This thesis focuses on local water institutions and practical management arrangements in North West Thailand through the lens of governance in order to begin to establish how the transition to more sustainable water management might be undertaken. Adaptive governance is advanced as a potent means of delivering more sustainable management by providing the flexibility and adaptability to respond to abrupt environmental change, while enhancing participatory and learning opportunities for stakeholders. Insights from the literature on socio-spatial relations are employed to compliment the use of governance concepts by providing insight into the territorial organization of water supply and delivery within the study area, specifically the all-important role of space and socio-spatial relations on day-to-day water management. Data collection methods comprised: (i) 192 face-to-face in-depth semi-structured interviews with key actors; (ii) 20 questionnaires distributed to actors from Joint Management Committee for Irrigation (JMC); (iii) four group discussions with actors from a state-led irrigation project; and (iv) 20 remote interviews with four administrator groups. The analysis identifies the importance of ‘middle ground’ organization as a strategic policy goal to encourage more sustainable water management, set against the pragmatic reality of escalating future demand for water from multiple users at different levels and scales.

A new meteorological research station has been established and set up in the Solar Energy Laboratory which measures solar radiation (total and diffuse) on a horizontal surface, ambient air temperature, wind speed and wind direction. An inexpensive data logger based on an APPLE II microcomputer was designed and built. This data logger was used for more than 21 months and provided processed data for transcribing onto a main frame computer. A microdata (M1600L) microprocessor based automatic data logger was used later for the continuous monitoring of measured parameters. Four years of monitored data were used for analysis. Two mathematical models have been developed for the estimation of both total and diffuse solar radiation on a horizontal surface from different meteorological parameters. Several mathematical models developed by others were used to relate solar radiation and meteorological parameters measured in Birmingham. The results of these were compared, analysed and the best six were identified. The best models were tested and evaluated with (a) Birmingham data, (b) data from nine different sites in Europe. The best results show that the Birmingham models give the best estimation for total and diffuse solar radiation. The work reported here forms part of a continuous project of the Solar Energy Laboratory in meteorological research applied to solar energy utilization.

The work conducted in this thesis examines the potential for emissions of flame retardants (FRs) from a range of treated end-of-life materials during and following disposal. A series of standardised leaching experiments were developed and conducted to study FR leaching from a range of waste flame retarded products, including: textiles, EPS and XPS building insulation foams, cathode-ray tube plastics and polyurethane furniture foams (PUF). The leaching tests were conducted using a range of leaching fluids, with the view of simulating the characteristics of real landfill leachates. A number of different test parameters were examined, such as a variety of dissolved humic matter concentrations, landfill relevant pHs between 5.8 and 8.5, landfill relevant temperatures, the effect of agitation, contact durations and longer term cycles of periodic wetting and draining of waste. It is apparent from these experiments that despite the relatively hydrophobic physicochemical properties of brominated FRs (BFRs), they are able to leach from waste materials at substantial concentrations. Concentrations of ƩPBDEs (polybrominated diphenyl ethers) in the leachate from the leaching experiments in this study ranged from 14,000 – 200,000 ng L-1, while concentrations of ƩHBCDD (hexabromocyclododecane) ranged from 170 ng L-1 – 13,000 ng L-1 in textile leaching experiments and from 13,000 ng L-1 – 4,200,000 ng L-1 in building insulation foam experiments. BFR leaching appears to be a second order process, whereby a period of initially intense dissolution of more labile BFR is followed by a slower stage corresponding to external diffusion of the soluble residue in the material. Tris (chloroisopropyl) phosphate (TCIPP) is more readily soluble in water than the BFRs studied, and leaching of TCIPP from PUF appears to be a first order process. Concentrations of TCIPP in the leachate from the leaching experiments in this study ranged from 13 mg L-1 – 130 mg L-1. In serial batch leaching experiments, >95 % of TCIPP was depleted from the flexible PUF after the sixth batch (168 h total contact). Hence, leaching is potentially a very significant pathway for TCIPP emissions to the environment. A small survey of waste soft furnishings from a variety of UK domestic and office locations was also conducted, to help determine the total FR content entering the UK waste stream as a result of the disposal of soft furnishings. The predominant FR detected was TCIPP. Closed test chamber experiments investigating the effect of temperature on volatilisation of TCIPP from polyurethane foam were conducted. These experiments show volatilisation of TCIPP from PUF to increase exponentially with temperature and to constitute an additional potentially significant pathway for emissions from UK MSW landfills, with TCIPP emissions via volatilisation from landfilled PUF estimated to range between ~200 and ~3,800 tonnes yr-1.

Literature on the integration of cross-cutting issues, or policy integration, has given little attention to how policy-making processes allow for policy integration as well as present barriers. There is also little evidence of how sectoral ministries respond to crosscutting issues and in what way they are affected by pressure to address such issues, including those promoted by ‘competing’ agencies. Climate change presents a significant and important issue for integration into many areas of public policy. Many government ministries and departments are tasked with responding to climate change mitigation and adaptation objectives. Forestry is a key sector in building a response to climate change and so an investigation into how policy-makers and policy-making processes have responded to climate change can shed light on the integration of cross-cutting issues. The thesis reports on investigation into how the Ministry of Forestry, Indonesia, has responded to climate change and into the organisational arrangements developed in the response to climate change. The research developed an innovative framework for the analysis of policy integration, generating conclusions in relation to the policy process, organisational arrangements and the influence of key actors, including policy champions and boundary spanners.

The global incidence of allergic reaction has been rising for years, especially within westernised urban areas. There is evidence that the interaction between pollen grains, environmental pollution and meteorological change is increasing the allergenicity of the pollen grain and consequently, increasing the misery of hay fever sufferers. Laboratory experiments have shown that the interaction of pollen with atmospheric oxidants such as ozone and nitrogen dioxide NO₂ can alter protein molecules that are present within the pollen grains via post-translational modification of the protein. Within the laboratory, birch pollen was exposed to atmospherically relevant exposures of gas phase NO₂ and ozone under a range of environmentally relevant conditions (temperature and relative humidity RH). The effects of the exposures on the biochemistry of the pollen grains were probed using proteomic approach. The morphological changes of unexposed and exposed pollen samples to RH, rainwater and NO₂, where observed under fluorescence microscopy and scanning electron microscope. The discoveries suggest that interaction between gas pollutants and pollen do exist and cause protein specific modifications; nitration. Detailed analysis of London Ambulance data compared to London temperature data is presented. The relationships established will allow for prediction of likely changes in ambulance demand (and illness types) that will be caused by seasonal temperature changes, increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, due to climate change, in the future. The study applied statistical analyses to examine short-term associations between birch pollen count with allergic related illnesses recorded in the London Ambulance data, temperature and NO₂.

Reactive groundwater contaminant transport is dependent upon hydraulic and geochemical property distributions. The aim of this research was to determine, for an example fluvial sandstone: (i) the degree of correlation between geochemical property values and lithofacies (LFs); and (ii) the effect of the correlations on reactive solute transport. A 60 m core from the carbonate-cemented, red-bed Triassic Sherwood Sandstone Group was examined. Five fluvial LFs were identified, in fining upwards cycles from a channel lag sandstone (LF5) to a low energy mudstone (LF1). The main geochemical properties investigated were carbonate content, oxide content, sorption capacity, cation exchange capacity (CEC) and selectivity coefficient; Surface area and colour were also studied. There is a clear distinction in carbonate content, CEC, selectivity coefficient and Fe and Mn oxide content between LF1 and LF2, the ‘mud’ LFs, and the matrix of LF3, LF4 and LF5, the ‘sand’ LFs. In addition, the pellets change the bulk geochemical properties of the sand LF units. Modelling indicated that the pellets can affect solute mobility significantly. Selectivity coefficients show a possible depth zoning. Distribution parameter values obtained characterize the sequence for geochemical modelling and uncertainty estimation. Oxide coating thickness was estimated at about 100nm. CEC was found to be well-correlated with surface area. Colour/Fe/Mn content correlations suggest a possibility in future to use colour logging to indicate oxide content and possibly even surface area and CEC. As the sequence examined appears typical of many red-bed fluvial sequences, it is suggested that the findings may also be typical of other similar continental sandstones.

In the 1960s, Seyyed Hossein Nasr was the first to articulate in contemporary language the vision of an Islamic environmentalism. Ever since, in a number of articles and interviews Nasr has elaborated his vision further. As the ultimate solution to the environmental crisis, he has persistently argued the need to substitute the prevalent scientific worldview with a religious worldview. However, there has not been any systematic and comprehensive presentation of Nasr’s approach that discusses his ideas in the context of the intellectual currents which have shaped his thought. This thesis attempts to address the gaps in the presentation of Nasr’s religious perspectives on environmentalism. The research has been guided by two questions: 1) what do we need to know to best appreciate Nasr’s vision? And 2) how does Nasr’s vision adhere to traditional Islamic thought? The thesis has demonstrated that Nasr’s arguments are rooted in metaphysical principles of reality, found in the perennial philosophy as well as in traditional Islamic metaphysics, Sufism, philosophy and sciences, as represented by the key authorities of those areas. The thesis hopefully contributes to scholarship in an important dimension of Islamic environmentalism and on the environmental aspects of the relevant intellectual currents.

This research explored the gender dimension of energy poverty in rural Bangladesh. Women’s energy poverty in their everyday lives was investigated and its effects compared with men’s experience. The research also scrutinised whether energy poverty was derived from or reinforced by energy injustice, and explored whether energy poverty has any relationship with the economic situation of women. A qualitative research approach was used, consisting of in depth interviews and observation methods. The research revealed that women’s ‘energy profile’ is not the same as men living in the same household and that they are more affected than men by energy poverty. It also discovered that women’s energy poverty is reinforced due to a lack of ‘energy justice’. All three components of energy justice (distributional justice, justice as recognition and procedural justice) are deficient regarding women in this area. It also found that women’s ability to contribute to the household’s ability to purchase energy can improve their participation in energy decisions at the household level; however, the absence of modern fuel and a reliable power supply, together with patriarchal societal arrangements, restricts women’s opportunity to earn an income. Recommendations for improving the energy situation of women in rural Bangladesh are made.

This thesis argues that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is in a unique position to advance environmental norms but that it does not. Reasons for this situation are analysed and, ultimately, a biocentric natural law philosophy is presented to address the deficiencies of the Court's environmental protection. To construct this argument the thesis demonstrates that it is not unreasonable to assume that the Court’s decision-making may embody a tacit philosophy. Notions of environmental duty and the traditions of thought they may be based upon are explored to understand this. Changing conceptions of the place of humans in the world and related notions of responsibility are shown to culminate in morally neutral utilitarianism, which removed all that had limited a ruinous environmental regard. Modern environmental philosophical perspectives must be characterised as movements to different extents, away from utilitarian thinking. ICJ case analysis is conducted against these perspectives, where it is found that the Court is inconsistent and hesitant to articulate the content and status of principles of international environmental law. In response, the thesis sketches a biocentric perspective based on natural law. To conclude the thesis considers what it would take for the ICJ to develop a biocentric legal doctrine.

China has been the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the absolute terms since 2008. Yet the pivotal drivers and key factors in its climate policymaking are still much under‐researched. In particular, little attention has been given to developing theoretical models to account for and to explain the evolution of Chinese climate change policy. This study directly addresses this gap in the climate change literature. Firstly, the study identifies the key domestic drivers and factors in Chinese climate policies using social evolution theory, which incorporates facets of institutionalism and elite theory in order to explain the evolution of Chinese climate change policy by direct reference to its highly dynamic socio‐economic circumstances. Secondly, this study uses these social evolutionary insights to inform interviews with 11 key climate policymakers situated at the highest levels within the Chinese Communist Party and the climate policymaking organisations. Respondents’ verbatim comments are analysed using NVivo software to critically assess the validity of social evolutionary analysis conducted in the first part of the thesis. Not only does this provide a vital means of empirical confirmation, it also directly contributes to the very scarce body of academic work on Chinese political elite interviewing. Thirdly, the analysis builds on this domestic level analysis to examine the extent to which social evolutionary theory might be used to understand and explain Chinese climate policies. Implications are discussed to inform future domestic and international climate policymaking and global cooperation on addressing climate change.