Can level of safety climate predict level of orientation toward safety in a decision making task?

Establishing the relationship between level of safety climate and safety performance is a current challenge. This work examines the relationship between level of safety climate and orientation toward safety in the decision making process and choice. Alternatively, this work seeks to answer the question of whether level of safety climate can predict safety-oriented decision making. A generalized safety climate questionnaire and a decision making simulation are utilized to examine this relationship. The results indicate that level of safety climate is not a significant predictor of the decision process; however, it was found to be a significant predictor of the selection of safer choices.     

Timing and flight mode of departure in migrating European bee-eaters in relation to multi-scale meteorological processes

Understanding departure decisions of migratory birds and the environmental factors affecting them is important for predicting their distribution, abundance, and arrival times to breeding and wintering areas. In the past, methodological difficulties to obtain fine-scale bird departure and meteorological data have limited testing the multi-scale effects of meteorology on bird departure during migration. We investigated departure timing of European bee-eaters (Merops apiaster) staging in southern Israel, identified their departure flight mode (flapping or soaring) using radio telemetry, and measured local meteorological conditions to study if bird departure was affected by these. Departure timing was examined using a timescale analysis design. The conditions before, during, and after the time of departure were compared using timescales of 24 h, 6 h, 1 h, and 10 min and in relation to bird flight mode. At the between-days timescale, barometric pressure at departure time was significantly lower compared with 2–1 day earlier, whereas temperature at departure was significantly higher compared with 3–2 days earlier. Temperature at departure was also higher compared with 6 h and 3–2 h earlier. Tailwind assistance had no significant effect at any timescale. Soaring birds departed at significantly higher temperature compared with flapping birds. We suggest that bee-eater departure is tuned to the infrequent passage of warm atmospheric depressions at the between-days timescale and with an increasing temperature trend within these days enabling the birds to use energetically cheap soaring flight. We thus suggest that energetic considerations dictate the departure decisions of migrating European bee-eaters.     

Estimating the marginal cost of nature conservation: evidence from Israel

Contrary to many studies regarding the efficient use of resources that measure the marginal cost of nature conservation by looking at a specific objective and asks about efficient way to achieve it, this article tries to estimate the (marginal) cost of nature conservation in a more flexible way. Instead of looking at a specific objective and then not being able to compare different objectives, we take an approach that is based on experts’ valuation of increased satisfaction from nature conservation. We trace the marginal cost of conservation from their answers and use official cost statistics. Officials in the Israeli Nature and Parks Authority (NPA) were surveyed to determine the activities required to increase the level of nature conservation in two districts of the NPA as well as nationwide. We determined the costs of these proposed activities, and subsequently were able to calculate the total cost and marginal cost of conservation efforts. When operating on a limited budget, conservation authorities can use these schedules as an additional tool to help determine the efficiency of different proposed activities both on a regional scale and nationwide, and to ensure the sustainability of the resulting conservation. In addition, our results demonstrate the existence of economies of scale in nature conservation, and the benefit of both bottom-up and top-down decision processes in nature conservation.     

The Benefits and Costs of Noise Reduction

This paper attempts to measure, in a cost-benefit analysis, a stricter noise abatement programme for noise originating from roads in Israel. Using the hedonic price method for three large cities and rural area transactions, a benefit from noise reduction was found. In order to perform a social cost-benefit analysis, a measure of benefit has been derived for 1 km of road and has been compared with the cost of noise reduction under different types of road structure. The results indicate that even though benefits have largely increased when compared to past decades (e.g. 1.2% of an average urban property value per 1 decibel reduction), the decision to insulate a given road is dependent on location and road structure. This raises the normative question of a national vs. regional standard that decision makers should be aware of and such studies could be of help in this respect.     

Sand dunes management: a comparative analysis of ecological versus economic valuations applied to the Coastal region in Israel

Mobile coastal dunes are of significant ecological importance both globally and locally. Yet a large portion of these dunes are disappearing due to encroachment of local shrubs and exotic plants, resulting in changes of floristic and faunal composition, and an overall decrease in biodiversity of coastal systems. Active management is therefore required to maintain mobile dune presence. This study focuses on economic valuation of coastal dunes in Israel, based on public and professional ecological perspectives. This comparison allows reflection on the suitability of a contingent valuation method (CVM) to assess ecological restoration and conservation projects. The CVM was applied in Nizzanim LTER nature reserve in Israel, and concurrently, data of plant species composition on stabilized and mobile dunes were used to calculate the ecological value index (EVI) of the different dune states. The EVI was then transformed into monetary terms by combining the public valuation and the relative proportion of the various species to the total coverage. The monetary values derived from the general public and the ecological assessment were then compared and used to estimate the expected change in economic value resulting from a state shift from mobile to stabilized dunes. According to the CVM, the total value of the Nizzanim coastal dunes would drop from 344 to 197 million Israeli Shekels (NIS) (1 Shekel = $0.39) if active management does not take place, a reduction of 42 % in value. However, results from the EVI indicate only a 33 % decrease in ecological value (in monetary terms) in the absence of active management. We suggest that in this case, general public perception is strong enough to justify conservation decisions, even though they are not professional ecologists. However, we still recommend the use of both measures for land use decision making.