家具行业挥发性有机物治理成本及排污权交易价格估算

佛山市顺德区工业VOCs污染问题突出,以中小企业为主的家具行业排放是第二大来源(17%),因此,顺德区率先在广东省开展了家具行业VOCs排污权交易试点工作.本文以区内木质家具行业为例,研究了排污权交易定价方法,得到VOCs平均污染治理成本(5363.26元·t~(-1)·a~(-1))并将其作为排污权交易的初始价格,之后运用多级模糊综合评价法计算的地区调整系数(γ=1.47)进行修正,得到最终参考交易价格(7883.99元·t~(-1)·a~(-1)).该价格与2016年交易底价(8000元·t~(-1)·a~(-1))偏差较小(1.45%).本文还开发了内置核心算法的挥发性有机物排污权交易辅助定价工具,综合利用数据库中企业基本信息、挥发性有机物排放数据等,为排污权交易定价提供辅助决策服务.     

Smallholder Agroforestry Systems For Carbon Storage

Most smallholder agroforestry systems in Southeast Asia are tree- and species-rich systems producing non-wood and wood products for both home use and market sale. Due to their high biomass, these systems contain large carbon (C) stocks. While the systems of individual farmers are of limited size, on a per area basis smallholder systems accumulate significant amounts of C, equaling the amount of C stored in some secondary forests of similar age. Their ability to simultaneously address smallholders’ livelihood needs and store large amounts of C makes smallholder systems viable project types under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol, with its dual objective of emissions reduction and sustainable development. Smallholder systems have not developed in areas where enabling conditions do not exist. A CDM project that facilitates a minimum threshold of enabling conditions that make smallholder agroforestation possible should qualify for C credits. To secure smallholder confidence, the agroforestry systems promoted through a CDM project must be socially and economically viable independent of C payments. To assure system productivity and profitability, projects should provide farmers with technical and marketing assistance. Additionally, project sites should meet the following preconditions: areas of underutilized low-biomass landuse systems available for rehabilitation; smallholders interested in tree farming; accessible markets for tree products; supportive local governments; sufficient infrastructure; and transparent and equitable relationships between project partners. Questions of leakage and additionality should not be problematic and can be addressed through the project design, establishment of quantifiable baseline data and facilitating enabling conditions. However, smallholder-focused CDM projects would have high transaction costs. The subsequent challenge is thus to develop mechanisms that reduce the costs of: (a) making information (e.g., technology, markets) more accessible to multiple clients; (b) facilitating and enforcing smallholder agreements and (c) designing feasible monitoring systems.     

Potential economic impact of introduction and spread of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, in Hawaii

Globally, many invasive alien species have caused extensive ecological and economic damage from either accidental or intentional introduction. The red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, has created billions of dollars in costs annually, spreading as an invasive species across the southern United States. In 1998, the red imported fire ant spread into California creating a highly probable future introduction via shipped products to Hawaii. This paper presents the estimation of potential economic impacts of the red imported fire ant (RIFA) to the state of Hawaii. Evaluation of impacts focuses on the economic sectors of (1) households, (2) agriculture (cattle and crop production), (3) infrastructure (cemeteries, churches, cities, electrical, telephone, and cable services, highways, hospitals and schools), (4) recreation, tourism and business (hotels/resort areas, golf courses, commercial businesses and tourists), and (5) government expenditures (with minimal intervention). The full annual economic costs of the red imported fire ant to Hawaii are estimated (in US$ 2006) to be $211 million/year, comprised of $77 million in damages and expenditures and $134 million in foregone outdoor opportunities to households and tourists. The present value of the projected costs of RIFA over a 20-year period after introduction total $2.5 billion. RIFA invasions across the globe indicate that economic cost-effective action in Hawaii entails implementation of prevention, early detection and rapid response treatment programs for RIFA.     

Value of maternal serum unconjugated oestriol measurement in prenatal screening for Down's syndrome

We compared the medical and financial cost-effectiveness of prenatal serum screening for Down's syndrome using maternal age, serum alpha-fetoprotein and human chorionic gonadotrophin with and without the use of unconjugated oestriol. The use of unconjugated oestriol is medically more cost-effective than screening without it at all levels of detection. The actual performance depends on whether gestational age is estimated using ‘dates’ or an ultrasound scan. At a detection rate of 60 per cent, the proportion of unaffected fetal losses per case diagnosed at amniocentesis is about 22 per cent less if gestational age is estimated using dates (time since the first day of the last menstrual period) and about 47 per cent less if it is based on an ultrasound scan examination. At this detection rate, the inclusion of unconjugated oestriol increases costs by about £2k per case diagnosed (£36k instead of £34k) if gestational age is estimated using dates, but it is no more expensive if gestational age is measured from an ultrasound scan examination (indeed, it is more cost-effective at detection rates above 60 per cent). Since there is little change in the financial cost with the inclusion of unconjugated oestriol, for the improved medical performance of screening, it is worthwhile including it in the screening test.     

Plant vintage, technology, and environmental regulation

We use data on productivity and pollution abatement costs at individual pulp and paper mills to test whether the impact of environmental regulation on productivity differs by plant vintage and technology. Plants with higher pollution abatement costs have significantly lower productivity levels. This relationship differs greatly based on a plant's technology, with productivity at integrated mills being greatly affected by abatement costs, while the impact at non-integrated mills is negligible. Plant vintage does not seem to matter, with older and newer plants showing similar impacts. Reported abatement costs appear to substantially understate the true costs of abatement. Accounting for the impact of technology differences makes some difference in the estimated overall impact of environmental regulation.     

Project-Based Emissions Trading: The Impact of Institutional Arrangements on Cost-Effectiveness

In this paper we demonstrate that the institutionalarrangement (or: design) of Joint Implementation (JI) and the CleanDevelopment Mechanism (CDM) has a decisive impact on theircost-effectiveness. We illustrate our arguments by statistically analyzing thecosts from 94 Activities Implemented Jointly (AIJ) pilot phase projects aswell as by adjusting these data on the basis of simple mathematicalformulas. These calculations explicitly take into account the institutionaldifferences between JI (sinks, no banking) and the CDM (banking, no sinks)under the Kyoto Protocol and also show the possible effects on credit costsof alternative design options. However, our numerical illustrations shouldbe viewed with caution, because AIJ is only to a limited extentrepresentative of potential future JI and CDM projects and because creditcosts are not credit prices. Some of the main figures found in this study are:an average cost figure per unit of emission reduction for AIJ projects of 46dollar per ton of carbon dioxide equivalent ($/Mg CO₂-eq), anaverage potential JI credit cost figure which is lowered to 37$/Mg CO₂-eq by introducing banking and an average of 6$/Mg CO₂-eq per credit for potential low-cost CDM projects whichincludes sinks. However, at CoP6 in November 2000 in The Hague (TheNetherlands), the Parties to the Framework Convention on Climate Change(FCCC) did not (yet) reach consensus on the institutional details of theproject-based mechanisms, such as the possible arrangement of early JIaction or the inclusion of sinks under the CDM.     

运用资源动态调控体系内化环境成本

生产、消费的环境成本外部性是全球性生态环境问题产生的重要根源之一。在体现资源生态价值的基础上，建立、运用资源动态调控体系(DRSR)、减少资源消耗、减轻环境负荷是绿化传统产业、实现可持续发展的重要经济手段之一。本文就运用资源动态调控体系，内化环境成本、改善环境状况的问题提出个人观点，以供商榷。     

A comparative study of the costs of alternative mayfly oviposition behaviors

Oviposition behavior of insects has associated fitness costs related to the probability that females survive to oviposit. During summer 2003, we observed the oviposition behavior and compared the mortality rates of females of 17 mayfly species in one western Colorado watershed. We dissected adult females collected on terrestrial sticky traps, in drift nets submerged in streams, and in stomachs of brook trout to determine whether the mayflies had oviposited before capture, drowning, or consumption. Females oviposited by either splashing on the water surface releasing all their eggs (splashers), dropping their eggs from the air (bombers), dipping their abdomens multiple times releasing a few eggs at a time (dippers), landing on rocks and ovipositing on the undersides (landers), or floating downstream while releasing their eggs (floaters). Almost 100% of lander and 50% of dipper females had not oviposited when captured on sticky traps, increasing their vulnerability to preoviposition mortality by aerial predators compared to mayflies with other behaviors. In contrast, most females had laid their eggs before drowning or being eaten by a fish (50–90%). However, groups with oviposition behaviors most exposed to the water surface (floaters, then splashers, dippers, and landers) were more vulnerable to drowning before completing oviposition. In addition, splashers and floaters were most vulnerable to predation by brook trout before ovipositing. These data suggest that fitness costs associated with preoviposition mortality may be considerable depending on mayfly oviposition behavior. Furthermore, previously demonstrated benefits of low predation rates on eggs of lander species may be offset in part by costs to female survival. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Jobs Versus the Environment: An Industry-Level Perspective

The possibility that workers could be adversely affected by increasingly stringent environmental policies has led to claims of a “jobs versus the environment” trade-off by both business and labor leaders. The present research examines this claim at the industry level for four heavily polluting industries: pulp and paper mills, plastic manufacturers, petroleum refiners, and iron and steel mills. Combining a unique plant-level data set with industry-level demand information, we find that increased environmental spending generally does not cause a significant change in employment. Our average across all four industries is a net gain of 1.5 jobs per $1 million in additional environmental spending, with a standard error of 2.2 jobs—an economically and statistically insignificant effect. There are statistically significant and positive effects in two industries, but total number of affected jobs remains quite small. These small positive effects can be linked to labor-using factor shifts and relatively inelastic estimated demand.     

Environmental and social implications of waste in U.S. agriculture and food sectors

Because the agriculture/food sectors appear to be driven by short-term economic and political forces, cheap energy, and agricultural-chemical technologies, waste and environmental/social problems in the agricultural/food sectors are estimated to cost the nation at least $150 billion per year. Most of the waste and environmental/social problems can be eliminated through better resource management policies and the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices.Based on a paper entitled Waste in U.S. Agricultural and Food Sectors—Environmental and Social Costs presented at the Gross National Waste Product Forum, Washington, D.C.