As the most important ecosystem in Beijing, the forest supports a lot of ecosystem services to local and around communities, which plays a key role in the maintenance of urban ecological security.However, the valuatio...As the most important ecosystem in Beijing, the forest supports a lot of ecosystem services to local and around communities, which plays a key role in the maintenance of urban ecological security.However, the valuation on the forest ecosystem services based on regional scale could not provide precise and reasonable values for forestry sector management.In this study, we estimated the magnitudes and economic values of the forest ecosystem services in Beijing at sublot level.The economic value of forest ecosystem services in Beijing was estimated to be 19 339.71×10 6 yuan(RMB) in 2004.Among all the ecosystem services indicators we estimated in this study, only fruit, timber and part of the recreation(which only include the tourism income from the forest parks and scenic areas, but not include that from other forest types) were measured in the social economic system.As estimated in this study, more than 82.19% of the economic value of forest ecosystem services could not be measured in the socio-economic statistical system.The importance of forest ecosystem services in Beijing to human welfare was underestimated by the socio-economic system.Therefore, the policies about the eco-compensation of forest ecosystem services should be established to maintain the sustainable supply of the forest ecosystem services in Beijing.展开更多
Based on multi-source data,this paper evaluated the economic value of ecological services in the Yeyahu Wetland Nature Reserve,Beijing,China.The ecological services of wetland included gas regulation,water quality im-...Based on multi-source data,this paper evaluated the economic value of ecological services in the Yeyahu Wetland Nature Reserve,Beijing,China.The ecological services of wetland included gas regulation,water quality im-provement,biodiversity maintenance,erosion control,water supply,recreational opportunity,raw material supply and existence value.Multiple conventional evaluation methods were used to calculate the value of eight wetland services.The results showed that significant values came from biodiversity maintenance and recreational opportunity.The main reasons were as follows.Firstly,Yeyahu Wetland Nature Reserve was the habitat for migrant birds,and government had payed more efforts to protect precious birds.Secondly,the population is large in Beijing.People enjoyed going outside and enjoyed the natural and artificial wetland scenes.At the same time,most people were prepared to pay for wetland conservation.The decline of vegetation cover made the economic value of erosion control the lowest.While the shrink of water resource and the deteriorative water quality caused the economic value of water supply lower.The evaluation results could help decision-makers understand the present status of the Yeyahu Wetland Nature Reserve and provide a scientific basis for strategic decision.展开更多
Human pressure on mountain resources poses certain threats to their natural and man-made environment. Although there are many parameters involved, one of the driving forces behind this situation is the emphasis given ...Human pressure on mountain resources poses certain threats to their natural and man-made environment. Although there are many parameters involved, one of the driving forces behind this situation is the emphasis given so far only to the market value of mountain goods and services, ignoring the true social and environmental costs of using mountain resources. Towards this direction, the use of non-market valuation techniques could prove to be beneficial. Bearing in mind the above remarks, the paper presents an application of the Contingent Valuation Method, which aims at estimating the monetary value of a mountain settlement’s vernacular architecture, namely Metsovo. For this purpose, the survey focuses on Metsovo visitors’ willingness to pay a single annual voluntary contribution to an institution that would be founded in order to undertake all necessary actions required to preserve the town’s traditional character. The results are very promising and indicate that vernacular architecture holds a significant economic value that could justify the implementation of appropriate policies towards the protection of vernacular settlements in mountain areas.展开更多
In the Indian Himalayan Region predominantly rural in character, livestock is one of the main sources of livelihood and integral part of the economy. Livestock mostly rely on fodder from wild. The diversity, distribut...In the Indian Himalayan Region predominantly rural in character, livestock is one of the main sources of livelihood and integral part of the economy. Livestock mostly rely on fodder from wild. The diversity, distribution, utilization pattern, nativity, endemism, rarity, seasonality of availability, nutritive values, perceived economic values and pressure use index of livestock have not been studied. The present study attempts to enumerate 150 species of fodder representing trees (51 spp.), shrubs (54 spp.) and herbs (45 spp.). Poaceae (19 spp.) and Fabaceae (13 spp.) amongst families and Salix (6 spp.), Ficus, Clematis, and Desmodium (5 spp., each) amongst genera are rich in species. Maximum species were found in the 1801 ~ 2600 m zone, and the remaining two zones showed relatively low diversity. Out of the 150 species, 109 are used in summer, 5 winter and 36 throughout year. During rainy season, mostly grasses are used as fodder. Only 83 species are native to the Himalayan region, one species, Strobilanthus atropuroureus is endemic and 35 species are near endemic. The nutritive values of the fodder species were reviewed, and economic values and status of the species were also assessed. The pressure use index of the species was calculated on the basis of cumulative values of the utilization pattern, altitudinal distribution, availability, status, nativity and endemism. Amongst the species, Grewia oppositifoilia, Morus serrata, Indigofera heterantha, Quercus leucotrichphora, Ulmus villosa, U. wallichiana and Aesculus indica showed highest PUI indicating high preference and pressure. Season wise prioritization of the species for different altitudinal zones has been done. Appropriate strategy and action plan have been suggested for the conservation and management of fodder species.展开更多
The problem of price scissors difference between industrial products and agricultural products is one of the important problems in China. It impacts not only the living standard improvement of farmers but also the eco...The problem of price scissors difference between industrial products and agricultural products is one of the important problems in China. It impacts not only the living standard improvement of farmers but also the economic value of cultivated land, furthermore results in the direct and indirect loss of cultivated land resources. China's cultivated land area has decreased dramatically in recent years. An important reason for the decrease is the relatively low cost of cultivated land occupancy, which results from the distortion of economic value of cultivated land due to the existence of scissors difference. This study firstly analyzed the dynamic change of scissors difference and calculated the absolute and relative magnitude of scissors difference from 1997 to 2002, then computed the economic value of cultivated land before and after scissors difference adjustment in 2002, and finally discussed the inverted scissors difference. Results suggest that the scissors difference has a remarkable impact on the economic value of cultivated land, and the adjustment of scissors difference even inverted scissors difference to the economic value of cultivated land is indisoensable.展开更多
In light of the practical need for research to inform policy in Beijing,this study evaluates the economic cost of the impact of PM 10 pollution in Beijing from 2001 to 2006,taking health as the main impact,and mortali...In light of the practical need for research to inform policy in Beijing,this study evaluates the economic cost of the impact of PM 10 pollution in Beijing from 2001 to 2006,taking health as the main impact,and mortality as the main outcome.Based on the literature review,this study adopts relatively conservative parameters as the basis for calculating the health impacts.It concludes that nearly 30%of mortality among registered residents above age 30 in Beijing can be attributed to PM 10 pollution,and that the economic cost equals 0.8%-1.2%of the city's GDP over the same period.This is lower than the results of previous studies,but still high enough to warrant a commitment to solve the city's air pollution problem.展开更多
The sources of marine oil spills are mainly from accidents of marine oil tankers or freighters, marine oil-drilling platforms, marine oil pipelines, marine oilfields, terrestrial pollution, oil-bearing atmosphere, and...The sources of marine oil spills are mainly from accidents of marine oil tankers or freighters, marine oil-drilling platforms, marine oil pipelines, marine oilfields, terrestrial pollution, oil-bearing atmosphere, and offshore oil production equipment. It is concluded upon analysis that there are two main reasons for marine oil spills: (I) The motive for huge economic benefits of oil industry owners and oil shipping agents far surpasses their sense of ecological risks. (II) Marine ecological safety has not become the main concern of national security. Oil spills are disasters because humans spare no efforts to get economic benefits from oil. The present paper draws another conclusion that marine ecological damage caused by oil spills can be roughly divided into two categories: damage to marine resource value (direct value) and damage to marine ecosystem service value (indirect value). Marine oil spills cause damage to marine biological, fishery, seawater, tourism and mineral resources to various extents, which contributes to the lower quality and value of marine resources.展开更多
Ecosystem services valuation seeks to increase the social relevance of ecosystem characteristics, the underlying biological mechanisms that support services, by making the contribution of ecosystems to human well-bein...Ecosystem services valuation seeks to increase the social relevance of ecosystem characteristics, the underlying biological mechanisms that support services, by making the contribution of ecosystems to human well-being explicit. Economic valuation can help management by clarifying the full range of benefits and costs of proposed management actions. In the past two decades, economic valuation of wetland ecosystem services has become one of the most significant scientific priorities for wetland protection. In this paper, we provide an overview of ecosystem services, and summarize the main interdisciplinary approaches to measure and value wetland ecosystem services. We identified four main methodological gaps preventing progress on wetland valuation of ecosystem services in China, which are: 1) confusion on terminology like intermediate and final ecosystem services, 2) lack of ecological production functions to link ecosystem characteristics to final ecosystem services, 3) static valuation making it difficult to evaluate the trade-offs and synergies among ecosystem services, and 4) lack of clear guidance on relating ecological compensation programs to conservation targets. Overcoming these gaps is important to inform wetland compensation mechanisms and conservation policies. We propose future research on wetland ecosystem services in China should be focused on: 1) defining final ecosystem services based on beneficiary preferences and underlying biophysical mechanisms, 2) establishing wetland monitoring programs at specific sites to collect data on final ecosystem service indicators and ecosystem characteristic metrics to create ecological production functions for economic valuation and rescaling techniques, and 3) incorporating wetland ecosystem service values into decision-making processes to inform wetland management.展开更多
Insight into the different values of water is essential to support rational decision making about policies, management and investments in the water sector. The main objective of this paper is to estimate an economic v...Insight into the different values of water is essential to support rational decision making about policies, management and investments in the water sector. The main objective of this paper is to estimate an economic value of irrigation water in Jordan by choosing appropriate methodology fit with available data. The Residual Imputation Method (RIM) is used to determine the average economic value of irrigation water used in agriculture across crops. The results showed that the weighted average of water value used in field crops is JD 0.44 m"3 and JD 1.23 m3 for vegetable crops and JD 0.23 m3 for fruit trees. The overall weighted average water value in irrigation is estimated with JD 0.51 m"3. With regard to individual crops, cucumbers had the highest water values with about JD 6.05 m3, followed by string beans with JD 2.64 m3, and sweet pepper with JD 2.54 m3. The lowest returns per m3 were provided by squash, radish and hot pepper. For fruit tress banana has the highest water value JD 0.79 m3 and olive tress has the lowest with only JD 0.069 m3. The current practice of some banana producers is economically rational by installing Reverse Osmosis unit to irrigate banana, since water value is twice the desalination costs of one cubic meter. The estimated values represent the maximum price that farmers might be willing to pay for water under the current market conditions. Water subsidy distorts farmers' perception of water as a scarce and thus valuable resource. Low water prices are thus likely to engender excessive use. It is necessary to allow water prices to recover the real cost of water supply and to ensure financial sustainability of water utilities.展开更多
This paper addresses the question of whether the Hang Kong government made a rational economic decision when it decided to set aside land to develop a Wetland Park, or whether it should have used the land for alternat...This paper addresses the question of whether the Hang Kong government made a rational economic decision when it decided to set aside land to develop a Wetland Park, or whether it should have used the land for alternative commercial developments. Different analytical methods are used to estimate the economic value of the environmental benefits of the Wetland Park: the Value Transfer Method is used to estimate the economic value oJ the ecological services provided by the Park. the Direct Market Price analysis for the economic value of the goods purchased in the Wetland Park, the Hedonic Housing Price Analysis for the value of the Park to those residing in its proximity, the Travel Cost and Contingent Valuation Method for the value of the Park to the visitors, and the Contingent Valuation for the Passive (Nonuse) Values of the Park. These benefits are compared to the opportunity cost of the land and the cost of running the Wetland Park. The article concludes that if a rate of 5% or less is used to discount fiture costs and benefits, we would find that the government's decision to set aside land for a Wetland Park was economically sound while using a discount rate of 6% or more shows that it was not.展开更多
The present study is intended to be an analysis of the main Romanian legal provision in what concerns the impact of foreign exchange differences and potential consequences at the level of financial statements for comp...The present study is intended to be an analysis of the main Romanian legal provision in what concerns the impact of foreign exchange differences and potential consequences at the level of financial statements for companies. In Romanian legislation, the issue of the foreign exchange differences is treated at a general level: these are recognized as a profit and loss item and as a consequence, they are included in the taxable base when booked in the accounting. Our legislation does not provide for specific treatments depending on the 'realization momenf' of these differences or depending on the conditions for recognizing a gain/loss from foreign exchange differences. For the unrealized exchange differences arising from the application of accounting rules on monthly assessment of foreign currency monetary items, there is not a specific event or transaction to determine income or expenditure. This monthly review depending on the National Bank of Romania [BNR] foreign exchange rate valid on the last day of the month aims to bring closer to reality the financial position of an entity. The exchange rate is a monetary policy item set by the central bank and may be influenced by various factors such as: monetary policy of the BNR; inflation target objectives and rate of exchange stabilization or reduction efforts, as is the case of BNR in the last years to fulfill EU criteria for adoption of the EURO; periodical influences of speculative capitals on the exchange rate level; economic status and especially exports and imports. However, a taxpayer should not be charged unless there is evidence of the "economic enrichment" thereof. However, this enrichment, seen as a rising economic value of the company, depends on the perspective from which is seen: the owner of the company or the tax authorities. The exchange differences impact also the value of the owners' equity for which a minimum level is requested under the commercial company law. In case of negative values, this triggers various risks at the level of the continuity principle or even endangers the existence of the company.展开更多
In the past,evaluations of ecosystem functions were mostly based on Costanza's model,whereas the spatial,quality and temporal characteristics of regional ecosystems were not considered in the model.Focusing on the...In the past,evaluations of ecosystem functions were mostly based on Costanza's model,whereas the spatial,quality and temporal characteristics of regional ecosystems were not considered in the model.Focusing on these issues,coefficients of regional difference,spatial heterogeneity and willingness-to-pay(WTP)were established to modify Costanza's model,and a new comprehensive valuation model of ecosystem functions is proposed.The analytical results indicate that the comprehensive model could evaluate regional ecosystem functions in China accurately and provide more helpful information for decision-making.The empirical study on Zhangbei County in Hebei Province shows that the intensive human activities could limit the provision of ecosystem functions while the planned ecological programs might promote the restoration of ecosystem functions.展开更多
Natural landscapes consist of the natural substances, environment, and phenomena, all of which provide many benefits to people, including a sense of place, sightseeing, relaxing, and recuperating. However, the economi...Natural landscapes consist of the natural substances, environment, and phenomena, all of which provide many benefits to people, including a sense of place, sightseeing, relaxing, and recuperating. However, the economic value of natural landscapes has only been recognized in recent decades, and the resulting large-scale decline and degradation of ecosystems now severely threatens the sustainable provision of their services to society. There is an emerging consensus that natural capital should be incorporated into the current socioeconomic accounting system. Many studies valuated natural resources at local and regional scales, but there are very few empirical studies at a national level. To provide a benchmark for natural landscape management on a national scale, we use the travel cost method(TCM) and the contingent valuation method(CVM) to determine the economic value and the spatial distribution of natural landscapes across China. Our results show that the total economic value of China′s natural landscape was 9.75 × 10^(11) U.S. dollars(USD) in 2012. Of this value, the highest proportion was in the eastern and southwestern regions of China, which accounts for 23.7% and 18.3%, respectively. The provinces of Guangdong, Sichuan, Yunnan, Inner Mongolia, and Heilongjiang were the top five in terms of the largest number of natural landscapes and largest economic values. Together, these five provinces accounted for 32.9% of the total number of natural landscapes and 29.4% of the total economic value in 2012. We believe this study will increase awareness of the value of natural landscapes, and more importantly provide a scientific basis for resolving conflicts between development and resource conservation.展开更多
Mangrove forests occur extensively in the tropic areas rich in wildlife and other non forestry resources and provide a wide array of raw materials for livelihood and production processes and have been a major source o...Mangrove forests occur extensively in the tropic areas rich in wildlife and other non forestry resources and provide a wide array of raw materials for livelihood and production processes and have been a major source of income generation and subsistence for the local people. Exploitation of timber, fuel wood, poles, industrial raw material, and many other non wood products from the mangrove forests give rise to large scale economic activity and income generation. At present, mangrove forests are facing great peril. Reckless exploitation and swampland reclamation result in their gradual degradation. This article deals with the worlds mangrove forest resources and their benefit to people; describes the current status, points out the main causes of the destruction of these forests, presents proposals for protecting mangrove forests, and discusses international cooperation in protecting the world’s mangrove forests.展开更多
In order to identify and check the adaptability of new flue-cured tobacco variety of Guiyan 2 to soil, cultivation and curing conditions and its utility value in production in Qianxinan Prefecture ecological areas, a ...In order to identify and check the adaptability of new flue-cured tobacco variety of Guiyan 2 to soil, cultivation and curing conditions and its utility value in production in Qianxinan Prefecture ecological areas, a comparative trail with the leading cultivar Yunyan 97 as the control(CK) was made according to the regulations of local characteristic and high-quality tobacco production. The experimental results showed that Guiyan 2 had moderate growth duration after transplant, strong field growing power, good uniformity and good agronomic traits; moreover, its yield,production value and rate of first-class tobacco were respectively higher than these of CK by 349.2 kg/hm^2, 4746.3 yuan/hm^2 and 6%, while its average price and grade index were respectively lower than these of CK by 1.13 yuan/kg and 0.06;Guiyan 2 also had the advantages of appropriate intrinsic chemical component content and proportion, as well as better curing characteristics, and it got generally better evaluation from tobacco growers, indicating that Guiyan 2 had a better potential to generalize.展开更多
This article is based on traditionally intrinsic value assessment model. We employed the assumption on the differences in future increase rates of companies, taking into account of the expected Economic Value Added (E...This article is based on traditionally intrinsic value assessment model. We employed the assumption on the differences in future increase rates of companies, taking into account of the expected Economic Value Added (EVA) discount and the capital investment, to establish a high increase model, a two-stage EVA discount model and a three-stage EVA discount model for the intrinsic value assessment. Those models eliminate the great fluctuation of free cash flow in calculating the capital expenditure by setting aside the cash flow of the company’s investment in the year and considering only the capital cost. This method needs only to assess the EVA flow in different year in probing the intrinsic value of a company, thus give more consistent conclusion than conventional methods.展开更多
Boswellia sacra from Burseraceae family, grows is limited and the land unsuitable for traditional agriculture wild in dry hot lands of southern part of Oman (Dhofar), where the water purpose. Boswellia sacra is a mu...Boswellia sacra from Burseraceae family, grows is limited and the land unsuitable for traditional agriculture wild in dry hot lands of southern part of Oman (Dhofar), where the water purpose. Boswellia sacra is a multipurpose tree, but more famous for its high value olibanum. The olibanum is used for ritual and in church ceremonies worldwide, traditional medicines, pharmaceutical, perfumery, cosmetics, chewing, painting, food flavouring. In addition to this, the species has other numerous environmental, historical, and socio-economical benefits. This study is based on literature reviews, and on the interview local people, as well as on personal field experiences. The objective is to introduce the importance of the species and to study the native habitats, the distribution, and the harvesting techniques. The soil is carbonitic, isohypertherrnic, lithic torriothent, poor in mineral elements. The olibanum produces when the tree tapped by making a thin vertical slicing into the tree trunk. Initial size should be about 18 cm2 (3 × 6 cm) and 1-2 mm in depth and the diameter tree trunk should be not less than 10 cm. Tree tapping should be stopped 2-3 weeks before the rain season. The method of tree tapping and olibanum collection need to be revised for long-term tree protection.展开更多
基金Under the auspices of Major State Basic Research Development Program of China (No. 2009CB421106)National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 30770410)
文摘As the most important ecosystem in Beijing, the forest supports a lot of ecosystem services to local and around communities, which plays a key role in the maintenance of urban ecological security.However, the valuation on the forest ecosystem services based on regional scale could not provide precise and reasonable values for forestry sector management.In this study, we estimated the magnitudes and economic values of the forest ecosystem services in Beijing at sublot level.The economic value of forest ecosystem services in Beijing was estimated to be 19 339.71×10 6 yuan(RMB) in 2004.Among all the ecosystem services indicators we estimated in this study, only fruit, timber and part of the recreation(which only include the tourism income from the forest parks and scenic areas, but not include that from other forest types) were measured in the social economic system.As estimated in this study, more than 82.19% of the economic value of forest ecosystem services could not be measured in the socio-economic statistical system.The importance of forest ecosystem services in Beijing to human welfare was underestimated by the socio-economic system.Therefore, the policies about the eco-compensation of forest ecosystem services should be established to maintain the sustainable supply of the forest ecosystem services in Beijing.
基金Under the auspices of National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 40771170)Beijing Municipal Natural Science Foundation (No. 8082010)
文摘Based on multi-source data,this paper evaluated the economic value of ecological services in the Yeyahu Wetland Nature Reserve,Beijing,China.The ecological services of wetland included gas regulation,water quality im-provement,biodiversity maintenance,erosion control,water supply,recreational opportunity,raw material supply and existence value.Multiple conventional evaluation methods were used to calculate the value of eight wetland services.The results showed that significant values came from biodiversity maintenance and recreational opportunity.The main reasons were as follows.Firstly,Yeyahu Wetland Nature Reserve was the habitat for migrant birds,and government had payed more efforts to protect precious birds.Secondly,the population is large in Beijing.People enjoyed going outside and enjoyed the natural and artificial wetland scenes.At the same time,most people were prepared to pay for wetland conservation.The decline of vegetation cover made the economic value of erosion control the lowest.While the shrink of water resource and the deteriorative water quality caused the economic value of water supply lower.The evaluation results could help decision-makers understand the present status of the Yeyahu Wetland Nature Reserve and provide a scientific basis for strategic decision.
文摘Human pressure on mountain resources poses certain threats to their natural and man-made environment. Although there are many parameters involved, one of the driving forces behind this situation is the emphasis given so far only to the market value of mountain goods and services, ignoring the true social and environmental costs of using mountain resources. Towards this direction, the use of non-market valuation techniques could prove to be beneficial. Bearing in mind the above remarks, the paper presents an application of the Contingent Valuation Method, which aims at estimating the monetary value of a mountain settlement’s vernacular architecture, namely Metsovo. For this purpose, the survey focuses on Metsovo visitors’ willingness to pay a single annual voluntary contribution to an institution that would be founded in order to undertake all necessary actions required to preserve the town’s traditional character. The results are very promising and indicate that vernacular architecture holds a significant economic value that could justify the implementation of appropriate policies towards the protection of vernacular settlements in mountain areas.
文摘In the Indian Himalayan Region predominantly rural in character, livestock is one of the main sources of livelihood and integral part of the economy. Livestock mostly rely on fodder from wild. The diversity, distribution, utilization pattern, nativity, endemism, rarity, seasonality of availability, nutritive values, perceived economic values and pressure use index of livestock have not been studied. The present study attempts to enumerate 150 species of fodder representing trees (51 spp.), shrubs (54 spp.) and herbs (45 spp.). Poaceae (19 spp.) and Fabaceae (13 spp.) amongst families and Salix (6 spp.), Ficus, Clematis, and Desmodium (5 spp., each) amongst genera are rich in species. Maximum species were found in the 1801 ~ 2600 m zone, and the remaining two zones showed relatively low diversity. Out of the 150 species, 109 are used in summer, 5 winter and 36 throughout year. During rainy season, mostly grasses are used as fodder. Only 83 species are native to the Himalayan region, one species, Strobilanthus atropuroureus is endemic and 35 species are near endemic. The nutritive values of the fodder species were reviewed, and economic values and status of the species were also assessed. The pressure use index of the species was calculated on the basis of cumulative values of the utilization pattern, altitudinal distribution, availability, status, nativity and endemism. Amongst the species, Grewia oppositifoilia, Morus serrata, Indigofera heterantha, Quercus leucotrichphora, Ulmus villosa, U. wallichiana and Aesculus indica showed highest PUI indicating high preference and pressure. Season wise prioritization of the species for different altitudinal zones has been done. Appropriate strategy and action plan have been suggested for the conservation and management of fodder species.
文摘The problem of price scissors difference between industrial products and agricultural products is one of the important problems in China. It impacts not only the living standard improvement of farmers but also the economic value of cultivated land, furthermore results in the direct and indirect loss of cultivated land resources. China's cultivated land area has decreased dramatically in recent years. An important reason for the decrease is the relatively low cost of cultivated land occupancy, which results from the distortion of economic value of cultivated land due to the existence of scissors difference. This study firstly analyzed the dynamic change of scissors difference and calculated the absolute and relative magnitude of scissors difference from 1997 to 2002, then computed the economic value of cultivated land before and after scissors difference adjustment in 2002, and finally discussed the inverted scissors difference. Results suggest that the scissors difference has a remarkable impact on the economic value of cultivated land, and the adjustment of scissors difference even inverted scissors difference to the economic value of cultivated land is indisoensable.
基金Supported by the Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education(Grant no.20070001049):pricing policy for resources products incidence of welfare impactBeijing Science and Technology Commission D09040903670905:Study on the Regional Air Pollution Control Strategy and Policy
文摘In light of the practical need for research to inform policy in Beijing,this study evaluates the economic cost of the impact of PM 10 pollution in Beijing from 2001 to 2006,taking health as the main impact,and mortality as the main outcome.Based on the literature review,this study adopts relatively conservative parameters as the basis for calculating the health impacts.It concludes that nearly 30%of mortality among registered residents above age 30 in Beijing can be attributed to PM 10 pollution,and that the economic cost equals 0.8%-1.2%of the city's GDP over the same period.This is lower than the results of previous studies,but still high enough to warrant a commitment to solve the city's air pollution problem.
基金supported by the Academy of Ocean of China (No. AOCQN200812)part of the results of the scientific research project entitled ‘The Legal Issues on the Ecological Damage Caused by Marine Oil Spills
文摘The sources of marine oil spills are mainly from accidents of marine oil tankers or freighters, marine oil-drilling platforms, marine oil pipelines, marine oilfields, terrestrial pollution, oil-bearing atmosphere, and offshore oil production equipment. It is concluded upon analysis that there are two main reasons for marine oil spills: (I) The motive for huge economic benefits of oil industry owners and oil shipping agents far surpasses their sense of ecological risks. (II) Marine ecological safety has not become the main concern of national security. Oil spills are disasters because humans spare no efforts to get economic benefits from oil. The present paper draws another conclusion that marine ecological damage caused by oil spills can be roughly divided into two categories: damage to marine resource value (direct value) and damage to marine ecosystem service value (indirect value). Marine oil spills cause damage to marine biological, fishery, seawater, tourism and mineral resources to various extents, which contributes to the lower quality and value of marine resources.
基金Under the auspices of Forestry Nonprofit Industry Scientific Research Special Project(No.201204201)National Key Technology Research and Development Program of China(No.2011BAJ07B05)
文摘Ecosystem services valuation seeks to increase the social relevance of ecosystem characteristics, the underlying biological mechanisms that support services, by making the contribution of ecosystems to human well-being explicit. Economic valuation can help management by clarifying the full range of benefits and costs of proposed management actions. In the past two decades, economic valuation of wetland ecosystem services has become one of the most significant scientific priorities for wetland protection. In this paper, we provide an overview of ecosystem services, and summarize the main interdisciplinary approaches to measure and value wetland ecosystem services. We identified four main methodological gaps preventing progress on wetland valuation of ecosystem services in China, which are: 1) confusion on terminology like intermediate and final ecosystem services, 2) lack of ecological production functions to link ecosystem characteristics to final ecosystem services, 3) static valuation making it difficult to evaluate the trade-offs and synergies among ecosystem services, and 4) lack of clear guidance on relating ecological compensation programs to conservation targets. Overcoming these gaps is important to inform wetland compensation mechanisms and conservation policies. We propose future research on wetland ecosystem services in China should be focused on: 1) defining final ecosystem services based on beneficiary preferences and underlying biophysical mechanisms, 2) establishing wetland monitoring programs at specific sites to collect data on final ecosystem service indicators and ecosystem characteristic metrics to create ecological production functions for economic valuation and rescaling techniques, and 3) incorporating wetland ecosystem service values into decision-making processes to inform wetland management.
文摘Insight into the different values of water is essential to support rational decision making about policies, management and investments in the water sector. The main objective of this paper is to estimate an economic value of irrigation water in Jordan by choosing appropriate methodology fit with available data. The Residual Imputation Method (RIM) is used to determine the average economic value of irrigation water used in agriculture across crops. The results showed that the weighted average of water value used in field crops is JD 0.44 m"3 and JD 1.23 m3 for vegetable crops and JD 0.23 m3 for fruit trees. The overall weighted average water value in irrigation is estimated with JD 0.51 m"3. With regard to individual crops, cucumbers had the highest water values with about JD 6.05 m3, followed by string beans with JD 2.64 m3, and sweet pepper with JD 2.54 m3. The lowest returns per m3 were provided by squash, radish and hot pepper. For fruit tress banana has the highest water value JD 0.79 m3 and olive tress has the lowest with only JD 0.069 m3. The current practice of some banana producers is economically rational by installing Reverse Osmosis unit to irrigate banana, since water value is twice the desalination costs of one cubic meter. The estimated values represent the maximum price that farmers might be willing to pay for water under the current market conditions. Water subsidy distorts farmers' perception of water as a scarce and thus valuable resource. Low water prices are thus likely to engender excessive use. It is necessary to allow water prices to recover the real cost of water supply and to ensure financial sustainability of water utilities.
文摘This paper addresses the question of whether the Hang Kong government made a rational economic decision when it decided to set aside land to develop a Wetland Park, or whether it should have used the land for alternative commercial developments. Different analytical methods are used to estimate the economic value of the environmental benefits of the Wetland Park: the Value Transfer Method is used to estimate the economic value oJ the ecological services provided by the Park. the Direct Market Price analysis for the economic value of the goods purchased in the Wetland Park, the Hedonic Housing Price Analysis for the value of the Park to those residing in its proximity, the Travel Cost and Contingent Valuation Method for the value of the Park to the visitors, and the Contingent Valuation for the Passive (Nonuse) Values of the Park. These benefits are compared to the opportunity cost of the land and the cost of running the Wetland Park. The article concludes that if a rate of 5% or less is used to discount fiture costs and benefits, we would find that the government's decision to set aside land for a Wetland Park was economically sound while using a discount rate of 6% or more shows that it was not.
文摘The present study is intended to be an analysis of the main Romanian legal provision in what concerns the impact of foreign exchange differences and potential consequences at the level of financial statements for companies. In Romanian legislation, the issue of the foreign exchange differences is treated at a general level: these are recognized as a profit and loss item and as a consequence, they are included in the taxable base when booked in the accounting. Our legislation does not provide for specific treatments depending on the 'realization momenf' of these differences or depending on the conditions for recognizing a gain/loss from foreign exchange differences. For the unrealized exchange differences arising from the application of accounting rules on monthly assessment of foreign currency monetary items, there is not a specific event or transaction to determine income or expenditure. This monthly review depending on the National Bank of Romania [BNR] foreign exchange rate valid on the last day of the month aims to bring closer to reality the financial position of an entity. The exchange rate is a monetary policy item set by the central bank and may be influenced by various factors such as: monetary policy of the BNR; inflation target objectives and rate of exchange stabilization or reduction efforts, as is the case of BNR in the last years to fulfill EU criteria for adoption of the EURO; periodical influences of speculative capitals on the exchange rate level; economic status and especially exports and imports. However, a taxpayer should not be charged unless there is evidence of the "economic enrichment" thereof. However, this enrichment, seen as a rising economic value of the company, depends on the perspective from which is seen: the owner of the company or the tax authorities. The exchange differences impact also the value of the owners' equity for which a minimum level is requested under the commercial company law. In case of negative values, this triggers various risks at the level of the continuity principle or even endangers the existence of the company.
基金supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.40171001)National Science and Technology Support Program(Grant No.2006BAB15B02-04)+1 种基金Key Fundamental Item of Hebei Province(Grant No.08966712D)Key Discipline Construction Item of Physical Geography of Hebei Province
文摘In the past,evaluations of ecosystem functions were mostly based on Costanza's model,whereas the spatial,quality and temporal characteristics of regional ecosystems were not considered in the model.Focusing on these issues,coefficients of regional difference,spatial heterogeneity and willingness-to-pay(WTP)were established to modify Costanza's model,and a new comprehensive valuation model of ecosystem functions is proposed.The analytical results indicate that the comprehensive model could evaluate regional ecosystem functions in China accurately and provide more helpful information for decision-making.The empirical study on Zhangbei County in Hebei Province shows that the intensive human activities could limit the provision of ecosystem functions while the planned ecological programs might promote the restoration of ecosystem functions.
基金Under the auspices of National Science and Technology Support Program(No.2011BAC09B08-02)
文摘Natural landscapes consist of the natural substances, environment, and phenomena, all of which provide many benefits to people, including a sense of place, sightseeing, relaxing, and recuperating. However, the economic value of natural landscapes has only been recognized in recent decades, and the resulting large-scale decline and degradation of ecosystems now severely threatens the sustainable provision of their services to society. There is an emerging consensus that natural capital should be incorporated into the current socioeconomic accounting system. Many studies valuated natural resources at local and regional scales, but there are very few empirical studies at a national level. To provide a benchmark for natural landscape management on a national scale, we use the travel cost method(TCM) and the contingent valuation method(CVM) to determine the economic value and the spatial distribution of natural landscapes across China. Our results show that the total economic value of China′s natural landscape was 9.75 × 10^(11) U.S. dollars(USD) in 2012. Of this value, the highest proportion was in the eastern and southwestern regions of China, which accounts for 23.7% and 18.3%, respectively. The provinces of Guangdong, Sichuan, Yunnan, Inner Mongolia, and Heilongjiang were the top five in terms of the largest number of natural landscapes and largest economic values. Together, these five provinces accounted for 32.9% of the total number of natural landscapes and 29.4% of the total economic value in 2012. We believe this study will increase awareness of the value of natural landscapes, and more importantly provide a scientific basis for resolving conflicts between development and resource conservation.
文摘Mangrove forests occur extensively in the tropic areas rich in wildlife and other non forestry resources and provide a wide array of raw materials for livelihood and production processes and have been a major source of income generation and subsistence for the local people. Exploitation of timber, fuel wood, poles, industrial raw material, and many other non wood products from the mangrove forests give rise to large scale economic activity and income generation. At present, mangrove forests are facing great peril. Reckless exploitation and swampland reclamation result in their gradual degradation. This article deals with the worlds mangrove forest resources and their benefit to people; describes the current status, points out the main causes of the destruction of these forests, presents proposals for protecting mangrove forests, and discusses international cooperation in protecting the world’s mangrove forests.
基金Supported by the Funding Project of Guizhou Tobacco Monopoly Bureau(201011)~~
文摘In order to identify and check the adaptability of new flue-cured tobacco variety of Guiyan 2 to soil, cultivation and curing conditions and its utility value in production in Qianxinan Prefecture ecological areas, a comparative trail with the leading cultivar Yunyan 97 as the control(CK) was made according to the regulations of local characteristic and high-quality tobacco production. The experimental results showed that Guiyan 2 had moderate growth duration after transplant, strong field growing power, good uniformity and good agronomic traits; moreover, its yield,production value and rate of first-class tobacco were respectively higher than these of CK by 349.2 kg/hm^2, 4746.3 yuan/hm^2 and 6%, while its average price and grade index were respectively lower than these of CK by 1.13 yuan/kg and 0.06;Guiyan 2 also had the advantages of appropriate intrinsic chemical component content and proportion, as well as better curing characteristics, and it got generally better evaluation from tobacco growers, indicating that Guiyan 2 had a better potential to generalize.
文摘This article is based on traditionally intrinsic value assessment model. We employed the assumption on the differences in future increase rates of companies, taking into account of the expected Economic Value Added (EVA) discount and the capital investment, to establish a high increase model, a two-stage EVA discount model and a three-stage EVA discount model for the intrinsic value assessment. Those models eliminate the great fluctuation of free cash flow in calculating the capital expenditure by setting aside the cash flow of the company’s investment in the year and considering only the capital cost. This method needs only to assess the EVA flow in different year in probing the intrinsic value of a company, thus give more consistent conclusion than conventional methods.
文摘Boswellia sacra from Burseraceae family, grows is limited and the land unsuitable for traditional agriculture wild in dry hot lands of southern part of Oman (Dhofar), where the water purpose. Boswellia sacra is a multipurpose tree, but more famous for its high value olibanum. The olibanum is used for ritual and in church ceremonies worldwide, traditional medicines, pharmaceutical, perfumery, cosmetics, chewing, painting, food flavouring. In addition to this, the species has other numerous environmental, historical, and socio-economical benefits. This study is based on literature reviews, and on the interview local people, as well as on personal field experiences. The objective is to introduce the importance of the species and to study the native habitats, the distribution, and the harvesting techniques. The soil is carbonitic, isohypertherrnic, lithic torriothent, poor in mineral elements. The olibanum produces when the tree tapped by making a thin vertical slicing into the tree trunk. Initial size should be about 18 cm2 (3 × 6 cm) and 1-2 mm in depth and the diameter tree trunk should be not less than 10 cm. Tree tapping should be stopped 2-3 weeks before the rain season. The method of tree tapping and olibanum collection need to be revised for long-term tree protection.