Considering the prominence of green supply chain management (GrSCM) research has developed expressively in this field. However, there is a dearth of studies from emerging economies comprised of modelling and empirical testing of hypotheses. Moreover, the literature is lacking the empirical evidence on the determinants of GrSCM practices by small and medium enterprises (SMEs) especially in the case of Pakistan. The literature has yet to determine what green practices are being adopted by SMEs in Pakistan, an elucidation why GrSCM practices are adhered, what construct is appropriate to evaluate adoption of GrSCM practices by SMEs in Pakistan, and whether mediation of internal factors exits between the relationship of GrSCM practices and external pressure. This dissertation uses Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) to investigate GrSCM practices adoption, the appropriate construct for evaluating green practices, and examining three potentially important determinants in Pakistani SMEs. With the data collected in two stages from the SMEs sector of Pakistan, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) revealed a three-dimension structure for measuring the GrSCM practices. Subsequently, the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was carried out on two measurement models (i.e. first and second order) of GrSCM adoption based on EFA. The empirically outcomes advocates that both models for GrSCM adoption are valid and reliable, however the second order model has better fit indices. The SEM testing shows significant results for mediation of internal factors in the hypothesized relationship among the GrSCM practices and external pressures. For academicians and supply chain mangers these results yield several exciting theoretical and practical implications.

Accra Metropolis is the major recipient of agricultural produce in Ghana, with almost the entire population depending on rural agricultural activities for subsistence. To increase agricultural produce, various forms of pesticides are normally used in fruits and vegetable farming. The consequence is that several cases of pesticide poisoning have been observed. In this preliminary study, a field survey was carried out to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and peoples' perception concerning the use of pesticides by farmers in fruit production. The residual concentrations of selected pesticides in pawpaw, imported apples and tomato samples and the potential health risks associated with the exposure to these pesticides were also assessed. The field survey data indicated that more than 70% of the participants reported one or more poisoning upon fruits consumption resulting in pesticide-related illnesses. Pesticide residues in the various environmental samples were determined by gas chromatography with electron capture detector (GC-ECD). The results showed that, the levels of pesticide residues varied from <0.01 μg/g to as high as 0.11 μg/g depending on the pesticide monitored. The analysis of health risk estimates revealed heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, endrin aldehyde, and endrin ketone levels exceeded the reference dose, suggesting a great potential for systemic toxicity in children considered the most vulnerable population subgroup. Lastly, the public is in the know of pesticide residues in fruits and calls for the curtailing of pesticide use on fruits and vegetable production via educational programmes for farmers on control and safer use of pesticides.

Aims and Objectives: To compare three risk assessment scales with respect to predictive validity Background: In paediatrics there are several competing scales and at least ten published paediatric pressure ulcer risk assessment scales have been identified. However there are few studies exploring the validity of such scales, and none identified that compares paediatric risk assessment scales. Design: Cross sectional study Methods: Three risk assessment scales, Braden Q, Garvin and Glamorgan, were compared. The total scores and sub-scores were tested to determine if children with pressure ulcers were significantly different from those with no pressure ulcer. Logistic regression was conducted to determine if the probability of developing a pressure ulcer was a better predictor of development of pressure ulcer compared with the total score of each scale. Receiver operating characteristic curves were computed and the area under the curve used to compare the performance of the risk assessment scales. Results: Data from 236 children were collected. 71 were from children in eleven hospitals who were asked to provide data on children with pressure ulcers (although seventeen did not have a pressure ulcer) of whom five were deep (grade 4). A sample of 165 were from one hospital, of which seven had a pressure ulcer, none grade four. The Glamorgan risk assessment scale had a higher predictive ability than either the Braden Q or Garvin. The mobility sub-score of each of the risk assessment scales was the most predictive in each case. Conclusions: The Glamorgan scale is the most valid of the three paediatric risk assessment scales studied in this population. Mobility alone may be as effective as employing the more complex risk assessment scale. Relevance to clinical practice: If a paediatric risk assessment scale is employed to predict risk, then unless it is valid, it may identify children who are not at risk and waste resources, or fail to identify children at risk possibly resulting in adverse health outcomes.

In the United States, the large number of incarcerated individuals presents heavy social and economic burdens. To lessen these strains, many criminal justice agencies utilize risk assessment to determine which individuals are at a higher risk of recidivating and allocate limited intervention resources accordingly. To ensure these interventions are being delivered to those persons most in need, these risk assessment instruments must be tested for predictive validity. The present research seeks to revalidate one such risk assessment tool, the Level of Service Inventory Revised (LSI-R), on an adult offender population of a Midwest state. Additionally, this research expands on previous LSI-R validation studies by assessing the predictive validity of the LSI-R on an understudied population, Native Americans. The analyses utilized in this research include univariate descriptive statistics, bivariate correlation, and Receiver Operator Characteristic/Area Under the Curve analysis. Results are presented. Policy implications and recommendations for future research are discussed.

In this study, the formation mechanisms, distribution characteristics, and potential environmental risks of hazardous air pollutants from industrial-scale waste incineration processes were investigated. First, to clarify the dominant formation mechanism of polychlorinated dibenzo- p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) in a hazardous waste (HW) incinerator, three tests were designed by adding different precursors in phenol-containing raw materials. With the addition of p-dichlorobenzene, PCDD/F levels at the quenching tower outlet were ten times higher than levels observed at the inlet. This indicates that the quenching tower failed to suppress the formation of PCDD/Fs and surface-mediated precursor reaction is the dominant formation mechanism in low-temperature stages. Besides, adsoprtive memory effect in air pollution control devices (APCDs) also led to high PCDD/F emissions. These findings suggest that to control PCDD/F emissions, strict regulation of chlorine contents in feed materials and frequent cleaning of APCDs are necessary. Meanwhile, single particles and solid residues were collected from the same HW incinerator. Morphologies and elemental compositions of particles in flue gas and indoor air were characterized by transmission electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (TEM-EDS). Eight types of single particles were classified, as organic, soot, K-rich, S-rich, Na-rich, Fe-rich, mineral and fly ash particles. The heavy metal partitioning behavior study suggested that Hg, Cd and Pb were mainly enriched in fly ash through evaporation, condensation, and adsorption; while Cr, Cu, Mn, and Ni were mostly remained in the bottom ash due to their low volatilities. In addition, the study also investigated environmental behaviors of certain characteristic pollutants. Thrity-two soil samples surrounding a cement plant co- processing HW were collected and analyzed for the presence of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and 12 heavy metals. Ten samples were selected for PCDD/Fs analysis. The highest concentration of PCDD/Fs occurred 1200 meters downwind from the cement plant. Levels of ∑16 PAHs ranged from 130.6 to 1134.3 μg/kg in soil. Source identification analysis suggested that the cement plant was the most likely source of PAH contamination. The concentrations of Cd and Hg were on average two times and six times higher than background values, respectively. Both incremental lifetime cancer risk model (ILCR) for PAHs and potential ecological risk index (RI) for heavy metals indicate potential risks to the population and the environment surrounding the cement plant. Last, to identify whether waste incineration is a major source for airborne environmentally persistent free radicals (EPFRs), tree leaf samples were collected from 120 sites surrounding four waste incinerators and one urban area. EPFR concentrations on leaves ranged from 7.5 × 10 16 to 4.5 × 10 19 spins/g. For the 10 N.D. samples, they were all collected from areas inaccessible by vehicles. Although previous work has linked atmospheric EPFRs to waste incineration, the evidence in this study suggests that vehicle emissions, especially from heavy-duty vehicles, are the main sources. According to our estimation, over 90% of the EPFRs deposited on tree leaves might be attributed to automotive exhaust emissions, as a synergistic effect of primary exhausts and degradation of aromatic compounds in road dust

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The aim of this thesis is to characterize and discuss two kinds of influences on the outcome of a toxicological risk assessment. One kind of influence has to do with values and the role played by value-based judgment. Currently, many toxicological risk assessments are characterized by scientific uncertainties. When this is the case, risk assessors are to some extent dependent on assumptions and judgment, and this has consequences for the outcome of the assessment. Another other kind of influence comes from the quality and accuracy of the empirical studies that risk assessments are based on. If toxicological research and testing are affected by systematic errors (bias), this will influence the ensuing risk assessment. In order to improve toxicological risk assessments work must be done both on understanding and dealing with the impact of values and on getting better and more efficient methods for gathering facts. The two papers that make up this licentiate thesis may be seen as a contribution to each of these objectives. Article 1: Values in science and risk assessment It is a widely accepted claim that scientific practice contains valuejudgments, i.e. decisions made on the basis of values. This paper clarifies the concepts involved in this claim and explains its implications for risk assessment. It is explained why values are necessarily a part of science and of risk assessment. A certain type of values that contribute to the aim of science, so-called epistemic values, are identified as rationally justified as basis for judgment in science. It is argued that the aims of pure science and risk assessment differ in some aspects and that consequently pure science’s epistemic values are not sufficient for risk assessment. I suggest how the epistemic values may be supplemented in order to align better with the aim of risk assessment. Article 2: Bias in toxicology In this article, the potential for bias in toxicological research and in the performance of standardized toxicological testing in discussed. Due to the lack of empirical studies of bias in toxicology, very little is known aboutits prevalence and impact. Areas to consider for such studies are pointed out, and it is suggested that such investigations should be given priority. / QC 20101119

The criticality of desalination plants, which greatly rely on Industrial Control Systems (ICS), has heightened due to the scarcity of clean water. This reliance greatly emphasizes the necessity of securing these systems, alongside implementing a robust risk assessment protocol. To address these challenges and the existing limitations in prevalent risk assessment methodologies, this thesis proposes a risk assessment approach for ICS within desalination facilities. The proposed strategy integrates Bayesian Networks (BNs) and Dynamic Programming (DP). The thesis develops BNs into multilevel Bayesian Networks (MBNs), a form that effectively handles system complexity, aids inference, and dynamically modifies risk profiles. These networks account for the interactions and dynamic behaviors of system components,providing a level of responsiveness often missing in traditional methods. A standout feature of this approach is its consideration of the potential attackers’perspective, often neglected but critical for a comprehensive risk assessment and the development of solid defense strategies. DP supplements this approach by simplifying complex problems and and identifying the most optimal paths for potential attacks. Therefore, this thesis contributes greatly to enhancing the safety of critical infrastructures like water desalination plants, addressing key deficiencies in existing safety precautions.

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