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Books > Earth & environment > Earth sciences > The hydrosphere
Hot, parched summers, water restrictions, sprinkler bans: how can we maintain our beloved gardens in such adverse conditions? Drought has become a serious issue, but with a little planning, gardeners can ease the problem and still achieve a fabulous display of color, form, and fragrance. These tips for the water-saving garden offer a variety of great ways to choose and use plants that thrive in an arid environment. Filled with magnificent illustrations, it details design ideas, soil-enhancing possibilities, and hints on watering wisely. Find out how to have an efficient container or kitchen garden, and which trees, shrubs, and border plants work especially well when it's dry. A large A-to-Z of low-water plants offers all the possibilities any gardener could want.
This book describes the fundamental phenomena of, and computational methods for, hydraulic transients, such as the self-stabilization effect, restriction of the Joukowsky equation, real relations between the rigid and elastic water column theories, the role of wave propagation speed, mechanism of the attenuation of pressure fluctuations, etc. A new wave tracking method is described in great detail and, supported by the established conservation and traveling laws of shockwaves, offers a number of advantages. The book puts forward a novel method that allows transient flows to be directly computed at each time node during a transient process, and explains the differences and relations between the rigid and elastic water column theories. To facilitate their use in hydropower applications, the characteristics of pumps and turbines are provided in suitable forms and examples. The book offers a valuable reference guide for engineers and scientists, helping them make transient computations for their own programming, while also contributing to the final standardization of methods for transient computations.
Originally published in 1988 Deforestation examines deforestation as a major environmental and development problem. It examines the issues of forests being cut in tropical and mountain areas, and how acid rain, pollution and disease wreak havoc in temperate zones. Some of the worst effects of deforestation have been changes in the world's climate system, erosion and flooding, desertification, wood short-ages and the disappearance of some floral and fauna species. This book challenges the belief that deforestation is due to entirely rapid population growth and agricultural expansion and emphasises the effects of commercial exploitation and poor planning and management. In concludes with a programme for reforestation using agro-forestry, appropriate cottage industries, improved international programmes, local land reforms and community participation.
Originally published in 1981 Historical Plant Geography is an introductory treatment of historical plant geography and stresses the basic theoretical frame of the subject. The book is about neither the study of vegetation nor the concept of the ecosystem, instead focusing on the much older tradition concerned with analysing the geographical distribution of individual species and natural plant groups. Important areas are discussed, such as global plate tectonics and sea-floor spreading, plant maps are introduced and there is a basic treatment of recent advances in plant taxonomy. The book will appeal to students and academics of geography, botany, ecology and environmental sciences.
Originally published in 1990, The Biogeography of the British Isles is devoted to the biogeography of the British Isles and surrounding shelf seas. Bringing together a wealth of diverse information, it is thoroughly referenced and well illustrated, and will be invaluable to students of geography, environmental science, ecology, botany, and zoology. The book traces the development of British biogeography over the last two centuries, examining key topics such as ecosystems, habitats, and niches in the context of plant and animal distribution. The book gives a detailed account of the development of biogeographical mapping and recording systems, and describes modern-day distributions, both in the countryside and in urban areas against the backcloth of human activities.
During the recent decades, social, political and academic endeavours have been made to improve environmental quality and reduce pollution. In particular, the ocean, sea and coastal areas show varying degrees of impact from the multiple human activities carried out in the terrestrial as well as in the aquatic environment. Ecology is a science which studies the relationship between organisms and the surrounding environment and in the modern era, the marine world is getting increasing attention. For centuries it has been the final reservoir of human garbage; later it became an oil farm with a concomitant increase of coastal population growth and unplanned growth of the fishing industry and the increasing use of sea routes for cargo transport and recreational uses (cruises). All this led to rising contamination with negative effects on biota and even human health. It is then imperative to know the current situation of the world's oceans: that is the main purpose of this book, to document at a glance the latest research in the field of ocean pollution.
Rural-Urban Water Struggles compiles diverse analyses of rural-urban water connections, discourses, identities and struggles evolving in the context of urbanization around the world. Departing from an understanding of urbanization as a process of constant making and remaking of multi-scalar territorial interactions that extend beyond traditional city boundaries and that deeply reconfigure rural-urban hydrosocial territories and interlinkages, the chapters demonstrate the need to reconsider and trouble the rural-urban dichotomy. The contributors scrutinize how existing approaches for securing urban water supply - ranging from water transfers to payments for ecosystem services - all rely on a myriad of techniques: they are produced by, and embedded in, specific institutional and legal arrangements, actor alliances, discourses, interests and technologies entwining local, regional and global scales. The different chapters show the need to better understand on-the-ground realities, taking account of inequalities in water access and control, as well as representation and cultural-political recognition among rural and urban subjects. Rural-Urban Water Struggles will be of great use to scholars of water governance and justice, environmental justice and political ecology. This book was originally published as a special issue of Water International.
The depths of the oceans are the last example of terra incognita on earth. Adamowsky presents a study of the sea, arguing that - contrary to popular belief - post-Enlightenment discourse on the sea was still subject to mystery and wonder, and not wholly rationalized by science.
Soft Clay Engineering and Ground Improvement covers the design and implementation of ground improvement techniques as applicable to soft clays. This particular subject poses major geotechnical challenges in civil engineering. Not only civil engineers, but planners, architects, consultants and contractors are now aware what soft soils are and the risks associated with development of such areas. The book is designed as a reference and useful tool for those in the industry, both to consultants and contractors. It also benefits researchers and academics working on ground improvement of soft soils, and serves as an excellent overview for postgraduates. University lecturers are beginning to incorporate more ground improvement topics into their curricula, and this text would be ideal for short courses for practicing engineers. It includes several examples to assist a newcomer to carry out preliminary designs. The three authors, each with dozens of years of experience, have witnessed and participated in the rapid evolvement of ground improvement in soft soils. In addition, top-tier professionals who deal with soft clays and ground improvement on a daily basis have contributed, providing their expertise in dealing with real-world problems and practical solutions.
Professionals and students who come from disciplines other than chemistry need a concise yet reliable guide that explains key concepts in environmental chemistry, from the fundamental science to the necessary calculations for applying them. Updated and reorganized, Applications of Environmental Aquatic Chemistry: A Practical Guide, Third Edition provides the essential background for understanding and solving the most frequent environmental chemistry problems. Diverse and self-contained chapters offer a centralized and easily navigable framework for finding useful data tables that are ordinarily scattered throughout the literature. Worked examples provide step-by-step details for frequently used calculations, drawing on case histories from real-world environmental applications. Chapters also offer tools for calculating quick estimates of important quantities and practice problems that apply the principles to different conditions. This practical guide provides an ideal basis for self-study, as well as short courses involving the movement and fate of contaminants in the environment. In addition to extensive reorganization and updating, the Third Edition includes a new chapter, Nutrients and Odors: Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur, two new appendices, Solubility of Slightly Soluble Metal Salts and Glossary of Acronyms and Abbreviations Used in this Book, and new material and case studies on remediation, stormwater management, algae growth and treatment, odor control, and radioisotopes.
First published in 1987, Maritime Boundaries and Ocean Resources is a collection of essays which examines the political jurisdiction of ocean boundaries and the affects that this has on the world's oceans. It examines how the intensification of ocean use has raised questions of how rational planning, and the management of the oceans can avoid increasingly environmental damage and sea use conflict and examines the ocean as a tool for space, trade and communication. It also addresses the creation of integrated regional planning for ocean management.
This book chiefly focuses on environmental flow, water pollution and water quality. Several chapters also cover water treatment technologies and management. In today's context, climate change and climate variability are important issues in the water sector, which is called upon to develop adaptation strategies to cope with their negative impacts. Human health depends upon the quality of water used for drinking and irrigation purposes. These core issues are discussed and addressed in several chapters. The book explores the impact of climate change on water resources and considers various climatological scenarios. In this regard, it carries out a trend analysis and compares the performance of various Global Climate Models (GCMs). Further, it conducts a water quality analysis and water quality mapping so as to provide information on the most vulnerable areas in the context of water quality. Emerging pollutants, generated from paper mills, are identified in order to choose an appropriate treatment technology. Bioremediation techniques are included for the characterization of improved water quality parameters. The book also presents a low-cost treatment technology for fluoride removal, which can help water managers ensure potable water to stakeholders. In terms of maintaining river ecology in the downstream areas of water resources project sites, the book provides a number of case studies on assessment of environmental flows. Advanced treatment technologies that can be highly advantageous for removing water pollutants are presented. Given its scope, the book offers a valuable resource for academics, water resources practitioners, scientists, water managers, environmentalists, administrators, NGOs, researchers and students who are involved in water management with a main focus on water pollution, the environment, climate change and health.
This book provides a comprehensive, up-to-date assessment of the key terrestrial components of the Arctic system, i.e., its hydrology, permafrost, and ecology, drawing on the latest research results from across the circumpolar regions. The Arctic is an integrated system, the elements of which are closely linked by the atmosphere, ocean, and land. Using an integrated system approach, the book's 30 chapters, written by a diverse team of leading scholars, carefully examine Arctic climate variability/change, large river hydrology, lakes and wetlands, snow cover and ice processes, permafrost characteristics, vegetation/landscape changes, and the future trajectory of Arctic system evolution. The discussions cover the fundamental features of and processes in the Arctic system, with a special focus on critical knowledge gaps, i.e., the interactions and feedbacks between water, permafrost, and ecosystem, such as snow pack and permafrost changes and their impacts on basin hydrology and ecology, river flow, geochemistry, and energy fluxes to the Arctic Ocean, and the structure and function of the Arctic ecosystem in response to past/future changes in climate, hydrology, and permafrost conditions. Given its scope, the book offers a valuable resource for researchers, graduate students, environmentalists, managers, and administrators who are concerned with the northern environment and resources.
Accurate prediction of hydrological variables is essential for efficient water resources planning and management. Proper understanding of the characteristics of the time series may help in improving the simulation and forecasting accuracy of hydrological variables. This book presents a detailed description and application of multiscale time-frequency characterization tool for the spectral analysis of hydrological time series. It presents spectral analysis methods for hydrological applications through a wide variety of illustrative case studies including Wavelet transforms, Hilbert Huang Transform and their extensions.
This new volume offers effective solutions to the mismanagement of waste, particularly in developing countries, by providing an understanding of different types of wastes, their generation, and use of advanced technologies for waste management, and by focusing on integrating the technical and regulatory complexities of waste management. Waste Problems and Management in Developing Countries provides a comprehensive overview of the characterization, issues, and regulatory development of waste management for sustainable solutions and prevention techniques. It covers the various types of pollution, including pollution from plastics, industrial activities, metals, livestock, healthcare, food loss and waste, etc. It explores new techniques for thermal and radioactive waste management and includes such methods as vermicomposting and composting for organic wastes management and profitable use. The volume also looks at the role of modern technologies and legislation measures to manage biosolid waste. The volume includes numerous data sets obtained from various surveys and highlights special categories of waste that may not fit precisely into either RCRA Subtitle D (solid wastes) or Subtitle C (hazardous wastes). Academicians, researchers, and students will find the volume to be a comprehensible volume about waste management and its diversity, exploration, exploitation, and management strategies.
Master the in-depth knowledge and higher-level skills that A-level Geography students need to succeed; this focused topic book extends learning far beyond your course textbooks. Blending detailed content and case studies with questions, exemplars and guidance, this book: - Significantly improves students' knowledge and understanding of A-level content and concepts, providing more coverage of The Water and Carbon Cycles than your existing resources - Strengthens students' analytical and interpretative skills through questions that involve a range of geographical data sources, with guidance on how to approach each task - Demonstrates how to evaluate issues, with a dedicated section in every chapter that shows how to think geographically, consider relevant evidence and structure a balanced essay - Equips students with everything they need to excel, from additional case studies and definitions of key terminology, to suggestions for further research and fieldwork ideas for the Independent Investigation - Helps students check, apply and consolidate their learning, using end-of-chapter refresher questions and discussion points - Offers trusted and reliable content, written by a team of highly experienced senior examiners and reviewed by academics with unparalleled knowledge of the latest geographical theories
Coupled Atmosphere-Ocean Dynamics of Climate Variability and Climate Change presents the patterns, mechanisms, and predictability of climate variability and anthropogenic climate change. Based on a graduate course the author has taught over 25 years, this book provides the physical foundation for those who are interested in fundamental questions such as: why climate varies from one year to another; how predictable climate is; and how climate will change in the face of increasing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This is the first comprehensive and systematic treatment of this subject that simultaneously draws on the latest research and is accessible for graduate students. The book takes a step-by-step systematic approach to coupled ocean-atmosphere interactions. This allows a wide range of comparative views: climate modes among and across different tropical ocean basins, ocean feedback on the atmosphere (in and out of the tropics), and spontaneous internal oscillation versus externally forced climate change. Such comparative views offer unprecedented insight into the dynamics of climate variability and predictability. This book can be used as supplementary reading for advanced undergraduate students, as coursework in climate dynamics, modeling, variability, and change, and as a reference book and research monograph for researchers in ocean, atmospheric, climate, and earth system sciences.
One of the core areas of study in civil engineering concerns water that encompasses fluid mechanics, hydraulics and hydrology. Fluid mechanics provide the mathematical and scientific basis for hydraulics and hydrology that also have added empirical and practical contents. The knowledge contained in these three subjects is necessary for the optimal and equitable management of this precious resource that is not always available when and where it is needed, sometimes with conflicting demands. The objective of Fluid Mechanics, Hydraulics, Hydrology and Water Resources for Civil Engineers is to assimilate these core study areas into a single source of knowledge. The contents highlight the theory and applications supplemented with worked examples and also include comprehensive references for follow-up studies. The primary readership is civil engineering students who would normally go through these core subject areas sequentially spread over the duration of their studies. It is also a reference for practicing civil engineers in the water sector to refresh and update their skills.
This book is a concise informative elucidation of all aspects of reproduction and development in annelids covering from arenicola to tubifex. Annelids flourish between 4,900 m depth to 2,000 m altitude; some of them occur in unusual habitats like hydrothermal vents and subterranean aquatic system (stigobionts). A few have no gut and acquire adequate nutrients through osmotrophism and/or engaging symbiotic microbes. In the absence of exoskeleton to escape predation, the 17,000 speciose annelids have explored bewildering modes of reproduction; not surprisingly, 42-47% of them are brooders. With 13,000 species, polychaetes are gonochores but some 207 species of them are hermaphrodites. Clitellates are all hermaphrodites; of them, 76 species are parthenogens, of which 56 are earthworms. Regenerative potency of annelids ranges from an organ to an entire worm from a single 'seminal' segment. The head, tail and both together can be regenerated 21, 42 and 20 times, respectively. However, the potency is limited to ~1% of polychaetes and < 2% of oligochaetes. In oligochaetes, the chloragogue temporally separates regeneration and reproduction but sedentary polychaetes undertake them together at the reduced reproductive output. Only 79 polychaete and 111 oligochaete species have the potency for clonal reproduction. Within families, the potency ranges from 2% in spionids to 54% in naidids. Epitoky, a spectacular and unique phenomenon, involves the transformation from benthic to meroplanktonic reproductive morphism. It occurs in 106 errant polychaete species. The larger glycerides, nereidids and eunicids use muscular energy to climb < 50 m vertical distance. But the small phyllodocids and cteniodrilids may reduce buoyancy to climb 1,000-4,000 m vertical distance. Heterogamatic sex determination is reported to occur only in six polychaete species, although karyotype is known for 83 annelid species. In temperate polychaetes, a dozen neuroendocrines, arising mostly from the 'brain' regulates reproductive cycle. A complete chapter devoted to vermiculture, (i) recognizes the fast-growing candidate species, (ii) distinguishes 'layers' from 'brooders', (iii) indicates that the harvest of oligochaetes may reduce the input of nitrogenous fertilizer in the ricefield, and (iv) explores the scope for increasing wealth from waste.
Artificial or constructed wetlands are an emerging technology particularly for tropical areas with water scarcity. For big cities, the sustainable management of water resources taking into account proper use is always challenging. The book presents case studies illustrating the above. As plants and microorganisms are a fundamental part of the correct functioning of these systems, their contribution to the degradation of the organic matter and to the removal and transformation of the pollutant compounds present in the wastewaters is also a highlight of this book.
This book gathers contributions discussing climate change in Egypt from an agricultural perspective. Written by leading experts, it presents state-of-the-art insights and the latest research developments in light of the most recent IPCC report. Focusing on identifying the specific phenomena that affect climate change in Egypt, the book also addresses the effects of climate change in Egypt, particularly examining the quality and quantity of water resources as well as the socio-economic impacts of climate change on agricultural activities. Furthermore, it explores alternative solutions to support agriculture and food security and raises awareness of adaptation and protection as the key to adapting to the risks posed by climate change. Covering the four fundamental pillars of climate change: food security, availability, access and stability, this book is a valuable resource for stakeholders involved in achieving the 2030 sustainable development goals in Egypt and all countries with similar climatic conditions. It is also a unique source of information and updates on climate change impacts for graduates, researchers, policy planners, and decision-makers.
"Handbook of Microalgal Culture" is truly a landmark publication,
drawing on some 50 years of worldwide experience in microalgal mass
culture. This important book comprises comprehensive reviews of the
current available information on microalgal culture, written by 40
contributing authors from around the globe.
The book is divided into four parts, with Part I detailing
biological and environmental aspects of microalgae with reference
to microalgal biotechnology and Part II looking in depth at major
theories and techniques of mass cultivation. Part III comprises
chapters on the economic applications of microalgae, including
coverage of industrial production, the use of microalgae in human
and animal nutrition and in aquaculture, in nitrogen fixation,
hydrogen and methane production, and in bioremediation of polluted
water. Finally, Part IV looks at new frontiers and includes
chapters on genetic engineering, microalgae as platforms for
recombinant proteins, bioactive chemicals, heterotrophic
production, microalgae as gene-delivery systems for expressing
mosquitocidal toxins and the enhancement of marine productivity for
climate stabilization and food security.
"Handbook of Microalgal Culture" is an essential purchase for
all phycologists and also those researching aquatic systems,
aquaculture and plant sciences. There is also much of great use to
researchers and those involved in product formulation within
pharmaceutical, nutrition and food companies. Libraries in all
universities and research establishments teaching and researching
in chemistry, biological and pharmaceutical sciences, food sciences
and nutrition, and aquaculture will need copies of this book on
their shelves.
Amos Richmond is at the Blaustein Institute for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel.
Published in 1995: This book is not designed as a culture manual for herbivorous fishes, but the reader is directed to other sources. This book should meet the needs that exist for a comprehensive publication on herbivorous fishes.
Rising at 11,750 feet in the Sangre de Cristo range and snaking 926 miles through New Mexico and Texas to the Rio Grande, the Pecos River is one of the most storied waterways in the American West. It is also one of the most troubled. In 1942, the National Resources Planning Board observed that the Pecos River basin ""probably presents a greater aggregation of problems associated with land and water use than any other irrigated basin in the Western U.S."" In the twenty-first century, the river's problems have only multiplied. Bitter Waters, the first book-length study of the entire Pecos, traces the river's environmental history from the arrival of the first Europeans in the sixteenth century to today. Running clear at its source and turning salty in its middle reach, the Pecos River has served as both a magnet of veneration and an object of scorn. Patrick Dearen, who has written about the Pecos since the 1980s, draws on more than 150 interviews and a wealth of primary sources to trace the river's natural evolution and man's interaction with it. Irrigation projects, dams, invasive saltcedar, forest proliferation, fires, floods, flow decline, usage conflicts, water quality deterioration - Dearen offers a thorough and clearly written account of what each factor has meant to the river and its prospects. As fine-grained in detail as it is sweeping in breadth, the picture Bitter Waters presents is sobering but not without hope, as it also extends to potential solutions to the Pecos River's problems and the current efforts to undo decades of damage. Combining the research skills of an accomplished historian, the investigative techniques of a veteran journalist, and the engaging style of an award-winning novelist, this powerful and accessible work of environmental history may well mark a turning point in the Pecos's fortunes.
Rivers have traditionally been revered by the people of the Indian subcontinent, though in recent decades, the region's rivers have deteriorated dramatically due to economic progress and gross mismanagement. Dams and ill-advised embankments strangle the Ganges and its sacred tributaries. Rivers have become sewage channels for a burgeoning population. Dirty, Sacred Rivers explores South Asia's looming water crisis, tracing a journey through the vast watershed of the Ganges, one of the great rivers of South Asia and to many people the holiest. To tell the story of this river basin, Cheryl Colopy treks to high mountain glaciers with hydrologists; bumps around the rough embankments of India's poorest state in a jeep with social workers; and takes a boat excursion through the Sundarbans, the mangrove forests at the end of the Ganges watershed. She lingers in key places and hot spots in the debate over water: * Delhi-a megacity on the banks of one the Ganges' most revered tributaries, the Yamuna-and a paradigm of water mismanagement * Bihar, where the Buddha gained enlightenment. It's now India's poorest, most crime-ridden state, thanks largely to the blunders of engineers who tried to tame powerful Himalayan rivers with embankments but instead created annual floods * Kathmandu-the home of one of the most elegant and ancient traditional water systems on the subcontinent, now the site of a water development boondoggle * The Nepal Himalaya, whose sweeping glaciers are starting to melt, threatening villagers in the high mountains A first-person narrative holds together disparate places and issues. The reader meets a cast of characters, ranging from the most humble members of South Asian society to engineers and former ministers. Some of these men and women are heroes, bucking current trends, trying to find rational ways to manage rivers and water. They are reviving ingenious methods of water management that thrived for centuries in South Asia and may point the way to water sustainability and healthy rivers. |
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