Developing low-carbon and efficient power systems is critical for energy security in the global warming context.We address this issue by focusing on the productivity impact of a decarbonization policy in China’s ther...Developing low-carbon and efficient power systems is critical for energy security in the global warming context.We address this issue by focusing on the productivity impact of a decarbonization policy in China’s thermal power sector—namely,the“Constructing Large Units and Restricting Small Ones”(CLRS)initiative.Utilizing a resource misallocation model,we construct a new theoretical framework to distinguish between technical and allocative efficiency and analyze productivity using plant-level data.The results indicate that the CLRS policy has significantly improved the allocative and technical efficiency of China’s coal-fired power sector,thereby ensuring power security.The closure of outdated and highly distorted small coal-fired units,which have been replaced by technologically advanced large units,primarily drives the enhanced efficiency.The policy’s effects are most pronounced in large-scale power plants and those with high coal combustion efficiency.Furthermore,a comparison of power plants’productivity distribution before and after policy implementation reveals that the CLRS policy not only enhances capital productivity in the coal-fired power sector but also increases rational labor allocation.Our findings have important policy implications for developing countries vis-à-vis building efficient and stable power systems amid climate change.展开更多
Research on environmental behaviour is often overlooked in literature on regime destabilization in energy transitions.This study addresses that gap by focusing on socio-political and demographic factors shaping suppor...Research on environmental behaviour is often overlooked in literature on regime destabilization in energy transitions.This study addresses that gap by focusing on socio-political and demographic factors shaping support for carbon regime destabilization policies in one of the most carbon-intensive regions of Europe.Carbon-intensive industries,especially coal mining and coal-based power generation,are often concentrated in a few carbon-intensive regions.Therefore,decarbonization actions will affect those regions particularly strongly.Correspondingly,carbon-intensive regions often exert significant political influence on the two climate mitigation policies at the national level.Focusing on Poland,we investigate socio-political and demographic factors that correlate with the approval or rejection of the two climate mitigation policies:increasing taxes on fossil fuels such as oil,gas,and coal and using public money to subsidize renewable energy such as wind and solar power in Poland and its carbon-intensive Silesia region.Using logistic regression with individual-level data derived from the 2016 European Social Survey(ESS)and the 2014 Chapel Hill Expert Survey(CHES),we find partypolitical ideology to be an important predictor at the national level but much less so at the regional level.Specifically,voting for right-wing party is not a divisive factor for individual support of the two climate mitigation policies either nationally or regionally.More interestingly,populism is a strong factor in support of increasing taxes on fossil fuel in the carbon-intensive Silesia region but is less important concerning in support of using public money to subsidize renewable energy in Poland overall.These results show the heterogeneity of right-wing party and populism within the support for the two climate mitigation policies.Socio-demographic factors,especially age,gender,education level,employment status,and employment sector,have even more complex and heterogeneous components in support of the two climate mitigation policies at the national and regional levels.Identifying the complex socio-political and demographic factors of climate mitigation policies across different national versus carbon-intensive regional contexts is an essential step for generating in situ decarbonization strategies.展开更多
Climate actions(SDG-13)aim at limiting global warming by targeting carbon emissions reduction.With the energy industry recognized as a significant CO_(2) emitter,SDG-13 policies mostly translate energy transition to r...Climate actions(SDG-13)aim at limiting global warming by targeting carbon emissions reduction.With the energy industry recognized as a significant CO_(2) emitter,SDG-13 policies mostly translate energy transition to renewables(SDG-7)and the electrification of end-users,both energy-demanding sectors and society(cities,households,and mobility).The double-layered actions parallel the classical“cascade control”employed in industrial sectors.For achieving deep decarbonization,the ambitious net-zero emissions(NZE),large-scale deployment of renewables demand storage,with hydrogen as a prominent chemical storage alternative,and carbon capture&storage(CCS)for hard-to-electrify sectors.Infrastructure developments need policy and capital investments,and geopolitics and resource availability challenge and offer opportunities.Since decarbonization and electrification have multiple realization paths and impact the industrial metabolism,SDGs are interconnected with synergies and trade-offs.Prioritization of SDGs by policymakers is necessary for resilience and robustness in achieving climate goals within a systems dynamics approach.This critical review identifies niches in decarbonization and electrification,enlightening the industrial metabolism under the lens of SDGs.展开更多
AIM:To analyze the environmental impact of patient travel for cataract surgery at a German ophthalmology center.METHODS:All cataract surgeries performed between October 23 and October 27,2023,were analyzed,and all pat...AIM:To analyze the environmental impact of patient travel for cataract surgery at a German ophthalmology center.METHODS:All cataract surgeries performed between October 23 and October 27,2023,were analyzed,and all patient records were reviewed for follow-up visits.All travel distances were calculated,and the associated emissions were quantified.Additionally,patients’utilization of geographically closer branch practices for follow-up care was evaluated,along with the corresponding effects on travel-related emissions.RESULTS:A total of 69 patients underwent unilateral cataract surgery.The average one-way travel distance was 40.1 km(24.9 mi;SD=23.6 km).Corresponding emissions were 1284.8 kg of greenhouse gas(GHG),2.477 kg of nitrogen oxides,and 0.101 kg of particulates.All patients attended at least two follow-up visits.Conducting followup visits at branch practices reduced travel distance by 49.1%.The associated GHG emissions from all travel were 1984.3 kg.Emissions from follow-up visits were 54.4%higher than those from the surgery itself.Total GHG emissions amounted to 3269.1 kg,with an average of 47.4 kg of GHG per patient for all travel associated with cataract surgery.CONCLUSION:A dense network of branch practices contributes to reducing the carbon footprint of cataract surgery-related patient travel;however,the development of digital health approaches for follow-up care is necessary to further optimize the environmental sustainability of cataract surgery.展开更多
Rural logistics faces a dilemma between development and high carbon emissions in China.We assess the tension between rural logistics development and carbon emissions from the perspective of policy guidance by modeling...Rural logistics faces a dilemma between development and high carbon emissions in China.We assess the tension between rural logistics development and carbon emissions from the perspective of policy guidance by modeling a rural logistics system using Jiangsu’s data.We simulate the development trend of Jiangsu rural logistics under carbon abatement policies from 2021–2030,with a focus on promoting its development while simultaneously reducing carbon emissions at a minimal cost.The findings show that rural logistics will move towards high carbon emissions without a carbon abatement policy,while the huge tax pressure of carbon reduction policies reduces the profitability of rural logistics,leading to a trade-off between development and decarbonization.From the perspective of implementation timing and manner of carbon abatement policies implementation,we propose a pathway for securing the profitability of rural logistics and resolving the trade-off.展开更多
基金supported by the Chengdu Philosophy and Social Science Planning Project[Grant No.2022C05]National Natural Science Foundation of China[Grant No.71904158].
文摘Developing low-carbon and efficient power systems is critical for energy security in the global warming context.We address this issue by focusing on the productivity impact of a decarbonization policy in China’s thermal power sector—namely,the“Constructing Large Units and Restricting Small Ones”(CLRS)initiative.Utilizing a resource misallocation model,we construct a new theoretical framework to distinguish between technical and allocative efficiency and analyze productivity using plant-level data.The results indicate that the CLRS policy has significantly improved the allocative and technical efficiency of China’s coal-fired power sector,thereby ensuring power security.The closure of outdated and highly distorted small coal-fired units,which have been replaced by technologically advanced large units,primarily drives the enhanced efficiency.The policy’s effects are most pronounced in large-scale power plants and those with high coal combustion efficiency.Furthermore,a comparison of power plants’productivity distribution before and after policy implementation reveals that the CLRS policy not only enhances capital productivity in the coal-fired power sector but also increases rational labor allocation.Our findings have important policy implications for developing countries vis-à-vis building efficient and stable power systems amid climate change.
基金funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under grant agreement No:884539“Carbon Intensive Regions in Transition-Unravelling the Challenges of Structural Change(CINTRAN)”。
文摘Research on environmental behaviour is often overlooked in literature on regime destabilization in energy transitions.This study addresses that gap by focusing on socio-political and demographic factors shaping support for carbon regime destabilization policies in one of the most carbon-intensive regions of Europe.Carbon-intensive industries,especially coal mining and coal-based power generation,are often concentrated in a few carbon-intensive regions.Therefore,decarbonization actions will affect those regions particularly strongly.Correspondingly,carbon-intensive regions often exert significant political influence on the two climate mitigation policies at the national level.Focusing on Poland,we investigate socio-political and demographic factors that correlate with the approval or rejection of the two climate mitigation policies:increasing taxes on fossil fuels such as oil,gas,and coal and using public money to subsidize renewable energy such as wind and solar power in Poland and its carbon-intensive Silesia region.Using logistic regression with individual-level data derived from the 2016 European Social Survey(ESS)and the 2014 Chapel Hill Expert Survey(CHES),we find partypolitical ideology to be an important predictor at the national level but much less so at the regional level.Specifically,voting for right-wing party is not a divisive factor for individual support of the two climate mitigation policies either nationally or regionally.More interestingly,populism is a strong factor in support of increasing taxes on fossil fuel in the carbon-intensive Silesia region but is less important concerning in support of using public money to subsidize renewable energy in Poland overall.These results show the heterogeneity of right-wing party and populism within the support for the two climate mitigation policies.Socio-demographic factors,especially age,gender,education level,employment status,and employment sector,have even more complex and heterogeneous components in support of the two climate mitigation policies at the national and regional levels.Identifying the complex socio-political and demographic factors of climate mitigation policies across different national versus carbon-intensive regional contexts is an essential step for generating in situ decarbonization strategies.
基金O.Q.F.Araújo,C.R.V.Morgado,and J.L.de Medeiros are grateful for the financial support of Petrobras(Grant No.:Cenpes/ANP 19536)Jos´e Luiz de Medeiros is also thankful for the support of CNPq(311076/2017-3)Ofelia Q.F.Araújo to CNPq(312328/2021-4).
文摘Climate actions(SDG-13)aim at limiting global warming by targeting carbon emissions reduction.With the energy industry recognized as a significant CO_(2) emitter,SDG-13 policies mostly translate energy transition to renewables(SDG-7)and the electrification of end-users,both energy-demanding sectors and society(cities,households,and mobility).The double-layered actions parallel the classical“cascade control”employed in industrial sectors.For achieving deep decarbonization,the ambitious net-zero emissions(NZE),large-scale deployment of renewables demand storage,with hydrogen as a prominent chemical storage alternative,and carbon capture&storage(CCS)for hard-to-electrify sectors.Infrastructure developments need policy and capital investments,and geopolitics and resource availability challenge and offer opportunities.Since decarbonization and electrification have multiple realization paths and impact the industrial metabolism,SDGs are interconnected with synergies and trade-offs.Prioritization of SDGs by policymakers is necessary for resilience and robustness in achieving climate goals within a systems dynamics approach.This critical review identifies niches in decarbonization and electrification,enlightening the industrial metabolism under the lens of SDGs.
文摘AIM:To analyze the environmental impact of patient travel for cataract surgery at a German ophthalmology center.METHODS:All cataract surgeries performed between October 23 and October 27,2023,were analyzed,and all patient records were reviewed for follow-up visits.All travel distances were calculated,and the associated emissions were quantified.Additionally,patients’utilization of geographically closer branch practices for follow-up care was evaluated,along with the corresponding effects on travel-related emissions.RESULTS:A total of 69 patients underwent unilateral cataract surgery.The average one-way travel distance was 40.1 km(24.9 mi;SD=23.6 km).Corresponding emissions were 1284.8 kg of greenhouse gas(GHG),2.477 kg of nitrogen oxides,and 0.101 kg of particulates.All patients attended at least two follow-up visits.Conducting followup visits at branch practices reduced travel distance by 49.1%.The associated GHG emissions from all travel were 1984.3 kg.Emissions from follow-up visits were 54.4%higher than those from the surgery itself.Total GHG emissions amounted to 3269.1 kg,with an average of 47.4 kg of GHG per patient for all travel associated with cataract surgery.CONCLUSION:A dense network of branch practices contributes to reducing the carbon footprint of cataract surgery-related patient travel;however,the development of digital health approaches for follow-up care is necessary to further optimize the environmental sustainability of cataract surgery.
基金This work has been supported in part by National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.72103178)Humanities and Social Sciences Youth Foundation,Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China(22YJC790004)Zhenjiang Federation of Philosophical and Social Sciences(2022YBL31).
文摘Rural logistics faces a dilemma between development and high carbon emissions in China.We assess the tension between rural logistics development and carbon emissions from the perspective of policy guidance by modeling a rural logistics system using Jiangsu’s data.We simulate the development trend of Jiangsu rural logistics under carbon abatement policies from 2021–2030,with a focus on promoting its development while simultaneously reducing carbon emissions at a minimal cost.The findings show that rural logistics will move towards high carbon emissions without a carbon abatement policy,while the huge tax pressure of carbon reduction policies reduces the profitability of rural logistics,leading to a trade-off between development and decarbonization.From the perspective of implementation timing and manner of carbon abatement policies implementation,we propose a pathway for securing the profitability of rural logistics and resolving the trade-off.
