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Standing on the broken ground of resource extraction settings, the state is sometimes like a chimera: its appearance and intentions are misleading and, for some actors, it is unknowable and incomprehensible. It may be easily mistaken for someone or something else, like a mining company, for example. With rich ethnographic material, this volume tackles critical questions about the nature of contemporary states, studied from the perspective of resource extraction projects in Papua New Guinea, Australia and beyond. It brings together a sustained focus on the unstable and often dialectical relationship between the presence and the absence of the state in the context of resource extraction. Across the chapters, contributors discuss cases of proposed mining ventures, existing large-scale mining operations and the extraction of natural gas. Together, they illustrate how the concept of absent presence can be brought to life and how it can enhance our understanding of the state as well as relations and processes forming in extractive contexts, thus providing a novel contribution to the anthropology of the state and the anthropology of extraction.

The authors investigate the effectiveness of service transition strategies for generating shareholder value by evaluating secondary data pertaining to 477 publicly traded manufacturing firms during 1990-2005. The impact of a firm's transition to services on firm value (as measured by Tobin's q) remains relatively flat or slightly negative until the firm reaches a critical mass of service sales (20%-30%), after which point they have an increasingly positive effect. Furthermore, the effect of service sales on firm value depends on both firm and industry factors. Service transition strategies are more effective at enhancing value when the service offerings are related more to the firm's core business and when firms have more available resources (i.e., resource slack). The impact of adding services to core products on firm value amplifies as industry turbulence increases but diminishes when the firm's core products are in high-growth industries.

Over the last 30 years, China's economy has boomed. This trend has lifted hundreds of millions of Chinese out of poverty but it has also sharply increased local, regional, and global pollution levels. We look at the rise in air pollution over recent decades, and the perhaps surprising finding that in many of China's urban areas, levels of particulates (of less than 10 microns) have been decreasing during the last 10 to 15 years. We then turn to the costs and tradeoffs of air pollution, including costs to human health, reductions in worker productivity, and how people are seeking to reduce their exposure to pollution as shown by compensating differentials in real estate prices and purchases of masks and air filters. We discuss how rising incomes tend to raise the demand for environmental amenities and thus increase political pressure for environmental protection, and then we turn to the policy tools that China has used to reduce pollution. We conclude by arguing that as China's government is preparing for an additional 300 million people to move to urban areas over the next 30 years, it will have a number of opportunities for China to reduce pollution through a shift from manufacturing to services, along with various steps to improve energy efficiency and resource conservation. Overall, it seems that China is on track to improve its environmental performance in the years ahead.

Background Heavy industry emits many potentially hazardous pollutants into the air which can affect health. However, the effects of air pollution from heavy industry on lung function and respiratory symptoms have been investigated scarcely. Our aim was to investigate the associations of long-term air pollution from heavy industry with lung function and respiratory symptoms in school children. Methods A cross-sectional lung function study was conducted among school children (7–13 years) in the vicinity of an area with heavy industry. Lung function measurements were conducted during school hours. Parents of the children were asked to complete a questionnaire about the health of their children. A dispersion model was used to characterize the additional individual-level exposures to air pollutants from the industry in the area. Associations between PM 2.5 and NO X exposure with lung function and presence of respiratory symptoms were investigated by linear and/or logistic regression analysis. Results Participation in the lung function measurements and questionnaires was 84% (665/787) and 77% (603/787), respectively. The range of the elevated PM 2.5 and NO X five years average concentrations (2008–2012) due to heavy industry were 0.04–1.59 μg/m 3 and 0.74–11.33 μg/m 3 respectively. After adjustment for confounders higher exposure to PM 2.5 and NO X (per interquartile range of 0.56 and 7.43 μg/m 3 respectively) was associated with lower percent predicted peak expiratory flow (PEF) (B -2.80%, 95%CI -5.05% to − 0.55% and B -3.67%, 95%CI -6.93% to − 0.42% respectively). Higher exposure to NO X (per interquartile range of 7.43 μg/m 3 ) was also associated with lower percent forced vital capacity (FVC) and percent predicted forced expiration volume in 1 s (FEV1) (B -2.30, 95% CI -4.55 to − 0.05 and B -2.73, 95%CI -5.21 to − 0.25 respectively). No significant associations were found between the additional exposure to PM 2.5 or NO X and respiratory symptoms except for PM 2.5 and dry cough (OR 1.40, 95%CI 1.00 to 1.94). Conclusion Exposure to PM 2.5 and NO X from industry was associated with decreased lung function. Exposure to PM 2.5 was also associated with parents’ reports of dry cough among their children.

Sweden has committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to net-zero by 2045. Around 20% of Sweden’s annual CO2 emissions arise from manufacturing, transporting, and processing of construction materials for construction and refurbishment of buildings and infrastructure. In this study, material and energy flows for building and transport infrastructure construction is outlined, together with a roadmap detailing how the flows change depending on different technical and strategical choices. By matching short-term and long-term goals with specific technology solutions, these pathways make it possible to identify key decision points and potential synergies, competing goals, and lock-in effects. The results show that it is possible to reduce CO2 emissions associated with construction of buildings and transport infrastructure by 50% to 2030 applying already available measures, and reach close to zero emissions by 2045, while indicating that strategic choices with respect to process technologies and energy carriers may have different implications on energy use and CO2 emissions over time. The results also illustrate the importance of intensifying efforts to identify and manage both soft and hard barriers and the importance of simultaneously acting now by implementing available measures (e.g., material efficiency and material/fuel substitution measures), while actively planning for long-term measures (low-CO2 steel or cement).

New power systems, predominantly based on renewable energy, necessitate active load-side management to effectively alleviate the pressures associated with balancing supply-side fluctuations and demand-side energy requirements. Concurrently, as power markets continue to evolve, both the energy market and ancillary services market offer valuable guidance for the optimal economic dispatch of industrial loads. Although substantial energy-saving potential exists within industrial production processes, their inherent complexity, dynamic nature, and mixed continuous–discrete modal characteristics present significant challenges in achieving accurate and efficient demand-side response. Conversely, the ongoing advancement of industrial internet techniques lays a robust technical foundation for the reliable, stable, and economically efficient operation of new power systems with large-scale industrial load response. This paper starts from the industrial load, discusses the resources and advantages and disadvantages of the industry itself, and carefully distinguishes the advantages and disadvantages of participating in the power market to make decisions. This paper provides a comprehensive review of intelligent optimization and regulation of industrial load flexibility in response to new power systems. Firstly, it synthesizes the three prevalent demand response strategies (load shedding, load shifting, and load substitution), along with their associated regulatory techniques, considering the operational characteristics of various industrial sectors. It then examines the trading strategies and modeling challenges of flexible industrial loads within two power market environments: the energy market and the ancillary services market. Subsequently, using the non-ferrous industry electrolytic process as a case study, it explores the optimization of production process parameters under energy usage planning. Finally, from the perspectives of market, technical innovation, and stakeholder engagement, it highlights the unresolved issues and provides insights into future research directions concerning the intelligent, digital, and market-driven integration of flexible industrial load flexibility.

As one of the industries with high energy-extensive consumption in China, the carbon emissions (CO 2 -E) generated by heavy industry cannot be ignored. However, the related literatures that take heavy industry energy-related CO 2 -E as the research object in the past mainly focus on the index decomposition model (IDM), econometric analysis, and other aspects. At present, few literatures use the structural decomposition model (SDM) to analyze the CO 2 -E and influencing factors of the industry from the perspective of input–output (I-O) analysis. This perspective and model can unify the supply side and demand side energy-related CO 2 -E of the heavy industry, which is conducive to a more comprehensive analysis of the heavy industry energy-related CO 2 -E and further various direct and indirect influencing factors. Based on this, this paper employs the energy consumption method (ECM), the I-O analysis method, and SDM to examine the energy-related CO 2 -E and influencing factors of China’s heavy industry. The findings show that while the growth tendency of China’s heavy industry energy-related CO 2 -E has been effectively controlled within the sample interval. Simultaneously, the supply side’s optimization of the energy consumption structure (ECS), the upgrading of energy utilization technologies, and the generalized technological progress rate (GTPR) reflecting the input structure effect (ISE) have an inhibitory effect on the heavy industry’s energy-related CO 2 -E, while the final demand effect (FDE) has an increasing effect on the energy-related CO 2 -E in the heavy industry, indicating that the products produced by the heavy industry are still characterized by high carbonation. This paper not only further enriches the existing research literature on energy-related CO 2 -E from the heavy industry in theory, but also provides guidance for efficient control of excessive growth of energy-related CO 2 -E from the perspective of input and output for the heavy industry in practice.

The relevance of the article lies in the significant reduction of the mammal population in the areas of heavy industry enterprises located in Kazakhstan. The aim of the research is to investigate the technogenic pollution's impact level on the representatives of the species of Rodents and Insectivores order in Northern Kazakhstan. The result of the work on the analysis of the species composition of small mammals in the technogenic territories of Northern Kazakhstan in comparison with the control zone in 2021 is presented. Technogenic sites were located in the vicinity of industrial enterprises. The following methods were used in the study: complex analysis, the method of record lines, and the method of statistical data processing. During the study, 15 species of animals were noted at all sites: 11 species of the Rodentia order and 4 species of representatives of the Eulipotyphla order. The registered animals were classified according to their distance from the emission sources. The dominance index was calculated. The calculation results were marked by low indicators in the impact and buffer territories and an increase in the background and control areas. All plots have dominant species. With the increase in anthropogenic influence and the approximation of the sources of emissions, the number of small mammal species decreases, the structure is simplified, and biodiversity is reduced.

The optimal approach to design, build, operate, and maintain buildings  With this strategic guide to building information modeling (BIM), you’ll learn how to implement this new technology as part of a comprehensive systems approach to the design, construction, management, operation, maintenance, and use of buildings.  The authors, among the leading experts and pioneers in BIM, show you how BIM supports more streamlined, integrated, and efficient business processes throughout the life cycle of buildings, from their initial conception through their eventual retirement or reuse. The result is better quality buildings, lower construction and operating costs, shorter project turnaround times, and a higher quality of building information to support better business decisions.  Moreover, they set forth a plan for incorporating BIM into every organization’s existing workflows, enabling you to take full advantage of all the benefits that BIM offers.  Everything you need to implement a BIM approach is set forth in detail, including: The business case for BIM, demonstrating how it can improve collaboration, facilitate better design and construction, optimize workflow, and help reduce risk Guidance for meeting the challenges of BIM such as an entrenched business culture, the proliferation of BIM tools, and the uneven rates of BIM adoption The “big picture” view showing how your organization can work with business partners and fit into the building life cycle in a BIM-enabled industry  Throughout the book, sample documents and figures help you better understand the principles of BIM and how it works in practice.  In addition, first-hand accounts show you exactly how adopters of BIM have gained a competitive edge. Architects, engineers, constructors, building owners, and facility managers can turn to this book to realize the full potential of BIM and radically improve the way buildings are designed, built, operated, and maintained.

The study aimed to analyze the association between green supply chain management practices (GSCM) practices and sustainable organizational performance (OP) in construction organizations of Pakistan. A quantitative survey-based design was adopted to test the proposed hypotheses. Data were collected from 118 respondents. The PLS-SEM-based approach was applied for data analysis. The results revealed that eco-design is positively associated with economic, social, and environmental performance. Green purchasing is positively associated with social and environmental performance. Green production and green logistics are positively associated with environmental performance. Cooperation with customers is positively associated with social performance. The study corroborates the use of GSCM practices for improving sustainable OP. The results are vital for theory and practice.The aim of industrial development in a developing country is to improve the economy by enhancing organizational image and goodwill while minimizing adverse impact on the environmental. Green supply chain management (GSCM) practices are environmental-friendly practices which help organizations to reduce energy and logistics cost, customer satisfaction and loyalty, reputation and goodwill, and social responsibility and resultantly improve sustainable organizational performance (OP). The findings of this study revealed that GSCM practices are positively associated with sustainable OP in the construction organizations of Pakistan. The ‘eco-design’ is positively associated with economic, social, and environmental performance. The ‘green purchasing’ is positively associated with social and environmental performance. The ‘green production’ and ‘green logistics’ are positively associated with environmental performance. The ‘cooperation with customers’ is positively associated with social performance. The findings are useful for theory and practice.