Discovering meaningful information from large amounts of environment and health data to reduce uncertainties in formulating environmental policies

This study uses knowledge discovery concepts to analyze large amounts of data step by step for the purpose of assisting in the formulation of environmental policy. We performed data cleansing and extracting from existing nation-wide databases, and used regression and classification techniques to analyze the data. The current water hardness in Kaohsiung, Taiwan contributes to the prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) but exacerbates the development of renal stones (RS). However, to focus on water hardness alone to control RS would not be cost effective at all, because the existing database parameters do not adequately allow for a clear understanding of RS. Analysis of huge amounts of data can most often turn up the most reliable and convincing results and the use of existing databases can be cost-effective.     

Implications of changing national policies on land use in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh

Land use in the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of Bangladesh had undergone changes over the past several centuries. The landscape, which was mostly covered with forest with interspersed shifting cultivation plots until the beginning of the colonial period, has gradually changed into a landscape with a blend of land uses. Overall, the forest area has gradually declined, while the area under shifting cultivation and sedentary agriculture has expanded. The process of the change was multi-directional. National forestry, land use, land taxation, population migration policies, and development activities, such as construction of a hydroelectric dam and roads, played an important role in this process. Shifting cultivation had inflicted little damage on the forest until the beginning of the colonial period. The pace of deforestation accelerated with the nationalization of forests which abolished tribal people's customary use and management rights to the forest, and allowed large-scale commercial logging both legally and illegally. The pace was further intensified by the policy encouraging population migration to CHT and construction of a reservoir on the Karnafuli River. Efforts were made to replace shifting cultivation with more productive types of sedentary agriculture. However, much change could not take place in the absence of secure land rights, supportive trade policies, and the required support services and facilities, including infrastructure. Locationally suitable land use evolved in areas where transportation facilities were available and farmers were granted land title with the necessary extension services and credit facilities. These findings have important policy implications for the promotion of environmentally and economically sound land use in CHT.     

Policy Windows, Policy Change, and Organizational Learning: Watersheds in the Evolution of Watershed Management

Employing in-depth, elite interviews, this empirical research contributes to understanding the dynamics among policy windows, policy change, and organizational learning. First, although much of the research on agenda setting—how issues attract enough attention that action is taken to address them—has been conducted at the national scale, this work explores the subnational, regional scale. With decentralization, regional-scale environmental decision-making has become increasingly important. Second, this research highlights the role of policy windows and instances of related organizational learning identified by natural resources managers. Having practitioners identify focusing events contrasts with the more typical approach of the researcher identifying a particular focusing event or events to investigate. A focusing event is a sudden, exceptional experience that, because of how it leads to harm or exposes the prospect for great devastation, is perceived as the impetus for policy change.     

上海市“十四五”规划绿色发展驱动因素研究

本文首次以上海市“十四五”规划的视角,使用系统动力学方法研究上海市的绿色发展因素。首先确定了由经济、社会、环境、资源四个子系统交叉融合而构成上海市绿色发展系统,再基于系统动力学原理和上海市2012—2019年的数据构建上海市绿色发展模型,响应“十四五”规划在绿色发展方面设立的目标,构建多个未来发展情景并进行指标参数调控,依据各个情景的仿真结果,分析并总结了“十四五”规划背景下上海市的绿色发展特点。研究结果表明,影响绿色发展的关键因素由主到次依次为生态环境建设支出、研发支出、产业结构调整。相比于产业的投资结构调整,上海市对从业人员结构的调整可以高效平衡经济与环境的发展;加快科技创新可以在很大程度上抑制碳排放,从而快速实现上海市的“双碳”目标;针对化学污染物的治理,污染源防治不但十分有效,而且有利于持续性发展,这些措施应是上海市政府的首选。     

Oil and power industries’ responses to EU emissions trading: laggards or low-carbon leaders?

ABSTRACT

How have petroleum and power companies and their European industry associations responded to the EU emissions trading system (ETS)? Responses can be political, directed externally towards the initiation and reforms of the EU ETS itself, or internally and market-based, directed at low-carbon solutions. Proactive response strategies shape companies’ leadership potential. Variation in responses is explained by two models that differ in assumptions about corporate behaviour as well as the wider multilevel regulatory context in which companies operate. Responses are found to have converged within the two industries, with reactive companies following the proactive ones. Secondly, responses between the two industries increasingly diverge, with the power industry becoming much more proactive than the petroleum industry. The main explanation is found in the differing relevance of the two models and the wider regulatory context, particularly differing exposure to international competition and weak international climate agreements.     

Renewable energy in Australia: a wider policy discourse

ABSTRACT

This paper assesses the evolution of generation technology-mix in Australia, with specific emphasis on understanding how such evolution has been shaped by wider political and socio-economic influences. This assessment is predicated on the argument that the contemporary, quintessentially techno-economic, policy discourse on renewable energy is deficient, as it ignores climacteric political and socio-economic influences on generation technology-mix. The methodological framework employed in this paper is informed by the core tenets of technological change theory. The assessment suggests that generation technology-mix in Australia has historically been overwhelmingly influenced by the underlying technological paradigm of the electricity industry; and that this technological paradigm essentially draws its imprimatur from the wider political and socio-economic contexts. By implication, it suggests that a rapid uptake of renewables will have widespread ramifications, extending into political, socio-economic and cultural realms of a society. Clearly, existing policy discourse – that tends to focus on technical potentials, cost competitiveness, externalities and risks of various renewable technologies – is deficient. A much broader discourse is needed. This paper also made an attempt to develop a basis for such a discourse by reviewing broader aspects of the Australian society that would be affected by a rapid uptake of renewables.     

基于协整和因果分析的我国安全生产宏观政策干预研究

为进一步分析我国安全生产政策的实施效果及存在问题,根据政策时效干预度量化模型,采用协检验、格兰杰因果检验和脉冲响应分析等计量方法对1978-2006年我国特别重大事故发生趋势与政策时效干预力度关系进行量化分析,得出特别重人事故的发生与政策时效干预力度问存在长期均衡关系,且在10%的显著水平下,特别重大事故的发生是政策时效干预力度加强的格兰杰原因.同时分析表明,目前我国安全生产政策干预表现出两大缺点:被动性和滞后性.因此,应逐步开展生产安全事故宏观预警与政策模拟等研究,为提高安全生产宏观政策干预的主动性和前瞻性提供技术支持.     

面向可持续发展的国家投资策略

可持续发展战略逼迫投资创新,呼唤着新的国家投资策略。本文分析了可持续发展与投资创新的关系,系统地研究了可持续发展的投资策略,讨论了可持续发展的投资结构问题,有针对性地提出了可持续发展的投资政策建议。     

南京市经济发展与环境污染关系的实证研究

根据南京市1991～2003年经济与环境数据,分析经济发展与环境污染的相互关系,建立了南京市经济增长与环境污染水平的计量模型,进而评价了南京市的环境保护政策。研究表明：作为一个重化工业城市,南京市自20世纪90年代以来,在经济高速发展的情况下,其环境恶化程度逐步得到遏制,部分环境指标与人均GDP演替轨迹呈现显著的环境库兹涅茨曲线特征。这主要归功于南京市政府近年来有效的环境政策和巨额的环境投资。     

中国西部绿色发展概念框架

综合绿色发展的国际经验,以自然资本、经济资本、社会资本与人力资本四大资本为核心,提出了中国西部地区绿色发展概念框架.中国西部地区绿色发展概念框架是以“发展中促转变,转变中谋发展”的良性循环发展原则为指导原则,分析西部地区社会经济发展及生态环境和自然资源保护两个方面在发展过程中相互促进和制约的关系,并根据西部地区当前经济资本、环境资本、社会资本以及人力资本数量,通过政府适当干预,如区域规划、区内调整,最终实现社会经济与生态环境和自然资源相协调的绿色发展.该框架综合考虑了中国西部在绿色发展道路上特有挑战与机遇,阐明了社会经济发展与资源环境承载力之间的相互作用机制,明确了中国西部地区“生态友好、社会包容和内生增长”的绿色发展目标.最后,本文针对该绿色发展框架提出了中国西部地区绿色发展的政策建议:提出“西部地区绿色发展战略”是当前西部地区绿色发展进程中最为迫切的需求,中央政府应当尽快制定和实施“西部地区绿色发展战略”,同时西部地区政府在省级和地方层面将保护中国西部生态环境与区域扶贫开发相结合,加大对以提升西部地区人力资本为目的的各类工程的投入,强化区域绿色基础建设和生态服务供给,缓解西部地区贫困,提升区域绿色发展进程的速度和质量;开展财政体制机制改革,以提高各级财政资金的使用效率;结合各省发展需求与条件实施以生态城市为发展目标的可持续城镇化发展模式,制定差异化的城镇化发展战略;在西部地区重点和限制开发区尤其是贫困集中和区域发展潜力较大地区,鼓励具有区域特色的新型绿色产业的发展.在发展过程中不断加强制度创新以引导长期绿色发展.