A922 Sequential measurement of 1 hour creatinine clearance (1-CRCL) in critically ill patients at risk of acute kidney injury (AKI)

Meeting abstrac

Air quality impacts of Tokyo\u27s on-road diesel emission regulations

In October 2003, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government began regulating emissions from diesel-powered trucks and buses under a local in-use particulate emission standard. This paper uses an empirically based emissions modeling approach to estimate the effect of Tokyo\u27s regulations on emissions of particulate matter and nitrogen oxides. Results indicate that Tokyo\u27s regulations cut exhaust particulate emissions from diesel-powered trucks and buses registered in Tokyo by 17% and 31% in 2003 and 2004 through the promotion of diesel particulate filters and oxidation catalysts and by accelerating fleet turnover. Modest emission reductions were also observed for nitrogen oxides. The model suggests that the bulk of emission reductions - 70% for particulate matter, and 30% for nitrogen oxides - after 2002 directly tied to environmental policies are attributable to Tokyo\u27s local regulations rather than national emission control policies

Implementing the Montreal Protocol in China : use of cleaner technology in two industrial sectors

An analysis of the household refrigeration sector and the foams sector investigates how Chinese enterprises have adopted cleaner technologies involving substitutes for ozone depleting substances (ODSs), such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). The performance of the household refrigeration sector in reducing ODS consumption has been superior to that of the foams sector, even though required technology changes are relatively simple for the foams sector. There are two explanations for this outcome. First, market demand matters. The influence of the global market, multinational corporations, intense (and occasionally misleading) advertising about non-CFC products, and severe competition for consumers caused China’s principal refrigerator manufacturers to adopt non-CFC production technologies. Similar incentives did not exist for enterprises in the foams sector. Second, industrial structure matters. The foams sector includes a large number of small enterprises with limited financial and technical capability and weak access to information and technology, and these factors obstructed technological change. In general, assistance from the Multilateral Fund established under the Montreal Protocol has motivated enterprises to shift to ODS reduction technologies, but complex and lengthy procedures for accessing the Multilateral Fund, difficulties in finding appropriate suppliers of non-CFC technologies, and insufficient financial and technical capabilities of many enterprises have slowed down this shift. Our results provide a foundation for making changes in international assistance programs and China’s strategies for CFC reduction

Development of citizen-organized environmental NGOs in China. Voluntas

Abstract Social movement theories provide a framework for explaining the post-1990 rise in China's citizen-organized environmental nongovernmental organizations (ENGOs), which consisted of at least 128 organizations as of 2004. We use a political process model, which is based on favorable political opportunities, cognitive liberation, and indigenous organizational strength, to explain the sharp growth in citizen organized ENGOs. In addition, we employ a world society perspective to help clarify why the political environment in China became favorable for ENGO growth, and how international ENGO practices were diffused within China. Our analysis shows that the relatively high status of ENGO founders together with their personal and professional networks also played important roles in ENGO growth. Résumé Certaines théories du mouvement social offrent un cadre pour expliquer comment la montée, suite aux années 1990, d'une structure pour expliquer comment les Organisations non gouvernementales environnementales organisées par les citoyens chinois, qui a présidé à la création d'au moins 128 organisations dès 2004. Nous utilisons un modèle de processus politique, basé sur la force organisationnelle indigène, pour rendre compte de la croissance de grande ampleur qui a été l'oeuvre des Organisations non gouvernementales environnementales organisées par les citoyens chinois. De plus, nous faisons recours à une perspective de société globale pour nous aider à clarifier pourquoi l'environnement politique en Chine a adopté les Organisations non gouvernementales environnementales, et comment les pratiques de leur internationalisation ont été diffusées au sein de la Chine. Notre analys

Motivations for Slum Dweller Social Movement Participation in Urban Africa: A Study of Mobilization in Kurasini, Dar es Salaam

This paper examines what motivates the participation of African slum(1) dwellers in urban social movement activities. This issue is analyzed through a case study of grassroots mobilization around evictions in Kurasini ward, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The paper uses an analytic narrative approach to account for patterns in participatory behaviour, drawing on both quantitative and qualitative data gathered through interviews with 81 slum dwellers. The study shows that, contrary to the expectations of movement leaders, property owners were significantly more likely than renters to participate in a risky and time-consuming mobilization effort. The study identifies three factors that favoured owner participation: the nature of expected payoffs from participation; greater belief in their efficacy of action; and greater connection to place

Implementing China's national energy conservation policies at state-owned electric power generation plants

China's 11th Five-Year Guideline identified energy conservation as one of the country's fundamental policies and established a mandatory target: 20% reduction in national average energy intensity by 2010. Despite the various policies, laws, and administrative reforms to support energy conservation, China fell behind schedule for meeting its conservation targets in 2006 and 2007. Using a combination of available literature and an interview-based case study, this paper examines the implementation of energy conservation and investigates impediments to achieving China's conservation goal in the electric power generation sector. Three key impediments are detailed: (1) municipal governments' incentives to overlook conservation-related central directives primarily because of budget pressures linked to financial decentralization, (2) procedural obstacles in the form of time required to obtain project approvals for high-efficiency power generation units, and (3) financial obstacles making it difficult for power generation enterprises to raise capital for energy conservation projects. An interview-based case study of a state-owned coal-fired electric power generation company demonstrates the influence of the aforementioned obstacles. While procedural obstacles are notable, they can be managed. However, electricity pricing reforms and/or stronger subsidy programs will be needed to address the financial obstacles facing Chinese power generation companies.Energy conservation implementation Electric power sector China