Validation of I ecological transfer models and thyroid dose assessments using Chernobyl fallout data from the Plavsk district, Russia

Within the project “Environmental Modelling for Radiation Safety” (EMRAS) organized by the IAEA in 2003 experimental data of ¹³¹I measurements following the Chernobyl accident in the Plavsk district of Tula region, Russia were used to validate the calculations of some radioecological transfer models. Nine models participated in the inter-comparison. Levels of ¹³⁷Cs soil contamination in all the settlements and ¹³¹I/¹³⁷Cs isotopic ratios in the depositions in some locations were used as the main input information. 370 measurements of ¹³¹I content in thyroid of townspeople and villagers, and 90 measurements of ¹³¹I concentration in milk were used for validation of the model predictions.A remarkable improvement in models performance comparing with previous inter-comparison exercise was demonstrated. Predictions of the various models were within a factor of three relative to the observations, discrepancies between the estimates of average doses to thyroid produced by most participant not exceeded a factor of ten.     

Determination activity of radionuclides in marine sediment by gamma spectrometer with anti cosmic shielding

In this work, the activities of radionuclides in a marine sediment sample have been determined. The gamma spectrometer comprises an N type coaxial HPGe detector with active shielding to reduce cosmic background. The mass activities of radionuclides have been derived and found to be around a few Bq kg⁻¹ to several hundreds Bq kg⁻¹ with relative uncertainties in this paper quoted corresponding to the combined standard uncertainties (k = 1).     

SLFP: a stochastic linear fractional programming approach for sustainable waste management

A stochastic linear fractional programming (SLFP) approach is developed for supporting sustainable municipal solid waste management under uncertainty. The SLFP method can solve ratio optimization problems associated with random information, where chance-constrained programming is integrated into a linear fractional programming framework. It has advantages in: (1) comparing objectives of two aspects, (2) reflecting system efficiency, (3) dealing with uncertainty expressed as probability distributions, and (4) providing optimal-ratio solutions under different system-reliability conditions. The method is applied to a case study of waste flow allocation within a municipal solid waste (MSW) management system. The obtained solutions are useful for identifying sustainable MSW management schemes with maximized system efficiency under various constraint-violation risks. The results indicate that SLFP can support in-depth analysis of the interrelationships among system efficiency, system cost and system-failure risk.     

A community-based approach to low-income residential energy efficiency participation barriers

Financial barriers are often cited as the principle impediment to the adoption of energy efficiency measures. Since 1976, the US Department of Energy's Weatherisation Assistance Programme (WAP) has provided state block grants for no-cost, low-income energy efficiency retrofits. Yet, millions of low-income American households lack affordable, reliable, and efficient energy access. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 boosted WAP's annual appropriation from $230 million to $5 billion, requiring states to explore innovate approaches to quickly increasing programme participation. Community-based energy programmes have shown success for overcoming various barriers and increasing participation in the adoption of energy technologies. This case study explores a community-based approach to scaling WAP-funded energy efficiency retrofits in a cluster of five urban, low-income, majority African-American neighbourhoods, known as the Green Impact Zone (GIZ), in Kansas City, Missouri. Findings from interviews with GIZ stakeholders suggest that local context is important to how energy efficiency participation barriers manifest. The targeted, community-based approach to WAP created institutional capabilities for increased recognition of participation challenges and facilitated opportunities for alternative solutions that may otherwise have been overlooked under the standard self-referral implementation of WAP. Lastly, effective implementation of WAP required policy workarounds that recognised the unique characteristics and needs of the target community.     

Nuclear Weapons Tests and Environmental Consequences: A Global Perspective

The beginning of the atomic age marked the outset of nuclear weapons testing, which is responsible for the radioactive contamination of a large number of sites worldwide. The paper aims to analyze nuclear weapons tests conducted in the second half of the twentieth century, highlighting the impact of radioactive pollution on the atmospheric, aquatic, and underground environments. Special attention was given to the concentration of main radioactive isotopes which were released, such as ¹⁴C, ¹³⁷Cs, and ⁹⁰Sr, generally stored in the atmosphere and marine environment. In addition, an attempt was made to trace the spatial delimitation of the most heavily contaminated sites worldwide, and to note the human exposure which has caused a significantly increased incidence of thyroidal cancer locally and regionally. The United States is one of the important examples of assessing the correlation between the increase in the thyroid cancer incidence rate and the continental-scale radioactive contamination with ¹³¹I, a radioactive isotope which was released in large amounts during the nuclear tests carried out in the main test site, Nevada.     

Science–policy processes for transboundary water governance

In this policy perspective, we outline several conditions to support effective science–policy interaction, with a particular emphasis on improving water governance in transboundary basins. Key conditions include (1) recognizing that science is a crucial but bounded input into water resource decision-making processes; (2) establishing conditions for collaboration and shared commitment among actors; (3) understanding that social or group-learning processes linked to science–policy interaction are enhanced through greater collaboration; (4) accepting that the collaborative production of knowledge about hydrological issues and associated socioeconomic change and institutional responses is essential to build legitimate decision-making processes; and (5) engaging boundary organizations and informal networks of scientists, policy makers, and civil society. We elaborate on these conditions with a diverse set of international examples drawn from a synthesis of our collective experiences in assessing the opportunities and constraints (including the role of power relations) related to governance for water in transboundary settings.     

西部大开发政策效应评价

经过15年的西部大开发,西部各个省份的综合发展水平怎样?西部大开发是否显著缩小西部与东部地区在综合发展水平和经济增长的差异?哪些政策起到了关键作用?是本文将要探讨的问题。研究方法主要是通过模型与数据的实证研究方法对西部大开发的政策效应进行评价。内容包括:一是通过构建包含了社会、经济、科教与文化、对外开放和资源与环境五大类25个分项指标的综合发展水平评价体系,使用从1997到2013年31个省市的指标数据,并计算出综合评价值来考察西部大开发政策对西部地区各个省份整体发展的影响。从评价值排名上来看发现只有重庆、陕西、四川和内蒙古综合发展水平排名提升明显,而新疆、宁夏和青海发展差距还在拉大,其他省份排名变化不大。从分类指标来看,西部地区整体上社会发展和资源环境与生态提升较为明显,说明中央对于公共服务的转移支付和"退耕还林还草"等保护环境与生态的政策起到了一定的成效。二是选取了交通基础设施建设、中央转移支付和税收优惠这三个主要政策作为计量模型的政策变量,分别考察西部大开发整体和分项政策对于综合发展水平和经济增长率的影响。通过系统GMM方法估计整体西部大开发整体政策效应,以2000年前后对比,政策实施对GDP增长率的提升并不显著,综合发展水平也没有收敛。而以2008年为时间节点,综合发展水平和经济增长速度都得到了显著提升。通过DID估计分项政策,结果表明基础设施投入和转移支付能够有效提升综合发展水平和经济增长速度,税收优惠提升相对较弱。本文建议:在交通基础设施投入方面继续对西部地区予以倾斜,特别是建设西部地区通往东中部地区的交通大通道;培育和完善西部地区的市场经济体系,政府较少干预企业投资决策;加强对于西部落后地区、偏远地区的公共产品投入,加强扶贫工作。     

Health and Environmental Implications of Rural Female Entrepreneurship Practices in Osun State Nigeria

In rural Nigeria, food processing is mostly engaged in by women and children. Most of these processes are done using outdated technologies that make use of traditional woodstoves. This article presents the health and environmental implications of the rural female entrepreneurs involved in food processing and proffer means of bettering the lot of these women to handle these hazards. A partially structured questionnaire and focus group discussion was used to capture data from respondents. The study revealed that about 73 % of women involved in direct production of garri and palm oil processing could be at risk of early death or disability-adjusted life years from the mentioned diseases. The article concludes that the rural female entrepreneur needs to be better positioned to handle these hazards, for her health, that of her children, as well as for the environment.