Editorial policies and manuscript submittal instructions.(Editorial)

EDITORIAL POLICIES

The Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association is one of the oldest continuously published, peer-reviewed, technical environmental journals in the world. First published in 1951 under the name Air Repair, the Journal is intended to serve those occupationally involved in air pollution control and waste management through the publication of timely and reliable information in several formats.

Technical papers describe and interpret the results of original investigations in all aspects of air pollution and waste management. They are significant in their findings and increase the body of knowledge upon which environmental decision-making and policy are based. Of particular interest are topics that are relevant to science and technology issues and problems emerging from contemporary directions in regulatory policy-making.

Notebook papers offer a forum for rapid disclosure of new technical or administrative studies, or for significant comment on previously published papers. Publication of a Notebook paper will not preclude later consideration of a technical paper on the subject. If the Notebook paper is a comment on a previously published paper, the Notebook paper will be published with a reply from the author(s) of the previously published paper.

Review papers synthesize existing research and define problems to be addressed by future research. Reviews should be critical in nature while noting the strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of current knowledge.

All papers submitted for consideration in the Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association are subject to a minimum of two external peer reviews.

Publication Policy

Submission of a manuscript implies that the work described has not been published (except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, or thesis); that it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere; and that its publication has been approved by all coauthors and the responsible authorities at the institute where the work was conducted. Previously published work will not be considered for publication. The Journal will, however, accept manuscripts based on presentations made at conferences sponsored by the Air & Waste Management Association, at the discretion of the Technical Editor-in-Chief.

Page Proofs

Before a manuscript is published, the corresponding or primary author will be required to review and approve page proofs of the manuscript. (Authors will be contacted by e-mail when their proofs are available in PDF format for downloading and printing.) Authors are responsible for checking their proofs for accuracy and for clearly marking any corrections on the proofs. Please note that only major errors can be corrected at the page proof stage. A & WMA assumes no responsibility for data or text errors printed in the Journal if authors do not correct such errors on their proofs. Failure to return proofs promptly, as outlined in instructions provided with the proofs, may delay publication of the manuscript.

Copyright Requirements

If a manuscript is accepted for publication, the authors must agree to reassign the copyright of that manuscript to the Air & Waste Management Association. (Note: This does not apply to government employees.) This allows the Association to perform all standard supplementary functions of publishing inherent to information dissemination, including selling or redistributing reprints, granting to third parties permission for reproducing or reprinting articles, handling requests from abstracting and information centers, and publishing articles online. A copy of the Journal's Copyright Reassignment Form can be downloaded from the Journal homepage at secure.awma.org/journal.

Page Charges and Reprints

Papers published in the Journal are subject to page charges of US$79 per printed page for A & WMA members and US$89 per page for all others. Payment must be received before manuscripts can be published. In lieu of hardcopy reprints, primary authors will receive a PDF copy of the published paper for limited distribution--rights and limitations will be conveyed along with the PDF. Authors interested in hard copy reprints in booklet format may order them using the form included on the standard page charge invoice (which is e-mailed with proof copies of the manuscript), or by calling the Journal's main office.

Manuscript Submittal

The Journal employs an online manuscript submittal and review system called Rapid Review. This system facilitates the submittal process, allowing authors greater flexibility and control over files, formats, and access to schedule and other information. Rapid Review also facilitates the peer review process, thereby reducing the time between submittal and publication of manuscripts.

To submit your manuscript, please go to the Journal homepage at secure.awma.org/journal and follow the instructions. The first time you use the online manuscript submittal system, you will be asked to create an author account. The system will walk you through this process step by step. Once you have established an account, you will be able to access it to check the status of your manuscript, read and respond to reviewer comments, upload revised files and figures, print documents, and contact Journal editors.

FORMATTING AND STYLE GUIDELINES

Please read the following guidelines carefully. Manuscripts that do not conform to these guidelines may be delayed in publication or returned to authors for resubmittal.

Overview

The Journal strives to present information in a clear, direct, and easily understood format. Manuscripts should concisely provide essential information, avoiding wordiness, duplication, and unnecessary detail. Although the Journal does not maintain a page-limit policy, authors should be mindful of their audience and strive for efficiency in presentation. Manuscripts that are unnecessarily lengthy or repetitive will be identified as such by the Journal reviewers and/or editors, and returned to the authors for revision. Authors should also remain cognizant of the Journal's page charge policy, which is assessed on a per-page basis.

General Formatting Information

For initial online manuscript, the following formats are acceptable for all text files:

** Microsoft Word

** WordPerfect

** Adobe PDF

** PostScript

** RTF

** PDF+ASCHII form TeX or LaTeX

For submittal of revised (i.e., after peer review) or final (i.e., accepted for publication) manuscripts, the following formats only are acceptable for text files:

** Microsoft Word

** WordPerfect

** RTF

Acceptable table and figure formatting requirements are detailed below.

Journal Style

Manuscripts must be typed 1 1/2-spaced, including references and the numbered list of figure captions. Times New Roman 12-point is the preferred font. Allow at least a 1-inch margin on all sides. Text should be typed flush left on the page; do not right-justify or hyphenate. Do not insert page or section breaks within text, but number all pages consecutively and include line numbering throughout. Do not use footnotes or endnotes within the text. Do not italicize common Latin words or phrases, such as "i.e.," "e.g.," or "a priori." Do not include any design or complex formatting, such as two-column text formats, embedded text boxes or figures, or unnecessary changes in font, type size, page depth, and page width. Manuscripts should include only simple attributes such as bold, italics, superscript, and subscript to a specific letter, word, or words.

Authors are expected to follow the style conventions detailed in the most recent edition of The ACS Style Guide (3rd Edition, Anne M. Coghill, Lorrin R. Garson, eds.; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2006), with the following exceptions:

** Second(s) is abbreviated as "sec" (not "s");

** Hour(s) is abbreviated as "hr" (not "h");

** Use "HH:MM a.m./p.m." style for time, rather than 24-hr time PST or PDT style;

** Versus is abbreviated as "vs." (not "vs") within parentheses, tables, and captions (the word should not be abbreviated in body text);

** Yard is abbreviated as "yd"; and

** Year is abbreviated as "yr" (not "y") in descriptions of experimental work.

Authors should also refer to back issues of the Journal as a guide.

Manuscript Requirements

Manuscripts should not exceed 11,000 words in length, not including the Abstract, Implications, or References. Figures and tables are submitted separately and are not included in the word count. In addition, all manuscripts must contain the following elements:

** A concise title that avoids acronyms and abbreviations;

** A list of all authors and their affiliations, including the city, state/province, and country for each;

** An abstract of 300 words or less, summarizing the work's purpose, methodology, results, and conclusions;

** An implications statement of 100 words or less, explaining the practical implications of the manuscript for law-makers, policy-makers, and others;

** References (following the text), numbered and cited in consecutive order as they appear within the text, and styled according to The ACS Style Guide (see examples below);

** Any relevant tables and figures, following the formats and style outlined herein; and

** An "about the authors" statement (in paragraph format), providing the name, title, affiliation, and current contact information for the corresponding author, and the affiliation of each co-author. Excessive biographical information is unnecessary.

For examples of an Abstract, an Implications statement, and an About the Authors statement, please view this section in the online Style Guidelines at secure.awma.org/joumal/style.htm.

Print Get the Mag Weekly Updates