Are two resources really better than one? Some unexpected results of the availability of substitutes

The possibility of exploiting multiple resources is usually regarded as positive from both the economic and the environmental point of view. However, resource switching may also lead to unsustainable growth and, ultimately, to an equilibrium condition which is worse than the one that could have been achieved with a single resource. We developed a dynamic model where users exploit multiple resources and have different levels of preference among them. In this setting, exploiting multiple resources leads to worse outcomes in both economic and ecological terms than the single resource case under a wide range of parameter configurations. Our arguments are illustrated using two empirical situations, namely oil drilling in the North Sea and whale hunting in the Antarctic.     

Multi-criteria analysis for improving strategic environmental assessment of water programmes. A case study in semi-arid region of Brazil

Multi-criteria analysis (MCA) is a family of decision-making tools that can be used in strategic environmental assessment (SEA) procedures to ensure that environmental, social and economic aspects are integrated into the design of human development strategies and planning, in order to increase the contribution of the environment and natural resources to poverty reduction. The aim of this paper is to highlight the contribution of a particular multi-criteria technique, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), in two stages of the SEA procedure applied to water programmes in developing countries: the comparison of alternatives and monitoring. This proposal was validated through its application to a case study in Brazilian semi-arid region. The objective was to select and subsequently monitor the most appropriate programme for safe water availability. On the basis of the SEA results, a project was identified and implemented with successful results. In terms of comparisons of alternatives, AHP meets the requirements of human development programme assessment, including the importance of simplicity, a multidisciplinary and flexible approach, and a focus on the beneficiaries' concerns. With respect to monitoring, the study shows that AHP contributes to SEA by identifying the most appropriate indicators, in order to control the impacts of a project.     

An Evaluation Framework for Scoring Corporate Sustainability Reports in Taiwan

Abstract Recently, an increasing number of Taiwanese companies have engaged in economic, environmental, and social disclosures through sustainability reports to demonstrate social responsibility. However, the quality and the contents of information disclosure have yet to be translated into meaningful and comprehensive reports. This article proposed a framework to evaluate the quality and the contents of the voluntary information disclosure of sustainability reports in Taiwan. The proposed framework is based on the Global Reporting Initiative G3 Guideline, scorecard, and other award scoring systems that were converted into comprehensive scoring systems to evaluate 16 reports published by companies operating in Taiwan. In all, 44 indicators within 18 criteria were recognized through expert questionnaires and the fuzzy Delphi method. The fuzzy analytic hierarchy process was applied to determine the relative weightings of the 18 criteria, after which a multiple-criteria decision-making evaluation framework wa...     

Evaluation of Urban Sustainability in Specific Sectors in Latvia

In Latvia, the concept of sustainability is only slowly gaining recognition. An analysis of Development Plans prepared by the four largest cities of Latvia indicates that sustainability is presented as one of the guiding principles. However, a comparison of Development Plan policies against the urban sustainability issues reveals a great deal of ambiguity and contradiction.At the municipal level, planners and politicians lack indicators to gauge whether the long-term goals of Development Plans and the principles of sustainable development are being achieved. As a consequence, the broad public is deprived of the opportunity to assess for itself the process of development in relation to Development Plan policies, thus limiting accountability in development decision-making. Relevant statistical data collected on a regular basis are required to create sustainability indicators reflecting sustainability issues, to supplement and replace existing statistical compilations pertaining almost exclusively to economic growth and consumption. Development and utilisation of sustainability indicators can be an effective instrument for promoting the values of sustainable development amongst politicians, planners and the broad public and for enhancing accountability in decision-making.     

县域土地资源可持续利用评价指标体系研究——以锡山市为例

土地利用评价的尺度包括微观、中观和宏观，其中县域土地资源可持续利用评价是最适宜的候选中观尺度，在评价中有承上启下的作用。县域经济的特点对县域土地利用的构成和动态变化必然产生直接或间接的影响，从而决定了县域土地资源利用可持续性的程度。遵循FAO提出的土地利用的生产性、安全性、保护性、可行性和可接受性等准则，确立了适宜于县域土地资源可持续利用评价指标体系框架，并以锡山市为例，从锡山市的具体情况出发，确定了适宜于锡山市的土地资源可持续利用评价指标体系，对锡山市1985－1999年土地资源利用状况进行了评价，评价指标按土地可持续评价的要求将指标分为增长型、递减型、控制性、平稳型。评价结果以诊断的形式表现，首先列出六大准则层，依据指标计算结果对其进行定性评价；其次列出各准则层中存在的问题；再次是确定问题发生影响的时点，这样针对土地资源利用中存在的问题一一解决时，可以分出轻重缓急，所依据的是系统论的原理：系统各组成部分之间可能存在替代作用，但这种替代作用是暂时和相对的，系统各部分之间的不可替代性是长久和绝对的。     

骨炭粉对Cd污染农田的修复效果与稳定性评价

为了探明骨炭粉对Cd污染土壤的修复效果及稳定性,以潮土与红壤Cd污染农田土壤为对象,基于土壤Cd有效态、作物降Cd率（DR,%）及降Cd失活率（IR,%）等指标,研究田间条件下施用3种浓度（0.25%、0.50%及1.0%）骨炭粉对Cd污染土壤的修复效果及120,360d后修复效果的稳定性.结果表明：骨炭粉处理均能有效促进潮土与红壤中作物生长,增加作物产量.施用骨炭粉能不同程度提高土壤中pH值、阳离子交换量（CEC）、全磷及有效磷含量;其中,0.5%和1.0%骨炭粉处理均显著（P<0.05）提高土壤pH值、土壤全磷及有效磷含量.与对照相比,不同骨炭粉处理120d后潮土和红壤中有效态Cd含量分别降低32.1%~48.4%、32.8%~56.2%,360d后土壤中有效态Cd仍然显著低于对照,降幅为26.9%~37.8%、25.8%~39.5%.对修复后三季作物Cd吸收测定结果表明,与对照相比,不同浓度（0.25%~1.0%）骨炭粉处理的第一季作物降Cd率（DR_-Cd）分别达36.0%~60.4%、33.9%~58.2%,作物降Cd率随骨炭粉施用量增加而增加.基于降Cd失活率（IR_-Cd）对骨炭粉修复效果的稳定性测定结果表明,潮土与红壤施用骨炭粉360d后,第三季作物降Cd失活率IR_-Cd为21.2%~34.7%和6.2%~21.6%,表明在酸性红壤中修复效果的稳定性大于潮土.综上骨炭粉对Cd污染土壤的修复效果及其稳定性结果表明,骨炭粉在Cd污染农田土壤修复中具有较大应用价值.     

合理施肥与农业的可持续性发展初探

合理施肥可以提高作物产量和品质,降低农业生产成本,增加农民收入,减少环境污染;但是,在我国农业发展过程中,农民施用化肥时存在化肥的过量施用、化肥的错误选用以及化肥施用方法不科学等问题;不合理施肥引发了水污染、大气污染和土壤污染。从农业可持续性发展的角度,提出了根据作物性质选择合适肥料,测定土壤性质,根据土壤性质选择合适的肥料,采取科学的方法施肥等建议。     

Implicating waterfronts in regional sustainability

Advocates of sustainable urban development often privilege the region as a scale for coordinated action and investment. However, discourses of sustainability institutionalised through regional planning, and conflated with notions of liveability, lend themselves to recruitment by competing, and opposing, development interests. To be regionally sustainable, an individual land development should, both on-site and through its connections to other sites, contribute to overall sustainability of the region. Using examples of industrial waterfront redevelopment in metropolitan Vancouver, we show how particular urban spaces are misrepresented as lynchpins of regional sustainability. In a plan for residential redevelopment, it is claimed that sustainable redevelopment will reunite citizens with “their waterfront”, reframed as liveable, pure, clean, ecologically vital and non-industrial. At an adjacent site, it is claimed that waterfront industrial land should be protected to combat industrial sprawl. Yet, in both cases the developers have lobbied for the expansion of road transportation making the claims of regional sustainability doubtful.     

Extending the EU Renewable Energy Directive sustainability criteria to solid bioenergy from forests

Solid bioenergy from forests plays — and is expected to continue to play — a key role to fulfil the renewable energy targets at the European Union level. When the Renewable Energy Directive was enacted, sustainability criteria were incorporated solely for biofuels and bioliquids. Sustainability criteria for solid bioenergy are also needed in order to prevent wood and primary forest residues from posing additional environmental risks to ecosystems. Acknowledging this, the European Commission has been working on extending the biofuels and bioliquids provisions to solid biomass. An internal draft was circulated in August 2013 which addressed the ways to both balance and mitigate the risks in three main topics: biodiversity; sustainable forest management; and greenhouse gases. This paper presents a set of criteria and indicators, developed during workshops with experts from Governments, scientific institutions, businesses and NGOs, that may be considered by the EU to assure that solid biomass from forests is obtained in an environmentally sustainable way.     

Are Wastewater Systems Adapting to Climate Change?

Wastewater (WW) systems are vulnerable to extreme precipitation events; storm‐induced WW system failures pollute the environment and put public health at risk. Despite these vulnerabilities, we know very little about how WW managers are responding to current climate risks or to future climate change. This study aims to fill this critical gap in the literature. Data from surveys and interviews were used to understand what WW managers are doing to adapt to the current climate, what facilitates those adaptations, and if they are adapting to future climate change. Findings show most WW managers (78%) are making changes to build resiliency to storms they have experienced in the past (e.g., extra fuel on site, extra staff on call, more training, better communication, adding generators, elevating components, adding capacity); most are not adapting to future climate change. Our work suggests organizational leadership, concern about future climate‐related impacts, and experiencing storm impacts drive resiliency changes while regulatory requirements drive adaptation to future climate change. Beyond advancing science, our work offers practical suggestions for building WW system resilience and for increasing WW system's consideration of future climate impacts in their resiliency building efforts.