Karst Management


Book Description

Focusing specifically on the management of karst environments, this volume draws together the world’s leading karst experts to provide a vital source for the study and management of this unique physical setting. Although karst landscapes cover 12% of the Earth’s terrain and provide 25% of the world’s drinking water, the resource management of karst environments has only previously received indirect attention. Through a comprehensive approach, Karst Management focuses on engineering issues associated with surface karst such as quarries, dams, and agriculture, subsurface topics such as the management of groundwater, show caves, cave biota, and geo-archaeology projects. Chapters that focus on karst as an integrated system look at IUCN World Heritage sites, national parks, policy and regulation, measuring systematic disturbance, information management, and public environmental education. The text incorporates the most up-to-date research from leading karst scientists. This volume provides important perspectives for university students, educators, geoengineers, resource managers, and planners who are interested in or work with this unique physical landscape.







Rethinking Governance of the Army's Arsenals and Ammunition Plants


Book Description

The Department of the Army meets its materiel requirements principally through purchase from private sources. However, the Army produces certain ordnance-related items and performs some ordnance-related services in a set of arsenals, ammunition plants, other ammunition activities, and depots. The Army operates some of these facilities; contractors operate others. Although this set of facilities has been reduced since the end of the Cold War, the remaining facilities still operate at less than their full capacity today. The unused and underused capacity raises questions about how many of these facilities the Army needs, how large they need to be, and who should own and operate them. This report represents the third phase of a multiyear study that examines the Army's ordnance industrial base and makes recommendations about these issues.




Environmental Aspects of Zoonotic Diseases


Book Description

Environmental Aspects of Zoonotic Diseases provides a definitive description, commentary and research needs of environmental aspects related to zoonotic diseases. There are many interrelated connections between the environment and zoonotic diseases such as: water, soil, air and agriculture. The book presents investigations of these connections, with specific reference to environmental processes such as: deforestation, floods, draughts, irrigation practices, soil transfer and their impact on bacterial, viral, fungal, and parasitological spread. Environmental aspects such as climate (tropical, sub-tropical, temperate, arid and semi-arid), developed and undeveloped countries, animal (domestic and wild) traffic animal border crossing, commercial animal trade, transportation, as well geography and weather on zoonosis, are also discussed and relevant scientific data is condensed and organized in order to give a better picture of interrelationship between the environment and current spread of zoonotic diseases. Altogether, the book presents a remarkable and a vast amount of potential future research directions based on the link: environment-vectors-pathogens-humans. The most up-to-date source of information on this increasingly important cross-disciplinary subject, Environmental Aspects of Zoonotic Diseases will be invaluable for environmentalists, veterinarians, medical staff, environmental engineers, government agencies and consultants working in this field. Authors: Prof. Robert Armon, Technion (Israel Institute of Technology), Haifa, Israel, Dr. Uta Cheruti, Technion (Israel Institute of Technology), Haifa, Israel