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Journal of the South African Institution of Civil Engineering
On-line version ISSN 2309-8775
Print version ISSN 1021-2019
J. S. Afr. Inst. Civ. Eng. vol.55 n.1 Midrand Apr. 2013
Design implications on capital and annual costs of smallholder irrigator projects
A F Hards; J A du Plessis
While agricultural producers on commercially operated irrigation schemes will aim to achieve the recommended high crop yields, those on a smallholder irrigation scheme usually produce moderate to low crop yields. The water demand by these two irrigator types also differs and is reflected in the variations in crop yields.
Because smallholder irrigators produce lower crop yields and use less water, they should use a system suited to this lower water demand. Many irrigation schemes have the opportunity for participants to assess their farming objectives and models. The irrigators can then use the assessment results to determine their water demands, reduce their infrastructure capacity and reduce their capital, operation and maintenance costs.
On many smallholder schemes, the system has been designed for commercial crop yields and water use. If smallholders never achieve commercial levels of production, they have overcapitalised and subjected themselves to additional operational strain.
In this study, six irrigation schemes based in the Eastern Cape were evaluated according to three levels of irrigation supply: a commercial irrigator, a smallholder irrigator and the commercial under-utilised irrigator. The irrigation infrastructure for each of the six schemes was designed, and the associated costs determined, for each level of supply. The study investigates the impact of different designs on the amount of water and land used, and resultant costs of the infrastructure. The results show that a smallholder irrigator using a scheme sized for commercial operation can have significantly higher (between 5% and 29%) annual operation and maintenance costs. The study clearly shows that the farmer type should be considered when designing each irrigation scheme.
Key words: appropriate irrigation design, smallholder irrigators, smallholder water supply, smallholder production costs
Irrigation scheme planning and design can be relatively complex. A scheme's ultimate success depends on many things - soils, water, farmer skills, markets and financing. By incorporating these factors at the various design levels, each scheme can be tailored to the user's individual circumstances.
The irrigation sector - smallholder irrigators in particular - has been the focus of much discussion and on-going government financial assistance. Programmes include the Revitalisation of Smallholder Irrigation Schemes of the Limpopo Province and other ad hoc developments, led by general policy during the last decade. The Department of Water Affairs, for instance, has developed a financial assistance policy for poor farmers (DWAF 2004), most of whom are smallholder irrigators.
It is often believed that irrigation is the key to alleviating poverty, especially in rural areas. The development of smallholder irrigators has a political aspect, because providing assistance to rural communities through irrigation aligns directly with national poverty alleviation goals. As a result, governments place considerable emphasis on smallholder irrigation, and allocate funds expressly to develop these irrigators.
By using the correct design philosophy and optimising the irrigation system, the project life cycle costs can be minimised and the best use can be made of the limited funding.
When designing a new scheme or one due for revitalisation, two questions arise: what is the best design approach, and what will influence the design and profitability? The answers usually depend on whether one is designing on a commercial basis, or altering the design to cater specifically for the operational needs of the smallholder irrigator. This paper aims to provide guidance on the expected cost ranges and the design approach to be adopted under specific circumstances. The primary aim of the study is to determine whether an irrigation scheme's design should be tailored to the particular irrigator or broadly structured for commercial water use, and whether the latter, the traditional practice, is the reason for the high economic risk associated with smallholder irrigation projects.
Irrigation management transfer and revitalisation
The most recent stage of smallholder irrigation in South Africa can be referred to as the era of irrigation management transfer and revitalisation (Van Averbeke & Mohamed 2007). The strategy coincides with the political change in the country and the ideologies that came with that change. The planned changes were first implemented through the Reconstruction and Development Programme, which was then followed by the Growth, Employment and Redistribution Policy.
Existing schemes were targeted first. Part of the process involved transferring the responsibility of managing, operating and maintaining the irrigation scheme from the state to the farmers. The process is known as irrigation management transfer (IMT) (Van Averbeke & Mohamed 2007).
With the current focus on the revitalisation of irrigation schemes, many lessons can be learned from previous development mistakes. Backeberg (2004) showed that returning to the previous focus on infrastructure at the expense of social relationships, land tenure, water entitlements, economic location and market access, financial capital and support services, technical and financial viability, and resources of households, risks repeating the mistakes of previous generations.
One of the most comprehensive initiatives has been the Revitalisation of Smallholder Irrigation Schemes (RESIS) of the Limpopo Province (Arcus Gibb 2005). It included the WaterCare programme and involved revitalising the scheme's infrastructure, leadership, management and productivity.
The existing smallholder schemes in South Africa and their characteristics are summarised in Table 1.
Revitalisation differs from rehabilitation: it does not concentrate solely on the engineering aspect of the schemes. Denison (2005) identified that revitalisation takes a holistic approach in which human development (individually and organisationally), empowerment, access to information, marketing and business strategy development are given the same emphasis as the engineering aspects.
Design aspects found in smallholder irrigation
Each irrigation system installation should take into account the circumstances and needs of that scheme. The typical development options may need to be adapted to allow for such issues as:
■ availability of infrastructure for installation and on-going maintenance
■ availability of support services for maintenance of specialist equipment
■ affordability
■ soil and selection of a system that will prevent soil water management problems
■ the appropriateness of systems such as short-furrows and the management requirements needed to ensure their success.
Productivity of farmers is affected by education and infrastructure (Fan & Zhang 2004). If inputs and markets are made more accessible, more rural farmers will be able to use them, which will lead to greater productivity (Kamara 2004). However, poor road conditions, high transport costs and distant markets prevent good market access for smallholder irrigators (Nieuwoudt & Groenewald 2003).
Access to basic general services, such as finance and communication, affects the effectiveness of smallholder irrigators and directly affects their ability to access inputs and the market in general. Poor access to services limits the ability of farmers to adopt new or better technology (Perret & Stevens 2003). Even though they may be regarded as simple services, they must be remembered during the process of revitalisation (Chaminuka et al 2008).
Investment costs
The International Water Management Report (Inocencio et al 2007) investigated 314 projects in 50 countries to find the factors influencing the cost of revitalising smallholder irrigation projects. They are:
■ Project size (total irrigated area benefited by a project)
This is the most important factor influencing the project costs. The larger the project, the lower the unit cost; this is primarily due to the engineering economies of scale that result from larger projects.
■ Average area of irrigation systems involved in a project
As with the project size, larger system sizes will have lower unit costs than smaller systems. It was, however, shown that the larger the system, the lower the economic performance of the project.
■ Degree of complexity
The degree of complexity does not affect the development costs of a project. Increased complexity does, however, have a negative effect on the rate of return for the project.
■ Government funding
It was found that the greater the portion of government funding, the lower the unit cost for the project.
■ 'Soft costs'
The 'soft costs' include components such as engineering management, technical assistance, agricultural support, institutional development, training of staff and beneficiary farmers. Higher 'soft costs' resulted in lower unit costs.
■ Rainfall
The amount of annual rainfall was found not to have a significant impact on the costs of projects, but it improved the economic returns.
■ Macro-economic factors
The greater the gross domestic product per capita, the higher the unit cost.
■ Farmer contribution to initial costs
No impact was found on the unit cost where farmers contributed to a project. When farmers contributed to the initial costs, the project performance increased.
■ Conjunctive water use
■ Conjunctive water use' involves the use of both surface and ground water. It was found that this did not impact on the unit cost, but increased conjunctive use did significantly improve project performance.
■ Operation and maintenance (O&M), and farmer participation
Three approaches may be taken to managing O&M - first, through a government agency alone; second, through a joint venture between government and farmers; and third, by farmers themselves. Farmer-managed systems have lower unit costs than systems managed by government agencies. The deeper involvement of farmers results in tailor-made, appropriate technology that meets the farmer's real needs and reduces the project costs.
■ Type of crop irrigated
The systems for irrigating rice are significantly more expensive than those for any other crop type. The more valuable the crop irrigated, the higher the project performance and profitability. Fruits, vegetables and livestock products generally result in better project performance.
The project size, rainfall and the type of crop irrigated all affect the costing of the schemes analysed in the research. Due to the nature of the study and the engagement of the community, the degree of complexity, 'soft costs' and farmer participation should all result in lower costs and more efficient schemes. However, the effect of these items has not been quantified in this study.
Smallholder production and reduced crop water requirement
The aim of any irrigation venture is to produce the best possible crop yield permitted by the soil, water and fertility (Doorenbos & Pruitt 1977). Smallholder irrigators tend to apply significantly less water than commercial irrigators, largely because of their lower plant densities and low-input cultivation. Smallholder irrigators farm in a manner aimed at reducing risk (Perret & Stevens 2003). By reducing risk they lower input costs. The direct result is reduced crop water requirements and reduced system capacity. The reduced system capacity reduces initial costs and on-going operational costs. If the system requires less water than its design requires, its full capability might be underutilised (Crosby et al 2000).
When the system is being designed, the future needs of the farmer must be determined. The system can then be designed to allow flexible operation, and expansion if required.
Conventional design norms for calculating crop water requirements generally suit intensive farming practices, and infrastructure is designed to the peak water requirement. However, a smallholder irrigator scheme generally has lower yields than an intensive scheme. When this fact is ignored and the intensive system is proposed for the smallholder irrigator, the oversizing can negatively affect the financial evaluation of the project; the project might then be rejected based on sustainability or initial capital costs. If, when calculating crop water requirements, crop coefficients were adapted to reflect the conditions on smallholder schemes, the proposed infrastructure is likely to be smaller in capacity and lower in cost (Crosby et al 2000).
Farmer types and risks
Denison & Manona (2006) and Van Averbeke & Mohamed (2005) developed farmer typologies for irrigation schemes. These typologies are very useful for suiting the system design to the application. The farmer types are closely linked to the level of risk the farmer is willing to accept (i.e. how willing the farmer is to risk losing money). This willingness to accept risk determines how farmers operate, another factor in determining the farmer type. The farmer types also measure success according to their own criteria, which might not include financial aspects. Four farmer types were identified:
■ Business farmer
Business farmers are commercially oriented producers aiming to produce an income from their farming activities. They usually have high skill levels, an understanding of markets and greater financial resources. These farmers are likely to accept higher risks and aim for higher crop yields.
■ Smallholder farmer
Smallholder farmers are traditionally plot holders. They do not rely on farming alone, but generate income from a variety of livelihoods. As a result, they rely less on outside markets for their cash income. They are more risk-averse than the business farmer and use lower-risk farming styles. They may struggle to be financially sustainable on larger schemes and pump systems with high O&M costs. Their operations are more suited to gravity schemes with lower annual costs. They will generally reduce their inputs to reduce risk, and consequently achieve lower yields.
■ Equity labourer
Some large, expensive irrigation schemes are open to partnerships. They consist of a number of plot holders who are unable to farm in a business farmer model. Instead, an outside commercial partner operates the scheme and farming enterprise, and the plot holders become equity labourers who make their resources - soils, water and infrastructure - available. As equity labourers, the plot holders enjoy the benefits of employment and receive dividends from the enterprise profits.
■ Food producer
Food producers may be plot holders on a scheme. They have limited access to resources such as labour and finance. Generally, food producers are on the poverty line and their objective is simply to supply their households with food. They want to avoid risk completely and may not use irrigation, due to the initial costs, risks and their low skill level.
One of the most important findings of the Van Averbeke & Mohamed (2005) study was the attitude of the farmers. There was no evidence that farmers of one type aspired to achieve the higher level of production of another type. This finding is of particular importance as it shows that a scheme for smallholder irrigators should not be designed on the assumption that they will, over time, become business farmers. The objectives of the farmers determine their type. Only when the objectives of the farmer alter would they move into a different type.
The scheme design must therefore be based on direct interaction with the farmers so that the design matches the farmers' objectives.
The research presented in this paper is based on the input data from a project undertaken by ARCUS GIBB for the Department of Water Affairs (Arcus Gibb 2004a-f) in 2003 and 2004 - the Eastern Cape Resource Poor Farmers Irrigation Pre-Feasibility Study. However, all cost calculations were based on 2007 values.
The schemes selected to form the basis of the research are shown in Table 2. Figure 1 shows each scheme schematically.
Design development
The proposed system for each scheme was developed in consultation with the beneficiaries and the characteristics of each scheme. During the study, multiple development options were evaluated for each scheme. The economics of these different options were then evaluated. Only the economically most favourable option for each scheme was used in the analysis presented in this paper.
The most favourable economic option was developed for the commercial farmer and the smallholder irrigator. For each farmer type, the water demands were calculated and the favourable option designed to cater for the required flow capacity of the system to meet the irrigation demand. The water demands were calculated using the SAPWAT (Crosby & Crosby 1999) software. BEWAB (Bennie 1993) software was used to estimate the reduction due to the lower yields and crop density of smallholder irrigators. For the purpose of the study, the term 'level of supply' (LOS) has been used to identify the farmer type and the resulting system capacity design.
The calculation of the costs of the schemes and evaluation does not take into account everything that affects irrigators. The initial capital investment in the selected schemes covers only the construction cost and related engineering fees. The financial impacts of training and organisational and institutional development were excluded. The training requirements are not always directly linked to the scheme type and size, but are more likely to be linked to the number of beneficiaries and existing skill levels.
The scheme types are also limited in the variety of infrastructure options. These were limited to:
■ pump-based schemes with only sprinklers and draglines, and
■ gravity schemes that include sprinklers and draglines, drip irrigation and short furrow flood irrigation options.
The impact of these limited selections for this study on the design, costs and results are as follows:
■ The analysis is biased towards draglines and sprinklers.
■ Results are limited to the cost associated with these pre-selected options.
■ Annual O&M costs are calculated only on the actual infrastructure.
■ A large portion of the O&M costs are attributed to the electrical costs of the pumping equipment.
■ O&M costs allow for water charges of 67 cents per cubic metre of water.
■ Kama Furrow, Wolf River and Ncambedlana have formalised their union as the Water Users Association, with an associated management cost of R250 per hectare per annum.
Financial evaluation
The gross margin analysis was based on one hectare under irrigation, planted with a mixture of field crops and vegetables. The crop types were green mealies, potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, maize and dry beans (summer crops) and cabbage (winter crop). The costs for each crop type excluded management, but included indicative market selling prices and transport to markets. The crop types were chosen to provide a fair representation of crops and a profitability that could realistically be achieved. The hectare would be fully planted with the six summer crops, but only 30% of the area would be used for cabbages in winter. The gross margin was calculated for each LOS considering the overall yield difference between a commercial and smallholder irrigator. In terms of efficiency of production, the evaluation is based on smallholder irrigators achieving production levels of 60% of the commercial yields, as would be expected from the regional
Computerised Enterprise Budgets (COMBUD) published by the Department of Agriculture. Additional key elements of the evaluation were:
■ The financial analysis includes the DWA Bulk Water subsidy of R 10 000 per hectare with a maximum of R 50 000 per eligible farmer.
■ The analysis does not make provision for the replacement of infrastructure.
■ The tax rate used for the financial evaluation is 15%.
■ Infrastructure loans will be at an interest rate of 8%.
■ It is assumed that farmers will require loans for 100% of their operational costs during the first two years and that thereafter they will reduce their requirements to 50%.
Summarising the costs of the interventions of each of the schemes allows us to evaluate the type of system applied and whether there are similarities between the schemes. Table 3 shows the characteristics of the different types of schemes evaluated in this study.
Capital costs
For each scheme, a design was created for the commercial and smallholder levels. A summary of the associated development capital costs are presented in Table 4. Table 4 shows that the initial capital costs are likely to be linked to the type of scheme. A 'rehabilitated' scheme is likely to cost less than any other type of scheme; a new 'pumped' scheme costs more than a rehabilitated scheme; and a new 'gravity' scheme is the most expensive.
Operation and maintenance costs
From the capital costs developed for each scheme, the associated O&M costs have been calculated and presented in Table 5. The actual cost per hectare of the schemes, based on the annual O&M costs, reveals four distinct groups. These are: Wolf River and Kruisfontein, Mantusini, Wolf River and Kamma Furrow, and Ncambedlana. Table 5 shows that gravity schemes are likely to have lower O&M costs than pumped schemes. However, a gravity scheme with significant infrastructure would have higher O&M costs, making it similar to a smaller pumped scheme. A pumped-to-storage scheme has higher O&M costs than any other scheme. The costs given in Table 5 include:
■ O&M: These include the annual maintenance costs of the proposed infrastructure; and operational costs, including water charges, water user association charges and electrical operational costs. No additional allowances have been made for increases in electricity costs.
■ Annual cost of water: The value shows the annual O&M cost of water used on the scheme. The cost does not allow for capital repayment. The cost of operating the scheme in R/m3 was based on level of consumption. The lower the cost per cubic metre, the greater the value to the user, because it will cost less to use the same amount of water.
Variation of costs
It is important to determine the impact of the variation between the two LOS designs on capital, O&M and water costs. To illustrate this variation between the costs, the percentage variation of the commercial LOS to the smallholder irrigator LOS is shown in Tables 4 and 5.
Zero percent indicates that there is no variation; a positive percentage that the commercial LOS has a higher value than the smallholder irrigator LOS; and a negative percentage that the commercial LOS has a lower value than the smallholder irrigator LOS.
The capital cost has a variation range of costs between 4% and 34%, with the average about 18%. The increased costs are not proportional to the increased volume of water used, which was expected due to economies of scale. For example, the infrastructure required to deliver 30% more water would not need to cost 30% more.
Commercial under-utilised level of supply
Tables 4 and 5 compare the commercial and smallholder LOSs, and show how they affect the initial capital and on-going operational costs. The impacts on the smallholder irriga-tor caused by over-designing the scheme are revealed, not by simply comparing the commercial and smallholder irrigator costs, but by considering the full scenario of the commercial under-utilised LOS. Commercial under-use occurs when a smallholder irrigator is placed on a commercially designed scheme, but still operates like a smallholder. To evaluate the impacts of this, the costs for the commercial designed scheme and the water use of the smallholder LOS need to be compared. Table 6 summarises the costs associated with this option.
The costs in Table 6 for the commercial under-utilised LOS projects provide the best information for comparison with the smallholder irrigator's costs. The commercial under-utilised LOS and the commercial LOS have been compared to the smallholder LOS in Figure 2.
Figure 2 shows that the capital and O&M costs of the commercial under-utilised LOS is on average 18% more expensive than a correctly sized scheme. If the capital costs do not need to be repaid, it may not have the initial negative impact that it would have if the farmers needed to fund the construction themselves. However, the O&M costs of the larger capacity system affect the farmers on an on-going basis. They are between 5% and 29% higher than if the system were designed for the smallholder LOS only, and farmers must pay these higher costs each year, which affects their financial viability.
A commercial farmer would be producing a higher yield crop than a smallholder irrigator on the same system, and unlike the smallholder, would recoup the additional costs. The variation in O&M costs for the three LOSs is depicted in Figure 3. It would be expected that the larger schemes would benefit from economies of scale and that the annual O&M cost per hectare would decrease as the scheme size increased. Figure 3 indicates that the characteristics of the selected schemes for the study outweigh the economies of scale and have a greater effect on the annual O&M.
The O&M costs for the commercial LOS are higher and generally vary from 5% to 34% compared to the other LOSs. A further, distinct variation occurs between the gravity and pumped schemes: the pumped system has higher O&M costs, which are largely attributable to electricity charges.
The higher annual O&M cost per cubic metre for the commercial under-utilised LOS is shown in Figure 4. While the O&M cost per cubic metre for the commercial LOS and smallholder LOS are roughly the same, the commercial under-utilised LOS has significantly higher annual O&M cost per cubic metre - between 5% and 29% - than the commercial and smallholder LOSs.
Financial evaluation
Table 7 presents the results of a financial evaluation for each scheme and LOS. The return on investment presented in Table 7 has been calculated at year 5 when the initial infrastructure capital debt repayments have reduced and normal working capital requirements account for the lending needs of the farmers. The full calculations show the same return on investment from year 5 until year 19 (not presented here). The return on investment was calculated using the net benefit after financing divided by the initial capital outlay. The cash surplus is the net benefit after financing divided by the irrigable area.
The results of the financial evaluation show that a commercially operated farm provides the best net present value (NPV) and cash surplus. The higher NPV is expected, since commercial farmers will have higher returns from their crops. The smallholder irrigator has the second best NPV for each of the schemes, except for Ncambedlana, which provided the best NPV. 'Commercial underutilised' ranks third in each category.
For normal investment purposes, a negative NPV would indicate that a project is not viable in its current form and should be either abandoned or revised to determine a suitable strategy for achieving a positive return.
The higher water use associated with the commercial LOS results in infrastructure with greater capacity, but with higher construction costs and higher annual O&M costs. The infrastructure for the smallholder LOS has been reduced to suit its lower needs, reducing its capital and O&M costs.
The evaluation of the two LOSs has shown that the capital cost for the commercial LOS is approximately 18% higher than for the smallholder LOS, and the O&M costs are 6% to 36% higher. The initial capital cost may, in some cases, be grant-funded by the government, but the on-going O&M costs will be funded by the farmer. If farmers are producing the yields associated with the different LOSs, they will have no additional financial burden, as the infrastructure has been sized to suit that LOS.
The evaluation, even though based on limited specific projects, provides a general estimate of possible costs associated with each scheme type and LOS. As the calculated costs depend on each scheme's individual requirements and location, they will not be applicable to every similar scheme. The schemes that were investigated can be grouped into five general scheme types:
■ Gravity schemes that need rehabilitation, where the bulk supply is in place and no augmentation or rehabilitation is required (e.g. Kruisfontein)
■ Rehabilitated schemes where water is supplied from a nearby bulk pipeline and pumped directly to the lands (e.g. Wolf River)
■ Run-of-river schemes where water is abstracted and pumped directly to the lands (e.g. Mantusini)
■ Run-of-river schemes where water is abstracted and pumped to storage (e.g. Ncambedlana)
■ Gravity schemes where bulk supplies need to be installed (e.g. Tamboekiesvlei and Kama Furrow)
A summary of the indicative costs of the different scheme categories is provided in Table 8.
A a new irrigation system may have been designed for a commercial LOS because the designer either had not taken into account the irrigator type or had expected that the smallholder irrigator would attain a commercial LOS. If the smallholder irrigator attains a commercial LOS, they would receive a benefit because the system would cater for the higher LOS they require. If the irrigator has neither the desire, necessary skills, maintenance support, sufficient training, access to credit, nor links to markets needed to attain a commercial LOS, they would continue to operate at a smallholder LOS, but with the additional challenges associated with the cost of water, due to the over-designed system. Where the smallholder irrigator is never going to achieve a commercial LOS, they will find they must use a system that is optimised to neither their skills nor their water needs.
A comparison between the commercial under-utilised LOS and the smallholder LOS has shown that the capital cost for commercial under-utilised LOS is 2% to 34% higher, and the O&M costs 5% to 29% higher, than for the smallholder LOS. The O&M variation is higher with the same water use, indicating that the costs of maintaining the higher cost infrastructure and of operating higher capacity pumps have a significant impact on the smallholder irrigator.
The smallholder irrigator on a commercial LOS scheme is therefore at a definite disadvantage to a smallholder irrigator on a smallholder LOS scheme. Even if the initial capital costs are grant-funded by government, the irrigator must pay higher annual O&M costs. The higher O&M costs will directly affect the farmers' margins and how much they will profit from the venture. It could also affect the farmers' sustainability; they would need to consolidate land and manage larger areas to generate greater profits to overcome their higher O&M costs. Failure rates of these farmers would also probably be higher.
A further indication of the cost effectiveness of the smallholder LOS is illustrated in the annual O&M costs per cubic metre of water used. This figure is significant - the commercial LOS and smallholder LOS have similar values, showing that their design and water use are being optimised. The O&M costs of the commercial under-utilised LOS are significantly higher, ranging between 5% and 29%. The higher values indicate that smallholder irrigators using less water on a commercial LOS are not operating optimally and their water use is not as cost-effective as that on the correctly designed schemes.
The financial evaluation provides further evidence that a commercial scheme offers little benefit for a smallholder irrigator. The smallholder irrigator will achieve lower returns and faces additional risk due to high debt. Table 8 shows that the commercial under-utilised LOS provides the lowest NPV, net return on investment and annual cash surplus. A summary of the indicative financial return of the different scheme categories is provided in Table 9.
To appropriately apply the information provided by the study, the individual circumstances of each scheme and the farmers involved in it must be understood.
Business farmers are likely to require the commercial LOS. They are willing to accept higher risk, have financing to cover the higher inputs and have market access to sell their larger amount of produce.
Smallholder farmers will require a design based on the smallholder LOS, as this is most suited to a more risk-averse farming style where inputs are reduced and reliance on outside assistance is not an important component.
Understanding the farmer types and the appropriate LOS allows the results from the evaluated schemes to be correctly correlated. The farmer types, anticipated LOS and associated costs have been incorporated in Table 10.
The design of any scheme must involve consultation with the end users to determine their main objectives and ability to manage risk. Once these have been determined, the scheme can be designed for an appropriate LOS and the associated costs can be evaluated. When approaching a new project for which the farmer type and scheme type have been determined, Table 10 can be used to provide a starting point for the anticipated LOS and associated costs. Site-specific design and economic calculations will then need to be completed for the proposed scheme to determine its capital costs and financial viability.
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Van Averbeke, W & Mohamed, S S 2007. Smallholder irrigation schemes in South Africa: Past, present and future. Pretoria: Tshwane University of Technology, Department of Crop Science, Centre for Organic and Smallholder Agriculture. [ Links ]
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Adrian Hards
Department of Civil Engineering
Stellenbosch University
Private Bag X1
South Africa
E: firstname.lastname@example.com
Contact details:
Dr Kobus du Plessis
Department of Civil Engineering
Stellenbosch University
P/Bag X1
E: email@example.com
ADRIAN HARDS (Pr Eng, MSAICE, MSAB Designer) has practised in the field of water engineering for 11 years, gaining most of his experience in the Eastern Cape. He is particularly interested in pipeline transient analysis, pump stations, pipe structural design and irrigation Engineering from the University of Natal, and ir 2008 he obtained Approved Designer status from the South African Irrigation Institute.
DR KOBUS DU PLESSIS (Pr Eng, MSAICE, MIMESA) has lectured in hydrology, water engineering and environmental engineering for the past ten years at the Stellenbosch University. During his more than 25 years of experience in the water sector, he has also worked for the Department of Water Affairs, the City of Cape Town and the West Coast District Municipality. His specia interest is integrated management of water resources in South Africa as applied by local authorities. He obtained his PhD (Water Governance), MSc (Water Resource Management) and BEng (Civil) from the Stellenbosch University.


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BREAKING! Two Huge Announcements on BHO'S Eligibility!
It seems that committing fraud to 300 million people continues to be a thorn in the side of the Imposter-and-Chief, Barry Hussein Soetoro, aka, Barack Obama. These courts cases keep coming up on the regime like flies swarming a decaying carcass.
If you believe in miracles: Pray. Pray. Pray. -W.E.
Below the video is the WND article.
If you believe in miracles: Pray. Pray. Pray. -W.E.
Below the video is the WND article.
Eligibility challenge returns to haunt Florida
'Obama is a direct threat to the safety and security of the United States'
"Defendant Barack Hussein Obama is a direct threat to the safety and security of the United States, and its Constitution, which plaintiff must protect and defend by oath," according to the complaint, which was delivered to Secretary of State Ken Detzner today.
The case earlier this year was dismissed by Circuit Judge Terry Lewis, who said Obama's eligibility could not be challenged at that time because under Florida election law, technically, Obama hadn't been nominated to the position.
As WND reported, Michael Voeltz, who identifies himself as "a registered member of the Democratic Party, voter and taxpayer in Broward County," had challenged Obama's eligibility, arguing that the "natural born citizen" clause was rightly understood in historical context to mean a child not only born in the U.S., but born to two American-citizen parents, so as not to have divided loyalties. Obama, however, readily admits to being born a dual citizen because of his father's British citizenship.
In his decision then, Lewis noted that the United States Supreme Court has concluded that "every person born in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, becomes at once a citizen of the United States."
However, attorney Larry Klayman, who is representing Voeltz, said, "The judge equated being a 'citizen' with a 'natural born citizen' and cited no authority to conclude the two terms are the same. He quotes other state's cases, where judges reached that conclusion, but that's not precedent for him. What other courts said in lower cases means nothing to him."
Klayman also had been concerned that the judge determined the burden of proof that Obama is ineligible fell on Voeltz – but then refused to authorize discovery in the case which could have confirmed that eligibility status.
"How can you say we have the burden of proof, then not allow discovery?" Klayman asked. "He says we have burden, but doesn't allow us to meet it."
And he said Voeltz has standing to bring the case, under Florida law.
Is Obama constitutionally eligible to serve? Here's WND's complete archive of news reports on the issue
The original case sought to exclude Obama from the 2012 ballot. Klayman and Voeltz claimed that Obama is not a natural born citizen as required by Article 2, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution, because he was born a British subject.
The case cited the evidence produced by Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio's special investigative unit, which has asserted that the birth documentation from Hawaii that Obama claimed was "proof positive" of his Hawaiian birth is not real.
And Florida law provides that anyone qualified to vote in an election may challenge a candidate based on 'ineligibility of the successful candidate for the nomination or office in dispute."
Now the new complaint explains the challenge to Obama's eligibility is "within the proper time frame and venue established by the 'contest of election' statutes of Florida."
"Plaintiff asserts that Defendant Barack Hussein Obama is not a natural born citizen of the United States because he was born a British subject of a British subject father, Barack Obama Sr., who was married to the mother of Barack H. Obama at the time…," it explains.
"Barack Obama Sr., a citizen of the British colony of Kenya, and his children, were subject to the operation of the British Nationality Act of 1948. By the operation of Part 1 Section 1 of that Act, Barack Hussein Obama became a British subject, upon birth to a British subject father. It is not known whether he has lost that birth allegiance to the British crown."
And, according to the complaint, the natural born citizen clause specifically was inserted to address the possibility of foreign influence at the highest levels of the U.S. government, in the White House.
"Law of Nations defines the term of art 'natural born citizen' as one born in the country [to] parents who are that country's citizens.
"Plaintiff Michael C. Voeltz has standing, as a Florida voter, and taxpayer, to challenge the 'nomination or election of any person to office' based on the winning candidates' eligibility for the office sought. … The state of Florida has chosen, by popular election, the electors for Defendant Barack Hussein Obama to be president … Plaintiff has fulfilled all aspects of the Florida election statutes for this challenge of eligibility, as to timing, venue, and indispensable parties."
The case notes that the complaint is being filed before the Florida electors meet to cast their vote in the Electoral College, a procedure that affirms the popular vote choice made Nov. 6.
The case asks the Florida Elections Canvassing Commission to decertify the Florida General Election upon a "judicial determination of the ineligibility of Barack Hussein Obama to serve as president … and to certify the electors for Mitt Romney as the winner."
Klayman has argued that since Obama, by his own admission, was not born to two citizen parents, he is not a "natural born citizen" and, therefore, is ineligible to be a candidate on the state's election ballot.
Florida's election statutes provide broad protections for voters to ensure that the integrity of the election system is beyond reproach. One of the laws allows voters to challenge the nomination of a candidate who is not eligible for the office he is seeking.

subset: commoncrawl


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Students Give Jindal School Top Marks in 10 Subjects
Bloomberg Businessweek Rankings Based on Senior Survey at 124 Universities
Jun. 18, 2012
Graduating seniors surveyed by Bloomberg Businessweek helped put the Naveen Jindal School of Management undergraduate program among the nation's top 20 in five academic disciplines and among the top 25 in five other fields.
In all, the school placed highly in 10 of the 14 subjects included in the publication's 2012 specialty area rankings:
- No. 4 in operations management.
- No. 14 in macro economics.
- No. 15 in information systems.
- No. 17 in business law.
- No. 19 in micro economics.
- No. 20 in marketing.
- No. 21 in corporate strategy.
- No. 21 in sustainability.
- No. 25 in accounting.
- No 25 in quantitative methods.
JSOM student responses put four other disciplines in the top 50: No. 26 in finance, No. 31 in entrepreneurship, No. 38 in ethics and No. 43 in international business.
The results are based on Bloomberg Businessweek's annual survey of more than 85,000 seniors at 124 business schools. The online surveyhad a 32 percent response rate.
Information systems is a new specialty area, added to the rankings survey this year. It takes the place of calculus, which was removed from the rankings survey.
Two schools, the University of Virginia and Emory University, each had 11 specialty areas that ranked in the top 25.
The Jindal School at UT Dallas was one of five schools with 10 specialty areas in the top 25.
Adding the specialty area rankings across all 14 disciplines, JSOM had a summary score of 318, placing it fifth overall. The other top schools and their scores were: Notre Dame, 227; the University of Virginia, 229; the University of Miami, 287; and Emory, 312.
"Across a broad spectrum of subjects important to business students, we fared very well," JSOM Dean and Caruth Chair of Management Hasan Pirkul said. "That is gratifying because we strive to deliver excellence in all courses and all programs."
"Because they are based on responses from students about to complete our undergraduate program, these rankings tell it like it is to potential students," said JSOM Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs Marilyn Kaplan. "While I am glad the Class of 2012 thought well of our efforts, I hope we impress the classes to come even more."
or the Office of Media Relations, UT Dallas, (972) 883-2155, [email protected]
June 16, 2019


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Wow. I just skimmed through last years personal photos trying to find some bluebonnet photos, and unlike my clients' folders, my personal photo folders are all whack and unorganized. I've saved just about every frame I captured last year, and they are all dumped in a folder called Miles. All raw, unedited photos. Waiting to be loved. ??? I hope to take better care of my personal photos and maybe tackle them as I shoot instead of waiting for "free time". Ha!
Anyhow, I promise myself to post more photos of my sweet sweet boy. He will be turning TWO in just a few short months and I want to look back on the last year and remind myself of how much we've all grown.
On to the requisite bluebonnet photos. We are so fortunate to have a small patch of wildflowers a five minute walk from our house. We ran over and squeaked out a few shots before the sun went down. Miles had a kick watching Mama dash back and forth in a sweaty frenzy trying to set the timer on the camera. (You should have seen the outtakes…ha!)
He kept going over to the tripod to "compose" his shot, then said "Cheese! Cheese!" It was the cutest thing ever.


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Educational Background
- M.F.A., University of Georgia
- B.A. in Art and Theatre, Agnes Scott College
Teaching Interests
- Scene design
- Costume design
- Mask and puppet design
- Interactive environments for theatre and dance
The following links are virtual breadcrumbs marking the 27 most recent pages you have visited in Bucknell.edu. If you want to remember a specific page forever click the pin in the top right corner and we will be sure not to replace it. Close this message.


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Big Bite Baits took the popular Crappie Minn'r and added a swimming tail. These are great finesse lures, whether used for saltwater LRF species or perch and chub in freshwater. The Swimming Crappie Minn'r measures approximately 2 inches (5cm) and features a tapered body with a generous paddle tail on the end, which provides lots of action on the retrieve. They are best fished on a small jig head, see photo above for rigging suggestions. Fortified with 'Bite Juice' additive for extra attraction. Made in USA, 10pcs per pack.
TIP - The paddle tails on these lures can sometimes get a little flattened whilst in the packet. If that happens, dip the tails into a bowl of freshly boiled water for a few seconds to straighten them out.
Length: 2" (5cm)
Weight: 1.2g
Colour: Blink (see photo)
Price: £1.99 per pack
Links below to jig heads featured in above photo:
AGM Finesse Jig Head 3g size 4
AGM Finesse Sickle Jig Head 1.5g size 6


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QSC AG: Communication services for SMEs – simple, meaningful, efficient.
IR Releases
QSC's first quarter revenues exceed total revenues in 2000
Cologne, May 29, 2001. QSC AG, Germany's leading alternative provider of DSL infrastructure, generated EUR 5.3 million in sales during the first three... Read more
QSC Annual Financial Statement for 2000: Sales and earnings on target
Cologne, March 29, 2001. QSC AG (Neuer Markt: QSC; Nasdaq: QSCG) generated almost EUR 5 million in the past financial year, compared to EUR 1.6... Read more
QSC Wins Big-Ticket Order for 9,000 DSL Lines
Cologne, 22/03/2001. QSC AG (PLCNasdaq: QSCG), Germany's leading alternative DSL provider, has entered into a supply agreement with the Internet... Read more
QSC to sell directly to business users
Cologne, February 19, 2001. QSC AG (Nasdaq: QSCG), the leading alternative provider of DSL-based broadband infrastructure in Germany, will be selling... Read more
QSC boosts DSL line sales beyond market expectations
Cologne, January 22, 2001. QSC AG (QSCG), Germany's leading alternative provider of DSL-based broadband infrastructure, sold more than 9,000 broadband... Read more


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Subhashish Dutta, Head of Global Research and Development and Thomas Clift, Managing Director
Guy Carpenter's GC ProfitPoint+ SM, delivers powerful portfolio planning and point-of-sale capabilities allowing insurers to set, calibrate and monitor risk management strategy. A single, easy-to-use solution, it enables line underwriters and agents to make informed decisions about individual policies by drawing on the robust analytical capabilities and insurance industry insight of Guy Carpenter. It crystallizes the business results of portfolio strategy that would otherwise take insurers weeks to analyze.


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My Letter to HIV: A Letter and Video From Dona L. Lackey
Dear HIV,
Sometimes, I don't know what to say to you. Other times, I fume and rant and rage with cussing and foot stomping. You anger me. You took my peace. I am a peaceful woman and now, I don't feel peaceful. Look at me, on the outside I am beautiful and on the inside, you reign. You are the queen living inside me and taking from my life. Sure, I can cover it all up with pretty words and say, I am the same Dona that I used to be ... but, am I? Am I the same woman that you met all those years ago? I have changed in many ways, some ... I will say, I am thankful for the change and others ... yeah, I cannot be thankful for the others.
You made me more aware of myself. Thoughtful of who I allow in my life and what I put inside my body, because if I damage my body, you will be right there with a quickness and devour my strength. So, yes ... I love how I am aware of what is happening around and within me. I hate the fatigue. I hate the fear. I hate having you in my life.
When it all boils down to reality, I feel broken. I am incomplete and afraid of intimacy. Where I once was passionate and an awesome lover, I am afraid to be involved emotionally and physically with another. I have tried and I end up crying. Even tho I know I am worthy of love, having you hiding in my body, hangs as a cloud above my head and I don't know how I can be with another person ... and just be me. No matter how much I am "just me", I am not "just me". I am me and you.
We are a team. An unwanted team...
So, I will remain broken. I recently read about a Goddess from India, her name is Goddess Akhilandeshvari. Her name means "never not broken". She is the Goddess of turmoil, sadness, life changes ... The Always Broken, Goddess. She rides a Crocodile, which is essentially her fear, her turmoil. She travels upon the back of her great danger and her body is broken and radiates light and change. She surrenders to change.
You, HIV are my change. You are my fear. You are my Crocodile and I will ride the hell out of you and surrender to my change of life. I am always broken. Always. With my broken-ness, I will inspire and radiate light and life and continue to flow with the changes. You, despite your best effort, will not control me. I will control you.
So, HIV ... One day, you will leave my body, we will separate. My soul will travel to the light and you will fall to the grave. Despite the changes you have caused in my life, I win. I win with graciousness and beauty because I will die on my terms and become one with the light.
Your connection to me is temporary and I belong to the eternal. I am saddling up my Crocodile and riding to the sunset and under the moon light ... you cannot stop me ...
Dona L. Lackey
Resonate Love ...


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If you love gemstones and jewellery then chances are you're going to love this town. Set in the heart of the Sapphire Gemfields, Rubyvale is home to several gift shops where you'll find everything from sapphire necklaces to sparkling diamond rings.
Made from 'billy boulders' and ironbark logs, the Rubyvale Hotel is a quirky place worth checking out. Then head underground on a mine tour where you'll be able to enjoy cooler temperatures as well as a lesson in sapphire mining. Explore the tunnels with your guide before trying your luck at one of several fossicking parks found near to the town. Thankfully at these parks the staff have already done the digging for you - so all that's left to do is grab a bucket and start sieving. Whether you get lucky or not, you should definitely treat yourself to a meal and a beer at the local pub before heading to your next destination.
Note: Information on listed products and services are provided by the operator and were correct at the time of publishing. Rates are indicative based on the minimum and maximum available prices of products and services. Please visit the operator's website for further information. All prices quoted are in Australian dollars (AUD).


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Market surveillance ensures that non-food products on the EU market do not endanger European consumers and workers. It also ensures the protection of other public interests such as the environment, security and fairness in trade. It includes actions such as product withdrawals, recalls and the application of sanctions to stop the circulation of non-compliant products and/or bring them into compliance.
Market surveillance is crucial for the smooth functioning of the Single Market. It helps protect:
Several factors affect the market surveillance authorities' ability to check whether products made available in the EU are manufactured according to EU law:
The major objective of the Commission is to ensure that EU market surveillance legislation provides:
Regulation (EC) 765/2008 sets out the requirements for accreditation and market surveillance relating to the marketing of products. The Regulation:
Decision 768/2008/EC on a common framework for the marketing of products contains provisions on market surveillance, obligations of businesses, traceability and safeguard mechanisms. These provisions are being incorporated in sector specific legislation.
Directive 2001/95/EC (the General Product Safety Directive) contains additional market surveillance provisions, notably for non-harmonised consumer products.
The Single Market Strategy adopted on 28 October 2015 emphasised that the growing number of illegal and non-compliant products in the Single Market distorts competition among businesses and puts consumers at risk.
On 19 December 2017, the Commission tabled a legislative proposal to strengthen controls by national authorities and customs officers to prevent unsafe products from being sold to European consumers.
The draft Regulation on Compliance and Enforcement will help create a fairer internal market for goods by encouraging more cooperation among national market surveillance authorities. This will include sharing information about illegal products and ongoing investigations so that authorities can take effective action against non-compliant products. The Regulation will also help national authorities to improve checks on products entering the EU market. Since 30% of goods in the EU are imported, the Commission also proposes to reinforce inspections of ports and external borders.
The draft Regulations will now be sent to the European Parliament and Council for adoption. Once adopted, the Regulation will be directly applicable.
The proposal is accompanied by the following documents:
For more information
In July 2017, the Commission issued guidelines to help national market surveillance authorities better control products sold online. These guidelines clarify:
An evaluation of the application of the market surveillance provisions of Regulation (EC) No 765/2008 was carried out between July 2016 and May 2017.
The purpose of the study was:
Another objective is to facilitate the implementation of the market surveillance framework. In particular, the Commission supports the development of a common understanding of market surveillance issues and cooperation among national authorities. It does this through actions such as:


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The Central Connecticut women's golf team wrapped up the second round of the St. John's Invitational writing in a team score of 326. Central (307/326/633) tallied a 633 final team score after two rounds which placed them third on the leader board. Conditions on the second day of the tournament showed strong winds.
The 36-hole tournament stretched over a two day period with the first round being held on Monday, September 17th and the final round wrapping up play on Tuesday, September 18th. Eisenhower Park, a par-72 course, was the host site for the event playing 6,399 yards long.
Tournament host St. John's (301/311/612) won the event edging second place Seton Hall (304/309/613) by just one stroke. The Blue Devils (307/326/633) shot 57 strokes over par which placed them third in the nine team field.
Central finished ahead of all Northeast Conference teams in competition including fourth place Fairleigh Dickinson (316/320/636), sixth place Sacred Heart (329/320/649), and ninth place St. Francis (NY)(363/353/716).
Senior Anna Ausanio (77/78/155) tied for seventh overall individually and headed the Blue Devils on day two posting a 78. After two rounds, Ausanio compiled 155 total strokes, a team best. The senior ended her two-round tournament just seven strokes back of the event's champion Alison Kruse (74/74/148) of Seton Hall. Ausanio has placed top-ten in both tournament's played in so far this season.
Freshman Sarah Boden (73/84/157) put together her best finish of the season placing tied for 12th (+13). The first year Boden carded the top score for any Blue Devil after the first day writing in a 73, her season best round score.
Three Blue Devils finished in the individual top-20, Ausanio, Boden, and sophomore Albrianna Farnum (79/80/159) who tied for 16th (+15). Farnum wrote-in her best round score of the season after her day one score of 79.
Senior Stephanie Bednar (78/84/162) shared the 25th place spot at +18. Bednar marked down her season best score on Monday when she carded a 78. Senior Katie Reid (85/89/174) tied for 41st (+30) in her first outting of the 2012-13 season.
Central Connecticut will return to tournament play on October 5th at the Rutgers Invitational.Team Results 1 St. John's Univ. 301 311 612 +36 2 Seton Hall 304 309 613 +37 3 Central Conn. St. U. 307 326 633 +57 4 Fairleigh Dickinson 316 320 636 +60 5 Towson University 323 320 643 +67 6 Sacred Heart Univ. 329 320 649 +73 7 Seton Hall B Team 334 320 654 +78 8 Hofstra University 330 328 658 +82 9 St. Francis Coll-NY 363 353 716 +140


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The FaxFresh app allows you to send a fax from any Mac with an Internet connection to any U.S. or Canada telephone number quickly and easily, using the FaxFresh cloud service. Just select the file to send, enter the destination telephone number, and pay a small fee and your fax is on its way. We'll send you an email confirmation so that you can be confident that your fax was received. If your fax is not sent successfully for any reason (e.g., wrong telephone number) then you will not be charged.
What's New in FaxFresh
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- Updated help to explain how to merge multiple PDFs.
- Updated help to explain how to add your signature to a document.
Requirements for FaxFreshOS X 10.6 or later
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"I'm very impressed with this book. I've done this my whole life and Carol has made it easy and fun to help others transition to awesome health and well-being."
—Dr. Timothy Brantley, PhD, naturopath and author of the New York Times bestseller The Cure
"Carol Alt is not only a supermodel, she's also a superhero! And as you'll discover within these pages, superheroes are fueled by super nutrition. Carol Alt tells you how she keeps her raw edge and how you can too with the best foods ever!"
—David Wolfe, author of Eating for Beauty and Superfoods: The Food and Medicine of the Future
"If you want to look like Carol Alt, read this book! In it, Carol shares her secrets for looking younger and more beautiful and feeling healthier. She shows you how simple it is to include healthy, raw foods in your diet. Easy Sexy Raw is a must-have for every kitchen."
—Ani Phyo, author of Ani's 15-Day Fat Blast
"Carol is the ultimate glowing example of how a clean, raw diet equates to looking and feeling younger and sexier. She is passionate about helping others reach their own potential for good health, and with her third book full of simple recipes and helpful tips, she continues this inspiring journey."
—Sarma Melngailis, author of Living Raw Food and Raw Food Real World


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Post: #1
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An opportunity extended to you by Datasoft Networks http://www.datasoft.ws to use our dedicated servers can help you sense a first-hand experience of the remote computing power. You will be able to do a lot more with as much as little effort from your own remote location. Yes!!! , we are offering a 10 day trial for our 24 Core Dedicated servers. These are the best of the variant powerful Dell servers that can be put to a variety of applications such as VOIP, as Database servers OR for any other Virtualization efforts that will unleash its best use even when managed remotely.
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nidhinpereira, proud to be a member of VoIP Call Provider - Discussion Forums for the VoIP Call Provider since Feb 2014.
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New Town Utopia is a feature documentary film about utopian dreams and concrete realities the challenging, funny, and sometimes tragic story of the British new town of Basildon, Essex.
The narrative is guided by the artists, musicians and poets of Basildon on a journey through memory, place and performance. Facing austerity, adversity and personal battles they are individuals driven by creative spirit to help their community through art, poetry, music and some rather angry puppets.
New Town Utopia features Oscar-winning actor Jim Broadbent (Iris, A Sense OF An Ending, Moulin Rouge) as the voice of Lewis Silkin MP. Directed by Christopher Ian Smith and Executive Produced by Margaret Matheson (Shell, Sleep Furiously).
Directed by: Christopher Ian Smith
Cast: Jim Broadbent
Produced by: Christopher Ian Smith
Showing At:
London, Picturehouse Central (From 04/05/2018)
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Clean your hair brush regularly to make sure you remove the hair, dirt and product buildup that can soil your clean hair over time. Learn how to clean hair brushes the right way, based on their type and material. Brushes need to be cleaned regularly just like combs that get dirty from the natural oils produced by your scalp. When you're also using a lot of hair products, hair brushes can get dirty faster and proper hair brush cleaning becomes even more important.Removing Hair Some types of brushes, like the Anna Sui Hair Brush are... Read More


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The list of nine North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission appointments announced by Gov. Pat McCrory this week has two Craven County names including former chairman Bob Emory.
The list of nine North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission appointments announced by Gov. Pat McCrory this week has two Craven County names including former chairman Bob Emory.
Bill Naumann of New Bern was one of three gubernatorial appointees to two-year terms on the commission responsible for preparing and adopting the rules and guidelines for development in 20 coastal counties.
Another of the two-year terms went to Frank Gorham of New Hanover County who will serve as Coastal Resources Commission Chairman from his seat for the member requiring a coastal property ownership or experience in land development. He is owner of Sandstone Properties LLC, has a law degree, and is active in charity and public service work.
Naumann, former president and CEO and then chairman of Hatteras Yachts, fills the seat which requires experience in engineering or marine-related science.
Presently president of Transformation Venture Capital in New Bern, Naumann serves in leadership positions on several government, education, and civic boards. He has a bachelor of science degree from Purdue University and an MBA in finance from the University of Chicago.
Emory is environmental manager for Weyerhaeuser�s Southern Timberlands Operations, in charge of responsible and sustainable management of millions of forest acres in 10 states. He received the 2000 EPA Environmental Merit Award for the work Weyerhaeuser did at 20 sites in North Carolina.
Filling the seat which requires experience in coastal forestry, Emory is one of only three reappointments to the 13-member commission on which he has served since 1994.
Sue Book can be reached at 252-635-5665 or firstname.lastname@example.com. Follow her on Twitter@SueJBook.


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Tomb Raider Definitive Edition Release Date Set for January
The rumors were true. Tomb Raider Definitive Edition is real and is coming to the Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
Set to arrive on Jan. 28, 2014, the Definitive Edition will be more than a port of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 title. Lara will have an entirely new head and newly rendered hair. Crystal is claiming this will be the developer's first attempt at a true next-gen game. Most importantly, all the DLC will be included, giving players the most complete experience.
Tomb Raider Definitive Edition is available for pre-order, and will come with a collectible art book. More details can be found on the official site.


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Marketing is the business of recruitment and retention
My Professional Journey
I've had the opportunity and privilege to spend my entire professional career in higher ed marketing. I cut my teeth in admissions, where I learned and experienced the vital importance of solid recruitment strategies. Along the way, I was recruited to share my expertise and passion with colleges and universities across the country as an associate consultant with a leading enrollment management firm. Now, in addition to my consultant responsibilities, I enjoy developing and leading campus-wide digital marketing initiatives. Oh, and I get the privilege to bestow my knowledge on our future superiors as a lecturer in a great journalism college.
Strategic Solutions
Smart business is built on strong strategy and vision. Return on investment, data analysis and market segmentation are parts of a successful equation. I bring business objectives, marketing strategies and technical expertise together. It's what I call
visionizing higher ed marketing.


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5-Year Standard Geek Squad Protection
In-Home Service
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We fix failures from dust, internal heat and humidity, plus defects in materials and workmanship
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We're here for you if something goes wrong
Please refer to the terms and conditions for a complete description of coverage and exclusions. AIG WarrantyGuard, Inc. is the Obligor and Administrator of the coverage under this plan.


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House of Commons
Session 2013-14
Publications on the internet
The Register of Members' Financial Interests: Part 1
As at 28th April 2014
CONNARTY, Michael (Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
6. Overseas visits
Name of donor: BASF plc
Address of donor: PO Box 4, Earl Road, Cheadle Hulme, Cheshire SK8 6QG
Amount of donation (or estimate of probable value): BASF paid directly for flights with a value of £415.65, accommodation with a value of £110.97 and hospitality, transfers and other incidentals with a value of £314.97; total £841.59
Destination of visit: BASF Chemical complex, Ludwigshafen, Germany
Date of visit: 23-24 July 2013
Purpose of visit: Industry and Parliament Trust Industry visit to the BASF complex in Ludwigshafen. (Registered 20 August 2013)
Name of donor: Results UK
Address of donor: Second Floor, 31-33 Bondway, London SW8 1SJ
Amount of donation (or estimate of the probable value): flights, accommodation, etc, totalling £1,410
Destination of visit: Cambodia
Date of visit: 15-21 February 2014
Purpose of visit: Participation in a delegation to study the impact of key Global Fund and UK funded health initiatives.
(Registered 9 April 2014)


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Watch CBSN Live
Six natural and cultural sites were named to UNESCO's World Heritage List by the World Heritage Committee on June 23, 2014. The group also approved extensions of three other sites already on the list.
One of the new additions is the Bolgar Historical and Archaeological Complex located on the shores of Russia's Volga River south of the city of Kazan.
The site contains evidence of the medieval city of Bolgar, an early settlement of the civilization of Volga-Bolgars which was the first capital of the Golden Horde in the 13th century.
Credit: Makhmutov R.Z./UNESCO
Precolumbian chiefdom settlements with stone spheres of the Diquis
Four archaeological sites in southern Costa Rica, which are considered unique examples of the complex social, economic and political systems of the period between 500-1500 AD.
The sites contain artificial mounds, paved areas, burial sites and, most significantly, a collection of stone spheres, whose meaning, use and production remain largely a mystery.
Credit: Museo Nacional de Costa Rica/UNESCO
Trang An Landscape Complex
A mixed natural and cultural property located on the southern shore of the Red River delta, Trang An is a spectacular landscape of limestone karst peaks permeated with valleys, some of which are submerged, and surrounded by steep, almost vertical cliffs.
Some of the highest altitude caves have revealed archaeological traces of human activity dating back almost 30,000 years.
Credit: Xuan Lam/UNESCO
Great Himalayan National Park
The park, located in the western part of the Himalayan Mountains in northern India, is characterized by high alpine peaks, alpine meadows and riverine forests.
It is part of the Himalaya biodiversity hotspot and includes 25 forest types with a rich mix of fauna species, several of which are threatened.
Credit: IUCN/Graeme Worboys/UNESCO
Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary
This wildlife sanctuary provides critical habitat for a range of plant and animal species, including critically endangered trees, plants and the iconic Philippine Eagle and Philippine Cockatoo.
Credit: IUCN/Naomi Doak/UNESCO
Stevns Klint
This fossil-rich coastal cliff offers exceptional evidence of the impact of the Chicxulub meteorite that crashed into the planet at the end of the Cretaceous era, about 65 million years ago, which researchers think caused the most remarkable mass extinction ever.
The Stevns Klint site holds a record of the cloud of ash formed by the impact of the meteorite – the exact site of the impact being at the bottom of the ocean off the coast of Mexico's Yucatán peninsula.
Credit: Jacob Lautrup/UNESCO
South China Karst
This is an extension of the South China Karst site. The property was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2007 and is one of the world's most spectacular examples of humid tropical to subtropical karst landscapes.
This site now includes 12 elements including the most significant types of karst landforms along with characteristics such as natural bridges, gorges and large cave systems.
Credit: Jim Thorsell/UNESCO
Bialowieża Forest
First listed in 1979, this extension reduces the amount of property on the Belarus side and greatly increases the amount in the Polish section.
Situated on the watershed of the Baltic Sea and Black Sea, the forest includes both conifers and broadleaved trees.
This transboundary property is exceptional for the opportunities it offers for biodiversity conservation. It is home to the largest population of the property's iconic species, the European bison
Credit: Mateusz Szymura/UNESCO
The Wadden Sea
This is an extension of the Dutch and German Wadden Sea site, inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2009.
The sea is the largest unbroken system of intertidal sand and mud flats in the world.
Credit: Klaus Dieter Meinen/UNESCO


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Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories
Budget plan would create new jobs and ensure fiscal responsibility
Changes to the state's film production tax credit included in spending proposal
The New York State Senate has approved a 2013-14 budget resolution, proposed by the Senate Majority Coalition, that focuses on helping businesses create new jobs, investing additional funds in education and transportation, providing mandate relief to local governments, and restoring proposed cuts to women's health programs as well programs for the developmentally disabled. The budget also includes proposals to implement a 2 percent state spending cap and reform the state's film production tax credit program to level the playing field for upstate.
"The Senate's budget resolution is one that all New Yorkers can be proud of. It's a fiscally responsible spending plan that provides relief from Medicaid's unfunded mandate that is strangling local government budgets, seeks meaningful tax relief and focuses state government's attention on job creation, agricultural growth and private-sector development," Sen. Patrick M. Gallivan said.
"I am particularly excited that this bipartisan resolution recognizes the need to create a level playing field for Western New York and upstate so these regions can compete with bordering states and Canada as viable locations to film and produce motion pictures," he added. "The tiered application of New York's film production tax credit will give the entertainment industry the incentive needed to consider every region of New York state when choosing locations to film."
"The Senate budget resolution is a responsible plan that controls spending, rejects new taxes, makes job creation a priority, and invests additional funds in areas that are critically important to all New Yorkers, including education, health care and transportation," said Senate Republican Leader Dean Skelos. "We are working with the governor and Assembly to achieve the earliest budget in 30 years. I'm confident we can get it done and that the final budget will reflect many of the goals we have laid out in our resolution."
Independent Democratic Conference Leader Senator Jeff Klein, D-Bronx/Westchester, said, "This is a smart and balanced budget proposal demonstrating the senate's commitment to job creation, education, and the protection of our state's most vulnerable populations. Today, the Senate recognizes the need to raise our state's minimum wage. By working on a bipartisan basis, we will enact a minimum wage increase that will take effect this year."
The budget resolution includes: the Senate's "Blueprint for Jobs" plan that would allow the 18a energy tax surcharge to expire and cut taxes on small businesses and manufacturers; The Family Tax Relief Act to increase tax relief for middle-class families; the Senate's "Grown in New York" plan to strengthen family farms and the agriculture industry; a school aid increase of $415 million above the governor's budget; restorations to women's health programs that were cut in the governor's budget; property tax rebates for senior citizens; a $100 million increase in CHIPS funding for local road and bridge projects; and relief for counties from increasing Medicaid costs.


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The increasing demand for data-centric communications and net-centric capabilities will drive the military-communications market to reach $30 billion by 2022. The four areas that are expected to grow are ground, airborne, terrestrial-military-satellite, and shipborne communications. The new report by Strategy Analytics Advanced Defense Systems (ADS) includes information about all four of these markets and details their expected growth.
Investments into ground-communications systems and components are expected to continue. The tactical-radio market is predicted to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2%, reaching $4.5 billion in 2022. Handheld tactical radios will represent 94% of shipments, limiting the electronic component market to just over $721 million. The multiband sector will account for 78% of the total market by 2022.
The airborne-communications systems and components market will continue to grow at a CAGR of almost 2%, reaching $1.3 billion in 2022. The bulk will be represented by fast-jet platforms. The unmanned-aerial-vehicle (UAV) market will see the fastest growth with an emphasis on Ku-band and Ka-band frequencies. The electronic-components market will reach $79 million because of the emphasis on multiband radios. Gallium-arsenide (GaAs) and gallium-nitride (GaN) semiconductors also will see growth.
With their new satellite-communications platforms, terrestrial-military-satcom systems will accelerate demand for military very-small-aperture-terminal (VSAT) terminals. Shipments of Ka-band military VSAT terminals, as demand for voice and data-centric communications increases, will grow the most quickly through 2022. GaAs and GaN technologies will lead in the RF front end with the overall market for semiconductors predicted to grow at a CAGR of 7%.
The report also noted that shipbuilding activity will remain quiet due to upgrades to existing vessels, which are a result of the demand for shipborne radio systems that will comprise multiple systems spanning a broad range of frequencies. There also is expected to be increased attention to littoral operations, which will cause offshore patrol vessels to drive increased demand for radio systems.


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Product Summary
AZEK® Deck is engineered to last beautifully. These elegant, on-trend products are protected with Alloy Armour Technology™ (AAT), the latest in materials science innovation. So, unlike wood, AZEK decking materials resist scratches, stains, insects, moisture, mold, and mildew, and we promise protection from cupping, cracking, and more with our 30-year limited fade and stain and lifetime limited warranties.
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Learn More - Use the Quick Links on this page to navigate quickly through the manufacturer's website or Contact Us directly .
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by Nancy Ritter
Corbis Photography; © Veer, royalty free (see
reuse policy).
NIJ-sponsored project contributes to the growing body of evidence on how to handle untested sexual assault kits.
In a one-year project that tested 1,000 sexual assault kits (SAKs) in New Orleans, there were hits against the FBI's Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) that aided police investigations in 13 percent of the cases. The NIJ-sponsored project grew out of a request from the U.S. Department of Justice to provide assistance to the city after it initiated an investigation of the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) in 2010.
Mark Nelson, a physical scientist who managed the project at NIJ, said that the results offer one more piece in the growing body of evidence regarding the controversial issue of how to handle untested SAKs.
"Of the 1,008 SAKs tested, 256 male DNA profiles were uploaded to CODIS — and this resulted in 139 CODIS hits," said Nelson, who wrote the final report on the project,
Analysis of Untested Sexual Assault Kits in New Orleans (pdf, 12 pages).
In response to the Department of Justice's call for assistance, NIJ leveraged existing partnerships, cooperative agreements and congressionally designated funding to assist NOPD in performing DNA testing on 830 SAKs that were in NOPD custody when the project began and 178 SAKs that were collected during the project's duration (January 1, 2011, to January 1, 2012).
"It's important to note that problems with the untested kits — and with police follow-up on CODIS hits for kits that had already been tested — were exacerbated by the loss of the NOPD Crime Laboratory and its DNA functionality as a result of Hurricane Katrina," Nelson said.
NIJ's SAK project in New Orleans took place over a short (one-year) period and required a quick and clear delineation of the participating partners' responsibilities. Within two months of the first planning meeting, the partners signed a memorandum of understanding, and DNA analysis of SAKs began.
See "The Partners in the Sexual Assault Kit Project"
There are two types of CODIS matches (referred to as "hits"): offender hits and forensic hits. An offender hit occurs when a DNA profile developed from evidence in an alleged crime matches an offender whose DNA profile is already in CODIS. A forensic hit (sometimes called a case-to-case hit) occurs when a DNA profile developed from evidence in an alleged crime matches a DNA profile from another crime. Both types of hits can offer police a new lead or, in cases in which a particular individual is not identified through a DNA profile, at least link cases in which the suspect's identity is unknown.[1]
Table 1 summarizes CODIS hits in the New Orleans project as of September 1, 2012 (when data were last reported to NIJ).
There were essentially two groups of untested SAKs in the project: 830 kits that were already in NOPD custody when the project began and 178 kits that were collected in sexual assaults that occurred during the project ("current cases"). Among the cases that existed before the project began, 10 percent yielded a CODIS hit: 9 percent were hits to an individual who had not previously been identified as a suspect in the case, 0.5 percent were forensic hits in which the offender was unknown, and 0.5 percent were offender hits between an offender (either known or named by the victim) and the evidence.
Among the current cases, 31.5 percent yielded a CODIS hit: 21.4 percent were hits to an offender who had not previously been identified as a suspect, 1.7 percent were forensic hits in which the offender was unknown, and 8.4 percent were offender hits between an offender (either known or named by the victim) and the evidence.
"I was not surprised that there was a much higher percentage of hits from the current cases, because after Katrina and before the NIJ project began, they already had tested some of the potentially most probative kits," Nelson said.
It is important to keep in mind that there are extremely limited published data to inform our understanding of the effectiveness of testing every SAK in law enforcement custody. NIJ continues to support research on testing priorities and strategies that can improve judicial outcomes in cases of sexual assault; results are expected in 2014 from an ongoing action-research project in Houston, Texas, and Wayne County (Detroit), Mich.[2],[3]
When jurisdictions use very different criteria for testing large numbers of previously untested SAKs, outcomes — including CODIS hit rates — are simply not going to be comparable. In his full report on the New Orleans project, for example, Nelson discusses CODIS hit rates in an NIJ-supported project in Los Angeles a few years ago; in that sample of just under 2,000 SAKs, the percentage of CODIS hits that provided new investigative leads was significantly smaller than that in the New Orleans project.[4],[5] However, the New Orleans project did
not include DNA testing of kits in cases that had already been adjudicated or in which the statute of limitations had run; in the Los Angeles project, those kits were included.
During the New Orleans project, 40 sex crime cases were closed after investigation by NOPD's Cold Case Sex Crimes unit: 16 by warrant and 24 by arrest. As of September 1, 2012, six cases had been adjudicated. In two, the suspects were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. In another, the suspect was convicted and sentenced to 40 years. In the remaining three, the suspects pled guilty and were sentenced to 20 to 22 years.
"The success of this project, however, went beyond these impressive judicial outcomes," said Nelson. One such success is the CODIS Hit Outcome Project (CHOP), software that tracks CODIS hits, helping identify bottlenecks in evidence submission, processing and results reporting. Using an existing cooperative agreement to install and test CHOP in several jurisdictions, NIJ arranged for CHOP to be installed on Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory servers with connections to both NOPD and the New Orleans District Attorney's Office.
"Our partners in New Orleans reported that having instant access to CODIS hits was very beneficial, allowing them to deal with hits in real time," said Nelson.
Two versions of CHOP software are currently available. A stand-alone version (such as the one used in the New Orleans project) can be purchased from a software vendor. Another version — upgraded from the California Department of Justice, which developed the original software — is available to state DNA database laboratories at no charge.
As a result of the New Orleans partners' success with CHOP, the Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory was planning to upgrade its CHOP network by establishing links with the Baton Rouge Police Department, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office, the Ascension Parish Sheriff's Office and other organizations throughout the state.
In another initiative that stemmed from the SAK project — particularly the successful follow-up of CODIS hits — the Louisiana State Police launched a pilot project in which detectives were paid $5,000 in overtime to follow up on CODIS hits, including collecting reference samples from suspects who had been identified through CODIS. During that pilot project, 90 CODIS hits were resolved — and since then, the Louisiana State Police applied for and was awarded a Justice Assistance Grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance;[6] the grant provides overtime for detectives, CODIS analysts and other law enforcement professionals who follow up on CODIS hits.
In his final report on the SAK project in New Orleans, Nelson states that justice is not served — including the possibility of more sexual assaults by the same perpetrator — unless scientific results from DNA testing and CODIS hits are investigated promptly and thoroughly by law enforcement agencies.
"In that regard," he said, "I believe that our New Orleans project was unprecedented in its scope and that it should inspire other states to make similar efforts."
Nelson makes two specific recommendations:
The NOPD project demonstrated the success of CHOP software in managing and providing accountability for following up on CODIS hits.
"I would like to see this expanded to more jurisdictions nationwide," Nelson said, noting that a state laboratory database seems to be the logical place to put CHOP software, because CODIS hits can then be disseminated to client government crime labs and police departments throughout a state.
"Deployment of CHOP nationwide — in concert with efforts similar to those undertaken by NOPD and Louisiana State Police to conduct timely and complete investigations of all CODIS hits — would benefit the criminal justice system and decrease victimization through faster identification and apprehension of repeat offenders," he added.
As Nelson notes in the final report, electronic evidence-tracking systems that allow police agencies to communicate directly with their crime laboratory's Laboratory Information Management System would help eliminate the situation faced by New Orleans and other jurisdictions around the country with large numbers of untested SAKs.
"Computerized evidence-tracking systems create a permanent record of decisions by investigators about whether to submit an SAK to a crime laboratory for analysis," Nelson said. "This, in turn, would allow subsequent review by management and oversight boards and increase transparency and accountability to the public."
For more information regarding the need to develop and install computerized evidence-tracking systems, see recommendations in the NIJ-funded evaluation of testing SAKs in the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.[7],[8]
Finally, Nelson said, the success of the SAK project in New Orleans was achieved through a shared commitment by stakeholders from the federal, state, city and university arenas. He also noted that the Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory was able to provide significant assistance to NOPD because the lab had recently implemented new processes and procedures to increase its DNA unit efficiency.[9]
"Although we will continue to learn from different approaches employed in other jurisdictions," Nelson said, "the success in NOPD project offers invaluable knowledge that adds to the growing body of research on how to deal with the issue of large numbers of untested SAKs."
NIJ Journal No. 272, posted June 2013NCJ 241926
Nancy Ritter is a writer and editor at NIJ.
Back to the top.
For More Information
[note 1] Learn more about CODIS at the
FBI's website.
[note 2] To learn more, visit
NIJ's page on untested evidence in sexual assault cases.
[note 3] Ritter, Nancy,
The Road Ahead: Unanalyzed Evidence in Sexual Assault Cases (pdf, 21 pages), Special Report, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, 2011, NCJ 233279.
[note 4] Peterson, Joseph, Donald Johnson, Denise Herz, Lisa Graziano, and Taly Oehler,
"Sexual Assault Kit Backlog Study" (pdf, 133 pages), Final report to the National Institute of Justice, grant number 2006-DN-BX-0094, June 2012, NCJ 238500.
[note 5] Ritter, Nancy,
"Solving Sexual Assaults: Finding Answers Through Research,"NIJ Journal 270 (2012): 4-17.
[note 6] Visit the Bureau of Justice Assistance website for more information on the
Justice Assistance Grant program.
[note 7] Peterson, "Sexual Assault Kit Backlog Study," 105-106.
[note 8] Ritter, "Solving Sexual Assaults: Finding Answers Through Research," 14-16.
[note 9] See the
final report of the Louisiana State Police's Forensic DNA Unit Efficiency Improvement project (pdf, 125 pages).
National Institute of Justice, 810 Seventh Street, NW, Washington, DC 20531


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snow bunny
Outfit Details:
head scarf – vintage (tutorial here)
polka dot shirt – Urban Outfitters
kitty cat sweater – c/o Modcloth (blue is sold out but the red version) is still available)
lace shorts – c/o Madewell
tights – H+M
socks – Target
packable tour boots – c/o Hunter
glasses – Ray-Ban RB5226
lipstick – MAC Party Parrot
blush – MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Stereo Rose
Bobby's outfit:
vest and pants – Banana Republic
button down – c/o Everlane
tie – thrifted
vintage tie bar – Miami flea market
Seeing Miku running and rolling around in the snow makes me realize just how much of a little snow bunny she is. She is part Eskimo, after all – that fluffy coat was made for this. She was doing flips and making snow angels; I never see her happier than when she has lots of land and snow (or mud) to roll around in. It's been making me reconsider the city lifestyle. In 2013, I've decided that I'm going to make an effort to do more things like this, to get away and actually have a little more nature around. It gives us something to look forward to. Not just for me and Bobby, but for little Ku, too. We're lucky to live near Prospect Park, but it really isn't the same, is it? Look how happy she is!