Law and science: risk assessment and risk management in the WTO agreement on the application of sanitary and phytosanitary measures

Assessing and managing risks relating to the consumption of food stuffs for humans and to the environment has been one of the most complex legal issues in WTO law, ever since the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures was adopted at the end of the Uruguay Round and entered into force in 1995. The problem was expounded in a number of cases. Panels and the Appellate Body adopted different philosophies in interpreting the agreement and the basic concept of risk assessment as defined in Annex A para. 4 of the Agreement. Risk assessment entails fundamental question on law and science. Different interpretations reflect different underlying perceptions of science and its relationship to the law. The present thesis supported by the Swiss National Research Foundation undertakes an in-depth analysis of these underlying perceptions. The author expounds the essence and differences of positivism and relativism in philosophy and natural sciences. He clarifies the relationship of fundamental concepts such as risk, hazards and probability. This investigation is a remarkable effort on the part of lawyer keen to learn more about the fundamentals based upon which the law – often unconsciously – is operated by the legal profession and the trade community. Based upon these insights, he turns to a critical assessment of jurisprudence both of panels and the Appellate Body. Extensively referring and discussing the literature, he deconstructs findings and decisions in light of implied and assumed underlying philosophies and perceptions as to the relationship of law and science, in particular in the field of food standards. Finding that both positivism and relativism does not provide adequate answers, the author turns critical rationalism and applies the methodologies of falsification developed by Karl R. Popper. Critical rationalism allows combining discourse in science and law and helps preparing the ground for a new approach to risk assessment and risk management. Linking the problem to the doctrine of multilevel governance the author develops a theory allocating risk assessment to international for a while leaving the matter of risk management to national and democratically accountable government. While the author throughout the thesis questions the possibility of separating risk assessment and risk management, the thesis offers new avenues which may assist in structuring a complex and difficult problem

Cognitive Cities: An Application for Nairobi. Text Message Participation of Slum Inhabitants to Improve Sanitary Facilities

Population growth is always increasing, and thus the concept of smart and cognitive cities is becoming more important. Developed countries are aware of and working towards needed changes in city management. However, emerging countries require the optimization of their own city management. This chapter illustrates, based on a use case, how a city in an emerging country can quickly progress using the concept of smart and cognitive cities. Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, is chosen for the test case. More than half of the population of Nairobi lives in slums with poor sanitation, and many slum inhabitants often share a single toilet, so the proper functioning and reliable maintenance of toilets are crucial. For this purpose, an approach for processing text messages based on cognitive computing (using soft computing methods) is introduced. Slum inhabitants can inform the responsible center via text messages in cases when toilets are not functioning properly. Through cognitive computer systems, the responsible center can fix the problem in a quick and efficient way by sending repair workers to the area. Focusing on the slum of Kibera, an easy-to-handle approach for slum inhabitants is presented, which can make the city more efficient, sustainable and resilient (i.e., cognitive).

Energetic performance of landfill and digester biogas in a domestic cooker

The energetic performance of landfill biogas (LB) and biodigester biogas (BB) from municipal waste was examined in consumption tests. These tests were performed in situ at a gas generation plant associated with a landfill facility in Madrid (Spain) and following the standard UNE-EN 30-2-1 (1999). The jets of a domestic cooker commonly used for natural gas (NG) or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) were modified to operate with the biogases produced at the facility. The working pressures best suited to the tested gases, i.e., to avoid flashback and flame lift, and to ensure the stability and correct functioning of the flame during combustion, were determined by trial and error. Both biogases returned optimum energetic performance for the transfer of heat to water in a metallic recipient (as required by the above standard) at a supply pressure of 10 mbar. Domestic cookers are normally supplied with NG at a pressure of 20 mbar, at which pressure the energetic performance of G20 reference gas was higher than that of both biogases (52.84% compared to 38.06% and 49.77% respectively). Data concerning these issues involving also unexplored feedstock are required for the correct conversions of domestic cookers in order to avoid risks of serious personal injuries or property damages.

Closures of positive braids and the Morton-Franks-Williams inequality

We study the Morton-Franks-Williams inequality for closures of simple braids (also known as positive permutation braids). This allows to prove, in a simple way, that the set of simple braids is an orthonormal basis for the inner product of the Hecke algebra of the braid group defined by Kálmán, who first obtained this result by using an interesting connection with Contact Topology. We also introduce a new technique to study the Homflypt polynomial for closures of positive braids, namely resolution trees whose leaves are simple braids. In terms of these simple resolution trees, we characterize closed positive braids for which the Morton-Franks-Williams inequality is strict. In particular, we determine explicitly the positive braid words on three strands whose closures have braid index three.

Estudio de las posibilidades de aplicación de los conceptos de urban mining y landfill mining

Como la demanda de la sociedad de metal aumenta, la tasa de extracción de minerales hace lo mismo. Esto contribuye al aumento de las implicaciones ambientales en forma de emisiones y el agotamiento de los recursos naturales. El reciclaje es una fuente importante para satisfacer la demanda de metales; como mucho un 30% de la demanda de metal está cubierto por el reciclaje en algunos mercados. Otra forma de reciclaje es la práctica de Urban Mining. El presente trabajo estudia la potencialidad del Landfill Mining en los vertederos españoles. Este concepto denomina el proceso de recuperación de materiales residuales depositados en vertederos para su uso posterior como materiales secundarios y, cuando ello no es posible, para su reaprovechamiento energético. Como consecuencia esto implica el cumplimiento de un segundo objetivo: la reducción o mitigación de las emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero derivadas de la presencia de residuos en vertederos.

Analysis of halogenated compounds in landfill gas

The authors thank the research project CTQ2008-05520 from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science and PROMETEO/2009/043/FEDER from the Valencian Community Government (Spain) for the support provided.

Biogas from MSW landfill: Composition and determination of chlorine content with the AOX (adsorbable organically bound halogens) technique

An exhaustive characterization of the biogas from some waste disposal facilities has been carried out. The analysis includes the main components (methane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen and oxygen) as well as trace components such as hydrogen sulphide, ammonia and VOCs (volatile organic compounds) including siloxanes and halogenated compounds. VOCs were measured by GC/MS (Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry) using two different procedures: thermal desorption of the Tenax TA and Carbotrap 349 tubes and SPME (Solid Phase Micro-Extraction). A method has been established to measure the total halogen content of the biogas with the AOX (adsorbable organically bound halogens) technique. The equipment used to analyze the samples was a Total Organic Halogen Analyzer (TOX-100). Similar results were obtained when comparing the TOX (Total Organic Halogen) values with those obtained by GC/MS. The halogen content in all the samples was under 22 mg Cl/Nm3 which is below the limit of 150 mg/Nm3 proposed in the Spanish Regulations for any use of the biogas. The low chlorine content in the biogas studied, as well as the low content of other trace compounds, makes it suitable for use as a fuel for electricity generating engines.

Landfill Leachate Toxicity to Oncorhynchus mykiss (Rainbow Trout) at the Merrick Landfill

At the Merrick Landfill, located outside of North Bay (Ontario, CA), an investigation into the potential for an environmental impact to the Little Sturgeon River as a result of landfill leachate discharge was undertaken using toxicity testing using 96 hour acute lethality on Oncorhynchus mykiss (Rainbow Trout). Landfill leachate may present a risk to receiving environments as it is comprised of an array of chemicals including organics, ammonia, and metals. Testing was conducted in three phases, firstly testing was completed on site throughout an existing natural attenuation zone where the presence of several groundwater seeps down gradient of the site had been identified to determine the effectiveness of the existing leachate control features at reducing the environmental risks. These tests indicated that the existing capture strategies were largely effective at reducing toxicity risks to the receiving environment. Testing was also completed on two pilot-scale hybrid-passive treatment systems to determine their effectiveness for leachate treatment. Summer performance of a constructed gravel wetland system was also shown to be effective at reducing the toxicity of the landfill leachate at the site. Lastly in order to support evaluation of leachate treatment requirements, a toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) was performed to determine the principle cause of toxicity within the leachate. Based on water chemistry analyses of samples collected at various locations at the site, the TIE identified ammonia toxicity as the primary source of toxicity in the leachate, with a secondary focus on metal toxicity.