Improving food security in Swaziland: The transition from subsistence to communally managed cash cropping

The Komati Downstream Development Project (KDDP), based upon the Maguga Dam has enabled 6,000 hectares of semi‐arid lowveld, in a region with low and highly variable rainfall to be converted from subsistence to irrigated commercial farming, mainly of sugar cane. This has transformed the Swazi sugar industry from one dominated by a small number of large‐scale commercial estates to one where more than 1,500 previously impoverished small‐scale Swazi farmers have been able to enter the industry by joining farmers’ associations and creating communally managed farms. Recent changes to the EU's Sugar Protocol have undermined the financial viability of the KDDP farms and undermined food security, especially for the poorest, due to the cut in sugar prices. However, some farmers’ associations have opted to keep some of their land as irrigated home gardens, rather than convert all their land to sugar cane. This model has improved food security at a time of low sugar prices and points to a more sustainable way of using water from large scale dams than the conventional model. It is argued that the EU should target support to members of the KDDP who have taken out large‐scale loans to pay for the in‐field infrastructure and encourage all farmers’ associations to adopt the food garden model. This would enable them to continue to benefit from the irrigation through improved production of subsistence crops, whilst they diversify their commercial production into novel markets.     

Evaluation of Three Watershed‐Scale Pesticide Environmental Transport and Fate Models1

Abstract: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) has completed an evaluation of three watershed‐scale simulation models for potential use in Food Quality Protection Act pesticide drinking water exposure assessments. The evaluation may also guide OPP in identifying computer simulation tools that can be used in performing aquatic ecological exposure assessments. Models selected for evaluation were the Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), the Nonpoint Source Model (NPSM), a modified version of the Hydrologic Simulation Program‐Fortran (HSPF), and the Pesticide Root Zone Model‐Riverine Water Quality (PRZM‐RIVWQ) model. Simulated concentrations of the pesticides atrazine, metolachlor, and trifluralin in surface water were compared with field data monitored in the Sugar Creek watershed of Indiana’s White River basin by the National Water Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program. The evaluation not only provided USEPA with experience in using watershed models for estimating pesticide concentration in flowing water but also led to the development of improved statistical techniques for assessing model accuracy. Further, it demonstrated the difficulty of representing spatially and temporally variable soil, weather, and pesticide applications with relatively infrequent, spatially fixed, point estimates. It also demonstrated the value of using monitoring and modeling as mutually supporting tools and pointed to the need to design monitoring programs that support modeling.     

Environmental and economic impacts of water scarcity and market reform on the Mooki catchment

Over-allocation of irrigation water has led to widespread environmental degradation in the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) in Australia, prompting discussions of the water efficiency performance of irrigated industries. There is increasing pressure for irrigators to adopt water efficient practices in line with ecologically sustainable principles, especially with current drought conditions. However, there is great uncertainty surrounding the available practices to improve irrigation efficiency from both ecological and economic standpoints. This paper examines the economic and environmental impact of several possible water efficient practices and government policies, using an interdisciplinary approach combining biophysical modelling and economic modelling. This is done for the case-study of the Mooki catchment in the MDB, located in northern New South Wales, Australia.     

An empirical investigation of the influence of safety climate on organizational citizenship behavior in Taiwan's facilities.

Although the social exchange relationships between employers and employees are increasingly important to the performance of safety management systems, the psychological effects of work attitudes on this relationship have been less studied. Using a sample of first-line operators and their supervisors from 188 facilities in Taiwan which had Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series 18000 (OHSAS 18000) certification, the current research conducted an empirical investigation of the influence of safety climate on organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). Work attitude was used to disclose the psychological effect. Research results indicated that (a) safety climate was a significant predicator of OCB, (b) the psychological effect significantly influenced social exchange relationships, and (c) job satisfaction showed a stronger mediating influence than organizational commitment due to the frequent top management turnover. Discussions and implications are also addressed.     

Impact of microenvironmental nitrogen dioxide concentrations on personal exposures in Australia

Indoor and outdoor NO2 concentrations were measured and compared with simultaneously measured personal exposures of 57 office workers in Brisbane, Australia. House characteristics and activity patterns were used to determine the impacts of these factors on personal exposure. Indoor NO2 levels and the presence of a gas range in the home were significantly associated with personal exposure. The time-weighted average of personal exposure was estimated using NO2 measurements in indoor home, indoor workplace, and outdoor home levels. The estimated personal exposures were closely correlated, but they significantly underestimated the measured personal exposures. Multiple regression analysis using other nonmeasured microenvironments indicated the importance of transportation in personal exposure models. The contribution of transportation to the error of prediction of personal exposure was confirmed in the regression analysis using the multinational study database.     

Evaluating and Managing Cumulative Effects: Process and Constraints

Since any proposed activity could contribute to a wide range of potential CEs at different spatial and temporal scales, a tiered or nested approach should be followed to assess CEs. The difficulty of assessing and predicting CEs also suggests that in many cases the most efficient approach is to focus on minimizing on-site impacts. Under some circumstances adaptive management can also be a viable alternative to detailed CE assessments. Regular monitoring and feedback is critical to the successful management and regulation of CEs.     

Removal of 2,4-dichlorophenol by suspended and immobilized Bacillus insolitus

In this experiment, Bacillus insolitus was isolated and selected from a mixed culture that have been acclimated to chlorophenols. Decomposition of chlorophenolic compounds will be studied using this pure culture in both suspended and immobilized form. The results are: at lower initial concentrations of 2,4-dichlorophenol (10-50 mg/l), immobilized Bacillus insolitus shows a higher removal of 2,4-dichlorophenol than Bacillus insolitus in suspended growth. When the 2,4-dichlorophenol concentration becomes higher (50-200 mg/l), both immobilized and suspended Bacillus insolitus have approximately the same efficiency for removal of 2,4-dichlorophenol. Higher concentrations of 2,4-dichlorophenol are inhibitive to the growth of either suspended or immobilized Bacillus insolitus. At lower concentrations of 2,4-dichlorophenol, immobilized mixed culture may have the same removal efficiency of 2,4-dichlorophenol as immobilized pure culture of Bacillus insolitus. But with regard to the overall 2,4-dichlorophenol removal efficiency, immobilized pure culture is considered to be superior to immobilized mixed culture.     

Paper fibers as a carbon source for the de novo formation of polychlorinated dioxins and furans

The formation of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDDs/Fs) from carbon that was produced by the pyrolysis of paper fibers and from wood charcoal was investigated experimentally. Fibers obtained from filter paper were pyrolyzed at 300° and 800°C to produce low- and high-temperature carbon samples. The two types of carbon and wood charcoal were mixed with silica (SiO₂) and trace copper oxide to produce three synthetic fly ash samples. Experiments to measure the formation of PCCDs/Fs from the three ash samples were conducted using a bench-scale reactor. The two carbon samples derived from paper fibers generated more PCDDs/Fs than was generated by the wood charcoal. The PCDDs/Fs generated by the low-temperature carbon and by the wood charcoal were dominated by the lower-chlorinated PCDFs. Such unique homologue distribution patterns are very similar to those generated by the open burning of household waste. The high-temperature carbon generated more highly chlorinated PCDDs/Fs. The effect of pyrolysis temperature on the de novo formation of PCDDs/Fs from residual carbon is discussed. Paper and paper products contained in household waste are likely to be the source of unburned carbon that contributes to high PCDD/F emissions in the open burning of household waste.     

Mechanical treatment of automobile shredder residue for its application as a fuel

Enforcement of the Automobile Recycling Law in Japan requires utilization of automobile shredder residue (ASR). However, the high contents of copper (∼5%) and chlorine (∼1%) in ASR stand in the way of practical application. We studied methods for the removal of copper and chlorine from ASR so that it could be utilized as a fuel. By compression of the ASR for solidification with an extruder, the polyvinylchloride (PVC) that covered electrical cables was softened and stripped from the copper wire. The solidified ASR was comminuted with cutter mills and classified by dry density separation. The copper content of the obtained light products was 0.2%–0.5%. Furthermore, we studied the possibility of dechlorination of the ASR by mechanochemical (MC) activation. The light product of the ASR was milled with CaO or CaCO₃. The chlorine content decreased to about one-tenth of the original value after MC activation over 8 h. Therefore, the combined processing of softening–stripping and comminution liberated the PVC-covered cables and decreased the copper content of the ASR. In addition, dechlorination of the ASR was also possible by MC activation with the addition of calcium compounds.