<p>Den här studien har ett tudelat syfte där huvuddelen utreder vilka behov och syften två svenska möbelföretag har i att kommunicera produkters miljöprestanda idag. Delsyftet i studien var att se om de studerade företagen har användning för miljödeklarationer för sina syften och behov i produktkommunikationen. För att samla in empiri användes kvalitativa intervjuer. Utifrån en kategorisering av resultatet kunde materialet diskuteras tillsammans med utvalda kommunikativa begrepp samt rådande forskning som behandlar miljödeklarationen och relaterade ämnens koppling till kommunikation.</p><p>Av diskussionen framgick att företagen kommunicerar produkter främst utefter krav som ställs från kunden. Syftena med produktkommunikationen är att sändarna i kommunikationsprocessen förmedlar budskapet om bra produkter som framställs ur ett helhetsperspektiv på miljöarbetet. Idag kommuniceras produkterna främst genom den allmänna marknadsföringen såsom hemsida och försäljare, men även reaktivt via miljödeklarationer. Om möbelföretagen definierar målgrupperna och kundernas kompetens i kommunikationsprocessen kan framtida användning av miljödeklarationen bli effektiv.</p><p>Studien visar slutligen att miljödeklarationen, som kommunikationsverktyg för produkters miljöprestanda, skulle kunna fungera kompletterande till möbelföretagens rådande marknadsföring och således infria de krav som ställs.</p>

<p>Eutrophication is an increasing problem in the Baltic Sea and is caused by an excess of nutrients in the water which are primarily transported with the runoff from cultivated land. The peninsula Vikbolandet in Östergötland is dominated by arable land and has stream outflows to the bays of Bråviken and Slätbaken. In this study five streams of Vikbolandet have been sampled during the spring flood period with the aim of connecting concentrations of nutrients in the streams with turbidity and runoff in the catchment. This analysis has then been related to the land use in the small catchment of Vadsbäcken in order to investigate the impact of land uses with areal losses of phosphorus. The results indicate that there are increasing concentrations of phosphorus downstream in the sites of Vadsbäcken and that the transported amounts of phosphorus increases with the spring flood and at a rainstorm event. It is shown that the distribution of agricultural blocks in the catchment of Vadsbäcken has a major impact on the nutrient leakage. There is a co-variation between turbidity and runoff during a rainstorm event and between particulate-bound phosphorus and runoff over time. A further aim has been to investigate possibilities for use of an easily managed, cost-effective environmental monitoring method for nutrient measurements in watercourses. Within four out of five streams at Vikbolandet there is a significant co-variation between turbidity and total phosphorus. Using field measurements of turbidity for environmental monitoring could provide a viable alternative for environmental monitoring of watercourses but will need further investigations of co-variation before being brought into use. Further, this study shows that the transport of phosphorus is underestimated in environmental monitoring</p>

<p>In this thesis, several national methods used for investigating and/or assessing potentially contaminated sites have been analysed from a sustainable development perspective. To add a practical perspective to the analysis, a case study of the Swedish method’s initial site investigation was performed. The aim was to see how the national methods take the sustainable development aspects into consideration and based on the results see which method that would be most suitable when working towards sustainable development. The results showed that the methods do take the aspects of sustainable development into consideration. Based on how the aspects were taken into consideration, the methods used in the United Kingdom (England and Wales) and Norway are considered to be the most suitable when working towards sustainable development. The case study showed that differences between the theoretical and practical work can be found, and that the economic aspect in particular is given more priority in praxis.</p>

<p>I dagens samhälle finns det en stor variation på golv och golvmaterial. Till dessa finns det en stor variation av de produkter och metoder som används för att hålla dessa golv funktionsdugliga. Samtliga golv och produkter ger upphov till miljöpåverkan av olika storlek och sort.</p><p>Denna studie är skriven på uppdrag av avdelningen för industriell miljöteknik, Institutionen för ekonomisk och industriell utveckling (IEI) Linköpings Universitet, som vill veta vilken miljöpåverkan Twister™-metoden har. Detta sker genom en livscykelanalys.</p><p>En livscykelanalys ställer en produkt eller tjänst miljöpåverkan utifrån helhetsperspektiv innefattande materialframställning, tillverkning, användning och resthantering. Som hjälp i denna studie har programvaran SimaPro 7.0 använts vari metoden Eco-indikator 99 valts.</p><p>I studien ställs Twister™-metoden mot andra golvvårdsmetoder innefattande polish och vax. I analysen sker även en nedbrytning av Twister™-metoden likväl en nedbrytning av den Twister™-rondell som HTC Sweden AB tillverkar.</p><p>Resultatet visar att den del av Twister™-metoden som har störst miljöpåverkan är den skurmaskin som används och den energianvändning som Twister™-metoden kräver. Resultatet visar även att Twister™-metoden har signifikant lägre miljöpåverkan än de andra golvvårdsmetoderna polish och vax. De delar av Twister™-rondellen som har störst miljöpåverkan är de industridiamanter och den rondell, som Twister™-rondellen består av.</p>

<p>Diverting urine from faeces or mixed wastewater and reusing it to fertilize crops, is a traditional method used in Asia. It is also a contemporary approach to sustainable nutrient and water management in Scandinavia and other parts of Europe. Urine diversion and reuse is a proven socio-technical system that has significant potential benefits on both a local and global scale, such as recirculating scarce plant nutrients like phosphorus back to agriculture, reducing eutrophication of waterways and improving water and sanitation systems. This thesis explores the nature of these benefits in Australia and the global context and what barriers would need to be overcome if a urine diversion and reuse system were implemented in Australia to achieve significant environmental benefits. These questions are investigated through stakeholder interviews in Sweden, to identify the ‘lessons learnt’ from the Swedish experience with urine diversion and reuse, and, through interviews with relevant stakeholders in Australia to identify possible barriers and opportunities, costs and benefits, and roles and responsibilities in the Australian context. Findings from both the stakeholder interviews are triangulated with other sources of knowledge, such as the literature, personal communications and a qualitative assessment of costs and benefits.</p><p>This thesis found that while urine diversion is likely to benefit the Australia situation and warrants further research, these benefits are fragmented and spread across a range of discourses and separate institutions. Its acceptance and effective introduction into Australia might therefore be challenged by its lack of a single obvious organisational home. To overcome this and other identified challenges, several recommendations are made. For example, an Australian demonstration trial of urine diversion and reuse is recommended where clear drivers and opportunities exist, such as: in new developments adjacent to agricultural land; in regions where algal blooms are a critical problem and are predominantly caused by municipal sewage discharges; and where synergies with waterless urinals are being considered for water conservation value. This thesis does not promote urine diversion and reuse as the ‘silver bullet’ to Australia’s water and nutrient problems, however it does recommend that it be considered on an equal basis next to other possible options. For example, if reducing nutrient loads on receiving water bodies is a key objective, then a cost-effective analysis of urine diversion and reuse, compared to other options to reduce nutrient loads, could be undertaken, ensuring all relevant costs and benefits to the whole of society are included in the analysis.</p>

<p>The Hull Street Integrated Housing Project, in Kimberley, is one of the projects supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, Sida, in South Africa. The vision of the</p><p>project is to provide low cost housing for the people of Kimberley. As a way of ensuring sustainability, the project adopts the Ecological sanitation (Ecosan) approach where urine and</p><p>faeces are separated from the source.</p><p>The concept of Ecosan is new to many people around the world. To make the concept workable and acceptable effective implementation strategies are required.</p><p>At the Hull Street, after the first of the four phases 144 unit houses have been completed all fitted</p><p>with the UDS. Urine from the UDS as well as the greywater from the kitchen and bathroom are connected to infiltrate into the ground. This arrangement is called the “quick-fix”. The faeces from</p><p>the houses are sent to the compost yard for composting so that the residents could use the compost in their gardens.</p><p>This study which involves interview with some selected workers and residents in Hull Street</p><p>focuses on the modus operandi of the Ecosan unit of the Hull Street project with special emphasis on the methods of human excreta disposal and education strategies.</p>

In many mining regions of the world, pollution of surface water and groundwater by drainage water originating from mines aiming waste poses either a serious threat to the environment, or a severe environmental problem. During the last two and a half decades, treatment of mine drainage water in constructed and natural wetlands has emerged as an alternative to more conventional methods to handle the problem. In this thesis, the major biogeochemical processes behind metal immobilization in wetlands are summarized. Factors that influence the efficiency and longevity of these processes are discussed based on a review of previous experiences from wetlands exposed to mine drainage waters. The potential for successful treatment is largely determined by the characteristics of the drainage, the morphology of the wetland, and the degree of maintenance planned. In maintenance-free wetland, factors that have to be considered include: changes in drainage water production and wetland performance over the years, the total metal accumulating capacity of the wetland, and the post treatment integrity of the wetland. Results from a case study indicated that no or little immobilization of metals occured in natural wetlands situated along a mining region recipient (the river Vormbäcken, northern Sweden). However, Fe supplied from the catchment area appeared to favor the fraction of As, Cu, and Pb recovered in particles, a mechanism that could be of interest for the polishing of treated mine drainage waters, especially when combined with settling in a downstream wetland. Laboratory experiments showed that such a process is likely to be favored by addition of Fe in its ferrous form, higher water temperatures, presence of Ca, and absence of dissolved organic matter.

This thesis is not intended to be an indictment of our leaders — well, not entirely, anyway. This thesis is meant to be an exercise in listening. I talked to a lot of people on every side of this issue, and tried hard to listen. I obviously have my biases, but I did my best to understand where everyone was coming from. I tried to evaluate groups instead of individuals as participants in this issue. My interviewees were requested to express views on behalf of the community group to which they belonged. I tried to find the opinions that best defined the majority of each group. Sometimes these came from resolutions, sometimes surveys, and other times analyses of local newspaper letters. In writing this up, I hoped to express the the voices I heard from a common ground. It seems that we've let our voices become antagonistic — that we've lost the will to embrace new opinions and engage in debate. I hope that people reading this might listen to the voices that are speaking — understand where they come from instead of preparing a rebuttal of their opinions. Consider our own actions and how they affect the situation. Think about whether we’re prepared to let this battle divide our community into the dreamers who get their way and those who don’t — or if we are ready to listen to one another, offer compromises, and do what really benefits this community the most. This thesis is an effort to explore different perspectives on a common issue and document the voices that have been cast aside and ignored. I originally wanted to speak for the Bernard Field Station, because I wasn’t sure how much longer it would be around to speak for itself. But I now realized it is futile. If you are willing to listen, the place speaks for itself ... and the story it tells is remarkable.

Due to its high levels of concern and awareness of environmental issues, rural character, and sparse population, Vermont would at first glance appear to possess the ideal recipe to become a national leader in renewable energy development. Renewable initiatives have focused primarily on wind energy, as over a dozen wind farms have been proposed in the last few years across the state. However, in spite of the widely held belief in Vermont’s wind energy future, its proponents have run into vehement opposition at every proposed site, often successfully impeding the planned developments. This report develops a wide-level framework of the motivations of and complaints presented by wind opposition groups around the state, followed by an analysis of opposition strategies commonly employed. These are contrasted with the tactics used by wind developers and their supporters to remediate or overcome this opposition. Next, this essay will offer a view of the state and local institutional settings in which these battles take place, and finally conclude with a brief analysis of various alternatives to utility-scale wind, offering suggestions for wind’s role in the future of energy in Vermont.

<p>This thesis focused on testing the suitability of reactive filter media used for phosphorus (P) removal from wastewater as fertilizers, thus recycling P to agriculture. The work compared the P sorption capacity of several materials in order to assess their suitability as a source of P for plants. The selected materials (Filtra P, Polonite and wollastonite) were saturated with P and used as soil amendments in a pot experiment. The amendments tended to improve the yield of barley and ryegrass compared with no P addition. The amendments also increased soil pH, P availability and cation exchange capacity in the studied soils. The substrates studied here can be of particular interest for acid soils. Of the materials studied, Polonite appears to be the most suitable substrate for the recycling of P from wastewater to agriculture</p>