Riparian vegetation instream flow requirements: A case study from a diverted stream in the Eastern Sierra Nevada,California, USA

A methodology is described that allows determination of instream flow requirements for maintenance of riparian trees. Tree-ring data revealed strong relationships between tree growth and stream flow volume for riparian species at Rush Creek, an alluvial stream within an arid setting; these relationships allowed development of models that predict growth rates from hydrologic variables. The models can be used to assess instream flow requirements under the assumption that certain levels of growth are necessary to maintain the population. There is a critical need for development and use of instream flow methodologies for riparian vegetation, since present methodologies focus on needs of aquatic animals (e.g., fish) and may underestimate needs of the entire riparian ecosystem.     

Hot air,fast bucks,or true commitment: Strategies for transforming environmental commitment into a competitive advantage

Just saying that you are doing something is not good enough, especially when it comes to the environment. You need to document your changes and progress. In this article, (reprinted, with permission, from The Environmental Marketing Imperative) we'll show you how you can establish a true and meaningful environmental commitment for your company. We'll also show you how to effectively use this commitment as the basis for strategic marketing and communications plans.     

VALIDATION OF POLITICAL SIMULATION MODELS -WATER RESOURCE PROJECTS1

ABSTRACT. The critical role of political processes in water resource projects has recently been placed in a new perspective [Hall, 1970]. The “political hassle” period of institutional interaction which serves to resolve political conflicts over such aspects as organizational growth and survival, responsibility for economic liabilities, and responsibility for economic benefits, requires systematic analysis in order to improve our capability to implement water projects. Failure to properly assess the political aspects of a proposed water project may result in extensive delays with significant economic losses. The complexities associated with water use and re-use have created the need for new institutional arrangements which can more effectively function to implement policies and programs. One tool which has recently become available for the research investigator concerned with institutional interactions and political processes associated with water resource projects is the technique of computer simulation of such institutional interaction. In theory, this new approach will enable the investigator to assess the political feasibility or political acceptability of a proposed water project given existing institutional structures. Furthermore, the investigator has the opportunity to experiment with new and innovative institutional arrangements which may in turn enhance the political acceptability of a proposed project. The specific material presented within this paper reports upon the validation of an existing computer simulation model designed to replicate political interactions in resource allocation problems-including water resource problems. This validation effort is done by taking an actual water problem and comparing what the political simulation models predicts in terms of political outcomes with what actually takes place. The case study in question is the formulation and legislative development of the Michigan Bond Issue for Water Pollution Control.     

Cost-effectiveness of interventions to prevent road traffic injuries in low- and middle-income countries: A literature review

Objective: The objective of this study was to identify, critically appraise, summarize, and synthesize evidence from cost-effectiveness analyses (CEAs) of interventions aimed at preventing road traffic injuries (RTIs) in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) by age group and road users targeted.

Methods: A search strategy was applied to 12 electronic databases for studies published between May 2002 and August 2015 that met prespecified inclusion criteria. Additional studies were identified by contacting authors and searching bibliographies. Included studies were critically appraised against published criteria and a narrative synthesis was conducted including a use of the strength of evidence criteria.

Results: Five studies were included in the final review that reported 9 interventions. Only 2 out of 9 interventions (drink-drive legislation with enforcement via breath testing campaign and combined interventions for reducing RTIs) showed moderate evidence of being cost-effective, whereas the evidence of cost-effectiveness of other interventions was weak. Only 2 interventions (bicycle and motorcycle helmet use legislation and enforcement) were explicitly targeted to children, young people and vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and cyclists. The cost-effectiveness of interventions to prevent RTIs in LMICs ranged from US$4.14 per disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) averted for building speed bumps at the most dangerous junctions that caused 10% of junction deaths in the area studied to US$3,403 per DALYs averted for legislation and enforcement of helmet use by motorcyclists in the World Health Organization (WHO) sub-Saharan Africa region.

Conclusions: Evidence of cost-effectiveness of interventions to prevent RTIs in LMICs is limited, particularly for children, young people, and vulnerable road users. Evaluation of the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a larger number of possible road safety interventions in a variety of LMIC settings is warranted to generate the evidence base for effective traffic injury prevention programs.     

Child restraint use and parental perceptions of comfort

Objective: Suboptimal child restraint use includes incorrect and/or inappropriate restraint use and increases the risk of injury. Comfort has been suggested as an important factor impacting on optimal use of restraints by children. This article aims to examine the relationships between parent reported comfort and restraint misuse and age-appropriate restraint choice.

Methods: This is an analysis of data from a cross sectional observation study of child restraint use in New South Wales. Logistic regression was used to model the relationship between parent-reported comfort and restraint misuse and age-appropriate restraint choice.

Results: There was no significant relationship between either parent-reported comfort and restraint misuse or parent-reported comfort and age-appropriate restraint choice.

Conclusions: Parent perceptions of comfort of children in child restraints do not appear to be associated with incorrect child restraint use or age appropriate restraint choice. It is possible that the actual comfort of the child may be related to incorrect use but this remains to be tested. Further investigation of the relationship between parent-perceived comfort and the actual comfort of the child, as well as the impact of child comfort on optimal child restraint use is warranted.     

Mitigating Groundwater Impacts of Residential Wells through Small‐Scale Distributed Storage in the Skagit River Basin

The exemption for groundwater wells for residential uses from the prior appropriations system, common in the western United States, has eroded in Washington State since about 2000 due to a series of legal cases. Water markets can allow the transfer of an existing water right, typically from an agricultural use, to compensate for the effect of a new residential well. But water must be legally and physically available in a way suitable to satisfy mitigation requirements. A recent court case in the Skagit basin in Northwestern Washington State has effectively halted residential development in rural areas of the basin because no suitable water rights are available to purchase for mitigation. This paper presents and examines the cost‐effectiveness of various water supply mitigation strategies. We find a small‐scale, distributed stream‐side storage system for augmenting instream flow purchased from downstream sources is relatively cost‐effective to mitigate against the effects of domestic groundwater use compared to more common alternatives. We consider transporting water to storage sites by both small‐gauge pipe and by truck. Overall, trucking water to stream‐side storage and release points tends to be more cost‐effective to mitigate against indoor‐use only given current subbasin housing densities, whereas piping for direct streamflow augmentation is more cost‐effective for higher mitigation needs associated with indoor and outdoor use and higher housing densities.     

Supplanting by olive baboons: dominance rank difference and resource value

Summary Interactions in which one animal takes over a food resource from another (feeding supplants) are usually interpreted as evidence of feeding competition, and the level of competition is predicted to be proportionate to the value of the resource. However, in this study of juvenile olive baboons (Papio anubis) living in a troop near Gilgil, Kenya, individuals were less selective about the quality of the supplant food under certain social circumstances. Two major food classes, Grass and Corm, were compared. Corms were less common in the diet, more difficult to locate as a replacement food after a supplant, and then at greater distances than Grass: in general, corms were the favoured supplant food, as predicted. But in interactions between animals who were close in rank, supplants over Grass occurred more often than expected. It is suggested here that, in these particular interactions, the winner benefitted socially, even at some cost of time or energy. Further, such interactions which may serve to reinforce the winner's status will be most productively directed to those close in rank, where relationships are potentially less stable. These data provide evidence that baboons can discriminate the relative ranks of others, rather than simply distinguishing between individuals who are higher- or lower-ranking than themselves.     

Orientation in captive migratory and sedentary Australian silvereyes <Emphasis Type="Italic">Zosterops lateralis</Emphasis> (Zosteropidae)

The orientation of two closely related subspecies of Australian silvereye Zosterops lateralis was studied in captivity over 14 months. Migratory silvereyes Z. lateralis lateralis showed significant directional preferences during the spring and autumn migration periods and also displayed orientated behaviour during the breeding period. In contrast, the non-migratory subspecies Z. lateralis familiaris did not display any significant directional preferences at any time. This is the first time that the orientation behaviour of a migratory and non-migratory subspecies has been compared over the duration of an annual cycle, both during and outside the migratory periods. The results suggest that migratory silvereyes possess an endogenous program determining the timing and direction of autumn and spring migration and that this program is unique to the migratory subspecies. This is also the first comparison of this nature on southern hemisphere birds and demonstrates that the migratory behaviour of southern hemisphere migrants may be more similar to that of northern hemisphere migrants than previously thought.Submitted to Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology: 23 Jan 2006.     

Solubilities of hydrophobic compounds in aqueous-organic solvent mixtures

Solubilities of several hydrophobic organic substances (paradichlorobenzene, endrin, naphthalene, and dibutyl phthalate) in aqueous solutions containing up to 0.10 mole fraction of common alcohols and ketones, were measured by gas chromatography. The solubilities are significantly increased by the alcohols and ketones. The results are interpreted in terms of the association of n molecules of alcohol or ketone with each hydrophobic organic molecule. Values of n and the equilibrium constant for this association are reported for each hydrophobic organic-alcohol and organic-ketone combination. The implications of these results for the disposal of toxic wastes by landfilling is discussed.     

Rapid measurement of indoor mass-transfer coefficients

Indoor air pollutant concentrations can be influenced by how rapidly species are transported to and from surfaces. Consequently, a greater understanding of indoor transport phenomena to surfaces improves estimates of human exposure to indoor air pollutants. Here, we introduce two methods of rapidly and directly measuring species fluxes at indoor surfaces, allowing us to evaluate the transport-limited deposition velocity, v_t (a mass-transfer coefficient). The deposition velocity sensor (DeVS) method employs a small microbalance coated with a pure hydrocarbon, preferably octadecane. We quantify flux (or evaporation rate) of the hydrocarbon into a room by observing the rate of mass loss on the microbalance. The transport-limited deposition velocity, v_t,octadecane, is then obtained by combining the flux with the vapor pressure of the hydrocarbon. Simultaneously, v_t,ozone is quantified using the deposition velocity of ozone (DeVO) method, which acts as a standard to calibrate and evaluate DeVS. Specifically, DeVO evaluates ozone transport to surfaces by quantifying the conversion by ozone of nitrite to nitrate on a glass fiber filter. Simultaneous laboratory chamber experiments demonstrates that v_t for octadecane and ozone are strongly correlated, with the values for ozone 1.5 times greater than that for octadecane. In an office experiments, the DeVS method responds within minutes to step changes in conditions such as occupancy, activities and ventilation. At present, the results are in order-of-magnitude agreement with predicted indoor mass-transfer coefficients.