Multiscale Analysis of Hydrology in a Mountaintop Mine‐Impacted Watershed

In the Appalachian region of the eastern United States, mountaintop removal mining (MTM) is a dominant driver of land‐cover change, impacting 6.8% of the largely forested 4.86 million ha coal fields region. Recent catastrophic flooding and documented biological impairment downstream of MTM has drawn sharp criticism to this practice. Despite its extent, scale, and use since the 1970s, the impact of MTM on hydrology is poorly understood. Therefore, the goal of this study was a multiscale evaluation to establish the nature of hydrologic impacts associated with MTM. To quantify the extent of MTM, land‐cover change over the lifetime of this practice is estimated for a mesoscale watershed in southern West Virginia. To assess hydrologic impacts, we conducted long‐term trend analyses to evaluate for systematic changes in hydrology at the mesoscale, and conducted hydrometric and response time modeling to characterize storm‐scale responses of a MTM‐impacted headwater catchment. Results show a general trend in the conversion of forests to mines, and significant decreases in maximum streamflow and variability, and increases in base‐flow ratio attributed to valley fills and deep mine drainage. Decreases in variability are shown across spatial and temporal scales having important implications for water quantity and quality. However, considerable research is necessary to understand how MTM impacts hydrology. In an effort to inform future research, we identify existing knowledge gaps and limitations of our study.     

Policies for Livestock Development in the Ethiopian Highlands

Since 1991, there have been significant changes in utilization of feed resources in the Ethiopian highlands: while use of communal grazing lands and private pastures has declined, use of crop residues and purchased feed has increased. In addition, although use of animal health services and adoption of improved livestock breeds and modern management practices have increased, ownership of various types of livestock has declined. Rapid population growth has contributed most to the declining trends in grazing resources and ownership of livestock, showing the negative effects of increasing pressure on already degraded resources in the Ethiopian highlands. Land redistribution, increased participation in credit and extension programs targeting livestock, and improvement in access to markets, on the other hand, have had significant positive impacts on adoption of improved livestock technologies and ownership of livestock. Thus, reducing population growth and improving access to markets and credit and extension programs targeting livestock can enhance the role of livestock in improving food security and reducing poverty, especially in the mixed crop-livestock farming systems as exist in the East African highlands.     

Enhancement of sorption capacity of cocoa shell biomass modified with non-thermal plasma for removal of both cationic and anionic dyes from aqueous solution

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Removal of cationic dye, Azur II, and anionic dye, Reactive Red 2 (RR-2) from aqueous solutions, has been successfully achieved by using a modified...     

Use of micellar liquid chromatography for rapid monitoring of fungicides post harvest applied to citrus wastewater

A method based on micellar liquid chromatography has been developed to simultaneously monitor four pesticides largely post-harvest applied to citrus:thiabendazole,pyrimethanil,o-phenylphenol and imazalil.Water samples were filtered and directly injected without other treatment,thus avoiding extraction steps.The composition of the mobile phase was optimized using a chemometrical approach to achieve and excellent resolution to 0.07 mol/L SDS/5%,V/V 1-pentanol buffered at p H 3.Mobile phase run through a C18 column at 1 m L/min at room temperature.The detection was performing by UV–Visible absorbance using a wavelength program:0–10 min,305 nm(for thiabendazole);10–12;265 nm(for pyrimethanil)and 12–18,220 nm(o-phenylphenol and imazalil).The developed method was validated following the guidelines of the US Environmental Protection Agency in terms of:quantitation range,(0.5–4 to 15μg/m L),linearity(r20.9995),sensitivity(LOD,0.18–1.4μg/m L),precision(9.2%),trueness(93.9%–103.7%),and ruggedness(9.9%).It was found that the fungicides remain up to eight days in surface water at outdoor conditions.The method was used to screen the presence of the analytes in several waste water samples,and was proved to be useful in routine analysis.     

Development of termites severity probability map of futa campus area using geographical information system (GIS) technology

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Siting of buildings in rural urban development requires that the prevalence of termite activities is considered. The severity of termite activities...     

A Preliminary Study of Particulate Emissions from Small Wood Stoves

This paper summarizes the methodology developed to analyze alternative oxidant control strategies of the 1979 Air Quality Plan for the San Francisco Bay Area. The analysis of alternative oxidant control strategies is a complex task, particularly when a grid-based photochemical model is the primary analysis tool. To handle quantitatively spatial and temporal variations in emissions under both existing and projected future conditions, as well as to simulate the effects of a wide variety of control strategies, a system of computer-based models was assembled. The models projected and distributed a number of variables in space and time: population, employment, housing, land use, transportation, emissions, and air quality. Given time and budget constraints, an approach to maximizing the information return from a limited number of model runs was developed. The system was applied in three sequences to determine (1) what future air quality would be if no further controls were implemented, (2) the degree of hydrocarbon and NO_x emission control necessary to attain the oxidant standard, and (3) the effectiveness of alternative stationary source, mobile source, transportation and land use control strategies in contributing to attainment and maintenance of the oxidant standard.

A number of significant modeling assumptions had to be developed in order properly to interpret the modeled results in the context of the oxidant standard. In particular, a Larsen-type analysis was used to relate modeled atmospheric conditions to “worst case” conditions, and a proportional assumption was made to compensate model results for an imperfect validation. The specification of initial and boundary conditions for future year simulations was found to be a problem in need of further research.     

Overview of state approaches to vapor intrusion

A large number of states have issued guidance addressing the vapor intrusion pathway making it difficult to keep up with various policies and requirements. We have compiled and reviewed guidance from 35 states, half of which have issued documents within the last three years. A comparison of policies among states shows reasonable consistency in some areas—for example, 20 of 23 states that provide an exclusion distance for subsurface sources of chlorinated volatile organic compounds (VOCs) use a distance of 100 feet. However, more commonly, the policy decisions vary widely. Among states, indoor air screening concentrations for the same VOC vary by more than 2,000 times and subsurface screening concentrations vary by more than 2,000,000 times. These wide discrepancies suggest a need for communication and consensus building in order to increase consistency in the management of the vapor intrusion pathway. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Habitat use by Red-tailed Hawks in surface-mined areas

Habitat use by 4 radio-tagged red-tailed hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) was monitored during 708 transmitter-days in coal surface-mined areas in northern West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in 1977 and 1978. Mean cumulative home range size for the 3 adults was 316.8 ha (3.2 km²). Red-tailed hawks showed significant (P<0.005) tendencies to elect certain habitats over others. Descending order of habitat electivity was: 1) woods edge with open area not surfacemined. 2) woods edge with surface-mined area. 3) deciduous woods, 4) open area not surface-mined, and 5) surface-mined area. Red-tailed hawks' flexibility in niche requirements allowed them to exploit reclaimed area. Recommendations for surface mine reclamation are given.     

Biosorption of hydrophobic organic pollutants by mixed microbial populations

In recognition of the need to estimate biosorption for natural microbial populations, the variability of partition coefficients for two hydrophobic pollutants to natural populations from a variety of aquatic systems was investigated. Biosorption partition coefficents for pyrene [2.46(±0.6) × 10⁴] and phenanthrene [6.34(±1) × 10³] were nearly constant over 14 different microbial sources, consisting of sediments and soils from eight states. For these condensed ring aromatics, semi-empirical equations were developed relating biosorption partition coefficients to octanol/water partition coefficients and to water solubility and melting point. Concepts and relationships developed for these materials should extend to other families of hydrophobic compounds.