Extreme Ocean Waves
The book details the vast progress that has been achieved in the understanding of the physical mechanisms of rogue wave phenomenon in recent years. The selected articles address such issues as the formation of freak waves due to modulation instability of nonlinear wave field, physical and statistical properties of rogue wave generation in deep water and in shallow water, various models of nonlinear water waves, special analysis of nonlinear resonances between water waves and the relation between observations and freak wave theories.
Experimental rock deformation : The brittle field
The primary aim of this monograph is to present the current knowledge of brittle properties of rocks as determined in laboratory experiments. The principal aspects of brittle behavior are described with special attention to the fundamental physical aspects. Thus, the book provides a useful introduction to the basics of rock properties for engineering and earth science applications. Furthermore, it serves as a guide for graduate students and non specialists by presenting the relevant background material and where it can be found. For the new edition a further chapter has been added, and almost
Exercises in Environmental Physics
Exercises in Environmental Physics covers the essential topics in university courses in environmental physics including: Energy and the environment / Fluid mechanics / Evapotranspiration, soil physics and groundwater hydrology / Pollution / Ocean and atmospheric physics / The planet in space This is the first book specifically devoted to exercises on the application of physics to describe the environment including the human impact. It is a valuable tool for students to develop skills in the manipulation of physical concepts and methods while learning environmental science. The exercises are drawn from the author's teaching experience and the need for stimulating practice problems in various environmental physics courses. A chapter on mathematical methods used in the book supplements the material.
Excavations and Foundations in Soft Soils
The book is about soft soil engineering and is intended to serve the practicing as well as the research engineers. The planning, design and construction of exca- tions and foundations in soft to very soft soils is always a difficult and challanging assignment to engineers. The authors have tried to address some of these problems and challenges in this book. Beside the state of the art of soft soils, authors own research results and expe- ences from practical projects are presented in the book. Special emphasis is also given among others on the presentation of several case studies coresponding to each topic treated in the book as well as a summary of the experiences in the - termination of soil parameters for finite element analysis of geotechnical pr- lems. The book is illustrated by a wealth of photographs and diagrams.
Evolutionary Stasis and Change in the Dominican Republic Neogene
In practice, however, science is no less susceptible to fads, culture shifts, and pendulum swings than any other realm of human endeavor. This is an especially important feature of science to keep in mind in the present climate of shrinking government funding (at least in prop- tion to the demand) and the resulting susceptibility of individual scientists and entire disciplines to being influenced by the changing priorities of funding agencies (even if, as such agencies maintain, those priorities come ultimately “from the c- munity”). The present volume is in several important respects a testimonial to both the threats and opportunities that such scientific culture swings pose, both for the individual researcher and a wider field. When scientific research in the Dominican Republic Neogene began more than a century ago, paleontology was an essentially descriptive discipline, focused mainly on finding, describing, and documenting the taxa represented in the fossil record, and (especially in invertebrate paleontology) on using these taxa for bi- tratigraphic correlation.
Evaporites : Sediments, Resources and Hydrocarbons
The monograph offers a comprehensive discussion of the role of evaporites in hydrocarbon generation and trapping. For the first time, diverse knowledge on exploitable salts has been assembled and organized, along with a summary of evaporate karst hazards as well as a summary of exploitative methods and pitfalls in dealing with evaporites in conventional and solution mining. Written by a field specialist in research and exploration, the book presents a comprehensive synthesis of the low temperature realm of evaporite evolution. It is aimed for earth science professionals, sedimentologists, oil and gas explorers, mining geologists, as well as environmental geologists.
Evaluating Climate Change Action for Sustainable Development
The following sections focus on evaluation of climate change projects and policies as they link to development, from the perspective of international organisations, NGO’s, multilateral and bilateral aid agencies, and academia. The authors share methodologies or approaches used to better understand problems and assess interventions, strategies and policies. They also share challenges encountered, what was done to solve these and lessons learned from evaluations. Collectively, the authors illustrate the importance of evaluation in providing evidence to guide policy change to informed decision-making.
Eutrophication Management and Ecotoxicology
This book aims to bridge the gap between ecotoxicology and limnology. The intended readers of the book are water managers, policy makers with a scientific background as well as researchers/advisors in the area of water management. The book provides an ecotoxicological perspective on lake management and describes eutrophication of shallow, temperate lakes. It surveys the influence of toxic substances (e.g., agricultural pesticides) on the aquatic ecosystem, especially the relation between algae and daphnids. The message of the book is that nutrients such as phosphorus are not the only important factor in explaining and managing eutrophication: toxic disturbance of to-down control is also an important factor to be considered. The results of extensive studies and experiments (some unpublished) on lake eutrophication are presented in this book.
Eutrophication in the Baltic Sea : Present Situation, Nutrient Transport Processes, Remedial Strategies
This book takes a holistic process-based ecosystem perspective on the eutrophication in the Baltic Sea, with a focus on the factors regulating how the system would respond to changes in nutrient loading. This includes a very special process for the Baltic Sea: land uplift. After being depressed by the glacial ice, the land is now slowly rising adding vast amounts of previously deposited nutrients and clay particles to the system.
Estuaries
Aspects of the biogeochemistry of estuaries from a variety of environments, from the tropics to the Arctic, are discussed. In most cases the courses of these rivers have been altered by dams or diversions; the results of these changes on the nature of the estuary are also discussed, where such data is available. In the case of the Tasmanian rivers, the estuary of the Huon, a largely untouched river, is contrasted with that of the Derwent, a river heavily influenced by industry. The future state of all of these estuaries may be a sensitive indicator of shifts in global weather patterns.
Ester Boserup’s legacy on sustainability : Orientations for contemporary research
The contents are organized in three sections reflecting important focal points of Boserup’s own work: Long-Term Socio-Ecological Change; Agriculture, Land Use, and Development; and Gender, Population, and Economy. The first three chapters offer a comprehensive review of her political and scientific work. Section Two focuses on the applicability of Boserup’s reflections on land use, technology, and agriculture, incorporating case studies which illuminate and test Boserup’s hypotheses on land use intensification and soil degradation, the impact of population growth on land use, the agricultural transition, and the role of women in development. The case studies examine both long historical time series and present-day dynamics, and explore different levels of geographical scale, from the local to the regional and the global. Section Three emphasizes the key role of women and gender relations for agriculture and development.
Equidosimetry : Ecological Standardization and Equidosimetry for Radioecology and Environmental Ecology
Considerable experience with radioecological and related ecological research on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems has been achieved, especially after the Chernobyl accident. The combined effects of the radiation, chemical and biological factors, after a contamination of the environment and during its remediation have shown an interactive complexity that highlights the need for equidosimetrical evaluations of the influence of the various stressors and the need for their ecological normalization. In radioecology and radiation protection, methods of radiation dosimetry are key for dose assessment. It is therefore highly desirable to develop a clear theoretical approach as well as a practical method of equidosimetry that would allow for an ecological normalization of the different stressors in unified uniform units, especially for comparison purposes.
Environmental Value Transfer : Issues and Methods
The transfer of environmental values in time and space has increased rapidly with the widespread use of cost benefit analysis in project evaluation and regulatory assessments over the last three decades. The purpose of this volume is to take a snapshot of the research that is ongoing in the area of value transfer (benefit transfer). It includes papers by some of the most influential authors in the area, and covers the latest developments in the field. It will be useful for academics conducting research in this area and for practitioners in government agencies and ministries, as well as consulting firms.
Environmental UV radiation : Impact on ecosystems and human health and predictive models ; Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Environmental UV Radiation: Impact on Ecosystems and Human Health and Predictive Models Pisa, Italy, June 2001
This volume originates from the NATO Advanced Study Institute Environmental UV Radiation: Impact on Ecosystems and Human Health and Predictive Models, held in Pisa, Italy in June 2001.
Environmental Simulation Chambers : Application to Atmospheric Chemical Processes
Atmospheric pollution has many different detrimental impacts on air quality at urban, regional and global scales. Large volume photoreactors (often referred to as smog or simulation chambers) have been used very effectively to investigate and understand many varied aspects of atmospheric chemistry related to air pollution problems. Photochemical smog formation, which was first observed around 1945 in Los Angeles, is now a major environmental problem for all industrialised and densely populated regions of the world. Over the years many different modelling and experimental tools have been developed to analyse and simulate the complex chemical processes associated with tropspheric photooxidant formation. Work in environmental chambers has played a key role in the development of our understanding of the atmospheric chemistry associated with pollution problems on local, regional and global scales.
Environmental Security in Harbors and Coastal Areas : Management Using Comparative Risk Assessment and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis
This book explores the challenges facing coastal areas during the next few decades and the difficult decisions needed to prevent a repeat of the past. Establishing, maintaining or enhancing a sense of environmental security in different coastal regions and improving the management of critical infrastructure will require (i) matching human demands with available environmental resources; (ii) recognition of environmental security threats and infrastructure vulnerabilities; and, (iii) identification of the range of available options for preventing and/or minimizing natural disasters, technological failures, and/or terror actions. This book emphasizes beliefs that the convergence of seemingly disparate viewpoints and often uncertain and limited information is possible only by using one or more available risk assessment methodologies and decision-making tools such as multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA).
Environmental Security and Sustainable Land Use - with special reference to Central Asia
This book presents important aspects of environmental security and sustainable land use in general and in particular for Central Asia, i.e. the environmental consequences of climate change; sustainable land use and regional development; sustainable development in mountain and steppe regions; beyond borders: Transboundary Biosphere Reserve "Altai" as an approach for regional development; landscape planning as an integrative tool for sustainable development; challenges and threats for environmental stability in Central Asia. A final recommendation in the area of sustainable development and land use as well as the proceeding efforts towards the establishment of the Transboundary Biosphere Reserve "Altai" and the implementation of landscape planning were set in the book as some of the main results of the meeting.
Environmental Security and Public Safety ; Problems and Needs in Conversion Policy and Research after 15 Years of Conversion in Central and Eastern Europe
Although the end of the Cold War has paved the way to a substantial demilitarisation and conversion, the leftovers of this process – such as former military installations, military training areas, and huge quantities of unserviceable ammunition and equipment – still pose a severe threat to the environment of both NATO and Partner countries.The rehabilitation of these areas for civilian uses is extremely costly and is generally in the short and medium term not possible. For this reason, the development of new methods for the estimation avoidance of risks should receive special priority. In the context of this ARW, the reconnaissance and appraisal of conversion areas with respect to costs, returns, and legal considerations were discussed. The decades-long use of some areas led to the heavy loading of contaminates. Every task of conversion has as its goal the elimination of dangers to humans and nature, and the return of areas to civil use, such that these areas can be used realise economic interests of the society.
Environmental security and environmental management : The role of risk assessment ; Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workhop on The Role of Risk Assessment in Environmental Security and Emergency Preparedness in the Mediterranean Region, held in Eilat, Israel, April 15-18, 2004
The concept of “environmental security” has emerged as one basis for understanding international conflicts. This phrase can mean a variety of things. It can signify security issues stemming from environmental concerns or conflicting needs, or it can mean that the environment is treated as a resource for the long term, and the question is what should be done today to preserve the quality of the environment in the future. In the same way that energy security is about ensuring access to energy for the long run, it can also mean that pressing environmental concerns create a situation where different countries and communities are forced to collaboratively design a unified response, even if cooperation is not generally in the logic of their relations. Over the last several years, the authors of this book and their colleagues have tried to demonstrate the power of risk assessment and decision analysis as valuable tools that decision makers should use for a broad range of environmental problems, including environmental security. Risk analysis is almost more a state of mind or a way of looking at problems than it is a kind of algorithm or a set of recipes. It projects a kind of rationality on problems and forces a certain degree of quantitative rigor, as opposed to the all too common tendency of making environmental recommendations based on anecdotal evidence.
Environmental Role of Wetlands in Headwaters
Internationally, the wetlands of headwater and upland regions provide many valuable environmental services. This book moves towards a more comprehensive inventory of the benefits and costs of headwater wetlands. It evaluates the research that tries to understand the tolerances, exchanges, checks and balances within headwater landscapes and the downstream impacts of changes in wetlands. It employs case studies and reviews from 21 nations spanning Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas. It explores the new policy frameworks, changes in land husbandry, new systems for community education, participatory processes and technological interventions required for the effective management of headwater wetlands and the full integration of wetlands (including newly constructed wetlands) into environmental management and planning. In the past, most research dealt with wetlands as isolated features, this book examines wetlands in their watershed management context.



















