Estimating Environmental Impacts Of New Roads Environmental Sciences Essay

Estimating Environmental Impacts Of New Roads Environmental Sciences Essay Main Roads Western Australia Public Environment Report 2008 New Transportation projects nowadays is noticeably increasing across nations all around the world, especially the aspect of constructing new roadway and highway networks, due to the tremendously unstoppable increase in the population of people on earth, thus, the demand of life resources, the need of moving from one place to another (from location A to location B) is also increasing, in response to that governments of different countries are spending billions of dollars each year just to enhance and develop the transportation networks, focusing on the local roadway and highway networks, this movement of development was noticeable after the war world II. C:UsersEmadDocumentsUniversity ProjectsYear 4 ((2012 2013))Highway DesignAssignmentsAssignment 1ReferencesRoad and The environment.jpg According to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) 2008, the United Arab Emirates has paved roads of 4,080 km (including 253 km of expressways), while the United States of America has paved roads of 6,506,204 km, this shows the huge increasing demand on paved roads. Road projects can be taken as an indication of how urban the country is, the more developed the roadway network the better the economy, because it provides more access to different locations with little travel time, thus it provides more jobs, health services and education. But as they say everything has its own price, developing new roads can have some bad impacts on the environment and the ecosystem surrounding the roads. In this report, both the positive and the negative impacts of new roads and highway on the environment and ecosystem will be discussed, nevertheless the different types of physical environmental impacts. Impact of Roads on the Environment Fragile Nature by Joel Sartore Impact of new roads on the environment is becoming a more serious issue that governments should take care and be aware of, because of the increasing demand on constructing new roadways nowadays, what comes after constructing a new road most of the times is a permanent change with the environment surrounding the road and may develop with time and lead to a serious damage with the ecosystem that canà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢t be reversed, so reckless planning and constructing of new roads could have a huge impact on the surrounding environment and the ecosystem. On the other hand, well designed and operated new roads could have positive impacts on the environment and the ecosystem, yet sometimes it cost more money to avoid affecting the environment, so engineers and environmental scientists are still trying to develop some new alternatives by using the new modern technology techniques to avoid any interruption that the human kind is causing by dom inating the environmental resources without looking at the consequences of the actions. http://images.joelsartore.com/gallery/B/BEA014-00001.jpg Recently many environmental engineers and scientists are conducting Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports to monitor and observe any physical impact on the environment and the ecosystem that may be result because of constructing new roads, the process of the environmental impact assessment may take some time, depending on the size of the project and where ità ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s located. Types of Environmental Impacts Resulting from New Roads There a lot of environmental impacts of constructing new roads and highways that can be observed, they all can be categorised in three points: Direct Impacts this impact will take effect in the near future. Indirect Impacts this impact will take effect in the far future. Cumulative Impacts this impact will take effect in the far future after accumulation. *All these different impacts could have either a positive or a negative effect on the environment and the ecosystem. Direct Impacts: Direct impacts on the environment can directly occur during the process of the new road construction, for example the 1st step of constructing a new road between two cities separated by a green area or farm is removing the greens (trees, plants,,etc.) to place the roadà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s gravel and asphalt (pavement), in general direct impacts are easier for the environmental assessment, because they are more predictable than the other two types (the indirect and the cumulative impacts), thus the impacts can be easily controlled to prevent any serious damage on the environment in case of the negative impacts. Direct Positive Impacts: Although that the direct impacts may have a lot of negative impacts, they have some positive impacts, for example, rechanneling a river or a water stream might improve the water retention of a village near by the road. Some developed countries are trying to merge the green and urban together, for example constructing new roads with rain retention or drainage systems by including some plants. C:UsersEmadDesktopLawrence Village Road Project 026.jpg Lawrence Village Road Project (Image by Iron Age) Direct Negative Impacts: There are a lot of direct negative impacts that may damage the environment, for example some major roads need to be constructed between major cities, so sometimes the process of construction requires removing or redirecting some obstacles like the flow of a river or water stream which will lead to a huge impact on the ecosystem, the removal of farms and private properties. Air pollution could have the greatest impact on the environment (CO2 vehicles emissions) and noise pollution which all have negative effect on the ecosystem surrounding the road. Indirect Impacts: Indirect impacts can be also known as chain impacts, from the name we can tell that chain impacts require time to develop which will be hard to observe and measure during the construction of the new road. Indirect Positive Impacts: some new modern roads that are being constructed have some facilities for pedestrians and bicyclists, thus this might help to reduce the impact of air pollution by reducing the number of vehicle users (CO2 emissions), likewise some new roads has a special lane for buses which will encourage people to use the bus more often and this might also decrease the air pollution. Indirect Negative Impacts: When it comes to negative indirect impacts, the 1st thing comes is deforestation and the decline in forest animals and bird species, in 1994 Rich et al. drew attention with his report that the reduction and extinction of some bird species is primary because of new roads (noise and light). In 1982 Burke Sherburne examined the population of wildlife of mammals and birds during and after construction of new roads, they found there is a little movement of both mammals and birds densities to different places. Cumulative Impacts: These types of environmental impacts could be called as silent impacts, because the results of these impacts will need time to accumulate. Cumulative Negative Impacts: Global warming could be one of the cumulative impacts, many scientists are referring to the incremental percentages of CO2 for the last 5 decades, where they come from the emissions of factories, nevertheless, the vehicles emissions, thus, constructing new roads means more vehicles and more CO2 emissions. Environmental Impact Assessment is the Solution Environmental Impact Assessment also known as EIA, it should take place whenever there is a project that wanted to be constructed, the purpose of this environmental assessment is to check and consider every predictable impact (positive or negative) that may occur or affect the environment, it can be performed by taking study corridors, for example for green field roads a corridor of 10 à ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬ 100 km should be considered along the road that is being constructed, in order to assess and predict any changes that may occur surrounding that new road. Conclusion As what we have seen in this report there are a lot of impacts may occur because of constructing new roads, some are positive impacts and some are negative impacts, some will occur in the long-term and some will occur in the short-term, so in order to control and to predict them environmental impact assessments (EIA) need to be done before constructing any new roads for a better environmentally friendly future.

A Critique of Pablo Neruda?s ?Keeping Still? :: essays research papers

Keeping Still by Pablo Neruda is a thought provoking work of poetry. The poem was probably applicable to humanity of the time when it was authored, but it eerily fits so well into this moment of time and space. The notion of slowing the pace of life down for just a moment to realize that every living thing could use a moment of peace and reflection is so applicable to our lives in the Silicon Valley. With our hectic ways of trying to survive financially, complete our education, live and raise a family, we quickly forget about life itself at a basic level. We take practically everything for granted because we get so caught up in†¦well, life. An idea of world peace to be realized by everybody at the same time is portrayed vividly as well. No chaos, unrest, war, political persecution or death. An image of complete bliss, if momentarily, flashes to show people coming together without prejudice and a common goal to help each other instead of chasing the almighty dollar. Neruda uses some different poetic elements to portray his vision, including repetition. An example of repetition can be found linking the beginning to the end. â€Å"Now we will count to twelve†, is the first line of the poem and the second to last line of the poem. It reiterates the countdown to momentary silence. It gives the reader something to think about before the poem gets underway and it is almost oddly placed. But at the end when it is said again it makes you imagine everything that he has proposed seem so easily obtainable by simply counting to twelve. Another poetic element that he uses is metaphors. An example of this is when he says, â€Å"Victories with no survivors.† It is a contrasting sentence that was probably referring to either of the World Wars. I really enjoyed reading this poem. It pertains a lot to my life and the immediate population of the Bay Area. Heck, anyone who works a lot of hours and has daily stress can relate to this poem. Neruda is correct about people not being able to live a moment without all of the stress. A momentary lapse in the false sense of realty people create around themselves could really be devastating to them. Realizing that the new Mercedes doesn’t achieve happiness or that a high paying job with ample promotions isn’t bringing self-fulfillment would be devastating to many people.

Harry Houdini’s Affect on the American Identity

Breaking bonds in mid-air, slipping chains with a smile: Harry Houdini's greatest talent was not in performing illusions, but making any obstacle seem irrelevant (Rothstein). Life in the early 1900s was depressing and filled with extremely strenuous work. While watching Houdini, fans throughout America and Europe were dazzled by his escapism and were given a sense of hope as a result of his exploits. Nothing on Earth could hold Houdini a prisoner; every illusion achieved the impossible. To immigrants, he was an example of the freedom that came with the American dream. The magical achievements of Harry Houdini evoked a sense of limitless power and imagination that helped to inflate a belief in a limitless America. There are certain arguments, however, that must be considered when examining Houdini’s contributions to the American identity. Like all illusionists, Houdini made the impossible appear to be not only possible, but easy to accomplish. As a result, many children attempted to emulate his intricate escapes, ending up injured or worse. In addition, those who believed in a limitless sense of the possible, using Houdini’s magic as a symbol for freedom from boundaries, were disappointed by the realization that the American dream was not easily attained. Contrary to this speculation, Houdini’s contributions to the American identity were overall positive because he gave hope for a new life. Even to this day his name is known for magic and inspiration. Harry Houdini was born in the late 1800s with the birth name of Ehrich Weisz. The early twentieth century marked an era of both beginnings and endings. Americans of this time period had yet to make their mark in the world, and were very impressionable. Life for children of the early 1900s was work and school, so when they heard about the magic man, and saw Houdini, they gained a sense of imagination that had been deprived of them. Fans saw new possibilities once Harry Houdini came into the picture; innovations in the arts and entertainment gave a strong sense of national pride among the population as a whole. Houdini demonstrated the power to overcome bondage, to dissolve material obstacles, to confound expectations. The yearning that magic awakened in audiences was no less vital in himself. Even today’s most amazing magicians, like David Blaine, are still inspired by Harry Houdini. Blaine is the Harry Houdini of the current generation and as Blaine watched a video of Houdini performing an illusion he said â€Å"It's almost beautiful — the beautiful struggle. † (Barron). Today, Houdini’s legacy lives on and hardly any magicians today do not owe Harry Houdini a debt. Houdini elevated the magic arts to a phenomenon and invented an entirely new category of magic: the escape act. And as a result, Harry Houdini’s name is synonymous with escapes. His ability to get out of seemingly impossible situations made him a legend in his own time. Impossible illusions shocked crowds, the most famous being eating needles, being buried alive, escaping from a torture cell, and dangling upside-down trapped in a straight jacket. All his escape illusions made people believe that nothing could hold them back; they were free and realized it was possible to â€Å"escape† from any trouble with which they were faced (Magical History). †Nothing on Earth can hold Houdini a prisoner† read a sign from 1906, and by 1917, America seemed prepared to believe it. Houdini was publicly proclaiming the possibility of liberation. Was this, as the exhibition points out, the immigrant's fantasy as well? It must have been thrilling to watch an enactment of such transcendence, and not just of social obstacles, of course, but of spiritual ones, as well. The poor and the downtrodden embodied his acts with a kind of reverence. Even death is overcome by Houdini's powers† (Rothstein). According to one of Houdini’s reviewers, immigrants in the early 1900s came to America and saw Harry Houdini as an example of the American dream and then molded their view of what it means to be American to the magic of Houdini. The American dream includes a promise of the possibility of prosperity and success and it is implied that freedom is the key to that success. Harry Houdini’s death-defying escapes during his life time fascinated audiences, particularly the many European immigrants. He inspired his audiences primarily because he was, at one time, a struggling immigrant himself. To them, he was the embodiment of the American dream. Immigrants watched Houdini and felt confident in making individual choices without the prior restrictions that limit people according to their class, caste, religion, race, or ethnicity. By doing things that were seen by all as impossible, Houdini gave people a feeling of invincibility contributed to the American identity. Although Harry Houdini’s achievements occurred in the past, his legend lives on more than 80 years after his death. Still considered the greatest and most well known magician of all time, Houdini’s legacy for magic, performance and dramatics endures. After witnessing his amazing illusions, people’s imaginations soared and they saw limitless possibilities in the United States that molded the American identity. During Houdini’s lifetime, he put a face to the idea of freedom and even today, if asked what it means to be an American, the word freedom will always be discussed. And since then, the feelings of freedom and possibility have been passed down through the generations and directly affect the nation and what it means to be an American. If men like Harry Houdini had not existed, then hope for a new life might have remained a dream for many. Houdini and his illusions became an icon for hope, and his legacy has remained an important thread in the tapestry of the American identity.

The Mexican State Of Coahuila Y Tejas - 1287 Words

American settlement in Texas began with the encouragement of first the Spanish, and then Mexican, governments. In the summer of 1820 Moses Austin, a bankrupt 59-year old Missourian, asked Spanish authorities for a large Texas land tract which he would promote and sell to American pioneers. The request by Austin seemed preposterous. His background was that of a Philadelphia dry goods merchant, a Virginia mine operator, a Louisiana judge, and a Missouri banker. But early in 1821, the Spanish government gave him permission to settle 300 families in Texas. Spain welcomed the Americans for two reasons--to provide a buffer against illegal U.S. settlers, who were creating problems in east Texas even before the grant was made to Austin, and to help develop the land, since only 3,500 native Mexicans had settled in Texas which was part of the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas. Texas–or Tejas as the Mexicans called it–had technically been a part of the Spanish empire since the 17th century. 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