Search results for: urban land use

Authors: Srikantan L. Jayasri, James Gan

Abstract:

The changes in Singapore’s land use, natural preference of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) to live in forest edges and their adaptability has led to interface between humans and macaques. Studies have shown that two-third of human-macaque interactions in Singapore were related to human food. We aimed to assess differences among macaques groups in their dependence on human food and interaction with humans as indicators of the level of interface. Field observations using instantaneous scan sampling and all occurrence ad-lib sampling were carried out for 23 macaque groups over 28 days recording 71.5 hours of observations. Data on macaque behaviour, demography, frequency, and nature of human-macaque interactions were collected. None of the groups were found to completely rely on human food source. Of the 23 groups, 40% of them were directly or indirectly provisioned by humans. One-third of the groups observed engaged in some form of interactions with the humans. Three groups that were directly fed by humans contributed to 83% of the total human-macaque interactions observed during the study. Our study indicated that interactions between humans and macaques exist in specific groups and in those fed by humans regularly. Although feeding monkeys is illegal in Singapore, such incidents seem to persist in specific locations. We emphasize the importance of group and location-specific assessment of the existing human-wildlife interactions. Conflict management strategies developed should be location specific to address the cause of interactions.

Keywords: primates, Southeast Asia, wildlife management, Singapore

Procedia PDF Downloads 462

Authors: Pavel Shcherban, Viktoria Ivanova, Alexander Neprokin, Vladislav Golovanov

Abstract:

Currently, LLC «Lukoil-Kaliningradmorneft» is implementing a comprehensive program for the development of offshore fields of the Kaliningrad region. This is largely associated with the depletion of the resource base of land in the region, as well as the positive results of geological investigation surrounding the Baltic Sea area and the data on the volume of hydrocarbon recovery from a single offshore field are working on the Kaliningrad region – D-6 «Kravtsovskoye».The article analyzes the main stages of the LLC «Lukoil-Kaliningradmorneft»’s development program for the development of the hydrocarbon resources of the region's shelf and suggests an optimization algorithm that allows managing a multi-criteria process of development of shelf deposits. The algorithm is formed on the basis of the problem of sequential decision making, which is a section of dynamic programming. Application of the algorithm during the consolidation of the initial data, the elaboration of project documentation, the further exploration and development of offshore fields will allow to optimize the complex of technical and technological solutions and increase the economic efficiency of the field development project implemented by LLC «Lukoil-Kaliningradmorneft».

Keywords: offshore fields of hydrocarbons of the Baltic Sea, development of offshore oil and gas fields, optimization of the field development scheme, solution of multicriteria tasks in oil and gas complex, quality management in oil and gas complex

Procedia PDF Downloads 188

Authors: J. E. M. Macwan, D. A. Pastagia, Reeta Meena

Abstract:

Government of Gujarat (India) wishes to create smart villages to improve the quality of life. The significance of these efforts will result into higher rural productivity. The main aim of this research is to identify, design and propose implementable planning solutions suited for an Indian village set up. The methodology adopted is to create a database by conducting onsite study as well as gathering public opinion to help researchers to satisfy rural needs. The outcome of this research exercise is a planning design preparation and channelizing funds in right direction for a result oriented better village shape. The proposals are accepted after slight modifications by the stakeholders. Planning solutions were designed through public participatory approach. To control rural Urban migration, villagers were offered better quality of life.

Keywords: smart village, digitization, development plan, gram panchayats

Procedia PDF Downloads 118

Authors: R. E. Fat-Helbary, A. A. Abdel-latief, M. S. Arfa, Alaa Mostafa

Abstract:

The Egyptian Government proposed a general plan, aiming at constructing new settlements for Nubian in south Aswan in different places around Nasser Lake, one of these settlements in Kurkur area. The Nubian habitations in Wadi Kurkur are located around 30 km southwest of Aswan City. This area are affecting by near distance earthquakes from Kalabsha faults system. The shallow seismic refraction technique was conducted at the study area, to evaluate the soil and rock material quality and geotechnical parameters, in addition to the detection of the subsurface ground model under the study area. The P and S-wave velocities were calculated. The surface layer has P-wave, velocity ranges from 900 m/sec to 1625 m/sec and S-wave velocity ranges from 650 m/sec to 1400 m/sec. On the other hand the bedrock has P-wave velocity ranges from 1300 m/sec to 1980 m/sec and S-wave velocity ranges from 1050 m/sec to1725 m/sec. Measuring Vp and Vs velocities together with bulk density are calculated and used to extract the mechanical properties and geotechnical parameters of the foundation material at the study area. Output of this study is very important for solving the problems, which associated with the construction of various civil engineering purposes, for land use planning and for earthquakes resistant structure design.

Keywords: shallow seismic refraction technique, Kurkur area, p and s-wave velocities, geotechnical parameters, bulk density, Kalabsha faults

Procedia PDF Downloads 412

Authors: Allagui Mohamed

Abstract:

The study of the temporal variation of the PM10 and the SO₂ in the area of Sfax during the year of 2008, showed very significant fluctuations of the contents. They depend on the transmitting sources and the weather conditions. The study of the evolutionary behavior of the PM10 and the SO₂ in a situation of the Sirocco revealed the determining influence of the Sahara which was confirmed by its strong enrichment of the atmosphere with particulate matter. The analysis of a situation of breeze of sea highlighted the increase in the contents of the PM10 of agreement with the increase the speed of the marine wind, in particular for the diurnal period, possibly testifying to the enrichment of the aerosol in a considerable maritime component. A situation of anticyclonic winter examined when with it the accumulation of the contents of the PM10 at a rate of 70 μg/m³ showed such concentrations remained weak by comparison with other studies which show contents of about 300 μg/m³.

Keywords: PM10, sea breeze, SO₂, sirocco, anticyclone

Procedia PDF Downloads 115

Authors: Chidiebere C. Agoha, Armstong C. Awuzie, Chukwuebuka N. Onwubuariri, Joy O. Njoku

Abstract:

Spatial analysis is a field of study that utilizes geographic or spatial information to understand and analyze patterns, relationships, and trends in data. It is characterized by the use of geographic or spatial information, which allows for the analysis of data in the context of its location and surroundings. It is different from non-spatial or aspatial techniques, which do not consider the geographic context and may not provide as complete of an understanding of the data. Spatial analysis is applied in a variety of fields, which includes urban planning, environmental science, geosciences, epidemiology, marketing, to gain insights and make decisions about complex spatial problems. This review paper explores definitions of spatial analysis from various sources, including examples of its application and different analysis techniques such as Buffer analysis, interpolation, and Kernel density analysis (multi-distance spatial cluster analysis). It also contrasts spatial analysis with non-spatial analysis.

Keywords: aspatial technique, buffer analysis, epidemiology, interpolation

Procedia PDF Downloads 297

Authors: Nwaoga, Theresa Chinyere

Abstract:

The paper examines the impacts of Aso-Ebi, a Yoruba term for ‘uniform’ on the people of south-east Nigeria. Aso-Ebi is used to denote uniform wear which is typical of the people of south-west Nigeria. In the 1980s and 1990s, uniform wears were used only by immediate family members of a deceased person. This is for easy identification by visitors—to know those who are related to the deceased person. Aso-Ebi is now part of a culture that has existed in Nigeria from the Yoruba and transcended to other parts of Nigeria, precisely south-east Nigeria. The buying of Aso-Ebi and attending the occasions in the attire is the only way of showing solidarity and support to the celebrant. Aso-Ebi has led to creating a sense of belonging, opening of doors for marriage by those single, and fundraising. As part of the findings, it was discovered that Aso-Ebi has led to an increase in marital infidelity and divorce, robbery, prostitution, depression, and an increase in enmity between friends in south-east Nigeria. Data was generated through oral interviews, focus group discussion and participant observation. Secondary data were obtained from journals, textbooks, the internet and periodicals. The phenomenological method of research was used as the methodology. This method allows for an objective report and analysis of the research problem. Aso-Ebi has come to stay in Igbo culture, so there should be a proper re-orientation on the uses of Aso-Ebi during occasions like burial in Igbo land. The campaign can start from the church by discouraging people from using Aso-Ebi during burials and wedding ceremonies.

Keywords: Asho Ebi, uniformed women, burial ceremonies, August meetings

Procedia PDF Downloads 123

Authors: Siti Aiysyah Tumin

Abstract:

This paper looks at the nature of structural changes—the transition of employment from agriculture, to manufacturing, then to different types of services—in different states in Malaysia and links it to income outcomes for households and workers. Specifically, this paper investigates the conditional association between the concentration of different economic activities and income outcomes (household incomes and employee wages) in almost four decades. Using publicly available state-level employment and income data, we found that significant wage premium was associated with “modern” services (finance, real estate, professional, information and communication), which are urban-based services sectors that employ a larger proportion of skilled and educated workers. However, employment in manufacturing and other services subsectors was significantly associated with a lower income dispersion and inequality, alluding to their importance in welfare improvements.

Keywords: employment, labor market, structural change, wage

Procedia PDF Downloads 154

Authors: Muhamad N. Borhan, Nur S. Darus, Siti Z. Ishak, Rozmi Ismail, Siti F. M. Razali

Abstract:

Children are at the greater risk to be involved in road traffic collisions due to the complex interaction of various elements in our transportation system. It encompasses interactions between the elements of children and driver behavior along with physical and social environment factors. The present study examined the effect between the collisions severity and physical environment factors on child pedestrian collisions. The severity of collisions is categorized into four injury outcomes: fatal, serious injury, slight injury, and damage. The sample size comprised of 2487 cases of child pedestrian-vehicle collisions in which children aged 7 to 12 years old was involved in Malaysia for the years 2006-2015. A multinomial logistic regression was applied to establish the effect between severity levels and physical environment factors. The results showed that eight contributing factors influence the probability of an injury road surface material, traffic system, road marking, control type, lighting condition, type of location, land use and road surface condition. Understanding the effect of physical environment factors may contribute to the improvement of physical environment design and decrease the collision involvement.

Keywords: child pedestrian, collisions, primary school, road injuries

Procedia PDF Downloads 152

Authors: Monika Rani, Claudio Marchesi, Stefania Federici, Laura E. Depero

Abstract:

Degradation of the aquatic environment by plastic litter, especially microplastics (MPs), i.e., any water-insoluble solid plastic particle with the longest dimension in the range 1µm and 1000 µm (=1 mm) size, is an unfortunate indication of the advancement of the Anthropocene age on Earth. Microplastics formed due to natural weathering processes are termed as secondary microplastics, while when these are synthesized in industries, they are called primary microplastics. Their presence from the highest peaks to the deepest points in oceans explored and their resistance to biological and chemical decay has adversely affected the environment, especially marine life. Even though the presence of MPs in the marine environment is well-reported, a legitimate and authentic analytical technique to sample, analyze, and quantify the MPs is still under progress and testing stages. Among the characterization techniques, vibrational spectroscopic techniques are largely adopted in the field of polymers. And the ongoing miniaturization of these methods is on the way to revolutionize the plastic recycling industry. In this scenario, the capability and the feasibility of a miniaturized near-infrared (MicroNIR) spectroscopy combined with chemometrics tools for qualitative and quantitative analysis of urban plastic waste collected from a recycling plant and microplastic mixture fragmented in the lab were investigated. Based on the Resin Identification Code, 250 plastic samples were used for macroplastic analysis and to set up a library of polymers. Subsequently, MicroNIR spectra were analysed through the application of multivariate modelling. Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was used as an unsupervised tool to find trends within the data. After the exploratory PCA analysis, a supervised classification tool was applied in order to distinguish the different plastic classes, and a database containing the NIR spectra of polymers was made. For the microplastic analysis, the three most abundant polymers in the plastic litter, PE, PP, PS, were mechanically fragmented in the laboratory to micron size. The distinctive arrangement of blends of these three microplastics was prepared in line with a designed ternary composition plot. After the PCA exploratory analysis, a quantitative model Partial Least Squares Regression (PLSR) allowed to predict the percentage of microplastics in the mixtures. With a complete dataset of 63 compositions, PLS was calibrated with 42 data-points. The model was used to predict the composition of 21 unknown mixtures of the test set. The advantage of the consolidated NIR Chemometric approach lies in the quick evaluation of whether the sample is macro or micro, contaminated, coloured or not, and with no sample pre-treatment. The technique can be utilized with bigger example volumes and even considers an on-site evaluation and in this manner satisfies the need for a high-throughput strategy.

Keywords: chemometrics, microNIR, microplastics, urban plastic waste

Procedia PDF Downloads 141

Authors: Mehmet Yanardag, Ilker Yilmaz

Abstract:

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) enjoy and success the aquatic-based exercise and play skills in a pool instead of land-based exercise in a gym. Some authors also observed that many children with ASD experience more success in attaining movement skills in aquatic environment. Properties of the water and hydrodynamic principles cause buoyancy of the water and decrease effects of gravity and it leads to allow a child to practice important aquatic skills with limited motor skills. Also, some authors experience that parents liked the effects of the aquatic intervention program on children with ASD such as improving motor performance, movement capacity and learning basic swimming skills. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of aquatic exercise training on water orientation and underwater working capacity were measured in the pool. This study included in four male children between 5 and 7 years old with ASD and 6.25±0.5 years old. Aquatic exercise skills were applied by using one of the error less teaching which is called the 'most to least prompt' procedure during 12-week, three times a week and 60 minutes a day. The findings of this study indicated that there were improvements test results both water orientation skill and underwater working capacity of children with ASD after 12-weeks exercise training. It was seen that the aquatic exercise intervention would be affected to improve working capacity and orientation skills with the special education approaches applying children with ASD in multidisciplinary team-works.

Keywords: aquatic, autism, orientation, ASD, children

Procedia PDF Downloads 416

Authors: Silvija ŠIljeg, Ante ŠIljeg, Ivan Marić

Abstract:

Measuring housing quality is being done on objective and subjective level using different indicators. During the research 5 urban and housing indicators formed according to 58 variables from different housing, domains were used. The aims of the research were to measure housing quality based on GIS approach and to detect critical points of housing in the example of Croatian coastal Town Zadar. The purposes of GIS in the research are to generate models of housing quality indexes by standardisation and aggregation of variables and to examine accuracy model of housing quality index. Analysis of accuracy has been done on the example of variable referring to educational objects availability. By defining weighted coefficients and using different GIS methods high, middle and low housing quality zones were determined. Obtained results can be of use to town planners, spatial planners and town authorities in the process of generating decisions, guidelines, and spatial interventions.

Keywords: housing quality, GIS, housing quality index, indicators, models of housing quality

Procedia PDF Downloads 281

Authors: Seung-Seok Bak, Chang-Mu Jung

Abstract:

An enough amount supply of industrial complexes is an important national policy in South Korea, which is highly dependent on foreign trade. A development process of the industrial complex can distinguish between the planning stage and the construction stage. The planning stage consists of the process of consulting with many stakeholders on the contents of the development of industrial complex, feasibility study, compliance with the Regional policies, and so on. The industrial complex planning stage, including licensing procedure, usually takes about three years in South Korea. The government determined that the appropriate supply of industrial complexes have been delayed, due to the long licensing period and drafted a law to shorten the license period in 2008. The law was expected to shorten the period of licensing, which was about three years, to six months. This paper attempts to show that the shortening of the licensing period does not positively affect the appropriate supply of industrial complexes. To do this, we used Interrupted Time Series Designs. As a result, it was found that the supply of industrial complexes was influenced more by other factors such as actual industrial complex demand of private sector and macro-level economic variables. In addition, the specific provisions of the law conflict with local policy and cause some problems such as damage to nature and agricultural land, traffic congestion.

Keywords: development of industrial complexes, industrial complexes, interrupted time series designs, simplification of licensing procedures for industrial complexes, time series regression

Procedia PDF Downloads 278

Authors: Mahesh Kumar Farejiya, Anil Kumar Dikshit

Abstract:

The toxic metal contamination and their biomagnification in marine fishes is a serious public health concern specially, in the coastal areas and the small islands. In the present study, concentration of toxic heavy metals like zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), nickel (Ni), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr) and mercury (Hg) were determined in the tissues of tunas (T. albacores) caught from the area near to Lakshdweep Islands. The heavy metals are one of the indicators for the marine water pollution. Geochemical weathering, industrialization, agriculture run off, fishing, shipping and oil spills are the major pollutants. The presence of heavy toxic metals in the near coastal water fishes at both western coast and eastern coast of India has been well established. The present study was conducted assuming that the distant island will not have the metals presence in a way it is at the near main land coast. However, our study shows that there is a significant amount of the toxic metals present in the tissues of tuna samples. The gill, lever and flash samples were collected in waters around Lakshdweep Islands. They were analyzed using ICP–AES for the toxic metals after microwave digestion. The concentrations of the toxic metals were found in all fish samples and the general trend of presence was in decreasing order as Zn > Al > Cd > Pb > Cr > Ni > Hg. The amount of metals was found to higher in fish having more weight.

Keywords: toxic metals, marine tuna fish, bioaccumulation, biomagnifications

Procedia PDF Downloads 341

Authors: Iqra Yaseen

Abstract:

One of the well-known areas of computer science and engineering, image processing in the context of computer vision has been essential to automation. In remote sensing, medical science, and many other fields, it has made it easier to uncover previously undiscovered facts. Grading of diverse items is now possible because of neural network algorithms, categorization, and digital image processing. Its use in the classification of agricultural products, particularly in the grading of seeds or grains and their cultivars, is widely recognized. A grading and sorting system enables the preservation of time, consistency, and uniformity. Global population growth has led to an increase in demand for food staples, biofuel, and other agricultural products. To meet this demand, available resources must be used and managed more effectively. Image processing is rapidly growing in the field of agriculture. Many applications have been developed using this approach for crop identification and classification, land and disease detection and for measuring other parameters of crop. Vegetation localization is the base of performing these task. Vegetation helps to identify the area where the crop is present. The productivity of the agriculture industry can be increased via image processing that is based upon Unmanned Aerial Vehicle photography and satellite. In this paper we use the machine learning techniques like Convolutional Neural Network, deep learning, image processing, classification, You Only Live Once to UAV imaging dataset to divide the crop into distinct groups and choose the best way to use it.

Keywords: image processing, UAV, YOLO, CNN, deep learning, classification

Procedia PDF Downloads 90

Authors: G. Meccariello, L. Della Ragione

Abstract:

The exposure to outdoor air pollution causes lung cancer and increases the risk of bladder cancer. Because air pollution in urban areas is mainly caused by transportation, it is necessary to evaluate pollutant exhaust emissions from vehicles during their real-world use. Nevertheless their evaluation and reduction is a key problem, especially in the cities, that account for more than 50% of world population. A particular attention was given to the slope variability along the streets during each journey performed by the instrumented vehicle. In this paper we dealt with the problem of describing a quantitatively approach for the reconstruction of GPS coordinates and altitude, in the context of correlation study between driving cycles / emission / geographical location, during an experimental campaign realized with some instrumented cars. Finally the slope analysis can be correlated to the emission and consumption values in a specific road position, and it could be evaluated its influence on their behaviour.

Keywords: air pollution, driving cycles, GPS signal, slope, emission factor, fuel consumption

Procedia PDF Downloads 375

Authors: Chuhan Zhang

Abstract:

As a typical mountainous city in the world, with the rise of shared transportation, cycling behavior in Chongqing is undergoing a role change from a traditional leisure activity to an important transportation mode. However, with the rapid increase in people's cycling demand, the built environment with mountainous features in Chongqing has become a key constraint hindering the further development of bicycle traffic. Based on the above background, the research summarizes the current development contradictions of bicycle traffic in Chongqing, analyses the global experience in the construction of bicycle-friendly cities with mountain characteristics, and combines the characteristics of bicycle traffic in Chongqing to further propose the planning method of the bicycle in mountain cities, to improve the bikability of Chongqing from the perspective of urban planning.

Keywords: bicycle traffic, mountainous city, bicycle-friendly, bikability, Chongqing

Procedia PDF Downloads 80

Authors: Majdi Al Shdifat, Juan Chiachio, Esther Puertas, María L. Jalón, Álvaro Blanca-Hoyos

Abstract:

In recent years, the world has begun to adopt more sustainable practices in response to today's environmental and climate challenges. The construction sector is one of the most resource-intensive among others, so researchers are testing different types of materials with different processes and methodologies to achieve more environmentally and sustainably friendly buildings. Plastic is one of the most harmful materials for the environment. The global production of plastics has increased dramatically in recent decades, and it is one of the most widely used materials. However, plastic waste is not biodegradable and has a chemical composition that is stable for many years in the environment, both on land and in water bodies. Recycled plastics have been tested to be used in construction in many ways to reduce the amount of plastic in the environment and the use of raw materials in construction. In this context, the main objective of this research is to test the use of plastic fibers with one of the most promising materials to replace cement, which is rammed earth. In fact, rammed earth is considered one of the most environmentally friendly materials due to its use of local raw materials, recyclability, and low embodied energy. In this research, three different types of plastic fibers were used. Then, the blends were evaluated by considering their mechanical properties, including compressive strength and tensile strength. In addition, the non-destructive ultrasonic wave velocity was measured. The result shows excellent potential for the use of plastic fibers in rammed earth, especially in terms of compressive strength.

Keywords: mechanical characterization, plastic fibers reinforcement, rammed earth, sustainable material

Procedia PDF Downloads 58

Authors: Kevin F. Hsu, Alvin Chua, Sarah X. Lin

Abstract:

As a multilingual society, Singaporean names for different parts of the city have changed over time. Residents included Indigenous Malays, dialect-speakers from China, European settler-colonists, and Tamil-speakers from South India. Each group would name locations in their own languages. Today, as ancestral tongues are increasingly supplanted by English, contemporary Singaporeans’ understanding of once-common place names is disappearing. After demolition or redevelopment, some urban places will only exist in archival records or in human memory. United Nations conferences on the standardization of geographic names have called attention to how place names relate to identity, well-being, and a sense of belonging. The Singapore Place-Naming Project responds to these imperatives by capturing past and present place names through digitizing historical maps, mining archival records, and applying selective crowd-sourcing to trace the evolution of place names throughout the city. The project ensures that both formal and vernacular geographical names remain accessible to historians, city planners, and the public. The project is compiling a gazetteer, a geospatial archive of placenames, with streets, buildings, landmarks, and other points of interest (POI) appearing in the historic maps and planning documents of Singapore, currently held by the National Archives of Singapore, the National Library Board, university departments, and the Urban Redevelopment Authority. To create a spatial layer of information, the project links each place name to either a geo-referenced point, line segment, or polygon, along with the original source material in which the name appears. This record is supplemented by crowd-sourced contributions from civil service officers and heritage specialists, drawing from their collective memory to (1) define geospatial boundaries of historic places that appear in past documents, but maybe unfamiliar to users today, and (2) identify and record vernacular place names not captured in formal planning documents. An intuitive interface allows participants to demarcate feature classes, vernacular phrasings, time periods, and other knowledge related to historical or forgotten spaces. Participants are stratified into age bands and ethnicity to improve representativeness. Future iterations could allow additional public contributions. Names reveal meanings that communities assign to each place. While existing historical maps of Singapore allow users to toggle between present-day and historical raster files, this project goes a step further by adding layers of social understanding and planning documents. Tracking place names illuminates linguistic, cultural, commercial, and demographic shifts in Singapore, in the context of transformations of the urban environment. The project also demonstrates how a moderated, selectively crowd-sourced effort can solicit useful geospatial data at scale, sourced from different generations, and at higher granularity than traditional surveys, while mitigating negative impacts of unmoderated crowd-sourcing. Stakeholder agencies believe the project will achieve several objectives, including Supporting heritage conservation and public education; Safeguarding intangible cultural heritage; Providing historical context for street, place or development-renaming requests; Enhancing place-making with deeper historical knowledge; Facilitating emergency and social services by tagging legal addresses to vernacular place names; Encouraging public engagement with heritage by eliciting multi-stakeholder input.

Keywords: collective memory, crowd-sourced, digital heritage, geospatial, geographical names, linguistic heritage, place-naming, Singapore, Southeast Asia

Procedia PDF Downloads 113

Authors: Ahmed Azizeldein Abubaker Abdelhafez

Abstract:

This review explores the application of biochar as a strategy for enhancing soil fertility in arid regions, with a focus on Arab countries. Biochar, derived from the carbonization of biomass under low-oxygen conditions, has shown promise in improving the physical and chemical properties of soil, such as increasing water retention and nutrient availability. Despite the challenging conditions of arid and semi-arid regions, characterized by poor soil fertility and severe land degradation, biochar application has emerged as a viable method to enhance agricultural productivity and mitigate environmental issues. This paper examines various aspects of biochar, including production methods, such as pyrolysis and gasification, and the effects of biochar on soil fertility. It discusses different application techniques and presents case studies from Arab countries like Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, and Kuwait, highlighting the successes and challenges faced in implementing biochar technology. The review also addresses the limitations of biochar use in arid regions and suggests future research directions to optimize its effectiveness. Overall, this study underscores the potential of biochar to contribute significantly to sustainable agriculture and ecological restoration in arid environments, advocating for integrated strategies that combine biochar application with other innovative agricultural practices.

Keywords: biochar, soil fertility, arid region, Arab countries, challenges and limitations

Procedia PDF Downloads 27

Authors: Adnan F. Sheikh, Fayaz A. Mir

Abstract:

After the recent devastating flood in Kashmir in 2014, dredging of the local water bodies, especially Jhelum River has become a priority for the government. Local government under the project name of 'Comprehensive Flood Management Programme' plans to undertake an increase in discharge of existing flood channels by removal of encroachments and acquisition of additional land, dredging and other works of the water bodies. The total quantity of soil to be dredged will be 16.15 lac cumecs. Dredged soil is a major component that would result from the project which requires disposal/utilization. This study analyses the effect of cement and sand on the engineering properties of soil. The tests were conducted with variable additions of sand (10%, 20% and 30%), whereas cement was added at 12%. Samples with following compositions: soil-cement (12%) and soil-sand (30%) were tested as well. Laboratory experiments were conducted to determine the engineering characteristics of soil, i.e., compaction, strength, and CBR characteristics. The strength characteristics of the soil were determined by unconfined compressive strength test and direct shear test. Unconfined compressive strength of the soil was tested immediately and for a curing period of seven days. CBR test was performed for unsoaked, soaked (worst condition- 4 days) and cured (4 days) samples.

Keywords: comprehensive flood management programme, dredge soil, strength characteristics, flood

Procedia PDF Downloads 161

Authors: Yuguang Wang, Chuanjun Wang

Abstract:

At present, many coastal areas around the world suffer from seawater intrusion. Seawater intrusion is the superimposed result of two factors which are nature and human social economical activities in particular area. In recent years, due to excessive exploitation of groundwater, the seawater intrusion phenomenon aggravate in coastal zone of the Bohai and Huanghai seas in our country. Moreover, with sea-level rising, the original hydrodynamic equilibrium between saltwater and freshwater has been damaged to a certain extent, and it will further aggravate seawater intrusion in the land plains. In addition, overexploitation of groundwater declined groundwater level and increase saltwater intrusion in coastal areas. Therefore, in view of the sensitivity and vulnerability of the impact of sea-level rise in the future, the risk of sea-level rise in coastal zone should be considered, reasonable exploitation, utilization and management of coastal zone’s groundwater should be formulated. The response mechanism of sea-level rise should be studied to prevent and reduce the harm of seawater intrusion, which has important theoretical and realistic significances. In this paper, through the long-term monitoring of groundwater level and conductibility in the transition region of seawater intrusion for the sand coast area, realtimely master the situation of seawater intrusion. Combined with the seasonal exploitation station of groundwater and sea level variation, early alert the seawater intrusion to prevent and reduce the harm of seawater intrusion.

Keywords: groundwater level, sea level, seawater intrusion, sand coast

Procedia PDF Downloads 444

Authors: Julio Jesus Salazar, Manuel Andres Jesus De Lama

Abstract:

There are very few models that serve to analyze the use of water in the socio-economic process. On the supply side, the joint use of groundwater has been considered in addition to the simple limits on the availability of surface water. In addition, we have worked on waterlogging and the effects on water quality (mainly salinity). In this paper, a 'complex' water economy is examined; one in which demands grow differentially not only within but also between sectors, and one in which there are limited opportunities to increase consumptive use. In particular, high-value growth, the growth of the production of irrigated crops of high value within the basins of the case study, together with the rapidly growing urban areas, provides a rich context to examine the general problem of water management at the basin level. At the same time, the long-term aridity of nature has made the eco-environment in the basins located on the coast of Peru very vulnerable, and the exploitation and immediate use of water resources have further deteriorated the situation. The presented methodology is the optimization with embedded simulation. The wide basin simulation of flow and water balances and crop growth are embedded with the optimization of water allocation, reservoir operation, and irrigation scheduling. The modeling framework is developed from a network of river basins that includes multiple nodes of origin (reservoirs, aquifers, water courses, etc.) and multiple demand sites along the river, including places of consumptive use for agricultural, municipal and industrial, and uses of running water on the coast of Peru. The economic benefits associated with water use are evaluated for different demand management instruments, including water rights, based on the production and benefit functions of water use in the urban agricultural and industrial sectors. This work represents a new effort to analyze the use of water at the regional level and to evaluate the modernization of the integrated management of water resources and socio-economic territorial development in Peru. It will also allow the establishment of policies to improve the process of implementation of the integrated management and development of water resources. The input-output analysis is essential to present a theory about the production process, which is based on a particular type of production function. Also, this work presents the Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) version of the economic model for water resource policy analysis, which was specifically designed for analyzing large-scale water management. As to the platform for CGE simulation, GEMPACK, a flexible system for solving CGE models, is used for formulating and solving CGE model through the percentage-change approach. GEMPACK automates the process of translating the model specification into a model solution program.

Keywords: water economy, simulation, modeling, integration

Procedia PDF Downloads 135

Authors: Wen Li, Zhengyu Bai, Qi Zhang

Abstract:

The demand for smart scheduling platform in agriculture, particularly in the scheduling process of machinery equipment, is high. With the continuous development of agricultural machinery equipment technology, a large number of agricultural machinery equipment and agricultural machinery cooperative service organizations continue to appear in China. The large area of cultivated land and a large number of agricultural activities in the central and western regions of China have made the demand for smart and efficient agricultural machinery equipment scheduling platforms more intense. In this study, we design and implement a platform for agricultural machinery equipment scheduling to allocate agricultural machinery equipment resources reasonably. With agricultural machinery equipment scheduling platform taken as the research object, we discuss its research significance and value, use the service blueprint technology to analyze and characterize the agricultural machinery equipment schedule workflow, the network analytic method to obtain the demand platform function requirements, and divide the platform functions through the platform function division diagram. Simultaneously, based on the case-based reasoning (CBR) algorithm, the equipment scheduling module of the agricultural machinery equipment scheduling platform is realized; finally, a design scheme of the agricultural machinery equipment scheduling platform architecture is provided, and the visualization interface of the platform is established via VB programming language. It provides design ideas and theoretical support for the construction of a modern agricultural equipment information scheduling platform.

Keywords: case-based reasoning, service blueprint, system design, ANP, VB programming language

Procedia PDF Downloads 157

Authors: Derya Nizam

Abstract:

An alternative understanding of "localization" has gained significance as the ecological and social issues associated with the growing pressure of agricultural homogeneity and standardization become more apparent. Through an analysis of a case study on an alternative food networks in Turkey, this research seeks to critically examine the localization movement. The results indicate that the idea of localization helps to create new niche markets by creating place-based labels, but it also strengthens local identities through social networks that connect rural and urban areas. In that context, localization manifests as a commodification movement that appropriates local and cultural values to generate capitalist profit, as well as a grassroots movement that strengthens the resilience of local communities. This research addresses the potential of community development approaches in the democratization of global agro-food networks.

Keywords: community building, local food, alternative food movements, localization

Procedia PDF Downloads 58

Authors: G. A. Adamu, M. S. Sallau, S. O. Idris, E. B. Agbaji

Abstract:

Drinking water is supplied to Danbatta, Makoda and some parts of Minjibir local government areas of Kano State from the surface water of Thomas Reservoir. The present land use in the catchment area of the reservoir indicates high agricultural activities, fishing, as well as domestic and small scale industrial activities. To study and monitor the quality of surface and drinking water of the area, water samples were collected from the reservoir, treated water at the treatment plant and potable water at the consumer end in three seasons November - February (cold season), March - June (dry season) and July - September (rainy season). The samples were analyzed for physical and chemical parameters, pH, temperature, total dissolved solids (TDS), conductivity, turbidity, total hardness, suspended solids, total solids, colour, dissolved oxygen (DO), biological oxygen demand (BOD), chloride ion (Cl^-) nitrite (NO₂^-), nitrate (NO₃^-), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and phosphate (PO₄^3-). The higher values obtained in some parameters with respect to the acceptable standard set by World Health Organization (WHO) and Nigerian Industrial Standards (NIS) indicate the pollution of both the surface and drinking water. These pollutants were observed to have a negative impact on water quality in terms of eutrophication, largely due to anthropogenic activities in the watershed.

Keywords: surface water, drinking water, water quality, pollution, Thomas reservoir, Kano

Procedia PDF Downloads 281

Authors: Majdi Al Shdifat, Juan Chiachio, Esther Puertas, María L. Jalón, Álvaro Blanca-Hoyos

Abstract:

In recent years, the world has begun to adopt more sustainable practices in response to today's environmental and climate challenges. The construction sector is one of the most resource-intensive among others, so researchers are testing different types of materials with different processes and methodologies to achieve more environmentally and sustainably friendly buildings.Plastic is one of the most harmful materials for the environment. The global production of plastics has increased dramatically in recent decades, and it is one of the most widely used materials. However, plastic waste is not biodegradable and has a chemical composition that is stable for many years in the environment, both on land and in water bodies. Recycled plastics have been tested to be used in construction in many ways to reduce the amount of plastic in the environment and the use of raw materials in construction. In this context, the main objective of this research is to test the use of plastic fibers with one of the most promising materials to replace cement, which is rammed earth. In fact, rammed earth is considered one of the most environmentally friendly materials due to its use of local raw materials, recyclability, and low embodied energy. In this research, three different types of plastic fibers were used. Then, the blends were evaluated by considering their mechanical properties, including compressive strength and tensile strength. In addition, the non-destructive ultrasonic wave velocity was measured. The result shows excellent potential for the use of plastic fibers in rammed earth, especially in terms of compressive strength.

Keywords: mechanical characterization, plastic fibers reinforcement, rammed earth, sustainable material

Procedia PDF Downloads 53

Authors: A. M. Omoare, E. O. Fakoya

Abstract:

This study sought to determine the use of indigenous knowledge for selected arable crops production in Ondo Sate. A multistage sampling method was used and 112 arable crops farmers were systematically selected. Data were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The results showed that majority of the sampled farmers were male (75.90%). About 75% were married with children. Large proportion of them (62.61%) were within the ages of 30-49 years. Most of them have spent about 10 years in farming (58.92%). The highest raw scores of use of indigenous knowledge were found in planting on mound in yam production, use of native medicine and scare crow method in controlling birds in rice production, timely planting of locally developed resistant varieties in cassava production and soaking of maize seeds in water to determine their viability with raw scores of 313, 310, 305, 303, and 300 respectively, while the lowest raw scores was obtained in use of bell method in controlling birds in rice production with raw scores of 210. The findings established that proverbs (59.8%) and taboos (55.36%) were the most commonly used media in transmitting indigenous knowledge by arable crop farmers. The multiple regression analysis result revealed that age of the farmers and farming experience had a significant relationship with the use of indigenous knowledge of the farmers which gave R2 = 0.83 for semi log function form of equation which is the land equation. The policy implication is that indigenous knowledge should provide basis for designing modern technologies to enhance sustainable agricultural development.

Keywords: crop production, extent of use, indigenous knowledge, arable crops

Procedia PDF Downloads 646

Authors: M. Mourad, K. Mahmoud

Abstract:

Recently hybrid vehicles have become a major concern as one alternative vehicles. This type of hybrid vehicle contributes greatly to reducing pollution. Therefore, this work studies the influence of electrification phase of hybrid electric vehicle on emission of vehicle at different road conditions. To accomplish this investigation, a simulation model was used to evaluate the external characteristics of the hybrid electric vehicle according to variant conditions of road resistances. Therefore, this paper reports a methodology to decrease the vehicle emission especially greenhouse gas emission inside cities. The results show the effect of electrification on vehicle performance characteristics. The results show that CO₂ emission of vehicle decreases up to 50.6% according to an urban driving cycle due to applying the electrification strategy for hybrid electric vehicle.

Keywords: electrification strategy, hybrid electric vehicle, driving cycle, CO2 emission

Procedia PDF Downloads 425

Authors: Muhamad Rasyid Angkotasan

Abstract:

Eco-village is an ecosystem where the countryside or urban communities that are inside trying to integrate the social environment with low impact way of life to achieve this, they integrate the various aspects of ecological design, agriculture permanent, ecological building and the alternative energy. Eco-village in question is eco-village conducted on of marine tourism areas, where natural resources are very good, without ignoring the global issue of climate change. Desperately needed a source of energy, which can support the fulfillment of energy needs in a sustainable. Fulfillment of energy sources that offer is the use or application of environmentally friendly technologies of usage is still very low in Indonesia, the technology namely the Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC), OTEC is expected to be a source of the alternative energy, which can support the goal of eco-village of the region's of marine tourism.

Keywords: eco village, saving energy, ocean thermal energy conversion, environmental engineering

Procedia PDF Downloads 443