Waste management in the building industry in Hong Kong has become a major environmental issue in recent years. Of particular concern is the increasing amount of construction and demolition (C&D) waste being dumped at landfill sites. Greater consideration must be given to waste generation and management at the planning stage of a building development to reduce wastage levels. The causes and quantities of building construction waste generated on public housing building sites in Hong Kong have been analysed. Five public housing construction sites were selected for the study by regular site visits. Timber boards used in formwork were the most significant waste type requiring disposal followed by waste derived from wet trades. Waste generation could be significantly reduced by the use of precasting and system formworks. The major causes of wastes were improper preparation and handling, misuse, and incorrect processing. In general, little on-site waste sorting was carried out. Appropriate planning including the preparation of a detailed waste management plan is essential for effective waste minimization. At the construction stage, better house keeping and more vigorous on-site sorting of inert from non-inert materials are necessary. Waste indices calculated from waste monitoring data should be publicized and used for future waste estimations.Hong Kong, Construction Waste, Waste Recycling, Waste Management Plan, On-site Sorting,

Business interests are overrepresented in Hong Kong's nominally democratic political institutions. Many in Hong Kong perceive this as evidence of the existence of “collusion between government and business,” a phenomenon that has stirred public concerns in the city since its sovereignty transfer. Although anecdotal accounts abound, no systematic analysis has been conducted to evaluate the validity of this perception. In this article I use a rich firm-level dataset to offer the first systematic assessment of the effects of political connections on firm performance in Hong Kong. I define politically connected firms as firms that have stakeholders concurrently holding a seat on the Election Committee, a constitutional body that elects the city's chief executive. I found evidence, though not overwhelming, consistent with the “collusion” hypothesis: political connections do improve firm performance measured by return on equity and market-to-book ratio. The improvement is unlikely due to unobserved confounding factors such as firms' inherent ability. As for the origin of the political connections, the data show that a firm's economic power has little predictive value of its connections to the Election Committee. Rather, number of employees matters; firms that hire fewer workers were more likely to gain a seat on the 1997 Election Committee. This result may suggest that Beijing plays a more dominant role in the formation of political connections—that serve Beijing's co-optation needs rather than the interests of powerful firms that may have a desire to “capture” the state.

BackgroundCurrent medical treatments for endometriosis are very limited. Progestin and selective progesterone receptor modulators (SPRM) are developed but their efficacy, safety, mechanism and recurrence in endometriosis are not fully studied.MethodsIn order to compare therapeutic, side effects and therapeutic actions of Esmya, Duphaston and Dienogest in endometriosis. Experimental endometriosis was induced by either intraperitoneal or subcutaneous mouse endometrium transplantation. Lesion size, weight and histology at the end of intervention were compared. Expression of related markers in the endometriotic lesions were examined. Body, uterus and ovary weights, endometrial glands and thickness (ETI), and follicle count were measured. For recurrent study, lesion growth before and after intervention was monitored.ResultsAfter Esmya, Duphaston, Dienogest treatment, lesion size and weight were significantly decreased. Proliferation Pcna expression was significantly decreased in all groups, but proliferation cells were significantly decreased only in Duphaston group. Apoptosis Mapk1 expression and TUNEL-positive cells were significantly increased in Duphaston group. Adhesion Mmp2 and Itgavβ3 expression were significantly increased in Esmya group. Plau, Hif1α and Vegfa expression, peritoneal fluid PGE2 levels, and ERα and ERβ expression were not affected; while PR expression was significantly lower in all groups. Endometrial gland count in uterus was significantly increased in Dienogest group, ETI was significantly decreased in Duphaston group, and AFC were significantly increased in Esmya group. Upon treatment cessation, lesion growth rebound quickly in Dienogest and Duphaston groups, but slowly in Esmya group.ConclusionEsmya, Duphaston and Dienogest are effective anti-endometriosis drugs targeting proliferation, apoptosis and adhesion. Esmya, Duphaston and Dienogest are all well tolerable, although endometrial glandular hyperplasia was found in Dienogest, endometrial atrophy in Duphaston, follicle accumulation in Esmya.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12958-018-0347-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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