Prices vs quantities with multiple pollutants

We examine the choice of policy instruments (price, quantity or a mix of the two) when two pollutants are regulated and firms' abatement costs are private information. Whether abatement efforts are complements or substitutes is key determining the choice of policies. When pollutants are complements, a mixed policy instrument with a tax on one pollutant and a quota on another is sometimes preferable even if the pollutants are identical in terms of benefits and costs of abatement. Yet, if they are substitutes, the mixed policy is dominated by taxes or quotas.     

基于SPI指数的1981—2010年内蒙古地区干旱时空分布特征

依据内蒙古地区47 个地面观测站1981—2010 年降水资料,采用标准化降水指数(SPI)作为干旱指标,分析了内蒙古地区年度和四季干旱发生的频率、干旱强度和站次比(发生干旱站数与总站数之比) 的演变特点。结果表明:年度、秋季和冬季干旱强度变化趋势不明显,春、夏季干旱强度呈显著上升的趋势;近30 a 来年尺度上干旱强度表现为轻度干旱,四季干旱强度以轻度干旱为主;年、季尺度上干旱发生的覆盖范围为局域性干旱和区域性干旱;内蒙古东北部呼伦贝尔盟是年度干旱、中旱、重旱与特旱发生频率最高地区,而西部阿拉善盟地区干旱、中旱、重旱和特旱发生的频率相对较低;从季节上来看,内蒙古全区春、冬季干旱(含中、重和特旱)发生频率较为一致,表现为西部及西南部地区干旱发生的频率较低,而东部、中部、北部地区干旱发生的频率相对较高。     

Threshold management in a coupled economic–ecological system

Economic analysis of optimal ecosystem management in the presence of a threshold has typically ignored the potential for induced behavioral responses. This paper contributes to the literature on non-convex ecosystem management by considering the implications of a particular behavioral response in a regional economy – that of amenity-led growth – to changes in ecosystem services generated by a lake ecosystem subject to a eutrophication threshold. The essential policy challenge is to achieve optimal levels of lake nutrients and urbanization given that improvements to water quality will induce additional migration and urbanization in the region with attendant ecological impacts. We show that policies that ignore the recursive relationship between urbanization and water quality unintentionally exacerbate boom-bust cycles of regional growth and decline and risk pushing the system towards long-run economic decline. In contrast, the optimal policy accounts for the behavioral feedbacks to improved ecosystem services, and balances regional growth and ecological degradation.     

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。     

国际标准产业分类体系的供水、污水处理、废物管理和补救活动的分类演化及启示

国际标准产业分类体系是目前国际上最有影响、最有权威的产业分类体系。深入了解国际标准产业分类体系中供水、污水处理、废物管理和补救活动分类演化,对正确收集、处理和测算供水、污水处理、废物管理和补救活动的指标以及国际间数据比较至关重要。论文首先详细地剖析了国际标准产业分类体系的供水、污水处理、废物管理和补救活动的分类演化,然后依据国际标准产业分类体系的最新变化,结合我国供水、污水处理、废物管理和补救活动现状,为我国国民经济行业分类中供水、污水处理、废物管理和补救活动的修改和调整提供改进建议。     

辽宁省污水综合排放标准刍议

针对《辽宁省污水综合排放标准》（DB21/1627—2008）实施以来暴露出的一些值得商榷的问题,对比分析了发达国家的污水排放标准,指出了在《辽宁省污水综合排放标准》（DB21/1627—2008）执行过程中应以建设时间为节点区别对待污水处理厂,应适当放宽总氮指标,分流域制定标准,建立标准的技术支撑体系等4个方面对《辽宁省污水综合排放标准》进行改进,以使《辽宁省污水综合排放标准》更适应社会、经济、技术的发展。     

环境基准研究与环境标准制定进展及展望

环境基准是一个非常棘手且具有挑战性的科学难题,环境标准制定与修订是一项长期的、艰巨的任务。根据国际上该方向近年来的发展,对环境基准和环境标准的概念与内涵进行了论述,对过去的认识进行了纠正,指出:环境基准不等于环境质量基准,环境基准应该包括环境质量基准和污染环境修复基准2个方面;相应地,环境标准则应包括环境质量标准和污染环境修复标准2个部分。在此基础上,概述了国际和国内有关环境质量基准研究方面取得的显著成绩,列举了法国(作为西欧的代表)、加拿大(作为美洲的代表)和意大利(作为中欧的代表)在环境质量标准制定过程中的先进做法,介绍了美国、英国和俄罗斯等国家在污染环境修复基准研究与污染环境修复标准制定等方面的进展。最后,对我国今后环境基准的研究进行了展望。     

Occupational Exposure to Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons During Diesel Combustion

Identification and determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Diesel exhaust in the working environment and assessment of workers’ occupational exposure to these suspected human carcinogens were the aim of this experimental investigation.

The range of exposure factors calculated on the basis of 9 individual PAH concentrations determined in personal air samples shows that time-averaged concentration of these compounds did not exceed the Polish Maximum Admissible Concentration (MAC) value for PAHs, that is, 2 μg·m^–3. The highest concentrations of PAHs were determined in the breathing zone of forklift operators. The maximum exposure factor was 0.427 μg·m^–3 (about 1/4 of MAC).     

Participative Versus Assigned Production Standard Setting in a Repetitive Industrial Task: A Strategy for Improving Worker Productivity

Abstract

The participative standard with feedback condition was superior to the assigned difficult (140% of normal) standard with feedback condition in terms of worker productivity. The percentage increase in worker productivity with the participative standard and feedback condition was 46%, whereas the increase in the assigned difficult standard with feedback was 23%, compared to the control group (no standard, no feedback). Worker productivity also Improved significantly as a result of assigning a normal (100%) production standard with feedback, compared to the control group, and the increase was 12%. The participative standard with feedback condition emerges as the optimum strategy for improving worker productivity in a repetitive industrial production task.     

A Comparison of Two Methods of Determining Thermal Properties of Footwear

The present European Standard for footwear testing (Standard No. EN 344:1992; European Committee for Standardization [CEN], 1992) classifies footwear thermally by a temperature drop inside the footwear during 30 min at defined conditions. Today, other methods for footwear thermal testing are also available. The aim of this study was to compare EN 344:1992 with a thermal foot method. Six boots were tested according to both methods. Additional tests with modified standard tests were also carried out. The methods ranked the footwear in a similar way. However, the test according to standard EN 344:1992 is a pass-or-fail test, whereas data that is gained from the thermal foot method gives more information and allows further use in research and product development. A change of the present standard method is suggested.