Mechanical grading of structural timber and species conservation in the forest of the Congo Basin
February 2011
The aim of the present work is to propose a non-destructive experimental approach, organizing the species of the Congo Basin in four; according to the likeness of their main mechanical properties, and is also to promote the subsistence of over-consumed species in our biodiversity. The assignment of a given specie to one of the four groups takes place in return for a homogeneity test of comparison of the...
Governance challenges in Tanzania’s environmental impact assessment practice
February 2011
Tanzania has had an interesting history of Environmental Impact Assessments (EA). Few assessments were conducted prior to 2004 leading to a process of voluntary compliance without explicit laws to enforce the process. Even without a comprehensive legal and institutional framework, those EIAs generated useful policy decisions. Fundamental changes came after 2004 when Tanzania adopted the first...
Efficacy of extractives from parts of Ghanaian pawpaw, avocado and neem on the durability of alstonia
February 2011
Conventional preservatives are not only toxic to wood bio-deteriorators, but also to humans and animals. In an effort to find preservatives that are non-toxic to humans and animals, efficacy of water extracts of heartwood of Azadirachta indica (Neem) and leaves of Perseaamericana (avocado) and Carica papaya (pawpaw) at 0.24%, was tested on the durability of wood...
Inter-annual trends of heavy metals in marine resources from the Nigerian territorial waters
February 2011
In an attempt to monitor and assess the pollution status of marine resources in the Nigerian territorial waters, this study was carried out to reveal the levels and inter-annual trend of heavy metals in marine resources from the Lagos lagoon marine ecosystem. Studies were carried out annually in the month of July between 2007 and 2009; and the observed levels and trends...
From dependency to Interdependencies: The emergence of a socially rooted but commercial waste sector in Kampala City, Uganda
February 2011
Urban waste has traditionally remained for municipal councils to manage in several sub-Saharan cities such as Kampala. However, due to noticeable inefficiencies at municipal level, there is a manifest of low-income groups that take the initiative to extract and add value to materials from the waste stream, although higher-income groups are engaged in similar activities. This...
The Baggage and Visage of 2011
January 2011
Biosorption of Cd (II) and As (III) ions from aqueous solution by tea waste biomass
January 2011
Biosorption of Cadmium (Cd (II)) and Arsenic (As (III)) ions from wastewater by tea waste biomass was examined in a batch experimental setup. The effects of pH and temperature on the biosorption were studied in this work. The optimum pH for the maximum efficiency of biosorption of Cd (II) and As (III) were found to be 5.5 and 7.5, respectively. The adsorption process was endothermic in nature and...
Lunnyu soils in the Lake Victoria basin of Uganda: Link to toposequence and soil type
January 2011
We compared the physico-chemical characteristics of Lunnyu soils using soil type and slope position in order to explain their variability in the Lake Victoria basin of Uganda.Lunnyu patches located on four different soil types (chromic lixisol, mollic gleysols and plinthic ferralsols) were selected. At each patch, the slope was divided into shoulder, back-slope and foot-slope. Five locations along the...
Evaluation of three classifiers in mapping forest stand types using medium resolution imagery: a case study in the Offinso Forest District, Ghana
January 2011
Loss of Ghana’s natural forests has been counteracted by plantation establishment and development. As at 2003, Ghana had a plantation area of about 97,000 hectares comprising different tree species. With the rapid expansion of plantations in the country, it is anticipated that major managerial challenges will arise due to insignificant technical personnel for monitoring and management. The...
Vegetational dynamics in some tropical abandoned rice fields in the western part of Orissa, India
January 2011
Natural wetland in China
January 2011
As it is known to all, wetland is one of the most crucial ecosystems in the world, with large varieties in China. How to protect wetland in China has become a more serious problem and five typical wetlands were selected in the article to illustrate the condition. Through the comparison between the past and present of wetland, attention should be paid in adjusting the human behavior and the ways of producing...
Assessment of rural households’ objectives for gathering non-timber forest products (NTFPs) in Kogi State, Nigeria
January 2011
This study assessed rural households’ objectives for gathering non-timber forest products in Kogi State, Nigeria, with specific focus on identifying some species of non-timber forest products present in the area, identifying reasons why they engaged in the gathering of the non-timber forest products (NTFPs) as well as determining the relative importance of the identified reasons to the households. One...
Extraction of Al and Na from red mud by magnesium oxide sodium carbonate sinter process
December 2010
The sintering of Bayer’s process waste residue: Red mud along with magnesium oxide and sodium carbonate is adopted for recovery of aluminium and sodium followed by leaching. This is facilitated by the high temperature reaction of magnesium oxide sodium carbonate and DSP in the red mud to produce an insoluble dimagnesium silicate, magnesium ferrite, magnesium titanate and a soluble...
Climate impacts, forest-dependent rural livelihoods and adaptation strategies in Africa: A review
December 2010
The long term contribution of forests to the livelihoods of the rural poor had been long appreciated. More than half of Africa’s fast-growing population rely directly and indirectly on forests for their livelihoods. As the continent faces stresses from poverty and economic development, another major uncertainty is looming that could alter many of the relationships between people and forests. This...
Second law analysis of a solar air heater having 60° inclined discrete rib roughness on absorber plate
December 2010
Artificially roughened solar air heaters perform better than the smooth ones under the same operating conditions. However, artificial roughness leads to even more fluid pressure thereby increasing the pumping power. The entropy generation in the duct of solar air heater having 60° inclined discrete rib roughness on one broad wall is studied numerically. The effect of system parameters such as relative...
Electro kinetic remediation of contaminated habitats
December 2010
Electrokinetics (EK) is a process that separates and extracts heavy metals, radionuclides and organic contaminants from saturated or unsaturated soils, sludge, and sediments. A low intensity direct current is applied across electrode pairs that have been implanted in the ground on each side of the contaminated soil mass. The electrical current causes electroosmosis and ion migration (electromigration)...
Pasteurization of mushroom substrate and other solids
December 2010
Mushrooms represent an important part of natural solid waste disposal, which can be enhanced by cultivation. Cultivation provides a source of wholesome food which thus, by cultivating them we can have more food and less solid waste. However, pasteurization for cultivation requires the use of some fuel. In order to obtain the maximum environmental benefit from them, it is therefore important to use the minimum...
A Decade of Decadence
December 2010
Saudis trust and confidence in information sources about chemical pollution
December 2010
The presence of toxic chemicals in the environment has drawn increasing concern in Saudi Arabia in recent years. Public health officials recognize a direct link between health problems and exposure to these chemicals. To communicate information on chemical pollution health risks effectively, policy makers must know population source of information and the confidence level in this information. This study...
The groundwater geochemistry of the Saloum delta aquifer: Importance of silicate weathering, recharge and mixing processes
December 2010
The physical-chemical and isotopic characteristics of the groundwater in the Saloum detrital aquifer system obtained from a network of 74 sampling points have indicated the likely geochemical reactions and defined the groundwater flow regime in the context of a semi-arid region. The main geochemical zones with distinct water types and isotopic contents displayed through this investigation are the results of...
Variation of interception loss with different plant species at the University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria
December 2010
Interception studies of six plants groups were carried out at the campus of University of Agriculture, Abeokuta in Nigeria, using three different sample sites. These sites were the Arborea plantation, cashew plantation and College of Environmental Resources Management premises of the University. The field work was carried out between 15th June and 28th September, 2009. Of the 22 rainfall events...
Drought risk assessment in pasture arid Morocco through remote sensing
December 2010
During the last three decades, Morocco has experienced several stern and extended episodes of drought that severely affected pasture production. To cope with this phenomenon, the policy makers have put emphasis on a reactive short term management approach rather than on pro-active risk-based management measures. The purpose of this study is the assessment of drought by remote sensing, which is an important...
Factors determining community participation in afforestation projects in River Nyando basin, Kenya
December 2010
Factors determining community participation in afforestation projects were investigated. Data was collected from 150 respondents who were selected from a sample population of 1,928 households using systematic random sampling technique. Data was collected using a standardized questionnaire, focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Chi-square (X2) test was used to establish the relationship between...
Phenotypic plasticity of leaf length to an environmental gradient in Khaya ivorensis (Meliaceae) populations in Ghana
December 2010
Khaya ivorensis encountears different ecological conditions in its native habitats in Ghana. The demand for this species has led to severe depletion of the natural stand, thus threatened with extinction. To address the dwindling populations demands intervention for restoration and establishment of plantations. The goal of reforestation is to establish a new generation of trees with optimal growth and...
Production of both esters and biogas from Mexican poppy
December 2010
This paper details a dynamic evaluation of a procedure for extracting both, ester and biogas from seeds and waste of Mexican poppy (Argemone mexicana) using simple and inexpensive technique. Results showed that A. mexicana seed contains 30% oil. Through the process of transestrification, oil extracted from seed, has been converted to its ester. Methanol gives good separation of ester with A....
Local preference of indigenous fruit trees in Coast Province, Kenya
December 2010
Indigenous fruit trees (IFTs) have various benefits such as enhancing nutrition and food security, but face threats of deforestation and genetic erosion. This paper focused on identification of the local people’s preference of IFT. Research methods mainly involved field survey in Coast province, Kenya and analysis was by the conjoint analytical method. The survey results were as follows: (1) By the...
Income sources and their relation to wildlife poaching in Ugalla ecosystem, Western Tanzania
December 2010
In the Ugalla ecosystem, wildlife conservation is constantly and pervasively challenged by the local communities looking for ways to improve their livelihoods. The need to curb poaching of wildlife continues to spark debate amongst conservation stakeholders in the area. Assessing livelihood contributions of different sources of income in light of wildlife poaching is vital to inform conservation effort. The...
The Descent of Incandescence
November 2010
An assessment of common atmospheric particulate matter sampling and toxic metal analysis methods
November 2010
In this study, the atmospheric particulate matter (PM) was sampled using the tapered element oscillating microbalance, and the inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS) and scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM/EDS) were used for determination of elemental composition of the PM. The efficiency and relevance of thesampling method, ICP-MS and SEM/EDS in...
Heavy metal contamination of soil and sediment in Zambia
November 2010
Heavy metal pollution is one of the most important problems in Zambia and causes serious effects to humans and animals. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the spatial distribution of heavy metals in main areas of Zambia and understand the characteristics of the pollution in each area. River and lake sediments and soil samples were collected from a large area of Zambia and analyzed for ten heavy...
Effect of quarrying activity on biodiversity: Case study of Ogbere site, Ogun State Nigeria
November 2010
This study was carried out in quarry site at Ogbere town located at Ijebu-North Local Government Area of Ogun State; with main aim of assessing the impact of the quarry activity on bio-diversity within the unexploited site. The methods used for fauna survey are both direct and indirect by line-transect, while analysis of Mueller-Dombois and Ellenberg was adopted for vegetation. The research was carried out at...
Ecological diagnoses factors affecting the distribution of zooplankton community in the Massa Lagoon (Southern Morocco).
November 2010
In thise present study, the zooplankton structure and the water quality of Massa lLagoon were investigated. Samples were collected biweekly at the three stations for 6 months from winter to summer 2008. Results show that the state of the lagoon is a hyper-eutrophic environment, characterized by high value levels of chlorophyll-a and nitrogen. Pollution-tolerant zooplankton such as Brachionus was the dominant...
Heavy metal contamination in agricultural soils and water in Dar es Salaam city, Tanzania
November 2010
Heavy metals in soil and water were determined at four points along Msimbazi River valley in Dar es Salaam city, which is popular for vegetable farming. Results indicated that the concentration of chromium in water ranged from (1.414±0.922) to 0.01 mg/L. Maximum and minimum lead concentrations of 0.113 and 0.083 mg/L were detected. The concentration of copper was generally low at all sites, ranging...
Leaves of roadside plants as bioindicator of traffic related lead pollution during different seasons in Sargodha, Pakistan
November 2010
Plants are important bioindicators of heavy metal environmental pollution. For this purpose a study was conducted during winter and summer seasons in Sargodha, Pakistan. Three roadside plants that is Dalbergia sissoo Roxb., Prosopis juliflora L. and Eucalyptus spp. were collected from different locations. The study area was divided into five on the basis of traffic density and...
Quality assessment of drinking water in Temeke District (part II): Characterization of chemical parameters
November 2010
This paper presents a study on drinking water quality in Temeke District (Dar es Salaam), which involved analyses of chemical parameters of drinking water samples from different drinking water sources. The drinking water sources examined included tap water, river water and well water (deep and shallow wells). Water quality studied includes pH, chloride, nitrate and total hardness levels. The concentrations of...
Survey of termites in forests of Punjab: Pakistan
November 2010
Termites were surveyed in seven forests (plantations) of Punjab (Bhagat, Kamalia, Chichawatni, Changa Manga, Jallo Forest Park, Daphar and Attock) in 2008. Twelve termite species were observed from soil, dead logs, and live wood and living trees. Host trees were also identified. The percentage of infested trees in Kamalia, Bhagat, Chichawatni, Changa Manga, Jallo Forest Park, Daphar and Attock forests were...
Evaluation of antifungal efficacy of some plant extracts on Curvularia lunata, the causal organism of maize leaf spot
November 2010
The efficacy of leaf extracts of Gliricidia sepium, Tithonia diversifolia, Phyllanthus amarusand Morinda lucida were assessed in vitro to control Curvularia lunata. The extracts of the four plants suppressed the growth of C. lunata in vitro. All the extracts at 100% concentration significantly suppressed the growth of C. lunata (P ≤ 0.05). At all...
Risk mitigation strategies and policy implications for carbon dioxide (CO2) emission in organically- amended soils in Nigeria
November 2010
Global food security has been a challenge, especially in Africa. This has attracted the adoption of strategies to improve soil productivity and crop yield. One of such strategies is the use of solid wastes as soil organic matter amendments. An investigation of the effects of soil amendment using poultry manure, sawdust and their mixtures on carbon dioxide (CO2) emission, maize (Zea mays L.) growth and...
Green Nobel Prize for Swaziland
October 2010
Agroforestry trends in Punjab, Pakistan
October 2010
Pakistan in general and the province of Punjab in particular have a narrow forest resource. More than 90% of the fuel wood and about 72% of timber requirements are being met from trees growing on the private farm lands, based on agro forestry / social forestry / community forestry as compared with the state forests. It is obvious that trees have to be grown in conjunction with agricultural crops on private...
Transfer and accumulation of lead, zinc, cadmium and copper in plants growing in abandoned mining-district area
October 2010
The analysis of the Jebel Hallouf-Sidi Bouaouane mining-district soil has shown that the surface horizons are strongly contaminated by heavy metals, especially during floods or in lee-side areas. The contents of metallic-trace elements (MTE), in the soil and two cultivated plant species, have been determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-AES). The results show that the concentration of...
Marginal effects of rural roads and irrigation canals on woody and non-woody species composition
October 2010
Across the northern rural regions of Iran, gardens and farmlands are being fragmented into smaller and smaller patches by rural roads network with significant edge effects on plant species composition and abundance. In this study, the presence of different plant species was recorded in ninety 11 m plots on nine 100 m transects at the edge of terrene rural roads with irrigation canal and without irrigation...
Determination of pesticide residues in blood samples of villagers involved in pesticide application at District Vehari (Punjab), Pakistan
October 2010
Blood samples were collected from field workers involved in pesticide spraying activities at three different farms in Tahsil Mailsi, District Vehari (Punjab), Pakistan. Twenty seven villagers (including three controls), ranging from 16 to 50 years of age and one to nine years of pesticide application experience were tested. The blood samples were analyzed for 383 different pesticides using Gas Chromatograph...
Impact of the insecticide endosulfan on growth of the African giant snail Achatina achatina (L.)
October 2010
The impact of the insecticide endosulfan was assessed on the growth of the African giant snails, litter-living animals found in cocoa fields throughout tropical Africa. Two doses of endosulfan, C1, 6.25 a.i g/l and C2, 12.50 a.i g/l were applied twice with one month of interval to the litter of the snails. After quarantine, snails were allowed to feed on this litter and the elongation of their shells as well as their...
Physico-chemical properties and heavy metal content of water sources in Ife North Local Government Area of Osun State, Nigeria
October 2010
The water quality examination in Ife–North Local Government of Osun State Nigeria was conducted by determining the physico–chemical parameters of 40 samples. Surface water, bore holes, wells and pipe borne water samples were collected from major towns in the Local Government Area and analyzed. Results showed temperature range of 26.5 to 33.0°C, pH (6.53 to 8.90), conductivity (63.0 to...
Geochemistry and mineralogy of Ogun phosphate rock
October 2010
Suitability of direct application of phosphate rock as low cost phosphorus fertilizer for crop production must be environmentally safe. Four pellets of Ogun phosphorites labeled OG1, OG2, OG3 and OG4 were randomly selected and subjected to petrographic, X-ray diffraction and X- ray fluorescence analyses. Petrographic results revealed two textural forms: nodular (OG1 and OG3) and granular (OG2 and OG4)....
An improved technique for the prediction of optimal image resolution(s) for large-scale mapping of savannah ecosystems
October 2010
Past studies to predict optimal image resolution required for generating spatial information for savannah ecosystems have yielded different outcomes, hence providing a knowledge gap that was investigated in the present study. The postulation, for the present study, was that by graphically solving two simultaneous equations of values of image noise index (INI) and degradation level Index (LDI), a robust...
The impact of industrial pollution on macrobenthic fauna communities
September 2010
Mossa creek is a long, deep, tidal canal in Iran. The creek stretches almost 56 km along the northwestern edge of the Persian Gulf. The creek contains numerous sources of organic pollution including industrial sewage effluent. A survey of the creek was performed assessing organic pollution, water properties, and the macrobenthic community. The need to assess the environmental status of marine and coastal...
Survey of heavy metals in sediments of Kolo creek in the Niger Delta, Nigeria
September 2010
Concentrations of Fe, Pb, Cr, Ni and V were measured in sediments taken from eight (8) sampling stations along a section of Kolo creek which traverses an oil flow station and a point in Epie creek which receive effluent discharges from human and industrial activities. The study was conducted in four seasons (Dry, Late Dry, Rainy and Late Rainy Seasons). Vanadium was less than 0.001 mg/Kg in all the samples...
Page 18 of 23, showing 50 records out of 1128 total, starting on record 851, ending on 900
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