The impact of privatization approaches on the productivity growth of the water industry: A case study of Chile

The water industry faces the challenge of implementing privatization reforms. This process mainly adopts the following two approaches: the privatization of public water and sewerage services (WSS) and the privatization of water companies’ ownership. This paper investigates the impact of both privatization approaches on changes in productivity in the water industry. In doing so, the Luenberger productivity indicator (LPI) was computed for a sample of Chilean water and sewerage companies (WaSCs) for the period 1997–2013. Unlike the most commonly applied index (Malmquist productivity index), the LPI simultaneously takes into account output expansion and input contraction. The results evidenced that productivity in the Chilean water industry decreased after its privatization. However, in the sub-periods in which the ownership of WaSCs was privatized, the productivity of the water industry increased due to technical improvements. On the other hand, the concession of WWS to private WaSCs involved a regression in productivity. From a policy perspective, regulators and managers of WaSCs at the international level can learn important lessons from the Chilean case to improve the productivity of the water industries in their countries.     

Uncertainty,complexity and controversy in dolphin threat management: A role for post-normal science?

Managing fishing threats to populations of endemic, threatened Hector’s and Māui dolphins around New Zealand is a complex and controversial issue, underpinned by uncertain scientific knowledge. As such, it can be argued that it falls into the realm of post-normal science, which advocates transparency about uncertainties and stakeholder peer review of knowledge feeding into decision-making. This paper focuses on selected examples of modelling and risk assessment research relating to Hector’s and Māui dolphin threat management. It explores how knowledge is developed, shared and utilised by decision-makers, finding that uncertain scientific knowledge may be shared in ways that make it appear more certain, with some of the subjectivities involved in knowledge production hidden from view. Interviews with stakeholders illustrate how some stakeholders are aware of the subjectivities involved when uncertain knowledge underpins decision-making, so a lack of transparency may be leading to erosion of social trust in decisions made. This in turn can lead to a lack of support for dolphin conservation measures from key stakeholders such as the commercial fishing industry. The paper concludes that while moves towards increasing transparency and stakeholder involvement are apparent, a deeper embrace of post-normal science approaches to knowledge production and dissemination would contribute to effective dolphin threat management in New Zealand.     

Assessing the efficiency of Chilean water and sewerage companies accounting for uncertainty

Efficiency assessment of water and sewerage companies (WaSCs) has attracted considerable attention both for water company managers and water regulators. Within the methodological approaches that can be applied to estimate efficiency scores, data envelopment analysis (DEA) is the most widely applied technique. In spite of the positive features of DEA, it presents a major drawback which is its deterministic nature. In other words, conventional DEA models do not account for uncertainty in the data. To overcome this limitation, we assess, for the first time, the efficiency of a sample of Chilean WaSCs by using a DEA model with statistical tolerance in the data. Hence, 81 efficiency scores are estimated for each WaSC rather than a single score as with conventional DEA models. The results illustrate that outputs exhibit larger uncertainty than inputs. Moreover, WaSCs efficiency scores change significantly under the best-case and worst-case scenarios. The ranking of the WaSCs allows for the identification of which of them has the highest performance based on their efficiency scores. This information is essential to enhance efficiency and innovation in the water industry. Moreover, the introduction of uncertainty in the efficiency assessment allows for the prediction and ranking of future performance of WaSCs.     

Species Inequality in Scientific Study

Abstract: Some conservationists argue for a focused effort to protect the most critically endangered species, and others suggest a large‐scale endeavor to safeguard common species across large areas. Similar arguments are applicable to the distribution of scientific effort among species. Should conservation scientists focus research efforts on threatened species, common species, or do all species deserve equal attention? We assessed the scientific equity among 1909 mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians of southern Africa by relating the number of papers written about each species to their status on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. Threatened large mammals and reptiles had more papers written about them than their nonthreatened counterparts, whereas threatened small mammals and amphibians received less attention than nonthreatened species. Threatened birds received an intermediate amount of attention in the scientific literature. Thus, threat status appears to drive scientific effort among some animal groups, whereas other factors (e.g., pest management and commercial interest) appear to dictate scientific investment in particular species of other groups. Furthermore, the scientific investment per species differed greatly between groups—the mean number of papers per threatened large mammal eclipsed that of threatened reptiles, birds, small mammals, and amphibians by 2.6‐, 15‐, 216‐, and more than 500‐fold, respectively. Thus, in the eyes of science, all species are not created equal. A few species commanded a great proportion of scientific attention, whereas for many species information that might inform conservation is virtually nonexistent.     

防灾减灾的基础研究及应用研究进展概况

人类社会是在对自然灾害的不断斗争中得到发展。近代由于全球人口的迅速增长和城市化程度的提高，自然灾害的损失也在急剧增加。防灾减灾是减轻灾害损失、保障社会可持续发展的系统工程。当前灾害监测技术、灾害的形成和发展规律、灾情评估方法、灾害管理及灾害对社会经济的影响等方面的基础研究及应用研究已有了不小的进展。本文概括地介绍了这些进展，并指出了防灾减灾工作中存在的一些问题及对策     

清代综合治理黄河下游水患的系统科学思想

利用清代在治黄斗争中留下的历史文献, 对清代治理黄河的系统科学思想进行初步的研究与总结, 目的是鉴古知今, 为当代治理好黄河提供借鉴与创意。     

关于安全教育学的分析与探讨

论述安全教育学的定义和研究领域;分析其理论基础、在安全科学技术体系结构中的地位与作用和本身的体系结构;指出其与相邻学科的关系、发展趋势和应注意的问题。     

Referee analyses: A better approach than data validation

Data validation, as prescribed in guidance documents provided by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), yields legal evidence that an analytical laboratory has performed analyses according to predetermined specifications. This validation process, because it involves only the checking of procedural documentation, provides minimal information concerning the technical validity of the data. Unfortunately, in the minds of many, the performance of such a data validation has become synonymous with technical validity. A better approach is to implement a routine program of referee analyses. That is, submit a predetermined number of samples from the project to a second laboratory. A routine program of this type provides a self-checking and self-correcting mechanism for determining whether data are technically valid. Publication No. 3874, Environmental Sciences Division, ORNL. Managed by Martin-Marietta Energy Systems, Inc. for the US Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC05-840R21400.     

20世纪中国强震与天体位置关系分析

本文全面分析了1900年至1985年发生于中国的7.0级以上大地震与天体位置的关系.分析结果表明,月回归与三天体一线等天文奇点有利于大地震的发生;本世纪93次7.0级以上大地震中68%发生于月亮轨道(白道)与赤道交角变小阶段,60%以上发生于月亮升交点黄经位于350°～210°期间.这说明月亮轨道运行至此将会是中国地震活跃期.文中还指出,各天体对地球的作用除引潮力之外,还有电磁力和宇宙辐射,而对于远离平衡态的地震区,任何微小的涨落都会被放大,从而诱发地震.     

SOCIO-ECONOMIC ACCOUNTING APPLIED TO WATER RESOURCE PLANNING1

ABSTRACT The growing social consciousness and concern with human well-being has resulted in numerous water resource use and control programs, the results of which must be measured not in the customary monetary terms, but rather in terms of social and human welfare. Interdisciplinary research offers the greatest promise of yielding fruitful results in establishing planning methodology that would result in a maximum utilization of funds available for water resource programs. Working with the various social science disciplines, accountants have begun research in social measurement thus opening the door to a new field of accountancy known as socio-economic accounting. The development of social accounting systems will improve water resource management by projecting heretofore unmeasureable social values into the management decision making process.