Eco-investing: Financing sustainable economic development

Many Canadian communities are facing resource depletion and high unemployment as a result of a model of economic development which has consistently promoted large capital-intensive, resource-based companies. A new model of sustainable community development is required which incorporates ecological, economic and social concerns. One aspect of sustainable community development is the use and promotion of locally-based and controlled financing mechanisms, including community loan funds, community bonds, and peer lending circles providing micro-credit. Widely successful across the USA and Canada, these 'alternative' financing mechanisms use local control and a proximity to local ecosystems to foster small businesses which are less resource-intensive and create long-term jobs within communities. Improving these financing tools through broader government facilitation of them as innovative public policy instruments, and the incorporation of specific ecological lending and investment screens, could dramatically further the development of healthy communities.     

Method for evaluating non-economic effects of air pollution

The basic premise underlying the approach presented in the paper is the assumption that humans are unique beings that can evaluate. The environment is described as a system of resources satisfying human needs. The assessment of the effects of environmental pollution derives from the fact that there is, or will be, non-satisfaction of needs resulting from a reduction in environmental resources.     

Response of Mercury Contamination in Fish to Decreased Aqueous Concentrations and Loading of Inorganic Mercury in a Small Stream

Approximately 250 000 kg of mercury was lost towater and soils at the U.S. Dept. of Energy Y-12 Plantin Oak Ridge, Tennessee in the 1950s and early 1960s. A creek originating within the plant receivedcontinuous inputs of waterborne mercury, predominantlyas dissolved inorganic mercury, from groundwater,streambed contamination, and sump and process waterdischarges to the contaminated storm sewer network.These produce aqueous total mercury concentrations of1–2 g L^-1 in the upper reaches of the stream,decreasing to about 0.1–0.2 g L^-1 in its lowerreaches. A program to reduce mercury concentrationsin the creek identified specific sources (buildingsumps, contaminated springwater seeps, foundationdrains, and contaminated piping) and rerouted wateraround contaminated portions of the drain system orcollected and treated mercury-contaminated waterbefore discharging it. As a result, waterbornemercury concentrations in the creek and total mercuryloading were reduced from 1.8 g L^-1 to0.6 g L^-1 and 100 to 20 g d^-1, respectively, in the last 5 yr.Mean mercury concentrations in fish nearest sourceareas in the creek headwaters decreased at roughly thesame rate as waterborne total mercury concentrationsover the past five years, but at the facility boundarydownstream the decline in mercury bioaccumulation wasmuch less. At sites 5–15 km farther downstream, nodecrease was evident. Dissolved methylmercury tendedto increase with distance downstream in a patterninverse to that noted for its dissolved inorganicmercury precursor.Improvements in water quality and modification ofweirs to allow the passage of fish have resulted inthe establishment of large populations of fish inmercury-contaminated headwater areas previously devoidof fish. It may be that the accumulation, retention,and eventual downstream transport of this reservoir ofbiologically incorporated methylmercury has acted tobuffer against expected reductions in mercury in fishat downstream sites.     

Evaluation of biodegradability of poly(ε-caprolactone)/poly(ethylene terephthalate) blends

The results of an investigation aimed at evaluation of the biodegradability of blends of poly(-caprolactone) (PCL) with poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) as the major component are reported. Specimens of the blends, as melt extruded films and/or powders, were submitted to degradation tests under different environmental conditions including full-scale composting, soil burial, bench-scale accelerated aerobic degradation, and exposure to axenic cultures and esterolytic enzymes. Indications have been gained that blending in the melt gives rise to insertion of PCL segments in the PET chain. Copolymers thus attained acted as macromolecular compatibilizers, allowing for a complete miscibility of PCL and PET. The biodegradation detected on the blend samples was, however, well below the values expected from chemical composition and behavior of individual homopolymers under the same environmental conditions. The presence of PET as the major component in PET/PCL blends apparently reduces the propensity of PCL to be degraded, at least in the investigated composition range. The degradation data collected under different environmental conditions indicate that the full-scale composting system is the most efficient among the tested degradation procedures.     

Age-related thermal strain in men while wearing radiation protective clothing during short-term exercise in the heat.

The aim of the study was to compare heat strain among different age groups of men in protective clothing during short-term physical work. Eight young (20-29 years), 6 middle-aged (41-55 years), and 6 older (58-65 years) men exercised for 30 min on a cycle ergometer (40% V(O2 max)) in 2 hot environments with a similar WBGT (ca. 26 degrees C): once with minimal clothing without infrared radiation (E1), and once with aluminized protective clothing under infrared radiation (E2). All subjects had sedentary jobs, but only the older subjects were physically active in their leisure-time. Body temperatures, heart rate, sweat rate, and subjective feelings were determined during the tests. Higher thermal strain was observed in E2 than in E1. No age-related differences in thermal strain were observed in either experiment indicating that active older men can tolerate short work periods with protective clothing in the heat as well as younger sedentary men.     

Information and Willingness to Pay in a Contingent Valuation Study: The Value of S. Erasmo in the Lagoon of Venice

This paper reports on a contingent valuation (CV) study eliciting willingness to pay (WTP) for a public program for the preservation of lagoon, beach and infrastructure in the island of S. Erasmo in the Lagoon of Venice, Italy. We use split samples to investigate the effect of providing a summary of reasons for voting in favor and against the program before the referendum valuation question. Reminding respondents of the reasons for voting for or against the program increases WTP among less highly educated respondents, and decreases WTP among more highly educated respondents.     

The Atatürk Dam project in south-east Turkey: Changes in objectives and planning over time

The Atatürk Dam was constructed on the Euphrates River in Turkey in the 1980s as the central component of a large-scale regional development project for the South-eastern Anatolia region, known as GAP. Since the first development plan for the region was presented in 1970, the objectives for regional development have changed significantly.
This article aims to analyze how the functions, design, and capacities of the Atatürk Dam project have been modified since 1970, paralleling changes in the regional development objectives and ambitions, and to identify accomplishments and constraints in the realization of the dam project.
Since 1970, ambitions to develop the region have grown significantly, resulting in major changes to the original project plans. The most important change occurred in 1978, when the design for the Middle Karababa Dam, recommended in 1970, was abandoned and the Atatürk Dam design was adopted. This change considerably increased the storage and power generation capacities of the dam. Yet, the sparse rainfall throughout the catchment in recent years has hampered full utilization of the dam's storage and generation capacities and increased the need for tradeoffs between conflicting demands for water use.     

Evaluation and optimization of an urban PM2.5 monitoring network

The objective of this study was to evaluate the PM(2.5) monitoring network established in the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky metropolitan area for measuring the 24 h integrated PM(2.5) concentration, as well as-at selected sites-hourly PM(2.5) concentration and 24 h integrated PM(2.5) speciation. The data collected during three years at 13 measurement sites were analyzed for spatial and temporal variations. It was found that both daily and hourly concentrations of PM(2.5) have low spatial variation due to a regional influence of secondary ammonium sulfate. In contrast, the trace element concentrations had high spatial variation. Seasonal variation accounted for most of the total temporal variation (60%), while yearly, monthly, weekly and daily variations were lower. The variance components and cluster analyses were applied to optimize the number of sites for measuring the 24 h PM(2.5) concentration. It was found that the 13-site network may be optimized by reducing the number of sites to 8, which would result in a relative precision reduction of 9% and a relative cost reduction of 36%. At the same time, the data suggest that the spatial resolution of speciation monitors and real-time PM(2.5) mass monitors should be increased to better represent spatial and temporal variations of the markers of local air pollution sources.     

Air quality biomonitoring through pollen viability of Fabaceae

In this study, pollen viability and germination of three plant species, Cercis siliquastrum L., Robinia pseudoacacia L., and Spartium junceum L., belonging to the Fabaceae family, was evaluated in sites with different intensity of road traffic, constantly monitored with continuous analysers for air pollutants (carbon monoxide (CO), sulphur dioxide (SO₂), and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)) by the Municipality of Catania. Two sites, in which road traffic was absent, were selected, too. The percentages of viable pollen by 2,3,5-trypheniltetrazolium chloride (TTC) test ranged from 59.0 to 90.2 % in C. siliquastrum, from 61.5 to 83.5 % in S. junceum and from 67.5 to 84.3 % in R. pseudoacacia. The percentages of germination varied from 41.0 to 72.7 % in C. siliquastrum, from 42.0 to 64.7 % in S. junceum and from 38.3 to 66.3 % in R. pseudoacacia. The highest percentages of viable pollens were found in no-road traffic stations by either TTC or germination tests, while the lowest values were detected in a site characterised by heavy road traffic. In the monitored period (2007–2009), pollen viability, germinability and tube length of C. siliquastrum resulted in a significant negative correlation to CO, SO₂ and NO₂, whereas data from TTC and germination tests on S. junceum and R. pseudoacacia pollens were not well correlated to air pollutants. The results showed that pollen viability, germination and tube growth in C. siliquastrum were affected by air pollution. S. junceum and R. pseudoacacia were not very influenced by air pollutants, suggesting a different pollen sensitivity of these species.