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‘Carbon footprinting’: Towards a universally accepted definition
Carbon Management
Abstract
As the threat of climate change becomes more acute, so does the need for adequate measures of impact(s), management and mitigation. Although carbon footprints are increasingly being used by organizations in the public and private sectors, a number of challenges and questions need to be addressed; among them, what does the term 'carbon footprint' actually mean? The term needs a universally accepted definition before a consistent, accurate, comparable and transferable methodology can be developed. This article investigates the range of current definitions proposed for a carbon footprint in the context of inventoried emissions, applications, boundaries and limitations. We argue that to only account for CO2 emissions would result in the omission of almost a third of GHGs and a significant gap in their global management, whilst inclusion of all GHGs is very time-consuming and expensive, and should be considered only in system-specific life cycle-based assessments; this requires a separate definition, name and methodology. We suggest that as data collection for CO2 and CH4 emissions is relatively straightforward, these two carbon-based gases should be used in the determination of a carbon footprint. This should allow the carbon footprint to become a cost-effective, practical and repeatable metric that can be adopted by all types of organizations across the globe as a 'baseline' indicator. However, it is likely that a more comprehensive metric will be required in some circumstances and by some organizations, so we also propose further GHG inclusion for full life cycle assessment-based assessments; where complete data is obtainable it can be used to provide a 'climate footprint'. This name reflects the addition of noncarbon-based gases and encompasses the full range of gases used in the global political community's response in managing climate change. We conclude by considering lessons learnt with the proposal of sound and pragmatic definitions.
... In addition, in the vast majority of estimates of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, made so far, the indicator of the 'Carbon Footprint' or CF (Carbon Footprint) stands out (Weidema et al., 2008;Rugani et al, 2013;Venkat, 2012;Vasquez-Rowe et al., 2013;Marras et al., 2015), which uses the unit of measurement 'kg CO2-Eq' and which is essentially calculated via the environmental equivalents defined in EcoInvent (Frischknecht et al., 2004). It is the unit that has been assumed to be a convenient metric Wright et al., 2014;Marras et al., 2015;Navarro et al., 2017;Jradi et al., 2018) for estimating the 'ecological footprint' implicated in LCAs in general and where the Wine LCA is included. The assiduous use of that indicator (CF), linked to the measurement unit (kg CO2-Eq), meets a curious assumption, more linked to mass marketing, made by Weidema et al. (2008), who points out that "The carbon footprint, more than any other concept, has been able to capture the attention of the public". ...
... On the other hand, it is noted that the 'Carbon Footprint' of the 'viticulture' phase appears with relative values of its importance in the 'LCA of Wine' that vary between 16% and 40% of the total impact Another limitation noted, points out that in the approaches to the economic dimension, the cost and income of grape production still do not appear contemplated in order to confront the environmental impact Valero et al., 2019). ...
... These differences, reinforce the researchers, indicate the uncertainty associated with the agricultural crop factors already mentioned above and that may be determinants for the evaluation of the phase under study(Ferrara et De Feo, 2018;Beauchet et al., 2018;Renaud-Gentié et al., 2019). However, the analysis through 'CF'Wright et al., 2014), of course, is only intended to determine the environmental dimension. ...
Literature on the relationship of economic with environmental and social factors of grape production is very scarce. The analysis through the 'Carbon Footprint' has been corresponding to the environmental dimension, while the economic and social pillars have emerged in a market-oriented logic and strategies potentially influencing consumer behavior, making it necessary to analyze their interactions from a perspective of balancing the dimensions that integrate the sustainability of production systems. This is the objective of this work, applied to a wine-growing farm in Douro Demarcated Region (RDD), measuring the economic and environmental inputs and outputs in the viticulture phase, from 'Pruning to the Harvest', in a period of 5 campaigns (2015-16 to 2019-20). Operational activity was analyzed and recorded, field notebooks and operational accounting data of the holding were consulted to determine production volumes, costs and profit of the campaigns. The environmental impact was calculated from the AgriBalyse database, available at OpenLCA, using the functional unit 'kg of grapes'. The economic impact was calculated using the actual market values paid by inputs and received each year for the harvested grapes. The results are expressed in the functional units 'kg of grapes' and 'hectare'. The main results point to i) 'manual work' as the highest cost factor, weighing 52.7% of the total, followed by 'mechanical traction' (without fuel) with 17.8% and 'phytopharmaceutical products' with 9.3%; ii) the factor with the greatest environmental impact (CO2-Eq) is 'fuel', representing more than 65% of the total. In the years under evaluation, there is a low positive average profitability but very influenced by agricultural subsidies. The conclusions obtained suggest the need for environmental assessment of 'manual work' to be able to understand the true relationship of forces of its impacts with other factors of production.
... The first type includes lifestyle choices, such as selecting a renewable energy provider, changing diet to be more plant-based, choosing public transport or cycling instead of a motor vehicle, and more sustainable shopping (buying fewer new clothes, buying second-hand). These types of behavior can be measured as individual carbon footprints (Wright et al., 2014), defined as "a measure of the total amount of CO 2 and CH 4 emissions of a defined population, system or activity, considering all relevant sources, sinks and storage within the spatial and temporal boundary of the population, system or activity of interest" (Wright et al., 2014). Collective action takes various forms of exerting pressure on authorities and organizations to implement climate policies and may include participating in neighbourhood-based climate protection initiatives, engaging with climate activist groups, signing petitions, voting, or discussing climate policies with friends and neighbors. ...
... The first type includes lifestyle choices, such as selecting a renewable energy provider, changing diet to be more plant-based, choosing public transport or cycling instead of a motor vehicle, and more sustainable shopping (buying fewer new clothes, buying second-hand). These types of behavior can be measured as individual carbon footprints (Wright et al., 2014), defined as "a measure of the total amount of CO 2 and CH 4 emissions of a defined population, system or activity, considering all relevant sources, sinks and storage within the spatial and temporal boundary of the population, system or activity of interest" (Wright et al., 2014). Collective action takes various forms of exerting pressure on authorities and organizations to implement climate policies and may include participating in neighbourhood-based climate protection initiatives, engaging with climate activist groups, signing petitions, voting, or discussing climate policies with friends and neighbors. ...
This study explores the impact of embodied experiences in Virtual Reality (VR) on individuals' attitudes and behavior towards climate change. A total of 41 participants were divided into two groups: an embodied group that interacted with a virtual environment through full-body avatars, and a non-embodied group that observed the scenarios from an invisible observer's point of view. The VR experience simulated the progressive consequences of climate change across three generations within a family, aiming to make the abstract and relatively distant concept of climate change a tangible and personal issue. The final scene presented an optimistic scenario of a future where humans had successfully combated climate change through collective action. The evidence suggests that there is an effect of the scenario on the carbon footprint response, even 6 weeks after the VR exposure, irrespective of condition. Additionally, increases were found in participants' perceived influence on climate action and engagement in pro-environmental behaviors, with the embodied group showing a more pronounced response in the short term. These findings suggest that immersive VR experiences that incorporate virtual embodiment can be an effective tool in enhancing awareness and motivating pro-environmental behavior by providing a powerful and personal perspective on the impacts of climate change.
... The most common metric used to assess carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions is the carbon footprint, which measures CO 2 released by the activities of an individual, an organization, a process, or a product, both directly and indirectly (Wiedmann and Minx, 2007). As this definition includes only CO 2 and omits other GHGs, some such as Wright et al. (2011) and Heinonen et al. (2020) have IJSHE 25,9 questioned that this could lead to deceptive and oversimplified results. Thus, the definition of carbon footprint should also include methane, nitrous oxide and certain synthetic chemicals that contribute to climate change. ...
... Regardless of this, emission reduction targets were less prevalent than carbon neutrality targets, with one-third of institutions having no environmental impact indicators other than the carbon footprint. As past research (Kiehle et al., 2023;Wright et al., 2011) and the results suggest that carbon footprint alone does not tell the full story of the sustainability of a HEI, increasingly including other indicators, such as the carbon handprint (Pajula et al., 2021) or climate footprint (Wiedmann and Minx, 2007) could help support stronger sustainability. ...
Purpose
Calculating an organization's carbon footprint is crucial for assessing and implementing emission reductions. Although Finnish higher education institutions (HEIs) aim for carbon neutrality by 2030, limited research exists on plans to reach a similar target in any country. This paper aims to address the shared and individual challenges Finnish HEIs have with carbon footprint calculations, reductions, resources and offsetting.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was targeted to sustainability experts in all 38 HEIs in Finland to identify key patterns and trends in the focus fields of the study. SWOT analysis was used to classify main strengths, opportunities, weaknesses and threats, based on which a series of policy recommendations was drafted.
Findings
Finnish HEIs are committed to carbon footprint tracking (97%, annually by 87%). The lack of standardization and the number of external stakeholders complicate accounting indirect emissions, impeding comparability and reliability. Only 39% had set separate emission reduction targets, suggesting a preference for carbon footprint over other environmental impact indicators. Insufficient monetary and human resources emerged in 23% of institutions, especially those smaller in size. Only 52% had clear offsetting plans, with shared concerns over trust and responsibility.
Originality/value
By including both research universities and universities of applied sciences, the findings provide an unprecedented outlook into the entire Finnish HEI sector. The policy recommendations guide HEIs both locally and globally on how to improve their transparency and scientific integrity, reflect on core successes and weaknesses and how they complete their objectives of education, research and social impact while promoting stronger sustainability.
... Другим хорошо развитым направлением исследований в обсуждаемой области является расчет углеродного следа (carbon footprint, в исходной терминологии), что связано, главным образом, с антропогенными источниками С-содержащих парниковых газов (ПГ) в произвольных масштабах. Согласно наиболее наукоемкому определению, это "общее количество выбросов диоксида углерода (CO 2 ) и метана (CH 4 ), вызванное определенной популяцией или деятельностью, с учетом всех соответствующих источников, поглощения и накопления в пространственных и временных границах этой популяции или деятельности" [36]. Однако, если речь идет об определенной территории, такие расчеты, основанные на антропогенных источниках, обычно не учитывают природную составляющую баланса ПГ. ...
... Для пересчета выбросов метана в СО 2 -эквивалент применяли коэффициент 25, соответствующий 100-летнему потенциалу глобального потепления, на основе рекомендаций [36], хотя в последнее время этот показатель считается недооцененным и по обновленным оценкам составляет 28 [19]. Этот коэффициент отражает существенно бóльшую поглощающую способность молекул метана в отношении инфракрасного излучения и большее время их жизни в атмосфере по сравнению с СО 2 . ...
A comprehensive study of the net carbon balance of Lgov administrative district (Kursk oblast) in the Chernozem zone of the European part of Russia is carried out. The data sources included field estimates of carbon dioxide and methane exchange between soil and atmosphere, above- and below-ground phytomass stocks, simulation models parameterized on these data, official statistical and meteorological information, and published scientific data. Watered filtration fields of waste disposal sites of sugar industry are responsible for 26% of CH4 emissions from the territory of the district, although they occupy only 0.04% of its area. The maximum of CO2 emission is found at volumetric soil moisture of 30%, whereas, with exceeding this value, methane emission begins to rise linearly, reaching a maximum on the open surface of water reservoirs, and among them – on watered filtration fields. Another significant local source of methane is compost storages (22%). However, water reservoirs and ponds are the largest source of CH4 (43%). Amongst the net sources of CO2 the combustion of fossil fuels by transport and agriculture machinery predominates (22.3%). In contrast to methane, which emission is mainly determined by powerful point sources, the input of net fluxes of CO2 positively correlates with their area. Currently observed low rate net CO2 flux in the district area (–6.4 g C m–2 per year), is decisively overlapped by local methane sources (+95 g C (CO2-eq.) m–2 per year). The influence of the types of land use and methods of calculation on the C-balance of the territory in study, and a way of its transformation into a carbon-neutral state are discussed.
... E1 refers to the ability to recycle and reuse the material [36]. E2 addresses the CO 2 material's emissions during its lifetime and is closely connected to the carbon footprint [36,47]. E3 concerns the total energy consumption of the material during its lifetime. ...
... E5 Carbon footprint is an index that compares the total amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) released in the atmosphere by a specific entity, activity, or product from production to final consumption and disposal. For other definitions see [47]. E6 refers to the ease of waste management after the end of a product's life [36,51,52]. ...
One of the primary contributors to energy consumption is the construction industry. To address the urgent demand for eco-friendly approaches in this field, this study conducted an investigation on Scopus and Web of Science databases to identify the criteria for selecting sustainable materials for façades. Three groups of criteria were derived after a systematic review: Environmental, Social/economic and Technical. The main goal of the research was to answer the question of whether there are differences in these materials’ selection between Turkey and European Union countries. After applying statistical tests, it was found that there are significant differences in selecting eco-friendly material only from the social/economic perspective. The most important sub-criterion is the economic cost. Comparisons with results from China and US confirm this finding.
... No obstante, diversos estudios subrayan la importancia de una definición precisa de la HC para que su estimación sea coherente y útil en la evaluación de emisiones, así como en la toma de decisiones orientadas a su reducción (Wright et al., 2011). Enríquez et al. (2020), señalan que el propósito de la HC es identificar puntos críticos de emisión, optimizar procesos productivos, ajustar insumos y mejorar prácticas en transporte, distribución y almacenamiento de productos. ...
p> Background . The carbon footprint (CF) quantifies the total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions generated by human activities. Reducing the CF of agricultural products is essential for mitigating global warming. Objective . To quantify the CF in organic shade-grown coffee production in two modalities: green coffee for export and ground, packaged coffee for the local market at Finca Triunfo Verde S.C., Chiapas, Mexico. Methodology . During the 2023–2024 production cycle, 458 plots across 32 communities in eight municipalities of the Sierra Madre de Chiapas were evaluated. GHG emissions were estimated according to IPCC guidelines and the PAS-2050 standard. Results . The average total CF was 0.909 kg CO₂e kg⁻¹ for export green coffee and 1.014 kg CO₂e kg⁻¹ for locally marketed coffee. The wet processing phase had the highest impact in both cases, primarily due to methane emissions from pulp decomposition (0.289 kg CO2e kg⁻¹) and nitrous oxide emissions from wastewater (0.266 kg CO2e kg⁻¹). Transportation contributed 0.238 kg CO2e kg⁻¹ for export coffee and 0.211 kg CO2e kg⁻¹ for local market coffee due to fuel consumption. Together, these activities accounted for 87.18% and 75.54% of the total CF for export and local market coffee, respectively. Implications . Optimizing coffee by-product management, adopting clean energy, and improving transportation efficiency could significantly reduce CF. Conclusion . Wet processing was the most significant impactful phase in both production modalities. Pulp decomposition contributed 31.77% to the CF of export coffee and 28.48% to local market coffee. Wastewater emissions represented 29.28% and 26.25%, respectively, while transportation represented 26.13% and 20.81% of the CF for export and local market coffee.</p
... The disclosure of one's carbon footprint to the public or to a third party is necessary in accordance with legal requirements, carbon trading, corporate social responsibility, or to enhance a brand's reputation. The carbon dioxide equivalent is determined by applying the applicable 100-year global warming potential ([GWP100] Wright, Kemp and Williams, 2011). The human-induced carbon sources and sinks are shown in figure 1. ...
It is clear how the global community is affected by global warming and climate change. The climate system is being impacted by excessive greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which is leading to global warming and climate change. Of all the greenhouse gases, carbon makes up the majority. In order to lessen global warming and climate change, this paper focuses on managing carbon emissions worldwide. The relevant papers were carefully chosen after a logical search of previous research on the subject was done in academic electronic databases. Additionally, the articles chosen from the search results were vetted, carefully examined, evaluated, and condensed. The outcome discusses carbon budgeting, carbon footprint, and carbon sequestration and capture. In summary, the significance of carbon as a greenhouse gas makes the carbon cycle an essential component of the climate system. Therefore, lowering the global carbon footprint-particularly through carbon sequestration-will lower the global carbon budget, which will lower the global temperature.
... It is all the more important because agriculture is a key sector for climate change mitigation (Steffen et al., 2015). Carbon footprint analysis serves as a relevant tool for this assessment (Wright et al., 2011). However, its use might overlook the adverse effects of examined processes on other environmental impacts. ...
... Similar concepts have emerged within the debate on climate change, giving rise to the concept of embodied carbon and related methodologies for carbon footprinting. 71,72 Only recently, however, have these questions assumed political and economic salience beyond the spheres of water and climate policy. As decarbonization policies are beginning to extend beyond power generation and transport to industrial production, the local availability of renewable energy resources is emerging as a tangible competitive advantage for attracting investment in climate-friendly industrial production. ...
... As public awareness of environmental issues and climate change has increased over the past ten years, the term "carbon footprint" has gained great importance. Today, the government, business community and the public frequently use this expression (Wright et al., 2011). It has recently been noted that carbon footprint is a contribution to climate change. ...
The research objective is to guess the carbon footprint value generated by civil electrical diesel generators (EDGs) in terms of carbon dioxide. This research evaluates the carbon footprint of electrical diesel generators in Baghdad throughout 2023. In this work, carbon footprint refers to the total CO2 generated by all EDGs. The total carbon footprint (CO2 generated) is 3454235.9 tons/year. The Al-Rusafa side has a larger number of EDGs than the Al-Karkh side. As a result, Al-Rusafa generates more electricity and CO2, producing 2,980.95 GWh/year and emitting 2,086,665.8 tons/year of CO2, compared to Al-Karkh, which generates 1,953.67 GWh/year and emits 1,367,570.1 tons/year of CO2. This is due to the larger population on the Al-Rusafa side compared to the Al-Karkh side. First Al-Sadr City and the Second Al-Sadr City sectors have the highest effective carbon footprint (effective CO2 generated) values, at 12460.19 tons/year km 2 and 13214.79 tons/year km 2 , respectively. While the lowest value for the effective carbon footprint in Al-Dora is 4011.236 tons/year km 2 .
... This concept aligns with climate objectives, particularly the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. The definition provided by Wright, Kemp, and Williams [18] , which focuses on carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and methane (CH4) emissions, informs contemporary approaches to carbon footprint assessment. The practice has garnered widespread attention from the public, mainly through educational initiatives and media coverage, making it an effective means of raising consumer awareness about environmental impacts. ...
This study investigates the adoption of carbon footprint tracking apps (CFAs) among Thai millennials, a critical element in addressing climate change. CFAs have yet to gain significant traction among users despite offering personalized missions. Employing an extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) framework, we examine factors influencing CFA adoption intentions based on a sample of 30 environmentally conscious Thai millennials. Our findings indicate that perceived ease of use and enjoyment are crucial drivers of CFA adoption. Trust significantly impacts perceived usefulness, while enjoyment influences perceived ease of use. The study underscores the importance of user experience (UX) and enjoyment in driving adoption, highlighting the need for intuitive interfaces and engaging features. This research provides comprehensive insights into CFA adoption in Thailand by integrating TAM with external trust and perceived enjoyment factors. These findings offer valuable guidance for app developers, policymakers, and marketers, emphasizing the critical role of user experience and fun in fostering widespread CFA adoption. We discuss implications for stakeholders and suggest directions for future research, including larger-scale studies and cross-cultural comparisons within Southeast Asia. This research contributes to SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production).
... Carbon footprint is derived as the GHG emissions measured in carbon equivalents (CE) resulting from the production of a specific product (Wright et al., 2011). For each product, CF is the sum of GHGs, which are emitted during production, use, and final disposal. ...
... In this study, the greenhouse gas emissions due to energy consumption of buildings were used to obtain science-based information about the environmental impact of the case study building, in terms of GHG emissions (kgCO 2eq ), according to the standard EN 15978:2011 [50]. GHG emissions were evaluated on the Kyoto basket gases weighted by their global warming potential (GWP) and aggregated to determine total GHG in terms of CO 2eq [51]. ...
One of the primary global objectives is to decrease building energy consumption to promote energy efficiency and environmental sustainability. The large-scale food retail trade sector accounts for over 15% of total primary energy consumption in Europe, posing a significant challenge to the transition towards green energy. This study proposes a simple method for energy efficiency, environmental sustainability, and cost-saving assessment and improvement in large-scale food retail trade buildings. It aims to analyze the energy and environmental performance of building–plant systems, establishing an interactive network to assess intervention potential for the energy transition. The investigation focuses on the proper selection and analysis of the benefits of retrofit solution implementation, emphasizing potential energy savings in current and future climate change scenarios. Dynamic simulation with the Building Energy Model (BEM) was used to evaluate the impacts of building–plant system retrofit solutions, such as high thermal insulation, photovoltaic (PV) panels, Light Emitting Diode (LED) installation, waste heat recovery, and improvement in refrigeration units. The results show a reduction in annual energy consumption for the PV panel installation by up to 29% and lighting systems with high-quality LED to 60%. Additionally, CO2 emissions can be decreased by up to 41% by combining these two strategies.
... Global warming is a result of greenhouse gas that accumulates in the atmosphere, absorbs, and re-emits heat. The term Carbon Footprint is defined as the total greenhouse gases (GHG) (carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), methane (CH 4 ), nitrous oxide (N 2 O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PCFs), sulphur hexafluoride (SF 6 ) and nitrogen trifluoride (NF 3 ) (Wright et al 2011)) emissions including the emissions caused by individual, events, organizations, services, places, or products and is expressed in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2 e). In accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP), an international standard for accounting and reporting emissions, emissions are classified according to their source into Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3. As a consequence of the organisation's activities, scope 1 represents direct emissions from within the organisational boundary, Scope 2 represents indirect emissions caused by electricity consumption and Scope 3 includes all indirect emissions caused by activities that are not directly within the organisational boundary. ...
As a result of the carbon-intensive nature of health care, hospital facilities are contributors to global warming. Health care’s contributions to global warming and greenhouse gas emissions include those associated with carbon emissions, energy consumption, pharmaceuticals, travel-related emissions and procurement. This article presents a review of environmental impact of different medical services. The published research articles focused on estimating the carbon footprint of healthcare services are investigated here. This review also discusses methods used for determining greenhouse gas emissions. Life cycle assessment and component analysis are the two most used methods for calculating emissions. This study also highlights the existing challenges related to estimation of carbon emission of different healthcare services and ways to overcome these challenges associated with carbon emission. The findings reveal substantial variability in carbon footprint estimates depending on region, settings, and usage patterns, with energy consumption identified as the primary source of greenhouse gas emissions. The review also addresses challenges in data availability, the accuracy of estimations, and the exclusion of critical factors like the environmental impact of medical equipment manufacturing. To mitigate healthcare’s carbon footprint, the study underscores the importance of transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy, minimizing unnecessary medical procedures, and promoting the use of reusable instruments. These insights are essential for developing more accurate and comprehensive strategies to reduce the carbon footprint of healthcare services globally.
... While the Carbon Footprint quantifies gas emissions from human activities causing climate change (Wiedmann & Minx, 2008;Aichele & Felbermayr, 2012;Wright et al., 2011;Durojaye et al., 2020;Chen et al., 2021), the UGF's primary objective is to visually depict the impact of geo-climatic factors on urban settlements. It serves as a reference for investigating how cities can simultaneously enhance their resilience. ...
Urban resilience is critical to allow cities to withstand the challenges of the 21st Century. One factor that is often overlooked in such assessments is the role of the subsurface. A novel methodology called the Urban Geo-climate Footprint (UGF) has been developed to classify cities quickly and comprehensively from geological and climatic perspectives. The method operates on the fundamental assumption that cities with similar geological-geographical settings will face similar challenges, due to both common geological issues and associated climate impacts. The UGF approach has been applied to 41 European cities in collaboration with 17 Geological Surveys of Europe, the results of the UGF analysis are presented along with a regional classification of the geological resilience indicators. The UGF tool provides a semi-quantitative representation of the pressures driven by geological and climatic complexity for the cities presented, providing for a first time such classification of the urban environment. The advantage of this methodology lies in increasing awareness among non-experts and decision-makers of the interplay between geological settings, climate change pressures, and anthropogenic activities. Furthermore, it facilitates the exchange best practices among city planners to increase resilience, supporting knowledge based decision making to promote actions and policies, that enhance geoscience-informed climate justice.
... In the realm of supply chain management, the carbon footprint stands out as a paramount concern, denoting the volume of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere due to human activities (Wright et al., 2011). Among all sectors contributing to this footprint, the transportation sector emerges as the most significant contributor. ...
In the contemporary digital age, the pressing issues of climate change and sustainability have gained heightened significance, demanding urgent attention to safeguard Earth's habitability for its 8 billion inhabitants. As per the findings of the Global Logistics Emissions Council (GLEC), freight transportation stands out as a substantial contributor, responsible for 36% of transport emissions and 23% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, ranking third in emission levels behind industry and buildings. Technology emerges as a crucial ally in both gauging and curbing carbon footprints. This paper delves into the advancements in the SAP Transportation Management (TM) realm, specifically focusing on sustainability efforts and carbon footprint reduction. The discussion centers on the end-to-end (E2E) stages of business processes within the SAP TM domain, with particular emphasis on carbon emissions calculation (Scope 1, 2, 3). Additionally, it explores the strategic significance of TM in footprint management through the optimization of transportation processes, provision of real-time visibility, ensuring adherence to regulations, and facilitating environmentally conscious decision-making, ultimately leading to substantial cost savings. By leveraging SAP TM's advanced algorithms and predictive analytics, companies can minimize empty miles, optimize route planning, and consolidate shipments, thereby reducing fuel consumption and emissions. Real-time visibility provided by SAP TM enables proactive monitoring of transportation activities, allowing organizations to promptly identify inefficiencies and implement corrective actions to minimize environmental impact. Furthermore, SAP TM facilitates environmentally conscious decision- making by considering sustainability factors alongside traditional metrics like cost and time. This holistic approach ensures that sustainability objectives are integrated into transportation planning and execution processes, driving towards a greener future while also achieving significant cost savings. The integration of SAP TM with carbon accounting tools further enhances transparency and accountability in tracking emissions, facilitating continuous improvement initiatives. Ultimately, this paper highlights the pivotal role of SAP TM in driving sustainable transportation practices and contributing to a greener future for businesses worldwide."
... The carbon footprint is a measure of the total amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) emissions of a specific population, system or activity, considering all relevant sources, sinks and reservoirs [WKW11]. To conduct the PCF within a company, ISO 14067:2018 sets out principles, requirements and guidelines for quantifying and reporting the carbon footprint of a product in a way that is consistent with the international standards for life cycle assessment (LCA) (ISO 14040 and ISO 14044) [IS18]. ...
Society and politics are increasingly demanding a shift to more sustainable behavior, especially from manufacturing companies. This can be a major challenge as they face technological, regulatory, economic, supply chain, and cultural hurdles when transitioning to more sustainable practices. However, data spaces offer new ways to sharing data can help to accurately calculate CO2 emissions and develop new business models based on it. To illustrate the impact of data spaces on sustainability we considered the example of the product carbon footprint. Doing so, we analyzed public data of the automotive network Catena-X and highlighted the added value for each actor in the ecosystem using the e³value modeling language. Supplementary, we transferred our findings into business model elements (value proposition, value creation and delivery, and value capture).
... The concept of the carbon footprint, particularly the PCF, has emerged as a critical metric for assessing the environmental performance of products and services. This aligns with the broader shift in environmental management standards, as seen in the development of ISO 14067 and similar standards, which emphasise product-level carbon footprints (Pattara et al., 2017;Rondoni & Grasso, 2021;Wiedmann & Minx, 2007;Wright et al., 2011). Our study contributes to this discourse by focusing on the PCF of office equipment, thus providing insights into the environmental impact of these products across their lifecycle. ...
Purpose: The aim of the article is to publicise the issue of carbon footprint emission from office equipment because this problem is not yet widely recognised in the ICT industry. Methodology/approach: The product carbon footprint (PCF) of various information and communication technologies (ICT) was assessed - 196 products of 12 groups representing a broad spectrum of office equipment - covering the entire life cycle (LCA) from production to disposal. Findings: The level of carbon footprint of a given office device depends on its size, including its energy demand. It should be noted that although smaller devices individually have a smaller carbon footprint, due to their common use (many pieces), they may generate emissions similar to larger ones. Originality/value: The results of the carbon footprint statistics of ICT devices included in the result section may constitute valuable input for companies to calculate the carbon footprint in offices. They can also be used as a data set for the carbon footprint calculator of ICT devices.
... Researchers in Indonesia have conducted carbon footprint assessments and estimation processes using calculations on various topics such as land use changes, oil plantations, electricity, transportation, waste generation, and many others [6][7][8]. The choice of methodology depends highly on the subject and desired outcome [9]. The areas where carbon footprints need to be analysed are broad, from individuals and corporations, whether per region, per activity, or product, so research on carbon footprints is still wide open. ...
The agri-food industry in Indonesia plays a crucial role in socio-economic development. It contributes 37% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the non-oil and gas processing industry sector. However, the agri-food industry contributes to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of about 10-12% of total anthropogenic greenhouse gases. It is predicted to increase, along with food consumption needs. These GHG emissions contribute to climate change and threaten the food industry’s sustainability. The purpose of this research is to examine existing trends and future direction of the carbon footprint in the agri-food industry and propose future recommendations for research and policy in reducing the carbon footprint of the agri-food industry in Indonesia. Combining a review of existing literature and an analysis journals related to the topics to find the research gaps, we found an increasing trend of carbon footprint from the agri-food industry in Indonesia between 2007 and 2023, in which food processing, packaging, transportation, and waste management are significant contributors to the agri-food supply chain. There are several recommendations to reduce the carbon footprint when research is essential, such as adopting more efficient product processing, packaging technologies, and improved waste management.
... In the realm of supply chain management, the carbon footprint stands out as a paramount concern, denoting the volume of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere due to human activities (Wright et al., 2011). Among all sectors contributing to this footprint, the transportation sector emerges as the most significant contributor. ...
Abstract: In the contemporary digital age, the pressing issues of climate change and sustainability have gained heightened significance, demanding urgent attention to safeguard Earth's habitability for its 8 billion inhabitants. As per the findings of the Global Logistics Emissions Council (GLEC), freight transportation stands out as a substantial contributor, responsible for 36% of transport emissions and 23% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, ranking third in emission levels behind industry and buildings. Technology emerges as a crucial ally in both gauging and curbing carbon footprints. This paper delves into the advancements in the SAP Transportation Management (TM) realm, specifically focusing on sustainability efforts and carbon footprint reduction. The discussion centers on the end-to-end (E2E) stages of business processes within the SAP TM domain, with particular emphasis on carbon emissions calculation (Scope 1, 2, 3). Additionally, it explores the strategic significance of TM in footprint management through the optimization of transportation processes, provision of real-time visibility, ensuring adherence to regulations, and facilitating environmentally conscious decision-making, ultimately leading to substantial cost savings.
By leveraging SAP TM's advanced algorithms and predictive analytics, companies can minimize empty miles, optimize route planning, and consolidate shipments, thereby reducing fuel consumption and emissions. Real-time visibility provided by SAP TM enables proactive monitoring of transportation activities, allowing organizations to promptly identify inefficiencies and implement corrective actions to minimize environmental impact. Furthermore, SAP TM facilitates environmentally conscious decision-making by considering sustainability factors alongside traditional metrics like cost and time. This holistic approach ensures that sustainability objectives are integrated into transportation planning and execution processes, driving towards a greener future while also achieving significant cost savings.
The integration of SAP TM with carbon accounting tools further enhances transparency and accountability in tracking emissions, facilitating continuous improvement initiatives. Ultimately, this paper highlights the pivotal role of SAP TM in driving sustainable transportation practices and contributing to a greener future for businesses worldwide."
... Additionally, GHG emissions in Fig. 1 Location map of experiment site (a), experimental field (b), schematic of rice-crayfish farming system of production field structure (c), rice-crayfish farming system of production management process (d), and static chamber for greenhouse gas collecting (e). agroecosystem come not only directly from cropland soils, but also indirectly from fertilizer, pesticide, as well as seed production and from machinery operation and irrigation (Wright et al. 2011;Jiang et al. 2019). However, previous studies have mainly focused on monitoring direct GHG emissions from rice fields , while ignoring indirect GHG emissions from rice production activities. ...
Rice–crayfish farming systems (RCs), a novel rice cropping system, have gained rapid popularity in many countries due to their economic advantages. Fertilizers tend to be applied in large quantities for higher profits, but has high burden on resources and environment, especially in terms of the carbon emissions. It is crucial to explore an optimal fertilization strategy with high productivity and low carbon emissions for the sustainable development of RCs. However, information about C emissions is incomplete, regarding the indirect C emissions during the rice growing season as well as C emissions during the crayfish culture period. We conducted field experiments to investigate the effects of five fertilization strategies including no fertilization (CK), farmer’s practices (FP), optimized fertilization (OPT), organic fertilization only (OF), and organic fertilizer substitution (OPTOF) on the productivity, economic benefits, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, carbon footprint, and sustainability index of RCs. Results showed that OPT reduced direct (by 6.7%) and indirect (by 37.0%) GHG emissions during the rice growing season while maintaining rice (95%) and crayfish (104%) yields compared with that of FP. Additionally, the soil organic carbon storage and annual economic benefit of the OPT increased by 20.1% and 4.7%, respectively, whereas the carbon footprints of unit area, unit grain yield, unit energy yield, and unit of economic output decreased by 29.5%, 27.2%, 24.5%, and 32.7%, compared to the FP, respectively. The sustainability index (0.78) of the OPT treatment was significantly higher than that of other treatments due to its higher productivity and lower the carbon footprint. In conclusion, optimal fertilization strategy in RCs could achieve to increase productivity while reducing carbon footprint. This is conducive to the sustainability of RCs. Future attention in RCs should be focused on the development and promotion of such strategies.
... En plus du CO 2 , elle comprend les émissions de plusieurs gaz à effet de serre (CH 4 , N 2 O, gaz fluorés), modulées par un coefficient 93 . C'est une mesure de la quantité totale d'émissions de dioxyde de carbone (CO 2 ) et de méthane (CH 4 ) d'une population, d'un système, d'un process (Lazarevic et Martin, 2016) ou d'une activité définie, en tenant compte de toutes les sources, puits et stockages pertinents dans les limites spatiales et temporelles de la population, du système ou de l'activité en question (Wright, Kemp et Williams, 2011). Pour des raisons de simplification, toutes les émissions sont ramenées au standard équivalent dioxyde de carbone en utilisant le potentiel de réchauffement planétaire sur cent ans (PRP100), le méthane équivalant à 28-34 fois celui du CO 2 , le N 2 0, 273 fois celui du CO 2 . ...
Objectif de vie pour tout un chacun, démonstration de puissance pour l’État, le bonheur fait l’objet de nombreux classements. Les indicateurs utilisés résultent toutefois de constructions fondées sur différentes idées du bonheur, incluant de manière variable la préservation du vivant. Le bien-être des sociétés occidentales en particulier repose sur un imaginaire consumériste peu en phase avec les préoccupations écologiques. Mais est-il possible aujourd’hui d’être heureux sans se soucier des limites planétaires ? Est-il envisageable d’indexer le bonheur sur d’autres récits, davantage axés sur l’émotion que sur la possession, la comparaison et leurs effets délétères ?
Cet ouvrage interroge le rôle que ces palmarès du bien-être et les mesures sur lesquelles ils s’appuient jouent dans la prise en compte de l’environnement. En faisant le tour des liens entre mesures du bonheur et empreinte écologique, il sonde notre rapport au vivant là où on s’y attend le moins, au coeur même de notre quête du bonheur.
... This underscores that the extent to which these scales are relevant to TOA is understudied and merits further research. For example, generic methods, such as the carbon 30 or water 31 footprint, can provide a broad assessment of which off-site effects at larger scales are relevant to TOA outcomes. These approaches may facilitate the inclusion of underlying causes, the involvement of more inclusive stakeholders and account for leakage effects, such as the expansion of agricultural lands beyond the TOA case study area 32 . ...
Trade-off analysis (TOA) is central to policy and decision-making aimed at promoting sustainable agricultural landscapes. Yet, a generic methodological framework to assess trade-offs in agriculture is absent, largely due to the wide range of research disciplines and objectives for which TOA is used. In this study, we systematically reviewed 119 studies that have implemented TOAs in landscapes and regions dominated by agricultural systems around the world. Our results highlight that TOAs tend to be unbalanced, with a strong emphasis on productivity rather than environmental and socio-cultural services. TOAs have mostly been performed at farm or regional scales, rarely considering multiple spatial scales simultaneously. Mostly, TOAs fail to include stakeholders at study development stage, disregard recommendation uncertainty due to outcome variability and overlook risks associated with the TOA outcomes. Increased attention to these aspects is critical for TOAs to guide agricultural landscapes towards sustainability.
... These indicators, apart from being regularly cited [9,11,26,27,31], are easy to link with viticulture (N, P, and SO), and they are related to environmental issues (global warming, the ozone layer, and toxicity). Additionally, the combination of indicators enables a more assertive evaluation of the environmental impacts of viticulture and comparisons [11]. ...
Evaluations of the sustainability of the viticulture associated with wine production are still scarce in the literature. Usually, the ‘carbon footprint’ assumes the environmental dimension, while the economic pillar is focused on market orientation. In the present work, the integration of both was tested using a case study supported in a six-year series (2015–2021) of primary data from a farm in the Região Demarcada do Douro (Douro Demarcated Region, hereafter the RDD). Economic and environmental inputs and outputs were collected from ‘pruning to harvest’. Profitability was calculated based on the market prices and environmental impacts using the AgriBalyse database, which is available in OpenLCA 1.10.3. In the scope of the economic results, the following costs stand out: (1) ‘human labor’; (2) use of machinery; and (3) plant protection products. Concerning the environmental impacts, the greatest weight resulted from the use of fuels, and no relation was found between the grape production variation and environmental factor variation. The indicators studied were considered valuable for comparing production systems (conventional, organic, and biodynamic, among others) and might support stakeholders’ decision making. We highlight the importance of replication in further studies to better understand the complex world of viticulture’s sustainability.
Gastronomi; toplumların kültürel yapıları, inanışları, içinde yaşadıkları coğrafyanın
özellikleri ve diğer toplumlarla etkileşimleri gibi pek çok değişkenden etkilenerek ortaya çıkan
deneyimsel ve dinamik bir süreçtir. Günümüzde gastronomi, yalnızca yöresel çerçevede beslenme
ihtiyacının giderilmesinde ortaya konulan ürünleri değil, farklı lezzetler üretme ve deneyimlemeyi,
kültürler arası etkileşimi ve yeni beslenme eğilimlerini de ifade etmektedir.
Dijitalleşme ve sosyal medyanın da etkisi ile artan kültürlerarası etkileşim, beslenme
eğilimleri ve gastronomi cephesinde yenilikleri beraberinde getirmektedir. Bu kitap, gastronomiye
etki eden unsurları ve ortaya çıkan güncel beslenme eğilimlerini kapsamlı bir şekilde ele
almaktadır. Bu çalışmada gastronomik yapı, etkilendiği alanlar ve eğilimleri olmak üzere iki ayrı
kapsamda ele alınmıştır. İlk dört bölümde, gastronomik yapının nelerden etkilenerek şekillendiği
açıklarken kalan dokuz bölümde gastronomik ve toplumsal yapı neticesinde ortaya çıkan güncel
beslenme eğilimleri açıklanmaktadır.
Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices have gained increasing attention among companies in Malaysia as they strive to meet the expectations of stakeholders, especially investors. This study aims to environmental, social and governance (ESG) practice reported in the public-listed companies and the similarities among the industry sectors and to investigate the relationship between environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and corporate financial performance. Grounded in Stakeholder Theory, this study employs descriptive and correlation analysis to assess the correlation between independent and dependent variables. A comprehensive content review of secondary data from the annual reports of selected public-listed companies in Malaysia was conducted, with data thoroughly documented in a meticulously prepared checklist. The sample consists of 41 public-listed companies across 10 distinct industry sectors. Data analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 29. The findings revealed that Malaysian public-listed companies typically implemented structured environmental, social and governance practice (ESG) practices in Malaysia which are perceived to influence corporate financial performance. The analysis demonstrates an insignificant weakly negative relationship between environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices and corporate financial performance. Despite several limitations, this study offers recommendations for future research and practice.
Despite its urgency, the prediction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at the city level is hampered by limited quality and quantity of training data so most predictions of GHG emissions are carried out at the country level, using different feature spaces. Heterogeneous Transfer Learning (HeTL) is considered capable of getting around this limitation due to its ability to facilitate the transfer of knowledge between domains that have different feature spaces and distributions. However, the implementation of HeTL is still haunted by the potential of negative transfer in the knowledge transfer process. Current studies on mitigating negative transfer in HeTL still rely heavily on classical optimization techniques and focus solely on either feature-level or instance-level optimization. In this paper, a method is proposed to optimize the knowledge transfer process in HeTL using quantum annealing. The proposed optimization is carried out in three stages: (1) feature alignment, (2) common feature optimization, and (3) data instance optimization. The proposed method seeks to optimize the knowledge transfer process at both the feature and instance levels. It utilizes a combination of classical computing and quantum computing, thereby combining the advantages of the classical approach and the quantum approach to obtain optimal results.
Predicting greenhouse gas emissions is a crucial effort in mitigating climate change and reducing the harmful effects of these gases. Various machine learning models have been employed for intelligent prediction of greenhouse gas emissions, both at a macroscopic level and through energy demand forecasting. The most popular models include Long Short Term Memory (LSTM), Back Propagation Neural Network (BPNN), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Extreme Learning Machine (ELM), and Random Forest (RF). To enhance the performance of these models, numerous optimization techniques have been utilized, with those from the swarm intelligence group being particularly prominent. Current research challenges involve selecting the appropriate machine learning model and optimization technique, addressing dependency on official data, overcoming model interpretability limitations, and dealing with training data constraints. Future research opportunities lie in discovering or modifying existing machine learning models and optimization techniques, utilizing transfer learning to mitigate limited training data issues, and leveraging quantum computing-based optimization techniques to refine existing machine learning models.
Background
The health-care sector and particularly the surgical sector are major contributors to the exacerbation of the global climate crisis. Little is known about the carbon emissions caused by surgical procedures. Therefore, the aim of this study was to estimate the carbon footprint associated with common orthopaedic surgical procedures.
Methods
Eight surgical procedures (total hip arthroplasty, total knee arthroplasty, knee arthroscopy, anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction, shoulder arthroscopy, elective foot surgery, revision hip arthroplasty, and revision knee arthroplasty) were selected for analysis. The inventory process was performed according to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol for all activity occurring in the operating room.
Results
The carbon footprint (in CO 2 equivalents, CO 2 e) ranged between 53.5 kg for knee arthroscopy and 125.9 kg for revision knee arthroplasty. Energy consumption accounted for 57.5% of all emissions, followed by other indirect emissions (38.8%) and direct emissions (3.7%). The largest single contributors were the supply chain (34.6%) and energy consumption for ventilation, heating, and air conditioning (32.7%).
Conclusions
Orthopaedic surgical procedures produce considerable amounts of CO 2 . Reduction in and greening of energy consumption, as well as the decarbonization of the supply chain, would have the greatest impact in reducing the carbon footprint of orthopaedic surgical procedures.
Clinical Relevance
Orthopaedic surgical procedures contribute to the climate crisis by emitting relevant amounts of CO 2 . It should therefore be imperative for all orthopaedic surgeons to endeavor to find solutions to mitigate the environmental impact of their practice.
The study of the energy transition towards a low carbon energy has captured widespread interest in literature over the recent decades. Yet, the examination of pathways followed by firms remains limited. Although electricity companies play a crucial role in the energy transition, disaggregated studies by firms are scarce in most countries. This thesis addresses a comparative long-term analysis of the three leading electricity-generating firms in Spain-Iberdrola, Endesa, and Naturgy-and their long-term transition towards low carbon electricity generation. It conducts, for the first time, a comprehensive reconstruction of their historical generation series by technology type from 1960 until today, evaluating the pace, scale, and outcomes of technological changes, as energy transition literature does. The results reveal significant variations among Spanish electricity firm trajectories, confirming that energy transition is not a homogeneous process. Similarly to what has been observed for countries, electricity firms adopt different strategies and technology specialisations, creating particular pathways. These divergences result in differing levels of feasibility and commitment to energy transition guidelines. Based on business history, this imbalance in Spain might be explained by different technological starting points, causing long-term path dependence that delineates divergent positions in the competition for transition leadership. The implications suggest that energy policy makers must consider some disparities between capacities and challenges of each individual electricity company in achieving carbon emission reduction targets. Furthermore, a spectrum of new statements about decarbonization dynamics has been disclosed by this firm-level examination, contrasting some previous understanding of the decarbonization previously extracted from the national level perspective. Similarly, the long-term historical analysis has shown trends that short-term analysis have missed thus far. This dissertation expands the general knowledge on decarbonization, examining transition pathways of the electricity sector from a business and historical perspective. 2 Resumen (Spanish) El estudio de la transición energética hacia fuentes de bajo carbono es un tema relevante en la literatura científica reciente. Aunque se ha examinado el papel de las compañías eléctricas en este proceso, faltan análisis específicos por empresa en muchos países. Esta tesis realiza un análisis comparativo de las tres principales empresas eléctricas en España: Iberdrola, Endesa y Naturgy, evaluando las series históricas de generación por tipo de tecnología desde 1960 hasta hoy. En este estudio se analiza, tal y como hace la literatura de las transiciones energéticas, la magnitud y los resultados de los cambios tecnológicos implementados por las principales empresas eléctricas para reducir las emisiones de carbono. Los resultados muestran variaciones significativas en las trayectorias de estas empresas, confirmado que la transición no es uniforme. Al igual que hacen los países, las compañías no siguen un camino único hacia una energía de bajo carbono; en su lugar, adoptan estrategias, que aunque convergentes, son relativamente diversas y que reflejan diferentes niveles de compromiso con la descarbonización. Basándose en la historia empresarial, esta tesis sostiene que la posición actual de cada empresa está influenciada por su trayectoria tecnológica pasada. En otras palabras, existe una dependencia del camino tecnológico, lo que debería ser tenido en cuenta en la definición de estrategias y políticas de descarbonización incluyendo las capacidades y los límites específicos de cada compañía eléctrica para alcanzar los objetivos. Además, el estudio de la transición energética desde la perspectiva de las empresas ha ofrecido una variedad de nuevas perspectivas sobre la dinámica de la descarbonización. Estos nuevos hallazgos contrastan con las explicaciones anteriores y enriquecen las observaciones hechas desde el ámbito nacional. Asimismo, el análisis histórico ha identificado tendencias discordantes, tanto a nivel general como a nivel comparativo entre las empresas, que no habrían sido detectables en estudios de corto plazo. Esta tesis ofrece una aproximación al conocimiento sobre las dinámicas de la transición energética desde el ámbito empresarial. 3
ملخص: هدفت الدراسة الحالية للكشف عن مستوى الوعي البيئي لدى طلبة الصف التاسع في سلطنة عمان حول البصمة الكربونية، في ضوء بعض المتغيّرات: الجنس، والمحافظة التعليمية، ومكان الإقامة. اتبعت الدراسة المنهج الوصفي التحليلي. تكونت عينة الدراسة من 601 طالبٍ وطالبة، من الصف التاسع الأساسي في محافظتي مسقط وشمال الشرقية. لتحقيق أهداف الدراسة، تمّ تطبيق مقياسٍ للوعي البيئي من إعداد الباحث، مكوّنٍ من 39 عبارة، موزعة على ثلاث مكونات: المعرفي، الوجداني، والسلوكي. تمّ التحقّق من صدق المقياس بعرضه على عددٍ من المحكّمين، وحساب الاتساق الداخلي باستخدام معامل ألفا كرونباخ، والذي بلغ 0.94. أشارت نتائج الدراسة إلى وجود مستوى مرتفع من الوعي البيئي للبصمة الكربونية في المتوسط العام، وفي جميع المكوّنات الثلاثة. كما توصّلت الدراسة إلى عدم وجود فرقٍ دالٍ إحصائيًا عند مستوى الدلالة (α = 0.05)، في متغير الجنس. وأشارت النتائج أيضًا إلى وجود فرقٍ دالٍ إحصائيًا عند مستوى الدلالة (α = 0.05)، في متغير المحافظة التعليمية، لصالح محافظة شمال الشرقية. كما كشفت النتائج عن وجود فرقٍ دالٍ إحصائيًا عند مستوى الدلالة (α = 0.05)، في متغيّر مكان الإقامة، لصالح القرية. في ضوء نتائج الدراسة، يُوصى بإجراء المزيد من الدراسات؛ للكشف عن الوعي البيئي فيما يتعلق بالبصمة الكربونية لمراحلَ عمريةٍ أخرى.
In recent years, extreme weather conditions have been occurring around the world, and climate change is a systemic issue that all mankind must face together, and the joint negotiation and extensive consultation is in dispensible to achieve the goal of carbon neutrality. Since CO2 is a large amount of greenhouse gases, and about 25% of global warming is caused by CO2, most greenhouse gases are traded in units of per ton of CO2 equivalent.
The North China Plain (NCP) serves as a critical grain-producing region in China, playing a pivotal role in ensuring the nation’s food security. A comprehensive analysis of the carbon footprint (CF) related to the cultivation of major grain crops within this region and the proposal of strategies to reduce emissions through low-carbon production methods are crucial for advancing sustainable agricultural practices in China. This study employed the lifecycle assessment (LCA) method to estimate the CF of wheat, maize, and rice crops over a period from 2013 to 2022, based on statistical data collected from five key provinces and cities in the NCP: Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shandong, and Henan. Additionally, the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) model was utilized to analyze the influencing factors. The results indicated that the carbon footprints per unit area (CFA) of maize, wheat, and rice increased between 2013 and 2022. Rice had the highest carbon footprint per unit yield (CFY), averaging 1.1 kg CO2-eq kg⁻¹, with significant fluctuations over time. In contrast, the CFY of wheat and maize remained relatively stable from 2013 to 2022. Fertilizers contributed the most to CF composition, accounting for 48.8%, 48.0%, and 25.9% of the total carbon inputs for wheat, maize, and rice, respectively. The electricity used for irrigation in rice production was 31.8%, which was much higher than that of wheat (6.8%) and maize (7.1%). The LMDI model showed that the labor effect was a common suppressing factor for the carbon emissions of maize, wheat, and rice in the NCP, while the agricultural structure effect and the economic development effect were common driving factors. By improving the efficiency of fertilizer and pesticide utilization, cultivating new varieties, increasing the mechanical operation efficiency, the irrigation efficiency, and policy support, the CF of grain crop production in the NCP can be effectively reduced. These efforts will contribute to the sustainable development of agricultural practices in the NCP and support China’s efforts to achieve its “double carbon” target.
Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the transport industry, comprised almost entirely of CO2, account for around 23% of global emissions. Reducing these emissions is crucial, if countries are to meet their carbon reduction targets. Given that net zero carbon emissions are beginning to be enacted into various countries’ laws, transport infrastructure owners now have time bound targets to meet. The accurate measurement of carbon currently expended by transport infrastructure is the first, and most critical, step of infrastructure owners’ journey towards carbon reduction, as this Business as Usual carbon expenditure will form the basis for both carbon reduction measures and expansion of carbon measurement from limited embodied and construction scopes though to whole life cycle carbon assessment. This article provides an overview of a transferable method for calculating the carbon footprint of railway infrastructure assets, based on a novel carbon calculation data form. Use of this form will ensure a standardized and consistent approach in data collection methods, enabling the creation of carbon footprints for small scale case studies of individual railway earthworks (around 100 m linear length) with a specific focus on the construction life cycle stages. These stages form the basis for future expansions to the whole life cycle and therefore accuracy in carbon footprinting is vital. These figures can also be used for aggregation across multiple interventions, and again accurate data are required to ensure inaccuracies are not amplified.
Herein, a zinc‐air flow battery (ZAFB) as an environmentally friendly and inexpensive energy storage system is investigated. For this purpose, an optimized ZAFB for households is designed based on the most recent publications, and an economic and ecological analysis of the system is carried out. The results show that the customer price of the designed ZAFB is estimated at ≈5000 € and is thus about one‐third lower than the quoted price for a comparable vanadium flow battery (VFB). The carbon footprint (CF) analysis shows that especially the alkaline electrolyte and the silver‐containing gas diffusion electrode have a high share of the greenhouse gas emissions of the ZAFB system. However, the CF is 41% lower than that of the VFB, highlighting the great potential of the ZAFB as an alternative home storage system.
As the importance of environmental strategy is gaining weight, a number of tire manufacturers are quantifying the environmental aspect of a product in order to reduce the environmental impact of the product and devise an environmental strategy for the product. In this study, the environmental impact of Passenger Car Radial(PCR) tire and Truck Bus Radial(TBR) tire was quantified using Life Cycle Assessment(LCA) and Carbon Footprint which are the two of the main methods for assessing environmental impact. Life cycle in the LCA was divided into 6 categories: raw material extraction and production phase, transportation phase, product manufacturing phase, distribution phase, use phase, disposal and recycle phase. As a result, it was found that the use phase had the highest environmental impact, and the tread showed especially high environmental impact among all parts. This study suggests a direction for environmental strategy for a product in each phases of the LCA method by analyzing case studies and utilizing the LCA and Carbon Footprint assessment done by major tire manufacturers.
As the importance of environmental strategy is gaining weight, a number of tire manufacturers are quantifying the environmental aspect of a product in order to reduce the environmental impact of the product and devise an environmental strategy for the product. In this study, the environmental impact of truck bus radial(TBR) tire was quantified using Life Cycle Assessment(LCA) and Carbon footprint which are the two of the main methods for assessing environmental impact.
We are in a climate emergency—this is anthropogenic, and we can do something about it. An awareness of carbon footprinting is essential to allow us to understand and address this issue, both in our personal and professional lives. The aim of this article is to demystify carbon footprinting and to make the concept relevant to the gastrointestinal healthcare professional.
Fair definition of system boundary is essential for obtaining reliable results in life cycle assessment (LCA), especially in comparative LCA studies. However, it doesn't seem that a consensus has been reached on an appropriate method for selecting system boundary. This study addresses the development of a consistent method for definition of system boundary using an economic input-output table, which describes all the flows of goods and services between sectors of an economy. The method proposed within this paper 1) is quantitative, 2) is objective 3) is reproducible, 4) is available without detail process-LCI, 5) requires little time and cost, and 6) doesn't overlook any process that significantly influences LCA results. This method is demonstrated on complicated production system of a passenger car in terms of CO2 emissions.
International attention to carbon dioxide emissions is turning to an individual's contribution, or “carbon footprint.” Calculators that estimate an individual's CO2 emissions have become more prevalent on the internet. Even with similar inputs, however, these calculators can generate varying results, often by as much as several metric tons per annum per individual activity. This paper examines the similarities and differences among ten US-based calculators. Overall, the calculators lack consistency, especially for estimates of CO2 emissions from household electricity consumption. In addition, most calculators lack information about their methods and estimates, which impedes comparison and validation. Although carbon calculators can promote public awareness of carbon emissions from individual behavior, this paper reveals the need for improved consistency and transparency in the calculators.
The term 'carbon footprint' has become tremendously popular over the last few years and is now in widespread use across the media – at least in the United Kingdom. With climate change high up on the political and corporate agenda, carbon footprint calculations are in demand. Numerous approaches have been proposed to provide estimates, ranging from basic online calculators to sophisticated life-cycle-analysis or input-output based methods and tools. Despite its ubiquitous use however, there is an apparent lack of academic definitions of what exactly a 'carbon footprint' is meant to be. The scientific literature is surprisingly void of clarifications, despite the fact that countless studies in energy and ecological economics that could have claimed to measure a 'carbon footprint' have been published over decades. This commentary explores the apparent discrepancy between public and academic use of the term 'carbon footprint' and suggests a scientific definition based on commonly accepted accounting principles and modelling approaches. It addresses methodological questions such as system boundaries, completeness, comprehensiveness, units, and robustness of the indicator.
A carbon footprint (CF) analysis is the sum of the estimated carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with a particular activity or industry. Without a standardized protocol for developing a CF of water production, US utilities must draw on the experiences of other nations and adapt approaches used in other industries. In the United Kingdom, mandatory regulation of emissions for large industry has spurred collaborative development of CF methods for the water industry. British and Australian utilities are conducting CF analyses and using this information to better understand the environmental impact of their water production. First, various utility activities are defined, information about power and potential GHG emissions is gathered, and the GHGs are converted to carbon dioxide equivalents to create a CF assessment. The utility can then use this baseline CF as a management tool to guide decisions about sustainable operations and construction projects as well as future resources and treatment and transmission facilities.
Following a brief introduction about the need for businesses to respond to climate change, this paper considers the development of the phrase ‘carbon footprint’. Widely used definitions are considered before the authors offer their own interpretation of how the term should be used. The paper focuses on the contribution small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) make to the economy and their level of influence in stimulating change within organisations. The experience of an outreach team from the Engineering Department of a UK university is used which draws on the experience of delivering regional economic growth projects funded principally through the European Regional Development Fund. Case studies are used including the development of bespoke carbon footprints for SMEs from an initiative delivered by the outreach team. Limitations of current carbon footprints are identified based on this higher education‐industry knowledge exchange mechanism around three main themes of scope, the assessment method and conversion factors. Evidence and discussions are presented that conclude with the presentation of some solutions based on the work undertaken with SMEs and a discussion on the merits of the two principally used methodologies: life‐cycle analysis and economic input–output assessment.
This article provides an overview of how generalised multi-regional input-output models can be used for carbon footprint applications. We focus on the relevance and suitability of such evidence to inform decision making. Such an overview is currently missing. Drawing on UK results, we cover carbon footprint applications in seven areas: national emissions inventories and trade, emission drivers, economic sectors, supply chains, organisations, household consumption and lifestyles as well as sub-national emission inventories. The article highlights the multiple uses of generalised multi-regional input-output models for carbon footprinting and concludes by highlighting important avenues for future research.
Many developed countries have targeted landfill methane recovery among greenhouse gas mitigation strategies, since methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide. Major questions remain with respect to actual methane production rates in field settings and the relative mass of methane that is recovered, emitted, oxidized by methanotrophic bacteria, laterally migrated, or temporarily stored within the landfill volume. This paper presents the results of extensive field campaigns at three landfill sites to elucidate the total methane balance and provide field measurements to quantify these pathways. We assessed the overall methane mass balance in field cells with a variety of designs, cover materials, and gas management strategies. Sites included different cell configurations, including temporary clay cover, final clay cover, geosynthetic clay liners, and geomembrane composite covers, and cells with and without gas collection systems. Methane emission rates ranged from -2.2 to >10,000 mg CH(4) m(-2) d(-1). Total methane oxidation rates ranged from 4% to 50% of the methane flux through the cover at sites with positive emissions. Oxidation of atmospheric methane was occurring in vegetated soils above a geomembrane. The results of these studies were used as the basis for guidelines by the French environment agency (ADEME) for default values for percent recovery: 35% for an operating cell with an active landfill gas (LFG) recovery system, 65% for a temporary covered cell with an active LFG recovery system, 85% for a cell with clay final cover and active LFG recovery, and 90% for a cell with a geomembrane final cover and active LFG recovery.
Historically, a sectoral approach (based on the industrial, transportation, commercial, and residential sectors) has shaped the way we frame and analyze issues of energy conservation and CO2 mitigation. This sectoral categorization, however, is limited in its capacity to reveal the total impacts of consumer activities on energy use and its related environmental impacts. In this paper, we propose an alternative paradigm, called the Consumer Lifestyle Approach (CLA), to explore the relationship between consumer activities and environmental impacts in the US. Estimates based on our methodology reveal that more than 80% of the energy used and the CO2 emitted in the US are a consequence of consumer demands and the economic activities to support these demands. Direct influences due to consumer activities (home energy use and personal travel) are 4% of the US GDP, but account for 28% and 41% of US energy use and CO2 emissions, respectively. Indirect influences (such as housing operations, transportation operations, food, and apparel) involve more than twice the direct energy use and CO2 emissions. Characterization of both direct and indirect energy use and emissions is critical to the design of more effective energy and CO2 emission policies. It may also help erode the false dichotomy of “them versus us” (industrial polluters versus consumers) references to the locus of responsibility for control of energy use and CO2 emissions.
One of the challenges faced by local governments in the work with municipal climate action plans concerns accounting for the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions—what emissions should be targeted, development of emissions over time, and how to effectively measure the success of local climate action. In this paper, we present challenges in developing a GHG emissions inventory related to the provision of municipal services. We argue that a consumption-based perspective, illustrated through the use of the carbon footprint (CF), rather than more conventional production-based inventory, provides a more useful and less misleading indicator. We present an analysis of the CF of municipal services provided by the city of Trondheim. The use of data directly from the city's accounting system ensures a reliable calculation of indirect emissions, and, with some minor modifications, also accurate data on direct emissions. Our analysis shows that approximately 93 percent of the total CF of municipal services is indirect
Carbon footprints and embodied carbon have a strong methodological foundation and provide valuable input into policy formation. The widespread use of carbon footprints using existing knowledge needs to be encouraged and even regulated. At the product level, carbon footprints can empower consumers to shape their own climate friendly behaviour and help governments design policies that do not give the wrong incentives. Companies can use carbon footprints to reduce exposure to carbon prices or highlight the positive actions they have taken. Cities and regions can use carbon footprints to implement local policies that help meet overarching national objectives. National carbon footprints can help design equitable and efficient climate agreements that avoid shifting problems to other administrative territories. Further advances can provide strong interdisciplinary links between the physical carbon-cycle, emission drivers, and policy at a variety of scales.
This editorial is the introduction to a special issue of Economic Systems Research on the topic of carbon footprint and input-output analysis. It provides a brief historical context of the involvement of input-output analysis with applications in environmental research and makes the link to carbon footprint theory and practice. The six papers in this issue are briefly introduced. The aim of the special issue is to bring together the academic world of rigorous economic modelling and the practice of greenhouse gas accounting at various levels.
Background, aim, and scopeThe assessment of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions arising from products (goods and services) is emerging as a high profile
application of life cycle assessment (LCA), with an increasing desire from retailers and other supply chain organizations
to better understand, and in some cases communicate, the carbon footprint of products. Publicly Available Specification 2050:2008,
Specification for the assessment of the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of goods and services, addresses the single-impact category of global warming to provide a standardized and simplified implementation of process
LCA methods for assessing GHG emissions from products. This paper briefly reviews the development process followed for PAS
2050, before examining the treatment of GHG-specific contribution of PAS 2050 to product carbon footprinting.
Materials and methodsPAS 2050 was jointly sponsored by the Carbon Trust and the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and was published
by the British Standards Institution on 29 October 2008. An independent steering group oversaw the development of the specification,
including the establishment of an expert workgroup program, comprehensive international consultation, and expert input on
the requirements of the specification.
ResultsThe development process for PAS 2050 resulted in a specification that includes specific requirements that limit the interpretation
of the underlying LCA approach to product carbon footprinting. These requirements, including goal setting and life cycle inventory
assessment, aspects of system boundary identification and temporal aspects of GHG emissions, clarify the approach to be taken
by organizations implementing product carbon footprinting, and simplify the application of LCA procedures in relation to product
carbon footprinting.
DiscussionAssessment of the emissions arising from the life cycle of products has a clear international component, and delivering consistent
results across the supply chain requires the application of consistent methods. There is an emerging recognition that further
standardization of methods for product carbon footprinting is needed, and the specific requirements resulting from the PAS
2050 development process make a valuable contribution across a range of GHG assessment issues.
ConclusionsThe widespread interest in PAS 2050 from individuals and organizations, together with the development of similar guidance
by other organizations, confirmed that there is a need for clarification, certainty, and requirements in the field of product
carbon footprint analysis. The use of PAS 2050 to refine, clarify, and simplify existing LCA methods and standards has resulted
in specific approaches to key GHG assessment issues being developed; it is important that future standards development work
considers the impact of these approaches and their further refinement.
Recommendations and perspectivesIt is the consumption of goods and services by individuals around the world that drives global GHG emission, and PAS 2050
is a first attempt to provide integrated, consistent approaches that directly address the role of consumption at the product
level in contributing to GHG emissions. Climate science and GHG assessment techniques are both evolving areas and it will
be necessary to review the approach taken by PAS 2050 in the future: a formal review process for PAS 2050 will commence towards
the end of 2009 and practitioners are encouraged to participate in this review process.
The Global Warming Potential (GWP) is used within the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change as a metric for weighting the climatic impact of emissions of different greenhouse gases. The GWP has been subjected to many criticisms because of its formulation, but nevertheless it has retained some favour because of the simplicity of its design and application, and its transparency compared to proposed alternatives. Here, two new metrics are proposed, which are based on a simple analytical climate model. The first metric is called the Global Temperature Change Potential and represents the temperature change at a given time due to a pulse emission of a gas (GTPP); the second is similar but represents the effect of a sustained emission change (hence GTPS). Both GTPP and GTPS are presented as relative to the temperature change due to a similar emission change of a reference gas, here taken to be carbon dioxide. Both metrics are compared against an upwelling-diffusion energy balance model that resolves land and ocean and the hemispheres. The GTPP does not perform well, compared to the energy balance model, except for long-lived gases. By contrast, the GTPS is shown to perform well relative to the energy balance model, for gases with a wide variety of lifetimes. It is also shown that for time horizons in excess of about 100 years, the GTPS and GWP produce very similar results, indicating an alternative interpretation for the GWP. The GTPS retains the advantage of the GWP in terms of transparency, and the relatively small number of input parameters required for calculation. However, it has an enhanced relevance,
as it is further down the cause–effect chain of the impacts of greenhouse gases emissions and has an unambiguous interpretation. It appears to be robust to key uncertainties and simplifications in its derivation and may be an attractive alternative to the GWP.
Carbon footprint models are increasingly being used to manage personal and household carbon dioxide emissions. Six models were compared for their suitability for use in Ireland using typical data for a household of three people. The annual household energy and transportation emissions ranged from 10,540 to 17,361 kg CO2 yr− 1 (mean 12,886; sd 2135) rising to a total footprint of 12,053 to 27, 218 kg CO2 yr− 1 (mean 18,117; sd 5106) when aviation emissions were included. This represents a potential range for individual CO2 emissions of between 4018 and 9073 kg CO2/person/annum, a variation of over 5 tonnes/person. The information provided by these models proved to be inconsistent and often contradictory. The high variability between models was due to a number of anomalies. When these were corrected mean household energy and transportation emissions fell to 12,130 kg CO2 yr− 1 (sd 805), with a total household footprint of 16,552 kg CO2 yr− 1 (sd 1101). Models vary in their complexity in terms of what is included in the overall estimation of emissions making a full analysis of the primary carbon footprint very difficult. When compared to current Irish conversion factors the corrected models either underestimated or overestimated CO2 emissions by approximately 10%. Current carbon footprint models excluded emissions from CH4 and N2O underestimating CO2 emissions for the household by 1.8%.
This paper reviews quantitative assessments of uncertainty in level and trend in national greenhouse gas inventories. The reported uncertainty in the total emissions of high-quality greenhouse gas inventories ranges from ±5–20% in studies of five industrialised countries. The differences in uncertainty are, in particular, due to different subjective assessment of the uncertainty in emissions of nitrous oxide from agricultural soils. The fraction of CO2 in the inventory has little effect on the uncertainty. The uncertainties in trends are about ±4–5 percentage points for those countries that have made estimates. High uncertainties of emission levels indicate potential for improvements and, consequently, recalculations. Recalculations will reduce uncertainty, but might also cause practical problems. A high uncertainty in the emission level for large emission sources may be an obstacle for assessing cost-effective reduction strategies as well as for designing effective systems of emission trading. This could imply that the more uncertain emission sources should be excluded from emission trading. Alternatively, subjective uncertainty estimates may be expressed in terms of an economic risk of recalculation. The latter system may allow a market-based encouragement to reduce emission uncertainty. Reductions in uncertainties are anticipated in the future. However, it will be extremely difficult to reduce the trend uncertainty. Trend uncertainties may consequently remain high compared with the emission reduction targets in the Kyoto protocol.
Local governments can have a large effect on carbon emissions through land use zoning, building codes, transport infrastructure investments, and support for transportation alternatives. This paper proposes a climate policy instrument - city carbon budgets - that provides a durable framework for local governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Local governments would be assigned an emissions "budget", and would be required to keep annual local transport and buildings emissions within this budget. This policy framework could be implemented and managed by a higher-level government, or might be used in awarding funds to developing country cities from international climate funds. The state of California has enacted a version of this policy. In this paper, we identify and evaluate options for creating an effective and acceptable institutional structure, allocating emission targets to localities, measuring emissions, providing flexibility and incentives to local governments, and assuring compliance. We also discuss the likely costs of such a policy.
Processes causing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions benefit humans by providing consumer goods and services. This benefit, and hence the responsibility for emissions, varies by purpose or consumption category and is unevenly distributed across and within countries. We quantify greenhouse gas emissions associated with the final consumption of goods and services for 73 nations and 14 aggregate world regions. We analyze the contribution of 8 categories: construction, shelter, food, clothing, mobility, manufactured products, services, and trade. National average per capita footprints vary from 1 tCO2e/y in African countries to approximately 30/y in Luxembourg and the United States. The expenditure elasticity is 0.57. The cross-national expenditure elasticity for just CO2, 0.81, corresponds remarkably well to the cross-sectional elasticities found within nations, suggesting a global relationship between expenditure and emissions that holds across several orders of magnitude difference. On the global level, 72% of greenhouse gas emissions are related to household consumption, 10% to government consumption, and 18% to investments. Food accounts for 20% of GHG emissions, operation and maintenance of residences is 19%, and mobility is 17%. Food and services are more important in developing countries, while mobility and manufactured goods rise fast with income and dominate in rich countries. The importance of public services and manufactured goods has not yet been sufficiently appreciated in policy. Policy priorities hence depend on development status and country-level characteristics.
Because of increasing concern about global climate change and carbon emissions as a causal factor, many companies and organizations are pursuing "carbon footprint" projects to estimate their own contributions to global climate change. Protocol definitions from carbon registries help organizations analyze their footprints. The scope of these protocols varies but generally suggests estimating only direct emissions and emissions from purchased energy, with less focus on supply chain emissions. In contrast approaches based on comprehensive environmental life-cycle assessment methods are available to track total emissions across the entire supply chain, and experience suggests that following narrowly defined estimation protocols will generally lead to large underestimates of carbon emissions for providing products and services. Direct emissions from an industry are, on average, only 14% of the total supply chain carbon emissions (often called Tier 1 emissions), and direct emissions plus industry energy inputs are, on average, only 26% of the total supply chain emissions (often called Tier 1 and 2 emissions). Without a full knowledge of their footprints, firms will be unable to pursue the most cost-effective carbon mitigation strategies. We suggest that firms use the screening-level analysis described here to set the bounds of their footprinting strategy to ensure that they do not ignore large sources of environmental effects across their supply chains. Such information can help firms pursue carbon and environmental emission mitigation projects not only within their own plants but also across their supply chain.
Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is a method for evaluating the environmental impacts of products holistically, including direct and supply chain impacts. The current LCA methodologies and the standards by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) impose practical difficulties for drawing system boundaries; decisions on inclusion or exclusion of processes in an analysis (the cutoff criteria) are typically not made on a scientific basis. In particular, the requirement of deciding which processes could be excluded from the inventory can be rather difficult to meet because many excluded processes have often never been assessed by the practitioner, and therefore, their negligibility cannot be guaranteed. LCA studies utilizing economic input-output analysis have shown that, in practice, excluded processes can contribute as much to the product system under study as included processes; thus, the subjective determination of the system boundary may lead to invalid results. System boundaries in LCA are discussed herein with particular attention to outlining hybrid approaches as methods for resolving the boundary selection problem in LCA. An input-output model can be used to describe at least a part of a product system, and an ISO-compatible system boundary selection procedure can be designed by applying hybrid input-output-assisted approaches. There are several hybrid input-output analysis-based LCA methods that can be implemented in practice for broadening system boundary and also for ISO compliance.
Carbon footprint is an increasingly popular concept: for labelling, marketing, finance and regulation. In individual cases, carbon footprints can also be contentious, for example in the case of LPG and electric forklifts. Therefore, the fuel carbon footprints of the two were investigated to see if a fair, robust comparison could be made. This investigation yielded two conclusions: (1) definitions will continue to complicate footprint comparisons and (2) fuel carbon footprints of electric and (liquefied petroleum gas) LPG forklifts are, in principle, about equal, while in actual practice, LPG's footprint is smaller than that of electricity. The paper concludes that carbon footprint definitions should be sensible and transparent, but not prescribed.
Over the past decade, an increasing number of authors have been examining the nexus of producer versus consumer responsibility, often dealing with the question of how to assign responsibility for internationally traded greenhouse gas emissions. Recently, a similar problem has appeared in drafting the standards for the Ecological Footprint: While the method traditionally assumes a full life-cycle perspective with full consumer responsibility, a large number of producers (businesses and industry sectors) have started to calculate their own footprints (see www.isa.org.usyd.edu.au). Adding any producer's footprint to other producers' footprints, or to population footprints, which all already cover the full upstream supply chain of their operating inputs, leads to double-counting: The sum of footprints of producers and consumers is larger than the total national footprint. The committee in charge of the Footprint standardisation process was hence faced with the decades-old non-additivity problem, posing the following dilemma for the accounting of footprints, or any other production factor: if one disallows double-counting, but wishes to be able to account for producers and consumers, then one cannot impose the requirement of full life-cycle coverage; the supply chains of actors have to be curtailed somehow in order to avoid double-counting. This work demonstrates and discusses a non-arbitrary method of consistently delineating these supply chains, into mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive portions of responsibility to be shared by all actors in an economy.
- H Bauman
- A Tilman
Our Ecological Footprint - Reducing Human Impact on the Earth
- M Wackernagel
- W E Rees
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to LCA
- H Bauman
- A Tilman
Google Scholar]▪▪ Review of definitions for a ‘carbon footprint’ in the gray literature
- T Wiedmann
- J Minx