Spatial patterning in albedo and biogenic carbon exchange in urban areas

Urbanization alters surface energy and biogenic carbon (C) exchange processes which can exacerbate increases in near-surface temperature and complicate municipal-scale efforts to address the local causes and impacts of climate change. This dissertation integrates field- and remote-sensing datasets to evaluate the magnitude of and spatial patterns in albedo and biogenic C fluxes in the urban landscape, focusing on the region of Greater Boston, Massachusetts. Using surface reflectance measurements from the Landsat and MODIS satellites, we show mean albedo in the Boston metropolitan region was significantly lower in core population centers than nearby rural areas, corresponding to reduced tree cover, greater impervious surface area, and higher surface temperatures. These results establish albedo decline as a gradient in landscape-scale features of urbanization, and offer context for efforts to mitigate extreme urban temperatures through raising the albedo of built surfaces. Pairing field measurements of tree growth with LiDAR-based data on tree biomass and canopy cover, we estimate the distribution of annual woody biomass C uptake in the city of Boston. A substantial portion of tree C uptake occurred in densely developed residential areas dominated by open-grown trees as well as remnant forest fragments. Our results show that estimates based on rural tree growth may under-predict C uptake by up to approximately 50%, and quantifies the scope for policy interventions aimed toward increasing ecosystem services output from the urban forest. Fusing measurements of soil respiration and net vegetation productivity in lawns and trees with high-resolution land surface data, we develop an improved estimate of annual biogenic net carbon fluxes in Boston at a 30 m resolution. We find forested areas of the city may be a modest net sink for C (median 2.7 GgC yr-1), but also estimate substantial C flux from intensively managed landscapes in residential areas. Estimated city-wide biogenic C was relatively small (median 600 MgC yr-1), potentially offsetting less than 1% of estimated annual fossil fuel emissions. Our results imply net biogenic C flux likely will contribute little towards efforts to reduce local net greenhouse gas emissions, but may significantly influence urban atmospheric CO2 concentrations at certain times and places

Urban Land Cover and Urban Heat Island Effect Database

The database consists of two data files: a geospatial raster stack, GeoTIFF file (.tif) and a corresponding data table file (.csv) without spatial information. The raster stack contains nine layers (detailed below) that correspond with the variables found in the data table file. All data are georeferenced using the NAD83 datum and projected to the UTM coordinate reference system in zone 19N (EPSG code 26919). All data has also been downscaled to the native Landsat 30m grid, using nearest-neighbor resampling. The data is readable by most commonly available GIS applications

Tillage x Fertility Crop Yields 1970-2015, Soils, and Plant Tissue

These data represent crop yield data from 1970 to 2015 for the long-term Tillage x Fertility trial started by Dr. George Kapusta at the Southern Illinois University Belleville Research Center in Belleville, IL. Some other agronomic data are also included

TxF historic soils composites 1978 1983 1990 1999 2011 2013

These data were NOT included in the Cook and Trlica 2016 publication. Curation for the historic soils data was imperfect and any use of this data should be considered not completely reliable. A thorough explanation of data processing and data issues is included in the README file. The composite samples were for the most part collected and analyzed at 0-15 cm soil cores

TxF Corn plant tissue 1990 and 2014

These data were analyzed for the Cook and Trlica 2016 publication. Metadata are found in the yield README file

TxF soils increment data 1990 and 2013

These data were used for the Cook and Trlica 2016 publication. Soil plow layer (0-15 cm) was constructed from 5-cm increments. Metadata is included with the yield README file

Greenhouse Gas Emissions and the Interrelation of Urban and Forest Sectors in Reclaiming One Hectare of Land in the Pacific Northwest

The interrelation between urban areas and land use options for greenhouse gas mitigation was evaluated by assessing the utility of urban residuals for soil reclamation. Long-term impacts on soil C storage for mine lands restored with urban organic residuals were quantified by sampling historic sites reclaimed both conventionally and with residuals-based amendments. Use of amendments resulted in greater C storage compared to conventional practices for all sites sampled, with increases ranging from 14.2 Mg C ha^–1 in a coalmine in WA to 38.4 Mg C ha^–1 for a copper mine in British Columbia. Expressed as Mg C per Mg amendment, effective C increases ranged from 0.03 to 0.31 Mg C per Mg amendment. Results were applied to three alternative land-use scenarios to model the net GHG balance for a site restored to forest or low-density development. The model included construction of 3.9 243 m²-homes, typical of urban sprawl. Emissions for home and road construction and use over a 30-year period resulted in net emissions of 1269 Mg CO₂. In contrast, conventional reclamation to forestland or reclamation with 100 Mg of residuals resulted in net GHG reductions of −293 and −475 Mg CO₂. Construction of an equivalent number of smaller homes in an urban core coupled with restoration of 1 ha with amendments was close to carbon neutral. These results indicate that targeted use of urban residuals for forest reclamation, coupled with high-density development, can increase GHG mitigation across both sectors

Labor_Unsorted

Econ data file: "Labor_Unsorted.csv" — unsorted labor wage rates, U.S. Average, 2015–1978 (USDA NASS Quick Stats download)

Seasonal diet selection of cattle grazing a montane riparian community

Cattle-grazing in riparian areas has become increasingly controversial. More information is needed about cattle use of these areas to develop Best Management Practices. This study was designed to determine seasonal changes in diet selection of cattle in a montane riparian community in northern Colorado. Previous cattle diet studies in riparian zones have not separated the interaction between seasonal preference and biomass utilization. The experiment was conducted within large exclosures that had not been grazed by livestock since 1956. Vegetation biomass estimates and diet samples from 5 esophageally fistulated steers were taken during 4 grazing periods (spring, early-summer, late- summer, and fall) in 1995. Vegetation measurements and diet samples were also collected during the late summer and fall of 1994. One of the 3 paddocks in each grazing period of 1995 had been grazed in 1994. Steer diets in 1995 were found to contain 15% more Carex spp. from paddocks that had been ungrazed until 1995 as compared with paddocks previously grazed in 1994. Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis L.) and forbs were consumed about 13 times and 5 times greater, respectively, in previously grazed paddocks as compared with ungrazed paddocks. Carex spp. were the most preferred component of cattle diets throughout the study. Willows (Salix spp.) were not preferred in any grazing period of either year, and consisted of less than 4% of cattle diets in any season. However, a trend towards increased consumption of willows was found from spring to fall, 1995. Information obtained in this study should help managers develop grazing systems that allow for a desirable combination of herbaceous and woody species in a riparian community while still affording grazeable forage.The Journal of Range Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact [email protected] for further information.Migrated from OJS platform August 202

Tillage x Fertility Econ data sample SAS code

This is an example of the SAS code used to analyze the final dataset for the Trlica et al. 2017 publication