School Notes: School of the Environment
January/February 2011

Research study to examine sustainable development in Singapore

In a collaboration with the National University of Singapore, the environment school will conduct a study that will make recommendations for the sustainable development of Singapore. The Urban Metabolism Study will estimate and map the flow of materials and energy in the Jurong Lake District, which was created in 2008 and is under long-term development, and explore how land-use planning can incorporate resource-conservation strategies to minimize the use of, conserve, and recover scarce resources. It will also recommend strategies to optimize the use of raw materials and energy to achieve a more sustainable urban environment.

The three-year study will be conducted in collaboration with Singapore’s Urban Redevelopment Authority and Housing Development Board, and is supported by a $400,000 grant from Singapore’s Ministry of National Development Research Fund. It will be led by Kua Harn Wei, an assistant professor in the Department of Building at the NUS School of Design and Environment, and Marian Chertow ’81MPPM, ’00PhD, associate professor of industrial environmental management at the environment school.

Journal highlights environmental aspects of ICT

A special issue of Yale’s Journal of Industrial Ecology explores new environmental applications of information and communication technology (ICT) that could save society significant amounts of energy and money and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “Environmental Applications of ICT” examines recent advances in these technologies, including social networking, Web 2.0, smart energy monitoring, and geographic information systems, with possible applications in home, industrial, and municipal energy systems.

The Journal of Industrial Ecology is a peer-reviewed, international bimonthly journal that examines the relationship between industry and the environment from the perspective of the emerging field of industrial ecology. It is owned by Yale University, headquartered at the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, and published by Wiley-Blackwell.

Heat wave deaths highest in early summer

The risk of dying from a heat wave is highest when heat waves occur early in the summer and are hotter and longer than usual, according to an environment school study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives(EHP). Michelle Bell, associate professor of environmental health, and Brooke Anderson, a postdoctoral researcher, examined the instances of deaths during heat waves in 43 U.S. cities over a 19-year period, from 1987 to 2005. They found a 5 percent increased risk of mortality during the first heat wave of a summer, compared with those occurring later in the season. Bell said that people may be less accustomed to the heat early in the summer and may not protect themselves against it, and that people most vulnerable to heat waves may succumb during the first one of the season. The study also found that the risk of mortality was greater in the Northeast and Midwest than in the South. Bell said that even though it’s hotter in the South, the risk of dying may be lower because air conditioning is more prevalent and people are more acclimated to the heat.