Ocean views: coastal environmental problems as seen by downeast Maine residents

This brief contends that loss of fishing jobs and income is the top environment-related concern among residents of Maine\u27s Hancock and Washington counties, as well as forestry decline and water pollution. Also of note, across a wide range of environmental issues, political party affiliation is associated with level of concern about environmental problems

The Zika Virus Threat: How Concerns About Scientists May Undermine Efforts to Combat the Pandemic

Using data from the University of New Hampshire’s October 2016 Granite State Poll, authors Thomas Safford, Lawrence Hamilton, and Emily Whitmore investigate how New Hampshire residents view the Zika crisis. They report that most New Hampshire residents believe Zika is only a minor threat to public health in the United States, and they generally trust the CDC as a source of information about the virus. The data also show that, while there is doubt about the government’s ability to control the spread of the virus, the public feels that emergency federal funding to combat Zika should be a priority. They discuss that many Granite Staters have real concerns about the practice of science, believing scientists change their findings to get the answers they want. More importantly, individuals who questioned the integrity of scientists are less likely to believe Zika is a threat, have confidence in the government’s ability to combat the virus, trust the CDC, and to prioritize emergency funding. They conclude that these results suggest that health officials working to engage the public in efforts to control the spread of Zika must not only discuss risks associated with the virus and mechanisms of transmission, but also confront science skepticism and potential concerns about the integrity of the scientists gathering data related to Zika and other infectious diseases

Optimization of Forage Use in Diets Fed to Backgrounding and Finishing Cattle in The Northern Great Plains

The two studies in this thesis were conducted to: 1) investigate the impact of corn silage moisture content and kernel processing at harvest on growth performance, efficiency of dietary net energy utilization, and carcass traits in finishing steers when fed at 20% DM inclusion in diets containing modified distillers grains plus solubles; and 2) determine the influence of equal cumulative roughage inclusion in a single diet or twodiet system during a 210-d backgrounding-finishing period in pre-conditioned beef steers on growth performance responses, efficiency of dietary net energy (NE) utilization, and carcass traits. Experiment 1 was a 112-d finishing experiment conducted at the Southeast Research Farm (SERF) near Beresford, SD using 192 single source, Red Angus influenced steers (initial BW = 446 ± 28.3 kg). This study used 6 replicate pens (24 total pens) of 8 steers assigned to one of 4 dietary treatments (2 x 2 factorial arrangement). Factors included silage maturity at harvest time (HT) and kernel processing (KP). Treatments were arranged as a 2 x 2 factorial with the factors of HT (1/2 to 2/3 Milkline [(ML)]) or (black layer [BL]) with (KP+) or without (KP-) kernel processing. Steers were blocked by batch fraction (n = 6) and pen served as the experimental unit. The model included the effects of harvest time, processing, and their interaction. Block was included as a random factor. No harvest time × KP interaction was detected (P ≥ 0.26) for any parameters related to the efficiency of dietary NE utilization. Comparative by harvest time indicates that delayed harvest enhanced corn silage NEm by 6% and KP decreased apparent NEm value of corn silage by 9% compared to current feeding standards. No HT × KP interaction (P ≥ 0.08) was detected for any carcass traits except the distribution of USDA Prime carcasses (P = 0.04). Steers from ML/KP- had fewer (P = 0.05) USDA Prime carcasses compared to ML/KP+, BL/KP-, and BL/KP+. Harvest time (P ≥ 0.07) and KP (P ≥ 0.07) had no appreciable influence on any carcass trait parameters. These data indicate that corn silage harvest can be delayed without detriment to growth performance and kernel processing does not enhance the apparent feeding value of corn silage when corn silage is fed as the sole roughage component of a feedlot finishing diet (i.e. 20% inclusion DM basis). Experiment 2 used 46 single source, crossbred beef steers (initial BW = 281 ± 40.4 kg) in a 210-d background-finish experiment at the Ruminant Nutrition Center (RNC) in Brookings, SD. This study used five replicate 7.6 x 7.6-meter concrete pens (10 total pens) with 4 or 5 steers assigned to one of two dietary treatments. The target cumulative roughage for both treatments was 16% over the 210-d backgroundfinish period. Treatments included: 1) Single Diet (1D), one diet throughout the feeding period, (16% Roughage) 1.34 Mcal/kg NEg 210-d, 2) Two Diet (2D), initial growing diet, (25% Roughage) 1.25 Mcal/kg NEg for 98-d, transition diet, (16% Roughage) 1.34 Mcal/kg NEg for 14-d, finishing diet, (7% Roughage) 1.43 Mcal/kg NEg for 98-d. All steers were implanted initially (d 1) with a 100 mg trenbolone acetate (TBA) and 14 mg estradiol benzoate (EB) implant (Synovex Choice, Zoetis) and re-implanted with a 200 mg TBA and 28 mg EB implant (Synovex-Plus, Zoetis) on d 112. Fresh feed was manufactured once daily for each treatment in a single batch using a stationary mixer and bunks were managed using a slick bunk management approach. Data were analyzed as a randomized complete block design with pen as the experimental unit. Average daily gain (ADG) tended (P = 0.06) to be 9.5% greater for 1D compared to 2D during the backgrounding portion and ADG was increased 11.3% (P = 0.01) for 2D compared to 1D during the finishing phase of the experiment. Cumulative ADG did not differ between treatments (1.61 vs. 1.62 ± 0.046 kg/d) for 1D and 2D, respectively. Cumulative observed dietary NEm and NEg did not differ (P ≥ 0.96) between treatments. There were no differences (P ≥ 0.18) detected between treatments for HCW, DP, REA, RF, USDA marbling score, KPH, yield grade, retail yield, EBF, or body weight at 28% estimated EBF. It is concluded that Northern Plains feedlot producers can feed a single growingfinishing diet to preconditioned beef steers with minimal effects on overall growth performance or carcass traits

In the Wake of the Spill: Environmental Views Along the Gulf Coast

Abstract Objectives We analyze patterns in environmental views of Gulf Coast residents, in the wake of the 2010 oil spill. To what extent do spill-related and other environmental views vary with individual characteristics, personal experience with the spill, or characteristics of place? Methods About 2,000 residents of selected coastal regions in Louisiana and Florida were interviewed by telephone in late summer 2010. Results One-quarter of the respondents said that their environmental views had changed as a result of the spill. Despite reporting more change, more spill effects, and greater threats from climate-induced sea-level rise, Louisiana respondents were less likely to support a deepwater moratorium, alternative energy, or resource conservation. Conclusions Results are consistent with real effects from the spill. Differences between Louisiana and Florida respondents are not explained by spill effects or individual characteristics, however. The patterns reflect biophysical differences of the coastlines that shaped their socioeconomic development

Rural environmental concern: Effects of position, partisanship and place

The social bases of environmental concern in rural America resemble those for the nation as a whole, but also reflect the influence of place. Some general place characteristics, such as rates of population growth or resource-industry employment, predict responses across a number of environmental issues. Other unique or distinctive aspects of local society and environment matter as well. We extend earlier work on both kinds of place effects, first by analyzing survey data from northeast Oregon. Results emphasize that “environmental concern” has several dimensions. Second, we contextualize the Oregon results using surveys from other regions. Analysis of an integrated dataset (up to 12,000 interviews in 38 U.S. counties) shows effects from respondent characteristics and political views, and from county rates of population growth and resource-based employment. There also are significant place-to-place variations that are not explained by variables in the models. To understand some of these we return to the local scale. In northeast Oregon, residents describe how perceptions of fire danger from unmanaged forest lands shape their response to the word conservation. Their local interpretation contrasts with more general and urban connotations of this term, underlining the importance of place for understanding rural environmental concern

Trusting Scientists More Than the Government: New Hampshire Perceptions of the Pandemic

In this brief, authors Lawrence Hamilton and Thomas Safford report that despite a dramatic increase in the incidence of COVID-19, and an evolving government response, there was no significant change between surveys taken in mid-March and mid-April in the shares of New Hampshire residents who reported they were making “major changes” in their daily routines, had low confidence in the federal government’s response, or expressed trust in information from science agencies

Elite Cues and the Rapid Decline of Trust in Science Agencies on COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has been marked by political divisions in US public trust of scientists. Such divisions are well known on other science topics, but regarding COVID-19 they arose suddenly, with disastrous results. Public distrust of scientists has been variously explained in terms of conflicts with belief systems, psychology, peer influences, or communication from elites. Three surveys conducted from March to July 2020 in the US state of New Hampshire observed changing perceptions on COVID-19, providing a test of alternative explanations. Over this period trust in science agencies such as the CDC for information on the coronavirus fell dramatically among Republicans, while views among Democrats and Independents changed little. Elite cues provide an obvious explanation—specifically, a reversal of views toward the CDC expressed by President Donald Trump. The change was consequential: people expressing lower trust in scientists also report less compliance with science-based behavioral recommendations, and less support for scientifically-informed policies. On several items, partisan differences are narrowest among college graduates, opposite to patterns previously seen with other science-trust issues. The primacy of elite cues regarding COVID-19 agrees, however, with earlier conclusions about the origins of distrust in scientists on climate change and environmental protection

Views of a Fast-Moving Pandemic: A Survey of Granite Staters’ Responses to COVID-19

In this brief, authors Thomas Safford and Lawrence Hamilton report the results of a Granite State Panel survey (March 17-26), asking New Hampshire residents about their views concerning government responses to the coronavirus (COVID-19) and whether they changed their daily routine because of the pandemic. They report that New Hampshire residents who approve of President Trump’s handling of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and those who regularly watch Fox News are less likely than others to have made major changes in their routines due to COVID-19. Granite Staters have polarized opinions about President Trump’s handling of the pandemic: 40 percent strongly or somewhat approve, and 56 percent strongly or somewhat disapprove. Just 4 percent express more neutral views. Governor Sununu’s response to COVID-19 is viewed more positively—67 percent strongly or somewhat approve, and only 13 percent strongly or somewhat disapprove—but 20 percent express more neutral opinions. A large majority (77 percent) say they trust science agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control for information about the coronavirus