Mineral deposits are such type of assets, the valuation of which can be carried out in a very diverse manner. Methods and procedures for such a valuation are most often applied to mineral deposits with mineral reserves (according to the CRIRSCO classification), much less frequently and usually only using a comparative approach for undeveloped, initially recognized mineral deposits (with mineral resources).

In Poland, a significant portion of mineral deposits, mainly of energy, metal and chemical minerals, are covered by the so-called mining property of the Treasury. At the moment, there is a lack of consistent and thoughtful management of these deposits. The appropriate methodology for valuing these deposits, which are at various stages of recognition (sometimes also of development), should be one of the key elements of such management. The State Treasury usually disposes of mining rights by “establishing” mining usufruct in the form of a contract, with the determination of remuneration for this establishment. The rules for determining remuneration for the establishment of mining usufruct are determined on the basis of an internal informal document of the Ministry of the Environment with very simplified rules for determining this remuneration, to a very limited extent related to the actual value of the deposit, which is also variable over time. This fee should be in close relation to the value of the mineral deposit valued at a given moment, taking the current conditions, including technological, environmental, formal and legal, and – in particular – market conditions into account. The valuation of mineral deposits covered by mining property, except for current needs in determining the basis for remuneration for mining usufruct establishing, should also be used to determine the value of these deposits annually as part of the State Treasury property and to present its results as part of the State Treasury Property Status Report.

It is an open matter whether the methodology of valuation of the discussed mineral deposits should be based on accepted and widely used solutions for the valuation of mineral deposits for the purposes of business transactions or based on methodology of valuation of deposits as part of the planned system of Integrated Environmental and Economic National Account (up to date poorly developed). The paper presents the most important elements of both methodological approaches. It seems that the use of selected elements of each of these approaches would be advisable in this case.

The transformation of the former docks in Dublin was one of the major urban regeneration projects in Ireland, which was built during the recent economic boom. Since the start of the project in the nineties, more than six thousand apartments have been built in the area. The construction of the apartments allowed for the diversifi cation of the character of this district into a living quarter. Initially the Docklands were considered as an offi ce district that would serve the Ireland’s service-based economy. New projects also allowed for the development of housing in a close proximity to existing city centre, although it did not happen not without avoiding the gentrifi cation and social polarization of this area.

The key role in the process was played by the operator – the urban development agency (Dublin Docklands Development Authority). It acted both as a strategic landowner and the coordinator of the development. The agency was responsible for the delivery of the infrastructure and the sale of the land. The actions of the operator included setting up the of the housing standards, requirements for the development of the infrastructure, both social and technical and public transportation systems. In the hindsight, the agency was praised for the management of the development of such large site. On the other hand, the lack of procedural oversight and a few dubious fi nancial decisions, as well as the other eff ects of the neoliberal policies, such as gentrification, fi nally lower the assessment of DDDA efficiency in that matter.

The article summarizes the main aims and achievements of the DDDA’s development policy and its assessment from the long-term perspective of two decades of transformation. This includes the eff ects of the actions in the aftermath of the fi nancial crisis. Such perspective allows to highlight the various stages of the development of the agency and to examine the efficiency and efficacy of these actions.

This article aims to discuss the notion of environmental damage under the CLC 1992 and FUND 1992 as stated in the new Guidelines for Presenting Claims for Environmental Damage prepared by the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds. That approach is contrasted with the solution adopted in the United States of America under the OPA. Particular attention is given to the problems of compensation for lost services of the environment, as well as providing alternative environment as a restoration measure. The judgments of French and Spanish courts in the Erika and Prestige cases are discussed, raising questions as to suitability of the CLC 1992/FUND 1992 system.

The purpose of this analysis is to deal with the first of the conditions for commencement of laytime, i.e. obligation of the vessel to arrive at the agreed destination. The position, prima facie, with regard to berth, dock or port is relatively straightforward, it having been established that the vessel only becomes an arrived ship when it enters the specified berth, dock or port, respectively. In all three cases, in principle, the risk of delay in reaching the specified berth, dock or port is borne by the shipowner. In many cases, the shipowners, for obvious reasons are not prepared to bear such a risk for loss and take appropriate action. In particular, they demand the inclusion, in the charterparty, of a specific clause shifting the risk of such loss. We will deal therein below with one of the most commonly used forms of such a clause namely – “Time lost waiting for a berth clause” against broader picture of current English jurisdiction.

The aim of the study is to examine the importance of economic argumentation in international maritime disputes. The paper first explains what the international maritime disputes, their sources and types are, what principles they are subjected to. It also established what should be understood by economic arguments, emphasizing their relative nature, as well as showing the potential of the Convention on the Law of the Sea of 1982 as a basis for formulating economic argumentation. The importance of economic argumentation was considered in relation to international disputes regarding the legal status of maritime territories, delimitation of maritime zones, power over the sea and use of the sea.

Research, carried out, leads to the following conclusions: 1) economic arguments are present in the reasoning of the parties as well as dispute settlement bodies. However, their probative value is limited; 2) in disputes related to the status of maritime features economic reasoning appears in the context of necessity to demonstrate that they can be a basis for delimitation; 3) in delimitation disputes, addressing economic arguments is more complex and contradictory. Economic arguments may be useful in the second phase of delimitation when relevant circumstances are considered. However, the existing practice shows that the range of economic arguments is limited (they cannot serve as a reason for correction of natural inequalities). International jurisprudence denies taking into account arguments based on level of economic development or economic or financial difficulties of a state (except for the catastrophic repercussions for the livelihood and economic wellbeing of the population), the needs of economic development or performance of economic activities (mining, fishing, shipping). An argument associated with assurance of deposit unity is of some importance (when resources are known or readily ascertainable); 4) in disputes concerning the power over the sea some weight is held by an argument associated with the establishment of economic authority, in particular, of a regulatory and control nature; 5) in disputes related to the use of the sea, the importance of economic reasoning is varied. In disputes concerning the prompt release, the role of the economic argument is limited. On the contrary, it is relevant in disputes related to the violation of rights and economic interests of States and people, if they are protected by international law.

The continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles (NM) accounts for a great value for States. The development of technologies and science has allowed the human economic and scientific activities on the deep parts of the ocean floor. The continental shelf is rich with living resources. The living resources of continental shelf are also valuable, since they possess valuable genetic resources for pharmaceuticals and commercial products. Many valuable non-living resources are situated on the continental shelf, including hydrocarbons (oil and gas) and minerals (e.g. manganese, nickel, cobalt, gold, diamonds, copper, tin, titanium, iron, chromium and galena). Therefore, States have spent significant resources on conducting a research and exploring their continental shelf and the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) has received seventy-seven submissions and issued twenty-nine recommendations pursuant to Article 76 (8) of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). With the expected improvement of technological capabilities in decades to come, especially, in deep waters, the continental shelf will be explored more thoroughly and perhaps will meet no technological limits.

The study addresses the challenges facing the law of the sea. Although UNCLOS is rightly described as a constitution of the law of the sea, it does not and cannot give answers to all problems and doubts that arise in practice and that are related to global warming, protection of biodiversity, legal status of genetic resources, controversy concerning shipping, delimitation of areas or the protection of underwater cultural heritage. Hence the question arises, what the ways and means of further development of the law of the sea are. Undoubtedly, one of the possibilities is to develop implementation agreements, of which the third devoted to the protection and sustainable use of marine biodiversity outside national jurisdiction is the subject of an international conference convened by the General Assembly, whose resolutions in the area of the law of the sea play an important role. Undoubtedly, also the importance of the organization of the United Nations system, such as the IMO, FAO, UNESCO, UNEP is significant. There is also the possibility of accepting agreements addressing the issues left by UNCLOS without solution or definition. Not without significance is the soft law and the practice of states as well as the position of the organs appointed by UNCLOS.

Communication is one of the most important aspects of everyday life. One of its most characteristic features is its diversity as “it rangers from the mass media and popular culture, through language to individual and social behavior” (Fiske 1990:13). The way we talk depends on a number of factors, such as where a conversation takes place, when, why, how and with whom. Thus, “One person’s language use will vary widely according to the needs of the social context” (Jule 2008:27). One has to learn how to communicate successfully through many situational interactions since both communicative competence and success consist in making appropriate choices in contextual, situational and social settings. It is usually stressed that whereas men’s communication styles are associated with competition and dominance, women’s conversation strategies are based on cooperation and politeness (Trask 1999:183). In the following paper we intend to verify the linguistic data obtained so far and focus on the most principal aspects of communication, which are: turn taking, backchannels and interruptions. The purpose of the analysis is to investigate characteristics of conversation strategies in the speech of both male and female speakers talking to each other and exchanging their views on a particular topic during relatively spontaneous male-female interactions, that is mixed-gender interviews. We will seek to analyze the occurrence of backchannels and interruptions the use of which could be indicative of either support, agreement, involvement or dominance, competition and even hostility on the part of the speakers. The participants consist of randomly selected students at the age of 20-25 who study English at the English Department.

The article presents the research into hygienizing process of chicken manure using calcium peroxide (CaO₂) as an environmentally friendly biological deactivation agent. The influence of the addition of CaO₂ to chicken manure on the bioavailability of phosphorus was also analyzed. The process of biological deactivation using CaO₂, CaO and Ca(OH)₂ agents was analyzed applying the disk diffusion method. To optimize the effect of the hygienizing parameters, (CaO₂ concentration, pH, temperature and time) on the reduction of Enterobacteriaceae count the Taguchi method was applied. The content of bioavailable phosphorus was measured with the Egner-Riehm method and determined with spectrophotometry. The reduction in bacterial count followed an increase in the concentration of CaO₂ in a sample. The optimal experimental conditions (CaO₂=10.5 wt.%, pH=9.5, T=40°C, t=180 h) enabled a significant decrease in the Enterobacteriaceae count, from 10⁷ cfu/g to 10² cfu/g. Analysis of the samples with Egner-Riehm method showed that the phosphorus content decreased with the addition of biocide CaO₂: from 26.6 mg/l (for 3.5 wt.%) to 3.5 mg/l (for 10.5 wt.%). These values were slightly higher than the content of phosphorus deactivated with Ca(OH)₂ i.e., from 11.25 mg/l (for 3.5 wt.%) to 4.49 mg/l (for 10.5 wt.%). The application of CaO₂ for hygienizing chicken manure enables effective reduction of Enterobacteriaceae count to an acceptable level (below 1000 cfu/g). In comparison with the traditional techniques of hygienization, the application of CaO₂ has a positive effect on the recovery of bioavailable phosphorus.

The Lower Devonian ‘Placoderm Sandstone’ in the Holy Cross Mountains (HCM) is filled with abundant impressions

of disarticulated vertebrate remains. The only acanthodian macroremains named to date are fin spines

of Machaeracanthus polonicus Gürich. Fin spine impressions in slabs from the Winna Formation (Emsian) at

Podłazie Hill (near Daleszyce) in the southern HCM, and also the Barcza Formation (?Lochkovian) at Barcza

Quarry, Miedziana Góra Conglomerate (?Lochkovian), Gruchawka, and Zagórze Formation (middle–upper

Emsian) at Bukowa Mountain in the northern HCM, reposited in the University of Warsaw, Polish Geological

Institute-National Research Institute, Warsaw, and Natural History Museum, London collections, have been cast

and studied in order to better document this poorly known taxon. As noted in other Machaeracanthus species,

we have found that M. polonicus has two different morphotypes of spines, which abut lengthwise to form a pair

of spines. Our investigations show that the fin spine assemblage includes Onchus overathensis as well as M.

polonicus, and probably another undetermined acanthodian. The affinities of O. overathensis are reassessed.

It is here considered to be a diplacanthiform, and reassigned to the genus Striacanthus, as S. overathensis.

Acanthodian scapulocoracoids have also been identified, as well as tightly spiralled toothwhorls which could

be from an acanthodian.

Fourteen symposia on early/lower vertebrates have taken place over the last 50 years, usually at about four year

intervals. An average 60 participants have taken part at these symposia, with over one hundred occasionally. The

results of the symposia have been published in proceedings. The symposia started honoring E. A:son Stensiö and

E. Jarvik. Honors were taken up at the 11th symposium in Uppsala again. Since the 13th symposium a Stensiö

award is also given to young researchers in the field.