Study on green ecological assessment of high-speed railway using unascertained measure and AHP

U svrhu istraživanja ekološkog učinka konstrukcije i funkcioniranja brzovozeće željeznice, u radu se postavlja sustav određivanja indeksa zelene ekološke procjene na temelju koncepta održivog razvoja te se postavlja model ekološke procjene na osnovu neutvrđene mjere i AHP. U tom postupku autor najprije konstruira matricu neutvrđene procjene uvodeći neutvrđenu teoriju, zatim određuje težinu indeksa klasifikacije primjenom AHP, a kao treće određuje ekološki stupanj u skladu s kriterijem povjerenja. Na toj osnovi autor definira stupnjeve ekološke procjene. Zatim autor daje zelenu ekološku procjenu za željeznicu Beijing-Shanghai (dio Xuzhou-Shanghai). Ekološki omjer je 7.0089 a rezultirajuća boja je tirkizna, što je u skladu s konceptom održivog razvoja. Rezultat pokazuje da je izvodivo kombinirati neutvrđenu mjeru i AHP u metodi ekološke procjene za projekt izgradnje brzovozeće željeznice.Aiming at exploring the ecological effect of high-speed railway construction and operation, this paper establishes a green ecological assessment index system based on the concept of sustainable development, and sets up a green ecological assessment model based on unascertained measure and AHP. During the assessment process, the author firstly constructs the unascertained judgment matrix by introducing the unascertained theory, secondly determines index classification weight by AHP, and thirdly identifies the green grade according to the confidence criterion. On this basis, the author defines the green assessment grades. Then, the author carries out green ecological assessment of Beijing-Shanghai HighSpeed Railway (Xuzhou-Shanghai Section). The ecological score is 7.0089 and the resulting color is turquoise, which is consistent with the concept of sustainable development. The result shows that it is feasible to combine the unascertained measure and AHP into an ecological assessment method for high-speed railway construction project

Study on post evaluation of high-speed railway based on FAHP and MATLAB simulation calculation

Usmjeren na izgradnju znanstvenog sustava naknadne procjene, ovaj rad definira 4 prva indikatora, 9 drugih indikatora i 32 treća indikatora na temelju analize naknadne procjene projekata željezničkih pruga visokih brzina. S Harbin-Dalian željeznicom visoke brzine kao objektom empirijske analize, autor gradi model kroz neizraziti analitički hijerarhijski proces (FAHP) te provodi simulacijski izračun s Matlabom. Konačno, autor zaključuje da Harbin-Dalian željeznica velike brzine postiže dobre rezultate. Naime, prikladni su putovi odabrani anketom i projektom, tijekom izgradnje osigurana je sigurnost na radu, projekt je stimulirao BDP, porastao je BDP po glavi stanovnika duž željezničke pruge te zadovoljstvo i spremnost na sudjelovanje ljudi u željezničkim projektima viskokih brzina. Ipak, trebaju se usvojiti mjere zaštite od buke i zračenja radi poboljšanja učinkovitosti prijevoza, povećanja prihoda od projekta i smanjenja onečišćenja okoliša uzrokovanog željezničkim prometom visoke brzine.Targeted at constructing a scientific post-evaluation system, this paper establishes 4 first indices, 9 secondary indices, and 32 third indices on the basis of post evaluation analysis of high-speed railway construction projects. With Harbin-Dalian High-speed Railway as the object of empirical analysis, the author builds a model through the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP), and carries out simulation calculation with Matlab. Finally, the author draws the conclusions that Harbin-Dalian High-Speed Railway gets good results. Specifically, the routes selected by survey and design are appropriate, work safety is ensured during the construction, the project operation has stimulated the GDP, the per capita GNP of residents along the high-speed railway has increased, and people’s satisfaction and willingness to participate in high-speed railway projects have been improved. Nevertheless, acoustic and radiation protection measures should be adopted to improve transport efficiency, increase project revenue, and reduce the environmental pollution caused by high-speed railway operation

Analysing Efficiency of Waste to Energy Systems: Using Data Envelopment Analysis in Municipal Solid Waste Management

In our day-to-day living, a simple underlying principle is to consume resources in one form or another. This consumption generates waste, which needs to be dealt with in a responsible, efficient and effective manner. Waste is mostly collected and disposed by municipalities. This presents a challenge for these municipalities in dealing with ever increasing amounts of waste to be managed. This is particularly critical in cities, where the demand for these services is increasing. Management of municipal solid waste (MSW) continues to be one of the top priorities for human communities in the 21st century. The model of integrated solid waste management, reduction of waste right at the source points before it enters the chain of waste stream, reuse of generated wastes for recovery by recycling, and disposal through environmentally sound combustion facilities and landfills that meet policy standards are being used by communities as they evolve. Solid waste management is known to be an important contributor to various environmental problems, for example climate change (e.g. greenhouse gas emissions from landfills), disturbing multiple ecosystems (e.g. heavy metal emissions into air, soil and surface water), and improper use of resources leading to depletion (e.g. inexistent or inefficient recycling processing methods for a few particular key minerals or metals) among others. The formidable rise in solid waste generation require suitable management systems, which methodically handle these environmental issues and eventually contribute to move towards a more environmentally sustainable society. This paper presents a method based on Data Envelopment Analysis to analyse the efficiency of Waste to Energy systems, looking not only at maximising the positive outputs (e.g. Energy), but also minimising the negative ones (e.g. emissions). The results provide a benchmark for municipalities to aim in the operation of their Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM)

Comprehensive Sustainability Evaluation of High-Speed Railway (HSR) Construction Projects Based on Unascertained Measure and Analytic Hierarchy Process

This paper aims to evaluate the sustainability of high-speed railway (HSR) construction projects in a comprehensive manner. To this end, the author established an index system, involving 4 primary indices, 9 secondary indices, and 32 tertiary indices. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and the unascertained measure were introduced to calculate the weights of these indices. Then, the index system was applied to evaluate the sustainability of the China’s Harbin-Dalian Passenger Dedicated Line (PDL). The results show that the Harbin-Dalian PDL project achieved good results in terms of process, economic benefit, impact, and sustainability, and will bring long-term benefits in the fields of tourism, economy, and transport capacity, as well as many other fields. In spite of its good overall sustainability, the project needs to further increase its economic benefits and reduce its negative environmental impact. For this purpose, it is necessary to adopt the management mode of “separation between network and transportation” and apply noise prevention measures like noise barriers, tunnels, and overhead viaducts. This research lays a solid basis for the sustainability evaluation of HSR construction projects, and simplifies the modelling process for designers of HSR

Pattern of Grain Production Potential and Development Potential in China–Mongolia–Russia Economic Corridor

The China–Mongolia–Russia Economic Corridor (CMREC) region is part of the Silk Road Economic Belt and is critical to world food grain safety, and thus, developing its potential grain production will help counter any global food crisis. In this study, a grain production potential measurement system for the CMREC was designed and developed using spatial data to progressively correct environmental factor functions. The potential yield per unit area and potential area of four grain crops in 48 provinces were scientifically and systematically evaluated, and the grain production potential, development potential, and development potential range were calculated. The results show that the grain production potential and development potential of the corridor are significant. The yield of wheat and maize is mainly distributed in Siberia and the south of the Russian Far East. The development potential of soybean is very large and is mainly concentrated in the Russian Far East and northeast region of Mongolia. However, there is little room for paddy yield improvement, and its potential is mainly concentrated in northeast China. The grain production potential forms a high-value region with a low value from north to south, high value in the middle, extending from northwest to southeast. Grain and cereals in the whole region amounted to 8.45 × 108 t (4.25 × 108 t in Russia, 4.03 × 108 t in China, and 0.12 × 108 t in Mongolia). In terms of grain type, maize has the highest productivity potential with 1.96 × 108 t, followed by wheat at 1.45 × 108 t. The potential for paddy is 0.58 × 104 t, whereas soybean has the lowest potential of 0.40 × 108 t. The results of this study provide evidential support in the form of data for the development of the complementary advantages of agricultural resources, construction of the CMREC, and joint development of a food resource free trade zone. The CMREC will strengthen the development of modern, green, high-yield, high-quality, and efficient grain production zones for soybean and maize, and promote the diversification of grain resource cooperation

A System Dynamics Model to Assess the Effectiveness of Governmental Support Policies for Renewable Electricity

China’s support policy for renewable electricity belongs to a feed-in tariffs scheme. With the rapid development of renewable electricity industries, this set of policies brought about a heavy fiscal burden for the government. The exploration of whether current support policy provided excessive subsidies for renewable electricity is of great practical significance. We hold an idea that the internalization of positive externality is the only criterion for the government to support the development of a renewable electricity industry. The problem of whether the current policy provides excessive subsidies for renewable electricity industry can be solved by assessing whether its positive externality is internalized, as renewable electricity industry has a characteristic of externality. Our study object is an assumed biomass power plant in Jingning County, Gansu Province. A system dynamics model was built. Applying the environmental cost accounting method and net present value analysis method, we connected the techno-economic analysis of the biomass power plant with the measurement of positive externality of biomass power generation together. In this system dynamics model, we developed an indicator to reveal whether the subsidies provided by governmental policies can compensate the positive externality generated by the assumed biomass power plant. This study mainly draws the following conclusions: Firstly, China’s current support policy does provide excessive subsidies for the renewable power industry. The subsidies received by biomass power plants from the government are higher than the positive externality generated by them; secondly, the positive externality measurement of the biomass power industry is influenced by many regional factors; thirdly, without governmental policy support, biomass power plants cannot compete with traditional power companies; fourthly, as biomass power generation is concerned, the current price subsidy intensity is about US$0.0132 higher per kWh than a reasonable level. Furthermore, the parameters frequently applied in the calculation of the prices of pollutant emission reduction in Chinese research papers are relatively small, which is only half of their actual values. Jingning County, situated in inland west-northern China, lacks typicality. There is a limitation in judging whether the government’s support policy for renewable electricity is reasonable through a feasibility analysis of investment in a biomass power generation project. This may be the main drawback of this study