Search results for "Directive"
showing 10 items of 308 documents
Smart Cities and Municipal Building Regulation for Energy Efficiency
2015
The “Smart Cities & Communities Initiative” of the Strategic Energy Technology Plan is the strategic European response to lead cities and regions to a carbon free future. In this contest energy efficiency in buildings has a crucial role and must be considered in a holistic approach to the urban planning. In order to implement the minimum requirements stated by the European Directive about the Energy Performance of Buildings, and in order to consider different planning layers with the view to a smart city planning, local regulations are a key factor aiming at sustainable territorial planning. This paper investigates the possibility to draft a basic structure of Municipal Building Regulat…
Where Are Corporate Thought Patterns to be Found in Legislation and Planning Processes? The Example European Water Framework Directive (Wo Lassen Sic…
2008
Planning Processes are always the result of a societies thought pattern. This paper analyses the thought patterns that influenced the treatment of water sheds in the last centuries and how the change of these patterns has influenced the European Water Framework Directive.
Class Actions or Collective Redress: The Need for an Efficient European Tool
2014
Collective redress makes sense both in court-based litigation and in alternative dispute resolution (ADR). Yet while the courts generally have a good sense of collective redress (though arguably there is room for improvements), in the second framework, there are some contradictions from a dogmatic point of view. When collective interests come up in conflict, judicial coercion and a judicial structure are often needed to resolve the conflict. In addition, the absence of a voluntary agreement, especially from the abuser’s side, makes it more difficult to resolve conflicts using ADR. The future EU Directive in Consumer Collective Redress aims to bring a new era to the field. In this paper, I s…
Technical, Environmental and Economical Aspects of Hybrid Systems Including Renewables and Fuel Cells
2006
In this paper, some configurations including renewables and fuel cells are studied. Technical, environmental and economical aspects are treated in the frame of the EU regulations concerning the ‘emission trading’ issue and the way in which Italy has implemented the relevant EU directive. The study has been carried out considering some architectures including renewables such as photovoltaic and wind with a back up system to increase continuity of supply based on the application of fuel cells and of a hydrogen storage system. Performing several runs with different values of the cost of energy (COE) bought from the network and produced with traditional fuel, it has been observed that, for some…
The Directive 2014/95/EU – Is there a “New” Beginning for CSR in Romania?
2017
Abstract The global commandments of sustainable development, assumed and translated by the EU into a series of communications and resolutions, have found themselves a new (and more powerful) expression into the “Directive 2014/95/EU (…) as regards disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by certain large undertakings and groups”; in order to increase the transparency of their sustainability-related actions and results, these companies need to report (starting from 2018, by referring to the financial year 2017) information “relating to, as a minimum, environmental, social and employee matters, respect for human rights, anti-corruption and bribery matters”. As regards the Romania…
Economic valuation of environmental benefits of removing pharmaceutical and personal care products from WWTP effluents by ozonation.
2013
Continuous release of pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) present in effluents from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is nowadays leading to the adoption of specific measures within the framework of the Directive 2000/60/EC (Water Framework Directive). The ozonation process, normally employed for drinking water production, has also proven its potential to eliminate PPCPs from secondary effluents in spite of their low concentrations. However, there is a significant drawback related with the costs associated with its implementation. This lack of studies is especially pronounced regarding the economic valuation of the environmental benefits associated to avoid the discharge of …
Performance in the treatment of municipal waste: Are European Union member states so different?
2019
Abstract Efficient management and treatment of municipal waste is essential for achieving green growth. Recent studies have revealed convergence in European Union (EU) member states' performance in municipal waste treatment, particularly since the transposition of the 2008 European Waste Framework Directive into national laws. However, there are still notable differences between countries. In this paper, we calculate a composite indicator of performance in municipal waste treatment at the country-level. We also present an in-depth examination of differences in performance across EU member states. Our results show that the best performers—mainly high income Northern and Central European coun…
Efficiency of wastewater treatment facilities: The influence of scale economies.
2018
The water cycle, from catchment to discharge, is a sector that involves an important investment and operation and maintenance costs. In particular, sewage treatment is a challenge for governments because they are having to consider economic, environmental, and social aspects. Within the European Union, implementation of Directive 91/271/EEC is responsible for the location of wastewater treatment facilities in the territory, due to the requirement that all urban areas must have this infrastructure to reduce the environmental impact of treated water in water bodies. Different sizes of municipalities affect the design of each wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and cause variations in the operat…
Modelling of E. colidistribution in coastal areas subjected to combined sewer overflows
2013
Rivers, lakes and the sea were the natural receivers of raw urban waste and storm waters for a long time but the low sustainability of such practice, the increase of population and a renewed environmental sensibility increased researcher interest in the analysis and mitigation of the impact of urban waters on receiving water bodies (RWB). In Europe, the integrated modelling of drainage systems and RWB has been promoted as a promising approach for implementing the Water Framework Directive. A particular interest is given to the fate of pathogens and especially of Escherichia coli, in all the cases in which an interaction between population and the RWB is foreseen. The present paper aims to p…
Biodiversità vegetale degli stagni temporanei della Sicilia
2009
Gli ambienti umidi effimeri ospitano comunità vegetali specializzate e sono sede esclusiva di rare microterofite nonché autentiche stazioni di rifugio per molte specie a ciclo effimero. Per l’interesse bio-ecologico, Braun-Blanquet ha definito queste fitocenosi un gioiello floristico. Anche la Comunità Europea, con la direttiva Habitat 92/43/CEE, riconosce agli stagni temporanei mediterranei una notevole importanza e li individua come habitat prioritario (3170*). Questi ambienti, essendo stagionali, di modesta estensione, spazialmente dispersi e difficilmente cartografabili, spesso vengono trascurati negli studi a scala di paesaggio. Tali habitat, invece, rappresentano veri e propri micro-h…