Good Environmental Management Research Articles

PRINCIPLE OF BALANCING REGULATION OF MINERAL MINING BUSINESS LICENSES FOR SUSTAINABILITY OF ENVIRONMENT

The principle of balance in the regulation of mineral and coal mining business permits is very important because it relates to environmental sustainability and the provisions of the legislation. The principle of balance as the implementation of the principle of good faith, the principle of honest transactions and the principle of justice will provide maximum benefits to humanity, people's well-being and personal development of citizens, the preservation of the nation's noble cultural values ? ? and environmental sustainability that is sustainable. This is important to maintain the balance of state rights in the control and management of natural resources and as a bridge between legal norms of good business principles. Mineral and stone mining business activitiesember must be based on the principle of good environmental management and control. The problem in this paper is how the urgency of the principle of balance in the issuance of mineral and coal mining business licenses based on environmental sustainability. This research is a type of research article using juridical analysis methods. The results showed that the application of the principle of balance must be present to maintain the continuity of natural support with the human needs whose arrangements are included in the law.

Sustainability management emergence and integration on different management levels in smaller large‐sized companies in Austria

AbstractCompanies should integrate sustainability into all organizational units and on all management levels to contribute to sustainable development. This study explores nine smaller large‐sized companies (revenue between €50 and €300 million, at least 250 employees) from various sectors. We applied the framework of Baumgartner for corporate sustainability/corporate social responsibility empirically and used the promotor model of Witte from innovation management in the context of sustainability. The findings show that companies must have (a) top management support and (b) an open organizational culture regarding sustainable development to integrate sustainability on operational, strategic, and normative management levels. These two prerequisites need to remain stable over time, as changes in top management and staff create new challenges in sustainability implementation. The companies have mainly implemented sustainability management from the top‐down, first enlarging aspects of environmental management and human resource management and then integrating sustainability in terms of their vision and strategy. If top management does not see the need to alter the organization to address sustainability challenges, lower level managers or middle managers might take the initiative. In this case, however, only good environmental and human resources management practices are enabled. The top management blocks bottom‐up implementation efforts if they are not willing to make decisions based on new values and judgement and promote change in the organization. Our case studies show that a power promoter is essential for the integration of sustainability on all organizational levels. Presence of strong power promoter allows other promoter types to act in sustainability integration.

NEXUS OF KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER, GREEN INNOVATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE: IMPACT OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING

The present study is motivated to investigate the importance of ecological innovations and knowledge management in influencing environmental performance. The focus of the present study lies in identifying the contribution of environmental management accounting in driving the firm's knowledge transfer, green innovation, and environmental performance in Indonesian small and medium enterprises sector. The current collected the data from 223 respondents from different SMEs of Indonesia. The results of PLS-SEM confirm that all variables have a positive and significant impact on the environmental performance of Indonesia SMEs. Moreover, the outcomes of the PLS-SEM confirm that knowledge transfer, green innovation, and environmental performance have significantly and positively impacted by environmental management accounting system. The outcomes of partial least square structural equation modelling also indicate that knowledge transfer and green innovation have also positively and significantly impact on the environmental performance. The results further recommended that the firms can improve their environmental performance by implementing good environmental management accounting system. Keywords: Knowledge transfer, green innovation, environmental performance, Indonesia.JEL Classifications: Q55, Q50DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.8285

The impact of decentralization policies: the environmental performance applied to municipalities of the Amazon

The historical environmental problems in the Amazon urge greater governance and transparency at the municipal level. The decentralizing of municipal environmental management (MEM) is an ongoing process in the Brazilian Amazonbut a monitoring mechanism is missing. We used an index (iMEM) derived by factorial analysis to rank the environmental management performance of 143 municipalities in Para state at the beginning of the decentralizing process (2009) and six years after that (2015). Multiple regression analysis indicated that iMEM was positively affected by factors such as population, communication and protected areas in the municipalities and negatively affected by rural credit, GDP and property registration program. Decentralizing measures seem to be more politically than environmentally effective since only 21.7% of 143 municipalities were classified as having good environmental management in 2015. Para’s poorly performing municipalities in both periods illustrate regions where unsustainable and misguided national policies were fostered in the 70s. The monitoring of the decentralization progress and synergic policies is crucial for the effectiveness of the policy in the Amazon.

Green commuting and gasoline taxes in the United States

This paper analyzes how gasoline tax rates are related to the time workers in the United States spend commuting by private car, public transport, or with other physical modes of transport. Our identification strategy relies on both inter-state differences and time variations in gasoline taxes. Using the American Time Use Surveys for the years 2003–2015, we find that higher gasoline tax rates are related to less time spent in commuting. Furthermore, higher gasoline taxes are related to less commuting by private car, and more commuting by public transport and/or a physical mode of transport (walking or cycling). Our results highlight the importance of gasoline taxes in the consumption of energy for personal transport, as higher gasoline taxes are related to a greater use of “green” modes of transport, showing that fuel taxes are important for good environmental management.

Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Process towards the Sustainable Design and Construction of Computer, Communication, Network Engineering, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Systems

Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Process towards the Sustainable Design and Construction of Computer, Communication, Network Engineering, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Systems

Apakah Pendidikan Lingkungan Merupakan Faktor Utama Pembentuk Perilaku Lingkungan pada Masyarakat di Negara Berkembang?

Environmental education in developed countries is currently being intensively developed to increase the environmental awareness of the community in order to achieve sustainable development. But for developing countries like Indonesia, is environmental education the most urgent thing to do first to improve the successful implementation of environmental management system? This paper presents an analysis of social aspects related to the environmental behavior of a society, which is about the importance of the "environmental education" factor for people in developing countries in general, in Indonesia specifically. In addition, other factors that form the environmental behavior of the community and their relationships with one another are also discussed. The topic chosen to represent environmental behavior in this paper is the community's environmental awareness for the waste management system in Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia. This study uses structural equation modeling (SEM) (which consists of exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA)) to investigate the environmental behavior of the community represented by 609 respondents living in the Padang city. The results of the study show that environmental education factor is ranked 3rd out of 8 determinants of the formation of environmental behavior in society, namely after the factors of "government role" and "law enforcement". This research is expected to be able to provide information to various stakeholders where providing environmental education to the community has not been able to effectively change the environmental behavior of the community if the government's role in making a good environmental management system and strong law enforcement have not been carried out.

Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Process for Green Materials and Environmental Engineering Systems towards Sustainable Development-Business Excellence Achievements

Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Process for Green Materials and Environmental Engineering Systems towards Sustainable Development-Business Excellence Achievements

Strategies for the management of environmental hazards: implications for sustainable healthy living in Calabar Urban, Cross River State, Nigeria

The study was designed to asses the strategies adopted in the management of environmental hazards in Calabar urban. The specific objectives of the study were to identify the strategies adopted by the government to promote environmental management consciousness and prevention of environmental hazards as well as the role of the residents on environmental hazards prevention. Calabar urban comprises of two local government areas which include; Calabar municipality and Calabar south. A total of one hundred and twenty respondents were randomly selected from the study area. Also interview were conducted on staff of the ministry of environment, Calabar Urban Development Agency (CUDA) and Cross River Waste Management Agency (CRWMA). A structured questionnaire and interview guide were the instruments used to collect data for the study. Data for the study were analyzed using simple statistical tools such as frequency distribution tables and percentages. The results revealed that certain strategies were adopted by both government and agencies in reaching people with information on environmental issues. Some of the strategies include distribution of waste disposal materials (75%), use of radio, television jingles (60%), provision of designated dumping sites, daily sweeping and excavating of waste were identified as the most important strategies for prevention and management of environmental hazards. The study therefore recommended that government should extend its environmental management programmes beyond certain areas in Calabar urban to other remote streets in Calabar urban through the provision of accessible roads and good drainage channels to ensure effective environmental hazards prevention. Also that awareness campaigns should be increased to enlighten the public of their role in the prevention of environmental hazards, and environmental education be included in the curriculum of secondary schools to inculcate good environmental management attitude among young people. Keywords: Environmental hazards and sustainable healthy living

The Relationship between Training Climate and Self Efficacy to the Effectiveness of the Implementation of ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Training

The environment is an inseparable element of human health. A good environmental management will bring benefit to human and surrounding. The successful implementation of International Standardized Management System (SML) ISO 14001 is determined by various factors and one of the factors is training. The purpose of this study was to analyze the correlation of training climate and self-efficacy to the effectiveness of ISO 14001 SML training. This study was categorized as a quantitative type with a cross-sectional design. The population consisted of participants with the total sampling of 90 respondents. The research variables include the training climate, self-efficacy and the effectiveness of the training. This study was conducted in PT XYZ, one of the manufacturing company in Jakarta. The results indicated that training climate and self-efficacy promote the effectiveness of the training with the percentages of 46.7% and 51.1% respectively. The prevalence of ratio that increases the opportunity for practical training is managers’ support (12.9), mastery experience (5.7), and opportunities to use learned abilities (0.2). In conclusion, the climate training and self-efficacy show a positive relationship with the effectiveness of training

Environmental policy, environmental performance, and financial distress in China: Do top management team characteristics matter?

AbstractThis study investigates the effect of environmental performance that is driven by good environmental policies, regulations, and management on firm's financial distress and, consequently, ascertains the extent to which top management teams' (TMTs') characteristics can moderate the environmental performance–financial distress nexus in China using 749 firms over the 2009–2014 period (i.e., generating over 3,000 individual observations). Our findings are twofold. First, our results indicate that increased environmental performance that is driven by good environmental policies tends to strategically reduce the extent of firm financial distress. Second, this nexus is moderated by TMT gender diversity, foreign exposure, and political connection. We interpret our findings within neo‐institutional, upper echelons, and risk management theoretical perspectives. The findings are robust to the use of alternative measures of financial distress, estimation techniques, and endogeneity problems.

The Development of a Soil Erosion Risk Map for Perak, Malaysia

Soil erosion in the state of Perak has long been identified as a problem, and soil erosion due to water is one of the main causes of land degradation in this state. If this problem is not seriously addressed, it will result in soil erosion affecting a vast area and suitable soil erosion risk map has to be developed to ensure effective implementation of soil conservation in a particular area. The purpose of this study was to prepare a soil erosion risk map for the state of Perak which can be used to prioritize the areas that are highly exposed to soil erosion for conservation efforts. This study used the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) model integrated with a Geographic Information System (GIS) to produce a soil erosion risk map for the state of Perak. Soil erosion risk mapping was carried out using a map overlay of USLE parameters within Arc GIS which was used to identify risky areas for soil erosion and estimate soil loss in the study area. The results of the study showed that the risky areas for soil erosion were scattered all across Perak, especially on steep slopes. The development of this soil erosion risk map for Perak state is very important for conducting good environmental management and land use planning strategies.

Multicriteria decision analysis framework for hydrological decision support using environmental flow components

Assessing the quantity and quality of water available in water stressed environments under various potential climate and land-use changes is necessary for good water and environmental resources management and governance. We present a novel approach with which to assess water quantity in the Luanginga basin, a subbasin of the upper Zambezi River, using existing results of hydrological modelling based on climate change scenarios, hydrological indicators, and multicriteria decision analysis. Flexible input criteria and open-source software are used to the greatest degree possible. Scenarios are represented through a combination of model input data and parameter settings in the hydrological model, and preferences are represented through criteria weighting in the multicriteria decision analysis. The resulting methodology, combining hydrological indicators with MCDA, is thus adaptable, in terms of both application platform and subject matter. The method results were largely as expected. When a decision maker expressed a preference for wetter conditions, the RCP 4.5 scenarios were generally deemed most suitable, and thus ranked highest. When drier conditions where preferred, the RCP 8.5 scenarios, resulting in less streamflow and less frequent flood events, were ranked highest. Validation of the results is not possible, due to the methodologically exploratory nature of the research being undertaken. The promising results do, however, allow for further research that builds upon the work undertaken here, to be envisaged.

Development of environmental model performance green productivity for small and medium industries

Small and Medium Industries has a very important role in supporting the Indonesian economy and reduce unemployment. SMEs in Indonesia contributed in employment amounted to 99.74% of the total national uptake and contribute as much as 1013.5 trillion or 56.73%. As a country that is trying to give a full effort in implementing environmental management systems in all sectors of activity, we need to pay attention to the sector of Small and Medium Industries in terms of environmental management systems. Presumably most of the SMEs in Indonesia have never committed any good environmental management. On the other hand, good environmental management which is performed by company may help to improve efficiency, reduce excessive consumption of resources, reduce waste, help the company in meeting the requirements of environmental law, encourage employment to engage in environmental performance and improve company customer relationship. This study examines indicators that influences the ability of the environmental performance of food and beverage SMEs in East Java, and measure the effect of leadership on human resources, process and environmental management as well as the influence of process and environmental management of the Environmental Performance Indicator, to illustrate how the positive and negative effects of this research using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) approach. Based on the t-value result, shows that significant variable is the leadership on the processes and environmental management, for human resources, process variables and environmental management of the Environmental Performance Indicator and Environmental Performance Indicator environmental performance.

Influence of Pansharpening in Obtaining Accurate Vegetation Maps

ABSTRACTIn recent decades, there has been a decline in ecosystem services. Thus, the development of reliable methodologies to monitor ecosystems is becoming important. In this context, the availability of very high resolution sensors offer practical and cost-effective means for good environmental management. However, improvements in the data received are becoming necessary to obtain higher quality information in order to get reliable thematic maps. One improvement is pansharpening, which enhances the spatial resolution of the multispectral bands by incorporating information from a panchromatic image. The main goal of this work was to assess the influence of pansharpening techniques in obtaining precise vegetation maps. Thus, pixel- and object-based classification techniques were implemented and applied to fused imagery using different pansharpening algorithms. Worldview-2 high resolution imagery was used due to its excellent spatial and spectral characteristics. The Teide National Park, in The Canary Islands (Spain), was chosen as the study area since it is a vulnerable heterogeneous ecosystem. The vegetation classes of interest considered were established by the National Park conservation managers. Weighted Wavelet ‘à trous’ through Fractal Dimension Maps pansharpening algorithm demonstrated a superior performance in the image fusion preprocessing step, while the most appropriate classifier to generate accurate vegetation thematic maps in heterogenic and mixed ecosystems was the Bayes method after the segmentation stage, even though Support Vector Machine achieved the highest overall accuracy.

Environment, development and sustainability of local practices in the sacred groves and shrines in Bongo District: a bio-cultural study for environmental management in Ghana

The eminent crisis threatening biological and resource diversity is a global adversity. Global resource diversities are constantly disappearing and deteriorating at quite an alarming proportion, provoking renewed thinking regarding the effectiveness of existing environmental management approaches and practices. For the past four decades, several epochs of environmental management policies and practices disregarded the cultural imperative for safeguarding efficient environmental management outcomes, particularly at the community level. Even in the rouse of this reality, issues of spirituality and how it binds local community people to their natural environment appear to be given only a window dressing attention through the recognition of sacred natural sites. Eight sacred groves and shrines in the Bongo District were investigated based on an endogenous development framework. The data were collected using focus group discussions with stakeholders at the local and district levels and individual interviews with key local natural resource managers from four selected communities. The study revealed that the way indigenous people construct the worldviews and interactions with nature using ancestors and other spirit mediums can safeguard the environment against long periods of human interference and destruction. It also demonstrates that in certain places traditional institutions are becoming malleable and open to the use of external knowledge and resources in order to sustain places of sacred significance. It concludes that cultural imperative and the issues of spirituality are critical for the sustainable management of environmental resources. The study recommends revisiting local practice and cultural values that promote good environmental management practices within the local communities.

E-waste flows, resource recovery and improvement of legal framework in Pakistan

Electronic waste (E-waste) is becoming most rapidly expanding solid waste stream of the world. Pakistan receives thousands of tons of E-waste from developed countries like the USA and Europe. At present, quantification of E-waste imported to Pakistan and materials recovered from such waste is not well defined. Therefore, the objectives of this research include estimation of E-waste flow and assessment of potential quantities of recyclable metallic and non-metallic components. As a result, it was found that, on average, 95,415 tons of E-waste is imported into Pakistan annually. It contains a variety of metals such as gold, silver, copper and non-metals like plastics and glass as well as hazardous materials. It was also found out that all the recycling activity takes place in informal sectors without any consideration to environmental pollution and safety of workers. Improvements in the existing legal framework regarding import and recycling of E-waste have been proposed. These proposals include take back, prohibition of illegal import and good environmental management.

Disaster Risk Management Systems in South Asia: Natural Hazards, Vulnerability, Disaster Risk and Legislative and Institutional Frameworks

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the disaster risk reduction and management systems and its challenges in the countries of South Asia Region. All the member states of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) are highly prone to hydro-meteorological and geological hazards such as floods, landslides, droughts, cyclones, earthquakes, heat waves, avalanches and tsunamis. Economic vulnerability analysis shows that India, Pakistan and Bangladesh exhibit the largest losses, which is due to large exposure at risk and the high level of hazards. Poverty, exposed population and lack of preparedness can be attributed to the vulnerability to the disasters caused by natural hazards. Bangladesh and India have the highest Multiple Mortality Risk Index (MMRI) whereas Maldives and Bhutan have the least. Although Maldives has the lowest MMRI based on the past disaster losses, the country has the high risk of tsunami, floods and potential risk of sea level rise mainly due to climate change. Urbanization, environmental degradation and lack of strong governance are exacerbating the vulnerabilities in most of the countries in South Asia. Political instability, border disputes, ineffective regional networks and climate change are triggering the hazard impacts. The occurrence and impact of disasters due to natural hazards are not confined to a country's political boundary. Floods, earthquakes, forest fires and volcanoes have significant cross border impacts. Some examples of crossborder impacts of disasters include Koshi flooding in South Asia (2008), Kashmir earthquake (2005), Indian Ocean Tsunami (2004), and recurrent tropical cyclones in Bangladesh and India. Good governance, regional stability, economic prosperity and sound environmental management are required to have minimum impacts of a disaster. After the 2005 Kobe conference, many efforts have been initiated in line with the resilient building of the state in the SAARC region; however, there exists a huge gap in its implementation. For this, a sound disaster risk management system together with the strong coordination among the disaster risk management actors in the countries should prevail to augment the capacity building of the community and institutions and build their resilience capabilities.

Mineral systems and the thermodynamics of selenites and selenates in the oxidation zone of sulfide ores – a review

Contemporary mineralogy and geochemistry are concerned with understanding and deciphering processes that occur near the surface of the Earth. These processes are especially important for resolving ecological challenges and developing principles of good environmental management. Selenium oxysalts, selenites and selenates, are relatively rare as minerals; there are presently only 34 known mineral species. Thirty-one “pure” selenites, which contain only selenite anionic groups, are known to occur naturally. The other three minerals each contain two anionic groups: selenate and selenite (schmiederite), selenate and sulphate (olsacherite), and selenate and iodate (carlosruizite). This work is intended to provide a classification of natural selenium oxysalts based on their chemical composition. Selenites belong to a particular mineral system, whose components are chemical elements required to construct the crystal structure of a mineral (species-defining constituents). The number of components represents the minimum number of independent elements necessary to define the composition of the system. All selenites and selenates are divided into two groups: anhydrous selenites (I) and hydrous selenites and selenates (II). The paper also presents systematized data published on the thermodynamics of selenites, which are formed in the weathering zone of sulfide and selenide ores, and determines approaches to the quantitative physicochemical modeling of formation conditions. The Eh–pH diagrams of the Me–Se–H2O systems (Me = Cu, Co, Ni, Fe, Zn, Ca, Al) were calculated and plotted for the average contents of these elements in aqueous weathering solutions in sulfide deposit oxidation zones.

Cidades e territórios sustentáveis, paisagens culturais e desenvolvimento regional

Numa região cujo espaço não-urbano obedece a princípios consagrados da boa gestão ecológica, patrimônio e paisagem constituem valores culturais e ambientais que se integram sistemicamente. Os limites territoriais administrativos coincidem com o das bacias hidrográficas que conformam a região. Agrupamentos urbanos sustentáveis vinculam-se às paisagens culturais que se destacam no território correspondente. Paisagem e arquitetura rural dissecadas pelo Método de Pesquisa Orientada a Processos — Método POP — constituem o universo de uma cidade sustentável, ou “ecocidade”. A integração sistêmica de todos esses elementos leva ao ordenamento territorial baseado na conexão patrimônio-paisagem cultural, a partir de empreendimentos ecologicamente corretos e economicamente adequados. Daí a necessidade de se compreender o território a partir de uma abordagem sistêmica e transdisciplinar que permita a conexão patrimônio-paisagem cultural.