Taming B.C. Hydro: Site C and the implementation of the B.C. Utilities Commission Act

Public policy making in resources management is greatly influenced by the institutional arrangements that arise out of the legal powers, administrative structures, and financial provisions of the decision system. In British Columbia, the institutional arrangements for energy planning in the province have been greatly altered by the passage of the Utilities Commission Act in 1980. This act redefines the policy implementation process for energy in British Columbia and provides for the regulation of the province's power utility, B.C. Hydro. This is the first time that the hitherto autonomous utility has been subject to regulation and the Utilities Commission Act represents a major reform in the institutional arrangements for energy planning in the province. The article evaluates the effectiveness of the 1980 B.C. Utilities Commission Act and assesses the impact of the legislation upon the institutional arrangements for energy planning in the province. Data for the article were derived from written sources and a series of personal interviews with key participants involved with energy planning in B.C.It is shown that the act represented a major departure in the management of energy resources in B.C. Moreover the implementation of the act's provisions, particularly in regard to B.C. Hydro, had a dramatic impact on the development of new energy projects in the province. It is suggested that while the political and economic climate during the period also favored restraint, the major influence on taming the utility was passage of the Utilities Commission Act. The article concludes by exploring the implications of policy changes that have occurred as a consequence of the act's impact on B.C. Hydro.     

A PROPOSED MODIFICATION TO REGULATION OF LAKE OKEECHOBEE1

ABSTRACT: The current Lake Okeechobee regulation schedule is two feet higher than previous schedules that were in operation during the early 1970's. Its implementation was in response to prolonged periods of drought that occurred during the 1960's and early 1970's and the large increases in consumptive uses that were projected, and are presently occurring in south Florida. The additional storage provided by the schedule undoubtedly helped prevent more severe water shortages during the record setting 1980–1982 drought. However, two environmental concerns associated with the present schedule surfaced in recent years with the return to more normal rainfall conditions. First, the present schedule allows frequent high water conditions to exist in the lake that appear to be stressful to the unique littoral zone habitat of the lake. Second, the allowable buildup of storage prior to the dry season, combined with the large required decrease in storage prior to the hurricane (wet) season, contribute to the need for large regulation releases to tidewater. These large discharges have undesirable impacts on ecosystems of the downstream estuaries. This paper presents an alternative schedule that better meets the needs of the estuarine habitats without negatively impacting the other objectives of managing the lake.     

OPTIMIZING NONPOINT SOURCE CONTROLS IN WATER QUALITY REGULATION1

ABSTRACT: A stochastic programming framework is developed to evaluate the economic implications of reliability criteria and multiple effluent controls on nonpoint source pollution. An integrated watershed simulation model is used to generate probability distributions for agricultural effluents in surface and ground water resulting from agricultural practices. Results from the planning model indicate that reliability and multiple effluent constraints significantly increase the cost of nonpoint controls but the effects vary by control alternative. The analysis indicates that an evaluation of multiple water quality objectives can be an important planning tool for designing nonpoint source controls for innovative programs to promote cost-effective water quality regulation.     

EMERGING STATE ROLES IN URBAN STORMWATER MANAGEMENT1

ABSTRACT: The technology of urban stormwater management has far outpaced its actual application in new urban development. This article documents that implementation gap, but shows that state and local governmental measures, particularly storm drainage regulations, can lead to improved performance in the private sector. Although state stormwater management programs are in their infancy, they are already having a measurable effect in stimulating the adoption of local governmental programs to manage urban storm water. Pioneering state programs in Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, described in this article, provide models for states contemplating the formulation of stormwater management programs.     

INSTITUTIONAL INTERACTION IN METROPOLITAN WATER RESOURCE PLANNING1

ABSTRACT Methods of institutional coordination derived from the applied behavioral sciences have been useful in determining the policy planning, and implementation responsibilities that must be shared between local governments, watershed districts, and a regional planning body in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Area. The confines of the traditional behavioral science models of organizations and institutional change processes, and the realities of administrative systems imbedded in political processes at both the local and state levels, have created conflicts between regional planners, watershed district staff and consultants, and municipal administrators. A conceptual framework based on work by Selznick on institutions was applied to two watershed districts, and the results evaluated for other research purposes as well as policy development for the 1973 Minnesota legislative session.     

ASSESSING THE ECONOMIC BENEFITS OF GROUND WATER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY DECISIONS1

ABSTRACT: The full range of environmental and economic services of ground water need to be accounted for in policy decisions. Non-recognition of these services imputes a lower value for the ground water resource in establishing policies. We describe a conceptual framework for identifying and measuring the economic value of groundwater. The valuation framework links changes in physical characteristics of ground water to services provided by ground water and the economic effects of changes in ground water services. In addition to the framework, we develop a general protocol to follow for assessing the benefits of ground water policies. Application of the protocol will aid in establishing structure and consistency across policy assessments and improve the accuracy and completeness of benefit estimates, avoid double-counting problems, and eliminate duplication of ground water valuation efforts.     

人体温度调节的计算机数值模拟

在研究人体温度调节生理机制的基础上，通过必要的近似简化方法，对一维人体温度调节数学模型进行某些改进，用控制容积法推导出微分方程的有限差分格式，并利用相应的计算程序对人体温度调节进行数值模拟     

我国古建筑消防法规与技术规范发展现状研究

古建筑火灾会造成重大财产和文化损失,一直是我国消防工作中的重点和难点问题。我国古建筑消防相关法规与技术体系建设起步较晚,发展速度较慢。近年来我国文物保护部门与消防部门加强对古建筑消防法规与技术体系建设,颁布了一系列法规与规范,为我国古建筑消防事业发展提供了法律和技术依据。本文对我国古建筑火灾特点进行分析,阐述了我国古建筑消防法规与技术规范发展历程,并对其中存在制度单一,灵活性差;发展滞后,内容不完善;体系封闭,社会参与不足等问题进行了分析与探讨,为进一步研究提供了一定的参考价值。     

规划管制下土地发展权受限的多情景测度:数量与价值

在统筹推进国土空间规划及用途管制的背景下,揭示土地发展权受限的数量及其价值,对于完善中国空间治理体系、解决不平衡不充分发展尤其是区域差异问题具有重要的理论和现实意义。文章以湖北省为"生态资源优势区"代表性省份,首先运用柯布-道格拉斯(C-D)生产函数模型测算各生产要素在农业与非农业部门中对经济增长的弹性以及土地资源在两部门的边际收益,揭示土地发展权受限的客观现实和成因;然后基于缩小湖北省与"经济发展优势区"经济发展差距的不同情景,测度2009—2018年湖北因处于生态资源优势区而使土地发展权受限的数量与价值。结果显示:(1)土地要素投入对湖北省经济增长具有重要影响。2009—2018年,湖北省非农部门经济增长仍依赖土地要素投入,且土地要素对经济增长的贡献难以被其他生产要素替代。(2)高额的机会成本是土地资源由农业部门向非农部门转移的重要潜在驱动力。2009—2018年,湖北省非农部门的土地边际收益是农业部门的17.03~44.14倍,且呈逐年递增趋势,规划管制的存在导致了土地发展权受限。(3)规划管制背景下,对受限的土地发展权进行补偿具有必要性和可行性。在经济发展水平差距缩小10%~100%的不同情景下,2009—2018年湖北省土地发展权受限数量处于0.53×104~5.35×104hm2之间,对应的价值量占同时期"经济发展优势区"总GDP的比重较低,为0.02%~0.19%。基于此,应开展土地发展权受限补偿的制度建设,从土地发展权产权确认和利益分配机制改革两方面量化和落实土地发展权,并以对土地发展权的底线补偿情景为起点逐步提高土地发展权补偿水平,直至实现完全补偿。     

Who takes the lead? A multi‐source diary study on leadership,work engagement,and job performance

Transformational leadership is associated with a range of positive outcomes. Yet, according to substitutes for leadership theory, there may be circumstances under which it is difficult, if not impossible, for leaders to inspire and challenge their employees. Therefore, we hypothesize that transformational leadership behaviors as well as employee self‐leadership strategies contribute to employee work engagement and job performance. Furthermore, we hypothesize that transformational leadership behaviors are more effective when employees have a high need for leadership, whereas self‐leadership strategies are more effective when employees have a low need for leadership. A sample of 57 unique leader–employee dyads filled out a quantitative diary survey at the end of each week, for a period of five weeks. The results of multilevel structural equation modeling showed that employees were more engaged in their work and received higher performance ratings from their leader when leaders used more transformational leadership behaviors, and when employees used more self‐leadership strategies. Furthermore, we showed that transformational leadership behaviors were more effective when employees had a high (vs. low) need for leadership and that the opposite was true for employee self‐leadership. These findings contribute to our understanding of the role of employees in the transformational leadership process. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.