Strategic Environmental Management Research Articles

Monitoring and Assessing (PM10 & PM2.5) Particulate Matters within Federal University Otuoke amidst Seasonal Variation of Relative Humidity

This study examines the seasonal variation of particulate matter (PM10; PM2.5) concentrations within Federal University Otuoke, Nigeria. The study is premised on monitoring and assessing PM10 and PM2.5 in the environment of the university. Dustmate and Kane 100-1 and 3.5.1 RS-1361C-Humidity/Temperature meter were used in sampling between the hours of 8am to 5pm per day in five day per week for a period of 6month which covers both the rainy and dry season. The sampled concentration of PM10 and PM 2.5 obtained was compared with the guidelines of “The National Ambient Air Quality Standard” established by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for compliance and regulation. Descriptive statistically methods were used in data analysis. The Results revealed that the averages PM10 are 116.71 µg/m3 and 107.25 µg/m3, while PM 2.5 records as 27.52 µg/m3 and 32.21 µg/m3 respectively. Relative humidity was also recorded 55.53 µg/m3 and 73.74 µg/m3. Similarly the results in both seasons shows the total average of PM10 as 100.19 µg/m3 and 110.07 µg/m3, PM 2.5 records 23.88 µg/m3 and 23.37 µg/m3 while relative humidity records 55.78 µg/m3 and 68.18 µg/m3 respectively. These were significantly influenced by the relative humidity of the environment of Federal University Otuoke. The study concludes that the seasonal variation of the relative humidity has an effect on the PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations and consequently the air quality of the university, hence further research into methods that will reduce particulate matter, as well as strategic environmental management policies within the university and beyond is recommended.

Effects of sediment-storage dams on suspended sediment transport in the Sera Lake Watershed, northeast Turkey

In this study, the effects of cascade sediment-storage dams (SSDs) on the suspended sediment (SS) transport in the Sera Lake Watershed (northeast Turkey) were investigated. Ten SS monitoring stations from upstream (S01) to downstream (S10) were selected for the study considering the locations of the SSDs and Sera Lake. In a gauging station, where S05 was selected, the water stage monitoring studies were also conducted, and daily discharges and SS loads were computed. The Spearman correlation coefficient between SS and discharges data was computed as 0.592. The deterioration of the naturalness of the watershed with external interventions was effective on this value. While the Sera Lake trapped 33% of the SS transport, this value varied between –25.8 and 44% for SSDs. Although the SSDs have been proportionately succeed in trapping the SS, they have been insufficient in preventing sedimentation and problems caused by sediment transport in the watershed. In addition, the annual average soil erosion amount was determined by the revised universal soil loss equation (RUSLE) method in the watershed. According to the RUSLE method, the annual average soil loss of the watershed is 1.65 tons/ha. The SDR value of the watershed was calculated as 0.104. Integrating different environmental management tools to achieve a balanced and sustainable decision, a strategic environmental management plan should be constituted.

Effects of urban vegetation on PM mitigation: The case of a street in Novi Sad, Serbia

Experiencing rapid development and growth, cities worldwide face a surge in air pollution, primarily driven by the increased concentrations of the particulate matter (PM) originating from various anthropogenic sources, such as traffic, household fuel combustion, and industrial and construction activities. Urban green spaces can naturally filter PM through physicochemical processes, serving as effective urban planning instruments for the improvement of the air quality. Focusing on a street in Novi Sad, the second-largest city in Serbia, this study investigates the efficiency of vegetation in mitigating air pollution, specifically PM10 emissions from traffic and construction activities. Using the contemporary monitoring and modelling techniques for measuring and predicting PM10 concentrations, the focus of this research is to evaluate the efficacy of vegetation in affecting and minimizing detected PM concentrations. The results indicate a significant reduction in the monitored PM10 concentrations behind the green barrier compared to the modelled concentrations near the pollution source (on the road) for both traffic and construction-related emissions. The paper highlights the capacity of green elements to act as natural air pollution mitigators and suggests better integration of strategic environmental management into urban planning to foster the development of healthier and more sustainable cities, providing recommendations to facilitate this objective.

Understanding Strategic Environmental Management Response to the Sustainability Challenges: A Case of Electronic Waste Management

Understanding Strategic Environmental Management Response to the Sustainability Challenges: A Case of Electronic Waste Management

The direct and interacting effects of strategic environmental management and socially responsible practices on new product advantage

A substantial body of literature has shown the relationship between corporate sustainability (CS) and firm performance, but the effects of individual CS practices on new product advantage (NPA) remain ambiguous. Drawing on stakeholder theory and relevant CS literature, the purpose of this study is to investigate the direct and interacting effects on NPA of four CS practices, namely, strategic environmental management (SEM), CS management control, safety climate, and community relationship management. Our study method involved a multi-respondent questionnaire survey of 198 Chinese manufacturers, and we statistically verified the survey data to test the research model with three hypotheses. The findings of this study show that all CS practices can directly improve NPA. We found that, in affecting NPA, SEM interacts positively with CS management control, negatively with community relationship management, and not at all with safety climate. Our findings provide new evidence to prioritize and balance the efforts of CS practices on new product performance. They also primarily clarify the conflicting or unclear relationships among the four CS practices for new product development (NPD).

Institutional Pressures and Sustainable Business Practices: A Case of Strategic Environmental Management

Sustainability and environmental conservation have become key concerns for the developing and developed world, prompting firms to embrace sustainable business practices. The recent decade has witnessed a rise in environmental sustainability consciousness, with businesses and legislators incorporating environmental aspects into their strategic planning and practices. Strategic environmental management emphasizes the implementation of environmental management strategies through the incorporation of environmental concerns into business plans and decisions. This study proposes to investigate the isomorphic pressures that influence organizational behaviour and the significant determinants for addressing sustainable business practices. The qualitative research design is adopted and data is primarily collected through semi-structured interviews. The findings of this study from four significant service sectors highlighted various certifications, business requirements, corporate image and corporate social responsibility as the driving forces behind strategic environmental management. Legislations from government the appeared as the most influential factor to assume responsibility for the environment and society by the firms.

Determinants of corporate climate change disclosure: Is the mediating role of corporate strategic response to environmental governance and policy matter? Evidence from emerging market

AbstractWe examine the determinants and the mediating role of corporate strategic response to environmental governance and policy (EGP) with the extent of corporate climate change disclosure (CCD) through the isomorphic pressures. We collect data from annual reports of Bangladeshi listed manufacturing corporations and we analyze data via partial least square‐structural equation modeling (PLS‐SEM). Our study findings indicate that board specialty in terms of independent directorship, board human capital reflected by education, and experience, as well as the corporate values include corporate convictions and commitments reflected by vision, mission, core objectives have significant and positive relationships with CCD. The EGP also mediates the abovementioned relationships. Furthermore, the EGP mediates the relationship between corporate attributes (total assets, ROA, ROE, leverage) and CCD. Our findings suggest that when corporations strategically response to environmental issues by putting in place environmental‐related governance and policy, factors such as corporate attributes, board specialty, and corporate values play stronger role in promoting corporate climate change disclosure in developing economies like Bangladesh. Our results offer implications to policymakers, governmental units, professional bodies, social catalysts, and industry practitioners, on their important role in promoting sustainable development by encouraging corporations to manage their environmental issues strategically via corporate governance, strategic environmental management and climate change disclosure.

Environmental Management Control Systems and Environmental Performance: Direct and Indirect Effect

Purpose: This study aims to examine the effect of environmental management control systems on environmental performance. Testing is carried out directly or through the environmental strategy mediation role. Theoretical framework: In contrast to previous studies, this research focuses on managerial activity processes that enable, encourage, ensure how a company and facilitate practices that achieve environmental performance and strategies to achieve it. The research model is built on the basis of stakeholder theory and contingency theory. Design/methodology/approach: The research was conducted through an online survey of hotel managers in Makassar City, Indonesia. Data analysis was performed by regression, path analysis and Sobel test. Findings: The results of the study prove that the environmental management control system has a positive and significant effect on environmental strategy and environmental performance. The Sobel test also proves that environmental strategy mediates the influence of environmental management control systems on environmental performance. Research, Practical & Social implications: This research covers hotels in Makassar, not all of them in Indonesia; therefore, generalizing the findings of this study should be exercised with caution. Secondly, this study assumes hotel homogeneity and does not consider hotel type. The findings of this study also provide recommendations on public policy and business practices to integrate environmental issues into managerial processes and decision-making as well as corporate control. Further research can expand this research by considering contextual and other contingency aspects. In addition, future research may use a larger sample and longitudinal data which allows to investigate changes in strategic environmental management control system policies over time. Originality/value: Improvements in research on environmental management control systems have become a very important issue in supporting the themes of sustainability in business practices globally. The originality of this research focuses on managerial processes to support sustainability practices in business, especially business practices in hotels.

DOES CARBON EMISSION, ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND INCOME MATTER? INVESTIGATING FACTORS AFFECTING HEALTHCARE EXPENDITURE AMONG 61 NATIONS

Empirical studies on the effects of carbon emissions on population health are still in their infancy and its true implications have not yet been fully understood. The purpose of this study is to conduct a comparative analysis on the relationship between carbon emissions, energy consumption, income and public healthcare expenditure in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and non-OECD countries. The empirical research employs the dynamic common correlated effects of mean group (DCCEMG) and two-stage least square estimators. The findings indicate that carbon emissions increase healthcare spending only in non-OECD countries. The relationship between energy consumption and health expenditure varies significantly between OECD and non-OECD countries. Income increases health expenditure; however, the correlation is more robust in the OECD than in non-OECD countries. As a result, the findings recommend that non-OECD governments implement strategic environmental management policies that prioritize clean and healthy air to reduce healthcare costs.

Coping with policy errors in an era of chronic socio-environmental crises

Since large-scale environmental disruptions have become chronic, policymakers need to consider the long-term consequences of urgent crisis decisions. We develop design principles for a decision platform addressing strategic environmental crisis management, by which we mean coordinated decisions during an environmental urgency that are sensitive to long-term path dependencies and policy errors. To enhance critical questioning of formal doctrines, the decision platform includes policymakers and sectoral experts as equal participants. The agenda for decisionmaking is structured around future scenarios to encourage the participants to imagine alternative ways of framing the decision problem. The agenda also discourages defensive heuristics with which decision-makers attempt to preserve their short-term reputation. The design principles for strategic environmental crisis management are based on urban experimentation. The barrier of implementation for similar experiments in other contexts is low because they assume no major overhaul in existing administration

Does Carbon Emissions, and Economic Expansion Induce Health Expenditure in China: Evidence for Sustainability Perspective

The current paper assesses the drivers of health care expenditure such as urbanization, natural resources, economic expansion, and CO2 utilizing quarterly data from 2000Q1 to 2018Q4. The research applied the novel dual adjustment approach to identify the long run association between healthcare expenditure and urbanization, economic growth, natural resource and CO2 emissions. The main novelty of the dual adjustment approach is that the approach offers another way to cointegration analysis by relaxing the implicit assumption of the singular adjustment in cointegration analysis. The outcome of the dual adjustment approach affirmed cointegration among the variables in the long run. Furthermore, we applied fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS), dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS) and canonical cointegrating regression (CCR) estimators and their results disclosed that economic growth, urbanization, and CO2 emissions increase health care expenditure while natural resource rent mitigates healthcare expenditure in China. Moreover, the spectral causality test uncovered that urbanization, economic growth, natural resource, and CO2 emissions can predict healthcare expenditure at various frequencies. Based on these findings, China’s policymakers should establish strategic environmental management policies that improve healthy and clean air to reduce healthcare costs. In addition, policymakers in China should reevaluate their urban development strategies to avoid negative externalities associated with fast urbanization.

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT FOR SUPERIOR ENVIRONMENTAL AND FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE IN MALAYSIAN MANUFACTURING FIRMS

The purpose of this research is to examine the association between strategic environmental management, i.e. environmental strategic focus, shared vision and financial performance in manufacturing companies. Data were collected from 124 Malaysian manufacturers with ISO 14001 EMS certification. Structural equation modelling analysis was carried out using SEM-PLS software Version 3.2.7. The findings indicated that environmental strategic focus had contributed positively to environmental performance. Likewise, environmental performance also affected the companies’ financial performance positively. On the contrary, environmental shared vision showed no effect on environmental performance. The results empirically endorsed the role of environmental strategic focus as the driver in improving environmental performance, and the role of environmental performance in driving superior financial performance. On the contrary, the study could not validate environmental shared vision as a driver of performance.

Strategic Environmental Planning for Deep Seabed Mining in the Area

Discussions approximately an environmental control method for deep seabed mining in the Area had been underway for some the years. Both states and scientists have known for such an environmental control method. In 2018, the International Seabed Authority has followed its first 5-year strategic plan, masking all elements of its mandate. This article examines the brand-new strategic plan integrates factors of an environmental control method and what is probably missing. It demonstrates that even as a few overlaps exist, there are numerous key gaps left via way of means of the modern strategic plan which will be stuffed via the way of means of an environmental control method. To operationalize those desires and objectives, development ought to be measurable; thus, objectives are set, reviews are assessed, and suitable responses are awarded. Many control equipment and toots are relevant for accomplishing environmental desires. To date, the ISA has taken into consideration marine spatial making plans in large part across the modern exploration settlement blocks. Other factors of environmental control, which include the necessities for baseline studies, effect assessment, post-effect tracking, and the remedy of dangerous consequences and extreme damage want to be carried out to assist well-described environmental desires and objectives. We advocate that this making plans be done for scales largethan man or woman blocks, through a Strategic Environmental Management Plan, to make certain sustainable use of ocean assets throughout the Area.

STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL RISK MANAGEMENT OF TRANSPORT ENTERPRISES

The article is devoted to the study of theoretical and methodological aspects of strategic risk management of environmental risks of the transport enterprise. The urgency of the issue is due to the acceleration of changes in the external environment of economic activity of transport enterprises, which determines the need for adjustments to the management system. Strategic environmental risk management is currently the main direction for its effective management. Statistical data on the number of enterprises in the transport industry, the introduction of new fixed assets, the financial result of enterprises are given. The prerequisites for improving the risk management system of the transport enterprise, which is currently defined as one of the main tools for sustainable development of the enterprise. The need to take into account the trends of changing the prerequisites for risk management, which leads to the transformation of the system of strategic management of economic activity of the transport company to ensure the implementation of projects. The diagram of environmental risks in the context of the foresight approach of risk management of a transport company is presented. The definition of environmental risk is proposed to be carried out on three «horizons»: operational; tactical and strategic. It is proposed to determine the probability of environmental risk and losses from its occurrence using the formula for calculating the mathematical expectation from the PERT (Program Evaluation and Research Task) system. Management must understand the probabilities of risk and the results of its impact on the enterprise, its projects. This approach will provide: an understanding of the trend of risk change and, accordingly, will develop the necessary measures to respond to it; adjustment of risk management policy taking into account forecast risk values; identification of long-term prospects for environmental risk management. Forecasting environmental risk at the operational, tactical and strategic levels is a necessary element of the risk management system of the transport company.

Role of uncertainties in protecting ecological resources during remediation and restoration

ABSTRACT Cleanup of contaminated waste sites is a National priority to protect human health and the environment, while restoring land to productive uses. While there are uncertainties with understanding risk to individuals from exposure, the aim of this study was to focus on uncertainties and complexities for ecological systems, complicated by hundreds of species occupying any remediation site which participate in multiple-interacting food webs. The ability to better predict the effectiveness of remediation in fostering future ecosystems might facilitate remedy selection and improve strategic environmental management. This investigation examined (1) uncertainties in ecosystem processes, (2) uncertainties in exposure from contamination before remediation, and (3) uncertainties during remediation. Two Department of Energy sites Hanford Site and Savannah River Site were used as case studies to illustrate how the uncertainties affect eco-receptors. Several types of ecological, physical, and human dimension uncertainties are defined. Ecological uncertainties include temporal, spatial, individual, developmental, and exogenous types. Physical uncertainties are weather-related, watershed variations, slope/aspect, soil/sediment structure and form, unforeseen events, and temporal patterns. Human dimension uncertainties include current land use, future land use, extractive and non-extractive recreation. The effects of remedial strategies varied between the two sites because Hanford is a primarily arid shrub-steppe ecotype, while Savannah River is a wet forest ecotype. Defining the associated ecological sensitivities and uncertainties and providing examples might help policy-makers, managers, planners, and contractors to be aware of issues to consider throughout planning, remediation, and restoration. Adding ecological uncertainty analysis to risk evaluations and remediation planning is analogous to using safety factors in human health risk assessment.

ЗЕЛЕНИЙ БАНКІНГ В УМОВАХ ДІДЖИТАЛІЗАЦІЇ

The article considers environmentally responsible green banking activity as a direction of sustainable development of the banking sector in the context of digitalization of the Ukrainian economy. The article reveals the content of the concept of green banking and sustainable development, defines the features of implementing sustainable development strategies in banking institutions. In particular, the main Green Environmental Services implemented by commercial banks in Ukraine are considered. Four stages on the way to the sustainability of financial activities of banking institutions have been identified. Four stages on the way to ensuring the sustainability of financial activities of banking institutions have been identified. The first stage is the protective phase of basic environmental risk management, when broader sustainability issues are ignored. The second is the reactive phase, where more systematic management of environmental and social risk is carried out. The third more active or offensive phase, in which strategic environmental and social risk management is carried out and even. The Ultimate banking sustainability phase, where the triple approach (people, planet and prosperity) is integrated into the bank’s core business strategy and is no longer limited to risk avoidance, but is now seen as a potential part of every type of financial risk management and decisionmaking processes. To determine the strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats, a SWOT analysis of the introduction of green banking in banking institutions of Ukraine in the context of digitalization was conducted. Three main components of the green banking strategy in Ukrainian banking institutions have been identified. These include: managing environmental risks, creating a so-called Green Office, developing and promoting environmentally friendly services and products through digitalization of the economy. A detailed review of Green Environmental Services, which can be implementation for the transition to environmental friendliness in the banking sector. The role of the banking sector in the development of green banking in the context of digitalization is determined. It is proved that green banking in this financial world is a new development and an active way to achieve sustainability in the future. Banks in Ukraine are quite far behind their counterparts in the developed economy. But banks that try to clarify the green color and use green financing tools in their activities have chances.

Strategic Environmental Assessment of the Territory as a Public Management Instruments for Technological Development. A Case of Ukraine

Abstract The study aims to substantiate theoretical and methodological aspects of the use of strategic environmental assessment as an instrument for public regulation of the ecological status of territories. The research methodology is based on using a systematic approach for conducting a strategic environmental assessment of the possibility of environmental problems and threats posed by the implementation of long-term projects and current activities. The development of ecological balance, comparison of the results of normative and exploratory forecasts of the state of the environment become the basis for the formation of goals of strategic environmental management, the appearance of a set of measures for the conservation and restoration of natural resources. Identification of factors influencing the state of the environment is a necessary condition for the prevention of pollution of territories, inefficient use of natural resources, justification of the essential measures of state regulation to ensure the achievement of goals. The practical experience of assessing the achievements in the management of the conditions of the environment is illustrated by the example of regions of Ukraine. The proposed approach to the development of the ecological balance and the methodology of complex assessment of the ecological status of the territory have scientific novelty and contribute to the assessment of the effectiveness of public administration balanced development of the territories.

Exploring Environmental Supply Chain Innovation in M&A

Organisations are challenged with executing innovation for sustainable development within the context of their operations and value networks—networks which are increasingly fuelled by mergers and acquisitions (M&As), and which accounted for USD 4 trillion in global deal value in 2019. While outcomes from M&As may produce mixed results, merger synergies fundamentally change the environmental, social and governance (ESG) footprint of an organisation and its product-supply chain. These compounding challenges of innovation for sustainability and ESG product-supply chain due diligence are not adequately explored in the operations management literature or practically considered during M&As. In this article, we consider those factors that determine “how innovative is the deal?” and explore how environmental supply chain innovation for sustainability might inform M&As. A case study approach is adopted, drawing upon an exemplar deal within the global food product-supply chain for ingredient production, where high M&A deal-interest and ESG sustainability considerations exist. The theoretical lens is the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm. A deal analysis framework, integrating key concepts from strategic environmental supply chain management and the M&A process literature, is defined. These findings suggest that product design and technology selection factors represent sources of M&A value creation when exploring an innovation for sustainability deal thesis. The implication for firms with ambitious environmental agendas or motives is that the M&A process needs to be reconfigured, such that product design and technology selection, currently secondary factors, are considered primary drivers. Together, these drivers form substantive strategic considerations and new merger motives of both theoretical and practical relevance, informing a new perspective of operations sustainability targeted M&A.

Implementing the Strategic Environmental Management Approach to Dams and Hydroelectric Power Plants for Optimizing Environmental Pollution Control Processes in the Utilizing Phase Using NEURO SOLUTIONS Software (Case study: The Dams of Siah Bisheh in Maza

Introduction: The purpose of the present applied research is to design a comprehensive, inclusive and flexible process for a suitable strategic planning based on effective factors and parameters.
 Materials and Methods: To this end, strategic operational programs for controlling environmental pollutants were identified using the logic and algorithm applied in the artificial neural network model and Neuro Solutions software, prioritizing the weight of the programs and predicting the probable future ecosystem conditions. The Delphi approach was used to screen and perform pairwise comparisons of criteria factors, sub-criteria and strategic action plans. The SWOT matrix technique was implemented to control environmental pollutants. Then, in the fuzzy neural network, Neuro Solutions software was used to prioritize weighting and predicting future probable conditions to form the matrices of decision as entrance ANN model was used.
 Results: The output of the implementation of the Neuro Solutions software shows that the strategic action plan has developed a comprehensive and integrated landscape system consistent with the nature of the forest, mountain and valley of the Siah Bisheh with a score of weighing 0.6161 in the first priority and last priority (12th rank) which are subject to periodic audits. The environment has been allocated to increase the ecosystem's ability to return in the face of natural and human hazards with an odd weight of 0.5673.
 Conclusion: Based on this fact, among the studied indices, economic, social and cultural factors ranked first among the criteria studied, and tourism ranked first among the sub criteria of the study.

Modeling of environmental aspects related to reverse osmosis desalination supply chain

Background: This study aimed to model optimization of strategic environmental management decisions in the operation of reverse osmosis desalination, emphasizing the costs required for the environmental protection during the production of freshwater using reverse osmosis technology. Methods: This analytical research was conducted in five cities of Hormozgan province in Iran for 18 months from February 2018 to September 2019. The research includes eight phases of defining the research problem, data collection, preliminary data analysis and decision criteria, mathematical modeling, model validation, information preparation, analysis and finally discussion, conclusions and suggestions. The main environmental issues were the carbon dioxide (CO2 ) release rate due to power demand and rejected brine water (RBW) were entered the mathematical model. Results: The desalination plants of Abu Musa, Bandar Abbas, Qeshm, Sirik, and Hormoz with water production flow rate of 2100, 89 000, 5300, 3300 and 1500 m3 /d can generate 2360.82, 100053.80, 5958.260, 3709.86 and 1686.30 tons/year of CO2 emissions respectively. This output requires 1.35, 57.47, 3.42, 2.13 and 0.97 million USD for controlling the process, respectively. For reduction of the negative effect of RBW 0.75, 22.79, 1.78, 1.15 and 0.55 million USD respectively, is needed. Conclusion: Recommendations for environmental impacts protection of RBW, for desalination capacity up to 50 000 m3 /d, are; (a) for desalination capacity up to 50 000 m3 /d; dilution the RBW using raw water before entering into the sea, (b) for capacity of 50 000-100 000 m3 /d; dispersing RBW in sea using diffuser, and (c) for capacity more than 100 000 m3 /d; hybrid water desalination plants and power plant. Application of power plant cooling water to dilute RBW may reduce cost.