Willingness to pay for improved residential waste management in a developing country

In most developing countries policies and frameworks that govern solid waste management strategies have often been directed at the waste management service providers and less attention is often given to the demand side of the problem. This paper reports a study regarding householders’ willingness to pay for improved residential solid waste management. The data for the study originated from a contingent valuation survey that was conducted in 236 households in Ilorin city in Kwara State, Nigeria. A binary logit model was used to account for some factors influencing the respondents’ willingness to pay. The results show that more than 80 % of the respondents were in support of the residential waste management. The respondents were willing to pay an average of 3,660 Nigerian Naira (US $24) each year. Income, education, dwelling type and whether the respondent is satisfied with private sector participation in provision of waste management service positively influenced the respondents’ willingness to pay. The price, gender, household size and activities of sanitary inspectors had negative influence. The findings from this study could contribute to the knowledge regarding the design of a more sustainable residential waste management strategy in Nigeria and other countries that have similar conditions.     

Perception of earthquake risk: a study of the earthquake insurance pilot area in China

In 2014, China will pilot its first earthquake insurance program, and the inhabitants’ perception of earthquake risk in the pilot area is significant for the implementation of this plan. In this study, the authors conducted a field survey in four districts in the insurance pilot area to investigate the factors affecting the earthquakes risk perception of residents. The survey concentrates on the factors of hazard experience and residents’ house type and shows that people who have experienced more earthquakes tend to have a lower risk perception while people who have suffered serious earthquake loss tend to have a higher risk perception. For the house type factor, the author finds that house type is correlated with the risk perception from an earthquake. The effect on risk perception is significantly reduced when people enhance their house type with brick walls, concrete beams, and column. Furthermore, gender, income, and education level also have direct effects on how residents perceive of the risk from an earthquake.     

Heavy metals contamination in water and sediments of an urban river in a developing country

Water and sediment samples were collected from 20 location of the Buriganga river of Bangladesh during Summer and Winter 2009 to determine the spatial distribution, seasonal and temporal variation of different heavy metal contents. Sequential extraction procedure was employed in sediment samples for the geochemical partitioning of the metals. Total trace metal content in water and sediment samples were analyzed and compared with different standard and reference values. Concentration of total chromium, lead, cadmium, zinc, copper, nickel, cobalt and arsenic in water samples were greatly exceeded the toxicity reference values in both season. Concentration of chromium, lead, copper and nickel in sediment samples were mostly higher than that of severe effect level values, at which the sediment is considered heavily polluted. On average 72 % chromium, 92 % lead, 88 % zinc, 73 % copper, 63 % nickel and 68 % of total cobalt were associated with the first three labile sequential extraction phases, which portion is readily bioavailable and might be associated with frequent negative biological effects. Enrichment factor values demonstrated that the lead, cadmium, zinc, chromium and copper in most of the sediment samples were enriched sever to very severely. The pollution load index value for the total area was as high as 21.1 in Summer and 24.6 in Winter season; while values above one indicates progressive deterioration of the sites and estuarine quality. The extent of heavy metals pollution in the Buriganga river system implies that the condition is much frightening and may severely affect the aquatic ecology of the river.     

Design and implementation of a drilled shaft load test database

This paper details the development and potential of the drilled shaft load test (DSLT) database in which 351 case histories of static load tests from various countries can be freely retrieved and utilized worldwide. Employing the Entity-Relationship (ER) model to the structure design of the database provides considerable flexibility and extensibility while the open source MySQL server systematically compiles the historic data. DSLT enables quick browsing, inexpensive query, and utility of data as pile design tools or as relevant data for advanced research. Moreover, it can serve as a data platform for a centralized storage of information among interested pile data holders worldwide.     

Design and implementation of a smart solid waste collection system

Solid waste collection systems are very important in today’s urban environment. The last three decades witnessed the development in urban areas over rural ones in a process called urbanization. Growth of urbanization is much more in developing countries than in the developed countries to the extent that it became a trend characterizing several developed and even least developed countries. Unfortunately, it has been observed that the systems currently used in modern cities do not provide a service of sufficient efficiency and quality, despite their high running costs. As an alternative, a smart solid waste collection system with all subcomponents was developed and applied in a small city in Turkey. In addition to the conventional waste collection systems, this system included smart features and optimization algorithms for route planning. The study presents the design philosophy, feasibility and pilot implementation of a smart solid waste collection system which can be operated with high efficiency at low cost.     

Simulation of large earthquakes and its implications on earthquake insurance rates: a case study in Bursa region (Turkey)

Ground motion intensity parameters of past and potential earthquakes are required for a range of purposes including earthquake insurance practice. In regions with no or sparse earthquake recordings, most of the available methods generate only peak ground motion parameters. For cases where full ground motion time histories are required, simulations that consider fault rupture processes become necessary. In this study, a major novel use of simulated ground motions is presented in insurance premium calculations which also require ground motion intensity measures that are not always available through observations. For this purpose, potential earthquakes in Bursa are simulated using stochastic finite-fault simulation method with dynamic corner frequency model. To ensure simulations with reliable synthetic ground motions, input parameters are derived from regional data. Regional model parameters are verified by comparisons against the observations as well as ground motion prediction equations. Next, a potential large magnitude event in Bursa is simulated. Distribution of peak ground motion parameters and time histories at selected locations are obtained. From these parameters, the corresponding Modified Mercalli Intensities (MMI) are estimated. Later, these MMIs are used as the main ground motion parameter in damage probability matrices (DPM). Return period of the scenario earthquake is obtained from the previous regional seismic hazard studies. Finally, insurance rates for Bursa region are determined with implementation of two new approaches in the literature. The probability of the scenario event and the expected mean damage ratios (MDR) from the corresponding DPMs are used, and the results are compared to Turkish Catastrophe Insurance Pool (TCIP) rates. Results show that insurance premiums can be effectively computed using simulated ground motions in the absence of real data.     

National policy of watershed management and flood mitigation after the 921 Chi-Chi earthquake in Taiwan

Registering a 7.3 magnitude on the Richter scale, the 921 Chi-Chi Earthquake that struck central Taiwan on September 21, 1999 left the island nation with fragile soils, frequent floods, and debris flow, further weakening homeland resources. Taiwan’s dense population had forced its residents to use mountain hills for agriculture and development. The 92-Flood in 2004, which incurred vast monetary losses and human casualties, caused the government to rethink its strategy for land use. In order to use land in a more efficient and in an eco-friendly manner, the Council for Economic Planning and Development, Executive Yuan of the Taiwanese government proposed the “Land Recovery Strategy and Action Plan” in 2006. Its core concept was aimed at “respecting, and adapting to, nature.” To achieve this goal, a hillside watershed management and flood mitigation policy was proposed. Factors of safety, economy, and ecology were included in the policy. Both strategies and practical measures to be implemented were organized in a chart for better understanding and for reference by other countries with similar conditions.     

近景摄影测量中活动控制系统的设计与实现

应边坡岩体结构面几何信息测量的需要,设计并制作了一套活动控制系统。经过实验验证,制作的活动控制系统结构稳定,携带方便,控制点成像清晰,活动控制架在室内的控制点点位中误差为 ± 2 mm,在野外环境下控制点点位中误差为± 3. 5 mm。可为近景摄影测量提供快速有效控制,满足近景摄影测量中被测目标测量的精度需要,可作为近景摄影测量获取低矮边坡岩体结构面信息的有效控制。     

适用于地质灾害调查的微型无人机航线控制系统设计与实现

传统的地质灾害野外调查手段已经不能满足日益增长的快速获取信息的需求以及国家精细化地质调查的要求,因此近年来掌上机、无人机、InSAR、高精度遥感等技术在地质灾害调查研究领域得到了不同程度的应用。文章紧密结合地质灾害调查数据采集业务需求和工作流程要求,以微型无人机为采集端,采用无人机技术、地理信息技术和图像融合技术,基于Android系统设计了适用于地质灾害野外调查微型无人机航线控制系统,开发了航线规划、智能续飞、图像快拼、离线地图以及针对不同形态灾害体的不同拍摄模式等功能,实现采集流程全自动化,为地质灾害调查人员提供了快速、便捷的无人机遥感影像数据采集手段,为地质调查工作提供了直观、精准的数据支撑。     

WebGIS技术在地震灾害防御中的设计探讨

从地震灾害防御指挥信息系统中的WebGIS技术研究入手,分析了在地震灾害防御指挥信息系统中采用WebGIS技术对地震灾害防御指挥带来的优势,同时探讨了地震信息采集、信息处理、系统集成发布以及今后对地震灾害评估等一系列过程。研究了基于WebGIS技术建立地震应急防御指挥系统的理论实现过程和方法。通过对地震灾害这一特殊情况的研究,分析研究了基于WebGIS集成应用技术在地震灾害防御指挥信息系统中的优点,对处理其他灾害防御指挥信息系统也提出了一种全新的解决途径。     

Possibility of implementation and environmental benefits of high-voltage power supply in developing countries,example of Croatia

One of the significant environmental aspects of transport and cargo manipulation in ports is air pollution. Coupled with other industrial sources, port traffic and operations can cause exceedances of environmental limit values and thus increase the risk of adverse biological effects including toxicity to humans. The proposed paper will describe the main characteristics of the on-shore high-voltage power supply and will discuss the extent to which the implementation of this technology is justified with respect to environmental protection, development of sustainable transport and the protection of human health. The paper suggests implementing on-shore high-voltage power supply with the aim of securing a sustainable development of world ports and minimizing their harmful effects to the environment, taking into consideration the economic aspects. After analysing the results, this technology provides a wider perspective for its future implementation into Croatian ports. The paper will assess the possible environmental effects of implementing this new technology into Croatian ports.     

Clustering and visualization of earthquake data in a grid environment

We present a web client-server service WEB-IS, which we have developed for remote analysis and visualization of seismic data consisting of both small magnitude events and large earthquakes. We show that the problem-solving environment (PSE) intended for prediction of large magnitude earthquakes can be based on this WEB-IS idea. The clustering schemes, feature generation, feature extraction techniques and rendering algorithms form a computational framework of this environment. On the other hand, easy and fast access both to the seismic data distributed among distant computing resources and to computational and visualization resources can be realized in a GRID framework. We discuss the usefulness of NaradaBrokering (iNtegrated Asynchronous Real-time Adaptive Distributed Architecture) as a middleware, allowing for flexibility and high throughput for remote visualization of geophysical data. The WEB-IS functionality was tested both on synthetic and the actual earthquake catalogs. We consider the application of similar methodology for tsunami alerts.     

北京市突发地质灾害监测预警系统设计与实现

北京市突发地质灾害监测预警系统功能覆盖了灾害调查、监测、分析、预警、应急管理工作的全流程.该系统在设计中采用了诸多关键技术:用基于地质要素分类的监测方法来解决单纯按对象分类监测方法而产生的数据使用局限问题;针对结构化、非结构化、空间的各类监测预警数据采用三重分类并分别集成的方法来解决地质信息系统普遍存在的多源异构数据存储利用的问题;用建立统一通讯规约的方法来解决设备数据接收和管理的问题;用分灾种、分时空精度、分方法建立预警模型库的方式来解决预警模型合理性、准确性和时效性的问题.     

How a court, a commissioner and a lobby group brought European transport policy to life in 1985

Until the mid-1980s, transport policy was considered by many as one of the least successful domains of the European integration project. However, from the early 1990s onwards, there are clear signs of a single European transport policy, along with the accompanying implementation of infrastructure projects. What is the explanation for such a change in pace? This paper aims to offer insight in these processes by looking at the mechanisms which form and transform this policy domain. To understand the state of a policy domain and its dynamics over time an institutional approach is taken. Two concepts in political science, ‘policy arrangements’ and ‘supranational governance’ are combined and used as a framework to analyse the European transport policy domain. This analysis describes the development of several elements: organisations, rules, the transnational society, power, resources, and the central transport discourse. It demonstrates that all of these elements have developed from an intergovernmental setting towards a more supranational one. This development was slow in the first decennia when European transport policy was rather passive, but it picked up speed in the 1980s and 1990s. In the pivotal year of 1985, pressure from the transnational society resulted in a rapid change of the rules, the resources and the discourse.     

广东城市地质信息管理服务平台设计与实现

要:为实现对全省城市地质调查成果的规范化管理,挖掘地质调查成果信息,为城市规划、建设、管理、安全等提供综合地质信息服务,依托广东省"数字政府"政务云资源,充分利用"云计算""大数据""中台+微服务"等技术搭建广东省城市地质信息管理服务平台;开发数据管理与维护、三维地质建模、专业分析评价、地上地下二三维一体化展示分析、示范应用、公众服务等应用系统,实现对全省城市地质调查成果的汇聚管理、分析评价、共享服务及辅助决策.通过"数字政府"建设的政务大数据中心实现成果共享,以及基于省平台搭建地市版城市地质平台、地质成果生产软件等为各地市提供信息化技术支撑,避免重复建设.     

Applications of a GIS-based geotechnical tool to assess spatial earthquake hazards in an urban area

A geotechnical information system (GTIS) was constructed within a spatial geographic information system (GIS) framework to reliably predict geotechnical information and accurately estimate site effects at Gyeongju, an urban area in South Korea. The system was built based on both collected and performed site investigation data in addition to acquired geo-knowledge data. Seismic zoning maps were constructed using the site period (T _G) and mean shear wave velocity to a depth of 30 m (V _S30), and these maps were presented as a regional strategy to mitigate earthquake-induced risks in the study area. In particular, the T _G distribution map indicated the susceptibility to ground motion resonance in periods ranging from 0.2 to 0.5 s and the corresponding seismic vulnerability of buildings with two to five stories. Seismic zonation of site classification according to V _S30 values was also performed to determine the site amplification coefficients for seismic design and seismic performance evaluation at any site and administrative subunit in the study area. In addition, we investigated the site effects according to subsurface and surface ground irregularities at Gyeongju by seismic response analyses in time domains based on both two- and three-dimensional spatial finite element models, which were generated using spatial interface coordinates between geotechnical subsurface layers predicted by the GTIS. This practical study verified that spatial GIS-based geotechnical information can be a very useful resource in determining how to best mitigate seismic hazards, particularly in urban areas.