Livestock animals affect their environment in a number of different ways, mostly through grazing and trampling. This study focused on the effects of Gotland pony grazing on forest structure and diversity, and the impact on ground cover. To compare the fenced and grazed area with a reference area outside the enclosure a number of transects were used. The study showed that there was no significant difference in height structure and diversity between the compared sites; however, there were a significantly higher proportion of damaged trees inside the enclosure. The ground cover variables showed a higher amount of bare soil, plant litter and wood-rush (Luzula sp.) inside the enclosure whilst grass was more frequent in the reference area.

In the year 1783 a fissure eruption from Laki in the southern part of Iceland produced a large amount of volcanic gases during a period of eight months. The volcanic gases and aerosols spread across the northern hem sphere due to ideal weather conditions and had a substantial impact on the environment, human health and also climate effects. This, so called dry fog, caused severe health problems, which led to death casualties, killing animals, crops and other vegetation. The consequence was a widespread famine which was aggravated by a hard and long winter in 1783/84. Analysis shows that the Icelandic volcanoes are the primary risk to produce dry fog that can affect Sweden.

Abstract:Perennials in public areas have during the latest decades been more and more popular. This group of plants has become a more accepted komponent when creating pleasant public places, and people begin to see the functional aspects. Perennials do also give a colour- and senceexperience in a more detailed way than can be achieved with only trees and shrubs. One of the ojects of this essay is to give more examples of motives for using perennials in urban areas.Having in mind the increasing use of perennials, you can expect a growing need for better understading of how to create successfull perennial plantings. In spite of the increasing interest it is hard to find any written information in this subject.

This thesis investigates the former apple orchard ?pplehagen with a focus on its origin, history, and remaining fruit trees. Historical aerial photographs, historical maps, an interview with a former owner, together with a field investigation has served as the methods of this survey. The investigation shows that ?pplehagen probably was established between 1882 and the 1930?s as a rational orchard in the spirit of the time aiming to produce fruit both for household and for sale.

This study investigates whether the site index curve method (SICM) and the growth intercept method (GIM) can be used for site index predictions in younger Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) stands than recommended by current guidelines. For SICM it was thus investigated whether the method could be used for stands younger than ten years, and for GIM it was tested whether a starting point for the intercept measurements could be used below the recommended 2.5 meter. This was tested based on measurements taken from experimental stands in Tönnersjöheden Research Forest. For GIM it was found that the method can only be used when the TH-trees of a stand have five complete intercepts above 2.5 meters. For the method to be applicable beyond this, it will be necessary to adapt the underlying equations, perhaps following the Canadian example where a 1.3 meter intercept start is used. In conclusion it is not currently possible to apply the approach beyond the current recommendations. For SICM, SI predictions are accurate for the study area already form year three.

At the beginning of the 1970´s forestry feared an imbalance in the future wood supply. Because of this anticipated "timber slump" forest companies undertook a variety of measures to counter this. One of these measures was the introduction of exotic tree species. The choice finally ended up with lodgepole pines which were considered a fast growing tree species compared to our native tree species. Theambition for the new lodgepole pine stands were to run these with rotation periods of between 40-60 years, thus smoothing out the ?timber slump? that was anticipated.

To get rid of our dependence on fossil fuels we need to make use of renewable energy sources like wind power to a greater extent. Even though wind power is a renewable energy source it can still cause some problems for the close environment. One of the problems is shadow flickering. When the sun is low and the wind blows in a direction so that the rotor blades are positioned at right angles to the sunbeams and ?cut? the sunbeams off.

This report is a result of a first survey of Halland?s gravel pits as an assignment from the County Administrative Board of Halland. The focus has been on Apalus bimaculatus, since the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency are creating a restoration program as it is red listed as Near Threatened. The purpose was also to get an overview of the pits since the County Administrative Board wants to continue this project. Apalus bimaculatus is easy to overlook since it is a short-lived beetle and it lives early in the spring.

Horse-hair lichen Bryoria bicolor is a red-listed lichen species in the category Vulnerable. It is an oceanic lichen and it is often found on boulders and cliffs in a semi-open environment with a high humidity in the agricultural landscape. The species can also be found as an epiphyte on trees, mostly in boreal forests in the provinces of Dalarna, Härjedalen and Jämtland. In the agricultural landscape, there has been indications on that B. bicolor show a decline, and this studie aimed at examining the extent and causes of this decline.

Abstract:Perennials in public areas have during the latest decades been more and more popular. This group of plants has become a more accepted komponent when creating pleasant public places, and people begin to see the functional aspects. Perennials do also give a colour- and senceexperience in a more detailed way than can be achieved with only trees and shrubs. One of the ojects of this essay is to give more examples of motives for using perennials in urban areas.Having in mind the increasing use of perennials, you can expect a growing need for better understading of how to create successfull perennial plantings. In spite of the increasing interest it is hard to find any written information in this subject.

Natural monuments are natural objects with special protection due to their high natural value or cultural significance. The natural value is determined by the occurrence of signal species found on and near the natural monument. The law surrounding natural monuments has evolved a lot since the first ones were declared, and today the title natural monument can be replaced with the title tree with high conservation value. The title has come later and can sometimes overlap natural monument. Some natural monuments lack the qualities required to be classified as a natural monument or a tree with high conservation value, but have a cultural importance.

Det byggs mer och mer med prefabricerade håldäcksbjälklag vilka har stora dimensionerings och produktionsfördelar. Långa spännvidder och lätta bjälklag gör denna typ av konstruktion känslig för vibrationer och därför ställs konstruktörer idag inför en problematik som inte tidigare vanligtvis varit en dimensionerande faktor. Som en naturlig följd av detta är kunskapen inom området begränsad och förståelsen för denna typ av konstruktion vid dynamiska problem eftersatt. Hur håldäcksbjälklag beter sig vid små dynamiska laster, från mänsklig aktivitet på bjälklaget, och hur denna typ av problematik ska hanteras beräkningsmässigt behöver studeras. Vid statiska beräkningar antas bjälklaget vara enkelspänt men vid dynamiska beräkningar kan bland annat inte detta antagande göras då effekten från elementens sammankopplingar och eventuella pågjutningar påverkar bjälklagets styvheter och därmed dess dynamiska beteende.

To create multifunctional buffer strips along a watercourse in an economically sustainable way requires consideration of many different factors. In this plan we have selected pollutant reduction as the main purpose of the buffer strip. We have also strived to achieve minimal income loss due to reduced production, increased biological diversity, good game preservation that leads to higher income from hunting, aesthetical satisfaction and possibility to profit from available subsidies. This is done mainly to make landowners/farmers more interested in creating buffer strips along water courses.As sand is the dominant type of soil in the area, the water course is less affected by surface runoff compared to if the soil would be clay or some other finer texture. Game preservation and subsidies have therefore been the main factors when establishing the width of the strip, because these require wider buffer strips in some cases.

During 2012, the employer of this essay carried out a telephone survey with 18000 participants and a web panel survey with 708 participants. Those who partook in the telephone survey were given a choice to join the web panel. The purpose of this work is to study the participants of the telephone survey and see if they reflect the Swedish population with regards to several socio-demographic factors. Also, we intend to investigate if the propensity to join the web panel differs for participants of the telephone survey with regards to various socio-demographic affiliations. It is also of interest to study if the response pattern is different for participants of the telephone survey that would like to join the web panel and those who reject.

To create multifunctional buffer strips along a watercourse in an economically sustainable way requires consideration of many different factors. In this plan we have selected pollutant reduction as the main purpose of the buffer strip. We have also strived to achieve minimal income loss due to reduced production, increased biological diversity, good game preservation that leads to higher income from hunting, aesthetical satisfaction and possibility to profit from available subsidies. This is done mainly to make landowners/farmers more interested in creating buffer strips along water courses. As sand is the dominant type of soil in the area, the water course is less affected by surface runoff compared to if the soil would be clay or some other finer texture. Game preservation and subsidies have therefore been the main factors when establishing the width of the strip, because these require wider buffer strips in some cases.