Integração de dados geofísicos de poços e geoquímicos na avaliação do potencial gerador dos folhelhos betuminosos da Formação Tremembé, Bacia de Taubaté

Nos depósitos cenozóicos da Bacia de Taubaté são encontrados depósitos de folhelhos betuminosos (oleígenos) pertencentes à Formação Tremembé, de idade oligocênica, que durante alguns anos na década de 50 foram investigados com relação ao seu aproveitamento econômico através da extração industrial do óleo nele contido. Entretanto, em face de aspectos tecnológicos e conjunturais da época, esse aproveitamento industrial foi considerado inviável do ponto de vista econômico. Nesta dissertação é proposta uma aplicação da perfilagem geofísica para a caracterização da faciologia dos folhelhos betuminosos da Formação Tremembé, tendo como objetivo principal a identificação das eletrofácies nos perfis elétricos, através de uma metodologia robusta e consistente. A identificação de eletrofácies é importante para ajudar na determinação da caracterização de uma reserva não convencional e na análise da viabilidade econômica. Neste estudo foram utilizados os perfis convencionais de poço: Raio gama, resitividade, potencial espontâneo e sônico. Os dados de perfis de poços foram integrados com os testemunhos e dados geoquímicos, mais precisamente os dados de COT, S, IH, S2 para uma caracterização realística das eletrofácies. Os dados foram obtidos a partir de três sondagens rotativas realizadas na Bacia de Taubaté, resultantes de testemunhagem contínua e perfilagem a cabo ao longo do intervalo de folhelhos da Formação Tremembé. A partir disto, obtém-se como resposta um modelo específico para cada litologia, onde cada pico corresponde a uma eletrofácies, permitindo o estabelecimento de alguns padrões ou assinaturas geofísicas para as principais fácies ocorrentes. Como resultado deste trabalho, foi possível correlacionar as eletrofácies entre os poços numa seção modelo, a partir de similaridade lateral das eletrofácies entre os marcos estratigráficos representado, foi possível observar a continuidade de duas sequências de folhelhos betuminoso com alto teores de COT, S, IH, S2, considerados os mais importantes do ponto de vista econômico e gerado um modelo faciológico 2D e 3D dessas camadas. Os resultados obtidos neste trabalho são bastante promissores, apontando para a possibilidade de aplicação desta técnica a outros poços da Bacia de Taubaté, fornecendo subsídios relevantes à determinação da evolução sedimentar.

Farming a new economically viable fish species: Kisinja (Barbus altianalis)

Kisinja (Barbus altianalis)is an indigenous omnivorous fish, of high economic value in Uganda. It was widely distributed in most lakes and rivers in the country but its stocks were depleted due to overfishing and degradation of its natural habitat. 1t can grow up to a maximum length of 120m and a weight of 15kg in the wild and grows faster, attains larger size than commonly farmed fishes in Uganda, including the Nile tilapia, the African catfish, and mirror carp. Kisinja is a highly valuable table fish with good taste and aroma especially when smoked. Increased production of Kisinja is therefore necessary to meet economic and nutritional benefits of the communities and conservation of the spedes.

The effectiveness of physical activity interventions in socio-economically disadvantaged communities: A systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: Interventions to increase levels of physical activity (PA) in socio-economically disadvantaged communities are needed but little is known about their effectiveness. This review examines the effectiveness of interventions designed to increase PA in these communities and the theoretical frameworks and components used. METHODS: Five databases were searched for papers published in English between January 2000 and December 2010 that reported outcomes of PA interventions in socio-economically disadvantaged communities. Studies targeting individuals with pre-existing disease and not reporting a measure of free-living PA were excluded. Two reviewers independently extracted data and evaluated quality of evidence against pre-defined criteria. RESULTS: Of 478 publications identified, 27 were included. We found that group-based interventions were effective for adults but not for children; evidence for the effectiveness of interventions targeting individuals was insufficient; limited evidence suggested that community-wide interventions produced small changes in PA. Interventions underpinned by any theoretical framework, compared to none, were more likely to be effective. Several effective interventions included education, PA and social support components. CONCLUSION: Compared to other approaches, multi-component adult group-based interventions with theoretical frameworks are most effective in increasing PA in socio-economically disadvantaged communities. More robust evaluations of interventions targeting individuals in these 'hard-to-reach' communities are required. Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Can grass biomethane be an economically viable biofuel for the farmer and the consumer?

Farm incomes in Ireland are in decline and many farmers would operate at a loss in the absence of subsidies. Agriculture is responsible for 27% of Ireland's greenhouse gas emissions and is the largest contributing sector. Penetration of renewable energy in the heat and transport sectors is falling short of targets, and there is no clear plan for achieving them. The anaerobic digestion of grass to produce biogas or biomethane is put forward as a multifaceted solution, which could help meet energy and emissions targets, reduce dependence on imported energy, and provide additional farm income. This paper addresses the economic viability of such a system. Grass biogas/biomethane fares poorly under the current combined heat and power tariff structure, which is geared toward feedstock that attracts a gate fee. Tariff structures similar to those used in other countries are necessary for the industry to develop. Equally, regulation should be implemented to allow injection of biomethane into the gas grid in Ireland. Blends of natural gas and biomethane can be sold, offering a cost-competitive green fuel. Sale as a renewable transport fuel could allow profitability for the farmer and savings for the consumer, but suffers due to the lack of a market. Under current conditions, the most economically viable outlet for grass biomethane is sale as a renewable heating fuel. The key to competitiveness is the existing natural gas infrastructure that enables distribution of grass biomethane, and the renewable energy targets that allow renewable fuels to compete against each other. © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Identifying Economically Vulnerable Groups as the Economic Crisis Emerged

A frequent refrain during recent debates on welfare cuts and tax increases has related to the need to "protect the vulnerable". However, it is far from clear that a consensus exists on which individuals or groups are to be included under this heading with a consequent lack of clarity for the policy implications of pursuing this goal. In this paper, operating with a conception of social exclusion that incorporates notions of dynamics and multidimensionality, we make use of EU-SILC 2008 data for Ireland to clarify the distinction between income poverty and economic vulnerability. We then proceed to consider the relationship between these outcomes and multiple deprivation, financial pressures and perceptions of recent and future economic prospects. Our analysis is then extended to compare patterns of risk for poverty and vulnerability in relation to key socio-economic groups. Finally, we will consider the relationship between poverty and vulnerability and the distribution of welfare dependence. Our analysis suggests that the vulnerable but non-poor group may need to be a key focus of policy attention in the future.

Identifying solutions to increase participation in physical activity interventions within a socio-economically disadvantaged community: a qualitative study

Background: There is an urgent need to increase population levels of physical activity, particularly amongst those who are socio-economically disadvantaged. Multiple factors influence physical activity behaviour but the generalisability of current evidence to such ‘hard-to-reach’ population subgroups is limited by difficulties in recruiting them into studies. Also, rigorous qualitative studies of lay perceptions and perceptions of community leaders about public health efforts to increase physical activity are sparse. We sought to explore, within a socio-economically disadvantaged community, residents’ and community leaders’ perceptions of physical activity (PA) interventions and issues regarding their implementation, in order to improve understanding of needs, expectations, and social/environmental factors relevant to future interventions.

Methods: Within an ongoing regeneration project (Connswater Community Greenway), in a socio-economically disadvantaged community in Belfast, we collaborated with a Community Development Agency to purposively sample leaders from public- and voluntary-sector community groups and residents. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 leaders. Residents (n=113), of both genders and a range of ages (14 to 86 years) participated in focus groups (n=14) in local facilities. Interviews and focus groups were recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using a thematic framework.

Results: Three main themes were identified: awareness of PA interventions; factors contributing to intervention effectiveness; and barriers to participation in PA interventions. Participants reported awareness only of interventions in which they were involved directly, highlighting a need for better communications, both inter- and intra-sectoral, and with residents. Meaningful engagement of residents in planning/organisation, tailoring to local context, supporting volunteers, providing relevant resources and an ‘exit strategy’ were perceived as important factors related to intervention effectiveness. Negative attitudes such as apathy, disappointing experiences, information with no perceived personal relevance and limited access to facilities were barriers to people participating in interventions.

Conclusions: These findings illustrate the complexity of influences on a community’s participation in PA interventions and support a social-ecological approach to promoting PA. They highlight the need for cross-sector working, effective information exchange, involving residents in bottom-up planning and providing adequate financial and social support. An in-depth understanding of a target population’s perspectives is of key importance in translating PA behaviour change theories into practice.

Poverty and Education: Preparing Teacher Candidates for Economically Diverse Classroom Environments

The poverty rate in Ontario affects approximately 1 in 6 children. Consequently, many classrooms in the province include students who come from poverty, and teachers are faced with the challenge of providing an equitable education to students who come from economically diverse backgrounds. Because student poverty in our education system is so prevalent, this challenge exists also for teacher candidates who enter the education system and complete their practicums in classrooms that often include students from impoverished backgrounds. This project examined issues of poverty and education and developed a workshop to assist teacher candidates to develop knowledge in this area. The project combined existing pedagogical approaches with participants’ recommendations and developed a workshop that could be delivered to Faculty of Education students. The workshop addresses poverty, the relationship between poverty and education, student academic achievement and well-being, and the relationship between school and home. The goal and hope of the workshop is that teacher candidates will be better prepared when working in economically diverse school environments.

Introduction: perspectives for economically important wild species and neglected crops in the Mediterranean

The Mediterranean region is one of the major centres of origin and diversification of cultivated plants and many crop wild relatives are found there. In addition, many native species are still widely harvested from the wild for food, medicine and other uses and some of these have potential for development as alternative crop especially in marginal zones. While there have been several recent initiatives that address the cataloguing and conservation of these species, such as the Network on Identification, Conservation and Use of Wild Plants in the Mediterranean Region (MEDUSA and the Bioversity International (IPGRI) studies on Underutilized Mediterranean Species (VMS), no comprehensive assessment has yet been made and little work undertaken on their agricultural potential. It has been confidently predicted that consequences of global change in the Mediterranean region - population movements and migrations, changes in disturbance regimes, and climate change - will be serious. One the one hand, this will affect the survival prospects of many of these underutilized species and on the other hand it will enhance their importance as the source of potential new crop germplasm. The conservation and availability of genetic diversity of both crops and underutilized species is essential if we are to be able to meet the increasing demand for food and other crops that will be adapted to the new ecoclimatic envelopes that will develop in the region as a consequence of global change. The rapid rate of climatic and other change that is expected adds urgency to the task of assessing, conserving and sustainably using this rich diversity of wild species of economic value in the region but new strategies will be need to be developed to achieve this. The Mediterranean region has the potential of becoming a major source of new crop development in the coming decades.