Assessing the institutional capacity to adapt to climate change: a case study in the Cambodian health and water sectors

Institutional capacity is an important element for climate change adaptation (CCA) and the development of such capacity is a great challenge in a Least Developed Country like Cambodia where resources are limited. An important first step to increasing capacity is via an understanding of the level of existing capacity; future priorities can then be subsequently identified. This study aimed to assess the capacity of organizations to implement climate change activities in Cambodia in order to provide such a basis for building capacity. Four elements of capacity were investigated in this research: (1) financial resources, (2) cooperation and coordination of stakeholders, (3) availability and quality of information on vulnerability and adaptation to climate change, and (4) the level of understanding of climate change vulnerability and adaptation. The data were collected through semistructured interviews with a wide range of government and non-government informants across a number of sectors. Results of the study showed that informants perceived capacity for CCA to be very constrained, especially in terms of financial resources and cooperation, and addressing these factors was ranked as the highest climate change capacity priority. Institutional capacity constraints were considered to relate more generally to weak governance of CCA. In light of our research findings, the absence of local higher education institutions in CCA activities should be addressed. The support of such institutions would provide an important mechanism to progress both capacity development as well as partnerships and coordination between different types of organizations and relevant sectors.

Policy relevance

Capacity for CCA within Cambodian health and water sectors was perceived to be very constrained across a range of interdependent factors. Increasing funding was ranked as the highest priority for building capacity for CCA; however, governance factors such as ‘improved cooperation’ were also ranked highly. Improving stakeholders' awareness of the availability of adaptation funds and resources, and their responsiveness to funding criteria, is an important implication of our research, as is improving the mobilization of local resources and the private sector. To address the issue of weak cooperation among stakeholders, improving the coordination function of the National Climate Change Committee (NCCC) regarding stakeholder engagement and capacity building is crucial. Ensuring that CCA activities are based on sound information and knowledge from across different disciplines and, importantly, include the perspectives of vulnerable people themselves, ultimately underpins and supports the realization of the above priorities.     

SUSTAINABLE LAND USE PLANNING BASED ON ECOLOGICAL HEALTH——Case Study of Beiwenquan Town, Chongqing, China

1IN T R O D U C T IO N Since the20th century, ecosystem and even biosphere has been facedwith threat sunder theimpactsofclimate and humankind together(E RICH and ULRIKE , 2002 ; G LADE ,2003 ;O LGERTS etal.,2005 ).Land isan im- portantpartof natureecosyst…     

CLINICALLY APPLIED MEDICAL GEOGRAPHY: ITS ROLE IN TRAVEL MEDICINE

Medical geography frequently contributes to public health, but rarely are medical geographic concepts applied in clinical settings. This article describes the application of medical geographic concepts to an academic travel and tropical medicine clinical service at University Hospital in Seattle, and reviews the role of a medical geographer in this particular clinical setting. Applied concepts of medical geography improve the quality of patient care for overseas travellers and recent immigrants to the United States.     

Organochlorines and dioxin-like compounds in green-lipped mussels Perna viridis from Hong Kong mariculture zones

Concentrations of persistent organic pollutants including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorine (OC) pesticides and dioxin-like compounds were measured in green-lipped mussels, Perna viridis, collected from seven mariculture zones in Hong Kong between September and October in 2002 in order to evaluate the status, spatial distribution and potential sources of pollution in these areas. Concentrations ranged from 300 to 4400 ng/g lipid weight for total OCs and 170–1000 ng/g lipid weight for total PCBs (based on 28 congeners). Relatively smaller DDT concentrations in mussels compared with previous studies suggest reduced discharges of DDTs from nearby regions into Hong Kong waters. Detection of a mixture of HCH isomers in the mussels indicated that Hong Kong waters were predominantly contaminated by technical HCHs rather than lindane. Mussel samples from all sampling locations elicited significant dioxin-like activity in the H4IIE-luc bioassay. The greatest magnitude of dioxin-like response (39 pg TEQ/g wet wt.) was detected in mussels from Ma Wan in the western waters of Hong Kong, which is strongly influenced by the Pearl River discharge. Human health risk assessment was undertaken to evaluate potential risks associated with the consumption of the green-lipped mussels. Risk quotient (RQ) for dioxin-like compounds was greater than unity suggesting that adverse health effects may be associated with high mussel consumption.     

Biomonitoring of Atmospheric Heavy Metal Deposition by Mosses in the Vicinity of Industrial Sites

At four industrial regions, heavy metal concentrations and calculated depositions were investigated by sampling and analysing mosses. In each region, a special spatial pattern of heavy metal concentrations was detected, reflecting the industrial processes. Metals most likely originating from the industrial sites showed an exponential decrease of concentrations and depositions with increasing distance from the pollution source. The exponential deposition pattern was in some cases modified by a series of natural factors, like the main direction of winds or orographic conditions. The distance at which deposition dropped to background values was up to 20 km. Beside the fact that the moss-metho is a useful tool for deposition measurement in the vicinity of stationary sources, some improvements for using this method are discussed, highlighting factors such as a proper calculation of deposition from concentrations, or the better knowledge of correlations between heavy metal concentrations in mosses and effects on human health.     

河湖水系连通特征及其利弊

随着水资源以及水环境健康的恶化,河湖水系连通性作为河流健康以及提高水资源利用的一个重要指标在国家＂十二五＂战略规划中被着重提出。目前,中国对河湖水系连通特征及其对河流健康的影响缺乏足够的认识,本文主要对河湖水系连通的定义、分类、评判指标、影响因素及其对水环境健康的影响进行了一一阐述。分析表明：维持水系连通可以明显地改善...     

兰州市土壤一蔬菜系统典型重金属空间评价及健康风险分析

通过田间试验和室内分析相结合,对兰州市蔬菜和土壤中重金属cd、Hg、Pb、As和cr的含量进行测定并评估经食入途径对人体的健康风险,同时运用改进的物元模型综合评价兰州市三县四区土壤重金属污染并进行分区。结果表明：（1）兰州市菜地土壤中Cd、Hg、Pb、As和cr的平均含量都高于背景值,存在明显的积累,但均低于《土壤环境...     

河流健康评价的主评指标筛选

河流健康是近年来探讨水资源问题的一个热点,其评价指标体系正成为河流管理的目标。为了筛选出一些基本的、易于量化的主要评价指标来揭示河流健康基本状况和变化趋势,通过对1972～2010年约150篇相关文献、45个河流健康评价指标体系902项指标的整理和归纳,应用统计、层次和相关性分析法,确定各指标的被采用率,并同时综合考虑指标的重要性、普遍性、可量化性和易获得性,筛选出揭示河流生境物理、水环境、生物和水资源利用4类特征的主要指标。结果表明,有以下8个指标可作为河流健康的主评指标:河岸植被覆盖率、河流连通性、湿地保留率、径流量变化率、水质达标率、鱼类生物完整性指数、水资源利用率和流域天然植被覆盖率。     

Vulnerability of Aboriginal health systems in Canada to climate change

Climate change has been identified as potentially the biggest health threat of the 21st century. Canada in general has a well developed public health system and low burden of health which will moderate vulnerability. However, there is significant heterogeneity in health outcomes, and health inequality is particularly pronounced among Aboriginal Canadians. Intervention is needed to prevent, prepare for, and manage climate change effects on Aboriginal health but is constrained by a limited understanding of vulnerability and its determinants. Despite limited research on climate change and Aboriginal health, however, there is a well established literature on Aboriginal health outcomes, determinants, and trends in Canada; characteristics that will determine vulnerability to climate change. In this paper we systematically review this literature, using a vulnerability framework to identify the broad level factors constraining adaptive capacity and increasing sensitivity to climate change. Determinants identified include: poverty, technological capacity constraints, socio-political values and inequality, institutional capacity challenges, and information deficit. The magnitude and nature of these determinants will be distributed unevenly within and between Aboriginal populations necessitating place-based and regional level studies to examine how these broad factors will affect vulnerability at lower levels. The study also supports the need for collaboration across all sectors and levels of government, open and meaningful dialogue between policy makers, scientists, health professionals, and Aboriginal communities, and capacity building at a local level, to plan for climate change. Ultimately, however, efforts to reduce the vulnerability of Aboriginal Canadians to climate change and intervene to prevent, reduce, and manage climate-sensitive health outcomes, will fail unless the broader determinants of socio-economic and health inequality are addressed.     

南阳市灰霾天气污染特征及其健康效应

利用南阳市1971—2007年地面气象站观测资料以及2004—2005年环境检测站提供的空气污染物监测数据和南阳市中心医院门诊逐日病例资料,统计分析了南阳市灰霾天气及其空气污染特征,并根据灰霾天气对应的门诊病历,分析了灰霾天气对人体健康的影响。结果表明:南阳市灰霾日数的年代际变化非常明显,37年来南阳市霾的发生频率和持续时间都呈持续增加的趋势。秋冬是灰霾的高发季节。灰霾天气出现时空气污染程度加剧,特别是PM10浓度在灰霾出现日明显升高。就诊人群以呼吸系统为主的疾病发生率在灰霾发生当天明显升高,呼吸系统疾病门诊例数与PM10浓度正相关。