环境损害的法律定义研究

结合近年发生的重大环境污染与破坏事故,从环境权益的角度,深入剖析“环境损害”的现象与实质,兼与“环境侵权”、“环境侵害”辨析,借鉴国外立法经验,为制定我国《环境损害赔偿法》界定“环境损害”的法律定义。     

国外化学品环境管理中关于商业保密信息的实践及其对中国的借鉴

化学品环境管理实践中,化学品危害特性和暴露评估相关数据涉及的化学品所有者的商业保密信息(CBI)是管理部门和企业重点关注的焦点之一.通过信息的公布,可以让公众了解化学品的有毒有害特性,提前防范其环境和健康风险,实现管理目标,但同时也可能影响化学品企业的商业利益、竞争地位和技术优势,损害企业的利益.美国和欧盟的化学品管理法规均对CBI提出了规定和要求,其管理实践对完善中国化学品环境管理中保密信息的管理具有积极的借鉴意义.     

Mercury: The good, the bad, and the export ban

We analyze the bipartisan call to ban US exports of commodity mercury. An export ban can generate positive environmental benefits by increasing the scarcity of mercury in developing economies where significant toxic releases occur. We show, however, that a direct mercury purchase and retirement policy can achieve the same foreign environmental goals without adverse impacts on domestic environmental quality. We present qualitative and quantitative evidence that highlight the potential inefficiencies of a mercury export ban as a method of achieving environmental objectives.     

Combined Effects of Climate Change and Bank Stabilization on Shallow Water Habitats of Chinook Salmon

Significant challenges remain in the ability to estimate habitat change under the combined effects of natural variability, climate change, and human activity. We examined anticipated effects on shallow water over low‐sloped beaches to these combined effects in the lower Willamette River, Oregon, an area highly altered by development. A proposal to stabilize some shoreline with large rocks (riprap) would alter shallow water areas, an important habitat for threatened Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), and would be subject to U.S. Endangered Species Act‐mandated oversight. In the mainstem, subyearling Chinook salmon appear to preferentially occupy these areas, which fluctuate with river stages. We estimated effects with a geospatial model and projections of future river flows. Recent (1999–2009) median river stages during peak subyearling occupancy (April–June) maximized beach shallow water area in the lower mainstem. Upstream shallow water area was maximized at lower river stages than have occurred recently. Higher river stages in April–June, resulting from increased flows predicted for the 2080s, decreased beach shallow water area 17–32%. On the basis of projected 2080s flows, more than 15% of beach shallow water area was displaced by the riprap. Beach shallow water area lost to riprap represented up to 1.6% of the total from the mouth to 12.9 km upstream. Reductions in shallow water area could restrict salmon feeding, resting, and refuge from predators and potentially reduce opportunities for the expression of the full range of life‐history strategies. Although climate change analyses provided useful information, detailed analyses are prohibitive at the project scale for the multitude of small projects reviewed annually. The benefits of our approach to resource managers include a wider geographic context for reviewing similar small projects in concert with climate change, an approach to analyze cumulative effects of similar actions, and estimation of the actions’ long‐term effects. Efectos Combinados del Cambio Climático y la Estabilización de Bordes de Ríos Hábitats de Aguas Poco Profundas del Salmón Chinook     

环保税制的新思考

政府在环保领域扮演着重要的角色,税收体制则通过引导政府行为而间接影响着一个地方的环境建设。存量税与流量税是从税种性质方面对税收体系的划分。站在环保的角度看,两者对不同层级政府具有不同的导向作用：存量税更能促使政府着力于环境保护,而流量税则更能引导政府倾向于GDP增长。对不同税制模型下的博弈分析表面,流量税归上级政府征收,而存量税归下级政府征收的税收设计更有利于经济与环保的协调发展。     

黄土高原丘陵沟壑区小城镇建设的生态经济学意义及其特点

论述了小城镇建设与区域小流域治理之间的相互关系,阐明了小城镇建设在黄土丘陵沟壑区的生态经济学意义,即发展小城镇,不仅能促进和加快区域产业结构调整,缓解人口对土地的压力,有利于小流域生态环境的恢复和保护;而且还将大大提高流域的各种基础设施建设水平,加强流域与外部的经济活动联系,促进区域经济发展。进一步讨论了黄土丘陵沟壑区小城镇建设的特点:以小流域为基础的小城镇建设呈"袖珍型"发展状态;在很长一段时间内以加工业和制造业为主;建设中心城镇,加强区域小城镇之间的联系。     

At the source: the origins of the Massachusetts toxics use reduction program and an overview of this special issue

This special edition of the Journal of Cleaner Production celebrates the twentieth anniversary of a piece of legislation that has special significance to the environmental movement - the Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Act of 1989 (TURA). Most of the papers in this issue were presented at a symposium to commemorate the twentieth anniversary that was held on November 4, 2009.Much has been written about the Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Program. It has been heralded as a major pollution prevention success story. It has been lauded as a premier American example of the precautionary principle in action. It has been condemned by the American chemical industry trade association as “bad for the chemical industry”. And it has been praised by the Ford Foundation and Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government as an award-receiving example of innovation in government (Harvard Kennedy School, 2005).Looking back now to some twenty years ago—back to the early origins of the program concept—it can be seen both as a landmark breakthrough in international chemicals policy, and as a fairly conventional next step in the political evolution of Massachusetts environmental policy.Where did this idea come from? How did it develop? How were pieces put together? Why did Massachusetts adopt such an idea into law? And how did the idea change during the early years of implementation? This paper provides a brief history of the development of the concept of toxics use reduction and the process by which it was drafted into law in Massachusetts, followed by an introduction to the articles included in this special edition and their assessment of TURA - past, present, and future.     

煤矿瓦斯突出事故不安全动作原因统计分析

为了从行为控制角度预防煤与瓦斯突出事故,在对88起重特大瓦斯突出事故资料统计的基础上,分析了煤矿瓦斯突出事故的基本特征、事故直接原因不安全动作及其相关法规特征,结果表明,非瓦斯突出矿井也可能发生瓦斯突出,突出事故在小型、乡镇矿井仍占主要地位;不安全动作原因可归为突出危险工作面作业、未及时支护、突出后未强化实施综合防突措施等3类;突出危险工作面作业严重程度最高的3种动作为采煤机割煤、放炮、风镐落煤;不安全动作原因共违反了3种法律法规的14个条款。     

Distribution of PCDDs and PCDFs in Soils Collected from the Denver Front Range - Principal Components Analysis of Diffuse Dioxin Sources (10 pp)

Background, Aims and Scope The Rocky Mountain Arsenal (RMA) is a US Army facility located northeast of Denver, Colorado that has been listed on the National Priorities List (NPL). It is currently being re-mediated under the authority of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) and the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA). As part of the remediation activities at RMA, indications were found that a source of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) had existed on the RMA. As a result, investigations were undertaken to assess the possible nature and extent of any potential sources of PCDDs and PCDFs on the RMA site. In addition, other studies were conducted that examined PCDD/PCDF contamination in the Denver area. The goal of these studies was to examine nature and extent of PCDD/PCDF contamination both on the RMA as well as in the surrounding Denver area. The intent of this study was to characterize sources of dioxins (PCDDs) and dibenzofurans (PCDFs) at low environmental concentrations which might have originated from diffuse sources in the Denver Colorado area and in particular, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal (RMA) using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Methods Over 200 soil samples were collected from the RMA and the Denver area. From the RMA, soil was collected as part of three studies that included a (1) random site-wide sampling of the RMA, (2) soils from the Western Tier Parcel (WTP), and (3) soils from Historic Use areas. Denver area soil samples were collected from five different land use categories: Residential, Agricultural, Open Space, Commercial, and Industrial. PCA was conducted on concentrations of 17 2,3,7,8-substuituted PCDD and PCDF congeners in 220 soil samples collected from the RMA and the Denver Front Range region. Results and Discussion PCA demonstrated the presence of possible minor sources of dioxins on the RMA. Current remediation efforts on RMA will result in the removal of these sources. Samples from the RMA were identified by the presence of a congener profile containing higher chlorinated PCDFs while the Denver Front Range areas were characterized by the presence of higher chlorinated PCDD congeners. The presence of a PCDF signature for the RMA samples does not necessarily indicate a major source of these contaminants on-site. Indeed, the relatively diffuse nature of the sample clusters would argue strongly against the presence of a single large source. Instead, the predominance of the PCDF congeners probably indicates the mixed industrial activities that took place on and near the site. Conclusion PCA results indicate that PCDD/PCDF profiles in soils collected from the RMA differed from those collected from the outlying Denver areas but that a major source of these contaminants was not present. Rather, the diffuse nature of sample clusters from the PCA indicated that the congener profile of RMA samples was most likely a result of the mixed industrial activities that historically have taken place on and near the site. PCA also indicated that many of the 'open area' (peripheral site-wide) RMA soils samples did not differ from Denver are reference congener profiles. This finding was also true for samples collected from the WTP that were essentially indistinguishable from Off-RMA reference samples. In addition, total TEQ concentrations in soils collected from WTP were similar to those measured in soils collected from the Denver Front Range areas indicating that lack of a major source of PCDD/PCDF within the WTP zones of the RMA. Recommendation and Outlook Analytical as well as statistical results of the soil congener data indicate that the WTP soils are indistinguishable from soils collected from non-industrial areas in the Denver area. This finding would support the recent 'de-listing' of the WTP from the other RMA areas and its' transfer to other authorities in the Denver area.