A scenario-based study on information flow and collaboration patterns in disaster management

Disaster management (DM) is a continuous, highly collaborative process involving governments, DM organisations, responders, the construction sector, and the general public. Most research approaches to DM include the development of information and communication technologies (ICT) to support the collaboration process rather than the creation of a collaboration process to provide information flows and patterns. An Intelligent Disaster Collaboration System (IDCS) is introduced in this paper as a conceptual model to integrate ICT into DM and the mitigation process and to enhance collaboration. The framework is applicable to the collaboration process at the local, regional and national levels. Within this context, the deployment of ICT tools in DM is explored and scenario-based case studies on flooding and terrorism—examples of natural and human-induced disasters, respectively—are presented. Conclusions are drawn regarding the differences found in collaboration patterns and ICT used during natural and human-induced disasters and the differences between currently available ICT and proposed ICT.     

Denitrification potential enhancement by addition of external carbon sources in a pre-denitrification process

The aim of this study is to investigate the denitrification potential enhancement by addition of external carbon sources and to estimate the denitrification potential for the predenitrification system using nitrate utilization rate （NUR） batch tests. It is shown that the denitrification potential can be substantially increased with the addition of three external carbon sources, i.e. methanol, ethanol, and acetate, and the denitrification rates of ethanol, acetate, and methanol reached up to 9.6, 12, and 3.2 mgN/（g VSS.h）, respectively, while that of starch wastewater was only 0.74 mgN/（g VSS,h）. By comparison, ethanol was found to be the best external carbon source. NUR batch tests with starch wastewater and waste ethanol were carried out. The denitfification potential increased from 5.6 to 16.5 mg NO3-N/L owing to waste ethanol addition. By means of NUR tests, the wastewater characteristics and kinetic parameters can be estimated, which are used to determine the denitrification potential of wastewater, to calculate the denitrification potential of the plant and to predict the nitrate effluent quality, as well as provide information for developing carbon dosage control strategy.     

脆弱生态环境耦合下的贫困地区可持续发展研究

研究表明，中国贫困地区的分布与脆弱生态环境的分布存在一种地理空间意义上的耦合，这种耦合是一种非良性的耦合，存在着诸多问题并我着当地的社会经济发展，要改变这一现状，实现区域社会经济可持续发展，必须革新现有的贫困人口生存方式和社会经济发展模式，据此，本文提出了实现贫困地区社会经济可持续发展的战略措施应是依托现有的资源优势，推广生态农业技术，发展绿色食品和开展生态旅游。     

欧美经验对我国“十三五”大气污染防治战略的启示

当前,我国大气污染形势严峻,复合型污染特征突出。新修订的《中华人民共和国环境保护法》、《中华人民共和国大气污染防治法》、《环境空气质量标准》以及《大气污染防治行动计划》的发布和实施,对我国大气污染防治工作提出了更高要求。"十三五"时期是我国环境保护负重前行困难期和大有作为关键期,也是我国改善大气环境质量的攻坚期,需要系统谋划大气污染防治战略。欧盟和美国在制定大气污染防治战略时,以改善空气质量为核心,构建了涵盖一次污染物和二次污染物的多污染物目标体系,规定了环境浓度、排放量、直观感受(能见度)、健康以及管理等约束性指标,并且针对大气污染防治政策分析实施的成本与收益,开发相应的模型工具,基于收益成本比进行科学决策。本文对欧美环境规划和战略中的多污染物协同控制目标体系以及大气污染防治政策成本效益评估经验进行梳理,分析我国大气污染防治战略的现状和问题,并提出相关政策建议,以期为解决"心肺之患"、实现环保"十三五"总体目标提供参考。     

“一带一路”战略背景下的中国省域绿色发展:现状、问题与对策

以绿色发展推动生态文明建设将会是我国长期面临的重大课题。"一带一路"是我国新时期的对外开放国家战略,涵盖范围广泛,涉及国内18个省域和沿线65个国家,研究"一带一路"战略背景下的中国省域绿色发展,意义重大。本文通过对"一带一路"战略的基本回顾认为,建设绿色"一带一路"是促进我国经济绿色转型、消除国际社会担忧、推进战略顺利实施的必然选择。"一带一路"战略涉及国内18个省份之间的环境污染状况和绿色发展水平差异较大,东部沿海省份的经济发展水平远高于中西部省份,绿色发展水平相对领先,但同时污染物排放量也明显较大。本文进一步探讨了我国省域绿色发展过程中存在的四个问题,即中国绿色经济发展整体水平不高、地区间同质化竞争严重、污染性产业向中西部省份梯度转移、生态环境脆弱,并分别给出了相应的对策建议。     

Welfare states and environmental states: a comparative analysis

A framework is presented for thinking about state intervention in developed capitalist economies in two domains: social policy and environmental policy (and, within that, climate-change policy). Five drivers of welfare state development are identified, the ‘five Is’ of Industrialisation: Interests, Institutions, Ideas/Ideologies, and International Influences. Research applying this framework to the postwar development of welfare states in the OECD is summarised, distinguishing two periods: up to 1980, and from 1980 to 2008. How far this framework can contribute to understanding the rise and differential patterns of environmental governance and intervention across advanced capitalist states since 1970 is explored, before briefly comparing and contrasting the determinants of welfare states and environmental states, identifying common drivers in both domains and regime-specific drivers in each. The same framework is then applied to developments since 2008 and into the near future, sketching two potential configurations and speculating on the conditions for closer, more integrated ‘eco-welfare states’.     

Comparison of Function of Created Wetlands of Two Age Classes in Central Pennsylvania

Hydrogeomorphic (HGM) functional assessment models were used to assess whether function in created wetlands of two ages (1 year old and >12 years old) was equivalent to that of natural (reference) mainstem floodplain wetlands. Reference wetlands scored higher than both created age classes for providing energy dissipation and short-term surface water storage. Reference wetlands scored higher in maintaining native plant community and structure than 1-year-old sites, and 12-year-old wetlands scored higher than reference sites for providing vertebrate habitat structure. Analysis of individual model variables showed that reference wetlands had greater vegetative biomass and higher soil organic matter content than both created wetland age classes. Created wetlands were farther from natural wetlands and had smaller mean forest patch sizes within a 1-km-radius circle around the site than did the reference sites, indicating less hydrologic connectivity. Created wetlands also had less microtopographic variation than reference wetlands. The 1-year-old created sites were placed in landscape settings with greater land use diversity and road density than reference sites. The 12-year-old sites had a higher gradient and a higher percentage of their surrounding area in urban land use. These results show that the created wetlands were significantly structurally different (if not functionally so) from reference wetlands even after 12 years. The most profound differences were in hydrology and the characteristics of the surrounding landscape. More attention needs to be focused on placing created wetlands in appropriate settings to encourage proper hydrodynamics, eliminate habitat fragmentation, and minimize the effects of stressors to the site.     

基于制度与技术情境的企业绿色管理战略研究

企业绿色管理已有研究将制度和技术在两个不同的领域进行分析,忽视了绿色管理是对制度和技术压力的反应,两种压力同时并存甚至相互影响.技术创新的"正外部性"和环境问题的"负外部性"要求在分析企业绿色管理行为时,整合制度和环境技术创新以及二者的相互关系.已有文献普遍强调作为强制性制度的环境规制对技术创新的驱动效果,而较少关注制度压力与技术创新的交互作用.通过对企业面临的制度压力和技术压力相互关系的分析,本文构建了基于制度与技术情境的企业绿色管理战略选择模型.企业绿色管理战略是制度压力和环境技术等因素相互作用的结果,对制度压力的反应有助于技术效率的提高,而企业所处的制度情境也影响到其对技术压力的响应方式.针对我国目前的环境监管现状,本文为制定有助于清洁技术采纳和扩散的环境政策提出相应建议.     

Assessing the long-term supply risks for mineral raw materials—a combined evaluation of past and future trends

This paper develops a method for identifying and assessing long-term supply risks for mineral raw materials. The method is based on a combined evaluation of past and future supply and demand trends. By analysing raw material boom and bust cycles over the past 50 years, we have quantified indicators and defined benchmarks for identifying critical market situations. By applying the method, risks for supply shortage may be identified at an early stage. In addition, a numerical evaluation model has been developed for better comparison between various mineral raw materials. Compared to other assessment methods this method uses specific benchmarks for each raw material to better assess supply risks. The method is embedded within a systematic and comprehensive analytical approach.     

Gender differences in relation to wayfinding strategies, navigational support design, and wayfinding task difficulty

This study investigated user wayfinding navigational performance in terms of two navigational support designs (guide sign and you-are-here map, i.e., YAH), wayfinding strategies (egocentric/route and allocentric/survey), task difficulty (terrestrial/2D or weightless/3D), and gender differences. Eighty participants (40 males and 40 females) were recruited for the wayfinding experiment. The experimental results and statistical analysis indicated that, in the weightless VR scene, navigation time for the terrestrial/2D task type was significantly shorter than for the weightless/3D task type. The guide sign support was significantly more effective than YAH map support. Moreover, the interactions between support style and gender difference indicated that males exhibit better wayfinding performance than females, but that appropriate support can improve navigational performance and eliminate gender differences. In addition, the Way-Finding Strategy Scale result showed that the females were more likely to adopt the egocentric strategy while males were more likely to adopt the allocentric strategy, and that their scores were negatively correlated with navigational performance. Our results can be used to evaluate the interface designs of navigational support systems taking into consideration gender differences with respect to 3D VR games, including VR diving or flying navigational systems.