THE DANGERS OF DECENTRALIZATION

Demand for decentralization is strong throughout the world.But the benefits of decentralization are not as obvious as thestandard theory of fiscal federalism suggests, and there areserious drawbacks that should be considered in designing anydecentralization program. An analysis of these dangers makesit easier to understand some of the real choices. These choicesare not so much whether to decentralize in general, but ratherwhat functions to decentralize, in which sectors, and in whichregions. In many cases the problem is not so much whether acertain service should be provided by a central, regional, orlocal government, but rather how to organize the joint productionof the service by the various levels. In many—if not most—cases, such measures have anenormous potential and could, if properly designed and implemented,significantly improve the efficiency of the public sector. Decentralizationmeasures are like some potent drugs, however: when prescribedfor the relevant illness, at the appropriate moment and in thecorrect dose, they can have the desired salutary effect; butin the wrong circumstances, they can harm rather than heal.This article looks at some of the negative effects of decentralizationin the hope that a better understanding of its dangers willcontribute to a wiser application of potentially desirable decentralizationprograms.      

The Sanaga discharge at the Edea Catchment outlet (Cameroon): An example of hydrologic responses of a tropical rain‐fed river system to changes in precipitation and groundwater inputs and to flow regulation

The Sanaga River is one of Sub‐Saharan Africa's largest and greatly regulated rivers. Available flow data for this hydrosystem largely cover the pre‐ and post‐regulation periods. From comparisons between unregulated (hypothetical) and observed scenarios, it has been possible to separate and to quantify hydro‐climatic (groundwater + rainfall) change effects from anthropogenic impacts (especially dam‐related alterations). To appreciate shifts in the river regime, discontinuity detection tests and the IHA model were applied to discharge data series reflecting average and extreme flow conditions, respectively. Results obtained principally from the Hubert segmentation method reveal that a major discontinuity occurred in 1970–1971 separating a surplus phase between 1945–1946 and 1969–1970, and a deficient and much contrasted one, from 1971/1972. This implies that the Sanaga catchment is dominantly affected by hydro‐climatic changes. However, wide land cover/land use changes experienced here since 1988 have resulted in an increase in surface runoff. Additional quickflows linked to these changes may have partly compensated for the substantial decline in the dry season rainfall and groundwater inputs observed from this date. Although at the monthly scale, dam‐related impacts on average flows increase with stage of regulation, the seasonal variability of the river regime remains generally unaffected. A comparison of the IHA statistics, calculated from unregulated and observed streamflow data, show that hydrologic shifts occurring in maximum and minimum discharges are mostly significant from 1971/1972 and are mainly due to the action of dams. Minimum flows appear, however, widely impacted, thus reflecting the prime objective assigned to the existing reservoirs, constructed to supplement flows for hydroelectricity production during the dry season. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Energy analysis of conventional and source-separation systems for urban wastewater management using Life Cycle Assessment

This study investigates the cumulative energy demand (CED) of different systems for the management of urban wastewater, following the methodology of Life Cycle Assessment. In a hypothetical case study for an urban area (5,000 inhabitants), all relevant processes for wastewater collection and treatment and the construction of infrastructure are described in a substance flow model. The conventional system requires 1,250 MJ/(pe*a), with the operation contributing 45%, the infrastructure 7%, and the system expansion (production of mineral fertilizer and electricity) 48% to the total CED. The separation systems have a CED of 930-1,182 MJ/(pe*a) depending on their configuration. Results of the impact assessment show that recovering energy from the organic matter of toilet wastewater and household biowaste in a digestion process can decrease the cumulative energy demand by 13-26%. Energetic benefits of mineral fertilizer substitution are relatively small compared to the energy recovered from organic matter. Decisive parameters for the energy analysis are the amount of biowaste which is co-digested with toilet wastewater and the energy demand of the vacuum plant.     

Behavioral portfolio selection and optimization: an application to international stocks

The behavioral approach of decision making has emerged as a diversified solution in the presence of risk and uncertainty. Using the popular cumulative prospect theory as an objective function for portfolio selection, this study implements the classical mean–variance model to compare the portfolio performance of high behavioral stocks with that of stocks with lower behavioral values. Based on a sample of 37 international stocks over the period from October 1998 to November 2017, empirical results from D-vine pair copula GARCH-GEV indicate that the portfolio of high behavioral prospect stocks outperforms the portfolio of stocks with low behavioral scores. This finding may suggest that portfolios with high behavioral values coincide with rational efficiency sets.     

EC Competition Law After Modernisation: More than Ever in the Interest of Consumers

In this paper it is argued that even though the consumer cannot (anymore) be reduced to a homo oeconomicus, competition law is the cornerstone of consumer law and that the decentralised application of EC competition law since 1 May 2004 (pursuant to Regulation 1/2003) gives new opportunities for an effective application of the EC competition rules to the benefit of consumers. While the EC Treaty (and the future Constitution for Europe) aim to protect consumers in the framework of the internal market programme, as well as on the basis of a genuine consumer protection policy, it is submitted that an effective competition policy remains crucial for consumers in a market economy. Consumer interests are generally diffuse and therefore difficult to protect via legal procedures. Nevertheless a further development of remedies which are already available in Community law (nullity of restrictive agreements, claims for damages, actions for a cease and desist order, and so on) will contribute to an increased application of the competition rules in the interest of consumers.     

Do wood fibers from a pulp mill affect the distribution of total and methyl mercury in river sediments?

The St. Lawrence River near Cornwall Ontario is affected by industrial mercury contamination of sediments and biota. It has been suggested that pulp and paper mill effluents may stimulate bacterial mercury methylation in these sediments, leading to contamination of aquatic biota. To test this hypothesis, we examined sediment–porewater dynamics of total mercury (THg) and methyl mercury (MeHg) at a site with high concentrations of wood fibers from a pulp and paper mill effluent and a nearby reference site with low wood fiber content. Dissolved phase THg (THg_diss) and MeHg (MeHg_diss) in porewater profiles showed that 38 ± 30.9% (SD) of THg in porewaters was in the methylated form regardless of wood fiber content. MeHg_diss and THg_diss concentrations were homogeneous between porewater and overlying water, indicating (a) that there is minimal net diffusion of MeHg_diss and THg_diss and (b) that redox-dependent processes such as sulfate reduction and Fe reduction were not associated with MeHg_diss distribution in these sediment profiles. MeHg and THg in solid phase showed coincident subsurface peaks at depths > 40 cm suggesting either that historical deposits of MeHg on particles (MeHg_(p)) are preserved in deep sediments, or that Hg methylation is active in deep sediments.