Do Norwegian SMEs manage to create additional value in the transition toward sustainability?

Companies' aggregated harm and benefits within ESG aspects, both externally to society and internally in firms have become increasingly important in recent years. Small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) make up for 90% of the world's businesses (World Bank, n.d.) Much of the research attention has been given to large companies, and less so to SMEs.In this article we investigate Norwegian SMEs to see if they differentiate against the current literature, and if they are able to generate additional value through Norwegian sustainability guidelines and policies. Data is generated through qualitative research by interviewing 10 Norwegian SMEs. External drivers causing SMEs to pursue sustainability are stakeholder demands, environmental impact, financial pressure, and regulatory pressure. The internal drivers for firms are financial, social, or strategic benefits from sustainability implementation. However, time and resources, liability of smallness, bureaucracy, price, and measurement problems are some of the barriers facing SMEs when trying to implement sustainability initiatives. Here are some of our main findings; Financial ability to invest more than the minimum policy requirement is one way of creating additional value. A one-size fits all regulatory sustainability approach is a drawback leading to not suitable regulations for firms.Measurement problems cause firms to question if their sustainable initiatives provide value and to what extent. Changes in policies, regulation and incentives will be important tools for a successful transition toward sustainability for Norwegian SMEs

Do Norwegian SMEs manage to create additional value in the transition toward sustainability?

Companies' aggregated harm and benefits within ESG aspects, both externally to society and internally in firms have become increasingly important in recent years. Small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) make up for 90% of the world's businesses (World Bank, n.d.) Much of the research attention has been given to large companies, and less so to SMEs.In this article we investigate Norwegian SMEs to see if they differentiate against the current literature, and if they are able to generate additional value through Norwegian sustainability guidelines and policies. Data is generated through qualitative research by interviewing 10 Norwegian SMEs. External drivers causing SMEs to pursue sustainability are stakeholder demands, environmental impact, financial pressure, and regulatory pressure. The internal drivers for firms are financial, social, or strategic benefits from sustainability implementation. However, time and resources, liability of smallness, bureaucracy, price, and measurement problems are some of the barriers facing SMEs when trying to implement sustainability initiatives. Here are some of our main findings; Financial ability to invest more than the minimum policy requirement is one way of creating additional value. A one-size fits all regulatory sustainability approach is a drawback leading to not suitable regulations for firms. Measurement problems cause firms to question if their sustainable initiatives provide value and to what extent. Changes in policies, regulation and incentives will be important tools for a successful transition toward sustainability for Norwegian SMEs

Nitrite kinetics during anoxia: the role of abiotic reactions versus microbial reduction

Anoxic spells in soil induce denitrification, i.e. the sequential reduction NO3-→NO2-→NO→N2O→N2, catalysed by the four enzymes NAR, NIR, NOR and NOS, respectively. Transient accumulation of all intermediates is inevitable, but the concentrations depend on the regulation of gene expression and the physical/chemical properties of the soil. Nitrite is chemically unstable at low pH, decomposing via a conglomerate of abiotic reactions with metals and organic compounds which can result in production of NO, N2O, N2 and nitrosated organic compounds (R-NO). There is evidence that acidic soils accumulate less nitrite than neutral soils, but it is unclear if this is due to high abiotic decomposition rate (VADEC) or fast enzymatic reduction of nitrite (VNIR) at low pH. To investigate this, we monitored the kinetics of NO2-, NO, N2O and N2 during anoxic incubations of three organic soils with pHCaCl2 ranging from 3.4 to 7.2, taken from a long-term liming experiment. In parallel, we determined the rate of abiotic nitrite decay (VADEC) and its product stoichiometry (NO, N2O and R-NO) in gamma-irradiated soils. VADEC was clearly first-order with respect to HNO2 (kHNO2 = 1.4 h-1), N-gas production (NO, N2O and N2) accounted for only ~50% of VADEC, the rest was ascribed to nitrosation (R-NO). During denitrification (live soil incubation), the nitrite concentrations reached 2-3 mM in the soils with pH 4.9 and 7.2, while the soil with pH 3.4 kept nitrite concentrations at 20-50 µM , except for a short spike reaching 160 μM. Estimated rates of nitrite scavenging by the two competing sinks (NIR and ADEC) showed that NIR was the strongst nitrite sink in soil with pH 3.4 (VNIR>VADEC), while VNIR ≈ VADEC in the soil with pH 5.9. In the soil with pH 7.2, VADEC was insignificant. Thus, the regulation of denitrification (high VNIR relative to VNAR) played a crucial role in determining nitrite kinetics, hence the fate of nitrite in acid soils. High nitrite reductase activity effectively minimized abiotic nitrite decomposition and nitrosation of soil organic matter. The results shed light on regulation of denitrification in acid soils, and its implications for the fate of nitrogen during denitrification events.Nitrite kinetics during anoxia: the role of abiotic reactions versus microbial reductionacceptedVersio

Low Probability of Initiating nirS Transcription Explains Observed Gas Kinetics and Growth of Bacteria Switching from Aerobic Respiration to Denitrification

In response to impending anoxic conditions, denitrifying bacteria sustain respiratory metabolism by producing enzymes for reducing nitrogen oxyanions/-oxides (NOx) to N2 (denitrification). Since denitrifying bacteria are non-fermentative, the initial production of denitrification proteome depends on energy from aerobic respiration. Thus, if a cell fails to synthesise a minimum of denitrification proteome before O2 is completely exhausted, it will be unable to produce it later due to energy-limitation. Such entrapment in anoxia is recently claimed to be a major phenomenon in batch cultures of the model organism Paracoccus denitrificans on the basis of measured e−-flow rates to O2 and NOx. Here we constructed a dynamic model and explicitly simulated actual kinetics of recruitment of the cells to denitrification to directly and more accurately estimate the recruited fraction (). Transcription of nirS is pivotal for denitrification, for it triggers a cascade of events leading to the synthesis of a full-fledged denitrification proteome. The model is based on the hypothesis that nirS has a low probability (, h−1) of initial transcription, but once initiated, the transcription is greatly enhanced through positive feedback by NO, resulting in the recruitment of the transcribing cell to denitrification. We assume that the recruitment is initiated as [O2] falls below a critical threshold and terminates (assuming energy-limitation) as [O2] exhausts. With = 0.005 h−1, the model robustly simulates observed denitrification kinetics for a range of culture conditions. The resulting (fraction of the cells recruited to denitrification) falls within 0.038–0.161. In contrast, if the recruitment of the entire population is assumed, the simulated denitrification kinetics deviate grossly from those observed. The phenomenon can be understood as a ‘bet-hedging strategy’: switching to denitrification is a gain if anoxic spell lasts long but is a waste of energy if anoxia turns out to be a ‘false alarm’.publishedVersio

Samansette preposisjonar i norske dialektar

I norsk ï¬Ânst det ei rekkje preposisjonar som er samansette av stadadverb og tra-disjonelle preposisjonar. I dialektane har ein del av desse fusjonert til éi stav-ing.Etter ei generell innleiing konsentrerer vi oss om preposisjonskompleksetav â utav â tå. Vi skisserer fordelinga av desse i dialektane og refererer så eispørjeundersøking basert på femti eksempelsetningar som illustrerer ulikebruksmåtar av dette komplekset. Undersøkinga er avgrensa, men kan gi grunn-lag for hypotesar til vidare prøving. Dialektane vi undersøkte, ser ut til å dele seg i tre: 1: dei som berre nyttarav, 2: dei som berre nyttar tå, og 3: dei som nyttar begge i ulike funksjonar, slikat tåhar overteke den preposisjonelle funksjonen, og avhar spesialisert seg påden adverbielle. Bruken av utavhar vi ikkje fått noko klart bilete av. Vi tolkar desse preposisjonane som døme på leksikalisering og konkluderermed at klassiï¬Âseringa av stadadverb som preposisjonar i Norsk referanse-grammatikker problematisk

Integrating Economics and Ecology

SupplementThis report documents the results from an analysis of policy measures to reduce losses of nitrogen, phosphorus and soil from the agricultural sector to the environment. These kinds of losses are nonpoint, and standard emission oriented policy measures like effluent taxes are prohibitively costly to use. The policy altematives are therefore to regulate the input of potentially polluting substances - in this case reduce the use of fertilizers, to prescribe changes in agronomic practices as conducted on the farm or to change product prices. Principally this study analyzes the effects of these types of regulations, their ability to reduce losses of nutrients and soil, and the private and social costs thereby invoked

Understanding recent trends in incidence of invasive breast cancer in Norway: age-period-cohort analysis based on registry data on mammography screening and hormone treatment use

Objective To quantify the separate contributions of menopausal hormone treatment and mammography screening activities on trends in incidence of invasive breast cancer between 1987 and 2008

Controlling dietary cation-anion differences in forages by chloride fertilisation

Rations with low to negative dietary cation-anion difference (DCAD) given to dairy cows before calving reduce the risk of hypocalcaemia (milk fever). Different strategies for increasing forage DCAD were investigated in field trials in Central and Western Norway. Fertilisation with 70, 140 or 210 kg Cl per hectare as calcium chloride and low supply rates of K reduced DCAD in forage harvested at late developmental stages in spring growth of timothy and meadow fescue. The ideal negative DCAD was only attained on soils very low in plant available K. Timing (spring versus late spring) and source of Cl (CaCl2 versus MgCl2) were of no importance for the result. When pure stands of seven grasses were fertilised in spring either without chloride or with 140 kg chloride per hectare, the lowest values of DCAD after chloride fertilisation were found in perennial ryegrass and reed canary grass. By comparison, cocksfoot had equally high or higher Cl concentrations in its tissues, but accumulated more K, and seemed to be poorly suited for low DCAD forage production. It was concluded that Cl fertilisation is a more efficient means of controlling DCAD than sward species composition

Denitrification by bradyrhizobia under feast and famine and the role of the bc1 complex in securing electrons for N2O reduction.

acceptedVersio