资源型城市贵阳市的生态可持续发展研究

生态可持续发展是资源型城市可持续发展的基础。应用生态足迹的方法,对资源型城市贵阳市的生态可持续发展做了定量评估,并分析了影响贵阳市生态可持续发展的社会经济驱动力。贵阳市1999年-2007年间生态足迹从1.447 hm2/cap增长到2.472hm2/cap,而生态承载力从0.551 hm2/cap下降至0.509 hm2/cap,生态足迹远超出生态承载力,生态系统处于不可持续发展状况。但贵阳市生态效率在不断改善,从1999年的0.500万元GDP/hm2生态足迹增长到2007年的0.787万元GDP/hm2生态足迹,生态系统改善仍存在一定契机。人口增加、能耗增加等因素会导致贵阳市生态足迹增加,而增加农作物播种面积则可减少生态足迹。应用生态足迹的方法,有利于分析资源型城市可持续发展的相关问题,最后就如何缓解贵阳市生态系统压力,促进贵阳市生态可持续发展进行了探讨。     

High and low value fish chains in the Mekong Delta: challenges for livelihoods and governance

This paper investigates the structure, function and wealth distribution within the Pangasius hypophthalmus and Henicorhynchus spp./Labiobarbus spp. value chains in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. The analysis is driven by key questions relating to the form and function of value chains, their contribution to the livelihoods of farmers and fishers, the effectiveness of government policy and the potential for value chain governance mechanisms, such as contracts and certification, to steer towards sustainable production. The results indicate that actors in the high value Pangasius hypopthalmus export chain have a higher potential income, but face considerably higher economic vulnerability from global markets. Alternatively, Henichorhychus/Labiobarbus spp. fishers are severely constrained in their ability to negotiate higher prices for their fish but appear to be less vulnerable to economic and environmental change. The paper concludes that for value chain governance to improve the livelihoods of fishers and farmers in both high and low value chains, new arrangements are needed that better accommodate customary institutions and informal market relations.     

Overcoming latecomer disadvantage through learning processes: Taiwan’s venture into wind power development

Research into national innovation systems (NISs) has received extensive academic and policy attention, and is especially relevant with latecomer countries seeking to innovate in challenging industrial environments. In playing catch up with their early industrializing counterparts, methods of learning take on increased importance in determining industrial success for latecomers. The wind turbine technology innovation system is one that is highly dependent on both the extent of the national learning processes and the strength of the national social-institutional setting. This research investigates the case of Taiwan, a country which has embarked on a program to build its national innovative capacity in wind turbine technologies with specific emphasis on Taiwan’s social sector. Within this system, the spotlight will be on four types of learning processes that interplay during wind turbine development: learning by searching, learning by doing, learning by using, and learning by interacting. Through a case study of the emergence of Taiwan’s burgeoning large-scale wind power technology initiatives, the paper aims to add to the understanding on how methods of learning impact upon the success of innovation systems. The findings show that the industry’s future prospects are constrained because of the limited learning by interacting processes between turbine component producers, turbine owners, and researchers and because of weaknesses in the institutional framework. This research also recognizes the importance that culture has on dominant forms of learning.     

Sustainable nations: what do aggregate indexes tell us?

What is a ‘sustainable nation’ and how can we identify and rank ‘sustainable nations?’ Are nations producing and consuming in a sustainable way? Although several aggregate indexes have been proposed to answer such questions, comprehensive and internationally comparable data are not available for most of these. This paper quantitatively compares three aggregate indexes of sustainability: the World Bank’s ‘Genuine Savings’ measure, the ‘Ecological Footprint,’ and the ‘Environmental Sustainability Index.’ These three indexes are available for a large number of countries and also seem to be the most influential among the aggregate indexes. This paper first discusses the main limitations and weaknesses of each of these indexes. Subsequently, it shows that rankings of sustainable nations and aggregate assessments of unsustainable world population and world GDP shares vary considerably among these indexes. This disagreement leads to suggestions for analysis and policy. One important insight is that climate change, arguable the most serious threat currently faced by humanity, is not or arbitrarily captured by the indexes.     

Economic growth and CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> emissions

This article considers a planner’s optimum control exercise with environmental pollution and derives a testable link between the growth rates of consumption and pollution. The link is then empirically estimated for the case of CO₂ emissions for a sample consisting of the union of top 25 countries in terms of CO₂ emissions, population and per capita GNP. The analysis suggests that the interrelationship between the growth rates of CO₂ emission and economic development is mostly significant for countries that have a high level of CO₂ emissions and population.     

Do EU pesticide standards promote environmentally-friendly production of fresh export vegetables in developing countries? The evidence from Kenyan green bean industry

Developed countries are major markets for developing country fresh produce. Demand by developed country consumers for spotless produce has encouraged developing country consumers to rely increasingly on pesticides in producing fresh export vegetables. However developed country pesticide standards enacted in response to reports of increased farmer and farm worker pesticide poisoning and the food safety scandals of the 1980s and 1990s require changes in the way growers use pesticides. The EU has especially developed stringent food safety standards relating to, among other things, pesticide usage. Under EU pesticide standards (EU-PS) farmers are trained by their buyers on safe use of pesticides and then closely monitored under contract. This paper looks at the impact of these standards on developing country farmers’ use of alternative pest management practices, pesticide protective clothing and the actual usage of pesticides. It finds that compliance with EU-PS increases the use of alternative pest management practices and protective clothing. However, EU-PS has mixed effect on the quantity of pesticides used. The paper also finds that farmer’s education and access to information play an important role in the use of alternative pest management practices. The paper concludes that EU-PS encourage the use of alternative pest management practices and pesticide protective gear in production of fresh export vegetables. The findings imply that EU-PS promote environmentally-friendly methods of production of fresh export vegetables in developing countries.     

重大水利工程项目社会风险的牛鞭效应

重大水利工程在有效利用自然资源的同时,也将带来巨大的社会风险,且这种风险在传递过程中不断被放大扭曲,具有明显的牛鞭效应。本文在构建重大水利工程项目社会风险链模型基础上,具体分析了牛鞭效应的产生原因,并定量刻画了社会风险牛鞭效应的削弱机制。研究表明,水利工程项目信息尤其是隐性信息在施工方和当地民众之间传递的不及时或不准确,将导致社会风险被大幅放大,并形成牛鞭效应。牛鞭效应的具体大小主要取决于两方面,一方面是水利工程项目直接影响的利益受损当地民众比例,另一方面是社会风险传染率与退出率的比值。针对前者,除了设计良好的补偿机制来弥补具体的、可衡量的利益损失外,还须通过建立失地农民的社保体系来维护如地缘业缘消失带来的无形损失;针对后者,可以在政府各部门、施工方和民众之间建立良好的信息共享系统,把单向沟通改变为多向沟通,把治理模式从"政府治理"改变为"政府—民众共治",从而促进社会的和谐发展。     

Ecological Function Zoning for Environmental Planning at Different Levels

Environmental planning at different levels has been called for by environmental departments in China during last years to integrate environment consideration to economic development. Based on the accomplished environmental planning practice in Xiamen China, the paper suggests a general environmental planning process with ecological function zoning as its key steps, at the same time an effective method for ecological function zoning was formulated. The case studies of Dongfu suburban town environmental planning and Xiamen eco-city conceptual planning indicate that scientifically sound results of ecological function zoning can contribute to improving not only the adaptability and acceptability of environmental planning, also the environmental management and the decision-making. The experience shows that the ecological function zoning methods should be applied according to the principles of adaptive management, resource-based and community-based, so that it can integrate science into decision-making process, avoiding both narrow-minded viewpoints of planners and natural resource use conflicts among variety of stakeholders. Problems to be resolved in the future are also pointed out in the ending part.     

生态工程研究进展

生态工程的概念提出已经有40余年，在其发展过程中，研究的理论、方法不断创新，在近脾的发展趋势中，模型研究以及生态工程评价成为研究的重点，面新技术的应用以及跨尺度的研究已经开始，本文对这些发展趋势进行了总结，并指出生态工程发展过程中仍然存在的不足之处，同时认为生态学理论与传统技术的结台，以及哲学观念的转变将使生态工程前途光明。