Diagnosing institutional barriers and opportunities for adaptation to climate change

Institutions are one of the decisive factors which enable, constrain and shape adaptation to the impacts of climate change, variability and extreme events. However, current understanding of institutions in adaptation situations is fragmented across the scientific community, evidence diverges, and cumulative learning beyond single studies is limited. This study adopts a diagnostic approach to elaborate a nuanced understanding of institutional barriers and opportunities in climate adaptation by means of a model-centred meta-analysis of 52 case studies of public climate adaptation in Europe. The first result is a novel taxonomy of institutional attributes in adaptation situations. It conceptually organises and decomposes the many details of institutions that empirical research has shown to shape climate adaptation. In the second step, the paper identifies archetypical patterns of institutional traps and trade-offs which hamper adaptation. Thirdly, corresponding opportunities are identified that enable actors to alleviate, prevent or overcome specific institutional traps or trade-offs. These results cast doubt on the validity of general institutional design principles for successful adaptation. In contrast to generic principles, the identified opportunities provide leverage to match institutions to specific governance problems that are encountered in specific contexts. Taken together, the results may contribute to more coherence and integration of adaptation research that we need if we are to foster learning about the role of institutions in adaptation situations in a cumulative fashion.     

Increasing the application of gas engines to decrease China’s GHG emissions

This paper employs a review of the technical literature to estimate the potential decrease in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that could be achieved by increasing the application of gas engines in China in three sectors: urban public transport vehicle; shipping; and thermal power plants. China’s gas engine development strategies and three types of gas resource are discussed in the study, which indicates that gas engines could decrease GHG emissions by 520 megatonnes (Mt) of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO_2e) by 2020. This would account for 9.7 % of the government’s target for decreasing GHG emissions and is dominated by methane recovery from the use of coal mine gas (CMG) and landfill gas (LFG) for power generation. In the public urban transport vehicle and shipping sectors the low price of natural gas and the increasing demand for the control of harmful emissions could spur the rapid uptake of gas engine vehicles. However, the development of CMG- and LFG-fuelled power plants has been limited by the unwillingness of local enterprises to invest in high-performance gas engine generators and the associated infrastructure. Therefore, further compulsory policies that promote CMG use and LFG recovery should be implemented. Moreover, strict regulations on limiting methane leakage during the production and distribution of gas fuels are urgently needed in China to prevent leakage causing GHG emissions and largely negating the climate benefits of fuel substitution. Strategies for increasing the application of gas engines, promoting gas resources and recovering methane in China are instrumental in global GHG mitigation strategies.     

An empirical analysis of energy efficiency measures applicable to cities,regions, and local governments,based on the case of South Korea’s local energy saving program

As highlighted in the outcome of the Paris Agreement at the 21st Conference of Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change there has been a recent push for the stronger mitigation actions of cities, regions, and local governments. Energy efficiency is a tool that can be leveraged by not only industry or national governments but also cities, regions, and local governments for mitigation purposes. However, studies on energy efficiency as a mitigation tool thus far have focused on the national or transnational scale, and on certain sectors of industry. The purpose of this paper is to find the most cost-efficient energy efficiency measures (EEMs) at the city, region, and local government level. To that end, this paper examines the yearly energy savings and greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction intensity, as well as energy savings and GHG reduction efficiency, in the case of EEMs conducted by South Korean local governments. Yearly energy savings intensity and GHG reduction intensity are estimated to be in the range of 0.094～0.375 tonne of oil equivalent (TOE)/M-KRW (million Korean won) and 0.287～1.180 tCO2e/M-KRW. Results show that inverter installation at water and sewage treatment plants and improvement of pump efficiency are the most cost-efficient EEMs. Moreover, energy savings efficiency and GHG reduction efficiency are within the range of 18.29～45.31 %, at an average of 30.5 % GHG reduction potential. If this reduction potential is applied to the buildings and facilities regulated and run by cities/local governments, there is a worldwide reduction potential of 1.023 billion tCO₂ compared to 2020 business as usual levels.     

基于WebGIS的水环境模拟关键技术研究

近年来随着水环境模拟领域的发展出现了较多水环境数学模型,目前日益成熟的WebGIS技术是使模型使用变得简单化和直观化的一大途径.是在通过Flex和ArcGIS Server搭建WebGIS系统平台的基础上,利用PHP进行WebGIS和水环境模拟模型的数据交互,实现系统平台和数值模型的松散耦合.用户在浏览器端进行模型输入条件的设置,模型在远程服务器端进行运行计算,反馈的模拟结果通过RIA在WebGIS中进行多元化动态展示.该方法对一般模型具有适用性,可降低模型使用门槛,提高模拟结果展示和分析能力.     

铁碳微电解技术应用与研究

铁碳微电解作为一种"以废治废"的高效废水预处理技术受到人们的广泛关注,近几十年来广泛应用于废水处理工程实践中.为了进一步提高铁碳微电解技术的处理效果,很有必要对铁碳微电解技术的反应机理深入了解,对影响铁碳微电解处理效果的各种因素进行探讨,并剖析近年来铁碳微电解技术在废水预处理应用方面的研究成果,总结该技术存在的问题并探究相应的改进技术,最后对该技术未来研究方向和发展趋势进行了展望.     

广西"十三五"环境保护和生态建设规划指标体系研究

生态环境保护目标指标是环境保护和生态建设规划中的核心内容,制定科学合理的规划指标体系,能够确保规划各项重点任务顺利实施.通过回顾分析"十一五"、"十二五"环境保护和生态建设规划指标体系,结合广西环境现状和发展趋势,在与国家和广西同期规划、计划、方案等衔接基础上,研究提出广西"十三五"环境保护和生态建设规划指标体系,设置了环境质量改善、总量控制、污染治理、风险防范、生态保护和生态公共服务等6个方面共29个指标,以期更好地指导"十三五"环境保护和生态建设工作.     

The Effect of Heat and Free Chlorine Treatments on the Surface Properties of Murine Norovirus

Heat and free chlorine are among the most efficient and commonly used treatments to inactivate enteric viruses, but their global inactivation mechanisms have not been elucidated yet. These treatments have been shown to affect at least the capsid proteins of viruses and thus may affect the surface properties (i.e. electrostatic charge and hydrophobicity) of such particles. Our aim was to study the effects of heat and free chlorine on surface properties for a murine norovirus chosen as surrogate for human norovirus. No changes in the surface properties were observed with our methods for murine norovirus exposed to free chlorine. Only the heat treatment led to major changes in the surface properties of the virus with the expression of hydrophobic domains at the surface of the particles after exposure to a temperature of 55 °C. No modification of the expression of hydrophobic domains occurred after exposure to 60 °C, and the low hydrophobic state exhibited by infectious and inactivated particles after exposure to 60 °C appeared to be irreversible for inactivated particles only, which may provide a means to discriminate infectious from inactivated murine noroviruses. When exposed to a temperature of 72 °C or to free chlorine at a concentration of 50 mg/L, the genome became available for RNases.     

Use of ATP Readings to Predict a Successful Hygiene Intervention in the Workplace to Reduce the Spread of Viruses on Fomites

The purpose of this study was to validate the use of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) for evaluating hygiene intervention effectiveness in reducing viral dissemination in an office environment. The bacterial virus MS-2 was used to evaluate two scenarios, one where the hand of an individual was contaminated and another where a fomite was contaminated. MS-2 was selected as a model because its shape and size are similar to many human pathogenic viruses. Two separate experiments were conducted, one in which the entrance door push plate was inoculated and the other in which the hand of one selected employee was inoculated. In both scenarios, 54 selected surfaces in the office were tested to assess the dissemination of the virus within the office. Associated surface contamination was also measured employing an ATP meter. More than half of the tested hands and surfaces in the office were contaminated with MS-2 within 4 h. Next, an intervention was conducted, and each scenario was repeated. Half of the participating employees were provided hand sanitizer, facial tissues, and disinfecting wipes, and were instructed in their use. A significant (p < 0.05) reduction was observed in the number of surfaces contaminated with virus. This reduction in viral spread was evident from the results of both viral culture and the surface ATP measurements, although there was no direct correlation between ATP measurements with respect to viral concentration. Although ATP does not measure viruses, these results demonstrate that ATP measurements could be useful for evaluating the effectiveness of hygiene interventions aimed at preventing viral spread in the workplace.     

Norovirus GII.Pe Genotype: Tracking a Foodborne Outbreak on a Cruise Ship Through Molecular Epidemiology,Brazil, 2014

Norovirus (NoV) is recognized as the most common cause of foodborne outbreaks. In 2014, an outbreak of acute gastroenteritis occurred on a cruise ship in Brazil, and NoV became the suspected etiology. Here we present the molecular identification of the NoV strains and the use of sequence analysis to determine modes of virus transmission. Food (cream cheese, tuna salad, grilled fish, orange mousse, and vegetables soup) and clinical samples were analyzed by ELISA, conventional RT-PCR, qRT-PCR, and sequencing. Genogroup GII NoV was identified by ELISA and conventional RT-PCR in fecal samples from 5 of 12 patients tested (41.7%), and in the orange mousse food sample by conventional RT-PCR and qRT-PCR. Two fecal GII NoV samples and the orange mousse GII NoV sample were successfully genotyped as GII.Pe (ORF 1), revealed 98.0–98.8% identities among them, and shared phylogenetically distinct cluster. Establishing the source of a NoV outbreak can be a challenging task. In this report, the molecular analysis of the partial RdRp NoV gene provided a powerful tool for genotyping (GII.Pe) and tracking of outbreak-related samples. In addition, the same fast and simple extraction methods applied to clinical samples could be successfully used for complex food matrices, and have the potential to be introduced in routine laboratories for screening foods for presence of NoV.