Estimating the effects of Kyoto on bilateraltrade flows using matching econometrics

Many Kyoto countries fear a loss of competitiveness due to unilateral climate policyefforts; policymakers therefore call for carbon-related border tax adjustments. With thispaper we attempt to estimate the treatment effect of Kyoto commitment on bilateralexport flows using regression-adjusted differences-in-differences matching techniques.The gravity and international environmental agreement formation literatures provideguidelines for the choice of matching variables. We find that Kyoto countries' exportsare reduced by 13–14% due to Kyoto commitment. Trade effects are largest in energyintensive,homogeneous industries such as iron and steel, non-ferrous metals, organicand inorganic chemicals but also in machinery and equipment.Competitiveness, Kyoto Protocol, matching econometrics, treatment effects

TINJAUAN HUKUM TENTANG PERLINDUNGAN BAGI TENAGA KERJA SEKTOR UMKM DIHUBUNGKAN DENGAN PRECARIOUS WORK (KONDISI KERJA BERBAHAYA)

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui bagaimana perlindungan bagi tenaga kerja sektor UMKM dan untuk mengetahui kebijakan seperti apa yang diberikan apabila terdapat suatu kondisi precarious work dalam suatu UMKM. Dengan menggunakan metode penelitian yuridis normatif, disimpulkan: 1. Perlindungan hukum bagi tenaga kerja UMKM terdapat pada 3 (tiga) aspek yaitu aspek ekonomis, aspek Kesehatan, dan aspek keselamatan kerja, tanpa memberikan kepentingan yang lebih besar pada salah satu aspek. 2. Kebijakan yang diberikan apabila tenaga kerja sedang berada pada suatu kondisi precarious work atau kondisi kerja berbahaya adalah tenaga kerja dapat mengajukan permintaan kepada atasannya untuk memenuhi syarat-syarat keselamatan kerja, dan apabila dalam hubungan kerjanya dengan pengusaha terjadi perselisihan maka dapat dilakukan penyelesaian melalui tahapan baik secara litigasi maupun non litigasi. Kata kunci: Perlindungan Hukum, Tenaga Kerja, UMKM, Precarious Wor

Suitability of the Carbonate Rocks of the Bekhme Formation Exposed in Shakrook Anticline, Iraqi Kurdistan region, for Cement Industry

The Bekhme Formation forms almost the bulk of the Shakrook anticline, especially the limbs. The current research deals with studying the exposed beds within the Bekhme Formation at the Shakrook anticline to check the suitability of the exposed rocks at the northeastern limb of the anticline for the cement industry. Twenty rock samples from a section which lies along a deeply cut valley that crosses the northeastern limb of the Shakrook anticline within the Bekhme Formation were collected. The channel sampling method was applied; therefore, each sample represents the concerned sampling interval and to be representative for the thickness of the sampled interval. The total thickness of the sampled section is 110 m with a covered interval of 15 m, totaling to 125 m. The collected 20 samples were prepared at the laboratory of the Koya University and were subjected to XRF test at the Tarbiat Modares University, Iran, to indicate the concentration of the main oxides (CaO, MgO, Al2O3, Fe2O3, Na2O, K2O, and SO3), and Cl and L.O.I. The indicated concentrations at each sample, from both universities, were compared and were found to be almost coinciding. The average concentrations at each sample were changed to weighted averages and the results were compared with the Iraqi standards for cement industry. The results revealed that the sampled rocks are excellent for cement production

Industrial Assessment of the Carbonate Rocks of the Pila Spi Formation at Haibat Sultan Mountain, Iraqi Kurdistan Region

The Pila Spi Formation is one of the prominent formations forming continuous ridges in Kurdistan Region. The thickness of the formation ranges from 15 to 110 m, consisting of well-bedded limestone, dolomite, dolomitic limestone, and very rare marl beds. The study area is located about 15 km east of Koya town, next to the abandoned tunnel through a deeply cut valley which has exposed 50 m of the formation. However, the uppermost part of the exposed section may belong to one of the Oligocene formations of Kirkuk Group. The study area was selected within the Pila Spi Formation because the rocks of the same formation and along the same ridge, about 45 km west of the study area showed encouraging results for cement industry. The average CaO is about 51%, whereas the average MgO is 1.8%. Therefore, eight samples were collected at constant thickness from the exposed section. The samples were subjected to X-ray fluorescence (XRF) test to indicate the main oxides in the sampled section. The acquired results from the XRF tests showed that the chemical composition of the exposed rocks within the Pila Spi Formation is suitable for cement industry, also for paper and paint but needs some treatment. Accordingly, another eight samples were collected from the same section to increase the density of sampling, totaling to 16 samples

Factor Affecting Timely Completion of Local Government Development Projects: A Case of Tanganyika District.

Thestudy aimed to assess the factors affecting the timely completion of development projects in Tanganyika District. The study was seeking to examinehow resource allocation affect timely completion of development projects, examinehow the knowledge and skill of the project manager affect the timely completion of development projects, examine how project monitoring affect the timely completion of development projects and examine how the project planning affect the timely completion of development projects. This study was guided by the general system theory. The sample size was 46 respondents from Tanganyika District. The study used a cross-sectional research design to collect data from many different individuals at a single point in time. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect information from Tanganyika District. Discriptive statistics and inferencial analysis were used as a data analysis technique. The study is significance since p<0.05 and showed that there is a positive correlation between resource allocation,project planning, knowledge and skill of the project manager,project monitoring and timely completion of the development projects. the study indicated that inadquate resource allocation, lack of project planning,lack of knowledge, skill and experience of the project manager, and lack of project monitoring affect the timely completion of development projects. The government should ensure adequate resource allocation in all project undertaking to facilitate project completion, improve project planning tool to enhance the capacity of forecasting the expected project activities and their financial implications, ensure skilled, Competent and experienced project managers are hired to ensure that the right project leadership team is hired to lead a process of development project implementation and make monitoring process a continuous and ongoing and not based on milestones but rather on schedules to be able to identify any time creep that may occur during a project. Keywords: Timely project Completion, Development Project, Project, Local Governmen

Influence of Soldiers' Cardiorespiratory Fitness on Physiological Responses and Dropouts During a Loaded Long-distance March.

Introduction: In military service, marching is an important, common, and physically demanding task. Minimizing dropouts, maintaining operational readiness during the march, and achieving a fast recovery are desirable because the soldiers have to be ready for duty, sometimes shortly after an exhausting task. The present field study investigated the influence of the soldiers' cardiorespiratory fitness on physiological responses during a long-lasting and challenging 34 km march. Materials and methods: Heart rate (HR), body core temperature (BCT), total energy expenditure (TEE), energy intake, motivation, and pain sensation were investigated in 44 soldiers (20.3 ± 1.3 years, 178.5 ± 7.0 cm, 74.8 ± 9.8 kg, body mass index: 23.4 ± 2.7 kg × m-2, peak oxygen uptake ($\dot{\rm{V}}$O2peak): 54.2 ± 7.9 mL × kg-1 × min-1) during almost 8 hours of marching. All soldiers were equipped with a portable electrocardiogram to record HR and an accelerometer on the hip, all swallowed a telemetry pill to record BCT, and all filled out a pre- and post-march questionnaire. The influence of aerobic capacity on the physiological responses during the march was examined by dividing the soldiers into three fitness groups according to their $\dot{\rm{V}}$O2peak. Results: The group with the lowest aerobic capacity ($\dot{\rm{V}}$O2peak: 44.9 ± 4.8 mL × kg-1 × min-1) compared to the group with the highest aerobic capacity ($\dot{\rm{V}}$O2peak: 61.7 ± 2.2 mL × kg-1 × min-1) showed a significantly higher (P < .05) mean HR (133 ± 9 bpm and 125 ± 8 bpm, respectively) as well as peak BCT (38.6 ± 0.3 and 38.4 ± 0.2 °C, respectively) during the march. In terms of recovery ability during the break, no significant differences could be identified between the three groups in either HR or BCT. The energy deficit during the march was remarkably high, as the soldiers could only replace 22%, 26%, and 36% of the total energy expenditure in the lower, middle, and higher fitness group, respectively. The cardiorespiratory fittest soldiers showed a significantly higher motivation to perform when compared to the least cardiorespiratory fit soldiers (P = .002; scale from 1 [not at all] to 10 [extremely]; scale difference of 2.3). A total of nine soldiers (16%) had to end marching early: four soldiers (21%) in the group with the lowest aerobic capacity, five (28%) in the middle group, and none in the highest group. Conclusion: Soldiers with a high $\dot{\rm{V}}$O2peak showed a lower mean HR and peak BCT throughout the long-distance march, as well as higher performance motivation, no dropouts, and lower energy deficit. All soldiers showed an enormous energy deficit; therefore, corresponding nutritional strategies are recommended

Developing and refining biological indicators for condition assessments in an integrated monitoring program

[Extract] Indicators representative of ecosystem condition are required for the long-term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) in a Reef Integrated Monitoring and Reporting Program (RIMREP), which tracks progress towards Reef 2050 Plan targets and objectives. Seagrass meadows are highly sensitive to climatic conditions and environmental pressures such as water quality, as seen through recent (past 10 years) changes in abundance in the GBR (McKenzie, et al., 2016). Due to these impacts, GBR seagrass meadows underwent a period of decline from 2009 to 2011. Widespread loss of seagrass occurred, but in 2015 many meadows had started recovering. The storage reserves within seagrass rhizomes were tested for suitability as a complimentary indicator in the MMP/RIMREP because previous studies had suggested that they are good indicators. We set out to test the relationships between total non-structural carbohydrates (TNSC) and seagrass condition (i.e. trend in abundance, either declining pre 2011 or recovering post 2011), seagrass abundance, water temperature and daily light in a temporal analysis using linear models. Samples were collected quarterly from 2008 to 2015 from four locations (8 sites) for three species (917 samples in total) in the Wet Tropics and Burdekin regions. TNSC was significantly (p<0.001) lower pre 2011 during the period of decline (181and 192 mg gDW-1for intertidal sites pooled and subtidal sites pooled, respectively) than post 2011 during recovery (277 and 289 mg gDW-1) for H. uninervis. A similar trend was observed for T. hemprichii, which occurred at intertidal sites only (168 mg gDW-1 in decline and 208 mg gDW-1in recovery), but not for C. serrulata which had the fewest available data points. The differences were even greater when investigating individual sites. TNSC were also correlated (p<0.001) to seagrass abundance during both the decline and recovery phases. TNSC was positively correlated to water temperature, though the period being assessed was relatively mild in terms of temperature extremes. Therefore, light was the main pressure assessed in this project. A direct effect of light limitation (daily light, average of 30 days prior to TNSC collection) on TNSC was not observed, in fact there was a slight negative effect of light in some analyses. This was contrary to our hypothesis, as low light, at least in part, drove declines in seagrass abundance from 2009 –2011. In an additional spatial analysis, differences in TNSC among regions and habitat types were assessed from 39 sites collected in late 2014 across the GBR. This spatial analysis was carried out to explore representativeness of the sites used in the temporal analysis. There was little difference in TNSC among habitats; however, TNSC varied among NRMs and were lowest in the Mackay Whitsunday and Fitzroy NRMs. This exploration of storage reserves, undertaken at a time of dynamic meadow changes, has yielded exciting results on their variation with meadow condition and abundance. However, we did not provide conclusive evidence to support the inclusion of TNSC as an indicator in monitoring programs such as the MMP at this stage, because the link to the main environmental pressure tested –light –was not demonstrated by this analysis. Irrespective of this, TNSC was an indicator of cumulative stress (being correlated to abundance and condition), but the specific pressure(s) could not be identified. This provides justification for further inquiry into the effect of other pressures (e.g. nutrients and flood plume exposure), other biological processes (e.g. reproduction and meadow expansion) and to obtain further data on other species. We also tested the relationship between %cover and biomass, with the aim of developing biomass calibration formulae. Above-ground biomass and %cover was measured in seven mono-specific meadows for four species and four habitat types. Above ground biomass was highly correlated (p<0.001) to % cover, and the correlation was further improved (lower AIC) by factoring canopy height into the calibration. Even after canopy height was included in the calibration, canopy height strongly affected the calibration values and highlighted the importance of habitat/morphology-specific calibration formulae. Further work is required to capture all species and habitat/morphology combinations that are routinely monitored. With further work, these calibration values will enable integration among seagrass monitoring programs including Queensland Ports Seagrass Monitoring Program and GBR historical baseline data

Accuracy of aerial telemetry in fisheries studies

Abstract.-Radiotelemetry has become an important method for examining movement patterns of fishes. The use of aircraft allows transmitter-implanted fish to be tracked over long distances and in areas difficult to access on the ground. However, the accuracy of aerially determined locations can limit the types of conclusions one can draw about fish habitat use. We utilized aerial telemetry while studying the effects of irrigation canals on a population of cutthroat trout Oncorhynchus clarkii. To determine the accuracy of aerially determined locations, we used a method common in terrestrial studies whereby transmitters are placed at known locations and then located by a naïve pilot. These aerially determined locations were then compared with the known locations of transmitters to determine the mean error associated with aerial telemetry. In our study, we found that aerially acquired location errors ranged from 22 to 426 m and had a mean of 178 m. In a review of recent studies that used aerial telemetry, we found that 15 of 34 (44%) terrestrial studies but only 4 of 17 (24%) aquatic studies reported an estimate of the error associated with aerial telemetry locations. The overall mean location error of these studies was 158 m. We urge aquatic biologists to consider location errors when using aerial telemetry, especially when making inferences about fish habitat use or movement patterns