This e-book reviews environmental impacts of ski tourism in mountain environments. Specifically, the book addresses skiing impacts on soils, vegetation, vertebrate and invertebrate animals living in such habitats. Additional chapters also explain the methods for the restoration of disturbed sites at high altitude and snow cover in a changing climate. The e-book is therefore a compilation on the latest knowledge on environmental impacts of skiing and is intended to be a standard reference for ecologists, students and universities, business professionals (ski-resort managers), regional governmental organizations, conservation agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

Organic petrology is a discipline of geology which integrates multidisciplinary approaches for the exploration and evaluation of fossil fuel resources by conventional and unconventional procedures. Organic petrology has brought forth new, powerful analytical tools for the characterization of geological hydrocarbon systems, thus providing information where previous analytical techniques prove to be less effective. The reference provides a broad, comprehensive source of information about the application of organic petrology in the investigation of geological formations related with the production and accumulation of oil and gas. Eleven chapters cover a variety of topics (kerogens, dispersed organic matter systems, sedimentary organic matter systems, oil and gas shales, etc.). Additional information in chapters referring to examples in specific geographical locations provides a global perspective of hydrocarbon exploration. The book is an introductory reference for all scholars involved in applied organic petrology of hydrocarbon systems including graduate and undergraduate geology students, engineers and lab technicians. [Series intro] Geology: Current and Future Developments is a book series that brings together the latest contributions to geological research. Each volume features chapters contributed by academic scholars / professional experts from around the world. The scope of the book series includes (but is not limited to) topics such as plate tectonics, climate science, hydrocarbon exploration, mineral exploration, and environmental science. This series is intended as a useful compendium of scholarly reference material for geology students and professionals.

In an era of globalization, where the progressive deterioration of local values is a dominating characteristic, identity is seen as a fundamental need that encompasses all aspects of human life. One of these identities relates to place and the physical environment. Place identity is concerned with a set of ideas about place and identity from the perspective of a wide range of disciplines. Mainly, it refers to the meaning and importance of places for their inhabitants and users. Readers of this e-book will gain an insight on the role of identity as a basis for the perception, experience, and appreciation of the form of built structures. This e-book explains knowledge in relation to place identity, focusing on people's identity, and those factors that play a significant role in this process. Most of all, the book gives further insight about place identity with regard to global and local contexts, and across multifaceted and multicultural societies. The theme is approached from a number of disciplines that include environmental psychology, philosophy, urban sociology, geography, urban planning, urban design, architecture and landscape architecture.

The search for a cause of the global warming phenomenon on our planet has sparked some interest in the scientific community. The connection between changes occurring in the sun and global warming presents one fundamental perspective which has been investigated by a number of scientific research groups. In recent times, there have been some promising results that might help us uncover the clues about such a link. The Sun-Climate Connection over the Last Millennium: facts and questions presents fundamental information about the solar activity, space weather, terrestrial climates and their variations over an extended period of time. The information presented is a set of analyses based on modern methods of statistical analysis of non-stationary time series, including Fourier, wavelet and singular spectral analysis while considering space weather phenomena (solar winds, solar flares, aurora borealis etc.) and other terrestrial manifestations of solar activity. The physical mechanisms potentially linking solar activity and space weather to climate are discussed based on these analyses. The eBook also provides some context of modern millennial temperature reconstructions for explaining global warming in the 20th century. Scenarios of the solar activity and climate evolution throughout the 21st century are considered on the basis of the updated data. The eBook provides useful facts for researchers seeking information on climate and space research with respect to solar phenomena

With the application of the effective stress concept, the strength and volumetric behavior of saturated materials was clearly understood. For the case of unsaturated materials, a universally accepted effective stresses equation is still under debate. However, the use of the effective stress concept to develop constitutive models for unsaturated soils is becoming increasingly popular not only because the hydro-mechanical coupling observed in these materials is implicit in the formulation but also because simpler and more precise models can be established. Towards A Unified Soil Mechanics Theory demonstrates that the same strength and volume change equations used in saturated soil mechanics can be used for the case of unsaturated soils. In other words, the constitutive models developed for saturated soils can be used for unsaturated materials once the effective stress equation has been defined.

In this book, an analytical equation for the effective stress for unsaturated soils is established. This equation requires the knowledge of the superficial area of solids affected by the capillary phenomenon. In other words, we need to know how water distributes in the pores of the soil. This distribution can be modeled using a solid-porous model built on a regular network. However the size of the network required to correctly simulate the structure of a small soil sample cannot be managed with a common PC. For that reason, a probabilistic porous-solid model is developed. This model uses the pore size distribution in the form of a probabilistic function which in addition to the Laplace equation and the principle of continuity can be expressed as the probability of a pore of certain size to be filled or dry at suction during a wetting or drying path, respectively. In this way, the soil-water retention curves can be simulated and the effective stress at any suction during wetting or drying processes can be determined. Based on this approach, it is shown that unsaturated soils behave under the same principles for strength and volumetric behavior as saturated soils.

Towards A Unified Soil Mechanics Theory paves the way for a universal theory of soil mechanics. The volume will be a valuable reference to civil engineers, earth scientists and hydrologists interested in soil mechanics at both academic and professional levels.

This book examines a wide range of emerging sources off water pollution. It consists of thirteen chapters dedicated to the topic, giving readers comprehensive information about the types of materials involved and the solution for their removal. The first five chapters present an analysis of the emerging water pollutants, their toxicities, legislations available to monitor and regulate their emissions. This introduction is followed by 3 chapters that cover risk assessment of emerging pollutants, their fate and life cycle assessment. The last section of the book goes through the details of remediation technologies for wastewater treatment. This reference is equally suitable for academia, industry professionals and students, presenting state-of-the-art learnings on emerging water pollutants and their remediation methods.

The book helps readers to understand the fundamentals of water purification processes. Chapters in the book cover industrial purification techniques, while also exploring the future scope and current challenges in this field. Key Features - Seven chapters arranged and structured in a clear, coherent manner for understanding the broad topics. - Covers basic water purification techniques for safe drinking water - Covers defluoridation techniques - Explains the parameters affecting photocatalytic degradation of substituted benzoic acids. - Includes a case study for seasonal variations in pond water - Covers the role of nanotechnology in wastewater treatment - Covers the impact of water mismanagement on the environment with suggestions for preventive measures for sustainable water utilization This reference informs advanced readers (sustainable development professionals, post-graduate and research scholars) interested in water treatment processes. It also serves as a resource for courses in environmental chemistry, waste management and sustainability.

Environmental pollution has received the attention of both economists and ecologists who have integrated their ideas and concepts in recent decades. Production and consumption of material goods generates residuals that are disposed in the environment. Air emissions constitute one of the most important residuals, including greenhouse gases, as well as localized substances toxic to human health and the environment. How economic activity affects gas emissions is valuable information for pollution control and is extremely useful for defining and implementing successful environmental policies, aimed at improving the global efficiency of an economy. The e-book presents the relationship between economic activities and air pollution. It describes research contributions focused on showing the properties and the usefulness of National Accounting Matrices with Environmental Accounts (NAMEA). Additionally, demonstrates the most recent advances in the input-output methodology and linear extended multisectorial models to capture the gas emissions processes with empirical applications of these methods to specific countries. The contents of the e-book make it an interesting platform of new knowledge for both academic public and people in national agencies of environmental regulation.

Ground water reactive transport models are useful to assess and quantify contaminant precipitation, absorption and migration in subsurface media. Many ground water reactive transport models available today are characterized by varying complexities, strengths, and weaknesses. Selecting accurate, efficient models can be a challenging task. This ebook addresses the needs, issues and challenges relevant to selecting a ground water reactive transport model to evaluate natural attenuation and alternative remediation schemes. It should serve as a handy guide for water resource managers seeking to achieve economically feasible results.