Εφαρμογή μεθόδων της περιβαλλοντικής οικονομίας για την οικονομική αποτίμηση προστατευόμενων περιοχών: Η περίπτωση του Εθνικού Δρυμού Πάρνηθας

Οι προστατευόμενες περιοχές είναι ευαίσθητα και μοναδικά οικοσυστήματα που αντιπροσωπεύουν τον φυσικό πλούτο. Ο Εθνικός Δρυμός Πάρνηθας είναι μία προστατευόμενη δασική περιοχή που παρουσιάζει μοναδικά χαρακτηριστικά βιοποικιλότητας και προσφέρει σημαντικές οικοσυστημικές υπηρεσίες σε όλο τον νομό Αττικής. Η οικονομική του αποτίμηση, με εργαλεία που προσφέρει η περιβαλλοντική οικονομία, είναι πλέον ένα αναπόσπαστο κομμάτι για την χάραξη περιβαλλοντικής πολιτικής που θα αυξήσει τη κοινωνική ευημερία. Για την επιλογή των βέλτιστων στρατηγικών διαχείρισης της Πάρνηθας, η οικονομική αξία αναψυχής είναι αναγκαίο να λαμβάνεται υπόψη ώστε να αποφευχθούν δραστηριότητες που θα υποβαθμίσουν ή θα αλλοιώσουν το τοπίο. Η διεξαγωγή της παρούσας έρευνας έχει σκοπό την οικονομική αποτίμηση του. Ως καταλληλότερη μέθοδος οικονομικής αποτίμησης κρίθηκε αυτή του κόστους ταξιδιού μεμονωμένης προσέγγισης. Μετά από έρευνα πεδίου συλλέχθηκαν 100 έγκυρα ερωτηματολόγια, εκ των οποίων τα 6 εξαιρέθηκαν για να πραγματοποιηθεί η εμπειρική ανάλυση. Τα αποτελέσματα της μελέτης έδειξαν πως η συνολική αξία αναψυχής του Εθνικού Δρυμού Πάρνηθας κυμαίνεται από 36.383.323,5€ έως 38.398.573,5€, ετησίως, γεγονός που θέτει κοινωνικά αποδεκτή την προβλεπόμενη χρηματοδότηση για την υλοποίηση των δράσεων του διαχειριστικού σχεδίου του δρυμού. Η στατιστική ανάλυση έδειξε πως παράγοντες όπως το κόστος ταξιδιού, οι λόγοι επίσκεψης για ποδηλασία ή για επίσκεψη σε ιστορικά μνημεία, η δήλωση ανεργίας ή αυταπασχόλησης και η αξιολόγηση των περιβαλλοντικών πιέσεων της λατομίας και των υφιστάμενων εγκαταστάσεων σχετίζονται σημαντικά με τον βαθμό επισκεψιμότητας.According to IUCN a protected area is “a clearly defined geographical space, recognized, dedicated and managed, through legal or other effective means, to achieve the long-term conservation of nature with associated ecosystem services and cultural values.”. Protected areas produce flows of economically goods and services that secure livelihoods and benefit society. Parnitha National Park is considered a protected area by the greek and european legislation. Parnithas’ flora and fauna remain unique in the Attica plain, despite the severe human impact. The present study attempts the economic valuation of this park, which offers plenty of recreational outdoor activities. Individual Travel Cost Method (ITCM) was used for evaluation, in order to quantify the benefits derived by visitors to this National Park. A fieldwork was conducted from June to October of 2016. The required data and information were collected via 100 questionnaires, filled-out from parks’ visitors. The questionnaire is aimed to collect information on the visitors’ behavior towards the environmental goods or services to be evaluated. The questionnaire had two sections. In the first section, some general questions were asked such as the individuals’ number of visits per year, the travelled distance, the kind of trip, the kind of vehicle to access the site, the amount of time spent at the site, the quality of the recreational site, natural attractiveness of the site, etc. In the second section, survey respondents were asked about their age, gender, education, income and other socio-economic characteristics. Three semi-log models were used for the regression analysis, excluding six questionnaires which presented deviation from the remaining sample. Based on the analysis results, the calculated consumer surplus attributable to a visit to the Parnitha National Park ranges between 70-75 €. Based on the total number of visits received by the administration of the park (data drawn from the official surveys of visitation rate of 1995 and 2001), the annual consumer surplus offered by the park is between 28.213.500 -30.228.750 € based on Official Visitation Rate Survey of 2001 and 18.656.820 -19.989.450 € based on Official Visitation Rate Survey of 1995. Taking into account the costs incurred by the visitors, the annual total value of the park was estimated at 36.383.323,5 -38.398.573,5 € based on the survey of 2001 and 24.059.302,02-25.391.932,02 € based on the survey of 1995. Furthermore, negative correlation was found between the number of visits per visitor annually and travel costs. On the contrary, positive relations were found between the number of visits per visitor annually, the activity of cycling or sightseeing as the main purpose of visit, the visitors who stated that they are unemployed or self-employed and the visitors who consider that the existing facilities are factors of high environmental pressure

PERAN REVEGETASI TERHADAP RESTORASI TANAH PADA LAHAN REHABILITASI TAMBANG BATUBARA DI DAERAH TROPIKA (The Role of Revegetation on the Soil Restoration in Rehabilitation Areas of Tropical Coal Mining)

ABSTRAKPertambangan batubara terbuka menyebabkan degradasi lahan, sehingga perlu upaya rehabilitasi lahan melalui program revegetasi. Penelitian dilakukan di areal PT. Berau Coal  pada site Binungan, Lati dan Sambarata, Kabupaten Berau, Kalimantan Timur, Indonesia. Penelitian menggunakan rancangan acak lengkap ber-blok dengan umur revegetasi sebagai perlakuan, tiga kali ulangan dan tiga site sebagai blok. Pemilihan lokasi menggunakan metode purposif sampling yaitu pengambilan sampel yang didasarkan pada pertimbangan pada umur pengolahan lahan revegetasi, meliputi S1 : area hutan sebelum ditambang (rona awal), S2 : revegetasi awal, umur tanaman  5 tahun. Pengambilan sampel tanah pada  kedalaman 0–20 dan 20-40 cm pada setiap perlakuan di ketiga lokasi, selanjutnya dianalisis sifat fisik dan kimianya. Tanah Typic Hapludult pada lahan hutan sebelum ditambang batubara secara terbuka (S1,  rona awal) mempunyai kadar C-organik (1,87 %), N-total (0,14 %), P-tersedia (31,40 ppm), K-tertukar (0,11 me/100g), pH (3,98), KTK (10,72 me/100g) dan kejenuhan basa (17 %). Penambangan terbuka batubara telah menyebabkan lapisan bawah dan  permukaan tanah menjadi terbongkar dan terjadi penurunan kualitas tanah yang sangat drastis. Penimbunan lahan dengan media tanah permukaan sebelumnya, telah cukup  mampu memperbaiki sifat-sifat tanah tertambang namun belum sesuai sebagai media pertumbuhan, serta sangat rentan terhadap degradasi lahan lebih lanjut. Revegetasi menggunakan tanaman pionir, cepat tumbuh dan adaptif seperti Sengon, Akasia, Sungkai, Melina, Angsana, Jarak serta Legume Cover Crop (LCC) pada area bekas tambang  batubara memberikan pengaruh yang  nyata terhadap peningkatan kandungan C-organik, N-total dan  pH tanah. Revegetasi menggunakan spesies cepat tumbuh setelah berumur 5 tahun telah mengembalikan bahkan memperbaiki sifat kimia tanah dibanding dengan kondisi pada hutan tropika basah sebelum dilakukan penambangan terbuka. ABSTRACTOpen coal mining causes land degradation, so they need land rehabilitation through re-vegetation programs. The study was conducted in the PT Berau Coal area of Binungan, Lati and Sambarata site, Berau regency, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Research using a randomized completely block design with the age of re-vegetation as treatments, three replication and three sites as blocks. Sampling unit was selected using a purposive sampling method that is based on the re-vegetation management, including: (i) S1: forest area without mining activities (baseline), (ii) S2: initial re-vegetation, plant age 5 years. Soil sample was collected from 0-20 and 20-40 cm soil depth in each treatment at three locations, then analyzed for soil  physic and chemistry. Soil of Typic Hapludult on forest land without coal mining has a C-organic (1.87 %), N-total (0.14 %), available-P (31.40 ppm), exchangeable-K (0.11 me/100g), pH (3.98), CEC (10.72 me/100g) and base saturation (17 %). Opened coal mining has led the soil layer becomes exposed and a declining in soil quality drastically. Land closure with the top soil media has been quite able to improve soil properties in rehabilitation areas, but not suitable as media for plant growth, and highly susceptible for further degradation. Land rehabilitation and re-vegetation with fast growing and adaptive pioneer plants such as: Sengon, Acacia, Sungkai, Melina, Angsana, Jarak and Legume Cover Crop (LCC) in the rehabilitation area of coal mining, gave significant effect on the increasing of  C-organic, N-total and soil pH. Re-vegetation with fast growing species after 5-year-old has returned the soil chemical properties that are equivalent or even better than thier condition in moist tropical forests without open coal mining.ABSTRAKPertambangan batubara terbuka menyebabkan degradasi lahan, sehingga perlu upaya rehabilitasi lahan melalui program revegetasi. Penelitian dilakukan di areal PT. Berau Coal  pada site Binungan, Lati dan Sambarata, Kabupaten Berau, Kalimantan Timur, Indonesia. Penelitian menggunakan rancangan acak lengkap ber-blok dengan umur revegetasi sebagai perlakuan, tiga kali ulangan dan tiga site sebagai blok. Pemilihan lokasi menggunakan metode purposif sampling yaitu pengambilan sampel yang didasarkan pada pertimbangan pada umur pengolahan lahan revegetasi, meliputi S1 : area hutan sebelum ditambang (rona awal), S2 : revegetasi awal, umur tanaman  5 tahun. Pengambilan sampel tanah pada  kedalaman 0–20 dan 20-40 cm pada setiap perlakuan di ketiga lokasi, selanjutnya dianalisis sifat fisik dan kimianya. Tanah Typic Hapludult pada lahan hutan sebelum ditambang batubara secara terbuka (S1,  rona awal) mempunyai kadar C-organik (1,87 %), N-total (0,14 %), P-tersedia (31,40 ppm), K-tertukar (0,11 me/100g), pH (3,98), KTK (10,72 me/100g) dan kejenuhan basa (17 %). Penambangan terbuka batubara telah menyebabkan lapisan bawah dan  permukaan tanah menjadi terbongkar dan terjadi penurunan kualitas tanah yang sangat drastis. Penimbunan lahan dengan media tanah permukaan sebelumnya, telah cukup  mampu memperbaiki sifat-sifat tanah tertambang namun belum sesuai sebagai media pertumbuhan, serta sangat rentan terhadap degradasi lahan lebih lanjut. Revegetasi menggunakan tanaman pionir, cepat tumbuh dan adaptif seperti Sengon, Akasia, Sungkai, Melina, Angsana, Jarak serta Legume Cover Crop (LCC) pada area bekas tambang  batubara memberikan pengaruh yang  nyata terhadap peningkatan kandungan C-organik, N-total dan  pH tanah. Revegetasi menggunakan spesies cepat tumbuh setelah berumur 5 tahun telah mengembalikan bahkan memperbaiki sifat kimia tanah dibanding dengan kondisi pada hutan tropika basah sebelum dilakukan penambangan terbuka. ABSTRACTOpen coal mining causes land degradation, so they need land rehabilitation through re-vegetation programs. The study was conducted in the PT Berau Coal area of Binungan, Lati and Sambarata site, Berau regency, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Research using a randomized completely block design with the age of re-vegetation as treatments, three replication and three sites as blocks. Sampling unit was selected using a purposive sampling method that is based on the re-vegetation management, including: (i) S1: forest area without mining activities (baseline), (ii) S2: initial re-vegetation, plant age 5 years. Soil sample was collected from 0-20 and 20-40 cm soil depth in each treatment at three locations, then analyzed for soil  physic and chemistry. Soil of Typic Hapludult on forest land without coal mining has a C-organic (1.87 %), N-total (0.14 %), available-P (31.40 ppm), exchangeable-K (0.11 me/100g), pH (3.98), CEC (10.72 me/100g) and base saturation (17 %). Opened coal mining has led the soil layer becomes exposed and a declining in soil quality drastically. Land closure with the top soil media has been quite able to improve soil properties in rehabilitation areas, but not suitable as media for plant growth, and highly susceptible for further degradation. Land rehabilitation and re-vegetation with fast growing and adaptive pioneer plants such as: Sengon, Acacia, Sungkai, Melina, Angsana, Jarak and Legume Cover Crop (LCC) in the rehabilitation area of coal mining, gave significant effect on the increasing of  C-organic, N-total and soil pH. Re-vegetation with fast growing species after 5-year-old has returned the soil chemical properties that are equivalent or even better than thier condition in moist tropical forests without open coal mining

S P E C I A L P A P E R Patient Safety and Healthcare Quality

Abstract Introduction: Due to a variety of circumstances and world-wide research findings, patient safety and quality care during hospitalization have emerged as major issues. Patient safety deficits may burden health systems as well as allocated resources. The international community has examined several proposals covering general and systemic aspects in order to improve patient safety; several long-term programs and strategies have also been implemented promoting the participation of health-related agents, and also government agencies and non-governmental organizations. Aim: Those factors that have negative correlations with patient safety and quality healthcare were determined; WHO and EU programs as well as the Greek health policy were also reviewed. Method: Local and international literature was reviewed, including EU and WHO official publications, by using the appropriate keywords. Conclusions: International cooperation on patient safety is necessary in order to improve hospitalization and healthcare quality standards. Such incentives depend heavily on establishing worldwide viable and effective health programs and planning. These improvements also require further steps on safe work procedures, environment safety, hazard management, infection control, safe use of equipment and medication, and sufficient healthcare staff

A comprehensive health effects assessment of the use of sanitizers and disinfectants during COVID-19 pandemic: a global survey

COVID-19 has affected all aspects of human life so far. From the outset of the pandemic, preventing the spread of COVID-19 through the observance of health protocols, especially the use of sanitizers and disinfectants was given more attention. Despite the effectiveness of disinfection chemicals in controlling and preventing COVID-19, there are critical concerns about their adverse effects on human health. This study aims to assess the health effects of sanitizers and disinfectants on a global scale. A total of 91,056 participants from 154 countries participated in this cross-sectional study. Information on the use of sanitizers and disinfectants and health was collected using an electronic questionnaire, which was translated into 26 languages via web-based platforms. The findings of this study suggest that detergents, alcohol-based substances, and chlorinated compounds emerged as the most prevalent chemical agents compared to other sanitizers and disinfectants examined. Most frequently reported health issues include skin effects and respiratory effects. The Chi-square test showed a significant association between chlorinated compounds (sodium hypochlorite and per-chlorine) with all possible health effects under investigation (p-value \u3c0.001). Examination of risk factors based on multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that alcohols and alcohols-based materials were associated with skin effects (OR, 1.98; 95%CI, 1.87–2.09), per-chlorine was associated with eye effects (OR, 1.83; 95%CI, 1.74–1.93), and highly likely with itching and throat irritation (OR, 2.00; 95%CI, 1.90–2.11). Furthermore, formaldehyde was associated with a higher prevalence of neurological effects (OR, 2.17; 95%CI, 1.92–2.44). Furthermore, formaldehyde was associated with a higher prevalence of neurological effects (OR, 2.17; 95%CI, 1.92–2.44). The use of sodium hypochlorite and per-chlorine also had a high chance of having respiratory effects. The findings of the current study suggest that health authorities need to implement more awareness programs about the side effects of using sanitizers and disinfectants during viral epidemics especially when they are used or overused

Financial Crisis and Health

The financial crisis has a dramatic impact on social life, since reduced or even non-existent incomes affect people’s well-being and push big parts of the population to poverty. The individuals’ financial status affects health indicators such as life expectancy, morbidity, mortality and healthcare service accessibility [1].The negative impact of financial crisis on health affects in a different way the social groups; thus, low-level persons and families have twice the risk of premature death and higher morbidity due to reasons related to income, education, healthcare, housing and nutrition that act cumulatively [2].&nbsp;This situation poses a threat mainly for the least developed and developing countries, and even more the low-level social groups within those countries, and highlights three intertwined problems: (a) increasing inequalities within those countries, (b) unequal conditions of social protection and health, and (c) the urgent issues of climate change and environmental degradation [3].&nbsp;</p