Greater London Authority

This business report aims to investigate the policies affecting the environment in London. A review will be made into the responsibilities of the Greater London Authority (GLA) and the mayor. A critical evaluation of the evidence will be provided. A survey of opinions amongst GSM students will be presented and a conclusion drawn on the effectiveness of the Greater London Authority (GLA) and the Mayor in tackling key issues which relate to the environment. It has been estimated that London, the capital of England, has a population of more than eight million (www. tandard. co. uk). With a 0. 7% fall in GDP in the second quarter of 2012 (GLAEconomics, 2012) the Mayor of London (MoL) plays an important role in ‘improving London for all’ (london. gov. uk). The Greater London Authority (GLA) is a top-tier administrative body for London (http://en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Greater_London_Authority) which consists of an elected mayor, the London assembly and permanent members of GLA staff who collaboratively work towards design a better capital (www. london. gov. uk/who-runs-london/greater-london-authority).The MoL is responsible for the economic, environmental, social enhancement of the city (www. london. gov. uk/who-runs-london/mayor/role). Plans and policies are developed to tackle the issues effect London such as transport, housing, health inequalities and environmental issues (www. london. gov. uk/who-runs-london/mayor/role). Environmental issues can be defined as the overuse of natural resources (Fransson and Garling, 1999) and can be categorised into air, water, radiation and odor pollution (http://www. environment-agency. ov. uk). The United Kingdom (UK), ranked eighth in the world for emit the highest carbon dioxide emissions (http://www. ucsusa. org). The UK generates 586 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year. Even though significant efforts are being made to reduce our carbon footprint such as building the world's largest wind farm, pollution due t ransportation however still remains a major problem in the UK (http://www. actionforourplanet. com). Environmental concern has risen on the political agenda since 2003. Various olicies have been introduced since then, relating to the environment. In 2009, a document entitled ‘Leading to a Greener London’ was published setting out the aims for London to reduce its carbon foot print and become ‘one of the worlds greenest cities’ (https://www. london. gov. uk/priorities/environment/vision-strateg. The Mayors Municipal waste strategy (2011) sets out to improve the life of Londoners by retrofitting London, greening London and cleaner air for London (http://www. london. gov. uk/sites/default/files/Municipal%20Waste_FINAL. pdf).Retrofitting or mordenising our homes and workplaces to be more energy efficient is considered to be a vital action, as this accounts for nearly eighty percent (80%) of the cities emissions. Greening London consists of increasing Londonâ₠¬â„¢s tree coverage and green spaces in order to improve air quality, reduce the impact of extreme weather conditions and increase the vibrancy of the city. The mayor has already made various steps towards achieving cleaner air for London which includes introducing new cleaner hybrid buses (http://www. london. gov. k/priorities/transport/green-transport/hybrid-buses), charging points for electric cars (https://www. sourcelondon. net) and barlays cycle hire is due to be expanding to south west London in 2014 (http://www. tfl. gov. uk/corporate/media/newscentre/archive/25711. aspx). Nevertheless, evidence shows that air pollution in our capital has exceeding EU limits and proves that London has a long way to go to improve emissions (http://www. london. gov. uk/media/press_releases_london_assembly/new-figures-reveal-limits-harmful-air-pollution-breached-across-capital).The business waste Strategy (2011) sets out to direct the management of business waste. London currently produces 20 m illion tones of waste a year. With London growing, this amount is due to increase. The aim of this policy is to educate and encourage Londoners to reduce, reuse and recycle their household and support business’s to dispose of their waste more efficiently and effectively (http://www. london. gov. uk/priorities/environment/vision-strategy/waste). These policies have filtered down to local councils and a proposal has been drawn in the borough of Croydon to target those who persistently refuse to recycle with a fixed penalty of ? 0 (http://www. croydon. gov. uk/environment/rrandw/recycling-rates/). However, even with the governments increasing efforts to try a reduce waste and encourage recycling, there are many areas in society where this is not happening. For example, the government’s voluntary scheme to cut the use if throwaway bags issued by supermarkets has been a disappointment. The use of plastic bags has increased for the second year running (http://www. guardian. co. uk/environment/2012/jul/05/plastic-bag-use-rise-supermarkets). In response, a proposal making it mandatory to charge all single use carrier bags may be enforced (http://www. ondon. gov. uk/media/press_releases_assembly_member/news-jenny-jones-am-calling-charge-all-single-use-carrier-bags). In conclusion, government will always make proposals and draw up policies however sometimes implementing these policies at a local level is very challenging. Even though the GLA want to see improvements and continuously demand, support needs to be made at a local level to help guide local authorities through continuous changes enforced upon them. REFERENCING FRANSSON, N. GARLING,T. (1999) ENVIRONMENTALCONCERN: CONCEPTUAL DEFINITIONS, MEASUREMENT METHODS, AND RESEARCH FINDINGS.Journal of Environmental Psychology, 19 (4) pp 369–382 http://www. actionforourplanet. com/#/top-10-polluting-countries/4541684868 http://www. london. gov. uk/media/press_releases_london_assembly/new-figures-reveal -limits-harmful-air-pollution-breached-across-capital http://www. london. gov. uk/priorities/transport/green-transport/hybrid-buses http://www. london. gov. uk/sites/default/files/Business%20Waste_FINAL. pdf). http://www. london. gov. uk/sites/default/files/Business%20Waste_FINAL. pdf http://www. london. gov. uk/sites/default/files/londons_economy_today_no119_26071

Agriculture and Tractor

The tractor industry reported a strong 28. 3% growth in sales volumes during 2009-10, thereby ending the phase of cyclical correction that had pulled down tractor sales during the preceding two years (200709). Significantly, the revival of 2009-10 happened despite the droughtlike conditions in many States during the kharif1 season dampening sentiments.The key factor enabling the demand growth of 2009-10 was strong rural liquidity, which in turn was sustained by several factors, including: higher minimum support price (MSP) for crops; greater ability of farmers to make cash purchases (including the usage of Kisan Credit Card which are increasingly being used to part-finance tractor purchases); enhanced employment opportunities (with rural employment schemes being implemented by the Government of India); an improved credit environment; and continuance of replacement demand.These factors apart, non-agricultural use of tractors (for haulage in construction and infrastructure projects) co ntinued to increase, benefiting tractor demand. Also, with infrastructure projects and rural employment schemes increasing employment opportunities, availability of labour for agricultural activities continued to decline, persuading even farmers with medium-sized land holdings to either rent or purchase tractors. On a regional basis, the performance of the eastern, northern and western parts of the country was robust during 2009-10 in terms of tractor demand, while that of the southern region was moderate.A strong growth in tractor volumes, albeit on a low base, was witnessed in the eastern States, including Bihar, Orissa and Jharkhand, which had a good paddy crop. Tractor volumes in the northern and western regions also reported strong growth during 2009-10, especially in the second half (H2) of the year, benefiting from a low base (H2, 2008-09) and a satisfactory kharif crop in some States. The southern region reported moderate performance in terms of tractor demand (growth of 11. 9% in 2009-10), being impacted largely by the de-growth in Andhra Pradesh (AP)—a key southern market—where rainfall was irregular in 2009-10.However, in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, higher MSPs for rice along with some revival of interest of public sector banks (PSBs) in tractor financing led to strong tractor sales volumes. Historically, tractor demand has been fairly volatile, being influenced by cyclical trends, availability of finance, and crop patterns (monsoon). After four years of strong growth during 2003-07, the fiscal years 200708 and 2008-09 both reported a marginal decline in tractor sales volumes, largely reflecting cyclical corrections.In addition to the cyclical dips, during H2, 2008-09, the industry also had to cope with the 1 Kharif season in India is during the south-west monsoon (June-October) ICRA Rating Feature Tractor Industry: An ICRA Perspective liquidity crunch, which pushed up interest rates, even as financiers resorted to more stringent lending norms in the face of rising non-performing assets (NPAs). However, the situation improved during 200910 as credit availability improved on the strength of greater liquidity in the banking system.While tractor financing has traditionally been done by PSBs, of late, private banks and non-banking finance companies (NBFCs), despite their higher interest rates vis-a-vis the PSBs, have been able to increase their penetration of this market on the strength of faster loan processing and use of more liberal credit norms. Overall, with tractor demand being closely linked to agricultural output, growth in farm mechanisation and farmers’ remuneration, the long-term demand drivers for the industry remain robust.The currently low levels of tractor penetration in India, strong Governmental focus on availability of finance for agriculture mechanization tools and on rural development, increase in the use of tractors for nonagricultural purposes, and the growing emphasis on tractor exports au gur well for the industry. Background Chart 1: Annual Trends in Tractor Sales Volumes Chart 2: Monthly Trends in Tractor Sales Volumes Source: Industry, ICRA’s estimates Source: Industry, ICRA’s estimates The tractor industry reported a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 20% in volume terms during the period 2003-07.The long up-cycle in demand was supported by several factors, including excise duty exemptions on tractors (2004-05), thrust on rural development, improved availability of finances for tractor purchase, and low interest rates. The growth also came on a low base, with the preceding three fiscal years (2000-03) having witnessed a prolonged phase of volume correction. The cyclical correction during 2000-03 had been aggravated by the build-up of channel inventory with the major players having pushed aggressively for larger sales.In contrast to this phase of cyclical slowdown, the one that happened during 2007-09 was less severe, with volumes declining by around 3%, despite the intermittent tightening of the liquidity situation during H2, 2008-09. The demand slowdown during H2, 2008-09 also impacted the profitability of the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), that is, the tractor manufacturers, because of the high price inventory they were carrying. However, the situation improved on the cost structure front in H1 2009-10 with the softening of commodity prices preparing the ground for the industry to earn higher profitability margins.The pickup in volumes also lowered the overhead expenses for the tractor manufacturers, boosting their profitability. While the OEMs did not lower the listed sales price of tractors, the benefit of lower steel prices was passed on to the end customers via discounts. This is an accepted practice in the industry; given that once prices are lowered it is difficult to raise them subsequently. However, during H2 2009-10, the tractor majors increased the prices with the reversal of commodity prices an d the discounts have also come down. ICRA Rating Services Page 2 ICRA Rating FeatureChart 3: Trends in Profitability Margins of Select Players Tractor Industry: An ICRA Perspective Source: Company releases, ICRA’s estimates; refers to Profit before Interest and Tax (PBIT) and volume in the tractor segment Capacity utilisation in the tractor industry had hit a low during 2002-03, following large capacity additions and a volume slump. After that, capacity utilisation improved steadily, but remained moderate at around 50% during 2008-09. In 2009-10, the tractor volume growth has helped the OEMs improve their capacity utilizations; however, there is still excess capacity in the industry.Thus, over the medium term, most tractor manufacturers would not need to make any significant capital investments in building capacities. As discussed, the domestic tractor industry has to cope with demand volatility on account of cyclical trends and the strong linkages it has with agricultural pr oduction and monsoon rains. Many of the industry players have thus diversified into related products, including generator engines and cranes, besides focusing more on exports, to gain some insulation against the volatility in domestic tractor demand.As for tractor exports, while a major part of that currently goes to USA, the OEMs are now exploring various other markets across Europe, Asia and Africa for future exports. Industry Trends by Region The biggest markets for the tractor industry include States like Uttar Pradesh (UP), Andhra Pradesh (AP), Madhya Pradesh (MP), Rajasthan, and Maharashtra, which together accounted for around 50% of the total tractor sales in India during 2009-10. The tractor industry witnessed a strong y-o-y growth of 28. 3% during 2009-10, with most of the States reporting positive growth during the year.Chart 4: Trend in Tractor Sales across regions Chart 5: Trend in Tractor sales across States Source: Industry, ICRA’s estimates Source: Industry, IC RA’s estimates The northern region remains the largest tractor market in India with sales of around 1,67,000 units as of 2009-10. This region reported a growth rate of 35. 7% in volume sales in 2009-10 over the previous fiscal, with the key contributors including UP, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. The northern region benefited from higher MSPs (for crops), limited availability of labour (forcing higher mechanisation), and increasing non-agricultural use of tractors.Additionally, increased infrastructure development activities (especially highways) led to appreciation in land values and use of tractors for non-agricultural purposes. In some cases, farmers also received compensation for the Government’s acquisition of select land patches (adjoining highways), which increased the availability of cash with them. Feedback from industry players ICRA Rating Services Page 3 ICRA Rating Feature Tractor Industry: An ICRA Perspective suggests cash purchases (including purchases u sing Kisan Credit Card) in some northern States increased to 35-40% of the total tractor volumes in 2009-10 from 10-15% in the past.Tractor volumes in UP grew by 42. 7% during 2009-10, with H2, 2009-10 reporting particularly strong growth (around 51% y-o-y) mainly on the back of high sugarcane prices for the kharif crop and improved irrigation facilities. In the case of Punjab, tractor volumes remained strong for the fifth straight year in 2009-10 (y-o-y growth of 42%). In Rajasthan however, growth in tractor volumes was relatively subdued in 2009-10 (around 24% y-o-y) as compared with the figure for the northern region as a whole.Tractor sales in Rajasthan were especially low in H2, 2009-10 versus H1, 2009-10, due to lower kharif output on account of deficient rains and inadequate financing availability. In the eastern region, tractor volumes continued to report strong growth in 2009-10, albeit on a small base, and went up by 53. 8% over 2008-09, being driven mainly by the higher M SPs announced for paddy. Within the region however, many financiers remained reluctant to finance tractor purchases in some States like Bihar. Nevertheless, in Bihar, tractor volumes grew 66% over 2008-09 to around 29,000 units in 2009-10, thereby accounting for over 50% of the totalsales in the eastern region. The Bihar market, where tractor penetration had been low historically, has shown sustained growth over the last few years and become one of the important markets for the tractor industry. Overall, in the eastern region, growth in tractor volumes is expected to moderate, going forward, as the benefit of a low base get diluted gradually. The western region reported sales of around 92,000 tractor units during 2009-10—a growth rate of 35. 7% over the previous fiscal—benefiting particularly from the strong performance that Maharashtra, Gujarat and MP posted during H2, 2009-10 (55% y-o-y growth over H2, 2008-09).The factors contributing to the strong growth in the reg ion during H2, 2009-10 included a benign base effect, higher crop prices (of sugarcane and cotton in Maharashtra, and of cereals and soyabean in MP), and greater availability of retail finance. The performance of the southern region in terms of tractor sales was relatively modest during 2009-10, with the growth rate being around 11. 9% over the previous fiscal. While most States in the region reported healthy growth, AP, which is the largest tractor market in the south, de-grew by 10. 4% in 200910.The AP market has been undergoing a volume correction since 2007-08, with the preceding four to five years having witnessed a large and sustained volume growth; this factor apart, the de-growth of 2009-10 was also aided by irregular monsoons. The other big market in the southern region, Karnataka, reported growth of 74% in tractor volumes in 2009-10 mainly on the strength of higher MSPs for rice; however, volume growth is expected to moderate in 2010-11 because of the base effect. In Tamil Nadu, tractor sales were flat during H1, 2009-10, but the performance improved in H2, 2009-10 mainly because of improved retail financing by the PSBs.Industry Trends by Tractor Horse Power (HP) The Indian tractor market has traditionally been a medium HP market, with 31-40 HP tractors accounting for around 47% of the total industry volumes. In 2008-09, the 31-40 HP category had reported sales of 157,602 tractor units, which was about the same as the previous year’s figure but lower than the 2006-07 statistic by 7%. In 2009-10 however, this category reported a strong revival, with the volume growing by 22%2 over 2008-09; the revival was led by UP, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh. The other major segment in theIndian tractor market is the 41-50 HP range, which accounts for around 23% of the total industry volumes. This segment grew by around 10% during 2009-10, thereby underperforming the growth in overall tractor volumes (around 19%) that year. The main reason for this underperf ormance was the low growth that the southern region, the biggest market for this segment, reported in 2009-10. 2 The HP wise y-o-y growth rates are based on 9M 2009-10 tractor volumes. Page 4 ICRA Rating Services ICRA Rating Feature Tractor Industry: An ICRA PerspectiveThe >51 HP segment of the Indian tractor market also underperformed the industry growth rate in 200910 mainly because of the de-growth in the exports which is a key demand area for these high HP tractors. Some Long-Term Demand Drivers for the Industry Low penetration of tractors in Indian agriculture: Indian agriculture is characterised by low farm mechanisation, fragmented land holdings, and high dependence on monsoon rains (in the absence of adequate irrigation facilities). Tractor penetration in India is low at around 13 tractors per 1,000 hectares as against the global average of 19 and the US average of 29.While this does indicate the relative backwardness of Indian agriculture, it also points to the significant scope that exists for raising tractor penetration, which bodes well for tractor demand over the long term. Government support for the agricultural sector: Although agriculture contributes just around 20% to India’s GDP, it provides employment to a large rural population, which is why the sector remains a strong focus area for the Government. The tractor industry benefits significantly from the Governmental focus on agriculture, with measures such as nil excise duty ontractors (even the excise duty on tractor parts has been lowered from 16% to 8%) and inclusion of tractor financing under priority sector lending (by PSBs) serving as long-term demand drivers. Financing of tractor purchase is of great significance for the industry, it being a key demand facilitator. Export of tractors: Indian tractor manufacturers have been increasingly targeting the international markets over the last few years. The industry exported a total of around 37,900 tractors during 2009-10, with the USA , Africa, South America, and some Asian countries being the top destinations.The industry leader, Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M), has acquired Yancheng Tractors, the fourth largest tractor manufacturer in China (in terms of FY2008 volumes), to improve its presence in the country. In the developed markets, Indian tractors have a relatively marginal presence, with sales being largely restricted to the hobby farming segment. Outlook Tractor sales are expected to remain healthy in fiscal 2010-11, given the good rabi crop this time around, the continuing firmness in the prices of agricultural products, and the healthy monsoons anticipated during the coming kharif season.Moreover, improving farm mechanisation levels (with labour availability in rural areas declining), increasing non-agricultural use of tractors, higher credit disbursements for agriculture, and sharper Governmental focus on the farm sector (larger budgetary allocations) are also expected to encourage tractor sales. The indust ry’s profitability is however expected to remain moderate in the medium term, considering the high competitive intensity and low capacity utilisation levels, although larger players could benefit from scale economics.As for margins, while they have seen an improvement in 2009-10, they would remain vulnerable to adverse changes in commodity prices. While some States in the northern region have achieved high levels of tractor penetration and farm mechanisation, on an all-India basis, the penetration remains low, which along with the current shortage of farm labour and consequently rising labour costs, may be expected to lead to greater mechanisation and use of tractors.The long-term prospects for the Indian tractor industry hinge on agricultural growth and Government support in areas such as financing availability, tax exemptions, and fiscal stimulus for rural development. Overall, ICRA expects the long-term growth rate for the Indian tractor industry to trend around the histor ical average of 6-8%, supported by increasing tractor penetration. ICRA Rating Services Page 5 ICRA Rating Feature Tractor Industry: An ICRA Perspective Annexure I: Structure of the Indian Tractor IndustryThe Indian tractor industry has around 13 national players and a few regional players. The industry is dominated by Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) with a market share of around 41. 1%, followed by Tractors and Farm Equipments TAFE, which holds around 22% of the market. The other major players include Escorts (12. 1%), L&T-John Deere (7. 8%), and International Tractors Limited (8. 9%). During the last few years, the industry has seen some consolidation with M&M acquiring Punjab Tractors (PTL) and TAFE acquiring Eicher Tractors.Most of the tractors sold in India are in the 21-50 HP range, with the 31-40 HP category alone accounting for around 50% of this. The long-term prospects of the Indian tractor industry are highly dependent on Government policies for the agriculture sector. Histor ically, most tractor sales are done on credit even as over the last few years financial institutions, facing an increase in their non-performing assets (NPAs), have resorted to some tightening of credit norms. Also, during 2009-10, there has been a sharp increase in cash purchases, reflecting the rise in disposable incomes in the rural markets.Most of the tractor financing done by banks comes under priority sector lending, a directed-lending mechanism of the Government of India. In terms of volume, India is one of the largest tractor markets in the world, besides China and the USA. The prospects of the domestic industry are highly linked to monsoon rains, which remain a key factor in determining agricultural production. Better irrigated States like Punjab and Haryana have a high tractor density (over 100 per 1,000 hectares), while States like Rajasthan, Gujarat, Himachal, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra, MP and WestBengal have low levels of tractor penetration—a pointer to th e substantial growth potential that the latter set offers. On an all-India basis, tractor penetration remains low at around 13 per 1,000 hectares. Besides being used in farming, tractors find application in activities such as harvesting and irrigation, land reclamation, drawing water and powering agricultural implements. In addition, lately, the tractors are also being used for non-agricultural purposes including haulage in construction and infrastructure projects which has expanded the tractor market.The Indian tractor market, thus, is expected to grow in future and remain one of the biggest tractor markets in the world. Chart 6: Trend in State wise market share Source: Industry, ICRA’s estimates Annexure 2: Region-wise Market Shares of Various Players The market shares of the top four players in the Indian tractor industry did not change much during 200910 in comparison with 2008-09. M&M remained the market leader with around 41. 1% market share, followed by TAFE with a mar ket share of around 22%, Escorts with around 12. 1%, and International Tractors (ITL) with around 8. 9%.ICRA Rating Services Page 6 ICRA Rating Feature Tractor Industry: An ICRA Perspective Chart 7: Movement in Regional Market Shares of Select Players 2009-10 vs. 2008-09 (bps) Source: Industry, ICRA’s estimates M&M remains particularly strong in the southern region (50. 4% market share during 2009-10). However, L&T John Deere (LT-JD) was able to increase its market share in the region by around 250 bps in 2009-10, mainly at the expense of M&M (market share down by 140 bps) and Escorts (down by 140 bps).In the western region too, LT-JD performed well in 2009-10, increasing its market share by 190 bps, even as TAFE lost market share by around 90 bps there. In the northern region, where M&M has been traditionally weak, the company increased its market share by 140 bps during 2009-10, even as ITL and Escorts lost market shares by around 90 bps and 60 bps respectively, there. In t he eastern region, M&M was able to raise its market share by around 140 bps in 2009-10 at the expense of Escorts and TAFE.ICRA Rating Services Page 7 ICRA Rating Feature Tractor Industry: An ICRA Perspective ICRA Limited An Associate of Moody's Investors Service CORPORATE OFFICE Building No. 8, 2nd Floor, Tower A; DLF Cyber City, Phase II; Gurgaon 122 002 Tel: +91 124 4545300; Fax: +91 124 4545350 Email: [email  protected] com, Website: www. icra. in REGISTERED OFFICE 1105, Kailash Building, 11th Floor; 26 Kasturba Gandhi Marg; New Delhi 110001 Tel: +91 11 23357940-50; Fax: +91 11 23357014Branches: Mumbai: Tel. : + (91 22) 24331046/53/62/74/86/87, Fax: + (91 22) 2433 1390 Chennai: Tel + (91 44) 2434 0043/9659/8080, 2433 0724/ 3293/3294, Fax + (91 44) 2434 3663 Kolkata: Tel + (91 33) 2287 8839 /2287 6617/ 2283 1411/ 2280 0008, Fax + (91 33) 2287 0728 Bangalore: Tel + (91 80) 2559 7401/4049 Fax + (91 80) 559 4065 Ahmedabad: Tel + (91 79) 2658 4924/5049/2008, Fax + (91 79) 2658 4924 Hyderabad: Tel +(91 40) 2373 5061/7251, Fax + (91 40) 2373 5152 Pune: Tel + (91 20) 2552 0194/95/96, Fax + (91 20) 553 9231  © Copyright, 2010 ICRA Limited. All Rights Reserved. Contents may be used freely with due acknowledgement to ICRA.All information contained herein has been obtained by ICRA from sources believed by it to be accurate and reliable. Although reasonable care has been taken to ensure that the information herein is true, such information is provided ‘as is' without any warranty of any kind, and ICRA in particular, makes no representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy, timeliness or completeness of any such information. All information contained herein must be construed solely as statements of opinion, and ICRA shall not be liable for any losses incurred by users from any use of this publication or its contents.

Post-occupancy evaluating of low income housing Essay

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Critically discuss being drinking among women and particularly among asian women - Literature review Example This is because they are the largest group between the two that is experiencing rapid growth in binge drinking. This paper seeks to explore the theoretical implication of binge drinking while focusing on Asian women. As a modern phenomenon, binge drinking is more of a problematic form of drinking as opposed to pleasurable drinking. There has been numerous instances of debate on binge drinking in the media, especially in the TV and the newspaper with shameful representations captioned by examples such as â€Å"Binge Britain’s Night of Shame†, â€Å"Booze Britain† and â€Å"Ladette to Lady†. From these contexts, it is clear that the people being described in the TV and the newspaper are young people who engage in unacceptable behavior after alcohol intoxication. There are also alcohol policies put in place by the government to promote sensible behavior when drinking (Nicholls 2009). In academic studies, there are misconceptions about the phenomenon of binge drinking being a new manifestation of the 21st century. What is also questionable is its mere existence and how exactly it is presented in practice because most of the people who go out drinking on weekends are painted by the media and the government as being binge drinkers when they do not overtly comprehend the nature of their drinking themselves (Haydock 2009). Academic accounts also identify a problem with the fact that binge drinking is considered a new phenomenon, given that there are numerous aspects that influence the â€Å"newness† and they vary with race, culture, age, gender among others. For instance according to Measham and Brain’s (2005), the â€Å"culture of intoxication† is a representation of â€Å"determined drunkenness† which is a calculated and deliberate attempt made by a person to get drunk (Measham & Brain 2005). However, according to Hall and Winlow’ s (2006), binge drinking is considered a means by which people engage more in broader friendship

Harvard justice course MICHAEL SINDEL FREEDOM AND KANT Essay

Harvard justice course MICHAEL SINDEL FREEDOM AND KANT - Essay Example Therefore, this poses another critical question: what would you do if harming or killing the other party will elude the highest happiness? For instance, a person driving along a tunnel and realizes a farmer fall on the road just in front of his vehicle. If you move ahead, you will probably kill the farmer but if you divert, you will probably collide with a forthcoming school bus and the least number of deaths that you can cause is five. The big question is what do you and are we convinced that utilitarianism gives the right answer. It is alleged that when telling the truth, we have to strive and reduce pain and unhappiness in whatever we do as unhappiness and pains have numerous sources. Furthermore, there are instances when truth makes somebody unhappy. Thereby, if one has to lie to make the other party happy. He therefore comes up with three cases in this argument. First, is it right to tell a friend who is fond of singing while taking a shower. He posits that your friend all along has thought his voice is the best but he sings poorly. Thus, should you tell your friend the truth and ruin his confidence? Secondly, he asserts that you have just learned that a man who has been missing for a very long time is dead. What is the right step for you to do? Should you tell the family member of the sad news even if it will make them despair? Later he question if it is okay to wrong for one to lie, is there any moral duty that is attached in telling the truth however much the consequences might be? More so, do the duties confirm that we are misled by the principles of utility? Freedom in life also includes purposes for one to live which state that we should minimize happiness. The activities are not limited in terms of national rules and regulations or in private life. Therefore is it always true to be happy in the actions that we engage in? For instance, is it right to volunteer all your evenings to make the poor happy. That is, if you spare one of you evenings, the po or will become happy but their happiness will increase more if you dedicate all your evenings. Is this the right thing to do? Freedom is also governed by features of utilitarianism and its evaluation. He states that the principle of utilitarianism classifies a right action if it produces huge amount of happiness and it at the same time reduces unhappiness. For instance he questions the credibility of either building a new hospital or a new sports stadium. He concludes that the viability of building a stadium depends on the level of happiness that it creates on the fans and the level of pain it will cause on the sick. Thus, according to Bentham, the option that will yield huge balance of pleasure will be opted. Thus, happiness is like pleasure with the absence leading to happiness. Furthermore, Bentham utilitarianism counts all the pains and pleasure and all types of pain and pleasure is treated equally. Lastly, this Bentham states that one person should sacrifice for the sake of the others. Thus, we can evaluate utilitarianism by use of the aspects of happiness and pleasure. The libertarians argue that for one to be free he must be sponsored by the government in all ways. Thus, the libertarians blame the government as it is the source of threat to human rights. They think that law is the main inhibitor to the people’

Policemen of the World Pper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Policemen of the World Pper - Essay Example This operation is somewhat controversial in both America and Guatemala. Guatemalan citizens are anxious about the fact that their soldiers, who have engaged in human rights abuses in the past, are now being given more in depth training on how best to confront drug traffickers. The American public, on the other hand, is concerned about spending on such foreign missions while the American nation itself is plagued with drug abuse (hotdogfish, 2012). In 2011, America also committed troops to Africa. President Obama sanctioned the operation of 100 troops to assist in the Ugandan government in its objective to capture, Joseph Kony, the head of the Lord’s Resistance Army- an outlawed resistance group that is responsible for the death of more than 30,000 Ugandans, and which uses drugged child soldiers to murder and brutalize others. The LRA has been functional in the northern part of Uganda for approximately two decades and has resulted in the massive displacement of more than one mil lion people. Joseph Kony is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and refuses to sign any agreements to surrender until the warrant for his arrest is disqualified. This operation is controversial among Ugandans because the LRA has been functional for 20 years with no forthcoming help. There are concerns that the choice to send help recently was tied to other desires to take advantage of Ugandans natural resources such as newly discovered and unmanned oil deposits. Two (2) factors that propelled America into a dominant military and diplomatic force after World War II Immediately after the Second World War there was a power vacuum on the world stage because the formerly powerful British Empire had been brought to its knees. Britain was almost financially destroyed by the effects of fighting two World Wars within two decades. Other European nations such as France, Germany, and Spain had all but been decimated financially (Huchthausen, 2003). The only nation in the world that had not suffered extremely in the Second World War was the United States. Even though America lost millions of soldiers in the war, the only time when its mainland was attacked by the enemy was at Pearl Harbor. The fact that it survived with a relatively healthy economy at a time when the other formerly powerful nations were financially crippled allowed it to presume the mantle of world leadership. During the war, America’s economy was actually strengthened. Before its entry into the war, America sold arms and weapons to European nations involved in the war. After its entry into the war, the production of ammunition and weapons increased drastically. By the end of the war, the American economy was healthy enough for its government to bail out the economies of numerous European nations through the Marshal Plan. America had the most powerful economy in the world at the end of the Second World War. Differences in American foreign policy before and after World War II. Explain th e main reasons why the differences in pre- and post-war policy occurred Before WW II, America embraced isolationist principles and refused to be a part of any organizations which were created to maintain peace between the world’s nations. The League of nations was signed by numerous Western nations with the exception of the USA. This is because America’

Case study for subject (Strategic Leadership in Criminal Justice Essay

Case study for subject (Strategic Leadership in Criminal Justice 7038CCJ ) - Essay Example Kathy is required to resort to an apt leadership strategy that will ameliorate the concerns and distress of the personnel in one’s team and will lead to the requisite levels of work performance. The key issue is that Kathy’s organization is opting for a change, which it believes will lead to better work performance, efficiency and effectiveness. Managing organizational change is one of the most difficulties things to do, as the resistance to change ensues from varied sections of an organization (Joyce, 2000, p. 3). Those personnel who are most likely to be impacted by change could positively be expected to register maximum resistance, which is either intended, or happens inadvertently (Randall, 2004, p. 16). The employees in Kathy’s team are resisting the change and Kathy is required to resort to an apt leadership strategy to manage this problem (Barganza, 2001, p. 119). The personnel could be resisting change owing to a variety of reasons like: It goes without saying that the apprehensions of the personnel in Kathy’s team are to a great extent valid and justified. Hence, Kathy ought to resort to an appropriate leadership approach to ameliorate the identifiable and genuine concerns of the employees. As Kathy is the team leader, it goes without saying that he enjoys a degree of rapport with one’s team members. Hence, in the given dilemma, Kathy ought to establish herself as a transformational leader to assure a smooth management of change in the organization. Transformational leadership is an approach towards leadership which enables the team leaders to help team members rise to higher levels of moral and effectiveness. It allows the team leaders to help wrought out a positive and desirable change in the personnel following them. It is an approach towards leadership wherein the team leader exploits one’s vision and integrity to secure the commitment and sincerity of the team members in the intended change process (Rickards, 2005, p.

Hypothesis and Research Design Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Hypothesis and Design - Research Paper Example According to findings, it is found that, ethical and moral decisions reached upon by software developers during software development, has an influence on how things and businesses in particular, are done and how people`s lifestyles adapt to this technological development (Salehnia, 2006). Studies concerning the ethical standards in view of the use of computers and its software, centers on critical issues such as; hacking, privacy, copyright protection, and piracy among other issues related to compute use and software. However, studies indicate that, there is little that research indicating if software developers experience ethical and moral decisions opportunities. Because of this, researchers have developed theories that may help in predicting and explaining ethical and moral behaviors. The theories put forward by researchers, as virtue ethics help social scientist and researchers in categorizing the human behavior basing on ethical and moral judgments. In some instances, an ethical theory like, ethics position theory, is used to categorize human behavior in a number of groups, which includes exceptionism, situationism, subjectivism and absolutism. Through this examination of software developers by applying the ethical position theory, was facilitated. This related to the decisions that software developers make during the process of software development, and a few hypothesis relating to it emerged, which guided further research in the area to unveil various issues. Concerning the above introductory discussion it essential to understand issues about ethics and morality in software development, with a user’s perspective. To tackle the issues well, it is critical to understand some factors involved, which is ethics, morality and software development, so that a good basis is formed to unveil the discussion critically. To begin with, software development is the process through which, individuals, a team or accompany invents and then implements the grant plan that helps to create a new software program (Quigley, 2008). The same process is applied in creating a new variety software. In the software development, many steps get involved to achieve the target plan. First, an understanding has to be made about what is needed, in terms of the purpose for developing the software. Secondly, the plan is then developed to create the software required to meet the purpose perceived, this done by writing the code and the bug test prior launching. The process of software development may involve one or many programmers, depending on the complexity of the software require achieving perceived results. At the initial stages, a research is mandatory to gain an understanding of the type of software that the market requires. The research is used to establish the real purpose of the software in meeting the market needs, in line with the overall goals set. On the other hand, ethics is perceived as the study of concept value in terms of right, good, wrong, or bad, as applied to actions concerning a group’s norms and regulations or rules. Basing on ethics and computer systems it is found that, computer software systems lie squarely in the heart of decision-making. This includes issues like data storage and manipulation, and data availability. Concerning the ubiquity of software systems in every area of private

To regulate or not to regulate the Internet Research Paper

To regulate or not to regulate the Internet - Research Paper Example Many politicians and businesses have also embraced the internet in order to sell a better image of themselves to the public. Politicians use the internet for their campaigns because it has many users and these will be able to access the message easily, which the politicians are trying to pass across. Businesses on the other hand are using the internet not only for advertising their products but also for transactions between them and their customers. However, despite the good that the internet has brought, there are also some very malicious activities that go on within it, which have raised a great debate concerning internet regulation in many countries (Yang 359). In this paper therefore, we shall look at some of the reasons why the internet should be regulated and why it should not be regulated on the political and business arena. It is our belief that the internet should indeed be regulated in the political and business arena, especially in the latter. In the business arena, the in ternet should be regulated because there are so many businesses, which conduct their activities through the internet, and many do this without any form of government oversight. This means that some businesses might give false information about their products online and after the customer pays for them, he finds that he receives a product of lesser quality from what he paid for. Furthermore, it is easy for false business websites to be set up online with the intention of defrauding those people who fall into their clutches of their money. Online payment methods have made it easier for people to lose their money to false business schemes and to prevent such things from happening; governments all over the world should take steps to regulate the business activities that take place on the internet to protect their citizens. There should also be internet regulations on the political arena because even though the freedom of expression is a fundamental right to all, some politicians tend to propagate agendas which may be harmful to other people either within their own countries or without. For example, when some politicians propagate racist views online claiming that their own race or ethnic group is far more superior to all the others. If a politician in a multiethnic and multicultural society does this, then there is a possibility that his statements will most likely cause friction between the ethnic groups in this society. To prevent this, the government of such a society should put very strict regulations especially on websites, which encourage disunity within the society, and those who run such sites should be prosecuted and given stiff sentences to discourage others from doing the same (Wu 24 – 43). Governments should therefore take steps to ensure that content from the political arena is regulated over the internet because political news tends to spread very fast online and it is never known who will be able to access it and what its precise consequences will be. The capability of internet service providers to self-regulate is very much open to question because the internet is so wide and encompasses the entire world and it would be very difficult for a single internet service provider to be able to regulate it. There is however, some countries, such as the United Kingdom, where internet service

Introduction to Marketing Essay Example for Free

Introduction to Marketing Essay Pestle stands for political, economic, social technological, legal and environmental influences. Businesses use this as part of their marketing plan procedure. Political: what is happening politically with regards to tax policies employment laws, trade restrictions, tariffs Economic: what is happening within the economy i. e. economic growth/ decline, minimum wage, unemployment, credit availability, cost of living, etc. Sociological: what is occurring socially i. e. cultural norms and expectations, health consciousness, population growth rate, career attitudes. Technological: new technologies are continually being developed. There are also changes to barriers to entry in given markets Legal: changes to legislation. This may impact employment, access to materials, resources, imports/ exports, taxation etc. Environmental: what is happening with respect to ecological and environmental aspects. A PESTLE analysis is used in business to assess the industry which an organisation is in. The PESTLE analysis looks specifically at factors which are external to the organisation which will impact on the business. This is with a view to determining the current role and status of the organisation in relation to its competitors and can be used as a marketing tool. See more: how to start an essay SWOT Analysis. A tool that identifies the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of a business. SWOT is a straightforward model that assesses what a business can and cannot do as well as its potential opportunities and threats. The method of SWOT analysis is to take the information from an environmental analysis and separate it into internal (strengths and weaknesses) and external issues (opportunities and threats). Once this is completed, SWOT analysis determines what may assist the firm in accomplishing its objectives, and what obstacles must be overcome or minimized to achieve desired results. The strengths and weaknesses are interior when it comes to a business and things that are included that could be a problem are things like buildings, the quality of their workers, the i. t systems etc. The external element focuses on the opportunities and dangers in the business. Research into the organisation is essential and required when carrying out a SWOT analaysis. By matching organisations strengths and weaknesses with the external forces. SWOT analysis brings all the proof from all the different analytical techniques used. This is a way of creating a summary which gives the basis of developing the marketing objectives and strategies or even plans. Strengths: These are the internal features of the business. A highly efficient IT system could be an example. Weaknesses: These are the internal aspects of a business. Which don’t cope well with competition? An example would be staff that are not qualified or trained properly. Opportunities: This focuses on developing the business by focusing on things such as events. An example would be new territories for a particular product or a brand new segment of a market. Threats: These are external to the organisation and its development . Which can affect the business and wreck the businesses’ performance. They can be originated by the governmental policy such as an increase in corporation tax and new law. Smart Objectives All businesses have their own objectives. They can be at different levels depending on how well the business is performance. Specific – When the business sets the objectives, they must be specific so that the workers are able to follow them businesses must ensure that the instructions are clear along the goal set. Measurable – So the businesses knows on how successful they have become and to look at any changes that would affect the profit they must do a comparison of their performance in the previous years Achievable – The business needs to think carefully if they are going to be able to achieve their goals. Realistic – The business can’t set goals unless they are realistic and that they would be able to achieve these objectives. Time – The amount of time it is going to take should be stated then this way everyone has an idea and these can get done soon as.

The natural law

The natural law The subject of the article is the natural law. The term used to describe the experience many people have when they maintain their presence. It is well known fact that the natural law is theory depicted by the existence of law whose substances are set by nature and has validity in every corner of the world. Now, the natural law is complex phenomenon but I am going to focus on basic ideas. First of all, we will consider the meaning, emergence, the origin of the natural law. Secondly, I will describe the reasons why there are so many differences among various cultures and whether different cultures evaluate the natural law with a distinct point of view or not. Finally, I will mention some thought of philosophers like Thomas Aquines, Thomas Hobbes and John Locke who have profound impact on natural law theories. It is obvious that the implementation of natural law has fluctuated variedly through the history. For the first time in the history, almost the entire world have different theories of natural law, varying from each other with respect to the legal norms. The natural law theory is apparently very complicated occasion. It was composed of two types of theories, moral and legal theory. The term natural law is not referred to the laws of the nature which science has tried to clasify. Natural law moral theory acquired from the disposition of the human beings and existen ce of the world. On the other hand; being the legal theory independent, the two theories congregate in term of some respects. Since the time immemorial, it is generally wondered that now human society and its civil institutions come into being. In order to overcome the curiosity, philosophers developed the idea of the natural law. The natural law was made use of comprehending the human behaviour in society. The doctrine of natural law trigger the individual rights in constitutional law. In an attempt to come into existence, these rights constituted according to the fundamental structure of government which eliminated the power of majority rule. Notwithstanding there are some significant questions that we should ask ourselves. Can these fundemental constitutional rights be guarenteed by the governments in an attempt to provide citizens free speech, education, medical care etc. ? It is suggested by Joel Feinberg that moral rights as opposed to legal rights explains that human rights a re a subset of moral rights and that natural rights are a subset of human rights. On the other hand John Lockes ideas formulate theory that natural law is moral law and natural rights are moral rights. It may sound as if the situation that one philosopher differs from the other. For instance, Locke characterizes these fundamental moral requirements as God- given individual rights and more basic than human law or government. However, Bentham believes that all law and rights are conventional. They are the product of agreements of social order of government. Bentham defended that there are no rights without law and there is no law without government. There can be only chaos and individual power. We can say that the natural law is known as to be opposed to the positive law which was revealed by human beings. Natural law started to maintain availability with the presence of human beings. Furthermore, thanks to intersection between natural law and natural rights in United States, the decl aration of independence and the constitution of United States took place. This is the glamorous manifestation that the natural law tradition has immense influence on the development of government and law in western civilization, although the issue of natural law is still extremely controversial subject. Like the differences between ideas and prevision of philosophers, there are many disagreements and discrepancy among various cultures and civilizations. The different cultures assess the situation with the challenging point of view. Natural law is generally identified as an ideal legal system which is known to correspond the social requirements in the best way and is not implemented not only particular time period but also every scope of the lifestyle. Custom traditions law are not documental. Even though these sentiments inhabit in social conscience. The custom which is assimilated as a social attitude among individuals of community should meet three requirements in an attempt to become a rule of law. These requirements are sustainability, general notion and enforcements carried out by the government. Consequently, natural law theory can be defined as its content is substantial intrisically arranged naturally, it is more important that everything and in valid, available and also eff ectual. Natural law theory is great matter in terms of both morality and philosophy of law. Beyond it has magnificent reputation with the influence on philosophers. The first and most significant notion of natural law was detected in antique Greek. Primarily natural law which is perceived by antiquity thinkers is the correspondence of behaviour of human beings to the natural rules. The manner of the human beings should be well matched and proper to the natural law as well as physical occasion to be compatible with the physical laws. The creator of the rationalism, Hugo Grotius who spent some of his time with Descartes thought that natural law is universal and its roots were based on human mind. The natural law originated from the social nature of humanity. Thanks to very nature of mind, human beings can discover the principle implemented on themselves. In history of the humanity, human mind sought to reveal the principle with observing the life, habits, customs of people. Thereupon the natural law theory wa brought up by some specific philosophers known as the pioneer of their period. In that era philosophers, in order to identify the natural law, reached the result that the smallest structure of the society is individuals when they attempted to identify the common life while abiding the analysis method. For instance, in physics the term atom was handled the substance of matter. Like that Philosophers perceived the social life as social physic area. Philosopher sought the way to find the solutions to this issue that how both todays sociability and futures sociability should be constituted. In order to comprehend the nature of disposition of human beings, philosophers rendered a verdict that human should have placed on the isolation. As a result, they reached a decision that the affection of mind concatenation is necessary for indiv iduals to lead a society that is harmonizingly peaceful. That is to say; social lifetime is not becoming together with individuals mechanically, it is just dwelling together by utilizing their mind without damaging and becoming harmful to each other. Although you may think that the cultural diversity contradict the idea of natural law, that is not the case exactly. First then, why do people from various corners of the world experience natural law with an amended structure of consideration. Think about this for a minute when you grow up in a particular set of surrondings naturally, you get used to the rules and guidelines that govern the behaviour of the people around you. In a sense, you become totally dependent on the rules of your social group. You tend not to question them, you just accept them without thinking. These rules are often not clearly articulated and therefore you are not aware of their impact. In other words, you are not necessarily conscious of them. Lets turn to the different situations of natural law. The natural law acquires a different character according to the different cultures and philosophers who have great impact on the cultures on some categories about natural law. Stoic Natural Law: The improvement process of natural law can be attributed to the group of Stoics. The development of natural law is concurrent with the enlargement of the empires and kingdoms in Greek world. Stoic natural law is different from the divine or natural source of law in an attempt to obtain rational, real, purposeful order for the universe. And according to belief of Stoics, prosperity and arrangement can only gained through natural law. Stoics believed that the facilities of virtue can enlarge the power and development. Stoics emphasized influently that the theories of individual worth, moral duty and universal brotherhood played a great role in subsequent legal theory. Christian Natural Law: According to the thought of Christian Augustine of Hippo, a life keeping on with the nature is no longer possible. The human beings should have sought the way to maintain the life with the help of divine law and favor of Jesus Christ. In contrast to the philosopher Gratian who reserved this by coinciding the natural law with divine law. Then at the last stage, Thomas Aquinas reconstituted the independent state not only divine law but also eternal law. He defended his idea but could not really comprehend the eternal law that the perfection of human reason can only achieved with the approaches of eternal law and supported by divine law. Thomas Aquinas also stated that all human beings can be judged by the dependance and the loyalty about the natural law. According to the Christian law, the unfair law is not evaluated as law. In other words the unfair law remains merely the appearance of law. Christian natural law theory adjusted that the natural law was not used just to implement the moral aspects of laws also to make decision about what the law should have said in the first place of the occasion. For this reason, in some circumstances events could be resulted in great tension. It is the most significant fact that Christian law focused on truthfullness of actions in the view of ethic rather than the result. The natural law purpose is to gain the goodness and it focused on the whether the things become real and formed the happiness and goodness or not. Islamic Natural Law: The presence of natural law was admited. The advocator of natural law Abu Mansur AlMaturidi dedicated that the human beings could very well be aware of the existence of God and their apprehension could differentiate the good and the evil with the help of the feature of perception. In addition in this point of view human beings should have taken notice of inaccurate behaviours like killing, drinking alcoholism, gambling which were referred to the evils. Classical Natural Law Theory: The theory pointed out that there is nondocumented relation betweeen natural law and morality. With respect to this observation, law can not be precisely clarified without the favor of moral argument. Thomas Aquinas contributed the composition of classical law theory. Aquinas set apart laws in four groups such as eternal, natural, human, divine law. Eternal law is a degree of God which performs all creation and nature occasions. Human law also is positive law made by human changes persistently. On the other side divine law is defined as any law that in the thought of believers originated directly from the will. It is frequently mentioned that the natural law is composed of eternal law which administrate the behaviour of human beings in order to provide them for possesing free will. Furthermore, Thomas Aquinas can be stated as being representative and pioneer of the classical theory. Thomas Aquinas asserted that it is compulsory to do good things and to avoid bad habits and evil. It is well worth emphasizing that in his view of what is good and evil is came out from nature and temperament of beings. Thomas Aquinas described natural law activity of human participation in the eternal law, in providence. As you know, life of all creators will terminate in the end as human beings are aroused to explore the world. The slice of lifetime is to differentiate the good and the evil and after that maintain life according to precepts. There is a formulatic statement with Aquinas; that Man is by nature a social or political animal(DERS KITABI). Along with this commitment, he does not denote that we have inclination to participate in social contracts. The nature can not be preferred or chosen. It is just given and individuals must adjust their first born place. Because of the fact that it is like ring of chair, the conformation of family have influence on the maintance of life and survival and also humanbeigs flourish the various social and political communities. Aquinas c onveying the impression of Aristoteles depicted the people who can discriminate between the awful, weird and good, pleasent things. In addition to, coming into being individual with nature, human beings go astray and deteoriate with nature. Besides this, people should know natural law even if they are alone. Aquinas characterized the knowledge of primitive and complicated. In his point of view, simple informations are based on just unique definition or descriptions. At the same time the latter, knowlegde of complex abide by affirmation or negation of one thing of another. Put another word; every first happening things is comprised of series of the others. There is s connection between phenomenons. Thomas have a tenet that There is a conception which is prior to and presupposed by all other conceptions and judgement that is prior to and presupposed by all other judgements. Also think about it for a moment what does Thomas mean saying that since knowledge is expressed by language this seems to come down to the assertion that there is a first word that everyone utters and first statement that would appear in everyon es babybook on the appropriate page .(INTERNET KAYNAK) However surely that is not the case. In my opinion, although the life of the human beings resemble each other regarding birth, death, a great quantity of occasions yield different consequences on anothers. Even though there is a common language either the perception of the language or utilizing and keeping it alive varies. To sum up, Aquinas characterizes the God as pure mind and so he thought that individuals dominate the mind, they comprise the model of God. Aquinas thought that the law is an ordinance of reasons directed to the God and also should make by one who has confidence of community and should be promulgated. Another advocater of natural law is Thomas Hobbes. In Hobbes point of view; he dedicated that justifying towards certainity is more difficult than defining oneself. He uttered that individuals are equal in terms of damaging themselves. Hence, in an attempt to secure oneself and maintain existence, people can reach an agreement to constitute a government which is legitimate and quarantee complicated and profound issues, dilemma by setting aside our hostilities. He admitted that there was no reasoning about what is good, bad, better, worse. Hobbes evaluated the world administrated by mechanic movements as an ordinary hole of matters. Lively substances such as animal, plant, human are the fragment of the entire world. As to Hobbes both physical and mental life time dependent of the constution of mechanical actions. Thats why neither spirit, angel nor God are available. They are merely product of imaginary or belong to argument of belief. What distinguishes Hobbes notion from the notions propounded by other natural law theorists is the different denotation is referred to reason. By the side of Hobbes, reasoning is caltulation by means of we draw consequences for the nature occasions in an attempt to express and denote our feelings and opinions. Owing to Hobbes, the law of nature indicates what is good or evil in realiton to given end otherwise the other theorists emphasised that individuals comprise a team about what is good or evil in theirselves. Moreover, the natural law states prominently what is convenient or inconvenient to the reachment of the end which is peaceful and symbolizes supreme utility. For this reason the basement of natural law prescribes the way people seeking peace, benefitions, goodness. Hobbes highlighted especially that it is possible to obtain a peace, provided the state is utilized like an effective bridge. In brief, owing to Hobbes natural law command everyone conveying their specific rigths in order to assure the ways for conserving peace. It is explicit judgement that this can come to the fruition by means of state. We accomplish the thoughts about him by making deduction from his words you would give up liberty to gain security. As a result; the objectives should be seeking the peace, defending ourselves, surrending our Liberties which can be defined as the absence of external impediments for peace. Another theorist about natural law is John Locke who stuck in humans mind despite the fact that he is known in an account generating the fundamentals of revolutions French, Amerikan and British. Owing to John Locke, people are connected each other with no principle of natural law. Natural law are rationalistic and the reason of existence of human beings. In his point of view; God has confered to all peopla fundamental rights about life, health, liberty and possessions. For this reason, he encumbered to the government for protecting rights. Since he anticipated that the state which should be respectful about personal ownership and secure privileges has responsibilities to the citizens,inhabitants. John Locke consistently confronted with the question why should we obey the law of nature?. He thought that reasoning is kind of advisory.In human reason and divine reason it is just admited that what the God looks like. As if Locke took the natural law granted in spite of the fact that God created us with reason in an attempt to pursue Gods will and all of cases are exprienced like in divine and human law. Should the need arise; all humankind drew ones first breath being equal, indepent and free. With the help of natural law, willpower of God can be found out and what can be suited to the rational world. It is not quite accurate that the natural law is command of mind. Since mind can not ascertain the natural law by constructioning, individuals can not generate any social group or unity without natural law. The other prof showing the presence of law is that individual who made mistake on purpose and act in a nasty particular behaviour, can not feel welfare about conscience. Neither virtue nor goodness and rewarding being possible is veracity. Very important feature of Lockes Second Treatise of Government as a work of political modeling is its concern with the question of why people need structures of governance, in particular laws as regulatory forces in communal life. Essentially, a political theory needs to not only study and model the structures and duties of government but also speculate about why we need such a construction and regulation in our lives. Locke examines this by first questioning what state all men are naturally in.1 Men in the state of nature are in a state of perfect freedom to order their actions, and dispose of their possessions and persons, as they think fit, without asking leave, or depending upon the will of any other man.2 That is, the essence of human nature is to be free from any restraints on ones actions. Such unrestrained freedom, however, makes everyone both judge and executioner of the law of nature3 which, in turn, is very likely to impose a threat to another persons freedom and right to live. If, for instance, people punish their offenders in their own judgment and without any regulations that limit such punitive actions, one of the most important principles of justice, that punishment should be consistent and should fit the crime, will be violated. Thus, in the absence of governing structures, mens self-interest and natural instinct to preserve themselves and their possessions will eventually spur the society to unjust practices, thereby disrupting the peace and order of the communal life. This argument about human nature and why it requires certain structures of governance becomes yet stronger with the idea of how men are naturally inclined to protect their own property and seize new property at the same time: The great and chief end, therefore, of mens putting themselves under government and known law, is the preservation of their property. To which in the state of nature there are many things wanting.1 Through his arguments, Locke devises a political theory by analyzing which political model is most likely to bring people out of their state ofcommunal life. This argument about human nature and why it requires certain structures of governance becomes yet stronger with the idea of how men are naturally inclined to protect their own property and seize new property at the same time: The great and chief end, therefore, of mens putting themselves under government and known law, is the preservation of their property. To which in the state of nature there are many things wanting.1 Through his arguments, Locke devises a political theory by analyzing which political model is most likely to bring people out of their state of nature, and looking back to the historical context of his work, does so on the basis of empirical evidence. Thus, Second Treatise on Government, as a work of political theory, creates a strong foundation for why people need a certain political model and laws that it lays the grounds for.

Assessment of Hydraulic Conductivity of Soil

Assessment of Hydraulic Conductivity of Soil Hydraulic Conductivity Soil Chapter 1 Introduction Hydraulic conductivity or permeability of a soil is one important soil properties used in geotechnical engineering. It can be seen from the difficulty in measuring accurate and reliable values of hydraulic conductivity. Hydraulic conductivity of soil is basically the capacity of water to let water to pass through the pores or voids in the soil. There are many methods developed in order to measure the hydraulic conductivity of soil; both laboratory and in-situ field methods. Some of the common laboratory methods are the constant-head test and falling head test. On the other hand, the common in-situ field methods are pumping well test, borehole tests (e.g. slug test, variable head test), infiltrometer tests and using porous probes (BAT permeameter). All these in-situ field test methods were used to measure the hydraulic conductivity of subsoil for both saturated and unsaturated media. One other in-situ field measurement method that has been introduced is the Two-Stage Borehole (TSB) test, also known as the Boutwell permeameter test. This testing method is commonly used to test a low hydraulic conductivity soil such as compacted clay liner used in landfill barrier system or covers used at waste disposal facilities, for canal and reservoir liners, for seepage blankets, and for amended soil liners. The advantage of using this method is that it can be used to measure both the vertical and horizontal hydraulic conductivity values of soil, kv and kh respectively. One other advantages of using this method is that it can be used to measure the rate of infiltration of water or other fluid into a large mass of soil which can represent the tested site. However, the application of the TSB/Boutwell permeameter test for natural soil or other soils having a higher permeability value has been limited. This report will discuss the theory behind the TSB/Boutwell permeameter test and the application of this method on natural soil. The methodology of this test will also be included in this report. In addition to the standard TSB setup, this report will also discuss the modification made to the standard TSB test which can be easily and quickly installed in shallow boreholes for subsequent testing. The methodology and results from the modified setup will also be included. The results from both the standard and modified setup will then be compared. Objectives The objectives of this project is summarised into four stages. In the first stage, the objective is to measure the hydraulic conductivity of the soil using the standard TSB/Boutwell permeameter setup. The second stage involves the modification of the standard TSB/Boutwell Permeameter setup. The aim is to obtain a simple installation setup which can be easily and quickly installed in shallow boreholes for subsequent testing. In the third stage, the objective is to test the modified TSB/Boutwell Permeameter test in the field. This is done by carrying out a series of tests in varied subsurface media at the assigned site location. The results from both the standard and modified TSB/Boutwell Permeameter test will be compared. The last stage of the project consists of particle size analysis of the soil obtained from site. The results from the two setups will again be compared to the hydraulic conductivity values obtained from the derivation of the Particle Size Distribution curves. The tasks that are done in this project include: The review of TSB/Boutwell Permeameter methodology Developing the modify TSB/Boutwell Permeameter Completion of field tests using the TSB/Boutwell Permeameter Collection of soil samples and subsequent particle size analysis Chapter 2 Literature Review 2.1 Soil Water Soils are consists of separate solid particles. The pore spaces between the solid particles are all interconnected which mean that water is free to flow through these interconnected pore spaces (Whitlow, 2001). The water will flow from a higher pore pressure point to a lower pore pressure point. The pressure of the pore water is measure relatively to the atmospheric pressure. The level in which the pressure is zero (i.e. atmospheric) is defined as the water table (Craig, 2004). The soil above the water table is assumed to be unsaturated and the soil below the water table is assumed to be fully saturated. The level of water table changes in relation with climate conditions and can also be affected by any constructional operations (Craig, 2004). It is usual to express a pressure as a pressure head or head which is measured in metres of water when considering water flow problems. According to Bernoullis equation, the total head at a point in flowing water can be given by the sum of three head components; pressure head (u/ÃŽ ³w), velocity head (v2/2g) and elevation head (Z). This relationship is illustrated in the equation below: (Equation 1) where; h = total head u = pressure v = velocity g = acceleration due to gravity ÃŽ ³w = unit weight of water Z = elevation head However, since the seepage velocities in the soil are so small due to the high resistance to flow offered by the granular structure of the soil, the velocity head is often omitted from the equation (Whitlow, 2001). The total head at any point is then can be adequately represented by: (Equation 2) In saturated conditions, the one-dimensional water flow in soil is governed by the Darcys Law, which states that the velocity of the groundwater flow is proportional to the hydraulic gradient: (Equation 3) where; v = velocity of groundwater flow = flow/area (q/A) k = coefficient of permeability or hydraulic conductivity (constant) i = hydraulic gradient = head/length (h/L) The empirical validity of Darcys Law depends heavily on the hydraulic conductivity, k, which must be carefully determined so that it can represent the soil mass (Azizi, 2000). The different practical methods that can be used to measure the hydraulic conductivity will be discussed in Section 2.3. It is important to study the flow of water through porous media in soil mechanics. This is necessary for the estimation of underground seepage under various conditions, for investigation of problems involving the pumping of water for underground constructions, and for making stability analyses of retaining structures that are subjected to seepage forces (Das, 2006). Hydraulic Conductivity (Coefficient of Permeability) Hydraulic conductivity, k, of a soil is the capacity of the soil to allow water to pass through it. The value of hydraulic conductivity is often used to measure the resistance of a soil to water flow. Hydraulic conductivity has units of length divided by time. The most common unit used of measurement is meter per second (m/s). Although hydraulic conductivity has the same unit as those to describe velocity, it is not a measure of velocity (Coduto, 1999). Importance of Hydraulic Conductivity Hydraulic conductivity is a very important parameter in geotechnical engineering or in determining the widespread of contamination. This can be seen in the difficulties in measuring it. This is because hydraulic conductivity can varies from one point in a soil to another, even with small changes in the soil characteristics. It is also, as mentioned in the previous section, influenced by the viscosity and unit weight of the fluid flowing through the soil. Hydraulic conductivity is also dependent to the direction of flow which means that the vertical hydraulic conductivity would not be the same as the horizontal hydraulic conductivity. This condition of the soil is said to be anisotropic. Studies that have been made indicate that the value of vertical hydraulic conductivity (Kv) of a soil is usually higher than the horizontal hydraulic conductivity (Kh) in one or two order of magnitude (Chen, 2000). Some applications in which information on hydraulic conductivity is very important are in modelling the groundwater flow and transportation of contaminants in the soil. Hydraulic conductivity data of a soil is also important for designing drainage of an area and in the construction of earth dam and levee. In addition, it is very important in tackling most of the geotechnical problems such as seepage losses, settlement calculations, and stability analyses (Odong, 2007). Factors Affecting Hydraulic Conductivity The hydraulic conductivity of a soil depends on many factors. The main factor that affecting the value of hydraulic conductivity is the average size of the pores between particles in the soil, which in turn is related to the distribution of particle sizes, particle shape and roughness, pore continuity, and soil structure (Craig,2004). In general; the bigger the average size of the pores, the higher the value of hydraulic conductivity is. The value of hydraulic conductivity of a soil that has a presence of small percentages of fines will be significantly lower than the same soil without fines. In the other hand, the presence of fissures in clay will result in a much higher value of hydraulic conductivity compared to that of unfissured clay (Craig, 2004). The range of the hydraulic conductivity value is very large. Table 1 below illustrates the range of hydraulic conductivity which differs from one soil type to another which is mainly due to the different average size of the pores between the soil particles. Table 1 Range of hydraulic conductivity values (m/s) with different soil type (Whitlow, 2001) 102 101 1 10-1 Clean gravels Very good drainage 10-2 10-3 10-4 Clean sands Gravel-sand mixtures 10-5 10-6 Very fine sands Silts and silty sands Fissured and weathered clays Good drainage Poor drainage 10-7 10-8 10-9 Clay silts (>20% clay) Unfissured clays Practically impervious The hydraulic conductivity is also dependent to viscosity and density of water in which both are affected by temperature. It is therefore conclude that the value of hydraulic conductivity will then be affected by changes in temperature. Theoretically, it can be shown that for laminar flow and saturated soil condition the relationship between temperature and hydraulic conductivity: (Equation 4) Where; ÃŽ ³w= unit weight of water ÃŽ · = viscosity of water K = absolute coefficient (units m2). This value is dependent on the characteristic of the soil skeleton. Since most of the laboratory graduations were standardised at 20C, the value of hydraulic conductivity at this temperature is taken as 100% (Craig, 2004). Other value of hydraulic conductivity at 10C and 0C are 77% and 56% respectively (Craig, 2004). Hydraulic Conductivity Tests Most of the tests for measuring hydraulic conductivity measured one average value of hydraulic conductivity. However, some tests measured both the vertical and horizontal hydraulic conductivity values to obtained more accurate estimation. There are numbers of experiments and test that can be done to measure the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. These tests to measure the hydraulic conductivity can be done both in the laboratory and in the field. The following sections will briefly discussed the most common laboratory and in-situ tests practiced today to measure the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. Although with all the various tests developed to measured the hydraulic conductivity, there are uncertainties arise on how the soils that being tested represent the whole soil condition at the site of interest. It is therefore a good practice to perform different tests and comparing the results obtained. Laboratory Permeability Tests One problem with laboratory tests is that the samples collected do not adequately represent the detailed conditions of the soil, e.g. fissures, joints or other characteristics in the site of interest. Even with carefully conducted tests and good sampling techniques, it is impossible to obtain a very accurate result. The results typically have a precision of about 50% or more (Coduto, 1999). It is therefore important to take this into consideration if any construction activities or contamination remediation operations to be perform at the site of interest. Constant Head Permeability Test The constant head test is used to measure the hydraulic conductivity of more permeable soils such as gravels and sands which have a hydraulic conductivity value of 10-4 m/s (Whitlow, 2001). The equipments used for this test is called a constant head permeameter. A schematic illustration of this equipment is shown in Figure 2.1. The constant head permeameter was developed base on the basic idea of Darcys Law (Equation 3). The soil sample is contained in a cylinder of cross-sectional area A. Continuous water supply is let to flow from a tank to the sample to maintain a constant head. The water that flow through the sample is collected in a collection jar or container and the discharge through the sample is measured by calculating the volume of the water in the collection container over a period of time t. h Figure 2.1 Schematic diagram of Constant Head Permeameter (www.geology.sdsu.edu) The hydraulic conductivity, k of the tested soil is then calculated by: From equation 3: (Equation 5) Where; Q = the discharge through the sample (m3/s) L = the length of the sample (m) A = cross-section of the sample (m2) h = hydraulic head (m) The above diagram shows a simple setup of the constant-head permeameter. Other setup is also available which make use a pair of standpipes to measure the pore pressure and potential at two points. This is illustrated in Figure 2.2 below. Although both the setups are different, it makes used of the same concepts; Darcys Law. Figure 2.2 Alternative setup of Constant Head Permeameter (Whitlow, 2001) Falling Head Permeability Test The falling head test is used to measure the hydraulic conductivity of less permeable soils such as fine sands, silt and clay. The water flow resistance in these types of soil are very high which unable to measure accurate measurements of hydraulic conductivity if used with constant head permeameter. Undisturbed samples are required to perform laboratory test to measure the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. However, a small degree of disturbance of the sample is accepted as it is very hard to obtain a perfect undisturbed sample. An undisturbed sample can be obtained usually using a U100 sample tube or a core-cutter tube (Whitlow, 2001).The schematic illustration of the falling head test setup is shown in Figure 2.3. Figure 2.3 Laboratory setup of falling head test (Whitlow, 2001) The sample is place in a cylinder container with a wire mesh and gravel filter at both end of the cylinder. The base of the cylinder is left to stand in a water reservoir fitted with a constant level overflow. At the other end, which is the top of the cylinder, it is connected to a glass standpipe of known diameter (Whitlow, 2001). These standpipes are then filled with de-aired water and it is allow to flow through the soil sample. The height of the water in the standpipe is measured at several time intervals. The test is then repeated using standpipes of different diameters. It is a good practice to take note of the initial and final unit weight and water content of the sample to get additional information about the properties of the sample (Whitlow, 2001). The hydraulic conductivity of the sample is then calculated from the results obtained from the tests. The Darcys Law concept is still used in determining the hydraulic conductivity. The derivation of the hydraulic conductivity for the falling head test is done as follow (Whitlow, 2001). Deriving from Equation 3: With reference to Figure 2.3, if the level of the water in the standpipe fall dh in a time of dt the flow, q will be and the hydraulic gradient, i Therefore; (Equation 6) Where; a = cross-sectional area of the standpipe A = cross-sectional area of the sample When equation 6 is rearranged and integrated, the final equation to calculate the hydraulic conductivity is given as (Equation 7) Particle Size Analysis Particle size analysis is commonly used to classify the physical properties of the soil being tested. This testing method is used for both soil science and engineering purposes (Keller and Gee, 2006). In context of engineering purposes, it is commonly used to define the particle size distributions of the soil. The data obtained from the particle size distributions can then be used to estimate the pore-size classes needed in calculating the hydraulic properties of the soil such as hydraulic conductivity (Keller and Gee, 2006). There are various methods of measuring particle size analysis. Traditional methods include sieving, hydrometer and pipette. Other new techniques are also been developed; one example is laser-diffraction techniques (Eshel et al, 2004). However, particle size analysis is dependent on the technique used for defining the particle size distribution. It is therefore a common practice to do more than one method to define the particle size distribution (Keller and Gee, 2006). The results from all the different methods can then be compared to obtain more representative result. For the traditional particle size analysis methods, two separate procedures are used in order to obtain wider range of particles sizes (Head, 1980). The two procedures are sieving and sedimentation procedures (hydrometer or pipette method). Sieving is used to categorise large particle such as gravel and coarse sand. The particles can be separated into different size ranges using a series of standard sieves. For the finer particles such as silt and clay, sedimentation procedure is used (Head, 1980). Once the particle size distribution is defined from the particle size analysis, the hydraulic conductivity of the tested soil can then be estimated using a number of established empirical equations. However, the applicability of the above equations depends on the type of soil that is being tested. The following paragraphs summarised several empirical equations from previous studies (Odong, 2007). Hazens equation: (Equation 8) Kozeny-Carmans equation: (Equation 9) Breyers equation: (Equation 10) Slitchers equation: (Equation 11) Where; g = acceleration due to gravity v = kinematic viscosity n = porosity of the soil d10 = grain size in which 10% the sample is finer than The estimation of the hydraulic conductivity from these equations required information on the kinematic viscosity v and porosity n of the soil. The kinematic viscosity can be calculated by: (Equation 12) Where; = dynamic viscosity ÃŽ ¡ = density of water The porosity n can be calculated using the empirical relationship below: (Equation 13) Where U is the coefficient of grain uniformity and is given by: (Equation 14) The values of d60and d10 can be obtained from the particle size distribution. d60and d10 represent the grain size for which 60% and 10% of the sample respectively is finer than. In-situ Field Permeability Tests Due to the problems associated with reliability and laboratory tests, as mention in Section 2.3.1, field methods of measuring the hydraulic conductivity should be used to obtain more accurate and reliable measurements. In the field test, the soil disturbances is kept to a minimum level and they usually involves the testing of larger, more representative samples. Although, in term of cost and time, field measurement method is more expensive, it will as well provide more reliable measurement of hydraulic conductivity when dealing with a wide range of soil macro-structural characteristics. Other more economic option of field measurement can also be done. Such example is by performing borehole test, provided the pumping observation sequences are carefully planned and controlled (Whitlow, 2001). Well Pumping Tests This method is more suitable if used to measure hydraulic conductivity in homogenous coarse soil strata (Craig, 2004). The procedure involves the measurement of water that is being pumped out of a well at a constant rate, then observing the effect of these pumping activities to the drawdown of the groundwater level at other wells. The diameter of the well is normally at least 300mm and penetrates to the bottom of the stratum under test (Craig, 2004). The pumping rate and the groundwater levels in two or more monitoring wells are then recorded. The analysis of the results depends whether the aquifer is confined or unconfined. Well pumping test in a confined aquifer In confined aquifer the permeable stratum is squeezed in between two impermeable layers. This is illustrated in Figure 2.4 below. To perform the test, the pumping rate must not be too high to reduce the level in the pumping well below the top of the aquifer. The interface between the top aquifer and the overlying impermeable stratum therefore forms the top stream line (Whitlow, 2001). Figure 2.4 Pumping test in confined aquifer (Azizi, 2000) Figure 2.4 illustrates the arrangement of the pumping well and two other monitoring wells. Two assumptions were made at this point; the piezometric surface is above the upper surface of the aquifer and the hydraulic gradient is constant at a given radius (Whitlow, 2001). In steady state condition, the hydraulic gradient through an elemental cylinder with radius r from the well centres estimated as follow: where; dr = thickness h = height The area in which the water flow, A: where; D = the thickness of the aquifer Substituting the area A into the Darcys Law (Equation 4) will give; Hence: And therefore the hydraulic conductivity is: (Equation 15) In the case that the piezometric level is above ground level, where the water level inside the well inserted into the confined aquifer rises above the ground level, this scenario is called Artesian conditions (Azizi, 2000). This is illustrated in Figure 2.5. Figure 2.5 Artesian conditions (Azizi, 2000) Well pumping test in unconfined aquifer An unconfined aquifer is a free-draining surface layer that allows water to flow through the surface. The permeable stratum is not overlain by an impermeable layer. The piezometric surface is therefore in the same level of the water table. This is illustrated in Figure 2.6 below. The surface layer permeability is very high, thus allowing the water table to fluctuate up and down easily. Figure 2.6 Pumping test in an unconfined aquifer (Whitlow, 2001) Under steady state pumping conditions, the hydraulic gradient i at a given radius is assumed to be constant in a homogenous media. Homogenous unit is where the properties at any location are the same. For instance, sandstone has grain size distribution, porosity and thickness variation within a very small limit (Fetter, 2001). With reference to the arrangement of pumping well and two monitoring wells in Figure 2.6 above, the hydraulic conductivity can be determine by: Deriving from Equation 3: where; Hydraulic gradient i is And area through which the water flow, Then, Thus, hydraulic conductivity for an unconfined aquifer (after integrating the above equation) is (Equation 16) Borehole Permeameter Tests There are many borehole tests developed to determine the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. The most common in-situ borehole tests are as follow: Slug test Two-stage borehole test/ Boutwell Permeameter Variable head test In-situ constant head test Slug test is one of the cheapest in-situ field methods to determine the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. The procedure of this test involves the rapid adding or removing a slug or water into a monitoring well. The slug can be of anything that can displace the volume of the water in the well, e.g. water, plastic tubing capped at both ends, and other material of known volume and can fit into the monitoring well. The rate of rise and fall of the groundwater level is then observed until it reaches an equilibrium state. In a variable head test, a slug is introduced into the monitoring well by either adding in a measured volume of water into the well or other materials mentioned earlier. The rate of water level fall is then measured in time. This is called falling head test. The water can also be removed out from the well by using a bailer or a pump. The rate of water level rise is then measured with time. This is called a rising head test. Depending on the properties of the aquifer and the soil, and the size of the slug used the water can either returns to its original water level before the test quickly or very slowly. For instance, if the porosity of the soil is high then the water level will returns very quickly to its original water level before the test is done. There is also the constant head test. In this test the water level or head is maintained throughout the test at a given level. This is done by adjusting and measuring the flow rate of the water at intervals from start to the end of the test (Whitlow, 2001). The constant head test is said to give more accurate results, provided the water pressure is controlled so that it would not cause fracturing or other disturbance to the soil (Whitlow, 2001). There are several assumptions made for this test: The soil is homogenous, isotropic, uniformly soaked Infinite boundaries Soil does not swell when wetted The expressions use to calculate the hydraulic conductivity for the above tests depend on whether the stratum is unconfined or unconfined, the position of the bottom of the casing within the stratum and details of the drainage face in the soil (Craig, 2004). The horizontal hydraulic conductivity is tend to be measured if the soil is anisotropic with respect to permeability and if the borehole extends below the bottom of the casing. On the other hand, the vertical hydraulic conductivity is often measured if the casing penetrates below soil level in the bottom of the borehole (Craig, 2004). The following expressions are all recommended in BS 5930 to calculate the hydraulic conductivity (Whitlow, 2001). For variable head test: (Equation 17) Or, (Equation 18) For constant head test: Hvorslevs time lag analysis (Equation 19) Gibsons root-time method (Equation 20) where; A20% clay) Unfissured clays Practically impervious The hydraulic conductivity is also dependent to viscosity and density of water in which both are affected by temperature. It is therefore conclude that the value of hydraulic conductivity will then be affected by changes in temperature. Theoretically, it can be shown that for laminar flow and saturated soil condition the relationship between temperature and hydraulic conductivity: (Equation 4) Where; ÃŽ ³w= unit weight of water ÃŽ · = viscosity of water K = absolute coefficient (units m2). This value is dependent on the characteristic of the soil skeleton. Since most of the laboratory graduations were standardised at 20C, the value of hydraulic conductivity at this temperature is taken as 100% (Craig, 2004). Other value of hydraulic conductivity at 10C and 0C are 77% and 56% respectively (Craig, 2004). Hydraulic Conductivity Tests Most of the tests for measuring hydraulic conductivity measured one average value of hydraulic conductivity. However, some tests measured both the vertical and horizontal hydraulic conductivity values to obtained more accurate estimation. There are numbers of experiments and test that can be done to measure the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. These tests to measure the hydraulic conductivity can be done both in the laboratory and in the field. The following sections will briefly discussed the most common laboratory and in-situ tests practiced today to measure the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. Although with all the various tests developed to measured the hydraulic conductivity, there are uncertainties arise on how the soils that being tested represent the whole soil condition at the site of interest. It is therefore a good practice to perform different tests and comparing the results obtained. Laboratory Permeability Tests One problem with laboratory tests is that the samples collected do not adequately represent the detailed conditions of the soil, e.g. fissures, joints or other characteristics in the site of interest. Even with carefully conducted tests and good sampling techniques, it is impossible to obtain a very accurate result. The results typically have a precision of about 50% or more (Coduto, 1999). It is therefore important to take this into consideration if any construction activities or contamination remediation operations to be perform at the site of interest. Constant Head Permeability Test The constant head test is used to measure the hydraulic conductivity of more permeable soils such as gravels and sands which have a hydraulic conductivity value of 10-4 m/s (Whitlow, 2001). The equipments used for this test is called a constant head permeameter. A schematic illustration of this equipment is shown in Figure 2.1. The constant head permeameter was developed base on the basic idea of Darcys Law (Equation 3). The soil sample is contained in a cylinder of cross-sectional area A. Continuous water supply is let to flow from a tank to the sample to maintain a constant head. The water that flow through the sample is collected in a collection jar or container and the discharge through the sample is measured by calculating the volume of the water in the collection container over a period of time t. h Figure 2.1 Schematic diagram of Constant Head Permeameter (www.geology.sdsu.edu) The hydraulic conductivity, k of the tested soil is then calculated by: From equation 3: (Equation 5) Where; Q = the discharge through the sample (m3/s) L = the length of the sample (m) A = cross-section of the sample (m2) h = hydraulic head (m) The above diagram shows a simple setup of the constant-head permeameter. Other setup is also available which make use a pair of standpipes to measure the pore pressure and potential at two points. This is illustrated in Figure 2.2 below. Although both the setups are different, it makes used of the same concepts; Darcys Law. Figure 2.2 Alternative setup of Constant Head Permeameter (Whitlow, 2001) Falling Head Permeability Test The falling head test is used to measure the hydraulic conductivity of less permeable soils such as fine sands, silt and clay. The water flow resistance in these types of soil are very high which unable to measure accurate measurements of hydraulic conductivity if used with constant head permeameter. Undisturbed samples are required to perform laboratory test to measure the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. However, a small degree of disturbance of the sample is accepted as it is very hard to obtain a perfect undisturbed sample. An undisturbed sample can be obtained usually using a U100 sample tube or a core-cutter tube (Whitlow, 2001).The schematic illustration of the falling head test setup is shown in Figure 2.3. Figure 2.3 Laboratory setup of falling head test (Whitlow, 2001) The sample is place in a cylinder container with a wire mesh and gravel filter at both end of the cylinder. The base of the cylinder is left to stand in a water reservoir fitted with a constant level overflow. At the other end, which is the top of the cylinder, it is connected to a glass standpipe of known diameter (Whitlow, 2001). These standpipes are then filled with de-aired water and it is allow to flow through the soil sample. The height of the water in the standpipe is measured at several time intervals. The test is then repeated using standpipes of different diameters. It is a good practice to take note of the initial and final unit weight and water content of the sample to get additional information about the properties of the sample (Whitlow, 2001). The hydraulic conductivity of the sample is then calculated from the results obtained from the tests. The Darcys Law concept is still used in determining the hydraulic conductivity. The derivation of the hydraulic conductivity for the falling head test is done as follow (Whitlow, 2001). Deriving from Equation 3: With reference to Figure 2.3, if the level of the water in the standpipe fall dh in a time of dt the flow, q will be and the hydraulic gradient, i Therefore; (Equation 6) Where; a = cross-sectional area of the standpipe A = cross-sectional area of the sample When equation 6 is rearranged and integrated, the final equation to calculate the hydraulic conductivity is given as (Equation 7) Particle Size Analysis Particle size analysis is commonly used to classify the physical properties of the soil being tested. This testing method is used for both soil science and engineering purposes (Keller and Gee, 2006). In context of engineering purposes, it is commonly used to define the particle size distributions of the soil. The data obtained from the particle size distributions can then be used to estimate the pore-size classes needed in calculating the hydraulic properties of the soil such as hydraulic conductivity (Keller and Gee, 2006). There are various methods of measuring particle size analysis. Traditional methods include sieving, hydrometer and pipette. Other new techniques are also been developed; one example is laser-diffraction techniques (Eshel et al, 2004). However, particle size analysis is dependent on the technique used for defining the particle size distribution. It is therefore a common practice to do more than one method to define the particle size distribution (Keller and Gee, 2006). The results from all the different methods can then be compared to obtain more representative result. For the traditional particle size analysis methods, two separate procedures are used in order to obtain wider range of particles sizes (Head, 1980). The two procedures are sieving and sedimentation procedures (hydrometer or pipette method). Sieving is used to categorise large particle such as gravel and coarse sand. The particles can be separated into different size ranges using a series of standard sieves. For the finer particles such as silt and clay, sedimentation procedure is used (Head, 1980). Once the particle size distribution is defined from the particle size analysis, the hydraulic conductivity of the tested soil can then be estimated using a number of established empirical equations. However, the applicability of the above equations depends on the type of soil that is being tested. The following paragraphs summarised several empirical equations from previous studies (Odong, 2007). Hazens equation: (Equation 8) Kozeny-Carmans equation: (Equation 9) Breyers equation: (Equation 10) Slitchers equation: (Equation 11) Where; g = acceleration due to gravity v = kinematic viscosity n = porosity of the soil d10 = grain size in which 10% the sample is finer than The estimation of the hydraulic conductivity from these equations required information on the kinematic viscosity v and porosity n of the soil. The kinematic viscosity can be calculated by: (Equation 12) Where; = dynamic viscosity ÃŽ ¡ = density of water The porosity n can be calculated using the empirical relationship below: (Equation 13) Where U is the coefficient of grain uniformity and is given by: (Equation 14) The values of d60and d10 can be obtained from the particle size distribution. d60and d10 represent the grain size for which 60% and 10% of the sample respectively is finer than. In-situ Field Permeability Tests Due to the problems associated with reliability and laboratory tests, as mention in Section 2.3.1, field methods of measuring the hydraulic conductivity should be used to obtain more accurate and reliable measurements. In the field test, the soil disturbances is kept to a minimum level and they usually involves the testing of larger, more representative samples. Although, in term of cost and time, field measurement method is more expensive, it will as well provide more reliable measurement of hydraulic conductivity when dealing with a wide range of soil macro-structural characteristics. Other more economic option of field measurement can also be done. Such example is by performing borehole test, provided the pumping observation sequences are carefully planned and controlled (Whitlow, 2001). Well Pumping Tests This method is more suitable if used to measure hydraulic conductivity in homogenous coarse soil strata (Craig, 2004). The procedure involves the measurement of water that is being pumped out of a well at a constant rate, then observing the effect of these pumping activities to the drawdown of the groundwater level at other wells. The diameter of the well is normally at least 300mm and penetrates to the bottom of the stratum under test (Craig, 2004). The pumping rate and the groundwater levels in two or more monitoring wells are then recorded. The analysis of the results depends whether the aquifer is confined or unconfined. Well pumping test in a confined aquifer In confined aquifer the permeable stratum is squeezed in between two impermeable layers. This is illustrated in Figure 2.4 below. To perform the test, the pumping rate must not be too high to reduce the level in the pumping well below the top of the aquifer. The interface between the top aquifer and the overlying impermeable stratum therefore forms the top stream line (Whitlow, 2001). Figure 2.4 Pumping test in confined aquifer (Azizi, 2000) Figure 2.4 illustrates the arrangement of the pumping well and two other monitoring wells. Two assumptions were made at this point; the piezometric surface is above the upper surface of the aquifer and the hydraulic gradient is constant at a given radius (Whitlow, 2001). In steady state condition, the hydraulic gradient through an elemental cylinder with radius r from the well centres estimated as follow: where; dr = thickness h = height The area in which the water flow, A: where; D = the thickness of the aquifer Substituting the area A into the Darcys Law (Equation 4) will give; Hence: And therefore the hydraulic conductivity is: (Equation 15) In the case that the piezometric level is above ground level, where the water level inside the well inserted into the confined aquifer rises above the ground level, this scenario is called Artesian conditions (Azizi, 2000). This is illustrated in Figure 2.5. Figure 2.5 Artesian conditions (Azizi, 2000) Well pumping test in unconfined aquifer An unconfined aquifer is a free-draining surface layer that allows water to flow through the surface. The permeable stratum is not overlain by an impermeable layer. The piezometric surface is therefore in the same level of the water table. This is illustrated in Figure 2.6 below. The surface layer permeability is very high, thus allowing the water table to fluctuate up and down easily. Figure 2.6 Pumping test in an unconfined aquifer (Whitlow, 2001) Under steady state pumping conditions, the hydraulic gradient i at a given radius is assumed to be constant in a homogenous media. Homogenous unit is where the properties at any location are the same. For instance, sandstone has grain size distribution, porosity and thickness variation within a very small limit (Fetter, 2001). With reference to the arrangement of pumping well and two monitoring wells in Figure 2.6 above, the hydraulic conductivity can be determine by: Deriving from Equation 3: where; Hydraulic gradient i is And area through which the water flow, Then, Thus, hydraulic conductivity for an unconfined aquifer (after integrating the above equation) is (Equation 16) Borehole Permeameter Tests There are many borehole tests developed to determine the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. The most common in-situ borehole tests are as follow: Slug test Two-stage borehole test/ Boutwell Permeameter Variable head test In-situ constant head test Slug test is one of the cheapest in-situ field methods to determine the hydraulic conductivity of a soil. The procedure of this test involves the rapid adding or removing a slug or water into a monitoring well. The slug can be of anything that can displace the volume of the water in the well, e.g. water, plastic tubing capped at both ends, and other material of known volume and can fit into the monitoring well. The rate of rise and fall of the groundwater level is then observed until it reaches an equilibrium state. In a variable head test, a slug is introduced into the monitoring well by either adding in a measured volume of water into the well or other materials mentioned earlier. The rate of water level fall is then measured in time. This is called falling head test. The water can also be removed out from the well by using a bailer or a pump. The rate of water level rise is then measured with time. This is called a rising head test. Depending on the properties of the aquifer and the soil, and the size of the slug used the water can either returns to its original water level before the test quickly or very slowly. For instance, if the porosity of the soil is high then the water level will returns very quickly to its original water level before the test is done. There is also the constant head test. In this test the water level or head is maintained throughout the test at a given level. This is done by adjusting and measuring the flow rate of the water at intervals from start to the end of the test (Whitlow, 2001). The constant head test is said to give more accurate results, provided the water pressure is controlled so that it would not cause fracturing or other disturbance to the soil (Whitlow, 2001). There are several assumptions made for this test: The soil is homogenous, isotropic, uniformly soaked Infinite boundaries Soil does not swell when wetted The expressions use to calculate the hydraulic conductivity for the above tests depend on whether the stratum is unconfined or unconfined, the position of the bottom of the casing within the stratum and details of the drainage face in the soil (Craig, 2004). The horizontal hydraulic conductivity is tend to be measured if the soil is anisotropic with respect to permeability and if the borehole extends below the bottom of the casing. On the other hand, the vertical hydraulic conductivity is often measured if the casing penetrates below soil level in the bottom of the borehole (Craig, 2004). The following expressions are all recommended in BS 5930 to calculate the hydraulic conductivity (Whitlow, 2001). For variable head test: (Equation 17) Or, (Equation 18) For constant head test: Hvorslevs time lag analysis (Equation 19) Gibsons root-time method (Equation 20) where; A