energy, five for water, and twenty-two for Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ). Recommendations were developed for each issue identified. For the selected high-priority issues, twelve new or modified approaches were proposed and then evaluated against the existing procedures in the ASHRAE PMP. Of these twelve new or modified approaches, the following are the most significant developments: a more accurate monthly energy use regression model including occupancy; a monthly water use regression model for a weather-normalized comparison of measured water performance; a method how to use a vertical temperature profile to evaluate room air circulation; a method how to use LCeq – LAeq difference as a low-cost alternative to estimate low frequency noise annoyance; a statistical decomposition method of time-varying distribution of indices; and a real-time wireless IEQ monitoring system for the continuous IEQ measurements. The application of the forty recommendations and the twelve new or modified approaches developed in this study to the ASHRAE PMP is expected to improve the applicability of the ASHRAE PMP, which aligns the overall purpose of this study. Finally, this study developed a new single figure-of-merit rating system based on the ASHRAE PMP procedures. The developed rating system is expected to improve the usability of the protocols.

As a result of predicted climate change, environmental conditions may make woody plant species such as poplars (Populus spp.) vulnerable unless they are sufficiently adaptable to the new environment. This greenhouse study examined the responses of Hill, Northwest, Okanese and Walker hybrid poplar clones to drought, a potential outcome of a changing climate. Plants were grown from cuttings and subjected to two soil moisture treatments; a well-watered treatment and a drought conditioning treatment in which plants were subjected to cycles of soil moisture deficit. The first study examined growth and gas exchange following treatments, while the second study examined concurrent changes in leaf water potential and gas exchange during a period of increasing soil moisture deficit, following treatments.<p> Hill and Okanese plants had reduced shoot:root ratios, possibly leading to more positive plant moisture balances compared to Northwest and Walker plants. Stomatal characteristics related to steady state gas exchange with Okanese plants having stomata predominantly on lower leaf surfaces, and lower stomatal conductance and Northwest plants having relatively large stomata and increased stomatal conductance. Hill and Okanese plants had the most responsive stomata, which began to close at much higher levels of leaf water potential (-0.45 and -0.54 MPa) than Northwest or Walker plants (-1.03 and -0.88 MPa); however, closure was more gradual in Okanese plants. Drought preconditioning resulted in stomatal closure occurring at higher leaf water potentials in droughted Northwest and Walker plants compared to well-watered plants. Regardless of soil moisture treatment, WUE was highest in Okanese and Walker plants. The drought treatment did however lead to increased WUE in Hill and Northwest plants.<p> Overall, Okanese plants appear to be the best adapted to conditions of reduced soil moisture based on growth and physiological traits, while Northwest and Hill seem better suited to areas where moisture deficits are likely to be less frequent or less severe. Results indicate that variability exists in adaptability of hybrid poplar clones to drought, suggesting that there may also be other hybrid clones that are adaptable to reduced soil moisture conditions, which may merit further investigation.

As a result of predicted climate change, environmental conditions may make woody plant species such as poplars (Populus spp.) vulnerable unless they are sufficiently adaptable to the new environment. This greenhouse study examined the responses of Hill, Northwest, Okanese and Walker hybrid poplar clones to drought, a potential outcome of a changing climate. Plants were grown from cuttings and subjected to two soil moisture treatments; a well-watered treatment and a drought conditioning treatment in which plants were subjected to cycles of soil moisture deficit. The first study examined growth and gas exchange following treatments, while the second study examined concurrent changes in leaf water potential and gas exchange during a period of increasing soil moisture deficit, following treatments.<p> Hill and Okanese plants had reduced shoot:root ratios, possibly leading to more positive plant moisture balances compared to Northwest and Walker plants. Stomatal characteristics related to steady state gas exchange with Okanese plants having stomata predominantly on lower leaf surfaces, and lower stomatal conductance and Northwest plants having relatively large stomata and increased stomatal conductance. Hill and Okanese plants had the most responsive stomata, which began to close at much higher levels of leaf water potential (-0.45 and -0.54 MPa) than Northwest or Walker plants (-1.03 and -0.88 MPa); however, closure was more gradual in Okanese plants. Drought preconditioning resulted in stomatal closure occurring at higher leaf water potentials in droughted Northwest and Walker plants compared to well-watered plants. Regardless of soil moisture treatment, WUE was highest in Okanese and Walker plants. The drought treatment did however lead to increased WUE in Hill and Northwest plants.<p> Overall, Okanese plants appear to be the best adapted to conditions of reduced soil moisture based on growth and physiological traits, while Northwest and Hill seem better suited to areas where moisture deficits are likely to be less frequent or less severe. Results indicate that variability exists in adaptability of hybrid poplar clones to drought, suggesting that there may also be other hybrid clones that are adaptable to reduced soil moisture conditions, which may merit further investigation.

The first objective of this study was to investigate the role of an invasive grass species, Arundo donax (L.), on the hydrologic cycle. At a site on the Rio Grande in South Texas, we measured the gas exchange of carbon dioxide and water vapor at the leaf scale and structural characteristics, such as leaf area and shoot density, at the stand scale. In order to assess the effect of water availability, this study was conducted along transects perpendicular to the edge of the river along a potential moisture gradient. The second objective was to quantify the effect of two herbivores, an armored scale, Rhizaspidiotus donacis (Leonardi), and a stem-galling wasp, Tetramesa romana (Walker),on the photosynthetic and transpiration rates of A. donax. Leaf gas exchange measurements were made to determine the direction and magnitude of the effect on physiological processes and by what mechanisms any effects arose. Stands of A. donax used approximately 9.1 � 1.1 mm of water per day. This rate of water use was at the high end of the spectrum for plants. The major controls on stand scale transpiration were evaporative demand, leaf area index, and water availability. During two summer seasons, stand scale transpiration varied greatly, following the pattern of variability in precipitation, suggesting that recent rainfall constituted a significant proportion of the water taken up by this species. Herbivory by a stem-galling wasp and a sap-feeding scale, both separately and together, reduced the rates of leaf scale physiological processes in A. donax. The efficacy of the wasp was density dependent, and this herbivore reduced the carboxylation rate of Rubisco. The effect of the scale took approximately five months to manifest, which coincided with generation time. Scale reduced photosynthesis by decreasing the maximum rate of electron transport. When the two insects were both present, the effect of their herbivory seemed to be additive. These results will assist the responsible management agencies in evaluating the propriety of using one or both of the insect herbivores as biological control agents.

Saltcedar is an invasive shrub that has moved into western United States riparian areas and is continuing to spread. Saltcedar is a phreatophyte that can utilize a saturated water table for moisture once established and is also highly tolerant of saline soil and water conditions. Literature has indicated that depth to the water table and salinity have a significant effect on growth and water use by saltcedar. Several studies were initiated to help develop a simulation model of saltcedar growth and water use based on the EPIC9200 simulation model. A study was initiated at the USDA-ARS Blackland Research Center Temple, Texas in the summer of 2002 to better understand the effects of water table depth and salinity on (1) saltcedar above and below ground biomass, root distribution, leaf area and (2) water use. Five different salinity levels (ranging from 0 ppm to 7500 ppm) and three different water table depths (0.5m, 1.0m, and 1.75m) were studied. Results indicated that increasing depth to the water table decreased saltcedar water use and growth. For the 0.5m water table depth, saltcedar water use during the 2002 growing season averaged 92.7 ml d-1 while the 1.75m depth averaged 56.6 ml d-1. Both root and shoot growth were depressed by increasing water table depth. Salinity had no effect on saltcedar growth or water use except at the 1250 ppm level, which used 110 ml of H2O d-1. This salinity had the highest water use indicating that this may be near the ecological optimum level of salinity for saltcedar. A predictive equation was developed for saltcedar water use using climatic data for that day, the previous day's climatic data, water table depth and salinity that included: previous day total amount of solar radiation, water table depth, previous day average wind speed, salinity, previous day total precipitation, previous day average vapor pressure, minimum relative humidity, previous day average wind direction, and maximum air temperature. Data from the field study and a potential growth study were integrated into the model. The model was parameterized for the Pecos River near Mentone, Texas. Predicted saltcedar water use was slightly lower than results reported by White et al. 2003.

Various studies have pointed out the growing need to assess the availability of water sources in regions around the world as future forecasts suggest that water demands will increase significantly for agricultural, industrial and human consumption while freshwater resources are being depleted. One such emerging issue is the effect of industrial operations on said resources, specifically from automobiles. With numerous localities experiencing stresses on water availability, key stakeholders - suppliers, automakers, and vehicle end-users - need to better realize the effect vehicle manufacturing, usage, and disposal have on water resources. While efforts to improve the overall environmental performance of vehicles have mainly concentrated on improving technologies, there has also been considerable effort devoted to characterizing the life-cycle performance of the vehicle product system. However, much of this work has focused on energy consumption and carbon emissions while few studies have examined water. The difference between water use versus water consumption were highlighted and the life-cycle water consumption of a gasoline-powered midsize vehicle were analyzed from material extraction through production, use, and final disposition/end of life. This analysis examines each of the phases to determine a carâ s water footprint using data from the EcoInvent Life Cycle Analysis database as well as data collected from literature sources. Although water use is typically metered at the factory level, water consumption (i.e., water lost through evaporation and/or incorporation into a material, part, and/or product) is much harder to quantify. As shown in this thesis, the difference can be an order of magnitude or more because much of the water that goes into the different processes is either reused, recycled, or discharged back to its original source. The use phase of a vehicle has the biggest impact on the overall vehicle water consumption, followed by material production, whereas water consumption for the end of life processing seems to be relatively insignificant. It is also shown that the impact of energy consumption as part of the total water footprint is very large when compared to the other processes given the dependence on water for energy production. The assessment in this thesis represents a life-cycle inventory and serves as an initial benchmark as no previous study has been completed to determine the water consumption for the life of a vehicle, let alone for most other products. The impact of water consumption varies by region and locality, and a differentiation of impact would still be needed to determine whether the water consumption actually happens in water scarce regions or not.

Cities in the global South are confronting unprecedented challenges to urban sustainability and equitable development, particularly in the realm of water provision. Nearly 1.5 billion people worldwide suffer from a lack of safe access to drinking water and sanitation -an increasing proportion of whom reside in cities. Meanwhile, in the gaps of the grid, a diversity of water harvesting and reuse techniques, infrastructures, and institutional arrangements has emerged to provision poor households. Despite the burgeoning presence of the informal water sector, little is known about its institutional character, environmental impact, or relationship with state provision and private supply. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative data collected during nearly 13 months of fieldwork in Tijuana, Mexico, this dissertation queries how informal water use is managed, whether informal water use constitutes an alternative economy and sustainable environmental practice, and to what degree informal water use redefines urban space and alternative development possibilities. Findings reveal that: 1) despite historical efforts in Mexico to federalize and centralize the control of water resources, state action opens 'gaps' in the hydrosocial cycle, and informal institutions manage these 'extralegal' spaces; 2) informal water use is widespread across socioeconomic levels in Tijuana, predominantly managed by household-based institutions, and conserves a surprising degree of municipal water; and 3) the spatiality of contemporary water infrastructures and economies is highly diverse-ranging from bottled water markets to non-capitalist, self-provisioning greywater reuse-and is in fact constitutive of 'splintered urbanism' and alternative modes of development.

In arid lands, wetland loss is the result not only of the scarcity of water itself, but of the management of water to maximize off-stream uses. Declaring a wetland as a protected natural area is not enough when its water supply is not protected as well. In a fully-diverted, over-allocated, drought-prone Colorado River ecosystem, its delta has no instream flows allocated. Water use efficiency (WUE) is touted as the panacea for water shortages and lack of instream flows. I evaluated the relationships between water use in the Mexicali Irrigation District and the water supply for the Colorado River delta wetlands. The survey applied to 521 farmers complemented the GIS analysis to create a spatial distribution of agronomic and socio-economic factors influencing farmers’ options to improve WUE in irrigation. Mexicali farmers apply 10,496 m³/ha/yr; 4% higher than the legal allotment. Still, 28% of the district’s soils are salt-affected (ECe > 8dS/m), 19% are sodic (ESP > 50%), and 39% of the salt load in irrigation water accumulates in the soils. Thus, Mexicali farmers apply more water than plants need in order to maintain the sustainability of their soils. From an agronomic perspective, increasing WUE is feasible in 80% of the valley. However, high costs and lack of technical knowledge limit farmers’ options to either continue using as much water as they do now or rent/sell their water rights to larger farming operations or urban developments. Mexicali’s agriculture provides 87 Mm³ of water to the delta marshes, and seepage from unlined canals and subsurface flows generated by irrigation contribute to sustain riparian areas. Agricultural “inefficiencies” become the main source of water for wetlands when flows are fully diverted. The Irrigation District 014 is an integral part of the delta ecosystem; this is a required change in the agriculture-wetland paradigm. The restoration of arid and over-allocated rivers requires the integration of irrigation practices and WUE with the allocation of water for instream flows. The restoration of wetlands of international watersheds like the Colorado River requires the bi-national collaboration beyond memorandums of understanding between the countries; treaties where environmental flows are actually allocated will better serve shared ecosystems.

Typescript. / Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 1983. / Bibliography: leaves [243]-260. / Photocopy. / Microfiche. / xv, 260 leaves, bound ill. (some col.), maps 29 cm

The effects of differential irrigation treatments on the water use of broccoli (c.v. Indurance) and carrots (c.v. Stefano) were studied in the rainy, winter season from July to September 2006 and in the dry, summer period from November 2006 to March 2007, respectively. Broccoli and carrots are produced on the Swan Coastal Plain region on Grey Phase Karrakatta Sand. Such soils generally have water holding capacities as low as 10 to 13%. This soil is typical to the Swan Coastal Plain and requires irrigation to be applied at rates of up to 150% of class A pan evaporation (Epan) to optimise growth and quality. / High spatial uniformity (an average of 90%) of water distribution (DU) was achieved with the sprinkler irrigation system. The average irrigation water use efficiencies (Eu) in both the experiments were relatively high, at 78% and 95% in broccoli and carrot trials, respectively. The numerous rainy days during the winter season affected the results of water application efficiencies (Ea) of the broccoli experiment, which ranged from 35% to 43%. This contrasted with the carrot experiment where the water application efficiencies (Ea) of the 100% Epan and Crop Factor (CF) treatments were 81% and 78%, respectively. For the carrot experiment the water application efficiencies for the 100% Epan and crop factor treatments were 14% higher than the 150% Epan treatment. These results indicate that the sprinkler irrigation systems in both experiments showed good performance makes the system suitable for experimental purposes and also for vegetable production on soils of this nature. / Despite the differences in irrigation volume, soil water contents remained very high and did not differ among treatments in both the experiments. The differential soil water stress index (DSWSI) for the 100% Epan (T1) and variable water replacement (VR) (TVR) treatments ranged from 0.74 to 1.71 for both broccoli and carrot trials. There were only small soil water tension differences among all the irrigation treatments and ranged from -2.4 kPa to -7.6 kPa, which was within the range between saturation and field capacity for sandy soil (0 to -10 kPa). / In the broccoli experiment, even though the 150% Epan (T2) irrigation treatment received 46% and 61% more irrigation than the 100% Epan (T1) and variable water replacement (TVR) irrigation treatments respectively, the treatments appeared to be largely negated by the high incidence of rainfall during the growing season. For example, the total depth of water application at 150% Epan was 13.9% and 17.2% greater than 100% Epan and TVR treatments respectively. As such the yield, biomass components and nutritional value (ascorbic acid and carotenoid content) did not vary among the treatments. However, irrigation was still required based on the set scheduling parameters and when considered in isolation of rainfall the irrigation crop water use efficiency (WUEi) on T1 and TVR treatments increased by 1.6-fold compared to T2 treatment. / For the carrot experiment the total depth of water application (rainfall and irrigation) for the 150% Epan treatment was 33% and 23% greater than at 100% Epan and Crop factor (CF) treatments, respectively. The yield (carrot roots) on a fresh weight basis (FW) for plants irrigated with the 150% of Epan and Crop factor (CF) treatments were 16% and 20% higher than the yield for plants irrigated with the 100% Epan treatment. Total (root and shoot) fresh weight of carrot plants irrigated For the carrot experiment the total depth of water application (rainfall and irrigation) for the 150% Epan treatment was 33% and 23% greater than at 100% Epan and Crop factor (CF) treatments, respectively. The yield (carrot roots) on a fresh weight basis (FW) for plants irrigated with the 150% of Epan and Crop factor (CF) treatments were 16% and 20% higher than the yield for plants irrigated with the 100% Epan treatment. Total (root and shoot) fresh weight of carrot plants irrigated with the CF treatment was 17% higher than the total fresh weight of plants irrigated with the 100% Epan treatment. However, there were no significant differences between irrigation treatments for root and total (root and shoot) mass on a dry weight basis and the ratio of carrot root to shoot, on a fresh and dry weight basis. The root lengths for plants grown with the CF and 150% Epan irrigation treatments averaged 30 cm, and were 14% larger than the root lengths for the 100% Epan treatment. The plant height for plants grown with the CF irrigation treatment was 6% higher than at the 100% Epan irrigation treatment and leaf length at the CF irrigation treatment was 12% greater than at the 150% Epan irrigation treatment. The root diameter and leaf width of carrots were not significantly different for all treatments. There were no significant differences in ascorbic acid and total carotenoid content of carrot roots among the three irrigation treatments. The average values of antioxidant content from diphenylpicrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging, ARP (anti radical power) and total trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity were 44.83%, 0.8789 and 1.056μmol TE/g, respectively. The reduction of the irrigation level treatment from the 150% Epan water replacement to the 100% Epan water replacement increased the percentage of the DPPH scavenging by 1.55%, and total antioxidant capacity (AOC) and ARP activities by 4.19%. / On a dry weight basis, the crop water use efficiencies (WUE) (irrigation plus rain water) of carrot plants irrigated with the 100% Epan and CF treatments, were the same (0.013 g/mm). However, these were 30% greater than the WUE values of carrots irrigated with the 150% Epan treatment. On a fresh weight basis, the WUE of carrot plants irrigated with the 100% Epan and CF (0.120 and 0.132 g/mm) treatments were 14% and 26% greater than the WUE of carrot plants irrigated with the 150% Epan treatment, respectively. / An example of the diurnal trends of the carrot’s physiological responses to the irrigation treatments showed that on average, the rate of photosynthesis, stomatal conductance and intercellular CO2 for carrot plants grown with the 150% Epan treatment was higher than the rate of photosynthesis, stomatal conductance and intercellular CO2 at both the 100% Epan and CF treatments. However, not all the physiology measurements showed a significant difference among all the treatments. The variation in the physiological measurements was predominantly influenced by the change of temperature during the diurnal hours. / This study has proven the hypothesis that, on a free draining sandy soil, the irrigation treatments did not affect the growth and yield. However, there was a potential to reduce irrigation volumes from standard industry levels to maximise the WUE without decreasing the yield and crop quality, especially for broccoli and carrot, in Western Australia.