Institutional quality,financial development and sustainable economic growth among lower income countries

This article postulates strong endogenous relationships in lower income countries between institutional quality, financial development and sustained economic growth. These associations were investigated using the vector-error correction model (VECM) and Granger causality method for a sample of 79 countries from 2005 to 2022. The findings show that (1) these variables reinforce each other in the short run. (2) In the long run, both institutional quality and financial development can fuel economic growth. (3) The positive effect of institutional quality on economic growth is greater than that of financial development. Policy implications of these findings are that careful attention should be paid to co-development policies to enhance the institutional quality and the financial system in these economies. Policies should also consider economic growth strategies to enable sustainable economic growth rates.     

Toward sustainable use of natural resources: Nexus between resource rents,affluence, energy intensity and carbon emissions in developing and transition economies

Sustainable use of natural resources would entail ensuring that derived economic benefits today do not undermine the welfare of generations to come. On this basis, this study examines the nexus between natural resource rents and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions disaggregated into production and consumption-based (i.e., trade-adjusted) CO₂ emissions for a selected panel of 45 developing and transition economies over the period 1995–2017. The empirical model also incorporates the impacts of population, affluence, and energy intensity. The results show that affluence increases production-based CO₂ emissions by 1.407%, with the EKC's predicted inverted U-shaped curve only explaining consumption-based CO₂ emissions. Economic reliance on natural resource rents and energy intensification contribute 0.022% and 0.766%, respectively, to CO₂ emissions embedded in territorial production inventories and 0.035% and 0.583%, respectively, to CO₂ emissions embedded in consumption inventories. The bootstrap non-causality test shows that historical data on each variable has significant predictive power for future CO₂ emissions from both sources. The historical information about natural resource rents has significant predictive power over the future levels of affluence and energy intensity. Clearly, the results show that the environmental impact of natural resource rents is stronger when CO₂ emissions are adjusted for trade and varies among the countries, with Bangladesh, Guinea, India, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe among the most affected countries. Overall, this study provides motivation for policies to keep the use of natural resources within sustainable limits.     

How does eliminating mercury from artisanal and small-scale gold mining lead to achieving sustainable development goals?

Artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) is the principal anthropogenic activity that globally contributes to overloading our environment with mercury. Although the Minamata Convention, led by the United Nations, is a crucial instrument to eliminate its use progressively, novel approaches to accelerate this difficult transition are welcome. This article proposes a framework for policy-making or improvement, fostering the enforcement of mercury elimination through the lens of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), focusing on the excluded artisanal and small-scale gold miners and their dependents. We move forward with a literature review of the Artisanal and Small Mining topic, taking each SDG as a unit of analysis. Understanding the problem as a puzzle of four sets of pieces, namely: (1) social, (2) environmental, (3) economic, and (4) institutional, the paper offers potential opportunities for the decision-makers and practitioners to accelerate the substitution of this heavy metal and develop sustainable futures for the ASGM communities. We conclude by proposing a pragmatic framework that synthesizes the means, actions, and ends to accelerate a sustainable transition.     

Effects of Amazonian flying rivers on frog biodiversity and populations in the Atlantic rainforest

Given the speed at which humans are changing the climate, species with high degrees of endemism may not have time to avoid extinction through adaptation. We investigated through teleconnection analysis the origin of rainfall that determines the phylogenetic diversity of rainforest frogs and the effects of microclimate differences in shaping the morphological traits of isolated populations (which contribute to greater phylogenetic diversity and speciation). We also investigated through teleconnection analysis how deforestation in Amazonia can affect ecosystem services that are fundamental to maintaining the climate of the Atlantic rainforest biodiversity hotspot. Seasonal winds known as flying rivers carry water vapor from Amazonia to the Atlantic Forest, and the breaking of this ecosystem service could lead Atlantic Forest species to population decline and extinction in the short term. Our results suggest that the selection of morphological traits that shape Atlantic Forest frog diversity and their population dynamics are influenced by the Amazonian flying rivers. Our results also suggest that the increases of temperature anomalies in the Atlantic Ocean due to global warming and in the Amazon forest due to deforestation are already breaking this cycle and threaten the biodiversity of the Atlantic Forest hotspot.     

Spatial analysis of resources and environmental carrying capacity in Iran

Urbanization and mass movement of the population from rural areas and small cities to megacities have led to environmental, economic, and social problems in Iran. In dealing with these challenges, assessing resource and environmental carrying capacity (RECC) is considered an effective method to leverage space and capital to achieve sustainable development. This study aimed to rank the provincial RECC in Iran. Toward this purpose, environmental indices were generated from remotely sensed and statistical census data. Then, the provinces were scored in terms of environmental, economic, and infrastructural carrying capacities, and RECC using the mean variance analysis method. Results demonstrated that in most areas, there is no relationship between economic and infrastructural capacities and development. Statistically, a correlation coefficient of −0.53 between economic and environmental carrying capacities indicated excessive use of environmental capacities. Moreover, the spatial distribution pattern of environmental, economic, and infrastructural carrying capacity was entirely heterogeneous between the provinces; there was a northeast–southwest pattern in terms of infrastructural capacity and an economic pattern from north to south. The distribution pattern of RECC is most consistent with the environmental capacity, pointing at the high weight of the indicators of the RECC model. In conclusion, this research offers a new vision for policymakers and provides a theoretical and applicable framework for implementing sustainable strategies in land-use planning. It is recommended that the RECC concept and tools can be used not only for planning but also for measuring the efficiency of spatial development programs and establishing land balances in the region.     

内陆核设施废液零排放方式探讨

液态放射性流出物是核设施运行的必然产物,滨海核设施向大海进行稀释排放处置,内陆核设施缺少稀释载体,采用自然蒸发空气载带方式将液体流出物通过气态途径向大气稀释排放是可行的替代方案,可以实现液态流出物的零排放。自然蒸发空气载带排放方案描述了工艺原理,提出了空气流速、空气温度、环境相对湿度、废水温度等与蒸发强度的关系,给出了一套自然蒸发载带排放装置的概念设计,分析了液态流出物转为气态途径排放对环境的影响,论证了采用自然蒸发空气载带方式实现内陆核设施液态流出物零排放目标的可行性。     

可达性视角下东北地区城市群的高铁效应

利用2004—2015年列车实际运营数据,构建广义加权旅行时间模型,探究我国东北地区城市群可达性的空间分布特征。结果表明:①高铁开通后,东北地区城市群的可达性水平有较大程度的提高,地级市较为明显;空间上,提高较为明显的区域集中在铁路沿线以及辽中南城市群的部分城市。②高铁对东北地区第三产业集聚现象并不明显。③城市可达性水平的提高可以促进东北地区城市群经济增长,高铁的开通对于地区经济增长具有溢出效应。     

环保型塑料产业进展

本文在持续跟踪环保型塑料产业动态的基础上,从原料开发、产品设计、废弃物回收利用等方面,综述了生物基和石油基环保型塑料产业的最新进展,旨在为塑料研发人员和相关产业工作者开拓思路。指出:环保型塑料是未来塑料产业发展的重要方向,非环保型塑料的市场份额将逐步被环保型塑料占据,最后稳定在较低的水平上。     

环境保护税对企业绩效的影响研究：基于税额标准的提高

2018年中国正式开征环境保护税，这是我国首个以环境保护为直接政策目标的税种。环境保护税由排污费改革而来，有一半以上省份直接平移排污费收费标准，其他省份提高了税额标准。本文以2016—2019年中国上市公司季度数据为研究样本，利用PSM-DID方法评估了环境保护税税额标准提高对企业绩效的短期经济影响。实证结果表明，在短期内环境保护税税额标准提高并不会对企业绩效产生显著的影响，这一结论在进行三重差分、更换指标和数据等稳健性检验之后仍然成立。此外，本文发现在制度环境较好的东部地区，环境保护税对企业绩效的短期抑制作用更为显著，税额标准提高降低了企业的净资产收益率和总资产报酬率，显示出制度环境对环境保护税具有加强效应，从而促使企业有更好的环境表现。对此，本文提出应持续优化环境保护税制度，提高征管能力和水平，调高部分地区环境保护税税额标准，改进中西部地区制度环境等建议。     

美缝剂TVOC释放量与释放规律的测试与分析

提出了环境舱法测试美缝剂总挥发性有机化合物(TVOC)释放量的方法,对市场常见的美缝剂产品的TVOC进行了测试,并研究了美缝剂的TVOC释放规律和主要污染物.同时对美缝剂的甲醛释放量进行了测试.通过对16种环氧树脂美缝剂产品的数据分析显示,美缝剂产品的甲醛释放量风险较低;75%的产品在第7天的TVOC释放量可达到500μg·m^-3以下.但个别产品在28 d时仍有明显的VOC释放,显示其具有长期缓慢释放的特点.美缝剂释放的主要污染物为苯甲醛与苯甲醇,个别产品检出有甲苯和邻苯二甲酸酯类物质.