Indicators and tools for assessing sustainability impacts of the forest bioeconomy

The sustainable use of renewable resources has become an important issue worldwide in the move towards a less fossil-fuel-intensive future.Mainstream method for fulfilling this aim is to increase the share of renewable energy and materials to substitute fossil fuels and to become fully independent from fossil fuels over the long-term.However, the environmental sustainability of this endeavor has been questioned.In addition,economic and social sustainability issues are also much debated topics in this particular context.Forest resources are often thought to contribute partially to achieving a so-called ＂carbon-neutral society＂.In this review, we discuss sustainability issues of using forest biomass.We present several sustainability indicators for ecological,economic and social dimensions and discuss the issues in applying them in sustainability impact assessments（SIAs）.We also present a number of tools and methods previously used in conducting SIAs.We approach our study from the perspective of the Finnish forestry; in addition, various aspects regarding the application of SIAs in a broader context are also presented.One of the key conclusions of the study is that although sufficient data are available to measure many indicators accurately, the impacts may be very difficult to assess（e.g.impact of greenhouse gases on biodiversity） for conducting a holistic SIA.Furthermore, some indicators, such as ＂biodiversity＂, are difficult to quantify in the first place.Therefore, a mix of different methods, such as Multi-criteria Assessment, Life-cycle Assessment or Cost-Benefit Analysis, as well as different approaches（e.g.thresholds and strong/weak sustainability） are needed in aggregating the results of the impacts.SIAs are important in supporting and improving the acceptability of decision-making, but a certain degree of uncertainty will always have to be tolerated.

An indicator model for assessing community resilience to the COVID-19 pandemic and its validation: A case study in Hong Kong

The COVID-19 outbreak had a significant negative impact on the world,and the fifth wave of COVID-19 in Hong Kong brought a considerable shock to Chinese society.There is a growing call for more resilient cities.However,empirical evidence and validation of modeling studies of resilience indicators for urban community responses to the COVID-19 pandemic still need to be provided.In this study,a resilience assessment indicator model comprising 4 subsystems,7 indicators,and 12 variables was developed to assess the resilience of Hong Kong communities in response to COVID-19(i.e.,Resilience Index).Furthermore,this study utilized regression models such as geographically weighted regression(GWR)and multiscale GWR(MGWR)to validate the resilience model proposed in this study at the model and variable levels.In the regression model,the Resilience Index and the individual variables in the resilience model are explanatory variables,and the outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic(confirmed cases,confirmation rate,discharged cases,discharge rate)are dependent variables.The results showed that:(i)the resilience of Hong Kong communities to the COvID-19 pandemic was not strong in general and showed some clustered spatial distribution characteristics;(i)the validation results at the model level showed that the Resilience Index did not explain the consequences of the COvID-19 pandemic to a high degree;(ii)the validation results at the variable level showed that the MGWR model was the best at identifying the relationships between explanatory variables and the dependent variable;and(iv)compared with the model-level assessment results,the variable-level assessment explained the consequences of the COvID-19 pandemic better than the model level assessment results.The above analysis and the spatial distribution maps of the resilience variables can provide empirically based and targeted insights for policymakers.

A quantitative comparison and analysis on the assessment indicators of greenhouse gases emission

Anthropogenic greenhouse gases （GHG） emission and related global warming issues have been the focus of international communities for some time. The international communities have reached a consensus to reduce anthropogenic GHG emissions and restrain global warming. The quantitative assessment of anthropogenic GHG emissions is the scientific basis to find out the status of global GHG emission, identify the commitments of each country, and arrange the international efforts of GHG emission reduction. Currently the main assessment indicators for GHG emission include national indicator, per capita indicator, per GDP indicator, and international trade indicator etc. The introduction to the above indi- cators is put forward and their merits and demerits are analyzed. Based on the GHG emission data from the World Resource Institute （WRI）, the US Energy Information Administration （EIA）, and the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center （CDIAC）, the results of each indictor are calculated for the world, for the eight G8 industrialized countries （USA, UK, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, Italy and Russia）, and the five major developing countries including China, Brazil, India, South Africa and Mexico. The paper points out that all these indicators have some limitations. The Indicator of Industrialized Accumulative Emission per Capita （IAEC） is put forward as the equitable indicator to evaluate the industrialized historical accumulative emission per capita of every country. IAEC indicator can reflect the economic achievement of GHG emission enjoyed by the current generations in every country and their commitments. The analysis of IAEC indicates that the historical accumulative emission per capita in indus- trialized countries such as UK and USA were typically higher than those of the world average and the developing countries. Emission indicator per capita per GDP, consumptive emission indicator and survival emission indicator are also put forward and discussed in the paper.

Development and Application of a Tyrosinase-Based Time-Temperature Indicator(TTI) for Determining the Quality of Turbot Sashimi

Time-temperature indicators(TTIs) are convenient intuitive devices that are widely used to predict food quality. The aim of this study is to develop a new simple device which can be attached to food packages as a quality indicator for turbot sashimi. In this study, a solid TTI based on the reaction between tyrosinase and tyrosine was developed. The Arrhenius behavior of this enzymatic TTI was studied. The kinetics of the tyrosinase-based TTI was investigated in the form of color change from colorless to dark black induced by the enzymatic reaction. The mathematical formula for the color alterations as a function of time and temperature was established. The longest indication time for the developed TTI was 50 hours at 4℃. The activation energy of the tyrosinase-based TTI was 0.409 k J mol^(-1). The suitability of the tyrosinase-based TTI was validated for turbot sashimi using total plate count. The feasibility of using this TTI as a quality indicator for turbot sashimi was assessed based on the activation energy and indication time. Therefore, the tyrosinasebased TTI system developed in this study could be used as an effective tool for monitoring the quality changes of turbot sashimi during the distribution and storage.

Establishment and Application of Assessment Indicator System of Agricultural Catastrophe Vulnerability

To give play to the role of agricultural catastrophe risk fund in spreading agricultural catastrophe risk,we select natural conditions,economic conditions,social conditions,as the external vulnerability assessment indicators;select commodity rate of agricultural products,substitutability of agricultural products,the extent of agricultural products being related to the national economy and the people's livelihood,as the internal vulnerability assessment indicators.We assign weight to indicators using Analytic Hierarchy Process,and establish assessment indicator system of agricultural catastrophe vulnerability,to analyze the compensation for losses of different agricultural products arising from agricultural catastrophe in different regions.And we take the case of rice in Sichuan Province,to demonstrate the role this indicator system.

Indicators and Influence Factors for Sustainability Assessment of Inclusive Smart Innovation Clusters

A new manufacturing and business infrastructure industrial ecosystem model with the state-of-the art core infrastructure and smart applications in the form of inclusive smart innovation cluster is seen as a powerful tool to drive industrial symbiosis, economic, social and inclusive development. Essentially an integrated eco-industrial park, these clusters demonstrate applications of industrial ecology principles among the occupant units, besides promoting sustainable societies from economic, environmental and social perspectives. The holistic planning and development of these clusters from economic, environmental and social sustainability considerations or alternatively, the sustainability assessment of these clusters is highly complex. The research reported upon forms part of a larger study that aims to develop an integrated decision support system for sustainability assessment of inclusive smart innovation cluster. The paper discusses the conceptual model of the cluster and the need to establish context specific key indicators and influence factors from economic, environmental and social sustainability considerations. The paper proposes a structured methodology for development of key indicators and influence factors. The paper concludes by identifying a set of 184 key indicators and influence factors for comprehensive sustainability assessment of inclusive smart innovation cluster.

Spatial and Temporal Differences of Urban Land Comprehensive Carrying Capacity in Guangxi

The comprehensive carrying capacity of urban land can reflect the re- source level, economic scale, social development and environmental pressure of ur- ban land carrying. The assessment indicator system of urban land comprehensive carrying capacity was constructed from the 4 aspects of resource, economy, society, environment, and principal component analysis and cluster analysis were used to evaluate the urban land comprehensive carrying capacity of Guangxi and the 14 cities in 2005-2014, and analyzed its spatial and temporal characteristics as well as the driving forces, with the aim to provide references for improving the urban land comprehensive carrying capacity. The results showed that, the overall urban land comprehensive carrying capacity in Guangxi increased in 2005-2014, and there were significant differences in the land comprehensive carrying capacities among the cities in Guangxi in 2005-2014, in which Liuzhou, Guilin, Nanning belonged to the regions with the highest carrying capacity, while Beihai, Yulin, Wutong belonged to the regions with high carrying capacity, and the carrying capacities of the other cities changed with the changes of time. The economic development degree was an important factor influencing urban land comprehensive carrying capacity, but could not directly represent the urban land comprehensive carrying capacity level.

Research on Methods of Ecological Security Assessment of the Middle and Lower Reaches of Liaohe River Based on GIS

Ecological security assessment and early warning research possess the attributes of spatiality, non-linearity and randomicity, so we must process much spatial information. Spatial analysis and data management are the advantages of GIS, which can define distribution trend and spatial relations of environmental factors, and show ecological security pattern graphically. Spatial differences of ecological security assessment based on GIS are discussed in this paper, of which the middle and lower reaches of the Liaohe River is taken as a study case. First, to work out pressure-state-response (P-S-R) assessment indicators system, and investigate in person and gather information; second, to digitize the watershed; third, to quantize and calculate by the fuzzy method; last, to construct GIS grid database, and expound spatial differences of ecological security by GIS interpolation and assembly analysis.

Evaluation of Sustainable Land Management and Diagnosis of Obstacle at County Scale in Sichuan Basin:Taking Lezhi County as Example

This paper established sustainable land resources evaluating indicators fit for hilly area in Sichuan Basin, Southwest of China, and evaluated the case of sustainable land management of Lezhi County from 1990 to 2001. The result showed that the land resource sustainable utilization ability in Lezhi County is belong to Second level （better sustainable）. Secondly, this paper diagnosed some years obstacles of sustainable land management of Lezhi County from base period to goal period and compared the obstacles factors in the indicators system. There were 16 indexes orderly become major affect factor to land sustainable utilization of Lezhi county in indicator system, of which there are 8 obstacles indexes exist both in 1990 and 2001. The value of obstacles degree of five indicators exceeded 5 in 1990, but in 2001, only two indicators＇ values were more than 5.

Toward Water Conservation Society:the Connotationand Assessment Indication System

Water saving and developing water conservation society are the two key strategies both for wise water allocation and sustainable utilization. The paper analyses the connotation of water saving and water conservation society. Essentially, water saving means freeing up water from non-beneficial uses and providing it to some more productive uses. Basic principles for setting indicator are presented by providing efficient use of water, considering social issues and ecological protection. An integrated assessing water saving system aiming at more sustainable and efficient consumption is given considering unbalanced social and economic development in regions and basins. The hierarchy indicator system provides qualified tools to the practice of water conservation and evaluates the value for water conservation society construction.

Coastal geomorphic evolution at the Denglou Cape, the Leizhou Peninsula

The Denglou Cape, southwest of the Leizhou Peninsula, is the most typical tropical coast in the continent of China.The coastal geomorphic development basics of the geology and Quaternary environment change are discussed. Aerial photograph interpretation with fieldwork is applied to draw the outlines of geomorphic types. Based on the investigative data, the exogenic forces and marine organism conditions concerning tropical coast development in the area are expounded, and coastal dynamo-deposition geomorphic bodies are analysed, mainly with sea cliff-abrasion platform,barrier-lagoon system, modern beach, coral reef and mangrove tidal flat, and the general process of coastal evolution at this area, as well as coastline changes since middle Holocene transgression.

Exposure, sensitivity, and social adaptive capacity related to climate change:empirical research in China

The present research established a preliminary indicator assessment system satisfying Chinese characters for exposure, sensitivity, and social adaptive capacity related to climate change. The 31 province-level administrative regions in China's Mainland were considered in our research. We developed three dimensions of indices related to climate change, including primary, secondary,and tertiary indicators. We chose all variables and indicators based on a literature review and used principal component analysis and the varimax method to develop a weighted assessment index system. Districts in central China scored higher on the overall exposure index than other sample districts, western China generally exhibited higher sensitivity, and eastern China exhibited comparatively higher social adaptive capacity than the other regions. This study also provides perspective for adaptation policies that all regions in China could adopt to determine development direction decision-making based on their specific conditions and diversified comparative advantages to enhance adaptive capacity in response to climate change.

Research on the Assessment Strategies for the Product Multi-lifecycle System

In this paper, the assessment indicator hierarchy of the Product Multi-Lifecycle System (PMLS) is proposed based on the PMLS connotations and objectives, upon which the PMLS assessment method is discussed and the example is presented by using the fuzzy judging theory.

Study of Priority Area Selection and Evaluation for Afforestation and Reforestation Project under CDM in China

This paper gives an expatiation on significance and specific requirements of developing afforestation and reforestation project under CDM in Kyoto Protocol. According to the international rules and the current forestry development situation in China, the priority area for CDM afforestation and reforestation （CDM A/R） project is finally found after scientific selection and assessment on indicators, including the non-forestland area in 1990, growth rate of tree, afforestation cost, biodiversity and community development. The outcome from the study provides a solid basis for finding and implementing CDM A/R carbon sequestration projects in China. The study also puts forward suggestions on the strategy to develop and manage CDM A/R projects in China