ESPM175 May 2024: Table of Contents

Senior Research Seminar

Environmental Sciences Major, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720

Instructor

Patina Mendez

Graduate Student Instructors

Melissa von Mayrhauser, Jessica Craigg & Annie Miller

Environmental Sciences Senior Thesis Symposium, April 14th, 2024

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Modeling Environmental Impacts

Tia F. Pappas
Annual Energy Production Loss at US Wind Facilities from Turbine Curtailment for Bats

Zcjanin A. Ollesca
Using Citizen Science to Understand Human Disturbances on Philippine Coral Reefs

Sandya Wijaya
Harnessing Machine Learning Insights for Effective Policy Projections: A Study of Single-Use Plastic Bag Bans in Indonesia

Violet Tahsini
Debugging Bat Tracking on a Central Iowa Wind Farm: Support Vector Machine for Flying Object Classification

Britney R. Wu
Impacts on Santa Cruz County, California's Landscape and Community from Major Flood Events

Kenneth K. Choi
Modeling the Oceanic Effects of Climate Change on Bivalves' Reproductive Behavior

Climate, Atmosphere & Ocean Modeling

Mina K. Burns
Remote Sensing Applications: Fog Fluctuations, Vegetation Health, and Coastal Forest Fires in Northern California

Jiawen Tang
Atmospheric River and Precipitation: Climate Change and Land Surface Temperature Impact, 1995-2015

Benjamin S. Weinberger
Characterizing VOC Emissions and Plume Dynamics from an Oakland, CA Recycling Fire

Nina S. Mabasa
How Modeling Can Be Used to Predict the Effects of Climate Change on Philippine Coral

Alina Leticia Zárate
Assessment of Multivariate Drought Impacts on Agriculture in Central Chile for the Enhancement of Sustainable Adaptation

Claire Liu
Impacts of Predicted Sea-Level Rise and Coastal Inundation on Power Infrastructure in the San Francisco Bay Area

Daniel Doran
Quantifying Flood Risk for Pine Flat Reservoir in the Upper Kings Canyon Watershed

Landscape & Forest Management

Grace M. Boyd
Envisioning Future Ecologies: Mangrove Afforestation as a Coastal Climate Change Mitigation Technique in the Terrebonne Region, Louisiana

Tate Paige Luoma
Forest Management in Plumas County: Exploring Stakeholder Collaboration

Isabel M. Martín
Optimizing Spatial Planning of Small-scale Green Infrastructure to Mitigate Urban Heat Islands in Hong Kong

Alex Haydn Mordaunt
Preserving the Path: Investigating Mountain Bike Trail Erosion At Briones Regional Park

Tasneem Khalak
Wildfire Factors Affecting Grid Resilience in PG&E Electrical Distribution

Paige C. Lieblich
Assessing Rationale for Community Engagement in San Francisco Bay Area Conservation Groups

Mara G. St. Amant
Wildfire Fuel Treatments and Long-Term Carbon Storage in California Mixed Conifer Forests

Megan Y. Hur
Classifying Blue Oaks through Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis for Biomass, Canopy Cover, and Evapotranspiration Estimations

Melody I. Garza
Shrub Composition and Bird Habitat Suitability in UCR's Southern California Chaparral Reserves

Sabi Can Ruso
Post-Fire Vegetation Recovery Dynamics of the Rim Fire in California, 2013-2021

Anna Magruder
The Effects of Climate on Mast Seeding Behavior in Single-Leaf Pinyon Pine (Pinus monophylla)

Patrick T. Jacobson
Remote Sensing of Conifer Encroachment in Marin County Oak Woodland

Akshay S. Patel
Impacts of Prescribed Burning on Landscapes and Species in the California Sierra Nevada

Energy & Economics

Hayley A. Lai
The Development and Economic Viability of Offshore Wind in the US: Assessing Current Challenges and Charting Policy Solutions

Ayra Z. Moin
Assessing the Inflation Reduction Act's Impact on Renewable Energy Adoption and Industry in the United States

Abi Shiva
Carbon Conscious Capital: Private Equity and Net Zero

Ivanni Jamin
Trends on the Social Cost of Carbon from 2008-2023: A Review of Environmental Damage Valuation and Possibilities for Future Applications

Nicholas Whiting
GIS-based Suitability Analysis for PV Site Selection in Switzerland

Natalie Avida
Machine Learning Applications for Predicting Renewable Energy Project Success in the PJM Interconnection Queue

Isha Murali
Identifying Key Factors in Decarbonization Policy from India's National Action Plan on Climate Change

Freshwater & Marine Ecology

Carrie Thang
Measuring the Total Microplastics in Marsh Creek- Upstream and Downstream of the Brentwood Wastewater Treatment Plant

Moses Castillo
Synchronization of In-Stream Abiotic Conditions in Pinnacles National Park

Elena Y. Campell
Coho Salmon Outmigration Drivers and Long-Term Trends in a Small Watershed

Ethan Xie
The Influence of Dam-Induced Conditions on the Spatiotemporal Distribution and Size Structure of Rainbow Trout at Lower Putah Creek

James A. Campbell
Microplastic Storage Dynamics in Bay Area Streams

Chloe M. T. Hess
Modeling the effects of dynamic marine environments on Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) populations raised in aquaculture pens

Erinne K. Yoo
Hydroclimate Impacts on Phytoplankton Community Composition and Abundance in the Lower Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, 2008-2022

Environmental Health & Justice

Yichen Zhao
Managing Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Wastewater: Exploring the Ocean Discharge Option

Yinuo Ma
Impact of Heat Exposure on Human Health

Teresa C. Echevarria
Mapping the Distribution of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in California's Water Systems: Implications for Monitoring and Health Protection

Deva Rani R. Dharmapalan
Associations between Air Pollution and Preterm Birth in the Bay Area

Bethany Ou
Indoor Air Ventilation Issues in California Childcare Facilities

Elijah Ralf C. Macalinao
Exploring Aerosol Exposure from Motorsport Events and Routine Activities

Invertebrate Ecology

Tiena Mei Elias
Understanding the Life History and Feeding Behaviors of the Tobacco Hornworm (Manduca sexta)

Grace Chen
Upcycling Takeout Waste with Black Soldier Fly Larvae

Xiangrong Mark Sun
Short-term Responses of Terrestrial Ants Populations to Forest Thinning in the Santa Cruz Mountains

Ricky Pankratz
Viruses of Mason Bees in the Sierra Nevada

Allison M. Mays
The Effects of Climate Change on the Northern California Oyster Industry

Greenspaces & the Urban Environment

Angela A. Kou
Assessment of Embodied Water Impacts for Landscape Architecture Strategies: A Life Cycle Assessment Approach

Brandon Lin
Quantifying Neighborhood Level Relationships between Urban Vegetation Characteristics and Surface Temperatures in Oakland, CA

Rion Chan
Perceptions of Urban Green Spaces: A Standard for Sustainable Design

Alexander J. Levy
Assessing Environmental Changes Following Restoration Along Strawberry Creek

Margaret Kalaw
Assessing Water Use for Almond and Alfalfa Fields in the San Joaquin Valley Using Remote Sensing

Finnian Whelan
Redlining's Legacy and Gentrification in Urban Wilderness: Human Risk Perception of Coyotes in San Francisco, 2017-2022

Food Systems, Consumption & Sustainability

Nayeli V. Rubio
Understanding Consumer Perceptions of an EBT Incentive at a Student-run Grocery Collective in Berkeley, California

Jane Tovar
Harvesting Food Insecurity: Exploring Food Access Challenges Among Gilroy's Farmworkers and the Role of SB 1000

Priya N. Riley
Identifying Inefficiencies in California's Grain Supply Chain

Jenny C. Tseng
Rethinking School Lunch Oakland: School Meal and Farm to School Program Reform

Kyra W. Asprec
Time to Make a Switch? Consumer Behavior regarding Physical versus Digital Video Game Distribution

Jiho Park
Promoting Proper Waste Behavior with Packaging Design

Biogeochemistry

Kelsey L. Leet
Baltic Blue Carbon Systems Under Global Change: Assessing Soil Reduction Potential

Isabel K. Wamsteker
Wetland Restoration in the San Joaquin Delta: Modeling the Impacts of Seasonality and Variation in Water Levels on the Greenhouse Gas Budget

Tessa Auer
Determining Carbon Fractions in Composts of Differing Chemical Compositions with Hot Water Extraction

Kai N. Nittenberg
Investigating the Nitrogen Fertilization Potential of Human Hair

Karis Polfer
Analysis of Rhizopheric Denitrying Microbial Communities Along the Aliso Creek Estuary

Qi Jia Sun
Using Carbon Fluxes and Spectral Bands to Model Ecosystem Processes in Wetlands

Wildlife Ecology & Management

Alexandra Fister
Sea Turtle Nesting on Erosional Shorelines: Nest Relocation and Hatch Success on Georgia Barrier Islands

Gretel E. Huber
Backyard Boldness: Investigating how Urban Landscape Heterogeneity Affects Mesopredator Risk-Taking Behavior

Kylen Kennedy
How Human Population Density Affects the Frequency of Wildlife-Vehicle Collisions

Adan Gonzalez
Wildlife Behaviors at Pinnacles National Park's Intermittent Streams

Dhruthi S. Mandavilli
Winged Witnesses: Gentrification's Impacts on Bird Biodiversity in San Francisco

Krishna Parekh
A Tale of Two Habitats: Habitat Restoration and Its Impact on Biodiversity, Wildlife Use, and Human Presence in the Presidio, San Francisco

Plant & Microbial Ecology

Max S. Billat
Allelopathic Effects of Yarrow and its Uses in Rangeland Conservation

Malia Ariyoshi
Improving Water Use Efficiency through CRISPR/Cas9-mediated HT1 Knockout in Sorghum bicolor

Rachel Lyon
Cyanobacteria Biotherapeutic Protein Production: Phycocyanin-Interferon Fusion Constructs

Beatrice P. Cundiff
Latex and Leaf Venation Networks: Coevolution of Laticiferous Plants with Simulated Insect Herbivory

Jocelyn O. Delgado Uriarte
The Potential of Bioremediation Techniques to Enhance Soil Revitalization in Degraded California Landscapes

Shandeep S. Dhillon
Pathogen Ecology and Spread of Grapevine Red Blotch Virus in Napa Valley

Identity, Perceptions & Behavior

Elaine-Jane S. Viloria
UC Berkeley Students' Perceptions and Consumption of Green Cosmetics

May He
Assessing Climate Change Accountability: A Comparative Study of High and Low Income Groups in a Middle-Income City- Dublin

Ian S. Wang
Identity & the Environment: Social Factors that Shape Our Relationship with Environmental Spaces

Isabel Gatdula
Educators' Perspectives on the Role of Outdoor Environmental Education:A Case Study with KIDS for the Bay

Jade Marum
Blue Spaces and Identity: Interactions, Usage Factors, and Experiences among Undergraduate Students of Color

Mina P. Rossman
Urban Green Space and Social Cohesion at Nicholl Park in Richmond, CA

About the Program

These studies were undertaken by seniors in the Environmental Sciences Group Major, a program administered by the Department of Enviromental Science, Policy, and Management in the Rausser College of Natural Resources at the University of California at Berkeley. The Environmental Sciences major allows students to concentrate in one of three fields of specialization: biological science, physical science, and social science. In their senior year, students in the major participate in a two-semester Senior Research Seminar, investigating an environmental topic of current concern. This project gives the students experience in field work, general research techniques, and oral and written presentation of research results. This volume is the compilation of research reports from the Fall 2023 to Spring 2024 Senior Research Seminars.