The economic dimensions of integrating flood management and agri-environment through washland creation: a case from Somerset, England

In many river floodplains in the UK, there has been a long history of flood defence, land reclamation and water regime management for farming. In recent years, however, changing European and national policies with respect to farming, environment and flood management are encouraging a re-appraisal of land use in rural areas. In particular, there is scope to develop, through the use of appropriate promotional mechanisms, washland areas, which will simultaneously accommodate winter inundation, support extensive farming methods, deliver environmental benefits, and do this in a way which can underpin the rural economy. This paper explores the likely economic impacts of the development of flood storage and washland creation. In doing so, consideration is given to feasibility of this type of development, the environmental implications for a variety of habitats and species, and the financial and institutional mechanisms required to achieve implementation.     

The valuation of historical sites: a case study of Valdivia,Chile

The economic valuation of cultural heritage is an area of increasing interest and an important research topic in the emerging field of cultural economics. Many services and values associated with cultural heritage are not traded in markets, and their estimation requires methods developed for the valuation of non-market goods, such as those used in environmental economics. This paper applies the contingent valuation method with double dichotomous choice to estimate the value of historical sites in the city of Valdivia, Chile. The valuation exercise was implemented by designing a hypothetical guided walking tour to a cluster of historical sites in the city centre, and surveying tourists visiting the city during the summer of 2004. Parametric and non-parametric statistical methods were used to estimate the survival distribution and the mean and median estimates of the willingness-to-pay (WTP). The study emphasizes the importance of explicitly treating heterogeneous preferences and the sensitivity of the survival distribution to the estimation methods used.     

Elemental contaminants in groundwater: A study of trace metals from residential area in the vicinity of an industrial area in Lagos, Nigeria

Groundwater (well water) from a residential area within the vicinity of an industrial estate in Lagos, Nigeria were sampled and analysed by Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy for their heavy metals content. This was with a view of assessing the quality of the water, which was being used for domestic activities, especially, drinking usually without treatment. Total trace metal determination by mineral acid digestion of water samples was applied. This method proved to be better than an extractive concentration technique in the quality assurance protocols with the recovery range being 90.7 ± 0.006–97.6 ± 0.003%. Mean concentration of trace metals in water samples ranged from Fe: 0.05–0.47 mg l⁻¹; Al: 0.1–1.54 mg l⁻¹; Cu: 0.14–1.39 mg l⁻¹; Zn: 0.04–0.43 mg l⁻¹; Cd: trace–0.02 mg l⁻¹; Pb: trace–0.03 mg l⁻¹, Mn: 0.01–0.18 mg l⁻¹ and Ni: 0.02–0.11 mg l⁻¹. Physical parameters of water samples examined were within the drinking water safety limits except for conductivity. Results generally indicate the presence of heavy metal constituents in groundwater samples. Detection of metals such as cadmium and lead which have serious health implications above WHO and USEPA limits in drinking water gives cause for concern.     

Evaluation of the economic and environmental impact of converting cropland to forest: a case study in Dunhua county, China

The Sloping Land Conversion Program (also known as "Grain for Green" or the Upland Conversion Program) for converting cropland to forest is one of China's most ambitious environmental initiatives, and is one of the world's largest land-conservation programs with a budget of RMB 337 billion (over US$ 40 billion). Although environmental impacts have played a vital role in the general reasoning and argumentation for forest plantations, environmental impact analyses have often received less attention than economic analyses in the planning of plantation forestry projects. The overall goal of this paper is to evaluate the program's environmental impact considering the farmer's interests and the potential social benefits due to carbon sequestration in different scenarios based on household and field survey data in Dunhua County. Our findings are that: (1) in many cases, the program did not give adequate consideration to land productivity and environmental heterogeneity when selecting plots; (2) more than half of the reforestation plots were on flat cropland (slopes of less than 5 degrees ); (3) in five of the eight townships, net incomes on reforested land were substantially above or below previous crop incomes, raising questions about the efficiency of the allocation of compensation to farmers participating in the program; (4) the potential carbon co-benefit increased the NPV of the program by 5954-7009 RMB/ha. In conclusion, we recommend that more attention should be paid to the quality of reforestation programs rather than just their scale and note that consideration of potential carbon sequestration co-benefits enhances the benefits of cropland conversion programs.     

Social and economic considerations in conserving wetlands of indo-gangetic plains: A case study of Kabartal wetland,India

The Kabartal wetland situated in the upper Indo-Gangetic flood plains in northern India is significant because of its hydrological and ecological services, and the socio-economic and cultural values that it represents. Despite being designated as a wildlife sanctuary, this wetland is under threat from anthropogenic pressures. As in the case of most wetlands, the reason is incomplete information on its ecological services and functions, breakdown of traditional management structures and the lack of appropriate and recognized property rights. Our study assesses the economic linkages between the Kabartal wetland and the local people living around it, through socio-economic surveys and Contingent Valuation Method (CVM). The major objective of the study was to determine the importance of this wetland to the local people and to give an indication of the distribution of the benefits among various stakeholders. The people in the region are poor, have low literacy levels and high dependence on Kabartal and more than 50% want that the wetland should be drained and the land used for agriculture. However, they are willing to participate in collaborative management initiatives with the state. The willingness of people to accept compensation, as an alternative to access to Kabartal wetland, regressed on various socio-economic and attitudinal parameters, gave an estimated mean value of US $27,500 per household over a period of 60 years. This value is a pointer of the total value of access to Kabartal wetland to the surrounding villagers and would be useful when decisions to compensate people for lost access to Kabartal are made.     

Disaster preparedness and perception of flood risk: A study in an alpine valley in Italy

Italy is a country highly vulnerable to floods and landslides. The present study aims to investigate disaster preparedness and perception of flood risk in a group of people living in an alpine valley in the north of Italy. Four hundred seven adult residents in nine communities exposed to hydrogeological risk were interviewed by using a structured questionnaire. Participants were asked about the adoption of a set of protective behaviors that can prevent negative consequences of floods. Perception of flood risk was assessed by means of a one-dimensional scale that was developed and validated by the authors. Items included in this scale asked participants to estimate likelihood of occurrence of different flood consequences and to express feelings of worry associated to them. Socio-demographic and experiential information on respondents were also collected. Overall, results showed that most of respondents were fairly well prepared to deal with a future flood disaster. Correlational and regression analyses indicated that disaster preparedness was positively associated with risk perception. In accordance with literature, there was not a significant relation between likelihood judgments and adoption of protective behaviors, while feelings of worry were associated with disaster preparedness. Authors interpret their results in relation to the socio-environmental characteristics of the studied communities. Theoretical, empirical and practical implications of the findings are also discussed.     

Visitor perceptions of rural landscapes: a case study in the Peak District National Park, England

Maintaining national parks is an integral policy tool to conserve rare habitats. However, because national parks are funded by taxpayers, they must also serve the needs of the general public. Increasingly, and thanks to today's diverse society, there is evidence that this creates challenges for park managers who are pulled in two opposing directions: to conserve nature on the one hand and to meet different visitor expectations on the other. This tension was explored in the Peak District National Park, a rural landscape dominated by heather moorland and sheep farming in Northern England where research was conducted to determine how social class and ethnicity shaped perceptions of the park. Results uncovered that social class played a very strong role in shaping perceptions of this region with 'middle class' respondents reacting far more favourably to the park than people from more working class backgrounds. We observed ethnicity playing a similar role, though our results are less significantly different.     

Channel change,sediment transport,and fish habitat in a coastal stream: Effects of an extreme event

A study on sediment transport and channel change was conducted on Zayante Creek and the lower San Lorenzo River in Santa Cruz County, California. A rainstorm with a recurrence interval locally in excess of 150 years occurred during the study year, 1982 WY. Stream surveys indicated that significant aggradation occurred during and after the peak flood. Upper study reaches were substantially recovered after high flows of early April, but the lower study reaches still had significant filling of pools and burial of riffles by sand. Increases in width-depth ratio were minor and localized in upper reaches, but were significant in lower reaches. Large inputs of sand, primarily from landsliding, altered the sediment transport regime. A higher proportion of the bedload is now transported by lower flows than before the January event. Roads and sand quarries contributed significantly to sediment input to the stream. A proposed dam may alter the sediment transport regime of Zayante Creek. Mitigating the effects of this dam on downstream fish habitat may require occasional bankfull discharges.     

Factors influencing wastewater management performance: case study of housing estates in suburban Bangkok, Thailand

As population densities have risen and settlements become increasingly crowded, wastewater effluent volumes have, not unexpectedly, also risen. The adverse impacts of effluent from housing estates (HEs) in suburban areas of Thailand, served by local wastewater management (WWM) systems, are of particular concern. Because of this problem, which reflects the poor performance of WWM systems, it has become increasingly important that the pivotal factors that hinder WWM improvements be identified and effective solutions be proposed and implemented. The goal of the research described in this paper was to determine the critical factors influencing WWM performance at HEs in suburban Bangkok, using multiple regression analysis. Three significant factors encompassing financial, social, institutional and general aspects were identified for each type of WWM system (community centralized and onsite). For the community centralized system, the key factors were house price, type of organization managing the HE, and the attitudes of the organization. For onsite systems, the three factors were total number of house units, direct experience with water pollution and percentage of occupied houses. These findings reflect the importance of having a WWM that employs an integrated approach rather than focusing on specific aspects in isolation from other factors. WWM performance could be improved if significant factors indicating high priority concerns were to be identified and properly applied. Addressing the priority concerns could, consequently, contribute to the development of appropriate environmental management measures, plans, and policies related to HE WWM.     

Anticipated Performance Index of some tree species considered for green belt development in and around an urban area: a case study of Varanasi city, India

It is well established that trees help to reduce air pollution, and there is a growing impetus for green belt expansion in urban areas. Identification of suitable plant species for green belts is very important. In the present study, the Air Pollution Tolerance Index (APTI) of many plant species has been evaluated by analyzing important biochemical parameters. The Anticipated Performance Index (API) of these plant species was also calculated by considering their APTI values together with other socio-economic and biological parameters. Based on these two indices, the most suitable plant species for green belt development in urban areas were identified and recommended for long-term air pollution management.     

Modeling channel management impacts on river migration: a case study of Woodson bridge state recreation area,Sacramento river,California, USA

Understanding how hydraulic factors control alluvial river meander migration can help resource managers evaluate the long-term effects of floodplain management and bank stabilization measures. Using a numerical model based on the mechanics of flow and sediment transport in curved river channels, we predict 50 years of channel migration and suggest the planning and ecological implications of that migration for a 6.4-km reach (river miles 218–222) of the Sacramento River near the Woodson Bridge State Recreation Area, California, USA. Using four different channel management scenarios, our channel migration simulations suggest that: (1) channel stabilization alters the future channel planform locally and downstream from the stabilization; (2) rock revetment currently on the bank upstream from the Woodson Bridge recreation area causes more erosion of the channel bank at the recreation area than if the revetment were not present; (3) relocating the channel to the west and allowing subsequent unconstrained river migration relieves the erosion pressure in the Woodson Bridge area; (4) the subsequent migration reworks (erodes along one river bank and replaces new floodplain along the other) 26.5 ha of land; and (5) the river will rework between 8.5 and 48.5 ha of land in the study reach (over the course of 50 years), depending on the bank stabilization plan used. The reworking of floodplain lands is an important riparian ecosystem function that maintains habitat heterogeneity, an essential factor for the long-term survival of several threatened and endangered animal species in the Sacramento River area.     

High technology firms and planning policy: a case study of research machines limited,Oxford

This article reviews planning issues relating to “high‐tech” industry in Britain, and uses a case study of a manufacturer of micro‐computers in Oxford, England as a focus for a discussion. It concludes that town planning categories are not, in themselves, a constraint on high technology firms, and suggests that the provision of sites and premises by local authorities is a useful and undervalued task.     

Non-linear incentives,plan design,and flood mitigation: the case of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's community rating system

A basic proposition of ‘agency theory’ is that output-based performance incentives encourage greater effort. However, studies find that incentive schemes can distort effort if rewards for performance are discrete or non-linear. The Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Community Rating System (CRS) is a flood mitigation programme with a non-linear incentive design. Under this programme, localities are incentivised to implement a mix of 18 flood mitigation activities. Each activity is performance scored, with accumulated scores corresponding to a percent discount on flood insurance premiums for residents that hold National Flood Insurance policies. Discounts range from 0 to 45% and increase discretely in increments of 5%. With multivariate statistical and Geographic Information Systems analytic techniques, tests are made to find whether observed changes in annual CRS scores for participating localities in Florida are explained by non-linear incentives, adjusting for hydrologic conditions, flood disaster histories, socio-economic and human capital controls that can plausibly account for local mitigation activity scores over time. Results indicate that local jurisdictions are discount-seeking, with mitigation efforts partially driven by the non-linear incentive design of the CRS programme. The paper ends with recommendations to improve the operation FEMA's flood mitigation programme.     

Resource scarcity,energy use and environmental impact: A case study of the New Bedford,Massachusetts, USA,fisheries

The commercial fishing fleet in New Bedford, Massachusetts, USA, harvests seafood on George’s Bank, home of one of the nation’s most productive fisheries. We calculated the energy return on investment (EROI) and carbon intensity of protein harvest in the New Bedford fisheries from 1968 to 1988. EROI is the ratio of the energy content of the edible fish protein harvested to the quantity of fossil fuel energy used directly in the harvesting process. Carbon intensity is the quantity of carbon dioxide (CO₂) released (from the burning of fossil fuels) per calorie of edible fish protein harvested. The results show that the EROI of protein harvest declined from 0.18 to 0.028 from 1968 to 1988, indicating that the energy used to harvest seafood increased from about 6 to 36 kcal of fuel for each kilocalorie of protein harvested. The quantity of CO₂ released per calorie of edible fish protein is a linear function of energy use and therefore increased in a similar manner. During this period there was a large increase in fishing effort (caused by the increase in the real price of seafood products, favorable tax treatment for new vessel construction, and low interest loans from the government), and a decline in several important species of fish. The results suggest that fishing pressure could be managed effectively by the regulation of fuel use by the fleet. Despite the increase in the price of many seafood products, fishermen absorbed many of the costs of increasing scarcity in the form of longer working hours and fewer men per vessel.     

The use of aggregate complaints data as an indicator of cumulative social impacts of mining: A case study from the Hunter valley,NSW, Australia

Generally speaking, there is a greater amount of quantitative data available to measure and model the cumulative environmental or economic impacts of mining than the social impacts. In part, this is because social impacts are often inherently more difficult to quantify, but historically there have also been fewer regulatory drivers for companies or state agencies to invest in collecting such data. Regulators in some jurisdictions are now starting to require resource companies to report on aspects of their social performance, but companies and regulators are still struggling to identify appropriate metrics, particularly in regards to cumulative impacts. This paper describes an innovative quantitative approach to tracking how communities experience and respond to increased mining activity, using data from the complaints registers maintained by mines located in the Upper Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Australia. In this study, complaints lodged with five separate mines adjacent to the township of Muswellbrook over several years were aggregated and trends analysed. The aggregated set showed that complaint frequency increased with the increase in mining activity but then decreased as individual complaints were addressed. However, when complaints from near-neighbours were removed, it emerged that the proportion of complaints that came from the town itself steadily increased over time. Further analysis indicated that this increase was closely associated with the amount of mine-disturbed land that could be seen from the town over time, as measured using a combination of remotely sensed data and a digital elevation model. This is persuasive evidence of a cumulative social impact that is more than just the sum of the local impacts of individual mines.     

Influence of alkalinity, hardness and dissolved solids on drinking water taste: A case study of consumer satisfaction

Two surveys of consumer satisfaction with drinking water conducted by Taiwan Water Supply Corp. are presented in this study. The study results show that although a lot of money was invested to modify traditional treatment processes, over 60% of local residents still avoided drinking tap water. Over half of the respondents felt that sample TT (from the traditional treatment process) was not a good drinking water, whether in the first or second survey, whereas almost 60% of respondents felt that samples PA, PB, CCL and CT (from advanced treatment processes) were good to drink. For all drinking water samples, respondent satisfaction with a sample primarily depended on it having no unpleasant flavors. Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration plans to revise the drinking water quality standards for TH and TDS in the near future. The new standards require a lower TH concentration (from currently 400mg/L (as CaCO(3)) to 150mg/L (as CaCO(3))), and a lower TDS maximum admissible concentration from the current guideline of 600 to 250mg/L. Therefore, this study also evaluated the impacts on drinking water tastes caused by variations in TH and TDS concentrations, and assessed the need to issue more strict drinking water quality standards for TH and TDS. The research results showed that most respondents could not tell the difference in water taste among water samples with different TDS, TH and alkalinity. Furthermore, hardness was found to be inversely associated with cardiovascular diseases and cancers, and complying with more strict standards would lead most water facilities to invest billions of dollars to upgrade their treatment processes. Consequently, in terms of drinking water tastes alone, this study suggested that Taiwan Environmental Protection Administration should conduct more thorough reviews of the scientific literature that provides the rationale for setting standards and reconsider if it is necessary to revise drinking water quality standards for TH and TDS.     

Use and Occupation of Olinda Littoral (NE,Brazil): Guidelines for an Integrated Coastal Management

Located on the northeast Brazilian coast, Olinda is one of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites, which is economically dependent on tourism, commerce, industry, and the informal economy. Despite its environmental and socioeconomic importance, the city of Olinda (understanding the coast as part of it) has suffered several environmental and human disturbances over the last decades. This work describes the environmental and social status of Olinda’s beaches and makes recommendations concerning the development of an Integrated Coastal Management Plan for this coastal zone of the Brazilian littoral. The methodology adopted in this study is based on field campaigns (social, physical, chemical, and biological data collection), local observations, and the collection of sea contention building project data from city hall. The results showed that along the seven studied beaches, the main problems were related to the: (i) building of coastal protections, (ii) inefficient sewage disposal systems, (iii) inefficient urban management, and (iv) natural events (equinoctial spring tides and precipitation/evaporation rates). Casa Caiada beach showed the best hydrologic conditions as a consequence of its morphology and it presents facilities that attract housing and recreation investments (by private and public sectors) valuing and improving local use conditions. The obtained data showed that the studied beaches need an urgent action plan to minimize the environmental degradation of Olinda’s littoral and to promote sustainable development of the local coastal environments.     

A method for regional-scale material flow and decoupling analysis: A demonstration case study of Aichi prefecture, Japan

We have developed a method to analyse the annual material flow in a prefecture and have calculated environmental indicators for a prefecture. Material flow analysis (MFA) is important to clarify the structure of a regional society and obtain environmental indicators for a circular society. However, MFA has not advanced in local governments because of few local statistics. We have developed a method to analyse the annual material flow in Aichi prefecture from 1980 to 2000 using an input–output (I–O) table and statistics of Aichi. We have verified the accuracy of this method by comparing its results for 2000 which calculated on the basis of official I–O table for 1995 with the I–O table data for 2000; the correlation coefficient obtained in this case is greater than 0.95. Moreover, by performing MFA, we have estimated the resource consumption and decoupling indicator of each industry in Aichi prefecture from 1980 to 2000. We could obtain more detailed and accurate environmental indicators by using our method. From these results, we could estimate the progress of Aichi prefecture towards a circular society.     

Post-Fordist transformation,the sustainability concept and social relations with nature: a case study of the Hamburg region

Following the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, the concept of sustainability in general and of urban sustainability in particular has become increasingly significant in the course of the 1990s. Even if the environmental problems of cities are far from being solved, one can interpret this development as a change in the relationship between society and nature on both a discursive and a material level. At the same time the transition from Fordism to post-Fordism has given rise to new forms of urban entrepreneurialism, with an absolute priority to economic competitiveness on the one hand and sharpened social conflicts on the other. Looking at the case of the Hamburg region, the article discusses the interaction of these processes. Contrary to the understanding of sustainability as a broadly accepted policy goal it conceptualizes sustainability as a terrain of conflict. As such, we will argue, the sustainability concept and the underlying change in social relations with nature contribute to containing the contradictions of capitalist societalization, which in the transition to post-Fordism have become more visible again. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Environmental regulation, productive efficiency and cost of pollution abatement: a case study of the sugar industry in India

In this paper the input distance function is estimated for the Indian Sugar industry under alternative assumptions of weak and strong disposability of bad outputs. The estimated distance function is used to make the estimates of environmental efficiency, Malmquist productivity index and shadow prices of pollutants. The technical efficiency measure estimated under the assumption of weak disposability of bad outputs is utilized to test the Porter hypothesis. Marginal costs of pollution abatement functions are estimated for different pollutants of water. Pollutant specific taxes are computed using the tax-standards method.