Daniel Kurdyla Annotated Bibliography Wildlife/ Recreation on Public Lands Research: Annotated Bibliography Mitchell, C, C Ogura, DW Meadows, A Kane,

L Strommer, S Fretz, D Leonard, and A McClung. October 2005. Hawaiis Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy . Department of Land and Natural Resources. Honolulu, Hawaii. 722 pp. Hawaiis Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy was created to protect the 10,000 of native species that are found nowhere else. The plan has several conservation strategies for long term protection. The plan consists of seven conservation objectives statewide to help insure safety. All threats to species are documented in the plan, as well as the importance of wildlife conservation. The Wildlife Conservation Strategy is a part of the states Land Use law. The state of Hawaii is the first state in the U.S. to implement a state plan, and arguably the best state plan in effect today. The Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy keeps a balance with Hawaiis unique ecosystem. The plan is very promising for wildlife protection and is a great example for other states to follow. Giving the states local, tourism is the states main source for economic growth. With that in mind, the people who visit can also do less harm to the ecosystem with this comprehensive plan emplace. After reviewing this plan and what it in tails, I believe that if state governments took the time to develop wildlife conservation plans, there would be a better balance. Ecotourism is something special, but without some kind of conservation efforts can create great harm to the environment. I really like this plan and everything it stands for, and if only other states or countries took the time to develop strategies for wildlife protection/ recreation. With this plan emplace, it could be the start to a better tomorrow for all living things on this earth. Burson III S.L., Belant J.L, Fortier K.A., Tomkiewicz W.C., The Effect of Vechicle Traffic on Wildlife in Denali National Park vol. 53, NO. 2 June 2000, Pg. 146 -151 The following article studied Caribou, gizzly bear, dall sheep, and moose in Denli National Park and preserve road corridor during 1995-1997. The studied observe these species along the corridor road to see if the increased amount of traffic had an effect on these species. Throughout the study, there was no trend on the caribou but some variation and the grizzly bear they did notice an increase of bears on the road. The dall sheep had no trend or increase sightings on the road which may or may not because of the increase in traffic. The overall increase of traffic may or may not have an effect of these species, but it was noted that it could be because of other factors not taken in account.

This particular study observes population densities on four different species that use different parts of the land that brings up more questions to follow. The overall study was one like other scientific studies; it leaves more questions than answers. The report didnt explain where the species were going. But its understandable why they didnt go into the different aspects on this type of study. Overall, this report preformed the necessary answers of increased traffic on Denli National Park preserve road corridor. Reflecting on this study, my first thought was the increase in ecotourism is good, but also can have negative effects on the different species living there. Of course its great that families are getting outside instead of playing video games or watching television, but the pollution from the increased traffic maybe the reason why these species are staying away. Corridors are great for animals as road like trials, but when its interrupted by cars, noise, and or toxic pollution maybe hurting population sizes. This study was done in the late 90s, my question is whats it like now? Is there some type of plan for the wildlife in this area? Are other species affected by the increased traffic? Weyland F., Laterra P, Recreation potential assessment at large spatial scales: A method based in the ecosystem services approach and landscape metrics, Nov. 6 2013 Elsevier This article examines recreation landscapes at large spatial scales, which include ecotourism, hiking, nature based recreation, bird watching, and other outdoor recreation. Using spatial mapping, this article is able to measure densities on the given campground landscapes in Argentina. With the maps they developed, they were able to pin-point high density recreation potential. The mapping and the study will help develop land use plans that will benefit recreation, the culture of the landscape, and the ecosystems. As computers and or technology advances, the more effective a study can be with the right tools. In this report, the researchers use advance technology to help view the Argentina landscapes at a much bigger scale. The study was well conducted, and gave the readers more insight on high densities of recreation, which will help develop an effective land use plan for not only benefiting the people who enjoy the area, but also the habitat and species that live there. Overall, this report gave insiders a better view of landscapes and a better idea where to go for future planning. This article was well conducted as stated above, it express my interest in spatial mapping because of the benefits it can have on studying the environment. Also environmental planning is important to me, but Im also a believer in good recreation planning. Not only is protecting the wildlife important as well as landscapes, but its also good that people can experience outdoor activities. Ecotourism may not be on everybodys bucket list, but helps people understand the

beauty and the importance of ecological and biological process as well. There needs to be a balance with the environment, society, and the economy to achieve a better tomorrow. Fogliasso, C., Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: A Refuge for American? pg. 38 -48 Insights to a Changing World vol. 2012 Issue 1 The Artic Wildlife Refuge is believed to hold billions of gallons of crude oil, its about 19 million acres of protected land. The area of potential drilling is about 1.5 million acres, about the size of Delaware that has been untouched by humans. The amount of oil held in the area is unknown, and the report suggest all the potential benefits of drilling including lowering the U.S. demand for foreign oil, and the significant jobs opportunities that could arise. There are also environmental factors that have many potential harmful effects on the area including wildlife. With the harmful factors in mind, the people living in the state including natives see all the benefits that it could have on their lives. But in the end of the good and bad of tapping into the refuge, the question isnt why havent we starting drilling, its really what are other alternatives for means of energy other than oil? This report examine in a good fashion, the over view of drilling oil in the Artic Wildlife Refuge. The author did a good job with the benefits of drilling in a non-bias way that had you believe that drilling in the refuge was a great idea that hasnt happen yet. The author however didnt go into too much detail on the negative effects it could have o n the environment. She mention the possibility of a spill, but not about the amount of effect that it take to clean up a spill, the harmful dangers it will have long term, and that the refuge will never be the same afterwords. Overall she didnt give a view point of the drilling as having more benefits than not. I really like this article, I learn a lot about the possible oil reservoir in the refuge. The author was very convincing with the drilling. The benefits were totally great with limited risk unless a spill occurred, but even if a spill were to occur there are very effective ways to clean up a spill. The end of the article was so powerful in the author stating that drilling in the refuge and the worlds dependence of fossil fuels, drilling is only a temporarily solution. We need to find a new energy source that is renewable. George Shalene L., Crooks Kevin R., Recreation and large mammal activity in an urban nature reserve Biological Conservation 133 (2006) 107-117 The following article studies the relationships between human and large mammals in urban reserves which included coyotes, bobcats, mule deer, dogs, and humans. This study also discusses the impacts on human recreation activities and how they can have impacts on mammals reproduction successes and survival. The studies concluded that bobcats in Nature Reserve of Orange County werent visible with higher human activity but force the bobcats to be

more nocturnal. Of course this is one example of the study, but proved high human recreation has wildlife to adapt for survival. The article ended in saying that we cant fully have wildlife and human recreation completely separated, the cost of that would be too high and unlikely to happen. Large mammals usually arent associated with human recreation, and when we think of large mammals its more like bears or a species with that kind of size. The article proposed an interesting study, and I thought made some good observations in regards to large mammals reproduction and survival rates. Outdoor recreation is seen as a great thing, but this article showed some impacts on wildlife that may not be thought about often. The study was overall executed well and proposed further study, which can be more valuable than some Nobel Prize finding. My thoughts on this paper, a very casual study with informative finding that made me think about the wildlife surrounding me. I see wildlife everyday no matter where I go and Im sure other do as well, but every once in a while I try to take the time to appreciate their beauty. The biological circle of life starts with the smallest of organisms to the biggest or more dominate species in the food chain. The significances of this, is the beauty we see in wildlife is all living organisms that should have an opportunity to take part in living. Shrestha Ram K., Stein Taylor V., Clark Julie, Valuing nature -based recreation in public natural area of the Apalachicola River Region, Florida Journal of Environmental Management 85 (2007) 997-985 The recently increased interest in ecotourism and outdoor recreation activities something Americans and in particular Florida tourist. The Apalachicola river region has seen an increased in nature-based tourism, which has brought a great economic value for the region. But the increased tourism has public land managers wanted to provide development to bring in more visitors. One of the studies in the paper concluded that more people would rather the region be undeveloped, and with this can help land managers provide more tourism to areas of undeveloped land. The end result for the river area is to get the communities involved to provide a special experience that will attract more visitors to this unique region. Analyzing this studied on the Apalachicola river region provided insightful information on the regions recreation and unique habitat. The authors did a really good job on explaining the economic value the tourism brings to the region, but raised an interesting point on increased development to attract more visitors. A popular area can be destroyed by increased tourism, and I thought the author hit the nail on the head by stressing it throughout the paper. Overall I thought this was informative, but could have talk about proposing a plan of some sort of better the region.

In the analysis above, my thoughts on this are closely related on the economic growth of the region and the future benefits of having this can of eco-tourism. I do believe the public land managers should keep the region and recreational tourism as natural as possible. But of course, with the increased tourism youre going to get more in -door folks who cant handle the great out-door which is unfortunate. The regional growth impact on bui lding so big name hotel or restaurant can attract more people and bring in more money, but impact the wildlife and the habitat in a negative way. Taylor Audrey R., Knight Richard L., Wildlife Responses to Recreation and Associated Visitor Perceptions The Ecological Society of America 13(4) 2003, pp. 951-963 The potential dangers from recreational activities on wildlife and their habitats can be damaging. This article examines the effects of hiking and mountain biking trails vs. bison, mule deer, pronghorn antelope in Antelope Island State Park, Utah. The results vary on the species, but the trend of the species going away from the trail was apparent. They also studied the recreationists and if they thought they had an effect or not. 50% of recreationist said they didnt have an effect and that other groups were the ones responsible. Also the studies showed that neither hiking nor mountain biking was better or worst. The end result will hopefully educate recreationist on wildlife protection and land managers on the subject. This article provided the reader with great information on harmful effects that we can have on wildlife from recreation activities. But the interesting thing about this report was the ignorances of the recreationists for first of all not caring about the habitat they use for fun. The second I thought was playing the blame game on other groups causing wildlife to be effected. That alone showed how little people know about biological or ecological principles, and the author clearly exposed the problem with out-door recreation. The article gave a different spin on not only the wildlife, but the people involved hurting their habitat. The studied was a good one, simply for placing some blame on the recreationists that cant see the impact they cause. Even though the impacts werent extremely harmful to the wildlife, the ignorances was the scary part. But at the same time this should be expected from people, the lack of education is on basic science just shocks me. Just the thought that people out in this world believe that there the only ones that are on this earth are crazy. Climate change is said to from increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere which is true, but if we look beyond that we can see ignorances was the beginning to create an environment only suable for us. Knight Richard L., Cole David N., Effects of Recreation Activity on Wildlife in Wildlands Trans. 56th N.A. Wildl. &Nat. Res. Conf. 1991 pp. 238-247

This article observes wildlands preservation, and also the impacts on wildlife due to recreation. The authors identify four ways recreational activities that have harmful effects on wildlife: harvesting, habitat modification, pollution and disturbance. They express that the major effect on the wildlife is death from these harmful effects. The long-term effects on the populations can only be assumed that with displacement and lower birth rates can only lead to decreased populations. The end conclusion states that land managers need to understand the repercussions of recreation and wildlife impacts and how to improve on this growing issue. The overall report gave a lot of species that can be affected by recreation activities, but not so much of what specific activities will affect them. Also the authors made assumptions on decreasing population sizes without giving solid research to back it up. The overall questions of what will happen to wildlife left the reader with interesting things to think about. The article and study was informative, but lack true findings and not enough spark to be enlighten. The paper had interesting questions to think about after reading it, but lack the it factor for me. I mean that if the findings in this paper were so significant, why did they state in the conclusion that there are gaps in our information? To me that doesnt really follow up very well and makes me think, maybe they should have filled in the gaps before writing it. Of course I wasnt the one who wrote the paper and did research on the subject to learn more. I just thought this report was average to say the least. McGowan Conor P., Simons Throdore R., Effects of Human Recreation on the Incubation Behavior of American Oystercatchers The Wilson Journal of Orn ithology 118(4): 485-493, 2006 Human recreational was studied on the North Carolina coastline as they watch nesting efforts of the American Oystercatchers. The report included recreation activities like ATVs and there effects on behavior patterns. The report discovered that human recreational activities can have effects on nesting and reproductive successes. The studied also concluded that the ATVs propose a threat to the Oystercatchers nesting efforts. This studied ended with the other factors that could be effecting the nesting of Oystercatchers and how further research is needed. This article examines behaviors of nesting Oystercatchers, and included recreational activities that are known noise pollutant. The article showed that noise pollution and human recreational activities plays a role in reproductive success. The article exposed noise pollution, and how ignorance of recreational practices plays a role on the surrounding wildlife. Generally the study stood decent and informative. Looking back on the report, it helped me realize that not all recreational activities are perfect. In that everything that I do has good and bad effects on the ecosystems around me. For

instance, I enjoy skateboarding and even when Im outside on the street, the noise is most likely unbearable to the different bird species. I dont always take into account my actions and how they may affect my surroundings. Throughout my education on the environment, Im gaining more insight that is making me a better person. Leung Yu-Fai, Marion Jeffrey L., Recreation Impacts and Management in Wilderness: A State of-Knowledge Review USDA Forest Service Proceedings RMRS P -15 Vol.5 2000 The following editorial discusses the impacts on wilderness management in the U.S. and reviews impacts from recreation activities. The paper reviews impacts such as recreation ecology and how the research has been under minded. The paper also included the impacts on visitors affecting the overall scenery of wilderness areas. The last major component the report goes into is the planning of these areas and develops frameworks, something that land managers can in cooperate to keep the wilderness wild. This report did a great job with discussing the issues with the wilderness in the U.S. The authors also did something that is done but not often enough, discussing the issues but proposing ideas and a plan to improve the wilderness. Scientific papers usually have boring research with little input on some sort of solution to the problem, and I thought this paper did offer solutions or suggestions. The U.S. has little wilderness left, granted there are great places like the Adirondack state park that are forever wild. The little wilderness this country has left needs to be research consistently to keep learning about the ecosystem, and how to make it better. Human ignorances cannot play a role in protecting and preserving wild areas with unique habitats and species. The world needs to learn that we all live on this earth together and that we have taken away so much that we cannot have it all.

Cavity nesting species/ building habitats Radford Andrew N., Plessis Morne A., The importance of rainfall to a cavity nesting species British Ornithologists Union, 2003, 145, 692-694 This article explains why rainfall is an important factor for cavity nesting birds. The study was conducted in Morgans Bay region of South Africa where they measured daily rainfall. The green woodhoopoe was observed during their breeding seasons; over 18 years of data were account for correlations between rainfall and nesting efforts. Green woodhoopoe reproductive success could have been affect by two reasons. One it was harder for the adults to find food for their young during the rainfall or because the adults took shelter a great deal during the rain events. The second reason could have been the flooding of nests, which could have had

affects in their body temperatures. The end result showed that the nesting of green woodhoopoe was affected by the rainfall and is limited to other cavity nests in the area. The following study was a good observation of cavity nests that get affected by rainfall. The study was conducted well and gave the reader another view on naturally occurring events that take place in the environment. The timeline of the study was also long enough to show trends in the breeding season as well as the rainfall data. Overall, the study was very informative and well explains. Reflecting on this study made me realize that cavity nest isnt bullet proof. My idea before reading this was that since the nests are in trees, they are well protected from water at least. I was proven wrong after reading this and my views on cavity nesting birds has change. My reason being that through at least my way of life and the things I use has something to do with deforestation and climate change. Society doesnt take into account the species that need cavity nests in trees to survive and I feel like the human race is the only species that isnt trying to survive. We depend on other species for their survival to sustain us, and have all of the control. Gutzwiller Kevin J., Anderson Stanley H., Multiscale Associations Between Cavity -Nesting Birds And Features of Wyoming Streamside Woodlands The Condor 89:534 -548, 1987 The following study riparian habitat use of 3 different scales; nest trees, nest sites, and disjunct fragments of floodplain forest. The study included tree height, diameter, and nest height to study the cavity nesting efforts in Wyoming. The samples of trees were randomly selected regardless of vegetation coverage or tree densities. The studied ended with correlations between the 3 scales that were measure, which means that tree height, diameter, and nesting height play a role in nesting success. This study was interesting to a point; the statistics werent that convincing that made this study all that great. The study was also performing on a two year scale which didnt seem to be enough time for an experiment of this nature. What I did like was that the authors did stress the random sampling for the experiment and the statistical analysis of the data look to be done right. Overall, this article could have been better and done a bigger time scale to produce better longevity for the study. Looking back on this study, it wasnt my favorite study and it could have informed me more on the subject matter. I just felt that it didnt make me wondering too much about trees and there important role in nesting efforts. But I did enjoy the statistical analysis they did and made the study somewhat bearable. Batista Milson A., Ramalho Mauro, Soares Ademilson E., Nesting sites and abundance of Meliponini (Hymenoptera: Apidae) in heterogeneous habitats of the Atlantic Rain Forest, Bahia, Brazil Lundiana 4(1):19-23, 2003

This study compares nest distributions of six species of stingless bees in the Atlantic rain forest in Brazil. The stingless bee nests found in different parts of the forest including tree cavities, old termites nests, and cavitys in t he roots of the trees. The six bees where showed in this studied that the bees play a role in the disturbance that the forest is experiencing. It was also examine the regeneration stage is being affected by the bees growing population. The results also concluded that its likely that more species are more abundant in the forest. The study above was research for epidemiologist because it really only discuss bees and there where they nest in trees. I thought the study could have had better results; it didn t seem clear what the results really were. The paper also seemed like it was a slow read and not too informative. My overall analysis of this study is maybe the author could modify the experiment to get some better evidence of forest disturbance from stingless bees. Reflecting on this study made me think about the wide variety that trees provide so much too so many species. It also makes me think of the deforestation that is going on everyday across the world. More species are losing their habitats from man-made disturbance, and forests turning into our furniture, something needs to be done. This study was done 10 years, and Im wondering if the atlantic rain forest has had any success on regenerating the population. Scott Virgil E., Whelan Jill A., Svoboda Peggy L., Cavity Nesting Birds and Forest Management Department of Interior, Fish and Wildlife This report examines dead trees that were used by cavity nesting birds and trees consisted of aspen, ponderosa pine, and subalpine. The subalpine was looked at the Fraser experimental forest in Colorado, and the ponderosa pine was look at in Arizona. Aspen was examine in Stoner Colorado out of the San Juan National Forest. In the study, they look at the different cavity nesting birds that used the dead trees, and how to manage the areas. They concluded that removing the trees and replacing them with man-made nesting boxes could work since the increased wood demand. The following study was well written and straight to the point. The numbers were clear and the examinations of the dead trees and species who used them showed a positive results. The only problem with the study was the management suggestions. I thought the suggestions werent that good for a lack of a better word. A better description of building good replacement nests would have made the study shine. Overall, this study was clear and provided good results for the reader. I think back at this one and wonder what are the threats to the birds who nest in these dead trees. When I think about a dead tree, I see it on ground level where predators have easy excess to prey. But I know this isnt always the case and predator -prey relations are apparent, but its thought to look into. I also thought about the important role that forests play in many ecosystems, including providing protection to birds.

Li Pingjun, Martin Thomas E., Nest-Site Selection and Nesting Success of Cavity Nesting Birds in High Elevation Forest Drainages The AUK 108, 405-418, April 1991 The following study habitat features that found successful and unsuccessful nesting sites in Arizona. The study view mostly aspen trees, while studying a variety of coexisting cavity nesting birds. They measure different nesting heights, sizes, and random aspen tress at random and found some success. The study found that higher nesting sites had more success than lower nesting sites. The authors concluded that diverse nesting success was mostly found in aspen trees whether they were dead or alive. The study I thought was again well conducted and found good results for further research. The randomization for selecting nesting success was indeed perform well, which gave the author good explanations. The AUK is a well know publisher and always provides good papers. Overall, this paper hit all the points that were needed for this type of experiment. Ive read a few papers from the AUK and have always respected them. They provided me with good insight on cavity nesting success. This type of research isnt my favorite thing to read about, but I did enjoy learning about success rates with cavity nesting. I thought about the height differences in nesting and for building man-made nests this article gave some tools to do it at my home. Martin Thomas E., Nest predation and Nest Sites BioScience, vol. 43, No. 8, Sep. 1993 pp 523-532 This article is a study on the predation process and nesting sites with coexisting species. The article also observes habitat selection and explains how coexisting species have different methods of survival. The nesting sites that coexisting species select are due to predation that is face and all the species find different way to counteract. In doing that, the author then takes the time to study life history traits inorder to better understand nesting placement. In the end, it was said that nesting season plays an important role in reproductive success. The following article I thought was a little dry, with an interesting topic that could have made this study a lot better. I did like the idea of the study, but it could go into more detail in all areas of the paper. It was also very organized and flow good, but that doesnt make up for the detail. The overall analysis of this paper I think was okay but needed more input than was given. Reflecting on this paper, I feel again a little disappointed in the lack of input provided in the paper. I thought the topic was interesting, but didnt give me a chance to fully expand of the subject. I do like predator-prey relations with different species, and Ive seen some first hand. When a red tail hawk grabs a chipmunk 10 feet from you and rips it apart, it really is natural at its finest. As of now, I can really appreciate the world around me and the different forms of life around me.

Martin Kathy, Eadie John M., Nest Webs: A community-wide approach to the management and conservation of cavity-nesting forest birds Forest Ecology and Management 115, 1991, pp243 257 The propose idea in this study is that cavity nests are like food webs where its centered in available nest. The study was done in B.C., Canada where they observe four cavity nesting species including woodpeckers, nuthatch, chickadees, and ducks in the deciduous forest. The study included observations in cavity nest making, and species using existing nest. The study showed that the species that were study used more existing nests rather than creating their own. The end result to nest web idea was that there were strong and weak parts the web and brings ideas of how a community would after change. My analysis of this study, I thought it was good and provided me with enough evidence to believe this idea. The study had good research and was well conducted, and made a very good correlation with the idea of nest webs. The part that made the study good was the possibility of community structure having strengths and weaknesses to change in nesting. Overall, this report was very good and had good research to support the claims. I did like this report, it gave me more to think about ecological principles that I thought I would never think about again. After taking ecology, I thought that it will really boring and didnt explain how things really work. But I was wrong after reading this paper and I was happy that I could understand what was happen. Theres one theory in ecology about communities being a superorganism that describes communities working together. I feel that this study back that theory and helped the authors put together this idea. Brazili-Boast James, Pryke Sarah R., Griffith Simon C., Provisioning habitat with customdesigned nest-boxes increases reproductive success in an endangered finch Austral Ecology 38, 2013, pp 405-214 In this article, the authors examine the endangered gouldian finch nesting and reproductive success. They tried to manipulate the finches to nest earlier by placing man-made build nest boxes. They found that the nesting sites for finch was limited, so by applying more nesting sites would increase their reproduction. This became true as the 3 year study showed positive results in the finches nesting success, which they believed created the boast their reproductive success. They concluded the possibility that the finches reproductive success could correlate to their need for high quality nests. I thought this article provided great results which can hopefully be applied to other cavity nesting studies. The report had good interpretations of why the study was conducted, and also showed creativity on the artificial nest. Although the report was successful, my only problem is what the negative effects of the nest they build are. Overall, this was a constructive article that gave positive results.

Before reading this, I knew nothing about the gouldian finch and that they endangered. So when the authors provided me with the information on the species and their idea to help the population growth I was interested. The building of the artificial nests I thought was really cool and very creative. But my only problem like stated above, is increasing the finch population going to upset the balance of that ecosystem? My guess would be yes, but only further research would really be able to say to what extent. Usually when one thing or species is alternated in some way, it has an effect on the whole ecosystem. Westrich Paul, Habitat requirements of central European bees and the problems of partial habitats Chapter 1, The Problems of Partial Habitats, pp 1-15 In this chapter, the author looks at the decline in bees and their habitat. The author takes into account the loss of areas and resources has decline the behaviors of bees. In the chapter, it was clearly states that only conservation of natural habitats is the only way for bees to be restored. Also artificial habitats would not be a solution because bees are not responding to available resources that are in place of semi-natural habitats. The author concludes by bees being an important pollinator and that proper measures need to be taken before bees face extinction. Analyzing this chapter is pretty easy because it stated facts of bees and their sensitivity to human disturbance. I thought the descriptions of the facts were good and the importance of bees and their habitats showed that the author knew what he was talking about. Overall, this author identify and describe all that was needed for this study and concluding with a simplistic understandable solution. In my daily life, I dont like bees and there buzzing all around. I get scared that theyre going to bite and or sting me, which is a pretty rational fear. It doesnt mak e sense that I have this fear but regardless, Im aware of their importance in pollinating process. I also like honey in my tea on occasion so without them, it would be hard to enjoy the life that I live. But as an inspiring planner, this is something that needs to be taken into account when developing a plan. Belthoff James R., Ritchison Gary, Nest-Site Selection by Eastern Screech-Owls in Central Kentucky The Condor 92: 1990, pp 982-990 In this article, the authors observed 15 screech owls in Kentucky and compared nest site selection. They looked into the vegetation surrounding the different nest and used statistics to determine probability of whats determines the owls to select sites. The owls selection their nest by depth and height of the cavity nest, and not the direction the cavity was facing. Screech owls also didnt appear to select specific species of trees for their nests. The authors concluded that if there werent enough cavities for the owls, the population may suffer. This article stayed on topic and give good statistical conclusions to support the findings. I thought this article was really good overall, the fact that the authors only used one specific species made it more detailed. I thought the nesting study selection part of the study was very

well explained that I could really understand what the authors were talking about. Overall, this was a well conducted study for cavity nesting research. As stated above, I liked this article and liked the findings. It made me think about forest and the importance of them across the world. Many trees can provide nesting sites and protection to many species, so the importance of conservation needs to be stressed. Of course we can try to mimic the natural process by building artificial nests, but we should also preserve more forests. The one thing Ive taken away from cavity nesting species is that there are simple solutions that can be practice. Like building nests and placing them at the right heights, and preserve a forest lands which isnt an easy solution.

Waste to energy Allan Aaron, Mining the Midden: A Facility for Dynamic Waste Harvesting at the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill University of Washington 2012 This report starts with the process of landfill mining for resources to convert waste to energy. The paper describes the recovery of processes of recycled goods to help reduce waste that are filling up our landfills. Then the waste to energy isnt a new process, but the modern method has negative ecological effects. The Cedar Hills regional landfill is the study focus currently uses the natural gas created from the landfill to power its operations. The author proposes a plasma gasification plant and mining of recoverable materials from the landfill. The end of this report tries to connect people to the whole process of landfilling and waste to energy production. The report had great proposals that can be a very innovating project that can be used by other landfills across the world. The author explains very well the recovery of materials, but lacked the descriptions of how the plasma gasification process works, as well as the mining processes. The understanding of recovering materials were clear, but could of explained more about the processes instead of the engineering of the new building and such. I appreciate the landfilling process because I do work at one, and the possibilities of potential energy, whether its the methane created from the combustion or the idea of the plasma gasification process. No matter the process, the importance of converting waste energy is huge since the U.S. alone is running out of space for landfills and our need for a new energy source. But I did think that the possibility of providing tours for the public to see the whole process can be an eye opener for most. J Luche, Q Falcoz, T Bastien, J P Leninger, K Arabi, O Aubry, A Khacef, J M Cormier and J Ld, Plasma Treatments and Biomass Gasification MaterialsScienceandEngineering 29 (2012) 012011doi

The following paper is about the energy production from biomass, and how to improve the processes by adding a plasma-pyrolysis reactor which would act as a purifier. The plasmapyrolysis would help reduce tars and pollutants that biomass produces. The gasification of biomass through plasma-pyrolysis helps convert hydrocarbons into syngas: Bio-oil created from the biomass gasification. The end result showed great conclusions on using plasma reactors when producing biomass. Further research is still needed the author mention, but the possibilities from this new technology can change the way we produce biomass. The studied was very interesting and at the same time produced results that matter. Plasma gasification when producing biomass can change the way energy is created in this country. The study really produced innovated ideals that hopefully will gain more research so this process can be put into production. The experiments that were preform help prove the plasma-pyrolysis reactors work and thats plus for this study, so overall the study was great and hopefully more will come. Before reading this, I knew little about plasma gasification let alone using a plasma reactor to help produce a more efficient biomass. Innovations like this make me excited to be a environmental studies major, because I can have a chance to be a part of this. Or at least learn about it and have a good enough science back round to make sense of it. The world is in need for a new energy source, but with something like biomass plasma gasification theres a chance to improve on our existing resources. Bhasin K.C. Plasma Arc Gasification For Waste Management www.EFYMAG.com Feb. 2009 Plasma gasification systems are becoming a new cutting-edge technology that is explained to start going worldwide. This article explains the plasma gasification converting all kinds of waste to create energy. The plasma gasification system starts with the waste inlet where the waste goes, then hits the plasma torch that produces metal and slag output while the gas travels to the syngas outlet. Its explained that the plasma system heats up to 3000 degrees C in an oxygen free environment, and at this temperature helps create a hydrogen rich gas. The plasma gasification system is very expensive system to buy and operate, and for countries like India need to utilize the system considering their population. The article explained the plasma gasification system very well with fine detail that couldnt be fully summarized above. The costs were clearly defined as well as the different kinds of waste that can be used for the system. The author went into other countries using this technology as well, which leaves me to conclude that this was a well done report. The more I read about plasma gasification the more I get excited about the possibilities that can come of it. I feel that the U.S. doesnt express this amazing system or provide extra incentives to building plasma gasification systems for hospitals for example. This country needs to look beyond the cost of something like this and look for future incentives. And for the world including the U.S., need to come together and apply this technology for the better.

Quiros-Leal Edbertho, Plasma Processing of Municipal Solid Waste Brazilian Journal of Physics, vol 34, no. 4B, Dec. 2004 This report focuses on hot temperature plasma processing of waste and the environmental advantage of converting waste to plasma energy. The plasma technology is becoming a reliable source to convert waste to energy and helping the need for more landfill space. The integrated plasma gasification combined cycle system generates clean energy using big turbines and the synthetic fuel produced from the waste gets cleaned to be providing clean fuel. Occuring to the author the plasma process is the only environmental technology that we have to process waste. The author did a great job providing explanations that helped the reader understand waste to energy process. At the same time, it didnt need to be a thirty page document with lots of useless content which gives the author an A in my book. The article was easy to understand and made their points clean. I thought the ending was a very powerful statement, but held a lot of truth and was explained in the paper. My question is: Who was responsible for plasma gasification technology? Its not so much that I care who paten the idea or design, but really the creativity of the idea that we can turn waste into energy through gasification. The process blows my mi nd and I m glad to have the opportunity to learn about this subject. Im not an engineer, so the construction or design of this is out of my league but I really do appreciate it. Ducharme Caroline, Themelis Nickolas J., Castaldi Marco J., Technical and economic analysis of Plasma-assisted Waste-to-Energy processes Columbia University 2010 This report examines plasma assisted gasification that combines oxidation to the process which adds an extra step the usually process. The report looks at the air emissions because the process involves air pollutants that are an opposition to waste to energy production. In the paper the author explains the different types of waste and how there treated. The environmental concerned in the paper was the combustion cleaning and what leeks out. The author expresses this as a big concern because it creates more expenses. The authors ends with plasma assisted gasification system should be able to work out the concerns by the time there up and running. The report was very long but was extremely detail in every aspect of waste to energy production. The author really drove deep into the costs which gave a better idea what it would cost. The environmental effects were a great touch, since almost of the research Ive done has touch on the environment pollutants. The overall article was good but could have been broken up to make it easier on the reader. The article as stated above was very long, so for me and Im sure others that have read this. But the way the author didnt avoid the environmental effects was something I liked about it. My reason is no matter what we do, we are going to have some kind of negative effect on the environment. The key is to try to keep it to a small, but waste to energy is very cutting-edge that

hopefully gets utilizes. The world is losing valuable landfill space due to our high population creating tons of waste daily, and the waste needs to go somewhere. Quiros Edbertho Leal, Plasma Processing of Municipal Solid Waste Brazilian Journal of Physics, vol. 34, no. 4B, Dec. 2004 In this article, the article examines the high temperatures of plasma processing of municipal waste. Temperatures for the plasma torches reach 5000 C, which converts the organic matter to syngas to provide energy. The syngas goes through a cleaning process to make it a clean sustainable fuel. After the syngas is cleaned, the fuel will combust into two cycles of turbines to power itself and provide energy to an energy grid. The plasma torches would operate continuously 24-7 and sustain itself at the high temperatures of 5000 C. Analyzing this article is pretty simple; it provided good explanations for the overall process. The author made the study an easy read, making me understand the plasma/ gasification process from high temperatures. The author also provided enough evidence to support the claim of this process being the solution to our solid waste problem. Looking back on this article, I learn more about the temperature aspect of plasma gasification. Not being a physicist or really no real knowledge on the subject, I learn a lot about converting waste to energy. I think of plasma gasification as a renewable resource, because no matter what we create waste. And this waste ends up in landfills to produce methane, but needs a lot of land to house the waste. Not to mention the environmental effects landfills have at a given location. I believe this author and support plasma gasification, its just mind blowing that its not in full effect in the U.S. Bratsev A N, Kumkova I I, Kuznetsov V A, Popov V E, Shtengel S V, Ufimtsev A A, Air plasma gasification of RDF as a prospective method for reduction of carbon dioxi de emission IOP 19, 2011 This article proposes a plasma gasification of RDF (refuse derived fuel) to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the atmosphere. The RDF system is used in boilers for electricity and to generate heat which helps reduce the carbon emissions. The idea is to use a plasma gasifier to make synthesis gas. The authors also present calculations on how the CO2 emissions would be reducing, and how to use the synthesis gas for energy production. The end result would hopefully reduce the carbon emissions to 20-70% total reduction. The article had good calculations but wasnt clearly understood by the reader. Unless the reader was knowledgeable about plasma gasification, you would not be able to understand how the carbon emissions would reduce. The overall article was good, but not for someone like me who wants to understand the process better. For experts in the field, this is a good report for research efforts.

As stated above, this article was good and informative but only to an extent. I like this process of plasma gasification, but Im also not a physicist. I did like the idea of reducing carbon emissions by this air plasma gasification. Since the emissions of carbon have such an influence on the environment, this idea could change the way we depose our waste. I still cant wrap my head around the ideology of this country not pursuing any sort of plasma gasification to a full extent. Khongkrapan Parin, Thanompongchart Patipat, Tippayawong Nakorn, Kiatsiriroat Tanongkiat, Fuel as and char from pyrolysis of waste paper in a microwave plasma reactor Energy and Environment vol. 4, Issue 6, 2013 pp 969-974 In this report they use a microwave plasma reactor for pyrolysis of waste paper. They studied the char and gas that is generated from the reactor. They observe carbon and oxygen levels from the char and looked at the significant of it. The results of the data showed that the most consistent gases produced were CO, H2, and CH4. The heating of the microwave reactor produced many gases, but find that the gases above were the most significant. The end result showed that after the waste paper was converted to a fuel, the gases of CO, H2, and CH4 were more present then other gases. This was a good report, and the reasoning being was the study itself. I really like how they found the flaws in plasma gasification, and showed how every action has a reaction. The gases they found significant, are significant gases that pose a threat to air quality. My only problem was the lack of environmental effects it will have as a posed to landfills. Landfills combust the same sort of gases but at levels and I think a comparison would have stressed the results more effectively. Like stated above, I did approve of this report and enjoyed reading it. It did make me think about the comparison of landfill gases to plasma gasification gases. A plasma gasification system would most likely produced less harmful air pollutants then landfills. It would just be interesting to see because there is landfills that use the CH4 (or natural gas) produced for energy. Land consumption and land use is becoming a big concern in the world today, and waste of any kind is consuming and will consume more land as time goes on. Materazzi M., Lettieri L., Taylor R., Chapman C., Technical Aspects and thermodynamic Evaluation of a Two Stage Fluid Bed-Plasma Process for Solid Waste Gasification The 14th International Conference of Fluidization From Fundamentals to Products, Eds, ECI Symposium Series, 2013 The following study proposes the idea for a two stage process for solid waste gasification. The system would include two fluid beds instead of one, which would improve the carbon conversation. This would increase overall energy production according to the authors, and create more synthesis gas. The authors proved that the two stage process is more effective

and produces more energy by improving the carbon conversation, and converts the tars to syngas gases more often. The authors of this article did a good job on the over idea to improve plasma gasification. But for someone who doesnt a lot about plasma gasification, it would be almost impossible to understand. They did propose a very simple idea though; add another fluid bed to improve the process. This concept even though theres more to it, the author did a good job but this wouldnt be for someone who wants to learn about plasma gasification. I thought this article did propose a very simple idea, just double the fluid bed to increase production. I thought it was so simple, that of course nobody else would think of it. Sometimes the simplest of ideas are the game changers. These made me think about the little things do make the biggest difference like reduce, reuse, and recycle. If we had a 20 or even 30% increase of people reducing, reusing, and recycling the results would be out of this world. So with this study, I learned that just keep things simple. Ioana I., Clean technology from waste management ISBN: 978-960, 474-190-8 This article talks about waste as being a major environmental pollutant, and our standard waste management technics need to be updated. The author also goes into the waste to energy process in Europe and that this can be a great energy source. After that it goes into renewable energy solutions and clean combustion from waste to energy production. The author concludes that its also the mindset that we need to change as well; we need to reuse more and produce less. I thought this article was a good overview of waste management issues of the world today. The overall quality of the article was very good and gave the reader a better perspective on waste management. The ending of the article was the best part and reason being that the list of positive and negative environmental problems that we face today were listed and defined. Overall, this author put the right pieces together to produce a great article for all different types of readers. I really like this article because it talked about the issue with waste, and the different solutions. This article made me think about the problem with waste, and considering I work at landfill I see it every day. People would be shocked about the whole landfilling process. Also I bet money that at least 35% of the landfill I work at is recyclable material. The other big shocker is how fast landfills fill up, it makes me wonder why hasnt this country put plasma gasification into full affect.