ORGANIZATION OF METHODS FOR ASSESSING THE STATE OF ECOSYSTEM ASSETS OF TERRITORIAL COMMUNITIES RELATED TO WATER

The purpose of the article is to substantiate scientific approaches to streamlining methods for assessing the state of ecosystem assets of territorial communities related to water, from the standpoint of sustainable nature management on an ecosystem basis. The modern scientific developments on estimation of cost of ecosystem services connected with water, are resulted in the leading international documents are investigated. The peculiarities of application of the methodological approach of ZEC (general economic value) are revealed, which provides taking into account both the real characteristics of the actual use of ecosystem services related to water and the potential (hidden) characteristics of their non-use. It is determined that the most promising in the process of assessing ecosystem services related to water may be the use of methods such as: "market" prices; normative; cost transfer; benefit transfer, scenario development method, subjective assessments. It is emphasized that these methods can be applied both separately and in certain combinations (combinatorics), due to the need to take into account the specifics of ecosystem services produced by ecosystem assets and the impact of integration processes within the ecosystem interaction of territorial spatial formations. In this context, the possibility of applying the concept of ZEC to assess ecosystem services related to water, on the example of the village of Semenivka Blagodatnensky united territorial community of Pervomaisky district of Mykolayiv region according to the author's methodology and formalized them using several methods. Further research has prospects in the following areas: formation of a comprehensive system approach to streamlining the methods of cost measurement of water-related ecosystem assets; development and introduction of effective methodological approaches to the assessment of ecosystem assets, which are based on the use of combinatorics of possible assessment methods, which are selected in accordance with the characteristics of the local territorial water resource potential.

Costing a Maternity Leave Cash Transfer to Support Breastfeeding Among Informally Employed Mexican Women

Background: Investing in maternity protection for working women is an important social equity mechanism. Addressing the maternity leave needs of women employed in the informal sector economy should be a priority as more than half of women in Latin America, South Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa are employed in this sector. Objective: To develop a costing methodology framework to assess the financial feasibility, at the national level, of implementing a maternity cash transfer for informally employed women. Methods: A World Bank costing methodology was adapted for estimating the financial need to establish a maternity cash transfer benefit. The methodology estimates the cash transfer’s unitary cost, the incremental coverage of the policy in terms of time, the weighted population to be covered, and the administrative costs. The 6-step methodology uses employment and sociodemographic data that are available in many countries through employment and demographic surveys and the population census. The methodology was tested with data for Mexico assuming different cash transfer unitary costs and the benefit’s time coverage. Results: The methodological framework estimated that the annual financial needs of setting up a maternity cash transfer for informally working women in Mexico ranges between US$87 million and US$280 million. Conclusions: A pragmatic methodology for assessing the costs of maternity cash transfer for informally employed women was developed. In the case of Mexico, the maternity cash transfer for women in the informal sector is financially feasible.

Secondary Flow and Extra Heat Transfer Enhancement of Ribbed Surface After Jet Impingement

It has been recognized by previous experiments that substantial heat transfer augmentation can be achieved by adding ribbed turbulators after jet impingement in a cross flow. This study investigates the fundamental working mechanism in a typical turbulent channel flow. Conjugate CFD simulations were carried out for ribs, jet impingement, and their combinations. The flow characteristics and drawbacks for the two individual enhancement techniques are highlighted. Further analysis on the coupling design reveals that the counter-rotating vortices generated by the jet flow can energize the inter-rib recirculating vortices and promote the span-wise convection. With an optimal combination design, extra heat transfer benefit could be achieved beyond the simple superposition of rib and jet impingement techniques. This general thermal design philosophy is useful for design optimization in practice and has also been confirmed by published experimental data.

Heat Transfer for a Turbine Blade With Nonaxisymmetric Endwall Contouring

Complex vortical secondary flows that are present near the endwall of an axial gas turbine blade are responsible for high heat transfer rates and high aerodynamic losses. The application of nonaxisymmetric, three-dimensional contouring to the endwall surface has been shown to reduce the strength of the vortical flows and decrease total pressure losses when compared with a flat endwall. The reduction in secondary flow strength with nonaxisymmetric contouring might also be expected to reduce endwall heat transfer. In this study, measurements of endwall heat transfer were taken for a low-pressure turbine blade geometry with both flat and three-dimensional contoured endwalls. Endwall oil flow visualization indicated a reduction in the passage vortex strength for the contoured endwall geometry. Heat transfer levels were reduced by 20% in regions of high heat transfer with the contoured endwall, as compared with the flat endwall. The heat transfer benefit of the endwall contour was not affected by changes in the cascade Reynolds number.

Heat Transfer for a Turbine Blade With Non-Axisymmetric Endwall Contouring

Complex vortical secondary flows that are present near the endwall of an axial gas turbine blade are responsible for high heat transfer rates and high aerodynamic losses. The application of non-axisymmetric, three-dimensional contouring to the endwall surface has been shown to reduce the strength of the vortical flows and decrease total pressure losses when compared to a flat endwall. The reduction of secondary flow strength with non-axisymmetric contouring might also be expected to reduce endwall heat transfer. In this study, measurements of endwall heat transfer were taken for a low-pressure turbine blade geometry with both flat and three-dimensional contoured endwalls. Endwall oil flow visualization indicated a reduction in the passage vortex strength for the contoured endwall geometry. Heat transfer levels were reduced by 20 percent in regions of high heat transfer with the contoured endwall, as compared to the flat endwall. The heat transfer benefit of the endwall contour was not affected by changes in the cascade Reynolds number.

Convention on Biological Diversity: Towards a sustainable future

In an era of a rapidly shrinking biological resources, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is a historic landmark, being the first global agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. The CBD is one of the few international agreements in the area of natural resource conservation in which sustainability and equitable benefit-sharing are central concerns. The CBD links traditional conservation efforts to the economic goal of using biological resources sustainably and sets forth principles for the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the use of genetic resources, notably those destined for commercial use. Importantly, the CBD also gives traditional knowledge its due place in the sustainable use of genetic resources. The CBD also covers the rapidly expanding field of biotechnology, addressing technology development and transfer, benefit-sharing and biosafety, in an equitable framework. In the coming years, the CBD is likely to have major repercussions on the way biodiversity is conserved and benefits thereof, shared between the developing and developed worlds. The following commentary on the CBD has drawn heavily from a document produced by Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, at the United Nations Environment Programme. Articles 1 to 21 of the CBD have also been reproduced here in order to disseminate knowledge regarding the principles of the CBD-Editor.