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This article reports a multicentre quality improvement project on the use of clinical waste bins and aims to raise awareness of the importance of sorting waste. It also makes recommendations for hospital clinical and management staff to improve compliance. An audit on the contents of clinical waste bins at two NHS trusts was performed against hospital guidelines. Eighty clinical waste bins were spot-checked and their visible contents recorded. In total, 347 items were seen in 80 bins; 59% of items were non-clinical, 40% clinical. The results were presented at a medical department meeting and to the hospitals waste management teams with suggestions for improvement. A re-audit on a test ward was then performed. No improvement was seen, with 66% of the waste found to be non-clinical, 31% clinical. Therefore, the aims of this article are to educate clinicians and hospital staff and encourage waste separation to improve compliance on the use of clinical waste bins, resulting in savings in the environmental and financial costs of waste disposal.

Abstract Industrial sector in Pakistan is the largest consumer of energy, accounts for more than 35% of total energy consumption in the country. The performance of this sector has been severely affected due to the adverse effect of current energy crises in the country. Energy conservation potentials of Pakistan's industrial sector through energy management can save wasted energy which would ultimately leads to economic and environmental benefits. However, due to the presence of various barriers, the implementation of effective industrial energy efficiency measures is a real challenge. This area has not been adequately explored in Pakistan and there is a lack of focus on need of industrial energy efficiency and proper management. The specific objective of this research is to investigate the existence of various barriers to industrial energy efficiency improvement in Pakistan. Data was collected from 192 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and analyzed using a Likert scale. The perceived empirical barriers to industrial energy efficiency have been ranked according to the average responses. The results reveal that, a significant relationship exists among the firms’ size, qualification level of energy managers and nature of barriers to the industrial energy efficiency, for the manufacturing SMEs in Pakistan.

Abstract Oxy-combustion with a circulating fluidized bed (Oxy-CFBC) can facilitate the separation of high CO2 concentration and reduce emissions by biomass co-firing. This study investigated Oxy-CFBC characteristics such as temperature, solid hold-up, flue gas concentrations including CO2, pollutant emissions (SO2, NO, and CO), combustion efficiency and ash properties (slagging, fouling index) with increasing input oxygen levels (21–29 vol%), and biomass co-firing ratios (50, 70, and 100 wt% with domestic wood pellet). The possibility of bio-energy carbon capture and storage for negative CO2 emission was also evaluated using a 0.1 MWth Oxy-CFBC test-rig. The results show that combustion stably achieved with at least 90 vol% CO2 in the flue gas. Compared to air-firing, oxy-firing (with 24 vol% oxygen) reduced pollutant emissions to 29.4% NO, 31.9% SO2 and 18.5% CO. Increasing the biomass co-firing from 50 to 100 wt% decreased the NO, SO2 and CO content from 19.2 mg/MJ to 16.1 mg/MJ, 92.8 mg/MJ to 25.0 mg/MJ, and 7.5 mg/MJ to 5.5 mg/MJ, respectively. In contrast to blends of sub-bituminous coal and lignite, negative CO2 emission (approximately −647 g/kWth) was predicted for oxy-combustion only biomass.

Abstract The paper presents evidence from the performance assessment of two solar energy interventions. Specifically, an evidence base was built around two community co-conceived standalone photovoltaic-battery systems, which were deployed in two refugee camps in Rwanda. We found that for both installations (a micro-grid and a community hall electrification system) energy consumption levels were low, showing that sizeable energy consumption gaps can still develop when co-conceived interventions are deployed. The consumption gap led to low performance ratios (33% and 25% respectively for the micro-grid and community hall system). To guide further work and improve the sustainability of community interventions, we draw a number of design principles for future energy interventions in similar contexts. To deliver sustainable energy transitions for refugees, there needs to be a move towards co-creating community interventions that promote self-governance to position communities as users, maintainers and suppliers of energy services, throughout an intervention's lifetime.

AbstractThe pollution/energy leakage literature raises the concern that policies implemented in one country, such as a carbon tax or tight energy restrictions, might simply result in the reallocation of energy use to other countries. This paper addresses these concerns in the context of policies to increase energy efficiency, rather than direct action to reduce energy use. Using a global CGE simulation model, we extend the analyses of ‘economy-wide’ rebound from the national focus of previous studies to incorporate international spill-over effects from trade in goods and services. Our focus is to investigate whether these effects have the potential to increase or reduce the overall (global) rebound of local energy efficiency improvements. In the case we consider, increased energy efficiency in German production generates changes in comparative advantage that produce negative leakage effects, thereby actually rendering global rebound less than national rebound.

Furan based building blocks have potential of introducing new commodity chemicals at low cost with low carbon impact.

COVID-19 has changed the permeability of borders in transboundary environmental governance regimes. While borders have always been selectively permeable, the pandemic has reconfigured the nature of cross-border flows of people, natural resources, finances and technologies. This has altered the availability of spaces for enacting sustainability initiatives within and between countries. In Southeast Asia, national governments and businesses seeking to expedite economic recovery from the pandemic-induced recession have selectively re-opened borders by accelerating production and revitalizing agro-export growth. Widening regional inequities have also contributed to increased cross-border flows of illicit commodities, such as trafficked wildlife. At the same time, border restrictions under the exigencies of controlling the pandemic have led to a rolling back and scaling down of transboundary environmental agreements, regulations and programs, with important implications for environmental democracy, socio-ecological justice and sustainability. Drawing on evidence from Southeast Asia, the article assesses the policy challenges and opportunities posed by the shifting permeability of borders for organising and operationalising environmental activities at different scales of transboundary governance.