Students tackle tomatoes, recycling, gypsy moths, food security for senior thesis research

From left, Charles Caster, Ray Sabo, Jace Bures, Curtis Knight, presented their senior thesis ideas March 26.

From tomatoes to gypsy moths this year’s lineup of senior thesis topics is varied and challenging. All SNRAS natural resources management undergraduate students complete a senior thesis as part of their graduation requirements. Most students begin the process in the latter part of their junior year and present the results prior to graduation.

The emphasis is on problem-solving with writing and analysis being important components. Each individual project is under the guidance of a faculty sponsor for this formal, comprehensive report. The semester’s first session of presenters stating their proposed work was held March 26.

Jace Bures will tackle reducing the Alaska summer day length to increase growth and yield of tomatoes. He got the idea from his summer 20009 work for Professor Meriam Karlsson at Pike’s Waterfront Lodge greenhouse. Last summer while growing tomatoes in the natural Alaska daylight he noticed blight on some plants. Stating that tomatoes are one of the most light-sensitive plants, Bures said the high economic value of the product, the demand for locally grown produce, and the long summer days are what led him to this project. “I saw a lot of leaf curl and Pike’s and I want to eliminate it,” Bures said.

He cited a 1949 study by A. Withrow and R. Withrow that said that eighteen to twenty-four hours of light each day causes a tendency for tomatoes to develop chlorotic leaves, reducing the photsynthesis and leading to damage. “It’s too much light,” Bures said. He also quoted from a 1974 study on stomatal density by Gay and Heard.

Bures's study, which will run from June 10 to July 30, will involve data collection on the Conchita variety. He will have an area with a full dark curtain, an area of fifty percent shade, and a clear curtain for control area. He will lower the curtains from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. There will be thirty plants in a row and ten plants in each treatment. The area will have automatic drip irrigation. Bures plans to weigh and count the fruit every ten days.

His expectations are that the plants allowed the full dark period will have healthy leaves with no curling or discoloration. In the fifty percent shaded area he expects medium yields compared to the other two areas, and for the control site he predicts curled and discolored leaves and lower yields.

Ray Sabo is studying whether northern municipalities can successfully recycle solid waste. Whitehorse, Yukon, his hometown, is the study site. He will examine the collection and processing methods in Whitehorse since 2007, including curbside collection and refunds for recyclables.

Sabo said recycling is a viable option because it relieves land areas of the burden of garbage, takes less material resources, provides jobs, can be efficient, decreases greenhouse emissions, and can create consumer awareness. He noted that in a pilot project in one neighborhood voluntary participation in composting went from twenty to eighty percent when the residents were provided carts to place the matter in.

Sabo plans to determine the quantity of solid waste in landfills before and after 2007, do a cost analysis of waste hauling before and after 2007, and study the environmental benefits. He will collect recycling data, speak with local officials, visit recycling centers, contact soil scientists, and compare mature compost with Yukon soils. His goal is to provide recommendations on how Whitehorse can improve its recycling program and to eventually educate the public in Fairbanks about the issue.

Charles Caster will assess food security in Fairbanks using a survey about food production. “One way to measure food security is to measure imports,” Caster said. He hopes to determine how much food Fairbanks produces by interviewing growers at the Tanana Valley Farmers Market and owners of community shared agriculture businesses. “My objective seems simple but I’m sure it will be challenging,” he said. “The longterm goal will be a statewide application.”

He quoted the World Health Organization in saying that food security is when al people at all times have access to nutritional, safe food. He predicted that any serious disruption in transportation (trucking, barges, airlines) could result in Fairbanks’ food supplies in stores running out in three days.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture ranks Alaska last in cash receipts from agriculture ($30 million agricultural products per year), Caster said.

Currently there are no reliable methods to assess imports, Caster said, and businesses may not want to share proprietary information, therefore he is focusing on food production. He plans to assess the current data, create a list of producers, interview the producers and consumers, and produce a survey to distribute to agricultural producers. The focus of his study will be vegetable production.

Curtis Knight wants to prove whether or not the gypsy moth can survive in Alaska. “Can the gypsy moth complete its life cycle and if so where?” he asked. He will study temperature thresholds, life history, established records, rates of development, host species, and degree day calculations. He will create a host range map noting high-risk locations.

“I will identify areas where the gypsy moth is most likely to survive,” Knight said. “Its establishment in Alaska could affect forestry, wildlife, the environment, and even tourism.”

Seven more senior thesis presentations will be given Friday, April 2 at 2:15 p.m. in the International Arctic Research Center, room 405. Call 474-7188 for details.