Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Water status indicator'

Because cisterns are exposed to the environment via their direct attachment to catchment surfaces, cistern water quality is often poor. In the U.S. Virgin Islands cisterns are involved in supplying the water needs for private homes, hotels, businesses and public housing, making them subject to the mandates of the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act. This study compares the results of the occurrence of various water quality indicators in Private Residential, Public Housing, and Hotels and Guest House cisterns in the U.S. Virgin Islands in a side-by-side analysis. Forty-seven separate independent variables were created and tested for correlation, of which only the rate at which chlorination was applied was significant. A high degree of correlation was found to exist between total and fecal coliforms. A moderate, but still significant correlation between the coliform and the heterotrophic levels in the cistern was also noted. There was no correlation between any of the bacterial indicators studied and the opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The results show, depending upon on the type and amount of chlorination received, different bacterial indicators will predominate and that there is a logical succession from one to the next with chlorination. On the unchlorinated end of the scale, normally associated with privateresidential homes, there is a correlation between the heterotrophic bacteria and total coliform. On the other end where chlorination is constant, normally associated with public water supply systems, correlation is between total coliform and fecal coliform. The proportion at which these indicators occur is a function of the diligence at which chlorination takes place. Regression analysis showed that the heterotrophs and total coliforms were the most sensitive to chlorination while the streptococci and fecal coliform were the most resistant. Thus, what is seen is fecal coliform unmasking based upon chlorination pattern. Depending upon whether the cistern is a private or public water supply which is mandated to be treated, an appropriate indicator system based upon the likelihood of treatment can be suggested. For unchlorinated private residential home cisterns the prime indicator should be the heterotrophic plate count and for chlorinated systems the take-action organism should be the fecal coliform. P. aeruginosa should be tested for in both domestic cistern water supplies and public cistern water supply systems.

Thesis (MSc (Forest and Wood Science))--University of Stellenbosch, 2011.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study investigated the use of carbon isotopes as a potential measure for water availability and drought stress in Pinus radiata in the Western and Southern Cape, South Africa. An understanding of water availability and its variation in space is fundamental to the implementation of increasingly site-specific management regimes that have the potential to greatly improve productivity across sites in the region. Fifteen plantation compartments situated on water shedding sites were identified where good weather data existed and a water balance model could be run. In addition, late wood samples were analysed from four co-dominant trees in the same stand to determine the δ13C values of five tree rings, each representing a specific growth year before first thinning. Detailed water balances were constructed for each trial site and drought stress indicators (a) relative canopy conductance (after Granier et al., 2000) and (b) the ratio of actual to potential evapotranspiration (supply / demand ratio), were related to δ13C values in latewood. Maximum available soil water ranged from 52 to 313 mm across trial sites. The water balance model used adequately described soil water availability throughout each growing season and indicated that stand stress due to the lack of available soil water mainly occurred during the summer months of the study period (November to April). The supply / demand ratio for this period as well as the relative canopy conductance proved to be good measures of drought stress. The six-month supply demand ratio (calculated for the period November to April) ranged from 0.04 to nearly 1 (winter rainfall zone) and 0.35 to 1 (all-year rainfall zone) and were strongly related to δ13C values (p < 0.001; r2 = 0.7822). It appears that using δ13C values, it may be possible to classify sites into three water availability classes. This classification may assist in the implementation of intensive silvicultural operations on an increasingly site-specific basis. Where sites are enriched with water from lateral flow or upslope positions, δ13C may be the only reliable technique to quantify soil water availability.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie ondersoek die gebruik van koolstof isotope as 'n moontlike maatstaf vir die beskikbaarheid van water en droogtestremming in Pinus radiata in die Wes-en Suid-Kaap, Suid-Afrika. 'n Begrip van die beskikbaarheid van water en die ruimtelike variasie daarvan is fundamenteel vir die implementering van groeiplek-spesifieke bestuur sisteem wat die potensiaal het om baie verbeterde produktiwiteit oor persele in die streek teweeg te bring. Vyftien plantasievakke, geleë op waterskeidingsterreine is geïdentifiseer waar goeie weer data bestaan en 'n water balans model uitgevoer kon word. Daarmee saam is laathout monsters vanuit vier ko-dominante bome in dieselfde kompartement geanaliseer en die δ13C waardes van laathout in vyf jaarringe bepaal wat elk 'n spesifieke jaar van groei voor die eerste dunning verteenwoordig. Gedetailleerde water balanse is vir elke proef perseel bereken en aanwysers van droogtestremming, nl.: (a) relatiewe kroon geleiding (na Granier et al., 2000) en (b) die verhouding van die werklike teenoor potensiële evapotranspirasie (vraag / aanbod verhouding) is gekorreleer met 13C waardes in laat hout. Die maksimum hoeveelheid water beskikbaar op die verskeie proefpersele wissel van 52 tot 313 mm. Die water balans model wat gebruik is beskryf die beskikbare grondwater met genoegsame akkuraatheid. vir die hele groeiseisoen. Die model dui ook aan dat die kompartemente droogtestremming as gevolg van die gebrek aan beskikbare grond water ervaar gedurende die somer maande van die studie tydperk (November tot April). Die vraag / aanbod verhouding vir hierdie tydperk, asook die relatiewe kroon geleiding is geskik om as maatstawwe van droogtestremming gebruik te word. Die vraag / aanbod verhouding (bereken vir die tydperk November tot April) het gewissel van 0,04 tot byna 1 (Winter reënval gebied) en 0,35 tot 1 (die heel jaar reënval sone) en is sterk verwant aan 13C waardes (p <0,001; r2 = 0,7822). Dit blyk dat met die gebruik van δ13C waardes, dit moontlik kan wees om kompartemente te klassifiseer in drie klasse van water beskikbaarheid. Hierdie klassifikasie kan help met die implementering van intensiewe boskultuur bedrywighede op 'n meer vak-spesifieke basis. Waar vakkeverryk is met water vanuit laterale vloei of hoër liggende posisies, mag δ13C dalk die enigste betroubare tegniek wees om die beskikbaarheid van water te kwantifiseer.

Magistro baigiamojo darbo tikslas – išanalizuoti Šešupės tvenkinio būklės situaciją ir būklės gerinimo kryptis, bei ištirti investicinių projektų galimybes vandens telkinio būklei pagerinti. Šiame darbe yra nagrinėjama Šešupės tvenkinio aplinkosauginė būklė ir tiriamos investicinių projektų galimybės Šešupės tvenkinio būklei pagerinti. Tyrimai atlikti Šešupės tvenkinyje 2012 metais gegužės ir spalio mėn. Imti mėginiai vandens tyrimams iš trijų skirtingų vietų ir išanalizuoti aplinkotyros laboratorijoje. Atliekant vandens cheminės būklės tyrimus analizuoti šie vandens būklės rodikliai: PO-P4, Skendinčios medžiagos, Permanganato indeksas, Pb, pH, O2, N-NH4, N-NO2, N-NO3, Nb, BDS7. Tyrimams panaudoti duomenys gauti prieš tvenkinio tvarkymą ir prasidėjus rekonstrukcijai. Tyrimų metu nustatyta, kad vandens cheminė būklė ženkliai nepakito. Didžiausi vandens cheminės būklės pakitimai rasti nustatant bendrą azotą, kuris parodo vandens būklės pablogėjimą. Išaiškintos priežastys, dėl kurių atsirado vandens cheminės būklės pakitimai. Taip pat buvo nagrinėjamas geriausio scenarijaus pasirinkimas alternatyvų analizės būdu. Šiame projekte geriausias sprendimas pasirenkamas atlikus daugiakriterinę alternatyvų analizę.
The aim of this master's final paper is to analyze the condition of the Šešupė pond and the directions for improvement of this condition and also to study the possibility to implement investment projects for improvement of the condition of the pond. This paper analyzes the environmental condition of the Šešupė pond and studies the possibility to implement investment projects for improvement of the condition of the Šešupė pond. Analyses were conducted in the Šešupė pond during the period from May to October 2012. Water samples for the analyses were collected at three different places of the pond and analyzed in an environmental science laboratory. The analysis of water chemical status included the following water status indicators: PO-P4, materials in suspension, permanganate index, Pb, pH, O2, N-NH4, N-NO2, N-NO3, Nb, BDS7. Data used for the analyses were obtained before reconstruction of the pond and at the beginning of reconstruction. The analysis has shown that the water chemical status has not changed significantly. The most significant changes of the water chemical status were found during the analysis of total nitrogen which is the indicator of water status deterioration. The reasons of the changes of the water chemical status were clarified. Also I have studied the selection of the best scenario through the analysis of the alternatives. The best solution in this project is selected after multi-criteria analysis of the alternatives.

En la presente tesis doctoral se desarrollan una serie de procedimientos para evaluar el estado de los diversos componentes bióticos (fitoplancton, macroalgas, invertebrados bentónicos) y abióticos (calidad fisicoquímica de las aguas) del medio marino en relación a la incidencia humana sobre el mismo. El objetivo de dichos procedimientos es dar respuesta a las exigencias establecidas en la Directiva Marco del Agua (Directiva 2000/60/CE) en lo que respecta a la evaluación del estado ecológico de las masas de agua costeras. En este sentido, además de ampliar el conocimiento existente sobre las características fisicoquímicas y biológicas de las masas de agua costeras de Cantabria, constituye una importante aportación tanto desde el punto de vista científico como desde el punto de vista de la gestión. Entre las contribuciones más destacadas de esta tesis cabría mencionar el desarrollo del Índice de Calidad de Fondos Rocosos (CFR) para la valoración de las comunidades de macroalgas costeras.
In this PhD. Thesis, several procedures are developed to assess human influence on the status of the marine environment biotic (phytoplankton, macroalgae, benthic invertebrates) and abiotic (physicochemical quality of water) components. The purpose of these approaches is to meet the requirements of the Water Framework Directive (2000/60/EC) regarding the ecological status assessment of coastal water bodies.In this sense, besides increasing the existing knowledge on the physicochemical and biological characteristics of the Cantabrian coastal water bodies, it provides an important contribution both from a scientific and a management point of view. One of the most outstanding contributions of this thesis is the development of the Quality of Rocky Bottoms Index (CFR) for the assessment of coastal macroalgae communities.

碩士
淡江大學
水資源及環境工程學系碩士班
104
Water quality index and water quality models are usually used to demonstrate the trophic states of reservoirs water quality. In Taiwan, the Carlson Trophic State Index (CTSI) is officially used by Taiwan EPA. The objectives of this study are to understand the trophic states of 20 main Taiwanese reservoirs with different water quality indices and moreover, to compare the results of Vollenweider model and water quality index used in Nanhwa reservoir. The purposes of this study were: (1) to evaluate the limited nutrient of eutrophication for the 20 reservoirs, (2) to compare the differences of various trophic indices, (3) to evaluate the pollution loadings and water quality of Nanhwa reservoir by SWMM (Storm Water Management Model) and Vollenweider model, (4) to compare the trophic states of Nanhwa reservoir by Vollenweider model and trophic indices. Moreover, trophic state index on single parameter of total phosphorus (TP) included Carlson, USEPA, OECD and OECD average. The results show that about 80% of N/P ratios are larger than 15 for the main 20 reservoirs in Taiwan, so that the limited nutrient of eutrophication is phosphorous. The total phosphorous (TP) is suggested as the target water quality for reservoir management. While using the CTSI as the trophic state index, the percentage of eutrophication of the 20 reservoirs is 31%. However, the results are different with other indices. The percentage of eutrophication according to TP is 18%(OECD average TP), 15%(OECD TP), 46% (USEPA TP) , and 34% (Carlson TP), respectively. The validated SWMM model resulted in 5,603 kg-TP/yr pollution loads from Nanhwa reservoir watershed. The results of Vollenweider model also showed that the trophic state of Nanhwa reservoir is mesotrophic state, which is consistent with the results of other indices. If the target TP concentration is set as 10 µg/L for Nanhwa reservoir, 32% and 47% of the TP loads should be reduced respectively, according to the annual average and seasonal average results from Vollenweider model.

碩士
淡江大學
水資源及環境工程學系碩士班
103
Carlson(1977) developed CTIS(Carlson trophic status index) using the correlation of total phosphorus (TP), transparency (SD) and chlorophyll a (Chl-a) based on data of North America reservoir. In this study, the water quality data of Nan-Hua and Ching-Mien reservoirs monitored from 1993 to 2013 was collected by Taiwan EPA. The purposes of this research were: (1) to analyze the correlation between water quality parameters and CTSI, (2) to evaluate water quality parameters associated with the CTSI, (3) to compare the ratio of eutrophic status using trophic state indices. The trophic state indices (TSI) including CTSI, OECD comprehensive index (OECD) and US EPA are employed. The US EPA, OECD and Japan classified trophic status by Chl-a and TP concentration. CTSI was applied in Lake TMDL of the United States. The results based on the data of Nan-Hua reservoir indicate that, for example, the average of N/P ratio of Nan-Hua reservoir was 38 (more than 15). The limiting nutrient might be TP for Nan-Hua reservoir. The low correlation is present SD, TP and Chl-a. The correlation coefficient(r) was 0.08 and 0.19, respectively. The consequences are different from Carlson’s results that SD between TP and Chl-a had high correlation(r= 0.93 and r= 0.846, respectively). CTSI can not apply to the management of reservoir water quality in Taiwan. The correlation between SD and SS was better than that between SD and Chl-a which means SD is mainly affected by SS. Because reservoirs had high SS concentration in Taiwan, SD is not appropriate for water quality parameters. The ratio of eutrophic status was 27% by CTSI in Nan-Hua reservoir. The ratio of eutrophic status according to TP is 3% (OECD TP), 16% (OECD average TP), 41% (USEPA TP) and 32% (Carlson TP), respectively. The ratio of eutrophic status according to Chl-a were 1%(OECD Chl-a), 5%(OECD average Chl-a), 9%(USEPA Chl-a) and 9%(Carlson Chl-a), respectively. The highest ratio of eutrophic status according to TP was 41% by USEPA (TP), because the trophic status value for eutrophication was 20 μg /L. In contrast, the highest ratio of eutrophic status was 9% by USEPA (Chl-a). The results of Ching-Mien reservoir were similar to that result of Nan-Hua reservoir. Chl-a represented the density of algae and limiting nutrient was TP. Based on this research, we suggest that TP and/or Chl-a might be applied to classify the trophic status in Taiwan reservoir/lake.

Almond (Prunus dulcis (Mill) D. A. Webb) is a nut tree in the family Rosaceae, which compared to other nut crops, grown in Mediterranean climates, is relatively drought resistant. Due to the lack of, or high cost of water, almond growers are more inclined to improve gross production water use efficiency (WUE) by adopting water saving irrigation strategies. To this aim, the sensitivity and accuracy of different water status indicators need to be compared to design a suitable irrigation schedule. Meanwhile, instantaneous water use efficiency (WUEi) [i subscript] that is a measure made at the leaf scale can also be used as a criterion for estimating WUE in breeding programs. To study the effects of different deficit irrigation strategies, sustained and regulated deficit irrigations (SDI and RDI) were applied on almond trees for two consecutive seasons (2009-2010 and 2010-2011). Five levels of water amount were applied; namely, 55, 70, 85, 100 and 120% ETc [c subscript]. Kernel yield, midday stem water potential (MSWP), stomatal conductance (gs) [s subscript], increment in trunk circumference (ΔTC) and carbon isotope discrimination (Δ¹³C) were measured for both seasons. Results obtained in the 2009-2010 season showed that regardless of irrigation strategy, kernel yield was reduced in 70% ETc [c subscript] of irrigation or less. Meanwhile kernel yield, WUE and water status indicators in this season were more sensitive to the quantity of water applied rather than to the deficit strategy (SDI or RDI). However, kernel yield was slightly lower in RDI 70% ETc [c subscript] compared to SDI 70% ETc [c subscript] treatments. Although, there were high correlations between all water status indicators and the amount of water applied, gs [s subscript] and Δ¹³C showed lower sensitivity towards water deficit compared to MSWP and ΔTC, implying an anisohydric behaviour of almond trees. Meanwhile, in the first season, the observed correlation coefficients between kernel yield and ΔTC were lower than those of other water status indicators: MSWP ≈ gs [s subscript] ≈ Δ¹³C > ΔTC. In addition, there was only a moderate correlation (R²= 0.61) between Δ¹³C and WUE in the first season indicating that Δ¹³C may not be a reliable indicator of changes in WUE in almond trees. In the 2010-2011 season, there were no significant differences in kernel yields and water status indicators between different treatments. It was probably due to the humid weather and frequent rain in the second season that negated the effects of deficit irrigation on almond trees. To study the WUEi [i subscript] in different genotypes, gs and assimilation rate (A) in 5 mixed crosses of almond were examined. The significant correlations between gs [s subscript], A and internal concentration of CO₂ (Ci) [i subscript] indicated that A was probably limited by both stomatal and non-stomatal parameters that might be affected by genotype variations. Mesophyll anatomy and gs [s subscript] between three almond varieties (Nonpareil, Carmel and Masbovera) were also compared. The results demonstrated that the post-venous hydraulic distance Dm [m subscript] and the density of mesophyll cells might indirectly affect gs [s subscript].
Thesis (M.Phil.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, 2014

M.Sc.
A comprehensive histology-based fish health assessment was implemented at the Roodeplaat Dam (RD), Pretoria, South Africa, to determine the health status of two fresh water fish species, Clarias gariepinus (n = 20) and Oreochromis mossambicus (n = 18), after exposure to pollutants. RD is known to be polluted, being impacted from two sewage treatment plants, industry, housing and agriculture all upstream of the reserve. Excessive nutrient loads, such as orthophosphate, resulted in the dam becoming eutrophic. The quality of water in the RD was a cause for concern, as the fish from the dam are being used as a source of food by the local people. The histology-based fish health assessment included fish necropsy, calculation of gross body indices and histological assessment. Water quality (chemical and physical) analysis was also carried. Furthermore, target chemical analysis of fish tissue (skeletal muscle) was performed to determine the levels of contaminants in the consumable parts of the fish. These results were compared with existing international guidelines to determine whether the harvested fish were safe for human consumption. All the information obtained was integrated in a qualitative and quantitative scenario-based health risk assessment.

Thesis (M.Sc. (Aquaculture)) -- University of Limpopo, 2020
The aim of the study was to assess the extent to which biological indicators and biomarkers can be used to monitor the pollution status of the Sand and Blood Rivers. Physico-chemical parameters were assessed as a primary approach in assessing pollution status of the Sand and Blood Rivers. Temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), biological oxygen demand (BOD), turbidity, total dissolved solids (TDS), total nitrogen, phosphorus and ammonia were assessed during the rainy and dry seasons. Physico-chemical parameters showed spatial and temporal variation. The hierarchical average linkage cluster analysis grouped the reference sites (S1 and B1) into one group and sites after points of discharge (B2, S2, S3, S4 and S5) into another group. This grouping was due to the pollution status of each site, with the reference sites less polluted than the sites downstream of the wastewater treatment plant effluent points of discharge. The canadian council of ministers of the environment water quality index (CCME WQI) categorized reference sites as good, whilst sites after points of discharge were categorized as poor. This shows that the Sand and Blood Rivers are degrading. Heavy metal contamination in water, sediment and grass from the Sand and Blood Rivers was evaluated during the rainy season and dry season. All assessed heavy metals (Cadmium, Chromium, Copper, Iron, Lead, Manganese, Nickel, and Zinc) were below the detection limit in water, with an exception for Iron and Manganese. All metals assessed were also below the probable effect levels (PEL) according to the CCME. Geo-accumulation Index showed that the Sand and Blood Rivers were not contaminated with heavy metals. The enrichment factor (EF) further showed that only site B2 was enriched with manganese from anthropogenic activities. Heavy metal assessment in Cyperus exaltatus showed that this grass is a poor candidate for phytoremediation. Macroinvertebrates were used as biological indicators to assess pollution status of the Sand and Blood Rivers. Macroinvertebrates were sampled according to South African scoring system (SASS) and identified using aquatic invertebrates of South African rivers field guide. The SASS and average score per taxon (ASPT) categorized all sampling sites as critically modified. The family-level biotic index (FBI) also showed that the Sand and vi Blood Rivers are enriched with organic pollution. The reference sites recorded high macroinvertebrates diversity, compared to the sites after points of discharge. All indices used showed spatial and temporal variation in the water quality of the Sand and Blood Rivers. The relationship between macroinvertebrates and physico-chemical parameters were explored with the use of canonical correspondence analysis (CCA). The CCA triplots showed that the reference sites were associated with pollution sensitive taxa, whilst pollution tolerant taxa were associated with sites after points of discharge. Moreover, sites after points of discharge strongly correlated with phosphorus, nitrogen, ammonia, BOD and TDS. Clarias gariepinus gills and liver histology were used as biomarkers in assessing pollution status in the Sand and Blood Rivers. Gills and liver samples were qualitatively and semi-quantitatively assessed. Fish from the reference sites had less gill lesions than fish from sites downstream. Alterations such as hyperplasia of interlamellar, fusion of secondary lamellae, epithelial lifting and hyperplasia of secondary lamellae were observed in fish collected from downstream. Fish from downstream also showed more liver alterations than fish from the reference sites. Alterations such as melano-macrophage centers (MMC), macrovesicular steatosis, sinusoid congested with kupffer cells, nuclei pleomorphism and vacuolation were identified in liver of fish from sites S4 and S5. This was further confirmed by the high gill and liver indices of fish from downstream. Acetylcholinesterase enzyme (AChE) enzyme in brain and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in liver of Clarias gariepinus were used as biomarkers in assessing pollution status of the Sand and Blood Rivers. Both AChE and LDH enzymes were lower on fish from downstream compared to fish from the reference sites. This shows that AChE and LDH enzymes on fish from downstream were inhibited. This was attributed to the use of pesticides on farms surrounding the Sand and Blood Rivers and also the discharge of poorly treated sewage effluent from the Polokwane and Seshego wastewater treatment plants (WWTP’s). The Sand and Blood Rivers are surrounded by farms that utilize pesticides in their practice. This study showed that biological indicators and biomarkers can be used to assess pollution status of the Sand and Blood Rivers. However, biological vii indicators and biomarkers should be used in concurrence with physico-chemical parameters.
Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries, Water Research Commission (WRC) and Aquaculture Research Unit.

碩士
臺北市立大學
應用物理暨化學系
107
Abstract The purpose of this study is to explore and compare the opinion between soil and water conservation experts and school administration staff using self-evaluation indicators collected from soil and water conservation experts and school administration staff. The method of this study is Analytic Hierarchy Process questionnaire and self-evaluation questionnaire. Using “The opinion between soil and water conservation experts and school administration staff questionnaire” to compare the opinion between nine soil and water conservation experts and nine school staff to know the priority of these indicators, and then, five school principals and five school directors use “school administration staff self-evaluation questionnaire” individually. Lastly, analyze their final opinion with these indicators. The questionnaire shows: In the first hierarchy of soil and water conservation school self-evaluation indicated that, school staff better attached to the importance of “1.policy and management” but soil and water conservation experts better attached to the importance of “3.curriculum and instruction”. In the second hierarchy of these indicators, school staff better attached to the importance of “2-2 student study” but soil and water conservation experts better attached to the importance of “3-1 main curriculum”. In the third hierarchy of these indicators, school staff better attached to the importance of “1-1-1propaganda in school conference”, “1-2-1conbine current school organization”, and “2-2-2visit activity” but soil and water conservation experts better attached to the importance of “2-1-4participate promotion activity or competition”, “3-1-1agronomy”, “3-1-3 engineering”, and “3-3-1soil and water conservation curriculum integrate into field of study”. After the analysis of the school administration staff questionnaire, the result shows it does not have much significance about the statistical meaning. In the self-evaluation part of the questionnaire, only the average score of the school principal group is more different from the school director group. Key words：soil and water conservation school, school self-evaluation

Tese de doutoramento em Biociências, na especialidade de Ecologia Marinha, apresentada à Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia da Universidade de Coimbra
The aim of the research work presented in this thesis was to provide further knowledge of the effects of anthropogenic disturbance (organic enrichment) on intertidal rocky shore macroinvertebrate communities. The main objective was to address a gap in the Water Framework Directive (WFD) implementation with regard to rocky shores, namely with the development and validation of a multimetric index for rocky shore quality assessments based exclusively on the benthic macroinvertebrates quality element. First was analysed the change in structure of benthic macroinvertebrate communities as a response to anthropogenic disturbance (organic enrichment) gradients, and compared that with the response provided by the macroalgal component. Considering that the macroinvertebrate communities were responding to the disturbance gradients, the performance of several ecological indices (abundance, diversity and taxonomic composition indices) based on the macroinvertebrate communities was evaluated along the disturbance gradients. After, a complementary approach was followed, using functional trait-based methods (biological traits analysis and functional diversity indices), and comparing that approach with the more traditionally taxonomic one. Ultimately, the multimetric index proposed – Rocky shore Macroinvertebrates Assessment Tool (RMAT) – was developed integrating the macroinvertebrate metrics which showed the best efficiency (performance and consistency) along the disturbance gradients, and was validated using independent data. The assessment tool proposed in this thesis is compliant with the WFD concerning the evaluation of coastal waters’ ecological quality. Therefore, it presents great potential to be used in the assessment of rocky shores in the scope of the Directive.
A investigação feita no âmbito desta tese teve a intenção de fornecer maior conhecimento sobre efeitos de perturbação antropogénica (enriquecimento orgânico) em comunidades de macroinvertebrados de intertidal rochoso. O objetivo principal foi colmatar uma falha na implementação da Diretiva Quadro de Água (DQA) respeitante à costa rochosa, nomeadamente com o desenvolvimento e validação de um índice multimétrico para a avaliação de qualidade de costa rochosa, baseado exclusivamente no elemento de qualidade macroinvertebrados bentónicos, Primeiro, foram analisadas alterações na estrutura das comunidades de macroinvertebrados bentónicos em resposta a gradientes de perturbação antropogénica (enriquecimento orgânico), e comparadas com alterações identificadas nas macroalgas. Devido à boa resposta mostrada pelos macroinvertebrados à perturbação, foi avaliada a performance de vários índices ecológicos (baseados em abundância, diversidade e composição taxonómica), baseados em macroinvertebrados, ao longo dos gradientes de perturbação. De seguida foi utilizada uma abordagem complementar, através de métodos funcionais baseados em características dos organismos (biological traits analysis e índices de diversidade funcional), comparando esses métodos com índices baseados em diversidade/composição. No final, foi desenvolvido um índice multimétrico – Rocky shore Macroinvertebrates Assessment Tool (RMAT) – pela integração das métricas (baseadas exclusivamente em macroinvertebrados) que mostraram melhor eficiência (performance e consistência) ao longo dos gradientes de perturbação, sendo o RMAT também validado com dados independentes. A ferramenta de avaliação aqui proposta cumpre com os requisitos da DQA para a avaliação qualidade de sistemas costeiros, e apresenta grande potencial para a avaliação de costa rochosa no âmbito da Diretiva.
MARE – UC -Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre

abstract: Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) is a growing and expanding trenchless method utilized to install pipelines from 2 to 60 inch diameters for lengths over 10,000 foot. To date, there are not many public documents where direct costs and bid prices incurred by HDD installations are available and analyzed. The objective is to provide a better understanding of the factors affecting the bid prices of these projects. The first section of the thesis analyzes how project parameters such as product diameter, bore length and soil conditions affect the bid price of water and wastewater pipeline installations using HDD. Through multiple linear regressions, the effect of project parameters on bid prices of small, medium and large rigs projects is extracted. The results were further investigated to gain a better understanding of bid factors that influence the relationship between total cost and the project parameters. The second section uses unit cost, based on bid prices, to compare the costs incurred by defined categories. Parameters such as community type, product type, soil conditions, and geographical region were used in the analysis. Furthermore, using average unit cost from 2001 to 2009, HDD project cost trends are briefly analyzed against the main variations of the US economy from the same time horizon by using economic indicators. It was determined that project geometric factors influence more the bid price of small rig projects than large rig projects because external factors including market rates and economic situation have an increasing impact on bid prices when rig size increases. It was observed that bid price variation of HDD projects over years followed the same trend as the US economic variation described by economic indicators.
Dissertation/Thesis
M.S. Construction 2010

The diploma thesis deals with the monitoring of selected functional indicators of the women's water polo team during the RTC. The aim of this work is to observe the women's team in the water pole during the RTC. Tracking their TF for tests aimed at developing endurance and speed at ball launch. I divided the work into several parts. The theoretical part is devoted to the issue of water polo, deals with the basic skills of a water polo player and deals with the individual peculiarities of sports training and selected functional indicators. The practical part is divided into research and final part. The resulting part contains records of acquired changes in heart rate in selected phases of the annual training cycle. In the resulting part are processed the resulting data. To find out the results for the practical part I used observation methods, questionnaire, testing and statistical methods.