Incentives and regulations to reconcile conservation and development: thirty years of governance of the Sami pastoral ecosystem in Finnmark, Norway

Incentive-based mechanisms are regarded as efficient instruments to reconcile conservation and development. This win-win objective has been difficult to accomplish; cross-compliance has, therefore, been suggested as a mechanism to ensure sustainability. Cross-compliance, which requires producers to conform to production regulations and environmental standards to qualify for direct payments, has been a popular instrument in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reform. Since 1990, cross-compliance has been the main characteristic of policy design in Sami reindeer husbandry in Finnmark, Norway. All direct transfers to the Sami pastoralists have been connected to harvesting demands to decrease the number of reindeer and to conserve pastures. The content of these incentive-based mechanisms are decided through negotiated agreements with the Sami Reindeer Herders' Association of Norway (NRL), and the regulation of reindeer numbers and access to pastures are delegated to co-management boards. Despite the participation of the Sami pastoralists in shaping these policies, win-win objectives have not been achieved. Although the cross-compliance program could have been improved by payment for graded results, the lack of regulations by the administration or co-management boards is more likely to be the cause of failure to reach sustainability. Despite the long-term failures of the cross-compliance program, policies have been slow to change. We might attribute this delay to the NRL's strong position in the negotiated agreements. In general, we argue that the success of the cross-compliance program depends on a well-functioning governance system that can implement regulations and sanctions if incentives do not work as intended.     

Population dynamics and the economics of invasive species management: the greenhouse whitefly in California-grown strawberries

In agriculture, relatively few efficacious control measures may be available for an invasive pest. In the case of a new insect pest, insecticide use decisions are affected by regulations associated with its registration, insect population dynamics, and seasonal market price cycles. We assess the costs and benefits of environmental regulations designed to regulate insecticide applications on an invasive species. We construct a bioeconomic model, based on detailed scientific data, of management decisions for a specific invasion: greenhouse whiteflies in California-grown strawberries. The empirical model integrates whitefly population dynamics, the effect of whitefly feeding on strawberry yields, and weekly strawberry price. We use the model to assess the optimality of alternative treatment programs on a simulated greenhouse whitefly population. Our results show that regulations may lead growers to "under-spray" when placed in an economic context, and provide some general lessons about the design of optimal invasive species control policies.     

Historical Analysis of SO<Subscript>2</Subscript> Pollution Control Policies in China

Coal is not only an important energy source in China but also a major source of air pollution. Because of this, China’s national sulfur dioxide (SO₂) emissions have been the highest in the world for many years, and since the 1990s, the territory of China’s south and southwest has become the third largest acid-rain-prone region in the world. In order to control SO₂ emissions, the Chinese government has formulated and promulgated a series of policies and regulations, but it faces great difficulties in putting them into practice. In this retrospective look at the history of SO₂ control in China, we found that Chinese SO₂ control policies have become increasingly strict and rigid. We also found that the environmental policies and regulations are more effective when central officials consistently give environmental protection top priority. Achieving China’s environmental goals, however, has been made difficult by China’s economic growth. Part of this is due to the practice of environmental protection appearing in the form of an ideological “campaign” or “storm” that lacks effective economic measures. More recently, better enforcement of environmental laws and regulations has been achieved by adding environmental quality to the performance assessment metrics for leaders at all levels. To continue making advances, China needs to reinforce the economic and environmental assessments for pollution control projects and work harder to integrate economic measures into environmental protection. Nonetheless, China has a long way to go before economic growth and environmental protection are balanced.     

RURAL WATER SUPPLIES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES1

The best available figures indicate that on a global basis only about 10 per cent of the rural populations have a safe source of water, with the Region of the Americas having the highest coverage at 19 per cent. The program of the Second U.N. Decade proposed to supply coverage to about 200 million persons at an estimated cost of 1.6 billion dollars by 1980. The elements of a rural water supply program are presented, then the difference between rural and urban supplies in such areas as community participation, financing, technical assistance, etc., are discussed. The use of revolving funds to help finance this effort, and the use of the mass approach to help the governments increase their program coverage, are also presented. This paper concludes that while much has been done in the 60's, much remains to be done, but that the basic tools for this effort are available.     

A Brief Overview of Carbon Sequestration Economics and Policy

This article provides an overview of the issues and challenges involved in analyzing the costs and program design for carbon sequestration. The first section examines some of the pitfalls of comparing the results of carbon sequestration cost studies and suggests some simple ways in which analysts could make their results more useful. The pitfalls in comparing studies include different definitions for the summary statistic dollars per ton, differences in the type of costs that are estimated, and differences in underlying assumptions regarding program design and implementation. Future cost studies will benefit from improved treatment of leakage, general equilibrium interactions, and public finance interactions. The second section reviews issues related to the implementation of a carbon sequestration program, including which policy tools are available and which have received the most attention, some of the challenges for using those policy tools, and one alternative that has received little attention, but may become necessary. The discussion also provides an overview and analysis of the bills introduced in the last two congresses and considers the general policy implications of those proposals.     

Visitor Response to Management Regulations—A Study Among Recreationists in Southern Norway

/ The objectives of nature area management are often twofold: To protect the natural environment and to facilitate recreational use. In order to maintain the natural setting, it is sometimes necessary to regulate the recreational use of an area. In deciding on a management action, one problem can be the lack of knowledge about the effects of management actions on visitors. In order to enhance the knowledge base for future management practices, this study empirically evaluates the effects of management regulations in a Norwegian nature area. In this area camping outside commercial campgrounds was restricted in 1992. The management regulations seems to have influenced the use of Sjodalen for camping in several ways. The number of campers using the area has decreased. The user composition seems to have changed, with new campers in the area after the regulation being more tolerant of human influence on the natural environment than the campers before the regulations. In addition, a considerable proportion of the existing users ceased to stay overnight in Sjodalen, totally or partly due to the regulations. The behavioral response among existing users is related both to environmental preferences and place attachment. Implications for management and future research studies on impact assessment in general, and displacement specifically, are discussed.KEY WORDS: Outdoor recreation; Management regulations; Behavioral response; Displacement, Place attachment     

Point‐Nonpoint Trading – Can It Work?1

Ribaudo, Marc O. and Jessica Gottlieb, 2011. Point‐Nonpoint Trading – Can It Work? Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 47(1):5‐14. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2010.00454.x Abstract: Water quality trading between point and nonpoint sources is of great interest as an alternative to strict command and control regulations on point sources for achieving water quality goals. The expectation is that trading will reduce the costs of water quality protection, and may speed compliance. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has issued guidance to the States on developing point‐nonpoint trading programs, and United States Department of Agriculture is encouraging farmer participation. However, existing point‐nonpoint trading programs have resulted in very few trades. Supply side and demand side impediments seem to be preventing trades from occurring in most trading programs. These include uncertainty over the number of discharge allowances different management practices can produce, high transactions costs of identifying trading partners, baseline requirements that eliminate low‐cost credits, the reluctance of point sources to trade with unfamiliar agents, and the perception of some farmers that entering contracts with regulated point sources leads to greater scrutiny and potential future regulation. Many of these problems can be addressed through research and program design.     

THE BISCAYNE AQUIFER CONTAMINATION: CLEANUP AND PREVENTION1

ABSTRACT: The Biscayne Aquifer is the sole source of drinking water for approximately three million residents of southeast Florida. Nine hazardous waste sites on the EPA National Priority List overlie this aquifer. Extensive investigation of an 80 square-mile area in metropolitan Miami detected low to moderate levels of toxic contaminants in the ground water, with volatile organic chemicals the most prevalent. The Centers for Disease Control concluded that contamination of the aquifer within the study area poses a serious potential threat to public health. Recommendations for source control and cleanup have been partially carried out. The top few feet of soil at the Miami Drum site have been excavated and relocated; ground water encountered during excavation has been withdrawn and treated, and the Northwest 58th Street Landfill has been closed. Recovery and treatment of ground water from the contaminated area was the recommended cleanup measure and has been approved by EPA and state and local agencies. A preventive action program for the Biscayne Aquifer region was also recommended for implementation by local agencies. This program consists of regulations, waste management practices, construction and treatment guidelines, and public information activities and materials. Implementing this program will help keep the Biscayne Aquifer water drinkable far into the future.     

EPA's Environmental Technology Verification Program: An Evaluation of a Public‐Private Process

The Environmental Technology Verification Program (ETV) was started by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in October 1995 to generate independent and credible data on the performance of innovative technologies that have the potential to improve protection of public health and the environment. The purpose of this program is to help organizations, industries, businesses, states, communities, and individuals make better‐informed decisions when selecting new environmental technologies. The program has now been in existence for six years and the following article presents, for the first time, the results achieved to date and the program's future operating plans. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The benefits of proactive environmental quality: Tips from a successful small business

Who says environmental quality has to cost a bundle? Or that it's out of reach of the typical smaller company? In fact, says this article, a proactive environmental quality program offers significant cost-avoidance opportunities and can allow a company to reap positive public relations rewards. The combination of a total quality production program and a proactive environmental quality program is a formidable force for success. And you don't have to be a big company to be an environmental leader.© 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Effectiveness of self-identified and self-reported environmental regulations for industry: The case of stormwater runoff in the US

US environmental controls for industry include numerous regulations that rely on the regulated community to self-identify, monitor, report, or complete other requirements on their own recognizance. These include state- and federal-issued general permits for stormwater discharges associated with industrial activities, effective in 1992, with known incomplete compliance by 2004. Results demonstrate highly incomplete compliance with variation in effectiveness among studied states and urbanized regions. Texas and Oklahoma, administered by US EPA during the research period, have attained higher compliance rates than California, administered by a state agency, or Florida, also administered by US EPA. Specific program designs and implementation strategies employed by states are evaluated for impacts on states' compliance effectiveness.     

COST-EFFECTIVE REGULATORY OPTIONS FOR WATER QUALITY LIMITED STREAMS1

With the pressure from industries and municipalities to reduce the waste water treatment costs associated with the permit limits needed to attain the goals of the Clean Water Act, attention has turned ways of introducing flexibility into the regulations without sacrificing the water quality goals. Wisconsin is the first state to have adopted a variety of options from which dischargers may choose when meeting their water quality requirements. These options were developed for the express purpose of minimizing the costs and maximizing the flexibility of the point source water quality regulations while ensuring that permitted discharge would not violate the water quality standards. This paper presents five options that the state has made available to dischargers, as well as one the state did not adopt. The conclusion is that a mix of options can substantially increase the flexibility and reduce the costs of meeting water quality standards on effluent limited streams.     

Steam reforming of glycerol for syngas generation under cold plasma conditions: A DFT study

Density functional theory (DFT) has been used to investigate the reaction pathways with steam reforming of glycerol under cold plasma conditions. Total energies, energy barriers, and reaction enthalpies at 298.15 K have been calculated at the GGA/PW91/DNP level. The calculation shows that, with the presence of steam, the energy barrier of glycerol conversion is reduced and the conversion from glycerol to H₂ and CO is promoted under cold plasma conditions. The formation of syngas was through a multi-step pathway via the conversion of OHCH₂CHOH, CH₂OH, CH₂O, HCO,·and CH₃, while the recombination of H generated extra H₂. The synthesis of hydrocarbons are from the recombination of·CH₃,·CH₂, and·CH, which could be primarily generated through glycerol dissociation. The structure of glycerol anion was also studied in this work, and it was less stable than the neutral molecule. The route for the formation of OHCH₂CHOH·and CH₂OH·from glycerol anion is thermodynamically favorable.     

Experimental study on microalgae cultivation in novel photobioreactor of concentric double tubes with aeration pores along tube length direction

Microalgae have been identified as a superior feedstock for biodiesel production and varied tubular photobioreactors are developed for high efficient and scale-up microalgae cultivation. This article presented a novel concentric double tubes using aeration through radial pores along the length direction of inner tube. Experiments on microalgae cultivation were carried out in the novel photobioreactor, and two control groups including concentric double tubes with axial aeration at both ends and common tubular. The biomass productivity of novel photobioreactor increased by 43.6% and 107.4%, respectively, compared with concentric double tubes with axial aeration at both ends and common tubular without aeration. The values of pH shifted from 7.5 to 9.0 for novel photobioreactor, but 7.5 to 8.8 for common tubular, and 7.5 to 9.6 for concentric double tubes with axial aeration. The dissolved oxygen concentration fluctuated between 6.0 and 7.0 mg·L^?1 for novel photobioreactor, but rose from 6.6 to 10.2 mg·L^?1 for the common tubular, and 6.9 to 8.1 mg·L^?1 for the concentric with axial aeration. Results show that the aeration style of novel photobioreactor can make efficient local mixing and maintain smaller range of pH and lower level of dissolved oxygen in case of higher biomass concentration. Moreover, compared with the two control groups, the novel concentric double tubes have advantages on the light/dark cycle frequency, which may be benefit for microalgae cultivation. The novel concentric double tubes presented in this work can give some inspiration for high efficiency microalgae cultivation.     

“One thing leads to another”—Commodities,linkages and industrial development

With a particular focus on low income economies in SSA, this paper addresses the nature and determinants of linkages from the commodities sectors and challenges the received view that enclave development is an inherent characteristic of resource extraction, particularly in the hard and energy commodities sectors. It argues that there has been a steady increase in linkage development and that there are significant opportunities for deepening this process. The opportunities may be greater for backward than for forward linkages, particularly in the minerals and energy sectors. In making this case, this Discussion Paper draws on the experience of high income countries which have resource intensive economic structures, the geographical specificity of many resources and the growing interest of large resource extracting firms in outsourcing the production of inputs which are outside of their core competences and in supporting local production of some inputs, it sets out a general model of linkage development which distinguishes between win–win and win–lose outcomes.     

Spatial Targeting of Agri-Environmental Measures: Cost-Effectiveness and Distributional Consequences

Agri-environmental measures are payments to farmers to reduce environmental risks or to preserve cultivated landscapes. These measures are codified in European Union regulations. Poor spatial targeting is one of the major causes of low cost-effectiveness in agri-environmental measures. Existing studies on spatial targeting focus primarily on selected individual measures; hence, they do not allow for conclusions at the program level, where the planning and implementing of decisions on a number of different measures has to be made. In this study, we analyzed the impacts of two spatial targeting options (targeting of erosion-reducing measures on erosion vulnerable areas; targeting of grassland extensification on N-pollution vulnerable areas) on the cost-effectiveness of the single measures and the entire agri-environmental program of the federal state of Brandenburg in Germany. The methodological steps included an analysis of empirical data on land use and program participation, an expert-based environmental impact assessment and a spatial allocation procedure based on linear programming. The environmental impact assessment delivered goal-specific index values for each measures-land parcel combination expressing the suitability of the measures for contributing to four regionally relevant program objectives. The cost-effectiveness of the measures and the program were calculated by putting budgetary costs in relation to the achieved environmental index sum. The calculated cost-effectiveness of the program in 2006 was 89.6% of the simulated optimal cost-effectiveness. The spatial targeting of erosion-reducing measures on erosion vulnerable areas caused an increase in the cost-effectiveness at the measures level and almost no changes at the program level. The spatial targeting of grassland extensification on N-pollution vulnerable areas, despite also improving the cost-effectiveness of this measure, had negative effects on the cost-effectiveness of the program.     

The toxic release inventory: Fact or fiction? A case study of the primary aluminum industry

Since 1989 manufacturing facilities across the USA must report toxic chemical emissions to the EPA's toxic release inventory (TRI). Public release of this information and increased public scrutiny are believed to significantly contribute to the over 45% reduction in toxic chemical releases since inception of the program and to growing support for this type of informational regulation instead of traditional command-and-control. However, prior research indicates a tendency to under-report emissions. We find specific evidence of under-reporting of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) to the TRI by primary aluminum facilities after promulgation of the industry's maximum available control technology (MACT) standard in 1997. We also find evidence of dislocation of emission overseas due to these regulatory requirements. Additionally, changes in energy prices affected aluminum production and further distort reported PAH emissions levels. This suggests the possibility of more widespread under-reporting that is modulated by various factors, including market conditions and new regulations, and which may partially explain the downward trend in TRI emissions. It also suggests that the quality of TRI data may improve once facilities are subject to monitoring of emissions of a TRI listed pollutant due to command-and-control regulation.     

"What Works Well; What Needs Improvement": Lessons in public consultation from British Columbia's resource planning processes

Resource planning and management in British Columbia, Canada, has been steadily moving towards more active public participation. While government agencies have long been required to consult the general public during the course of land or resource use planning, the 1990s brought in a period of more intense public involvement. In terms of resource planning, this led to the creation of several new planning processes. Given that there is now considerable experience with the Commission on Resources and Environment (CORE) and the Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP) processes, it is time for an appraisal. In particular, the paper examines the public's perceptions of these processes with respect to 'what works well' and 'what needs improvement'. The results highlight a number of areas to which process designers and managers should direct attention. There are three key items of note. First, there are generally low levels of awareness by respondents of public consultation processes in their community. Second, there is a need for access to timely, relevant and readable information throughout the course of the process in order to keep participants and the public as up-to-date as possible. Finally, there must be greater clarity about the process itself, including mandates, participants and decision-making powers.     

Floodplain management in London,Ontario, Canada: Assessing implementation of section 28 of the conservation authorities act

An assessment of floodplain regulation by the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority in the City of London for the period 1978–1989 was undertaken. Utilizing a mix of data sources available through the conservation authority office, questionnaires administered to flooplain residents, interviews with relevant government officials, and housing statistics, the study concludes that regulations have been administered in an equitable and efficient manner. However, regulations have had some problems in controlling all development activity and in addressing policy objectives. Problems arise from weaknesses in the Conservation Authorities Act, an ensuing lack of judicial and participating municipal support in prosecuting violations, and inadequate monitoring and enforcement of development activity. Without addressing these issues, the basic problems associated with floodplain management in Ontario will remain.