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Amidst global shifts in land use patterns due to urbanization, this study focuses on the rapid land use and land cover (LULC) changes in Midnapore City during the periods 2003–2014 and 2014–2024. The study employs Landsat 5 and 8 imagery with 30 m spatial resolution which were processed through Maximum Likelihood Classifier (MLC) algorithms. The results were attained through ArcGIS 10.2.2 and ERDAS IMAGINE 2014 software, with ground-truth validation using data from 117, 111, and 116 points for 2024, 2014, and 2003, respectively. For the validation, the kappa coefficient was calculated and achieved 87.3%, 88.1%, and 81.7% for 2024, 2014, and 2003, indicating substantial accuracy. Using statistical measures such as change matrix union, binary logistic regression, and correlation matrix analysis applied to classified LULC outputs and spatial drivers, the research highlights significant transformations in the region. The study reveals significant transformations, notably the conversion of 77% of forest areas and 5% of fallow land to built-up land. The increased rate of agricultural land conversion to built-up areas is evident after 2014, indicating rapid urban growth. These factors led to the reduction of LULC classes possessing substantial ecological value like forests and scrub lands which are becoming more accessible due to the increasing population. The results point out the drastic alteration of these developments and recommend a planning approach responsive to environmental needs for safeguarded ecological impacts. The research highlights the importance of reforestation, preservation of water bodies, and socio-economic surveillance in fostering urban management and sustainable development in Midnapore City.

PurposeWaste recycling is one of the essential tools for the European Union’s transition towards a circular economy. One of the possibilities for recycling wood and plastic waste is to utilise it to produce composite product. This study analyses the environmental impacts of producing composite pallets made of wood and plastic waste from construction and demolition activities in Finland. It also compares these impacts with conventional wooden and plastic pallets made of virgin materials.MethodsTwo different life cycle assessment methods were used: attributional life cycle assessment and consequential life cycle assessment. In both of the life cycle assessment studies, 1000 trips were considered as the functional unit. Furthermore, end-of-life allocation formula such as 0:100 with a credit system had been used in this study. This study also used sensitivity analysis and normalisation calculation to determine the best performing pallet.Result and discussionIn the attributional cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment, wood-polymer composite pallets had the lowest environmental impact in abiotic depletion potential (fossil), acidification potential, eutrophication potential, global warming potential (including biogenic carbon), global warming potential (including biogenic carbon) with indirect land-use change, and ozone depletion potential. In contrast, wooden pallets showed the lowest impact on global warming potential (excluding biogenic carbon). In the consequential life cycle assessment, wood-polymer composite pallets showed the best environmental impact in all impact categories. In both attributional and consequential life cycle assessments, plastic pallet had the maximum impact. The sensitivity analysis and normalisation calculation showed that wood-polymer composite pallets can be a better choice over plastic and wooden pallet.ConclusionsThe overall results of the pallets depends on the methodological approach of the LCA. However, it can be concluded that the wood-polymer composite pallet can be a better choice over the plastic pallet and, in most cases, over the wooden pallet. This study will be of use to the pallet industry and relevant stakeholders.

The bioeconomy emerges as an opportunity to focus on a more sustainable economy, avoid dependence on non-renewable resources and help to mitigate negative environmental impacts. The bioeconomy is considered a priority for the European Union and for Spain, which launched its strategy in 2016. To promote the Spanish bioeconomy, the impact and variables that may influence its development must be known. While previous works have analyzed the domestic sectors, this paper focuses on analyzing the economic importance of Spanish bioeconomy products and on the influence of and the existing links between the foreign sector and the rest of the economy. For this purpose, we apply two different methodologies based on linear social accounting matrix (SAM) models. The linkages show that many bioeconomy products have the potential to promote the rest of the economy and the values of some product multipliers become more significant due to their import dependence. These results enable us to know the structure of the Spanish bioeconomy and the relationships within its account. This analysis is a useful tool for developing policies focused on fostering the bioeconomy and economic growth.

EU Member States must implement environmental policy in accordance with the specified rules, including standards supporting the implementation of the adopted EU policies. The standards (target values) for the levels of environmental indicators are included in EU directives. Compliance with EU environmental standards is already bringing many benefits, but there is still much to be done. The aim of our study is to assess the current levels of environmental indicators in EU countries, since prompt achievement of their target values is a prerequisite for sustainable development in this area. A classical correspondence analysis was used to evaluate the degree of differentiation of the levels of indicators in the EU countries based on the data presented in a binary matrix of indicators. As a result, countries have been identified in which indicators monitoring the state of environmental protection have achieved a level in line with the target values indicated in EU directives, and those in which this level has not been achieved. The research procedure used in the article is universal in the sense that it can be used to assess the situation of the objects under study (countries, regions) regardless of the specifics of the phenomenon under study, provided that comparable data are available.

The concept of ‘bioeconomy’ is receiving increased attention in policy and business circles. The European Commission (EC) has initiated the Bioeconomy Strategy which is a signal of intent that the EU seeks to meet the challenge of reconciling responsible-resource usage respecting sustainability criteria, with wealth-generation. To this aim, the EC’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) has been entrusted to implement a Bioeconomy Information Systems Observatory within which the objective is to develop an ongoing coherent picture of the activities of this sector, whilst developing forward-looking tools of analysis to help respond to the aforementioned challenge. This paper provides a discussion on the research activities which are currently under development at the JRC. Whilst the scale of ambition of the Bioeconomy Observatory is significant, it is recognised that much of the research conducted so-far remains work-in-progress and is therefore only a starting point to fully capturing the nuances of this diverse and complex sector.

The aim if this study was to assess the distribution of mercury in water, suspended particulate matter, surface sediments and biota from the Sado estuary, which, for the most part, is classified as a natural reserve, so as to evaluate its environmental quality status in terms of mercury contamination. Besides the diffuse sources of mercury coming into the Sado estuary, there are also additional contributions from the northern industrial zone and from the urban areas within the system. Applying national and international guidelines to different environmental matrices, the results obtained show that the system does not seem to be under environmental risk as far as mercury contamination is concerned. These quality guidelines can be used to rank and prioritise sites of concern. Hence, the area at the northern industrialised area deserves particular attention. The concentration of mercury in sediments of this area (0.54 mg kg−1) simultaneously succeeded the European Union Water Framework Directive (EU-WFD) reference value, the OSPAR Convention Ecotoxicological Assessment Criteria (EACs) and is classified as class 2 in degree of contamination by the National legislation, which implies some legal restrictive rules. Considering the stations close to urbanised areas, one exceeded the OSPAR EACs for dissolved mercury, whilst the other exceeded the EU-WFD reference value for mercury concentrations in sediments. No statistical significant relations were found between mercury concentrations in biota (Ulva sp, Hediste diversicolor, Scrobicularia plana, Cerstoderma edule and Carcinus maenas) and in the abiotic matrices (sediment and water column, including mercury in its dissolved form and associated to suspended particulate matter). This paper provides an overview of the guidelines for Hg proposed for a considerable number of coastal systems of the northern hemisphere and highlights the complex interactions of Hg in the different environmental compartments in low contaminated systems.

The concept of ‘bioeconomy’ is receiving increased attention in policy and business circles. The European Commission (EC) has initiated the Bioeconomy Strategy which is a signal of intent that the EU seeks to meet the challenge of reconciling responsible-resource usage respecting sustainability criteria, with wealth-generation. To this aim, the EC’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) has been entrusted to implement a Bioeconomy Information Systems Observatory within which the objective is to develop an ongoing coherent picture of the activities of this sector, whilst developing forward- looking tools of analysis to help respond to the aforementioned challenge. This paper provides a discussion on the research activities which are currently under development at the JRC. Whilst the scale of ambition of the Bioeconomy Observatory is significant, it is recognised that much of the research conducted so-far remains workin- progress and is therefore only a starting point to fully capturing the nuances of this diverse and complex sector.

Purpose - This paper aims to present the Business Classification Scheme used by the Directorate General Environment of the European Commission.Design methodology approach - The classification was developed following the functional methodology commonly recommended by existing records management guidelines and standards.Findings - The outcome of the analysis is a double classification system that has been represented in a table. At the end level, the classes of both classifications coincide to define the same individual transactions. One of the classifications defines them as sub-types of business activities and the other as the subjects or field of application of business operations.Practical implications - The scheme reflects the different points of view that horizontal and line units have over the same groups of documents. In this sense, it facilitates document sharing and collaboration. It also promotes the organisation of records into similar types of files and, in so doing, facilitates management operations.Originality value - The table format gives visibility to the relations between transversal processes and business areas that constitute the activities of an organisation. These cannot be represented in a linear classification.

Central control over personnel placement in the Soviet Union (the nomenklatura system) is widely regarded as the complement to the centralization of substantive policy making and implementation. Some recent studies, however, argue that the central authorities have used their appointments powers to ratify rather than alter the results of the circulation process specific to localities. In order to advance the terms of this discussion, (he present study employs a systemic model of circulation. Here, circulation is regarded as a Markov process involving the movement of vacancies across a stratified hierarchy of 2,034 positions in the Belorussian Republic, and allunion jobs occupied by Belorussian politicans, over the period 1966–86. The model's predictions are reasonably accurate for the full data set but fit the data especially well when all-union positions are excluded, indicating a marginal centralizing influence on elite circulation that results more from the interaction between national and republic personnel systems than from centrally co-ordinated cadres policies in either Moscow or Minsk. Three auxiliary tests also support the conclusions derived from the Markov analysis.