Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Power Play: The President's Role In Shaping Renewable Energy Regulation And Policy, Luke Bartol

Honors Projects

With the impacts of climate change becoming more and more apparent every day, finding means of effective action to mitigate its effects become increasingly critical. While localized work can play an important role, federal action is necessary to have the most widespread and effective impact, especially on interconnected issues such as clean energy. Congressional action is the avenue of change at this level, however in an increasingly partisan and divided environment, progress on this front is far short of what is needed.

Looking to the president is logical here, both as a single actor more insulated from partisan fights, but …

Diatom Blooms In Harpswell Sound: Seasonality, Succession, And Origin, Charlie Francis O'Brien

Honors Projects

Harpswell Sound (HS) is an inlet in northeastern Casco Bay that exerts control on Gulf of Maine ecosystem health, yet its complex phytoplankton community dynamics have not been characterized with sufficiently detailed analyses. In this research, high-resolution automated microscopy and current velocity observations were used to test the seasonality, ecological succession, bloom origin location, and potential toxicity of populations in HS between 2020 and 2022. Winter months could exhibit slow accumulation of diatom biovolume. Cold, salty surface water has net outflow in winter as nutrients from depth are replenished during net upwelling conditions, and populations could be exported from the …

Cover Crop Performance Under A Changing Climate In Continuous Corn System Over Nebraska, G. Birru, A. Shiferaw, Tsegaye Tadesse, Brian D. Wardlow, V. L. Jin, M. Schmer, Tala Awada, T. Kharel, J. Iqbal

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Literature Circles Promote Accountability And Student Engagement With Assigned Reading In A Soil Science Class, Judith Turk

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Complexities Of Community Consultation In Chile's Lithium Industry, Isabella R. Whelan

Honors Theses

Echoed by November’s COP27 in Egypt, the climate crisis has become an increasingly pressing and global issue, with the need to move away from fossil fuels more urgent than ever. In attempts to decarbonize the global economy, many countries and companies have turned to electrification –particularly within the transportation sector, one of today’s largest contributors of greenhouse gasses. A crucial component of energy storage and batteries is lithium, now considered a “critical mineral.” Demand for lithium has skyrocketed in recent years and is only expected to continue growing. More than fifty percent of the world’s lithium supply is found within …

Net Zero Roadmap For Copper And Nickel, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment, Carbon Trust, Rmi, Payne Institute For Public Policy

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment

As we seek to meet the challenges of climate change impacts, many commodities will play an increasing role in decarbonizing economies. There are increasing challenges of addressing the emissions from extraction of these commodities needed to support the zero-carbon transition.

CCSI, in a consortium with Carbon Trust, RMI, and the Payne Institute for Public Policy at the Colorado School of Mines, developed the Net Zero Roadmap to 2050 for Copper and Nickel Value Chains to support the copper and nickel mining sectors in taking collective, coordinated action by providing a clear, approachable, and accepted roadmap for decarbonization.

Our key messages …

Anticipating And Adapting To The Impacts Of Climate Change On Low Elevation Coastal Zone (Lecz) Communities, Lynn Donelson Wright, Thomas Allen, Kiki Caruson, Alain Hénaff, Jaia Syvitski

Political Science & Geography Faculty Publications

[Scholarcy Abstract] The rates of sea level rise in coastal Virginia and the Chesapeake Bay significantly exceed the global rate and weakening of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation adds to the annual rates.

The original vision was to enhance future resilience of Low-Elevation Coastal Zone communities by advancing understandings and approaches to better anticipate and mitigate hazards to human health, safety and welfare and reduce deleterious impacts to coastal residents and industries. The goal of the thematic Research Topic has been to assemble interdisciplinary papers that contribute to better understanding of the couplings among physical, ecological, socioeconomic, management and policy …

Wwu Environmental Health And Safety Intern, Kevin Nolasco

College of the Environment Internship Reports

The main task as the lab assistant was to collect and characterize any hazardous wastes that were produced by academic, research or other department laboratories. This consisted of seventy percent of my time because the process is time consuming, and this task was to be prioritized as the hazardous wastes were not to be kept in Satellite Accumulation Areas (SAA) more than three days.

Table Of Contents, Academy Editors

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Wwu_Geology_Cetaceon_Queen_Charlotte_Fault, Cameron Dillman

College of the Environment Internship Reports

The Transform Obliquity on the Queen Charlotte fault and Earthquake Study (TOQUES) cruise occurred from July 18 – Aug 23 of 2021 in the N. Pacific Ocean. During this time, TOQUES was using ocean-bottom seismometers (OBS) and acoustic arrays to map the sub-surficial geological features of the Queen Charlotte Fault (QCF). Expendable bathymetry (XBT) was deployed to measure the temperature of the water column in order to determine the speed of sound of the water column.

Nsea Community Program Intern, Paige Aagaard

College of the Environment Internship Reports

was a Community Program Intern with the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association’s (NSEA) Future Leaders of Whatcom County (FLOW) program for spring 2023. NSEA is a local, community-based organization within Whatcom County. It is a 501 c(3) organization meaning that NSEA is a charitable, nonprofit for the benefit of the community (IRS, 2023). Main funding comes from various grants. NSEA’s major focus is on habitat restoration to help declining salmon populations:

Re-Sources North Sound Waterkeeper, Hannah Miller

College of the Environment Internship Reports

My role specifically was as the North Sound Water Keeper. I assisted in various activities that helped monitor, restore, and measure local water ecosystems and engaged with local community members. I created a stormwater pollution permit project to compile data on local facilities in Bellingham. Every month, I assisted in stormwater monitoring of 7 outfalls in Bellingham. The data we collected was entered onto Water Reporter where the public has access. I attended training to learn about the DOE, NPDES, EPA, and beach cleanups. I assisted the Pollution Prevention Specialist on pollution patrols via canoe. The locations we observed were …

Wwu Iws Internship, Owen Sinderman

College of the Environment Internship Reports

The IWS performs several roles, both within the university and with external government and non-government organizations. Among these are assistance with student projects, program development, sponsorship of watershed-related seminars, and provision of equipment and knowledge for water quality monitoring and research. One of the main projects of the IWS is the Lake Whatcom monitoring program, a large-scale watershed study that has been collecting data since 1988. During my time with the Institute, I assisted primarily in this project, specifically with the tributary stormwater and lake water quality aspects. I additionally got a chance to help with the start of a …

Tenvr: Matlab-Based Toolbox For Environmental Research, Aleksandar I. Goranov, Rachel L. Sleighter, Dobromir A. Yordanov, Patrick G. Hatcher

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications

With the advancements in science and technology, datasets become larger and more multivariate, which warrants the need for programming tools for fast data processing and multivariate statistical analysis. Here, the MATLAB-based Toolbox for Environmental Research "TEnvR" (pronounced "ten-ver") is introduced. This novel toolbox includes 44 open-source codes for automated data analysis from a multitude of techniques, such as ultraviolet-visible, fluorescence, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopies, as well as from ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry. Provided are codes for processing data (e.g., spectral corrections, formula assignment), visualization of figures, calculation of metrics, multivariate statistics, and automated work-up of large datasets. TEnvR allows …

Ecological Monitoring Program At Vims Esl: Annual Report 2022, Paige G. Ross, Richard A. Snyder

Reports

An Ecological Monitoring Program (EMP) has been established at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science Eastern Shore Laboratory (VIMS ESL) for the coastal environment near the Wachapreague lab. The goals of the initiative are to 1) provide status and trends information to scientists who study and regulators who manage Virginia’s marine resources, 2) provide a scientific context for short-term research and grant proposals 3) provide pedagogical enrichment for educators to use in their classes, and 4) build capacity in staff expertise and training of interns and students at VIMS ESL.

The program formalizes and standardizes data collection for a long-term …

24/7 Clean Energy, Todd Aagaard

University of Colorado Law Review

In the face of the rapidly escalating climate crisis, the electricity sector is moving toward renewable energy. To date, policies and strategies have focused on increasing overall renewable energy generation, with little regard for timing and location. The result has been a misalignment of supply and demand in renewable energy markets. Renewable power projects produce energy when and where it is least expensive, leaving supply scarce at other times and places. Consumers, meanwhile, continue to use power when and where they need it. This mismatch increases the electricity grid’s dependence on fossil fuel–fired electricity to meet electricity demand at times …

Trademark's Grip Over Sustainability, Daniel R. Cahoy

University of Colorado Law Review

Entrepreneurs and larger firms are waking up to the fact that there is a viable market for recycled, repaired, and even upcycled goods. There is also an increasing desire on the consumer end for more sustainable products as well as measures to reduce landfill and other product disposal harms to the environment. Although some legal barriers to this new market are being actively debated, other barriers have taken a back seat and seem primed to surge only when increased business activity exposes the liability. This is the case with trademark law, which has the potential to substantially deter the small-firm …

Sustainability Hub Newsletter - January 2023, Jacqueline Jergensen, Neyda Gilman, Jennifer Embree

Library Sustainability Resources

The January 2023 Issue of the Sustainability Hub Newsletter shares sustainable New Year's Resolutions, additions to our documentary collection, a new environmental justice mapping tool, information on the Sustainability Hub Interest Group, and a student petition for EV Chargers on campus! Also read our announcements and upcoming events!

Polytech To Polytek: Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Indigenous Science, And The Future Forward Polytechnic University, Cutcha Risling Baldy, Kaitlin P. Reed, Kayla Begay

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

It is clear from Cal Poly Humboldt’s Polytechnic Prospectus that Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) and Indigenous communities are key parts of what elevates Humboldt’s development of a polytechnic university for the next century. The prospectus demonstrates Humboldt's proposed framework for a different comprehensive polytechnic "will also be informed by Indigenous communities and ways of knowing, as many Native peoples have lived sustainably in their places since time immemorial” (19). There are many considerations when engaging with TEK, especially around sustainable use. It is also important that engagement with TEK and Indigenous science not only center knowledge sharing, but also how …

Using Machine Learning Classification And Esa Sentinel 2 Multispectral Imager Data To Delineate Marsh Vegetation And Measure Ecotone Movement In Coastal Georgia, Thomas A. Pudil

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Tidal marshes are unique communities that are subjected to environmental stressors including sea level rise, salinity change, and drought, resulting in constant change. It is important to monitor these changing areas because of the ecosystem services they provide to us, such as protection from storms and carbon sequestration. The proposed work for this thesis project is focused on the study of tidal marshes and the dynamics between the vegetation species within them. The aim of this project is to use geospatial technology and analyses, along with machine learning classification methods, to monitor change in these valuable ecosystems. The Georgia coast …

Middle Savannah River: An A/R/Tographic Ecopedagogical Ethnography Experimenting With Rhizomatic Perspectives, Lisa Augustine-Chizmar

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This research is an experiment in perspective. Using the four commonplaces (Schwab, 1978), I practiced letting the Savannah River teach me what there is to know about the water, the land, the people, and the other entities that depend on ki through artistic, ethnographic, and ecopedagogical lenses. The ethnographic findings describe the social actors that depend on ki and give a voice to the River. The a/r/tographic findings display the River on a canvas map through two hundred years using paint, clay, photography, video, abstract acrylics, and fabric. Together, these methods contribute to a unique ecopedagogical journey. This word cloud …

Climate Justice In The Anthropocene And Its Relationship With Science And Technology: The Importance Of Ethics Of Responsibility, Paolo Davide Farah, Alessio Lo Giudice

Articles

Climate change is a global phenomenon. Therefore, globalization is the necessary hermeneutical horizon to develop an analysis of the metamorphosis climate change could cause at a political, social, and economic level. Within this horizon, this Article shows how the relationship between the concept of the Anthropocene epoch and the request for justice allows for framing a climate-justice and intergenerational equity–focused political interpretation of the effects of climate change. In order to avoid reducing such an interpretation to merely an ideological critique of capitalism, the conception of climate justice needs to be grounded in a rational, ethical model. This Article proposes …

Transforming Agriculture With Intelligent Data Management And Insights," 2023 Ieee International Conference On Big Data, Y. Pan, J. Sun, H. Yu, G. Bai, Y. Ge, J. Luck, Tala Awada

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

On The Economics Of The Transition To A Circular Economy, A. Chennak, K. Giannakas, Tala Awada

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Hydrologic Outcomes For Ecological Meadow Restoration In The Northern Sierra Nevada, Emma Sevier

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Ecologically functioning meadows provide critical ecosystem services including improving a catchment’s water yield, flood dispersion and attenuation, fostering groundwater-dependent ecosystems, and creating natural fire breaks (Loheide and Booth 2011). Degradation from past and current land use has resulted in incised channels that change the magnitude and timing of watershed and meadow fluxes and cause water table decline. Process-based restoration (PBR) is an approach which leverages fluvial processes to increase restoration efficiency. Though PBR is a promising tool to restore degraded meadow ecosystems, more studies are needed to understand its hydrologic outcomes and whether hydrodynamic modeling can be used as a …

Macrolichen Inventory Of The Horse Mountain Botanical Area, Six Rivers National Forest, California, Usa, Sarah Norvell Conway

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Macrolichen diversity and community composition was determined for an area of high botanical interest in the Coast Ranges of Northern California – the Horse Mountain Botanical Area (HMBA) in Six Rivers National Forest. The Coast Ranges have been suggested to have high epiphytic macrolichen diversity, yet detailed site-specific macrolichen surveys are lacking for the area. Here we present comprehensive data on macrolichens of the HMBA integrated with environmental metadata at the landscape level. Twenty 0.4 ha sampling plots were positioned across the varying habitats of the HMBA and macrolichens were intensively sampled from all substrata. Out of 888 total collections, …

The Effects Of Post-Harvest Residue On Plantation Forest Soils And Early Growth Of Redwood And Douglas-Fir Seedlings In Humboldt County California, Robert W. Raibley

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Forest harvest residue (slash) usefulness has been up for debate among private timberland owners, public land managers, and the timber industry for decades. The disposal of slash, viewed as having low ecological value, has received considerable attention as wildfire risk has made burning it harder. In recent years, forest scientists and ecologists have recognized the importance of decaying wood and its relationship to forest growth and regeneration. At this site in Northern California, we looked at whether forest harvest residue enriches soil near slash windrows through soils coring and lab analyses, looking for primary limited nutrients nitrate (NO₃-N) …

Food Waste Storage Gaseous Emissions Detection And Quantification Using Infrared Spectroscopy, Ryley A. Burton-Tauzer

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

A growing interest in sustainable waste management and the implementation of new policies have prompted a shift towards alternative resource recovery methods for organic waste, including food waste. To effectively assess alternative food waste treatment scenarios, it is important to evaluate the life cycle impacts associated with each scenario. The storage phase of food waste, encompassing its accumulation in kitchens, and storage in bins for collection and transportation, has been overlooked as a source of greenhouse gases in previous studies. This investigation aimed to identify the greenhouse gases emitted during the initial five-day period of low-oxygen storage. An open dynamic …

Socio-Economic Comparative Analysis Of Front-Of-The-Meter And Behind-The-Meter Microgrids For Panamnik, Olivia C. Amann Mcshea

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

In Northern California, the Karuk Tribe is feeling the effects of climate change on inadequate energy infrastructures leading to unreliable power supply. Improving energy reliability in a way that also increases energy sovereignty is necessary. Renewable energy microgrids have emerged as a pathway forward.

Modeling ownership structures and cash flows for different microgrid configurations can support the Tribe’s implementation of a microgrid in Orleans, CA that maximizes community benefits. This thesis considers a front-of-the-meter (FTM) and behind-the-meter (BTM) configuration, both approximately 2 MW solar PV and 3 MW/12 MWh battery energy storage. Cash flows including capital costs, operations and maintenance …

Occurrence Of Per- And Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (Pfas) In New Hampshire Biosolids, Katherine A. Wieck

Honors Theses and Capstones

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of over 4,000 compounds used in the manufacturing of products including aqueous film forming foams for firefighting, stain repellents, waterproofing agents, and nonstick cookware since their initial development in the 1940s. The long fluorinated carbon chain structure of PFAS causes chemical and thermal stability, and thus resistance to biodegradation. Biosolids produced at wastewater facilities for uses such as agricultural land-applied compost and fertilizer for lawns and athletic fields, as well as sludge disposed in landfills can cause contamination of groundwater and surface water. This poses a significant threat to human and environmental …