Consumption-based Emissions Research Articles

Regionalised greenhouse gas emissions from food production in South-Eastern Australia

Agriculture is a significant source of greenhouse gases (GHG). Agriculture GHG emissions are often quantified at national or state level, with local-scale emissions not available to inform the state's regional policies and local government and community action to mitigate climate change. We present spatial inventories of GHG from food production for the state of New South Wales in Australia for methane (CH 4 ), nitrous oxide (N 2 O) and the sum of the two GHG in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2 -e). We used a top-down approach to disaggregate emissions from state level reported in the State and Territory Greenhouse Gas Inventories to emissions at local government area level using publicly available agricultural census data. Our estimates showed that regional local government areas accounted for 18,522,010 t of CO 2− e, 572,707 t of CH 4 and 10,785 t of N 2 O emissions for food production, while metropolitan local government areas (Greater Sydney) accounted for 104,057 t of CO 2− e, 2313 t of CH 4 and 151 t of N 2 O emissions for food production. Livestock emissions dominated most regional local government areas, contributing on average (median) 14 times more emission than cropping emissions. Our study applies an approach for a transparent estimate of local-scale emissions consistent with the Australian national inventory. To supplement the food production emissions inventory, a spatial food consumption-based inventory using emission factors derived by Hendrie et al. (2016) is presented to illustrate the importance of engaging cities when addressing GHG emissions from food systems. Sources and spatial trends in food production-based and consumption-based emissions in New South Wales are addressed to guide policymakers and communities on opportunities to mitigate associated emissions to address climate goals.

Comparing Production- and Consumptionbased CO₂ Emissions by Economic Growth

Comparing Production- and Consumptionbased CO₂ Emissions by Economic Growth

Carbon-dioxide emissions management in Sub-Saharan Africa – the irrelevance of natural resource rent as a corrective policy tool

ABSTRACT This paper revisits the role of natural resource rent in explaining and regulating CO2 emissions in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Three variants of CO2 emissions are considered: territorial CO2 emissions, consumption-based CO2 emissions, and CO2 emission intensity. Panel-corrected standard error and panel autoregressive distributed lag estimation methods were applied. Results show that natural resource rent has a positive effect on consumption-based CO2 emissions, and a negative effect on CO2 emission intensity, but has no effect on territorial CO2 emissions. The results show that while high resource rent in SSA appears to finance consumption of pollution-laden imported goods, it worsens neither territorial CO2 emissions nor CO2 emission intensity. Given that importation of dirty goods is an economic system failure which is not imputable to resource rent, it is safe to conclude that, resource rent does not contribute to rising CO2 emissions in SSA.

Renewable Energy for Balancing Carbon Emissions and Reducing Carbon Transfer under Global Value Chains: A Way Forward

Research on the relationship between a country’s renewable energy consumption and carbon emissions is of great significance for reducing carbon emissions embodied in international trade. There always exists a gap between production-based and consumption-based carbon emissions. Accordingly, this paper investigates the influence of renewable energy consumption on carbon emission balance, the ratio of production-based emissions to consumption-based emissions, in various countries using the ordinary least square (OLS) method and generalized method of moments (GMM) method. We found that a 1% increase in renewable energy consumption can decrease the carbon emission balance by 5.8%. Furthermore, renewable energy consumption can help narrow the gap between production-based and consumption-based carbon emissions in net emission exporters. In addition, renewable energy consumption can also weaken the negative impact of the global value chains (GVCs) division system on the carbon emission balance. The findings in this study fill the research gap by analyzing the heterogeneous impacts of renewable energy consumption on carbon emission balance embodied within a GVC division system in various countries and provide policy suggestions that renewable energy consumption should be encouraged in net emission exporters to reduce the carbon emission transfers.

Renewable Energy Consumption and Carbon Emissions: Evidence from an Oil-Rich Economy

This article examines the influence of renewable energy consumption, real GDP per capita, exports and imports on consumption-based CO2 emissions in Azerbaijan from 1993 to 2019 by employing the Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares Method (DOLS). The results reveal that renewable energy consumption has a negative impact on CO2 emissions, while real GDP per capita has a positive effect. According to the findings, a 1% increase in renewable energy consumption leads to a 0.26% decrease in consumption-based CO2 emissions, while a 1% rise in real GDP per capita leads to a 0.46% rise in consumption-based CO2 emissions. In addition, imports and exports show positive and negative effects respectively. Numerically, a 1% rise in imports results in a 0.18% rise in CO2 emissions, whereas a 1% increase in exports reduces CO2 emissions by 0.16%. This is consistent with expectations and theoretical outcomes described in the functional specification and data section. The negative influence of renewable energy consumption, as well as the larger effect of imports, emphasize the necessity of implementing ecologically friendly measures in both energy sectors (particularly, the need to increase the share of renewable energy in total energy use) and international trade.

Developing an hourly-resolution well-to-wheel carbon dioxide emission inventory of electric vehicles

Vehicle electrification is reshaping global road transport, whereas the understanding of the well-to-wheel (WTW) CO2 emissions of electric vehicles (EVs) is mostly limited to the annual average, ignoring short-term variation. This study developed a framework to quantify the heterogeneity in the WTW CO2 emissions of EVs with different charging hours for multiple regions. The framework incorporates the consumption-based grid's CO2 emission factor, dynamic EV fuel consumption rate, and different charging levels and EV types. A three-year hourly-resolution WTW CO2 emission inventory of EVs was established for 71 regions across the contiguous United States. Results show that the EV's WTW CO2 emissions vary by season, charging hour, region, and EV type; up to 26% of WTW CO2 emissions could be reduced by shifting the current most common charging time. The study built a foundation inventory for policymakers to formulate daily smart charging schemes to minimize EV's WTW CO2 emissions.

GAUGING GREENHOUSE EMISSION THROUGH CBA, TRADE, FDI, AND POPULATION GROWTH

Introduction: Greenhouse gas emissions have a massive effect on the thinning of the earth's ozone layer, nowadays the industry is obligated to be as responsible for the process and output as possible in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions (CO2). This study examines the implications of consumption-based accounting, trade, and foreign direct investment on greenhouse gas emissions from the least five emitters of different fuel types, according to the World Research Institute Indonesia, which are Japan, Brazil, Indonesia, Iran, and Canada from 2000 until 2020. Methods: The study employs a panel data regression using Random Effect Model-Hausman Test. Results: The findings show that foreign direct investment has a strong negative association with lowering greenhouse gas emissions. The greater the investment, the cleaner the air and atmosphere. Trade has a negative correlation with greenhouse gas emissions, this reflects increasing environmental consciousness among producers and/or increasing pressure for environmentally friendly operations from oversea. Since natural assets could convey their full economic potential on a sustainable ground. The population had a role in lowering carbon emissions as well. The results of the consumption-based emission regression show a significant positive relationship, which can clearly exacerbate climate change conditions. It is not astounding, given that CBA accounts for emissions throughout a product's or service's complete lifecycle. Conclusion and suggestion: This study advances the grasp of greenhouse gas emissions and the factors that influence others in the five lowest emitters. It is the first study towards using greenhouse gas emission data as the dependent variable, rather than consumption-based accounting data, which has been used in most previous studies.

Who is most at risk of losing out from low-carbon transition in the food and transport sectors in Sweden? Equity considerations from a consumption perspective

The low-carbon transition requires policies and behaviour changes that affect people's consumption habits. However, the impacts of the transition are likely to be experienced unevenly by consumers. Failing to account for these differences puts at risk the prospects of a just transition. This paper investigates the demand-side aspects of a just low-carbon transition, with a focus on the transport and food sectors in Sweden. It combines footprint analysis and sociodemographic and geographic analysis with an assessment of the distributional impacts of low-carbon transition policies from the perspectives of wealth, access, and health. The study finds variations in carbon footprint categories between those with higher or lower income and living in higher or lower density areas. It also finds varying degrees of ability to cope with the required shifts in the food and transport sectors. About 40 % of the Swedish population appears to be at higher risk from the adverse impacts on wealth and access related to policies aiming at low-carbon transition, because this cohort depends heavily on cars and is less able to cope with the increased price of carbon-intensive goods that these policies are expected to entail. The study also finds that, collectively, those most at risk of losing are responsible for 41 % of consumption-based emissions. The paper goes on to discuss implications for low-carbon transition policy measures and transitional assistance policy. Overall, it highlights the need for targeted, well-planned policies for emissions reductions and transitional assistance to support a fair low-carbon transition for all.

Navigating the paths to sustainable environments via energy security, renewable energy and economic complexity: Evidence from array of pollution metrics

Empirical narratives pertaining to the implications of energy security (ENS) on environmental quality (EQ), particularly in the context of Emerging Seven (E7) countries, are currently understudied. Likewise, the influence of renewable energy (RWN), economic complexity (ECI) and environmental control technology (EVT) on EQ is still unsettled. Thus, based on arrays of pollution metrics (ecological footprint (ECF), carbon emission damage (CO2D) and consumption-based carbon emissions (CCO2) and annual panel series spanning 1990–2018, this study provides fresh insights into the implications of the listed variables on EQs in E7 countries. Accordingly, the following empirical narratives were established: (i) The effects of the enlisted panel series on EQ are sensitive to the peculiarities of each pollution metric. (ii) Estimates of the pool mean group autoregressive distributed lag (PMG-ARDL) model and those of cross-sectional augmented autoregressive distributed lag (CS-ARDL) underscore the important roles of ENS and RWN on EQ, particularly on ECF; and ECI on CO2D. While EVT provides insignificant carbon emission reducing effects across all variants of EQ indicators, population and economic growth are all time-significant pollution enablers. (iii) The outcomes of the panel quantile regression demonstrate that ENS enhances EQ only at the 25th and 50th quantiles and accelerates pollution at the 75th and 95th quantiles. RWN enhances EQ across all quantiles while ECI deaccelerates ECF and CO2D and accelerates CCO2 across all quantiles. Furthermore, EVT accelerates ECF and CO2D while it deaccelerates CCO2 across all quantiles. Meanwhile, the unpleasant effects of growth and population are reemphasized. Policy strategies to ensure a sustainable environment in E7 have been highlighted.

Co-control of the haze pollution emissions in China: Insight from supply chains.

Because of rapid economic development and the increase in social demand, China has been suffering from serious air pollution, in particular, haze pollution. To mitigate haze from the source, it is essential to achieve co-control of three important haze precursors: volatile organic compounds (VOCs), sulfur dioxide (SO2 ), and nitrogen oxide (NOx ). In this study, we used the environmentally extended input-output model, structural path analysis, and structural path decomposition method to investigate changes in consumption-based emissions of three major haze precursors (i.e., NOx , SO2 , and VOCs) in China during 2007-2017. First, the results revealed that fixed capital formation was the most critical final demand to co-control the three precursors. Investment in construction was the most important behavior for co-control. Second, the most crucial common path driving the changes in emissions of the three precursors was "transportation and warehousing→household consumption" during 2007-2012, and "electricity, gas, and water supply→household consumption" during 2012-2017. Finally, direct emission intensity of transportation and warehousing, and electricity, gas, and water supplies were critical to co-control precursors. The results of this study provided a comprehensive understanding of changes in haze precursor emissions driven by demand. Therefore, China must strengthen the co-control of multiple pollutant emissions on both the production and consumption sides by adjusting supply chains. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2023;19:1048-1063. © 2022 SETAC.

Consumption-based emissions at city level in China and the spatial heterogeneity analysis of the influential factors.

It is of great significance to identify the critical influential factors of pollutant emissions for emission mitigation. However, city disparity implies different priorities for regional mitigation. This study aims to estimate the consumption-based emissions of 309 prefecture-level cities in China based on the multi-region input-output table and the sectoral NOx emission inventory and investigate the emission transfer phenomenon among cities and sectors. In addition, a geographically weighted regression method is used to analyze the spatial heterogeneity in the driving factors of regional consumption-based emissions. The results reveal that the top 10 cities in consumption-based emissions account for 25.2% of emissions and contribute 22.6% to GDP. The consumption-based emissions are mainly driven by local demand (72.79%) at the regional level and by construction activities (94.43%) at the sectoral level. Besides, the results also show the spatial variances in contributions of driving forces to consumption-based emissions. Economic growth has been identified as the most important factor which promotes consumption-based emissions. However, disposable personal income, per capita road area, urbanization, and percentage of tertiary industry GDP are conducive to reduce consumption-based emissions in some cities of China. It could be concluded that policies without consideration of the emissions from a consumption perspective are difficult to achieve effective emission reduction.

Do climate technologies and recycling asymmetrically mitigate consumption-based carbon emissions in the United States? New insights from Quantile ARDL

Improving environmental quality has become one of the utmost essential policy agendas of the United States (US). The susceptibility to climate change adversities has motivated the need to construct and identify the factors that can function to evaluate and ensure environmental sustainability. Although few studies have highlighted the importance of recycling and technology in tackling environmental woes across different industries and sectors, little is known about the impact of national-level recycling and green technology innovation on consumption-based (trade-adjusted) carbon emissions. Therefore, this study scrutinizes the asymmetric linkages between recycling, climate technologies, trade, and consumption-based carbon emissions (CCE) in the US from 1990Q1 to 2018Q4. It employs novel Quantile Autoregressive Distributive Lag (QARDL) and Granger Causality-in-Quantiles to discover the asymmetric long-run cointegration and causality across the diverse data distribution. The long-run results indicate that recycling and climate-related technologies significantly mitigate CCE in the long run, mainly at lower-higher (0.05–070) and lower-highest (0.05–0.95) emissions quantiles, respectively. Trade-based covariates suggest that imports significantly contribute to CCE from upper-middle to highest (0.70–0.95) emissions quantiles, while exports significantly reduce CCE from lowest to highest (0.05–0.95) emissions quantiles. The short-run elasticities echo a similar direction; however, their magnitude and significance vary across quantiles. Moreover, Granger-causality outcomes in quantiles confirm one-way causality between recycling, climate technologies, and CCE, and two-way causality between exports, imports, economic growth, and CCE across major quantiles. These results provide pertinent policy suggestions for all stakeholders.

Evolution of household carbon emissions and their drivers from both income and consumption perspectives in China during 2010–2017

Household inputs and consumption play important roles in driving carbon emissions in China. However, existing studies have mainly studied consumption-based household carbon emissions in specific years to highlight consumption guidance and management, and little attention has been given to income-based accounting and policy-making focused on primary input behaviors and product allocation behaviors. In the quest for more coordinated and efficient mitigation strategies, we applied input–output analysis (IOA) combined with the biproportional scaling method (RAS) to obtain both income- and consumption-based annual accounting of rural and urban household carbon emissions from 2010 to 2017 and then used structural decomposition analysis (SDA) to determine key driving factors and sectors. Our results revealed that the proportions of income-based household emissions in gross emissions were higher than that of consumption-based household emissions. In terms of driving factors, per capita income/consumption contributed the largest increase in household emissions for most of the period, and population changes also showed a weak positive effect. However, intermediate input/output structure and carbon emission intensity were the main offsetting factors for household emissions. Compared with the consumption-based results, the income-based results can identify some new critical sectors that lead to household emission changes. Furthermore, the discrepant results for rural and urban household carbon emissions from both income and consumption perspectives suggest that differentiated measures of rural and urban households in key sectors are necessary. Finally, we propose industrial chain adjustment strategies and household input and consumption behavior recommendations in the context of urbanization.

The impact of financial crises on the relationship between imports, exports, and consumption-based CO2 emissions: Do country income levels matter?

Unlike most extant research that uses production-based CO2 emissions to examine the links between exports/imports and CO2 emissions, in this paper we use consumption-based CO2 emissions to examine the impact of the 2008 global financial crises on the stated relationship for a select sample of countries arranged by income levels. Using the common correlated effects estimator methodology and annual data over the 1990–2019 period, we examine the impact of the 2008 crisis on the stated relationship for a group of high-income, upper middle-income, and lower middle-income countries. Our results suggest that the global financial crisis significantly altered the high-income and lower middle-income countries in terms of the relationship between exports and pollution. The crisis also impacted the lower middle-income countries in terms of the imports/pollution relationship. These findings suggest that a country’s income level is important when considering the relationship between exports/imports and pollution following a crisis.

Impact of circular measures to reduce urban CO2 emissions: An analysis of four case studies through a production- and consumption-based emission accounting method

Cities are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs), but they can play a significant role in climate change mitigation by adopting and implementing GHG emission reduction plans, policies and measures. Circular economy measures are recognized to contribute significantly to decarbonization. However, in the literature there is a lack of quantitative analyses on circular measures in cities and their impact on urban GHG emissions.The paper aims to contribute to the literature on the relation between circular cities and climate change mitigation by focusing on circular interventions applicable in three high-impact sectors in cities: energy systems, mobility and built environment, in order to investigate their impacts in terms of emission reductions and contribution to decarbonization. The study covers four cities around the world accounting for more than 10 million of inhabitants and 2,000 km2 of metropolitan area: Bogotá, Colombia; Genoa and Milan, Italy; Glasgow, UK. The methodology uses a Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) modelling approach to develop production and consumption-based emission baselines for the four cities and to assess impacts of selected circular measures in the three sectors on the baselines. According to the in-depth analysis of the four considered urban contexts, the majority of the emissions generated by activities carried out within the urban borders are emitted outside the borders in the form of emissions scope 3, thus demonstrating how today's cities are large consumers of goods produced outside their borders, requiring the use of a consumption-based approach for emissions inventory. The results on the modelling of the GHG reduction impact of circular measures show that there is a relevant emission reduction potential in Scope 1 and 2 emissions in cities and highlight the need to prioritize decarbonization of electricity supply in order to ensure relevant emission reductions across the three sectors. The results also demonstrate the potential to reduce supply-chain Scope 3 emissions through urban measures.

The statistical projection of global GHG emissions from a consumption perspective

Projections of future emissions based on current trends are vital to assess the performance of mitigation efforts and to devise mitigation strategies. However, previous studies are uncertain how the persistence and convergence of mitigation efforts may impact future trajectories from the consumption perspective. Here we assume regional convergence over time after finding strong supporting historical evidence and develop a Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) Bayesian analysis of historical and projected consumption-based emissions during 1995–2050 via a modified Kaya identity. We find global emissions of 21–94 GtCO 2 eq yr −1 by 2050, slightly higher than SSP1-2.6 and encompassing SSP3-7.0, resulting in 1.4–2.9 °C of warming above pre-industrial levels mid-way through the century. The median projection shows a 2028 peak of 42 GtCO 2 eq yr −1 and an annual average decrease of 0.25 GtCO 2 eq thereafter. Future emission decreases result from the interplay between a rapid reduction driven by decreasing consumption-based emission intensities, especially in clothing and transport, and the change of final demand structure (−1.53 GtCO 2 eq yr −1 ) against increases from economic and population growth (+1.33 GtCO 2 eq yr −1 ). This highlights the importance in continually updating projections and considering models that reflect convergence and consumption structure changes, in order to better inform climate policy.

Can U.S. multi-state climate mitigation agreements work? A perspective from embedded emission flows

Subnational and non-governmental actors are expected to provide important contributions to broader climate actions. A consistent and accurate quantification of their GHG emissions is an important prerequisite for the success of such efforts. However, emissions embodied in domestic and international supply chains, that can undermine the effectiveness of climate agreements, add challenges to the quantification of emissions originating from theconsumption of goods and services produced elsewhere. We examine emission transfers between the states that have joined the U.S. Climate Alliance (USCA) and others. Our results show that states pledging to curb emissions consistent with the Paris Agreement were responsible for approximately 40% of total U.S. territorial GHG emissions. However, when accounting for transferred emissions through international and interstate supply chains of the products they consume, the share of Alliance states increased to 52.4% of the national total GHG emissions. The consumption-based emissions for some Alliance states, such as Massachusetts and New York, could be more than 1.5 times higher than their production-based emissions. Our detailed sectoral analysis highlights the challenges facing such agreements to extend cooperation in the future for larger joint benefit given the potential for carbon leakage from member states implementing stricter environmental policies that could lead to higher emissions from non-member states. It is critical for these arrangements to pay close attention to transferred emissions.

Quantifying consumption-based carbon emissions of major economic sectors in Japan considering the global value chain

International trade accelerates the separation between consumption and production on a global scale, thus leading to carbon transfer. Consequently, carbon flow embodied in international trade reallocates global carbon emission responsibilities, consisting of domestic demand and imports but excluding exports. To tackle the geographic flow of emissions embodied in products and services, carbon emissions must be quantified according to the global value chains. Using Japan as a case study, this study tracked the evolution of consumption patterns, international trade, and related carbon emissions based on multi-regional input-output tables, and carbon emissions inventories. Carbon emission transfers among sectors and countries were identified from 2000 to 2014. As a result, imports from the industrial sector led to a gap between production- and consumption-based carbon emissions. Japan was found to be an emissions net import country over the study period, with about 58% of the total carbon emissions inflow coming from China. Moreover, household consumption accounted for nearly 60% of consumption-based emissions, with industrial sector products and services being the primary source of carbon inflow, and the service, transport, and industry sectors are responsible for the majority of domestically released emissions. These conclusions provide valuable information for Japan to customize sectoral carbon reduction priorities, an essential component of setting decarbonization goals from the consumer perspective.

Visualizing invisible NOx emissions and remodeling policy requirements within bidirectional supply-demand control

Substantial anthropogenic nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions have attracted public concern because of its negative impacts on human health and eco-environment and become one of the major air pollutants in China during 14th National Five-Year Plan (FYP). Existing studies have made great contributions to the end-of-pipe NOx treatment but the evaluations of “invisible” emissions due to primary supply and final demand embedded within the whole supply chain are incomplete and the corresponding mitigation mechanisms remain unknown. Under the background of synergistic control for greenhouse gases and air pollution, the comprehensive rather than unilateral NOx control measures are necessary for achieving the maximization of emission reduction benefits. In this study, the environmentally extended Leontief- and Ghosh-based input-output sub-models were constructed and weighted average structural decomposition analysis technique was incorporated into the model framework for quantifying and decomposing the both demand-driven and supply-push NOx emissions of the whole socioeconomic industrial system of China during 2007–2017. Here we show that the total NOx emissions over China presented inverted U-shaped trend with the change rates of 19.6% and 16.9% during 2007–2017, and over 40% and 70% of this are embedded within the intersectoral supply-push and demand-driven intersectoral NOx flows. Construction sector contributed more than average 35% of national consumption-based NOx emissions, which mainly attributed to high-NOx-intensive fixed capital formation. Meanwhile, comprehensive control is essential for heavy industry sector due to its high proportion of national NOx emissions under all of the three perspectives. Air pollution control is a vital but long-term project, the obtained results and policy implications of this study could not only promote the NOx emission reduction from supply-demand perspective, but also provide more holistic and insightful enlightenment for decision-makers to consider the air quality improvement strategies from a systemic and comprehensive perspective.

The Race to Zero Emissions in MINT Economies: Can Economic Growth, Renewable Energy and Disintegrated Trade Be the Path to Carbon Neutrality?

The current paper evaluates the role of disintegrated trade, financial development, and renewable energy on consumption-based carbon emissions (CCO2) in MINT nations between 1990Q1 and 2019Q4. This paper utilizes the novel Bootstrap Fourier Granger causality in quantiles (BFGC-Q) to evaluate this connection. This approach produces tail-causal and asymmetric causal connections between the indicators within the Fourier approximation, contrary to the Toda–Yamamoto causality and other conventional Granger tests. The outcomes uncover a unidirectional causality from economic growth and renewable energy to CCO2 emissions in each MINT nation. Moreover, unidirectional causality emerged from financial development to CCO2 for Indonesia, Nigeria, and Turkey. Moreover, exports have predictive power over CCO2 in Indonesia, Turkey, and Mexico, while imports only have predictive power over CCO2 emissions in Turkey. Lastly, financial development causes CCO2 in Indonesia, Nigeria, and Mexico. In summary, green energy and exports are essential factors that decrease CCO2 emissions and therefore decrease ecological deterioration in Mexico, Indonesia, and Turkey. On the flip side, imports only trigger CCO2 emissions in Turkey and Mexico. Lastly, the financial development effect on CCO2 emissions is positive in Mexico, Indonesia, and Nigeria, while an insignificant impact is found in Turkey. Based on these findings, policy ramifications are initiated.