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Purpose: Nowadays, governments and people pay more attention to use green products due to environmental pollution, irreplaceable energy and shortage of resources. Green products are resulted from the application of green supply chain management strategies to the organizations' performance strategies, so that we can reduce environmental pollutants and wastes and take a step towards saving energy with limited resources. Methodology: In this paper, the effect of reducing energy consumption in green supply chain is examined by using queuing theory and transportation models. Data was generated and solved by a commercial optimization epackage. Findings: The findings indicate that suitable assignment of existing transportation fleet with specified capacity, and using queueing theory in a closed-loop network to reduce the queue length and handle congestion, can cause a reduction in energy consumption by optimizing transportation and waiting times in a green supply chain. Originality/value: Adopting investment strategy in improving the environmental performance of the supply chain, will yield in many advantages and benefits. This article investigates the effect of queuing theory on reducing waiting time, optimizing energy consumption in green supply chain, and consequently decreasing pollution.

The paper investigates the offshore crisis 2015–2017 and its impact on central international offshore oil and gas related maritime cluster, the Blue Maritime Cluster, located at the North-Western coast of Norway.This complete maritime cluster, heavily involved in offshore petroleum operations, it experienced an almost devastating blow, as it lost almost one-third of its employees as its value added contracted by 39 percent.When the crises is basically seen as a result of falling of oil prices and lower activity and squeezed profit margins, this paper investigates the crisis in the light of financial instability and reactions down the maritime supply chain. By collecting data from the Blue Maritime Cluster and the Norwegian central company register one is able both to trace the fall in the activity due to the crisis and measures of financial strength. The study approaches the data by using a structural time series analysis in order to map cycles as deviations from polynomial trends.The findings ascertain that financial instability was dominant within the Blue Maritime Cluster during its boom before the crisis. Debt ratios and thereby gearing (leverage) were high. Thus, the companies could not meet their obligations when the crisis hit.The paper also finds that narrow focused supply chain management made the cluster fall deep into the abyss. Companies with a more diversified portfolio were able to meet the hard years better than others.

BACKGROUND: In several volcanic areas of Italy, arsenic levels exceed European regulatory limits (10 μg/L in drinking water). There is still uncertainty about health risks from arsenic at low-medium doses (<100 μg/L). OBJECTIVES: A large population-based study using an administrative cohort of residents in the Viterbo province (Central Italy), chronically exposed to low-medium arsenic levels via drinking water, was investigated to evaluate the effects of a lifetime exposure to arsenic on mortality from cancers and chronic diseases. METHODS: The study population consisted of 165,609 residents of 17 municipalities, followed from 1990 until 2010. Average individual arsenic exposure at the first residence (AsI) was estimated through a space-time modeling approach using residential history and arsenic concentrations from water supply. A time-dependent Cumulative Arsenic dose Indicator (CAI) was calculated, accounting for daily water intake and exposure duration. Mortality Hazard Ratios (HR) were estimated by gender for different diseases using Cox proportional models, adjusting for individual and area-level confounders. A flexible non-parametric approach was used to investigate dose-response relationships. RESULTS: Mean AsI exposure was 19.3 μg/L, and average exposure duration was 39.5 years. Associations of AsI and CAI indicators with several diseases were found, with greatest risks found for lung cancer in both sexes (HR = 2.61 males; HR = 2.09 females), myocardial infarction, peripheral arterial disease and COPD in males (HR = 2.94; HR = 2.44; HR = 2.54 respectively) and diabetes in females (HR = 2.56). For lung cancer and cardiovascular diseases dose-response relationship is modelled by piecewise linear functions revealing effects even for doses lower than 10 μg/L, and no threshold dose value was identified as safe for health. CONCLUSIONS: Results provide new evidence for risk assessment of low-medium concentrations of arsenic and contribute to the ongoing debate about the threshold-dose of effect, suggesting that even concentrations below 10 μg/L carry a mortality risk. Policy actions are urgently needed in areas exposed to arsenic like in the Viterbo province, to comply with current EU regulations.

The issue of price transmission along the food chain has attracted considerable interest in the EU because of the welfare and policy implications that could potentially be generated. Possible consumer welfare loss may exist if price increases are rapidly transmitted through the supply chain, while price decreases are transmitted more slowly, or incompletely. Pasta is a strategic product in the Italian agro-food industry. In the last years, among the events which have characterized the Italian pasta supply chain such as CAP reform and prices instability, a case of anticompetitive practices against pasta makers was identified and sanctioned by the Italian Antitrust Authority for the period between October 2006 and, at least, March 2008. Specifically, based on Antitrust sentence Italian pasta makers (about 90% of Italian market) and two Industrial Unions of Italian pasta makers have put into practice a restrictive-competition accord aimed at harmonizing increases in the sale price for semolina dry pasta that applies to the retail sector. Our goal is to investigate whether antitrust sentence has produced some substantial effects in the Italian pasta market by restoring a state of appreciable competitiveness among companies. A useful way to analyze pasta makers' behavior, before and after antitrust sentence, is to investigate whether and how the mechanism of the transmission price, specifically the pasta producer price adjustment process to semolina price variations, was changed with antitrust intervention. We use Kinnucan and Forker model which has been employed in literature for analyzing the impact of a policy intervention on farm-to-retail price transmission in the fluid milk market. The results showed that antitrust intervention would seem have produced some substantial effects in the Italian pasta market by restoring a state of high competition among companies.

Food aid is a critical component of the global food system, particularly when emergency situations arise. For the first time, we evaluate the water footprint of food aid. To do this, we draw on food aid data from theWorld Food Programme and virtual water content estimates from WaterStat. We find that the total water footprint of food aid was 10 km3 in 2005, which represents approximately 0.5% of the water footprint of food trade and 2.0% of the water footprint of land grabbing (i.e., water appropriation associated with large agricultural land deals). The United States is by far the largest food aid donor and contributes 82% of the water footprint of food aid. The countries that receive the most water embodied in aid are Ethiopia, Sudan, North Korea, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Notably, we find that there is significant overlap between countries that receive food aid and those that have their land grabbed. Multivariate regression results indicate that donor water footprints are driven by political and environmental variables, whereas recipient water footprints are driven by land grabbing and food indicators.

A potentially severe problem is emerging in the Middle East—the threat of major water shortages. This developing issue is likely to exacerbate already strained relations between states in the region. A number of aspects of this crisis can be illustrated through an examination of one river system, the Jordan. Proceeding from this example, the first steps can be taken toward an effective theory of issues and water conflicts. Application of this theoretical framework reveals that the water issue means different things to different actors. Water is a highly complex, fragmented issue, which possesses special qualities that distinguish it from other foreign relations determinants. While water is not usually an issue to some actors, under conditions of severe shortage it is highly conflict-prone. Yet the water issue paradoxically is also a possibly unique vehicle for cooperation if the parties view that as the only possible solution.

The Zumbi dos Palmares land reform settlement lacks modern facilities for water and sewage treatment. Local farmers often use shallow wells as alternative source of water supply, because the water table is reasonably high in the region. This work presents a multivariate analysis assessment of physicochemical and bacteriological parameters and pesticide residues in water samples collected from these shallow wells. The physicochemical parameters analyzed were: conductivity, pH, DOC (dissolved organic carbon), nitrate, turbidity, and bacteriological analysis measuring total and fecal coliforms. The results show non-compliance with Brazilian legal standards in most samples where low pH values were found, characterizing the presence of acidic waters. Another example of non-compliance is the presence of total and fecal coliforms in for drinking water in most of the samples and, in some cases, very high values (2,400 CFU). Some wells showed high conductivity values, probably associated with a history of oceanic intrusion. Analyses determining the contamination by pesticides show the presence of ametrine, atrazine, methyl parathion, carbaryl and hexazinone. The concentration for these compounds ranged from 0.14 to 1.17 μg/L. Ordinance No 2914/2011 from the Brazilian Ministry of Health establishes the acceptable limits for atrazine and methyl parathion as 9 μg L(−1) and 2 μg L(−1). None of these exceeded the allowable Brazilian and European limits. However, for the other two pesticides, the European Legislation (Council Directive) recommends the maximum allowable concentration of 0.1 μg L(−1) and, 0.5 μg L(−1) for total pesticides. Our samples that were above the quantifiable limit of 50 ng L(−1), were also above the European limit values. Our results therefore suggest that water gathered from shallow wells at the Zumbi dos Palmares settlement is not proper for consumption without proper disinfection treatments.

Water development in the western states has passed through an "expansive" phase and now is entering an "intensive" phase. Large untapped sources of high‐quality fresh water no longer are available. Using current supplies more efficiently and reallocating water among uses will be necessary so as to sustain economic growth. Water conservation, particularly in the agricultural sector, will be an important part of decreasing both the quantity problems and the quality problems that have developed. This paper discusses alternative policies for gaining these benefits.

PurposeMany researchers have stressed the importance of using the right measures and metrics to manage a supply chain efficiently and effectively and have developed them from different perspectives. The basic purpose of this paper is to consolidate the measures and metrics that have been developed so far, verify the relevance of these measures from the practitioners, produce a usable list with proper classification (database), and demonstrate the use of this database through a case study.Design/methodology/approachAn initial list of metrics and measures is consolidated after analyzing the literature (journals and books) and web sites that deal with supply chains and conducting interviews with industry practitioners. A questionnaire is designed with these measures and metrics and is sent to 300 companies within the electronics industry in Malaysia to obtain feedback from the industry practitioners about the relevance of these measures. A case study is conducted with an electronics manufacturing company to demonstrate the use of the database to identify relevant measures and metrics.FindingsAbout 838 performance measures form the initial list. From these, the practitioners consider 159 important and very important measures and 135 are in use in the industry. The entire list of measures is classified into the following metrics: Fund flow, Internal process flow, Material flow, Sales and services flow, Information flow, and Partner evaluation. These metrics are further classified into different groups of measures using confirmatory factor analysis.Research limitations/implicationsOnly the industry practitioners from electronics industry in Malaysia participate in the study to identify the relevant measures and metrics.Originality/valueThe paper will be valuable to the academicians and practitioners working to develop measures and metrics for manufacturing supply chains.

Article written by Julie Foley, our Director of Flood Risk Strategy and Natural Adaptation, Environment Agency Surface water flooding happens when there is heavy rainfall and there is so much rainwater that it overwhelms drainage systems. Instead, rainwater collects over the …

This document addresses local government interests in The Clean Water Rule as applied to impacts on water supplies upstream.