Sustainable development indicators: a case study on the city of Flagstaff and Coconino county

The application of capitalist theory and the perception of an autonomous economy have created a range of environmental and social ramifications not addressed via traditional economic reasoning. In order to effectively and efficiently abate sustainability issues, the sustainable development discourse developed evaluation methods such as sustainable development indicators to gauge progress towards sustainability in communities without using traditional cost–benefit methods of analysis. The indicators created in this work are intended to be applied as a method of project evaluation in local community development departments. Using local growth management policy as a basis, these indicators have been designed to show how a development project contributes to policy goals that relate to all three dimensions of sustainability: environmental, economic, and socio-economic.     

基于投入视角的黄淮海平原农业碳排放与经济发展脱钩研究

农业增长对资源依赖的变化趋势以及农业发展与环境的互动关系日益引起学术界的关注.运用脱钩理论,以2000-2005和2005-2010年为时间尺度,以县域为空间尺度,探讨黄淮海平原农业碳排放与经济增长之间的脱钩关系,揭示两者脱钩发展的时间和空间演变趋势及转移特征,并尝试分析脱钩的内在机理.结果表明:(1)脱钩类型的数量结构和空间格局均发生明显变化,黄淮海平原农业正处于由资源依赖向技术依赖的过渡时期.2000-2005年农业碳排放与经济增长以强复钩和扩张性复钩为主,脱钩空间格局较为分散;2005-2010年以强脱钩和弱脱钩为主,脱钩区域呈现空间集聚态势;若考虑因技术进步带来的碳排放系数变化因素,脱钩趋势将会更加明显.造成这种空间格局的原因主要是经济增长与环境的关系较为复杂,经济发展、技术进步和制度创新等因素通过互动机制共同作用于农业生产经营主体.(2)脱钩类型的转换呈跳跃性,转换方式以强复钩、扩张性复钩转换为强脱钩、弱脱钩为主,且脱钩状态不稳定,持续脱钩难度较大.脱钩状况受到经济效应、技术效应和政策效应等因素的共同作用,3者作用的两面性是持续脱钩难的重要原因.     

经济发展与污染排放的空间错位分析

经济增长必然带来污染物的排放,但从空间上看,由于各地区在技术水平、产业结构、污染治理等方面的差异,经济总量与污染物排放量并非完全地呈正比例关系,两者存在不完全协同、匹配的现象（即空间错位）。为定量分析省域尺度上经济总量与污染排放的空间错位现象,分别以GDP和SO2排放量代表经济发展和污染物排放量,借鉴城市地理学中错位概念构建了空间错位指数模型,并分析不同要素对空间错位的影响。结果表明：2000-2010年,（1）中国 SO2排放量总体呈现先上升后下降的趋势,由2000年的1965.8×104 t增长至2006年的2588.7×104 t,至2010年降至2182.9×104 t;（2）中国经济增长与SO2排放量之间存在一定程度的空间错位现象,空间错位指数在0.25左右;（3）分阶段看,2000-2007年的错位现象有所扩大,而2007-2010年的错位现象缩小;（4）广东、贵州、山西、江苏、浙江、内蒙古等少数省份经济增长与污染排放的不匹配是造成空间错位的主要原因;（5）SO2排放量的变化缩小了空间错位现象,而2000-2006年经济的不均衡增长加剧了空间错位现象,2006-2010年经济增长则缩小了空间错位现象。研究结果对于调整区域经济结构、降低污染物排放具有一定的借鉴意义。     

Costs of expanding the network of protected areas as a response to climate change in the Cape Floristic Region

The expansion of protected areas is a critical component of strategies to promote the continued existence of biodiversity (i.e., life at all levels of biological organization) as climate changes, but scientific, social, and economic uncertainties associated with climate change are some of the major obstacles preventing such expansion. New models of climate change and species distribution and new methods of conservation planning now make it possible to explore the uncertainties associated with climate changes and species responses. Yet few reliable estimates of the costs of expanding protected areas and methods for determining these costs exist, largely because of the many (and uncertain) determinants of these costs. We developed a cost-accounting model to estimate the range in costs of various options for expanding protected areas and to explore the variables that drive these costs. Model development was informed by an existing plan to expand protected areas in the Cape Floristic Region of South Africa to address species conservation under a scenario of climate change. The 50-year present value of total costs varied from US$260 million ($1077/ha) for an off-reserve option that involves agreements with landowners and no compensation of forgone production and associated revenue to $1020 million ($4228/ha) for an on-reserve option that involves land acquisition and protection. The costs of acquiring land or compensating landowners for forgone production and development opportunities were the major drivers of the total costs across all options because most of the area identified in the protected-area expansion plan consisted of urban and high-quality agricultural lands. Total costs were also affected by changes in protected area extent and discount rate. Model-generated outputs such as these may be useful for informing implementation strategies and the allocation of future efforts in monitoring, data collection, and model development.     

三峡库区小城镇污水处理工艺现状调查

通过对三峡库区重庆段小城镇10家污水处理厂处理工艺和运行效果的调查,针对库区情况,分析比较了所调研污水处理厂使用工艺的处理效果、运行稳定性、自控要求、二次污染(剩余污泥产量)等技术指标以及建设投资、占地面积、处理成本、能耗等经济指标。对三峡库区小城镇排水工程规划建设,污水处理工艺的选择与开发,污水处理方案的优化提出明确的技术经济指标和建议。     

林场管理经济效益提升方法分析

林场管理经济效益提升需要从具体工作做起,需要落实好国家相关政策,充分利用林业资源,坚持走林场产业化发展道路,把林场生态资源分配好,优化各种产业链条,推动林场管理水平不断提高。我国林场管理工作是一个长期的过程,需要做好科学管理、技术管理工作,需要制定符合林场发展的总体规划,推动林场管理经济效益不断提升,促进林场各项工作可持续发展。     

不同生态位城市用地扩张和经济发展的互动关系研究——以广东省为例

城市化过程往往具有阶段性,不同用地规模、等级或区域的城市用地扩张,具有不同的阶段性,它们与连续性经济发展之间的互动关系有显著的差别。论文以广东省21个地级及以上城市为研究对象,根据研究对象1995—2010年生态位值的变化情况,将21个城市分为4个等级,结合4种方法从不同角度对不同等级城市用地扩张和经济发展之间的关系进行研究。结果表明,研究城市扩张和经济发展关系的方法应该基于完全市场化的基本假设,而且需要应用多种方法从不同角度进行综合诊断。生态位的方法能够恰当地区分城市扩张与经济发展关系的级别,不同生态位的城市用地扩张和经济发展具有不同的关联机制。大部分高生态城市用地扩张和经济发展符合库兹涅茨曲线关系,并能用Logistic蒂模型拟合,两者之间长期均衡关系也较显著,高生态位城市以弱脱钩状态为主。高生态位城市占有较大的空间和较多的资源,市场化水平也较高,城市扩张与经济发展关系密切。大部分低生态位城市不满足库兹涅茨曲线关系,少数城市能用Logistic蒂模型拟合,两者之间长期均衡关系也不显著,低生态位城市以强脱钩状态为主。低生态位城市所占有的空间和资源都比较少,市场化水平也较低,尽管城市扩张与经济发展也有一定的关系,但表现不明显。就目前而言,大部分城市规模已接近城市扩张的上限,高生态位城市应利用管理和技术等手段,不断提高资源利用效率和集约化水平,推动经济可持续发展。低生态位城市应逐渐改变城乡土地二元结构,调整内部产业结构,实现经济的可持续发展。     

Integration of different environmental valuation methods to estimate forest degradation in arid and semi-arid regions

Many factors are aggravating desertification and degradation of forests such as urbanization, droughts, exploitation of natural resources and climate change. The study aims at estimating and assessing the degradation of forests in arid and semi-arid regions. This task however is complicated since the impact of the degradation will be in different forms such as loss of wood, soil erosion and lost recreational areas. Nevertheless the dynamic impact of the degradation is increasing the complexity of analysis since forest once lost is a reduction of value for all subsequent years. This study is considering the value of damages over time and it is using the concept of three environmental valuation methods to estimate the whole impact of the degradation: the habitat equivalency analysis (HEA), the productivity method and the benefit transfer method. The methods were applied to specific values of forests, depending on the best applicability, and the results combined to an overall value loss. The costs are calculated based on the year 2014 with two time horizons: 30 and 100 years. To apply the valuation approach, Jordan as an arid and semi-arid country is chosen. The result shows that the annual costs of environmental degradation of Jordanian forest areas equal about 0.14% of GDP in 2013, proving the enormous value lost to forest degradation or deforestation. The valuation approach can be transferred to other arid or semi-arid areas and stimulate forest conservation activities to prevent further degradation and to save the forest ecosystem services for the future.     

Tourism effects on the environment and economic sustainability of sub-Saharan Africa

This paper integrates tourism, economic growth, and environmental issues in a multivariate format. Unlike recent research on this topic, a panel data of selected sample nations of sub-Saharan Africa is adopted by using cointegration and panel regression models. The current research discovers both long-run equilibrium and short-run dynamics between economic growth, tourism, energy use, and carbon emissions in sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, tourism and energy use show a highly significant direct impact on economic growth. In addition, tourism, energy use, and economic growth yield a highly significant positive effect on carbon emissions. Dissecting the region into oil producers and non-oil producers further suggests that the economic growth of sub-Saharan Africa has been accomplished by strong growth in tourism and energy use. However, there is highly significant evidence that in oil producing countries, CO₂ emissions are directly affected by energy use and economic growth and not by tourism. For non-oil producing countries, tourism and energy use but not economic growth incur a highly significant positive impact on carbon emissions.     

剧烈人类活动区经济发展与环境污染水平关系--以广东省东莞市为例

近年来,经济发展与环境污染之间的关系成了社会经济发展的热点问题。本研究选取东莞市1990-2010年经济与环境数据,探究环境库兹涅茨曲线演替轨迹,得出研究时段内东莞市环境库兹涅茨曲线大体呈“倒U型”特征,其中“倒U型”峰值大约出现在2007年人均GDP为4.51万元时;工业废水、工业废气以及工业废渣排放量3项指标的环境库兹涅茨曲线,分别呈现弱的“倒U型”、“倒U型上升阶段”、“倒U型＋倒U型上升阶段”特征。结果表明,东莞市环境库兹涅茨曲线特征与污染物排放量、产业结构、环保政策及投资等有较为密切的关系。结论建议：东莞市可以通过调整产业结构、加大环境保护投资力度等措施促进经济转型,加速“倒U型”曲线后半段的形成。