Search results for "Risk"
showing 10 items of 9963 documents
Economic performance and risk of farming systems specialized in perennial crops: An analysis of Italian hazelnut production
2019
Abstract Assessing farm profitability and economic risk is important to support farmers' decisions. Several factors affect yields and product prices, in turn influencing farmers' income level and economic risk. However, the literature has often neglected to explicitly account for the role of product quality. This is particularly important for crops such as hazelnut because farmers' prices vary according to the quality of the harvested product. Furthermore, it seems fundamental to disentangle the role of parameters influencing farm results, noticeably yield, product price and quality. This is because farmers select their risk management tools to satisfy their needs, but these are often suita…
Search without rescue? Evaluating the international search and rescue response to earthquake disasters
2020
Earthquakes around the world are unnecessarily lethal and destructive, adversely affecting the health and well-being of affected populations. Most immediate deaths and injuries are caused by building collapse, making search and rescue (SAR) an early priority. In this review, we assess the SAR response to earthquake disasters. First, we review the evidence for the majority of individuals being rescued locally, often by relatives and neighbours. We then summarise evidence for successful live rescues by international SAR (ISAR) teams, along with the costs, ethics and other considerations of deployment. Finally, we propose an alternative approach to postdisaster ISAR, with the goal of reducing …
Systematic review of the effects of chemical insecticides on four common butterfly families
2017
Safeguarding crop productivity by protecting crops from pest attacks entails the wide use of plant protection products that provide a quick, easy and cheap solution. The objective of this study is to understand the effects of insecticides used in agriculture on non-target butterflies, specifically on the families Lycaenidae, Nymphalidae, Hesperiidae, and Papilionidae. To achieve this goal, a formal systematic review was performed according to European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) guidelines, by entering a combination of keywords on 3 online databases. Three reviewers independently extracted information on study characteristics and quality. The main results were collected and grouped by the …
Implementation of IUCN criteria for the definition of the Red List of Ecosystems in Italy
2020
The present work is aimed at presenting the data, methods and criteria that are being used for the assessment of ecosystem collapse risk in Italy.
Comment on “A simple way to incorporate uncertainty and risk into forest harvest scheduling”
2017
In a recent research article, Robinson et al. (2016) described a method of estimating uncertainty of harvesting outcomes by analyzing the historical yield to the associated prediction for a large number of harvest operations. We agree with this analysis, and consider it a useful tool to integrate estimates of uncertainty into the optimization process. The authors attempt to manage the risk using two different methods, based on deterministic integer linear programming. The first method focused on maximizing the 10th quantile of the distribution of predicted volume subject to area constraint, while the second method focused on minimizing the variation of total quantity of volume harvested sub…
Potential risk evaluation for unintended entry of genetically modified plant Propagating material in Europe through import of seeds and animal feed –…
2019
Significant attention has been drawn to the adventitious and technically unavoidable presence of genetically modified (GM) organisms in the food and feed imported into the European Union (EU), while the potential presence of GM seeds in material for cultivation is less studied. Here we report a study from an EU member state, Latvia, during years 2017–2018 regarding monitoring for the presence of GM seeds in certified seed and animal feed material. Eighty-two and 28 samples of seeds intended for cultivation were analyzed in 2017 and 2018, respectively. One soybean sample contained MON40-3-2 soybean seeds (0.09 ± 0.01%) and one maize sample contained MON810 maize seeds (0.08 ± 0.01%). In addi…
Olfactory cues and the value of information: voles interpret cues based on recent predator encounters
2018
Abstract Prey strategically respond to the risk of predation by varying their behavior while balancing the tradeoffs of food and safety. We present here an experiment that tests the way the same indirect cues of predation risk are interpreted by bank voles, Myodes glareolus, as the game changes through exposure to a caged weasel. Using optimal patch use, we asked wild-caught voles to rank the risk they perceived. We measured their response to olfactory cues in the form of weasel bedding, a sham control in the form of rabbit bedding, and an odor-free control. We repeated the interviews in a chronological order to test the change in response, i.e., the changes in the value of the information.…
Assessment of the conservation status of the mat-forming lichens Cladonia subgenus Cladina in Italy
2015
Cladina species are likely to suffer the impact of human pressure, resulting in a potential, as well as currently unknown, extinction risk for some of them. In this study, we used herbarium specimen data and literature data combined with geographic information system (GIS)-based analyses to assess the threatened status of Italian Cladina species according to IUCN criteria. A total of 485 records, reported during the period 1833–2013, were evaluated. Biological traits, habitat requirements and distribution patterns were used to infer species extinction risk. Extent of occurrence and area of occupancy have been calculated at the national scale, based on a 2 km × 2 km cell grid. The potential …
Technical Note on the quality of DNA sequencing for the molecular characterisation of genetically modified plants
2018
Abstract As part of the risk assessment (RA) requirements for genetically modified (GM) plants, according to Regulation (EU) No 503/2013 and the EFSA guidance on the RA of food and feed from GM plants (EFSA GMO Panel, 2011), applicants need to perform a molecular characterisation of the DNA sequences inserted in the GM plant genome. The European Commission has mandated EFSA to develop a technical note to the applicants on, and checking of, the quality of the methodology, analysis and reporting covering complete sequencing of the insert and flanking regions, insertion site analysis of the GM event, and generational stability and integrity. This Technical Note puts together requirements and r…
Updated pest categorisation of Xylella fastidiosa
2018
Abstract Following a request from the European Commission, the EFSA Plant Health Panel updated its pest categorisation of Xylella fastidiosa, previously delivered as part of the pest risk assessment published in 2015. X. fastidiosa is a Gram‐negative bacterium, responsible for various plant diseases, including Pierce's disease, phony peach disease, citrus variegated chlorosis, olive quick decline syndrome, almond leaf scorch and various other leaf scorch diseases. The pathogen is endemic in the Americas and is present in Iran. In the EU, it is reported in southern Apulia in Italy, on the island of Corsica and in the Provence‐Alpes‐Côte d'Azur region in France, as well as in the Autonomous r…