Municipal Agencies Research Articles

Garbage prediction using regression analysis for municipal corporations of Indian cities

AbstractGarbage management is exceptionally critical and poses enormous environmental challenges. It has always been a vital issue in municipal corporations. However, municipal agencies have developed and used garbage management systems. Garbage forecasting still plays a crucial role in the management system and helps improve or create a garbage management system. This research examines the information from 212 cities to suggest a helpful regression model for garbage forecasting and control. To establish a connection between the variables, the descriptive study employs statistical techniques to learn about the composition of data collected from municipal corporations and conduct correlation analysis. Population and garbage depend highly on one another, as evidenced by their correlation coefficient of 0.922,144. The primary research is used to build an alternate hypothesis that shows the chosen variables are highly dependent on one another. The dataset is scaled and divided into a training and testing 80:20 ratio during the pre‐processing data phase. This research aims to do a regression analysis with daily garbage production, urban area, and population as independent variables. This research initiates a variety of regression models, including multiple linear regression (MLR), artificial neural network (ANN), decision tree regression (DTR), and random forest regression (RFR). The MLR model's R2 value of 0.85 indicates that it has the potential to accurately forecast daily garbage production based on just two independent variables and a single dependent variable. Random Forest Regression (RFR) with (MSE: 100,078.749 & MAE: 182.212) shows that it has the lowest MSE among all the models, which provides the most accurate predictions on average and the fit values of 8.85 and 316.23 obtained from the error distribution with a bin value 25. The estimated results from each model are compared to the test data values on line graphs and Taylor plots. The mean square error and the mean absolute error in the analysis and the Taylor plot show that the RFR model is best suited for predicting daily garbage production in a city. This research, therefore, provides a Random Forest model that is optimal for such challenges and is recommended for this class of problem.

Mainstreaming decarbonization through local climate budgets in Norwegian municipalities

ABSTRACT Climate budgets are increasingly being used in local climate governance, but it is not clear whether they have the potential to drive systemic change toward decarbonization. This study uses a political dynamics of decarbonization framework to assess the transformative potential of municipal climate budgets to catalyze changes across cultural, economic, political, and technological systems to overcome carbon lock-in. Document analysis and interviews with climate budget experts from Oslo, Fredrikstad, Hamar, Bergen, Arendal, Bærum, Asker and the county of Agder in Norway were employed in this study to identify and discuss transformative conditions for decarbonization. Climate budgets are used to integrate climate change mitigation as a core element of municipal governance. This approach aims to integrate climate change mitigation into existing decision-making mechanisms and expand the mandates of municipal departments and agencies in executing and overseeing climate actions. Local climate budgets are also being used to catalyze changes across cultural, economic, political, and technological systems through the alignment of new laws, regulations, financial and institutional capacities, inter-municipal coalitions, and cooperation with the private sector. However, climate budgeting in cities and local governments faces multiple barriers. These include a lack of jurisdiction over emissions accounted for in climate budgets; inadequate legal frameworks to support municipal climate actions; and competition for financial and institutional resources with other public services expected by city residents. These findings deepen our understanding of the transformative change potential in local climate action experiments by emphasizing the role of political dynamics in overcoming carbon lock-in.

Wild bird mass mortalities in eastern Canada associated with the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A(H5N1) virus, 2022

AbstractIn 2022, a severe outbreak of disease caused by clade 2.3.4.4b Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) H5N1 virus resulted in unprecedented mortality among wild birds in eastern Canada. Tens of thousands of birds were reported sick or dead, prompting a comprehensive assessment of mortality spanning the breeding season between April 1 and September 30, 2022. Mortality reports were collated from federal, Indigenous, provincial, and municipal agencies, the Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative, and other nongovernmental organizations, universities, and citizen science platforms. A scenario analysis was conducted to refine mortality estimates, accounting for potential double counts from multiple sources under a range of spatial and temporal overlaps. Correcting for double counting, HPAI is estimated to have caused 40,391 wild bird mortalities in eastern Canada during the spring and summer of 2022; however, this figure underestimates total mortality as it excludes unreported deaths on land and at sea. Seabirds and sea ducks, long‐lived species that are slow to recover from perturbations, accounted for 98.7% of estimated mortalities. Our study provides estimates of bird mortality, with Northern Gannets (Morus bassanus; 25,669), Common Murres (Uria aalge; 8133), and American Common Eiders (Somateria mollissima dresseri; 1894) exhibiting the highest mortality figures. We then compare these mortality estimates with recent population estimates and trends and make an initial assessment of whether biologically meaningful population‐level impacts are possible. Specifically, we focus on the Northern Gannet, a species that has suffered significant global mortality, and two harvested species, Common Murre and American Common Eider, to inform management decisions. Our analysis suggests population‐level impacts in eastern Canada are possible for Northern Gannets and American Common Eiders, but are unlikely for Common Murres. This study demonstrates a comprehensive approach to assessing mortality and underscores the urgent need for further research to understand the broader ecological ramifications of the HPAI outbreak on wild bird populations.

The co‐governance of basic education: Assessing the complementary effects of intergovernmental support, municipal capacity, non‐governmental organization presence and international development assistance

AbstractEnsuring equitable local service delivery requires sustained investments that are often beyond the reach of local governments in poor countries. In many developing countries, access to basic education is achieved primarily through the complementary efforts of state, municipal, non‐governmental and international development agencies — what I call the complementary “quartet” of service delivery. While the current literature acknowledges the individual roles of this “quartet,” it has not given much attention to the influence of their complementary efforts on access and quality of education outcomes. Using a unique (2013–2015) dataset of 260 Ghanaian municipalities in a cross‐sectional pooled regression analysis, the study finds that state assistance has broader influence on both access and quality of education outcomes, while municipal capacity, international development assistance and the presence of education focused non‐governmental organizations are associated with access (enrollment).

Shades of green: Unveiling the impact of municipal green bonds on the environment

Green bonds allocate proceeds towards environmentally beneficial projects and sustainable development goals, distinguishing themselves from traditional bonds primarily in the use of proceeds determination. However, investors often find it challenging to assess the carbon reduction potential of these bonds because of the lack of standardised environmental impact reporting. In response to this, our research constructs a unique set of indicators derived from financial and environmental datasets, using multivariate analysis techniques that can accommodate the detection of both linear and non-linear relationships. A novel method combining kernel Principal Component Analysis (kPCA) and Canonical Correlation Analysis (CCA) is applied to detect spatial–temporal cross-correlation in multivariate datasets. This approach handles variable comparability issues and the differential treatment of categorical and numerical variables. A significant finding of this study emerges when this methodology is applied to financial attributes obtained from green bonds issued by municipal agencies (muni bonds), pollution data and environmental (climate) data from nine California counties.The results of the detailed analysis indicate that there is measurable evidence to indicate relationships between green bond issuance and their use of proceeds for pollution reduction efforts. In particular, the results show a clear and interpretable correlation directly linked to the amount of green bond issuance and the effect this is having on pollution reduction, underscoring the tangible impact these financial instruments have on pollution reduction efforts in California.Conversely, when it comes to detecting spatial–temporal relationships between the use of proceeds from green bond issuance and positive climate change effects, this is inconclusive from the current studies’ analysis. It was found that there were weaker cross-correlation relationships observed between climate and green bond financial data set attributes which is perhaps indicative of the fact that climate change effects take a much longer time frame to occur. As such the findings of the analysis in this regard may not indicate that positive climate change effects are not occurring from green bond initiatives, but rather that the ability to measure detectable improvements to climate with regard to the issuance of green bonds is currently limited and will take longer for such effects to manifest in a statistically detectable fashion from the given data. This is particularly likely to be the case given green bonds are only in their infancy as a financial market, having had the earliest issuance only occurring in the last 15-20 years and only substantial growth in the market over the last 10 years. Therefore, this aspect of the research investigating longer-term climate effects with regard to green bond issuance will take longer to develop.

FloodNet: Low‐Cost Ultrasonic Sensors for Real‐Time Measurement of Hyperlocal, Street‐Level Floods in New York City

AbstractFlooding is one of the most dangerous and costly natural hazards, and has a large impact on infrastructure, mobility, public health, and safety. Despite the disruptive impacts of flooding and predictions of increased flooding due to climate change, municipalities have little quantitative data available on the occurrence, frequency, or extent of urban floods. To address this, we have been designing, building, and deploying low‐cost, ultrasonic sensors to systematically collect data on the presence, depth, and duration of street‐level floods in New York City (NYC), through a project called FloodNet. FloodNet is a partnership between academic researchers and NYC municipal agencies, working in consultation with residents and community organizations. FloodNet sensors are designed to be compact, rugged, low‐cost, and deployed in a manner that is independent of existing power and network infrastructure. These requirements were implemented to allow deployment of a hyperlocal, city‐wide sensor network, given that urban floods often occur in a distributed manner due to local variations in land development, population density, sewer design, and topology. Thus far, 87 FloodNet sensors have been installed across the five boroughs of NYC. These sensors have recorded flood events caused by high tides, stormwater runoff, storm surge, and extreme precipitation events, illustrating the feasibility of collecting data that can be used by multiple stakeholders for flood resiliency planning and emergency response.

Exploring the State of Municipal Water Supply Infrastructure

This paper explores the state of water infrastructure, concerning the obligation of the government municipal water supply agency (Plateau State Water Board) responsible for urban water supply. The study employs the qualitative method; a structured closed-ended questionnaire was prepared, and face-to-face interview was conducted with eight management staff of the board, thereafter interviews were transcribed verbatim and then analyzed using NVivo 12 software. Results from the analyses show that water infrastructures are in a deplorable state characterized by; bad condition of dams and water treatment plants, lack of stable electricity, lack of metering of customers as well as frequent cases of pipe bursts said to be connected to illegal connection by the residents of informal/slum settlements. The novelty of this study is anchored on the reality that infrastructure challenges negating the efficiency of PSWB were unveiled, and strategies that could improve and promote sustainability of water provision such as the ‘smart city’ concept that uses modern technology and ‘stakeholder’s involvement’ in the water governance process was suggested.

Does self‐organizing policy network provide effective waste services? An empirical evaluation of institutional collective action and transaction cost dilemmas

AbstractThis paper examines institutional collective action and transaction cost (TC) dilemmas in a self‐organizing policy network involving federal, state, and municipal agencies for waste services in a port and industrial park. A thematic analysis revealed dilemmas in: (a) vertical levels, which lack leadership in industrial waste management due to unclear responsibility delegation across government levels; (b) horizontal levels, reluctant to take responsibilities and define jurisdiction boundaries for efficient waste services; and (c) functional levels, which exhibit fragmented and unaligned action scopes. Transaction costs, stemming from a deficiency in expertise, infrastructure, and organized information regarding companies' waste management, hinder effective programs and policies. Without tackling these challenges and TCs through a governance framework that includes implementation strategies, monitoring, and institutional controls, the self‐organizing policy network is likely to remain stuck in collective institutional inertia.

Community gardens for inclusive urban planning in Padua (Italy): implementing a participatory spatial multicriteria decision-making analysis to explore the social meanings of urban agriculture

Urban agriculture is recognized as a worthy resource to support a growing population as well as to provide other positive effects on urban ecosystems and their citizens. In this context, community gardens are considered key topics in terms of food production and food security, in both developing and developed countries, as well as in terms of social inclusion and participation. The general aim of this study was to assess the main spatial criteria recognized and shared by stakeholders to identify suitable and inclusive areas for community gardens by testing and developing a participatory process. Because of its size, population, and urban fabric, Padua (northeast Italy) was selected as a representative and emblematic case study for mid-sized cities in Europe. The methodology was based on field surveys of key informants and spatial multicriteria decision-making analysis in the open-source geographic information system environment of QGIS. The results identified neighborhoods to be prioritized in the design of new community gardens according to three scenarios: the distance index, the social index, and the combination of the two (overall index). To conclude, this study highlighted the importance of adopting a decision-making methodology to support local policymakers and municipal agencies that are interested in implementing other community gardens in Padua. The case study and the methodology adopted could also serve as important guides for cities by providing step-by-step processes that can be directly applied.

Environmental Governance in Small Cities: Decentralization, Municipal Capacity and Autonomy in Gujarat and West Bengal

India’s 74th Constitutional Amendment obliges state governments to devolve responsibilities related to urban environmental resources and services to the Urban Local Bodies. However, the existing literature points to deficiencies in urban decentralization, including a mismatch between resources and responsibilities, financial constraints, and a lack of capacities at the municipal level. This article, based on comparative fieldwork and analysis of environmental governance in four small cities in Gujarat and West Bengal, two states representing contrasting subnational political regimes, largely confirms the literature on urban decentralization, but it also shows important differences between the two states. Municipal governance reflects state-level regime types to some extent: While an efficient local and parastatal bureaucracy spearheads investments in environmental infrastructure in Gujarat, relatively autonomous elected municipal councillors in West Bengal guide a widely spread creation of small environmental assets. The availability of more untied funds at the local level in Gujarat than in West Bengal leads to more pronounced intra-state variation and opens possibilities for more substantial municipal agency.

Talking about needs and rights in inter-agency meetings: interpretive contests in Swedish welfare provision

Inter-agency collaboration plays a central role in contemporary Swedish welfare provision and access to social security for citizens that are long-term unemployed and suffer from ill health. Drawing on Nancy Fraser’s theorisation on the ‘politics of needs interpretation’, this article examines how needs and rights are interpreted and contested in inter-agency meetings involving local representatives from national, regional and municipal Swedish welfare agencies. Contextualised against social security reforms that put emphasis on the limitation of access and a ‘work-first’ approach, the article suggests that localised inter-agency meetings of this nature are arenas where perceived injustices are symbolically elaborated and challenged ‘from within’ welfare organisations. Although discourses emphasising self-sufficiency and the importance of work tend to act as depoliticising and normalising, the way they are implemented in practice is not passively accepted by front-line professionals, who question interpretive justifications, as well as harmful consequences for individuals.

Predictors of fatal officer-involved shootings from eight municipal police agencies in the USA (2015–22)

Abstract In the USA, fatal officer-involved shootings (OIS) persist as a topic of nationwide concern. Still, due to a lack of reliable, public OIS data, research examining the predictors of these incidents is limited. The current project utilizes OIS data submitted to the Police Data Initiative (PDI) from eight large, municipal police agencies in the USA to assess trends and characteristics of OIS (fatal and nonfatal) occurring between 2015 and 2022. Using a logistic regression model, this analysis explores officer characteristics, civilian characteristics, and situational characteristics as predictors of the lethality of OIS incidents within these eight US jurisdictions. Results suggest three characteristics were significant predictors of fatal OIS, including the number of officers involved in the OIS, the officer’s years of experience, and the civilian’s age. Based on these findings, evidence-based strategies for fatal OIS prevention, critical incident response, and OIS data availability are discussed and future directions for research are explored.

A framework to forestall systemic police misconduct: Applying DOJ’S pattern or practice findings to municipal police

Abstract The 1994 crime bill authorized the DOJ to investigate and initiate reform against law enforcement agencies for patterns or practices of systemic misconduct and unconstitutional policing. Among the 78 investigations conducted under this authority, 35 involve municipal police agencies with DOJ issued “findings letters” detailing policy, procedural, and operational deficiencies within the subject agency. These DOJ-issued documents were analyzed for consistent thematic insufficiencies across investigations, and tested for association with police organizational and environmental variables. From this analysis, a four-step framework was developed to offer police leadership the knowledge, tools, timing, and insight to forestall patterns or practices of systemic misconduct and unconstitutional policing within their agency.

How California Sea Grant’s State Fellowship Program Fuels Careers in Coastal Conservation and Management

California Sea Grant’s State Fellowship Program, modeled after NOAA Sea Grant’s highly successful John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship Program, provides hands-on experience in the planning, implementation, and management of marine, coastal, and/or watershed resource policies and programs in the state of California. The program matches graduate students who have recently completed their degrees with hosts in municipal, state, and federal agencies and in research and conservation organizations in California for a 12-month paid fellowship. Over 300 fellows have been matched with over 40 unique hosts since its launch in 1987. Many alumni are now employed in key positions in government at the state and federal level, with 80% of participants in a given year going on to jobs in policy and/or resource management after completing their fellowships. This article provides a brief history of the program and testimonials from past fellows and hosts, and explores the program’s important role in providing agencies with well-trained, environmentally literate staff who can support the needs of coastal communities and ecosystems for the climate challenges ahead.

‘I really felt wanted’: Police recruitment strategies within a competitive labour market

Abstract As law enforcement organizations report challenges surrounding recruitment, evidence-based practices are critical and cost-effective measures which fundamentally support and advance the policing profession. To combat a hiring crisis and remain competitive among endless options of agency vacancies, employers must recognize internal data resources at hand along with the advantages of researcher-practitioner partnerships. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the effectiveness of a single mid-size southeastern municipal law enforcement agency’s recruitment program to identify unique indicators present within career decisions from the incoming officer workforce. Primary findings identified the recruitment process to play an integral role in the ultimate application and agency selection decision for participants, regardless of participant background. Further, participant interviews identified elements such as Responsiveness, Communication, Personal, and Timeliness critical to perceived success of the recruitment program. Regarding police staffing, this study introduces a self-sustaining model for agency-specific key motivating factors in recruit agency selection, to include application of strong recruitment practices and benchmark identification for sustained program effectiveness. Implications include the impact of customer-service approaches to police staffing and evidence-based strategies for agency-specific strengths during a nation-wide staffing crisis.

Sidewalk Government

This Article is about one of the most used, least studied spaces in the country: the sidewalk. It is easy to think of sidewalks simply as spaces for pedestrians, and that is exactly how most scholars, policymakers, and laws treat them. But this view is fundamentally mistaken. In big cities and small towns, sidewalks are also where we gather, demonstrate, dine, exercise, rest, and shop. They are host to commerce and infrastructure. They are spaces of public access and sources of private obligation. And in all of these things, sidewalks are sites of underappreciated conflict. The centrality of sidewalks in our day-to-day lives is rooted in the fact that they are open to everyone and to all of these varied uses, every hour of every day, but it is that very vibrancy that risks being their undoing. As competing claims on sidewalks increase in both number and intensity due to cultural shifts, technological advances, climate change, and more, the sidewalks we take for granted may crumble—both literally and figuratively—under the weight of contradictory and self-defeating governing principles and uncoordinated governmental oversight. This Article is the first to systematically examine the incoherence of the property law of sidewalks and of the fragmented regulatory architecture that municipalities have built to manage them. Drawing on insights from both property and local government law, as well as first-person interviews with current and former municipal officials, it demonstrates how both legal regimes have in fact deepened sidewalk conflict and have confused and undermined accountability for the quality and accessibility of sidewalks. With these shortcomings in mind, this Article charts a new course and constructs from the ground up a new municipal agency to administer the sidewalks—one that would be better positioned to protect and foster the utility and vitality of these critical social, economic, and political spaces.

Optimizing Segregated Waste Collection Routes as a Decision-Making Problem in the Municipal Solid Waste Management System in Small Town

Routing vehicles is a generic decision-making problem of strategic management in any business serving customers in distributed locations with a limited fleet including municipal solid waste collection. This paper introduces an approach tailored for optimizing waste collection routes in small towns and rural areas where dead-end streets are typical in the road network. Leveraging the Traveling Salesperson Problem (TSP), the approach employs optimal route determination taking advantage of the specific character of a road network with many dead-end streets. The service area for waste collection was aggregated, so the graph representing the map results in a relatively small data instance. This facilitated the application of the exact method, i.e. Mixed-Integer Programming using the OpenSolver tool in Excel. Conducted in collaboration with a municipal agency in southeastern Poland, this study outlines a comprehensive methodology, emphasizing the reduction of complex dead-end streets into singular nodes within the graph for effective route optimization. A comprehensive methodology is outlined alongside the solutions attained. Computational experiments focused on minimizing total travel distance during waste collection operations, demonstrating the methodology's success. Beyond efficiency gains, optimized routes hold potential for significant environmental impact reduction. The reduced travel distances result in decreased fuel consumption and emissions, aligning with sustainability goals. Developing an Excel-based decision support tool for municipal solid waste management is a significant contribution, particularly for decision-makers less familiar with Operations Research. The tool's compatibility within the spreadsheet environment streamlines waste management processes for municipal units, enhancing decision-making efficiency in optimizing waste collection routes.

The Future of Cyanobacteria Toxicity in Estuaries Undergoing Pulsed Nutrient Inputs: A Case Study from Coastal Louisiana

Harmful cyanobacteria blooms (cyanoHABs) are a global phenomenon, especially in calm, warm, and nutrient-rich freshwater and estuarine systems. These blooms can produce various potent toxins responsible for animal poisoning and human health problems. Nutrient-rich freshwater pulsed into estuaries affects turbidity, water temperature, salinity, and nutrient concentrations and ratios at irregular intervals, creating a highly dynamic habitat. However, the underlying processes that lead to the selective development of cyanoHABs for certain species and the fate of their toxins are still uncertain. This paper draws upon the rich body of research available for one such system, the Lake Pontchartrain Estuary, Louisiana, to generate insights about future research directions in pulsed-nutrient-delivery estuaries. Toxin-producing cyanobacteria blooms in river-dominated Louisiana coastal ecosystems have already been documented at high concentrations, presenting a potential risk to human health as $2.4 billion worth of Louisiana’s fish and shellfish are consumed by millions of people throughout the US every year. Recent studies have shown that the Lake Pontchartrain Estuary, just north of New Orleans, Louisiana has been experiencing cyanoHABs, likely connected to combinations of (a) high interannual variability in nutrient loading associated with seasonal and episodic rainfall, (b) the timing, duration, and magnitude of the flood-stage Mississippi River water diverted into the Lake Pontchartrain Estuary, and (c) saltwater inputs from tropical storms. It is expected that cyanoHABs will become more frequent in Louisiana with a warming climate and changes to the timing and magnitude of river water diverted into the Lake Pontchartrain Estuary, which will play a dominant role in the development of blooms in this region. More studies are needed to focus on the environmental conditions that control the succession or/and co-existence of different cyanobacteria species and their toxins, optimally culminating in a near-term forecasting tool since this information is critical for health agencies to mitigate or to provide early warnings. Toxin forecasts for pulsed-nutrient estuaries, including Lake Pontchartrain, could directly inform state and municipal health agencies on human exposure risks to upcoming cyanobacteria toxicity events by predicting cyanobacteria species shifts, potency, and toxin modality along the freshwater-to-marine continuum while also informing a longer-term projection on how the changing climate will impact the frequency and potency of such blooms.

Results from an effectiveness evaluation of anti-bias training on police behavior and public perceptions of discrimination

PurposeThe authors evaluated the impact of an anti-bias training intervention for improving police behavior during interactions with community members and public perceptions of discrimination.Design/methodology/approachFifty patrol officers from a diverse municipal agency were randomly selected to participate in an anti-bias intervention. Before and after the intervention, a random selection of Body Worn Camera (BWC) videos from the intervention group as well as from a control group of officers was coded using a validated tool for coding police “performance” during interactions with the public. Discrimination-based community member complaints were also collected before and after the intervention for treatment and control group officers.FindingsThe treatment group had a small but significant increase in performance scores compared to control group officers, F = 4.736, p = 0.009, R2ß < 0.01. They also had a small but significantly reduced number of discrimination-based complaints compared to control group officers, F = 3.042, p = 0.049, p2 = 0.015. These results suggest that anti-bias training could have an impact on officer behaviors during interactions with public and perceptions of discrimination.Originality/valueAlthough these results are from a single municipal police department, this is the first study to suggest that anti-bias trainings may have a positive behavioral impact on police officers as well as the first to illustrate the potential for their impact on community members' perceptions of biased treatment by officers.

Police Decisions in a Rape Scenario: The Effect of Trauma Response, Forensic Evidence, Stranger-Perpetrators, and Rape Mythology.

This study examined the direct effect of "classic rape" characteristics, and how they were moderated by rape myth endorsement, on the likelihood of arrest, perceived district attorney charge acceptance, and perceived suspect conviction using a formal rape disclosure among a sample of 468 police participants from a sizeable municipal law enforcement agency in one of the fifth largest and most diverse U.S. cities. A randomly assigned, between-subjects factorial vignette design was employed. Manipulations included stereotypical trauma response, forensic medical exam, and perpetrator type. Path modeling revealed statistically significant relations between stereotypical trauma response, forensic medical exam, perpetrator type, and the three outcome variables. Rape myth endorsement moderated the effect of manipulations on the dependent variables. Implications for research and policy are discussed.