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Widespread low-rise residential buildings with a seismically resistant concrete frame and brick infill walls have lower microclimate levels in cold seasons due to low temperatures on the inner wall corner surfaces.These temperatures are lower if there is a corner column. For Bishkek, this temperature is 4.6 °C lower than that for permissible microclimate, even when the external wall has the required 70 mm of mineral wool slab insulation. It is caused by the negative effect of the wall corner thermal bridge. This effect is determined by ArchiCAD 20 software packages by visualizing the temperature distribution in the cross-section of the corner, which needs an additional thermal insulation layer of 40 mm. Using the LiraSAPR 2013 software package, the authors reduced the square cross-section dimensions of the column by 40 mm to allow for that additional thermal insulation layer. The optimal width of this layer is determined for different options for the meeting angle of two external walls from 70° to 180°. For a typical 90° angle, an acceptable width is 860 mm. With this insulation, it is possible to achieve the required temperature at the corner. The authors eliminated the negative thermal effect of the corner by rounding it with cement-sand plaster. Using the isotherms, it was determined that the rounding radius of 300 mm allowed for equal temperatures on the corner and inner surface of the external walls. The achieved results show that the microclimate formed as in a room without external wall corners.

AbstractAbramov glacier, located in the Pamir Alay, Kyrgyzstan, is a reference glacier within the Global Terrestrial Network for Glaciers. Long-term glaciological measurements exist from 1968 to 1998 and a mass-balance monitoring programme was re-established in 2011. In this study we re-analyse existing mass-balance data and use a spatially distributed mass-balance model to provide continuous seasonal time series of glacier mass balance covering the period 1968–2014. The model is calibrated to seasonal mass-balance surveys and then applied to the period with no measurements. Validation and recalibration is carried out using snowline observations derived from satellite imagery and, after 2011, also from automatic terrestrial camera images. We combine direct measurements, remote observations and modelling. The results are compared to geodetic glacier volume change over the past decade and to a ground-penetrating radar survey in the accumulation zone resolving several layers of accumulation. Previously published geodetic mass budget estimates for Abramov glacier suggest a close-to-zero mass balance for the past decade, which contradicts our results. We find a low plausibility for equilibrium conditions over the past 15 years. Instead, we suggest that the glacier’s sensitivity to increased summer air temperature is decisive for the substantial mass loss during the past decade.

Road transport accounts for around 12% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As many high-income countries are moving to decarbonise their road vehicle fleets, Kyrgyzstan – with rapid growth in passenger car ownership – is seeing a significant increase in transport-related GHG emissions and air pollution in urban areas. Whilst a transition to electric vehicles (EVs) is a key part of Kyrgyzstan’s Nationally Determined Contribution to the Paris Agreement, the potential for successful EV deployment in the region is under-researched. To fill this research gap, this paper presents an assessment of the potential for EV deployment in Kyrgyzstan. Firstly, we present an investigation of the policy and institutional landscape relating to transport and the promotion of EVs in Kyrgyzstan. Secondly, based on research of 50,000 car sales and interviews with 23 key stakeholders in the country, we present analysis of the existing Kyrgyz vehicle fleet. Thirdly, using information ascertained from the interviews and desk-based research, we conduct a Total Cost of Ownership assessment of EVs versus internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) in the Kyrgyz context. We find that under the current conditions, EVs can have a lower total cost of ownership against similar ICEVs in Kyrgyzstan. However, it is evident that this is not typically the case: the analysis in this paper suggests that cost-competitiveness between EVs and ICEVs is more likely for larger and higher-powered vehicles, for which the ICEV version has a higher retail price. Finally, combining analysis of these results and analysis of the current conditions in Kyrgyzstan, trajectories for EV adoption in geographically and economically similar nations, and data from expert stakeholder interviews, we propose a set of policy recommendations to accelerate EV uptake in Kyrgyzstan.

Renewable energy technologies play a crucial role in solving global energy and environmental issues, and the pace of the energy transition directly depends on improving their efficiency. Presently, the development and implementation of renewable energy systems are ensured mainly through state funding, the possibilities of which are limited. The potential of attracting private investments depends directly on their impact on companies’ profitability indicators, and the uncertainty regarding the return on investments is one of the main barriers affecting investors’ decision-making. Based on a vector autoregressive model for analysing the stationary time series, the paper explores the impact of long-term investments and research and development costs in renewable energy technologies on the financial performance of ten of the largest companies operating in this field. The study’s results showed that investments and spending on research and development positively affect such companies’ profitability indicators as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation, earnings before interest and tax, net income, and return on investment. The obtained results can be used to substantiate the economic effectiveness of investments in developing and improving renewable energy technologies when forming the companies’ financial policies to support them.

Knowledge of farmers’ perceptions of and adaptations to climate change is important to inform policies addressing the risk of climate change to farmers. This case study explored those issues in the Melamchi Valley of Nepal through a survey of 365 households and focus group discussions in 6 communities using a Community-Based Risk Screening Tool–Adaptation and Livelihoods (CRiSTAL). Analysis of climate trends in the study area for 1979–2009 showed that mean annual temperatures rose by 1.02°C and the frequency of drought increased measurably after 2003. Farmers reported increases in crop pests, hailstorms, landslides, floods, thunderstorms, and erratic precipitation as climate-related hazards affecting agriculture. They responded in a variety of ways including changing farming practices, selling livestock, milk, and eggs, and engaging in daily wage labor and seasonal labor migration. With more efficient support and planning, some of these measures could be adjusted to better meet current and future risks from climate change.

Climate change and other global change drivers threaten plant diversity in mountains worldwide. A widely documented response to such environmental modifications is for plant species to change their elevational ranges. Range shifts are often idiosyncratic and difficult to generalize, partly due to variation in sampling methods. There is thus a need for a standardized monitoring strategy that can be applied across mountain regions to assess distribution changes and community turnover of native and non-native plant species over space and time. Here, we present a conceptually intuitive and standardized protocol developed by the Mountain Invasion Research Network (MIREN) to systematically quantify global patterns of native and non-native species distributions along elevation gradients and shifts arising from interactive effects of climate change and human disturbance. Usually repeated every five years, surveys consist of 20 sample sites located at equal elevation increments along three replicate roads per sampling region. At each site, three plots extend from the side of a mountain road into surrounding natural vegetation. The protocol has been successfully used in 18 regions worldwide from 2007 to present. Analyses of one point in time already generated some salient results, and revealed region-specific elevational patterns of native plant species richness, but a globally consistent elevational decline in non-native species richness. Non-native plants were also more abundant directly adjacent to road edges, suggesting that disturbed roadsides serve as a vector for invasions into mountains. From the upcoming analyses of time series even more exciting results especially about range shifts can be expected. Implementing the protocol in more mountain regions globally would help to generate a more complete picture of how global change alters species distributions. This would inform conservation policy in mountain ecosystems, where some conservation policies remain poorly implemented.

Abstract In Turkey, the consumption of diesel oil is increasing both in transportation and in agricultural fields. In this study, the opportunities of the use of safflower oil, which grow originally in Turkey as a direct fuel in diesel engines, were researched to provide a new alternative for biofuel industry and to popularize the farming of oil crops. In this study, the kit design was completed first, and afterwards safflower oil was exposed to the process of neutralization and laundering, and then turned into standard fuel. For engine performance experiments, reference experiences were conducted by using diesel fuel by using safflower as a fuel in the engine with kit for 500 h; comparisons were made with regards to power, moment, diesel consumption, and exhaust emission. As a result, it was seen that when safflower was used as a fuel, there was a decrease in motor performance and emission, however specific fuel consumption increased. When safflower was used, there was not any residual on the engine that was found. The designed kit, which can be easily produced with national technology, did not cause any malfunction or negativity in the engine and it was successfully used.