A tool for estimating Best Management Practice effectiveness in Arkansas

Increased nutrient and sediment losses from expanding agricultural practices and urban development in Arkansas are important environmental concerns. Best Management Practices (BMPs) are being implemented to lessen the effects of these developments on existing water bodies. There is, however, insufficient scientific base as to the effectiveness of these practices. A number of studies have been conducted in recent years to determine BMP effectiveness. Data from these studies can only be reliably used for the individual site from which they were obtained. When considered collectively, these data comprise quantitative effectiveness over a wide range of conditions and can thus be used to provide reliable estimates of BMP effectiveness. This study develops a tool for estimating BMP effectiveness, based on accumulation and analyses of data reported in previous studies, with a focus on site conditions and management interventions in Arkansas. This study incorporates data from a variety of regions in the southeastern U.S., which have site conditions and management similar to those in Arkansas. Developed within Microsoft® Access© from a pre-existing BMP characterization tool, this tool will be made accessible to local and state agencies and will aid rural and urban planners in developing management solutions for nutrients and sediment control. The tool describes individual BMPs in detail and gives site-specific estimates of their long-term effectiveness in sediment and nutrient control

Emerging Horizons: Transformative Prudentialism and the Renaissance of Judicial Philosophy in the Supreme Court of Kenya

After over a decade of extensive work, the Supreme Court of Kenya has built a substantial track record. Consequently, a thorough appraisal of the judges’ efforts is undoubtedly warranted, given the Court’s crucial role in safeguarding democracy and upholding the rule of law in Kenya. How judges go about deciding cases has consistently attracted considerable scrutiny. Moreover, in the study of judicial behaviour, there are various considerations as to which factors affect the outcomes of judicial decisions. Judicial philosophy, being one such factor, is a chosen, articulable, and rationally defensible method of judicial decision-making that generally includes an explicitly articulated view of many legal concepts, including separation of powers. This paper conducts a hermeneutic analysis of Supreme Court cases to investigate the judicial philosophy of the Supreme Court regarding the concept of separation of powers and evaluate its appropriateness for the post-2010 constitutional dispensation. It is argued that the philosophy the Court has adopted is not clear-cut, it is comprised of excessive restraint and sporadic overreach. Consequently, it is proposed that the Court should embrace transformative prudentialism as a philosophy because unlike judicial restraint or judicial activism, it is not tied down to determined actions irrespective of the circumstances, it seeks to meet the aims of transformative constitutionalism

Teaching to Critique: Implications for the Integration of New Jazz Studies in Jazz History Courses

Due to the formation of a traditional jazz canon, jazz has become a highly regarded topic of study in educational institutions. The evolutionary narrative of the canon, which ties together the early genres of ragtime and swing to the later styles of bebop and fusion, offers an easily accessible platform for students to learn about the music and to understand its historical and cultural significance. However, New Jazz Studies, beginning in the 1990s, has proven this canonical approach to be too limited and simplistic for the ongoing study of jazz. This revolutionary academic movement critiques the conventional canon for its restrictions on what is deemed important enough to be included in the pedagogy of jazz. Thus, the original method of teaching jazz is called into question, and a challenge emerges for educators to conceptualise the inclusion of New Jazz Studies in their history courses. The challenge lies in the need to familiarise students with the story of jazz whilst also encouraging them to be critical in their interaction with that story. This article proposes a solution to this problem, suggesting practical methods in which students be taught how to appreciate the traditional canon, not as an impenetrable monument, but as an object of study in itself, one that can be evaluated and taken apart. Students can also learn how to offer their own alternative canons which feature sophisticated insights that they believe should be represented more within the conversation about jazz. In this way, students become active members in the discourse as they create new canons that revitalise jazz within the classroom

The Problem of Sports Betting in Kenya: Striking a Balance between Private Profit and Public Good

The inception of sports betting in Kenya has brought forth great excitement to prospective bettors and shrewd betting operators which has resulted in an equal amount of controversy and muddle. This note seeks to address the conflict between the private profit that investors and the economy reap, and the public good that the state owes its citizens by virtue of its fiduciary duty over its people. The author scrutinises the current law of sports betting in Kenya to demonstrate that it is not sufficient to speak to the two conflicting issues and that a concession is possible

SCALING UP THE OXYGENIC PHOTOGRANULE (OPG) WASTEWATER TREATMENT PROCESS

Photogranular biomass has yet to be utilized at large scale for wastewater treatment despite their potential to lower energy demand due to self-aerating capacity in addition to better process control compared to conventional technologies. An evaluation of critical driving factors affecting scaling up has yet to be undertaken. The current generation of oxygenic photogranules under hydrostatic conditions (a deviation from orthodox conditions creating other granules) limit seeding of larger reactors in time and scale. In addition, evaluating the photosynthetic productivity of granules which exist as closely commingled consortia with tightly coupled production and consumption processes, has yet to be undertaken. We experimentally evaluate the alternative generation of oxygenic photogranules under hydrodynamic conditions. The photochemical capacity of oxygenic photogranules under variable light conditions was also determined. Concomitantly, we evaluate the effects of light intensity on the performance of reactors of varying scales and the light demand therewith. Finally, granular physical attributes that impact hydrodynamic behaviour and interaction with the bulk fluid due to agitation were assessed. Oxygenic photogranules were formed only under some combinations of different pressures in 8 days, suggesting a ‘goldilocks zone’ of selection pressure interaction fostering granulation. Rapid generation of multiple granules would ease seeding of reactors higher volume reactors. OPGs phototrophic capacity was also found to increase with light intensity to a curvilinear maximum beyond which photoinhibition ensues. This implies the existence of light-limited operating conditions below maximal sunlight intensities. Photoelasticity was also observed for granules treated under different light stress with apparent adaptability to abiotic stresses. Moreover, the light dependency is influenced by reactor design and operation, allowing for recovery of the photosynthetic mechanism and selecting for different microbial dominance. This, in turn, affects different treatment metrics in rectors at a different scale. No linear relationship was observed between reactor performance and increasing light intensity while density, porosity and permeability were found to be in the range of other granular biomass. No spontaneous granulation has been recorded in conventional wastewater basins. We surmise that this could be due to a mismatch of conditions suppressing potential granulation. Altering the magnitudes of these o could potentially result in the formation of granular aggregates

Use of road asset maintenance planning software in QDMR

Asset Management has over the last decade become the primary focus and objective of any worthwhile road authority. The focus of Road Asset Management is not merely of asset preservation but seeks to maintain the asset at a level, which optimises the returns to the community at large. These aims are achieved by continuously assessing the condition of the road network storing and synthesising the data and subsequently prioritising on the requirement hence providing the optimum treatment at the opportune time. In this background, Main Roads have progressively developed planning software - SCENARIO Millennium to assist their managers in developing maintenance strategies for their road networks. Considerable savings can be generated through timely maintenance and rehabilitation interventions and Main Roads envisage that their newly introduced SCENARIO software will be used as part of the program development process by their regions and districts. This dissertation explores the use of SCENARIO in the Southern District and process of identifying a program for rehabilitation works. This investigation of Scenario application follows a thorough review of the road asset management and the particular aspects of life cycle analysis. The report generally found that emphasis of asset management has in the last decade been fully recognised and embraced in the whole life management of assets. The use of SCENARIO software in the Southern District is yet to be implemented due to several reasons, such as the success in the current practices, staff shortfall and the fact that the software still requires a lot of local development to succeed etc. The report has found that Scenario could in addition to the identification of programmed maintenance requirements be tailored as an effective tool to timely predict the rehabilitation requirements. This involves further engineering analysis of the development of pavement weaknesses. Development of rules and different rehabilitation treatments would be an interesting regime that deserves further attention

Modalities of Healthcare Payment and their Consequences – A Qualitative Study on Kenyan Doctors

Introduction: The Kenyan government has put a spirited reform to ensure all Kenyans get universal healthcare. This has led to restructuring of several entities among them the health insurance industry. This is geared at alleviating the burden of catastrophic expenditure on health from the poor Kenyans. However, insurance uptake remains at less than a quarter of the population with many Kenyans still paying for healthcare out-of-pocket. These out-of-pocket payers often don’t afford the ever-increasing cost of healthcare in Kenya. This study looked at how doctors deal with patients given their modality of payment. Methodology: This was an online based survey that was distributed to Kenyan doctors via email by Kenya Medical Association. The survey sought information from the respondents on how they dealt with patients given their modality of payment. In addition, respondents were asked to provide an example of a case they had dealt with that touched on each payment modality. Results: Respondents gave their experiences where insurance had influenced their clinical decisions. Codes developed from the prose were; “inability to pay”, “harmful to the patient”, “changed the prescription” among others Health insurance played a crucial role whenever respondents made decisions. Top on the list of things that the majority indicated would be considered is insurance status and/or their ability of patients to pay for the services. Conclusion: Respondents are stuck in a limbo; striving to give the best care to patients but limited by the patients’ inability to pay. In explaining their experiences, respondents explain a situation where they intend to offer the best, but patients cannot afford. This especially so for those without health insurance who end up either not getting services or at the very best, get inferior service

An Exploration of Trauma Interventions and Building Peace: The Case of South Sudanese Refugees in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya

This thesis identifies a gap in peacebuilding theory and practice in terms of sensitivity to trauma and its impact on the survivors of war and other mass violence. In order to understand this gap and how it can be filled, the research focuses on the experiences and perceptions of South Sudanese refugees in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Northwestern Kenya. It explores the trauma experienced by the refugees before leaving South Sudan, during their journey to the camp and within the camp, the interventions they have received in the camp to help them to deal with their traumatic experiences, the ways of coping they have developed, and the resilience they portray. It also examines the refugees’ perceptions of peace and explores the possibilities for peacebuilding identified in these perceptions. The research found that a lack of sensitivity to the trauma experienced by the survivors of conflict and mass violence leads to interventions that are at best removed from, and at worst detrimental to the welfare of the survivors. Interventions that take into consideration the complex and multifaceted ways in which the survivors experience and respond to the traumatic events, encourage capacities for resilience in the survivors, engage the creative arts in peacebuilding, and emphasise the centrality of community and relationships, are seen to assist the survivors in recovery from trauma and to facilitate peacebuilding. Further, this research demonstrates the need for continued inquiry in the field of trauma interventions and peacebuilding, to augment ways of building a sustainable peace