Biosphere reserves and the “Yucatán” syndrome: another look at the role of NGOs

After centuries of cultural and economic conquest of the Americas by European and Euro-American conquistadors, contemporary rhetoric in ex-colonial powers heralds the decline of material and ideological imperialism. Instead, it is purported that today's world is peopled by a great brotherhood, with the more affluent striving to relieve their less fortunate, underdeveloped kith. This conviction is inherent in organizations which dispense money, information, training, and other resources in the name of community development and endangered species and environmental conservation. What is rarely perceived – and practically never said – is that these “benevolent” foreign aid activities typically result in the concentration of resources and power in the hands of a few, the building of empires, and the compounding of already difficult situations, counter-productive to stated objectives. The Yucatán Peninsula is a classic case of persistent imperialism: the geographic name is a corruption of the Mayan “matan cub a than” (“I do not understand you”), while contemporary development and conservation programs habitually exhibit cultural ignorance and dominance. This paper explores a diverse literature on non-governmental organizations, reflects on likely consequences of cultural dominance, and implores professional anthropologists to be adventurous in propagating anthropological knowledge relevant to environmental protection.     

Competition law constraints on access charges in the England and Wales water industry

Water industry regulation in the UK does not require a network owner to grant access to third parties. The regulator instead enforces common carriage on network owners through the application of the Competition Act 1998. This legislation, however, enables the regulator, the Director General of Water Services, to require only dominant companies to grant access; and gives the regulator no ex ante powers. The DGWS can intervene only when a dominant network owner has failed to grant access, and only in relation to aspects of the network that are “essential facilities”. The regulator will require access in these circumstances to be given on a non-discriminatory basis, at a price that is not “excessive”. Long run average incremental cost based prices will not be excessive. Prices calculated by reference to fully allocated cost or the efficient component pricing rule may on occasion be excessive.     

Different alliance relationships for project design and execution

The IMEC research programme (International Programme on the Management of Construction projects) performed an extensive benchmarking study of some 60 large engineering projects around the world during the period from 1995 to 1999. The purpose of the study was to identify best practice within different areas of management of such projects. While much of the focus of the study was on the front-end phase of the projects, some aspects of project design and execution were also addressed. This paper explores the findings of the IMEC study in this respect, with an emphasis on different models for alliance relationships in the design and execution phases. A model consisting of four different configurations of the dynamics of project development and execution has been identified. Two of these are based on a traditional arms’ length relationship in the design and execution phases. These traditional relationships have been explored in numerous existing publications and are, therefore, not dealt with specifically in this paper. The two configurations displaying a relational approach in the design and execution phases, termed “partners in design and execution” and “relational development and execution”, are described in detail. Perhaps the most important finding from the study is that there is no one “best practice” or “best configuration” for managing projects—the best-suited approach is highly dependent on the project in question and its characteristics.     

Turning brownfields into green space in the City of Toronto

Since the mid-1980s, policy makers and planners in North America and Europe have been paying significantly more attention to measures designed to foster sustainable development and improve the quality of life in urban areas. One issue that has received widespread political support has been the cleanup and redevelopment of under-utilized brownfield sites in urban areas. In Canada and the US, the focus of policy-making and redevelopment efforts has been on redeveloping brownfield sites for industrial, commercial, or residential uses that provide economic benefits through tax revenues and/or jobs. However, there has been a growing recognition among community groups and environmental organizations that brownfields hold enormous potential for “greening” city environments, through the implementation of parks, playgrounds, trails, greenways, and other open spaces. The objectives of the current research are to examine the issues, obstacles and processes involved in remediating potentially contaminated urban brownfield sites and converting them into green spaces, to identify the benefits that these green spaces can bring to the community and culture, and to understand the specific planning processes that it involves. Data for this study were collected through a review of 10 pertinent “greening” case studies and personal interviews with relevant stakeholders. Toronto’s brownfield-to-green space redevelopment experience has implications for cities across North America undergoing brownfield planning and seeking to enhance urban quality of life.     

Rethinking Project Management: Researching the actuality of projects

This paper puts forth the somewhat controversial position that what is needed to improve project management in practice is not more research on what should be done or the frequency and/or use of traditional project management practices. We argue that while a great deal is written about traditional project management we know very little about the “actuality” of project based working and management. This paper formulates a research approach that takes seriously practitioner’s lived experience of projects. We explore the ontological, epistemological and methodological assumptions underlying this kind of research and provide examples of some project management research originating from this perspective. We conclude by summarizing the findings from these studies and providing insights into the map ahead for future such research. In this kind of work the attention is refocused on praxis, on context-dependent judgement, on situational ethics and on reflexivity which enables social actors to see how power actually functions in context.     

Evaluation of geosmin and 2-methylisoborneol on the histidine dependence of TA98 and TA100 Salmonella typhimurium tester strains

Low (ca 0.01 ppb) concentrations of the naturally occurring terpene derivatives geosmin (1α, 10β-dimethyl-9α-decalol) and 2-methylisoborneol [(1-R-exo)-1,2,7,7-tetramethyl-bicyclo-(2,2,1)-heptan-2-ol] (MIB), impart earthy/muddy “off-flavors” to many water and food resources. The presence of these “off-flavors” often elicits public concern over the safety of the affected resources. The “Ames test”, assesses the induction of reverse mutation at the histidine locus in specially constructed Salmonella typhimurium tester strains, and is a widely used index of mutagenicity. This investigation indicated that neither MIB nor geosmin, when tested up to cytotoxic levels in both the presence and absence of exogenous metabolic activation, induced a mutagenic response in either strain TA98 or TA 100 compared to controls. Doses of MIB and geosmin above 45.2 and 18.1 ppm, respectively, inhibited tester strain growth, indicating that high concentrations of these metabolites may exhibit an antimicrobial activity, possibly by a mechanism similar to that reported for certain other terpene derived alcohols. Food or water resources containing similar concentrations of geosmin or MIB would be extremely unpalatable and would probably not be consumed.     

The green hydrogen paradigm shift: Energy generation for stations to vehicles

The change from a global economy dependent upon fossil fuels to renewable fuels for the hydrogen economy is occurring now. Not in 50–60 years, but the hydrogen economy exists today. This is a “paradigm shift” of such significance and so dramatic as to underlie the making of the Third Industrial Revolution. And more importantly, the Third Industrial Revolution includes three “pillars”: distributed as on-site renewable energy generation, “green” hydrogen and advanced storage devices. Each of these pillars is not an adjustment or economic cycle or business bubble. Indeed, the hydrogen economy is global with the European Union and the nation-state of California taking the lead toward sustainable energy infrastructures.This paper addresses that paradigm shift, but also the immediate economic and business development for any region or nation-state. More significantly, when the production of hydrogen is derived from renewable energy resources, not only are there societal benefits (no pollution and atmospheric impact), but also sustainable economic development and job growth. Some of the immediate evidence can be seen in California where “civic markets” are indeed working, but also with the combination of infrastructures into hybrid systems. Herein the combination of hydrogen for stationary power with transportation fuel needs is expediting the paradigm change into sustainable economic feasibility today, not in 50 years or the next century.     

A multicriteria satisfaction analysis approach in the assessment of operational programmes

Ex-post evaluation European Operational Programmes could provide useful information and knowledge that can be used as a guide in future planning.The different concerns of the operational programme stakeholders along with the operating constraints make programme evaluation a difficult and fuzzy task. This paper presents the application of concepts and methodologies of multicriteria data analysis to identify critical success and risk factors in achieving the strategic objectives of a programme. The MUSA (multicriteria satisfaction analysis) method was used for analyzing the satisfaction of project managers with respect to satisfaction criteria associated with four dimensions: the project’s results, the operations of the programme organization, the support of the project organization and the performance of the project team.The specific case study refers to a sample of projects in the Operational Programme for Education and Initial Training in Greece which was funded by the 3rd Common Support Framework. The results show that the proposed methodology can be a valuable tool for programme organizations, especially in the case of “soft” action projects where the deliverables are intangible and project management at beneficiary organizations is provided at an ad-hoc basis.     

Urban planning and a Europe transformed: The landscape politics of scale in Valencia

This paper explores how urban planning in a European, regional capital—Valencia—is shaped by economic globalization and political restructuring. Employing the vocabulary and concepts of the emerging literature on scale, this paper examines how planning efforts—like Valencia’s massive new redevelopment project, the City of the Arts and Sciences—are driven by the wider “re-scaling” or “re-territorialization” of the European political economy. This is a case study that moves beyond abstract theorizations about scale to the complex details of planning strategy in a regional context. More, it argues that an analytical shift from abstract theory to the empirical detail of a European city reveals two basic points. First, the re-scaling of Europe is more contested locally than this literature would suggest, negotiated politically as planners attempt to “re-scale” urban spaces. Second, the planned re-scaling of the city is about more than just space, but is also about the cultural landscape. Planned efforts to transform cities like Valencia in the image of global capitalism or European integration must navigate these complex, cultural politics. Theories of European re-scaling must account for the cultural politics in which planning is embedded, since planners must surely do so.     

Particulate forms of radium and barium in uranium mine waste waters and receiving river waters

A method of selective dissolution was used for analysis of particulate forms of radium and barium in a system consisting of uranium mine waste waters purified by coprecipitation with barium sulphate and of adjacent river waters. Four particulate forms of both the elements were distinguished: “loosely bound”, “acid soluble”, Ba(Ra)SO₄ and “in crystalline detritus”. It was found that the distribution of radium and barium between dissolved and particulate forms in waste waters depended on the time interval elapsing between the sampling and membrane filtration of the waters. No such dependence occurred in river water. The main particulate form of radium and barium in the system was Ba(Ra)SO₄. River water upstream of the mine water discharge contained radium mainly in “acid soluble” form or “in crystalline detritus” and barium as BaSO₄ or “crystalline detritus”. In unpurified mine effluents, a large part of radium and barium was present as “crystalline detritus”. Abundance of the “loosely bound” form was very low in all the samples analyzed. The bond of radium in bottom sediments was approximately the same as that in the solids suspended in waste waters. Suitability and accuracy of the selective dissolution method for analysis of surface and waste waters has been demonstrated by the analysis of the results and by radiotracer experiments.     

A preliminary study of metal distribution in three waterhyacinth biotypes

Two waterhyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms) biotypes from Broward County, Florida, were collected and analyzed for chlorophyll content and metal distribution (potassium, calcium, magnesium, cobalt, copper, manganese and iron) in roots, stems and leaves. Two biotypes were distinguished by size (medium or “stunted”, and large or “super”) and by whether they were or were not eaten (“stunted” and ”super”, respectively) by the waterhyacinth weevil, Neochetina eichhorniae Warner. Results are compared with a third biotype (small or “normal”): i.e. plants from the Hillsborough and Peace Rivers where the weevils have not been released. The data indicate abnormal concentration of cobalt and iron in the leaves of the “super” plants relative to the third biotype. Fractions of calcium, magnesium, manganese, iron and copper in roots showed a significant, negative linear correlation coefficient, r, with solubility product constant (log K_sp) for metal carbonates of the small and medium biotypes.     

Bound water content of biological sludges in relation to filtration and dewatering

This paper presents the results of an extensive analytical investigation on the mechanisms involved in filtration of biological sludges by studying the changes in the “bound water” content of activated and mixed digested sludges when they were subjected to several physical, and chemical processes. A new method for determining bound water in sludges, based on differential thermal analysis (DTA), was developed which proved reliable and fast. Water in sludges exist in two states, as “free” or bulk water and as “bound” water which is held by the solid state either by sorption on specific sites, i.e. functional groups of the proteins and other macromolecules and/or restricted within pores and capillaries. Water binding by sludge displayed similar behaviour to the absorption of ions.All chemical coagulants (FeCl₃, AlCl₃, FeSO₄) and cationic polyelectrolytes resulted in a reduction of the specific resistance and the bound water content of the sludge which was due to the replacement of water molecules by the adsorbed coagulant. Heat treatment of activated and digested sludge at 130°C resulted in a reduction of bound water by 30% whereas freezing and thawing reduced bound water by 70%.     

Soil Stabilization with Cement Grouts

“New” advertizable injection methods of enhancing the bearing capacity of soils by the “ geomass” and “geocomposite” methods with use of high-pressure injection of cement and cement-sand grouts, as well as stabilization of sandy soils with “microdur” cement are analyzed. Significant drawbacks of the “geomass-geocomposite” methods, which do not permit prediction and operational monitoring of results of changes in the physico-mechanical properties of the soils in a mass, are noted.__________Translated from Osnovaniya, Fundamenty i Mekhanika Gruntov, No. 2, pp. 24–28, March–April, 2005.     

Agile sustainable communities: On-site renewable energy generation

Smart and sustainable campuses demand three components. First, there is the need to have a Strategic Master Plan (SMP) for all infrastructures that include energy, transportation, water, waste and telecommunications along with the traditional dimensions of research, curricula, outreach and assessments. Secondarily, there is the array of issues pertaining to the sitting of buildings and overall facility master planning which must be addressed from the perspective of “green” energy, efficient orientation and be designed for multiple-use by the academic and local community.Thirdly, the development of sustainable buildings in one area that is compact and walkable campuses thus enable a range of transportation choices leads to reduced energy consumption. Historically, college campuses were often like towns and villages in that they are self-sustaining for family, business and recreational activities. Any sustainable smart campus is a vibrant, “experiential” applied educational model that should catalyze creative learning. More significantly, today, campuses and communities must be secure in terms of not only their own energy use and needs, but also for the resource demands of their power. Otherwise, the community(s) will never be secure economically or politically.Recognizing global warming and climate change, in the spring of 2001, the Board of Trustee (BOT) for the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) took the critical initial policy steps to turn these sustainable developments into goals. For example, the LACCD decided to have new “green” buildings to replace or renovate existing ones. The building program led to sustainable communities that included recycling, product reuse from waste as well as smart growth in terms of reduced energy use, efficiency and the use of telecommunication and wireless systems. The paper focuses primarily on the energy programs for the LACCD campuses.The paper considers the overall energy situation in California and the Southern California region, primarily Los Angeles. Then the paper looks at the state and regional energy contexts which lay the ground work and rationale why LACCD and other communities must act on their own to counteract climate change and global warming. Finally, the paper discusses how a community becomes sustainable, and hence “energy independent”. By doing so, any community can generate its own energy through the production or acquisition of its energy from renewable sources such as solar, wind or biomass among other local resources. Even more significant consequences come in terms of carbon control, lower impact on the environment and reduced global warming.     

Continuous and discontinuous stability analysis of the bell-shaped caverns at Bet Guvrin, Israel

The stability of two systems of bell-shaped caverns excavated some 1000 years ago at Bet Guvrin National Park is investigated. The caverns were excavated in a weak, anisotropic, and moderately discontinuous chalk. The cavern stability is considered based on two separate and independent methods: a continuum model framework—FLAC, used for stress analysis, and a discontinuous approach—block theory, used for critical key block analysis.The numerical stress analysis reveals that in the case of very large span openings, tensile fracture of intact rock may be responsible for instabilities, which may lead to global failure. Evidence of tensile rupture at margins of failed caverns is abundant at the Park.The discontinuous block theory analysis reveals that the moderate joint set spacing at Bet Guvrin, up to 45% of the roof area may be comprised of removable blocks. The removable keyblocks in the roof remain in place due to arching stresses, which develop through the roof material. The chalk at the roof can sustain the maximum loads in existing caverns, as predicted by the numerical stress analysis. However, local failures due to exceedingly high compressive stresses at the abutments or by tensile fracture at the roof, may lead to relaxation of arching stresses followed by keyblock displacement. Such a “mixed failure mode” process could eventually lead, over time, to global collapse. Indications that “mixed failure mode” processes are presently active in the studied caverns are substantiated by in-situ measurement of keyblock displacements.It is suggested that in weak and discontinuous rock environments where “mixed failure mode” processes may be active, long term stability evaluation should be based on both continuous and discontinuous stability analyses.     

Distribution and balance of volatile halogenated hydrocarbons in the water and air of covered swimming pools using chlorine for water disinfection

A survey of the “chlorination practice” of swimming-pool waters is presented taking the case of covered pools in Bremen. Chlorination of water may result in specific health hazards by various halogenated chemicals. Trihalomethanes (THMs), among others, are determined in water and air samples. We succeeded in identifying one organic “precursor” of the synthesis of THMs in swimming pools. An estimate of the average and maximum burden of the user/swimmer is given. Short and long range alternative measures are proposed to diminish the health hazards. We conclude from this work that the application of chlorine for disinfection should be minimized.     

Toxicity, accumulation and elimination studies of α-hexachlorocyclohexane (α-HCH) with freshwater organisms of different trophic levels

A short- and long-term toxicity study with α-hexachlorocyclohexane (α-HCH) was carried out with freshwater organisms of different trophic levels (algae, crustaceae and fishes). In this study mortality, immobilization, growth, reproduction, histopathologic changes and enzyme activities were chosen as criteria.Furthermore accumulation and elimination processes were investigated in separate organisms as well as the uptake of α-HCH by one organism and through a food-chain.Finally a tentative method for deriving an “ecological limit” for χ-HCH in surface water is described.     

The management process for complex underground and tunneling projects

Management could be considered simply that process which is necessary to achieve the Owner's goals and objectives, such as function, performance, configuration, quality, cost, schedule, operability and maintainability. However, the management of major, complex, underground and tunneling projects must deal with many inputs, conditions and variables. Different organizational approaches, techniques and process have been used—but the certainty of success remains unpredictable. A particular management approach may be very successful for one project and may fail utterly for another. Major determinants are policies, laws, regulations, local conditions and precedents-past ways of doing business. However, applying “known precedents” which worked for one project to a second one may not produce the expected, successful result and may have unintended consequences. Not surprisingly, procedures for management, procurement and administration, as well as supporting services such as partnering and risk mitigation, vary significantly depending on the city, state or country. It is apparent that, as an industry, we do not have a good process to objectively normalize project results and correlate them with management strategies. This article presents an overview of management for complex, underground and tunneling projects, touches on public policy and its effects, discusses procurement concerns, suggests an improved approach for the “project delivery process” and outlines important supporting systems such as partnering and risk mitigation. In a second article, implementation of changes to current management and contracting practices, partnering, disputes review and risk mitigation will be more fully discussed.     

The history of alternative fuels in transportation: The case of electric and hybrid cars

The article describes and presents a critical analysis of the long history of alternative fuels and propulsion technologies, particularly in automobile applications. Cases are electric and hybrid cars. The term “critical analysis” refers to the analysis of the various alternative technologies in relation to their societal contexts. In particular, these are the varying contexts of energy security, energy policy, environmental problems, sustainability, and also the later more explicit climate change context. This approach gives some knowledge with relevance to the current discussions on implementation issues. The work is first of all founded on the knowledge field of “Social Studies of Technological Systems”.     

Technology transfer projects in developing countries—furthering the Project Management perspectives

This paper attempts to broaden the analysis of the technology transfer phenomenon by refocusing research attention on the level of performance assessment of technology transfer projects. An holistic evaluation framework based on the considerations of an extended Project Life Cycle model is proposed to overcome some of the shortcomings of conventional approaches to project evaluation. This also reinforces the need for open systems thinking in assessing and managing risk of technology transfer projects. The discussion is based on two case studies which articulate the experiences with two integrated mechanisms of technology transfer used in Algeria from 1965 to 1990: turnkey and “product-in-hand”. The aim is to gain a better understanding of the processes of technology transfer and to contribute to the improvement of associated managerial practices in developing economies.