Halogenated compounds and climate change: future emission levels and reduction costs

OBJECTIVES: This work assesses the contribution to climate change resulting from emissions of the group of halogenated greenhouse gases. METHODS: A bottom-up emission model covering 22 technological sectors in four major regions is described. Emission estimates for 1996 and projection for 2010 and 2020 are presented. The costs for deep cuts into projected emission levels are calculated. RESULTS: The substances covered by this study have contributed emissions of 1100 +/- 800 MT CO2 equivalents per year in 1996. In terms of their relative contribution to emissions of CO2 equivalents, this corresponds to 3 +/- 2% of global emissions of all anthropogenic greenhouse gases. The wide range of uncertainty is due to the poorly quantified net global warming potential of the ozone depleting substances, which have an indirect cooling effect on climate through the destruction of stratospheric ozone. For annual emissions of HFCs, PFCs and SF6 (which are regulated under the Kyoto Protocol and for which global warming potentials are well defined), the relative contribution is projected to increase to 2% (600 MT CO2 eq.) of global greenhouse gas emissions by 2010. This trend is expected to continue, emissions are projected to grow to a contribution of roughly 3% (870 MT CO2 eq.) in 2020 compared to 0.9% (300 MT CO2 eq.) in 1996. For HFCs, PFCs and SF6, this study identifies global emission reduction potentials of 260 MT CO2 eq. per year in 2010 and 640 MT CO2 eq. per year in 2020 at below US$ 50 per ton. These values correspond to roughly 40% and 75% of projected emissions in 2010 and 2020, respectively.     

Adjustment costs from environmental change

The paper is concerned with the case whereby the distribution of a firm's productivity shocks changes without the knowledge of the firm. Over time the firm learns about the nature and extent of the change in the distribution of the shock and adjusts, incurring adjustment costs in the process. The long-run loss in profits (±) due to the shift in the distribution we term the equilibrium response. The transitory loss in profits, incurred while the firm is learning about the distribution shift, is termed the adjustment cost. The theory is then applied to the problem of measuring adjustment costs in the face of imperfectly observed climate change in agriculture. The empirical part of the paper involves estimating a restricted profit function for agricultural land in a five-state region of the Midwest US as a function of prices, land characteristics, actual weather realizations and expected weather. We then simulate the effect of an unobserved climate shock, where learning about the climate shock is by observing the weather and updating prior knowledge using Bayes Rule. We find adjustment costs to climate change are 1.4% of annual land rents.     

交通噪声污染经济损失估算方法比较研究

目前闷内外对于噪声污染经济损失的研究还相当有限，且采用的方法也存在很大的差别。运用环境经济学的观点和方法，提出了估算噪声污染损失的3种常用方法；损害费用法、意愿型调查评估法和防护费用法，并对其进行了比较研究。     

Social and hospital costs of patients admitted to a university hospital in Brazil due to motorcycle crashes

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the social and hospital costs of patients treated at a public hospital who were motorcycle crash victims.

Method: This prospective study was on 68 motorcycle riders (drivers or passengers), who were followed up from hospital admission to 6 months after the crash. A questionnaire covering quantitative and qualitative questions was administered.

Results: Motorcycle crash victims were responsible for 12% of the institution's hospital admissions; 54.4% were young (18–28 years of age); 92.6% were the drivers; 91.2% were male; and 50% used their motorcycles as daily means of transportation. Six months afterward, 94.1% needed help from someone; 83.8% had changed their family dynamics; and 73.5% had not returned to their professional activities. Among the injuries, 94.7% had some type of fracture, of which 53.5% were exposed fractures; 35.3% presented temporary sequelae; and 32.4% presented permanent sequelae. They used the surgical center 2.53 times on average, with a mean hospital stay of 18 days. The per capita hospital cost of these victims’ treatment was US$17,481.50.

Conclusion: The social and hospital costs were high, relative to the characteristics of a public institution. Temporary or permanent disability caused changes to family dynamics, as shown by the high numbers of patients who were still away from their professional activities more than 6 months afterward.     

生活垃圾焚烧厂超低排放的改造路线

通过分析国内外垃圾焚烧发电厂烟气净化系统的现状,基于燃煤电站和垃圾焚烧发电厂烟气物性之间的相似性及燃煤电站超低排放系统的先进性,提出了分别以循环流化床法脱硫和高效协同型湿法脱硫技术为核心的垃圾焚烧烟气超低排放改造可行技术路线,并分析了2种技术路线的初投资和运行成本.结果表明：2种技术路线的初投资相当,约为1.37万元/t,但以湿法脱硫为核心的技术运行费用较高,日运行成本约为16.46元/t;采用环保电价补贴政策时,2种烟气超低排放技术路线超过政策发电量部分的发电收入分别可以在3a和7a内弥补超低排放改造及运行带来的资金支出.     

基于D-S证据理论的“丝绸之路旅游带”5A景区区位优势度测评

景区发展与其区位条件密切相关,处于优势区位的景区更容易获得优先快速发展。以“丝绸之路旅游带”为例,综合考虑资源、市场、交通及服务四大区位因子,将其视为证据,引入D-S证据理论对景区区位优势进行测度,以I~V级表征区位由优到劣的状态,最后对景区区位与旅游发展核心区进行对比。结果显示：（1）区位优势等级区域差异化显著,总体呈现由东南至西北逐级递减的空间分布规律,自I至V级,重心逐步向西北方向偏移。（2）各区位因子分布存在差异性,东南地区景区资源区位优于西北地区;市场区位地带间差异最为明显,存在“长尾”特征及陕西“一省独大”现象;交通区位内在差异性与区位优势相仿;服务区位已不再是制约景区区位的主要因子,但就单个省份来看,“核心—边缘”结构较为明显。（3）与景区旅游发展对比来看,二者具有明显的空间关联性,但仍存在一定程度的空间错位现象。     

煤矿绿色生态矿山建设投入经济机理分析

目前,煤矿建设仍然存在绿色生态投入动力不足的问题。本文首先指出了绿色生态矿山建设的现状,并运用外部性理论分析煤矿绿色生态投入不足的经济机理;最后,基于外部成本内化深入分析了外部影响因素对绿色生态矿山建设的影响机理。     

Do plants’ emissions respond to ambient environmental quality? Evidence from the clean water act

In this paper we show that plants respond to downstream ambient water quality after controlling for permitted levels of pollution. We find if past water quality declines by one percent, plants reduce current pollution by 0.35 percent. The magnitude of this coefficient is comparable to the coefficient on permitted discharge levels i.e. regulatory stringency itself. Results are consistent with two mechanisms. First, a decline in water quality may lead to more stringent permits that would raise the cost of abatement of a plant significantly. Second, the plant is likely to be subject to increased public pressure in response to poor water quality. Indeed, as expected, the impact of water quality becomes stronger in locations with higher median household income, higher percent carpooling to work, or lower percent of manufacturing employment but surprisingly with lower median age of residents, lower percent with bachelor׳s degree or higher percent of families with children.     

Conservation Businesses and Conservation Planning in a Biological Diversity Hotspot

The allocation of land to biological diversity conservation competes with other land uses and the needs of society for development, food, and extraction of natural resources. Trade‐offs between biological diversity conservation and alternative land uses are unavoidable, given the realities of limited conservation resources and the competing demands of society. We developed a conservation‐planning assessment for the South African province of KwaZulu‐Natal, which forms the central component of the Maputaland–Pondoland–Albany biological diversity hotspot. Our objective was to enhance biological diversity protection while promoting sustainable development and providing spatial guidance in the resolution of potential policy conflicts over priority areas for conservation at risk of transformation. The conservation‐planning assessment combined spatial‐distribution models for 646 conservation features, spatial economic‐return models for 28 alternative land uses, and spatial maps for 4 threats. Nature‐based tourism businesses were competitive with other land uses and could provide revenues of >US$60 million/year to local stakeholders and simultaneously help meeting conservation goals for almost half the conservation features in the planning region. Accounting for opportunity costs substantially decreased conflicts between biological diversity, agricultural use, commercial forestry, and mining. Accounting for economic benefits arising from conservation and reducing potential policy conflicts with alternative plans for development can provide opportunities for successful strategies that combine conservation and sustainable development and facilitate conservation action. Negocios de Conservación y Planificación de la Conservación en un Sitio de Importancia para la Biodiversidad     

A case study on project-level CO2 mitigation costs in industrialised countries: the Climate Cent Foundation in Switzerland

This paper analyses CO₂ emissions reduction costs based on project data from the Climate Cent Foundation (CCF), a climate policy instrument in Switzerland. Four conclusions are drawn. First, for the projects investigated, the CCF on average pays €63/ton. Due to the Kyoto Protocol, the CCF buys reductions only until 2012. This cut-off increases reported per ton reduction costs, as the additional lifetime project costs are set in relation to reductions only until 2012, rather than to reductions realised over the whole lifetime. Lifetime reduction costs are €45/t. Second, correlation between CCF's payments and lifetime reduction costs per ton is low. Projects with low per ton reduction costs should thus be identified based on lifetime per ton reduction costs. Third, the wide range of project costs per ton observed casts doubts on the widely used identification of the merit order of reduction measures based on average per ton costs for technology types. Finally, the CCF covers only a fraction of additional reduction costs. Decisions to take reduction efforts thus depend on additional, non-observable and/or non-economic motives. Any generalisation of results has to consider that this analysis is based on prospective costs of a sub-sample of projects in Switzerland.