Optimal charges on river effluent from lumped and distributed sources

We propose a modelling framework for the design of a Pigouvian effluent tax, in an environmental management problem implicating several economic agents located in a river basin. The proposed charging system allows for the agents' geographical position relative to the river's sections, at which environmental standards are to be enforced, and takes into account the possible different market structures within which the agents are operating. In particular, we consider industrial agents competing on an oligopolistic market, and a set of farmers acting as price takers on a large market. A regional authority's goal is to induce agents to some sort of cooperation which would result in the satisfaction of the common environmental constraints. The economic process on one side, and the pollution transport and accumulation on the other, constitute two dynamic processes in two different time scales. As the economic process is much slower than the other process we can neglect the latter's transients and concentrate on the time invariant steady state solutions to the transportation equation. The model thus constructed has some noncooperative game and optimal control problem's features with space being the ‘running’ variable. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Emissions of gaseous and particulate pollutants in a port and harbour region in India

Ports can generate large quantity of pollutants in the atmosphere due to various activities like loading and unloading,transportation, and construction operations. Determination of the character and quantity of emissions from individual sources is an essential step in any project to control and minimize the emissions.In this study a detailed emission inventory of total suspendedparticulate matter (TSP), particulate matter less than 10 m(PM₁₀), sulfur dioxide (SO₂) and nitrogen oxides (NO_x) for a port and harbour project near Mumbai is compiled. Results show that the total annual average contributions of TSP and PM₁₀ from all the port activitieswere 872 and 221 t yr^-1, respectively. Annual average emissions of gaseous pollutants SO₂ and NO_xwere 56 and 397 t yr^-1, respectively, calculatedby using emission factors for different port activities. The maximum TSP emission (419 t yr ^-1) was from paved roads, while the least (0.4 t yr^-1) was from bulk handling activity. The maximum PM₁₀ emission (123 t yr^-1) was from unpaved roads and minimum (0.2 t yr^-1) from bulk handling operations. Similarly the ratio of TSP and PM₁₀ emission was highest (5.18) from paved roads and least (2.17) from bulk handling operations. Regression relation was derivedfrom existing emission data of TSP and PM₁₀ from variousport activities. Good correlation was observed between TSP andPM₁₀ having regression coefficient >0.8.     

MERCURY EMISSION INVENTORY IN ONTARIO

Mercury is released to the environment from various anthropogenic and natural sources. This work is a compilation of mercury emissions from anthropogenic sources in Ontario, Canada. The goal of our study was to identify all sources of mercury, and develop an emission inventory of anthropogenic mercury in Ontario. The result of our investigation revealed that combustion of fossil fuels and emissions from landfill sites are two primary sources of mercury to the atmosphere. Other sources of significance are emissions from waste incinerators, various industrial activities, and cement production. Total mercury emission in Ontario is estimated as 4100 kg per year.     

植物遗传资源保护与利用的市场化机制和国际制度

随着植物物种资源的不断减少和因生物技术迅猛发展对植物遗传资源需求的不断增加 ,植物遗传资源正逐步由公共物品转变为稀缺物品。坚持《生物多样性公约》所确立的遗传资源效益公平分享原则 ,完善现有国际多边体系 ,促进以“遗传编码功能”价值概念和遗传资源保护效应“内部化”与“补偿”方案为基础的植物遗传资源市场化保护与利用机制的形成 ,建立“植物遗传资源交易所”和“生物多样性合作社” ,将有助于提高世界各国尤其是发展中国家保护植物遗传资源的积极性 ,实现全球植物遗传资源的可持续利用     

广州市实施二氧化硫排污权交易研究

在排污权交易的理论基础上,借鉴美国二氧化硫排放权交易的政策和方法,设计了一套广州市实施二氧化硫排污权交易的框架,旨在为广州市控制削减二氧化硫排放提供一种基于市场的环境管理手段.     

综合福利视角下中国生态文明建设绩效评价及国际比较

基于强可持续研究范式,以生态经济学和可持续发展理论为基础,运用两阶段网络Super-EBM模型进行绩效测算和评价,打开生态福利转化过程的“黑箱”,基于综合福利视角将生态文明建设绩效进一步分解为生态经济效率和经济福利效率,实证研究部分选取2006-2015年的时间序列数据对中国“十一五”和“十二五”期间的生态文明建设绩效水平进行纵向分析,与此同时,选取42个国家2014年的截面数据进行横向的国际对比研究。研究表明：（1）“十一五”到“十二五”期间,中国生态文明建设绩效（0.986）整体水平一般,均未实现DEA有效,但“十二五”期间已呈现出逐年改善的利好趋势。国际比较层面,瑞士（1.647）、印度尼西亚（1.365）、爱尔兰（1.039）依次排名前三位,中国（0.297）排名相对靠后,位列倒数第二。各国之间差异较大,总体上呈现出“OECD国家（0.677）最高、G20国家（0.611）次之、金砖国家（0.417）最低”的态势。（2）从分阶段效率来看,无论是纵向分析还是横向对比,均发现第一阶段的生态经济效率明显低于第二阶段的经济福利效率,生态经济效率偏低是导致生态文明建设绩效总体水平偏低的主要原因。（3）与传统的单阶段、径向或非径向DEA模型相比,两阶段网络Super-EBM模型综合考虑了径向和松弛变量问题,测算出来的效率值更为精确,能够更为客观地反映现实。同时,对于其他领域涉及两阶段或多阶段生产系统的效率或绩效评估具有较好的借鉴价值。最后,根据上述结论提出相应的政策建议。     

刍议排污权价格的合理界定

排污权交易在中国的试点过程中,显现了强大的生命力,然而,由于对排污权交易基础理论理解的偏差,导致了实践层面上的缺陷,如排污权初始分配是否应该有偿的问题;排污权商品再分配价格应不应该包括正的外部效应价值问题;在排污权交易制度改革与中国其他制度的改革(现行税制改革、绿色GDP的推行)进行中出现的不协调的问题.     

Optimising the environmental benefits of emission reductions from UK coal- and oil-fired power stations: a critical loads approach

This paper describes a method for determining reductions of SO₂ emissions from coal- and oil-fired power stations, oil refineries and large industrial units in the UK taking into account their pollution potential. The method is based on the use of two gridded data sets: critical loads, which represent the sensitivity of the environment to acid deposition and modelled estimates of total (wet + dry) sulphur deposition for 646 point sources within the UK. An iterative method is used to identify and subsequently reduce emissions from point sources that contribute most to areas of critical loads exceedance. This paper demonstrates how the method may be used to determine an optimal allocation of emissions across the UK which yields the maximum amount of environmental protection per unit of emission.The paper then goes on to consider the changes that will have to take place within the UK power generation industry in order to meet the revised EC Large Combustion Plant Directive which comes into force on 1 January 2008. Particular emphasis is placed upon proposed emissions trading schemes and the environmental implications of allowing trading between stations with high and low pollution potentials. The paper concludes by suggesting that the emissions trading process should take into account the pollution potential of each source, irrespective of whether the proposed emission is within the plant's agreed emission limit. An approach based entirely on minimizing environmental damage rather than one which takes cost into account, as in current integrated assessment modelling, could provide an interesting approach across the rest of Europe.     

Developing Canada's National Forest Carbon Monitoring, Accounting and Reporting System to Meet the Reporting Requirements of the Kyoto Protocol

The rate of carbon accumulation in the atmosphere can be reduced by decreasing emissions from the burning of fossil fuels and by increasing the net uptake (or reducing the net loss) of carbon in terrestrial (and aquatic) ecosystems. The Kyoto Protocol addresses both the release and uptake of carbon. Canada is developing a National Forest Carbon Monitoring, Accounting and Reporting System in support of its international obligations to report greenhouse gas sources and sinks. This system employs forest-inventory data, growth and yield information, and statistics on natural disturbances, management actions and land-use change to estimate forest carbon stocks, changes in carbon stocks, and emissions of non-CO₂ greenhouse gases. A key component of the system is the Carbon Budget Model of the Canadian Forest Sector (CBM-CFS). The model is undergoing extensive revisions to enable analyses at four spatial scales (national, provincial, forest management unit and stand) and in annual time steps. The model and the supporting databases can be used to assess carbon-stock changes between 1990 and the present, and to predict future carbon-stock changes based on scenarios of future disturbance rates and management actions.     

国际环境法中环境信息交流制度

环境信息国际交流制度，已成为国际环境法的一项基本法律制度，其内容涉及各国和国际组织在这项交流中的地位，作用及机构，权利和义务，交流范围和形式，这项制度对有效保护人类环境发挥了多方面积极作用，在尊重各国主权，合作取得和共同享有，支持发展中国家参与交流原则基础上，这项制度将日益丰富，多样，完善。