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For Sustainable Development: The Differences in Water and Energy Consumptions in Urban and Rural Environments

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2022) | Viewed by 2619

Special Issue Editor

School of Science and Technology and CQ-VR- Center of Chemistry of Vila Real, University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, 5000-801 Vila Real, Portugal
Interests: buildings energy efficiency; thermal comfort; thermal performance analysis; nearly-zero energy buildings; passive solar design; sustainable construction; waste valorization as building materials; building materials characterization; sustainable materials
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Water and energy are two essential resources recognized as indispensable inputs to modern society’s economic and social development, whose consumptions are intensifying worldwide. The increasing demands represent an adverse impact on the environment in terms of resource scarcity and climate change, compromising the sustainable development of modern societies, which will not be supportable in the long run, making it urgent to manage these resources in a more sustainable way.

Water and energy are inextricably linked resources that have been largely treated individually. Understanding the energy–water nexus can be an important contribution to minimize energy and water consumptions and mitigate environmental impacts. Water is required in several processes of energy production, such as raw materials extraction and processing, electricity generation and consumption, thermal plant cooling, and waste products treatments. Energy is required at various water-related processes of the water cycle, namely water production, including desalination, groundwater pumping, water purification, end use, and wastewater treatment. Given this close interrelation, an integrated approach will be crucial to obtain more efficient water and energy systems.

The consumption of these resources is affected by several factors, such as demographic, economic, social, cultural, and technological, leading to different behavioral patterns. It is known that there are differences between water and energy consumption patterns in rural and urban environments. The identification of the factors influencing those consumptions plays an important role in future planning and strategic policy considerations.

The Guest Editors of Sustainability invite papers dealing with sustainability issues in water and energy consumptions in urban and rural environments. We invite submissions of high quality, empirical and theoretical, papers related to the following topics and keywords:

  • Water and energy consumptions at agricultural, industrial, and residential sectors;
  • Energy–water nexus;
  • Water cycle;
  • Energy systems;
  • Efficient use of water and energy;
  • Urban and rural consumption patterns;
  • Influencing factors;
  • Environmental impacts;
  • Costs analysis;
  • Public policies and strategies;
  • Sustainable systems;
  • Sustainability analysis.

Dr. Ana Briga-Sá
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • water and energy consumptions
  • urban and rural environments
  • consumption patterns
  • water and energy efficiency
  • sustainability

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

11 pages, 7041 KiB  
Article
Energy Consumption and CO2 Emissions Related to Wine Production: The Case Study of a Winery in Douro Wine Region-Portugal
by Cristina Matos and António Pirra
Sustainability 2022, 14(7), 4317; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14074317 - 05 Apr 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1986
Abstract
Water use and its associated energy consumption in wine processes are often unnoticed in best practice. Many proprietors are insensitive to how water is used within their winery procedures. Key areas of environmental concern currently faced by the wine industry include water and [...] Read more.
Water use and its associated energy consumption in wine processes are often unnoticed in best practice. Many proprietors are insensitive to how water is used within their winery procedures. Key areas of environmental concern currently faced by the wine industry include water and energy use and the production of greenhouse effect gas emissions, among others. This review revealed that the practice within wine organizations tends to be largely unexplored and inadequate. To address the present needs for accurate water and energy resources control, it is vital to develop research on how water and energy are related and used in wine production to increase the effective use of these resources, minimizing the related environmental impact. The main aim of this paper was to find the relationship between energy and water utilization and subsequent CO2 emissions from a winery located in the Douro Valley, contributing to its sustainability in terms of resources consumption. A two-year monitoring plan on water use was implemented, and the related energy consumption and CO2 emissions were calculated. The results showed high values of energy (148.5 kWh/day) as well as related CO2 emissions (54 kg CO2/day) associated with high water consumption (that ranged from 16.20 to 27.66 m3 water/day). This information is very important and contributes to enlarging the database of environmental parameters related to wine production in the Douro wine region, creating opportunities for environmental improvement. Full article
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