The production of ferrochromium alloys at Vargön Alloys AB contributes to formation of unwanted ferrochromium dust, which contains toxic Cr(VI). The dust is since summer 2005 treated with an iron-sulphate solution to reduce Cr(VI) to the non-toxic Cr(III). A year later the treatment technique was improved and disposal occurs in cells on the landfill. The cells can be up to 300 m3 and the edges can be made out of fro example concrete. Tests are conducted on the treated dust when it is disposed.

The society of today is dependent of secure transports and deliveries of electrical power. Interruptions in different activities because of fallen trees cost a great deal of money in form of reparations and claimed damages for transport companies and electrical suppliers. Fallen trees along some railway sections are a severe problem. For instance, to repair the damages of the storm of week 5 year 2002, costed 2 800 000 SEK for the line region of Hässleholm. Today, the Banverket railroad company has no norms in general for how close to the railway the forest is allowed to grow.

The aim with this report is to investigate what influence the way playgrounds are used throw the case study in Vänersborg, and also to find methods for municipalities to collect information about how playgrounds are used. The methods were observations, interviews with parents and children, a questionary with questions about what playgrounds they used, how often and why they used them and what the children used to do there. There was also a demographic investigation and documentary research. The most popular playground, Skräcklan, gets visitors from all parts of the municipality. It is located in a park with a view over the lake Vänern, there is a parking place and a café and it has furthermore a large area and many play equipments. Many of the families make shorter trips and picnics to this place. In exception of this playground, the families almost always go to the playground in their neighborhood and their part of the town.

This final thesis is performed on commission of Hargs Bruk Ltd. Hargs Bruk manages one of Sweden?s largest privately owned forests. A main part of the managed forest is situated in Roslagen in eastern Uppland. Since 1934 felling calculations have been performed within the estate every tenth year.

Timber floating operations in Scandinavia during the 19th and 20th centuries has contributed to severe negative impacts on riverine ecosystems. Increase in water velocity and lack of stream bed heterogeneity as a result of stream channelization lead to increased bed load transport. Since availability and recruitment of new suitable spawning substrate in Scandinavian watercourses is sparse, spawning habitats for salmonids has become a scarce commodity. Lately, increasingly more attention has been given to the recreation and improvement of brown trout (Salmo trutta) spawning habitats in restoration projects. While much of the research on spawning habitat has been focused on evaluation of the influence that the constructed spawning grounds have on fish populations, few studies have been conducted to evaluate the persistence of these constructions over time. I evaluate erosion of constructed spawning beds as an effect of sediment transport attributable to water discharge.

The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the degree of influence of holes in the web of steel beams with long spanson weakening of their bearing capacity. Making holes in the web of the beam generally reduces the bearing capacity of the beam. However, it might be necessary seen from both an architectural perspective as well as from a building services perspective by creating an opportunity for building installations.The objective of this thesis is to examine how much an I-beam can be weakened without sacrificing safety and functionality. The investigation has been done by using Finite Element Method through commercial software.The regulation for structural design of building structures in Sweden used to be specified in the document known as BKR. But this was replaced by the European norm Eurocode back in May 2011.

Glass has sophisticated front properties and are used as facades in high buildings. During cold periods, these glass facades could cause thermal discomfort, due to cold downdraught. Cold downdraught can be countered by placing heaters under glass surfaces. Nowadays technology offers highly insulating windows, which is why there is an interest to investigate the indoor climate with only underfloor heating. The research in this area is limited, and few empirical methods are available.

The numbers of natural disasters caused by extreme weather are increasing through out the world. A large majority of the research concerning the climate shows that this is a trend that can be expected to continue. At the same time the urbanisation is increasing more than ever and for the first time in history more than fifty percent of the population lives in a city. How we build these cities will have a crucial importance for our adaption to the new climate. In Sweden, our capacity for an adaption are high because of our economic situation as well as our rather well built society.

Wildlife is a valuable and renewable resource that promotes economical, ecological and social values. These values are important for developing and maintaining many rural societies. However, growing ungulate populations have led to increased browsing pressure on valuable forest trees and crops. Previous studies have proposed supplementary feeding and gamefields as potential methods for controlling the ungulate foraging and reducing browsing damage by providing other attractive food resources. However, quantitative estimates of potential biomass production of various gamefield crops and browsing pressure on the surrounding forest have been lacking.

Aspen (Populus tremula L.) and goat willow (Salix caprea L.) are two important tree species in the aspect of nature conservation. Due to the elimination of forest fires, a former negative attitude towards deciduous trees in forestry and a strong herbivore pressure, these tree species have been negatively affected during the last fifty years. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the occurrence of aspen and goat willow could be related to either human impact or to site properties, such as ground moisture and vegetation type. A side study included an inventory of a number of cyanobacterial tree lichens on aspen and goat willow in order to try to relate the occurrence of these lichens species to stand history and stand properties. The study was performed in Hamra State Forest in northern Dalarna. Nature reserves were compared with stands in managed areas.

This degree project studied surface waters on Kåbo Golf Course in Uppsala, Sweden, with the aim of determining the status of the water and how it is affected by the activities of the golf club, and to obtain suggestions of measures to create better conditions for the water environment on and around the golf course. The project forms part of the environmental protection work of Kåbo Golf Club, which is working towards achieving environmental certification from the Swedish Golf Association (SGF). The study is based on literature studies and quantitative and qualitative field studies of water on the golf course, with the focus on environmental factors identified as being important for the golf industry and on strategic environmental goals developed by SGF. The number of open water bodies in the Swedish landscape has substantially declined during the past 200 years, so it is important to save those that remain. This study showed that the surface water at Kåbo Golf Course is an important element in the surroundings since the area contains few wetlands, which can be a habitat for large numbers of species. The stream and ponds on Kåbo Golf Course also have the important function of serving as water hazards in the game and adding difficulty and variety to the course. Since Kåbo Golf Club wants its surface waters to look aesthetically appealing, extensive algal growth and drying up of ponds during parts of the year are regarded as problems.

The purpose of this thesis is to show how a good approach can be designed, focusing on the southern approach to the Swedish town Vilhelmina. Prior to the car being part of everyday life, the approach was a road where the town showed itself from the very best side. When the amount of traffic increased, so did noise and other disturbances, and as a consequence industrial areas replaced the residential buildnings at the approaches. Today, the pendulum is turning back and in recent years the approach is regarded as a place to introduce the town. The approach is also the place where cars should slow down from the speed of the main road to the speed of the city.

Det svenska kulturlandskapet har förändrats radikalt under de senaste 200 åren från ett varierat och heterogent landskap till ett mer monotont, homogeniserat landskap som följd av att olika former av mänskligt resursutnyttjande har effektiviserats. Detta har lett till en fragmentering av livsmiljöerna för flera av kulturlandskapets arter. Kraftledningsgator kan tänkas hysa naturtyper som påminner om vissa av de nu försvunna eller fragmenterade livsmiljöerna (t ex betad skogsmark och vissa typer av ängsmarker) och skulle kunna ha en viktig betydelse som reträttplats och/eller spridningskorridor för dessa arter.I en fallfällsinventering i Köpings och Strängnäs kommun i Mälardalen undersöktes förekomst och abundans av marklevande evertebrater i kraftledningsgator, skog och betesmark. Jämförelser i förekomst och abundans gjordes mellan dessa marktyper (d v s kraftledningsgator, skog och betesmark), samt mellan positioner inom kraftledningsgator (centrala och distala delar) och närliggande skogsmark. Jämförelserna innefattade dels analyser av artantal (eller snarare antal taxa) och flera olika biodiversitetsindex och dels analyser av likhet i artförekomst och individantal med "likhetsindex" (similarity index).