Effective risk governance for environmental policy making: A knowledge management perspective

Effective risk management within environmental policy making requires knowledge on natural, economic and social systems to be integrated; knowledge characterised by complexity, uncertainty and ambiguity. We describe a case study in a (UK) central government department exploring how risk governance supports and hinders this challenging integration of knowledge. Forty-five semi-structured interviews were completed over a two year period. We found that lateral knowledge transfer between teams working on different policy areas was widely viewed as a key source of knowledge. However, the process of lateral knowledge transfer was predominantly informal and unsupported by risk governance structures. We argue this made decision quality vulnerable to a loss of knowledge through staff turnover, and time and resource pressures. Our conclusion is that the predominant form of risk governance framework, with its focus on centralised decision-making and vertical knowledge transfer is insufficient to support risk-based, environmental policy making. We discuss how risk governance can better support environmental policy makers through systematic knowledge management practices.     

Adaptation Options Strategies for Hazards and Vulnerability Mitigation: An International Perspective

The broad objective of this special issue of Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change is to address some of the gaps in our knowledge and understanding of the policies, programs, and measures that might be applied to natural hazards and their impacts in an era of climate change. Given the global impacts of climate change and world-wide pattern of increasing losses from natural hazards we necessarily adopt an international perspective. The specific goals of the special issue are to: (a) encompass experiential aspects, emphasizing current practice of mitigation and its associated measures, and their results; and (b) explore primary or root causes of alarming shifts in human and economic costs of environmental extremes. Special emphasis is placed on how human activities are playing a key role in enhancing vulnerability to NTEE (nature-triggered environmental extremes), quite independently from the anthropogenic causes of climate change. The goals are also (c) to examine costs, risks, and benefits (of all kinds including social, political, ecological) of mitigation, and adjustment and adaptation measures; and (d) analyze policy implications of alternative measures. These components are expected to make significant contributions to policy considerations – formulation, implementation and evaluation. There is much uncertainty about the rate of climate change; however, the fact of increase of the atmospheric temperature in the last century is no longer a subject of scientific or policy debate. Due to such changes in the geophysical parameters, certain types of nature-triggered environmental extreme events are likely to continue to increase. How global warming will affect regional climates and pertinent variables is not well known, limiting our ability to predict consequential effects. This factor poses serious constraints against any straightforward policy decisions. Research findings of the work of this volume reaffirm that human dimensions, specifically our awareness and decision-making behavior, are powerful explanatory factors of increasing disaster losses. Disaster mitigation through addressing human, social, and physical vulnerability is one of the best means for contributing to ‘climate change adaptation plans’, and sustainable development goals. Recent lessons from various countries have depicted that the formulation of mitigation strategies cannot be exclusively top-down as it requires social, political, and cultural acceptance and sense of ownership. An interactive, participatory process, involving local communities, produces best expected outcomes concerning mitigation, preparedness, and recovery. An emerging consensus is that there is a need to move towards the ‘mission’ of the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction which aims at building disaster resilient communities by promoting increased awareness of the importance of disaster reduction as an integral component of sustainable development, with the goal of reducing human, social, economic and environmental losses due to natural hazards and related technological and environmental disasters. Sharing of best practices and lessons globally is certain to produce more efficiency and understanding in policy and decision making.     

The influence of science on Canada's foreign policy on persistent organic pollutants (1985–2001)

The role of science in environmental foreign policymaking has received little attention in the international environmental politics literature, and systematic, in-depth case studies of the influence of science on environmental foreign policy with respect to persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are entirely missing. We present a case study of the influence of science on Canada's foreign policy on POPs from the discovery of the transboundary nature of the POPs problem around 1985 to the signing of the United Nations Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants in 2001. Influence was analyzed in terms of a knowledge–action methodology that focused on the types of scientific knowledge and the actions taken by scientists that were influential. Data were collected through interviews and extensive document analysis. We conclude that, while individual knowledge types and actions were influential during various periods (single-factor explanations), it was an increasingly layered and integrated “package” of knowledge types and actions, with human health impacts as its touchstone and partnering between scientists and non-scientists as its watchword, that propelled and sustained Canada's foreign policy on the POPs issue.     

海洋动力灾害承灾体脆弱性评价分析——以海口市为例

科学地进行海洋承灾体灾害脆弱性评价,是完善海洋灾害监测、预警、防控体系的基础,是海洋灾害风险管理的重要组成部分。本文以海洋动力灾害多发的海口市为例,在系统开展承灾体调查分析的基础上,从自然和社会属性两个方面对该市进行了脆弱性分析和评价。利用GIS技术,对研究结果进行了标准化制图。结果表明,海拔较低的港湾地区、人口密集区更易受到海洋动力灾害的影响。海口市极高脆弱性区域共439 km2, 主要集中在人口和重要承灾体较密集的市中心秀英区、龙华区、美兰区北部沿海区域和西秀镇西部等区域。本文关于海洋动力灾害承灾体脆弱性的评价结果属于海口市专题海洋灾害风险调查和评价结果,可为海口市规划布局、海洋动力灾害风险防范提供重要参考。     

衡阳市早稻洪涝灾害风险区划研究

依托GIS技术,采用自然灾害风险评价的理论和方法,建立早稻洪涝灾害风险评价模型,研究了衡阳市早稻洪涝灾害风险等级。结果表明:综合分析早稻洪涝灾害的致灾因子危险性、孕灾环境敏感性、承灾体易损性和防灾减灾能力,绘制了衡阳市早稻洪涝灾害综合风险区划图,并分析了衡阳市早稻洪涝灾害风险区划的空间分布规律和特点。衡东县早稻洪涝灾害风险等级最高,祁东县早稻洪涝灾害综合风险等级最低。     

Matching knowledge brokering strategies to environmental policy problems and settings

The benefits of utilizing intermediaries to broker understanding between environmental scientists and policy makers have become widely touted. Yet little is known about the tasks boundary spanners undertake to develop environmental policy solutions and how these tasks fit into frameworks intended to advance public policy decision making. Such frameworks may be constructed to aid decision makers in differentiating between the types of environmental policy issues that confront them or the policy settings in which they are operating. Consequently, this paper examines how six different knowledge brokering strategies; informing, consulting, matchmaking, engaging, collaborating and building capacity might be employed in responding to different types of environmental policy problems or policy settings identified in decision aiding frameworks. Using real world examples, four frameworks are reviewed. They are; Lindquist's [Lindquist, E.A., 1988. What do decision models tell us about information use? Knowledge in Society 1 (2), 86–111; Lindquist, E.A., 1990. The third community, policy inquiry, and social scientists. In: Stephen Brooks, S., Gagnon, A. (Eds.), Social Scientists, Policy and the State. Praeger, New York; Lindquist, E.A., 2001. Discerning policy influence: framework for a strategic evaluation of IDRC-Supported research] decision regimes, Turnhout et al.’s [Turnhout, E., Hisschemoller, M., Eijsackers, H., 2007. Ecological indicators: between the two fires of science and policy. Ecological Indicators 7 (2), 215–228] science policy typology, Holling's [Holling, C.S., 1995. What barriers? What bridges? In: Gunderson, L.H., Holling, C.S. (Eds.), Barriers and Bridges to the Renewal of Ecosystems and Institutions. Columbia University Press, New York, pp. 3–34] adaptive cycle and Kurtz and Snowden's [Kurtz, C.F., Snowden, D.J., 2003. The new dynamics of strategy: sense-making in a complex and complicated world. IBM Systems Journal 42 (3), 462–483] Cynefin domains. For the different problem types or policy settings described in the decision aiding frameworks primary knowledge brokering strategies are identified. While the frameworks differ in their conceptual constructions, the applicability of specific knowledge brokering strategies serve as a commonality across particular problem types and policy settings.     

城市经济脆弱性评价研究——以北京海淀区为例

经济脆弱性评价是风险评估的重要步骤和制定有效防灾减灾规划的前提条件,是应急管理和灾后恢复重建的重要依据。为了能够反映区域内部经济脆弱性空间差异,为政府防灾减灾、应急管理以及灾后恢复重建提供有效依据,论文选择了城市街区尺度对经济脆弱性进行研究,提出了一个微观尺度的经济脆弱性评估模型,该模型综合考虑了企业属性、产业易损性、产业重要性、街区经济密度,并对经济脆弱性及各影响因素进行了空间研究。利用该模型对2010 年北京市海淀区的经济脆弱性进行了案例研究,结果显示：总体而言,海淀区经济脆弱性较低,647 个街区中有103 个街区经济脆弱性较高,虽然脆弱街区数量比例较高,达15.9%,但所占面积较小,仅占海淀区面积的4.91%;进行了经济脆弱性集聚区和热点地区分析,结果显示脆弱性地区同时是地区主导和支柱产业集聚地区,在应急管理和日常风险管理中应该对这些地区予以重点关注。     

灾害风险视角下的城市安全评估及其驱动机制分析——以滁州市中心城区为例

全球自然灾害以及城市化进程中的人为灾害频发,严重制约着城市的生存和安全发展。以典型的灾害多发地区滁州市中心城区为例,基于压力—状态—响应（Pressure-State-Response,PSR）概念框架,构建了各单灾种风险评价指标体系,利用耦合激励模型复合单灾种风险评估结果,定量测度了研究区的城市安全风险分布特征,并运用地理探测器对城市安全风险进行了驱动机制分析。结果表明：（1）研究区的城市安全风险等级占比从低到高分别为2.49%、8.71%、41.08%、30.47%和17.25%,以中风险占主导。在空间上,城市安全风险表现为中部高于周围边缘区域,呈现出由核心区往外逐步减弱的格局特征。（2）6个驱动因子对城市安全风险的解释力强度为人口密度（0.404）>地均GDP（0.402）>建筑承灾能力（0.095）>植被覆盖度（0.078）>路网密度（0.013）>用地类型风险（0.012）,因子交互协同作用后对结果的解释力增强。研究结果为城市安全风险评估提供了新的理论视角与研究框架,能够服务于高风险区域的灾害风险管理。     

Attitudes to and practices regarding sex selection in China

This paper explores the problem of China's ‘missing’ girls—estimated to run into many millions. It considers the impact of the underpinning Confucian value system in China that has produced a culture of son preference and which, together with China's compulsory family planning program and ‘one child policy’, has effectively established a ‘one son policy’. Discussion of the various means by which the birth or survival of daughters have traditionally been prevented provides the context for identifying the contribution of new sex selection procedures to the maintenance of son preference in contemporary Chinese society. The paper concludes that China's son preference is not simply a personal problem for the millions of ‘missing girls’ who were destined to live a shorter life and for the surviving girls who continue to face considerable discrimination simply because they are of the ‘wrong’ sex; it heralds a social and demographic disaster of major proportions for which neither the government nor the people of China appear to have the will or the means to forestall. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The challenge of knowledge exchange in national policy impact assessment – A case of Finnish climate policy

Impact assessment (IA) is one of the most widely applied instruments for generating policy-relevant knowledge. However, the step-wise process, logic of linear knowledge transfer and influence of IA has frequently been criticised. Current IA procedures do not adequately address complex and unpredictable policy processes, such as the preparation of climate policies. Drawing on a framework of science–policy interface problems, we analyse knowledge exchange in a national climate policy IA case and discuss the reasons for the problems. We demonstrate various problems in knowledge use and production as well as in the balance between the demand for and supply of knowledge, such as ignoring the knowledge involved in the policy process, the monopoly held by certain knowledge providers and models, insufficient scoping and framing of the IA, poor interaction with knowledge providers and users, and inadequate planning and coordination of the process. We highlight the need for adding context-sensitive and tailored knowledge exchange practices to IA processes to enhance the use of existing knowledge in climate policy.     

污染地块层次化风险评估发展历程与研究进展

风险评估是污染地块管理的核心环节,基于风险的管控策略已被广泛认可和应用.风险评估过程中暴露情景构建、暴露模型表征和暴露参数选用等的不确定性是影响评估结果的主要因素.而层次化风险评估（Tiered Risk Assessment）通过迭代方法可有效平衡评估不确定性、结果准确性和资源有限性之间的矛盾,为污染地块提供了经济高效的风险管控思路.因此,为强化对层次化风险评估的理论认知并推动其在污染地块风险评估领域的发展和应用,本文通过文献调研,系统梳理了国内外污染地块层次化风险评估的发展历程,分析了污染物环境行为的暴露情景构建、暴露模型表征及参数本土化调整等方面的研究进展,探讨了层次化风险评估技术的发展方向.结果表明,层次化方法在污染面积较大、污染状况复杂的大型污染地块中得到广泛的重视和应用,相较于传统风险评估,这一方法可提高结果准确性、减少不必要的成本投入和避免过度修复.基于现实假设构建暴露情景和优化暴露模型、耦合不确定模型评估及参数本土化调整是目前研究的热点和趋势.基于此,结合我国污染地块风险管理的政策要求及现状,提出层次化和精细化的风险评估在污染地块风险管理中的应用建议.未来可从内涵演变、...     

Community action planning in East Delhi: a participatory approach to build urban disaster resilience

The paper addresses disaster risk of an urban community in a mega city, which experiences high risk to natural hazards. The Community Action Planning (CAP) tool is used in this case. It has been developed from five resilience dimensions (physical, social, economic, institutional, and natural), 25 parameters and 75 actions. A detailed CAP structured questionnaire survey was conducted with 89 Residential and Welfare Associations (RWAs) in East Delhi, India situated in three types of settlements: planned Delhi Development Authority (DDA) housing and societies, colonies, and urban villages. The result identifies and prioritizes 32 actions as important for all three settlements. The result shows both consistent and inconsistent responses from RWAs. To give some examples, parameter S3 is “tasks to reduce number of people suffer from water borne diseases after a disaster”. In response to this parameter, approximately 80% of total respondents prioritized action (A1), “promoting people to take preventive measures after a disaster”. It shows consistent response from all three settlements. However, parameter S5 is “tasks to improve the awareness and knowledge about threat and impact of disasters”. Approximately 40% of total respondents prioritized A1, “organizing training program for awareness and knowledge building”. This action was prioritized in planned DDA housing and societies (56%) as well as in colonies (52%). However, none of the respondents from urban villages prioritized this action. These responses show inconsistency in response to specific action. In addition, the study shows the potential impact of CAP process for other communities in cities that are experiencing disaster risks and impact of climate change.     

An abbreviated alternatives assessment process for product designers: a children’s furniture manufacturing case study

Alternatives assessment is becoming increasingly popular to evaluate the potential environmental and human health hazards of materials. A three step process was used to identify and evaluate alternative products for a children's furniture manufacturer. An alternatives assessment framework was developed to analyze alternative mattresses. The framework specifically addresses those environmental and safety attributes applicable to the product and the product components in accordance with the product’s intended use. The result of the assessment allowed the manufacturer to select the most environmentally friendly alternative and eliminate polyvinyl chloride from their product.     

Designing a knowledge co-production operating space for urban environmental governance—Lessons from Rotterdam,Netherlands and Berlin,Germany

Challenges for a sustainable urban development are increasingly important in cities because urbanization and related land take come up with negative challenges for the environment and for city residents. Searching for successful solutions to environmental problems requires combined efforts of different scientific disciplines and an active dialogue between stakeholders from policy and society. In this paper, we present a comparative assessment of the way policy-science dialogues have achieved knowledge co-production about strategic urban environmental governance action using the cities of Berlin in Germany and Rotterdam in the Netherlands as case studies. The ecosystem services framework is applied as a lens for policy–science interaction and a ‘knowledge co-production operating space’ is introduced. We show how policy officers, urban planners, practitioners and scientists learned from each other, and highlight the impact of this knowledge co-production for governance practice. We found that the concerted collaboration and co-creation between researchers and policy officers have led to mutual learning and establishment of relationships and trust in both cities. Not only the policy-relevance of research and its policy uptake were achieved but also new insights for research blind spots were created. In our conclusions we reflect on co-production processes with two types of conditions that we introduced to be most influential in the way knowledge can be co-created. These are conditions that relate to the way knowledge co-production processes are set-up and, conditions that relate to the expected value or benefit that the co-produced knowledge will bring across society, policy and practice.     

区域地下水环境风险评价技术方法

针对我国在地下水环境风险评价技术方法储备不足的问题,提出区域地下水环境风险评价技术方法应遵循逐级筛选、分类分级评价的思路,突出对不同尺度的控制,将区域地下水尺度划分为区域(流域、平原)、局部地区(城市、单元)和场地(水源地、污染场地)3个层次. 通过分析区域地下水环境中风险源—受体—危害分析—生态终点的暴露响应途径,提出适宜大尺度区域地下水环境风险的评价方法;选用区域土地利用类型表征区域污染源,以地下水水质以及供水量变化为生态终点,采用相对风险模型分析大尺度区域环境风险. 针对大尺度区域内高环境风险区,采用源—路径—受体控制模型建立城市区域尺度地下水污染风险评价理论模型,并结合当地污染源特征、水文地质条件及水质现状进行局部地区地下水污染风险评价. 针对局部地区的高污染风险区,基于健康风险评价理论,突出水质安全保障,确定小尺度场地地下水健康风险的内涵与评价方法,提出场地地下水健康风险评价流程采用过程模拟方法确定污染物在包气带—地下水中的迁移转化,定量分析其对人体健康的影响. 下辽河平原区域地下水环境风险评价结果显示,高环境风险区位于沈阳浑河冲洪积扇区域,而细河是区域内地下水高健康风险区,应有针对性地采取保护措施.      

大学生减灾教育对策研究

灾害风险认知能力是进行减灾教育的基础,受众获取灾害知识与信息的方式是影响减灾教育方法的重要因素,而受众获取灾害知识与信息的途径则会直接影响灾害内容的传递效率和效果。本文针对以上所关心的问题,为了建立合理有效的大学生减灾教育计划,应对大学生防灾减灾意识和能力不足的现状,通过问卷调查,分析和研究了来自不同生源地大学生的灾害风险认知水平、获取灾害知识和信息的方式与途径。从自然灾害风险认知的视角,通过寻找不同特性大学生群体获取减灾知识与信息的差异和趋同性,提出了现势条件下针对大学生的减灾教育对策。     

Unruly pathogens: eliciting values for environmental risk in the context of heterogeneous expert knowledge

This paper examines some of the theoretical and methodological issues arising from the process of conceptualising and eliciting values for environmental risk in the context of heterogeneous expert knowledge. Drawing on the experience of a recent research project examining the relationship between livestock farming systems and microbial watercourse pollution the paper reflects critically upon efforts to develop an interdisciplinary assessment of the factors that may affect the loss of potential pathogens from agricultural land to water courses as the basis for targeting high risk fields and farms. The paper describes the procedures for designing the natural and cultural parameters that surround microbial risks and the issues that are raised for making whole system assessments workable based on contrasting and unstable systems of disciplinary insight. Situated within claims about the need for generating reliable and widely applicable assessments of environmental risk the paper suggests that interdisciplinary working raises important issues about the role of ‘uncertain’ knowledge in the management of ‘known’ risks.     

全氟和多氟烷基化合物的环境风险评估研究现状、不确定性与趋势分析

本研究系统梳理了国际学术界关于全氟和多氟烷基化合物(perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances,PFASs)的术语、范畴和应用物质的界定与变迁,以PFASs的环境危害性评估和暴露评估为重心,综述评析当前关于PFASs环境风险评估研究现状、不确定性和发展趋势.总体上,PFASs风险评估正面临着物质谱系复杂、种类众多、衍生关系复杂、商业秘密及风险不确定的复杂局面.尽管长链PFASs的环境风险已获广泛认可,但以其替代品形式大量涌现的短链PFASs及各类短链氟调聚物的环境危害性、环境行为和暴露风险则尚存很多的不确定性与研究空白,国际社会对于PFASs的风险控制范畴值得商榷.PFASs替代物质的结构和风险信息因商业秘密及市场竞争因素而缺乏公开性和透明度,多数含氟和非氟替代品的环境风险尚有待识别.总之,国际上对PFASs风险评估研究呈现出由以全氟辛烷磺酸类化合物(perfluorooctane sulfonic acid,PFOS)和全氟辛酸类化合物(perfluorooctanoic acid,PFOA)等为代表的长链全氟烷基酸(perfluoroalkyl acids,PFAAs)逐步扩展到短链PFAAs,再扩展到其他非PFAAs的PFASs物种的发展趋势.当前亟待解决及未来将持续研究关注的主要问题:关于短链PFASs的生物累积性和环境迁移性等关键环境危害性的评估指标和方法的优化,以及其环境释放和多介质环境归趋;中性PFASs的环境归趋及其作为短链PFAAs潜在前体物质的转化与贡献;未来PFASs含氟或非氟替代品的风险识别和评估.     

世界卫生组织(WHO)颁布环境健康基准的历程及对我国的借鉴

随着我国环境质量的不断改善,预防和控制由环境因素导致的健康风险正在成为环境管理制度的重要内容. 我国在环境基准理论和方法学领域取得了一些研究成果,而环境健康基准研究仍然存在不足,面临诸多挑战. 在回顾WHO启动环境健康基准项目背景,厘清起草、审阅和颁布环境健康基准的程序,系统总结244个环境健康基准核心内容的基础上,提出环境健康基准研究的几点建议:①运用组学和高时空人群精细化暴露评价等技术方法,开展环境致病因素和健康结局因果关系研究;②建立有效评价环境多因素暴露以及社会、经济发展状况相互作用产生健康风险的方法;③加强对影响我国居民健康,以及在环境介质中赋存量高的新型环境污染物健康基准研究;④推动建立符合我国环境质量管理需要的环境健康风险评价技术.      

中国的环境政策效应与污染治理效果分析

在简述环境政策和管理制度改革的基础上,对基产生的效应进行了分析,主要包括：经济改革促进了环境保护;环境保护新举措初见成效,但污染治理任务仍然十分艰巨。通过对各省区环境治理投资效果分析,提出未来环境政策和治理应该在以下几个方面加强：（１）重新设计环境影响评价和“三同时”制度,将它们与污染物总量控制战略结合起来（２）改善排污收费制度,由超标收费向排污收费转变;由单一浓度收费向浓度与总量相结合转变;由单