title: Fly-tipping: Drivers, deterrents and impacts

authors: Purdy, Ray

abstract: Fly-tipping is a significant problem in England. For the 2020/21 year, Local Authorities (LAs) in England dealt with 1.13 million fly-tipping incidents, an increase of 16% from the 980,000 reported in 2019/20. The cost of clearance for larger incidents also increased in the last year (a 6% increase from 2019/20). Additionally, these operational metrics do not capture the full picture as they only include public land. It is important for Government to better understand the main causes and consequences of fly-tipping because it has significant financial, social and environmental impacts which affect communities across the length and breadth of the country. It is at best unsightly, can impact public amenities, and negatively affect people’s perception of where they live and their quality of life. It can also pose risks to the environment and human/animal health. For example, there have been cases where dangerous waste has been deposited near water reservoirs in recent years. Those who fly-tip can also avoid paying disposal costs, impose clean-up costs on taxpayers and private landowners (who can also be responsible in many cases for the costs of clear up), as well as undercutting legitimate waste businesses. Additionally fly-tipping can also undermine achieving a circular economy. If Government can’t deal effectively with it then it becomes harder to achieve recycling and other targets. Despite the continuous efforts of the Government, LAs, National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group, Environment Agency, and charities in tackling fly-tipping, the situation isn’t improving and the problem appears more entrenched than ever. The 2006 Jill Dando Institute project commissioned by Government to look at fly-tipping identified that enforcement had dominated the thinking behind tackling fly-tipping at the expense of a strategic approach. Fifteen years later the focus is still on stronger regulation, with a large reliance on tip-offs, or clues in the waste identifying the perpetrator. This approach has not been as effective as hoped because of the resourcing implications of regulation and enforcement, and more generally hasn’t satisfactorily addressed the drivers behind fly-tipping. This research was commissioned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in 2021 because it has become increasingly obvious to Government that a more detailed and systematic examination of the factors influencing fly-tipping was necessary, and the expectation is that such a review might help provide better evidence based policy making and influence future strategies and interventions.

text: Fly-tipping: Drivers, deterrents and impacts Fly-tipping is a significant problem in England. For the 2020/21 year, Local Authorities (LAs) in England dealt with 1.13 million fly-tipping incidents, an increase of 16% from the 980,000 reported in 2019/20. The cost of clearance for larger incidents also increased in the last year (a 6% increase from 2019/20). Additionally, these operational metrics do not capture the full picture as they only include public land. It is important for Government to better understand the main causes and consequences of fly-tipping because it has significant financial, social and environmental impacts which affect communities across the length and breadth of the country. It is at best unsightly, can impact public amenities, and negatively affect people’s perception of where they live and their quality of life. It can also pose risks to the environment and human/animal health. For example, there have been cases where dangerous waste has been deposited near water reservoirs in recent years. Those who fly-tip can also avoid paying disposal costs, impose clean-up costs on taxpayers and private landowners (who can also be responsible in many cases for the costs of clear up), as well as undercutting legitimate waste businesses. Additionally fly-tipping can also undermine achieving a circular economy. If Government can’t deal effectively with it then it becomes harder to achieve recycling and other targets. Despite the continuous efforts of the Government, LAs, National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group, Environment Agency, and charities in tackling fly-tipping, the situation isn’t improving and the problem appears more entrenched than ever. The 2006 Jill Dando Institute project commissioned by Government to look at fly-tipping identified that enforcement had dominated the thinking behind tackling fly-tipping at the expense of a strategic approach. Fifteen years later the focus is still on stronger regulation, with a large reliance on tip-offs, or clues in the waste identifying the perpetrator. This approach has not been as effective as hoped because of the resourcing implications of regulation and enforcement, and more generally hasn’t satisfactorily addressed the drivers behind fly-tipping. This research was commissioned by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in 2021 because it has become increasingly obvious to Government that a more detailed and systematic examination of the factors influencing fly-tipping was necessary, and the expectation is that such a review might help provide better evidence based policy making and influence future strategies and interventions.

year: 2022

title: Near-automorphisms of Latin squares

authors: Cavenagh, Nicholas J.

subjects: intercalate

abstract: We define a near-automorphism α of a Latin square L to be an isomorphism such that L and αL differ only within a 2 × 2 subsquare. We prove that for all n≥2 except n∈{3, 4}, there exists a Latin square which exhibits a near-automorphism. We also show that if α has the cycle structure (2, n − 2), then L exists if and only if n≡2 (mod 4), and can be constructed from a special type of partial orthomorphism. Along the way, we generalize a theorem by Marshall Hall, which states that any Latin rectangle can be extended to a Latin square. We also show that if α has at least 2 fixed points, then L must contain two disjoint non-trivial subsquares.

text: Near-automorphisms of Latin squares We define a near-automorphism α of a Latin square L to be an isomorphism such that L and αL differ only within a 2 × 2 subsquare. We prove that for all n≥2 except n∈{3, 4}, there exists a Latin square which exhibits a near-automorphism. We also show that if α has the cycle structure (2, n − 2), then L exists if and only if n≡2 (mod 4), and can be constructed from a special type of partial orthomorphism. Along the way, we generalize a theorem by Marshall Hall, which states that any Latin rectangle can be extended to a Latin square. We also show that if α has at least 2 fixed points, then L must contain two disjoint non-trivial subsquares.

year: 2011

title: Investigation of in vitro diabetic inflammation and  treatment with Piper excelsum tea extract

authors: Harvey, Savannah

subjects: Piper excelsum

abstract: Induction of inflammation through hyperglycaemia and adiposity has been shown to contribute to the pathogenicity of type 2 diabetes (T2D). The pro-inflammatory cytokine, tumour necrosis factor α (TNF-α) was the first cytokine found to bridge the connection between the immune system and T2D. This was found due to its increased production in the disease state. TNF-α has specifically been linked to the onset of insulin resistance in T2D models. Evidence has shown that heat shock protein 60 (HSP60) may also play a role as a danger signal for the immune system as it can result in the induction of inflammation. Currently, there are no pharmaceutical options for T2D patients which target inflammation. Tea made from the leaves of kawakawa (Piper excelsum) has been used for many generations by Māori as a traditional rākau rongoā (traditional medicine) to treat a range of ailments including inflammation. The aim of this project was to investigate the modulation of inflammation using a commercially available kawakawa tea in human cancer cells in vitro. 

This project involved measuring the growth rate, cytotoxicity, TNF-α production and HSP60 expression upon exposure to three treatments: high glucose, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or kawakawa tea extract (KTE).

This study showed that a high concentration of KTE (1000 µg/mL) inhibited cell growth in both HEPG2 and HeLa cell lines. Cells treated with this concentration also showed typical morphological signs of apoptosis. Cytotoxicity testing confirmed that there was a significant (p <0.05) decrease in mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity for this treatment which confirmed the cells were likely dying through apoptosis. Over a course of 24-hours three LPS treatments were found to be cytotoxic. These were the 10 ng/mL, 10 µg/mL, and 100 µg/mL concentrations of LPS. After 48-hours all treatments apart from 100 µg/mL KTE treatment were also found to be cytotoxic. The cytotoxicity for these treatments was either due to a reduction in mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity (infers mitochondrial stress) or increased lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release from cells (infers necrotic cell death). These cytotoxicity experiments allowed for identification of which concentrations should be selected or removed for future experiments. 

Cytotoxicity levels were taken into consideration and experiments were run investigating the induction of TNF-α using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). Issues regarding negative readings from samples arose which resulted in protocol changes and extensive trouble shooting. It was found that extended exposure times were required to attenuate a positive result from the positive control, LPS. 

HSP60 expression was also measured for human cells exposed to high glucose and KTE treatments. No change in HSP60 expression was detected. However, 24-hour LPS exposure resulted in a significant increase in HSP60 expression compared to the control for the 100 ng/mL LPS treatment. Two concentrations were investigated; 100 ng/mL LPS and 100 µg/mL LPS which resulted in 1.4- and 2.1-fold increases compared to the control, respectively.

Overall, no conclusion could be drawn regarding the modulation of inflammation by KTE. However, this study was able to identify the effect the tea has on human cancer cell growth and the nature of cytotoxicity the tea poses to the cells. It is recommended to continue this research exploring different kawakawa tea blends and using alternative in vitro cell lines and whole animal models.

text: Investigation of in vitro diabetic inflammation and  treatment with Piper excelsum tea extract Induction of inflammation through hyperglycaemia and adiposity has been shown to contribute to the pathogenicity of type 2 diabetes (T2D). The pro-inflammatory cytokine, tumour necrosis factor α (TNF-α) was the first cytokine found to bridge the connection between the immune system and T2D. This was found due to its increased production in the disease state. TNF-α has specifically been linked to the onset of insulin resistance in T2D models. Evidence has shown that heat shock protein 60 (HSP60) may also play a role as a danger signal for the immune system as it can result in the induction of inflammation. Currently, there are no pharmaceutical options for T2D patients which target inflammation. Tea made from the leaves of kawakawa (Piper excelsum) has been used for many generations by Māori as a traditional rākau rongoā (traditional medicine) to treat a range of ailments including inflammation. The aim of this project was to investigate the modulation of inflammation using a commercially available kawakawa tea in human cancer cells in vitro. 

This project involved measuring the growth rate, cytotoxicity, TNF-α production and HSP60 expression upon exposure to three treatments: high glucose, lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or kawakawa tea extract (KTE).

This study showed that a high concentration of KTE (1000 µg/mL) inhibited cell growth in both HEPG2 and HeLa cell lines. Cells treated with this concentration also showed typical morphological signs of apoptosis. Cytotoxicity testing confirmed that there was a significant (p <0.05) decrease in mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity for this treatment which confirmed the cells were likely dying through apoptosis. Over a course of 24-hours three LPS treatments were found to be cytotoxic. These were the 10 ng/mL, 10 µg/mL, and 100 µg/mL concentrations of LPS. After 48-hours all treatments apart from 100 µg/mL KTE treatment were also found to be cytotoxic. The cytotoxicity for these treatments was either due to a reduction in mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity (infers mitochondrial stress) or increased lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release from cells (infers necrotic cell death). These cytotoxicity experiments allowed for identification of which concentrations should be selected or removed for future experiments. 

Cytotoxicity levels were taken into consideration and experiments were run investigating the induction of TNF-α using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). Issues regarding negative readings from samples arose which resulted in protocol changes and extensive trouble shooting. It was found that extended exposure times were required to attenuate a positive result from the positive control, LPS. 

HSP60 expression was also measured for human cells exposed to high glucose and KTE treatments. No change in HSP60 expression was detected. However, 24-hour LPS exposure resulted in a significant increase in HSP60 expression compared to the control for the 100 ng/mL LPS treatment. Two concentrations were investigated; 100 ng/mL LPS and 100 µg/mL LPS which resulted in 1.4- and 2.1-fold increases compared to the control, respectively.

Overall, no conclusion could be drawn regarding the modulation of inflammation by KTE. However, this study was able to identify the effect the tea has on human cancer cell growth and the nature of cytotoxicity the tea poses to the cells. It is recommended to continue this research exploring different kawakawa tea blends and using alternative in vitro cell lines and whole animal models.

year: 2021