Water resources assessment and geographic information system (GIS)-based stormwater runoff estimates for artificial recharge of freshwater aquifers in New Providence, Bahamas

The Bahamas is a small island nation that is dealing with the problem of freshwater shortage. All of the country’s freshwater is contained in shallow lens aquifers that are recharged solely by rainfall. The country has been struggling to meet the water demands by employing a combination of over-pumping of aquifers, transport of water by barge between islands, and desalination of sea water. In recent decades, new development on New Providence, where the capital city of Nassau is located, has created a large area of impervious surfaces and thereby a substantial amount of runoff with the result that several of the aquifers are not being recharged. A geodatabase was assembled to assess and estimate the quantity of runoff from these impervious surfaces and potential recharge locations were identified using a combination of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing. This study showed that runoff from impervious surfaces in New Providence represents a large freshwater resource that could potentially be used to recharge the lens aquifers on New Providence.

Analysis of global compliance and implementation of the goals of international environmental treaties: A case study of the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD)

The Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) was created in 1992 to coordinate global governments to protect biological resources. The CBD has three goals: protection of biodiversity, achievement of sustainable use of biodiversity and facilitation of equitable sharing of the benefits of biological resources. The goal of protecting biological resources has remained both controversial and difficult to implement. This study focused more on the goal of biodiversity protection. The research was designed to examine how globally constructed environmental policies get adapted by national governments and then passed down to local levels where actual implementation takes place. Effectiveness of such policies depends on the extent of actual implementation at local levels. Therefore, compliance was divided and examined at three levels: global, national and local. The study then developed various criteria to measure compliance at these levels. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used to analyze compliance and implementation. The study was guided by three questions broadly examining critical factors that most influence the implementation of biodiversity protection policies at the global, national and local levels. Findings show that despite an overall biodiversity deficit of 0.9 hectares per person, global compliance with the CBD goals is currently at 35%. Compliance is lowest at local levels at 14%, it is slightly better at national level at 50%, and much better at the international level 64%. Compliance appears higher at both national and international levels because compliance here is paper work based and policy formulation. If implementation at local levels continues to produce this low compliance, overall conservation outcomes can only get worse than what it is at present. There are numerous weaknesses and capacity challenges countries are yet to address in their plans. In order to increase local level compliance, the study recommends a set of robust policies that build local capacity, incentivize local resource owners, and implement biodiversity protection programs that are akin to local needs and aspirations.^

English Language Learners: A Correlational Study of the Relationship Between A Proficiency Level Assessment and End of Course Test Scores at one Georgia High School

Understanding the language of one’s cultural environment is important for effective communication and function. As such, students entering U.S. schools from foreign countries are given access to English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) programs and they are referred to as English Language Learner (ELL) students. This dissertation examined the correlation of ELL ACCESS Composite Performance Level (CPL) score to the End of Course tests (EOCTs) and the Georgia High School Graduation Tests (GHSGTs) in the four content courses (language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies). A premise of this study was that English language proficiency is critical in meeting or exceeding state and county assessment standards. A quantitative descriptive research design was conducted using Cross-sectional archival data from a secondary source. There were 148 participants from school years 2011-2012 to 2013- 2014 from Grades 9-12. A Pearson product moment correlation was run to assess the relationship between the ACCESS CPL (independent variable) and the EOCT scores and the GHSGT scores (dependent variables). The findings showed that there was a positive correlation between ACCESS CPL scores and the EOCT scores where language arts showed a strong positive correlation and mathematics showed a positive weak correlation. Also, there was a positive correlation between ACCESS CPL scores and GHSGT scores where language arts showed a weak positive correlation. The results of this study indicated that that there is a relationship between the stated variables, ACCESS CPL, EOCT and GHSGT. Also, the results of this study showed that there were positive correlations at varying degrees for each grade levels. While the null hypothesis for Research Question 1 and Research Question 2 were rejected, there was a slight relationship between the variables.

An interactive environmental site assessment audit for Wagner Creek river basin clean up project

The primary purpose of this thesis was to design and create an Interactive Audit to conduct Environmental Site Assessments according to American Society of Testing Material's (ASTM) Phase I Standards at the Wagner Creek study area. ArcPad and ArcIMS are the major software that were used to create the model and ArcGIS Desktop was used for data analysis and to export shapefile symbology to ArcPad. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is an effective tool to deploy these purposes. This technology was utilized to carry out data collection, data analysis and to display data interactively on the Internet. Electronic forms, customized for mobile devices were used to survey sites. This is an easy and fast way to collect and modify field data. New data such as land use, recognized environmental conditions, and underground storage tanks can be added into existing datasets. An updated map is then generated and uploaded to the Internet using ArcIMS technology. The field investigator has the option to generate and view the Inspection Form at the end of his survey on site, or print a hardcopy at base. The mobile device also automatically generates preliminary editable Executive Reports for any inspected site.

Analysis of Global Compliance and Implementation of the Goals of International Environmental Treaties: A Case study of the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD)

The Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) was created in 1992 to coordinate global governments to protect biological resources. The CBD has three goals: protection of biodiversity, achievement of sustainable use of biodiversity and facilitation of equitable sharing of the benefits of biological resources. The goal of protecting biological resources has remained both controversial and difficult to implement. This study focused more on the goal of biodiversity protection. The research was designed to examine how globally constructed environmental policies get adapted by national governments and then passed down to local levels where actual implementation takes place. Effectiveness of such policies depends on the extent of actual implementation at local levels. Therefore, compliance was divided and examined at three levels: global, national and local. The study then developed various criteria to measure compliance at these levels. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used to analyze compliance and implementation. The study was guided by three questions broadly examining critical factors that most influence the implementation of biodiversity protection policies at the global, national and local levels. Findings show that despite an overall biodiversity deficit of 0.9 hectares per person, global compliance with the CBD goals is currently at 35%. Compliance is lowest at local levels at 14%, it is slightly better at national level at 50%, and much better at the international level 64%. Compliance appears higher at both national and international levels because compliance here is paper work based and policy formulation. If implementation at local levels continues to produce this low compliance, overall conservation outcomes can only get worse than what it is at present. There are numerous weaknesses and capacity challenges countries are yet to address in their plans. In order to increase local level compliance, the study recommends a set of robust policies that build local capacity, incentivize local resource owners, and implement biodiversity protection programs that are akin to local needs and aspirations.

US Highway 65 / IA-330 Improvements Polk and Jasper Counties, Iowa : Limited Phase I, Environmental Site Assessment, 1998

The Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT) is currently considering improvements for US Highway 65 (US-65) and Iowa State Highway 330 (IA-330) in Polk and Jasper Counties, Iowa. As part of its project planning effort, IDOT is preparing an Environmental Assessment (EA) report which will include a section entitled "Hazardous Waste" to identify known sites in or near the proposed corridors that are, or could be, contaminated with hazardous or petroleum substances.

Government decentralization and disaster impact, an exploratory study

The purpose of this study is to explore the link between decentralization and the impact of natural disasters through empirical analysis. It addresses the issue of the importance of the role of local government in disaster response through different means of decentralization. By studying data available for 50 countries, it allows to develop the knowledge on the role of national government in setting policy that allows flexibility and decision making at a local level and how this devolution of power influences the outcome of disasters. The study uses Aaron Schneider’s definition and rankings of decentralization, the EM-DAT database to identify the amount of people affected by disasters on average per year as well as World Bank Indicators and the Human Development Index (HDI) to model the role of local decentralization in mitigating disasters. With a multivariate regression it looks at the amount of affected people as explained by fiscal, administrative and political decentralization, government expenses, percentage of urbanization, total population, population density, the HDI and the overall Logistics Performance Indicator (LPI). The main results are that total population, the overall LPI and fiscal decentralization are all significant in relation to the amount of people affected by disasters for the countries and period studied. These findings have implication for government’s policies by indicating that fiscal decentralization by allowing local governments to control a bigger proportion of the countries revenues and expenditures plays a role in reducing the amount of affected people in disasters. This can be explained by the fact that local government understand their own needs better in both disaster prevention and response which helps in taking the proper decisions to mitigate the amount of people affected in a disaster. The reduction in the implication of national government might also play a role in reducing the time of reaction to face a disaster. The main conclusion of this study is that fiscal control by local governments can help reduce the amount of people affected by disasters.

Different approaches to municipal solid waste management in Brazil : case study Rio de Janeiro

Inadequate final disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW) is associated with significant greenhouse gas (GHG) emission, environmental, health and safety issues, space consumption, public health and developmental issues in general. The environmental impact of waste is mostly felt in developing countries, inadequate waste management and treatment solution, inadequate policies and outdated practices are some of the factors leading to the significantly high final disposal of waste in dumps in developing countries. Brazil and other developing countries are changing the status quo by adopting polices that will adequately address this problem of inadequate waste management and disposal. Life cycle analysis (LCA) identifies the potential environmental impact of a product though environmental impact assessment, International Organization for Standardization (ISO) created the ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 to serve as principle guidelines for conducting LCA. Various waste treatment solution was applied to identify the waste management solution with the least Global warming potential (GWP) for treating the MSW generated from the city of Rio de Janerio, while reducing significantly final waste disposed in landfill.

Impact of dead and sunken water hyacinth on biotic communities, the aquatic environment and socioeconomic activities

The mobile water hyacinth, which was produced in growth zones, especially Murchison bay, was mainly exported to three sheltered storage bays (Thruston, Hannington and Waiya). Between 1996 and May 1998, the mobile form of water hyacinth occupied about 800 ha in Thruston bay, 750 ha in Hannington bay and 140 ha in Waiya bay). Biological control weevils and other factors, including localised nutrient depletion, weakened the weed that was confined to the bays and it sunk around October 1998. The settling to the bottom of such huge quantities of organic matter its subsequent decomposition and the debris from this mass was likely to have environmental impacts on biotic communities (e.g. fish and invertebrate), physico-chemical conditions (water quality), and on socio-economic activities (e.g. at fish landings, water abstraction, and hydro-power generation points). Sunken water hyacinth debris could also affect nutrient levels in the water column and lead to reduction in the content of dissolved oxygen. The changes in nutrient dynamics and oxygen levels could affect algal productivity, invertebrate composition and fish communities. Socio-economic impacts of dead sunken weed were expected from debris deposited along the shoreline especially at fish landings, water abstraction and hydropower generation points. Therefore, environmental impact assessment studies were carried out between 1998 and 2002 in selected representative zones of Lake Victoria to identify the effects of the sunken water hyacinth biomass.

Combined exposure to multiple mycotoxins in food: are we ready for risk assessment and risk management?

It is nowadays recognized that the risk of human co-exposure to multiple mycotoxins is real. In the last years, a number of studies have approached the issue of co-exposure and the best way to develop a more precise and realistic assessment. Likewise, the growing concern about the combined effects of mycotoxins and their potential impact on human health has been reflected by the increasing number of toxicological studies on the combined toxicity of these compounds. Nevertheless, risk assessment of these toxins, still follows the conventional paradigm of single exposure and single effects, incorporating only the possibility of additivity but not taking into account the complex dynamics associated to interactions between different mycotoxins or between mycotoxins and other food contaminants. Considering that risk assessment is intimately related to the establishment of regulatory guidelines, once the risk assessment is completed, an effort to reduce or manage the risk should be followed to protect public health. Risk assessment of combined human exposure to multiple mycotoxins thus poses several challenges to scientists, risk assessors and risk managers and opens new avenues for research. This presentation aims to give an overview of the different challenges posed by the likelihood of human co-exposure to mycotoxins and the possibility of interactive effects occurring after absorption, towards knowledge generation to support a more accurate human risk assessment and risk management. For this purpose, a physiologically-based framework that includes knowledge on the bioaccessibility, toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics of multiple toxins is proposed. Regarding exposure assessment, the need of harmonized food consumption data, availability of multianalyte methods for mycotoxin quantification, management of left-censored data and use of probabilistic models will be highlight, in order to develop a more precise and realistic exposure assessment. On the other hand, the application of predictive mathematical models to estimate mycotoxins’ combined effects from in vitro toxicity studies will be also discussed. Results from a recent Portuguese project aimed at exploring the toxic effects of mixtures of mycotoxins in infant foods and their potential health impact will be presented as a case study, illustrating the different aspects of risk assessment highlighted in this presentation. Further studies on hazard and exposure assessment of multiple mycotoxins, using harmonized approaches and methodologies, will be crucial towards an improvement in data quality and contributing to holistic risk assessment and risk management strategies for multiple mycotoxins in foodstuffs.

Publishing and impact criteria, and their bearing on Translation Studies: In search of comparability

This paper questions the current concept of quality as used in research assessment rankings and peer review, with special reference to the link often established between impact and the way this impact is measured in the form of citation counting. Taking translation studies as a case study, we will offer a two-level approach to reveal both the macro- and micro-level biases that exist in this regard. We will first review three key aspects related to the idea of the quality of publications, namely peer review, journal indexing, and journal impact factor. We will then pinpoint some of the main macro-level problems regarding current practices and criteria as applied to translation studies, such as Thomson Reuters World of Science's journal coverage, citation patterns, and publication format. Next we will provide a micro-textual and practical perspective, focusing on citation counts and suggesting a series of corrective measures to increase comparability.

Geochemical Assessment and Separation of Source Waters in the Upper Boulder River Watershed Near Boulder, MT

Environmental samples were collected at three surface water sites between 5/21/2011 and 11/21/2014 along the Upper Boulder River near Boulder Montana. The sites were located at Bernice (within the mountain block), near the High Ore drainage (near the mountain block/basin transition), and at the USGS Gauging Station near Boulder, Montana (within the basin). The parameters measured in the field were SC, temperature, and alkalinity with occasional pH measurements. We collected samples for anions, cations, and stable isotopes in the catchment. We identified endmembers by sampling snow and groundwater and determined from available data an approximate endmember for rain, snow, and groundwater. We used temporal and spatial variations of water chemistry and isotopes to generate an endmember mixing model. Groundwater was found to always be an important contributor to river flow and could increase by nearly an order of magnitude during large snowmelt events. This resulted in groundwater comprising ~20% of total river flow during snowmelt at all sites. At peak snowmelt we observed that near surface water contributions to the river were from a mixture of rain and snow. Soil water, though not sampled, was hypothesized to be an important part of the hydrologic story. If so, the endmember contributions determined in this study may be different. Groundwater may have the highest variation depending on water chemistry of shallow soil water.

Impact assessment of the production and utilization of entomopathogens and its effects on public policies.

2008

Consideration of problem formulation and option assessment (PFOA) for environmental risk assessment: Bt cotton in Vietnam.

2008

Formative and summative assessment and the notion of constructive alignment

This paper discusses the different perceptions of first year accounting students about their tutorial activities and their engagements in assessment. As the literature suggests, unless participation in learning activities forms part of graded assessment, it is often difficult to engage students in these activities. Using an action research model, this paper reports the study of first year accounting students' responses to action-oriented learning tasks in tutorials. The paper focuses on the importance of aligning curriculum objectives, learning and teaching activities and assessment, i.e. the notion of constructive alignment. However, as the research findings indicate, without support at institutional level, applying constructive alignment to facilitate quality student learning outcomes is a difficult task. Thus, the impacts of policy constraints on curriculum issues are also discussed, focusing on the limitations faced by tutors and their lack of involvement in curriculum development.