Transferring and extrapolating estimates of cost-effectiveness for water quality outcomes: Challenges and lessons from the Great Barrier Reef

In recent decades the declining health of the Great Barrier Reef has led to a number of government policies being implemented to reduce pollutant loads from the adjacent agricultural-based catchments. There is increasing use of cost-effectiveness measures to help prioritise between different programs and actions to reduce pollutants, given limited resources and the scale of the issues. However there are a small number of primary studies available, and the consistency of cost-effectiveness measures and their application is limited, particularly given the various uncertainties that underlie the measures. Unlike Europe and the United States of America water policy or benefit transfer approaches, there are no procedural guidance studies that must be followed in the context of the Great Barrier Reef catchments. In this study we review the use of cost effectiveness estimates for pollutant reduction into the Great Barrier Reef in the context of a benefit transfer framework, where estimates of costs from a particular case study are transferred to various scenarios within different catchments. The conclusions suggest a framework be developed for the Great Barrier Reef, which is consistent, transparent, and rigorous

Cost-effectiveness of changing land management practices in sugarcane and grazing to obtain water quality improvements in the Great Barrier Reef: Evaluation and synthesises of existing knowledge

This report aims to shape future assessments of cost-effectiveness and profitability of practice change within the Paddock to Reef Program for improved Great Barrier Reef (GBR) outcomes. A framework is provided to ensure that costs are more reconcilable and comparative. This will assist with ensuring the best return on investment is received for future government funding programs designed to address GBR water quality. The report evaluates and synthesises peer reviewed and published research on cost-effectiveness and profitability of changing land management practices in sugarcane and grazing land production systems for water quality improvements in catchments adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef. Methodological approaches to cost-effectiveness, key determinants of cost, assumptions and limitations in bio-physical modelling, and profitability in the literature have all been examined. The scope of the literature search included all grey and published literature on international, national, and Great Barrier Reef studies on paddock/property, region/catchment, and country levels

A techno-economic assessment of implementing power-to-gas systems based on biomethanation in an operating waste water treatment plant

The aim of the present study is to assess the techno-economic viability of integrating biomethanation into power to gas systems in a real waste water treatment plant (WWTP). The research is the first attempt to assess the viability of several scenarios based on the biomethanation technology that include both in- and ex-situ biomethanation as well as utilisation of on-site renewable electricity and grid electricity in a transient mode.Five scenarios were designed and evaluated and the calculated LCOE lies between 127.8 and 159.8 £/MWh. The consideration of existing policy mechanisms and revenues from by-products reduces the LCOEs to 31.4–68.1 £/MWh. The execution of a sensitivity analysis exposed that the electricity price and the electrolyser cost are the main cost contributors in all the scenarios. Future techno-economic advances along with imposing appropriate policy incentives can create the proper framework for two scenarios to generate profits. The study concludes that current and future power to gas application should focus on utilising on-site generated electricity

Biomethane production using an integrated anaerobic digestion, gasification and CO2 biomethanation process in a real waste water treatment plant: A techno-economic assessment

The biomethanation of CO2 from anaerobic digestion within the power to gas concept has recently emerged as a promising technology to upgrade biogas, to decarbonise the domestic and industrial heat sector, provide long term energy storage and deliver grid balancing services. In addition, the utilisation of the digestate, through a process such as gasification, offers a circular economy approach and has the potential to enhance the deployment of power to gas systems. To this direction, the study focuses on exploring the techno-economic feasibility of coupling biomethanation with digestate gasification for the wastewater industry. The study constitutes the first endeavour to assess the viability of such an integrated energy system. Four different scenarios have been designed and assessed. The energy efficiency of the concepts lies between 26.5% and 35.5% while the minimum selling price (MSP) of biomethane is in the range of 135–183 £/MWh. The implementation of appropriate policy mechanisms and the inclusion of by-products revenues reduces the MSPs by approximately 32%–42%. The conduction of a typical sensitivity analysis has identified the electricity price as the prime cost driver and this is followed by the cost of the electrolyser or the gasification plant depending on the scenario. Finally, a 2030 analysis, that incorporates projected techno-economic advances, has been carried out and revealed that under certain circumstances profits can be generated

Soil pH and organic matter content add explanatory power to Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus distribution models and suggest soil amendment as a conservation measure on upland farmland

Habitat associations of farmland birds are well studied, yet few have considered relationships between species distribution and soil properties. Charadriiform waders (shorebirds) depend upon penetrable soils, rich in invertebrate prey. Many species, such as the Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus, have undergone severe declines across Europe, despite being targeted by agri-environment measures. This study assessed whether there were additive effects of soil variables (depth, pH and organic matter content) in explaining Lapwing distribution, after controlling for known habitat relationships, at 89 farmland sites across Scotland. The addition of these soil variables and their association with elevation improved model fit by 55\%, in comparison with models containing only previously established habitat relationships. Lapwing density was greatest at sites at higher elevation, but only those with less peaty and less acidic soil. Lapwing distribution is being constrained between intensively managed lowland farmland with favourable soil conditions and upland sites where lower management intensity favours Lapwings but edaphic conditions limit their distribution. Trials of soil amendments such as liming are needed on higher elevation grassland sites to test whether they could contribute to conservation management for breeding Lapwings and other species of conservation concern that depend upon soil-dwelling invertebrates in grassland soils, such as Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata, Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris and Ring Ouzel Turdus torquatus. Results from such trials could support improvement and targeting of agri-environment schemes and other conservation measures in upland grassland systems

Example Based Learning for View-Based Human Face Detection

We present an example-based learning approach for locating vertical frontal views of human faces in complex scenes. The technique models the distribution of human face patterns by means of a few view-based "face'' and "non-face'' prototype clusters. At each image location, the local pattern is matched against the distribution-based model, and a trained classifier determines, based on the local difference measurements, whether or not a human face exists at the current image location. We provide an analysis that helps identify the critical components of our system

e+e−→bbˉW+W−e^+e^- \to b\bar b W^+W^- events at the Next Linear Collider: colour structure of top signal and irreducible background

We examine the colour structure and charged particle yield for both the $t \bar t$ signal and the irreducible background processes contributing to \eebbww\ production close to the \ttb\ threshold. The charged particle multiplicity for the various components of the cross section is computed as a function of several kinematic variables. Our study may have important implications for recently proposed studies of interconnection phenomena in \ttb\ production at high--energy $e^+e^-$ collidersComment: 14 pages, Latex, 8 figures uuencoded, complete ps file available via anonymous ftp at: ftp://axpc.hep.phy.cam.ac.uk/disk$alpha1:[public.hep9514]CAVENDISH_9514.ps http://www.hep.phy.cam.ac.uk/theory/papers/index.htm

Perturbative corrections to zero recoil inclusive BB decay sum rules

Comparing the result of inserting a complete set of physical states in a time ordered product of $b$ decay currents with the operator product expansion gives a class of zero recoil sum rules. They sum over physical states with excitation energies less than $\Delta$, where $\Delta$ is much greater than the QCD scale and much less than the heavy charm and bottom quark masses. These sum rules have been used to derive an upper bound on the zero recoil limit of the $B\to D^*$ form-factor, and on the matrix element of the kinetic energy operator between $B$ meson states. Perturbative corrections to the sum rules of order $\alpha_s(\Delta) \Delta^2/m_{c,b}^2$ have previously been computed. We calculate the corrections of order $\alpha_s(\Delta)$ and $\alpha_s^2(\Delta) \beta_0$ keeping all orders in $\Delta/m_{c,b}$, and show that these perturbative QCD corrections suppressed by powers of $\Delta/m_{c,b}$ significantly weaken the upper bound on the zero recoil $B\to D^*$ form-factor, and also on the kinetic energy operator's matrix element.Comment: 13 pages revtex, four figures included; minor change

The Octet Structure Function and Radiative Quarkonia Decay

The Operator Product Expansion, in conjunction with the power counting of non-relativistic field theory, is used to examine the end-point region of the radiative decay of heavy quark bound states with $^3S_1$ quantum numbers, $Q\bar{Q}\rightarrow \gamma+X$. We identify an infinite class of operators that determine the shape of the photonic end-point spectrum. These operators can be resummed to form an octet structure function which parameterizes the energy of the dynamical gluon content of the leading octet Fock state component of the quarkonium. This color-octet contribution is important when the photon spectrum is examined with a resolution given by $\Delta E_\gamma \sim m_Qv^2$, where $v^2$ is the relative quark velocity squared. The formalism used makes explicit the shift of the end-point from its partonic to its hadronic value.Comment: 9 pages, LaTex, Contribution from ^1S_0 include