Establishment of a Dredged Material Disposal Site in the Exclusive Economic Zone: New Zealand

Disposal options for muddy dredged material, especially if lightly contaminated, is an issue facing many countries, particularly if environmental protection and adherence to the Protocols of the London Dumping Convention is a regulatory requirement. For the case of the oceanic islands of New Zealand, disposal of muddy dredged material has become an issue for the prime city of Auckland. Accordingly, it has been necessary to investigate a suitable marine disposal site outside of the territorial seas in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Ideal properties for such a disposal site include a near flat surface on the continental shelf, with sediments of similar textural characteristics to the material being disposed, a site of non-critical benthic ecology, water depths sufficient to enable the disposal site to be monitored (as required under the London Dumping Convention), a site experiencing low shelf currents, not affected by significant wave agitation, and a site not of cultural significance. The approach for site establishment and gaining consent for disposal activities is reviewed. Preliminary investigations supporting a proposed site on the continental shelf in the EEZ are presented.     

影响省道S207线交通安全的主要因素及对策

省道S207线是新疆兵团第一条里程超过100km的二级公路,2006年9月竣工至今已运行六年。分析该工程沿线交通安全设施水平,总结该道路交通事故特点及原因,提出提高交通安全水平应采取的对策。     

The Economics of Using Ocean Observing Systems to Improve Beach Closure Policy

Beach closure policies in the United States suffers from two shortcomings. Type I errors, in which clean beaches are closed, results when managers resort to extensive beach closures because they are unsure of the spatial extent of water contamination. Type II errors, in which contaminated beaches remain open, occur because the time from sampling to public notification can be between two and nine days. Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (COOS) could reduce the impact of both Type I and II errors. The COOS could reduce the spatial extent of beach closures by better predicting the fate of contaminants in coastal waters. An improved COOS also could reduce the time from sampling to public notification of contamination events. I estimate the lost recreational value associated with Type I errors (unnecessary closures) and the public health costs associated with Type II errors (unnecessary exposure to waterborne illnesses) for beaches in Southern California.     

Road pricing: some further comments

This paper extends the discussion of certain problems associated with road pricing raised in an earlier contribution to this journal. Firstly it is shown that where the value of time varies between different groups of traffic using the same congested road, optimal road pricing requires price discrimination between the groups such that those with the lowest value of time pay the highest charge and suffer the greatest losses. However, a uniform price based on an “equity” value of time would reduce the relative distributional effects. Secondly the paper takes up the suggestion that queueing (and by extension congestion) may be positively helpful in the allocation of resources and shows that this is not in general correct although there are situations in which the use of queueing alongside conventional pricing may have a role to play. Finally it is argued that governments’ apparent lack of enthusiasm for road pricing stems as much from political considerations as the more technical problems of applying it.     

Forecasting automobile sales: the Peña-Box approach

As a response to growing concerns regarding the call for clean energy and its impact on future automobile sales, this study uses a classical factor model and the Peña-Box model to examine the contemporary and time-varying relationships of different brands/models of cars in Taiwan between 2003 and 2007. In this paper, we demonstrate the complementary characteristics of these two analytical and forecasting methods. The results confirm that these two models can derive equally important but different information from the same time series data. Furthermore, the models are a useful marketing tool for discovering the current preferences of car purchasers, as well as their preference changes over time.     

考虑车道荷载差异的多车道桥梁横向折减系数

为考虑车道荷载差异对多车道桥梁横向折减系数的影响，提出横向折减系数的多系数表达模式，并改进基于独立重复试验的相遇车道荷载方法以进行系数校核。首先，引入反映车道荷载差异性的车道修正系数和体现多车道荷载相遇概率的车道组合系数，形成横向折减系数的多系数表达模式。其次，改进目前常用的基于独立重复试验的相遇车道荷载方法，将车道交通流量及荷载分布的差异性涵盖进来。随后，参数化研究横向折减系数的关键影响参量，包括货车通过控制断面的平均时间、荷载重现期、车道交通量和车道荷载分布等。最后，基于某高速公路实测动态称重数据，给出采用该方法校核横向折减系数的详细过程，并与传统方法及JTG D60-2015规范方法所得结果进行对比。研究表明：所提出的改进相遇车道荷载方法，摈弃了传统方法中车重正态分布、车道荷载同分布、最大观测车重与均值3.5倍偏差关系等备受质疑的假设，是更一般性的解答。参数化分析表明：货车通过控制断面的平均时间和荷载重现期对结果影响很小，货车荷载模型及其在车道间差异性则影响很显著，说明对车道荷载分布规律进行准确建模的重要性。实测车道货车荷载数据统计发现：货车的交通量和荷载分布在车道之间具有明显的差异，传统方法和规范方法给出的横向折减系数均高估了实际情况，最大达19%，可能造成设计与管养资源的浪费；而基于该方法校核的横向折减系数，更能深入揭示各车道荷载的贡献规律，准确反映不同车道组合作用下的荷载横向折减规律，具有显著的工程应用价值。     

边坡参数取值研究以及加固措施分析

针对某失稳高速公路边坡的加固进行了研究。采用安全系数与测斜管数据相结合的方式,获得边坡的强度参数。并根据边坡的破坏特征及工程地质情况,采取了预应力锚杆,削坡减载等处治措施,并采用反演参数对加固后的边坡稳定性进行了分析。结果表明经过加固后边坡安全系数提高,工程效果可靠。     

Exposure of Fauna to Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) Traffic on Sandy Beaches

Driving of off-road vehicles (ORVs) on sandy beaches is common and widespread, but is not universally embraced due to putative environmental impacts on beach biota. For ORVs to impact the beach fauna, traffic areas must overlap with faunal habitat: a fundamental pre-requisite for impact assessments but as yet un-quantified for sandy beaches. Thus, this study quantified the spatial and temporal patterns of ORV traffic on five Australian beaches, and measured the degree to which the distribution of intertidal macro-invertebrates overlaps with traffic zones. Traffic volumes on beaches can be considerable (up to 500 vehicles per day). The position of beach traffic across the beach-face is principally governed by tides and driver behavior. Despite driver education campaigns to the contrary, a considerable fraction of vehicles (16–67%) traverses the soft, upper shore near the foredunes. The majority (65%) of burrowing invertebrate species of the intertidal zone is directly exposed to traffic, save for species inhabiting the swash zone. Because beach traffic presents a formidable management challenge, a fundamental first step in identifying whether ecological impacts are indeed likely, is to assess the potential for spatial and temporal conflict between human pressures (e.g., ORVs) and biological resources (e.g., beach fauna). Although this potential is certainly substantial for sandy shores used by ORVs, the actual ecological impacts on the intertidal fauna can only be predicted in situations where the responses (e.g., direct mortality, behavioral changes) of individual species to beach traffic are known.     

关于城市道路建设工程交通影响评价的若干思考

目前在国内还鲜有类似"城市道路建设工程交通影响评价"的提法和应用。通过将其与《建设项目交通影响评价技术标准》中所涉及的相关内容进行比较分析并总结实践经验,探讨了该项工作开展的必要性,以及所应包含的内容。