Impacts des barrages sur les populations d’hippopotames et gestion du conflit avec l’homme : le cas du barrage de Kandadji sur le fleuve Niger

Le Programme Kandadji de Régénération des Écosystèmes et de Mise en Valeur du Fleuve Niger et son barrage engendreront des modifications de l'habitat de l'hippopotame commun (Hippopotamus amphibius) et pourraient donc amplifier le conflit avec les populations humaines locales. Comme l'impact des barrages n'a jamais été étudié en profondeur sur les populations d'hippopotames, cet essai évalue cet impact en général et identifie des méthodes de gestion de conflit homme-hippopotame appropriées au contexte de l'Afrique subsaharienne afin d'appliquer ces connaissances au cas de Kandadji. La création d'un réservoir ne bonifie pas nécessairement l'habitat de l'hippopotame, car celui-ci privilégie les milieux dynamiques et diversifiés, ainsi que les eaux peu profondes. De plus, son alimentation, constituée principalement de Graminées et de Cypéracées, dépend du cycle naturel de l'eau qui se caractérise par des crues et des sécheresses importantes dans son aire de répartition. La gestion du conflit homme-hippopotame représente un défi, car l'animal peut-être meurtrier et dévastateur, surtout lorsqu'il pille les cultures dont dépendent les communautés humaines d'Afrique subsaharienne pour leur survie. Plusieurs méthodes existent pour gérer ce conflit: la réduction à la source, par exemple en construisant des barrières physiques, ou l'augmentation de la tolérance à l'égard des dommages par la création de revenus, notamment à partir de l'écotourisme. La création d'un réservoir et la régularisation du débit d'un cours d'eau auront pour effet d'amplifier, du moins temporairement, le conflit potentiel. En effet, lors du remplissage, les pâturages naturels en amont du barrage seront détruits. Toutefois, à long terme, des pâturages adéquats pourraient recouvrir la zone de marnage du réservoir. En aval, la régularisation du cours d'eau réduira la surface des plaines inondables, diminuant ainsi son aire d'alimentation. Néanmoins, cette régularisation assurera un niveau d'eau suffisant pour s'y réfugier. Les populations d'hippopotames du Niger, tout particulièrement celle d'Ayorou, pourraient donc souffrir du remplissage du réservoir tandis qu'il est difficile de préciser si l'impact sera positif ou négatif pour les populations en aval du barrage. Aucune mesure de gestion du conflit homme-hippopotame proposée par le Plan de Gestion Environnementale et Sociale du barrage de Kandadji ne permettra de compenser la destruction des habitats à court terme. À long terme, les aménagements envisagés ne suffiront pas à remplacer l'ensemble des milieux détruits, et le mécanisme de compensation prévu pour soutenir les populations locales victimes du conflit homme-hippopotame est peu ambitieux, donc peu prometteur. Estimer la capacité de soutien du milieu avant et après la construction d'un barrage permettrait d'évaluer plus précisément l'impact sur les hippopotames. Des stratégies de gestion du conflit doivent être établies en collaboration avec les populations locales après analyse de la problématique locale, de l'écologie de l'hippopotame et des méthodes de gestion de conflit accessibles. Enfin, le succès des méthodes envisagées doit être suivi, puis les résultats divulgués, afin de créer une littérature scientifique extensive sur la gestion du conflit entre l'homme et l'hippopotame

Thermal energy storage for industrial waste heat recovery

The potential is examined for waste heat recovery and reuse through thermal energy storage in five specific industrial categories: (1) primary aluminum, (2) cement, (3) food processing, (4) paper and pulp, and (5) iron and steel. Preliminary results from Phase 1 feasibility studies suggest energy savings through fossil fuel displacement approaching 0.1 quad/yr in the 1985 period. Early implementation of recovery technologies with minimal development appears likely in the food processing and paper and pulp industries; development of the other three categories, though equally desirable, will probably require a greater investment in time and dollars

Porter plainte pour harcèlement psychologique au travail : Un récit difficile

Cet article brosse un portrait des plaintes écrites déposées à la Commission des normes du travail du Québec entre le 1er juin 2004 et le 30 avril 2005. Au total, 236 plaintes de harcèlement psychologique au travail ont constitué le corpus d’analyse. Les principaux résultats montrent que parmi l’ensemble des cas analysés, 63 % des plaignants sont des femmes. Près de 95 % des plaignants ont avancé avoir subi du harcèlement à caractère répétitif. Les cinq premiers motifs de plainte sont les propos et les gestes vexatoires, les atteintes aux conditions de travail, la menace de congédiement, la mise en échec de la personne et l’isolement. Par ailleurs, ce sont généralement les gestionnaires qui sont désignés comme personnes mises en cause. À la lumière de ces résultats, il est important que les organisations se dotent de systèmes de veille pour détecter les cas et d’outils de gestion pour désamorcer les situations qui comportent un potentiel de harcèlement psychologique.Following in the wake of several European countries, Quebec adopted a bill in December 2002 to modify the Labour Code and other legislative measures by the introduction of measures pertaining to psychological harassment (art. 81.18 to 81.20). These standards, which are accompanied by specific means of legal recourse (art. 123.6 to 123.16) and fall under the responsibility of the Commission des normes du travail (CNT), came into effect on June 1, 2004 (Lippel, 2005). This article presents an overview of the written complaints filed with the Commission des normes du travail (CNT) between June 1, 2004 and April 30, 2005.At the present time, most of the studies on psychological harassment, moral harassment or other forms of violence in the workplace use a survey with worker populations (Brun and Plante, 2004; Byrne, 1997; Hirigoyen, 1998, 2001; Hoel, Rayner and Cooper, 2003; Leymann, 1996a, 1996b; Salin, 2003; Vandekerkhove and Commers, 2003; Wornham, 2003). Although these surveys are very useful, they have the limitation of being centred on identifying the types of events, the forms, or the sources of psychological harassment in the workplace. Scientific studies are rare (Garcia, Hacourt and Bara, 2005; Lapeyrière, 2004; Lewis and Orford, 2005); this type of study focuses on the inside story of cases of psychological harassment, the difficulties of putting into the experience into words, the doubts that the outward expression of facts may raise, and the ambiguities hidden by complex situations.For this reason, our research study adopted the point of view and the arguments put forward by the main players, that is to say, the men and women filing the complaints, as well as the situations that are being denounced. Our objective was to give an overview of the complaints filed with the Commission des normes du travail over a period of one year. In so doing, we hope to better understand the complexity of the phenomenon of psychological harassment through the situations as experienced and expressed by the complainants.In total, 236 complaints of psychological harassment at work and more than 1,500 pages written by the complainants made up the corpus for analysis. The research method used includes a first section on socioprofessional and economic factors (e.g., sex, age, profession, employment status, etc.), a second section on the business itself (e.g., sector, number of employees, etc.) and a third section focused on the complaint itself (e.g., causes, frequency, form, witnesses, consequences, etc.).The main study results show that among the set of cases analysed, 63% of complainants are women. Two-thirds of the complaints (68%) mention one individual as being involved, while 32% of cases identify several people as being the source of the psychological harassment. More than 95% of the complainants claimed to have been the target of harassment that was repetitive in nature. The five most common causes for complaint are vexatious words and gestures (132 complaints), infringement on working conditions (77 complaints), threat of firing (49 complaints), causing failure for the person (39 complaints), and isolation (39 complaints). Psychological harassment is socially distributed, that is to say, that it touches, as either author or victim, many employment categories, whether one be a secretary, technician, or senior management. As well, managers usually are identified as people being involved. In the majority of cases analyzed, attempts to find a resolution (e.g., discussion with the person involved, information given to the supervisor, complaint letter, etc.) are solely made by the complainant; colleagues are almost always uninvolved, and only in rare cases has another colleague intervened to make a situation stop or to speak out against a situation of which those in the complainant’s immediate environment are aware.The phenomenon of psychological harassment is far from being simple; the remarks and the stories that we have related clearly show that these are complex situations for many reasons. One of these reasons is that psychological harassment is a direct manifestation of the private nature of violence (Cooney, 2003) that concerns individuals rather than groups, and is addressed at individuals and in the context of face to face relations, that is to say, without the presence of any direct witnesses.Psychological harassment is also socially distributed, meaning that it involves, in terms of victims or perpetrators, people from all types of employment: secretary, technician, or upper management. However, the direction of psychological harassment is not randomly distributed. Generally, managers are identified as instigators, and women state they are harassed by men.In analysing the 236 cases, we were astonished by the large number of cases of psychological harassment involving situations of rudeness, vexatious or blasphemous remarks (132/236 complaints). An insult, “the sentence that kills!” and public denigration are common among the complaints of psychological harassment filed at the Commission des normes du travail. The situation seems to be similar in the United States, where, according to research by Pearson and Porath (2005), 20% of workers surveyed said they are the target of rude remarks at least once a week. The respect of others is a value which is losing ground, and individualism often justifies any remark when a person wishes to reach his or her ends.The individualization of conflicts is also revealed in the attempts at case resolution. In fact, in most of the cases studied, attempts at resolution (e.g., discussion with the person involved, information for the supervisor, letter of complaint, etc.) come directly from the complainant. Colleagues are almost always uninvolved; rare are the cases where another colleague has intervened in order to put a stop to or to speak out against a situation which is known in the immediate environment of the complainant. It is also important to mention that, in general, a person does not know how to intervene or stop a conflict (Lapeyrière, 2004). Other staff members usually plead being unsure or the overly complex nature of the situation.One of the challenges linked to psychological harassment in the workplace for employers and employees is to not become caught up within a legal debate, wondering if the situation does or does not fit with the definition provided by the law. From a point of view of good management within the organization and so as to avoid the courts becoming involved in cases, the problems brought forward by the complainants must first and foremost be analyzed in the light of individual and collective ethics (Wornham, 2003) and in the light of problems associated with work relations (Legoff, 2003). Whether or not it may be a case of harassment, the situations we have analyzed are, in many cases, quite simply inadmissible in modern organizations and may, as well, lead to psychological or physical health problems (Vartia, 2004). Seen from an ethical and a public health perspective, the employer and the employees have the duty of making sure that such situations not occur (Leclerc, 2005). For these reasons, it is important to establish boundaries which may not be crossed, to define as clearly as possible what is acceptable and what is not, to make it understood that respect of another person’s dignity is not a privilege, but rather a right and a fundamental duty and that it is crucial not to wait until the situation is deemed unacceptable before an intervention is made.Este artículo esboza una descripción de las quejas escritas presentadas a la Comisión de las Normas de trabajo del Quebec entre el 1ro de junio 2004 y el 30 de abril 2005. En total, 236 quejas de hostigamiento/acoso sicológico en el trabajo constituyeron el corpus del análisis. Los principales resultados muestran que del conjunto de casos analizados, 63% de los demandantes son mujeres. Cerca del 95% de demandantes sostuvieron haber sufrido hostigamiento sicológico de manera repetitiva. Los cinco primeros motivos de queja son las declaraciones y gestos ofensivos, el perjuicio de las condiciones de trabajo, la amenaza de despido, inducir la persona al fracaso y el aislamiento. Mas aún, son generalmente los directivos que son designados como personas acusadas. A la luz de estos resultados, es importante que las organizaciones se doten de sistemas de vigilancia para detectar los casos y que se procuren útiles de gestión capaces de frenar las situaciones que comportan un potencial de hostigamiento sicológico

Managing technology

What changes constantly, is optimized with difficulty, and cannot be bought or sold; yet without it, making web based products is impossible? The answer: Web Handling Technology. Ten years ago 3M established a Web Handling Research Group to convert the art of web handling into a science. Since then, we have determined many of the engineering principles governing the control of flexible media, established connections with several research centers, and published papers. However, subsequent to our success in gaining understanding, we have had to face the additional challenge of translating our knowledge into a form that will be useful in equipment design and production. This presentation will concentrate on the tools and processes we have used to effect this translation

Using a two dimensional winding model to predict wound roll stresses that occur due to circumferential steps in core diameter or to cross-web caliper variation

This paper describes a model for estimating the stresses throughout a wound roll as a function of both radius and width. Width direction stresses are influenced by non-uniform winding tensions created through stacking layers of film with cross-web caliper variation. The model computes the effects of cross-web non-uniformity by dividing the roll into an arbitrary number of cross-web segments, treating each as a separate wound roll with its own winding tension, and tension taper. In order to compute tension, segment diameters are first determined. For this, a special model based upon stacking thick walled cylinders with orthotropic properties is used. Computations of the wound-in pressure and tension are then computed from any existing model that allows the compressive roll modulus to be a function of pressure

Using finite element model to define how wrinkles form in a single web span without moment transfer

This paper describes a finite element model that successfully predicts the formation of troughs and shear wrinkles in plastic webs for a single span bounded by two idler rollers. For this model, wrinkles are created when the down-stream roller is out of tram with the up-stream roller, and there is no moment transfer across the up-stream roller. Variables considered are the span length web width, caliper, and tension

Measurement and modeling of bearing drag in idler rollers

Idler roller bearing drag plays a critical role when modeling web tension in a web line system. Lubrication, line speed, radial and axial loads on bearings can influence drag, which is directly reflected as a tension load on the web. An in-situ method has been devised for measuring idler roller bearing drag. Empirical models, fit to the data, provide bearing drag predictions under operating conditions. A relatively simple Spin Down test on an idler roller was used to predict the steady state drag from bearings as a function of line speed. Bearings were cleaned and lubricated with both oil and grease to test the contribution of lubricant to bearing drag

Wrinkle dependency on web roller slip

The shear forces in a web introduced from an untrammed roller create wrinkles that are affected by web twisting or slipping on the upstream roller. The web span bounded between the untrammed and upstream rollers behaves like a beam when bending in the web plane (2). If the bending stresses exceed the capacity of the friction forces holding the web on the upstream roller, strain will migrate over the roller transferring a portion of the moment to the upstream span. A model is presented that predicts the onset of moment transfer based on equilibrium equations for a beam in bending, and web roller traction