Oceanographic measurements from the Texas Automated Buoy System (TABS)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Texas Automated Buoy System contains daily oceanographic measurements from seven buoys off the Texas coast from Brownsville to Sabine. The Texas General Land...

Disbursement of $65 million to the State of Texas for construction of a Regional Medical Technology Center at the former Superconducting Super Collider Site, Waxahachie, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-05-01

As part of a settlement agreement between the US DOE and the State of Texas, DOE proposes to transfer $65 million of federal funds to the Texas National Research Laboratory Commission (TNLRC) for construction of the Regional Medical Technology Center (RMTC) to be located in Ellis County, Texas. The RMTC would be a state-of-the-art medical facility for proton cancer therapy, operated by the State of Texas in conjunction with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. The RMTC would use the linear accelerator assets of the recently terminated DOE Superconducting Super Collider Project to accelerate protons to high energies for the treatment of cancer patients. The current design provides for treatment areas, examination rooms, support laboratories, diagnostic imaging equipment, and office space as well as the accelerators (linac and synchrotron) and beam steering and shaping components. The potential environmental consequences of the proposed action are expected to be minor

Detecting Coastline Change with All Available Landsat Data over 1986–2015: A Case Study for the State of Texas, USA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nan Xu

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Coastline change often results from social and natural factors, such as human activities in the coastal zone, long-term and short-term sea level change, hurricane occurrences, subsequent recovery, and so on. Tracking coastline change is essential to deepen our understanding of coastal responses to these factors. Such information is also required for land use planning and sustainable development of coastal zones. In this context, we aimed to collect all available Landsat data (TM: Thematic Mapper, ETM+: Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus and OLI: Operational Land Imager over 1986–2015 for tracking the coastline dynamic and estimating its change rate in the State of Texas, USA. First, the land vs. water maps at an annual scale were derived from the satellite images. The border between land and water represents the coastline in this study. Second, the annual land area was obtained to characterize the coastline dynamic and a linear regression model was used for estimating the change rate. We also analyzed the potential driving factors of the observed coastline change. The results reveal that the coastline in the State of Texas changed at a rate of −0.154 ± 0.063 km2/year from 1986 to 2015, which indicates that the coastline has mainly experienced an erosion over the past three decades. Specifically, 52.58% of the entire coastline retreated to the land while a 47.42% portion advanced to the ocean. Long-term sea level rise can result in the erosion of coastline. Hurricane occurrences can explain the relatively strong coastline erosion. Besides, significant difference between the coastline change rate with a higher curvature and a lower curvature was observed. This study establishes a general method for detecting coastline change at large spatial and long-term temporal scales, by using remote sensing that can give fundamental information on coastline change. This is important for making scientific and reasonable policies of sustainable development of

State Level Review of Doctoral Programs in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Whittington, Nil

Review of doctoral degree programs in Texas public colleges and universities is discussed. Attention is directed to review procedures and strengths and weaknesses in the state's doctoral programs in educational psychology, counseling and guidance, and student personnel services. Doctoral programs were reviewed because of their high cost and a…

Urban and community forests of the South Central West region: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

David J. Nowak; Eric J. Greenfield

2010-01-01

This report details how land cover and urbanization vary within the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas by community (incorporated and census designated places), county subdivision, and county. Specifically this report provides critical urban and community forestry information for each state including human population characteristics and trends, changes...

Texas situation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Avant, R.V. Jr.; Bowmer, W.J.

1986-01-01

The Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Authority was formed in 1981 to address the Texas low-level radioactive waste problem consistent with the direction of P.L. 96-573. The Authority has completed technical tasks, including source term evaluations, preliminary conceptual designs, economic assessments, and long-range planning, and has work in progress on facility design, site selection, operating procedures, and licensing. Site selection has been the major technical activity and will be completed in 1987 after on-site evaluations of potential sites. The Authority expects to have its site licensed and operating in 1992. Texas has been the leader in site selection. Political concerns and the uncertainty of the national agenda led Texas policy makers to slow down the state's progress. The lessons learned through the Texas situation should be instructive to other states and compacts and may well be a prediction of events for these other groups. This paper discusses the background and status of Texas development activities, future plans, and lessons learned

Texas Affordable Baccalaureate Program: A Collaboration between the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, South Texas College, and Texas A&M University-Commerce. CBE Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Klein-Collins, Rebecca; Glancey, Kathleen

2015-01-01

This case study is part of a series on newer competency-based degree programs that have been emerging in recent years. In January 2014, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB), South Texas College (STC), and Texas A&M University-Commerce (A&M Commerce) launched the Texas Affordable Baccalaureate Program, the state's first…

Digital Learning Compass: Distance Education State Almanac 2017. Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Seaman, Julia E.; Seaman, Jeff

2017-01-01

This brief report uses data collected under the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) Fall Enrollment survey to highlight distance education data in the state of Texas. The sample for this analysis is comprised of all active, degree-granting…

Maternal Mortality in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Baeva, Sonia; Archer, Natalie P; Ruggiero, Karen; Hall, Manda; Stagg, Julie; Interis, Evelyn Coronado; Vega, Rachelle; Delgado, Evelyn; Hellerstedt, John; Hankins, Gary; Hollier, Lisa M

2017-05-01

A commentary on maternal mortality in Texas is provided in response to a 2016 article in Obstetrics & Gynecology by MacDorman et al. While the Texas Department of State Health Services and the Texas Maternal Mortality and Morbidity Task Force agree that maternal mortality increased sharply from 2010 to 2011, the percentage change or the magnitude of the increase in the maternal mortality rate in Texas differs depending on the statistical methods used to compute and display it. Methodologic challenges in identifying maternal death are also discussed, as well as risk factors and causes of maternal death in Texas. Finally, several state efforts currently underway to address maternal mortality in Texas are described. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

State of Student Aid and Higher Education in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Creusere, Marlena; Fletcher, Carla; Klepfer, Kasey; Norman, Patricia

2015-01-01

TG provides critical support to schools, students, and borrowers at every stage of the federal student aid process--from providing information on how to pay for a higher education including financial aid options, to facilitating successful loan repayment after graduation. This issue of "State of Student Aid and Higher Education in Texas"…

State and local economic impacts from wind energy projects: Texas case study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Slattery, Michael C.; Lantz, Eric; Johnson, Becky L.

2011-01-01

This paper uses the Jobs and Economic Development Impacts (JEDI) model to estimate economic impacts from 1398 MW of wind power development in four counties in west Texas. Project-specific impacts are estimated at the local level (i.e., within a 100-mile radius around the wind farms) and at the state level. The primary economic policy question addressed is how investment in wind energy affects the state and local communities where the wind farms are built. During the four-year construction phase approximately 4100 FTE (full time equivalents) jobs were supported with turbine and supply chain impacts accounting for 58% of all jobs generated. Total lifetime economic activity to the state from the projects equated to more than $1.8 billion, or $1.3 million per MW of installed capacity. The total economic activity to the local communities was also substantial, equating to nearly $730 million over the assumed 20-year life cycle of the farms, or $0.52 million per MW of installed capacity. Given the current level of impacts observed, and the potential for increased impacts via greater utilization of instate manufacturing capacity and the development of trained wind industry specific laborers, Texas appears to be well positioned to see increasing impacts from continued wind development. - Highlights: ► We use the JEDI model to assess economic impacts from wind development in west Texas. ► Total lifetime economic impact from 1398 MW wind equated to more than $1.8 billion. ► Texas is well positioned to see increasing impacts from continued wind development.

Can Texas' Physicians Be as Diverse as Texas?

Science.gov (United States)

Price, Sean

2017-07-01

The United States and Texas have a chronic shortage of doctors, but the shortage of minority physicians is even more acute. To address this, and the health disparities that come with it, Texas medical schools are working to increase minority enrollment, but challenges remain.

Promoting accountability: hospital charity care in California, Washington state, and Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Sutton, Janet P; Stensland, Jeffrey

2004-05-01

Debate as to whether private hospitals meet their charitable obligations is heated. This study examines how alternative state approaches for ensuring hospital accountability to the community affects charitable expenditures and potentially affects access to care for the uninsured. Descriptive and multivariate analyses were used to compare private California hospitals' charity care expenditures with those of hospitals in Texas and Washington state. The key finding from this study is that net of hospital characteristics, market characteristics and community need, Texas hospitals were estimated to provide over 3 times more charity care and Washington hospitals were estimated to provide 66% more charity care than California hospitals. This finding suggests that more prescriptive community benefit or charity care requirements may be necessary to ensure that private hospitals assume a larger role in the care of the uninsured.

Precipitation and Evaporation Trends in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Dixon, R. W.

2009-05-01

Texas is a large land area with at least three different climate types. As such it is expected that the results of climate change will not be homogenous. This paper presents results of a study of long trends in Texas precipitation and evaporation using data from the US Historical Climatology Network and the Texas Water Development Board. It shows that the long term trends of these variables is not homogenous and exhibits great variability in both spatial extent and magnitude. This variability must be considered in planning for future water supply or other mitigation projects.

Does state budget pressure matter for uncompensated care spending in hospitals? Findings from Texas and California.

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Jongwha; Patel, Isha; Suh, Won S; Lin, Hsien-Chang; Kim, Sunjung; Balkrishnan, Rajesh

2012-01-01

This study examined the impact of state budget cuts on uncompensated care at general acute care hospital organizations. This study capitalized on the variations in the states of Texas and California to form a natural experiment testing the joint impact of budget cut status on uncompensated care costs, as well as specific charity care costs and bad debt expenses from indigent patients. Budget cuts in the state of Texas occurred in the year 2004. Information was obtained from the Texas Department of Health and the California Department of Health Services regarding financial characteristics of hospitals and from the American Hospital Directory annual survey regarding organizational characteristics of hospitals. We created three dependent variables: R(UC) (the ratio of total uncompensated care costs to gross patient revenue), R(CC) (the ratio of charity care to total patient revenue) and R(BD) (the ratio of bad debt expenses to gross patient revenue). Using a two-period panel data set and individual hospital fixed effects, we captured hospital uncompensated care spending that could also have influenced budget cut status. Additionally, the impact of the state budget cut status on hospitals' uncompensated care spending, charity care spending and bad debt expenses was also estimated using the similar methodology. In this study, we included 416 (in Texas) and 352 (in California) public, not-for-profit (NFP) and for-profit (FP) hospitals that completed the annual survey during the study period 2002-2005. For the state of Texas, results from the fixed effect model confirmed that the year 2005 was directly related to increased R(UC) and R(CC) . The coefficients of 2005 were significantly and positively associated with R(UC) (0.43, p budget cut pressure on uncompensated care provided in Texas general acute care hospitals. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Texas motorcycle crash countermeasure workshop.

Science.gov (United States)

2013-06-01

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) contracted with the Texas A&M : Transportation Institute (TTI) to develop a 5-year strategic plan for improving motorcycle safety : in the State of Texas. The Texas Strategic Action Plan for Motorcycl...

US State Submerged Lands

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Submerged Lands Act (43 U.S.C. Section 1301 et seq.) grants coastal states title to natural resources located within their coastal submerged lands and navigable...

Louisiana State Lands and Buildings, Geographic NAD83, LA State Land Office (2007) [slabs_slo_2007

Data.gov (United States)

Louisiana Geographic Information Center — This dataset represents land and/or building areas for the state of Louisiana. This dataset was compiled by the State Land Office from Historical Records (SLABS)...

Public Outreach of the South Texas Health Physic Society and Texas A and M University Nuclear Engineering Department

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berry, R. O.

2003-01-01

In a cooperative effort of the members of the South Texas Chapter of the Heath Physics Society (STC-HPS) and the Texas A and M University Nuclear Engineering Department, great efforts have been made to reach out and provide educational opportunities to members of the general public, school age children, and specifically teachers. These efforts have taken the form of Science Teacher Workshops (STW), visits to schools all over the state of Texas, public forums, and many other educational arenas. A major motivational factor for these most recent efforts can be directly tied to the attempt of the State of Texas to site a low-level radioactive waste facility near Sierra Blanca in West Texas. When the State of Texas first proposed to site a low level radioactive waste site after the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Act of 1980 was passed, many years of political struggle ensued. Finally, a site at Sierra Blanca in far West Texas was selected for study and characterization for a disposal site for waste generated in the Texas Compact states of Maine, Vermont and Texas. During this process, the outreach to and education of the local public became a paramount issue

Furthering Medical Education in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Varma, Surendra K; Jennings, John

2016-02-01

Medical education in Texas is moving in the right direction. The Texas Medical Association has been a major partner in advancing medical education initiatives. This special symposium issue on medical education examines residency training costs, the Next Accreditation System, graduate medical education in rural Texas, Texas' physician workforce needs, the current state of education reform, and efforts to retain medical graduates in Texas.

A land-use and water-quality history of White Rock Lake Reservoir, Dallas, Texas, based on paleolimnological analyses

Science.gov (United States)

Platt, Bradbury J.; Van Metre, P.C.

1997-01-01

White Rock Lake reservoir in Dallas, Texas contains a 150-cm sediment record of silty clay that documents land-use changes since its construction in 1912. Pollen analysis corroborates historical evidence that between 1912 and 1950 the watershed was primarily agricultural. Land disturbance by plowing coupled with strong and variable spring precipitation caused large amounts of sediment to enter the lake during this period. Diatoms were not preserved at this time probably because of low productivity compared to diatom dissolution by warm, alkaline water prior to burial in the sediments. After 1956, the watershed became progressively urbanized. Erosion decreased, land stabilized, and pollen of riparian trees increased as the lake water became somewhat less turbid. By 1986 the sediment record indicates that diatom productivity had increased beyond rates of diatom destruction. Neither increased nutrients nor reduced pesticides can account for increased diatom productivity, but grain size studies imply that before 1986 diatoms were light limited by high levels of turbidity. This study documents how reservoirs may relate to land-use practices and how watershed management could extend reservoir life and improve water quality.

An updated understanding of Texas bumble bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae species presence and potential distributions in Texas, USA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jessica L. Beckham

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Texas is the second largest state in the United States of America, and the largest state in the contiguous USA at nearly 700,000 sq. km. Several Texas bumble bee species have shown evidence of declines in portions of their continental ranges, and conservation initiatives targeting these species will be most effective if species distributions are well established. To date, statewide bumble bee distributions for Texas have been inferred primarily from specimen records housed in natural history collections. To improve upon these maps, and help inform conservation decisions, this research aimed to (1 update existing Texas bumble bee presence databases to include recent (2007–2016 data from citizen science repositories and targeted field studies, (2 model statewide species distributions of the most common bumble bee species in Texas using MaxEnt, and (3 identify conservation target areas for the state that are most likely to contain habitat suitable for multiple declining species. The resulting Texas bumble bee database is comprised of 3,580 records, to include previously compiled museum records dating from 1897, recent field survey data, and vetted records from citizen science repositories. These data yielded an updated state species list that includes 11 species, as well as species distribution models (SDMs for the most common Texas bumble bee species, including two that have shown evidence of range-wide declines: B. fraternus (Smith, 1854 and B. pensylvanicus (DeGeer, 1773. Based on analyses of these models, we have identified conservation priority areas within the Texas Cross Timbers, Texas Blackland Prairies, and East Central Texas Plains ecoregions where suitable habitat for both B. fraternus and B. pensylvanicus are highly likely to co-occur.

75 FR 45695 - Final Federal Agency Actions on Trans-Texas Corridor 35 (TTC-35) in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-03

...-Texas Corridor 35 (TTC-35) in Texas AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT. ACTION: Notice... proposed transportation project, TTC-35, extending from the Texas- Oklahoma line to the City of Laredo, generally paralleling existing I- 35 in the State of Texas. DATES: By this notice, the FHWA is advising the...

CBTE: The Ayes of Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Houston, W. Robert; Howsam, Robert B.

1974-01-01

A heated controversy occurred when the Texas State Board of Education mandated competency based teacher education (CBTE) for all of the State's 66 teacher preparatory institutions. This is an account of developments in Texas by two major proponents of CBTE. (Author/JF)

Rising Above the Storm: DIG TEXAS

Science.gov (United States)

Ellins, K. K.; Miller, K. C.; Bednarz, S. W.; Mosher, S.

2011-12-01

For a decade Texas educators, scientists and citizens have shown a commitment to earth science education through planning at the national and state levels, involvement in earth science curriculum and teacher professional development projects, and the creation of a model senior level capstone Earth and Space Science course first offered in 2010 - 2011. The Texas state standards for Earth and Space Science demonstrate a shift to rigorous content, career relevant skills and use of 21st century technology. Earth and Space Science standards also align with the Earth Science, Climate and Ocean Literacy framework documents. In spite of a decade of progress K-12 earth science education in Texas is in crisis. Many school districts do not offer Earth and Space Science, or are using the course as a contingency for students who fail core science subjects. The State Board for Educator Certification eliminated Texas' secondary earth science teacher certification in 2009, following the adoption of the new Earth and Space Science standards. This makes teachers with a composite teacher certification (biology, physics and chemistry) eligible to teach Earth and Space Science, as well other earth science courses (e.g., Aquatic Science, Environmental Systems/Science) even if they lack earth science content knowledge. Teaching materials recently adopted by the State Board of Education do not include Earth and Space Science resources. In July 2011 following significant budget cuts at the 20 Education Service Centers across Texas, the Texas Education Agency eliminated key staff positions in its curriculum division, including science. This "perfect storm" has created a unique opportunity for a university-based approach to confront the crisis in earth science education in Texas which the Diversity and Innovation in the Geosciences (DIG) TEXAS alliance aims to fulfill. Led by the Texas A&M University College of Geosciences and The University of Texas Jackson School of Geosciences, with

Land Politics under Market Socialism: The State, Land Policies, and Rural–Urban Land Conversion in China and Vietnam

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hoang Linh Nguyen

2018-04-01

Full Text Available This paper undertakes a comparative analysis of rural–urban land conversion policies in China and Vietnam, and examines the ideology of the state in land policymaking under a market socialism environment. It argues that land policies in both countries include ambiguous boundaries, which allow the socialist state to legitimize its politico-administrative power in land management and retain strong intervention capacity in the land market. In addition to similarities, land policies in China and Vietnam show significant differences in terms of the ownership of rural land and related legislation on land expropriation and transactions. Together, these distinctions cause divergent impacts on the interests and motivations of multiple stakeholders in rural land conversion. It is further observed that the state in both countries is characterized by dynamic, complex, and self-coordinated institutional systems, in which multiple levels of government have different driving forces and strategies in land development. The internal structure of authority in rural–urban land conversion between the multiple levels of government is readjusted by the regulatory land control of the central government.

Texas trip generation manual : 1st edition-volume 1 : user's guide.

Science.gov (United States)

2014-08-01

The purpose of this Manual is to provide a summary of Texas trip generation data for various : Land Use Codes (LUCs) and time periods, for data obtained from workplace and special : generator (WSG) surveys performed as part of the Texas Travel Survey...

TEXAS MIGRANT LABOR, THE 1964 MIGRATION.

Science.gov (United States)

Good Neighbor Commission of Texas, Austin.

THE MAJORITY OF TEXAS MIGRANTS LIVE IN SOUTH TEXAS AND APPROXIMATELY 95 PERCENT OF THEM ARE OF MEXICAN EXTRACTION. MOST OF THE OTHER FIVE PERCENT ARE EAST TEXAS NEGROES. THE MECHANIZATION OF COTTON HARVESTING AND THE EXPIRATION OF THE "BRACERO PROGRAM" IN 1964 HAVE CAUSED MORE TEXAS MIGRANTS TO SEEK EMPLOYMENT OUTSIDE OF THE STATE. DURING 1964,…

The Self-Efficacy of Special Education Directors in the State of Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Hubbard, Catana C.

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the self-efficacy of special education directors serving in public schools in the state of Texas. Within the review of literature the following key components were identified: special education administration, self-efficacy--theoretical perspective and self-efficacy and outcomes-based research. A…

Future water supply and demand in response to climate change and agricultural expansion in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, K.; Zhou, T.; Gao, H.; Huang, M.

2016-12-01

With ongoing global environmental change and an increasing population, it is challenging (to say the least) to understand the complex interactions of irrigation and reservoir systems. Irrigation is critical to agricultural production and food security, and is a vital component of Texas' agricultural economy. Agricultural irrigation currently accounts for about 60% of total water demand in Texas, and recent occurrences of severe droughts has brought attention to the availability and use of water in the future. In this study, we aim to assess future agricultural irrigation water demand, and to estimate how changes in the fraction of crop irrigated land will affect future water availability in Texas, which has the largest farm area and the highest value of livestock production in the United States. The Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) model, which has been calibrated and validated over major Texas river basins during the historical period, is employed for this study. The VIC model, coupling with an irrigation scheme and a reservoir module, is adopted to simulate the water management and regulations. The evolution on agricultural land is also considered in the model as a changing fraction of crop for each grid cell. The reservoir module is calibrated and validated based on the historical (1915-2011) storage records of major reservoirs in Texas. The model is driven by statistically downscaled climate projections from Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5) model ensembles at a spatial resolution of 1/8°. The lowest (RCP 2.6) and highest (RC P8.5) greenhouse-gas concentration scenarios are adopted for future projections to provide an estimate of uncertainty bounds. We expect that our results will be helpful to assist decision making related to reservoir operations and agricultural water planning for Texas under future climate and environmental changes.

The Texas Ten Percent Plan's Impact on College Enrollment

Science.gov (United States)

Daugherty, Lindsay; Martorell, Paco; McFarlin, Isaac, Jr.

2014-01-01

The Texas Ten Percent Plan (TTP) provides students in the top 10 percent of their high-school class with automatic admission to any public university in the state, including the two flagship schools, the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M. Texas created the policy in 1997 after a federal appellate court ruled that the state's previous…

Chagas disease risk in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Sarkar, Sahotra; Strutz, Stavana E; Frank, David M; Rivaldi, Chissa-Louise; Sissel, Blake; Sánchez-Cordero, Victor

2010-10-05

Chagas disease, caused by Trypanosoma cruzi, remains a serious public health concern in many areas of Latin America, including México. It is also endemic in Texas with an autochthonous canine cycle, abundant vectors (Triatoma species) in many counties, and established domestic and peridomestic cycles which make competent reservoirs available throughout the state. Yet, Chagas disease is not reportable in Texas, blood donor screening is not mandatory, and the serological profiles of human and canine populations remain unknown. The purpose of this analysis was to provide a formal risk assessment, including risk maps, which recommends the removal of these lacunae. The spatial relative risk of the establishment of autochthonous Chagas disease cycles in Texas was assessed using a five-stage analysis. 1. Ecological risk for Chagas disease was established at a fine spatial resolution using a maximum entropy algorithm that takes as input occurrence points of vectors and environmental layers. The analysis was restricted to triatomine vector species for which new data were generated through field collection and through collation of post-1960 museum records in both México and the United States with sufficiently low georeferenced error to be admissible given the spatial resolution of the analysis (1 arc-minute). The new data extended the distribution of vector species to 10 new Texas counties. The models predicted that Triatoma gerstaeckeri has a large region of contiguous suitable habitat in the southern United States and México, T. lecticularia has a diffuse suitable habitat distribution along both coasts of the same region, and T. sanguisuga has a disjoint suitable habitat distribution along the coasts of the United States. The ecological risk is highest in south Texas. 2. Incidence-based relative risk was computed at the county level using the Bayesian Besag-York-Mollié model and post-1960 T. cruzi incidence data. This risk is concentrated in south Texas. 3. The

Chagas disease risk in Texas.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sahotra Sarkar

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Chagas disease, caused by Trypanosoma cruzi, remains a serious public health concern in many areas of Latin America, including México. It is also endemic in Texas with an autochthonous canine cycle, abundant vectors (Triatoma species in many counties, and established domestic and peridomestic cycles which make competent reservoirs available throughout the state. Yet, Chagas disease is not reportable in Texas, blood donor screening is not mandatory, and the serological profiles of human and canine populations remain unknown. The purpose of this analysis was to provide a formal risk assessment, including risk maps, which recommends the removal of these lacunae. METHODS AND FINDINGS: The spatial relative risk of the establishment of autochthonous Chagas disease cycles in Texas was assessed using a five-stage analysis. 1. Ecological risk for Chagas disease was established at a fine spatial resolution using a maximum entropy algorithm that takes as input occurrence points of vectors and environmental layers. The analysis was restricted to triatomine vector species for which new data were generated through field collection and through collation of post-1960 museum records in both México and the United States with sufficiently low georeferenced error to be admissible given the spatial resolution of the analysis (1 arc-minute. The new data extended the distribution of vector species to 10 new Texas counties. The models predicted that Triatoma gerstaeckeri has a large region of contiguous suitable habitat in the southern United States and México, T. lecticularia has a diffuse suitable habitat distribution along both coasts of the same region, and T. sanguisuga has a disjoint suitable habitat distribution along the coasts of the United States. The ecological risk is highest in south Texas. 2. Incidence-based relative risk was computed at the county level using the Bayesian Besag-York-Mollié model and post-1960 T. cruzi incidence data. This

Ready Texas: Stakeholder Convening. Proceedings Report

Science.gov (United States)

Intercultural Development Research Association, 2016

2016-01-01

With the adoption of substantial changes to Texas high school curricula in 2013 (HB5), a central question for Texas policymakers, education and business leaders, families, and students is whether and how HB5 implementation impacts the state of college readiness and success in Texas. Comprehensive research is needed to understand the implications…

Status report on Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Authority activities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Avant, R.V. Jr.

1990-01-01

In 1981, the Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Authority was created by Article 4590f-1 to site, develop, operate, decommission, and close a low-level radioactive waste disposal facility for Texas generated waste. In 1989, the Authority's act was recodified by the Texas legislature in the Health and Safety Code., Title 5. Sanitation and Environmental Quality, Subtitle D. Nuclear and Radioactive Materials, Chapter 402. The Authority is governed by a Board of Directors appointed by the Governor, composed of a certified health physicist, geologist, attorney, medical doctor, and two private citizens. Under the statute, low-level radioactive waste is defined as any radioactive material with a half-life of 35 years or less or having less than 10 nanocuries per gram of transuranics. Materials with half-lives of greater than 35 years may be classed as low-level waste if special criteria are established by the Texas Department of Health Bureau of Radiation Control. Subsequent sessions of the legislature have amended the act to revise siting criteria, require consideration of state land, create a Citizen's Advisory Committee, incorporate alternative designs, and establish a special low-level radioactive waste account in the state treasury. The Authority began its activities in 1982. The Authority has proposed a site in far West Texas near Fort Hancock, but El Paso County, the neighboring county to the west, has instituted three separate lawsuits to slow or stop the site selection process. Particular attention was paid early in the site selection process to items which could be fatal flaws from a licensing standpoint. This paper discusses the Fort Hancock site description, site evaluation studies, siting issues, waste volume projections, facility design, license application, cost and schedule

Family Members' Views on Seeking Placement in State-Supported Living Centers in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Colvin, Alex D.; Larke, Patricia J.

2013-01-01

This study investigated the factors that influence family members' decisions to seek placement for relatives with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (ID/DD) into state-supported living centers in Texas. The sample included 51 family caregivers between the ages of 26 and 95. Using descriptive statistics, correlation, and inferential…

Why understanding the impacts of the changing environment on river basin hydrology matters in Texas?

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, H.; Zhao, G.; Lee, K.; Zhang, S.; Shen, X.; Shao, M.; Nickelson, C.

2017-12-01

The State of Texas is prone to floods and droughts—both of which are expected to become more frequent, and more intensified, under a changing climate. This has a direct negative effect on agricultural productivity, which is a major revenue source for the state. Meanwhile, with the rapid population growth and economic development, the burden to Texas water resources is exacerbated by the ever increasing demands from users. From a hydrological processes perspective, the direct consequence of the increased impervious area due to urbanization is greater surface runoff and higher flood peaks. Although many reservoirs have been built during the past several decades to regulate river flows and increase water supply, the role of these reservoirs in the context of different future climate change and urbanization scenarios needs to be explored. Furthermore, phytoplankton productivity—an important indicator of coastal ecosystem health— is significantly affected by river discharge. The objective of this presentation is to reveal the importance of understanding the impacts of climate change, urbanization, and flow regulation on Texas river flows, water resources, and coastal water quality. Using state-of-the-art modeling and remote sensing techniques, we will showcase our results over representative Texas river basins and bay areas. A few examples include modeling peak flows in the San Antonio River Basin, evaluating water supply resilience under future drought and urbanization over the Dallas metropolitan area, projecting future crop yields from Texas agricultural lands, and monitoring and forecasting Chlorophyll-a concentrations over Galveston Bay. Results from these studies are expected to provide information relevant to decision making, both with regard to water resources management and to ecosystem protection.

Problems of administration of ACCOUNTING OF QUALITY OF LANDs in system of state land of Ukraine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tykhenko O.V.

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Conditions of land resources of Ukraine and quality of soil getting worse, increasing areas of technogenic pollution. Uncontrolled land use leads to deterioration of soil fertility. To maintain a high level of natural properties of lands is necessary to monitor over their use, which can be achieved by accounting of land quality. Information about the quantity and quality of lands summarizing by the central executive authority that implements the state policy in the sphere of land relations. Summarized information on the quantity and quality of land on gratis personnel provided to state authorities and local governments according to Order of conducting of State Land Cadastre. One of the main problems of accounting quality of lands is in Ukraine now is not only the absence of regulatory documents, but also the reliability of available information According to it’s providing is necessary of availability of actual information about the status of land resources. The absence of qualitative characteristics land plots in cadastral system complicates state control over land use and protection, because there are no grounds for levy fines for the catastrophic decline of soil fertility. One of the layers of Public Cadastral Map of Ukraine are soils. Nowadays is approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine ( № 1051 nomenclature list of agro-industrial group of soils, which includes 222 of the agro groups with deciphering by granulometric composition. If with soil units identified, so the indicators that characterize them more difficult. That indicators, which were the basis for accounting of the quality of lands should check up to modern realities and condition of soils. According to the Law of Ukraine "On Land Protection", in the field of land protection and restoration of soil fertility establishes the following standards: maximum allowable soil contamination; qualitative condition of soils; the optimum ratio of lands; indicators of land and soils

Changes between early development (1930–60) and recent (2005–15) groundwater-level altitudes and dissolved-solids and nitrate concentrations In and near Gaines, Terry, and Yoakum Counties, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Jonathan V.; Teeple, Andrew; Payne, Jason; Ikard, Scott

2016-06-21

Llano Estacado Underground Water Conservation District, Sandy Land Underground Water Conservation District, and South Plains Underground Water Conservation District manage groundwater resources in a part of west Texas near the Texas-New Mexico State line. Declining groundwater levels have raised concerns about the amount of available groundwater in the study area and the potential for water-quality changes resulting from dewatering and increased vertical groundwater movement between adjacent water-bearing units.

Environmental analysis of geopressured-geothermal prospect areas, Brazoria and Kenedy Counties, Texas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

White, W.A.; McGraw, M.; Gustavson, T.C.

1978-01-01

Preliminary environmental data, including current land use, substrate lithology, soils, natural hazards, water resources, biological assemblages, meteorological data, and regulatory considerations have been collected and analyzed for approximately 150 km/sup 2/ of land: (1) near Chocolate Bayou, Brazoria County, Texas, where a geopressured-geothermal test well was drilled in 1978, and (2) near the rural community of Armstrong, Kenedy County, Texas, where future geopressured-geothermal test well development may occur. The study was designed to establish an environmental data base and to determine, within spatial constraints set by subsurface reservoir conditions, environmentally suitable sites for geopressured-geothermal wells.

Spatial Distribution of Estimated Wind-Power Royalties in West Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christian Brannstrom

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Wind-power development in the U.S. occurs primarily on private land, producing royalties for landowners through private contracts with wind-farm operators. Texas, the U.S. leader in wind-power production with well-documented support for wind power, has virtually all of its ~12 GW of wind capacity sited on private lands. Determining the spatial distribution of royalty payments from wind energy is a crucial first step to understanding how renewable power may alter land-based livelihoods of some landowners, and, as a result, possibly encourage land-use changes. We located ~1700 wind turbines (~2.7 GW on 241 landholdings in Nolan and Taylor counties, Texas, a major wind-development region. We estimated total royalties to be ~$11.5 million per year, with mean annual royalty received per landowner per year of $47,879 but with significant differences among quintiles and between two sub-regions. Unequal distribution of royalties results from land-tenure patterns established before wind-power development because of a “property advantage,” defined as the pre-existing land-tenure patterns that benefit the fraction of rural landowners who receive wind turbines. A “royalty paradox” describes the observation that royalties flow to a small fraction of landowners even though support for wind power exceeds 70 percent.

78 FR 9047 - Public Water System Supervision Program Revision for the State of Texas

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-07

... Water System Supervision Program. Texas has adopted three EPA drinking water rules, namely the: (1) Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2), (2) the Stage 2 Disinfectants and Disinfection... Drinking Water Section (MC-155), Building F, 12100 Park 35 Circle, Austin, TX 78753; and United States...

Making Texas Restaurants Healthier for Children

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

Sylvia Crixell, PhD, RD, Professor of Nutrition at Texas State University, discusses her study which details the success of a community-based program in Texas aimed at combatting childhood obesity by improving children’s menus in restaurants.

Land-Cover Change in the East Central Texas Plains, 1973-2000

Science.gov (United States)

Karstensen, Krista A.

2009-01-01

Project Background: The Geographic Analysis and Monitoring (GAM) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Land Cover Trends project is focused on understanding the rates, trends, causes, and consequences of contemporary U.S. land-use and land-cover change. The objectives of the study are to: (1) develop a comprehensive methodology for using sampling and change analysis techniques and Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS) and Thematic Mapper (TM) data for measuring regional land-cover change across the United States, (2) characterize the types, rates and temporal variability of change for a 30-year period, (3) document regional driving forces and consequences of change, and (4) prepare a national synthesis of land-cover change (Loveland and others, 1999). Using the 1999 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Level III ecoregions derived from Omernik (1987) as the geographic framework, geospatial data collected between 1973 and 2000 were processed and analyzed to characterize ecosystem responses to land-use changes. The 27-year study period was divided into five temporal periods: 1973-1980, 1980-1986, 1986-1992, 1992-2000, and 1973-2000. General land-cover classes such as water, developed, grassland/shrubland, and agriculture for these periods were interpreted from Landsat MSS, TM, and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus imagery to categorize land-cover change and evaluate using a modified Anderson Land-Use Land-Cover Classification System for image interpretation. The interpretation of these land-cover classes complement the program objective of looking at land-use change with cover serving as a surrogate for land use. The land-cover change rates are estimated using a stratified, random sampling of 10-kilometer (km) by 10-km blocks allocated within each ecoregion. For each sample block, satellite images are used to interpret land-cover change for the five time periods previously mentioned. Additionally, historical aerial photographs from similar timeframes and other

Evaluation and analysis of Texas biofuel supply chains originating in the United States Midwest and Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

2009-05-01

This 2009 study, funded by the Southwest Region University Transportation Center, investigates : competing ethanol supply chains terminating in the State of Texas. Midwest corn ethanol and : Brazilian sugarcane ethanol constitute two sources of the b...

Texas Hydrogen Education Final Scientific/Technical Report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hitchcock, David; Bullock, Dan

2011-06-30

The Texas Hydrogen Education project builds on past interest in hydrogen and fuel cells to help create better informed leaders and stakeholders and thereby improve decision making and planning for inclusion of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies as energy alternatives in Texas. In past years in Texas, there was considerable interest and activities about hydrogen and fuel cells (2000-­2004). During that time, the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC) created a fuel cell consortium and a fuel cell testing lab. Prior to 2008, interest and activities had declined substantially. In 2008, in cooperation with the Texas H2 Coalition and the State Energy Conservation Office, HARC conducted a planning process to create the Texas Hydrogen Roadmap. It was apparent from analysis conducted during the course of this process that while Texas has hydrogen and fuel cell advantages, there was little program and project activity as compared with other key states. Outreach and education through the provision of informational materials and organizing meetings was seen as an effective way of reaching decision makers in Texas. Previous hydrogen projects in Texas had identified the five major urban regions for program and project development. This geographic targeting approach was adopted for this project. The project successfully conducted the five proposed workshops in four of the target metropolitan areas: San Antonio, Houston, Austin, and the Dallas-­Ft. Worth area. In addition, eight outreach events were included to further inform state and local government leaders on the basics of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies. The project achieved its primary objectives of developing communication with target audiences and assembling credible and consistent outreach and education materials. The major lessons learned include: (1) DOE’s Clean Cities programs are a key conduit to target transportation audiences, (2) real-­world fuel cell applications (fuel cell buses, fuel cell fork lifts

76 FR 65935 - Brucellosis in Swine; Add Texas to List of Validated Brucellosis-Free States

Science.gov (United States)

2011-10-25

... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 9 CFR Part 78 [Docket No. APHIS-2011-0005] Brucellosis in Swine; Add Texas to List of Validated Brucellosis- Free States AGENCY... or birth of weak offspring, reduced milk production, and infertility. There is no economically...

Overcoming the Barriers to Organic Adoption in the United States: A Look at Pragmatic Conventional Producers in Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jin Young Choi

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Organics is the one of the fastest growing segments in food sales. Though the amount of certified organic land is increasing, the supply of organic foods lags behind demand in the United States. The reasons for this gap include a lack of government support for organics, and the peculiarities of organics as an innovation. In an attempt to close this gap, and increase the environmental sustainability of U.S. agriculture, this paper has two objectives. The first is to document the structural and institutional constraints to organic adoption. This is accomplished through a review of organic programs and policies in the U.S., in particular the National Organic Program. The second objective is to investigate the predictors of interest and the perceived barriers to organic adoption among pragmatic conventional producers in Texas, compared to organic and conventional producers. This is accomplished through a survey of a representative sample of producers in Texas. The results indicate that more than forty percent of producers who currently have conventional operations have at least some interest in organic production (pragmatic conventional producers. There are significant differences among the three groups in their structural and attitudinal characteristics related to organic adoption. For the pragmatic conventional producers, an increase in revenue would be a major facilitator of organic adoption. Their high levels of uncertainty regarding organic production and marketing, and especially organic certification constrain organic adoption. The results also reveal that the institutional setting in the U.S. hindered adoption. The paper concludes that increased institutional support would facilitate organic adoption.

Nuevo Leon during the Independence of Texas, 1835-1836

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miguel Ángel González Quiroga

2006-10-01

Full Text Available The new-born Mexican Republic suffered one of its strongest shocks in 1836, during the Texas War. The impact of this conflict in the neighbouring state of Nuevo Leon is the main subject of this work, which also describes the situation of Mexico and its army, as well as the state's reaction towards the centralist shift — Texas' main argument  for splitting from Mexico. The study of the separation of Texas, widely reviewed in Mexican historiography, is enriched through the viewpoint of one of the most affected states.

76 FR 32986 - Vendor Outreach Workshop for Small Businesses in the Texas Intermountain Region of the United States

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-07

... DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Office of the Secretary Vendor Outreach Workshop for Small Businesses in the Texas Intermountain Region of the United States AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, Interior... region of the United States that are interested in doing business with the Department. This outreach...

Emergence of Integrated Urology-Radiation Oncology Practices in the State of Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jhaveri, Pavan M.; Sun Zhuyi; Ballas, Leslie; Followill, David S.; Hoffman, Karen E.; Jiang Jing; Smith, Benjamin D.

2012-01-01

Purpose: Integrated urology-radiation oncology (RO) practices have been advocated as a means to improve community-based prostate cancer care by joining urologic and radiation care in a single-practice environment. However, little is known regarding the scope and actual physical integration of such practices. We sought to characterize the emergence of such practices in Texas, their extent of physical integration, and their potential effect on patient travel times for radiation therapy. Methods and Materials: A telephone survey identified integrated urology-RO practices, defined as practices owned by urologists that offer RO services. Geographic information software was used to determine the proximity of integrated urology-RO clinic sites with respect to the state's population. We calculated patient travel time and distance from each integrated urology-RO clinic offering urologic services to the RO treatment facility owned by the integrated practice and to the nearest nonintegrated (independent) RO facility. We compared these times and distances using the Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test. Results: Of 229 urology practices identified, 12 (5%) offered integrated RO services, and 182 (28%) of 640 Texas urologists worked in such practices. Approximately 53% of the state population resides within 10 miles of an integrated urology-RO clinic site. Patients with a diagnosis of prostate cancer at an integrated urology-RO clinic site travel a mean of 19.7 miles (26.1 min) from the clinic to reach the RO facility owned by the integrated urology-RO practice vs 5.9 miles (9.2 min) to reach the nearest nonintegrated RO facility (P<.001). Conclusions: Integrated urology-RO practices are common in Texas and are generally clustered in urban areas. In most integrated practices, the urology clinics and the integrated RO facilities are not at the same location, and driving times and distances from the clinic to the integrated RO facility exceed those from the clinic to the nearest

Gender Association with Stringed Instruments: A Four-Decade Analysis of Texas All-State Orchestras

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, Vicki D.

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to track the gender makeup of the five string sections (Violin 1, Violin 2, Viola, Cello, and String Bass) of Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) All-State Orchestras from 1971 to 2010, to determine if a clear gender stereotype was evident in any of the sections and if there had been a trend towards a change in…

Predicting daily PM2.5 concentrations in Texas using high-resolution satellite aerosol optical depth.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xueying; Chu, Yiyi; Wang, Yuxuan; Zhang, Kai

2018-08-01

The regulatory monitoring data of particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter images retrieved from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellites. We then developed mixed-effects models based on AODs, land use features, geographic characteristics, and weather conditions, and the day-specific as well as site-specific random effects to estimate the PM 2.5 concentrations (μg/m 3 ) in the state of Texas during the period 2008-2013. The mixed-effects models' performance was evaluated using the coefficient of determination (R 2 ) and square root of the mean squared prediction error (RMSPE) from ten-fold cross-validation, which randomly selected 90% of the observations for training purpose and 10% of the observations for assessing the models' true prediction ability. Mixed-effects regression models showed good prediction performance (R 2 values from 10-fold cross validation: 0.63-0.69). The model performance varied by regions and study years, and the East region of Texas, and year of 2009 presented relatively higher prediction precision (R 2 : 0.62 for the East region; R 2 : 0.69 for the year of 2009). The PM 2.5 concentrations generated through our developed models at 1-km grid cells in the state of Texas showed a decreasing trend from 2008 to 2013 and a higher reduction of predicted PM 2.5 in more polluted areas. Our findings suggest that mixed-effects regression models developed based on MAIAC AOD are a feasible approach to predict ground-level PM 2.5 in Texas. Predicted PM 2.5 concentrations at the 1-km resolution on a daily basis can be used for epidemiological studies to investigate short- and long-term health impact of PM 2.5 in Texas. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Texas' forests, 2008

Science.gov (United States)

James W. Bentley; Consuelo Brandeis; Jason A. Cooper; Christopher M. Oswalt; Sonja N. Oswalt; KaDonna Randolph

2014-01-01

This bulletin describes forest resources of the State of Texas at the time of the 2008 forest inventory. This bulletin addresses forest area, volume, growth, removals, mortality, forest health, timber product output, and the economy of the forest sector.

Effects of prescribed burning on vegetation and fuel loading in three east Texas state parks

Science.gov (United States)

Sandra Rideout; Brian P. Oswald

2002-01-01

This study was conducted to evaluate the initial effectiveness of prescribed burning in the ecological restoration of forests within selected parks in east Texas. Twenty-four permanent plots were installed to monitor fuel loads, overstory, sapling, seedling, shrub and herbaceous layers within burn and control units of Mission Tejas, Tyler and Village Creek state parks...

Comparison of regional and global land cover products and the implications for biogenic emission modeling.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Ling; McDonald-Buller, Elena; McGaughey, Gary; Kimura, Yosuke; Allen, David T

2015-10-01

Accurate estimates of biogenic emissions are required for air quality models that support the development of air quality management plans and attainment demonstrations. Land cover characterization is an essential driving input for most biogenic emissions models. This work contrasted the global Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) land cover product against a regional land cover product developed for the Texas Commissions on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) over four climate regions in eastern Texas, where biogenic emissions comprise a large fraction of the total inventory of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and land cover is highly diverse. The Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosols from Nature (MEGAN) was utilized to investigate the influences of land cover characterization on modeled isoprene and monoterpene emissions through changes in the standard emission potential and emission activity factor, both separately and simultaneously. In Central Texas, forest coverage was significantly lower in the MODIS land cover product relative to the TCEQ data, which resulted in substantially lower estimates of isoprene and monoterpene emissions by as much as 90%. Differences in predicted isoprene and monoterpene emissions associated with variability in land cover characterization were primarily caused by differences in the standard emission potential, which is dependent on plant functional type. Photochemical modeling was conducted to investigate the effects of differences in estimated biogenic emissions associated with land cover characterization on predicted ozone concentrations using the Comprehensive Air Quality Model with Extensions (CAMx). Mean differences in maximum daily average 8-hour (MDA8) ozone concentrations were 2 to 6 ppb with maximum differences exceeding 20 ppb. Continued focus should be on reducing uncertainties in the representation of land cover through field validation. Uncertainties in the estimation of biogenic emissions associated with

State Conservation Lands; StaCons11

Data.gov (United States)

University of Rhode Island Geospatial Extension Program — Approximate edges of Conservation Lands protected by the State of Rhode Island through Fee Title Ownership, Conservation Easement, or Deed Restriction. Includes:...

40 CFR 282.93 - Texas State-Administered Program.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... provisions will be added to this subpart and notice of any change will be published in the Federal Register... Underground Storage Tank Program, Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, P.O. Box 13087, Austin, TX...

The Texas approach to the management of low-level radioactive waste after 1992

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jacobi, L.R.

1992-01-01

By 1993, Texas licensees will be producing 52000 ft 3 of low level radioactive waste (LLRW) containing 11000 Ci of Radioactivity. The three operating pressurized water reactors will produce 63% of the waste volume and greater than 90% of the radioactivity. While the majority of the waste is solid LLRW, some of it, such as liquid scintillation vials and bulk liquids from hospitals, universities, and research facilities, is mixed waste. Most of this waste can be shipped out of state and incinerated, but 60 ft 3 of lead contaminated waste from nuclear power plants and other industrial plants requires land disposal

75 FR 18200 - Enterprise Texas Pipeline LLC; Notice of Compliance Filing

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-09

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. PR07-12-005] Enterprise..., Enterprise Texas Pipeline LLC (Enterprise Texas), filed its Statement of Operating Conditions in compliance... Commission's regulations. Enterprise Texas states that the revisions include modifications consistent with...

75 FR 18496 - Enterprise Texas Pipeline LLC; Notice of Compliance Filing

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-12

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. PR07-12-005] Enterprise..., Enterprise Texas Pipeline LLC (Enterprise Texas), filed its Statement of Operating Conditions in compliance... Commission's regulations. Enterprise Texas states that the revisions include modifications consistent with...

An aerial radiological survey of the South Texas Project Electric Generating Station and surrounding area, Bay City, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thompson, J.M.

1988-12-01

An aerial radiological survey was conducted over the South Texas Project Electric Generating Station (STPEGS) near Bay City, Texas, during the period 25 March to 4 April 1988. The purpose of the 259-square-kilometer (100-square-mile) survey was to document the terrestrial gamma environment of the plant and surrounding area. An exposure rate contour map at 1 meter above ground level (AGL) was constructed from the gamma data and overlaid on an aerial photograph and map of the area. Exposure rates were observed up to 10μR/h over land. No areas of enhanced exposure rates were observed. Ground-based exposure rate measurements and soil samples were obtained to support the aerial data. Oblique aerial photographs of the plant were also acquired during the survey. 9 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab

Potential impact of neonicotinoid use on Northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) in Texas: A historical analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Ertl, Hannah M H; Mora, Miguel A; Brightsmith, Donald J; Navarro-Alberto, Jorge A

2018-01-01

The widespread use of neonicotinoid insecticides in recent years has led to increasing environmental concern, including impacts to avian populations. In Texas and across their range, Northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) habitat frequently overlaps cultivated cropland protected by neonicotinoids. To address the effects of neonicotinoid use on bobwhites in Texas, we conducted a historical analysis from 1978-2012 in Texas' ecological regions using quail count data collected from North American Breeding Bird Survey and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and neonicotinoid use data from the U.S. Geological Survey. We considered bobwhite abundance, neonicotinoid use, climate, and land-use variables in our analysis. Neonicotinoid use was significantly (pTexas Plains ecological regions in the time periods following neonicotinoid introduction (1994-2003) or after their widespread use (2004-2012). Our analyses suggest that the use of neonicotinoid insecticides may negatively affect bobwhite populations in crop-producing regions of Texas.

Using geometrical, textural, and contextual information of land parcels for classification of detailed urban land use

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, S.-S.; Qiu, X.; Usery, E.L.; Wang, L.

2009-01-01

Detailed urban land use data are important to government officials, researchers, and businesspeople for a variety of purposes. This article presents an approach to classifying detailed urban land use based on geometrical, textural, and contextual information of land parcels. An area of 6 by 14 km in Austin, Texas, with land parcel boundaries delineated by the Travis Central Appraisal District of Travis County, Texas, is tested for the approach. We derive fifty parcel attributes from relevant geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing data and use them to discriminate among nine urban land uses: single family, multifamily, commercial, office, industrial, civic, open space, transportation, and undeveloped. Half of the 33,025 parcels in the study area are used as training data for land use classification and the other half are used as testing data for accuracy assessment. The best result with a decision tree classification algorithm has an overall accuracy of 96 percent and a kappa coefficient of 0.78, and two naive, baseline models based on the majority rule and the spatial autocorrelation rule have overall accuracy of 89 percent and 79 percent, respectively. The algorithm is relatively good at classifying single-family, multifamily, commercial, open space, and undeveloped land uses and relatively poor at classifying office, industrial, civic, and transportation land uses. The most important attributes for land use classification are the geometrical attributes, particularly those related to building areas. Next are the contextual attributes, particularly those relevant to the spatial relationship between buildings, then the textural attributes, particularly the semivariance texture statistic from 0.61-m resolution images.

Texas State Library Grant Management Handbook: A Procedures Manual to Uniform Grants and Contract Management Standards Based on Texas Civil Statutes, Article 4413 (32g) and the Common Rule for Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to State and Local Governments.

Science.gov (United States)

Conable, Sharon R.

The purpose of this manual is to provide a conceptual framework of information concerning the reporting, financial, contractual, and auditing requirements for recipients of Texas State Library grants funded with state and federal funds under the Library Systems Act (LSA) and the Library Service and Construction Act (LSCA). The manual is divided…

Private lands and outdoor recreation in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

R. Jeff Teasley; John C. Bergstrom; H. Ken Cordell; Stanley J. Zarnoch; Paul Gentle

1999-01-01

Outdoor recreation on private land is influenced by myriad factors. To provide background and context on these factors, this chapter first overviews the private land situation in the United States and provides general information and discussion related to ownership and tenure, land-use patterns, legal restrictions, and economic conditions, including taxation issues....

Texas LPG fuel cell development and demonstration project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None, None

2004-07-26

The State Energy Conservation Office has executed its first Fuel Cell Project which was awarded under a Department of Energy competitive grant process. The Texas LPG Fuel Processor Development and Fuel Cell Demonstration Program is a broad-based public/private partnership led by the Texas State Energy Conservation Office (SECO). Partners include the Alternative Fuels Research and Education Division (AFRED) of the Railroad Commission of Texas; Plug Power, Inc., Latham, NY, UOP/HyRadix, Des Plaines, IL; Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), San Antonio, TX; the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC), and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). The team proposes to mount a development and demonstration program to field-test and evaluate markets for HyRadix's LPG fuel processor system integrated into Plug Power's residential-scale GenSys(TM) 5C (5 kW) PEM fuel cell system in a variety of building types and conditions of service. The program's primary goal is to develop, test, and install a prototype propane-fueled residential fuel cell power system supplied by Plug Power and HyRadix in Texas. The propane industry is currently funding development of an optimized propane fuel processor by project partner UOP/HyRadix through its national checkoff program, the Propane Education and Research Council (PERC). Following integration and independent verification of performance by Southwest Research Institute, Plug Power and HyRadix will produce a production-ready prototype unit for use in a field demonstration. The demonstration unit produced during this task will be delivered and installed at the Texas Department of Transportation's TransGuide headquarters in San Antonio, Texas. Simultaneously, the team will undertake a market study aimed at identifying and quantifying early-entry customers, technical and regulatory requirements, and other challenges and opportunities that need to be addressed in planning commercialization of the units

Making Texas Restaurants Healthier for Children

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2014-12-30

Sylvia Crixell, PhD, RD, Professor of Nutrition at Texas State University, discusses her study which details the success of a community-based program in Texas aimed at combatting childhood obesity by improving children’s menus in restaurants.  Created: 12/30/2014 by Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD), National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP).   Date Released: 12/30/2014.

Instructional Technology Practices in Developmental Education in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Martirosyan, Nara M.; Kennon, J. Lindsey; Saxon, D. Patrick; Edmonson, Stacey L.; Skidmore, Susan T.

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the current state of technology integration in developmental education in Texas higher education. Analyzing survey data from developmental education faculty members in 70 2- and 4-year colleges in Texas, researchers identified instructor-reported best instructional technology practices in developmental…

State Estimation for Landing Maneuver on High Performance Aircraft

Science.gov (United States)

Suresh, P. S.; Sura, Niranjan K.; Shankar, K.

2018-01-01

State estimation methods are popular means for validating aerodynamic database on aircraft flight maneuver performance characteristics. In this work, the state estimation method during landing maneuver is explored for the first of its kind, using upper diagonal adaptive extended Kalman filter (UD-AEKF) with fuzzy based adaptive tunning of process noise matrix. The mathematical model for symmetrical landing maneuver consists of non-linear flight mechanics equation representing Aircraft longitudinal dynamics. The UD-AEKF algorithm is implemented in MATLAB environment and the states with bias is considered to be the initial conditions just prior to the flare. The measurement data is obtained from a non-linear 6 DOF pilot in loop simulation using FORTRAN. These simulated measurement data is additively mixed with process and measurement noises, which are used as an input for UD-AEKF. Then, the governing states that dictate the landing loads at the instant of touch down are compared. The method is verified using flight data wherein, the vertical acceleration at the aircraft center of gravity (CG) is compared. Two possible outcome of purely relying on the aircraft measured data is highlighted. It is observed that, with the implementation of adaptive fuzzy logic based extended Kalman filter tuned to adapt for aircraft landing dynamics, the methodology improves the data quality of the states that are sourced from noisy measurements.

Texstar: The all-Texas educational satellite system

Science.gov (United States)

1990-01-01

Longhorn Satellite Company (LSC) has designed Texstar, and educational satellite communications system which will be considered as a means of equalizing the distribution of educational resources throughout the state of Texas. Texstar will be capable of broadcasting live lectures and documentaries in addition to transmitting data from a centralized receiving-transmitting station. Included in the design of Texstar is the system and subsystem design for the satellite and the design of the ground stations. The launch vehicle used will be the Texas-built Conestoga 421-48. The Texstar system incorporates three small satellites in slightly inclined geosynchronous orbits. Due to the configuration and spacing of these satellites, the system will be accessed as if it were one large, geostationary satellite. Texstar is shown to be a viable option to the educational crisis in the state of Texas.

High-level radioactive-waste-disposal investigations in Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, R.D.

1983-01-01

The Texas Energy and Natural Resources Advisory Council (TENRAC) was designated in 1980 to coordinate the interaction between the State of Texas and the federal government relating to the high-level radioactive waste disposal issue. This report was prepared to summarize the many aspects of that issue with particular emphasis on the activities in Texas. The report is intended to provide a comprehensive introduction for individuals with little or no previous exposure to the issue and to provide a broader perspective for those individuals who have addressed specific aspects of the issue but have not had the opportunity to study it in a broader context. Following the introduction, contents of this report are as follows: (1) general status of major repository siting investigations in the US; (2) detailed review of Texas studies; (3) possible facilities to be sited in Texas; (4) current Texas policy; (5) federal regulations; and (6) federal legislation. 9 figures, 2 tables

76 FR 15 - Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Texas; Emissions Banking and Trading of...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-03

... Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Texas; Emissions Banking and Trading of Allowances Program AGENCY... to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP) that create and amend the Emissions Banking and Trading... revisions to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP) that create and amend the Emissions Banking and...

Developing and Applying a Multi-scale Framework to Study the Relationship between Landscapes and Coastal Waters in the Texas Gulf Coast in a Changing Climate

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Z. L.; McClelland, J. W.; Su, H.; Cai, X.; Lin, P.; Tavakoly, A. A.; Griffin, C. G.; Turner, E.; Maidment, D. R.; Montagna, P.

2014-12-01

This study seeks to improve our understanding of how upland landscapes and coastal waters, which are connected by watersheds, respond to changes in hydrological and biogeochemical cycles resulting from changes in climate, local weather patterns, and land use. This paper will report our progress in the following areas. (1) The Noah-MP land surface model is augmented to include the soil nitrogen leaching and plants fixation and uptake of nitrogen. (2) We have evaluated temperature, precipitation and runoff change (2039-2048 relative to 1989-1998) patterns in Texas under the A2 emission scenario using the North American Regional Climate Change Assessment Program (NARCCAP) product. (3) We have linked a GIS-based river routing model (RAPID) and a GIS-based nitrogen input dataset (TX-ANB). The modeling framework was conducted for total nitrogen (TN) load estimation in the San Antonio and Guadalupe basins. (4) Beginning in July 2011, the Colorado, Guadalupe, San Antonio, and Nueces rivers have been sampled on a monthly basis. Sampling continued until November 2013. We also have established an on-going citizen science sampling program. We have contacted the Lower Colorado River Authority and the Texas Stream Team at Texas State University to solicit participation in our program. (5) We have tested multiple scenarios of nutrient contribution to South Texas bays. We are modeling the behavior of these systems under stress due to climate change such as less overall freshwater inflow, increased inorganic nutrient loading, and more frequent large storms.

School Consolidation Impact on State and Local Revenues and Expenditures in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart, Marvin

2011-01-01

This study examined financial aspects of the consolidation or annexation of 12 pairs of school districts in Texas during the period 1996-2006. Nine of the twelve districts consolidated by mutual agreement of the two school boards and three annexations were by order of the Commissioner of Education of Texas. Financial criteria studied were: (a) per…

Broken trusts: The Texas Attorney General versus the oil industry, 1889-1909

Science.gov (United States)

Singer, Jonathan Whitney

The legal history of state antitrust enforcement and the oil industry in Texas illustrates how and why antitrust law contemplated complementary enforcement at the state and federal government level. Historians, economists, and lawyers have concentrated on federal antitrust law and enforcement, ignoring state efforts. Yet for most of the first twenty-five years following the enactment of the Sherman Antitrust Act, federal enforcement efforts were extremely limited, leaving the field to the states. Texas was one of several states that had strong antitrust laws, and whose attorneys general prosecuted antitrust violations with vigor. Political ambition was a factor in the decisions to investigate and prosecute cases against a highly visible target, the petroleum industry, but there was also a genuine belief in the goals of antitrust policy, and in the efficacy of enforcement of the laws. Enforcement efforts were also complicated by the fact that large oil companies provided vital commodities, articles of "prime necessity," to the citizens of Texas and following the discovery of large oil fields, played an increasingly important role in the economies of many Texas communities. The Texas Attorney General's antitrust enforcement efforts against the oil industry in this time of transition from an agricultural society to an industrial society provide insights into the litigation process, and reveal how well the rhetoric of trust-busting fit with the reality of antitrust enforcement. The antitrust crusade against the petroleum industry also highlights the changing roles of state government in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, particularly the Attorney General's Department. The experience of Texas undermines the view that federal action has always dominated antitrust enforcement efforts and that antitrust litigation against Standard Oil was ineffective and ineffectual. Rather, the Texas Attorney General's litigations and their results suggest that some states

Effects of Year-Round Education on Texas Middle School Student Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Coopersmith, Michael

2011-01-01

This study was designed to investigate the effects of the year-round calendar on student performance in Texas middle schools as measured by achievement on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test. In the State of Texas, 15 schools served students in grades six through eight using the year-round calendar in 2009-2010. The 15…

Delivery of workshops on corridor management and preservation in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-12-01

This report summarizes the delivery and outcome of a series of workshops conducted at 23 Texas : Department of Transportation (TxDOT) districts across the state on corridor management and preservation : in Texas. The workshops served as follow-up imp...

Winter food habits and preferences of northern bobwhites in east Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Donald R. Dietz; R. Montague Whiting; Nancy E. Koerth

2009-01-01

During late winter, 1994 and 1995, we investigated food habits and preferences of northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus; hereafter, bobwhites) collected on forested lands in east Texas. Crops for bobwhites were collected from areas under 3 management regimes, namely intensively managed for bobwhites (QMA) (i.e., tree basal area reduced...

Distribution of indoor radon concentrations and uranium-bearing rocks in Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hudak, P.F.

1996-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare regional patterns of indoor radon concentration with uranium-bearing rock zones and county populations in Texas. Zones yielding radon concentrations that are relatively high for Texas include shale and sandstone in northwest Texas; red beds in north-central Texas; felsic volcanic rocks in west Texas; and sandstone, limestone, and igneous rocks in central Texas. Located in northwest Tecas, only five of the 202 counties evaluated have mean indoor radon concentrations above 4.0 pCi l -1 . Two of those counties have populations above the state median of 20115. The highest county mean concentration is 8.8 pCi l -1 . Results of the study suggest that (1) regional geology influences indoor radon concentrations in Texas, (2) statewide, the radon concentrations are relatively low, (3) highly populated counties do not coincide with regions of high indoor radon concentration, and (4) regions that may warrant further monitoring include northwest Texas and, to a lesser degree, west and central Texas. (orig.)

The Texas Air Quality Study: State of the Science of Ozone and Particulate Matter formation in Texas and Implications for Air Quality Policy

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, D. T.

2002-05-01

The Texas Air Quality Study (TexAQS) was performed during August and September of 2000; approximately 300 investigators from around the world made measurements of air pollutant concentrations and meteorological variables in southeast Texas. Five aircraft were deployed; five major ground chemistry sites were established and approximately 20 peripheral sites were established for collecting additional meteorological and chemical data. The scope, goals and preliminary results are available at the study web sites (www.utexas.edu/research/ceer/texaqs and www.utexas.edu/research/ceer/texaqsarchive). This presentation will provide an overview of the main findings from the study and will describe the role that ongoing data analysis activities are having on the development of air quality policy in the State of Texas. Some of the major findings are: Finding 1. Almost without exception, air parcels with very high ozone concentrations, observed by aircraft during the Texas Air Quality Study, had back trajectories that indicated a substantial contribution of emissions from industrial source regions. These air parcels also had chemical compositions that were representative of industrial sources, rather than typical urban sources. Finding 2: The rate of ozone production in and around the industrial source dominated areas in Houston can be very high, commonly exceeding 50 ppb/hr, and at times approaching instantaneous rates of 200 ppb/hr. Finding 3: The efficiency of ozone production in and around the industrial source dominated areas in Houston can be very high, ranging from 10-20 molecules of ozone per molecule of reacted NOx. Finding 4. Ozone production in the Houston urban plume was found to be slower and less efficient than in the composite industrial plume from the Ship Channel region and in plumes from isolated petrochemical facilities. Finding 5. The high rates and high efficiencies of ozone production in the industrial plumes are driven by high concentrations of reactive

State formation, religion, and land tenure in Cameroon

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schilder, K.; African Studies Centre, Leiden

1988-01-01

The purpose of this analytical bibliography is to provide an overview of the recently published social science literature on State formation, religion, and land tenure in Cameroon. The 800 entries have been arranged under the following subject headings: The Cameroon State (nation building, political

Study of Effective Land Registration Usage in State-Subsidised ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Project II is the third case study to be reported on land tenure administration in state-subsidised housing projects the Western Cape which indicate that registration is effective in administering ownership. Internationally, many land titling programmes have not produced the benefits envisaged. In a number of South African ...

Land use/land cover in Swisher County and Deaf Smith County locations, Palo Duro Basin, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-12-01

Agriculture is the major land use/land cover in the Swisher and Deaf Smith County locations. Most of the agricultural land is irrigated. Furrow, center pivot, and lateral-wheel irrigation systems are in common use. Rangeland is the second most abundant land use/land cover; it is typically associated with stream valleys and playas. The rangeland supports cattle, which are an important source of income. The main urban areas in or near the locations are Tulia and Happy, in Swisher County, and Hereford and Vega, in Deaf Smith County. Most of the land within the locations is privately owned - corporate and government ownership is extremely limited - and large portions are currently under lease for oil exploration. County and regional agencies have no authority to regulate land-use patterns in the locations, although the Panhandle Regional Planning Commission can provide guidance to local jurisdictions. Land use within the corporate limits and extraterritorial jurisdictions of Tulia and Hereford is controlled by zoning ordinances and subdivision regulations. According to projections for the locations, agriculture will remain the major land use in the foreseeable future. Dryland farming and rangeland will become more prevalent as irrigation costs increase and marginal areas are taken out of production

The Impact Of State Policies On ACA Applications And Enrollment Among Low-Income Adults In Arkansas, Kentucky, And Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Sommers, Benjamin D; Maylone, Bethany; Nguyen, Kevin H; Blendon, Robert J; Epstein, Arnold M

2015-06-01

States are taking variable approaches to the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Medicaid expansion, Marketplace design, enrollment outreach, and application assistance. We surveyed nearly 3,000 low-income adults in late 2014 to compare experiences in three states with markedly different policies: Kentucky, which expanded Medicaid, created a successful state Marketplace, and supported outreach efforts; Arkansas, which enacted the private option and a federal-state partnership Marketplace, but with legislative limitations on outreach; and Texas, which did not expand Medicaid and passed restrictions on navigators. We found that application rates, successful enrollment, and positive experiences with the ACA were highest in Kentucky, followed by Arkansas, with Texas performing worst. Limited awareness remains a critical barrier: Fewer than half of adults had heard some or a lot about the coverage expansions. Application assistance from navigators and others was the strongest predictor of enrollment, while Latino applicants were less likely than others to successfully enroll. Twice as many respondents felt that the ACA had helped them as hurt them (although the majority reported no direct impact), and advertising was strongly associated with perceptions of the law. State policy choices appeared to have had major impacts on enrollment experiences among low-income adults and their perceptions of the ACA. Project HOPE—The People-to-People Health Foundation, Inc.

Land use and transport relationships: A perspective from the United States

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seskin, S.N.

1995-12-31

As transportation and land use planners and policy makers world wide grapple with the increasingly challenging consequences of automobile use, there is a growing need to communicate globally about both the knowledge of interactions between transport and land use and the ability to analyze these relationships in a systematic manner. As the world`s largest consumer of energy in general and petroleum in particular, the United States continues to conduct research and innovate in integrated transportation and land use policy issues. The need for improving the state of knowledge and practice, however, is more compelling in developing nations, such as Chile and Thailand, from which, despite their transportation and environmental problems, the United States in fact has much to learn. Nevertheless it is instructive to take a long and broad look at the way the United States is planning and building urban environments. This paper focuses on four aspects of that effort. The first is the state of knowledge on the relationships between land use and travel demand. The second is the analytic tools used to evaluate these relationships. Third is the array of approaches used by government to integrate transport and land use. The last is the ways in which individuals and organizations outside of the formal structure of government participate in metropolitan planning and development.

It's about time : investing in transportation to keep Texas economically competitive.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-01

This current report, It's About Time: Investing in Transportation to Keep Texas : Economically Competitive, updates the February 2009 report by providing : an enhanced analysis of the current state of the Texas transportation system, : determining th...

CALCULATION OF LAND VALUE ON STATE FOREST ENTERPRISES BY USING FAUSTMANN FORMULA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Atakan Öztürk

2000-04-01

Full Text Available The land that is one of the asset items of the forest enterprises is both an establishment space, and source and depots of raw materials for forest enterprises. Land value is second following the growing stock in fixed and total capital items. The land value helps to determine the forest value, the total capital and the economic performance on forest enterprises. This study proposes and applies a method, Faustmann formula, for calculation of the land value. In conclusion, the land value of Artvin State Forest Enterprise and Ardanuç State Forest Enterprise were found as - 1 259 103 TL/ha and 408 194 TL/ha, respectively.

Cost Effectiveness of ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2013 for the State of Texas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hart, Philip R. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Athalye, Rahul A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Xie, YuLong [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Zhuge, Jing Wei [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Halverson, Mark A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Loper, Susan A. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Rosenberg, Michael I. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Richman, Eric E. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

2015-12-01

Moving to the ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2013 (ASHRAE 2013) edition from Standard 90.1-2010 (ASHRAE 2010) is cost-effective for the State of Texas. The table below shows the state-wide economic impact of upgrading to Standard 90.1-2013 in terms of the annual energy cost savings in dollars per square foot, additional construction cost per square foot required by the upgrade, and life-cycle cost (LCC) per square foot. These results are weighted averages for all building types in all climate zones in the state, based on weightings shown in Table 4. The methodology used for this analysis is consistent with the methodology used in the national cost-effectiveness analysis. Additional results and details on the methodology are presented in the following sections. The report provides analysis of two LCC scenarios: Scenario 1, representing publicly-owned buildings, considers initial costs, energy costs, maintenance costs, and replacement costs—without borrowing or taxes. Scenario 2, representing privately-owned buildings, adds borrowing costs and tax impacts.

Messing Up Texas?: A Re-Analysis of the Effects of Executions on Homicides.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrick T Brandt

Full Text Available Executions in Texas from 1994-2005 do not deter homicides, contrary to the results of Land et al. (2009. We find that using different models--based on pre-tests for unit roots that correct for earlier model misspecifications--one cannot reject the null hypothesis that executions do not lead to a change in homicides in Texas over this period. Using additional control variables, we show that variables such as the number of prisoners in Texas may drive the main drop in homicides over this period. Such conclusions however are highly sensitive to model specification decisions, calling into question the assumptions about fixed parameters and constant structural relationships. This means that using dynamic regressions to account for policy changes that may affect homicides need to be done with significant care and attention.

Messing Up Texas?: A Re-Analysis of the Effects of Executions on Homicides.

Science.gov (United States)

Brandt, Patrick T; Kovandzic, Tomislav V

2015-01-01

Executions in Texas from 1994-2005 do not deter homicides, contrary to the results of Land et al. (2009). We find that using different models--based on pre-tests for unit roots that correct for earlier model misspecifications--one cannot reject the null hypothesis that executions do not lead to a change in homicides in Texas over this period. Using additional control variables, we show that variables such as the number of prisoners in Texas may drive the main drop in homicides over this period. Such conclusions however are highly sensitive to model specification decisions, calling into question the assumptions about fixed parameters and constant structural relationships. This means that using dynamic regressions to account for policy changes that may affect homicides need to be done with significant care and attention.

Sustainability for the Americas Initiative: Land Design Institute, Ball State University

Science.gov (United States)

J. L. Motloch; Pedro Pacheco; Eloy F. Jr. Casagrande

2006-01-01

The Ball State University Land Design Institute (LDI) pursues ecologically and culturally sustainable land design through education, research, outreach, and demonstration. LDI seeks to lead communities (local, regional, global) to sustainable futures. It connects communities and sustainability experts to optimize education about land management, planning, and design...

"Fisher v. Texas": Strictly Disappointing

Science.gov (United States)

Nieli, Russell K.

2013-01-01

Russell K. Nieli writes in this opinion paper that as far as the ability of state colleges and universities to use race as a criteria for admission goes, "Fisher v. Texas" was a big disappointment, and failed in the most basic way. Nieli states that although some affirmative action opponents have tried to put a more positive spin on the…

Beyond Texas City: the state of process safety in the unionized U.S. oil refining industry.

Science.gov (United States)

McQuiston, Thomas H; Lippin, Tobi Mae; Bradley-Bull, Kristin; Anderson, Joseph; Beach, Josie; Beevers, Gary; Frederick, Randy J; Frederick, James; Greene, Tammy; Hoffman, Thomas; Lefton, James; Nibarger, Kim; Renner, Paul; Ricks, Brian; Seymour, Thomas; Taylor, Ren; Wright, Mike

2009-01-01

The March 2005 British Petroleum (BP) Texas City Refinery disaster provided a stimulus to examine the state of process safety in the U.S. refining industry. Participatory action researchers conducted a nation-wide mail-back survey of United Steelworkers local unions and collected data from 51 unionized refineries. The study examined the prevalence of highly hazardous conditions key to the Texas City disaster, refinery actions to address those conditions, emergency preparedness and response, process safety systems, and worker training. Findings indicate that the key highly hazardous conditions were pervasive and often resulted in incidents or near-misses. Respondents reported worker training was insufficient and less than a third characterized their refineries as very prepared to respond safely to a hazardous materials emergency. The authors conclude that the potential for future disasters plagues the refining industry. In response, they call for effective proactive OSHA regulation and outline ten urgent and critical actions to improve refinery process safety.

Africa for sale? Positioning the state, land and society in foreign large-scale land acquisitions in Africa

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Evers, S.; Seagle, C.; Krijtenburg, F.

2013-01-01

The past several decades have witnessed a rise in foreign and domestic investments in Africa's arable land. While such land projects are currently the focus of widespread media and scholarly interest, the role of the state in driving, negotiating and facilitating these acquisitions deserves closer

Flow and Suspended Sediment Events in the Near-Coastal Zone off Corpus Christi, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

2003-09-30

redistribution of preexisting shelf sediments during storms and (2) transportation of suspended sediment from the adjacent bay- lagoon system. Snedden et al...and K.E. Schmedes. (1983). Submerged lands of Texas, Corpus Christi area: sediments, geochemistry, benthic macroinvertebrates and associated

Eutrophication potential of lakes: an integrated analysis of trophic state, morphometry, land occupation, and land use

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

RF Silvino

Full Text Available AbstractDespite being inside a protected area, Lake Sumidouro has been impacted by the anthropogenic occupation of the surrounding area since the 1970’s, compromising the ecological integrity of the lake and the sustainable use of natural resources. This study examined the current trophic classification of the lake and developed methods for improving it through an integrated analysis of morphometric and limnological parameters, land use and land occupation in the watershed, and eutrophication potential. Data for the limnological parameters, land use and land occupation, and morphometric characteristics of Lake Sumidouro were collected in the rainy and dry seasons of 2009 and 2010. Depending on the trophic classification system used, Lake Sumidouro is classified as oligotrophic to hypereutrophic. In our study, the highest concentration of nutrients occurred in the rainy season, indicating that high nutrient inputs played an important role during this period. Areas of anthropogenic occupation comprised approximately 62.9% of the total area of the watershed, with pasture and urban settlement as the main types of land use. The influent total phosphorus load was estimated to be 15,824.3 kg/year. To maintain mesotrophic conditions, this load must be reduced by 29.4%. By comparing the isolated use of trophic state indices, this study demonstrated that comparing the trophic state classification with morphometric analyses, land use and land occupation types in the watershed, and potential phosphorus load provided better information to guide management actions for restoration and conservation. Furthermore, this approach also allowed for evaluating the vulnerability of the environment to the eutrophication process.

78 FR 39765 - Notice of Proposed Classification of Public Lands/Minerals for State Indemnity Selection, Colorado

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-02

... Proposed Classification of Public Lands/Minerals for State Indemnity Selection, Colorado AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior. ACTION: Notice of Proposed Classification. SUMMARY: The Colorado State Board... public lands and mineral estate in lieu of lands to which the State was entitled but did not receive...

Rare Plants and Animals of the Texas Hill Country: Educator's Guide.

Science.gov (United States)

Texas State Dept. of Parks and Wildlife, Austin.

Texas Hill Country is a land of fresh water springs, stony hills, and steep canyons and home to many rare plants and animals. Six activities for grades 3-5 and six activities for grades 6-12 are contained in this guide. Elementary activity highlights include using "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss to stimulate critical thinking about…

Tracking the Career Paths of Physics Teachers in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Mount, Jennifer; Marshall, Jill; Fuller, Edward

2013-01-01

In Texas, and some other states, there is a documented shortage of physics teachers, in terms of both number and qualifications. The shortage in Texas is due as much to teachers leaving the field (attrition) as to a lack of teachers entering. There are efforts under way to prepare more and better-qualified physics teachers who will stay in the…

Regulating Abortion: Impact on Patients and Providers in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Colman, Silvie; Joyce, Ted

2011-01-01

The State of Texas began enforcement of the Woman's Right to Know (WRTK) Act on January 1, 2004. The law requires that all abortions at or after 16 weeks' gestation be performed in an ambulatory surgical center (ASC). In the month the law went into effect, not one of Texas's 54 nonhospital abortion providers met the requirements of a surgical…

Assessing the Impacts of Climate and Land Use Change on Streamflow and Nutrient Loading in the Arroyo Colorado Watershed in Southern Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Osidele, O.; Sun, A.; Green, R.

2011-12-01

Based on results of the Second National Climate Assessment reported in 2009, the U.S. Global Change Research Program projects temperatures in southern Texas will increase 5 to 8° F by the end of the 21st century, with larger changes occurring under scenarios of higher greenhouse gas emissions. Temperature increases in summer are projected to be larger than in winter. Although drier conditions are expected in the region, sea-level rise, extreme rainfall events, and associated storm surges are projected to occur more frequently because of the likely increase in intensity of hurricanes and tropical storms in the Gulf of Mexico. The range of possible responses to climate change is attributable to a combination of characteristics at global, regional, and local scales. The risk of flooding and catastrophic infrastructure damage due to global climate phenomena has been incorporated into local climate adaptation plans for many low-lying areas and communities in the Gulf Coast region of southern Texas. However, because this region is dominated by irrigated agriculture and the population is projected to double by 2050, it is important to examine how climate change will affect water resources and environmental quality. The purpose of this study is to investigate the potential hydrologic and water quality impacts of projected climate change, land use change, and population change scenarios in the headwaters of the Arroyo Colorado. The results of this work will provide content for a web-based, collaborative geospatial decision support system being developed to support environmental management in the Arroyo Colorado Watershed. Presently, land use in the Arroyo Colorado Watershed is more than 50 percent agricultural and almost 25 percent residential with varying levels of urbanization. As a result, flow in the Arroyo Colorado is sustained primarily by discharge from municipal wastewater treatment facilities, irrigation return flows, and urban storm runoff. In this study

Long-term surveillance plan for the Falls City Disposal Site, Falls City, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-06-01

This long-term surveillance plan (LTSP) for the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project Falls City disposal site, Falls City, Texas, describes the surveillance activities for the disposal site. DOE will carry out these activities to ensure that the disposal cell continues to function as designed. This LTSP was prepared as a requirement for acceptance under the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) general license for custody and long-term care of residual radioactive materials. This LTSP documents whether the land and interests are owned by the United States and details how long-term care of the disposal site will be carried out. It is based on the DOE's Guidance for Implementing the UMTRA Project Long-term Surveillance Program (DOE, 1992a)

75 FR 18061 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Texas; Control of Air Pollution...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-09

...The EPA is approving revisions to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP). We are approving revisions to Title 30 of the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Chapter 114, which the State submitted on May 15, 2006, October 10, 2006, January 17, 2008, and February 28, 2008. These revisions establish the Rebate Grant Process and the Texas Clean School Bus Program, amend the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP), and amend the Locally Enforced Motor Vehicle Idling Limitations. The EPA is approving these revisions pursuant to section 110 of the Clean Air Act (CAA).

The discovery and character of Pleistocene calcrete uranium deposits in the Southern High Plains of west Texas, United States

Science.gov (United States)

Van Gosen, Bradley S.; Hall, Susan M.

2017-12-18

This report describes the discovery and geology of two near-surface uranium deposits within calcareous lacustrine strata of Pleistocene age in west Texas, United States. Calcrete uranium deposits have not been previously reported in the United States. The west Texas uranium deposits share characteristics with some calcrete uranium deposits in Western Australia—uranium-vanadium minerals hosted by nonpedogenic calcretes deposited in saline lacustrine environments.In the mid-1970s, Kerr-McGee Corporation conducted a regional uranium exploration program in the Southern High Plains province of the United States, which led to the discovery of two shallow uranium deposits (that were not publicly reported). With extensive drilling, Kerr-McGee delineated one deposit of about 2.1 million metric tons of ore with an average grade of 0.037 percent U3O8 and another deposit of about 0.93 million metric tons of ore averaging 0.047 percent U3O8.The west-Texas calcrete uranium-vanadium deposits occur in calcareous, fine-grained sediments interpreted to be deposited in saline lakes formed during dry interglacial periods of the Pleistocene. The lakes were associated with drainages upstream of a large Pleistocene lake. Age determinations of tephra in strata adjacent to one deposit indicate the host strata is middle Pleistocene in age.Examination of the uranium-vanadium mineralization by scanning-electron microscopy indicated at least two generations of uranium-vanadium deposition in the lacustrine strata identified as carnotite and a strontium-uranium-vanadium mineral. Preliminary uranium-series results indicate a two-component system in the host calcrete, with early lacustrine carbonate that was deposited (or recrystallized) about 190 kilo-annum, followed much later by carnotite-rich crusts and strontium-uranium-vanadium mineralization in the Holocene (about 5 kilo-annum). Differences in initial 234U/238U activity ratios indicate two separate, distinct fluid sources.

Facts about Texas Children. Excerpted from Children, Choice, and Change.

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Lorwen Connie

The environment in which Texas children grow up is crucial to their future and to the future of the state. Almost 500,000 Texas families were poor in 1985. Poverty sets the stage for numerous childhood maladies: infant mortality, health problems, child abuse, learning disabilities, malnutrition, and mental health problems. As poor children grow up…

78 FR 12349 - Proposed Information Collection; Land and Water Conservation Fund State Assistance Program

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-22

...] Proposed Information Collection; Land and Water Conservation Fund State Assistance Program AGENCY: National.... Abstract The Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (LWCF Act) (16 U.S.C. 460l-4 et seq.) was enacted... discussed in detail in the Land and Water Conservation Fund State Assistance Program Federal Financial...

Treasured Texas Theaters

Science.gov (United States)

Horton, Anita

2012-01-01

Dallas artist Jon Flaming's deep love of Texas is evident in his paintings and sculpture. Although he has created one sculptural Texas theater, his work primarily showcases old Texas barbershops, vacant homes, and gas stations. In this article, the author describes how her students, inspired by Flaming's works, created three-dimensional historical…

Regulating hydraulic fracturing in shale gas plays: The case of Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rahm, Dianne

2011-01-01

The ability to economically produce natural gas from unconventional shale gas reservoirs has been made possible recently through the application of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. This new technique has radically changed the energy future of the United States. The U.S. has shifted from a waning producer of natural gas to a growing producer. The Energy Information Administration forecasts that by 2035 nearly half of U.S. natural gas will come from shale gas. Texas is a major player in these developments. Of the eight states and coastal areas that account for the bulk of U.S. gas, Texas has the largest proved reserves. Texas' Barnett Shale already produces six percent of the continental U.S.' gas and exploration of Texas' other shale gas regions is just beginning. Shale gas production is highly controversial, in part because of environmental concerns. Some U.S. states have put hydraulic fracturing moratoriums in place because of fear of drinking water contamination. The federal government has gotten involved and some states, like Texas, have accused it of overreaching. The contention over shale gas drilling in the U.S. may be a bellwether for other parts of the world that are now moving forward with their own shale gas production. - Highlights: → Shale gas production through hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling techniques has transformed natural gas production in the United States and portents to do so for the world. → Hydraulic fracturing is highly controversial in part because of fears of environmental impacts particularly on drinking water resources. → The boom in shale gas production is not likely to be stopped because of the amount of resource available, the need for the resource, and the amount of money to be made from production.

Private forest-land owners of the United States, 1994

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas W. Birch; Thomas W. Birch

1996-01-01

A statistical analytical report on mail canvass of private forest-land owners in the United States. It discusses landowner characteristics, attitudes, harvesting experience, tenure, and management planning.

A Brief Look at...the Texas B-On-Time Loan Program. Research Report

Science.gov (United States)

Shook, Melissa

2012-01-01

The Texas B-On-Time (BOT) Loan Program is a unique state aid program intended to increase access to higher education in Texas and encourage on-time graduation. This state student loan may be completely forgiven if the otherwise eligible borrower completes his or her degree on time. The BOT Loan Program was developed in response to low on-time…

A state-impact-state methodology for assessing environmental impact in land use planning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Longgao; Yang, Xiaoyan; Chen, Longqian; Potter, Rebecca; Li, Yingkui

2014-01-01

The implementation of land use planning (LUP) has a large impact on environmental quality. There lacks a widely accepted and consolidated approach to assess the LUP environmental impact using Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). In this paper, we developed a state-impact-state (SIS) model employed in the LUP environmental impact assessment (LUPEA). With the usage of Matter-element (ME) and Extenics method, the methodology based on the SIS model was established and applied in the LUPEA of Zoucheng County, China. The results show that: (1) this methodology provides an intuitive and easy understanding logical model for both the theoretical analysis and application of LUPEA; (2) the spatial multi-temporal assessment from base year, near-future year to planning target year suggests the positive impact on the environmental quality in the whole County despite certain environmental degradation in some towns; (3) besides the spatial assessment, other achievements including the environmental elements influenced by land use and their weights, the identification of key indicators in LUPEA, and the appropriate environmental mitigation measures were obtained; and (4) this methodology can be used to achieve multi-temporal assessment of LUP environmental impact of County or Town level in other areas. - Highlights: • A State-Impact-State model for Land Use Planning Environmental Assessment (LUPEA). • Matter-element (ME) and Extenics methods were embedded in the LUPEA. • The model was applied to the LUPEA of Zoucheng County. • The assessment shows improving environment quality since 2000 in Zoucheng County. • The method provides a useful tool for the LUPEA in the county level

A state-impact-state methodology for assessing environmental impact in land use planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Longgao [Institute of land resources, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou 221116 (China); Yang, Xiaoyan [Institute of land resources, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou 221116 (China); School of Environmental Science and Spatial Informatics, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116 (China); Chen, Longqian, E-mail: cumt_chenlongqian@163.com [School of Environmental Science and Spatial Informatics, China University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221116 (China); Potter, Rebecca; Li, Yingkui [Department of Geography, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996 (United States)

2014-04-01

The implementation of land use planning (LUP) has a large impact on environmental quality. There lacks a widely accepted and consolidated approach to assess the LUP environmental impact using Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). In this paper, we developed a state-impact-state (SIS) model employed in the LUP environmental impact assessment (LUPEA). With the usage of Matter-element (ME) and Extenics method, the methodology based on the SIS model was established and applied in the LUPEA of Zoucheng County, China. The results show that: (1) this methodology provides an intuitive and easy understanding logical model for both the theoretical analysis and application of LUPEA; (2) the spatial multi-temporal assessment from base year, near-future year to planning target year suggests the positive impact on the environmental quality in the whole County despite certain environmental degradation in some towns; (3) besides the spatial assessment, other achievements including the environmental elements influenced by land use and their weights, the identification of key indicators in LUPEA, and the appropriate environmental mitigation measures were obtained; and (4) this methodology can be used to achieve multi-temporal assessment of LUP environmental impact of County or Town level in other areas. - Highlights: • A State-Impact-State model for Land Use Planning Environmental Assessment (LUPEA). • Matter-element (ME) and Extenics methods were embedded in the LUPEA. • The model was applied to the LUPEA of Zoucheng County. • The assessment shows improving environment quality since 2000 in Zoucheng County. • The method provides a useful tool for the LUPEA in the county level.

Development of a low level radioactive waste disposal site in Texas - 1994 status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jacobi, L.R. Jr.

1995-01-01

The Texas Low Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Authority, an agency of the State of Texas, has been trying to develop a site for the disposal of low level radioactive waste in Texas for over ten years. Since 1991, the agency has been evaluating a site near Sierra Blanca, in far west Texas. Site characterization has been completed and a license application has been filed with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission. Construction plans were completed in 1993, and the agency is prepared to begin construction and operations as soon as a license can be issued. Development costs for the site are borne by the utility companies and other major generators in Texas through the assessment of a planning and implementation fee. Total costs to date are approximately $26 million. As the project moves toward completion, state and national anti-nuclear activist groups have become more involved in attempts to thwart the Texas government's effort to solve the radioactive waste problem. To counter this increased opposition, the Texas utility companies and medical radioactive waste generators have also become more active in responding to these groups. This has been very helpful and is in keeping with the elements of building block 12 of the Nuclear Power Oversight Committee's Strategic Plan for Building New Nuclear Power Plants. This paper and poster session look at the schedule, design, and long term prospects for ultimate success of the project

Hazardous air pollutants and primary liver cancer in Texas.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luca Cicalese

Full Text Available The incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC, the most common primary liver cancer, is increasing in the US and tripled during the past two decades. The reasons for such phenomenon remain poorly understood. Texas is among continental states with the highest incidence of liver cancer with an annual increment of 5.7%. Established risk factors for HCC include Hepatitis B and C (HBV, HCV viral infection, alcohol, tobacco and suspected risk factors include obesity and diabetes. While distribution of these risk factors in the state of Texas is similar to the national data and homogeneous, the incidence of HCC in this state is exceptionally higher than the national average and appears to be dishomogeneous in various areas of the state suggesting that other non-recognized risk factors might play a role. No population-based studies are currently available investigating the effect of exposure to Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs as a contributing risk factor for liver cancer. Incidence rate of liver cancer in Texas by counties for the time period between 2002 and 2012 was obtained from the Texas Cancer Registry (TCR. Through Principal Component Analysis (PCA a subgroup of pollutants, explaining almost all the dataset variability, were identified and used to cluster Texas counties. The analysis generated 4 clusters showing liver cancer rate either higher or lower than national average in association with either high or low levels of HAPs emission in the environment. The study shows that the selected relevant HAPs, 10 among 253 analyzed, produce a significant correlation (P = 0.01-0.05 and some of these have been previously identified as carcinogens. An association between the increased production and consequent exposure to these HAPs and a higher presence of liver cancer in certain counties is suggested. This study provides a new insight on this complex multifactorial disease suggesting that environmental substances might play a role in the etiology of this

The High Cost of Failing to Reform Public Education in Texas. School Choice Issues in the State

Science.gov (United States)

Gottlob, Brian J.

2008-01-01

Research has documented a crisis in Texas high school graduation rates. Only 67 percent of Texas students graduate from high school, and some large urban districts have graduation rates of 50 percent or lower. This study documents the public costs of high school dropouts in Texas and examines how school choice could provide large public benefits…

Texas perpetual pavements : new design guidelines.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-06-01

Since 2001, the State of Texas has been designing and constructing perpetual pavements : on some of its heavily trafficked highways where the expected 20-year truck-traffic estimate of : 18 kip ESALs is in excess of 30 million (TxDOT, 2001). To date,...

Variations in tropical cyclone-related discharge in four watersheds near Houston, Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laiyin Zhu

2015-01-01

Full Text Available We examined a 60-year record of daily precipitation and river discharge related to tropical cyclones (TCs in four watersheds undergoing land use and land cover change near Houston, Texas. Results show that TCs are responsible for ∼20% of the annual maximum discharge events in the four selected watersheds. Although there are no trends in TC precipitation, increasing trends were observed in daily extreme discharge and TC-related discharge. The more developed watersheds (Whiteoak Bayou and Brays Bayou, tend to have higher extreme discharge and steeper trends in extreme discharge than the less developed watersheds (Cypress Creek. Increases in TC-related extreme discharges correspond with increases in developed land and decreases in vegetated land between 1980 and 2006. Therefore, changes in land cover/use in watersheds near Houston are a major cause of the increased flooding risk in recent years.

Development and Application of Improved Long-Term Datasets of Surface Hydrology for Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kyungtae Lee

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Freshwater availability and agricultural production are key factors for sustaining the fast growing population and economy in the state of Texas, which is the third largest state in terms of agricultural production in the United States. This paper describes a long-term (1918–2011 grid-based (1/8° surface hydrological dataset for Texas at a daily time step based on simulations from the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC hydrological model. The model was calibrated and validated against observed streamflow over 10 Texas river basins. The simulated soil moisture was also evaluated using in situ observations. Results suggest that there is a decreasing trend in precipitation and an increasing trend in temperature in most of the basins. Droughts and floods were reconstructed and analyzed. In particular, the spatially distributed severity and duration of major Texas droughts were compared to identify new characteristics. The modeled flood recurrence interval and the return period were also compared with observations. Results suggest the performance of extreme flood simulations needs further improvement. This dataset is expected to serve as a benchmark which may contribute to water resources management and to mitigating agricultural drought, especially in the context of understanding the effects of climate change on crop yield in Texas.

Economic Development Impact of 1,000 MW of Wind Energy in Texas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Reategui, S.; Hendrickson, S.

2011-08-01

Texas has approximately 9,727 MW of wind energy capacity installed, making it a global leader in installed wind energy. As a result of the significant investment the wind industry has brought to Texas, it is important to better understand the economic development impacts of wind energy in Texas. This report analyzes the jobs and economic impacts of 1,000 MW of wind power generation in the state. The impacts highlighted in this report can be used in policy and planning decisions and can be scaled to get a sense of the economic development opportunities associated with other wind scenarios. This report can also inform stakeholders in other states about the potential economic impacts associated with the development of 1,000 MW of new wind power generation and the relationships of different elements in the state economy.

Educational pipelines of nurses in Texas: promoting academic mobility through partnerships.

Science.gov (United States)

Darnall, Emily D; Kishi, Aileen; Wiebusch, Pamela

2011-01-01

Texas, like many states across the nation, is struggling to position itself to achieve the Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommendations on the future of nursing. This article provides insights into the hurdles faced by Texas in achieving some of the IOM goals, particularly those related to a better educated nursing workforce. Only 9% of actively licensed nurses have pursued higher degrees, putting Texas below the national average. Currently, there is a gap between actual academic mobility and national recommendations to increase the numbers of baccalaureate- and doctorate-prepared nurses by 2020. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the educational pipeline in the state of Texas while suggesting partnerships as a solution to promote academic mobility. This cross-sectional study evaluated the academic mobility of four selected cohorts of nurses who have been in practice for 5 to 20 years. The findings revealed limited academic mobility compared with national benchmarks among all cohorts, regardless of basic degree and length in the profession. Educational pipelines for nurses need to be more dynamic in Texas than current trends reflect. Collaboration and partnerships between academics, clinicians, administrators, employers, and policy makers should be developed to address barriers that are deterring nurses from continuing their education. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Called to Teach: Percy and Anna Pennybacker's Contributions to Education in Texas, 1880-1899

Science.gov (United States)

King, Kelley M.

2012-01-01

In 1879, with aid from the Peabody fund, Texas's first tax-supported teacher training institution, Sam Houston State Normal Institute (SHNI), opened on the site of the old Austin College in Huntsville (Richmond 1941, 37). The need for qualified educators in Texas was growing as the state struggled to make up for decades of neglect of and antipathy…

An evaluation of known remaining oil resources in the state of Louisiana and Texas. Volume 3, Project on Advanced Oil Recovery and the States

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-11-01

The Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) has conducted a series of studies to evaluate the known, remaining oil resource in twenty-three (23) states. The primary objective of the IOGCC's effort is to examine the potential impact of an aggressive and focused program of research, development, and demonstration (RD ampersand D) and technology transfer on future oil recovery in the United States. As part of a larger effort by the IOGCC, this report focuses on the potential economic benefits of improved oil recovery in the states of Louisiana and Texas. Individual reports for six other oil producing states and a national report have been separately published. The analysis presented in this report is based on the databases and models available in the Tertiary Oil Recovery Information System (TORIS)

Exploratory study : vehicle mileage fees in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

This project evaluates Vehicle Mileage (VM) fees as a possible funding mechanism for meeting the State of Texas : long-term transportation needs. Researchers conducted listening sessions with the general public and stakeholders to : gather input o...

Legalising land rights. Local Practices, State Responses and Tenure Security in Africa, Asia and Latin America

OpenAIRE

Ubink, Janine M.; Hoekema, André J.; Assies, Willem J.

2009-01-01

Millions of people live and work on land that they do not legally own in accordance with enforceable state law. The absence of state recognition for local property rights affects people's tenure security and impedes development. Efforts to legalise extra-legal land tenure have traditionally emphasised individual titling and registration. Disappointment with such approaches have led to a search for 'a third way' in land tenure regulation that will reconcile state perspectives with local land r...

State of Student Aid and Higher Education in Texas, 2016

Science.gov (United States)

Fernandez, Chris; Fletcher, Carla; Klepfer, Kasey

2016-01-01

Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation (TG) provides critical support to schools, students, and borrowers at every stage of the federal student aid process--from providing information on how to pay for a higher education including financial aid options, to facilitating successful loan repayment after graduation. This 2016 issue of "State…

Synthesis study of Texas signal control systems : technical report.

Science.gov (United States)

2012-09-01

In recent years, several versions of traffic control systems have been established across the United States and within the state of Texas. There is a growing need to identify the various versions of these systems that exist, including the system hard...

Data compilation and assessment for water resources in Pennsylvania state forest and park lands

Science.gov (United States)

Galeone, Daniel G.

2011-01-01

As a result of a cooperative study between the U.S. Geological Survey and the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (PaDCNR), available electronic data were compiled for Pennsylvania state lands (state forests and parks) to allow PaDCNR to initially determine if data exist to make an objective evaluation of water resources for specific basins. The data compiled included water-quantity and water-quality data and sample locations for benthic macroinvertebrates within state-owned lands (including a 100-meter buffer around each land parcel) in Pennsylvania. In addition, internet links or contacts for geographic information system coverages pertinent to water-resources studies also were compiled. Water-quantity and water-quality data primarily available through January 2007 were compiled and summarized for site types that included streams, lakes, ground-water wells, springs, and precipitation. Data were categorized relative to 35 watershed boundaries defined by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for resource-management purposes. The primary sources of continuous water-quantity data for Pennsylvania state lands were the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the National Weather Service (NWS). The USGS has streamflow data for 93 surface-water sites located in state lands; 38 of these sites have continuous-recording data available. As of January 2007, 22 of these 38 streamflow-gaging stations were active; the majority of active gaging stations have over 40 years of continuous record. The USGS database also contains continuous ground-water elevation data for 32 wells in Pennsylvania state lands, 18 of which were active as of January 2007. Sixty-eight active precipitation stations (primarily from the NWS network) are located in state lands. The four sources of available water-quality data for Pennsylvania state lands were the USGS, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PaDEP), and

Using the FORE-SCE model to project land-cover change in the southeastern United States

Science.gov (United States)

Sohl, Terry; Sayler, Kristi L.

2008-01-01

A wide variety of ecological applications require spatially explicit current and projected land-use and land-cover data. The southeastern United States has experienced massive land-use change since European settlement and continues to experience extremely high rates of forest cutting, significant urban development, and changes in agricultural land use. Forest-cover patterns and structure are projected to change dramatically in the southeastern United States in the next 50 years due to population growth and demand for wood products [Wear, D.N., Greis, J.G. (Eds.), 2002. Southern Forest Resource Assessment. General Technical Report SRS-53. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Research Station, Asheville, NC, 635 pp]. Along with our climate partners, we are examining the potential effects of southeastern U.S. land-cover change on regional climate. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Land Cover Trends project is analyzing contemporary (1973-2000) land-cover change in the conterminous United States, providing ecoregion-by-ecoregion estimates of the rates of change, descriptive transition matrices, and changes in landscape metrics. The FORecasting SCEnarios of future land-cover (FORE-SCE) model used Land Cover Trends data and theoretical, statistical, and deterministic modeling techniques to project future land-cover change through 2050 for the southeastern United States. Prescriptions for future proportions of land cover for this application were provided by ecoregion-based extrapolations of historical change. Logistic regression was used to develop relationships between suspected drivers of land-cover change and land cover, resulting in the development of probability-of-occurrence surfaces for each unique land-cover type. Forest stand age was initially established with Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) data and tracked through model iterations. The spatial allocation procedure placed patches of new land cover on the landscape until the scenario

Long-term Surveillance Plan for the Falls City Disposal Site, Falls City, Texas. Revision 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-08-01

This long-term surveillance plan (LTSP) for the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action (UMTRA) Project Falls City disposal site, Falls City, Texas, describes the surveillance activities for the disposal site. The US Department of Energy (DOE) will carry out these activities to ensure that the disposal cell continues to function as designed. This LTSP was prepared as a requirement for acceptance under the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) general license for custody and long-term care of residual radioactive materials. This LTSP documents whether the land and interests are owned by the United States and details how long-term care of the disposal site will be carried out. It is based on the DOE's Guidance for Implementing the UMTRA Project Long-term Surveillance Program (DOE, 1992a)

Commercial Space Port Planning in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Bell, L.; Looke, B.

2002-01-01

The Texas Legislature is providing funding to support research and planning activities aimed at creating a commercial spaceport in the state. These monies have been allocated to regional Spaceport Development Corporations that have been established in three countries containing candidate site locations: Willacy County (in South Texas); Brazoria County (East Texas); and Pecos County (West Texas). This program is being sponsored and coordinated by the Texas Aerospace Commission (TAC). The Sasakawa International Center for Space Architecture (SICSA) at the University of Houston is providing research, planning and design support to TAC and is a member of each of the three regional development teams. Planning must carefully consider special support requirements and operational characteristics of all prospective launch systems along with geographic, infrastructure and environmental factors at each site. Two of the candidate sites are in coastal areas; a priority for certain launch service providers; whereas the third inland site is more attractive to others. Candidate launch systems include winged horizontal takeoff air-launch vehicles, vertical multi-stage reusable launch vehicles, and expendable sub-orbital surrounding rockets. Important research and planning activities include environmental impact assessments, analyses of overflight hazards, investigations of economic impacts and business plan development. The results of these activities will guide master plan development for each site, including: a physical plan (site layout, infrastructure improvements and facility construction); and a strategic plan (user agreements, licenses, finance sources and participants). Commercial spaceport development demands compliance with stringent FAA regulations established by the Office of Commercial Space Transportation (OCST) which exceed minimum standards allowed for U.S. Government spaceport facilities. Key among these requirements are 15,000 ft. radius on-site clear zones

Opportunities and challenges for high-speed rail corridors in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-09-01

Texas features a growing economy and population. The state boasts a large and well-developed : network of roads, freight railroads, and air facilities, which make the state a vital link in the movement of : people and goods. However, as the state con...

Long-term changes in river system hydrology in Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Y. Zhang

2018-06-01

Full Text Available Climate change and human actives are recognized as a topical issue that change long-term water budget, flow-frequency, and storage-frequency characteristics of different river systems. Texas is characterized by extreme hydrologic variability both spatially and temporally. Meanwhile, population and economic growth and accompanying water resources development projects have greatly impacted river flows throughout Texas. The relative effects of climate change, water resources development, water use, and other factors on long-term changes in river flow, reservoir storage, evaporation, water use, and other components of the water budgets of different river basins of Texas have been simulated in this research using the monthly version of the Water Rights Analysis Package (WRAP modelling system with input databases sets from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ and Texas Water Development Board (TWDB. The results show that long-term changes are minimal from analysis monthly precipitation depths. Evaporation rates vary greatly seasonally and for much of the state appear to have a gradually upward trend. River/reservoir system water budgets and river flow characteristics have changed significantly during the past 75 years in response to water resources development and use.

Climate change and future land use in the United States: an economic approach

Science.gov (United States)

David Haim; Ralph J. Alig; Andrew J. Plantinga; Brent Sohngen

2011-01-01

An econometric land-use model is used to project regional and national land-use changes in the United States under two IPCC emissions scenarios. The key driver of land-use change in the model is county-level measures of net returns to five major land uses. The net returns are modified for the IPCC scenarios according to assumed trends in population and income and...

Zero-Based Budgeting: The Texas Experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Boyd, William L.

1982-01-01

Zero-based budgeting was instituted in all Texas state-funded agencies in 1975-76, including colleges. The first two years of using this procedure are reviewed and its applicability to higher education institutions is examined in light of the need to consider educational quality as well as costs. (MSE)

Neglected infections of poverty in Texas and the rest of the United States: management and treatment options.

Science.gov (United States)

Barry, M A; Bezek, S; Serpa, J A; Hotez, P J; Woc-Colburn, L

2012-08-01

In the poorest regions of the United States, especially along the Gulf Coast and in South Texas, are a group of endemic parasitic and related infections known as the neglected infections of poverty. Such infections are characterized by their chronicity, disabling features, and disproportionate impact on the estimated 46 million people who live below the U.S. poverty line. Today more Americans live in poverty than ever before in the half-century that the Census Bureau has been recording poverty rates. In association with that poverty, a group of major neglected infections of poverty have emerged in the United States. Here we describe the major neglected infections of poverty in the United States, with a brief overview of their significant epidemiological features, their links with poverty, and our approaches to their diagnosis, management, and treatment.

Is the Modern American Death Penalty a Fatal Lottery? Texas as a Conservative Test

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Scott Phillips

2014-01-01

Full Text Available In Furman v. Georgia (1972, the Supreme Court was presented with data indicating that 15% to 20% of death-eligible defendants were actually sentenced to death. Based on such a negligible death sentence rate, some Justices concluded that the imposition of death was random and capricious—a fatal lottery. Later, the Court assumed in Gregg v. Georgia (1976 that guided discretion statutes would eliminate the constitutional infirmities identified in Furman: If state legislatures narrowed the pool of death-eligible defendants to the “worst of the worst” then most would be sentenced to death, eliminating numerical arbitrariness. However, recent research suggests that numerical arbitrariness remains, as the death sentence rate falls below the Furman threshold in California (11%, Connecticut (4%, and Colorado (less than 1%. The current research estimates the death sentence rate in Texas. Interestingly, Texas provides a conservative test. In contrast to most states, the Texas statute does not include broad aggravators that substantially enlarge the pool of death-eligible defendants and therefore depress the death sentence rate. Nonetheless, the death sentence rate in Texas during the period from 2006 to 2010 ranges from 3% to 6% (depending on assumptions made about the data. The same pattern holds true in the key counties that send the largest number of defendants to death row: Harris (Houston, Dallas (Dallas, Tarrant (Fort Worth and Arlington, and Bexar (San Antonio. Thus, the data suggest that Texas can be added to the list of states in which capital punishment is unconstitutional as administered. If the death sentence rate in Texas runs afoul of the Furman principle then the prognosis for other states is not encouraging.

40 CFR 272.2201 - Texas State-Administered Program: Final Authorization.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... Recycling Act, sections 371.0025(b) and (c), 371.024(a), 371.024(c) and (d), 371.026(a) and (b), 371.028... title (relating to Purpose) * * * § 55.21 of this title (relating to Requests for Contested Case..., sections 361.131 through 140; Chapter 371, Texas Oil Collection, Management, and Recycling Act, sections...

Texas Occurrence of Lyme Disease and Its Neurological Manifestations.

Science.gov (United States)

Dandashi, Jad A; Nizamutdinov, Damir; Dayawansa, Samantha; Fonkem, Ekokobe; Huang, Jason H

2016-06-01

Today, Lyme disease is the most commonly reported tick-borne disease in the United States and Europe. The culprits behind Lyme disease are the Borrelia species of bacteria. In the USA, Borrelia burgdorferi causes the majority of cases, while in Europe and Asia Borrelia afzelii and Borrelia garinii carry the greatest burden of disease. The clinical manifestations of Lyme disease have been identified as early localized, early disseminated, and late chronic. The neurological effects of Lyme disease include both peripheral and central nervous systems involvement, including focal nerve abnormalities, cranial neuropathies, painful radiculoneuritis, meningitis, and/or toxic metabolic encephalopathy, known as Lyme encephalopathy. Given the geographic predominance of Lyme disease in the Northeast and Midwest of the USA, no major studies have been conducted regarding Southern states. Between 2005 and 2014, the Center for Disease Control has reported 582 confirmed cases of Lyme disease in Texas. Because of the potential for increased incidence and prevalence in Texas, it has become essential for research and clinical efforts to be diverted to the region. The Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences Lyme Lab has been investigating the ecology of Lyme disease in Texas and developing a pan-specific serological test for Lyme diagnosis. This report aimed to exposure materials and raise awareness of Lyme disease to healthcare providers.

Chihuahuan Deserts Ecoregion: Chapter 27 in Status and trends of land change in the Western United States--1973 to 2000

Science.gov (United States)

Ruhlman, Jana; Gass, Leila; Middleton, Barry

2012-01-01

The Chihuahuan Desert is the largest of the North American deserts, extending from southern New Mexico and Texas deep into Mexico, with approximately 90 percent of its area falling south of the United States–Mexico border (Lowe, 1964, p. 24). The Chihuahuan Deserts Ecoregion covers approximately 174,472 km2 (67,364 mi2) within the United States, including much of west Texas, southern New Mexico, and a small portion of southeastern Arizona (Omernik, 1987; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1997). The ecoregion is generally oriented from northwest to southeast, with the Madrean Archipelago Ecoregion to the west; the Arizona/New Mexico Mountains, Arizona/New Mexico Plateau, Southwestern Tablelands, and Western High Plains Ecoregions to the north; and the Edwards Plateau and Southern Texas Plains Ecoregions to the east (fig. 1).

Effects of Land Degradation on Agriculture in Anambra State: Issue ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The study examined the effects of land degradation on agriculture in Anambra state. Two Local Government Areas were purposively selected from the state while a town community was purposively selected from each of the Local Government Areas. Proportionate sampling technique was used to select 50% of the villages ...

Bulletin of the Texas Archeological Society, Volume 71 (2000, Austin, Paper.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Larry D. Banks

2000-11-01

Full Text Available This annual bulletin of the Texas Archeological Society is a unique contribution specifically focused upon the history of Texas archaeology in a format that no others have done previously. The volume contains 150 pages, the majority of which consists of interviews (146 pages conducted by the first State Archaeologist of Texas, Curtis Tunnell. In 1968 Tunnell conceived of the idea of obtaining personal interviews from individuals whom he considered his heroes for their pioneering efforts in Texas archeology. This volume entails the first publication of such information, but more will certainly follow. The remaining four pages comprise two different reviews of other publications important in their own right to those interested in Southern Plains archeology of Texas. These two reviews by Timothy K Pertulla and David T. Hughes, respectively, are of The Coronado Expedition to Tierra Nueva: The 1540·1542 Route Across the Southwest by Richard Flint and Shirley Cushing flint, and GaffCreek: Artifact Collection Strategy and Occupation Prehistory on the Southern High Plains, Texas County. Oklahoma. The section by Tunnell titled "In Their Own Words: Stories from Some Pioneer Texas Archeologists" contains numerous previously unpublished photographs of people, sites and artifacts referred to the texts.

Seroprevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi antibodies in white-tailed deer from Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shakirat A. Adetunji

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Lyme Disease is caused by the bacterial pathogen Borrelia burgdorferi, and is transmitted by the tick-vector Ixodes scapularis. It is the most prevalent arthropod-borne disease in the United States. To determine the seroprevalence of B. burgdorferi antibodies in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus from Texas, we analyzed serum samples (n = 1493 collected during the 2001–2015 hunting seasons, using indirect ELISA. Samples with higher sero-reactivity (0.803 and above than the negative control group (0.662 were further tested using a more specific standardized western immunoblot assay to rule out false positives. Using ELISA, 4.7% of the samples were sero-reactive against B. burgdorferi, and these originated in two eco-regions in Texas (Edwards Plateau and South Texas Plains. However, only 0.5% of the total samples were sero-reactive by standardized western immunoblot assay. Additionally, both ELISA and standardized western immunoblot assay results correlated with an increased incidence in human Lyme Disease cases reported in Texas. This is the first longitudinal study to demonstrate fluctuation in sero-reactivity of white-tailed deer to B. burgdorferi sensu stricto antigens in southern United States. Future ecological and geographical studies are needed to assess the environmental factors governing the prevalence of Lyme Disease in non-endemic areas of the southern United States.

76 FR 70479 - Draft Environmental Assessment and Safe Harbor Agreement for the Houston Toad Within Nine Texas...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-11-14

...] Draft Environmental Assessment and Safe Harbor Agreement for the Houston Toad Within Nine Texas Counties... of the endangered Houston toad (Bufo houstonensis) as a result of conservation actions, land...: [email protected] . Include ``Clear Lake Ecological Services Field Office draft Houston Toad...

Implementation and effectiveness of sound mitigation measures on Texas highways (HB 790) : final report.

Science.gov (United States)

2016-10-01

The 84th Texas Legislature passed House Bill (HB) 790 directing the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) to perform a study on the implementation and effectiveness of sound mitigation measures on the state highway system and certain toll roads an...

Texas Student Success Council: Finding Common Ground to Increase Community College Completion

Science.gov (United States)

Collins, Michael Lawrence

2014-01-01

In 2011, a prominent Texas business group erected provocative billboards condemning low completion rates at the state's community colleges and questioning the value of tax dollars spent there. The Texas Association of Business put up the signs to prod community colleges to do more to increase student success and help create a better educated…

Texas Bull Nettle (Cnidoscolus texanus) Exposures Reported to Texas Poison Centers.

Science.gov (United States)

Forrester, Mathias B

2017-06-01

Texas bull nettle (Cnidoscolus texanus) is covered in bristly hairs similar to stinging nettle. Contact with the plant may result in intense dermal pain, burning, itching, cellulitis, and allergic reaction. This study characterizes C texanus exposures reported to a large state-wide poison center system. Cases were C texanus exposures reported to Texas poison centers during 2000-2015. The distribution of cases was determined for patient demographics, exposure circumstances, and patient outcome. A total of 140 C texanus exposures were identified. Twenty percent of the patients were aged ≤5 years, 21% were 6 to 12 years, 5% were 13 to 19 years, and 51% were ≥20years; and 51% of the patients were male. Eighty-one percent of the exposures occurred at the patient's own residence, 11% in a public area, 2% at another residence, and 1% at school. Seventy-eight percent of the patients were managed on site, 13% were already at or en route to a health care facility, and 6% were referred to a health care facility. Eighty-eight percent of the exposures resulted in dermal effects: irritation or pain (56%), erythema or flushing (31%), edema (27%), pruritus (24%), rash (19%), puncture or wound (19%), and hives or welts (11%). C texanus exposures reported to Texas poison centers were most likely to be unintentional and occur at the patient's own residence. The outcomes of the exposures tended not to be serious and could be managed successfully outside of health care facilities. Copyright © 2017 Wilderness Medical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Texas Employee Health and Fitness Program. An Example of Unique Legislation.

Science.gov (United States)

Haydon, Donald F.; And Others

1986-01-01

The Texas State Employee Health Fitness and Education Act of 1983 enables state agencies and educational institutions to finance employee health and fitness programs. This legislation is discussed and an example of the state-supported program is given. (MT)

21 CFR 808.93 - Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Texas. 808.93 Section 808.93 Food and Drugs FOOD... and Local Exemptions § 808.93 Texas. (a) The following Texas medical device requirement is enforceable... that, in enforcing this requirement, Texas apply the definition of “used hearing aid” in § 801.420(a)(6...

Land-Use Requirements for Solar Power Plants in the United States

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ong, S.; Campbell, C.; Denholm, P.; Margolis, R.; Heath, G.

2013-06-01

This report provides data and analysis of the land use associated with utility-scale ground-mounted solar facilities, defined as installations greater than 1 MW. We begin by discussing standard land-use metrics as established in the life-cycle assessment literature and then discuss their applicability to solar power plants. We present total and direct land-use results for various solar technologies and system configurations, on both a capacity and an electricity-generation basis. The total area corresponds to all land enclosed by the site boundary. The direct area comprises land directly occupied by solar arrays, access roads, substations, service buildings, and other infrastructure. As of the third quarter of 2012, the solar projects we analyze represent 72% of installed and under-construction utility-scale PV and CSP capacity in the United States.

Private forest-land owners of the Western United States, 1994

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas W. Birch; Thomas W. Birch

1997-01-01

A statistical analytical report on mail canvass of private forest-land owners in the Western United States. Landowner characteristics attitudes harvesting experience tenure and management planning are discussed.

Private forest-land owners of the Southern United States, 1994

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas W. Birch; Thomas W. Birch

1997-01-01

A statistical analytical report on mail canvass of private forest-land owners in the Southern United States. Landowner characteristics, attitudes, harvesting experience, tenure, and management planning are discussed.

Private forest-land owners of the Northern United States, 1994

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas W. Birch; Thomas W. Birch

1996-01-01

A statistical analytical report on mail canvass of private forest-land owners in the Northern United States. Landowner characteristics attitudes harvesting experience tenure and management planning are discussed.

Degradation State and Sequestration Potential of Carbon in Coastal Wetlands of Texas: Mangrove Vs. Saltmarsh Ecosystems

Science.gov (United States)

Sterne, A. M. E.; Kaiser, K.; Louchouarn, P.; Norwood, M. J.

2015-12-01

The estimated magnitude of the organic carbon (OC) stocks contained in the first meter of US coastal wetland soils represents ~10% of the entire OC stock in US soils (4 vs. 52 Pg, respectively). Because this stock extends to several meters below the surface for many coastal wetlands, it becomes paramount to understand the fate of OC under ecosystem shifts, varying natural environmental constraints, and changing land use. In this project we analyze the major classes of biochemicals including total hydrolysable neutral carbohydrates, enantiomeric amino acids, phenols, and cutins/suberins at two study sites located on the Texas coastline to investigate chemical composition and its controls on organic carbon preservation in mangrove (Avicennia germinans) and saltmarsh grass (Spartina alterniflora) dominated wetlands. Results show neutral carbohydrates and lignin contribute 30-70% and 10-40% of total OC, respectively, in plant litter and surface sediments at both sites. Sharp declines of carbohydrate yields with depth occur parallel to increasing Ac/AlS,V ratios indicating substantial decomposition of both the polysaccharide and lignin components of litter detritus. Contrasts in the compositions and relative abundances of all previously mentioned compound classes are further discussed to examine the role of litter biochemistry in OC preservation. For example, the selective preservation of cellulose over hemicellulose in sediments indicates macromolecular structure plays a key role in preservation between plant types. It is concluded that the chemical composition of litter material controls the composition and magnitude of OC stored in sediments. Ultimately, as these ecosystems transition from one dominant plant type to another, as is currently observed along the Texas coastline, there is the potential for OC sequestration efficiency to shift due to the changing composition of OC input to sediments.

75 FR 18142 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Texas; Control of Air Pollution...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-09

...The EPA is proposing to approve revisions to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP) that amend Title 30 of the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Chapter 114, Control of Air Pollution from Motor Vehicles. The State submitted these revisions on May 15, 2006, October 10, 2006, January 17, 2008, and February 28, 2008. These revisions establish the Rebate Grant Process and the Texas Clean School Bus Program under the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP), further amend the TERP, and amend the Locally Enforced Motor Vehicle Idling Limitations. The EPA is proposing to approve these SIP revisions because they allow for clarity and consistency of the SIP requirements. The EPA is proposing to approve these revisions pursuant to section 110 of the Federal Clean Air Act (CAA).

Texas' Influence over Textbook Content Could Shift with Changes in the Market

Science.gov (United States)

Robelen, Erik W.

2010-01-01

As the Texas board of education prepares to adopt controversial new standards for social studies in May, many observers and news outlets have emphasized that the action may have ripple effects that reach classrooms far beyond the Lone Star State. Yet the extent of Texas' reach is a matter of debate, and recent legislation opens up new sources of…

Trends in State and Federal land use law relating to inventories, monitoring and evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Lamb, C. M.

1974-01-01

A description and analysis of selected State and Federal laws relating to land use inventories, monitoring, and evaluation is presented. Legal requirements and information systems for land use in the following states are reviewed: Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, and West Virginia.

Typhus in Texas

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

Dr. Kristy Murray, an associate professor in pediatrics and assistant dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital, discusses increased cases of typhus in southern Texas.

Land, law and politics in Africa : mediating conflict and reshaping the state

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Abbink, J.; Bruijn, de M.E.

2011-01-01

This volume, which is dedicated to the Dutch legal scholar Gerti Hesseling (1946-2009), examines issues of law, land dispute and conflict mediation in Africa. The focus is on how citizens, State institutions and concerned (inter)national actors attempt to find solutions to land disputes. The issues

SUPERCOLLIDER: Texas meeting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1992-01-01

With preparations pushing forward for the Superconducting Supercollider (SSC) to be built in Ellis County, Texas, there was a full agenda at the third SSC fall conference, held in Corpus Christi, Texas, from 14-17 October

Disposal alternatives and recommendations for waste salt management for repository excavation in the Palo Duro Basin, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-01-01

This report documents an evaluation of five alternatives for the disposal of waste salt that would be generated by the construction of a repository for radioactive waste in underground salt deposits at either of two sites in the Palo Duro Basin, Texas. The alternatives include commercial disposal, offsite deep-well injection, disposal in abandoned mines, ocean disposal, and land surface disposal on or off the site. For each alternative a reference case was rated - positive, neutral, or negative - in terms of environmental and dependability factors developed specifically for Texas sites. The factors constituting the environmental checklist relate to water quality impact, water- and land-use conflicts, ecological compatibility, conformity with air quality standards, and aesthetic impact. Factors on the dependability check-list relate to public acceptance, the adequacy of site characterization, permit and licensing requirements, technological requirements, and operational availability. A comparison of the ratings yielded the following viable alternatives, in order of preference: (1) land surface disposal, specifically disposal on tailings piles associated with abandoned potash mines; (2) disposal in abandoned mines, specifically potash mines; and (3) commercial disposal. Approaches to the further study of these three salt management techniques are recommended

Compliance status summaries for federal and state statutory directives that apply to the Salt Repository Project at the Deaf Smith County Site, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-07-01

This document contains statutory summaries, checklists of compliance requirements, status summaries, and lists of information needs for the environmental and health and safety statutory directives at Federal and State levels that apply to the Salt Repository Project at the Deaf Smith County Site, Texas. Statutes that apply in general to any repository project but not specifically to the Deaf Smith are not included. The information herein supplements the Salt Repository Project Statutory Compliance Plan and the Salt Repository Project Permitting Management Plan by providing lengthy details on statutory directives, compliance requirements, information needs, and the overall status of the environmental and health and safety compliance program for the Salt Repository Project at the Deaf Smith County Site, Texas

Texas Yehaa !!!

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kjellberg, Kurt

2001-01-01

Indtryk fra et besøg på SLA, Special Libraries Associations årlige konference, San Antonio, Texas, USA, 9.-13. juni 2001. "An Information Odyssey: Seizing the Competitive Advantage"......Indtryk fra et besøg på SLA, Special Libraries Associations årlige konference, San Antonio, Texas, USA, 9.-13. juni 2001. "An Information Odyssey: Seizing the Competitive Advantage"...

75 FR 68398 - Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad, LLC-Acquisition and Operation Exemption-Texas, Oklahoma...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-05

... & Eastern Railroad, LLC--Acquisition and Operation Exemption--Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad Company Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad, LLC (TOE), a noncarrier, has filed a verified notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1150.31 to acquire from Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad Company and to operate...

Tracking the Career Paths of Physics Teachers in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Mount, Jennifer; Marshall, Jill; Fuller, Edward

2013-10-01

In Texas, and some other states, there is a documented shortage of physics teachers, in terms of both number and qualifications. The shortage in Texas is due as much to teachers leaving the field (attrition) as to a lack of teachers entering. There are efforts under way to prepare more and better-qualified physics teachers who will stay in the field longer,2 but increasing the overall supply and retention will not necessarily address localized teacher shortages. To investigate this issue, we obtained a database cataloging every teacher who taught science in Texas public schools from 2003 to 2008, indicating the school where they taught during each of those years, the subjects they taught, and their route to certification. This allowed us to track not only teachers entering and leaving the public school system, but also migration between schools within the system. We found that migration poses a much bigger problem than attrition for some schools. We also found patterns in the movement of physics teachers in Texas that we would not necessarily have predicted and that varied substantially depending on certification.

Reasserting the commons: Pastoral contestations of private and state lands in East Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John G. Galaty

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The theory that land holding is inexorably evolving from common to private or state tenure is challenged by facts on the ground that this paper will examine. ‘Tenure’ is interpreted both in terms of formal law and informal practices. While the association between privatization and land fragmentation is clear, property theory has influenced privatization so the process cannot be used to validate the evolutionary model of transitions from open access to common property to private property. Although in many settings common and state property has given way to privatization, in other cases private or state property has reverted to common holdings. A dynamic tenure model would demonstrate the conditions under which tenure transitions occur between common, private and state property, as the balance between transaction and exclusion costs shifts, or when the boundaries of tenure forms weaken to allow open access to occur. Examining three scenes of tenure transitions involving Kenyan pastoralists (Laikipia County, the Rift Valley, Narok County and Kajiado County, this paper examines cases in which transaction and exclusion dynamics – which are metaphors for the institutional effects of social and territorial relations- lead to changing land-use practices and tenure transitions. In semi-arid pastoral regions, we find more fluid systems of tenure than the inexorable spread of privatization through formalized land rights and increasing land fragmentation would have suggested should occur in the 21st century.

Spatio-temporal spawning and larval dynamics of a zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) population in a North Texas Reservoir: implications for invasions in the southern United States

Science.gov (United States)

Churchill, Christopher John

2013-01-01

Zebra mussels were first observed in Texas in 2009 in a reservoir (Lake Texoma) on the Texas-Oklahoma border. In 2012, an established population was found in a near-by reservoir, Ray Roberts Lake, and in June 2013, settled mussels were detected in a third north Texas reservoir, Lake Lewisville. An established population was detected in Belton Lake in September 2013. With the exception of Louisiana, these occurrences in Texas mark the current southern extent of the range of this species in the United States. Previous studies indicate that zebra mussel populations could be affected by environmental conditions, especially increased temperatures and extreme droughts, which are characteristic of surface waters of the southern and southwestern United States. Data collected during the first three years (2010–12) of a long-term monitoring program were analyzed to determine if spatio-temporal zebra mussel spawning and larval dynamics were related to physicochemical water properties in Lake Texoma. Reproductive output of the local population was significantly related to water temperature and lake elevation. Estimated mean date of first spawn in Lake Texoma was approximately 1.5 months earlier and peak veliger densities were observed two months earlier than in Lake Erie. Annual maximum veliger density declined significantly during the study period (p mussels in littoral zones. Veliger spatial distributions were associated with physicochemical stratification characteristics. Veligers were observed in the deepest oxygenated water after lake stratification, which occurred in late spring. Results of this study indicate environmental conditions can influence variability of population sizes and spatial distributions of zebra mussels along the current southern frontier of their geographic range. Although the future population size trajectory and geographic range are uncertain, increased temperatures and intermittent, extreme droughts likely will affect spatio-temporal dynamics of

Integrating Ecosystem Carbon Dynamics into State-and-Transition Simulation Models of Land Use/Land Cover Change

Science.gov (United States)

Sleeter, B. M.; Daniel, C.; Frid, L.; Fortin, M. J.

2016-12-01

State-and-transition simulation models (STSMs) provide a general approach for incorporating uncertainty into forecasts of landscape change. Using a Monte Carlo approach, STSMs generate spatially-explicit projections of the state of a landscape based upon probabilistic transitions defined between states. While STSMs are based on the basic principles of Markov chains, they have additional properties that make them applicable to a wide range of questions and types of landscapes. A current limitation of STSMs is that they are only able to track the fate of discrete state variables, such as land use/land cover (LULC) classes. There are some landscape modelling questions, however, for which continuous state variables - for example carbon biomass - are also required. Here we present a new approach for integrating continuous state variables into spatially-explicit STSMs. Specifically we allow any number of continuous state variables to be defined for each spatial cell in our simulations; the value of each continuous variable is then simulated forward in discrete time as a stochastic process based upon defined rates of change between variables. These rates can be defined as a function of the realized states and transitions of each cell in the STSM, thus providing a connection between the continuous variables and the dynamics of the landscape. We demonstrate this new approach by (1) developing a simple IPCC Tier 3 compliant model of ecosystem carbon biomass, where the continuous state variables are defined as terrestrial carbon biomass pools and the rates of change as carbon fluxes between pools, and (2) integrating this carbon model with an existing LULC change model for the state of Hawaii, USA.

Working Together for Transition in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Theresa; Serrano, John A.

2016-01-01

When Texas state budgets resulted in a loss of direct funding for the transition of deaf and hard of hearing students', collaboration efforts for assisting these students became critical. Theresa Johnson, MEd, outreach specialist at the Educational Resource Center on Deafness in Austin, and John A. Serrano, MA, director of Academic Affairs at the…

Students Across Texas Celebrate Astronomy Day

Science.gov (United States)

Preston, S.; Wetzel, M.; Hemenway, M. K.

2010-08-01

Over the past three years, McDonald Observatory has offered special Astronomy Day videoconference programs to students across Texas—the second largest state in the U.S. (Only Alaska is larger). Videoconferencing allows many students and teachers access to our Observatory, which is remotely located 180 miles (290 kilometers) from any major city. McDonald Observatory partners with Connect2Texas to advertise the Astronomy Day event. Connect2Texas provides the electronic bridge between schools and the Observatory. They also provide an online evaluation for teachers to complete. In 2009 the Astronomy Day videoconference celebrated the International Year of Astronomy and the historic observations made by Galileo Galilei. During the videoconference, the classes explore the Moon or Venus by making real-time telescopic observations. Students also receive an introduction to the Observatory, an opportunity to perform an activity relating to Galileo's observations, and an interview with an astronomer. A website provides teachers pre-and post-video conference materials, instructions, and a certificate of completion that can be customized for each student. The website also lists content alignment with state science education standards.

33 CFR 165.804 - Snake Island, Texas City, Texas; mooring and fleeting of vessels-safety zone.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 33 Navigation and Navigable Waters 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Snake Island, Texas City, Texas... Guard District § 165.804 Snake Island, Texas City, Texas; mooring and fleeting of vessels—safety zone. (a) The following is a safety zone: (1) The west and northwest shores of Snake Island; (2) The...

Conservation and Recreation Lands with Public Access in the State of Iowa

Data.gov (United States)

Iowa State University GIS Support and Research Facility — This dataset represents conservation and recreation lands in the state of Iowa. Boundaries of areas represent differences in ownership and managing agency of the...

The Myth of the Texas Miracle in Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Walt Haney

2000-08-01

Full Text Available I summarize the recent history of education reform and statewide testing in Texas, which led to introduction of the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS in 1990-91. A variety of evidence in the late 1990s led a number of observers to conclude that the state of Texas had made near miraculous progress in reducing dropouts and increasing achievement. The passing scores on TAAS tests were arbitrary and discriminatory. Analyses comparing TAAS reading, writing and math scores with one another and with relevant high school grades raise doubts about the reliability and validity of TAAS scores. I discuss problems of missing students and other mirages in Texas enrollment statistics that profoundly affect both reported dropout statistics and test scores. Only 50% of minority students in Texas have been progressing from grade 9 to high school graduation since the initiation of the TAAS testing program. Since about 1982, the rates at which Black and Hispanic students are required to repeat grade 9 have climbed steadily, such that by the late 1990s, nearly 30% of Black and Hispanic students were "failing" grade 9. Cumulative rates of grade retention in Texas are almost twice as high for Black and Hispanic students as for White students. Some portion of the gains in grade 10 TAAS pass rates are illusory. The numbers of students taking the grade 10 tests who were classified as "in special education" and hence not counted in schools' accountability ratings nearly doubled between 1994 and 1998. A substantial portion of the apparent increases in TAAS pass rates in the 1990s are due to such exclusions. In the opinion of educators in Texas, schools are devoting a huge amount of time and energy preparing students specifically for TAAS, and emphasis on TAAS is hurting more than helping teaching and learning in Texas schools, particularly with at-risk students, and TAAS contributes to retention in grade and dropping out. Five different sources of evidence about

Spatiotemporal Variation of China’s State-Owned Construction Land Supply from 2003 to 2014

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Min Jiang

2016-11-01

Full Text Available State-owned construction land is the dominant legal land source for construction in China and its supply influences urban expansion, house prices, and economic development, among other factors. Surprisingly, limited attention has been directly devoted to the spatiotemporal variation in land supply or the driving factors. This paper applied a centroid model and hotspot analysis, and created a newly increased construction land dependence-degree index (NCD to present the spatiotemporal variations of China’s construction land supply magnitude and pattern from 2003 to 2014, using land supply data from 339 cities. A two-way fixed effect model was introduced to reveal the influence of the socio-economic driving factors. The results showed that China’s state-owned construction land supply area (CLSA and newly increased construction land supply area (NCSA both increased during the period from 2003 to 2014, the geographic centroid of CLSA and NCSA moved northwest. NCD showed an overall increasing trend, and hotspots with high NCD migrated from the east region to the west region and shifted from an “east hot and west cold” pattern in 2003 to an “east cold and west hot” pattern in 2014. The gross domestic product (GDP has a U-shape effect on CLSA and NCD. The population, average annual wage of workers, and investment in fixed assets (fiv have positive effects on CLSA, and fiv also has a positive effect on NCD. The increasing ratio of tertiary industry added value to secondary industry added value reduces CLSA and NCD, and the effects of state policies vary from year to year. Different land supply policies should be implemented for cities in different development stages.

Infrastructure-friendly vehicles to support Texas economic competitiveness.

Science.gov (United States)

2017-03-01

The researchers reviewed and extended the work done under Project 0-6736, Rider 36 OS/OW Vehicle Fees : Study, and other similar efforts currently underway in Texas and other states and at the federal and international : level to evaluate the effects...

Feasibility Study of Economics and Performance of Solar Photovoltaics at the Ft. Hood Military Base Outside Killeen, Texas. A Study Prepared in Partnership with the Environmental Protection Agency for the RE-Powering America's Land Initiative: Siting Renewable Energy on Potentially Contaminated Land and Mine Sites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Geiger, J.; Lisell, L.; Mosey, G.

2013-10-01

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in accordance with the RE-Powering America's Land initiative through the Region 6 contract, selected Ft. Hood Army Base in Killeen, Texas, for a feasibility study of renewable energy production. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) provided technical assistance for this project. The purpose of this study is to assess the site for possible photovoltaic (PV) system installations and estimate the cost, performance, and site impacts of different PV options. In addition, the report recommends financing options that could assist in the implementation of a PV system at the site.

Technical procedures for land use, Deaf Smith County site, Texas: Environmental Field Program: Final draft

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-09-01

This volume contains Technical Procedures pursuant to the Land Use Site Study Plan including land use data acquisition, land use/land cover map compilation, verification of land use/land cover map accuracy, and land use/land cover data analysis. 22 refs., 5 figs

State Transitions in Semiarid Landscapes

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, J. D.

2012-04-01

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has developed a large number of state-and-transition models (STM) to predict and interpret changes in vegetation communities in drylands of the southwestern U.S. These are represented as box-and-arrow models indicating potential changes in response to various combinations of management practices and environmental forcings. Analysis of the 320 STMs developed for areas within the state of Texas reveals two important aspects of environmental change in semiarid environments. First, the STMs are highly local—they are specific to very particular combinations of landform, soil, and climate. This is consistent with the perfect landscape concept in geomorphology, which emphasizes the irreducible importance of geographically and historically contingent local factors in addition to universal laws or principles in determining the state or condition of landscapes. Second, analysis of the STMs using algebraic graph theory shows that a majority of them have structures that tend to amplify effects of change and disturbances. In many cases the STMs represent a form of self-organization characterized by the potential of divergent behavior rather than convergence toward a dominant pattern or outcome. These results indicate that geomorphic, hydrologic, and ecological responses to climate and land use change are likely to be highly variable and idiosyncratic, both within and between semiarid landscapes of Texas.

Status of the Texas low-level radioactive waste disposal site - construction sequencing and staffing patterns

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jacobi, L.R. Jr.

1996-01-01

The Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Authority, an agency of the State of Texas, has been attempting to develop a site for the disposal of low-level radioactive waste in Texas for more than fourteen years. Since 1991, the agency has been evaluating a site near Sierra Blanca, in far west Texas. Site characterization was completed in 1992, and a license application was filed that year. Construction plans were completed in 1993. In April 1996, the licensing agency, the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, completed its review and proposed to issue a license. The administrative hearings on the proposed license should be completed by July 1997. The Authority is prepared to begin construction and operations as soon as a final license can be issued

Land-use mapping for the State of Kuwait using the Geographical Information System (Gigs)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Omar, S.A.S.; Misak, R.; Minkarah, H.; King, P.; Kwarting, A.; Abo-Rizq, H.; Roy, W.

2001-01-01

A land-use survey was undertaken at a scale 1:100000 for the State of Kuwait. Land use is classified into 19 map units based on field survey and interpretation of Landsat imagery. The latest topographic map coverage for the State of Kuwait was used as a base map. The Geographic Information System (GIS) was used for the storage, analysis and presentation of spatial data. Summary statistics of total areas of each map unit are presented in nine 1:100.000map sheets and percentage areas of different land uses were identified. Land use is dominated by rangeland (75.12%) which is used primarily for grazing activities, and also recreational activities such as spring camping and hunting. Oil fields (7%) include areas of existing development of wells and associated infrastructure. Water reservoir areas represent the surficial extent of aquifers and natural water fields. Military areas (4%) are scattered throughout the country. Other significant land uses include the build-up areas of Kuwait city (3.5%), quarries, borrow pits and dumps of building debris, communication facilities, cemeteries, parkland, encampments, power stations, race tracks and unused land (7%). Land use information can be used as the basis for future land use planning applications. (author)

Transforming Developmental Education in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Journal of Developmental Education, 2014

2014-01-01

In recent years, with support from the Texas Legislature, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has funded various developmental education initiatives, including research and evaluation efforts, to help Texas public institutions of higher education provide more effective programs and services to underprepared students. Based on evaluation…

Gastrointestinal helminths in raccoons in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Kresta, Amy E; Henke, Scott E; Pence, Danny B

2009-01-01

Raccoons (n=590) were collected from October 1999 to August 2003 from 35 counties across Texas, and gastrointestinal tracts were examined for helminth parasites. Prevalence was calculated and differences in mean abundance were examined among habitat ecoregions, age classes, and between sexes. Twenty different species of helminths (13 nematodes, two cestodes, two acanthocephalans, and three trematodes) were positively identified in the gastrointestinal tracts of 590 raccoons in Texas. Five of the 20 helminth species collected (Physaloptera rara, Placoconus lotoris, Molineus barbatus, Atriotaenia procyonis, and Macracanthorhynchus ingens) had a prevalence >20%. The total number of individuals of these five species (n=22,777) accounted for over 86% of the total number of individuals of all helminth species (n=26,426) collected. Subsequent analyses were based on these five helminths. Mean abundance differed among habitat ecoregions, age classes, and between sexes for all five parasites evaluated. This study is the most comprehensive statewide survey ever done of gastrointestinal helminths of raccoons across Texas. The five most prevalent helminths identified have all been reported in at least one previous survey, indicating that these parasites are not new to Texas and that raccoons are not naïve to the effects these parasites have on them. It may be helpful to wildlife rehabilitators, trappers, wildlife biologists, and other professionals to be aware of parasite abundance in raccoons from different areas of the state, as frequent human-raccoon interactions occur, and some of these parasites could be harmful to humans and domestic animals.

School Social Workers in Texas: A Comparative Demographic Analysis of the Texas-Mexico Border and Non-Border Regions

Science.gov (United States)

Garza, Cecilia; Landeck, Michael

2007-01-01

This study examines the role of school social workers as potential agents of change in the educational system, with a special focus on their major demographic characteristics in Texas and along the Mexico border region. The border region of the state has chronic poverty and limited educational attainment levels and demonstrates a need for…

Isotope identification as a part of the decommissioning of San Diego State University's Texas Nuclear neutron generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor, D.

1997-07-01

The Department of Physics at San Diego State University has maintained a Neutron Generator facility in room P-32C since the mid 1960's. This facility has provided students and faculty with a resource for the study of neutron interactions with matter, such as activation analysis, flux determinations, cross section determinations and shielding studies. The model 9500 was built by Texas Nuclear Research in the early 1960's, and could be used for either photon or neutron generation, depending on the source ions introduced into the accelerator's plasma bottle and the target material. In February of 1988, the Texas Nuclear Research neutron generator was replaced by a unit manufactured by Kaman Sciences Corporation. The Texas Nuclear unit was then removed and stored for later disassembly and disposal. In the summer of 1993, the neutron generator was disassembled into three large sections consisting of the titanium-tritide target, the oil diffusion pump and the corona shield/accelerator tube assembly. The target was packaged and stored in room P-33A and the other 2 assemblies were wrapped in plastic for storage. In June of 1995 the neutron generator was further disassembled to enable storage in 55 gallon drums and thoroughly surveyed for loose surface contamination. Openings on the disassembled hardware components were closed off using either duct tape or bolted stainless steel flanges to prevent the possible spread of contamination. Significant levels of removable surface contamination could be found on system internal and some external surfaces, up to five hundred thousand disintegrations per minute. Initial analysis of the removable contamination using aluminum absorbers and a Geiger-Meuller tube indicated beta particle or possibly photon emitters with an energy of approximately 180 keV. This apparent radiation energy conflicted with what one would be expected to find, given knowledge of the source material and the possible neutron activated products that would be

Financial assurance for decontamination and decommissioning: a Texas perspective

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rao, C.D.; Etter, S.D.; Dziuk, T.W.

1986-01-01

The Texas Department of Health (TDH) has the regulatory responsibility to ensure that funds are available for decontamination, decommissioning, and reclamation of uranium recovery facilities in Texas. Uranium recovery licensees are required to post financial security with the Agency for that purpose. Texas uranium facilities include (1) conventional surface mining and milling plants, including tailings ponds, and (2) in situ solution mining plants, each with somewhat different cost elements for decontamination, decommissioning, reclamation, and closure. Cost estimates for decontamination, decommissioning, and reclamation, along with a facility closure plan, are initially submitted to the Agency by the licensees. These are verified and compared with detailed independent cost estimates prepared by Agency staff. Significant differences between the two estimates are examined and resolved by negotiation and/or recalculation to the satisfaction of the state. The Texas philosophy for maintaining financial security permits flexibility in the closure plan without jeopardizing or compromising the ultimate long-term objectives of closure. Review of closure plans incorporates new technological developments In contrast, financial security is established expeditiously by applying the best available cost data to necessarily conservative estimates of the work involved. Financial security cost estimates are subject to annual review and adjustment

Climate-water quality relationships in Texas reservoirs

Science.gov (United States)

Gelca, Rodica; Hayhoe, Katharine; Scott-Fleming, Ian; Crow, Caleb; Dawson, D.; Patino, Reynaldo

2015-01-01

Water temperature, dissolved oxygen, and concentrations of salts in surface water bodies can be affected by the natural environment, local human activities such as surface and ground water withdrawals, land use, and energy extraction, and variability and long-term trends in atmospheric conditions including temperature and precipitation. Here, we quantify the relationship between 121 indicators of mean and extreme temperature and precipitation and 24 water quality parameters in 57 Texas reservoirs using observational data records covering the period 1960 to 2010. We find that water temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, specific conductance, chloride, sulfate, and phosphorus all show consistent correlations with atmospheric predictors, including high and low temperature extremes, dry days, heavy precipitation events, and mean temperature and precipitation over time scales ranging from one week to two years. Based on this analysis and published future projections for this region, we expect climate change to increase water temperatures, decrease dissolved oxygen levels, decrease pH, increase specific conductance, and increase levels of sulfate, chloride in Texas reservoirs. Over decadal time scales, this may affect aquatic ecosystems in the reservoirs, including altering the risk of conditions conducive to algae occurrence, as well as affecting the quality of water available for human consumption and recreation.

Invasive plants found in east Texas forests, 2009 forest inventory and analysis factsheet

Science.gov (United States)

Sonja N. Oswalt; Christopher M. Oswalt

2011-01-01

This science update provides information on the presence and cover of nonnative invasive plants found in forests of the eastern region of the State of Texas based on an annual inventory conducted by the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program at the Southern Research Station of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service in cooperation with the Texas Forest...

John Holt Stanway: Gone to Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Bryan, J.

2008-01-01

John Holt Stanway (1799Ð1872) was an amateur astronomer who lived in Manchester, England until 1845. He was in contact with the English Ôgrand amateurÕ astronomer, William Henry Smyth, who supported him for Fellowship of the Royal Astronomical Society and evidently advised him on how to build and equip an observatory. Apparently, Stanway had an observatory at Chorlton-cum-Hardy in 1837. In 1845, Stanway left for the United States in response to serious business problems. En route, he met Ashbel Smith, a representative of the government of the Republic of Texas, who convinced Stanway to go to Texas. There he changed his name to John H. Smythe Stanley and settled in Houston, where he re-established his observatory. He became a commercial photographer and wrote about astronomy and other scientific subjects in Houston newspapers until his death in 1872.

Two drastically different climate states on an Earth-like land planet with overland water recycling

Science.gov (United States)

Kalidindi, S.; Reick, C. H.; Raddatz, T.; Claussen, M.

2017-12-01

Prior studies have demonstrated that habitable areas on low-obliquity land planets are confined to the edges of frozen ice caps. Whether such dry planets can maintain long-lived liquid water is unclear. Leconte et al. 2013 argue that on such planets mechanisms like gravity driven ice flows and geothermal flux can maintain liquid water at the edges of thick ice caps and this water may flow back to the lower latitudes through rivers. However, there exists no modelling study which investigates the climate of an Earth-like land planet with an overland recycling mechanism bringing fresh water back from higher to lower latitudes. In our study, by using a comprehensive climate model ICON, we find that an Earth-like land planet with an overland recycling mechanism can exist in two drastically different climate states for the same set of boundary conditions and parameter values: A Cold and Wet (CW) state with dominant low-latitude precipitation and, a Hot and Dry (HD) state with only high-latitude precipitation. For perpetual equinox conditions, both climate states are stable below a certain threshold value of background soil albedo (α) while above that only the CW state is stable. Starting from the HD state and increasing α above the threshold causes an abrupt shift from the HD state to the CW state resulting in a sudden cooling of about 35°C globally which is of the order of the temperature difference between the present-day and the Snowball Earth state. In contrast to the Snowball Earth instability, we find that the sudden cooling in our study is driven by the cloud albedo feedback rather than the snow-albedo feedback. Also, when α in the CW state is reduced back to zero the land planet does not display a closed hysteresis. Our study also has implications for the habitability of Earth-like land planets. At the inner edge of the habitable zone, the higher cloud cover in the CW state cools the planet and may prevent the onset of a runaway greenhouse state. At the outer

Toward a best practice model for managed lanes in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2013-09-01

Increasing implementation of managed lanes in the : United States : Katy Freeway Managed Lanes : (KML) offers lessons learned : for other projects : First operational, multilane, : variably priced, managed facility : in Texas : Became oper...

Initial Results from the New Stress Map of Texas Project

Science.gov (United States)

Lund Snee, J. E.; Zoback, M. D.

2015-12-01

Modern techniques for characterizing tectonic stress orientation and relative magnitude have been successfully used for more than 35 years. Nevertheless, large areas of North America lack high spatial resolution maps of stress orientation, magnitude, and faulting regime. In Texas, for example, data are foundational elements of attempts to characterize tectonic driving forces, understand hazards associated with induced seismicity, and optimize production of oil, gas, and geothermal resources. This year, we launched the Texas Stress Map project to characterize tectonic stress patterns at higher spatial resolution across Texas and nearby areas. Following a successful effort just completed in Oklahoma, we will evaluate borehole breakouts, drilling-induced tensile fractures, shear wave anisotropy, and earthquake data. The principal data source will be FMI (fullbore formation microimager), UBI (ultrasonic borehole imager), cross-dipole sonic, density, and caliper logs provided by private industry. Earthquake moment tensor solutions from the U.S. Geological Survey, Saint Louis University and other sources will also be used. Our initial focus is on the Permian Basin and Barnett Shale petroleum plays due to the availability of data, but we will expand our analysis across the state as the project progresses. In addition, we hope to eventually apply the higher spatial resolution data coverage to understanding tectonic and geodynamic characteristics of the southwestern United States and northeastern Mexico. Here we present early results from our work to constrain stress orientations and faulting regime in and near Texas, and we also provide a roadmap for the ongoing research.

The role of protected areas in land use/land cover change and the carbon cycle in the conterminous United States

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lu, Xiaoliang [The Ecosystems Center, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole MA USA; Zhou, Yuyu [Departments of Geological and Atmospheric Sciences, Iowa State University, Ames IA USA; Liu, Yaling [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Joint Global Change Research Institute, College Park MD USA; Le Page, Yannick [Department Tapada da Ajuda, Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon Portugal

2017-08-08

Protected areas (PAs) cover about 22% of the conterminous United States. Understanding their role on historical land use and land cover change (LULCC) and on the carbon cycle is essential to provide guidance for environmental policies. In this study, we compiled historical LULCC and PAs data to explore these interactions within the terrestrial ecosystem model (TEM). We found that intensive LULCC occurred in the conterminous United States from 1700 to 2005. More than 3 million km2 of forest, grassland and shrublands were converted into agricultural lands, which caused 10,607 Tg C release from land ecosystems to atmosphere. PAs had experienced little LULCC as they were generally established in the 20th century after most of the agricultural expansion had occurred. PAs initially acted as a carbon source due to land use legacies, but their accumulated carbon budget switched to a carbon sink in the 1960s, sequestering an estimated 1,642 Tg C over 1700–2005, or 13.4% of carbon losses in non-PAs. We also find that PAs maintain larger carbon stocks and continue sequestering carbon in recent years (2001–2005), but at a lower rate due to increased heterotrophic respiration as well as lower productivity associated to aging ecosystems. It is essential to continue efforts to maintain resilient, biodiverse ecosystems and avoid large-scale disturbances that would release large amounts of carbon in PAs.

75 FR 69909 - Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Texas; Emissions Banking and Trading of...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-16

... ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY 40 CFR Part 52 [EPA-R06-OAR-2005-TX-0012; FRL-9226-3] Approval and Promulgation of Implementation Plans; Texas; Emissions Banking and Trading of Allowances Program AGENCY... four revisions to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP) that create and amend the Emissions Banking...

Notes from the Field: Zika Virus-Associated Neonatal Birth Defects Surveillance - Texas, January 2016-July 2017.

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Noemi Borsay; Broussard, Kelly; Evert, Nicole; Canfield, Mark

2017-08-11

On November 28, 2016, the Texas Department of State Health Services (Texas DSHS) reported its first confirmed case of local mosquitoborne Zika virus transmission in the city of Brownsville, located in south Texas along the U.S.-Mexico border. Zika virus infection during pregnancy has been linked to adverse congenital outcomes including microcephaly, neural tube defects, early brain malformations, structural eye abnormalities, congenital deafness, and limb contractures (1). On January 1, 2016, Texas DSHS established enhanced surveillance to identify women with laboratory evidence of possible Zika virus infection during pregnancy and suspected cases of Zika virus-associated birth defects among completed pregnancies.

The Application of Remote Sensing Data to GIS Studies of Land Use, Land Cover, and Vegetation Mapping in the State of Hawaii

Science.gov (United States)

Hogan, Christine A.

1996-01-01

A land cover-vegetation map with a base classification system for remote sensing use in a tropical island environment was produced of the island of Hawaii for the State of Hawaii to evaluate whether or not useful land cover information can be derived from Landsat TM data. In addition, an island-wide change detection mosaic combining a previously created 1977 MSS land classification with the TM-based classification was produced. In order to reach the goal of transferring remote sensing technology to State of Hawaii personnel, a pilot project was conducted while training State of Hawaii personnel in remote sensing technology and classification systems. Spectral characteristics of young island land cover types were compared to determine if there are differences in vegetation types on lava, vegetation types on soils, and barren lava from soils, and if they can be detected remotely, based on differences in pigments detecting plant physiognomic type, health, stress at senescence, heat, moisture level, and biomass. Geographic information systems (GIS) and global positioning systems (GPS) were used to assist in image rectification and classification. GIS was also used to produce large-format color output maps. An interactive GIS program was written to provide on-line access to scanned photos taken at field sites. The pilot project found Landsat TM to be a credible source of land cover information for geologically young islands, and TM data bands are effective in detecting spectral characteristics of different land cover types through remote sensing. Large agriculture field patterns were resolved and mapped successfully from wildland vegetation, but small agriculture field patterns were not. Additional processing was required to work with the four TM scenes from two separate orbits which span three years, including El Nino and drought dates. Results of the project emphasized the need for further land cover and land use processing and research. Change in vegetation

Techniques for land use change detection using Landsat imagery

Science.gov (United States)

Angelici, G. L.; Bryant, N. A.; Friedman, S. Z.

1977-01-01

A variety of procedures were developed for the delineation of areas of land use change using Landsat Multispectral Scanner data and the generation of statistics revealing the nature of the changes involved (i.e., number of acres changed from rural to urban). Techniques of the Image Based Information System were utilized in all stages of the procedure, from logging the Landsat data and registering two frames of imagery, to extracting the changed areas and printing tabulations of land use change in acres. Two alternative methods of delineating land use change are presented while enumerating the steps of the entire process. The Houston, Texas urban area, and the Orlando, Florida urban area, are used as illustrative examples of various procedures.

Evaluating the Potential of Marginal Land for Cellulosic Feedstock Production and Carbon Sequestration in the United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Emery, Isaac; Mueller, Steffen; Qin, Zhangcai; Dunn, Jennifer B

2017-01-03

Land availability for growing feedstocks at scale is a crucial concern for the bioenergy industry. Feedstock production on land not well-suited to growing conventional crops, or marginal land, is often promoted as ideal, although there is a poor understanding of the qualities, quantity, and distribution of marginal lands in the United States. We examine the spatial distribution of land complying with several key marginal land definitions at the United States county, agro-ecological zone, and national scales, and compare the ability of both marginal land and land cover data sets to identify regions for feedstock production. We conclude that very few land parcels comply with multiple definitions of marginal land. Furthermore, to examine possible carbon-flow implications of feedstock production on land that could be considered marginal per multiple definitions, we model soil carbon changes upon transitions from marginal cropland, grassland, and cropland-pastureland to switchgrass production for three marginal land-rich counties. Our findings suggest that total soil organic carbon changes per county are small, and generally positive, and can influence life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of switchgrass ethanol.

77 FR 71344 - Texas: Final Authorization of State-initiated Changes and Incorporation by Reference of State...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-11-30

... adverse written comment on the codification of the Texas authorized RCRA program by the close of business... Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit...) introductory paragraph 40 CFR 270.42(a)(1) intro. 30 TAC 305.69(b)(1)(A), except for 40 CFR 270.42(a)(1)(i...

CSHCN in Texas: meeting the need for specialist care.

Science.gov (United States)

Young, M Cherilyn; Drayton, Vonna L C; Menon, Ramdas; Walker, Lesa R; Parker, Colleen M; Cooper, Sam B; Bultman, Linda L

2005-06-01

Assuring the sufficiency and suitability of systems of care and services for children with special health care needs (CSHCN) presents a challenge to Texas providers, agencies, and state Title V programs. To meet the need for specialist care, referrals from primary care doctors are often necessary. The objective of this study was to describe the factors associated with the need for specialist care and problems associated with obtaining referrals in Texas. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed using the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs (NS-CSHCN) weighted sample for Texas (n = 719,014) to identify variables associated with the need for specialist care and problems obtaining referrals for specialist care. Medical need of the CSHCN and sensitivity to family values/customs was associated with greater need for specialist care, and Hispanic ethnicity and lower maternal education were associated with less need. Medical need, amount of time spent with doctors and sensitivity to values/customs, living in a large metropolitan statistical area, and lack of medical information were associated with problems obtaining a specialist care referral. Findings revealed some similarities and differences with meeting the need for specialist care when comparing Texas results to other studies. In Texas, aspects of customer satisfaction variables, especially doctors' sensitivity to family values/customs and parents' not receiving enough information on medical problems, were significantly associated with problems obtaining specialist referrals. Findings indicate a need to further research relationships and communication among doctors, CSHCN, and their families.

Forests of east Texas, 2016

Science.gov (United States)

Kerry Dooley

2018-01-01

This resource update provides an overview of forest resources in east Texas based on an inventory conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program at the Southern Research Station (SRS) in cooperation with Texas A&M Forest Service. The 254 counties of Texas are consolidated into seven FIA survey units—Southeast (unit 1),...

Sylvatic trichinellosis in Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pence D.B.

2001-06-01

Full Text Available There are no published reports of domestic or sylvatic trichinellosis in Texas. The aim of the present survey was to determine the presence of Trichinella species in selected representative species of potential wildlife reservoirs in southern Texas. In 1998-99, tongues of 211 wild mammals were collected in southern Texas: 154 coyotes (Canis latrans, three bobcats (Lynx rufus, 32 racoons (Procyon lotor, 1 3 opossum (Didelphis marsupialis, four ocelots (Leopardus pardalis and five wild boars (Sus scrofa. Presence of Trichinella sp. larvae was investigated by artificial digestion and larvae of positive samples were identified at the species level by a multiple-polymerase chain reaction analysis. Nine (5.8 % coyotes had trichinellosis ; in the muscles of seven of these coyotes, the larvae were identified as Trichinella murrelli. This is the first report of sylvatic trichinellosis in Texas.

78 FR 8960 - Texas (Splenetic) Fever in Cattle

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-07

... microscopic parasites (Babesia) that cause bovine babesiosis. We are amending the list by clarifying that... cattle from areas of the United States that are quarantined because of ticks that are vectors for bovine... this section to indicate that the terms southern fever, cattle fever, Texas fever, bovine piroplasmosis...

Typhus in Texas

Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Podcasts

2017-07-06

Dr. Kristy Murray, an associate professor in pediatrics and assistant dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital, discusses increased cases of typhus in southern Texas.  Created: 7/6/2017 by National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID).   Date Released: 7/6/2017.

Prognostic framing of stakeholders' subjectivities: A case of all-terrain vehicle management on state public lands

Science.gov (United States)

Stanley T. Asah; David N. Bengston; Keith Wendt; Leif. DeVaney

2012-01-01

Management of all-terrain vehicle (ATV) use on Minnesota state forest lands has a contentious history and land managers are caught between ATV riders, nonmotorized recreationists, private landowners, and environmental advocates. In this paper, we demonstrate the usefulness of framing distinct perspectives about ATV management on Minnesota state public forests,...

76 FR 12283 - Texas: Final Authorization of State-initiated Changes and Incorporation by Reference of State...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-07

... written comment on the codification of the Texas authorized RCRA program by the close of business April 6.... 30 TAC 305.45(a)(8) intro.--(a)(8)(B).. 40 CFR 270.13(l) related. 30 TAC 305.50(a)(6) 40 CFR 270.17(b.... The Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the Small Business Regulatory...

Ecological Baseline, Fort Hood, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

1980-08-01

cedar eTm (Uiimus crassifolia), Texas ash (Fraxinus texansis), and Texas persimmon ( Diospyros texana). Conversely, the two predominant tree species...Ilex decidua), Mex- ican buckeye (Ungnadia spjeciosa), and Texas persimmon ( Diospyros texana). Vines included greenbrier (Smilax bona-nox) and white...Hedgehey Cactus (Echinocereus sp.) has been observed on Fort Hood. Due to the brief period of flowering for this genus , the individual species were not

Water supply and needs for West Texas

Science.gov (United States)

This presentation focused on the water supplies and needs of West Texas, Texas High Plains. Groundwater is the most commonly used water resources on the Texas High Plains, with withdrawals from the Ogallala Aquifer dominating. The saturation thickness of the Ogallala Aquifer in Texas is such that t...

Texas perpetual pavements : experience overview and the way forward.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

Since 2001, the State of Texas has been designing and constructing perpetual pavements on some of its heavily : trafficked highways where the expected 20-year truck-traffic estimate of 18 kip ESALs is in excess of 30 million. To : date, there are 10 ...

The state of digitisation of the land registry operations in Uganda ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The state of digitisation of the land registry operations in Uganda. ... establish the challenges and chart strategies to overcome the challenges faced by stakeholders. ... The authors recommend strengthening the management of both paper and ...

Land use and beach closure 2004-2013 in the United States

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — The dataset contains the beach closure data and land use information around each beach in 2006 and 2011 in the United States. The original data are created by EPA...

75 FR 21534 - Texas Regulatory Program

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-26

... improve operational efficiency. This document gives the times and locations that the Texas program and... during regular business hours at the following location: Surface Mining and Reclamation Division... locations listed above under ADDRESSES. Texas proposes to revise its regulation at 16 Texas Administrative...

Evaluation of Wind Energy Production in Texas using Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrer, L. M.

2017-12-01

Texas has the highest installed wind capacity in the United States. The purpose of this research was to estimate the theoretical wind turbine energy production and the utilization ratio of wind turbines in Texas. Windfarm data was combined applying Geographic Information System (GIS) methodology to create an updated GIS wind turbine database, including location and technical specifications. Applying GIS diverse tools, the windfarm data was spatially joined with National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) wind data to calculate the wind speed at each turbine hub. The power output for each turbine at the hub wind speed was evaluated by the GIS system according the respective turbine model power curve. In total over 11,700 turbines are installed in Texas with an estimated energy output of 60 GWh per year and an average utilization ratio of 0.32. This research indicates that applying GIS methodologies will be crucial in the growth of wind energy and efficiency in Texas.

The rise of neglected tropical diseases in the "new Texas".

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter J Hotez

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Within the last five years, the State of Texas has experienced either transmission or outbreaks of Ebola, chikungunya, West Nile, and Zika virus infections. Autochthonous transmission of neglected parasitic and bacterial diseases has also become increasingly reported. The rise of such emerging and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs has not occurred by accident but instead reflects rapidly evolving changes and shifts in a "new" Texas beset by modern and globalizing forces that include rapid expansions in population together with urbanization and human migrations, altered transportation patterns, climate change, steeply declining vaccination rates, and a new paradigm of poverty known as "blue marble health." Summarized here are the major NTDs now affecting Texas. In addition to the vector-borne viral diseases highlighted above, there also is a high level of parasitic infections, including Chagas disease, trichomoniasis, and possibly leishmaniasis and toxocariasis, as well as typhus-group rickettsiosis, a vector-borne bacterial infection. I also highlight some of the key shifts in emerging and neglected disease patterns, partly due to an altered and evolving economic and ecological landscape in the new Texas, and provide some preliminary disease burden estimates for the major prevalent and incident NTDs.

The rise of neglected tropical diseases in the "new Texas"

Science.gov (United States)

2018-01-01

Within the last five years, the State of Texas has experienced either transmission or outbreaks of Ebola, chikungunya, West Nile, and Zika virus infections. Autochthonous transmission of neglected parasitic and bacterial diseases has also become increasingly reported. The rise of such emerging and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) has not occurred by accident but instead reflects rapidly evolving changes and shifts in a “new” Texas beset by modern and globalizing forces that include rapid expansions in population together with urbanization and human migrations, altered transportation patterns, climate change, steeply declining vaccination rates, and a new paradigm of poverty known as “blue marble health.” Summarized here are the major NTDs now affecting Texas. In addition to the vector-borne viral diseases highlighted above, there also is a high level of parasitic infections, including Chagas disease, trichomoniasis, and possibly leishmaniasis and toxocariasis, as well as typhus-group rickettsiosis, a vector-borne bacterial infection. I also highlight some of the key shifts in emerging and neglected disease patterns, partly due to an altered and evolving economic and ecological landscape in the new Texas, and provide some preliminary disease burden estimates for the major prevalent and incident NTDs. PMID:29346369

76 FR 50708 - Texas Regulatory Program

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-16

..., renewals, and significant revisions. Texas intends to revise its program to improve operational efficiency. This document provides the times and locations that the Texas program and proposed amendments to that... business hours at the following location: Railroad Commission of Texas, 1701 North Congress Ave., Austin...

78 FR 11579 - Texas Regulatory Program

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-19

... Interest and Compliance Information (Underground Mining). Texas proposed to delete old language in Sec. 12.... Therefore, we approve Texas' deletion. Texas proposed to delete old language in Sec. 12.156 regarding the... proposed to add new language regarding certifying and updating existing permit information, permit...

The Smart Grid in Texas. An investigation for Dutch business opportunities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van Ooijen, A.; Van Gellecum, P.

2011-12-01

This paper discusses the smart grid industry in the state of Texas, USA. A market scan for Dutch business opportunities is made. Currently, over 8 million smart meters have been installed in 18 smart grid projects in Texas. Its business climate is perceived as friendly and has attracted a lot of investments from the industry and over USD 1 billion from government grants. The deployment of smart meters is done mandatory. With the massive rollout of smart meters Texas has laid a profound foundation of the smart grid infrastructure. Some smart grid projects are mainly focused on the roll-out of smart meters, while others are holistically focused on the reduction of electricity consumption and include the use of solar panels, wind turbines and electric vehicles. The most important opportunities for Dutch business are in the in-home display industry, technologies for safety and security, smart grid applications, consumer involvement, bridging the smart grid to the smart city, deployment knowledge within Texas, and future pilot possibilities. Implications are discussed.

Is the Texas Pecan Checkoff Program Working?

OpenAIRE

Moore, Eli D.; Williams, Gary W.

2008-01-01

The Texas Pecan Board was established in 1998 to administer the Texas Pecan Checkoff Program and is financed through a one-half cent per pound assessment on grower pecan sales. The Board spends the assessment collections on a variety of advertising campaigns in an attempt to expand demand for Texas pecans, both improved and native varieties, and increase the welfare of Texas pecan growers. This study presents an evaluation of the economic effectiveness of the Texas Pecan Checkoff Program in e...

Radiation emergency response in Illinois, Alabama, and Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Larsen, D.K.; Chester, R.O.

1978-03-01

The objective of this study was to examine state radiation emergency response and to locate any areas of emergency planning in need of improvement. This report briefly presents a summary of laws and defining documents governing radiation emergency response, describes the existing and projected need for such response, and presents the authors' analyses of the evolution of state response plans and their application to radiation incidents. Three states' programs are discussed in detail: Illinois, Alabama, and Texas. These states were selected because they have quite different emergency-response programs. Therefore, these state programs provide a wide variety of approaches to state radiation emergency response

Public perceptions and information gaps in solar energy in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Rai, Varun; Beck, Ariane L.

2015-07-01

Studying the behavioral aspects of the individual decision-making process is important in identifying and addressing barriers in the adoption of residential solar photovoltaic (PV). However, there is little systematic research focusing on these aspects of residential PV in Texas, an important, large, populous state, with a range of challenges in the electricity sector including increasing demand, shrinking reserve margins, constrained water supply, and challenging emissions reduction targets under proposed federal regulations. This paper aims to address this gap through an empirical investigation of a new survey-based dataset collected in Texas on solar energy perceptions and behavior. The results of this analysis offer insights into the perceptions and motivations influencing intentions and behavior toward solar energy in a relatively untapped market and help identify information gaps that could be targeted to alleviate key barriers to adopting solar, thereby enabling significant emissions reductions in the residential sector in Texas.

77 FR 18738 - Texas Regulatory Program

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-28

... improve operational efficiency. This document gives the times and locations that the Texas program and... location: Surface Mining and Reclamation Division, Railroad Commission of Texas, 1701 North Congress Avenue... available for you to read at the locations listed above under ADDRESSES. Texas proposes to revise its...

State workshop on shallow land burial and alternative disposal concepts: proceedings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-10-01

Three of the major conclusions reached by state participants were the following: (1) Significant data gaps and information needs have to be addressed before timely state decisionmaking can be accomplished. State participants felt a generic cost/risk/benefit analysis for all viable alternatives would be useful and might best be performed by the federal government on behalf of the states. (2) Recognizing the imprecision in summarizing overall attitudes of the workshop participants, alternative disposal concepts that appear to be the most favorably perceived when rank ordered by critical factors are augered holes with liners, belowground vaults, earth mounded concrete bunkers, aboveground vaults and mined cavities. (3) The public appears to place greater confidence in disposal methods that incorporate man-made engineered barriers because of some past problems at closed shallow land burial facilities. Concern was expressed by workshop participants that the public may not consider the perceived risks associated with shallow land burial to be acceptable. In addition to the four 10 CFR Part 61, Subpart C performance objectives, public acceptance of risk was considered to be a critical factor by state officials in selecting a disposal technology. The states should take the lead in pursuing development-oriented analyses, such as detailed concept engineering and economic feasibility studies. It is not within the purview of NRC responsibility to undertake such studies

27 CFR 9.155 - Texas Davis Mountains.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

...) “Fort Davis, Texas,” 1985. (2) “Mount Livermore, Texas—Chihuahua,” 1985. (c) Boundary. The Texas Davis... follows Highway 166 in a southwesterly direction onto the Mt. Livermore, Texas-Chihuahua, U.S.G.S. map; (6... Grapevine Canyon on the Mt. Livermore, Texas-Chihuahua, U.S.G.S. map; (14) The boundary then proceeds in a...

A Braille Interface to the Texas Instruments SR-52 Programmable Calculator.

Science.gov (United States)

1976-09-21

F / _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ AD—A039 US PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIV JNIVtRSITY PARK APPLIED RESE——ETc F/G 9/2 * BRAILLE INTERFACE to PC TEXAS...UNCLASSiFIED A BRAILLE INTERFACE TO THE TEXAS INSTRUMENTS SR-52 PR0CRA)*~ABLE CALCULATOR C. P~ JANOTA Technical Memorandum D D C File No. TM 76-244 i...SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES ~~~~ ~ 15. KEY WORDS (ConUnti. on ,.v.ra• .Id. If nøc....ry and td~n t tf y by block ntanb.r) AIDS TO HANDICAPPED BRAILLE INTERFACE

Loss of feedwater heater analysis for the South Texas Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joyce, K.C.; Johnson, M.R.; Albury, C.R.

1987-01-01

The results of the steady state and transient analyses of the low pressure feedwater heater train for the South Texas Nuclear Project are presented. The South Texas Project consists of two 1250 MW Westinghouse PWR units. This analysis was performed using the Modular Modeling System (MMS) simulation code. The model presented will be incorporated into the secondary side model in support of the plant training simulator and the analysis of secondary side transients. Results of this analysis are considered preliminary until benchmarked against actual plant data. A model description of the feedwater heater train from the condensate pumps to the deaerator is presented. The methodology used to develop the model is also discussed. Results of the steady state run are presented, and a transient, the loss of extraction steam to feedwater heater 15A, is examined

76 FR 61249 - Oranges and Grapefruit Grown in Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas; Increased Assessment Rate

Science.gov (United States)

2011-10-04

... industry profile shows that 6 of the 12 handlers (50 percent) would be considered large businesses under... independent evaluation of the effectiveness of their generic promotion program, which is now commonly known as... State of Texas' budget, the Texas Department of Agriculture requested the citrus industry's assistance...

Assessment of emerging contaminants including organophosphate esters and pyrethroids during DISCOVER-AQ in Houston, Texas, United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Usenko, Sascha; Clark, Addie; Sheesley, Rebecca

2015-04-01

DISCOVER-AQ (Deriving Information on Surface conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality) is a NASA-funded air quality research program that focused on Houston, Texas, United States in September 2013. In conjunction with DISCOVER-AQ, particulate matter was collected for the month of September from four ground-based sampling sites across the Houston metropolitan area. The Houston metropolitan area is one of the most populous cities in the United States. Sampling sites included an upwind and downwind site as well as an urban (i.e. downtown) and industrial/port areas (i.e. Houston Ship Channel). Particulate matter samples were collected to examine both spatial and temporal trends (including day versus night). Particulate matter was collected on quartz fiber filters, which were analyzed for emerging classes of concern including organophosphate esters (OPEs; including flame retardants) and pyrethroids. OPEs have in recent years increased in both use and production as they replaced polybrominated diphenyl ethers flame retardants. Permethrin is one of the most commonly used mosquito adulticides in the United States.

Quantifying the purchasing power of public transportation in Texas : technical report.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

Investments in public transportation in Texas contribute to the state and local economy by improving : transportation options, which in turn creates benefits for individuals, businesses, and governments. Many : different agencies provide public trans...

Use of trees by the Texas ratsnake (Elaphe obsoleta) in eastern Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Josh B. Pierce; Robert R. Fleet; Lance McBrayer; D. Craig Rudolph

2008-01-01

We present information on the use of trees by Elaphe obsoleta (Texas Ratsnake) in a mesic pine-hardwood forest in eastern Texas. Using radiotelemetry, seven snakes (3 females, 4 males) were relocated a total of 363 times from April 2004 to May 2005, resulting in 201 unique locations. Snakes selected trees containing cavities and used hardwoods and...

Educator Sexual Misconduct and Texas Educator Discipline Database Construction.

Science.gov (United States)

Robert, Catherine E; Thompson, David P

2018-05-24

The purpose of this research is to describe Texas educator sexual misconduct (ESM) by examining 8 years of sanctions issued to educators (N = 1415) for either sexual misconduct or inappropriate relationships with students or minors. We first examine Texas ESM from the perspective of quality database construction and then describe the demographic characteristics of educators sanctioned for ESM between 2008 and 2016. Differences in the demographic characteristics of educators sanctioned for ESM vary according to the definition of ESM employed by the state education agency. Younger and early career educators are more likely to engage in inappropriate relationships with students or minors, whereas older and later-career teachers are more likely to engage in sexual misconduct as that term is defined by the state education agency. Over one-third of educators sanctioned for ESM were either new to the profession or new to their school district when sanctioned. Recommendations are offered for database construction, policy, and practice.

Bm86 midgut protein sequence variation in South Texas cattle fever ticks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kammlah Diane M

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Cattle fever ticks, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus microplus and R. (B. annulatus, vector bovine and equine babesiosis, and have significantly expanded beyond the permanent quarantine zone established in South Texas. Currently, there are no vaccines approved for use within the United States for controlling these vectors. Vaccines developed in Australia and Cuba based on the midgut antigen Bm86 have variable efficacy against cattle fever ticks. A possible explanation for this variation in vaccine efficacy is amino acid sequence divergence between the recombinant Bm86 vaccine component and native Bm86 expressed in ticks from different geographical regions of the world. Results There was 91.8% amino acid sequence identity in Bm86 among R. microplus and R. annulatus sequenced from South Texas infestations. When South Texas isolates were compared to the Australian Yeerongpilly and Cuban Camcord vaccine strains, there was 89.8% and 90.0% identity, respectively. Most of the sequence divergence was focused in one region of the protein, amino acids 206-298. Hydrophilicity profiles revealed that two short regions of Bm86 (amino acids 206-210 and 560-570 appear to be more hydrophilic in South Texas isolates compared to vaccine strains. Only one amino acid difference was found between South Texas and vaccine strains within two previously described B-cell epitopes. A total of 4 amino acid differences were observed within three peptides previously shown to induce protective immune responses in cattle. Conclusions Sequence differences between South Texas isolates and Yeerongpilly and Camcord strains are spread throughout the entire Bm86 sequence, suggesting that geographic variation does exist. Differences within previously described B-cell epitopes between South Texas isolates and vaccine strains are minimal; however, short regions of hydrophilic amino acids found unique to South Texas isolates suggest that additional unique surface exposed

Texas pavement preservation center four-year summary report.

Science.gov (United States)

2009-07-04

The Texas Pavement Preservation Center (TPPC), in joint collaboration with the Center for Transportation Research (CTR) of the University of Texas at Austin and the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) of Texas A&M University, promotes the use of pav...

Environmental considerations. Environmental impacts of uranium mining in South Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kallus, M.F.

1977-01-01

Recent investigations of uranium mining and milling activities in the Grants Mineral Belt of New Mexico revealed serious environmental problems associated with these activities. An investigation was undertaken in the South Texas Uranium Belt to determine whether or not similar or other environmental problems existed. The study describes: (1) the history of uranium mining and milling in South Texas, (2) the area economy and demography, (3) the occurrence of uranium ore and (4) the regulatory aspects of uranium mining and milling in South Texas. The commercial recovery and processing of uranium in this area is described in some detail. Exploration, open pit mining, in-situ solution mining and processing techniques for ''yellowcake'' (U 3 O 8 ), the uranium product of the area, are discussed. The state and federal regulations pertinent to uranium mining and milling are summarized. Finally, the environmental effects of these activities are discussed and conclusions and recommendations are drawn

Challenges and Lessons Learned in Low-Level Radioactive Waste Management and Disposal in the Texas Compact

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jablonski, S.M.

2009-01-01

This paper discusses challenges and lessons learned in approaching the management and disposal of commercial low-level radioactive waste in the Texas Compact. The State of Texas has actively worked decades to address radioactive waste management and disposal issues. The current strides made in Texas on the radioactive waste management front have benefited from unique attributes that help support a public policy foundation. The public policy of radioactive waste management, specifically low-level radioactive waste disposal, has been evolving in Texas for more than twenty years. The policy today is a product of past events and lessons learned. In many ways, public policy on radioactive waste disposal has come full circle. A purely scientific approach to radioactive waste management has not been the solution. Radioactive waste management public policy does not solely rely on technical expertise or state of the best technology. Sound science is simply not enough. Innovation in this case is largely people-based, focused on new ways to communicate and new opportunities to deliver a message of safe and effective radioactive waste management. (authors)

Geology and geohydrology of the Palo Duro Basin, Texas Panhandle. A report on the progress of nuclear isolation feasibility studies, 1980. Annual report, October 1, 1979-September 30, 1980

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gustavson, T.C.; Bassett, R.L.; Finley, R.J.

1981-01-01

Since early 1977, the Bureau of Economic Geology has been evaluating several salt-bearing basins within the State of Texas as part of the national nuclear repository program. The Bureau, a research unit of the University of Texas and the State of Texas, is conducting a long-term program to gather and interpret all geologic and hydrologic information necessary for description, delineation, and evaluation of salt-bearing and related strata in the Palo Duro and Dalhart Basins of the Texas Panhandle. The program in FY 1980 was divided into five broad research tasks, which were addressed by a surficial analysis and shallow stratigraphy group, a hydrology and geochemistry group, a basin analysis group, a host-rock analysis group, and a seismicity and tectonic environment group. The surficial analysis and shallow stratigraphy group has collected remotely sensed, surface and subsurface data to describe land resources, surface processes, and rates and styles of geomorphic development. The hydrology and geochemistry group has continued analysis of shallow and deep fluid circulation within the basins and has initiated studies of rock and fluid geochemistry within the salt-bearing units. The basin analysis group has characterized the major salt-bearing stratigraphic units within the basins and has assessed the potential for generating and trapping hydrocarbons within the basins. Concurrently, the host-rock analysis group has continued a study of cores from two drilling sites for analysis of salt and other lithologic units within the cores. The newly formed seismicity and tectonic environment group has initiated studies of deep-basement structure and tetonic development of the basin and has made an analysis of surface fracture systems. This paper, a summary of progress during FY 1980, presents principal conclusions and reviews methods used and types of data and maps generated

Alternative method to validate the seasonal land cover regions of the conterminous United States

Science.gov (United States)

Zhiliang Zhu; Donald O. Ohlen; Raymond L. Czaplewski; Robert E. Burgan

1996-01-01

An accuracy assessment method involving double sampling and the multivariate composite estimator has been used to validate the prototype seasonal land cover characteristics database of the conterminous United States. The database consists of 159 land cover classes, classified using time series of 1990 1-km satellite data and augmented with ancillary data including...

Escaping social-ecological traps through tribal stewardship on national forest lands in the Pacific Northwest, United States of America

Science.gov (United States)

Jonathan W. Long; Frank K. Lake

2018-01-01

Tribal communities in the Pacific Northwest of the United States of America (USA) have long-standing relationships to ancestral lands now managed by federal land management agencies. In recent decades, federal and state governments have increasingly recognized tribal rights to resources on public lands and to participate in their management. In support of a new...

Phosphine Exposure Among Emergency Responders - Amarillo, Texas, January 2017.

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Emily M; Patel, Ketki; Victory, Kerton R; Calvert, Geoffrey M; Nogueira, Leticia M; Bojes, Heidi K

2018-04-06

Phosphine is a highly toxic gas that forms when aluminum phosphide, a restricted-use pesticide* typically used in agricultural settings, reacts with water. Acute exposure can lead to a wide range of respiratory, cardiovascular, and gastrointestinal symptoms, and can be fatal (1). On January 2, 2017, the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) was notified by the Texas Panhandle Poison Center of an acute phosphine exposure incident in Amarillo, Texas. DSHS investigated potential occupational phosphine exposures among the 51 on-scene emergency responders; 40 (78.4%) did not use respiratory protection during response operations. Fifteen (37.5%) of these 40 responders received medical care for symptoms or as a precaution after the incident, and seven (17.5%) reported new or worsening symptoms consistent with phosphine exposure within 24 hours of the incident. Emergency response organizations should ensure that appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) is used during all incidents when an unknown hazardous substance is suspected. Additional evaluation is needed to identify targeted interventions that increase emergency responder PPE use during this type of incident.

Report on the lands of the arid region of the United States with a more detailed account of the land of Utah with maps

Science.gov (United States)

Powell, John Wesley

1879-01-01

A report from Maj. J. W.Powell, geologist in charge of the United States Geographical and Geological Survey of the Rocky Mountain Region, upon the lands of the Arid Region of the United States, setting forth the extent of said region, and making suggestions as to the conditions under which the lands embraced within its limit may be rendered available for agricultural and grazing purposes. With the report is transmitted a statement of the rainfall of the western portion of the United States, with reports upon the subject of irrigation by Capt. C. E. Button, U. S. A., Prof. A. H. Thompson, and Mr. G. K. Gilbert.

Equity evaluation of vehicle miles traveled fees in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-01

The Texas state gas tax has been 20.0 cents per gallon since 1991, and the federal gas tax has been 18.4 : cents per gallon since 1993. The gas tax is not only stagnant, but depreciating in value due to inflation. : One proposed alternative to the ga...

Clinician Survey to Determine Knowledge of Dengue and Clinical Management Practices, Texas, 2014.

Science.gov (United States)

Adam, Jessica K; Abeyta, Roman; Smith, Brian; Gaul, Linda; Thomas, Dana L; Han, George; Sharp, Tyler M; Waterman, Stephen H; Tomashek, Kay M

2017-03-01

AbstractDengue, a mosquito-borne viral disease, is increasingly being identified as a cause of outbreaks in the United States. During July-December 2013, a total of three south Texas counties reported 53 laboratory-confirmed dengue cases; 26 were locally acquired, constituting the largest outbreak in Texas since 2005. Because dengue outbreaks are expected to continue in south Texas and early case identification and timely treatment can reduce mortality, we sought to determine clinicians' knowledge of dengue and its clinical management. A survey was sent to 2,375 south Texas clinicians; 217 (9%) completed the survey. Approximately half of participants demonstrated knowledge needed to identify dengue cases, including symptoms (56%), early indicators of shock (54%), or timing of thrombocytopenia (48%). Fewer than 20% correctly identified all prevention messages, severe dengue warning signs, or circumstances in which a dengue patient should return for care. Knowledge of clinical management was limited; few participants correctly identified scenarios when plasma leakage occurred (10%) or a crystalloid solution was indicated (7%); however, 45% correctly identified when a blood transfusion was indicated. Because of the ongoing threat of dengue, we recommend clinicians in south Texas receive dengue clinical management training.

Clinician Survey to Determine Knowledge of Dengue and Clinical Management Practices, Texas, 2014

Science.gov (United States)

Adam, Jessica K.; Abeyta, Roman; Smith, Brian; Gaul, Linda; Thomas, Dana L.; Han, George; Sharp, Tyler M.; Waterman, Stephen H.; Tomashek, Kay M.

2017-01-01

Dengue, a mosquito-borne viral disease, is increasingly being identified as a cause of outbreaks in the United States. During July–December 2013, a total of three south Texas counties reported 53 laboratory-confirmed dengue cases; 26 were locally acquired, constituting the largest outbreak in Texas since 2005. Because dengue outbreaks are expected to continue in south Texas and early case identification and timely treatment can reduce mortality, we sought to determine clinicians' knowledge of dengue and its clinical management. A survey was sent to 2,375 south Texas clinicians; 217 (9%) completed the survey. Approximately half of participants demonstrated knowledge needed to identify dengue cases, including symptoms (56%), early indicators of shock (54%), or timing of thrombocytopenia (48%). Fewer than 20% correctly identified all prevention messages, severe dengue warning signs, or circumstances in which a dengue patient should return for care. Knowledge of clinical management was limited; few participants correctly identified scenarios when plasma leakage occurred (10%) or a crystalloid solution was indicated (7%); however, 45% correctly identified when a blood transfusion was indicated. Because of the ongoing threat of dengue, we recommend clinicians in south Texas receive dengue clinical management training. PMID:28138048

78 FR 27342 - Radio Broadcasting Services; Moran, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

2013-05-10

... Broadcasting Services; Moran, Texas AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission. ACTION: Proposed rule. SUMMARY... service at Moran, Texas. Channel 281A can be allotted at Moran, Texas, in compliance with the Commission's... parties should serve petitioner as follows: Katherine Pyeatt, 215 Cedar Springs Rd., 1605, Dallas, Texas...

Land Degradation States and Trends in the Northwestern Maghreb Drylands, 1998–2008

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriel del Barrio

2016-07-01

Full Text Available States of ecological maturity and temporal trends of drylands in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia north of 28°N are reported for 1998–2008. The input data were Normalized Difference Vegetation Index databases and corresponding climate fields, at a spatial resolution of 1 km and a temporal resolution of one month. States convey opposing dynamics of human exploitation and ecological succession. They were identified synchronically for the full period by comparing each location to all other locations in the study area under equivalent aridity. Rain Use Efficiency (RUE at two temporal scales was used to estimate proxies for biomass and turnover rate. Biomass trends were determined for every location by stepwise regression using time and aridity as predictors. This enabled human-induced degradation to be separated from simple responses to interannual climate variation. Some relevant findings include large areas of degraded land, albeit improving over time or fluctuating with climate, but rarely degrading further; smaller, but significant areas of mature and reference vegetation in most climate zones; very low overall active degradation rates throughout the area during the decade observed; biomass accumulation over time exceeding depletion in most zones; and negative feedback between land states and trends suggesting overall landscape persistence. Semiarid zones were found to be the most vulnerable. Those results can be disaggregated by country or province. The combination with existing land cover maps and national forest inventories leads to the information required by the two progress indicators associated with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification strategic objective to improve the conditions of ecosystems and with the Sustainable Development Goal Target 15.3 to achieve land degradation neutrality. Beyond that, the results are also useful as a basis for land management and restoration.

Land Mobility in a Central and Eastern European Land Consolidation Context

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartvigsen, Morten B.

2014-01-01

in a Central and Eastern European land consolidation context. The term land mobility is defined and the limited theory available is reviewed. Case studies of land mobility in land consolidation pilot projects in Moldova, Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina show the correlation between land mobility and the success......In most of the Central and Eastern European countries, land reforms after 1989 have resulted in extensive land fragmentation. The majority of the countries have during the two recent decades introduced land consolidation instruments to address the structural problems with land fragmentation...... or failure of voluntary land consolidation projects. In situations with low land mobility, land consolidation instruments need in order to be successful to be supported by other land policy tools such as land banks. The use of existing state agricultural land is an obvious foundation for establishing a state...

State-dependent errors in a land surface model across biomes inferred from eddy covariance observations on multiple timescales

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wang, T.; Brender, P.; Ciais, P.; Piao, S.; Mahecha, M.D.; Chevallier, F.; Reichstein, M.; Ottle, C.; Maignan, F.; Arain, A.; Bohrer, G.; Cescatti, A.; Kiely, G.; Law, B.E.; Lutz, M.; Montagnani, L.; Moors, E.J.

2012-01-01

Characterization of state-dependent model biases in land surface models can highlight model deficiencies, and provide new insights into model development. In this study, artificial neural networks (ANNs) are used to estimate the state-dependent biases of a land surface model (ORCHIDEE: ORganising

Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) and Race: A Report of ECT Use and Sociodemographic Trends in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Julie; Chiu, Lawrence; Livingston, Robin

2017-06-01

Minimal research on race and other sociodemographic disparities in patients receiving electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) exists. One previously noted national trend reveals whites receiving ECT disproportionately more than other races. The aim of this study is to determine whether a county ECT program demonstrates similar disparities observed at the state and national levels. This study examined 21 years of ECT data, between 1993 and 2014, provided by the Texas Department of State Health Services, focusing on race, sex, age, and payer source and 2.5 years of the same variables from a Harris County hospital ECT program. In addition, population demographic data for Harris County and the state of Texas during the same period were obtained from the Department of State Health Services Web site. Despite an overall decrease in the population of whites countywide and statewide, whites continue to use more ECT than African Americans, Latinos, and Asians in both Harris County and Texas. However, the rates of ECT use in minorities increased overall. Both countywide and statewide, ECT was used more than twice as often in women than men. Statewide, elderly patients (>65 years old) saw decreases in ECT use, and there was an increase in private third-party payer source. Electroconvulsive therapy remains underused among African Americans, Latinos, and Asians. Hypotheses and areas for future study include cultural beliefs, stigma, patient and provider knowledge of ECT, and access to care. Despite this, the general use of ECT in Texas has increased overall, and minority use is slowly on the rise.

Public School Finance Problems in Texas. An Interim Report.

Science.gov (United States)

Texas Research League, Austin.

The U.S. District Court ruling in Rodriguez vs San Antonio Independent School District, which struck down Texas' school finance system as inequitable and unconstitutional, provided the impetus for publishing this interim report. The report documents the growing cost of State-supported public school programs--the primary concern prior to the…

Energy developments and the transportation infrastructure in Texas : impacts and strategies.

Science.gov (United States)

2012-03-01

In recent years, Texas has experienced a boom in energy-related activities, particularly in wind power : generation and extraction of oil and natural gas. While energy developments contribute to enhance the : states ability to produce energy relia...

Estimation of livestock appropriation of net primary productivity in Texas Drylands

Science.gov (United States)

Robert Washington-Allen; Jody Fitzgerald; Stephanie Grounds; Faisar Jihadi; John Kretzschmar; Kathryn Ramirez; John Mitchell

2009-01-01

The ecological state of US Drylands is unknown. This research is developing procedures to determine the impact of the ecological footprint of grazing livestock on the productive capacity of US Drylands. A pilot geodatabase was developed for the state of Texas that includes 2002 data for county boundaries, net primary productivity (NPP) derived from the Moderate...

The Texas low-level waste compact: Classification and semantic problems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

LeMone, D.V.

1995-01-01

The disposal of low-level radioactive wastes for the State of Texas, as well as the participating compact states of Maine and Vermont, will require a stable classification scheme and a mutually acceptable series of definitions for the orderly planning, development, emplacement, and closure of the proposed Texas low-level site. Under the currently utilized system of classification, low-level radioactive wastes are usually segregated under six basic classes. These classes are: Class A, Class B, Class C, NARM, NORM, and Mixed Low-Level Waste. These wastes originate from two primary sources: utility generators and non-utility generators (medical/industrial/university). The Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Site currently will not accept either Greater Than Class C (GTCC) waste or Transuranic (TRU) waste (exceeding 370 Bq/g (10 nCi/g)), thereby establishing the upper limits for disposal. One basic problem for all low-level entities is the national classification scheme. There is no currently defined lower limit for radioactive wastes. This standard is essential and must be addressed in order to effectively project future waste streams. Semantic problems include the rendering of precise definitions for such common words as processing, recycling, generation, etc.; they are not necessarily defined or used in the same sense between generators or states. Consistency in terminology is an absolute essential for adequate nuclear waste management. Other problems that must be addressed include such areas as: types of beneficiation of waste (supercompaction and incineration versus untreated waste), validation of point of origin, consistent and easily recognizable labeling that includes an inventory, transport tracking, and package standards

General Land Office_GLO_Vegetation from the Years 1832 to 1859 of the State of Iowa

Data.gov (United States)

Iowa State University GIS Support and Research Facility — The Goverment Land Office (GLO) conducted the orginal public land survey of Iowa during the period 1832 to 1859. Deputy Surveyors and their assistants produced both...

76 FR 13209 - United States and State of Texas v. United Regional Health Care System; Proposed Final Judgment...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-10

... of Texas v. United Regional Health Care System, Civil Action No. 7:11-cv- 00030-O. On February 25..., ambulatory surgery center or radiology center in [a] 15 mile radius of United Regional Health Care System... 95% of billed charges for all inpatient and outpatient services at United Regional Health Care System...

9 CFR 72.5 - Area quarantined in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... 9 Animals and Animal Products 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Area quarantined in Texas. 72.5... AGRICULTURE INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION OF ANIMALS (INCLUDING POULTRY) AND ANIMAL PRODUCTS TEXAS (SPLENETIC) FEVER IN CATTLE § 72.5 Area quarantined in Texas. The area quarantined in Texas is the quarantined area...

Technical Training seminar: Texas Instruments

CERN Multimedia

2006-01-01

Monday 6 November TECHNICAL TRAINING SEMINAR 14:00 to 17:30 - Training Centre Auditorium (bldg. 593) Texas Instruments Technical Seminar Michael Scholtholt, Field Application Engineer / TEXAS INSTRUMENTS (US, D, CH) POWER - A short approach to Texas Instruments power products Voltage mode vs. current mode control Differentiating DC/DC converters by analyzing control and compensation schemes: line / load regulation, transient response, BOM, board space, ease-of-use Introduction to the SWIFT software FPGA + CPLD power solutions WIRELESS / CHIPCON Decision criteria when choosing a RF platform Introduction to Texas Instruments wireless products: standardized platforms proprietary platforms ( 2.4 GHz / sub 1 GHz) development tools Antenna design: example for 2.4 GHz questions, discussion Industrial partners: Robert Medioni, François Caloz / Spoerle Electronic, CH-1440 Montagny (VD), Switzerland Phone: +41 24 447 0137, email: RMedioni@spoerle.com, http://www.spoerle.com Language: English. Free s...

The ways to improve state regulation of land turnover which are in a government and municipal property in Ukraine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. A. Serdyuk

2016-09-01

Full Text Available After comprehensive scientific exploration the ways of improvement of state regulation of land turnover which are in a government and state municipal property in Ukraine have been identified. Also it was proposed and justified the conceptual bases of strategy in development of state regulation. As a result of scientific exploration the directions of improvement of organizational mechanism have been formed also and wich a viev to improve legal mechanism of state regulation of land turnover it was suggested the modern approach of it. The main problem that constrains mechanical development of state regulation is non-compliance with legal principles, corruption and low motivation of officials. Approach to improvement is necessity of strategic development by the way of compliance law principles, realization of identified steps in development, using the practice of international regulation in land turnover. Strategic goals are in improvement of procedure of land turnover in public property by the way of advance mechanisms of state regulation; in a finding of effective approaches to improvement components of the legal mechanism; to produce and to offer propositions about development of components legal mechanism; to create clear and understandable procedure of land turnover for all participants in relationships in accordance with European legal traditions etc.Scenario of development that was elected is strategic and directed to solve the problems, perfection of economic, organizational and legal mechanisms of land turnover and also system development. But there are some risks that can interfere realization of strategic priorities. They are in outside threat, political instability, the economic downturn and corruption. We have chosen the next evaluation criteria: the level of investment attractiveness; the level of perception corruption in the society; the level of rating and satisfying quality of in land turnover process by the market participants with

Benefits of public roadside safety rest areas in Texas : technical report.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-05-01

The objective of this investigation was to develop a benefit-cost analysis methodology for safety rest areas in : Texas and to demonstrate its application in select corridors throughout the state. In addition, this project : considered novel safety r...

Fine Resolution Probabilistic Land Cover Classification of Landscapes in the Southeastern United States

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joseph St. Peter

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Land cover classification provides valuable information for prioritizing management and conservation operations across large landscapes. Current regional scale land cover geospatial products within the United States have a spatial resolution that is too coarse to provide the necessary information for operations at the local and project scales. This paper describes a methodology that uses recent advances in spatial analysis software to create a land cover classification over a large region in the southeastern United States at a fine (1 m spatial resolution. This methodology used image texture metrics and principle components derived from National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP aerial photographic imagery, visually classified locations, and a softmax neural network model. The model efficiently produced classification surfaces at 1 m resolution across roughly 11.6 million hectares (28.8 million acres with less than 10% average error in modeled probability. The classification surfaces consist of probability estimates of 13 visually distinct classes for each 1 m cell across the study area. This methodology and the tools used in this study constitute a highly flexible fine resolution land cover classification that can be applied across large extents using standard computer hardware, common and open source software and publicly available imagery.

Ecohydrological Responses to Hurricane Harvey across South-Central Texas a Multidisciplinary Approach of the Texas Water Observatory

Science.gov (United States)

Jaimes, A.; Gaur, N.; Aparecido, L. M. T.; Everett, M. E.; Knappett, P.; Lawing, M.; Majumder, S.; Miller, G. R.; Moore, G. W.; Morgan, C.; Mitra, B.; Noormets, A.; Mohanty, B.

2017-12-01

The unprecedented destructive hurricane Harvey struck eastern Texas from August 25th to 29th, 2017. As the hurricane moved through the region, it dropped the equivalent of one year of precipitation within a five-day period, with peak accumulations near 165 cm. Rainfall intensity and distribution varied across the region but Harris County and portions of the lower Brazos River Basin experienced devastating flooding due to high run-off and water accumulation in the built-up area. In this study, we use a multidisciplinary approach to quantify the dynamics of carbon and water flux at different spatiotemporal resolution across land types both in and outside of the path of hurricane Harvey using a combination of remote sensing and fixed monitoring platforms of the Texas Water Observatory (TWO). We used LANDSAT imagery to compute Soil Adjusted Vegetation Index, Enhanced Vegetation Index, and Normalized Difference Moisture Index. MODIS ET, GPP, and sap flow data were used in combination with eddy covariance and meteorological data from seven sites of the TWO representative of biomes ranging from low tidal salt marsh of the Gulf Coastal Plain, Shrubland, Improved Pasture, Mixed and Native Prairies, and Crop sites. We hypothesize alteration in ecohydrological characteristics across land types, which were in the path of hurricane due to changes in vegetation structure. Specifically we used trend analysis to detect structural changes in temporal dynamics of sap flow, ET, and carbon to pulse response. In addition, we monitored trace metal concentration of soil and water pores before and immediately after the hurricane in order to predict the potential of any of the toxic metal (loid)s being mobilized in the natural water resources as a function of the changes in the redox gradient. Preliminary results indicated that tree water use was reduced on average 30% below normal days. Porewater concentration of some of the metal (loid) concentration increased (Fe, Mn, Co, As, Sb, Pb

Coal Fields and Federal Lands of the Conterminous United States

Science.gov (United States)

Biewick, Laura

1997-01-01

The map depicts the relationship of coal and public lands in the conterminous U. S. Multiple GIS layers are being created for the purpose of deriving estimates of how much coal is owned and administered by the Federal government. Federal coal areas have a profound effect on land-management decisions. Regulatory agencies attempt to balance energy development with alternative land-use and environmental concerns. A GIS database of Federal lands used in energy resource assessments is being developed by the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) in cooperation with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to integrate information on status of public land, and minerals owned by the Federal government with geologic information on coal resources, other spatial data, coal quality characteristics, and coal availability for development. Using national-scale data we estimate that approximately 60 percent of the area underlain by coal-bearing rocks in the conterminous United States are under Federal surface. Coal produced from Federal leases has tripled from about 12 percent of the total U.S. production in 1976 to almost 34 percent in 1995 (Energy Information Administration website ftp://ftp.eia.doe.gov/pub/coal/cia_95_tables/t13p01.txt). The reason for this increase is demand for low-sulfur coal for use in power plants and the fact that large reserves of this low-sulfur coal are in the western interior U.S., where the Federal government owns the rights to most of the coal reserves. The map was created using Arc/Info 7.0.3 on a UNIX system. The HPGL2 plot file for this map is available from the USGS Energy Resource Surveys Team from http://energy.cr.usgs.gov:8080/energy/coal.html.

Where Do Freestanding Emergency Departments Choose to Locate? A National Inventory and Geographic Analysis in Three States.

Science.gov (United States)

Schuur, Jeremiah D; Baker, Olesya; Freshman, Jaclyn; Wilson, Michael; Cutler, David M

2017-04-01

We determine the number and location of freestanding emergency departments (EDs) across the United States and determine the population characteristics of areas where freestanding EDs are located. We conducted a systematic inventory of US freestanding EDs. For the 3 states with the highest number of freestanding EDs, we linked demographic, insurance, and health services data, using the 5-digit ZIP code corresponding to the freestanding ED's location. To create a comparison nonfreestanding ED group, we matched 187 freestanding EDs to 1,048 nonfreestanding ED ZIP codes on land and population within state. We compared differences in demographic, insurance, and health services factors between matched ZIP codes with and without freestanding EDs, using univariate regressions with weights. We identified 360 freestanding EDs located in 30 states; 54.2% of freestanding EDs were hospital satellites, 36.6% were independent, and 9.2% were not classifiable. The 3 states with the highest number of freestanding EDs accounted for 66% of all freestanding EDs: Texas (181), Ohio (34), and Colorado (24). Across all 3 states, freestanding EDs were located in ZIP codes that had higher incomes and a lower proportion of the population with Medicaid. In Texas and Ohio, freestanding EDs were located in ZIP codes with a higher proportion of the population with private insurance. In Texas, freestanding EDs were located in ZIP codes that had fewer Hispanics, had a greater number of hospital-based EDs and physician offices, and had more physician visits and medical spending per year than ZIP codes without a freestanding ED. In Ohio, freestanding EDs were located in ZIP codes with fewer hospital-based EDs. In Texas, Ohio, and Colorado, freestanding EDs were located in areas with a better payer mix. The location of freestanding EDs in relation to other health care facilities and use and spending on health care varied between states. Copyright © 2016 American College of Emergency Physicians

Texas Teacher Evaluation & Support System (T-TESS) Appraiser Handbook

Science.gov (United States)

Texas Education Agency, 2016

2016-01-01

The Texas Education Agency's (TEA) approved instrument for evaluating teachers, the Professional Development and Appraisal System (PDAS), was the primary instrument used by 86 percent of local education agencies (LEAs) in the state and has been in place since 1997. In acknowledging the vital roles teachers play in student achievement, and based on…

The Applications of GIS in the Analysis of the Impacts of Human Activities on South Texas Watersheds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chandra Richardson

2011-06-01

Full Text Available With water resource planning assuming greater importance in environmental protection efforts, analyzing the health of agricultural watersheds using Geographic Information Systems (GIS becomes essential for decision-makers in Southern Texas. Within the area, there exist numerous threats from conflicting land uses. These include the conversion of land formerly designated for agricultural purposes to other uses. Despite current efforts, anthropogenic factors are greatly contributing to the degradation of watersheds. Additionally, the activities of waste water facilities located in some of the counties, rising populations, and other socioeconomic variables are negatively impacting the quality of water in the agricultural watersheds. To map the location of these stressors spatially and the extent of their impacts across time, the paper adopts a mix scale method of temporal spatial analysis consisting of simple descriptive statistics. In terms of objectives, this research provides geo-spatial analysis of the effects of human activities on agricultural watersheds in Southern Texas and the factors fuelling the concerns under the purview of watershed management. The results point to growing ecosystem decline across time and a geographic cluster of counties experiencing environmental stress. Accordingly, the emergence of stressors such as rising population, increased use of fertilizer treatments on farm land, discharges of atmospheric pollutants and the large presence of municipal and industrial waste treatment facilities emitting pathogens and pesticides directly into the agricultural watersheds pose a growing threat to the quality of the watershed ecosystem.

Development of a statewide motorcycle safety plan for Texas : technical report.

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-01

The objective of this research project was to develop a statewide plan to reduce motorcycle crashes and : injuries in the state of Texas. The project included a review of published literature on current and proposed : countermeasures for reducing the...

EnviroAtlas - Percent Stream Buffer Zone As Natural Land Cover for the Conterminous United States

Science.gov (United States)

This EnviroAtlas dataset shows the percentage of land area within a 30 meter buffer zone along the National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) high resolution stream network, and along water bodies such as lakes and ponds that are connected via flow to the streams, that is classified as forest land cover, modified forest land cover, and natural land cover using the 2006 National Land Cover Dataset (NLCD) for each Watershed Boundary Dataset (WBD) 12-digit hydrological unit (HUC) in the conterminous United States. This dataset was produced by the US EPA to support research and online mapping activities related to EnviroAtlas. EnviroAtlas (https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas) allows the user to interact with a web-based, easy-to-use, mapping application to view and analyze multiple ecosystem services for the contiguous United States. The dataset is available as downloadable data (https://edg.epa.gov/data/Public/ORD/EnviroAtlas) or as an EnviroAtlas map service. Additional descriptive information about each attribute in this dataset can be found in its associated EnviroAtlas Fact Sheet (https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-fact-sheets).

Land Use Adaptation to Climate Change: Economic Damages from Land-Falling Hurricanes in the Atlantic and Gulf States of the USA, 1900–2005

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Asim Zia

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Global climate change, especially the phenomena of global warming, is expected to increase the intensity of land-falling hurricanes. Societal adaptation is needed to reduce vulnerability from increasingly intense hurricanes. This study quantifies the adaptation effects of potentially policy driven caps on housing densities and agricultural cover in coastal (and adjacent inland areas vulnerable to hurricane damages in the Atlantic and Gulf Coastal regions of the U.S. Time series regressions, especially Prais-Winston and Autoregressive Moving Average (ARMA models, are estimated to forecast the economic impacts of hurricanes of varying intensity, given that various patterns of land use emerge in the Atlantic and Gulf coastal states of the U.S. The Prais-Winston and ARMA models use observed time series data from 1900 to 2005 for inflation adjusted hurricane damages and socio-economic and land-use data in the coastal or inland regions where hurricanes caused those damages. The results from this study provide evidence that increases in housing density and agricultural cover cause significant rise in the de-trended inflation-adjusted damages. Further, higher intensity and frequency of land-falling hurricanes also significantly increase the economic damages. The evidence from this study implies that a medium to long term land use adaptation in the form of capping housing density and agricultural cover in the coastal (and adjacent inland states can significantly reduce economic damages from intense hurricanes. Future studies must compare the benefits of such land use adaptation policies against the costs of development controls implied in housing density caps and agricultural land cover reductions.

The Demographics of Corporal Punishment in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Phillips, Stephanie

2012-01-01

This dissertation examined the student discipline policies of 1,025 Texas school districts, as well as data from the Texas Education Agency's Academic Excellence Indicator System in order to identify demographic patterns regarding corporal punishment policies in Texas schools. The study also studied the relationship between a district's corporal…

Terrestrial Ecosystems - Land Surface Forms of the Conterminous United States

Science.gov (United States)

Cress, Jill J.; Sayre, Roger G.; Comer, Patrick; Warner, Harumi

2009-01-01

As part of an effort to map terrestrial ecosystems, the U.S. Geological Survey has generated land surface form classes to be used in creating maps depicting standardized, terrestrial ecosystem models for the conterminous United States, using an ecosystems classification developed by NatureServe . A biophysical stratification approach, developed for South America and now being implemented globally, was used to model the ecosystem distributions. Since land surface forms strongly influence the differentiation and distribution of terrestrial ecosystems, they are one of the key input layers in this biophysical stratification. After extensive investigation into various land surface form mapping methodologies, the decision was made to use the methodology developed by the Missouri Resource Assessment Partnership (MoRAP). MoRAP made modifications to Hammond's land surface form classification, which allowed the use of 30-meter source data and a 1-km2 window for analyzing the data cell and its surrounding cells (neighborhood analysis). While Hammond's methodology was based on three topographic variables, slope, local relief, and profile type, MoRAP's methodology uses only slope and local relief. Using the MoRAP method, slope is classified as gently sloping when more than 50 percent of the area in a 1-km2 neighborhood has slope less than 8 percent, otherwise the area is considered moderately sloping. Local relief, which is the difference between the maximum and minimum elevation in a neighborhood, is classified into five groups: 0-15 m, 16-30 m, 31-90 m, 91-150 m, and >150 m. The land surface form classes are derived by combining slope and local relief to create eight landform classes: flat plains (gently sloping and local relief = 90 m), low hills (not gently sloping and local relief = 150 m). However, in the USGS application of the MoRAP methodology, an additional local relief group was used (> 400 m) to capture additional local topographic variation. As a result, low

The Need for the United States Army to Possess a Landing Craft with Maneuver Capabilities

Science.gov (United States)

2015-06-12

landing craft after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and the 2009 Myanmar cyclone.9 The landing craft enabled the relief effort to bypass partially...requirements for Army aviation . The Need for America’s Amphibious Capability In his thesis, “The Need for the United States of America’s Amphibious

40 CFR 81.344 - Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... AREAS FOR AIR QUALITY PLANNING PURPOSES Section 107 Attainment Status Designations § 81.344 Texas. Texas... County, Deaf Smith County, Dickens County, Donley County, Floyd County, Garza County, Gray County, Hale..., Cochran County, Collingsworth County, Crosby County, Dallam County, Deaf Smith County, Dickens County...

Iguana bites reported to Texas poison centers.

Science.gov (United States)

Forrester, Mathias B

2010-09-01

Although thousands of iguanas are kept as pets in the United States, information on their bites is limited. The intent of this investigation was to describe the pattern of iguana bites reported to Texas poison centers. Iguana bites reported during 1998-2008 were identified. The distribution of cases by various factors was determined. Of 59 total bites, 71% were managed on-site, 17% of the patients were at or en route to a health care facility when the poison center was contacted, and 10% were referred to a health care facility. The medical outcome was no effect in 9% of the cases, minor effect in 24%, moderate effect in 2%, not followed but minimal effects possible in 64%, and unable to follow but potentially toxic in 2%. Most iguana bites reported to Texas poison centers did not result in serious effects and were managed on-site. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Survey of lands held for uranium exploration, development, and production in fourteen western states in the six month period ending June 30, 1977

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1978-01-01

The statistics were gathered from public records and reports, commercial reporting services, and annual reports of land companies. The data are distributed according to ownership, state, land category, land held by uranium industry, and land control by county and state

Remedial Action Plan and site design for stabilization of the inactive uranium mill tailings site at Falls City, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chernoff, A.R.; Lacker, D.K.

1992-09-01

The uranium processing site near Falls City, Texas, was one of 24 inactive uranium mill sites designated to be remediated by the US Department of Energy (DOE) under Title I of the Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act of 1978 (UMTRCA). The UMTRCA requires that the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) concur with the DOE's remedial action plan (RAP) and certify that the remedial action conducted at the site complies with the standards promulgated by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The RAP, which includes this summary remedial action selection report (RAS), serves a two-fold purpose. First, it describes the activities proposed by the DOE to accomplish long-term stabilization and control of the residual radioactive materials at the inactive uranium processing site near Falls City, Texas. Second, this document and the remainder of the RAP, upon concurrence and execution by the DOE, the State of Texas, and the NRC, becomes Appendix B of the Cooperative Agreement between the DOE and the State of Texas

The Impact of Reproductive Health Legislation on Family Planning Clinic Services in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Hopkins, Kristine; Aiken, Abigail R. A.; Stevenson, Amanda; Hubert, Celia; Grossman, Daniel; Potter, Joseph E.

2015-01-01

We examined the impact of legislation in Texas that dramatically cut and restricted participation in the state’s family planning program in 2011 using surveys and interviews with leaders at organizations that received family planning funding. Overall, 25% of family planning clinics in Texas closed. In 2011, 71% of organizations widely offered long-acting reversible contraception; in 2012–2013, only 46% did so. Organizations served 54% fewer clients than they had in the previous period. Specialized family planning providers, which were the targets of the legislation, experienced the largest reductions in services, but other agencies were also adversely affected. The Texas experience provides valuable insight into the potential effects that legislation proposed in other states may have on low-income women’s access to family planning services. PMID:25790404

Texas Real Estate Curriculum Workshop Summary Report.

Science.gov (United States)

Lyon, Robert

The Texas Real Estate Research Center-Texas Education Agency (TRERC-TEA) curriculum workshop was attended by over 40 participants representing 26 Texas community colleges. These participants divided into eight small groups by real estate specialty area and developed curriculum outlines and learning objectives for the following real estate courses:…

76 FR 38416 - Notice of Segregation of Public Lands in the States of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-30

... Segregation of Public Lands in the States of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah... laws, but not the mineral leasing or material sales acts, for a period of 2 years for the purpose of..., approximately 677,384 acres of public lands located in the States of Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New...

Lineaments of Texas - possible surface expressions of deep-seated phenomena. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Woodruff, C.M. Jr.; Caran, S.C.

1984-04-01

Lineaments were identified on 51 Landsat images covering Texas and parts of adjacent states in Mexico and the United States. A method of identifying lineaments was designed so that the findings would be consistent, uncomplicated, objective, and reproducible. Lineaments denoted on the Landsat images were traced onto 1:250,000-scale work maps and then rendered cartographically on maps representing each of the 51 Landsat images at a scale of 1:500,000. At this stage more than 31,000 lineaments were identified. It included significant areas outside of Texas. In preparing the final lineament map of Texas at 1:1,000,000-scale from the 1:500,000-scale maps, all features that lay outside Texas and repetition among features perceived by individual workers were eliminated. Cultural features were checked for before reducing and cartographically fitting the mosaic of 51 individual map sheets to a single map base. Lineaments that were partly colinear but with different end points were modified into a single lineament trace with the combined length of the two or more colinear lineaments. Each lineament was checked to determine its validity according to our definition. The features were edited again to eliminate processing artifacts within the image itself, as well as representations of cultural features (fencelines, roads, and the like) and geomorphic patterns unrelated to bedrock structure. Thus the more than 31,000 lineaments originally perceived were reduced to the approximately 15,000 presented on the 1:1,000,000 map. Interpretations of the lineaments are presented.

Survival, fidelity, and recovery rates of white-winged doves in Texas

KAUST Repository

Collier, Bret A.; Kremer, Shelly R.; Mason, Corey D.; Peterson, Markus J.; Calhoun, Kirby W.

2012-01-01

the last 30 years. Because >85% of white-winged dove harvest in the United States (approx. 1.3 million annually) now occurs in Texas, information on vital rates of expanding white-winged dove populations is necessary for informed management. We used band

Role of land state in a high resolution mesoscale model for ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

13

2015-10-02

Oct 2, 2015 ... School of Earth, Ocean and Climate Sciences ... Though global models predicted the large scale event, but they had failed to predict realistic ... this study is to assess the impact of land state conditions in ...... Chand, R and C Singh 2015 Movements of western disturbance and associated cloud convection J.

Agent-based land markets: Heterogeneous agents, land proces and urban land use change

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Filatova, Tatiana; Parker, Dawn C.; van der Veen, A.; Amblard, F.

2007-01-01

We construct a spatially explicit agent-based model of a bilateral land market. Heterogeneous agents form their bid and ask prices for land based on the utility that they obtain from a certain location (houte/land) and base on the state of the market (an excess of demand or supply). We underline the

76 FR 7833 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2011-02-11

...] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application Take notice that on January 25, 2011, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern), 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas 77056, filed in the above... TEAM 2012 Project. Specifically, Texas Eastern requests: (i) Authorization under NGA sections 7(b) and...

Land use change effects on forest carbon cycling throughout the southern United States

Science.gov (United States)

Peter B. Woodbury; Linda S. Heath; James E. Smith

2006-01-01

We modeled the effects of afforestation and deforestation on carbon cycling in forest floor and soil from 1900 to 2050 throughout 13 states in the southern United States. The model uses historical data on gross (two-way) transitions between forest, pasture, plowed agriculture, and urban lands along with equations describing changes in carbon over many decades for each...

Groundwater Challenges of the Lower Rio Grande: A Case Study of Legal Issues in Texas and New Mexico

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elizabeth Wheat

2015-03-01

Full Text Available In 1938, Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado signed the Rio Grande Compact, establishing terms of apportionment for some of the water from the Rio Grande for the three states. Following congressional approval in 1939, this compact governs water allocation in a region with a variable climate and frequent drought conditions and established the Rio Grande Compact Commission, comprised of a commissioner from each state and one from the federal government, to enforce the compact. With an increasing population and declining surface water supply, the Compact has been tested among the parties and within the states themselves. In a case currently before the U.S. Supreme Court, Texas v. New Mexico and Colorado (2013, Texas claims New Mexico is violating the Compact and Rio Grande Project Act by using water in excess of its apportionment through its allowance of diversions of surface and groundwater. The issue is further compounded by disputes within Texas over separate legal regimes for groundwater and surface water. Combined with growing scarcity issues, the allocation of water in the Lower Rio Grande presents a timely natural resource challenge. This review explores legal issues involved in the case as well as growing challenges of population growth, agricultural development needs, and water shortages.

A unique funding opportunity for public health in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Schlenker, Thomas; Huber, Carol A

2015-01-01

In addition to the Affordable Care Act, states are more frequently turning to Medicaid waivers to achieve the "Triple Aim" goals of improving the experience of care, improving population health, and reducing per capita costs. These demonstration waivers provide opportunities to test innovative ways to finance and deliver care. Texas is currently implementing a waiver known as the Transformation and Quality Improvement Program. Its inclusion of public health agencies is a unique approach to a system typically limited to traditional providers. San Antonio Metropolitan Health District is one public health agency taking advantage of this new funding opportunity to implement 6 new or expanded programs targeting health issues of highest priority in this south Texas region. This article discusses the use of Medicaid waivers and the advantages and challenges of public health agency participation.

Estimates of Soil Moisture Using the Land Information System for Land Surface Water Storage: Case Study for the Western States Water Mission

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, P. W.; Famiglietti, J. S.; Levoe, S.; Reager, J. T., II; David, C. H.; Kumar, S.; Li, B.; Peters-Lidard, C. D.

2017-12-01

Soil moisture is one of the critical factors in terrestrial hydrology. Accurate soil moisture information improves estimation of terrestrial water storage and fluxes, that is essential for water resource management including sustainable groundwater pumping and agricultural irrigation practices. It is particularly important during dry periods when water stress is high. The Western States Water Mission (WSWM), a multiyear mission project of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is operated to understand and estimate quantities of the water availability in the western United States by integrating observations and measurements from in-situ and remote sensing sensors, and hydrological models. WSWM data products have been used to assess and explore the adverse impacts of the California drought (2011-2016) and provide decision-makers information for water use planning. Although the observations are often more accurate, simulations using land surface models can provide water availability estimates at desired spatio-temporal scales. The Land Information System (LIS), developed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, integrates developed land surface models and data processing and management tools, that enables to utilize the measurements and observations from various platforms as forcings in the high performance computing environment to forecast the hydrologic conditions. The goal of this study is to implement the LIS in the western United States for estimates of soil moisture. We will implement the NOAH-MP model at the 12km North America Land Data Assimilation System grid and compare to other land surface models included in the LIS. Findings will provide insight into the differences between model estimates and model physics. Outputs from a multi-model ensemble from LIS can also be used to enhance estimated reliability and provide quantification of uncertainty. We will compare the LIS-based soil moisture estimates to the SMAP enhanced 9 km soil moisture product to understand the

Authentic Learning Experiences for Educators through Summer Internships: Revising the DIG Texas Instructional Blueprints

Science.gov (United States)

Martinez, A. O.; Bohls-Graham, E.; Jacobs, B. E.; Ellins, K. K.

2014-12-01

Texas teachers have expressed a need for engaging activities for use in high school Earth science courses. With funding from the NSF, geoscience and education faculty from different institutions around the state collaborated with ten Earth science teachers to create five online Earth science instructional blueprints. The work is part of the DIG (Diversity and Innovation for Geosciences) Texas Instructional Blueprint project. A blueprint stitches together nine units for a yearlong Earth science course (scope and sequence). Each unit covers three weeks of teaching and contains lectures, readings, visualizations, lab investigations, learning activities, and other educational materials from credible sources, which are aligned with Texas state science standards for Earth and Space Science and the Earth Science Literacy Principles. Taken together, the collection of activities address the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). During summer 2014, three minority-serving secondary teachers completed a six-week internship at The University of Texas Institute for Geophysics (UTIG). As DIG Texas Education Interns, we organized and revised the content of the units, created scaffolding notes, and built blueprints by selecting groups of nine units from the project's current collection of twenty-one units. Because fieldwork is an important element of geoscience learning, we integrated virtual field trips into each unit. We (1) gained expertise in selecting high quality activities that directly correlate with state standards and address the Earth Science Literacy Principles; (2) developed a keen awareness of the value of the NGSS; (3) learned how to navigate through the NGSS website to track the relationships between the Science and Engineering Practices, Disciplinary Core Ideas, and Crosscutting Concepts for Earth science, as well as connections to other disciplines in the same grade level. Collaborating with other secondary Earth science teachers introduced each of us to new

Parasites of edible land snails in Edo State, Nigeria

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Igbinosa I. B.

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Land snails are sources of protein to man and are hosts to a number of parasites. It is imperative that the roles of the snail hosts and parasites are clearly defined. Before then however, the parasites of the different land snails collected in any locality should be identified. Land snails were collected in the wild in both dry and wet seasons. The internal organs and the faeces were examined for the presence of parasite. In the rainy season of 2015, a total of 272 snails were collected across four major towns (Benin, Uromi, Ekpoma and Auchi in Edo State, Nigeria, while in the dry season, fewer snails (n=91 were handpicked. The snail species seen are: Achatina achatina (Linnaeus, 1758, Achatina fulica (Férussac, 1821, Acharchatina marginata (Swainson, 1982, Limicolaria aurora (Jay, 1839, L. flammea (Müller, 1774 and Limicolariopsis spp. The larvae of Strongyloides stercoralis were isolated from the various snail species with overall prevalence of 54.04 %. Snails positive with Alaria mesocercariae were L. aurora, L. flammea and Limicolariopsis spp. Additionally, few L. flammea were positive of the cercariae of Drocoelium dedriticum. Meanwhile, some samples of A. fulica harboured larvae of Angiostrongylus cantonesis, sporocysts of Fasciola gigantica and Schistosoma mansoni. Therefore, these edible snails could pose serious health hazard to man and animals by serving as a possible alternative parasite transmission route.

75 FR 80798 - Notice of Intent To Prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for Land...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-12-23

... DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Department of the Army Notice of Intent To Prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for Land Acquisition, South Texas Training Center (STTC), in McMullen... media sources. To ensure scoping comments are fully considered in the preparation of the PEIS, comments...

Trends in Playa Inundation and Water Storage in the Ogallala Aquifer on the Texas High Plains

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dennis Gitz

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The Ogallala Aquifer is an important source of irrigation water on the Texas High plains; however, significant decreases in saturated thickness threaten its future use for irrigation. A better understanding of the roles of playas, ephemeral surface ponds, in aquifer recharge is needed to establish levels of withdrawals that will meet either established desired future conditions or sustainability. In this study, data regarding playa inundation, depth to groundwater, precipitation and land cover from 2001 to 2011 were collected and analyzed to ascertain associations between these characteristics for four study areas on the Texas High plains. Each area covered 40,000–70,000 ha. Three of the study areas in Hockley, Floyd and Swisher counties were chosen because their center contained a playa instrumented to measure weather and depth of inundation. There were 20 distinct inundation events at the three instrumented playas between 2006 and 2010. For each of these inundations, water loss exceeded rates of potential evapotranspiration (ET by a factor of 1.6–15.7 times, implying that infiltration was occurring. Playa inundation in all four study areas was also assessed by analyzing images from the National Agricultural Imaginary program. Data on depth to groundwater were analyzed from 2000 to 2010 to determine annual changes of stored water. Annual changes in groundwater were weakly associated with surface area of inundated playas in late summer, but was strongly associated with annual rainfall. Rates of infiltration based on playa water loss versus potential ET, and volume of water in playas was more than sufficient to account for annual changes in groundwater. Land use adjoining the playas had less of influence on playa inundation than annual rainfall. These results strengthen the argument that water storage in playas on the Texas High Plains is an important source of water for aquifer recharge.

Addressing Climate Change at the State and Local Level: Using Land Use Controls to Reduce Automobile Emissions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rachel Medina

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Automobiles are a major source of CO2 emissions. Because there is no immediate technological fix to reduce these emissions, the most promising current strategy is to promote less automobile use. In the United States, this is difficult because federal programs such as the interstate highway system and local land use planning and regulation have encouraged suburban sprawl. In 2006, the state of California passed legislation to roll back greenhouse emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. This legislation did not link the roll back target with land use policies. However, NGOs and the state Attorney General used the state’s pre-existing environmental impact assessment act to sue a large county east of Los Angeles alleging that its revised land use plan was inconsistent with the 2006 legislation. The state and the county settled the suit after the county agreed to new greenhouse gas mitigation duties, and in 2008 California passed additional legislation to implement its 2006 statute. Communities are strongly encouraged to adopt compact, transit-oriented development strategies to limit automobile use. The new legislation gives the attorney general and NGOs additional legal authority to challenge local land use plans and regulatory decisions which fail to adopt these strategies. California’s important experiment has lessons for all urban areas struggling to reduce automobile CO2 emissions. It suggests that local land use controls can be added to the list of workable greenhouse gas mitigation strategies.

Pricing and University Autonomy: Tuition Deregulation in Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeongeun Kim

2016-04-01

Full Text Available This paper investigates changes in tuition policies in the wake of tuition deregulation in Texas, which in 2003 transferred tuition-setting authority from the state legislature to institutions. We find that price increases accelerated, particularly at the most selective institutions. Institutions also began differentiating price by undergraduate program, raising relative prices for the most costly and lucrative majors, including engineering, business, nursing, and architecture. Price increases were particularly large for institutions with the highest initial costs and for programs with a high earnings premium within institutions, though lower for institutions with more low-income students. These distinctions suggest that public postsecondary institutions respond to microeconomic incentives when given greater autonomy to set price, and take some measures to alleviate impacts on low-income students. The Texas experience suggests that decentralized price-setting generates greater price differentiation within the public higher education system, both across and within institutions.

Urban gas drilling and distance ordinances in the Texas Barnett Shale

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fry, Matthew

2013-01-01

Newly accessible shale deposits and other unconventional sources of natural gas have dramatically increased global gas reserves and are regarded as major future energy sources. Shale gas drilling began in Texas and is expanding throughout the U.S. and globally. In Texas and other regions, large population centers overlie these deposits. As a result, city residents increasingly come into contact with extraction activities. The proximity of drilling activities to residential areas raises a number of concerns, including noise, dust and emissions hazards, public safety, diminished quality of life, and effects on neighborhood aesthetics and property values. Cities in Texas address these concerns through setback ordinances that regulate the distance between gas wells and residences, schools, floodplains, etc. Although the state of Texas permits drilling 200 ft (61 m) from residences, many municipalities in the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex (DFW) have established longer setback distances. This paper analyzes the purpose and basis for setback distances among 26 municipalities in DFW. Findings show that there is no uniform setback distance, distances have increased over time, and, rather than technically-based, setbacks are political compromises. For policy makers confronted with urban shale gas drilling, deriving setback distances from advanced emissions monitoring could decrease setback distance ambiguity. -- Highlights: •Urban shale gas drilling is expanding across the globe. •Municipal distance regulations address many concerns associated with urban drilling. •In Texas, setbacks have no empirical basis, but are political compromises. •Advanced monitoring methods could be used to standardize setback distances

78 FR 12010 - Radio Broadcasting Services; Pearsall, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

2013-02-21

... Broadcasting Services; Pearsall, Texas AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission. ACTION: Proposed rule... (``Petitioner''), licensee of FM Station KSAG, Channel 277A, Pearsall, Texas. Petitioner proposes to amend the... be allotted at Pearsall, Texas, in compliance with the Commission's minimum distance separation...

Texas, 2008 forest inventory and analysis factsheet

Science.gov (United States)

James Bentley

2011-01-01

This science update summarizes the findings of the first statewide annual inventory conducted by the Southern Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program in cooperation with the Texas Forest Service of the forest resource attributes in Texas. The 254 counties of Texas are consolidated into seven FIA survey units—southeast (unit 1), the northeast (unit 2), the north...

Texas, 2010 forest inventory and analysis factsheet

Science.gov (United States)

James W. Bentley

2012-01-01

This science update summarizes the findings of the statewide annual inventory conducted by the Southern Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program in cooperation with the Texas Forest Service of the forest resource attributes in Texas. The 254 counties of Texas are consolidated into seven FIA survey units – southeast (unit 1), northeast (unit 2), north central (unit 3...

Estimation of evapotranspiration across the conterminous United States using a regression with climate and land-cover data

Science.gov (United States)

Sanford, Ward E.; Selnick, David L.

2013-01-01

Evapotranspiration (ET) is an important quantity for water resource managers to know because it often represents the largest sink for precipitation (P) arriving at the land surface. In order to estimate actual ET across the conterminous United States (U.S.) in this study, a water-balance method was combined with a climate and land-cover regression equation. Precipitation and streamflow records were compiled for 838 watersheds for 1971-2000 across the U.S. to obtain long-term estimates of actual ET. A regression equation was developed that related the ratio ET/P to climate and land-cover variables within those watersheds. Precipitation and temperatures were used from the PRISM climate dataset, and land-cover data were used from the USGS National Land Cover Dataset. Results indicate that ET can be predicted relatively well at a watershed or county scale with readily available climate variables alone, and that land-cover data can also improve those predictions. Using the climate and land-cover data at an 800-m scale and then averaging to the county scale, maps were produced showing estimates of ET and ET/P for the entire conterminous U.S. Using the regression equation, such maps could also be made for more detailed state coverages, or for other areas of the world where climate and land-cover data are plentiful.

Long-term trends in restoration and associated land treatments in the southwestern United States

Science.gov (United States)

Copeland, Stella M.; Munson, Seth M.; Pilliod, David S.; Welty, Justin L.; Bradford, John B.; Butterfield, Bradley J.

2018-01-01

Restoration treatments, such as revegetation with seeding or invasive species removal, have been applied on U.S. public lands for decades. Temporal trends in these management actions have not been extensively summarized previously, particularly in the southwestern United States where invasive plant species, drought, and fire have altered dryland ecosystems. We assessed long-term (1940–2010) trends in restoration using approximately 4,000 vegetation treatments conducted on Bureau of Land Management lands across the southwestern United States. We found that since 1940, the proportions of seeding and vegetation/soil manipulation (e.g. vegetation removal or plowing) treatments have declined, while the proportions of prescribed burn and invasive species treatments have increased. Treatments in pinyon-juniper and big sagebrush communities declined in comparison to treatments in desert scrub, creosote bush, and riparian woodland communities. Restoration-focused treatment objectives increased relative to resource extraction objectives. Species richness and proportion of native species used in seeding treatments also increased. Inflation-adjusted costs per area rose 750% for vegetation/soil manipulation, 600% for seeding, and 400% for prescribed burn treatments in the decades from 1981 to 2010. Seeding treatments were implemented in warmer and drier years when compared to the climate conditions of the entire study period and warmer and wetter years relative to several years before and after the treatment. These results suggest that treatments over a 70-year period on public lands in the southwestern United States are shifting toward restoration practices that are increasingly large, expensive, and related to fire and invasive species control.

Laid Off. The Texas Response to Plant Closings and Layoffs.

Science.gov (United States)

Texas Association of Private Industry Councils, Austin.

For the benefit of Texas Association of Private Industry Council (TAPIC) volunteers who oversee dislocated worker projects, a report examined the initial efforts of putting together a cost-effective and responsive system that can reemploy people. In addition to a review of the state's role in the management and administration of the Economic…

Understanding the land-atmospheric interaction in drought forecast from CFSv2 for the 2011 Texas and 2012 Upper Midwest US droughts

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Y.; Roundy, J. K.; Ek, M. B.; Wood, E. F.

2015-12-01

Prediction and thus preparedness in advance of hydrological extremes, such as drought and flood events, is crucial for proactively reducing their social and economic impacts. In the summers of 2011 Texas, and 2012 the Upper Midwest, experienced intense droughts that affected crops and the food market in the US. It is expected that seasonal forecasts with sufficient skill would reduce the negative impacts through planning and preparation. However, the forecast skill from models such as Climate Forecast System Version 2 (CFSv2) from National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) is low over the US, especially during the warm season (Jun - Sep), which restricts their practical use for drought prediction. This study analyzes the processes that lead to premature termination of 2011 and 2012 US summer droughts in CFSv2 forecast resulting in its low forecast skill. Using the North American Land Data Assimilation System version 2 (NLDAS2) and Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR) as references, this study investigates the forecast skills of CFSv2 initialized at 00, 06, 12, 18z from May 15 - 31 (leads out to September) for each event in terms of land-atmosphere interaction, through a recently developed Coupling Drought Index (CDI), which is based on the Convective Triggering Potential-Humidity Index-soil moisture (CTP-HI-SM) classification of four climate regimes: wet coupling, dry coupling, transitional and atmospherically controlled. A recycling model is used to trace the moisture sources in the CFSv2 forecasts of anomalous precipitation, which lead to the breakdown of drought conditions and a lack of drought forecasting skills. This is then compared with tracing the moisture source in CFSR with the same recycling model, which is used as the verification for the same periods. This helps to identify the parameterization that triggered precipitation in CFSv2 during 2011 and 2012 summer in the US thus has the potential to improve the forecast skill of CSFv2.

Diversity and Innovation for Geosciences (dig) Texas Earth and Space Science Instructional Blueprints

Science.gov (United States)

Ellins, K. K.; Bohls-Graham, E.; Riggs, E. M.; Serpa, L. F.; Jacobs, B. E.; Martinez, A. O.; Fox, S.; Kent, M.; Stocks, E.; Pennington, D. D.

2014-12-01

The NSF-sponsored DIG Texas Instructional Blueprint project supports the development of online instructional blueprints for a yearlong high school-level Earth science course. Each blueprint stitches together three-week units that contain curated educational resources aligned with the Texas state standards for Earth and Space Science and the Earth Science Literacy Principles. Units focus on specific geoscience content, place-based concerns, features or ideas, or other specific conceptual threads. Five regional teams composed of geoscientists, pedagogy specialists, and practicing science teachers chose unit themes and resources for twenty-two units during three workshops. In summer 2014 three Education Interns (Earth science teachers) spent six weeks refining the content of the units and aligning them with the Next Generation Science Standards. They also assembled units into example blueprints. The cross-disciplinary collaboration among blueprint team members allowed them to develop knowledge in new areas and to share their own discipline-based knowledge and perspectives. Team members and Education Interns learned where to find and how to evaluate high quality geoscience educational resources, using a web-based resource review tool developed by the Science Education Resource Center (SERC). SERC is the repository for the DIG Texas blueprint web pages. Work is underway to develop automated tools to allow educators to compile resources into customized instructional blueprints by reshuffling units within an existing blueprint, by mixing units from other blueprints, or creating new units and blueprints. These innovations will enhance the use of the units by secondary Earth science educators beyond Texas. This presentation provides an overview of the project, shows examples of blueprints and units, reports on the preliminary results of classroom implementation by Earth science teachers, and considers challenges encountered in developing and testing the blueprints. The

Metamorphosis: Texas District Opts for Learner-Centered Professional Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Ellinger, Alan; Launius, Keri; Scott, Annette

2017-01-01

Like many districts across the United States, Galveston, Texas, is focused on building a culture of excellence. The district is a study in contrasts. On one hand, it is laced with opulent vacation homes and resort hotels used by out-of-town owners. On the other, the median household income level is $28,895, with 22% of the population living below…

TRENDS OF LAND SYSTEM IN UKRAINE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Tretiak

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The organization of land use in different countries is characterized by a variety of land system types, those proved their effectiveness in certain countries, but not are necessarily as effective in others. The objective factors that led to the emergence of various models of the land system, include socio-economic, historical, ethnic, cultural, natural and other features of different countries and peoples that inhabit them. During 1991-2016 years,Ukraineestablished basics of a new land order and the respective land relations and the system of market-oriented land use, especially in agriculture. It is characterized by: a new legal and regulatory framework, different types of ownership of land and other natural resources, a multi-structure and paid land use, providing public with land parcels, initiated the establishment of a market-oriented system of state land cadastre, including registration of land parcels and rights to them. So, modern land transformations in Ukraine, which laid the basics of a new land order, requires the development of new approaches to land use management at different hierarchical levels of general land planning throughout the country. It caused by many reasons. Primarily: setting the state boundaries and bounds of administrative units; development of different types of land ownership; increased numbers of new landowning and land tenure of citizens, enterprises, institutions and associations up to more than 23 million; need for separation of state and municipal property for land; establishment of payment for land use; specification of legal and functional status of land and of various restrictions, encumbrances and easements to each individual land parcel. It is hard to overemphasize the importance of work on land-use planning at different hierarchical levels and general land management in modern conditions. Particularly acute need of land planning in urban and agricultural land use sectors of the country. Thus, the

Recreation and protected land resources in the United States: a technical document supporting the Forest Service 2010 RPA Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

H. Ken Cordell; Carter J. Betz; Stanley J. Zarnoch

2013-01-01

This report provides an overview of the public and private land and water resources of the United States. Described is use of natural and developed land as recreation resources with an emphasis on nature-based recreation. Also described is land protection through conservation organizations and public funding programs, with an emphasis on protecting private land through...

Forests of East Texas, 2014

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas J. Brandeis

2015-01-01

This resource update provides an overview of forest resources in east Texas derived from an inventory conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program at the Southern Research Station in cooperation with the Texas A&M Forest Service. These estimates are based on field data collected using the FIA annualized sample design and are...

Forests of east Texas, 2013

Science.gov (United States)

K.J.W. Dooley; T.J. Brandeis

2014-01-01

This resource update provides an overview of forest resources in east Texas based on an inventory conducted by the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program at the Southern Research Station in cooperation with the Texas A&M Forest Service. Forest resource estimates are based on field data collected using the FIA annualized sample design and...

Grasslands, wetlands, and agriculture: the fate of land expiring from the Conservation Reserve Program in the Midwestern United States

Science.gov (United States)

Morefield, Philip E.; LeDuc, Stephen D.; Clark, Christopher M.; Iovanna, Richard

2016-09-01

The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is the largest agricultural land-retirement program in the United States, providing many environmental benefits, including wildlife habitat and improved air, water, and soil quality. Since 2007, however, CRP area has declined by over 25% nationally with much of this land returning to agriculture. Despite this trend, it is unclear what types of CRP land are being converted, to what crops, and where. All of these specific factors greatly affect environmental impacts. To answer these questions, we quantified shifts in expiring CRP parcels to five major crop-types (corn, soy, winter and spring wheat, and sorghum) in a 12-state, Midwestern region of the United States using a US Department of Agriculture (USDA), field-level CRP database and USDA’s Cropland Data Layer. For the years 2010 through 2013, we estimate almost 30%, or more than 530 000 ha, of expiring CRP land returned to the production of these five crops in our study area, with soy and corn accounting for the vast majority of these shifts. Grasslands were the largest type of CRP land converted (360 000 ha), followed by specifically designated wildlife habitat (76 000 ha), and wetland areas (53 000 ha). These wetland areas were not just wetlands themselves, but also a mix of land covers enhancing or protecting wetland ecosystem services (e.g., wetland buffers). Areas in the Dakotas, Nebraska, and southern Iowa were hotspots of change, with the highest areas of CRP land moving back to agriculture. By contrast, we estimate only a small amount (˜3%) of the expiring land shifted into similar, non-CRP land-retirement or easement programs. Reconciling needs for food, feed, fuel, and healthy ecosystems is an immense challenge for farmers, conservationists, and state and federal agencies. Reduced enrollment and the turnover of CRP land from conservation to agriculture raises questions about sustaining ecosystem services in this region.

Hanford Federal Facility state of Washington leased land

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1993-11-01

This report was prepared to provide information concerning past solid and hazardous waste management practices for all leased land at the US DOE Hanford Reservation. This report contains sections including land description; land usage; ground water, air and soil monitoring data; and land uses after 1963. Numerous appendices are included which provide documentation of lease agreements and amendments, environmental assessments, and site surveys.

Hanford Federal Facility state of Washington leased land

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-11-01

This report was prepared to provide information concerning past solid and hazardous waste management practices for all leased land at the US DOE Hanford Reservation. This report contains sections including land description; land usage; ground water, air and soil monitoring data; and land uses after 1963. Numerous appendices are included which provide documentation of lease agreements and amendments, environmental assessments, and site surveys

US hydropower resource assessment for Texas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Francfort, J.E.

1993-12-01

The Department of Energy is developing an estimate of the hydropower development potential in this country. The Hydropower Evaluation Software (HES) is a computer model that was developed by the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory for this purpose. The HES measures the potential hydropower resources available in the United States, using uniform criteria for measurement. The software was developed and tested using hydropower information and data provided by the Southwestern Power Administration. It is a dBASE menu-driven software application that allows the personal computer user to assign environmental attributes to potential hydropower sites, calculate development suitability factors for each site based on the environmental attributes present, and generate reports based on these suitability factors. This report details the resource assessment results for the state of Texas.

Crustal deformation and seismic measurements in the region of McDonald Observatory, West Texas. [Texas and Northern Chihuahua, Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Dorman, H. J.

1981-01-01

The arrival times of regional and local earthquakes and located earthquakes in the Basin and Range province of Texas and in the adjacent areas of Chihuahua, Mexico from January 1976 to August 1980 at the UT'NASA seismic array are summarized. The August 1931 Texas earthquake is reevaluated and the seismicity and crustal structure of West Texas is examined. A table of seismic stations is included.

Landsat sattelite multi-spectral image classification of land cover and land use changes for GIS-based urbanization analysis in irrigation districts of lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas

Science.gov (United States)

The Lower Rio Grande Valley in the south of Texas is experiencing rapid increase of population to bring up urban growth that continues influencing on the irrigation districts in the region. This study evaluated the Landsat satellite multi-spectral imagery to provide information for GIS-based urbaniz...

Solar Leasing Summary, Houston Texas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hammer, Mary [City of San Antonio, TX (United States)

2013-02-14

A relatively new option for homeowners looking to add solar to their home is the solar lease. At present, the solar lease option can be found in California, Arizona, Texas, Colorado, Hawaii, New York and Oregon. The most active companies currently offering solar leases are NRG Energy, Sungevity, Solar City and Sun Run. With the uncertainty and/or lack of subsidies the states participating in these programs have ebbed and flowed over the last few years. However, there is an expectation that in the current market solar leasing will make solar viable without the utility and federal subsidies. NRG Energy is currently testing this expectation in Houston, TX where currently no subsidies or incentives beyond the federal tax incentives, exist. Following is an explanation on the state of solar leasing in Houston, TX and explanation of the current financing options.

Effects of land use/cover change and harvests on forest carbon dynamics in northern states of the United States from remote sensing and inventory data: 1992-2001

Science.gov (United States)

Daolan Zheng; Linda S. Heath; Mark J. Ducey; James E. Smith

2011-01-01

We examined spatial patterns of changes in forest area and nonsoil carbon (C) dynamics affected by land use/cover change (LUC) and harvests in 24 northern states of the United States using an integrated methodology combining remote sensing and ground inventory data between 1992 and 2001. We used the Retrofit Change Product from the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics...

78 FR 42700 - Radio Broadcasting Services; Matagorda, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-17

... Broadcasting Services; Matagorda, Texas AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY... FM Channel 252A at Matagorda, Texas. This allotment change is part of a hybrid rule making and FM... 291A at Matagorda, Texas, is located within 320 kilometers (199 miles) of the U.S.-Mexican border...

The renewables portfolio standard in Texas: an early assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Langniss, Ole; Wiser, Ryan

2003-01-01

Texas has rapidly emerged as one of the leading wind power markets in the United States. This development can be largely traced to a well-designed and carefully implemented renewables portfolio standard (RPS). The RPS is a new policy mechanism that has received increasing attention as an attractive approach to support renewable power generation. Though replacing existing renewable energy policies with an as-of-yet untested approach in the RPS is risky, early experience from Texas suggests that an RPS can effectively spur renewables development and encourage competition among renewable energy producers. Initial RPS targets in Texas were well exceeded by the end of 2001, with 915 MW of wind installed in that year alone. RPS compliance costs appear negligible with new wind projects reportedly contracted for well under 3(US) cents/kWh, in part as a result of a 1.7(US) cents/kWh production tax credit, an outstanding wind resource and an RPS that is sizable enough to drive project economies of scale. Obliged retail suppliers have been willing to enter into long-term contracts with renewable generators, reducing important risks for both the developer and the retail supplier. Finally, the country's first comprehensive renewable energy certificate program has been put into place to monitor and track RPS compliance

State property tax incentives for promoting ecosystem goods and services from private forest land in the United States: a review and analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Michael A. Kilgore; Paul B. Ellefson; Travis J. Funk; Gregory E. Frey

2017-01-01

Financial incentives provided by State property tax programs are a means of promoting ecosystem services from private forest land. Identified by this 50-State 2015 review, categories of ecosystem services frequently promoted by such programs are open space and scenic resources, conservation of...

Land grants of New Mexico and the United States Forest Service

Science.gov (United States)

Carol Raish; Alice M. McSweeney

2011-01-01

The U.S. Forest Service (FS) has a long, shared history with the Spanish and Mexican land grants of northern New Mexico. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which ended the war between the United States and Mexico, was supposed to recognize and respect the property rights of the resident Hispano population. In many cases the intent of the Treaty was not honored. During...

Earth land landing alternatives: Lunar transportation system

Science.gov (United States)

Meyerson, Robert

1992-01-01

The objectives of this study are as follows: (1) develop a landing option such that it is a viable trade option for future NASA missions; (2) provide NASA programs with solid technical support in the landing systems area; (3) develop the technical staff; and (4) advance the state of landing systems technology to apply to future NASA missions. All results are presented in viewgraph format.

Quality assessment of state land internal audit agency of Ukraine based on risk-oriented approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N.G. Vugovska

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The article stipulates that in modern conditions of development and reform of the national system of state financial control to the fore the issue of quality, which is an integral part of - or the provision of a service or product produced. In the context of our study on the evaluation of the quality of the internal audit system of the State Land Agency, is the efficiency of its operation. The authors have developed scientific and methodical approach to assessing the quality of the internal audit system of the State Land Agency of Ukraine by specifying the list of evaluation criteria and the implementation of risk-based model selection controlled entities, which allowed to determine the potential risk of financial irregularities and frequency of inspections by the State Financial Inspection. Determined that the planned inspections of the state Land Agency should be not less than once every two years. Applying the above approach will reduce the number of violations in budgetary institutions, improve the quality control organization by the internal audit work, increase the responsibility of the head of an effective, legitimate and proper use of funds. The authors were asked to form a report on the results of the internal audit quality in budgetary institutions and determined that for the cooperation of internal audit bodies of the State financial inspection need to be able to use the latest internal audit report to provide recommendations to improve the functioning of the internal control systems in controlled entities.

Clone of EPA Approved Regulations in the Texas SIP

Science.gov (United States)

changed name to EPA Approved Regulations in the Texas SIP, Add links to:Texas Read Me; Texas SIP History;Current/Previous SIP-Approved Regulations; Delete regulations--now in /node/191099, removed tables

76 FR 67397 - Radio Broadcasting Services; Llano, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

2011-11-01

...] Radio Broadcasting Services; Llano, Texas AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission. ACTION: Proposed... substituting Channel 242C3 for vacant Channel 293C3, at Llano, Texas. The proposal is part of a contingently... required for the allotment of Channel 242C3 at Llano, Texas, because the proposed allotment is located...

The Impact of Socioeconomic Status on Elementary Student Achievement in Rural South Texas Schools

Science.gov (United States)

Martinez-Perez, Frances A.

2013-01-01

Educational inequalities that exist due to socioeconomic status impact the academic achievement of students and contribute to the achievement gap. This study attempted to examine how the predictors of grade level and socioeconomic status impact the passing of state standardized reading and mathematics exams. The 2012-2013 State of Texas Academic…

National Land Cover Database 2001 (NLCD01) Imperviousness Layer Tile 3, Southwest United States: IMPV01_3

Science.gov (United States)

LaMotte, Andrew E.; Wieczorek, Michael

2010-01-01

This 30-meter resolution data set represents the imperviousness layer for the conterminous United States for the 2001 time period. The data have been arranged into four tiles to facilitate timely display and manipulation within a Geographic Information System, browse graphic: nlcd01-partition. The National Land Cover Data Set for 2001 was produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. The MRLC Consortium is a partnership of Federal agencies (www.mrlc.gov), consisting of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). One of the primary goals of the project is to generate a current, consistent, seamless, and accurate National Land Cover Database (NLCD) circa 2001 for the United States at medium spatial resolution. For a detailed definition and discussion on MRLC and the NLCD 2001 products, refer to Homer and others (2004) and http://www.mrlc.gov/mrlc2k.asp.. The NLCD 2001 was created by partitioning the United States into mapping-zones. A total of 68 mapping-zones browse graphic: nlcd01-mappingzones.jpg were delineated within the conterminous United States based on ecoregion and geographical characteristics, edge-matching features, and the size requirement of Landsat mosaics. Mapping-zones encompass the whole or parts of several states. Questions about the NLCD mapping zones can be directed to the NLCD 2001 Land Cover Mapping Team at the USGS/EROS, Sioux Falls, SD (605) 594-6151 or mrlc@usgs.gov.

National Land Cover Database 2001 (NLCD01) Imperviousness Layer Tile 4, Southeast United States: IMPV01_4

Science.gov (United States)

Wieczorek, Michael; LaMotte, Andrew E.

2010-01-01

This 30-meter resolution data set represents the imperviousness layer for the conterminous United States for the 2001 time period. The data have been arranged into four tiles to facilitate timely display and manipulation within a Geographic Information System, browse graphic: nlcd01-partition. The National Land Cover Data Set for 2001 was produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. The MRLC Consortium is a partnership of Federal agencies (www.mrlc.gov), consisting of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). One of the primary goals of the project is to generate a current, consistent, seamless, and accurate National Land Cover Database (NLCD) circa 2001 for the United States at medium spatial resolution. For a detailed definition and discussion on MRLC and the NLCD 2001 products, refer to Homer and others (2004) and http://www.mrlc.gov/mrlc2k.asp.. The NLCD 2001 was created by partitioning the United States into mapping-zones. A total of 68 mapping-zones browse graphic: nlcd01-mappingzones.jpg were delineated within the conterminous United States based on ecoregion and geographical characteristics, edge-matching features, and the size requirement of Landsat mosaics. Mapping-zones encompass the whole or parts of several states. Questions about the NLCD mapping zones can be directed to the NLCD 2001 Land Cover Mapping Team at the USGS/EROS, Sioux Falls, SD (605) 594-6151 or mrlc@usgs.gov.

National Land Cover Database 2001 (NLCD01) Imperviousness Layer Tile 2, Northeast United States: IMPV01_2

Science.gov (United States)

LaMotte, Andrew E.; Wieczorek, Michael

2010-01-01

This 30-meter resolution data set represents the imperviousness layer for the conterminous United States for the 2001 time period. The data have been arranged into four tiles to facilitate timely display and manipulation within a Geographic Information System, browse graphic: nlcd01-partition. The National Land Cover Data Set for 2001 was produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. The MRLC Consortium is a partnership of Federal agencies (www.mrlc.gov), consisting of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). One of the primary goals of the project is to generate a current, consistent, seamless, and accurate National Land Cover Database (NLCD) circa 2001 for the United States at medium spatial resolution. For a detailed definition and discussion on MRLC and the NLCD 2001 products, refer to Homer and others (2004) and http://www.mrlc.gov/mrlc2k.asp.. The NLCD 2001 was created by partitioning the United States into mapping-zones. A total of 68 mapping-zones browse graphic: nlcd01-mappingzones.jpg were delineated within the conterminous United States based on ecoregion and geographical characteristics, edge-matching features, and the size requirement of Landsat mosaics. Mapping-zones encompass the whole or parts of several states. Questions about the NLCD mapping zones can be directed to the NLCD 2001 Land Cover Mapping Team at the USGS/EROS, Sioux Falls, SD (605) 594-6151 or mrlc@usgs.gov.

National Land Cover Database 2001 (NLCD01) Imperviousness Layer Tile 1, Northwest United States: IMPV01_1

Science.gov (United States)

LaMotte, Andrew E.; Wieczorek, Michael

2010-01-01

This 30-meter resolution data set represents the imperviousness layer for the conterminous United States for the 2001 time period. The data have been arranged into four tiles to facilitate timely display and manipulation within a Geographic Information System, browse graphic: nlcd01-partition. The National Land Cover Data Set for 2001 was produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. The MRLC Consortium is a partnership of Federal agencies (www.mrlc.gov), consisting of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). One of the primary goals of the project is to generate a current, consistent, seamless, and accurate National Land Cover Database (NLCD) circa 2001 for the United States at medium spatial resolution. For a detailed definition and discussion on MRLC and the NLCD 2001 products, refer to Homer and others (2004) and http://www.mrlc.gov/mrlc2k.asp.. The NLCD 2001 was created by partitioning the United States into mapping-zones. A total of 68 mapping-zones browse graphic: nlcd01-mappingzones.jpg were delineated within the conterminous United States based on ecoregion and geographical characteristics, edge-matching features, and the size requirement of Landsat mosaics. Mapping-zones encompass the whole or parts of several states. Questions about the NLCD mapping zones can be directed to the NLCD 2001 Land Cover Mapping Team at the USGS/EROS, Sioux Falls, SD (605) 594-6151 or mrlc@usgs.gov.

Effects of contemporary land-use and land-cover change on the carbon balance of terrestrial ecosystems in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Sleeter, Benjamin M.; Liu, Jinxun; Daniel, Colin; Rayfield, Bronwyn; Sherba, Jason; Hawbaker, Todd J.; Zhu, Zhiliang; Selmants, Paul; Loveland, Thomas R.

2018-01-01

Changes in land use and land cover (LULC) can have profound effects on terrestrial carbon dynamics, yet their effects on the global carbon budget remain uncertain. While land change impacts on ecosystem carbon dynamics have been the focus of numerous studies, few efforts have been based on observational data incorporating multiple ecosystem types spanning large geographic areas over long time horizons. In this study we use a variety of synoptic-scale remote sensing data to estimate the effect of LULC changes associated with urbanization, agricultural expansion and contraction, forest harvest, and wildfire on the carbon balance of terrestrial ecosystems (forest, grasslands, shrublands, and agriculture) in the conterminous United States (i.e. excluding Alaska and Hawaii) between 1973 and 2010. We estimate large net declines in the area of agriculture and forest, along with relatively small increases in grasslands and shrublands. The largest net change in any class was an estimated gain of 114 865 km2 of developed lands, an average rate of 3282 km2 yr−1. On average, US ecosystems sequestered carbon at an annual rate of 254 Tg C yr−1. In forest lands, the net sink declined by 35% over the study period, largely a result of land-use legacy, increasing disturbances, and reductions in forest area due to land use conversion. Uncertainty in LULC change data contributed to a ~16% margin of error in the annual carbon sink estimate prior to 1985 (approximately ±40 Tg C yr−1). Improvements in LULC and disturbance mapping starting in the mid-1980s reduced this uncertainty by ~50% after 1985. We conclude that changes in LULC are a critical component to understanding ecosystem carbon dynamics, and continued improvements in detection, quantification, and attribution of change have the potential to significantly reduce current uncertainties.

Effects of contemporary land-use and land-cover change on the carbon balance of terrestrial ecosystems in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Sleeter, Benjamin M.; Liu, Jinxun; Daniel, Colin; Rayfield, Bronwyn; Sherba, Jason; Hawbaker, Todd J.; Zhu, Zhiliang; Selmants, Paul C.; Loveland, Thomas R.

2018-04-01

Changes in land use and land cover (LULC) can have profound effects on terrestrial carbon dynamics, yet their effects on the global carbon budget remain uncertain. While land change impacts on ecosystem carbon dynamics have been the focus of numerous studies, few efforts have been based on observational data incorporating multiple ecosystem types spanning large geographic areas over long time horizons. In this study we use a variety of synoptic-scale remote sensing data to estimate the effect of LULC changes associated with urbanization, agricultural expansion and contraction, forest harvest, and wildfire on the carbon balance of terrestrial ecosystems (forest, grasslands, shrublands, and agriculture) in the conterminous United States (i.e. excluding Alaska and Hawaii) between 1973 and 2010. We estimate large net declines in the area of agriculture and forest, along with relatively small increases in grasslands and shrublands. The largest net change in any class was an estimated gain of 114 865 km2 of developed lands, an average rate of 3282 km2 yr‑1. On average, US ecosystems sequestered carbon at an annual rate of 254 Tg C yr‑1. In forest lands, the net sink declined by 35% over the study period, largely a result of land-use legacy, increasing disturbances, and reductions in forest area due to land use conversion. Uncertainty in LULC change data contributed to a ~16% margin of error in the annual carbon sink estimate prior to 1985 (approximately ±40 Tg C yr‑1). Improvements in LULC and disturbance mapping starting in the mid-1980s reduced this uncertainty by ~50% after 1985. We conclude that changes in LULC are a critical component to understanding ecosystem carbon dynamics, and continued improvements in detection, quantification, and attribution of change have the potential to significantly reduce current uncertainties.

How conflict affects land use: agricultural activity in areas seized by the Islamic State

Science.gov (United States)

Eklund, Lina; Degerald, Michael; Brandt, Martin; Prishchepov, Alexander V.; Pilesjö, Petter

2017-05-01

Socio-economic shocks, technogenic catastrophes, and armed conflicts often have drastic impacts on local and regional food security through disruption of agricultural production and food trade, reduced investments, and deterioration of land and infrastructure. Recently, more research has focused on the effects of armed conflict on land systems, but still little is known about the processes and outcomes of such events. Here we use the case of Syria and Iraq and the seizure of land by the Islamic State (IS) since 2014 as an example of armed conflict, where we investigate the effects on agricultural land use. We apply a reproducible approach using 250 m satellite-based time-series data to quantify the areas under cultivation from 2000 to 2015. Despite a common belief about widespread land abandonment in areas under conflict, results point to multiple trajectories regarding cropland cultivation in the IS seized area: (1) expansion of cropland to formerly un-cultivated areas, (2) cropland abandonment, and (3) decrease of high-intensity cropland. Our study highlights the need to understand these diverse conflict-related and context-dependent changes to the land system.

76 FR 18210 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2011-04-01

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP11-138-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application On March 15, 2011, Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation (Texas Eastern), 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas 77056-5310, filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory...

77 FR 7600 - Notice of Segregation of Public Lands in the State of Arizona for the Restoration Design Energy...

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-13

...] Notice of Segregation of Public Lands in the State of Arizona for the Restoration Design Energy Project... Arizona from all forms of appropriation under the public land laws, including the mining law, but... the Restoration Design Energy Project (RDEP). The public lands contained in this segregation total...

Addressing concerns about the agricultural impacts of siting a nuclear waste repository in Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boryczka, M.; Darrough, B.

1986-01-01

Public concerns related to the siting of a nuclear repository have included the potential impacts to specific economic sectors. In Texas, local residents have expressed concern about how a repository will affect agriculture. Several major questions have arisen with respect to this issue including: 1) how will a repository's requirements for land and water affect agriculture, 2) how will a repository affect agricultural land values, and 3) how will actual or perceived contamination of locally grown products affect their marketability? This paper describes the concerns raised by local residents and discusses the approach to analyzing the concerns identified. An evaluation of agricultural impacts has been prepared for the Department of Energy's Enviromental Assessment (EA) documents. In addition, activities needed to further evaluate these impacts are planned for site characterization. Both the current analysis and planned activities are described

Preliminary environmental analysis of a geopressured-geothermal test well in Brazoria County, Texas

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

White, W.A.; McGraw, M.; Gustavson, T.C.; Meriwether, J.

1977-11-16

Preliminary environmental data, including current land use, substrate lithology, soils, natural hazards, water resources, biological assemblages, meteorological data, and regulatory considerations have been collected and analyzed for approximately 150 km/sup 2/ of land near Chocolate Bayou, Brazoria County, Texas, in which a geopressured-geothermal test well is to be drilled in the fall of 1977. The study was designed to establish an environmental data base and to determine, within spatial constraints set by subsurface reservoir conditions, environmentally suitable sites for the proposed well. Preliminary analyses of data revealed the eed for focusing on the following areas: potential for subsidence and fault activation, susceptibility of test well and support facilities to fresh- and salt-water flooding, possible effects of produced saline waters on biological assemblages and groundwaer resources, distribution of expansive soils, and effect of drilling and associated support activities on known archeological-cultural resources.

Theoretical concepts "land management process", "land management procedure" and their relationships

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tretiak A.M.

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The state significance of land management activities is manifested in those legal consequences that arise after the issuance of land management documentation and are conditioned by the need to secure unsupported land rights and the use and protection of land in a state-guaranteed manner. The procedural activity of land surveyors and other persons authorized by the state to commit land management operations must be carried out in a certain order established by the state and obey the rights and obligations of the persons specified by the legislation at each stage of the development of such relations.The main goal of applying to land management organizations and land surveyors is landuse documentation, which is made in accordance with the requirements of the law and with which the relevant legal properties of the land management procedure are associated. First of all, let's dwell on such basic concepts as "land management process" and "land management procedure". Consideration of the term "land management process" implies a preliminary analysis of the category "process". At the same time, it must be admitted that the development of the procedural form of this category has not been paid attention. Considering the concept of "land management process", its place and role in the system of social relations, emphasis will be placed on the concept of a broad understanding of the legal process, the problem of which exists for decades.Thus, the legal process is a regulated by the procedural rules procedure for the activities of competent state bodies, consisting of the preparation, adoption and documentary consolidation of legal decisions of a general and individual nature. In the land law, the category "process" is specific and serves to designate relationships that provide regulatory and security land-property relationships. Particularly difficult today is the question of the delimitation of the concepts of "process" and "procedure" in general. Regarding

77 FR 66574 - Texas Regulatory Program

Science.gov (United States)

2012-11-06

... regulations and improve operational efficiency. This document gives the times and locations that the Texas... during regular business hours at the following location: Surface Mining and Reclamation Division... for you to read at the locations listed above under ADDRESSES or at www.regulations.gov . Texas...

77 FR 25949 - Texas Regulatory Program

Science.gov (United States)

2012-05-02

... regulations and improve operational efficiency. This document gives the times and locations that the Texas... during regular business hours at the following location: Surface Mining and Reclamation Division... locations listed above under ADDRESSES or at www.regulations.gov . Texas proposes to revise its regulation...

Current challenges and realities for forest-based businesses adjacent to public lands in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Emily J. Davis; Jesse Abrams; Eric M. White; Cassandra Moseley

2018-01-01

Through contracting and timber sales, the private sector is engaged in management of national forest lands and local community economies in the United States. But there is little recent research about current relationships between these lands and timber purchasers that could better inform future timber and biomass sale and business assistance policies and programs. We...

Nearly 50 Years Post-Jim Crow: Persisting and Expansive School Segregation for African American, Latina/o, and ELL Students in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Vasquez Heilig, Julian; Holme, Jennifer Jellison

2013-01-01

This study addresses the segregation of English language learner (ELL) students in schools across Texas. We descriptively analyze levels of racial, economic, and linguistic isolation experienced by ELL students across the state of Texas. We also examine the association between segregation by race/ethnicity, economic disadvantage, and language…

1982-83 Texas College and University Real Estate Course Survey.

Science.gov (United States)

Lyon, Robert

In 1983, the Texas Real Estate Research Center conducted its eighth annual survey of the real estate offerings of the state's two- and four-year colleges. Survey findings, based on a 90% response rate, included the following: (1) 90 institutions (46 community colleges and 44 four-year colleges) offered real estate courses during the 1982-83…

76 FR 49760 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-11

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP11-524-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application Take notice that on July 29, 2011, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern), 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas 77056-5310, filed with the Federal Energy...

78 FR 64933 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2013-10-30

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP14-4-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application Take notice that on October 10, 2013, Texas Eastern Transmission, (Texas Eastern), having its principal place of business at 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas, 77056...

Endangered Species Management Plan for Fort Hood, Texas: FY06-10

Science.gov (United States)

2007-05-01

Texas red oak, post oak, Texas ash (Fraxinus texensis), shin oak, blackjack oak (Quercus marilandica), slippery elm (Ulmus rubra), cedar elm ...by Ashe juniper and Texas oak. Other important tree species included live oak, cedar elm (Ulmus crassifolia), Lacey oak (Quercus laceyi), Arizona...0.83 m (Cimprich 2005). Nest substrates include shin oak, Texas red oak, Texas redbud, Ashe juniper, Texas ash, Plateau live oak, cedar elm , rusty

Current State and Development of Land Degradation Processes Based on Soil Monitoring in Slovakia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kobza Jozef

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Current state and development of land degradation processes based on soil monitoring system in Slovakia is evaluated in this contribution. Soil monitoring system in Slovakia is consistently running since 1993 year in 5-years repetitions. Soil monitoring network in Slovakia is constructed using ecological principle, taking into account all main soil types and subtypes, soil organic matter, climatic regions, emission regions, polluted and non-polluted regions as well as various land use. The result of soil monitoring network is 318 sites on agricultural land in Slovakia. Soil properties are evaluated according to the main threats to soil relating to European Commission recommendation for European soil monitoring performance as follows: soil erosion and compaction, soil acidification, decline in soil organic matter and soil contamination. The most significant change has been determined in physical degradation of soils. The physical degradation was especially manifested in compacted and the eroded soils. It was determined that about 39% of agricultural land is potentially affected by soil erosion in Slovakia. In addition, slight decline in soil organic matter indicates the serious facts on evaluation and extension of soil degradation processes during the last period in Slovakia. Soil contamination is without significant change for the time being. It means the soils contaminated before soil monitoring process this unfavourable state lasts also at present.

78 FR 43874 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2013-07-22

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP13-514-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application On July 2, 2013, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern) filed... natural gas facilities no longer in service. As described more fully in the Application, Texas Eastern...

76 FR 38381 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Amendment

Science.gov (United States)

2011-06-30

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP11-67-001] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Amendment Take notice that on June 13, 2011, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern), 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas 77056, filed in the above referenced docket an amendment...

77 FR 20015 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2012-04-03

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP12-88-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application Take notice that on March 19, 2012, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern), 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas 77056-5310, filed an application in Docket No...

77 FR 12045 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2012-02-28

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP12-68-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application Take notice that on February 16, 2012, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern), PO Box 1642, Houston, Texas 77056 filed an application in the above referenced docket...

Characterization of Pollution Transport into Texas Using OMI and TES Satellite and In Situ data, and HYSPLIT Back Trajectory Analyses: implications for TCEQ State Implementation Plans and High School/Undergraduate STEM Education

Science.gov (United States)

Boxe, C.; Bella, D.; Khaimova, J.; Culpepper, J.; Ahmed, N.; Belkalai, A.; Ealy, J.; Arroyo, I.; Lahoumh, M.; Jenkins, O.; Emmanuel, S.; Andrews, J.; Fu, D.; Wu, L.; Choi, Y.; Morris, G.; Osterman, G. B.; Johnson, L. P.; Austin, S. A.

2014-12-01

Using an online trajectory analysis tool NASA, ArcGIS, Satellite and EPA in situ data, we assess whether high pollution events in Texas are primarily sourced locally or remotely. We focus satellite data that exemplify high O3 and NO2 over Texas's lower troposphere. Four day back trajectory analyses of all dates show that upper-, mid-, and lower-tropospheric air over Texas, containing high O3, is transported from the Gulf of Mexico, Southeast USA, Midwest USA, Northeast USA, the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Mexico, etc. Only day showed air at 1 km is sourced within Texas. Satellite data show O3 enhancements in the boundary layer and O3 and NO2 enhancements via tropospheric column profiles. These enhancements complement four-day trajectory analysis. This study provides a viable basis for more quantifiable and accurate information for developing effective air quality State Implementation Plans. STEM Impact: (i) D. Bella was an NSF-LSAMP undergraduate research mentee with me at Medgar Evers College-CUNY; she received a B.S. in Environmental Science (and a Chemistry Minor) and is now a Ph.D. graduate student at University at Albany's School of Public Health. (ii) J. Khaimova is an undergraduate Geology and Planetary Science B.S. major at Brooklyn College-CUNY. I have supported Jessica's summer internship in summer 2013 as a CUNY Summer Research Fellow, where she is currently an NSF-REU research mentee at Pennsylvania State University's Meteorology Department. (iii) J. Culpepper received his B.S. in Environmental Science from MEC-CUNY and will be a Ph.D. student, Fall 2014 at University of Iowa's Civil and Environmental Engineering Department. (iv) S. Gentle was a high school researcher with me within ACS's Project SEED Program for high school students. S. Gentle will start her undergraduate career Fall 2014 at Pennsylvania State University and seeks to attain a B.S. in Chemistry. (v). All parties, including high school and undergraduate researchers seek to attend

78 FR 66352 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2013-11-05

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP14-9-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application Take notice that on October 17, 2013, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern), 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas 77056, filed an application in Docket No. CP14-9...

78 FR 79687 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2013-12-31

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP14-29-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application Take notice that on December 10, 2013 Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern), at 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas 77056, filed an application in Docket No. CP14...

77 FR 26534 - Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2012-05-04

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP12-164-000] Texas Eastern Transmission, LP; Notice of Application Take notice that on April 19, 2012, Texas Eastern Transmission, LP (Texas Eastern), 5400 Westheimer Court, Houston, Texas 77056, filed in Docket No. CP12-164-000, a request...

A theoretical model of subsidence caused by petroleum production: Big Hill Field, Jefferson County, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hill, D.W.; Sharp, J.M. Jr.

1993-01-01

In the Texas Gulf Coastal Plain, there is a history of oil and gas production extending over 2 to 5 decades. Concurrent with this production history, there has been unprecedented population growth accompanied by vastly increased groundwater demands. Land subsidence on both local and regional bases in this geologic province has been measured and predicted in several studies. The vast majority of these studies have addressed the problem from the standpoint of groundwater usage while only a few have considered the effects of oil and gas production. Based upon field-based computational techniques (Helm, 1984), a model has been developed to predict land subsidence caused by oil and gas production. This method is applied to the Big Hill Field in Jefferson County, Texas. Inputs include production data from a series of wells in this field and lithologic data from electric logs of these same wells. Outputs include predicted amounts of subsidence, the time frame of subsidence, and sensitivity analyses of compressibility and hydraulic conductivity estimates. Depending upon estimated compressibility, subsidence, to date, is predicted to be as high as 20 cm. Similarly, depending upon estimated vertical hydraulic conductivity, the time frame may be decades for this subsidence. These same methods can be applied to other oil/gas fields with established production histories as well as new fields when production scenarios are assumed. Where subsidence has been carefully measured above petroleum reservoir, the model may be used inversely to calculate sediment compressibilities

EnviroAtlas - Land Cover for the Conterminous United States

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — This dataset represents the percentage of land area that is classified as forest land cover, modified forest land cover, and natural land cover using the 2006...

Spatially explicit modeling of lesser prairie-chicken lek density in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Timmer, Jennifer M.; Butler, M.J.; Ballard, Warren; Boal, Clint W.; Whitlaw, Heather A.

2014-01-01

As with many other grassland birds, lesser prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) have experienced population declines in the Southern Great Plains. Currently they are proposed for federal protection under the Endangered Species Act. In addition to a history of land-uses that have resulted in habitat loss, lesser prairie-chickens now face a new potential disturbance from energy development. We estimated lek density in the occupied lesser prairie-chicken range of Texas, USA, and modeled anthropogenic and vegetative landscape features associated with lek density. We used an aerial line-transect survey method to count lesser prairie-chicken leks in spring 2010 and 2011 and surveyed 208 randomly selected 51.84-km(2) blocks. We divided each survey block into 12.96-km(2) quadrats and summarized landscape variables within each quadrat. We then used hierarchical distance-sampling models to examine the relationship between lek density and anthropogenic and vegetative landscape features and predict how lek density may change in response to changes on the landscape, such as an increase in energy development. Our best models indicated lek density was related to percent grassland, region (i.e., the northeast or southwest region of the Texas Panhandle), total percentage of grassland and shrubland, paved road density, and active oil and gas well density. Predicted lek density peaked at 0.39leks/12.96km(2) (SE=0.09) and 2.05leks/12.96km(2) (SE=0.56) in the northeast and southwest region of the Texas Panhandle, respectively, which corresponds to approximately 88% and 44% grassland in the northeast and southwest region. Lek density increased with an increase in total percentage of grassland and shrubland and was greatest in areas with lower densities of paved roads and lower densities of active oil and gas wells. We used the 2 most competitive models to predict lek abundance and estimated 236 leks (CV=0.138, 95% CI=177-306leks) for our sampling area. Our results suggest that

Site Study Plan for land use, Deaf Smith County site, Texas: Environmental Field Program: Preliminary draft

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-06-01

The Land Use Site Study Plan describes a field program consisting of characterization of the site; seismic survey rights-of-way and transportation and utility corridors, the vicinity, the region, future land use, and monitoring land-use change. Aerial photography will be used to characterize the site, seismic rows and transportation and utility corridors, and the vicinity. The resulting land-use maps and overlays will then be verified in the field. Interviews with farm managers and local experts will provide additional information. A Geographic Information System (GIS) and satellite imagery will be used to characterize the region, monitor land-use change, and provide information to assist with the future land use study. The site study plan describes the study design and rationale, the filed data collection procedures and equipment, the data analysis methods and application of results, the data management strategy, the schedule of field activities, the personnel requirements and management of the study, and the study's quality assurance program. The directives and requirements that drive these studies are derived from the Salt Repository Project Requirements Document. 51 refs; 6 figs; 3 tabs

Surface faults in the gulf coastal plain between Victoria and Beaumont, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Verbeek, Earl R.

1979-01-01

Displacement of the land surface by faulting is widespread in the Houston-Galveston region, an area which has undergone moderate to severe land subsidence associated with fluid withdrawal (principally water, and to a lesser extent, oil and gas). A causative link between subsidence and fluid extraction has been convincingly reported in the published literature. However, the degree to which fluid withdrawal affects fault movement in the Texas Gulf Coast, and the mechanism(s) by which this occurs are as yet unclear. Faults that offset the ground surface are not confined to the large (>6000-km2) subsidence “bowl” centered on Houston, but rather are common and characteristic features of Gulf Coast geology. Current observations and conclusions concerning surface faults mapped in a 35,000-km2 area between Victoria and Beaumont, Texas (which area includes the Houston subsidence bowl) may be summarized as follows: (1) Hundreds of faults cutting the Pleistocene and Holocene sediments exposed in the coastal plain have been mapped. Many faults lie well outside the Houston-Galveston region; of these, more than 10% are active, as shown by such features as displaced, fractured, and patched road surfaces, structural failure of buildings astride faults, and deformed railroad tracks. (2) Complex patterns of surface faults are common above salt domes. Both radial patterns (for example, in High Island, Blue Ridge, Clam Lake, and Clinton domes) and crestal grabens (for example, in the South Houston and Friendswood-Webster domes) have been recognized. Elongate grabens connecting several known and suspected salt domes, such as the fault zone connecting Mykawa, Friendswood-Webster, and Clear Lake domes, suggest fault development above rising salt ridges. (3) Surface faults associated with salt domes tend to be short (10 km), occur singly or in simple grabens, have gently sinuous traces, and tend to lie roughly parallel to the ENE-NE “coastwise” trend common to regional growth

An initial SPARROW model of land use and in-stream controls on total organic carbon in streams of the conterminous United States

Science.gov (United States)

Shih, Jhih-Shyang; Alexander, Richard B.; Smith, Richard A.; Boyer, Elizabeth W.; Shwarz, Grogory E.; Chung, Susie

2010-01-01

Watersheds play many important roles in the carbon cycle: (1) they are a site for both terrestrial and aquatic carbon dioxide (CO2) removal through photosynthesis; (2) they transport living and decomposing organic carbon in streams and groundwater; and (3) they store organic carbon for widely varying lengths of time as a function of many biogeochemical factors. Using the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Spatially Referenced Regression on Watershed Attributes (SPARROW) model, along with long-term monitoring data on total organic carbon (TOC), this research quantitatively estimates the sources, transport, and fate of the long-term mean annual load of TOC in streams of the conterminous United States. The model simulations use surrogate measures of the major terrestrial and aquatic sources of organic carbon to estimate the long-term mean annual load of TOC in streams. The estimated carbon sources in the model are associated with four land uses (urban, cultivated, forest, and wetlands) and autochthonous fixation of carbon (stream photosynthesis). Stream photosynthesis is determined by reach-level application of an empirical model of stream chlorophyll based on total phosphorus concentration, and a mechanistic model of photosynthetic rate based on chlorophyll, average daily solar irradiance, water column light attenuation, and reach dimensions. It was found that the estimate of in-stream photosynthesis is a major contributor to the mean annual TOC load per unit of drainage area (that is, yield) in large streams, with a median share of about 60 percent of the total mean annual carbon load in streams with mean flows above 500 cubic feet per second. The interquartile range of the model predictions of TOC from in-stream photosynthesis is from 0.1 to 0.4 grams (g) carbon (C) per square meter (m-2) per day (day-1) for the approximately 62,000 stream reaches in the continental United States, which compares favorably with the reported literature range for net carbon fixation by

Historical Analysis of Land Cover/Condition Trends at Fort Bliss, Texas, Using Remotely Sensed Imagery

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Tweddale, Scott

2001-01-01

.... They need a cost-effective method of assessing and monitoring land condition. The objective of this research was to characterize the small scale, gross level change in land condition on a selected area of Fort Bliss over a 23-year period...

75 FR 45611 - Texas Eastern Transmission LP; Notice of Application

Science.gov (United States)

2010-08-03

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. CP10-471-000] Texas Eastern Transmission LP; Notice of Application July 27, 2010. Take notice that on July 15, 2010, Texas Eastern Transmission (Texas Eastern), P.O. Box 1642, Houston, Texas 77251-1642, filed in Docket No. CP10-471-000, an...

Land Cover

Data.gov (United States)

Kansas Data Access and Support Center — The Land Cover database depicts 10 general land cover classes for the State of Kansas. The database was compiled from a digital classification of Landsat Thematic...

East Texas, 2011 forest inventory and analysis factsheet

Science.gov (United States)

Jason A. Cooper; James W. Bentley

2012-01-01

This science update summarizes the findings of the annual inventory conducted by the Southern Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program in cooperation with the Texas Forest Service of the forest resource attributes in east Texas. The 254 counties of Texas are consolidated into 7 FIA survey units—southeast (unit 1), northeast (unit 2), north central (unit 3), south (...

Biostratigraphic implications of the first Eocene land-mammal fauna from the North American coastal plain

Science.gov (United States)

Westgate, James W.

1988-11-01

A newly discovered vertebrate fossil assemblage, the Casa Blanca local fauna, comes from the Laredo Formation, Claiborne Group, of Webb County, Texas, and is the first reported Eocene land-mammal fauna from the coastal plain of North America. The mammalian fauna is correlated with the Serendipity and Candelaria local faunas of west Texas, the Uinta C faunas of the Rocky Mountains, the Santiago Formation local fauna of southern California, and the Swift Current Creek local fauna of Saskatchewan. The vertebrate-bearing deposit lies about 32 m above a horizon containing the marine gastropod Turritella cortezi, which ranges from east Texas to northeast Mexico in the lower half of the Cook Mountain and Laredo Formations and is a guide fossil to the Hurricane Lentil in the Cook Mountain Formation. Nannoplankton found in these middle Eocene formations belong to the upper half of Nannoplankton Zone I6 and allow correlation with European beds of late Lutetian to early Bartonian age.

Texas Heart Institute

Science.gov (United States)

... of seminars and conferences. Resources Texas Heart Institute Journal Scientific Publications Library & Learning Resources Resources for Physicians Fellowships & Residencies School of Perfusion Technology THI Spotlight Check out the ...

75 FR 14359 - FM TABLE OF ALLOTMENTS, Stonewall, Texas

Science.gov (United States)

2010-03-25

... TABLE OF ALLOTMENTS, Stonewall, Texas AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission. ACTION: Final rule... allotment of Channel 280A at Stonewall, Texas, as the community's first local transmission service. The..., Texas. It is Commission policy to protect applications against subsequently-filed and conflicting rule...

Area geological characterization report for the Palo Duro and Dalhart Basins, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-07-01

The present state of knowledge of the geology, hydrogeology, and seismology of the Palo Duro and Dalhart basins is summarized as a basis for future siting studies for a high-level nuclear waste repository. Large portions of the Texas Panhandle, and especially the Palo Duro basin, have stable geologic conditions and a favorable evaporite stratigraphy that warrant further study. Five salt-bearing formations containing thick salt units are present within the basin. Salt beds appear to be persistent over wide areas, relatively flat lying and structurally undisturbed. Available hydrogeologic data suggest that favorable conditions for waste isolation are widespread. The level and rate of seismic activity are low throughout the Texas Panhandle. 335 references, 83 figures, 17 tables

State Lands by Administrator - County

Data.gov (United States)

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — DNR land ownership and administrative interest mapped to the PLS forty level. This layer merges the DNR Control Point Generated PLS layer with IBM mainframe-based...

State Lands by Administrator - Forestry

Data.gov (United States)

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — DNR land ownership and administrative interest mapped to the PLS forty level. This layer merges the DNR Control Point Generated PLS layer with IBM mainframe-based...

State Lands by Administrator - Wildlife

Data.gov (United States)

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — DNR land ownership and administrative interest mapped to the PLS forty level. This layer merges the DNR Control Point Generated PLS layer with IBM mainframe-based...

State Lands by Administrator - Fisheries

Data.gov (United States)

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — DNR land ownership and administrative interest mapped to the PLS forty level. This layer merges the DNR Control Point Generated PLS layer with IBM mainframe-based...

An Examination of the Leadership Practices of University Presidents of Land-Grant Universities in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Aldighrir, Wafa M.

2013-01-01

A great deal of research has been done to understand leadership styles in different organizational settings. In this study, the researcher focused on the leadership practices of university presidents of land-grant universities (LGUs) in the United States. The study examined the leadership practices of presidents of land-grant universities as…

Land Treatment Digital Library

Science.gov (United States)

Pilliod, David S.; Welty, Justin L.

2013-01-01

The Land Treatment Digital Library (LTDL) was created by the U.S. Geological Survey to catalog legacy land treatment information on Bureau of Land Management lands in the western United States. The LTDL can be used by federal managers and scientists for compiling information for data-calls, producing maps, generating reports, and conducting analyses at varying spatial and temporal scales. The LTDL currently houses thousands of treatments from BLM lands across 10 states. Users can browse a map to find information on individual treatments, perform more complex queries to identify a set of treatments, and view graphs of treatment summary statistics.

Potential development of an intercity passenger transit system in Texas : final project report.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-01

This report describes the findings of a research study of the potential for development of an intercity rail and : express bus system in the state of Texas. Rather than focus on regional commuter or light rail systems : radiating from urban areas, th...

Democratic Purpose and Educational Leadership Policies in Sweden and in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Murakami, Elizabeth; Törnsén, Monika

2015-01-01

In this study we analyze the extent to which policy documents that include standards and expectations for the preparation of school principals (i.e., head teachers) influence democratic practices. This comparative research examines educational policies that influence the work of principals both in Sweden and in the U.S., the state of Texas asking:…

Measuring energy-saving retrofits: Experiences from the Texas LoanSTAR program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haberl, J.S.; Reddy, T.A.; Claridge, D.E.; Turner, W.D.; O`Neal, D.L.; Heffington, W.M. [Texas A and M Univ., College Station, TX (United States). Energy Systems Lab.

1996-02-01

In 1988 the Governor`s Energy Management Center of Texas received approval from the US Department of Energy to establish a $98.6 million state-wide retrofit demonstration revolving loan program to fund energy-conserving retrofits in state, public school, and local government buildings. As part of this program, a first-of-its-kind, statewide Monitoring and Analysis Program (MAP) was established to verify energy and dollar savings of the retrofits, reduce energy costs by identifying operational and maintenance improvements, improve retrofit selection in future rounds of the LoanSTAR program, and initiate a data base of energy use in institutional and commercial buildings located in Texas. This report discusses the LoanSTAR MAP with an emphasis on the process of acquiring and analyzing data to measure savings from energy conservation retrofits when budgets are a constraint. This report includes a discussion of the program structure, basic measurement techniques, data archiving and handling, data reporting and analysis, and includes selected examples from LoanSTAR agencies. A summary of the program results for the first two years of monitoring is also included.

National Land Cover Database 2001 (NLCD01) Tree Canopy Layer Tile 4, Southeast United States: CNPY01_4

Science.gov (United States)

LaMotte, Andrew E.; Wieczorek, Michael

2010-01-01

This 30-meter resolution data set represents the tree canopy layer for the conterminous United States for the 2001 time period. The data have been arranged into four tiles to facilitate timely display and manipulation within a Geographic Information System, browse graphic: nlcd01-partition.jpg The National Land Cover Data Set for 2001 was produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. The MRLC Consortium is a partnership of Federal agencies (www.mrlc.gov), consisting of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). One of the primary goals of the project is to generate a current, consistent, seamless, and accurate National Land Cover Database (NLCD) circa 2001 for the United States at medium spatial resolution. For a detailed definition and discussion on MRLC and the NLCD 2001 products, refer to Homer and others (2004) and http://www.mrlc.gov/mrlc2k.asp. The NLCD 2001 was created by partitioning the United States into mapping-zones. A total of 68 mapping-zones browse graphic: nlcd01-mappingzones.jpg were delineated within the conterminous United States based on ecoregion and geographical characteristics, edge-matching features, and the size requirement of Landsat mosaics. Mapping-zones encompass the whole or parts of several states. Questions about the NLCD mapping zones can be directed to the NLCD 2001 Land Cover Mapping Team at the USGS/EROS, Sioux Falls, SD (605) 594-6151 or mrlc@usgs.gov.

National Land Cover Database 2001 (NLCD01) Tree Canopy Layer Tile 2, Northeast United States: CNPY01_2

Science.gov (United States)

LaMotte, Andrew E.; Wieczorek, Michael

2010-01-01

This 30-meter resolution data set represents the tree canopy layer for the conterminous United States for the 2001 time period. The data have been arranged into four tiles to facilitate timely display and manipulation within a Geographic Information System, browse graphic: nlcd01-partition.jpg The National Land Cover Data Set for 2001 was produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. The MRLC Consortium is a partnership of Federal agencies (www.mrlc.gov), consisting of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). One of the primary goals of the project is to generate a current, consistent, seamless, and accurate National Land Cover Database (NLCD) circa 2001 for the United States at medium spatial resolution. For a detailed definition and discussion on MRLC and the NLCD 2001 products, refer to Homer and others (2004) and http://www.mrlc.gov/mrlc2k.asp. The NLCD 2001 was created by partitioning the United States into mapping-zones. A total of 68 mapping-zones browse graphic: nlcd01-mappingzones.jpg were delineated within the conterminous United States based on ecoregion and geographical characteristics, edge-matching features, and the size requirement of Landsat mosaics. Mapping-zones encompass the whole or parts of several states. Questions about the NLCD mapping zones can be directed to the NLCD 2001 Land Cover Mapping Team at the USGS/EROS, Sioux Falls, SD (605) 594-6151 or mrlc@usgs.gov.

National Land Cover Database 2001 (NLCD01) Tree Canopy Layer Tile 1, Northwest United States: CNPY01_1

Science.gov (United States)

LaMotte, Andrew E.; Wieczorek, Michael

2010-01-01

This 30-meter resolution data set represents the tree canopy layer for the conterminous United States for the 2001 time period. The data have been arranged into four tiles to facilitate timely display and manipulation within a Geographic Information System, browse graphic: nlcd01-partition.jpg. The National Land Cover Data Set for 2001 was produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. The MRLC Consortium is a partnership of Federal agencies (www.mrlc.gov), consisting of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). One of the primary goals of the project is to generate a current, consistent, seamless, and accurate National Land Cover Database (NLCD) circa 2001 for the United States at medium spatial resolution. For a detailed definition and discussion on MRLC and the NLCD 2001 products, refer to Homer and others (2004) and http://www.mrlc.gov/mrlc2k.asp. The NLCD 2001 was created by partitioning the United States into mapping-zones. A total of 68 mapping-zones browse graphic: nlcd01-mappingzones.jpg were delineated within the conterminous United States based on ecoregion and geographical characteristics, edge-matching features, and the size requirement of Landsat mosaics. Mapping-zones encompass the whole or parts of several states. Questions about the NLCD mapping zones can be directed to the NLCD 2001 Land Cover Mapping Team at the USGS/EROS, Sioux Falls, SD (605) 594-6151 or mrlc@usgs.gov

National Land Cover Database 2001 (NLCD01) Tree Canopy Layer Tile 3, Southwest United States: CNPY01_3

Science.gov (United States)

LaMotte, Andrew E.; Wieczorek, Michael

2010-01-01

This 30-meter resolution data set represents the tree canopy layer for the conterminous United States for the 2001 time period. The data have been arranged into four tiles to facilitate timely display and manipulation within a Geographic Information System, browse graphic: nlcd01-partition.jpg The National Land Cover Data Set for 2001 was produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC) Consortium. The MRLC Consortium is a partnership of Federal agencies (www.mrlc.gov), consisting of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). One of the primary goals of the project is to generate a current, consistent, seamless, and accurate National Land Cover Database (NLCD) circa 2001 for the United States at medium spatial resolution. For a detailed definition and discussion on MRLC and the NLCD 2001 products, refer to Homer and others (2004) and http://www.mrlc.gov/mrlc2k.asp. The NLCD 2001 was created by partitioning the United States into mapping-zones. A total of 68 mapping-zones browse graphic: nlcd01-mappingzones.jpg were delineated within the conterminous United States based on ecoregion and geographical characteristics, edge-matching features, and the size requirement of Landsat mosaics. Mapping-zones encompass the whole or parts of several states. Questions about the NLCD mapping zones can be directed to the NLCD 2001 Land Cover Mapping Team at the USGS/EROS, Sioux Falls, SD (605) 594-6151 or mrlc@usgs.gov.

The Texas A&M Radioisotope Production and Radiochemistry Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akabani, Gamal

2016-01-01

The main motivation of the project at Texas A&M University was to carry out the production of critically needed radioisotopes used in medicine for diagnostics and therapy, and to establish an academic program in radionuclide production and separation methods. After a lengthy battle with the Texas A&M University Radiation Safety Office, the Texas Department of State Health Services granted us a license for the production of radionuclides in July 2015, allowing us to work in earnest in our project objectives. Experiments began immediately after licensing, and we started the assembly and testing of our target systems. There were four analytical/theoretical projects and two experimental target systems. These were for At-211 production and for Zn-62/Cu-62 production. The theoretical projects were related to the production of Mo-99/Tc-99m using a) a subcritical aqueous target system and b) production of Tc-99m from accelerator-generated Mo-99 utilizing a photon-neutron interaction with enriched Mo-100 targets. The two experimental projects were the development of targetry systems and production of At-211 and Zn-62/Cu-62 generator. The targetry system for At-211 has been tested and production of At-211 is chronic depending of availability of beam time at the cyclotron. The installation and testing of the targetry system for the production of Zn-62/Cu-62 has not been finalized. A description of the systems is described. The academic program in radionuclide production and separation methods was initiated in the fall of 2011 and, due to the lack of a radiochemistry laboratory, it was suspended. We expect to re-start the academic program at the Texas A&M Institute for Preclinical Studies under the Molecular Imaging Program.

The Texas A&M Radioisotope Production and Radiochemistry Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akabani, Gamal [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States)

2016-08-31

The main motivation of the project at Texas A&M University was to carry out the production of critically needed radioisotopes used in medicine for diagnostic and therapy, and to establish an academic program in radionuclide production and separation methods. After a lengthy battle with the Texas A&M University Radiation Safety Office, the Texas Department of State Health Services granted us a license for the production of radionuclides in July 2015, allowing us to work in earnest in our project objectives. Experiments began immediately after licensing, and we started the assembly and testing of our target systems. There were four analytical/theoretical projects and two experimental target systems. These were for At-211 production and for Zn- 62/Cu-62 production. The theoretical projects were related to the production of Mo-99/Tc-99m using (a) a subcritical aqueous target system and (b) production of Tc-99m from accelerator-generated Mo-99 utilizing a photon-neutron interaction with enriched Mo-100 targets. The two experimental projects were the development of targetry systems and production of At-211 and Zn-62/Cu-62 generator. The targetry system for At-211 has been tested and production of At-211 is chronic depending of availability of beam time at the cyclotron. The installation and testing of the targetry system for the production of Zn-62/Cu-62 has not been finalized. A description of the systems is described. The academic program in radionuclide production and separation methods was initiated in the fall of 2011; due to the lack of a radiochemistry laboratory, it was suspended. We expect to re-start the academic program at the Texas A&M Institute for Preclinical Studies under the Molecular Imaging Program.

The Texas A&M Radioisotope Production and Radiochemistry Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akabani, Gamal

2016-01-01

The main motivation of the project at Texas A&M University was to carry out the production of critically needed radioisotopes used in medicine for diagnostic and therapy, and to establish an academic program in radionuclide production and separation methods. After a lengthy battle with the Texas A&M University Radiation Safety Office, the Texas Department of State Health Services granted us a license for the production of radionuclides in July 2015, allowing us to work in earnest in our project objectives. Experiments began immediately after licensing, and we started the assembly and testing of our target systems. There were four analytical/theoretical projects and two experimental target systems. These were for At-211 production and for Zn- 62/Cu-62 production. The theoretical projects were related to the production of Mo-99/Tc-99m using (a) a subcritical aqueous target system and (b) production of Tc-99m from accelerator-generated Mo-99 utilizing a photon-neutron interaction with enriched Mo-100 targets. The two experimental projects were the development of targetry systems and production of At-211 and Zn-62/Cu-62 generator. The targetry system for At-211 has been tested and production of At-211 is chronic depending of availability of beam time at the cyclotron. The installation and testing of the targetry system for the production of Zn-62/Cu-62 has not been finalized. A description of the systems is described. The academic program in radionuclide production and separation methods was initiated in the fall of 2011; due to the lack of a radiochemistry laboratory, it was suspended. We expect to re-start the academic program at the Texas A&M Institute for Preclinical Studies under the Molecular Imaging Program.

The Texas A&M Radioisotope Production and Radiochemistry Program

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akabani, Gamal [Texas A & M Univ., College Station, TX (United States). Dept. of Nuclear Engineering. Dept. of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences

2016-10-28

The main motivation of the project at Texas A&M University was to carry out the production of critically needed radioisotopes used in medicine for diagnostics and therapy, and to establish an academic program in radionuclide production and separation methods. After a lengthy battle with the Texas A&M University Radiation Safety Office, the Texas Department of State Health Services granted us a license for the production of radionuclides in July 2015, allowing us to work in earnest in our project objectives. Experiments began immediately after licensing, and we started the assembly and testing of our target systems. There were four analytical/theoretical projects and two experimental target systems. These were for At-211 production and for Zn-62/Cu-62 production. The theoretical projects were related to the production of Mo-99/Tc-99m using a) a subcritical aqueous target system and b) production of Tc-99m from accelerator-generated Mo-99 utilizing a photon-neutron interaction with enriched Mo-100 targets. The two experimental projects were the development of targetry systems and production of At-211 and Zn-62/Cu-62 generator. The targetry system for At-211 has been tested and production of At-211 is chronic depending of availability of beam time at the cyclotron. The installation and testing of the targetry system for the production of Zn-62/Cu-62 has not been finalized. A description of the systems is described. The academic program in radionuclide production and separation methods was initiated in the fall of 2011 and, due to the lack of a radiochemistry laboratory, it was suspended. We expect to re-start the academic program at the Texas A&M Institute for Preclinical Studies under the Molecular Imaging Program.

Integrated Assessment of Climate Change, Land-Use Changes, and Regional Carbon Dynamics in United States

Science.gov (United States)

Mu, J. E.; Sleeter, B. M.; Abatzoglou, J. T.

2015-12-01

The fact that climate change is likely to accelerate throughout this century means that climate-sensitive sectors such as agriculture will need to adapt increasingly to climate change. This fact also means that understanding the potential for agricultural adaptation, and how it could come about, is important for ongoing technology investments in the public and private sectors, for infrastructure investments, and for the various policies that address agriculture directly or indirectly. This paper is an interdisciplinary study by collaborating with climate scientist, agronomists, economists, and ecologists. We first use statistical models to estimate impacts of climate change on major crop yields (wheat, corn, soybeans, sorghum, and cotton) and predict changes in crop yields under future climate condition using downscaled climate projections from CMIP5. Then, we feed the predicted yield changes to a partial equilibrium economic model (FASOM-GHG) to evaluate economic and environmental outcomes including changes in land uses (i.e., cropland, pastureland, forest land, urban land and land for conservation) in United States. Finally, we use outputs from FASOM-GHG as inputs for the ST-SIM ecological model to simulate future carbon dynamics through changes in land use under future climate conditions and discuss the rate of adaptation through land-use changes. Findings in this paper have several merits compared to previous findings in the literature. First, we add economic components to the carbon calculation. It is important to include socio-economic conditions when calculating carbon emission and/or carbon sequestration because human activities are the major contribution to atmosphere GHG emissions. Second, we use the most recent downscaled climate projections from CMIP5 to capture uncertainties from climate model projections. Instead of using all GCMs, we select five GCMs to represent the ensemble. Third, we use a bottom-up approach because we start from micro-level data

Texas floods of 1940

Science.gov (United States)

Breeding, Seth D.

1948-01-01

Basin between Smithville and La Grange, amounting to 550 square miles, had an average rainfall of 19.3 inches, of which 11.5 inches appeared as runoff. The maximum discharge at La Grange was 182,000 second-feet, with much the greater part coming from below Smithville. This is probably a record-breaking flood for the area between Smithville and La Grange, but stages as much as 16 feet higher have occurred at La Grange. Heavy rainfall over the east half of Texas November 21-26 caused large floods in all streams in Texas east of the Guadalupe River. The maximum recorded rainfall for the 2-day period November 24-25 was 20.46 inches at Hempstead, of which 16.00 inches fell in 24 hours or less. The storm occurred during the period November 20-26, with the greater part of the rain falling November 23-25. During the period November 20-26, rainfall in Texas amounted to more than 15 inches over an area of 3,380 square miles, and 'to more than 10 inches over an area of 17,570 square miles. The average annual rainfall for the area in Texas experiencing more than 10 inches of rain during this storm ranges from 501 inches on the east border of the State to 35 inches near the west edge of the area. The study of this storm for the purposes of this report is limited to the San Jacinto River Basin, which had an average rainfall of 13.6 inches. This basin has an area of 2,791 square miles above the gaging station near Huffman and is typical in topographic and hydrologic features of much of eastern Texas. The stage reached at the gage near Huffman was about 1 foot higher than known before, the maximum discharge was 253,000 second-feet, and the runoff from the storm amounted to 8.8 inches. The November flood came after crops had been harvested, and its damage was mainly the destruction of highways and railways and the drowning of livestock. The storage reservoirs on the Colorado River located well upstream from the storm areas herein studied had very little effect on

METHODOLOGICAL BASIS IMPOSING RESTRICTIONS IN LAND USE, BURDENED LAND RIGHTS DURING LAND TENURE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dorosh J.

2016-05-01

of territorial restrictions in land use, formed on the principles of state security, a combination of state and local interests, to achieve a balanced ratio of economic and environmental interests of society and to ensure rational land use. Information on restrictions on land use rights and encumbrances on the land, was amended land systematized: • formation of land use and protection zones of objects and territories nature reserve fund objects Environmental Network; • definition (specification of borders of natural and agricultural zoning and parcels with especially valuable land; • definition (specification of land borders and security zones and areas of historical, cultural, health and recreational purposes; • definition (specification of land borders and security zones, objects (industry, transport, communications, defense, etc. and their protection zones; • definition (specification of limits of water protection zones and coastal strips, objects of sanitary protection; • definition (specification of limits of radioactive contaminated territories, and contaminated by heavy metals; • definition (specification limits encumbrances established easements, contracts, court order; • definition (specification limits areas formed in accordance with the previously approved land management documentation; • definition (specification boundaries of territories with special regime of land use; • definition (approval of the legal regime of land use in areas of special protection of land and formation of restrictions and encumbrances in land use.

Land reform and land fragmentation in Central and Eastern Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartvigsen, Morten B.

2014-01-01

It has often been stated that land fragmentation and farm structures characterized by small agricultural holdings and farms divided in a large number of parcels have been the side-effect of land reform in Central and Eastern Europe. This article reports the findings of a study of land reform in 25...... countries in the region from 1989 and onwards and provides an overview of applied land reform approaches. With a basis in theory on land fragmentation, the linkage between land reform approaches and land fragmentation is explored. It is discussed in which situations land fragmentation is a barrier...... for the development of the agricultural and rural sector. The main finding is that land fragmentation is often hampering agricultural and rural development when both land ownership and land use is highly fragmented....

Evaporite-hosted native sulfur in Trans-Pecos Texas: Relation to late-phase basin and range deformation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hentz, T.F.; Henry, C.D.

1989-01-01

Major deposits of biogenic native sulfur are associated with narrow, northeast-trending grabens and normal faults that disrupt the gently tilted, east-dipping Upper Permian evaporite succession of the western Delaware Basin in Trans-Pecos Texas. Orebodies are restricted to geologic traps in the fractured and dissolution-modified downfaulted blocks of the grabens. Other parallel, regionally distributed grabens and normal faults are commonly the sites of noncommercial sulfur deposits and genetically related secondary-replacement (diagenetic) limestone bodies. The sulfur-bearing structures probably formed during the later of two episodes of Basin and Range extension that have not previously been differentiated in Texas but are well defined elsewhere in the western United States. In Texas several lines of evidence collectively support the existence of late-phase, northwest-directed extension that was initiated in the middle Miocene

Texas flexible pavements and overlays : calibration plans for M-E models and related software.

Science.gov (United States)

2013-06-01

This five-year project was initiated to collect materials and pavement performance data on a minimum of 100 highway test sections around the State of Texas, incorporating flexible pavements and overlays. Besides being used to calibrate and validate m...

Successful renewable energy development in a competitive electricity market: A Texas case study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zarnikau, Jay

2011-01-01

The development of renewable energy in markets with competition at wholesale and retail levels poses challenges not present in areas served by vertically-integrated utilities. The intermittent nature of some renewable energy resources impact reliability, operations, and market prices, in turn affecting all market participants. Meeting renewable energy goals may require coordination among many market players. These challenges may be successfully overcome by imposing goals, establishing trading mechanisms, and implementing operational changes in competitive markets. This strategy has contributed to Texas' leadership among all US states in non-hydro renewable energy production. While Texas has been largely successful in accommodating over 9000 MW of wind power capacity, this extensive reliance upon wind power has also created numerous problems. Higher levels of operating reserves must now be procured. Market prices often go negative in the proximity of wind farms. Inaccurate wind forecasts have led to reliability problems. Five billion dollars in transmission investment will be necessary to facilitate further wind farm projects. Despite these costs, wind power is generally viewed as a net benefit. - Research Highlights: → Texas rapidly emerged as a leader in renewable energy development. → This state's experiences demonstrate that the right combination of policies to lead to rapid renewable energy development in a region with a very competitive electricity market. → Wind power development has lead to various operational challenges.

Water stress and social vulnerability in the southern United States, 2010-2040

Science.gov (United States)

cassandra Johnson-Gaither; John Schelhas; Wayne Zipperer; Ge Sun; Peter V. Caldwell; Neelam Poudyal

2014-01-01

Water scarcities are striking in semiarid, subregions of the Southern United States such as Oklahoma and western Texas (Glennon 2009, Sabo et al. 2010). In Texas, water stress has been a constant concern since the 1950s when the state experienced severe drought conditions (Moore 2005). The nearly 2000-mile Rio Grande River, which forms part of the Texas–Mexico border,...

High-resolution Continental Scale Land Surface Model incorporating Land-water Management in United States

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, S.; Pokhrel, Y. N.

2016-12-01

Land surface models have been used to assess water resources sustainability under changing Earth environment and increasing human water needs. Overwhelming observational records indicate that human activities have ubiquitous and pertinent effects on the hydrologic cycle; however, they have been crudely represented in large scale land surface models. In this study, we enhance an integrated continental-scale land hydrology model named Leaf-Hydro-Flood to better represent land-water management. The model is implemented at high resolution (5km grids) over the continental US. Surface water and groundwater are withdrawn based on actual practices. Newly added irrigation, water diversion, and dam operation schemes allow better simulations of stream flows, evapotranspiration, and infiltration. Results of various hydrologic fluxes and stores from two sets of simulation (one with and the other without human activities) are compared over a range of river basin and aquifer scales. The improved simulations of land hydrology have potential to build consistent modeling framework for human-water-climate interactions.

Recent Seismicity in Texas and Research Design and Progress of the TexNet-CISR Collaboration

Science.gov (United States)

Hennings, P.; Savvaidis, A.; Rathje, E.; Olson, J. E.; DeShon, H. R.; Datta-Gupta, A.; Eichhubl, P.; Nicot, J. P.; Kahlor, L. A.

2017-12-01

The recent increase in the rate of seismicity in Texas has prompted the establishment of an interdisciplinary, interinstitutional collaboration led by the Texas Bureau of Economic Geology which includes the TexNet Seismic Monitoring and Research project as funded by The State of Texas (roughly 2/3rds of our funding) and the industry-funded Center for Integrated Seismicity Research (CISR) (1/3 of funding). TexNet is monitoring and cataloging seismicity across Texas using a new backbone seismic network, investigating site-specific earthquake sequences by deploying temporary seismic monitoring stations, and conducting reservoir modeling studies. CISR expands TexNet research into the interdisciplinary realm to more thoroughly study the factors that contribute to seismicity, characterize the associated hazard and risk, develop strategies for mitigation and management, and develop methods of effective communication for all stakeholders. The TexNet-CISR research portfolio has 6 themes: seismicity monitoring, seismology, geologic and hydrologic description, geomechanics and reservoir modeling, seismic hazard and risk assessment, and seismic risk social science. Twenty+ specific research projects span and connect these themes. We will provide a synopsis of research progress including recent seismicity trends in Texas; Fort Worth Basin integrated studies including geological modeling and fault characterization, fluid injection data syntheses, and reservoir and geomechanical modeling; regional ground shaking characterization and mapping, infrastructure vulnerability assessment; and social science topics of public perception and information seeking behavior.

Opportunities for wind and solar to displace coal and associated health impacts in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Cohan, D. S.; Strasert, B.; Slusarewicz, J.

2017-12-01

Texas uses more coal for power production than any other state, but also leads the nation in wind power while lagging in solar. Many analysts expect that more than half of coal power plants may close within the next decade, unable to compete with cheaper natural gas and renewable electricity. To what extent could displacing coal with wind and solar yield benefits for air quality, health, and climate? Here, we present modeling of the ozone, particulate matter, and associated health impacts of each of 15 coal power plants in Texas, using the CAMx model for air quality and BenMAP for health effects. We show that health impacts from unscrubbed coal plants near urban areas can be an order of magnitude larger than some other facilities. We then analyze the temporal patterns of generation that could be obtained from solar and wind farms in various regions of Texas that could displace these coal plants. We find that winds along the southern Gulf coast of Texas exhibit strikingly different temporal patterns than in west Texas, peaking on summer afternoons rather than winter nights. Thus, wind farms from the two regions along with solar farms could provide complementary sources of power to displace coal. We quantify several metrics to characterize the extent to which wind and solar farms in different regions provide complementary sources of power that can reliably displace traditional sources of electricity.

75 FR 27647 - Approval and Promulgation of Air Quality Implementation Plans; Texas; Revisions to the Emission...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-18

... severable portions of two revisions to the Texas State Implementation Plan (SIP) submitted by the State of... further clarify procedures for using emission protocols and to update the approved list of emission credit... to recently recodified 30 TAC Chapter 117 provisions. EPA has determined that these SIP revisions...

The search for adenovirus 14 in children in Houston, Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Laham, Federico R; Jewell, Alan M; Schoonover, Shauna L; Demmler, Gail J; Piedra, Pedro A

2008-07-01

Adenovirus (Ad)14 has recently emerged in the United States causing outbreaks of severe respiratory disease. To determine if Ad14 circulated in Houston, Texas, during the same time as an outbreak in military recruits in nearby San Antonio, 215 pediatric adenovirus isolates were serotyped using microneutralization. None were Ad14; Ad1, Ad2, and Ad3 were the most common identified serotypes.

Texas A&M Physics Festival: bringing together the community, faculty, and students

Science.gov (United States)

Erukhimova, Tatiana

Texas A&M Physics Festival started in 2003 with a dozen of hands-on exhibits and an inaugural lecture by Stephen Hawking. Over the years it evolved into one of the largest STEM outreach events in the area. The Festival attracts over 4000 visitors annually from all over Texas and other states. It features over 100 interactive exhibits displayed by faculty and students, public lectures by world-renowned scientists and astronauts, professional bubble shows, and many other activities. I will report on the structure of the Festival as well as strategies for involving undergraduate and graduate students and faculty in public outreach. I will further discuss the results of an independent evaluation of the 2015 Festival by the NSF-funded EvalFest program.

Combining NLCD and MODIS to create a land cover-albedo database for the continental United States

Science.gov (United States)

Wickham, J.; Barnes, Christopher A.; Nash, M.S.; Wade, T.G.

2015-01-01

Land surface albedo is an essential climate variable that is tightly linked to land cover, such that specific land cover classes (e.g., deciduous broadleaf forest, cropland) have characteristic albedos. Despite the normative of land-cover class specific albedos, there is considerable variability in albedo within a land cover class. The National Land Cover Database (NLCD) and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) albedo product were combined to produce a long-term (14 years) integrated land cover-albedo database for the continental United States that can be used to examine the temporal behavior of albedo as a function of land cover. The integration identifies areas of homogeneous land cover at the nominal spatial resolution of the MODIS (MCD43A) albedo product (500 m × 500 m) from the NLCD product (30 m × 30 m), and provides an albedo data record per 500 m × 500 m pixel for 14 of the 16 NLCD land cover classes. Individual homogeneous land cover pixels have up to 605 albedo observations, and 75% of the pixels have at least 319 MODIS albedo observations (≥ 50% of the maximum possible number of observations) for the study period (2000–2013). We demonstrated the utility of the database by conducting a multivariate analysis of variance of albedo for each NLCD land cover class, showing that locational (pixel-to-pixel) and inter-annual variability were significant factors in addition to expected seasonal (intra-annual) and geographic (latitudinal) effects.

Impact of Texas high school science teacher credentials on student performance in high school science

Science.gov (United States)

George, Anna Ray Bayless

A study was conducted to determine the relationship between the credentials held by science teachers who taught at a school that administered the Science Texas Assessment on Knowledge and Skills (Science TAKS), the state standardized exam in science, at grade 11 and student performance on a state standardized exam in science administered in grade 11. Years of teaching experience, teacher certification type(s), highest degree level held, teacher and school demographic information, and the percentage of students who met the passing standard on the Science TAKS were obtained through a public records request to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC). Analysis was performed through the use of canonical correlation analysis and multiple linear regression analysis. The results of the multiple linear regression analysis indicate that a larger percentage of students met the passing standard on the Science TAKS state attended schools in which a large portion of the high school science teachers held post baccalaureate degrees, elementary and physical science certifications, and had 11-20 years of teaching experience.

Separate streams of discourse: Identity and the rise of the corporate state in East Texas, 1919-1935

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoskins, D.J.

1991-01-01

The discovery of oil brought a corporate state influence into East Texas. Forced by local control over this discovery, oil corporations negotiated with government to establish permanent mechanisms granting control over oil production to corporations regulated by government. That shifted the power structure operating locally out of local hands. The locally privileged classes renegotiated their positions to gain privilege and access to power within the new structure. The white business classes in particular struggled to define their positions, ultimately claiming the right to define who could fill what other functions within the new system. By undermining the material foundations of their separatism, the oil industry and its governmental and local allies defined economic survival as privileges for which poor whites and blacks would compete. Instead, these two traditionally resistant cultures claimed to some extent the raced, classed, and gendered definitions imposed upon them, using them to locate new arenas within which to continue defining themselves

Separate streams of discourse: Identity and the rise of the corporate state in East Texas, 1919-1935

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hoskins, D.J.

1991-01-01

The discovery of oil brought a corporate state influence into East Texas. Forced by local control over this discovery, oil corporations negotiated with government to establish permanent mechanisms granting control over oil production to corporations regulated by government. That shifted the power structure operating locally out of local hands. The locally privileged classes renegotiated their positions to gain privilege and access to power within the new structure. The white business classes in particular struggled to define their positions, ultimately claiming the right to define who could fill what other functions within the new system. By undermining the material foundations of their separatism, the oil industry and its governmental and local allies defined economic survival as privileges for which poor whites and blacks would compete. Instead, these two traditionally resistant cultures claimed to some extent the raced, classed, and gendered definitions imposed upon them, using them to locate new arenas within which to continue defining themselves.

EnviroAtlas - Percent Urban Land Cover by 12-Digit HUC for the Conterminous United States

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — This EnviroAtlas dataset estimates the percent urban land for each 12-digit hydrologic unit code (HUC) in the conterminous United States. For the purposes of this...

Catahoula formation as a source of sedimentary uranium deposits in east Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ledger, E.B.; Tieh, T.T.

1983-01-01

Volcanic glass-rich mudstone and siltstone samples from the Oligocene/Miocene Catahoula formation of Jasper County, Texas, and coeval volcaniclastic rock samples from Trans-Pecos, Texas, have been compared as to U, Th, Zr, Ti, K, Rb, and Sr contents. Uranium is slightly greater in the distal ash (5.85 ppM U) compared to the Trans-Pecos samples (average 5.41 ppM U). Diagenetic and pedogenetic alteration of Catahoula volcanic glass releases uranium to solution and, under favorable conditions, this uranium may accumulate to form ore bodies. Uranium has been produced from such ore bodies in south Texas, but economic deposits are not known in east Texas. Significant differences between south and east Texas include: (1) a greater amount of volcanic debris delivered to south Texas, both as air-fall ash and stream-transported material, (2) delivery of only air-fill ash to east Texas, (3) the possibility of more petroleum-related reductants such as H 2 S in south Texas, and (4) pervasive glass alteration with subsequent uranium release in south Texas due to late calichification. These differences argue against economic deposits of the south Texas type being found in east Texas. If economic deposits occur they are likely to be far downdip making exploration difficult and expensive

Changes in land use and housing on resource lands in Washington state, 1976–2006

Science.gov (United States)

Andrew N. Gray; David L. Azuma; Gary J. Lettman; Joel L. Thompson; Neil McKay

2013-01-01

Changes in human land use patterns have wide-ranging social, economic and ecological implications. How urban and residential areas develop to accommodate population increase can have varying effects on forest and agricultural production from resource lands. Estimates of the amount and type of land use change differ substantially with definitions and analytical methods...

Species Distribution Model for Management of an Invasive Vine in Forestlands of Eastern Texas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hsiao-Hsuan Wang

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Invasive plants decrease biodiversity, modify vegetation structure, and inhibit growth and reproduction of native species. Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica Thunb. is the most prevalent invasive vine in the forestlands of eastern Texas. Hence, we aimed to identify potential factors influencing the distribution of the species, quantify the relative importance of each factor, and test possible management strategies. We analyzed an extensive dataset collected as part of the Forest Inventory and Analysis Program of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA Forest Service to quantify the range expansion of Japanese honeysuckle in the forestlands of eastern Texas from 2006 to 2011. We then identified potential factors influencing the likelihood of presence of Japanese honeysuckle using boosted regression trees. Our results indicated that the presence of Japanese honeysuckle on sampled plots almost doubled during this period (from 352 to 616 plots, spreading extensively, geographically. The probability of invasion was correlated with variables representing landscape conditions, climatic conditions, forest features, disturbance factors, and forest management activities. Habitats most at risk to invasion under current conditions occurred primarily in northeastern Texas, with a few invasion hotspots in the south. Estimated probabilities of invasion were reduced most by artificial site regeneration, with habitats most at risk again occurring primarily in northeastern Texas.

REFORMING OF LAND MANAGEMENT SYSTEM UNDER AUTHORITY OF DECENTRALIZATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dorosh O.S.

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the problems related to the reform of land management from the beginning of the land reform ill the presentine. This need has arisen due to making another attempt to reorganize the structure of the land structures. With the launch of the land reform established the State Committee of Ukraine for Land Resources in 1992. To speed up land reform and land privatization in 2001 formed the administrative bodies of the State Committee for Land Resources of Ukraine. In order to improve the system of state land management in 2011 created the State Agency of Land Resources of Ukraine, which was reorganized in 2014 into the State Service of Ukraine of geodesy, cartography and cadastre. Over the years, in order to "optimize" the system of central executive body, content of this body has not been changed and constantly was changing its name and subordination, namely: the State Committee for Land Resources - Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Ukraine, the State Agency of Land Resources of Ukraine - Ministry of Agrarian policy and Food of Ukraine, State Service of Ukraine of geodesy, cartography and cadastre - Ministry of regional development, construction and housing. On the basis of analysis concerning the powers of the central executive authorities, local authorities found that the newly farmed Service State Land Cadastre das not contribute to the effectiveness of the administration, especially at the national level, as these features ave not provided by "Regulations on State Land Cadastre " and other regulations. In addition, the local level detected removal of local government in matters of land relations. In conclusion, proposed system based redistribution of powers on the level of central executive bodies and local authorities to reform the system of land management with regard to decentralized processes in Ukraine. It is advisable to restore central authority for land reform and regulation of land relations to the

Grassland birds wintering at U.S. Navy facilities in southern Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Woodin, Marc C.; Skoruppa, Mary Kay; Bryan, Pearce D.; Ruddy, Amanda J.; Hickman, Graham C.

2010-01-01

Grassland birds have undergone widespread decline throughout North America during the past several decades. Causes of this decline include habitat loss and fragmentation because of conversion of grasslands to cropland, afforestation in the East, brush and shrub invasion in the Southwest and western United States, and planting of exotic grass species to enhance forage production. A large number of exotic plant species, including grasses, have been introduced in North America, but most research on the effects of these invasions on birds has been limited to breeding birds, primarily those in northern latitudes. Research on the effects of exotic grasses on birds in winter has been extremely limited.This is the first study in southern Texas to examine and compare winter bird responses to native and exotic grasslands. This study was conducted during a period of six years (2003–2009) on United States Navy facilities in southern Texas including Naval Air Station–Corpus Christi, Naval Air Station–Kingsville, Naval Auxiliary Landing Field Waldron, Naval Auxiliary Landing Field Orange Grove, and Escondido Ranch, all of which contained examples of native grasslands, exotic grasslands, or both. Data from native and exotic grasslands were collected and compared for bird abundance and diversity; ground cover, vegetation density, and floristic diversity; bird and vegetation relationships; diversity of insects and arachnids; and seed abundance and diversity. Effects of management treatments in exotic grasslands were evaluated by comparing numbers and diversity of birds and small mammals in mowed, burned, and control areas.To determine bird abundance and bird species richness, birds were surveyed monthly (December–February) during the winters of 2003–2008 in transects (100 meter × 20 meter) located in native and exotic grasslands distributed at all five U.S. Navy facilities. To compare vegetation in native and exotic grasslands, vegetation characteristics were measured

Analysis of drought impacts on electricity production in the Western and Texas interconnections of the United States.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Harto, C. B.; Yan, Y. E.; Demissie, Y. K.; Elcock, D.; Tidwell, V. C.; Hallett, K.; Macknick, J.; Wigmosta, M. S.; Tesfa, T. K. (Environmental Science Division); (Sandia National Laboratory); (National Renewable Energy Laboratory); (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

2012-02-09

Electricity generation relies heavily on water resources and their availability. To examine the interdependence of energy and water in the electricity context, the impacts of a severe drought to assess the risk posed by drought to electricity generation within the western and Texas interconnections has been examined. The historical drought patterns in the western United States were analyzed, and the risk posed by drought to electricity generation within the region was evaluated. The results of this effort will be used to develop scenarios for medium- and long-term transmission modeling and planning efforts by the Western Electricity Coordination Council (WECC) and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). The study was performed in response to a request developed by the Western Governors Association in conjunction with the transmission modeling teams at the participating interconnections. It is part of a U.S. Department of Energy-sponsored, national laboratory-led research effort to develop tools related to the interdependency of energy and water as part of a larger interconnection-wide transmission planning project funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. This study accomplished three main objectives. It provided a thorough literature review of recent studies of drought and the potential implications for electricity generation. It analyzed historical drought patterns in the western United States and used the results to develop three design drought scenarios. Finally, it quantified the risk to electricity generation for each of eight basins for each of the three drought scenarios and considered the implications for transmission planning. Literature on drought impacts on electricity generation describes a number of examples where hydroelectric generation capacity has been limited because of drought but only a few examples of impact on thermoelectric generation. In all documented cases, shortfalls of generation were met by purchasing power

Catahoula Formation as uranium source rock in East Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ledger, E.B.; Tieh, T.T.; Rowe, N.W.

1984-01-01

The Oligocene-Miocene Catahoula Formation of the Texas Gulf coastal plain is a fluvial and lacustrine volcaniclastic unit composed of normal fluvial material mixed with distal rhyolitic air-fall ash. In the lower Texas Gulf coastal plain, it consists of stream-transported detritus from the volcanic source area in Trans-Pecos Texas and adjacent Mexico. This volcaniclastic component has altered to release uranium to mineralization processes in the lower Gulf Coast, but there has not been uranium production in the middle and upper Gulf Coast. To evaluate the potential of the upper Texas Gulf coastal plain for uranium ore deposits, a geochemical study was undertaken. The Catahoula Formation was analyzed for U, Th, K, Rb, Sr, Zr, and Ti to estimate the nature of volcanic glass and its abundance and alteration. Concentrations from three key outcrops were compared. They were also compared to samples from a volcanic area in Trans-Pecos Texas, which is chemically appropriate as a source for the volcanic material in the Catahoula Formation. In the lower Texas Gulf coastal plain, where uranium is produced, the glassy volcanic material has been pervasively altered, but in the upper coastal plain much glass remains. Because glass alteration is necessary for uranium release and concentration, the potential is low for large, shallow uranium ore bodies in the upper Texas Gulf coastal plain

STATE AND PROBLEMS TRAINING, ADVANCED TRAINING AND RETRAINING IN THE FIELD OF LAND PLANNING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tretiak A.

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Scientific and technological progress and improve land relations, land use and organization of work makes the need for systematic improvement of forms and methods of preparation, training and retraining in the land. Training in the land - is the formation of staff knowledge and skills in a particular professional field, that training people who want to get a profession in the field of land relations and the use and protection of land and other natural resources. In this connection the question the quality of the professionals who work in the system of land and land management enterprises. So in recent years, the system of land worked by 25 thousand. People .. to 28 thousand. People. The number of employees of DerzhzemahenstvaUkraine(and today DerzhheokadastruUkraine ranged from 9.5 - 10 thousand. People. Thus, in stateenterprisesLandManagement Institute, Centre of state land cadastre and land management of private enterprises and entrepreneurs are about 18 thousand. People. In the system of fixed services is almost 90% of workers with higher education. But of these, only about about 70% have higher education universities III-IV accreditation levels, and only about 50% - land management. Managers and professionals who have land management and land use close to education up together with the Bachelor education only 64% of the total number of employees. Thus, the problem of professional education in the field of land is very relevant. It is necessary to consider further training of land-management education for integrated communities. The article is justification for expanding areas of training in the field of land management and the introduction of new professions (specializations and the management of natural areas. According to Article 66 of the Law of Ukraine "On Land Management" of 22.05.2003 number 858-IV, professional activities in the field of land may engage citizens with special higher education levels and appropriate professional

76 FR 50476 - Application To Export Electric Energy; Glacial Energy of Texas, Inc.

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-15

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY [OE Docket No. EA-382] Application To Export Electric Energy; Glacial Energy... Application. SUMMARY: Glacial Energy of Texas, Inc. (Glacial) has applied for authority to transmit electric... for authority to transmit electric energy from the United States to Mexico for five years as a power...

East Texas, 2012—Forest Inventory and Analysis Factsheet

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas J. Brandeis; Jason A. Cooper; James W. Bentley

2014-01-01

This science update summarizes the findings of the statewide annual inventory of the forest resource attributes in Texas conducted by the Southern Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program in cooperation with the Texas A&M Forest Service. The 254 counties of Texas are consolidated into seven FIA survey units—southeast (unit 1), northeast (unit 2), north central (...

Geopressured-geothermal resource development on public free school lands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1979-07-01

The study's findings and recommendations are based upon analysis of the following: financial and economic feasibility of geopressured-geothermal resource development; possible ecological, social, and economic impacts of resource development on PFSL; and legal issues associated with resource development. The results of the analysis are summarized and are discussed in detail in a series of four technical papers which accompany this volume. Existing rules of the General Land Office (GLO), the School Land Board (SLB), and the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) were reviewed in light of the above analysis and were discussed with the agencies. The study's recommendations resulted from this analytical and review process; they are discussed. The preliminary draft rules and regulations to govern resource development on PFSL are presented in Appendix A; the accompanying forms and model lease are found in Appendix B.

Benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude assayed

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rhodes, A.K.

1994-01-01

The paper gives an assay of West Texas Intermediate, one of the world's market crudes. The price of this crude, known as WTI, is followed by market analysts, investors, traders, and industry managers around the world. WTI price is used as a benchmark for pricing all other US crude oils. The 41 degree API < 0.34 wt % sulfur crude is gathered in West Texas and moved to Cushing, Okla., for distribution. The WTI posted prices is the price paid for the crude at the wellhead in West Texas and is the true benchmark on which other US crudes are priced. The spot price is the negotiated price for short-term trades of the crude. And the New York Mercantile Exchange, or Nymex, price is a futures price for barrels delivered at Cushing

Land-use change, economics, and rural well-being in the Prairie Pothole Region of the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Gascoigne, William R.; Hoag, Dana L.K.; Johnson, Rex R.; Koontz, Lynne M.; Thomas, Catherine Cullinane

2013-01-01

This fact sheet highlights findings included in a comprehensive new report (see USGS Professional Paper 1800) which investigated land-use change, economic characteristics, and rural community well-being in the Prairie Pothole Region of the United States. Once one of the largest grassland-wetlands ecosystems on earth, the North American prairie has experienced extensive conversion to cultivated agriculture, with farming becoming the dominant land use in the region over the last century. Both perennial habitat lands and agricultural croplands retain importance economically, socially, and culturally. Greatly increased oil and gas development in recent years brought rises in employment and income but also stressed infrastructure, cost of living, and crime rates. Research described in these reports focuses on land-use dynamics and illuminates how economic variables and rural development in the Prairie Pothole Region might be influenced as land uses change.

Contesting State Forests in Post-Suharto Indonesia: Authority Formation, State Forest Land Dispute, and Power in Upland Central Java, Indonesia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anu Lounela

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This article explores the ongoing conflict over state forest land between the local population and the State Forestry Corporation (SFC in a village in upland Central Java with regard to authority formation. It looks at how different agents draw on different sources of authority in the course of the conflict and its negotiations. The principal questions are to what kind of sources of authority villagers refer to and how the formation of authority informs the relations between the state and society in the land dispute. The article is based on 11 months of ethnographic fieldwork and focuses on the central figure of Pak Wahid who took a leading position in the forest land dispute and in mobilising peasants in the village. The article argues that in post-Suharto Java, leadership in the struggle for state forest land at the village level is embedded in the interaction of Javanese ideas of power and authority as well as administrative authority. Due to political and institutional reforms, new sources of authority could be invoked while there are no real changes in the power relations within the village or between the SFC and the villagers. ----- Dieser Artikel untersucht den anhaltenden Konflikt um staatliche Waldflächen zwischen der lokalen Bevölkerung und der State Forestry Corporation (SFC in einem Dorf im Hochland von Zentral- Java in Bezug auf die Entwicklung von Autorität. Es wird untersucht, wie sich unterschiedliche AkteurInnen im Rahmen des Konflikts und dessen Verhandlung auf unterschiedliche Bezugsquellen von Autorität beziehen. Die zentralen Forschungsfragen in diesem Zusammenhang sind, auf welche Bezugsquellen von Autorität sich DorfbewohnerInnen beziehen und wie die Entwicklung von Autorität die Beziehungen zwischen Staat und Gesellschaft im Rahmen des Landkonflikts beeinflusst. Der Artikel basiert auf einer 11-monatigen ethnografischen Feldforschung und fokussiert auf die Person von Pak Wahid, der eine Schlüsselrolle im Konflikt

The renewables portfolio standard in Texas: An early assessment; TOPICAL

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wiser, Ryan H.; Langniss, Ole

2001-01-01

Texas has rapidly emerged as one of the leading wind power markets in the United States. This development can be largely traced to a well-designed and carefully implemented renewables portfolio standard (RPS). The RPS is a new policy mechanism that has received increasing attention as an attractive approach to support renewable power generation. Though replacing existing renewable energy policies with an as-of-yet largely untested approach in the RPS is risky, early experience from Texas suggests that an RPS can effectively spur renewables development and encourage competition among renewable energy producers. Initial RPS targets in Texas will be far exceeded by the end of 2001, with as much as 930 MW of wind slated for installation this year. RPS compliance costs appear negligible, with new wind projects reportedly contracted for under 3(US)/242/kWh, in part as a result of a 1.7(US)/242/kWh production tax credit, an outstanding wind resource, and an RPS that is sizable enough to drive project economies of scale. Obliged retail suppliers have been willing to enter into long-term contracts with renewable generators, reducing important risks for both the developer and the retail supplier. Finally, the country's first comprehensive renewable energy certificate program has been put into place to monitor and track RPS compliance

The Texas space flight liability act and efficient regulation for the private commercial space flight era

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Christopher D.

2013-12-01

In the spring of 2011, the American state of Texas passed into law an act limiting the liability of commercial space flight entities. Under it, those companies would not be liable for space flight participant injuries, except in cases of intentional injury or injury proximately caused by the company's gross negligence. An analysis within the framework of international and national space law, but especially informed by the academic discipline of law and economics, discusses the incentives of all relevant parties and attempts to understand whether the law is economically "efficient" (allocating resources so as to yield maximum utility), and suited to further the development of the fledgling commercial suborbital tourism industry. Insights into the Texas law are applicable to other states hoping to foster commercial space tourism and considering space tourism related legislation.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis Meningitis and Myelitis, Texas, USA.

Science.gov (United States)

Al Hammoud, Roukaya; Nayes, Stacy L; Murphy, James R; Heresi, Gloria P; Butler, Ian J; Pérez, Norma

2017-06-01

Infection with Angiostrongylus cantonensis roundworms is endemic in Southeast Asia and the Pacific Basin. A. cantonensis meningitis and myelitis occurred in summer 2013 in a child with no history of travel outside of Texas, USA. Angiostrongyliasis is an emerging neurotropic helminthic disease in Texas and warrants increased awareness among healthcare providers.

Enrollment in Texas Public Schools, 2014-15

Science.gov (United States)

Texas Education Agency, 2016

2016-01-01

This report provides information on enrollment in the Texas public school system from the 2004-05 through 2014-15 school years, based on data collected through the Texas Public Education Information Management System. Enrollment data are provided by grade, race/ethnicity, gender, and economically disadvantaged status, and for special populations…

Enrollment in Texas Public Schools, 2015-16

Science.gov (United States)

Texas Education Agency, 2016

2016-01-01

This report provides information on enrollment in the Texas public school system from the 2005-06 through 2015-16 school years, based on data collected through the Texas Public Education Information Management System. Enrollment data are provided by grade, race/ethnicity, gender, and economically disadvantaged status, and for special populations…

Road density not a major driver of Red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) population demographics in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Ivana Mali; Brian E. Dickerson; Donald J. Brown; James R. Dixon; Michael R. J. Forstner

2013-01-01

In recent years there have been concerns over the conservation and management of freshwater turtle populations in the state of Texas. In 2008 and 2009, we completed several investigations addressing anthropogenic impacts on freshwater turtles in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) of Texas. Here, we use a model selection approach within an information-theoretic...

Texas Instruments : Veiligheid is niet iets om over te stemmen

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Blijswijk, M. van; Pennekamp, E.

1990-01-01

In dit artikel wordt het VGW-beleid bij Texas Instruments beschreven. Hiertoe zijn interviews gehouden met B. Veekamp, hoofd opleidingen bij Texas Instruments Holland BV (TIH) en de J. Stapel, voorzitter van de VGW-commissie. Occupational health and safety policy of Texas Instruments Holland B.V.

Operation of South Texas Project, Units 1 and 2 Docket Nos. 50-498 and 50-499, Houston Lighting and Power Company et.al., Matagorda County, Texas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-08-01

The final environmental impact statement (EPA No. 860376F) on a proposal to issue operating licenses for units 1 and 2 of the South Texas Project describes the two pressurized waters reactors that will produce 1250 MWe per unit. A closed-cycle will use water from the Colorado River for cooling. The site will include prime farmland. The study finds no significant effect on aquatic productivity of the river and no disruptions of the terrestrial biota. Economic benefits will include about 1800 new jobs, which will raise tax revenues and spur the local economy. Area marsh lands and wildlife habitat will suffer. The risk of exposure to accidental radiation is considered very low. The Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972 and Nuclear Regulatory Commission Licensing require the impact study

Quantifying the Role of Agriculture and Urbanization in the Nitrogen Cycle across Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Helper, L. C.; Yang, Z.

2011-12-01

Over-enrichment of nutrients throughout coastal areas has been a growing problem as population growth has enhanced agricultural and industrial processes. Enhanced nitrogen (N) fluxes from land to coast continue to be the result of over fertilization and pollution deposition. This over-enrichment of nutrients has led to eutrophication and hypoxic conditions in coastal environments. Global estimates indicate rivers export 48 Tg N yr -1 to coastal zones, and regionally North America exports 7.2 Tg N yr-1. These exports are primarily from anthropogenic N inputs (Boyer et al. 2006). Currently the U.S. is home to the second largest hypoxic zone in the world, the Mississippi River Basin, and previous work from Howarth et al. (2002) suggest much of the over enrichment of N is a result of agricultural practices. Aforementioned work has focused on global and large regional estimates; however an inventory has not been conducted on the full scope of N sources along the Gulf of Mexico. This study was conducted along the Gulf, through the state of Texas, in order to quantify all sources of N in a region which contains a large precipitation gradient, three major metropolitan areas, and one of the top livestock industries in the United States. Nitrogen inputs from fertilizer, livestock, and crop fixation were accounted for and totaled to be 0.91 Tg N for the year of 2007. Using estimates of leaching rates from Howarth et al. (2002), riverine export of N was at a minimum of 0.18 Tg for that year. Atmospheric deposition inputs were also analyzed using the Weather Research and Forecasting model with online chemistry (WRF-Chem) and were found to be significantly smaller than those of agriculture. The developed regional high-resolution gridded N budget is now available to be used as N input to next-generation land surface models for nutrient leaching and riverine transport modeling. Ultimately, this comprehensive dataset will help better understand the full pathways of anthropogenic

Photogrammetry, Digital mapping and Land Informations Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Frederiksen, Poul

1998-01-01

Monitoring activities on photogrammetry, digital mapping and land information systems in State Land Service in Latvia in relation to the EU Phare Project Phase II, Technical Assistance to land Privatisation and registration in Latvia.......Monitoring activities on photogrammetry, digital mapping and land information systems in State Land Service in Latvia in relation to the EU Phare Project Phase II, Technical Assistance to land Privatisation and registration in Latvia....

Environmental regulatory compliance plan, Deaf County site, Texas: Draft revision 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-01-01

The DOE is committed to conduct its operation in an environmentally safe and sound manner and comply with the letter and spirit of applicable environmental statues and regulations. These objectives are codified in DOE order N 5400.2, ''Environmental Policy Statement.'' This document, the Deaf Smith County site (Texas) Environmental Regulatory Compliance Plam (ERCP), is one means of implementing that policy. The ERCP describes the environmental regulatory requirements applicable to the Deaf Smith County site (Texas), and presented the framework within which the Salt Repository Project Office (SRPO) will comply with the requirements. The plan also discusses how DOE will address State and local environmental requirements. To achieve this purpose the ERCP will be developed in phases. This version of the ERCP is the first phase in the delopment of the ERCP. It represents the Salt Repository Project Office's understanding of environmental requirements for the site characterization phase of repository development. After consultation with the appropriate federal and state agencies and affected Indian tribes, the ERCP will be updated to reflect the results of consultation with these agencies and affected Indian tribes. 6 refs., 38 figs

Hazardous waste incinerator permitting in Texas from inception to operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Simms, M.D.; McDonnell, R.G. III

1991-01-01

The regulatory permitting process for hazardous waste incinerators i a long and arduous proposition requiring a well-developed overall strategy. In Texas, RCRA permits for the operation of hazardous waste incinerator facilities are issued through the federally delegated Texas Water Commission (TWC). While the TWC has primacy in the issuance of RCRA permits for hazardous waste incinerators, the Texas Air Control Board (TACB) provides a significant portion of the Part B application review and provides much of the permit language. In addition to dealing with regulatory agencies, RCRA permitting provides by significant public involvement. Often the lack of public support becomes a major roadblock for an incinerator project. In order to establish an effective strategy which addresses the concerns of regulatory agencies and the public, it is important to have an understanding of the steps involved in obtaining a permit. A permit applicant seeking to construct a new hazardous waste incinerator can expect to go through a preapplication meeting with government regulators, a site selection process, file an application, respond to calls for additional technical information from both the TACB and the TWC, defend the application in a hearing, have a recommendation from a TWC hearing examiner and, finally, receive a determination from the TWC's Commissioners. Presuming a favorable response from the Commission, the permittee will be granted a trial burn permit and may proceed with the construction, certification and execution of a trial burn at the facility. Subsequent to publication of the trial burn results and approval by the TWC, the permittee will possess an operational hazardous waste incinerator permit. The paper describes the major steps required to receive an operational permit for a hazardous waste incinerator in the State of Texas. Important issues involved in each step will be discussed including insights gained from recent incinerator permitting efforts

The Texas Production Manual: A Source Book for the Motion Picture and Video Industry. Fourth Edition.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuttruff, Alma J., Ed.

This manual is a cross-referenced directory to film industry personnel and services available in the State of Texas. The Who's Who section contains an alphabetical listing of companies and individuals in the state engaged in some aspect of motion picture or video production. These listings include brief summaries of each company and individuals'…

Overview: Texas College and Career Readiness Standards

Science.gov (United States)

Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, 2009

2009-01-01

The Texas College and Career Readiness Standards define what students should know and be able to accomplish in order to succeed in entry-level college courses or skilled workforce opportunities upon graduation from high school. This paper answers the following questions: (1) Who developed the Texas College and Career Readiness Standards?; (2) What…

Enrollment in Texas Public Schools, 2016-17

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Texas Education Agency, 2017

2017-01-01

This report provides information on enrollment in the Texas public school system from the 2006-07 through 2016-17 school years, based on data collected through the Texas Student Data System. Enrollment data are provided by grade, race/ethnicity, gender, and economically disadvantaged status, and for special populations and instructional programs.…

Adaptation with climate uncertainty: An examination of agricultural land use in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Mu, Jianhong E.; McCarl, Bruce A.; Sleeter, Benjamin M.; Abatzoglou, John T.; Zhang, Hongliang

2018-01-01

This paper examines adaptation responses to climate change through adjustment of agricultural land use. The climate drivers we examine are changes in long-term climate normals (e.g., 10-year moving averages) and changes in inter-annual climate variability. Using US county level data over 1982 to 2012 from Census of Agriculture, we find that impacts of long-term climate normals are as important as that of inter-annual climate variability. Projecting into the future, we find projected climate change will lead to an expansion in crop land share across the northern and interior western United States with decreases in the south. We also find that grazing land share increases in southern regions and Inland Pacific Northwest and declines in the northern areas. However, the extent to which the adaptation potential would be is dependent on the climate model, emission scenario and time horizon under consideration.

Aerobiology of Juniperus Pollen in Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico

Science.gov (United States)

Levetin, Estelle; Bunderson, Landon; VandeWater, Pete; Luvall, Jeff

2014-01-01

Pollen from members of the Cupressaceae are major aeroallergens in many parts of the world. In the south central and southwest United States, Juniperus pollen is the most important member of this family with J. ashei (JA) responsible for severe winter allergy symptoms in Texas and Oklahoma. In New Mexico, pollen from J. monosperma (JM) and other Juniperus species are important contributors to spring allergies, while J. pinchotii (JP) pollinates in the fall affecting sensitive individuals in west Texas, southwest Oklahoma and eastern New Mexico. Throughout this region, JA, JM, and JP occur in dense woodland populations. Generally monitoring for airborne allergens is conducted in urban areas, although the source for tree pollen may be forested areas distant from the sampling sites. Improved pollen forecasts require a better understanding of pollen production at the source. The current study was undertaken to examine the aerobiology of several Juniperus species at their source areas for the development of new pollen forecasting initiatives.

An Analysis of Laboratory Safety in Texas.

Science.gov (United States)

Fuller, Edward J.; Picucci, Ali Callicoatte; Collins, James W.; Swann, Philip

This paper reports on a survey to discover the types of laboratory accidents that occur in Texas public schools, the factors associated with such accidents, and the practices of schools with regard to current laboratory safety requirements. The purpose of the survey is to better understand safety conditions in Texas public schools and to help…

Confronting the Graduation Rate Crisis in Texas

Science.gov (United States)

Losen, Daniel; Orfield, Gary; Balfanz, Robert