The Sustainability and Cost-Effectiveness of Water Storage Projects on Canterbury Rivers: The Opihi River Case

There is an increasing demand for water resources in the Canterbury region. The impact of this demand has lead to unacceptable minimum river flows, which has resulted in adverse affects to river ecology. In an effort to resolve this problem water storage projects have gained considerable attention. However, in order to consider all values of the impact of water storage projects, a systematic way of implementing an ecosystem services approach is developed. This ecosystem services approach coupled with various appropriate analytical methods are developed for the purposes of evaluating the cost-effectiveness of water storage projects and the sustainability of river systems impacted by water storage projects. For the purposes of evaluating the cost-effectiveness of water storage projects it is argued that cost utility analysis should be applied through an ecosystem services index, which is constructed from the aggregation of normalized indicators that represent each ecosystem service and preferential weights for each ecosystem service. The evaluation of sustainability is considered both according to its weak and strong definitions. Weak sustainability is evaluated by a non-declining ecosystem services index over time. Strong sustainability is evaluated by the elicitation of threshold levels or safe minimum standards where an ecosystem service, as represented by an indicator, should not pass below. These analytical methods developed are subsequently applied to the Opihi River, which is a river system located in Canterbury that has been hydrologically modified and impounded by the Opuha Dam scheme. The application of the analytical methods to the Opihi River provides a few preliminary results. Further data collection is required to fully determine the cost-effectiveness of the Opuha Dam and the sustainability of the Opihi River impacted by the dam scheme.Cost utility analysis, ecosystem services, ecosystem services index, indicators, sustainability, water storage projects, Agricultural and Food Policy, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Environmental Economics and Policy, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, Land Economics/Use,

PERSONAL PROSTHESIS

There is truth and inherent beauty in incomplete thoughts and half lived ideas. Muddling through the nature of aesthetics is enough to support multiple bodies of work. Add to that a rich historical tradition based in craft, and you will find not only a complex set of ideas and contradictions, but also a sense of pride mixed with resentment. At the heart of the matter, creativity and curiosity remain the main motivational factors for approaching each day with a desire to make and to work with ones hands

Ecosystem services review of water projects

Water projects are typically evaluated using benefit cost analysis. Ecosystem services are the direct and indirect benefits that people obtain from ecosystems. Many of these benefits are ignored in benefit cost analysis, because of the absence of markets and the limited information or understanding of how the benefits from ecosystem services are produced. Regional or local government may be interested in learning how the value of ecosystem services associated with projects may change if a project occurs. Ecosystem Service Reviews aim to make ecosystem services explicit and quantifiable so that they can be accounted for in the evaluation of water use projects. Water storage projects can enable land use intensification to occur, and confer environmental benefits in some instances (e.g., flow augmentation) and costs in others (e.g., groundwater contamination and flow‐on effects). Water storage projects can have both positive and negative outcomes for the environment. More flow can lead led to better fishing, better clarity, more contaminant dilution and a healthier aquatic ecosystem. It can also result in loss of braided river‐bird habitat, and regulated flows can result in nuisance growths of potentially toxic algal species. Irrigation can increase productivity of land within the scheme, with attendant benefits to soil quality and other out‐of‐river environmental characteristics. This paper reports the methods used to assess the impact of a water storage dam on the flow of ecosystem services in a river system. We review the range of ecosystem services that are available in a river system and examine how the flow of ecosystem services can be altered by water storage and flow augmentation through the construction of a dam. In order to list and quantify ecosystem services an attempt is made to determine a suitable site specific set of ecosystem service indicators for the Opuha‐Opihi river system case. We draw inferences about shifts in the value of ecosystem services that might arise from water projects in other contexts.Ecosystem services review,  water projects , Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Addressing the wicked problem of water resource management: An ecosystem services approach

This paper develops a systematic assessment of the sustainability of ecosystem services provided by rivers impacted by water storage projects. Given the conflicting preferences amongst stakeholders and the incomplete, uncertain and contradictory understanding about river ecology it is recognized that managing water resources sustainably is a wicked problem. In order to address this wicked problem, the methods of multi-criteria analysis and graph analysis are applied, in accordance with integrated water resource management, to assess the potential of investing in water storage projects and explore for sustainable solutions through the construction of an ecosystem services index.Ecosystem services, ecosystem services index, graph analysis, integrated water resource management, multi-criteria analysis, sustainability, wicked problems, Environmental Economics and Policy, Q15, Q25, Q27, Q51, Q58, Q57,

The Jewish Origins of the Ordinances of Christianity: Worship Within Baptism and the Lord\u27s Supper

The modern evangelical denominations have worship services that include many forms of worship and functions to bring the worshiper into communion with the living God as a disciple of Christ. These worship forms include the two ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Generations of denominational congregants have participated in these ordinances with little knowledge of the origin of these two rites. This qualitative historical study focuses on the roots of the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper formed within Christianity during the early church years. Using research from Christian and Messianic Jewish scholars along with Jewish sources, this study will strive to uncover the foundations of these ordinances within second-temple Judaism and discover how these rites find renewal and purpose in Christianity. This work will help form a foundation for the Church to gain a greater understanding of the Jewish roots of our faith as the study reveals why the Lord’s Table contains the elements present in Communion. This work will also reveal the original mode of baptism and practice based on Jewish practice and tradition used during the time of John the Baptist and Jesus. Finally, this research will exhort churches to explore deeper meanings found in the Gospels and Writings of the Apostles surrounding these festival and priestly practices from Judaism as the Body of Christ celebrate their renewal in Christ-centered worship

Evaluating the sustainability of impounded river systems and the cost-effectiveness of dam projects: An ecosystem services approach

In recent times, there has been increasing demand in the Canterbury region of New Zealand for the abstraction of water from rivers. The impact of this demand has lead to unacceptable minimum river flows and has adversely affected river ecology. In an effort to resolve these issues dams have been constructed. To evaluate the impact of these dam projects on all river values, an ecosystem services approach is developed. This ecosystem services approach coupled with various evaluation methods are applied for the purposes of assessing the cost-effectiveness of the Opuha Dam and the sustainability of the Opihi river system now modified by the Opuha Dam. To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of this dam project cost utility analysis is applied through the development of an ecosystem services index (ESI). The index is constructed from the aggregation of normalized indicators that represent each ecosystem service and preferential weights of each ecosystem service. The evaluation of sustainability is considered both according to weak and strong criteria. Weak sustainability is evaluated by a non-declining ecosystem services index over time. Strong sustainability is evaluated by the thresholds or safe minimum standards where an ecosystem service, as represented by an indicator, should not pass below. Fifteen ecosystem services provided by the Opihi river were identified and data for forty-two indicators was compiled to assess the provision of these services pre- and post-dam. Fifteen regional and six local stakeholder representatives were interviewed to elicit preferential weights for each ecosystem service. Assessment of both the ESI and safe minimum standards indicates that since dam construction the river has progressed towards both weak and strong sustainability in its provision of ecosystem services. The cost-effectiveness of the dam however was poor. While further work remains to refine the approach, namely to develop more effective indicators of river ecosystem services, the work does present a novel method to evaluate the impacts of dams on river systems.Cost utility analysis, dam projects, ecosystem services, impounded river systems, indicators and sustainability., Environmental Economics and Policy, Q15, Q25, Q27, Q51, Q58, Q57,

Contemporary evangelicalism

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsatsdissertations/1971/thumbnail.jp

SLEEP DISORDERED BREATHING RISK IN SURGICAL AND EARLY CLASS II CORRECTION ORTHODONTIC POPULATIONS

Orthodontics, through the movement of the facial skeleton and the dentition, may alter the risk of Sleep Disordered Breathing (SDB). Accordingly, understanding the prevalence of SDB in patients who might undergo treatment is critical. Methods: 140 patients who were referred for orthognathic surgery consultation were screened with two validated sleep questionnaires to assess their risk for SDB. Physical, dental and radiographic exams were completed. Two patients who had completed a randomized clinical trial comparing the efficacy of single-phase vs. two phase class II correction orthodontic treatment over 20 years ago were recalled. These participants underwent clinical exams and completed sleep questionnaires to assess their risk for SDB. Results: In the surgery population, there was no difference in gender (P=1.0), median age (P=0.10), ethnicity(P=0.43), or skeletal class (P=0.24) between good and poor sleepers. Similarly, there was no difference in genders (P=0.210), median age (P=0.41), ethnicity(P=0.89), or skeletal class (P=0.96) between good and poor daily functioners. Overbite was the only statistically significant variable to have a relationship to both sleep quality (P=0.04) and daily function (P=0.02). The odds of having poor sleep quality were 1.17 times more likely with each millimeter decrease in overbite (95%CI: 1.0; 1.22). The odds of having poor daily function were 1.13 times greater with each mm decrease in overbite (95%CI: 1.02; 1.24). Lastly, the prevalence of poor sleep quality was nearly double that of the general population (63% vs 31%), suggesting an increased risk. In our case study, patient A, who underwent early treatment with a functional appliance, was at high risk according to sleep questionnaires, and had physician diagnosed sleep apnea and undergoes active treatment. Patient B, who received a single phase of treatment, was at low risk for SDB but had TMD comorbidities. The occlusion of both subjects was stable, remaining Class I with under 3mm of crowding in both cases. Conclusions: The prevalence of risk for SDB is higher in a orthognathic-surgical population y. Severe skeletal disharmonies may modify other traditional risk factors such as age, sex, and skeletal class. Two case studies from a previous randomized trial of orthopedic treatment included the appearance of both SDB and TMD as related comorbidities at an ultra long-term follow-up.Master of Scienc