Assessing audit impact and thoroughness of VCS forest carbon offset projects

Voluntary markets transacted over $66 million USD of forest carbon offsets in 2016, according to Forest Trends, and over 99% of those offset projects were audited to a standard, primarily the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS). We provide a table characterizing all 70 validated and verified forest carbon projects employing the VCS version 3.0 currently-in-use (December 2011–July 2017). We also examine two separate aspects of the audit process––impact and thoroughness––to assess the effectiveness of the costly audit process, which can consume up to one-third of offset revenue. Audit impact we measure in terms of reduction in the number of offsets from ex ante estimated to ex post approved. Audit thoroughness we measure both directly in terms of the number of auditor hours worked per project and also indirectly in terms of the total number of Corrective Action Requests (CARs)/Non-Conformity Reports (NCRs) auditors prescribe. In terms of impact, we find that Afforestation/Reforestation/Restoration (A/R/R) and Improved Forest Management (IFM) projects, though only constituting 5% of total verified offsets, demonstrate significant (p < = 0.05) reductions from ex ante estimated to ex post approved offsets, likely because auditors can easily scrutinize carbon stocks/emission factors for the commercial tree species involved in these project types. In terms of thoroughness, we find that higher ex ante estimates correlate with more total auditor hours worked and total CARs/NCRs prescribed for three of four project activity types, likely because auditors perceive larger ex ante projects as higher risk. We conclude with recommendations for the VCS to empower auditors to scrutinize carbon stocks/emissions factors from avoided deforestation projects, and also to continue to flag high ex ante projects as higher risk.     

制定无组织排放恶臭物质浓度控制标准值的技术路线探讨

本文参考国外资料、结合我国国情,论述了制定无组织排放恶臭物质浓度控制标准值的技术路线。并以氨为实例,就其嗅阈值的确立,及六级强度等级,人群可适应性实验,阐明了控制标准值确立的方法和程序。确立的8种恶臭物质的控制标准,均基于大量实验数据,具有较好的实用性和科学性。      

新版GB/T28001的主要变化

介绍了GB／T28001—2001标准修订的背景及修订原则,解读了新版标准的主要变化。     

外部性视角下的节水灌溉技术补偿标准核算——基于选择实验法

合理的补偿标准是节水灌溉技术补偿政策的核心,也是促进农户技术采用的关键内容。论文以石羊河下游民勤县为例,通过选择实验调研和RPL（Random Parameters Logit）模型估计,量化了节水灌溉技术采用的外部效益,并结合特定技术与农户谈判能力讨论了兼顾公平与效率的补偿标准。结果表明：民勤县城乡居民均希望实施节水灌溉技术来改善生态环境,技术采用的外部效益约为1 052.25元/hm²;以膜下滴灌技术为例,合理的补偿标准应在789.15元/hm²左右。从现行政策看,过低的补贴标准难以保障农户切身利益,导致政策响应不足。据此建议,完善成本收益核算体系,将技术采用的外部效益纳入补偿标准的核算中,提升补偿政策的公平性,同时也要根据技术类型及其采用面积进行精准化补偿,保障资金有效利用。     

Are current Chinese national ambient air quality standards on 24-hour averages for particulate matter sufficient to protect public health?

With rapid economic development and urbanization in recent decades, China has experienced the worsening of ambient air quality. For better air quality management to protect human health, Chinese government revised national ambient air quality standards(NAAQS) for particulate matter(PM) in 2012(GB3095-2012). To assess the effectiveness of current NAAQS for PM on public health in Chinese population, we conducted a metaanalysis on published studies examining the mortality risk of short-term exposure to PM with aerodynamic diameters less than 10 and 2.5 μm(PM_(10) and PM_(2.5)) in China. The reported24-hour concentrations of PM_(10) and PM_(2.5) in studies ranged from 43.5 to 150.1 μg/m~3 and 37.5 to 176.7 μg/m~3. In the pooled excess, mortality risk estimates of short-term exposure to PM.In specific, per 10 μg/m~3 increase in PM_(10), we observed increases of 0.40%(95%CI: 0.33%,0.47%), 0.57%(95%CI: 0.44%, 0.70%) and 0.49%(95%CI: 0.40%, 0.58%) in total, respiratory and cardiovascular mortality, per 10 μg/m~3 increase in PM_(2.5), we observed increases of 0.51%(95%CI: 0.38%, 0.63%), 0.62%(95%CI: 0.52%, 0.73%) and 0.75%(95%CI: 0.54%, 0.95%) in total,respiratory and cardiovascular mortality. Finally, we derived 125 μg/m~3 for PM_(10) and 62.5 μg/m~3 for PM_(2.5) as 24-hour recommendation values based on the pooled estimates. Our results indicated that current Chinese NAAQS for PM could be sufficient in mitigating the excess mortality risk from short-term exposure to ambient PM. However, future research on longterm exposure cohort studies in Chinese population is also essential in revising annual averages for PM in Chinese NAAQS.     

Determination of 4-tert-octylphenol in surface water samples of Jinan in China by solid phase extraction coupled with GC-MS

Octylphenols, considered as xenoestrogens, mainly exist as 4-tert-octylphenol (OP) in aquatic environments. The high stability and accumulation of OP in aquatic systems have caused endocrine disruption. The OP in surface water in Jinan, China was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) coupled with solid phase extraction (SPE). Water samples were extracted by SPE on a cartridge system containing C-18 as sorbent. To increase sensitivity and selectivity, OP was derivatized to 4-tert-octyl-phenoxy silane. With the use of phenanthrene-d10 as internal standard, the detection limit based on signal-to-noise ratio (S/N = 3) was 0.06 ng/mL. The average recovery was from 84.67% to 109.7%. The precision of the method given as the relative standard deviations (RSD) was within the range 6.24%-12.96%. In the target water samples, the concentrations of OP were as follows: 15.88-71.24 ng/L for Jinxiuchuan Reservoir, 3.850-26.68 ng/L for the city moat, 6.930-41.56 ng/L for Daming Lake, 66.03-474.2 ng/L for Xiaoqing River, 14.66-17.72 ng/L for the Yellow River, and 10.60-26.43 ng/L for Queshan Reservoir. The Xiaoqing River was seriously polluted due to the discharge of wastewater from Jinan. Jinxiuchuan Reservoir had a higher concentration of OP compared with the Yellow River and Queshan Reservoir, which is ascribed to the surrounding human activities. These data are reported for the first time, providing strong support for the control of OP pollution in Jinan.     

河流健康评价标准研究——以贾鲁河流域郑州段为例

阐述了河流健康以及河流健康评价的概念,论述了河流健康评价的发展以及标准制定的原则和依据。并以贾鲁河流域(郑州段)为例,从生境状况、生物状况、生态功能三方面着手构建河流健康评价指标体系,并论述了该体系中各指标变量标准建立的过程。     

建筑施工企业安全质量标准化常见问题及对策

本文介绍了建筑施工企业开展安全质量标准化达标活动的背景,并从"对安全质量标准化达标活动重视程度不够、主动性不强"、"全员参与程度低"等几个方面指出了建筑施工企业开展安全质量标准化达标活动中存在的问题;同时提出了"统一思想,提高对安全质量标准化达标的认识"、"强化安全生产主体责任的落实"等8条解决措施,并提出了"建立有效...     

自然保护区生态补偿定量方案研究——基于“虚拟地”计算方法

自然保护区生态补偿的“补给谁”和“补多少”在理论和实践上都是生态补偿中的重点和难点所在。传统的通过计量保护区正外部性以确定生态补偿数量的方法存在两个主要问题：一是违背经济学原理,二是与管理体制不符且法理不足。据此,并考虑到中国相当数量的保护区“没有保护好”的主要因素是保护区社区居民生产生活的干扰,论文认为应通过控制保护区社区的负外部性来达成对保护区的生态补偿。通过生产函数理论分析,发现通常情况下保护区社区的经济产出与土地面积单调正相关,因此在没有生态补偿的情况下,保护区的划建会使周边社区居民经济收入减少,解决周边社区对保护区干扰的根本途径是利用生态补偿资金发展替代产业以提高单位面积土地的经济产出。以此认识为基础,文章提出了“虚拟地”概念并发展了定量方法来确定保护区的生态补偿最低标准,采用武夷山保护区的数据进行了这一方法的案例分析。     

甘肃黄土丘陵地区农户取暖用能需求的评价

甘肃黄土丘陵地区冬季温度多处于0 ℃以下,农户取暖水平低。论文通过实地观测记录获取数据,建立趋势面模型,核算采暖期累计温差和实际用能消耗,提出以16 ℃的室内温度为小康取暖标准。参考国家相关标准,比较实际用能和应用节能技术下用能的热效率。结果表明,陇东长官村和陇中河畔村农户采暖期累计温差分别为23 002 h·℃和36 390 h·℃,实际取暖能耗分别为926 kgce/a和1 199 kgce/a。农户取暖用能数量虽不少,但目前只解决了小康水平下39.6%和46.6%的取暖需求。取暖用能的综合热效率只有17%左右。如果应用节能技术,能耗会大幅降低,提高综合热效率的潜力巨大。因此,通过住房的节能改造和用能设施的改善来提高房屋的保暖性、降低单位面积的热损耗是今后解决取暖用能问题的主要方向。