Areas In Norway Research Articles

Irresponsible responsible tourism; observations from nature areas in Norway

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to share the trend observed around irresponsible behavior by tourists in nature areas and how this may affect future policy. Design/methodology/approach This paper illustrates the trend observed based on three major observations from Norway and links the observed trend to the micro-level to meso- and macro-trends. Findings As a result, it was found that due to irresponsible behavior the Norwegian allemansratten (Right to Roam) system is under pressure. Because of this, the freedom to enjoy the Norwegian nature risks to be limited by regulations. Originality/value The insights presented in this paper contribute to the debate on nature-based tourism, sustainable and responsible tourism and link with the debate on overtourism in the context of nature areas.

Genetic Structure and Gene Flow in Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Scandinavia: Implications for the Potential Future Spread of Echinococcus multilocularis Tapeworm

Knowledge about the dispersal and gene flow patterns in wild animals are important for our understanding of population ecology and the connectedness of populations. It is also important for management relating to disease control and the transmission of new and emerging diseases. Our study aimed to evaluate the genetic structuring among comparative samples of red foxes in a small part of Scandinavia and to estimate the gene flow and potential directionality in the movements of foxes using an optimized set of microsatellite markers. We compared genetic samples of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from two areas in Sweden and two areas in Norway, including red fox samples from areas where the occurrence of the cyclophyllic tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis has been documented, and areas without known occurrence of the parasite. Our results show a high level of gene flow over considerable distances and substantiates migration from areas affected with E. multilocularis into Norway where the parasite is not yet detected. The results allow us to better understand the gene flow and directionality in the movement patterns of red foxes, which is important for wildlife management authorities regarding the spread of E. multilocularis.

New Approach for Bias Correction and Stochastic Downscaling of Future Projections for Daily Mean Temperatures to a High-Resolution Grid

AbstractIn applications of climate information, coarse-resolution climate projections commonly need to be downscaled to a finer grid. One challenge of this requirement is the modeling of subgrid variability and the spatial and temporal dependence at the finer scale. Here, a postprocessing procedure for temperature projections is proposed that addresses this challenge. The procedure employs statistical bias correction and stochastic downscaling in two steps. In the first step, errors that are related to spatial and temporal features of the first two moments of the temperature distribution at model scale are identified and corrected. Second, residual space–time dependence at the finer scale is analyzed using a statistical model, from which realizations are generated and then combined with an appropriate climate change signal to form the downscaled projection fields. Using a high-resolution observational gridded data product, the proposed approach is applied in a case study in which projections of two regional climate models from the Coordinated Downscaling Experiment–European Domain (EURO-CORDEX) ensemble are bias corrected and downscaled to a 1 km × 1 km grid in the Trøndelag area of Norway. A cross-validation study shows that the proposed procedure generates results that better reflect the marginal distributional properties of the data product and have better consistency in space and time when compared with empirical quantile mapping.

Addressing Inequity: Evaluation of an Intervention to Improve Accessibility and Quality of a Green Space.

Green space areas offer several benefits that support our physical, psychological, and social health. However, the level of engagement with green space areas may not be the same across population groups. Using a mixed-method research design, we investigated the use of a green space area and whether and how the area was beneficial for health, social inclusion, and physical activity for all socioeconomic groups in a suburban area in Norway. The study showed significantly increased use of the area from 2015–2018 and that users belonged to different socioeconomic groups. The motivation for using the area was the opportunity to experience nature and to interact socially. While no significant changes in self-rated health, life satisfaction, or levels of physical activity were found, the study indicates that factors such as location, availability, and designated places for social interaction are important motivating factors for use. Users from the lower socioeconomic groups were among the frequent users but were also the least satisfied with the quality and availability of the path. Our findings call for closer consideration of the location and availability of green spaces and that including places for social interaction and relaxation can contribute to increased use of green spaces.

Financial performance under stress: the case of the Norwegian maritime cluster

The present study investigates the Norwegian maritime industry in terms of its economic activity during the period 2001–2018. The purpose of the study is to determine the financial state and to conduct the cluster analysis of the companies which belong to the Blue Maritime Cluster of Møre and Romsdal County.The paper presents a structural analysis of key financial indicators of the maritime industry within four major segments: shipping companies, shipyards, ship equipment manufactures, and maritime design and service providers. The analysis sheds light on the impact of the 2015–2017 offshore crisis on the Norwegian maritime cluster activity, which makes up the essential components of the maritime industry.The author suggests using Harrington’s desirability function to measure the firms’ financial state of two main segments (shipping companies and shipyards) that belong to the Blue Maritime Cluster of the Norwegian North-Western coast, which remains the most important area in Norway for shipbuilding activities. The obtained results reveal that during the analyzed period (2001–2018), companies had a satisfactory level of financial sustainability (with the peak in 2002 for shipping firms and in 2011 for shipyards). Nevertheless, there were several fluctuations and the most significant troughs were fixed after 2014. Moreover, it was defined that government policy plays an important role in an increase in the productivity, competitiveness of the maritime industry and supports more environmentally friendly shipbuilding.

Archaeological Prospection with Motorised Multichannel Ground-Penetrating Radar Arrays on Snow-Covered Areas in Norway

The technical advancements of the past decade have rendered motorised, high-resolution ground-penetrating radar (GPR) investigations increasingly popular for archaeological research and cultural heritage management in Norway. However, the agricultural use of most survey areas limits the time available for fieldwork in spring and autumn and thus reduces the method’s potential. An extension of the fieldwork period into the winter season would be desirable. The project “Arkeologi i veien?” aimed to develop practical solutions for efficient motorised GPR surveys on snow and to evaluate to what extent the thickness of the snow cover affects data quality. Four sites with known archaeological remains in the ground have been investigated under snowless conditions and with snow cover. The comparative data analysis showed that GPR surveys can result in useful data even on areas covered with one metre of snow. This study shows that different temperatures and resulting variable snow conditions can have a strong effect on the quality of the generated GPR data. The possibility for GPR measurements on snow offers the opportunity to extend fieldwork into the winter period without conflicting with the growing season; however, local weather and snow conditions have to be closely observed in order to obtain useful prospection data.

Critical thinking and use of film in Norwegian lower secondary history classrooms

This article examines how Norwegian social studies teachers from lower secondary schools enhance critical thinking when using film in the history classroom. We utilized empirical data from semi-structured interviews with 20 teachers from the same regional area in Norway. The article addresses several questions: What are the teachers' impressions of their students' and their own abilities to be critical towards films? Do they use film to meet competence aims in the curriculum for eighth to tenth grade? Do they use film to enhance students' critical thinking abilities? If so, how? The teachers' answers seem paradoxical. Although they mostly consider critical thinking abilities towards film to be crucial for eighth- to tenth-grade students, who usually lack them, most of the teachers did not clearly link their frequent use of film in the classroom to the development of critical historical thinking skills and dispositions, neither in their alleged goals nor in their actual practices. Although they partly recognized the empathetic value of history films and their worth for debate, the teachers generally overlooked a whole part of their potential. These results are consistent with those of other international studies. They probably bear witness to the predominance of a scientific conception of the use of history in school, rooted in epistemological beliefs that would need to be studied more closely in order to sustain perennial practice changes in the future.

Assessing cities: Applying GIS-based methods for mapping cross-scale spatial indicators

In recent years, several systems and tools to assess energy consumption and carbon emissions at scales beyond that of merely buildings, such as LEED, CASBEE and BREEAM communities have been development. However, reviews reveal a lack of robustness in these methods both in terms of an unstructured mix of qualitative and quantitative criteria and lack of focus on urban form parameters found to influence energy consumption and carbon emissions. A promising quantitative assessment system including various urban form indicators is developed by the Urban Morphology Institute (UMI) in Paris. Within the research centre on zero emission neighbourhoods in smart cities (ZEN), a GIS-based method is applied to analyze conditions of urban form known to contribute to carbon emissions. In this paper we demonstrate how a selection of the UMI indicators describing proximity can be further specified applying GIS-based methods. The potential of applicability of urban assessment system in planning as well as design processes will increase when linked to tools that are already implemented, and map visualizations as well as data provided by these methods are highly applicable in planning and urban design. As further research, methods described in recent research within ZEN and specified measures for calculating UMI indicators, will be tested in analyses of urban development areas in Norway.

Northward range expansion in spring-staging barnacle geese is a response to climate change and population growth, mediated by individual experience.

All long-distance migrants must cope with changing environments, but species differ greatly in how they do so. In some species, individuals might be able to adjust by learning from individual experiences and by copying others. This could greatly speed up the process of adjustment, but evidence from the wild is scarce. Here, we investigated the processes by which a rapidly growing population of barnacle geese (Branta leucopsis) responded to strong environmental changes on spring-staging areas in Norway. One area, Helgeland, has been the traditional site. Since the mid-1990s, an increasing number of geese stage in another area 250km further north, Vesterålen. We collected data on goose numbers and weather conditions from 1975 to 2017 to explore the extent to which the increase in population size and a warmer climate contributed to this change in staging area use. During the study period, the estimated onset of grass growth advanced on average by 0.54days/year in each of the two areas. The total production of digestible biomass for barnacle geese during the staging period increased in Vesterålen but remained stable in Helgeland. The goose population has doubled in size during the past 25years, with most of the growth being accommodated in Vesterålen. The observations suggest that this dramatic increase would not have happened without higher temperatures in Vesterålen. Records of individually marked geese indicate that from the initial years of colonization onwards, especially young geese tended to switch to Vesterålen, thereby predominating in the flocks at Vesterålen. Older birds had a lower probability of switching to Vesterålen, but over the years, the probability increased for all ages. Our findings suggest that barnacle geese integrate socially learned behaviour with adjustments to individual experiences, allowing the population to respond rapidly and accurately to global change.

Out-patient commitment order use in Norway: incidence and prevalence rates, duration and use of mental health services from the Norwegian Outpatient Commitment Study.

Norway authorised out-patient commitment in 1961, but there is a lack of representative and complete data on the use of out-patient commitment orders. To establish the incidence and prevalence rates on the use of out-patient commitment in Norway, and how these vary across service areas. Further, to study variations in out-patient commitment across service areas, and use of in-patient services before and after implementation of out-patient commitment orders. Finally, to identify determinants for the duration of out-patient commitment orders and time to readmission. Retrospective case register study based on medical files of all patients with an out-patient commitment order in 2008-2012 in six catchment areas in Norway, covering one-third of the Norwegian population aged 18 years or more. For a subsample of patients, we recorded use of in-patient care 3 years before and after their first-ever out-patient commitment. Annual incidence varied between 20.7 and 28.4, and prevalence between 36.5 and 48.9, per 100 000 population aged 18 years or above. Rates differed significantly between catchment areas. Mean out-patient commitment duration was 727 days (s.d. = 889). Use of in-patient care decreased significantly in the 3 years after out-patient commitment compared with the 3 years before. Use of antipsychotic medication through the whole out-patient commitment period and fewer in-patient episodes in the 3 years before out-patient commitment predicted longer time to readmission. Mechanisms behind the pronounced variations in use of out-patient commitment between sites call for further studies. Use of in-patient care was significantly reduced in the 3 years after a first-ever out-patient commitment order was made. None.

Brood parasitism on Meadow Pipits Anthus pratensis by Common Cuckoos Cuculus canorus in two mountain areas in Norway

In the period 2001–2014 we studied Common Cuckoo Cuculus canorus brood parasitism on Meadow Pipits Anthus pratensis in two mountain areas; one located in the eastern and one in the western part of southern Norway. In the total material of 211 Meadow Pipit nests, 14 (6.6%) were parasitized by the cuckoo. The parasitism rate showed considerable variation both in time and space, with highest rate in one of the areas in 2005 (35.3%). Cuckoo eggs were quite similar in appearance to host eggs. In spite of this, 30% of the cuckoo eggs were rejected by desertion. No host ejection of parasite eggs was observed. Nest predation rates were rather low. Due to climate change, it has been hypothesized that the cuckoo, a long-distance migrant, may arrive too late to successfully utilize the Meadow Pipit because the latter is better able to advance the breeding season due to a shorter migration distance. Our data lend support to the mismatch hypothesis, but the low sample size regarding cases of parasitism does not allow us to make any firm conclusions. Long-term monitoring of host-parasite interactions in specific populations is important to further disclose the mechanisms responsible for the decline in the Norwegian cuckoo population.

Emergency department crowding and length of stay before and after an increased catchment area

BackgroundEmergency department (ED) crowding and prolonged length of stay (LOS) are associated with delays in treatment, adverse outcomes and decreased patient satisfaction. Hospital restructuring and mergers are often associated with increased ED crowding. The aim of this study was to explore ED crowding and LOS in Norway’s largest ED before and after an increased catchment area.MethodsThe catchment area of Akershus University Hospital increased by approximately 150,000 inhabitants in 2011, from 340,000 to 490,000. In this retrospective study, admissions to the ED during a six-year period, from Jan 1st 2010 to Dec 31st 2015 were included and analyzed.ResultsA total of 179,989 admissions were included (51.0% men). The highest occupancy rate was in the age group 70–79 years. Following the increase in the catchment area, the annual ED admissions increased by 8343 (40.9%) from 2010 to 2011, and peaked in 2013 (34,002). Mean LOS increased from 3:59 h in 2010 to 4:17 in 2012 (highest), and decreased to 3:45 h in 2015 after staff, capacity and organizational measures. In 2010, 37.9% of the ED patients experienced crowding, and this proportion increased to between 52.9–77.6% in 2011–2015. Crowding peaked between 4 and 5 PM.ConclusionsLOS increased and crowding was more frequent after a major increase in the hospital’s catchment area in Norway’s largest emergency department. Even after 5 years, the LOS was higher than before the expansion, mainly because of the throughput and output components, which were not properly adapted to the changes in input.

Degradation and Mobility of Pesticides in Norwegian Soils

Degradation and Mobility of Pesticides in Norwegian Soils

CWD in Norway

The Norwegian Food Safety Authority (NFSA) and Norwegian Environmental Authority (NEA) asked the Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food Safety (Vitenskapskomiteen for mattrygghet, VKM) for an opinion on factors associated with the introduction of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) to Norway. VKM appointed a working group consisting of two members of the Panel on Biological Hazards, one member of Panel on Animal Health and Welfare, and two external experts to prepare the answer to the questions. The Panel on Biological Hazards has reviewed and revised the draft prepared by the working group and approved the opinion.
 CWD was diagnosed in March 2016 in a wild reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) from the Nordfjella mountain area in Norway and in May and June in two mooses (Alces alces) in Selbu in South Trøndelag County, approximately 300 km north from the first case.
 There is currently no information to determine the origin(s) of CWD agents in Norway. However, the sporadic or genetic (somatic mutation) occurrence of prion disease in cervids cannot be excluded, nor can introduction from North America or other countries. Furthermore, there is no evidence that it has not been circulating at low levels in the Norwegian cervid populations for years, but has not previously been identified. In this scientific opinion, information on prion diseases in general, and CWD in particular, is presented in the light of experiences with this disease in North America.
 Prions are among the most resilient pathogens known and dissemination of prions into ecosystems is likely to result in long-term problems. Prions bind strongly to soil and remain infectious. In CWD, prions are present in most peripheral organs and also shed into the environment via saliva, faeces, and urine, as well as with the placenta. CWD transmits easily among cervids, either through direct contact, or indirectly via the environment. Migration of animals is relevant for the spread between areas. Strain diversification might occur in CWD and may influence transmission properties of the agents.
 Clinical signs of CWD are non-specific and do not alone enable confirmation of the diagnosis. Analysis of tissue from the brainstem at the level of the obex by approved methods is necessary for diagnosis of CWD. Prion infectivity is assessed by bioassays, often involving transgenic mice. In vitro conversion assays, like protein misfolding cyclic amplification (PMCA), provide sensitive quantification of converting activity, which is a good approximation of infectivity.
 Genetic variation (polymorphisms) in the gene that encodes PrP (PRNP) can modulate sensitivity towards CWD. The level of such genetic variation in Norwegian wild and semi-domesticated cervids is currently unknown.
 Cattle and sheep are at very low risk of developing CWD and it is highly unlikely that prion diseases in sheep or cattle are the origin of CWD.
 Although transmission of CWD to humans has never been known to occur, and animals other than cervids have not been found to be infected, indicating a species barrier, this possibility cannot be excluded. Thus, measures for reduction of human exposure are recommended. Taking into account uncertainties regarding the plasticity of the CWD agents and the lack of transmission data from the Norwegian isolates, this scientific opinion considers the zoonotic risk of CWD to be very low.

Airborne radiometric survey of a Chernobyl-contaminated mountain area in Norway – using ground-level measurements for validation

An airborne radiometric survey can be an efficient way to investigate contamination of large areas after nuclear accidents. In the current study, a helicopter borne gamma ray spectrometry survey was carried out in a vast mountainous area in Norway, where the contamination from the 1986 Chernobyl accident still affects animal husbandry more than 30 years after the fallout occurred. The 137Cs activity densities provided by the aerial survey was validated using various independent ground-based measurements – including soil samples and in situ measurements (at 1 m above ground). Despite considerable small-scale heterogeneity, demonstrated by the ground-based measurements, strong correlations were obtained between the results from the aerial survey – after introducing more detailed instrument calibration and spectre analysis – and the ground-level data. Adjusted R2 values were around 0.9, and linear correlation coefficients close to unity.

People with Intellectual Disabilities Can Speak for themselves! A Methodological Discussion of Using People with Mild and Moderate Intellectual Disabilities as Participants in Living Conditions Studies

In 2016–2017, a living conditions survey was conducted among people with intellectual disabilities in Sami areas in Norway. The aim of this article is to discuss methodological aspects of carrying out living conditions studies where people with mild and moderate intellectual disabilities answer the questions themselves. What kinds of methodological challenges related to the reliability and validity of the study arise? How do we cope with these challenges? How can they affect the quality of the study? The challenge, among other things, is whether we measure what we want to measure. We argue it is possible to let people with intellectual disabilities answer surveys if we carefully consider methodological and research ethical issues throughout the entire research process. To let people with intellectual disabilities answer for themselves will strengthen the quality of the research. At the same time, we must recognise the limitations.

Neighbourhood Poverty and Individual Earnings: Tales of Two (Norwegian) Cities

AbstractAcross cities, one observes similarities in poverty and earnings of individuals within the same neighbourhood. Are these similarities due to causal influences neighbours exercise upon each other or to spatial sorting? We analyse this within the frame of a fixed effects model, estimated on a register‐based panel covering all residents of two urban areas in Norway over the years from 1997 to 2011. We find a significant depressing effect of the share of low‐earners in the neighbourhood on individual earnings in the capital region ‐ Oslo. Our estimates of the impact of neighbourhood poverty are small in magnitude compared to what is found in other studies. In the other, less central area studied, we do not find any such effect. It is tempting to speculate that sorting and neighbourhood effects are less intense in urban regions with a smaller menu of neighbourhood choices.[Correction added on 30 July 2019, after first publication: The Abstract has been modified for improvement in this version.]

Climate change and the future of the Norwegian alpine ski industry

ABSTRACT The demand for foresight on how climate change will alter the competitiveness of ski destinations continues to increase. Norway is often considered the country where modern skiing began, yet its climate change risk remains largely unknown. The SkiSim2 model is run with RCP 4.5 and 8.5 emission climate futures to analyse implications for ski season at 110 alpine ski areas in Norway in the 2030s, 2050s, and 2080s with only natural snow and with advanced snowmaking. A considerable shortening of the ski season in projected as early as the 2030s for the half of ski areas that currently lack snowmaking. Naturally snow reliable ski areas decline from approximately half in the 2030s to a third in the 2050s. With snowmaking, ski season losses are substantially reduced and the majority of ski areas remain snow reliable until the end of the twenty-first century in a lower emission future. A substantial shortening of the ski season (up to 40 days) nonetheless begins in the 2050s under a high emission scenario. The need to invest in snowmaking will continue to increase, with attendant financial and sustainability implications. The differential climate risk among five regions of Norway and the European Alps is also discussed.

Unrequited metropolitan mergers: suburban rejection of cities in the Norwegian municipal reform

ABSTRACT The administrative boundaries of the central city almost universally cover a smaller area than its functional boundaries. Hence, central cities often supply public goods beyond their own residents. Mergers with neighbouring municipalities offer an opportunity for central cities to internalize more of these externalities. However, suburban municipalities have few incentives to support such mergers. The 2014–17 Norwegian voluntary municipal merger programme offers a rare opportunity for large-scale empirical evidence on the preferences of central cities and suburbs over mergers. The paper examines the merger decisions made by municipalities in all metropolitan areas in Norway. Central cities were much more interested in merging than suburban municipalities: while the central cities wanted to merge with a total of 75 suburban municipalities, only 15 suburbs accepted. Differences between central cities and suburbs in political preferences (such as support for anti-reform parties) or the quality of government cannot explain this. While low suburban population size and central city taxes have some impact, by far the main predictor of merger preferences is whether the municipality is a suburb or the central city. While central cities want to internalize the inter-jurisdictional spillovers from their public goods production, suburbs prefer to continue free riding.

Loss of life years due to unavailable helicopter emergency medical service: a single base study from a rural area of Norway

Background: Despite the potential benefits of physician-staffed Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS), many dispatches to primary HEMS missions in Norway are cancelled before patient encounter. Information is sparse regarding the health consequences when medically indicated HEMS missions are cancelled and the patients are treated by a GP and ambulance staff only. We aimed to estimate the potential loss of life years for patients in these situations.Method: We included all HEMS requests in the period 2010–2013 from Sogn and Fjordane County that were medically indicated but subsequently cancelled. This provided a selection of patients, with the purpose of studying cancellations independently of the patient’s medical status A multidisciplinary expert panel retrospectively assessed each patient’s potential loss of life years due to the lack of helicopter transport and intervention by a HEMS physician.Results: The study included 184 patients from 176 missions. Because of unavailable HEMS, seven patients (4%) were anticipated to have lost a total of 18 life years. Three patients suffered from myocardial infarction, three from stroke and one from abdominal haemorrhage. The main contribution from HEMS care in these seven cases might have been rapid transport to definitive care. The probability of a patient losing life years when in need of HEMS evacuation was found to be 0.2%.Conclusion: During the four years period seven patients lost 18 life years. Lack of rapid transport seems to be the primary cause of lost life years in this specific geographical area.Key PointsKnowledge about to what extent HEMS contributes to an increased survival and a better outcome for patients is limited.Compared to similar studies on life years gained the estimated loss of life years was minor when HEMS evacuation was unavailable in this rural area.The findings indicates that lack of rapid HEMS transport was the primary cause of the estimated loss of life years.