Mandatory Targets Research Articles

Can China’s Energy Intensity Constraint Policy Promote Total Factor Energy Efficiency? Evidence from the Industrial Sector

As part of the country’s efforts to achieve green development, China implemented a mandatory energy intensity reduction target in its 11th “Five-Year Plan (FYP)” in 2006, and then began to roll out a series of relevant measures. However, existing studies have paid little attention to the actual effects of China’s energy intensity constraint policy (EICP). In this paper, using panel data from China’s 36 industrial sub-sectors covering the years from 2001 to 2014, we adopt the difference-in-differences (DID) method to investigate for the first time the EICP’s (marginal) effect on total factor energy efficiency growth (TFEEG). We also estimate the superposition effect caused by the introduction of a carbon intensity constraint policy (CICP) on TFEEG, through the difference-in-difference-in-differences (DDD) strategy. Finally, using counterfactual, re-grouping and quasi-DID analyses, we conduct a series of robustness tests of the empirical results. The results show that the TFEEG in China’s industrial sector experienced an overall declining trend between 2001 and 2014. The implementation of the EICP has had a significantly negative effect on the improvement of the TFEEG of sub-sectors with higher levels of energy intensity. After the implementation of the EICP, the TFEEG rate of these sub-sectors declined by 4.31%, compared to the rate of the other sub-sectors. The results of a series of robustness tests indicate that such a negative effect is credible. The marginal effect in the first two years after the implementation of the EICP was significantly negative, while the superposition effect of the introduction of a CICP on industrial TFEEG remained negative. Thus, the Chinese government should reinforce the implementation of energy-saving policies by introducing additional market-oriented auxiliary policies to propel the green development transformation of China’s industrial sector.

Evaluation of organ motion-based robust optimisation for VMAT planning for breast and internal mammary chain radiotherapy

AimsIn patients undergoing locoregional radiotherapy (RT) for breast cancer including the internal mammary chain (IMC), VMAT has been shown to be superior to tangential-field radiotherapy in terms of target coverage and minimising dose to heart and lungs. In this study we describe and validate organ motion-based robust optimisation for generating breast and locoregional lymph node VMAT plans that are robust to inter-fractional changes. Materials and methodsIn this retrospective study of five patients with left-sided breast cancer requiring locoregional breast radiotherapy including the IMC, non-robust plans were generated in the nominal scenario (planning-CT) and corresponding robust plans were created by optimising over a range of simulated CTs representing worst-case scenario shape changes to the breast. Both plans were re-calculated on CBCT images (n = 67) acquired prior to RT to generate estimates of delivered fractional dose. Plan robustness to inter-fractional changes was assessed in terms of the estimated target coverage and OAR dose. ResultsOrgan motion-based robust optimisation was able to generate clinically acceptable treatment plans in the nominal scenario on the planning CT with no significant differences to OAR dose between the robust and non-robust planning techniques. All plans (robust and non-robust) achieved the mandatory target coverage requirements. Estimates of delivered dose demonstrated a significant improvement in breast target coverage for the robust plans compared to non-robust plans. For the breast CTV, 92% of the robust plans achieved the optimal D98% > 95% clinical goal as compared to 71% of the non-robust plans (p < 0.01). 94% of robust plans achieved acceptable superficial breast coverage, as compared to 55% for the non-robust technique. ConclusionsOrgan motion-based robust optimisation VMAT is able to produce clinically acceptable organ-at-risk sparing plans for locoregional breast radiotherapy (including the IMC) that are robust to inter-fractional changes, therefore reducing the likelihood of reactive adaptive re-planning.

Do energy intensity targets matter for wind energy development? Identifying their heterogeneous effects in Chinese provinces with different wind resources

Setting energy intensity targets is an important policy instrument that addresses the shortage of energy resources and the increase of carbon emissions in China, but no study has empirically investigated the effects of energy intensity targets on renewable energy development. Based on panel data of Chinese provinces from 2001 to 2014, in this study a novel difference-in-difference design is applied to identify the causal relationship between energy intensity targets and wind energy generation capacities. The results show that mandatory energy intensity targets can drive provinces to develop renewable wind energy. The incentive effects of energy intensity targets on wind energy development are also significantly stronger for provinces with higher levels of wind resources than provinces with lower levels. These results are robust to a test set that reveals a positive moderating effect of energy intensity targets on the relationship between wind resources and wind energy generation capacities, based on alternative energy intensity target measures. The findings confirm that China’s target responsibility system can play an important role in promoting renewable energy development.

Editorial and News

Editorial and News

Indicators of environmental performance to assess wood-based bioenergy production: A case study in Northern Italy

Increased environmental concerns, mainly related to fossil fuels consumption and global climate change, have drawn the attention to the dependence of human society on energy supply. As a consequence of EU Directives setting mandatory renewable energy targets up to 2020, member states are boosting renewable energy and bioenergy production. The use of wood biomass for bioenergy production can entail important benefits, including improved energy security due to a smaller dependence on fossil fuel supply, mitigation of climate impact, and revitalization of rural economies connected to new job opportunities. Nevertheless, bioenergy production also involves environmental and socio-economic concerns. The environmental, economic, and social sustainability of bioenergy production needs to be assessed through a set of multicriteria indicators. In this study, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was used to explore the environmental performance of bioenergy production in an Alpine area of Northern Italy. In particular, the environmental impacts of a wood-based bioenergy plant utilizing local residues from wood industries and forestry operations were investigated. The amount of CO2-eq emissions (0.25 kg CO2-eq kWh−1) and the fossil demand (0.09 kg oil-eq kWh−1) calculated for the investigated bioenergy plant resulted lower than the values characterizing fossil fuels-based power plants. Yet, the environmental performance of the investigated bioenergy plant was affected by the consumption of methane, still used in the plant to cover peak loads. The results showed that the use of local wood biomass in the investigated Alpine area is a desirable option for recycling wood residues while supporting heat and electricity production. The findings of this study can support local managers and policy makers committed to plan and implement renewable energy strategies and circular economy patterns. In addition, they can be useful to assess the potential upscale of this bioenergy option at regional and national level considering the availability of wood residues (from forestry and industrial sector) while verifying possible operational constraints at larger scales. Future studies could also integrate environmental accounting with other assessment methods exploring the economic profitability and social desirability of wood-based bioenergy production in mountain areas characterized by low population density and large forest cover.

Carbon Credit Management and Strategies to Combat GHGs Emission: An Overview of the Carbon Market

The climate of the earth is changing at a rapid rate and every one of us plays a key role in the form of the products we purchase, the electricity we use, the way manufacturing units produce toxic waste, releases carbon dioxide and other harmful GHGs which leads to global warming. It alsohas a serious impact on our environment and the economy that affects the future and the present generation. To combat the problem of an increase in the earth's climate UNFCCC embraces the Kyoto Protocol, which is a universal agreement between the countries, and commits them by setting up universally mandatory emission reduction targets. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the carbon market, its strategies, pricing, and trading mechanism especially in context to the EU ETS mechanism trading mechanism. It also helps us to understand how the problem of climate change can be resolved and allows nations to create good atmospheric conditions and utilize funds on renewable sources of energy to create win-win situation. This paper also focuses on carbon price influence in determining the business strategy.

The impact of CO2 mitigation policies on light vehicle fleet in Brazil

Transportation is the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the energy sector, which, in turn, is the largest contributor in Brazil. The way different policies mitigate CO2 emissions in the short, medium, and long-term is an ongoing research topic. Four potential policies for light vehicle fleet are investigated: (i) energy efficiency; (ii) modal change and regulatory management; (iii) renovation of the fleet; and (iv) biofuel increase. A system dynamics model is developed to estimate the delay in fleet turnover and its CO2 emissions change during the 1980–2050 period. The results indicate a rebound effect in the long-term when an objective of renovating the fleet is realized. Only if more stringent terms are considered will this policy contribute to further mitigate CO2 emissions in the long run. Results also demonstrate a longer-term perspective to energy efficiency and modal change policies, indicating the need for mandatory CO2 emission targets, unseen in the country at the present time. A biofuel increase strategy provides CO2 reduction in the short-term, and it is advisable this strategy be adopted alongside the other ones.

Outlook of the EU energy system up to 2050: The case of scenarios prepared for European Commission's “clean energy for all Europeans” package using the PRIMES model

This paper presents a set of scenarios quantified by the PRIMES energy systems model that have provided input to the Impact Assessment work accompanying the “Clean Energy for all Europeans” package, brought forward by the European Commission in November 2016. The mandatory targets proposed or reiterated in the policy package are for the year 2030, within a decarbonisation context; the horizon of the modelling exercise extends to 2050. The role of electricity is essential for the transition, with energy efficiency and renewable energy sources being central pillars. The ETS mechanism along with bottom-up policy measures deliver the significant GHG emissions reductions needed for the decarbonisation of the EU energy system. The model based analysis reveals a significant shift away from OPEX towards CAPEX, with moderate impact on energy prices in the medium term.

Impact of mandatory targets on PM2.5 concentration control in Chinese cities

Abstract China suffers from severe hazy conditions, and the central government has introduced a mandatory target responsibility system to curb haze pollution. It is of policy importance to explore whether the mandatory target responsibility system is effective at improving the performance of environmental governance in China. However, studies have tended to ignore the impact of mandatory targets on PM2.5 concentration control. To fill this gap, this study, based on a nationwide dataset of 267 Chinese cities, applies a novel two-stage regression approach to identify the causal relationship between mandatory targets and PM2.5 concentration reduction by solving the endogeneity bias. The results demonstrate that a 1% increase in mandatory PM2.5 performance targets helped reduce the annual average PM2.5 concentrations by 0.5283 μg/m3 on average after nearly 2 years of implementation. Moreover, the PM2.5 concentrations of Chinese cities showed strong positive spatial dependence, and when spatial dependence is controlled, the average marginal impact of mandatory targets on PM2.5 concentration reduction decreased to 0.1998 μg/m3. This research confirms the spatial agglomeration of PM2.5 concentrations across Chinese cities and highlights the effectiveness of the mandatory target responsibility system for the control of China's haze pollution.

Tracing social capital: How stakeholder group interactions shape agricultural water quality restoration in the Florida Everglades

Agricultural nonpoint source pollution remains a pressing environmental problem despite decades of policy and environmental initiatives. Cooperative local actions are a crucial element of effective multilevel governance solutions to such problems, but securing farmer participation for water quality protection remains challenging. Social capital—relations of trust, reciprocity, and shared social norms within and between key stakeholder groups—has been found to enable cooperation for environmentally desirable outcomes. However, the downsides of social capital remain under-examined in multilevel governance, where cooperation within one stakeholder group (bonding social capital) may undermine cooperation with other stakeholders (bridging social capital). Given this important gap, researchers need to examine how bonding and bridging social capital may be formed, maintained, or undermined through stakeholder interactions, and the corresponding environmental consequences.In this paper, we address these gaps through a case study of south Florida’s sugar-producing region, whose drainage water flows south into the Florida Everglades. In contrast to persistent water quality impairment elsewhere, Everglades water quality has improved steadily over the past 20 years. These improvements have taken place under a complex set of governance arrangements that established a mandatory long-term numeric water quality target but which relies on shared compliance among farms. These dynamics encouraged interactions among three key groups of stakeholders—farmers, agricultural extension agents, and state regulators—to implement management changes. Drawing on semi-structured interviews, we find that bonding social capital among farmers encourages them to improve their management through a sense of shared responsibility, while also potentially limiting restoration by maintaining perceptions that the regulations are unfair. Bridging social capital helps to legitimize new management efforts, while court-mandated water quality targets incentivize farmers to draw on multiple forms of social capital. We also discuss the relevance of this case for governing agricultural nonpoint source pollution in similar settings elsewhere.

Performance Ranking and Environmental Governance: An Empirical Study of the Mandatory Target System

With the deterioration of the environment across the globe, environmental problems have attracted much attention from the public, academia, and governments. This study contributes to the understanding of environmental policy implementation by empirically testing the policy feedback theory and official ranking tournament theory in the Chinese context. In particular, it focuses on how prior environmental performance ranking transitions into future policy performance through the mandatory target system (MTS) in China. The results from this study show that provincial environmental performance ranking serves as an effective incentive for strengthening environmental governance. Low‐ranking provinces will improve their environmental policy performances in future years because of competition in the official tournament. Policy implications are drawn to improve the administrative design of environmental management.

Heat metering reform: A multiple game analysis

Energy conservation and emission reduction is both a mandatory target and task at the current stage of China. In the reform of heat metering, the government, heating enterprise, real estate developer, and residents form a complex interest network. Using theory of games in the Thesis, by structuring multi-game model them, it is explored the game mechanism and objective demands of different interest subjects in reform of heat metering, and provided theoretical idea for promoting our country's reform of heating metering better.

Material footprint of a fast-industrializing region in China, Part 1: Exploring the materialization process of Liaoning Province

Liaoning Province is one of the most important industrial bases in China that is confronting the challenges of resource restriction during the rapid industrialization and urbanization process. To explore the materialization process on an economy, previous studies have focused on the Material Footprint (MF), a consumption-based indicator of resource use, at the national level, but few results are available at the subdivision level, especially in rapidly developing China. In this study, a Structural Decomposition Analysis (SDA) was conducted of the MF of Liaoning to understand the key drivers behind the consumption of raw materials. The results show that Liaoning’s MF more than tripled, with an average annual growth rate of 13.4%, rising from 534 Mt to 1880 Mt during 2002–2012. Among the four material categories, nonmetallic minerals dominated the MF by 55–77% and contributed 83.3% to the total increase. From a sectoral viewpoint, construction dominated the MF by 65–85% and accounted for 90.8% of growth. In addition, among the four categories of final demand, investment played a prominent role in the MF, which more than quadrupled from 414 Mt (77.5%) in 2002 to 1701 Mt (90.5%) in 2012. The SDA results show that per capita final demand level was the strongest contributor, and that production structure was another chief contributor. In contrast, the significant improvement in material intensity and final demand composition played an important role in dematerialization of Liaoning. Optimizing investment towards less material-intensive sectors and designing mandatory targets for non-energy resources should be given more importance.

Vergütung intensivmedizinischer Leistungen in Österreich

In Austria, the reimbursement of intensive care services is based on a Diagnosis-Related Groups (DRG) system which has been adapted to the Austrian framework conditions. Compared to Germany where economic considerations had led to personnel cuts, mandatory targets outlined in both the LKF ("Leistungsorientierte Krankenanstaltenfinanzierung", Performance-oriented Hospital Financing) and ÖSG ("Österreichischer Strukturplan Gesundheit", Austrian Health Care Structure Plan) plans ensure a high level of medical and intensive care. A clearly defined minimal nurse-to-bed ratio should ensure adequate care of critically ill patients. However, such a staffing ratio is still lacking for intensive care unit physicians. The following article is meant to outline the fundamental structures of the Austrian intensive care units and provide consideration about further optimization of intensive care medicine provided in Austria to ensure the high level of care in the future.

Biomethane: A Renewable Resource as Vehicle Fuel

The European Union (EU) has set a mandatory target for renewable fuels of 10% for each member state by 2020. Biomethane is a renewable energy representing an alternative to the use of fossil fuels in the transport sector. This resource is a solution to reach this target. Furthermore, it contributes to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, gives social benefits and increases the security supply. Sustainability is reached also when the economic opportunities are verified. This work studies the profitability of small plants of biomethane, which is sold as vehicle fuel using the Net Present Value (NPV) and Discounted Payback Time (DPBT). The paper shows in detail the method used for the economic assessment of two typologies of feedstock recovered: (i) municipal solid waste and (ii) agricultural waste. Detailed information about the various parameters that affect the profitability of biomethane is given, and several case studies are analyzed as a function of two variables: subsidies and selling price. The results support the commercialization of small-scale plants, reducing also several environmental issues. The role of subsidies is strategic, and the profitability is verified only in some case studies

Prioritization methodology for the determination of national targets

National level planning documents have different goals, targets and indicators. Introduction of EU level policies require mandatory targets for climate change, energy efficiency, renewable energy and others. Sometimes the goals may be contradictive and decision makers may need to prioritize them. Prioritization methodology based on multi-criteria analysis TOPSIS method is presented in this article with the analysis example on conflicting agricultural and climate goals. This methodology may be combined with other approaches including modeling.

Urban responses to restrictive conservation policy during drought

AbstractWith climate change, the extent, severity, and frequency of droughts around the world are expected to increase. This study analyzed the ability of water districts to meet mandatory urban water conservation targets, which are a common policy response to drought. During California's recent record‐breaking drought, a 25% state‐wide use reduction objective was set and met. However, only 50% of urban water districts analyzed in this study reached their individual conservation target, which offers an opportunity to evaluate the factors associated with successful water use reduction. The findings show that the inclusion of water districts in the polycentric import structure may improve water conservation, but that source diversity may offer water districts a perceived buffer from the need for immediate water use reductions. Drought severity and lower median incomes are associated with greater water conservation, and conservation varies by hydrologic region. This analysis offers insights into institutional design and suggests that local biophysical and economic conditions shape responses in systematic ways that should be addressed by public policy responses to drought.

Time to cranial computerised tomography for acute traumatic brain injury in paediatric patients: Effect of the shorter stays in emergency departments target in New Zealand.

Timely access to computerised tomography (CT) for acute traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) facilitates rapid diagnosis and surgical intervention. In 2009, New Zealand introduced a mandatory target for emergency department (ED) stay such that 95% of patients should leave ED within 6 h of arrival. This study investigated whether this target influenced the timeliness of cranial CT scanning in children who presented to ED with acute TBI. We retrospectively reviewed a random sample of charts of children <15 years with acute TBI from 2006 to 2012. Cases were identified using International Classification of Disease 10 codes consistent with TBI. General linear models investigated changes in time to CT and other indicators before and after the shorter stays in ED target was introduced in 2009. Among the 190 cases eligible for study (n = 91 pre-target and n = 99 post-target), no significant difference was found in time to CT scan pre- and post-target: least squares mean (LSM) with 95% confidence interval = 68 (56-81) versus 65 (53-78) min, respectively, P = 0.66. Time to neurosurgery (LSM 8.7 (5-15) vs. 5.1 (2.6-9.9) h, P = 0.19, or hospital length of stay (LSM: 4.9 (3.9-6.3) vs. 5.2 (4.1-6.7) days, P = 0.69) did not change significantly. However, ED length of stay decreased by 45 min in the post-target period (LSM = 211 (187-238) vs. 166 (98-160) min, P = 0.006). Implementation of the shorter stays in ED target was not associated with a change in the time to CT for children presenting with acute TBI, but an overall reduction in the time spent in ED was apparent.

Efficiency & Sustainability Model to Design and Manage Two-stage Logistic Networks

The distribution and storage efficiency together with the environmental sustainability are mandatory targets to consider when designing and managing modern supply chain (SC) networks. The current literature continuously looks for quantitative multi-perspective strategies and models, including and best balancing such issues that often diverge.This paper presents and applies a bi-objective optimization model to best design and manage two-stage logistic networks looking for the best trade-off between the SC stock level and the building and distribution environmental impact. The existence of good balance confirms the possibility to reduce the average SC stock level without a relevant increase of the emissions due to frequent replenishments.

Function integration concept design applied on CFRP cross leaf spring suspension

In automotive systems, lightweight design is nowadays a mandatory target. Suspension systems, which are a safety system and contribute to overall vehicle performance (dynamic, comfort, noise and vibration, etc…), are one of the most complex systems in which to achieve lightweight targets. This paper discusses the development of a CFRP Cross Leaf Spring Prototype (TRL 6). The entire workflow, starting from kinematic design, multibody vehicle dynamics analysis, finite element method (FEM) structural analysis, prototype construction, testing and correlations is shown. Also studied in this project is the integration and applications of advanced continuous fibre reinforced thermoplastic polymer (CFRTP). This system, in comparison to traditional solutions, could guarantee: around 75% weight savings, suspension component optimisation, an optimisation of the suspension volume (resulting in more space for vehicle occupants), easy integration of advanced process using CFRTP, and a sustainable cost solution.