Thesis (Ph. D.)--Dalhousie University, 2004. Includes bibliographical references.
Aquatic macrophytes include macroscopic plants and bacteria of the divisions Cyanobacteria, Chlorophyta, Xanthophyta, Rhodophyta, Bryophyta, Pteridophyta and Spermatophyta, the vegetative parts of which actively grow either permanently or... more
Aquatic macrophytes include macroscopic plants and bacteria of the divisions Cyanobacteria, Chlorophyta, Xanthophyta, Rhodophyta, Bryophyta, Pteridophyta and Spermatophyta, the vegetative parts of which actively grow either permanently or periodically (for at least several weeks each year) submerged below, floating on, or growing up through the water surface. As part of a global project to identify species and generic diversity of freshwater organisms, we compiled a database of plant species fitting the definition of aquatic macrophyte, and their geographic distribution, from world and regional checklists, phytogeographical studies and taxonomic reviews. Species composition and distribution of aquatic macrophytes in the more primitive divisions are less well known than for the vascular macrophytes (Pteridophyta and Spermatophyta), which are represented by 33 orders, 88 families and c. 412 genera with about 2614 species (or ~1% of the total number of vascular plants). Whilst many of ...
Research Interests:
Increasing the amount of organic-carbon stored in the biomass of terrestrial ecosystems is an effective way to reduce the net anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. This can be done by conserving existing... more
Increasing the amount of organic-carbon stored in the biomass of terrestrial ecosystems is an effective way to reduce the net anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. This can be done by conserving existing ecological reservoirs of fixed organic-carbon, maintaining or enhancing the rate of sequestration, and restoring stocks that have been depleted by past land-use practices. Most trading systems for greenhouse-gas offsets recognize the validity of projects that gain ecological offsets, and permit them to sell carbon credits in an emerging marketplace for these novel commodities. Although ecological carbon-offset projects have been criticized from a variety of perspectives, most of the supposed problems can be satisfactorily mitigated. In addition to offsetting emissions of greenhouse gases, ecological projects that accumulate carbon credits may have a strong cross-linkage to the conservation of natural values, which in itself is an important action for society...