Integration of the environmental management aspect in the optimization of the design and planning of energy systems

The increasing concerns regarding the environmental pollution derived from anthropogenic activities, such as the use of fossil fuels for power generation, has driven many interested parties to seek different alternatives, e.g. use of renewable energy sources, use of “cleaner” fuels and use of more effective technologies, in order to minimize and control the quantity of emissions that are produced during the life cycle of conventional energy sources. In addition to these alternatives, the use of an integrated procedure in which the environmental aspect will be taken into account during the design and planning of energy systems could provide a basis on which emissions reduction will be dealt with a life cycle approach. The work presented in this paper focuses on the examination of the possibilities of integrating the environmental aspects in the preliminary phase of the conventional design and planning of energy systems in conjunction with other parameters, such as financial cost, availability, capacity, location, etc. The integration of the environmental parameter to the design is carried out within a context where Eco-design concepts are applied. Due to the multi-parameter nature of the design procedure, the tools that are used are Life Cycle Analysis and Multi-criteria Analysis. The proposed optimization model examines and identifies optimum available options of the use of different energy sources and technologies for the production of electricity and/or heat by minimizing both the financial cost and the environmental impacts, with regard to a multiple objective optimization subject to a set of specific constraints. Implementation of the proposed model in the form of a case study for the island of Rhodes in Greece revealed that an optimized solution both cost and environmental-wise, would be an almost balanced participation of renewables and non-renewable energy sources in the energy mix

Rural areas development through endogenous potentials

The main objective of the present paper is to reveal the most important reasons for admitting and supporting a local factor, such as a Union of Agricultural Cooperatives, by the rural residents of a typical Greek region. Moreover, the investigation of the possible dependence relationships among the socioeconomic variables of a market research, which refers to the willingness to purchase dairy products from the Cooperative (the dependent variable) and the independent variables, constitute the intention of the paper. From a methodological point of view, the study extends the employment of categorical multivariate methodologies into rural development issues. Interesting results are revealed from the segmentation of rural populations regarding the drivers of project adoption. In particular, the majority of the potential adopters of the local project face the same, more or less, challenges in supporting local cooperative projects and therefore in supporting their incomes. The survey results indicate the success of the investment project of the Union and the confidence of the local community in a local cooperative organization in supporting the development of the region

Endogenous rural development: evidence from a typical Greek region

The current financial and institutional crisis in Greece has brought far-reaching consequences for the whole economy including rural development. Nevertheless, farmers and rural residents can profit from the opportunities and synergies offered by other activities that are complementary and alternative to agriculture and thus they can liberate themselves from the unique role of producers. Rural residents, farmers and entrepreneurs in less favored Greek areas play an essential role in the valorization of endogenous resources of the area where they are operating. This paper aims to examine the willingness of the residents of a typical Greek region to accept and support a local factor such as a union of agricultural cooperatives and to reveal the foremost reasons thereof. To that effect, a survey of 500 rural residents was performed using both summary statistics and multivariate analysis while a categorical regression analysis was applied to determine the relation between the respondents' socioeconomic characteristics and their willingness to adopt the endogenous potential. The survey findings indicate the success of the Union investment project and the confidence of the local community in a local cooperative organization. Thus, this local business initiative can significantly reduce the impact of the economic crisis on Greek rural residents by generating additional income from indigenous resources

Delineation of capture zones in groundwater aquifers as a tool for the application of the ‘polluter-pays’ principle

Summarization: The continuous and intensive human intervention in the environment and its increasing degradation from human activities has made imperative the need for its protection and for its effective – as far as possible - ‘remedy’ and restitution of the incoming damages. Specifically, the second issue is addressed by the ‘the polluter pays’ principle, which, except its suppressive character, serves the philosophy of prevention and the strengthening of the effective environmental protection. In order to implement this principle the Directive 2004/35/EC for the environmental liability was launched. The main point for the provision’s implementation on the environmental liability becomes the proof of causal link and connection between the damage and the activity that causes it, especially, in cases of diffuse pollution, or in cases where one or more bodies or activities are engaged in the pollution. The present paper introduces an effort of interdisciplinary approach of the above issue through the usage of mathematical environmental models. From the implementation and study of hypothetical pollution scenarios of a field application of groundwater pollution it is examined whether or not the models can constitute an important tool and a means of expertise for the illumination of the plethora cases of diffuse pollution.Παρουσιάστηκε στο: International Conference on Protection and Restoration of the Environment VII

Εφαρμογή της Αρχής «ο ρυπαίνων – πληρώνει» σε Υπόγειους Υδροφορείς υπό Συνθήκες Αβεβαιότητας

Περίληψη: Στην εργασία αυτή παρουσιάζεται μια διαδικασία στοχαστικής θεώρησης του προβλήματος της ρύπανσης ενός υπόγειου υδροφορέα με στόχο τον εντοπισμό των δραστηριοτήτων που ευθύνονται για το επεισόδιο που προκάλεσε τη ρύπανση, την απόδοση της περιβαλλοντικής ευθύνης και την εφαρμογή της αρχής «ο ρυπαίνων – πληρώνει» βάσει των οδηγιών της ΕΕ. Η στοχαστική ανάλυση που διενεργείται χρησιμοποιείται για την εκτίμηση της υδραυλικής αγωγιμότητας του υδροφορέα, μιας παραμέτρου που χαρακτηρίζεται από αβεβαιότητα στα περισσότερα προβλήματα προσομοίωσης υπόγειων ροών. Η προσέγγιση αυτή καθιστά δυνατή την εκτίμηση της πιθανότητας μια δραστηριότητα που αποτελεί πιθανή πηγή ρύπανσης να βρίσκεται εντός της ζώνης σύλληψης της γεώτρησης στην οποία έχει παρατηρηθεί το επεισόδιο και ως εκ τούτου, και σε συνδυασμό με άλλα χαρακτηριστικά που θα πρέπει επίσης να πληροί η υπό διερεύνηση δραστηριότητα, να θεωρηθεί ως υπεύθυνη και να της απαιτηθεί η αποκατάσταση της περιβαλλοντικής ζημίας που έχει προκαλέσειΠαρουσιάστηκε στο: : 6° Εθνικό Συνέδριο της ΕΕΔΥΠ, Ολοκληρωμένη Διαχείριση Υδατικών Πόρων με Βάση τη Λεκάνη Απορροή