Resilience in the context of tsunami early warning systems and community disaster preparedness in the Indian Ocean Region

This paper discusses insights from post-tsunami early warning system (EWS) development in Thailand, Sri Lanka and Indonesia by analysing selected elements of resilience, based on the Coastal Community Resilience (CCR) framework, and by distinguishing between the cognitive, normative and procedural dimensions of EWSs. The findings indicate that (1) recent calls to develop participatory and people-centred EWSs as promoted by the Hyogo Framework for Action 2005—2015 have not been sufficiently translated into action in the implementation of national policies and strategies for early warning; (2) policy and guidance places significantly more emphasis on the procedural compared to the normative and cognitive dimensions of EWSs; (3) practitioners engaged in early warning and disaster risk reduction operate in contexts shaped by multiple stakeholder agendas and face considerable challenges in negotiating diverse needs and priorities; and (4) few platforms currently exist that enable stakeholders to coordinate and reconcile agendas, negotiate joint targets, share knowledge and critically reflect on lessons learnt, and to improve the integration of early warning with other priorities such as livelihoods improvement, natural resource management and community development.     

Threats of illegal,unregulated, and unreported fishing to biodiversity and food security in the Republic of the Congo

Illegal, unregulated, and unreported (IUU) fishing poses a major threat to effective management of marine resources, affecting biodiversity and communities dependent on these coastal resources. Spatiotemporal patterns of industrial fisheries in developing countries are often poorly understood, and global efforts to describe spatial patterns of fishing vessel activity are currently based on automatic identification system (AIS) data. However, AIS is often not a legal requirement on fishing vessels, likely resulting in underestimates of the scale and distribution of legal and illegal fishing activity, which could have significant ramifications for targeted enforcement efforts and the management of fisheries resources. To help address this knowledge gap, we analyzed 3 years of vessel monitoring system (VMS) data in partnership with the national fisheries department in the Republic of the Congo to describe the behavior of national and distant-water industrial fleets operating in these waters. We found that the spatial footprint of the industrial fisheries fleet encompassed over one-quarter of the Exclusive Economic Zone. On average, 73% of fishing activity took place on the continental shelf (waters shallower than 200 m). Our findings highlight that VMS is not acting as a deterrent or being effectively used as a proactive management tool. As much as 33% (13% on average) of fishing effort occurred in prohibited areas set aside to protect biodiversity, including artisanal fisheries resources, and the distant-water fleet responsible for as much as 84% of this illegal activity. Given the growth in industrial and distant-water fleets across the region, as well as low levels of management and enforcement, these findings highlight that there is an urgent need for the global community to help strengthen regional and national capacity to analyze national scale data sets if efforts to combat IUU fishing are to be effective.     

实施清洁生产,预防职业性危害

随着经济的发展 ,环境问题日趋严峻 ,同时由职业性危害因素导致的职业性危害或灾难也日趋增加 ,为了遏制环境的日益恶化 ,目前世界上大多数国家都实施了清洁生产 ,从源头控制环境污染已成为潮流。而在一定的劳动条件下或生产经营活动中 ,职业性危害因素主要存在于生产过程、劳动过程和生产环境 3个方面 ,而企业在实施清洁生产时 ,为诊断企业“不清洁”的因素 ,也要从这 3个方面来识别和评价。基于上述观点 ,笔者提出了结合企业的清洁生产来识别职业性危害因素 ,以预防职业性危害的发生和发展 ,并提出了具体预防职业性危害的清洁生产措施以及用职业健康监护来检验这些措施的效果 ,以实施安全生产 ,保护劳动者的生命安全与健康。     

Earthquake drills and simulations in community-based training and preparedness programmes

The San Francisco, California, bay area is subject to continuous seismic risk. One particular response has been the development of community-based training programmes designed to teach residents basic emergency response skills. Citizens are taught emergency medical techniques, search and rescue, fire suppression and other fundamental response skills. Current estimates in the Bay Area place the number of programmes at more than 100. Many programmes now include an annual community drill to reinforce the training and to evaluate the programme. The study described here is based on an evaluation of an effort initiated by BayNET (Bay Area Neighborhood Emergency Training), a voluntary association of communities with community-based disaster preparedness programmes. In April 1996, BayNET asked all of its members to hold a community earthquake drill. After the drill, a mail survey was conducted of all programme managers. The survey examined the structure and administration of the programmes, training efforts and other related components. This paper describes the typology of drill formats that communities used, the role of the simulation in the city's preparedness efforts, the qualitative costs and benefits, as well as an assessment of the drill based on survey respondents.     

煤矿呼吸性粉尘及其综合控制

在生产过程中产生的粉尘中,呼吸性粉尘是尘肺病的引发源,在煤矿防尘工作中必须引起高度重视。我国煤矿尘肺病发病情况十分严重,据不完全统计,至2002年底,我国煤炭行业累计患尘肺病人数达25万以上,该年度因尘肺病死亡人数是因事故死亡人数的两倍。呼吸性粉尘粒径小、悬浮时间长、肉眼不可见,极易被吸入人体的肺部并沉积于肺泡区内,随着沉积量的增加,可引发尘肺病。尘肺病目前尚无法根治,但完全可以预防。其有效的预防措施就是对粉尘施行综合控制,从抑制尘源、降低浮尘、排除余尘到个体防护等一系列技术措施,最大限度地减低作业人员的接尘量,同时进行医学预防,防止尘肺病的发生和发展。建立工程性防御与医学性预防相结合,防止煤尘爆炸与预防尘肺病一体化的管理机制。     

QUANTITATIVE METHODS FOR PRELIMINARY DESIGN OF WATER QUALITY SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS1

ABSTRACT: To assure attainment and maintenance of desired water quality levels in our rivers and streams, systematic monitoring must be performed. A preliminary phase of the design of water quality surveillance systems is the specification of sampling frequencies and station locations throughout the basin; that is, the development of an adequate space/time sampling plan. The purpose of this paper is to present some quantitative methods which have been developed to identify candidate sets of sampling frequencies and station locations, and to establish priorities for implementing the different frequencies and locations. These methods are useful in the cost/effectiveness trade-off analyses in surveillance system design, and are based on the surveillance system objective of pollution abatement in which it is desired to detect violations in state-federal water quality standards. A spatial priority measure is developed which is dependent both on the water quality profile in the stream and on the information obtained from monitoring stations located in other reaches. Also, a temporal sampling priority rating is presented which is a measure of the effectiveness of the surveillance system with respect to its ability to detect the violations in the standards. To illustrate the quantitative methods, the procedures are applied to the Wabash River Basin.     

DATA REQUIREMENTS OF A WATER QUALITY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM1

ABSTRACT: Routine data collection currently consumes a large amount of the total resources devoted to water quality management. All too often data collection becomes an end in itself, with little thought given to the purpose of the data collection. The problem generally stems from a lack of proper routine surveillance system design and a failure on the part of the designers to initially identify the data needs of the management program. This study attempts, in a general way, to delineate the data needs of a water quality management program. This first required an identification of the activities involved in water quality management. The activities were then discussed in terms of the types of information needed to successfully complete their assigned tasks. Several detailed examples are given. The results of the discussion are summarized and several strategies are proposed to relate the results to surveillance system design.     

危险品的GPS运输监控技术现状分析

频发的危化品运输事故说明,危化品运输环节的技术化监管仍存在重大的漏洞和不足.从分析导致运输事故的原因出发,提出通过建立以GPS定位技术为基础的智能化全程监控危化品的运输系统,并在城市化进程中不断推广,才能降低事故率,营造出持久、稳定、安全的运输环境.     

Estimated chemical usage by manufacturers in Connecticut

Background

There is little available data on chemical use patterns by companies, with few federal requirements for reporting. This results in difficulties for targeting toxics for possible substitution, assisting employers with complying with newer international regulations, and decreased ability to estimate health and environmental impacts.

Methods

Massachusetts chemical use data for manufacturers required under the Toxics Use Reduction Act (TURA) was acquired, with corresponding information on industrial sector classification and employment levels by sector for both Massachusetts (MA) and Connecticut (CT). The MA chemical data was adjusted based on the ratio of employment levels by sector for CT compared to MA to give estimates of chemical usage by sector in CT.

Results

It was estimated that there was over 660 million pounds of chemicals used in CT, with over 300 million pounds each of carcinogens and reproductive hazards (categories overlap). The most common chemicals estimated to be used were styrene monomer (266 million lbs.), sodium hydroxide (60 million lbs.), and methanol (50 million lbs.). The industrial sub-sectors estimated with the highest chemical usage were chemical manufacturing, plastics and rubber products manufacturing, and fabricated metal product manufacturing.

Conclusion

There is extensive chemical use in CT manufacturing, but little direct information on actual use patterns.     

When Agendas Collide: Human Welfare and Biological Conservation

Abstract:  Conservation should benefit ecosystems, nonhuman organisms, and current and future human beings. Nevertheless, tension among these goals engenders potential ethical conflicts: conservationists' true motivations may differ from the justifications they offer for their activities, and conservation projects have the potential to disempower and oppress people. We reviewed the promise and deficiencies of integrating social, economic, and biological concerns into conservation, focusing on research in ecosystem services and efforts in community-based conservation. Despite much progress, neither paradigm provides a silver bullet for conservation's most pressing problems, and both require additional thought and modification to become maximally effective. We conclude that the following strategies are needed to make conservation more effective in our human-dominated world. (1) Conservation research needs to integrate with social scholarship in a more sophisticated manner. (2) Conservation must be informed by a detailed understanding of the spatial, temporal, and social distributions of costs and benefits of conservation efforts. Strategies should reflect this understanding, particularly by equitably distributing conservation's costs. (3) We must better acknowledge the social concerns that accompany biodiversity conservation; accordingly, sometimes we must argue for conservation for biodiversity's sake, not for its direct human benefits.