Policy Briefs / Dossiers de politique

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    Basic hygiene can beat diarrhoea : a lesson from the slums of Dhaka
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2009) Alam, Jahangir; Bellamy, Rufus
    Relatively simple measures, such as the use of a narrow-neck water container or hand-washing can reduce diarrhoeal risk and duration. The mother's education and awareness also play an important role in lowering the prevalence of diarrhoea. The study assesses the financial cost of diarrhea to households and finds that slum households spend approximately 1% of their annual income on diarrhoea related costs. NGO and mass media public information campaigns should give more emphasis on safe storage of water, effective hand washing and other basic hygiene issues.
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    Why tackling indoor air pollution makes sense : a study from Nepal
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2009) Malla Thakuri, Min Bikram; Bellamy, Rufus
    Indoor air pollution (IAP) is a major environmental health problem in Nepal. Most of the poor in the country cook in poorly ventilated kitchens using inefficient stoves that burn wood and other biomass fuels creating a dangerous cocktail of hundreds of pollutants. They, therefore, suffer from numerous respiratory health problems. In a recent study, Min Bikram Malla Thakuri looked at the costs and benefits of a particular indoor air pollution control initiative and found that it offers a viable and cost-effective way of dealing with IAP.
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    Health cost of cement production : a study for air pollution in Sri Lanka
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2008) Bogawatte, C.; Herath, Janaranjana; Bellamy, Rufus
    Air pollution from Sri Lanka’s largest cement production plant is having significant effects on respiratory health. The study finds that about 14% of the people who live in the vicinity of the Puttalam cement factory have respiratory illnesses linked to the pollution that it produces. By assessing the cost of these health problems, the study finds that if the air pollution produced by the plant was reduced by 50%, locals would benefit by SLR 3 million through improvements in health.
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    Open fires, dirty air and respiratory diseases : examining health costs from indoor air pollution in Nepal
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2008) Pant, K. P.; Bellamy, Rufus
    A SANDEE report from Nepal looks at an environmental and social problem that has long plagued rural communities in the country – the health impact of indoor air pollution (IAP) caused by cooking fires. The study finds that, although most poor people accept indoor air pollution as a ‘fact of life’, it is, in truth, a very significant health problem, especially for women and children. The study also finds that relatively simple solutions such as improved cooking stoves (ICS) and the use of clean fuels such as biogas can reduce levels of indoor air pollution and significantly improve people’s health. An assessment of the costs and benefits of these solutions show that there is a very strong economic rationale for adopting them in preference to traditional fuels such as wood. Both biogas and improved cooking stoves provide benefits far in excess of their relatively small costs. It is clear that if rural health policy is to be effective, more work needs to be done to highlight the dangers of indoor air pollution and to promote the economic savings and health benefits that ‘clean’ cooking technology can bring.
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    Can tax combat pollution? : an assessment of the Sri Lankan rubber industry
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2008) Edirisinghe, Jagath; Bellamy, Rufus
    Rubber processing in Sri Lanka is one of the most polluting industrial activities in the country, and, the current ‘command and control’ system of pollution control is proving to be ineffective. Now, a new SANDEE research suggests that taxation could be used to encourage the industry to clean up its act. // The SANDEE study recommends that the government should levy a tax equivalent to 8.6 per cent of the total annual turnover of the rubber industry. It argues that this would provide an incentive for the rubber industry to meet environmental standards. Such an economic instrument would also motivate the Sri Lankan Central Environmental Authority to monitor effluents more carefully, and that would give polluting firms an incentive to find innovative ways of dealing with their waste, such as recycling the chemicals in their effluents.
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    Water pollution lowers returns to shrimp farms : evidence from Sri Lanka
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2008) Rohitha, W. R.; Bellamy, Rufus
    Sri Lanka’s shrimp industry is an important foreign exchange earner for the country and accounts for half of all of Sri Lankan fisheries exports. Private sector initiative has driven the rapid growth of the industry, which is concentrated in Sri Lanka’s North Western Province. As a large employment generator and as an industry with a direct impact on wetlands, shrimp farming in Sri Lanka is unfortunately an example of unmanaged development. In the Dutch canal lagoon, where shrimp farming is booming, pollutants from the farms are now hurting the very wetlands the industry depends on, and this in turn is affecting shrimp harvests. SANDEE researcher, W.R Rohitha, examines how a vibrant industry is being tripped up by its own growth and makes the case for the shrimp industry to clean up its house if it is to continue to grow and profit responsibly. Rohitha’s work predicts that shrimp yields per hectare would rise by 6-7 per cent if the Dutch canal wetlands were cleaned up and water pollution was reduced to a ‘safe’ level.
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    Counting the cost of water pollution : an investigation into arsenic poisoning in West Bengal
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2007) Roy, Joyashree; Bellamy, Rufus
    Arsenic contamination affects drinking water in almost half of the districts of West Bengal in India. This in turn has a significant impact on the health of many people in the area. In an attempt to find a solution to this health crisis, a SANDEE study examined the costs of contamination and its implications. It finds that households would benefit to the extent of Rs. 297($7) per month if arsenic concentrations met safety standards. The current cost of supplying safe piped water by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation is Rs 127 ($3) per month per household. Thus, investing in safe drinking water is economically feasible. The study also finds that poor households, who are most affected by the pollutant, will be major beneficiaries of any such solution.
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    Facing hazards at work : agricultural workers and pesticide exposure in Kuttanad, Kerala
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2007) Indira Devi, P.; Bellamy, Rufus
    Pesticides are responsible for hundreds of cases of poisoning in the developing world, where information and training on the potential negative health effects of these chemicals is often lacking. While the impact of the indiscriminate use of toxic chemicals is widely acknowledged, the economic costs of this misuse are less well known. This has held back investment in the necessary health and safety programmes that can safeguard people’s well-being.
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    Benefits of clean air : a case study from India
    (SANDEE, Kathmandu, NP, 2006) Gupta, Usha; Bellamy, Rufus
    In cities across South Asia, air pollution is fast becoming a critical problem. As vehicle congestion gets worse, industrialization expands, and energy use soars, air quality in urban centres is reaching potentially hazardous levels. This is producing a wide range of social and environmental problems, particularly with regard to people’s health. This, in turn, is placing a significant economic burden on individuals and society in general, in terms of health costs and loss of economic productivity. Improving air quality calls for a wide-range of responses, many of which can be costly and therefore difficult to politically administer. To ensure that air clean-up policies are cost-effective and have the necessary political backing, it is vital that accurate information is available on the potential economic benefits of pollution.
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    Cleaning up the King's river : a "willingness to pay" study from Thailand
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 1999) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia
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    Making recycling work for Manila's waste management
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 2002) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia
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    Colombo chokes on the car : the case for controlling automotive air pollution
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 1999) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia
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    Sewage or swimming? : the recreational value of East Lake, Wuhan, China
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 1999) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia; Du Yaping
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    Too much salt in the rice bowl : irrigation in Sri Lanka
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 1999) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia
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    Living with livestock : dealing with pig waste in the Philippines
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 2001) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia
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    Pesticides and policy : the impact of integrated pest management on the Indonesian economy
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 2001) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia; Resosudarmo, B.P.
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    China's pollution challenge : balancing the carrots and sticks
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 1998) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia; Yun Ping
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    Can market forces clean the air in Manila?
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 1999) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia
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    Pricing wastewater treatment in China
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 1999) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia
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    Philippine mining disaster : counting the cost of a ruined river
    (EEPSEA, Singapore, SG, 1998) IDRC. Regional Office for Southeast and East Asia, Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia; Bennagen, E.