The thesis understands biodiversity as a complex consisting of a form of environmentalism, a mode of governance for the global South, and a set of policy prescriptions all mobilized by the guiding idea of ‘genetic gold,’ the belief that biodiversity possesses significant latent economic value. The thesis primarily analyses the historical origins of biodiversity and the formation of a rationality of governing centred on genetic gold, deploying tools and methods from the work of Michel Foucault. It further applies these insights into the examination of two specific regulatory mechanisms developed within this project of environmental governance: the mechanism for securing access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their utilisation, and local and indigenous community participation in biodiversity conservation and utilisation. The aim of this research is a dual critique. First, the unpacking of the complexity of the biodiversity concept and its integrative rendering of biodiversity loss as a governance problem constitutes a critique of environmental law’s enthusiastic acceptance and subsequent regulation of biodiversity as genetic gold. Secondly, the conception of a broader governance complex pervaded by non-legal forms of knowledge, expertise and practices challenges an international environmental law that continues to regard itself as the instrumental centre of environmental concern and discourse.

This thesis is concerned with the application of stated preference methods to non-market valuation problems. It reviews the literature on the state of the art of the method, and applies the techniques to three applications in the water sector. In the first application, estimates are presented of the value to households in England and Wales of improvements to the quality of water in the natural environment. The need for value estimates arises from the European Community Water Framework Directive, which drives water policy across the European Union. Area based values were generated to maximise the potential for subsequent policy incorporation and value transfer. These were found to vary from £2,263 to £39,168 per km 2 depending on the population density around the location of the improvement, the ecological scope of that improvement, and the value elicitation method employed. The second application investigates the cost of drought water use restrictions to households and businesses in London. Estimates of willingness to pay for service quality increments often play an important role in the decisions of regulators and regulated companies in industries where consumers have little opportunity to exercise their preferences for service quality. The estimates presented in this chapter are particularly applicable to regulatory appraisals of water company investment expenditure and to planning applications for projects to improve the resilience of urban water supply systems. The final application examines the reliability of values measured before an economic downturn for application during the downturn via analysis of near identical surveys conducted before, and during, the 2008-2010 economic recession. The main result is that the economic downturn led to lower willingness to pay when elicited via 5 the payment card contingent valuation method, but had no effect on values elicited via a dichotomous choice (i.e. referendum-type) contingent valuation question. Potential explanations for this finding are explored in light of the literature on closed-ended versus open-ended elicitation method comparisons.

The research for the thesis is related to the construction of long and short term pollen forecast models for Grass, Olea and Urticaceae in Albania which are the most allergenic taxa in this country. Aerobiology, which is the study of organic particles (bacteria, fungal spores, pollen, small insects) passively transported by the air [Spieksma, 1991], has received very little attention in Albania. The research represents a major advance as it is the first work of this kind in this country. The aims of the research were to investigate the features of the pollen seasons for the mentioned taxa as well as establishing relationships between these features and the main controlling weather variables. The achievement of these aims provided the basis for a further aim of the research which was to construct the long and short term forecasts for Grass, Olea and Urticaceae. Also the research investigated the possibility of constructing short term forecasts for the mentioned taxa on the non-rainy days. The data used for the research were pollen data and meteorological data from Tirana city in the period 1995-2004. It was not possible to have data from the years 1997 and 1999, 2000, 2001 due to practical problems. The meteorological data for the research were obtained from the Meteorological Institute in Tirana. In order to investigate the pollen season features, the pollen season for Grass and Urticaceae were divided into three periods, the pre peak, peak and post-peak since the behavior of the pollen seasonal variation curve differs according to the phases. The Olea pollen season is very short lasting for no more than 40 days so this was divided in two periods namely pre-peak and peak. An important outcome of the research was also the production of a pollen calendar for the main allergenic taxa based on five years of data. The pollen calendar will be useful for allergists and the general public. A lot of meteorological variables were used in the empirical analysis (correlation and regression analysis) in order to investigate which of the weather parameters give most explanation of the features of the pollen season. A number of variables were examined for possible inclusion in the linear regression analysis. The variables were selected after reviewing previous research on the effects of meteorological variables on the production of pollen from the three taxa. Linear regression was used to construct the long term forecasts for Grass, Olea and Urticaceae while multiple regression analyses were used for the construction of the short term forecasts. The forecasts obtained were able to forecast with an accuracy from 50-85% for Grass, Olea and Urticaceae. The models obtained for the non-rainy days were successful for Olea in the pre-peak period. No rainfall was recorded during the peak period. Also the Urticaceae models for the non rainy days were accurate only for the pre and peak period. Neural networks were used as an alternative method to the regression analysis for Grass, Olea and Urticaceae and were very accurate. This method was able to forecast the daily variations of the mentioned taxa as a whole season as well as pre and post peak period. It also increased the accuracy to 96% to forecast the daily variations for the Olea in the prepeak period and 82% in the post-peak period. The accuracy achieved for Urticaceae was 98% in the pre-peak period and 95% in the post-peak and whole pollen season respectively. The skills gained and the forecast models that were constructed through this research will enable Aerobiology to be established in Albania as a scientific discipline. The work will allow the creation of a network pollen system similar to that in other European countries. The results will be for use for the public, for doctors, pharmacists and related bodies. The acquisition of more pollen data through the continuous monitoring sites in Albania will enable the constructed forecast models to be updated.

Our understanding of phosphorus (P) transfer is limited by a lack of available data with which to investigate the effects of scale. To rectify this, an extensive programme of field monitoring was undertaken at ADAS Rosemaund, Herefordshire. Monitoring was carried out at the hillslope patch (37 m to 111 m), the hillslope/field (1.9 to 3.7 ha) and the catchment (30.6 ha) scales, which were nested where possible and designed to ensure connectivity between scales. Twenty-eight hydrological events were monitored within the 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 hydrological years for discharge and suspended sediment, of which six events were monitored for P. The results showed that surface runoff was relatively unimportant in P transfer within the catchment, accounting for 1% of the catchment P loads from 6% of the area, as surface runoff generation and stream connectivity were spatially limited. Drainflow was the main process of P transfer from the hillslopes, which is likely to relate to the linkage of macropores to the field drains. The influence of land management practices, particularly artificial drainage and tractor wheelings, on P transfer processes and connectivity was evident throughout the analysis. The dominant P transfer processes varied between scales; P transfer was dominated by rainfall intensity and surface runoff at the hillslope patch scale, by rainfall volume and drainflow at the hillslope/field scale, and by rainfall volume, drainflow and instream processes at the catchment scale. Despite the differences in process operation observed, the data showed strong linkages between scales, allowing empirical relationships to be developed between concentration data for the hillslope patch and hillslope/field scales, and between event characteristics for the hillslope/field and catchment scales. A conceptual model of P transfer was revised to include modifications to the processes and to show the effects of scale on P transfer in small agricultural catchments.

This thesis looks at the role that technical knowledge plays in the transition in industry away from pollution-intensive production methods. It uses econometric techniques and qualitative analysis to test three aspects of the relationship between knowledge and pollution-saving technological change-related outcomes, all in the context of US industry, and all with respect to conventional pollutants. The first paper observes that the level of industrial environmental R&D spending steadily declined from the late 1970s onward. Employing an estimation model with industry fixed effects, the hypothesis is tested that this decline was the result of the conditioning effect of greater flexibility in the design of the environmental policy on the environmental regulatory burden born by industry. The second paper investigates the sources of the change in SO2 intensity of electricity production undergone by electric power plants under the SO2 cap and trade program. Mixed methods including quantile regression are used to compare the effect of frontier technical knowledge on the extent of change undergone, relative to the effect of knowledge un-intensive techniques. The third paper investigates why a small number of inventions aimed at controlling pollution from automobiles turned out to be so much more technologically influential than the great majority of comparable inventions, which exerted very little technological influence at all. Negative binomial regression is used to test the effect of the composition of the stock of knowledge that the automobile companies brought to bear on the inventive process. These studies find that pollution-saving technological change is characterised more by the repurposing and adaptation of existing knowledge and by the churn among existing technologies, than by universal technological advance in dedicated environmental technologies. The implications for climate mitigation policy are discussed in the conclusions.

Helm (2008) asked: 'Climate change policy: why has so little been achieved?' Cultural Theory (CT) has been used to analyse the debate over climate change, arguing that competing worldviews mandate divergent policy responses (Rayner & Malone 1998). CT's framework suggests the monolithic structure of the UNFCCC process fails to integrate these multiple worldviews, hindering effective action. This thesis uses a complementary framework, Fiske's (1992) Relational Model's Theory (RMT). Whereas CT analyses the debate at the societal level, RMT proposes a framework of individual social cognition comprising four models of social exchange: 'Equality Matching', based upon reciprocity; 'Communal Sharing', based on equal entitlement within a community; 'Authority Ranking', based upon established status; and 'Market Pricing', based on an external currency of merit. RMT implies that the relational models found in individual cognition should be mirrored in any debate at the societal and inter-personal levels. Content analyses of media articles and focus group interviews support the view that there are four coherent Standpoints matching these relational models in the debate. Survey respondents who believe in climate change used different models from those who did not, but survey evidence also gave support to the view that individuals use multiple models to reason over novel or contested issues such as climate change. CT explicitly argues that one of the four hypothesised worldviews, the 'fatalist', is not active in shaping policy. In contrast, these empirical studies suggest that the closest equivalent relational model, Equality Matching, generates the Commons Dilemma (Hardin, 1968) that actually drives much of the debate. The studies also raised new questions about the structure connecting the four relational models, or the worldviews. Lastly, the framework confirms it will be difficult to get concerted action before climate change impacts intensify, at which point social as well as climate thresholds will have been crossed.

The tropospheric composition of organohalogens and alkyl nitrates have been investigated from tropical and temperate environments. Ground based measurements and aircraft data are presented from the Oxidant and Particle Photochemical Processes (OP3) project, conducted in Borneo, 2008. Controlled experiments of temperate vegetation were also conducted to assess the emission of methyl halides from crop plants. Methyl halide results from OP3 contradict current assumptions of a strong source from tropical vegetation. High mixing ratios of methyl chloride and chloroform were observed in the boundary layer over oil palm plantations. OP3 aircraft data suggests that the oil palm plantations facilitate the formation of C2 to C4 alkyl nitrates. There was evidence that the southeast coast of Sabah is a source region for the bromocarbons measured. The short lived bromocarbons contribute to a bromine budget of 4- 6 ppt; this corroborates recent modelling estimates of their contribution to the stratospheric burden. In controlled experiments it was confirmed that the gene responsible for the emission of methyl halides is the HOL (HARMLESS TO THE OZONE LAYER) gene. The current WMO estimate for rapeseed contribution to the natural methyl bromide budget was shown to be an overestimate, based on the varieties studied in this thesis. Methyl iodide emissions from rice plants grown in soils were observed to be significantly lower than reported from rice paddies in the literature, suggesting that the growth conditions contribute to the production of methyl iodide.

International trade adds a thick layer of complexity to climate change mitigation efforts. Questions such as “Who is responsible for the emissions from China’s export sectors?” and “Will strengthening domestic climate policy measures lead to relocation of industry and emissions to countries with lax regulation?” are intensely discussed, both in policy and academic circles. Robust evidence on these issues remains limited, however. Many studies have quantified the volumes of embodied carbon in international trade using complex models, but the results appear very sensitive to the model specification, and conflicting results are reported across different studies. Similarly, the evidence on trade impacts from emissions reduction policies has so far relied largely on model simulations. This thesis combines two strands of work. The first part focuses on embodied carbon quantification. It critically reviews and compares the results and methods of existing work then goes on to conduct a first quantification exercise of global embodied carbon in bilateral trade at the product level. The second part measures the response of bilateral trade to industrial energy prices. It estimates the effect of energy price differences on bilateral trade flows, using a panel dataset covering over 80% of global merchandise trade over 16 years. These estimations are used to infer the effect of carbon price differences on trade. The first part reveals a complex mapping of global embodied carbon flows, contrary to the simplified picture portrayed by previous studies using aggregated models. Embodied carbon is found to be particularly concentrated in certain products and in regional trade. It suggests that rather viewing it as an Annex I vs non Annex I issue, grouping countries according to patterns of production and consumption may be more relevant in discussions surrounding climate policy and trade. The second part of the thesis finds evidence that trade tends to develop more between countries with different energy prices. However, this effect is small in magnitude and focused on a few sectors. The findings suggest that measures to ’prevent’ carbon leakage may have limited impact on most sectors, and should be targeted to those most likely to face adverse trade impacts.

Field, experimental and theoretical investigations have been carried out into the electrification of volcanic plumes. At Sakurajima volcano, Japan, ground-level perturbations of the atmospheric electric potential gradient generated by particulate plumes were recorded. Simultaneous measurements, made at up to five sites around the volcano, are shown to be capable of detecting even very small quantities of volcanic particles, and tracking a continuously produced (over a period of several hours), dilute plume as it was dispersed by the wind. Data collected during one small Vulcanian eruption suggest that charges, about 1 C in magnitude, were generated and then separated, with the positive charge centre residing above the negative charge centre. Experiments have been carried out in order to assess fracto-emission (the release of ions, neutral atoms and various frequencies of electromagnetic radiation from fracture surfaces) as a charging mechanism for the electrification of silicate particles in plumes. Silicate particles, generally less than 100 µm in diameter, were produced by colliding pumice samples together and were shown to have net specific charges of approximately 10-5 to 10-6 C kg-1 (similar to previous field measurements on ashfall). Most (but not all) of the experimental samples produced net negatively charged ash, and demonstrated a positive-above-negative charge separation. Additional charge thought to have been released in the form of ions was also detected, supporting fracto-emission as the charging mechanism for volcanic plumes. The magnitude of the net ash charge is shown to be a function of the particle size, with relative humidity having only a small effect. The polarity of the net charge appears to be a function of a property of individual pumice types, possibly their geochemistry. Experiments during which the particles were separated by their polarity indicate that the net charges reflect only a small imbalance in much larger, individual particle charges (10-3 C kg-1) of both polarities. The particle charges are shown to vary with the sample impact velocity, the number of impacts carried out within an experiment and, to a lesser degree, relative humidity. Variation within the results appears to be partly an effect of particle aggregation within the experiment. Investigation of any effects that this particle charging may have on the plumes observed on Io (one of Jupiter’s moons) suggests that luminous discharges and particle aggregation are both probable in this environment. It is shown that the distinct asymmetries observed in plumes are unlikely to be a result of electromagnetic interactions, but probably represent decompression features and asymmetric vent or crater morphologies.

This study identifies power relationships within forest conservation decision-making in Nova Scotia, Canada. Rather than rely on the ‘customary science’ of resource conservation largely based on biological and physical parameters, this analysis is steeped in the traditions of social science and policy analysis. This study’s central focus is the Forest Improvement Act (FIA): 1962-1986. Forest conservation policies and legislative initiatives developed prior to FIA enactment such as the Small Tree Act (STA): 1942 - 1965 are treated in this study as the FIA’s policy gestation period. Theoretical and practical insights derived from this pre-FIA period are used in the assessment of the FIA and these combined understandings are subsequently applied to the analysis of contemporary forest conservation policy. For contemporary analysis, six case studies including the Nova Scotia Envirofor process and the St. Mary’s River Landscape and Ecology Management proposal, as well as a recent provincial government initiative are examined. This study utilises a broad range of decision-making and resource management theory to tease out understandings of the particular character of the policy process. The analysis utilises various decision-making models, theories of power, and multi-agency decision making models as well as the Environmental Modernisation literature developed by Turner, O’Riordan and Weale and others. In addition to the investigative methodologies used generally throughout this study, the Envirofor and the St. Mary’s case studies employed a ‘participant observer’ approach that provided otherwise unavailable insights into these conservation initiatives. Regardless of policy content, this study shows that external forces such as woodfibre markets were key to the implementation of ground level forest conservation. Ironically, this study links the renewal of forest conservation legislation to the demand for increased forest exploitation. New forest policy initiatives were as much to do with pacifying conservation interests as they were about promoting ground level forest conservation.