Decision-making for sustainable location of a cement plant in the state of Florida

Site selection is a typical strategic decision for many industries that deals with specifying the most appropriate location for a facility. In the context of sustainable development, site selection decisions need to be improved by adopting environmental, economic and social requirements. This study aims to frame sustainable location decisions by conducting a case study of siting a new cement plant in the state of Florida. As a part of the study, a wide range of technical and sustainability criteria has developed. These criteria can help decision-makers in the cement industry evaluate the selection of a location with the requirements of sustainable development. The sustainability characteristics of alternative sites in the state of Florida are evaluated based on the criteria to identify the most appropriate ones. The analytical hierarchy processand geographic information system techniques are utilized to weight the criteria and evaluate the characteristics of site candidates.     

中国城市低碳发展的模式选择

低碳城市是当今世界城市发展的大趋势,国内外一些城市已经开始践行低碳理念并形成了各具特色的发展模式,较为成熟的可归纳为"哥本哈根模式"、"伦敦模式"、"伯明翰模式"、"东京模式""保定模式"、"上海模式"等。中国低碳城市的建设和发展目前正处于起步阶段,存在一定的盲目性。中国城市的多样性、差异性和复杂性决定了其低碳发展不能千篇一律的复制和模仿,而必须在工业化和城市化进程中探索适合自身的发展模式。本文将中国城市的类型和特征与其低碳发展模式的选择相结合,从人口规模、区位、资源禀赋及工业化阶段等角度对我国城市进行类型划分,并认为任何一类城市的低碳发展都必须依据自身特征选择适宜的发展模式。同时,对武汉市的案例研究表明,因地制宜的选择一条重化工集聚、中部特大型城市的综合低碳发展模式是武汉市实现低碳转型的必然选择。     

西部地区促进农民工就业的产业选择

金融危机后,西部地区存在大量返乡农民工和就地转移的农村富余劳动力,农民工亟待"就业"与企业亟待"用工"凸显西部地区劳动力市场矛盾和产业结构偏差。西部地区调整产业偏差,进行慎密的产业选择,成为必然。通过构建农民工产业供求模型,对农民工产业流向进行理论分析,表明在区域工业化初期向工业化中期的过渡期以及在工业化中期,重化工业和高端技术产业对资本和技术的偏好,限制了劳动力从农业向非农产业的转移;通过运用比较分析法,考察西部产业选择的宏观与微观条件,透析出西部的资源特点、产业发展现状、城镇化水平、非农产业收入状况、非农产业就业吸纳能力。在理论模型推导和现实社会经济状况分析基础上,提出了产业选择思路和选择结果,即西部地区应重点发展技术—劳动密集型制造业、技术—劳动密集型农产品加工业、技术—劳动密集型服务业、旅游和旅游服务业和公益事业。     

Basis of energy crop selection for biofuel production: Cellulose vs. lignin

This paper investigates the suitability of Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.), fiber hemp (Cannabis sativa L.), energy sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.), Amur silver-grass (Miscanthus sacchariflorus), and energy grass cultivar (cv) Szarvasi-1 for biofuel production in Northern climatic conditions. Above ground biomass, bioethanol production yield, and methane production yield are used as indicators to assess the bio-energy potential of the culture. Results presented show that energy crops of Southern origin produce 30–70% less biomass than in the origin region. Nonetheless, both perennial and annual energy crops produce high above ground biomass yields (660–1280 g m^–2) for Northern climatic conditions. Experimental results show that bioethanol yield is dependent on cellulose content of the biomass. The higher the cellulose content, the higher the bioethanol yield. The biogas production on the other hand, depends on lignin content. The lower the lignin content the higher the biogas yield. Therefore, the selection of the energy crop for bioethanol production should be based on high cellulose content, while for biogas production it should rather be based on the low lignin content.     

Research on central village selection in western underdeveloped region: a case study of Lidian Town,Jingning County,Gansu Province,China

Central village selection is the priority of small town construction. Depending on the development potential analysis, classification analysis, and quantitative and qualitative analysis, this article systematically proposes the specific methods of central village selection and also constructs the indicator system used in central village selection in small towns of western underdeveloped region in China. The article also puts forward ideas and methods for selection of central village in the western underdeveloped region through an empirical research on Lidian Town, Jingning County, Gansu Province. In the final part, suggestions and recommendations on how to develop central village for Lidian Town are made.     

垃圾填埋场选址与风水选址浅析

通过对风水理论中关于选址要素的科学阐述,从自然环境和社会环境两个方面分析了风水选址和垃圾填埋场选址的共通与不同之处,并根据风水理论中“天人合一”的和谐理念,提出了在填埋场选址过程中,应该融入崇尚自然,尊重自然;结合实际,因地制宜;整体系统;以人为本,和谐构建等原则。     

Application of spatial multi-criteria analysis to site selection for a local park: a case study in the Bergamo Province, Italy

This contribution discusses a site selection process for establishing a local park. It was supported by a value-focused approach and spatial multi-criteria evaluation techniques. A first set of spatial criteria was used to design a number of potential sites. Next, a new set of spatial and non-spatial criteria was employed, including the social functions and the financial costs, together with the degree of suitability for the park to evaluate the potential sites and to recommend the most acceptable one. The whole process was facilitated by a new software tool that supports spatial multiple criteria evaluation, or SMCE. The application of this tool, combined with a continual feedback by the public administration, has provided an effective methodology to solve complex decisional problem in land-use and urban planning.     

Male genital traits and mating interval affect male fertilization success in the water strider Gerris lacustris

Parker's seminal work brought attention to the possibility of postmating sexual selection by non-random fertilization success. Mechanisms for these processes are still only partly understood and there is clearly a need for more studies of intraspecific variation in sperm precedence. Here, we report results from an experimental study of the variation in fertilization success between males of the water strider Gerris lacustris. Genital morphology, male body size, and copulation duration were examined as possible correlates of paternity. The significance of guarding duration was also analysed. Only male genital morphology was correlated to fertilization success. This is one of the first studies showing a relationship between male genital traits and fertilization success, supporting the view that sexual selection may be responsible for the rapid and divergent evolution of genital structures in animals with internal fertilization. The fertilization success of last males varied considerably after double matings with a short mating interval (10 min). Last-male priority ranged from 0 to 100% and usually one of the males involved fertilized almost all the eggs. After double matings with a short mating interval, the proportion of eggs fertilized by the last male averaged 0.68 and was greater than 0.5. In contrast, the average fertilization success was biased towards the first male when the matings were more spread out over time (24 h). These results do not support earlier suggestions of a widespread last-male sperm priority in water striders. Received: 28 July 1998 / Received in revised form: 15 March 1999 / Accepted: 28 March 1999     

Seasonal variation in the relationship between cellular immune response and badge size in male house sparrows (Passer domesticus)

The immunocompetence handicap hypothesis postulates that secondary sexual traits are honest signals of male quality because steroid hormones (such as corticosteroids and sex steroids), which are supposed to favor the development of secondary sexual traits, may also have immunosuppressive effects. Certain secondary sexual traits are not only used as mate choice signals but also play a role as badges of status. In the house sparrow (Passer domesticus), males have a bib of black feathers which is used both as a signal of social status in male-male interactions and by females when choosing a mate. We investigated the relationships between bib size and cellular immune response in male house sparrows during and outside the reproductive season. Males with large badges were found to have lower levels of immunocompetence, as assessed using a T-cell-mediated immunity assay, during the reproductive season, as predicted by the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis. Conversely, in November, the correlation between badge size and cellular immune response was positive, possibly reflecting the better access to trophic resources of large-badged dominant males in winter flocks. Received: 24 September 1998 / Received in revised form: 2 February 1999 / Accepted: 14 February 1999     

Female distribution affects mate searching and sexual selection in male northern water snakes (Nerodia sipedon)

Mating systems and sexual selection are assumed to be affected by the distribution of critical resources. We use observations of 312 mating aggregations to compare mate-searching success of male northern water snakes (Nerodia sipedon) in two marshes in which differences in mating substrate availability resulted in more than fourfold differences in female dispersion. Reproductive males had significantly larger home ranges where females were dispersed than where females were clumped. The number of females encountered by males increased significantly with male home range size where females were dispersed, and decreased significantly where females were clumped. Where females were clumped, males were more likely to encounter other males when they located females. We found no evidence in either population that mate searching was energetically expensive or that males with relatively more energy had larger home ranges. However, males with greater fat reserves at the start of the season participated in more mating aggregations when females were dispersed, suggesting that fat reserves could affect a male’s willingness to attempt mating or to persist in aggregations. When females were dispersed there was weak stabilizing selection acting to maintain male body size (β=–0.14), but strong directional selection favoring larger (β=0.50) and fatter (β=0.37) males. Over 7 years, the intensity of selection favoring larger males varied substantially (β=0.14–1.15), but that variation was not related to variation in the operational sex ratio. We found no evidence of directional selection on either body size (β=0.05) or fat reserves (β=0.10) of males when females were spatially clumped. Overall, the distribution of females had a pronounced effect on male behavior, on the factors that affected male success in locating females, and probably on the extent of sperm competition once females had been located. Received: 23 November 1998 / Received in revised form: 9 August 1999 / Accepted: 18 August 1999