Beyond performance and protocols: early responders' experiences of multiple accountability demands in the response to the 2015 Nepal earthquake

Critics have long questioned the push for professionalised and performance‐driven accountability in the humanitarian sector, yet the matter is largely treated as a ‘back office’ issue of standards, guidelines, and processes. Scant attention is paid to the accountability demands experienced by early responders to disasters. Set in the contested climate of the emergency response to the earthquake in Nepal on 25 April 2015, and drawing on interviews with 15 early responders, this paper reveals three forms of accountability demands: (i) accountability as compliance; (ii) accountability as the object of government regulation; and (iii) accountability as public opposition and interrogation. Beyond the performance‐centric, non‐governmental organisation‐driven understanding of accountability, early responders to the earthquake experienced multidirectional accountability demands, not only from donors and beneficiaries, but also from the national government and wider public. Engaging with public criticism is a significant feature of early responders' responsibility that warrants further consideration by the humanitarian community.     

The continued operation of businesses after an earthquake: a case study from Lushan County,China

This study performed a comparative analysis of changes in the operating status of initial surviving disaster‐stricken businesses and non‐disaster‐stricken businesses in Lushan County, China, after a devastating earthquake on 20 April 2013. It used a logistic regression model to explore the key factors associated with ‘post‐disaster continued business operation’ in the long term. Field data were collected from 1,078 businesses and questionnaire data from 263 small businesses between 2013 and 2017. The results indicate that a higher proportion of initial surviving disaster‐stricken businesses than non‐disaster‐stricken businesses managed to remain operational in each observation period. The continued operation of disaster‐stricken businesses after the earthquake was positively associated with the owner's age, previous disaster experience, pre‐disaster financial conditions, closure duration, and borrowing money from family or friends. A negative association was found with the size of the business. The findings serve as a vital reference for strategies to promote post‐disaster continued business operation.     

Experimental investigation on oxidation of sulfurized rust in oil tank

Oxidation of sulfurized rust in oil tank is complicated, and it is influenced by numerous factors such as water content, air humidity, operating temperature etc. The paper focuses on the oxidation process of sulfurized rust in the wild. Firstly, samples collected from a petrochemical company were put into the sulfurization & oxidation experimental apparatus to gain wet and dry sulfurized rusts. Their chemical compositions and phase were analyzed by Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometer (EDS) -scanning electron microscope (SEM) technique. The results showed that both wet and dry sulfurized rusts had S, Fe₂O₃, Fe₃S₄ and FeS₂, whereas FeS only existed in wet sulfurized rust. The two kinds of rusts gave a short length of side, diamond appearance and a large pore size in structure. Then oxidation of wet sulfurized rust was investigated, which included electrochemical reaction stage, electrochemical & chemical reaction coexisting stage and chemical reaction stage. The final oxidation product of wet sulfurized was determined to be Fe₂O₃. On the basis of this study, an indicator for monitoring and early-warning was proposed to prevent plants in vicinity of the accidental vessel or tank from fire and explosion.     

关于固体废弃物处理技术研究

固体废弃物即是在生产与生活的过程中所产生的固态或者半固态物质,一般来说包括了工业垃圾、生活垃圾以及危险废弃物等。固体废弃物如果不能够进行及时有效的处理,则很容易对环境产生影响,其对于生态环境的影响一般是间接性的、潜在的以及长期性的综合影响。现结合笔者实际研究,分析了常见固体废弃物的分类,并就当前我国的固体废物处理技术进行了论述。     

鲁甸6.5级地震地质灾害调查分析

2014年8月3日云南鲁甸发生6.5级地震,震级不大、灾情较重。震后排查和地震震前后对比显示,滑坡崩塌灾害是加剧灾情的关键因素之一;震后新增隐患沿河谷岸坡脊线、公路边坡开挖线、断裂带"三线耦合"部位集中分布的特征;中小型滑坡主要由地震动触发,大规模滑坡是由断裂活动和地震动联合触发。研究建议在西南山区的应急减灾能力建设中应综合考虑地震和地质灾害,分阶段规划。     

Nitrogen to phosphorus ratios of two understory plant species in response to nitrogen and phosphorus addition in tropical forest of southern China北大核心CSCD

The secondary tropical forests in southern China have suffered from frequent human disturbance and increasing high N deposition. In order to explore the nutrient limitation status in secondary tropical forests of South China, this 3-year field experiment of nitrogen (+N) and phosphorus (+P) addition investigated nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations of the aboveground tissue (leaf and branch) of two widely distributed understory native species Clerodendrum cyrtophyllum and Uvaria microcarpa in a secondary tropical forest of South China. The results showed that: 1) the N and P concentrations of the two species were significantly different (P < 0.001); N and P concentrations of different tissues in the same species were different; N&P addition greatly affected N and P concentrations in branch rather than new leaf and older leaf. 2) +N treatment had no significant effect on N or P concentrations of either species, but significantly decreased N:P ratios (P = 0.001), at the level of 9% for C. cyrtophyllum and 50% for U. microcarpa, respectively. 3) +P treatment had no significant effect on tissue N concentrations, but significantly increased plant P concentrations (P < 0.001), at 54% for C. cyrtophyllum and 88% for U. microcarpa, respectively; +P treatment significantly decreased plant N:P ratios (P < 0.001), at 28% and 60%, respectively. 4) The alterations of P concentrations of two species had significantly negative correlations with N:P alterations under +N/+P treatment (P < 0.001), suggesting that the alteration of P concentrations in plant tissue was the major driver for N:P alteration. Our results show that N and P addition would affect tissue N and P concentrations of the two species, with +P treatment having relatively greater effect on nutrient concentrations than +N treatment; the branch is more sensitive than new or older leaf in response to nutrient addition. Therefore, P availability may be the limiting factor for plant growth in the tropical forests.     

电子元件行业环保验收监测技术难点研究

根据建设项目竣工环境保护验收规范要求及当前电子元件行业的发展情况,结合工作实践,探讨新形势下电子元件行业项目竣工环境保护验收监测工作中的技术难点,针对电子元件行业工艺分析及特征污染因子的确定、危险废物核查、验收监测标准执行等技术难点提出了具体解决建议,为电子元件行业项目竣工环境保护验收监测提供参考。     

某硫酸生产线清洁生产审核案例研究

某公司硫酸生产线针对生产过程中存在的原材料消耗高、产品转化率低等问题,通过开展清洁生产审核,分析生产过程能耗、物耗、废物产生量的现状,从原辅材料和能源、工艺、设备、过程控制、管理、员工、产品及废物八个方面提出14个清洁生产方案,通过方案的实施,提高了公司清洁生产水平,实现了预防污染、节能降耗减污增效的目的。