Effects of sugarcane expansion on surface runoff and evapotranspiration in the Rio Grande basin

The demand for sugarcane has increased in recent years as more countries desire to reduce its dependence of fossil fuels. Therefore, the number of sugarcane plantations has rapidly increased in Brazil which raises concerns for what effect these conversion of original land to sugarcane plantations have on local hydrology and climate. In this thesis, the effects of sugarcane expansion on surface runoff and evapotranspiration in the Rio Grande basin, Brazil were evaluated. Rio Grande basin is an area of great importance for the country in terms of hydropower generation and sugarcane cultivation. For the numerical experiments carried out in this thesis, several sugarcane scenarios were generated based on topographic features and mapping of areas suitable for growing sugarcane made by the Brazilian Institute for Agricultural Research (EBRAPA). A distributed hydrological model was used to estimate surface runoff and evapotranspiration rates in the river basin. Surface runoff and evapotranspiration rates were compared to a control scenario that corresponded to land use observed before sugarcane expansion. Results from simulations implied a reduction of 10.8% in surface runoff and an increase in evapotranspiration rate by 9.0% for the most severe scenario, which occurred at the Funil hydropower plant.Efterfrågan på sockerrör har de senaste åren ökat i takt med att fler länder strävar efter att minska sitt beroende av fossila bränslen. Som en följd har antalet sockerrörsodlingar kraftigt ökat i Brasilien vilket medfört en oro inför vilka effekter denna omvandling av ursprunglig mark till sockerrörsodling har på lokala hydrologin och klimatet. I det här arbetet har påverkan av sockerrörs expansion på ytavrinning och avdunstning i Rio Grandes avrinningsområde, Brasilien, utretts. Rio Grandes avrinningsområde är av stor betydelse för landets vattenkraftproduktion och sockerrörsodlingar. För de numeriska experimenten i studien genererades ett flertal sockerrörs scenarion baserade på topografiska egenskaper och, enligt forskningsinstitutet EMBRAPA, lämpliga områden för framtida sockerrörsodlingar. En distribuerad hydrologisk modell användes för att uppskatta ytavrinningen och avdunstningen för avrinningsområdet. Ytavrinningen och avdunstningen jämfördes med ett kontrollscenario som motsvarade markanvändningen före sockerrörsexpansionen. Resultaten från simuleringarna visade på en minskning med 10.8 % i ytavrinning och ökning i avdunstning med 9 % för det mest allvarliga scenariot, vilket inträffade vid vattenkraftverket Funil

Researching complex interventions in health: the state of the art

CITATION: Craig, P., et al. 2016. Researching complex interventions in health : the state of the art. BMC Health Services Research, 16:101, doi:10.1186/s12913-016-1274-0.The original publication is available at https://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.comENGLISH SUMMARY : Keynote presentationsPublishers' Versio

Isomorphic Learning at a Disciplined. Nuclear Power Plant

In this thesis we have examined the Swedish nuclear power plant Ringhals by asking three questions: How does the search for legitimacy take shape at Ringhals?, What kinds of disciplining in Foucault’s terms can we find, and how do these affect the organization? and Which types of learning can we find at Ringhals and how do they learn from experiences? To answer these questions we have interviewed 24 employees, mainly about learning issues, but found indicators for legitimacy seeking and disciplining as well. The special characteristics of the nuclear power industry with its safety rules, authority control, terrorist threat, public fear, risk management and environmental issues, make it interesting to study. In line with our questions we have analyzed the material along three master tracks; new institutional theory, disciplining and organizational learning. We have been overloaded with ingredients, which we have tried to sort out, cook, package and serve in a delicious takeaway meal, provided in this thesis. We concluded that the search for legitimacy has many faces at Ringhals. Giving an old phenomenon a new costume brings attention to the issue and might speed up the change process, which always is slow due to inertia. We also found fractions of strong corporate culture (or brainwashing, depending on which mood you’re in), separation from the outside world, division of space and functional locations. Although Ringhals has a substantial learning toolbox, we have considered high reporting frequency as a crucial prerequisite for learning, which turned our interest to factors contributing to reporting. Besides the reporting, we believe that their practice to ask “Why” is a good way of learning from experiences. If you think that it is enough to read the abstract or the conclusions to understand this thesis, we strongly recommend that you read the complete composition, since there are some grains of gold along the way..

Metagenomic Analysis of Subtidal Sediments from Polar and Subpolar Coastal Environments Highlights the Relevance of Anaerobic Hydrocarbon Degradation Processes

In this work, we analyzed the community structure and metabolic potential of sediment microbial communities in high-latitude coastal environments subjected to low to moderate levels of chronic pollution. Subtidal sediments from four low-energy inlets located in polar and subpolar regions from both Hemispheres were analyzed using large-scale 16S rRNA gene and metagenomic sequencing. Communities showed high diversity (Shannon’s index 6.8 to 10.2), with distinct phylogenetic structures (<40% shared taxa at the Phylum level among regions) but similar metabolic potential in terms of sequences assigned to KOs. Environmental factors (mainly salinity, temperature, and in less extent organic pollution) were drivers of both phylogenetic and functional traits. Bacterial taxa correlating with hydrocarbon pollution included families of anaerobic or facultative anaerobic lifestyle, such as Desulfuromonadaceae, Geobacteraceae, and Rhodocyclaceae. In accordance, biomarker genes for anaerobic hydrocarbon degradation (bamA, ebdA, bcrA, and bssA) were prevalent, only outnumbered by alkB, and their sequences were taxonomically binned to the same bacterial groups. BssA-assigned metagenomic sequences showed an extremely wide diversity distributed all along the phylogeny known for this gene, including bssA sensu stricto, nmsA, assA, and other clusters from poorly or not yet described variants. This work increases our understanding of microbial community patterns in cold coastal sediments, and highlights the relevance of anaerobic hydrocarbon degradation processes in subtidal environments.Fil: Espinola, Fernando Julian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro para el Estudio de Sistemas Marinos; ArgentinaFil: Dionisi, Hebe Monica. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro para el Estudio de Sistemas Marinos; ArgentinaFil: Borglin, Sharon. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; Estados UnidosFil: Brislawn, Colin J.. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Estados UnidosFil: Jansson, Janet K.. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Estados UnidosFil: Mac Cormack, Walter Patricio. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Comercio Interno y Culto. Dirección Nacional del Antártico. Instituto Antártico Argentino; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Houssay. Instituto de Nanobiotecnología. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica. Instituto de Nanobiotecnología; ArgentinaFil: Carroll, JoLynn. The Arctic University of Norway; NoruegaFil: Sjöling, Sara. Södertörn University; SueciaFil: Lozada, Mariana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro para el Estudio de Sistemas Marinos; Argentin