Gender aspects of work-related injuries in a Swedish municipality

The purpose of this study was to investigate gender aspects of work-related injuries in a Swedish municipality (population 41,000). All unintentional injuries treated at in- and out-patient facilities were recorded during a period of 1 year. The work-related injuries were mapped out in more detail with the help of standardized and structured surveys via telephone interviews and hospital records. The rate of work-related injuries among the gainfully employed was 33 per 1000. Males were observed to suffer more work-related injuries than females (46 compared to 12 per 1000 gainfully employed persons), and there were gender differences with regard to work-related injuries and injury event patterns. Young men showed the highest rate of injuries. Injuries caused during machine operation were the most common for both males and females, amounting to almost one quarter of all injuries. Injuries caused by falls were most common amongst females in the age groups 15–24 (25%) and 45–64 (28%). More attention should be given to gender aspects of work-related injuries and their prevention.     

秦山岛周边海域春季浮游植物群落结构特征

于2016年4月对秦山岛周边海域5个断面20个站位浮游植物进行调查,共鉴定出浮游植物5门84种,平均密度1.10×10^5个/m^3,优势类群硅藻(70种)平均密度为8.75×10^4个/m^3,甲藻9种,平均密度为8.10×10^3个/m^3;优势种主要为琼氏圆筛藻(Coscinodiscus jonesianus)(Y=0.095)、星脐圆筛藻(Coscinodiscus asteromphalus)(Y=0.087)、针状蓝纤维藻(Dactylococcopsis acicularis)(Y=0.087)、中肋骨条藻(Skeletonema costatum)(Y=0.070)、夜光藻(Noctiluca scientillans)(Y=0.058)、刚毛根管藻(Rhizosolenia setigera)(Y=0.051)等11种;多样性指数平均值为2.76,种类分布相对均匀。受沿岸4条河口淡水径流及营养元素输入影响,靠近河口的C、D断面浮游植物密度较高,琼氏圆筛藻、星脐圆筛藻、中肋骨条藻、针状蓝纤维藻等具有较高优势度,但密度较低,赤潮风险较低;各断面优势种组成存在一定更迭。     

Relating to nature,food and community in community gardens

This paper sheds critical light on the motivations and practices of community gardeners in relatively affluent neighbourhoods. The paper engages with community garden, alternative food and domestic garden literatures, to understand how people fit food production into their everyday lives, how they develop relationships to plants and how these in turn shape relations between people in a community group. The paper draws on participant observation and semi-structured walking interviews conducted at three community gardens in Sydney, Australia. The paper concludes that to fit community gardening into busy lives, people strategically choose plants with biophysical qualities that suit personal as well as communal circumstances and objectives. The paper shows how community is relationally constituted through the practices of growing and sharing food. Tensions might arise through the practices of growing food on communal and private plots and the taking and giving of food, but it can also encourage people to reflect on community food production and on their roles as individuals in a community group.     

Equitable distribution of green stormwater infrastructure: a capacity-based framework for implementation in disadvantaged communities

This study seeks to understand the factors that influence the variability in distribution of public and private sector investments in green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) projects across the diversity of neighbourhoods in the City of Philadelphia, PA, U.S.A. using indicators of community context and capacity. For this study, context is defined as characteristics of disadvantaged communities and capacity as factors that facilitate individual and collective action. Community context and capacity are deemed integral to the success of the Philadelphia GSI programme as the Philadelphia Water Department is relying upon collaborative approaches to facilitate public investments in neighbourhoods and voluntary implementation of GSI practices on publically and privately owned lands. Private sector investments in GSI mandated by stormwater regulations for new construction and major rehabilitation also are assessed in relation to these two sets of indicators. The geographic information systems and statistical analyses reveal an inequitable distribution of GSI projects, which largely is driven by market forces. The paper concludes with a community capacity-based framework to prioritise public sector investment in disadvantaged communities to achieve more equitable distribution of GSI projects and associated benefits.     

Purpose-Driven Public Sector Reform: The Need for Within-Government Capacity Build for the Management of Slope Stability in Communities in the Caribbean

This article stresses the importance of within-government capacity build as the optimal approach to minimizing landslide risk to the most vulnerable communities in the developing world. Landslide risk is an integrated issue that demands strong managerial leadership and multidisciplinary inclusion to develop structures that deliver sustainable improvements in the reduction of risk. The tension between projects demanding international technical and financial intervention and those capable of “within-country” solutions are examined. More particularly, the challenges of developing a management methodology capable of energizing inter-ministry collaboration to achieve community-level action is examined in the context of a recently established program of slope stability management in St. Lucia. The program, Management of Slope Stability in Communities (MoSSaiC), is shown to have successfully fostered not only extensive technical collaboration within government but also to have energized local communities in the shared mission of capacity build through their direct involvement in the management process.     

新形势下地市级环境监测站转型发展初探

以南京市环境监测中心站的实践为例,初步探讨了地市级环境监测站转型发展的优势和困难、总体思路和分步措施。针对转型中存在的人力不足、人才培养滞后、制度和机制与发展需求不匹配等问题,引入社会检测力量,释放人力,促进人员初步转型,并建立组织管理体系、资金管理体系和质控管理体系,试行人员持证上岗制,为顺利转型提供保障。提出强化人才转型、对外的质控与监管、对内的精细化管理、监测成果的挖掘分析,以及对区县站的扶持,进一步深化转型发展。     

Community Perception of Water Quality in a Mining-Affected Area: A Case Study for the Certej Catchment in the Apuseni Mountains in Romania

Mining-contaminated sites and the affected communities at risk are important issues on the agenda of both researchers and policy makers, particularly in the former communist block countries in Eastern Europe. Integrated analyses and expert based assessments concerning mining affected areas are important in providing solid policy guidelines for environmental and social risk management and mitigation. Based on a survey for 103 households conducted in a former mining site in the Certej Catchment of the Apuseni Mountains, western Romania, this study assesses local communities’ perceptions on the quality of water in their living area. Logistic regression was used to examine peoples’ perception on the quality of the main river water and of the drinking water based on several predictors relating to social and economic conditions. The results from the perception analysis were then compared with the measurements of heavy metal contamination of the main river and drinking water undertaken in the same study area. The findings indicate that perception and measurement results for the water quality in the Certej Catchment are convergent, suggesting an obvious risk that mining activities pose on the surface water. However, the perception on drinking water quality was little predicted by the regression model and does not seem to be so much related to mining as to other explanatory factors, such as special mineralogy of rock and soils or improper water treatment infrastructure, facts suggested by the measurements of the contaminants. Discussion about the implications of these joint findings for risk mitigation policies completes this article.     

Community-company relations in gold mining in Ghana

As a result of Structural Adjustment Programme from the 1980s, many developing countries have experienced an increase in resource extraction activities by international and transnational corporations. The work reported here examines the perceived impacts of gold mining at the community level in the Wassa West District of Ghana, Africa and discusses those perceived impacts in the context of globalization processes and growing multinational corporate interest in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Interview data compared community members' perceptions with those of company representatives in three communities. The results indicate that communities held companies responsible for a series of economic, social, and environmental changes. While recognizing some of the benefits brought by the mines, communities felt that the companies did not live up to their responsibility to support local development. Companies responded by denying, dismissing concerns, or shifting blame. Findings from this work show that lack of engagement and action by government agencies at all levels resulted in companies acting in a surrogate governmental capacity. In such situations, managing expectations is key to community-company relations.     

Getting low-carbon governance right: learning from actors involved in Community Benefits

Interest in Community Benefits (CB) has increased over the past decade mainly due to the growing number of wind farms and related criticism. Because CB are a voluntary gesture by the developer, there is no standard practice or institutionalised approach for good governance of the benefits; every community has a different approach, tailored to local needs and depending on the stakeholders involved. Additionally, since CB are a rapidly emerging practice, little is known about their governance, what actors are involved and how affected communities participate in decision-making on renewable projects. Using the Farr wind farm in Scotland, one of the first to introduce CB, as a case study, this paper sheds light on the governance structures surrounding the set-up, management and allocation of funds. It also contributes to the emerging body of work regarding transparency and community participation in CB, and the extent to which these might facilitate a transition to a low-carbon future.