Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Fate And Transport Of Nitrogen (N) And The Effect Of Emergent Plants On Natural Treatment Of N-Species At Las Vegas Wash, Nevada, Tanju Kiriscioglu

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The purpose of this study is to analyze the effect of emergent plant communities at Las Vegas Wash (the System) using a system dynamics modeling approach. Understanding the dynamics of nitrogen (N —major polluting nutrient in the Wash) that enters the System is important because it occasionally causes algal blooms, choking Lake Mead through excessive eutrophication. Emergent plant communities are an integral part of wetland ecosystems and they play a crucial role in natural treatment of nutrients. This study is intended to test this hypothesis.

The study makes use of Wash data from reliable sources (Las Vegas Valley Water District, …

Ecosystem Approaches To Aquatic Health Assessment: Linking Subtidal Habitat Quality, Shoreline Condition And Estuarine Fish Communities, Donna M. Bilkovic, Carl Hershner, Kory Angstadt

Reports

In the Chesapeake Bay, there is currently no comprehensive assessment of aquatic habitat heterogeneity or understanding of the effects of multiple stressors on the viability of these habitats. To assess the use of side-scan sonar technology with specially designed classification software, QTC SIDEVIEW developed by Quester Tangent Corporation as a tool to define subtidal nearshore habitat, two representative watersheds of the Chesapeake Bay were surveyed. Relationships between subtidal habitat and shoreline condition as well as linkages of habitat condition to fish community indices were assessed. Side-scan technology had the ability to image habitat at a resolution of less than 1 …

Invasive Species Definition Clarification And Guidance, Invasive Species Advisory Committee

National Invasive Species Council

Summary

Invasive species are those that are not native to the ecosystem under consideration and that cause or are likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human, animal, or plant health. Plant and animal species under domestication or cultivation and under human control are not invasive species. Furthermore for policy purposes, to be considered invasive, the negative impacts caused by a non-native species will be deemed to outweigh the beneficial effects it provides. Finally, a non-native species might be considered invasive in one region but not in another. Whether or not a species is considered an invasive …

Presentation To National Park Service – Pacific West Region April 25, 2006, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is dedicated to strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

In collaboration with federal, state, and non-profit partners, we are:

• creating new knowledge
• advancing technology
• improving education
• engaging the public to become involved in conservation and stewardship.

Presentation To National Park Service – Pacific West Region April 25, 2006, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is dedicated to strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

In collaboration with federal, state, and non-profit partners, we are:

• creating new knowledge
• advancing technology
• improving education
• engaging the public to become involved in conservation and stewardship.

Earth Science & Public Policy: Increasing Our Spheres Of Influence, Margaret N. Rees

Presentations (PLI)

The UNLV Public Lands Institute is dedicated to strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

Inside Unlv, Diane Russell, Shane Bevell, Carol C. Harter, Cate Weeks, Mamie Peers, Regina Vaccari

Inside UNLV

No abstract provided.

Estuarine Habitat Mitigation In Oregon: Policy Review, Analysis, And Recommended Improvements, Anna Buckley

Environmental Science and Management Professional Master's Project Reports

The report is organized in the following manner. After the introductory chapter (Chapter 1), Chapter Two describes Oregon's current estuarine policy and related state and federal policies. Chapter Three provides an inventory of recent permitted impacts and associated estuarine resource replacement. Chapter Four consists of a brief summary of the status of estuarine ecology and restoration/mitigation, with knowledge gaps identified. Chapter Five discusses wetland functional assessment tools and options for compensatory mitigation. This chapter begins with a description of the tidal Hydrogeomorphic (HGM) assessment method, how it compares to the estuarine resource replacement rules' relative values table, and the utility …

Unlv Magazine, Carol C. Harter, Joe Cockrell, Tony Allen, Regina Bacolas, Lori Bachand, Jennifer Lawson, Bret C. Birdsong, Steve Parker, Erin O'Donnell, Jennifer Robison

UNLV Magazine

No abstract provided.

Decision Modeling: Why Farmers Do Or Do Not Convert To Organic Farming, Ryan Locke

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study examines why farmers in Northern New South Wales, Australia do or do not convert to organic farming from conventional farming practices. Organic agriculture provides a production alternative that may be environmentally and nutritionally beneficial. Because the structural settings of economy and society influence decision-making on an individual basis at the farm level, discussions of policy must consider why farmers do, or do not, convert to organic farming. Ultimately, the successfulness of a policy depends on the effectiveness of motivating individual action. A hierarchical decision tree was created using ethnographic decision tree modeling. Elimination criteria, motivational criteria, and constraints …

Take Pride In America In Southern Nevada: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending March 31, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Anti-littering Programs

• A community-based roundtable met three times this quarter to suggest goals and objectives for the anti-litter strategic plan.

• Project Manager Doug Joslin is representing the public lands on a Clark County Recycling Advisory Committee, which met twice this quarter.

• Four public service announcements were produced by UNLV students, with one selected by the team for use in the Southern Nevada messaging campaign.

• The Clint Eastwood Take Pride in America PSA aired 74 times in January 2006 and was viewed by 116,802 people.

• The interagency team has begun arrangements for paper recycling in partnership with the …

Cooperative Conservation: Increasing Capacity Through Community Partnerships -- Interagency Volunteer Program & Cooperative Conservation Program: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending March 31, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Get Outdoors Nevada

• Interagency volunteer database now contains 2,211 records, reflecting 404 new volunteer records this quarter, a 22% increase over last quarter.
• Website activity decreased, recording an average of 35,798 hits per month, with an average of 3,337 pages viewed per month.
• Volunteer events were successfully executed in Sloan Canyon NCA, Spring Mountains NRA, and Lake Mead NRA.
• Interagency training was delivered to 70 volunteers.

Gray Wolf Populations In The United States, 2006

Rocky Mountain Wolf Recovery: Annual Reports

Gray Wolf Populations

Presentation To Green Valley Rotary Club March 16, 2006, Public Lands Institute, Nancy Flagg

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is dedicated to strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

In collaboration with federal, state, and non-profit partners, we are:

• creating new knowledge
• advancing technology
• improving education
• engaging the public to enhance public lands stewardship.

Public Lands, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is fully engaged in strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

Scwds Briefs: Volume 22, Number 1 (April 2006), Michael J. Yabsley

Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study: Publications

Avian Influenza Update - May 2006: 207 human cases, 115 fatalities. HPAI H5N1 virus has been detected in wild birds in Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and other European countries.
SCWDS remains actively involved in several field and laboratory studies investigating the ecology of avian influenza virus (AIV), including both high pathogenicity viruses (HPAI) and low pathogenicity viruses (LPAI).
A plan to conduct a survey of avian influenza (AI) viruses in wild birds in Canada was developed late in 2004 by the Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Centre (CCWHC) in consultation with a wide range of federal and provincial …

Refuge Update – March/April 2006, Volume 3, Number 2

RefugeUpdate (USFWS-NWRS)

Table of Contents:
Energy Company Fine Benefits Ottawa Refuge, page 3
Hide and Seek…but Mostly Hide page 4
Focus on …Pollinators, page 10
Great Storytellers, page 18

Fire History, Passerine Abundance, And Habitat On A North Dakota Drift Plain Prairie, Timothy J. Ludwick, Robert K. Murphy

The Prairie Naturalist

Prescribed fire is among key tools for restoring and managing prairies in the northern Great Plains, yet there are no published reports of its impacts on grassland passerine birds on native prairie in the Drift Plain, a major physiographic subregion. We examined relationships between prescribed fire history and abundance and habitat of breeding passerines in Drift Plain prairie at Des Lacs National Wildlife National Refuge in northwestern North Dakota. In 2003, we used point counts (n = 79 75 m radius plots) to survey bird abundance on 16 management units that had been prescribe-burned one to three times each …

New Directions In Conservation For The National Wildlife Refuge System, Robert L. Fischman, Vicky J. Meretsky, James R. Karr, Daniel M. Ashe, Michael Scott, Reed F. Noss, Richard L. Schroeder

Articles by Maurer Faculty

The National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997 includes the nation’s broadest statutory commitment to ecosystem protection: to “ensure that the biological integrity, diversity, and environmental health of the system are maintained.” The act also directs the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to expand the scope of conservation monitoring, assessment, and management beyond refuge boundaries to encompass surrounding landscapes. The act thus gives the FWS a leadership role in developing research and management partnerships with other agencies, organizations, and neighboring landowners. Increasing research capacity and scientific expertise, and strengthening institutional resolve to limit activities that impede the attainment …

Advisory Circular: Construction Or Establishment Of Landfills Near Public Airports, David L. Bennett

Other Bird Strike and Aviation Materials

This advisory circular (AC) contains guidance on complying with Federal statutory requirements regarding the construction or establishment of landfills near public airports.

Presentation To Outside Las Vegas Foundation January 23, 2006, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is dedicated to strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.

In collaboration with federal, state, and non-profit partners, we are:

• creating new knowledge
• advancing technology
• improving education
• engaging the public to become involved in conservation and stewardship.

Factors Contributing To Dust Emissions In Clark County, Nevada Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending January 15, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Dust Emissions from Public Lands

• Task agreement formally executed November 1, 2005
• Search for post-doctoral scholar commenced November 17, 2005

Effects Of Economic And Environmental Reform On The Diffusion Of Cleaner Coal Technology In China, Stephanie Ohshita, L Ortolano

Environmental Science

Coal is both the major fuel for China's economic development and the major source of its severe air pollution. China's reliance on coal for nearly three-quarters of its primary energy has contributed to local air pollution, regional acid rain and global climate change. At the same time, the country's coal consumption has electrified its growing cities and helped Chinese steel and chemical industries to become international powerhouses.

This contribution considers how the intertwined issues of environmental reform and economic reform have affected efforts to reduce coal-related air pollution in China. Our analysis focuses on government efforts to promote the diffusion …

Refuge Update – January/February 2006, Volume 3, Number 1

RefugeUpdate (USFWS-NWRS)

Table of Contents:

Three New Species in Alaska
Conserving Wildlife State by State
Focus on…Incident Command
Mushing to Your New Job

Optimal Management Of Groundwater Over Space And Time, Nicholas Brozovic, David L. Sunding, David Zilberman

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

For nearly half a century, groundwater has been portrayed in the economic literature as a typical common property resource. Numerous studies of groundwater extraction have analyzed the externalities imposed by users on each other. A large body of work offers clear prescriptions in the form of optimal policy instruments, and a similarly large body of work advocates the needlessness of any centralized intervention. Yet existing theoretical models of groundwater extraction implicitly make two strong assumptions about the underlying behavior of the resource. First, the spatial distribution of resource users is assumed to be irrelevant. Second, path-independence of the resource is …

Emisja Zanieczyszczeń Z Procesu Grafityzacji Elektrod Węglowych W Piecach Lwg (Castnera). Cz. 2. Wybrane Substancje Pyłowe, Marian Mazur, Robert Oleniacz, Marek Bogacki, Przemysław Szczygłowski

Robert Oleniacz

The measurement results of quantity of dust pollutants originated and emitted to air from LWG (Castner) furnaces during graphitisation process of coal electrodes were presented in the paper. The investigation was carried out for total dust, total tar substances and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The measurements were performed both before and after the flue gas control system (catalytic burning and wet cleaning). Thus changes of the substance concentrations in the gases for the cleaning system were estimated. As a result of the investigation was conclusion that the graphite process of coal electrodes in LWG stoves is not a significant source …

Emisja Zanieczyszczeń Z Pieca Achesona Do Grafityzacji Wyrobów Drobnych, Marian Mazur, Robert Oleniacz, Marek Bogacki, Przemysław Szczygłowski

Robert Oleniacz

Research results of the air pollutant emissions from the graphitisation process of fine products in the Acheson electric resistance furnace (discharge capacity 5,5 Mg) were presented in the paper. Research was performed for two kinds of raw material inputs (based on petroleum coke and pitch coke). Approximately 40-hours measurement series were carried out for each material including mainly such substances like carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, carbon disulphide, ammonia, benzene, toluene, xylenes, total dust, tar substances and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Both average and maximum concentrations and mass streams in the flue gases and average emission factors …

Removal Of Methyl-Tert Butyl Ether From Water By A Pulsed Arc Electrohydraulic Discharge System, Danielle M. Angeloni, Sarah E. Dickson, Monica B. Emelko, J -S Chang

Sarah E Dickson

The removal of methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE) from water by a pulsed arc electrohydraulic discharge (PAED) system was investigated experimentally at the laboratory scale. The effects of arc electrode gap, detention time and initial solution pH on the efficacy of MTBE treatment by PAED were investigated. A 0.3 kJ/pulse spark-gap-type power supply was employed in combination with a 3.0 L flow-through reactor. Experimental results showed that: 1) oxidation reactions are induced by this PAED system; 2) removal efficiency increases with increasing cumulative input energy (kW·h/m3 or kJ/L); 3) removal efficiency decreases with increasing arc electrode gap; and 4) initial solution pH …

Pulsed Electrohydraulic Discharge Characteristics In An Eccentric Electrode Cylindrical Reactor With Pbs, A Yamataki, D M. Angeloni, Sarah E. Dickson, Monica B. Emelko, K Yasuoka, J -S Chang

Sarah E Dickson

Pulsed arc electrohydroulic discharge (PAED) has been proposed as a water treatment technology for the removal of chemical and microbial contaminants. In this work, we examined the fundamental characteristics of a PAED system with an eccentric electrode cylindrical reactor. Phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) water was used in lieu of tap water, because the conductivity of PBS is much higher than that of tap water. The results show that the voltage and current waveforms generated in PBS and tap water are very different due to the higher conductivity of PBS. Strong pressure waves and UV emission were also observed in PBS.

Decision Support System For Rural Water Supply In The Nilgris District Of South India, Daniel Olsen, Sarah E. Dickson, Brian Baetz

Sarah E Dickson

A considerable amount of knowledge exists for planning, designing, and implementing rural water supply schemes in developing countries around the world. Generalized decision support systems (DSSs) are used to tackle the daunting task of providing water in areas that have poor water resources and limited financial capacity. However, there is a lack of site-specific DSSs that utilise local hydrological and socio-economic data for assessing regionally-based rural water supply schemes. In the Nilgiris District of South India, an organizational structure exists for improving local water resources through watershed management projects, but many of the tools used to make informed decisions are …