This paper employs an economic-engineering optimization model to explore water supply options for environmental restoration of the Colorado River Delta, Mexico. Potential water sources include reductions in local agricultural and urban water use through water markets, wastewater reuse, and additional Colorado River flows from the United States. For these alternatives, the optimization model est...

Many regions around the world are currently facing water shortages which inhibit development and economic growth. Although some of the allocation problems faced by these regions can be partially alleviated by improving agricultural irrigation efficiencies, another means for substantial water savings involves the reuse of municipal and industrial discharges to offset freshwater demands. In many ...

Lack of agricultural information has been attributed to the inability of smallholder farmers to transition from subsistence to commercial agriculture. Recent efforts to improve smallholder access to agricultural information have seen increased application of ICT technologies in developing agriculture. These efforts use ICT-based market information to reduce transaction costs of smallholder part...

Although activated carbon adsorption is an efficient process in water treatment applications, high costs involved in both the production of carbon and the operation of adsorption units have caused to search alternative adsorbents. Agricultural by-products are a group of alternative adsorbent, with only one or several adsorption cycles, which is available locally in a cheap and abundant manner. ...

This study uses quantitative and qualitative survey data on the use of public-private partnership in provision and production of public services by municipalities in predominantly rural New Hampshire (USA). Descriptive analysis suggests that town officials are less satisfied with the quality of privatized services, suggesting that privatization involves some tradeoff between costs and quality. ...

This study with three Appalachian county agricultural education programs examined the feasibility, effectiveness, and impact of integrating a cost-effective rollover protective structure (CROPS) project into high school agricultural mechanics classes. The project aimed to (1) reduce the exposure to tractor overturn hazards in three rural counties through the installation of CROPS on seven tract...

Agricultural injuries involving the hand and upper extremity are common, debilitating injuries that reflect the significant occupational hazards associated with the agricultural industry. Farm injuries occur in all age groups and are associated with significant resource utilization and treatment costs. Most of these injuries are associated with machinery, including tractors, power take-off devi...

Global biodiversity priority setting underpins the strategic allocation of conservation funds. In identifying the first comprehensive set of global priority areas for mammals, Ceballos et al. [Ceballos G, Ehrlich PR, Soberón J, Salazar I, Fay JP (2005) Science 309:603-607] found much potential for conflict between conservation and agricultural human activity. This is not surprising because, lik...

Agriculture is fundamental for human survival through food production and is performed in ecosystems that, while simplified, still operate along ecological principles and retain complexity. Agricultural plants are thus part of ecological systems, and interact in complex ways with the surrounding terrestrial, soil, and aquatic habitats. We discuss three case studies that demonstrate how agricult...

Josephson, Anna Leigh. M.S., Purdue University, December 2013. How Population Density Influences Agricultural Intensification and Productivity: Evidence from Ethiopia. Major Professors: Jacob Ricker-Gilbert, Raymond J.G.M. Florax. We use household-level panel data to estimate how population density impacts agricultural intensification and farm income in Ethiopia. We hypothesize that increases i...