Measuring externalities of waste transfer stations in Israel using hedonic pricing

This study estimates the economic value of externalities related to waste transfer stations in Israel. Most externalities are associated with local disamenities experienced by residents living in close proximity to transfer stations - including noise, odor, litter, vermin, visual intrusion and any associated perceived discomfort. Following the mapping of all active transfer stations in Israel, problematic sites near residential areas were identified. Four of these sites were selected for detailed examination. The study involved estimating the economic value of disamenities using the Hedonic Price Method, which examines the impact of disamenities on property values. The results indicate that the maximum spatial extent of the impact occurs about 2.8km away from a transfer station with an increase of about $5000 in housing price for each additionalkm away from the site. Alternatively, an increase of 1% in the average distance of a house from the local transfer station is associated with a 0.06% rise in the price of the average house. These figures, representing the relationship between changes in environmental quality and property prices, indicate that transfer stations create externalities that should be taken into account in location and clean-up policies for transfer stations as well as in potential compensation policies.     

Valuation of externalities of selected waste management alternatives: A comparative review and analysis

Accessible and transparent data on the social costs of externalities is crucial to waste management researchers, decision-makers, and managers, if waste management strategies are to be successfully analyzed and implemented. The primary objective of this study, which is based on a thorough review of existing literature and research, was to assist the abovementioned in their decision-making with reliable recent data, by mapping, gathering, analyzing, and comparing different valuation results of external costs associated with various types of pollution and disamenities related to landfilling and incineration of solid waste.The second objective was to assess the suitability and reliability of various valuation methods and techniques that were implemented in the reviewed valuation studies, as well as the transferability of valuations across sites.The paper focuses on studies conducted since 1990, because in dynamic fields such as the waste sector, externalities, and valuation, it is essential to stay current with the most recent information and valuations.We discuss the issues and the limits of the valuation techniques and analyze the estimates of all the studies, presenting the results in the form of intervals and averages of damage costs. In spite of the inconsistencies evident in the variability in the results we reviewed, the outcome of this first comprehensive critical analysis is significant and the valuations obtained in this study provide estimates of orders of magnitude of external costs that can be used by decision makers in the waste sector to address important policy questions associated with social welfare.     

Analysis of radiation hazards to personnel on marine platforms

The large number of radio frequency (RF) transmitters employed in modern marine platforms requires that they operate in mutual coexistence while posing no danger to operators and equipment despite the limited available physical space. A key to the successful system integration is the control of the electromagnetic environment on the ships’ topsides, which might pose radiation hazards (RADHAZ) to personnel (HERP). HERP are caused by transmitter antenna installations that generate intentional EM radiation in excess of the safe levels in zones of personnel activity. Radiation safety to personnel is achieved when the average radiation power density is below the permissible exposure limits (PEL) for HERP at locations of personnel activity and medical equipment operation. This paper describes the analysis tools and techniques for the evaluation of HERP on marine platforms. The same approaches could be employed in the analysis of land site antenna deployment scenarios.     

Web-based GIS for collaborative planning and public participation: an application to the strategic planning of wind farm sites

Spatial planning typically involves multiple stakeholders. To any specific planning problem, stakeholders often bring different levels of knowledge about the components of the problem and make assumptions, reflecting their individual experiences, that yield conflicting views about desirable planning outcomes. Consequently, stakeholders need to learn about the likely outcomes that result from their stated preferences; this learning can be supported through enhanced access to information, increased public participation in spatial decision-making and support for distributed collaboration amongst planners, stakeholders and the public. This paper presents a conceptual system framework for web-based GIS that supports public participation in collaborative planning. The framework combines an information area, a Multi-Criteria Spatial Decision Support System (MC-SDSS) and an argumentation map to support distributed and asynchronous collaboration in spatial planning. After analysing the novel aspects of this framework, the paper describes its implementation, as a proof of concept, in a system for Web-based Participatory Wind Energy Planning (WePWEP). Details are provided on the specific implementation of each of WePWEP's four tiers, including technical and structural aspects. Throughout the paper, particular emphasis is placed on the need to support user learning throughout the planning process.     

Monitoring of natural and synthetic hormones in a polluted river

Natural (estradiol, estrone, testosterone, estriol) and synthetic hormones (ethinylestradiol) are constantly excreted into the environment from human and animal sources but little is known of their transport. The purpose of this study was to determine how far along a 100 km river course that hormones could be detected after contamination with sewage effluent or fishpond effluent. Fourteen sites in the Lower Jordan River drainage were sampled (two sites above the sewage effluent contamination, eight sites below the contamination and four tributaries) before and after the dry season of 2002 (Spring and Fall). Samples were tested for testosterone, estrogen (estrone and estradiol combined), estriol, ethinylestradiol, ammonia and fecal coli. It was found that the fecal coli count dropped exponentially (from 250,000 to 60/100 ml3) and the ammonia dropped from 15 to less than 1mg/l over the initial 25 km stretch. Over the same stretch, the hormone values declined by half from their maximum values for testosterone (3.3 ng/l), estriol (8.8 ng/l), ethinylestradiol (6.1 ng/l), and estrogen (4.9 ng/l). From 67 to 100 km mark, testosterone (4.8 ng/l) and estrogen (2.4 ng/l) were still elevated while ethinylestradiol and estriol were >or=1.5 ng/l. The high level of testosterone and estrogen between 67 and 100 km marks was probably due to major discharge from fishponds between 23 and 27 km marks. Levels of ethinylestradiol above 1 ng/l, a level which can affect fish, was seen in 70% (12/16) of the samples tested. The data suggest that hormones in readily measured quantities can be transported considerable distances from the source of pollution.     

Economic cost of mineral supply disruptions: Effects on a small, open economy

The potential impact of short-run disruptions in the minerals market on Israel's small, developed open economy is examined, showing that Israel is potentially capable of a smoother adjustment to external market disturbances. First, the analysis evaluates critical situations within the framework of a normative ‘general equilibrium model’, tracing the impacts of short-run developments in the resources market, and, second, it focuses on specific minerals within a partial equilibrium framework, using economic supply - demand relationships to assess economic damages. The potential damage estimates indicate that significant research and development outlays in the areas of material and process substitution and the capability for a quick build-up of contingent inventories would be justified to prevent the damages which supply disruption might inflict on the economy.