易燃、易爆危险化学品铁路运输危险性分析

从定性和定量两个方面对易燃、易爆危险化学品的铁路槽罐车运输过程和装卸过程的危险性进行分析,利用道化学火灾爆炸指数法计算易燃、易爆危险化学品铁路罐车的火灾爆炸指数,进行重大危险源辨识,并对重大危险源的概念进行了理论探讨,提出移动式重大危险源的概念。     

Advancing voluntary chemical governance? The case of the Swedish textile industry dialogue

Voluntary environmental governance is a widely used policy approach that has been criticized for its lack of effectiveness. This raises fundamental questions about how to design processes that can advance voluntary programmes in a way that makes them more successful. In this paper, we analyse a government-initiated dialogue process to phase out hazardous chemicals through voluntary action by the Swedish textile industry. The analysis shows that information transfer primarily motivated business participation, while consumer pressure, regulatory threats and traditions of government–business cooperation played minor roles. The institutional design of the dialogue ensured close interaction within a homogeneous group, but collective actions were limited by disagreement about the problems to be addressed, prior unilateral environmental commitments by leading companies, and ambivalent engagement. This case provides valuable insights into the effect of institutional design on the actual interplay between business and government and its effects on voluntary governance.     

The Effects of Irrigation and Climate on the High Plains Aquifer: A County‐Level Econometric Analysis

The High Plains Aquifer (HPA) underlies parts of eight states and 208 counties in the central area of the United States (U.S.). This region produces more than 9% of U.S. crops sales and relies on the aquifer for irrigation. However, these withdrawals have diminished the stock of water in the aquifer. In this paper, we investigate the aggregate county‐level effect on the HPA of groundwater withdrawal for irrigation, of climate variables, and of energy price changes. We merge economic theory and hydrological characteristics to jointly estimate equations describing irrigation behavior and a generalized water balance equation for the HPA. Our simple water balance model predicts, at average values for irrigation and precipitation, an HPA‐wide average decrease in the groundwater table of 0.47 feet per year, compared to 0.48 feet per year observed on average across the HPA during this 1985–2005 period. The observed distribution and predicted change across counties is in the (?3.22, 1.59) and (?2.24, 0.60) feet per year range, respectively. The estimated impact of irrigation is to decrease the water table by an average of 1.24 feet per year, whereas rainfall recharges the level by an average of 0.76 feet per year. Relative to the past several decades, if groundwater use is unconstrained, groundwater depletion would increase 50% in a scenario where precipitation falls by 25% and the number of degree days above 36°C doubles. Editor’s note : This paper is part of the featured series on Optimizing Ogallala Aquifer Water Use to Sustain Food Systems. See the February 2019 issue for the introduction and background to the series.     

新中国70年生态环境建设发展的艰难历程与辉煌成就

中国的生态环境建设,经历了新中国建立之初生产力低下的农耕文明、改革开放后的工业文明、迈向生态文明的三大阶段,每个阶段都有自身的特质、挑战、应对和成效。从1949年到改革开放前,中国整体上表现为农耕文明特征,自然灾害频发、粮食生产短缺、城市化水平低下。为了跳出"马尔萨斯陷阱",新中国的缔造者带领人民治理水患,兴修水利,拓荒垦殖,问题得到缓解但没有得到解决,贫困落后依然,没能彻底摆脱"马尔萨斯魔咒"。改革开放后,工业化快速推进,城市化加速发展,使农民得以从土地中解放出来,极大地提升了劳动生产力;同时也使土地得以从农民手中部分释放出来,不仅大幅提升了土地资源价值,也使土地得以休养生息自我生态修复。虽然快速的工业化、城市化进程大幅提升了生产力、积累了巨量的物质财富,但是进入21世纪以来,中国的发展逼近工业文明的生态红线、环境底线和资源上线,可持续发展挑战不断凸显。2010年后,中国全面启动生态保护、污染控制和资源节约的转型发展进程,高质量、大力度建设生态文明,推进人与自然的和谐 发展。     

我国生态工业园区政策可持续性的动力机制

为了有效地推动工业园区的生态转型,相关的政策支持需要考虑时间的连续性及阶段性。本文以我国生态工业园区政策为例,运用事件序列分析方法,重构了政策长时期演化过程,剖析其序列规律,以此揭示促进我国生态工业园区政策可持续性的动力机制。结果表明：我国生态工业园区政策的演化路径经历了从单一机构到多部门合作治理的转变,从政策学习与实验型实施到实验型与行政规范化相结合的实施方式的转变。这些转变提升了政策实施初期的适应性与政策实施中后期的稳定性,从而提升了政策的生命力,促进了政策的可持续性与积极政策结果的实现。     

基于投影寻踪的资源环境综合绩效评估方法研究

资源环境综合绩效评估是建设节约型社会的一项基础工作.在传统的资源环境综合绩效指数中,各种资源消耗和污染物排放绩效的权重相等,导致综合评价结果的合理性受到影响.针对该问题,通过构建投影指标函数和采用遗传算法对投影方向进行优化,提出了基于投影寻踪的资源环境综合绩效评估方法,并应用于2007年中国各省、直辖市和自治区的资源环境绩效评估.研究结果表明,中国资源环境绩效水平空间差异明显,呈现东部高西部低的特征,因此必须合理调整西部地区的经济结构,提高资源利用效率和加强环境保护,实现可持续发展.该方法的权重取值较为客观和科学,评估结果合理,值得推广应用.     

中原经济区城市资源环境绩效指标体系构建与实证

为了识别城市或“相似群体”最重要的资源环境“短板”问题,以中原经济区31个城市为研究区域,选择水土资源、能源、环境质量和污染物排放及治理水平等4个方面共计33项指标,利用层次分析修正法确定指标权重,采用正向指标极大化、负向指标极小化、适中指标平均化的标准化方法对研究区域内各市资源环境绩效进行测算. 研究表明:①从资源环境绩效角度来看,中原经济区城市可分为“双高”超载型、农业型、“双低”超载型、资源型四大类. ②占中原经济区城市总数2/5的资源型城市,由于过度强调资源产出、忽视环境保护而成为经济区环境问题高发、资源环境矛盾较为突出的集中区域. ③在对4个Ⅰ级指标(资源利用效率、能源利用效率、环境质量指数、污染物排放及治理水平)设定均衡权重情况下,15个城市的能源利用效率居末位,10个城市的资源利用效率居末位,表明中原经济区提高资源环境绩效应率先在能源、资源利用效率领域实现突破. 所构建的资源环境绩效评估指标体系仍有待进一步优化,今后应加大对可再生资源能源利用、农村生态环境特别是农村土地重金属及有机物污染等问题的关注.      

Ensuring social acceptance of the energy transition. The German government’s ‘consensus management’ strategy

This study deals with the German Federal Government’s approach of ensuring public support for its ‘Energiewende’, the swift and complete transition to an energy system based on renewable sources. First, the government’s ‘consensus management’ strategy is described as consisting of four elements: the setup of stakeholder deliberation fora; the funding of organisations dedicated to the public promotion of the energy transition; public campaigns that appeal to people’s commitment and the support of research on energy technologies. The study then traces the need for a strong social mandate of the energy transition back to the scope of the regulatory challenge and the recently growing conflicts around implementation, to institutional constraints of a consensus democracy and to the narrative of ‘Energiewende’ as the ‘grand national task’.     

A responsibility–accountability framework for private sector use of a World Heritage Area

The Great Barrier Reef (GBR) is a natural asset of global significance, spanning 2600?km’s along the Australian coastline. On the southern tip of the GBR is the Gladstone region, where high levels of industrial activity have been juxtaposed with the natural wonder, and World Heritage Listed, GBR. Given these competing local priorities, this research explores local perceptions of the GBR and its management. Exploratory analysis of 38 interviews with residents and stakeholders from Gladstone revealed a potential incongruence between environmental concern and support for more stringent management of the tourism and resources sectors on the GBR. A responsibility–accountability framework (RAF) for managing the use and protection of the GBR is developed by drawing on current theoretical frameworks and the results of the interviews. Importantly the framework highlights the importance of business responsibility combined with monitoring and control mechanisms to ensure accountability and to deliver transparency, education and partnership. Future research should apply the RAF for testing and application in other marine World Heritage Area contexts.