Sustainability — Open Access Journal

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the factors that promote successful rural tourism development in light of EU sponsorship of rural tourism hosts. The paper examines the effect of the size and geographical characteristics of rural tourism hosts on their views towards rural tourism development. The paper employs factor analysis, t-tests, and ANOVA to analyze the data from the survey of the hosts. The survey was sent to 652 rural tourism hosts, of whom 174 replied, giving a response rate of 27%. The results show the following. Firstly, subsidies, leadership, and cooperation are viewed by the hosts as important factors. Secondly, sponsorship, size, and peripheral economic conditions influence rural tourism hosts’ views on success factors of rural enterprises. Full article

The amount of released water (discharge) in a levee breach is a primary input variable to establish an emergency action plan for the area next to the levee. However, although several studies have been conducted, there is still no widely applicable discharge coefficient formula; this needs to be known to estimate discharge amount through an opening caused by a levee breach. Sometimes, the discharge coefficient developed for a sharp crested side weir is used to rate the discharge, but, in case of a levee breach, the resulting geometry and flow types are similar to that over a broad crested weir. Thus, in this study, two different openings—rectangular and trapezoidal shape—are constructed in the center of a levee at a height of 0.6m to replicate levee breach scenarios, and the effect of two different approach flow types—the river type approach and reservoir type approach—are explored to suggest a discharge coefficient formula applicable for discharge rating for a levee breach. The results show that the ratio of head above the bottom of an opening and the opening width is a key variable for calculating the discharge coefficient of a reservoir type, but the approach Froude number should also be considered for a river type approach. The measured data are used to improve rating equations and will be useful in the future to validate computational fluid dynamics simulations of wave propagation during levee failure into the inundation area. Full article

The maintenance of drinking water safety is a major environmental issue. It is necessary to strengthen environmental protection in water source areas and establish good vegetation coverage. This study examined the effects of secondary forests transformation on chestnut forests on soil nutrient changes in the Fuji Reservoir, Anji County, Zhejiang province, China. Plots were set up in a chestnut plantation and a nearby secondary forest to measure the nutrient contents of soil samples that were collected from different soil depths. Differences of soil nutrient content from the two stands were significant at 0–20 cm soil depth. There were no significant differences in the contents of total phosphorus and total potassium between the two forests; however, the available phosphorus content in chestnut stands was 2.73 mg/kg higher than in secondary forests. Overall, the soil nutrient contents under chestnut stands were lower than those under secondary forests. Some of the soil surface is exposed due to the low diversity of the chestnut forest. The soil nutrients in the chestnut forest are usually carried and transferred in soil particle form and they become dissolved in the runoff during rainfall and lost, which explains the lower soil nutrient contents in the chestnut forest than the secondary forest. Therefore, for economic forests, such as chestnut forests, measures should be taken to protect understory vegetation and enhance soil and water conservation capacity, which is conducive to retaining soil nutrients. Full article

Increasing temperatures, greater carbon dioxide concentrations, and changes in related climatic variables will continue to affect the growth and yields of agricultural crops. Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is extremely vulnerable to these climatic changes. Therefore, investigating the degree to which climate changes could influence rice yields and what effective adaptive strategies could be taken to mitigate the potential adverse impacts is of vital importance. In this article, the impacts of climate change on rice yields in Zhejiang province, China, were simulated under the Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios. The impacts of climate change, with and without CO₂ fertilization effects, were evaluated and the three most effective adaptive measures were examined. Compared with the yield for the baseline time of 1981–2010, the simulated average yields of all cultivars were inevitably projected to decrease under both RCPs when the CO₂ fertilization effects were not considered during the three periods of the 2020s (2011–2040), 2050s (2041–2070), and 2080s (2071–2099), respectively. Declines in rice yields were able to be alleviated when the CO₂ fertilization effects were accounted for, but the yields were still lower than those of the baseline. Therefore, the three adaptive measures of advancing planting dates, switching to high-temperature-tolerant cultivars, and breeding new cultivars were simulated. The results indicated that adaptive measures could effectively mitigate the adverse effects of climate change. Although the simulation had uncertainties and limitations, the results provide useful insights into the potential impacts of climate change in Zhejiang province while also proposing adaptive measures. Full article

R&D investment can reduce costs through efficient production technology, which has a positive (+) impact on future performance. On the other hand, R&D investment has uncertainty due to characteristics such as time lag, high cost and non-appropriability. We examine whether the effects of R&D expenditures on future performance and earnings uncertainty are different according to firm life cycle, which reflects the differences in the environment, circumstances, and strategy of the firm. Investors assess sustainable growth potential of the enterprise in the capital market, reflecting the future performance and the uncertainty of the firm. This implies that R&D investment can affect the capital market through investors’ future expectations for sustainable growth of the company. We also examine the differential effects of R&D expenditures on market response by the firm life cycle. The test results show that firm life cycle differentially affects the relation between R&D expenditures and future performance and uncertainty. Further, the market response varies over the firm life cycle. Our results provide suggestions that R&D investments should be made properly considering the environment and circumstances of the firm. The finding that R&D expenditures differently affect future performance, uncertainty, and sustainable growth potential according to the firm life cycle is expected to help managers make decisions about R&D investment. Full article

China is experiencing substantial land-use and land-cover change (LUCC), especially in coastal regions, and these changes have caused many ecological problems. This study selected a typical region of Jiangsu Province and completed a comprehensive and detailed spatial-temporal analysis regarding LUCC and the driving forces. The results show that the rate of land-use change has been accelerating, with land-use experiencing the most substantial changes from 2005 to 2010 for most land-use types and the period from 2010 to 2015 showing a reversed changing trend. Built-up land that occupies cropland was the main characteristic of land-use type change. Southern Jiangsu and the coastline region presented more obvious land-use changes. Social-economic development was the main factor driving increased built-up land expansion and cropland reduction. In addition, land-use policy can significantly affect land-use type changes. For land-cover changes, the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) for the land area without land-use type changes increased by 0.005 per year overall. Areas with increasing trends accounted for 82.43% of the total area. Both precipitation and temperature displayed more areas that were positively correlated with NDVI, especially for temperature. Temperature correlated more strongly with NDVI change than precipitation for most vegetation types. Our study can be used as a reference for land-use managers to ensure sustainable and ecological land-use and coastal management. Full article

Geographical and environmental conditions were two of the most important factors on the design and construction of traditional architecture. Traditional earthen architecture is found throughout the Iberian Peninsula in numerous constructive techniques and variants, most notably rammed-earth, adobe and half-timber. The varied morphology, climate, geology and culture of the Iberian Peninsula, together with its immediate surroundings, have a direct effect on the development and the properties of traditional architecture. Thus, the objective of this research is to establish the relationship between the geographical characteristics and the distribution of the earthen techniques. For that purpose, the authors of this text have carried out a thorough data collection throughout the whole of the Iberian Peninsula in order to identify the main characteristics of this architecture in each location and to produce maps featuring the locations for each technique. This mapping of numerous techniques has been compared with other thematic maps of the territory, establishing relationships between the different techniques and specific properties of a given area. These provide hypotheses on which factors encourage or hinder the use of earthen construction techniques. Moreover, the relationship of traditional architecture with geographical factors and its specific morphology on a given place has provided many design lessons for a sustainable architecture. Those lessons must be taken into account on rehabilitation works and new architecture. Full article

This study provides an overview of corporate ethical responsibility (CER) studies and discusses potential future research directions. We use citations analysis in this study, because it is an efficient method for identifying and visualizing intellectual bases in a given field. Then, it presents a conceptual model that summarizes the key relationships within the CER literature by reviewing the source articles. Finally, this study synthesizes intellectual contributions to CER literature, highlights unresolved issues, and identifies areas for future research. Full article

Assessing the current levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from road transportation projects allows for benchmarking and is essential for potential emissions reduction. The objective of this study was to estimate the GHG emissions associated with the construction and operation of three road cases—two primary roads and one secondary road network—in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The GHG emissions produced by the study cases were estimated using the RoadCO₂ estimation tool. Results showed that the total emissions (in kg CO₂e/m²/y) range from 76 for the secondary road case to 1100 for the primary road cases. The operation phase is responsible for 94–98% of these emissions; the construction phase is responsible for the rest. Road works contributed the most to GHG emissions during the construction phase. The contribution of the remaining categories of the construction phase fluctuates within a certain case and among the considered cases. The equipment used in the construction phase for the three cases contributed 15–70% of the total phase emissions, while the remaining emissions were due to construction materials. In the operation phase, emissions were mainly generated by vehicle movement. Street lighting also contributed to emissions during the operation phase. On the other hand, the irrigation of planted trees along the road had a very low impact on GHG emissions, and carbon sequestration by these trees had a negligible effect in terms of acting as a carbon sink. The results obtained from this study were compared with other cases reported in the literature. Full article

The number of battery electric vehicle models available in the market has been increasing, as well as their battery capacity, and these trends are likely to continue in the future as sustainable transportation goals rise in importance, supported by advances in battery chemistry and technology. Given the rapid pace of these advances, the impact of new chemistries, e.g., lithium-manganese rich cathode materials and silicon/graphite anodes, has not yet been thoroughly considered in the literature. This research estimates life cycle greenhouse gas and other air pollutants emissions of battery electric vehicles with different battery chemistries, including the above advances. The analysis methodology, which uses the greenhouse gases, regulated emissions, and energy use in transportation (GREET) life-cycle assessment model, considers 8 battery types, 13 electricity generation mixes with different predominant primary energy sources, and 4 vehicle segments (small, medium, large, and sport utility vehicles), represented by prototype vehicles, with both battery replacement and non-replacement during the life cycle. Outputs are expressed as emissions ratios to the equivalent petrol internal combustion engine vehicle and two-way analysis of variance is used to test results for statistical significance. Results show that newer Li-ion battery technology can yield significant improvements over older battery chemistries, which can be as high as 60% emissions reduction, depending on pollutant type and electricity generation mix. Full article

This paper formulates a rainwater harvesting model, with system and economic measures to determine the feasibility of a rainwater harvesting system, which uses water from the mains to complement the system. Although local meteorological and market data were used to demonstrate the model, it can also be easily adapted for analysis of other localities. Analysis has shown that an optimum tank size exists, which minimizes the cost per unit volume of water. Economic performance measures have indicated that rainwater harvesting system is currently infeasible to be implemented in Brunei; with capital cost and water price being shown to be among the prohibiting factors. To improve feasibility, a combination of rebate scheme on capital cost and raising the current water price has been proposed. It has also been shown that the system is more viable for households with high water demand. Full article

Environmental conflicts have been a top global focus and issue for human’s sustainable development. China is confronted with a serious situation with a rigid demand of ecological governance, in which the “Not In My Back Yard” (NIMBY) crisis outbreaks frequently. NIMBY has a great impact on government management and social stability. This study aims to analyze the NIMBY crisis transformation path for municipal solid waste incineration (MSWI) in China. Considering environmental, social and economic influences, this study seeks to find methods of transforming dangers into opportunities. A conceptual framework for realizing the NIMBY crisis transformation in waste management decision-making was conducted with a hybrid approach. A fishbone diagram was applied to explain the key factors of NIMBY crisis transformation for MSWI. Integrating Bayesian network structure discovery and co-word analysis into a qualitative analysis, searched data and key factors from a literature search engine with specific themes were used for structure learning. The results showed that project location, benefit compensation, publicity and education, public decision, public participation, the rule of law and multiple governance have distinct influences on the NIMBY crisis transformation process in China. In summary, the conceptual framework describes the complex process of NIMBY crisis transformation and helps to deepen data mining for municipal solid waste management (MSWM). Full article

The recovery of cathode and anode materials plays an important role in the recycling process of spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs). Organic binders reduce the liberation efficiency and flotation efficiency of electrode materials derived from spent LIBs. In this study, pyrolysis technology is used to improve the recovery of cathode and anode materials from spent LIBs by removing organic binders. Pyrolysis characteristics of organics in electrode materials are investigated, and on this basis, the effects of pyrolysis parameters on the liberation efficiency of electrode materials are studied. Afterwards, flotation technology is used to separate cathode material from anode material. The results indicate that the optimum liberation efficiency of electrode materials is obtained at a pyrolysis temperature of 500 °C, a pyrolysis time of 15 min and a pyrolysis heating rate of 10 °C/min. At this time, the liberation efficiency of cathode materials is 98.23% and the liberation efficiency of anode materials is 98.89%. Phase characteristics of electrode materials cannot be changed under these pyrolysis conditions. Ultrasonic cleaning was used to remove pyrolytic residues to further improve the flotation efficiency of electrode materials. The cathode material grade was up to 93.89% with a recovery of 96.88% in the flotation process. Full article

As one of the “three major strategies” for China’s regional development, the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) is under severe pressure to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, this paper analyzes the spatiotemporal disparities, and driving factors of carbon emissions based on energy consumption and related economic development data in the YREB over the 2005–2016 11-year period. Using the Stochastic Impacts Regression on Population, Affluence and Technology (STIRPAT) model, we empirically test the factors affecting YREB carbon emissions and key drivers in various provinces and municipalities. The main findings are as follows. First, per capita GDP, both industrial structure and energy intensity have positive effects on increasing carbon emissions. Second, per capita GDP and energy intensity have the largest impact on the increase of carbon emissions, and the urbanization rate has the largest inhibitory effect on carbon emissions. Full article

The primary objective of this study was to validate the sustainability benchmarking tool (SBT) framework proposed by the authors in a previous study. The SBT framework is focused on benchmarking triple bottom line (TBL) sustainability through exhaustive use of lean, six-sigma, and life cycle assessment (LCA). During the validation, sustainability performance of a value-added wood products’ production line was assessed and improved through deployment of the SBT framework. Strengths and weaknesses of the system were identified within the scope of the bronze frontier maturity level of the framework and tackled through a six-step analytical and quantitative reasoning methodology. The secondary objective of the study was to document how value-added wood products industries can take advantage of natural properties of wood to become frontiers of sustainability innovation. In the end, true sustainability performance of the target facility was improved by 2.37 base points, while economic and environmental performance was increased from being a system weakness to achieving an acceptable index score benchmark of 8.41 and system strength level of 9.31, respectively. The social sustainability score increased by 2.02 base points as a function of a better gender bias ratio. The financial performance of the system improved from a 33% loss to 46.23% profit in the post-improvement state. Reductions in CO₂ emissions (55.16%), energy consumption (50.31%), solid waste generation (72.03%), non-value-added-time (89.30%), and cost performance (64.77%) were other significant achievements of the study. In the end, the SBT framework was successfully validated at the facility level, and the target facility evolved into a leaner, cleaner, and more responsible version of itself. This study empirically documents how synergies between lean, sustainability, six-sigma and life cycle assessment concepts outweigh their divergences and demonstrates the viability of the SBT framework. Full article

Stakeholder collaboration has become a critical issue in sustainable tourism policy due to the increasing complexity and interdisciplinary nature of the domain. Policymaking should reflect tourism values through a dynamic system in which stakeholders come to a consensus on sustainability issues via ongoing interactive engagement. Taking Singapore’s hotel sector as a case, this study explores how stakeholder relationships contribute to participatory policymaking on sustainable water management. Based on a survey of 33 relevant organisations, this research applies network analysis to investigate stakeholder collaboration within this policy domain. While the policymaking process is derived from a complex web of actors and their formal and informal interactions, the national water agency of Singapore and some private businesses were found to be centrally located in the policy network. The aforementioned government body is also perceived to hold the greatest legitimacy, power, and urgency over others in the policy domain. Central stakeholders were found to play an important “bridging” role in terms of the interconnectedness of policy actors across boundaries of the public, private, and third sectors. These prominent political and industry players were also likely to exert control over the policymaking process and access to important resources based on their favourable network positions. Full article

Green buildings may become the solution to the problem of high energy consumption, including those that are subject to verification by the relevant institutions issuing green certificates. The aim of the paper is an analysis and a brief discussion of trends related to the certification of office buildings in Poland. At the end of 2017, almost 9.7 million m² of modern office space was available in Poland, of which 62% was a certified area. This constitutes a five percent increase in the share of certified office space in relation to the total modern office space available during 2017. In order to compare the costs and benefits of certified buildings, the costs of an office building and a certified building were simulated. The comparison was made using the idea of costs in the life cycle and calculating the Life Cycle Cost. The difference between the base building and the green one was mainly based on obtaining higher Net Present Value with lower investment expenditures for the green building. There was also a clear difference between the beginning of investment profitability for the different levels of rent. Full article

Animal disease is a major threat to the sustainability of the global livestock market. We explore the price risk spillover of avian influenza to the broiler market, from the perspective of public opinion. Unlike in previous work, where avian influenza is measured as a whole, we decompose an avian influenza epidemic into avian influenza outbreak and public opinion, measured by infection cases and Baidu and Google search volume. Theoretically, by introducing the theory of limited attention and two-step flow of communication, we develop an analytical framework to capture the causal mechanism of avian influenza outbreak, public opinion, and broiler price risk spillover, arguing that it is actually public opinion, not avian influenza outbreak alone, that directly causes broiler price risk. Empirically, using a long panel from China spanning from November 2004–November 2017, we examine the causal mechanism and analyse the nonlinear spatial spillover of public opinion to broiler price risk. We find that: (i) neither poultry nor human infection with avian influenza outbreak has a significant spillover to broiler price; (ii) on average, public opinion has a negative spillover to broiler price; in general, spillover of public opinion to broiler price is inverse U-shaped; (iii) on average, public opinion has a negative direct effect on local broiler price and a three times larger negative spatial spillover effect on nearby broiler price; in general, direct and spatial spillover effects are inverse U-shaped. Our research highlights the importance of studying public opinion in amplifying price risk when analysing spillover of animal disease to the global livestock market. Full article

Global environmental degradation is linked to a worldwide erosion of ethnic identity and cultural diversity, as well as market disruption. Cultures rely heavily on the local environment around them, and local communities play a key role in conserving natural resources. People’s identity, connection with land, and the adaptation of Indigenous and local knowledge are prerequisites for resilience. Though the Environmental Precautionary Principle (EPP) aims to tackle environmental degradation by privileging the environment in the face of uncertainty, it is not sufficient on its own; it does not take into account the intimate connection between nature and local culture, nor does it prioritize community or cultural wellbeing. We suggest expanding this concept into a multi-faceted Universal Precautionary Principle (UPP), which recognizes people’s connection to the land, and elevates community, cultural, and economic wellbeing as equally important values alongside environmental concerns. Here, we coin the Universal Precautionary Principle, outline its four core pillars—systems, governance, diversity, and resilience—and introduce its three subsets: Environmental Precautionary Principle, Sociocultural Precautionary Principle, and Economic Precautionary Principle. We discuss potential outcomes of its application, and offer operational guidelines to implement the Universal Precautionary Principle in practice, before concluding that it is a crucial tool to build environmental, sociocultural, and economic resilience. In essence, reciprocity is the keystone for continuance—if the environment is healthy, people are more likely to be healthy. Equally, if people are healthy, the environment is more likely to be healthy; for both people and the environment to be healthy, their culture and economy must be healthy. Full article