Case Study: The Implementation of Tool Box Talks at a Steel Subcontracting Shop

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing tool box talks at a small iron working shop. A case study of workers at Ironstone Metal Works, Inc. based out of San Carlos were given a series of tool box talks then evaluated on the effectiveness of the implementation of regular safety meetings. The impact focused on this paper will be the effectiveness of the implementation of regular safety training and how it relates to a safer work environment, reduced cost of workplace injuries, and workers knowledge of safe practices. An analysis of worker interviews and survey responses will be used to determine the effectiveness of using tool box talks

Multiple facets of diversity effects on plant productivity: species richness, functional diversity, species identity and intraspecific competition

International audienc

Introducing Perennial Grain in Grain Crops Rotation: The Role of Rooting Pattern in Soil Quality Management

The use of the perennial grain intermediate wheatgrass (Thinopyrum intermedium(Host) Barkworth & D.R. Dewey) may have the potential to sustain soil health and fertility through the development of an extensive root system. However, references are scarce to demonstrate its potential influence in a context of a limited perennial grain growth phase, integrated into annual grain crops succession. This study aims at determining how early a perennial crop rooting system differs from that of an annual crop through root development and root traits and microbial indicators. Our results indicate that the two-year-old intermediate wheatgrass promotes a denser and deeper rooting system with proportionally more root biomass and length deeper in the soil profile. From the first growing season, the perennial grain demonstrated a suite of root traits typical of a more resource-conservative strategy, and more belowground-oriented resource allocation. Soil fungal biomass indicators were enhanced. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) indicators were notably found to be improved at 1 m depth during the second growing season. This study provides evidence that grain-based agriculture can benefit from the potential of deeper and long-lived root systems of intermediate wheatgrass to manage soils. The periodic use of a short-term perennial phase in the crop rotation has the potential to improve soil functioning in the long term

Chapitre 13. Séquestration du carbone et usage durable des savanes ouest-africaines : synergie ou antagonisme ?

Introduction Les écosystèmes de savane ouest-africaine couvrent de vastes superficies (5.106 km2), en grande majorité exploitées par l’agriculture et le pastoralisme (Mayaux et al., 2004). Ils associent des systèmes herbacés et arborés, les faciès de végétation étant fortement pilotés par la pluviosité annuelle selon un gradient latitudinal. Dans ces écosystèmes, pour des raisons principalement démographiques et techniques – et, demain, sans doute climatiques – les ressources carbonées se rar..

Intraspecific Root Trait Variability Along Environmental Gradients Affects Salt Marsh Resistance to Lateral Erosion

Recent studies in salt marshes have demonstrated the role of plant roots in sediment stabilisation, and hence the importance of marshes in providing coastal protection. However, the relative role of root traits and environmental factors in controlling sediment stability, and how intraspecific variability of root traits vary within and among marshes, remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated which root trait(s) drive sediment stability (resistance to lateral erosion) in two marsh species with an important role in coastal protection (Spartina anglica and Atriplex portulacoides) and how the environment affects the expression of these traits. We sampled three marshes along salinity gradients in each of two estuaries in Wales (UK), establishing replicate plots in the respective dominant zones of each species. In all plots we sampled abiotic variables (sand, redox potential, pH, salinity) and root traits (root density, specific root density, root volume, root length density); in a subset of these plots (three per species in each marsh) we extracted soil-plant cores and assessed their erosion resistance in a flume. Sediment stability was enhanced by increases in root density and reductions in sand content. Abiotic variables affected root density in different ways depending on species: in S. anglica, redox was the only significant factor, with a positive, linear effect on root density; in A. portulacoides, redox had a non-linear (U-shaped) effect on root density, while sand had a negative effect. Collectively, these results show that (i) intraspecific variability in root density can influence sediment stability in salt marshes, and (ii) sediment properties not only influence sediment stability directly, but also indirectly via root density. These results shed light on spatial variability in the stability of salt marshes to lateral erosion and suggest that root density should be incorporated into coastal vegetation monitoring programs as an easy-to-measure root trait that links the environment to sediment stability and hence to the function and services provided by marshes

Modes of functional biodiversity control on tree productivity across the European continent

The relative contribution of community functional diversity and composition to ecosystem functioning is a critical question in ecology in order to enable better predictions of how ecosystems may respond to a changing climate. However, there is little consensus about which modes of functional biodiversity are most important for tree growth at large spatial scales. Here we assessed the relative importance of climate, functional diversity and functional identity (i.e. the community mean values of four key functional traits) for tree growth across the European continent, spanning the northern boreal to the southern Mediterranean forests. Using data from five European national forest inventories we applied a hierarchical linear model to estimate the sensitivity of tree growth to changes in climate, functional diversity and functional identity along a latitudinal gradient. Functional diversity was weakly related to tree growth in the temperate and boreal regions and more strongly in the Mediterranean region. In the temperate region, where climate was the most important predictor, functional diversity and identity had a similar importance for tree growth. Functional identity was strongest at the latitudinal extremes of the continent, largely driven by strong changes in the importance of maximum height along the latitudinal gradient

Co-occurrence patterns of litter decomposing communities in mangroves indicate a robust community resistant to disturbances.

Abstract: Background. Mangroves are important coastal ecosystems known for high photosynthetic productivity and the ability to support marine food chains through supply of dissolved carbon or particular organic matter. Most of the carbon found in mangroves is produced by its vegetation and is decomposed in root associated sediment. This process involves a tight interaction between microbial populations, litter chemical composition, and environmental parameters. Here, we study the complex interactions found during litter decomposition in mangroves by applying network analysis to metagenomic data

TRY plant trait database - enhanced coverage and open access

Plant traits-the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants-determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait-based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits-almost complete coverage for 'plant growth form'. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait-environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives