Chemical Treatment Methods Pilot (CTMP) System for Treatment of Urban Runoff – Phase I. Feasibility and Design

(pdf contains 418 pages)

A review paper on Integrated Aquaculture Benefits Project at Federal College of Forestry, Ibadan

This paper highlights some of the practices involved in integrated aquaculture such as poultry-cum-fish, pig-cum-fish, sheep and goat-cum-fish and grasscutter-cum-fish. Also the role of fisheries in alleviating protein deficiency was reviewed. Successful research findings on these practices in aquaculture at the Federal College of Forestry, Jericho, Ibadan (Nigeria) will eventually lead to alleviating protein deficiency of the inhabitants of the largest city in West African thus alleviating poverty in the nation

Habitat enhancing marine structures: Creating habitat in urban waters

Although maritime regions support a large portion of the world’s human population, their value as habitat for other species is overlooked. Urban structures that are built in the marine environment are not designed or managed for the habitat they provide, and are built without considering the communities of marine organisms that could colonize them (Clynick et al., 2008). However, the urban waterfront may be capable of supporting a significant proportion of regional aquatic biodiversity (Duffy-Anderson et al., 2003). While urban shorelines will never return to their original condition, some scientists think that the habitat quality of urban waterfronts could be significantly improved through further research and some design modifications, and that many opportunities exist to make these modifications (Russel et al., 1983, Goff, 2008). Habitat enhancing marine structures (or HEMS) are a potentially promising approach to address the impact of cities on marine organisms including habitat fragmentation and degradation. HEMS are a type of habitat improvement project that are ecologically engineered to improve the habitat quality of urban marine structures such as bulkheads and docks for marine organisms. More specifically, HEMS attempt to improve or enhance the physical habitat that organisms depend on for survival in the inter- and sub-tidal waterfronts of densely populated areas. HEMS projects are targeted at areas where human-made structures cannot be significantly altered or removed. While these techniques can be used in suburban or rural areas restoration or removal is preferred in these settings, and HEMS are resorted to only if removal of the human-made structure is not an option. Recent research supports the use of HEMS projects. Researchers have examined the communities found on urban structures including docks, bulkheads, and breakwaters. Complete community shifts have been observed where the natural shoreline was sandy, silty, or muddy. There is also evidence of declines in community composition, ecosystem functioning, and increases in non-native species abundances in assemblages on urban marine structures. Researchers have identified two key differences between these substrates including the slope (seawalls are vertical; rocky shores contain multiple slopes) and microhabitat availability (seawalls have very little; rocky shores contain many different types). In response, researchers have suggested designing and building seawalls with gentler slopes or a combination of horizontal and vertical surfaces. Researchers have also suggested incorporating microhabitat, including cavities designed to retain water during low tide, crevices, and other analogous features (Chapman, 2003; Moreira et al., 2006) (PDF contains 4 pages)

Cypermethrin use in forestry and its impact on Welsh streams: An evaluation of the impact of cypermethrin use in forestry on Welsh streams

This is the Evaluation of the impact of cypermethrin use in forestry on Welsh streams from the University of Plymouth, published on September 2010 by the Environment Agency South West. The report focuses attention on Cypermethrin, a highly active synthetic pyrethroid insecticide effective against a wide range of pests in agriculture, public health, and animal husbandry. It is also used in forestry to control the pine weevil, Hylobius abietis. Cypermethrin is very toxic to aquatic invertebrates and fish at nanogram per litre concentrations. This project checks the effectiveness of current best practice measures in minimising the risk of pollution associated with the use of cypermethrin in forestry in Wales. Chemical results from the intensive studies show that cypermethrin entered minor watercourses draining treated areas at two of the eight sites. In one of these cases the level was well in excess of the short-term Predicted No Effect Concentration. The absence of a buffer area at the other site resulted in the cypermethrin reaching a main drain. However dilution appeared to be sufficient to prevent any impact on water quality or on the invertebrate community in the main stream. Invertebrate and chemical data from the extensive survey showed little evidence of pollution due to wider use of cypermethrin in Welsh forestry. Finally, a number of recommendations are made for further tightening controls on forestry practice to minimise the risk of cypermethrin entering the aquatic environment.

The quest for temperature records in California free of urban heat island effects [abstract, figures, and tables]

EXTRACT (SEE PDF FOR FULL ABSTRACT): The data of this paper differ from the Jones and Bradley papers [of 1982-1986] in that it represents an attempt to select thermal pollution free records rather than to include all available records. The specific long-term trends that this paper is trying to avoid are those illustrated by the heat islands of fast growing urban locations. One other major difference in this paper is that all of the records reported of this study are complete for the entire study period.

Forestry Impacts on Freshwater Habitat of Anadromous Salmonids in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska: requirements for protection and restoration

This synthesis presents a science overview of the major forest management Issues involved in the recovery of anadromous salmonids affected by timber harvest in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. The issues involve the components of ecosystem-based watershed management and how best to implement them, including how to: Design buffer zones to protect fish habitat while enabling economic timber production; Implement effective Best Management Practices (BMPs) to prevent nonpoint-source pollution; Develop watershed-level procedures across property boundaries to prevent cumulative impacts; Develop restoration procedures to contribute to recovery of ecosystem processes; and Enlist support of private landowners in watershed planning, protection, and restoration. Buffer zones, BMPs, cumulative impact prevention, and restoration are essential elements of what must be a comprehensive approach to habitat protection and restoration applied at the watershed level within a larger context of resource concerns in the river basin, species status under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and regional environmental and economic issues (Fig. ES. 1). This synthesis 1) reviews salmonid habitat requirements and potential effects of logging; 2) describes the technical foundation of forest practices and restoration; 3) analyzes current federal and non-federal forest practices; and 4) recommends required elements of comprehensive watershed management for recovery of anadromous salmonids.