This thesis investigates the impact of the provisions contained within a specific piece of legislation - the Environmental Protection Act 1990 [EPA] - upon the management of municipal solid waste. The legislation and its impact are considered within the broader context of the Conservative government's privatisation policy during its eighteen year period of office between 1979 and 1997 - and in particular the requirement for local authorities to subject services to compulsory competitive tender. Two sets of data covering the thirty-nine English shire county waste disposal authorities [WDA] are analysed. The first provides a snapshot of local authorities' expectations of the impact of the legislation as it began to be implemented whilst the second, more detailed and comprehensive set, provides cost and other information on an annual basis - covering a seven year period prior to the implementation of the EPA legislation plus five years post-EPA. Annual VEDA unit cost data is derived and trends and patterns identified, together with potential cost drivers. As the analysis progresses the approach focuses more upon using multiple regression techniques in an attempt to derive a predictive model for changes in waste disposal costs. This is then supplemented by the consideration of data envelopment analysis as a tool to be used to search for additional insights into the picture painted by the multiple regression work. The research concludes with a summary of the work done and draws conclusions, together with outlining options for developing and extending the work further.

The electricity supply industry (ESI) in England and Wales does not operate efficiently, in terms of optimising the balance between benefits of electricity and costs associated with environmental impacts. The optimal situation would be one where such impacts are minimised per unit of electricity service used, notwithstanding cost considerations. However, the present regulatory regime fails to account sufficiently for environmental impacts. Indeed, it cannot do so at present, due to lack of objective, complete and sufficiently accurate information. The main methods currently advocated for valuing environmental impacts are based on the theory of neo-classical environmental economics. These aim to place monetary values on impacts, which can then, in theory, be used to internalise environmental externalities, by applying market mechanisms to correct for the market inefficiency. However, numerous objections have been raised and weaknesses identified, including, principally, the lack of a systematic approach and the inability of the technique to accurately value impacts which are not usually considered in monetary terms. Better regulation starts with better understanding of the issue(s) to be regulated. In this case, it requires appropriate data about values of environmental impacts. While environmental economics is not rejected outright, further improvements are required and, in any event, it must be supplemented by a systematic approach, which encompasses a means of valuing non-economic elements of value. The Environmental Analysis, Valuation and Application (EAVA) Framework proposed here has been designed and developed in order to address these requirements. It also satisfies the need for objectivity, rigour, transparency, versatility, practicality and a step-by-step, sequential procedure for dealing appropriately with environmental impacts. The EAVA Framework encompasses four separate methods which have been developed simultaneously to work together in order to address different areas of the problem. The output analysis method allows the production of a complete inventory of released incidental outputs (RIOs) which arise from the process being studied. The pathway analysis method provides a means of tracing these RIOs through the environment and generating objective data about the resulting environmental changes. The valuation method is where the only necessary subjectivity of valuation is concentrated by accommodating the views of those whose quality of life is damaged by the impacts. The unit of valuation is the "natural" unit of quality of life outcome state (QLOS), and quantification is achieved through use of the QLOS Index. The final method is the application method, where valuation data and information about unknowns or other "gaps" in knowledge or data are utilised in mechanisms to ensure decision making and operation of the process concerned correctly reflects the environmental impacts caused. It should be noted here that procedures exist throughout the EAVA Framework for identifying and quantifying "gaps". The overall result is the EAVA Framework - a single integrated process for regulating environmental impacts, from the point of origin, to the point of applying regulation.

No description available.

Urban waste management poses problems in all cities of the world, but it also provides opportunities for innovative resource use. The Thesis begins by defining the waste management problem of Nairobi in context and then analytically reviews the international status of waste management, contrasting the circumstances in developed economies with those in Tropical Africa. An investigation of household refuse in Nairobi, exploring its embodied energy and its value for composting follows as the focus of the Thesis. Typical households were surveyed in relation to their waste management behaviour and agricultural activities. An attempt was made to analyse the physical and chemical composition of household refuse as well as its energy value. In addition to household surveys, a senior local government official and waste disposal crews were interviewed in order to ascertain current policies and management practices in the handling of waste. Particular attention was paid to the Eastlands area of the City. Ways in which refuse is incorporated into the food and energy cycles were identified. Among the important factors discerned are the role of family structure and the economic position of households. The validity of the research is discussed and recommendations are made for the future of waste management in relation to energy and food production in Nairobi. The findings of the research should have wide application in other African countries.

No description available.

No description available.

This study aims to determine the factors that affect the implementation of marine pollution policy, especially with regard to regulation of the hazardous substances which contaminate the marine environment- The purpose is to identify weaknesses in the current regulatory regime and to propose improvements. The study also aims to develop a new strategic framework for the implementation of the recent international policy commitments, which call for the complete cessation of discharges of hazardous substances into the marine environment by the year 2020. Furthermore, the study seeks to provide evidence to support or challenge current theories relating to regulation and policy implementation. Examination was made of the attitudes of environmental managers from the UK chemical industry and inspectors from the environmental agencies towards the regulatory system. These are the key personnel who operate at the regulatory interface where the policy outcome is determined. The methodology combined both qualitative and quantitative techniques. Structured interviews helped define the issues for subsequent investigation using a questionnaire survey which was sent to over 700 key personnel. Focus groups were then used to explain the survey findings and develop solutions to key regulatory problems. Statistical analysis of the survey response data revealed similarities and significant differences between the views of industry and the regulator on the effectiveness of the current Integrated Pollution Control regime. The strength of the system was perceived as its practical and pragmatic approach, coupled with a convenient and familiar bureaucracy. The weaknesses identified related to the derivation and enforcement of standards. The Environmental Quality Standards system, which underpins the regime, was acknowledged to be flawed by both operators and regulators who agreed it should be improved by the expansion in the number of priority listed chemicals, the introduction of sediment Environmental Quality Standards and Direct Toxicity Assessment of effluents. Focus groups supported the expansion of the system, but recognised that it would create a regime that was both complex and impractical. The findings were used to construct a revised model of the existing regime. Multivariate analysis of the industry response data identified 3 cluster types and significant differences were revealed between their knowledge of policy developments, their implications and the need for changes to the current system of hazardous chemical control. Operators and regulators acknowledged the existence of the mutual interdependency which has created and maintained a tight policy network (community) at the regulatory interface. Further evidence to support the existence of this community and of regulatory capture, was provided by the study data. Focus group discussions also identified the requirement for a more fundamental reappraisal of the regulatory system in order to deliver the OSPAR strategy. A new regulatory model, which incorporates process and product substitution, is proposed as a strategic framework to ensure that future policy commitments are implemented. This approach may lead to the opening up of the current tight policy network with resultant benefits for policy implementation and reduced regulatory capture. The new model could be applied by other countries within the OSPAR region and in other regions of the world, in order to improve environmental protection.