Special Issue "Adoption of Management Strategies and Technologies for Sustainable Production: A Solution to Reduce Environmental Emissions"

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Sustainability and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2021.

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Ehsan Elahi
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Business, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, China
Interests: renewable energy; non-renewable energy; industrial production; farm production; sustainable development; environmental pollution
Dr. Guo Wei
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mathematics & Computer Science, University of North Carolina at Pembroke, Pembroke, NC 28372, USA
Interests: economic development; sustainable production; industrial productionems in Social Science, Environmental Economics and Management, and Public Health
Dr. Tasawar Nawaz
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Plymouth Business School, University of Plymouth. Plymouth PL4 8AA, United Kingdom
Interests: green energy; sustainable production systems

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the era of advanced technology and economic development, global society is continuously facing the challenge of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The use of non-renewable energy sources for household, industrial, and agricultural sectors has escalated the pollution emissions. The production systems of developing countries are mainly dependent on the use of traditional energies. For instance, at the domestic level, the use of firewood, charcoal, and animal dung is common. The industrial sector largely uses inefficient energy technology, which causes not only wasteful use of resources but also contributes to GHG emissions and the destruction of human health. Similarly, agriculture directly and indirectly contributes more than 10% of global environmental emissions, mainly from the burning of fossil fuels, farm mechanization, and the application of synthetic agrochemicals. This Special Issue (SI) focuses on determining the contribution of household, industrial, and agricultural sectors to the pollution emissions. Moreover, it aims to find plausible solutions in terms of the adoption of management practices and energy-efficient technologies to decouple the dependency of production systems on non-renewable energy sources for pollution abatement. In developing countries, limited studies have focused on adopting smart management strategies and energy-efficient technologies for cleaner production. To solve the stated problem, this Special Issue aspires to collect novel studies covering a broad range of topics.

Prof. Ehsan Elahi
Dr. Guo Wei
Dr. Tasawar Nawaz
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1900 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

  • Smart management practices 
  • Energy-efficient technology 
  • Industrial production 
  • Farm production 
  • Pollution abatement
  • Environmental emissions
  • Renewable energy
  • Non-renewable energy
  • Sustainable production
  • Economic development and pollution emissions
  • Environment and human health

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

Article
Towards Sustainable Farm Production System: A Case Study of Corn Farming
Sustainability 2021, 13(16), 9243; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13169243 - 17 Aug 2021
Viewed by 396
Abstract
Many recent studies show that most of the crop production systems in developing countries are not environmentally sustainable. This study uses the life cycle assessment (LCA) to investigate the potential impacts of corn production in Pakistan on global warming and human health damages [...] Read more.
Many recent studies show that most of the crop production systems in developing countries are not environmentally sustainable. This study uses the life cycle assessment (LCA) to investigate the potential impacts of corn production in Pakistan on global warming and human health damages and also suggests mitigation strategies to reduce environmental impacts towards sustainable crop production based on the results. Land-based, mass-based, and energy-based functional units were used. IMPACT 2002+ methodology—a combination of IMPACT 2002, Eco-Indicator 99, CML, and intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC)—is used for the impact assessment. The results demonstrated that the global warming potential of one-ton production of corn, one-hectare corn farm, and production of 1000 MJ energy were 354.18, 34,569.90, and 1275.13 kg CO2 equivalents, respectively. The off-farm and on-farm emissions of nitrogen-based chemical fertilizers were the hotspots in the most impact categories. Moreover, human health damages followed by global warming as environmental externalities were also associated with corn production. We also highlighted the production areas with light, medium and extreme environmental externalities with Toba Tek Singh and Okara districts in the Punjab province of Pakistan being the most and least contributing districts towards global warming, respectively. Results further indicated that a 5 to 100% reduction of chemical fertilizers would mitigate the environmental impacts of corn production by 4.38 to 87.58% and 2.16 to 43.30% in terms of aquatic acidification and global warming, respectively. Modern farming systems and conservation technologies were suggested to reduce emissions and improve the environmental performance of corn production. Furthermore, agricultural extension and the ministry of agriculture should pay more attention to farmers’ education on emissions from farming inputs and their impact on climate. Full article
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Article
A Study on the Relationship between Income Change and the Water Footprint of Food Consumption in Urban China
Sustainability 2021, 13(13), 7076; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13137076 - 23 Jun 2021
Viewed by 378
Abstract
We use a threshold model to analyze the relationship between per capita income and the per capita water footprint of food consumption in the urban Guangdong Province of China, and further simulate the effect of changes in income distribution on the per capita [...] Read more.
We use a threshold model to analyze the relationship between per capita income and the per capita water footprint of food consumption in the urban Guangdong Province of China, and further simulate the effect of changes in income distribution on the per capita water footprint of food consumption. The income growth of urban residents has a significant positive effect on the per capita water footprint of food consumption, where the effect varies by income stratum. The income elasticity of the per capita water footprint of food consumption for the total sample is 0.45, where the income elasticity of the low-income group (0.75) is greater than that of the high-income group (0.23), indicating that a change of income in the low-income group has a greater effect on water resources. The simulation results show that increasing the income of residents, especially that of the low-income group, significantly increases the water footprint due to food consumption for the whole society. At present, China is in a period of rapid economic growth and urbanization, comprising a period of profound change and sensitive response to the income level of urban and rural residents. Therefore, in order to reduce the effect of food consumption on the environment, sustainable food consumption management strategies should consider group differences. We should correctly guide all kinds of groups to carry out sustainable consumption, advocate healthy and reasonable diet models, reduce animal food consumption, avoid the excessive consumption of food, and strengthen the management of food waste. Full article
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Article
Decomposing the Persistent and Transitory Effect of Information and Communication Technology on Environmental Impacts Assessment in Africa: Evidence from Mundlak Specification
Sustainability 2021, 13(9), 4683; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13094683 - 22 Apr 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 543
Abstract
This study examines the persistent and transitory effects of information and communication technology (ICT) on the environmental impact assessment in Africa. The applied advanced econometrics is based on both the Mundlak and Hausman–Taylor methodology for correcting endogeneity and the feasible generalized least squares [...] Read more.
This study examines the persistent and transitory effects of information and communication technology (ICT) on the environmental impact assessment in Africa. The applied advanced econometrics is based on both the Mundlak and Hausman–Taylor methodology for correcting endogeneity and the feasible generalized least squares (FGLS) method to identify any potential cross-panel correlation. The empirical evidence suggests that an increase in ICT (Internet penetration) has a positive transitory effect on the environment. On the contrary, an increase in ICT has a negative persistent effect on the environment. This implies that a temporary change in ICT usage increases carbon emissions, whereas ICT use can reduce carbon emissions in the long run. In addition, this study identified mediums through which ICT can affect the environment, such as energy consumption. Therefore, this study recommends continuous investment in ICT infrastructure and education on the importance of practicing environmentally sustainable practices. Similarly, energy conservation is critical because use of the Internet appears to indirectly increase energy usage by increasing the overall productivity of the economy, which may subsequently degrade the environment. Full article
Article
Analysis on the Agricultural Green Production Efficiency and Driving Factors of Urban Agglomerations in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River
Sustainability 2021, 13(1), 97; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13010097 - 24 Dec 2020
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 587
Abstract
As one of the main grain-producing areas in China, urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River plays an important role in the development of agricultural production for China’s grain supply. The existing studies about agricultural production efficiency lack of regional [...] Read more.
As one of the main grain-producing areas in China, urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River plays an important role in the development of agricultural production for China’s grain supply. The existing studies about agricultural production efficiency lack of regional coordination analysis at both macro and micro levels, and only few studies consider the impact of agricultural production environment pollution and other undesirable outputs. Based on the input–output index system of agricultural green production, Slacks-based model (SBM) was adopted to measure the agricultural green production efficiency of 31 prefecture level cities in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River from 2008 to 2018, and the Tobit model of panel fixed effect was used to analyze the driving effect of external factors that affect the agricultural green production efficiency of urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. At the same time, the research methods at both macro and micro levels provide ideas for the research of transregional production efficiency. The results showed that: (1) the agricultural green production efficiency of urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze river is relatively low, with 2009 and 2013 as the inflection points, showing a stable trend of rise and decline; (2) The green agricultural production efficiency of urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River presents the spatial distribution characteristics of “high in the west and low in the east”. The regional efficiency difference is obvious, the gap gradually expands, develops from the equilibrium to the polarization; (3) Urbanization development and government intervention has a significant restraining effect on the improvement of agricultural green production efficiency, and opening to the outside world produces a remarkable influence on the improvement of agricultural green production efficiency, however, economic development and industrial structure have little impact on the improvement of agricultural green production efficiency. Therefore, it is necessary to increase investment in technological innovation, promote agricultural transformation and upgrading, promote rational factors allocation and promote coordinated development of agriculture based on regional production differences. Full article
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Article
Thermo-Environmental Assessment of a Heated Venlo-Type Greenhouse in the Yangtze River Delta Region
Sustainability 2020, 12(24), 10412; https://doi.org/10.3390/su122410412 - 12 Dec 2020
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 609
Abstract
Accurate evaluation of microclimate conditions in a greenhouse can assist producers to manage crop production and designers to optimize climate control systems. An assessment of the variable thermo-environmental behavior of a heated Venlo-type greenhouse under the influence of naturally changing climate conditions in [...] Read more.
Accurate evaluation of microclimate conditions in a greenhouse can assist producers to manage crop production and designers to optimize climate control systems. An assessment of the variable thermo-environmental behavior of a heated Venlo-type greenhouse under the influence of naturally changing climate conditions in the Yangtze River Delta region was undertaken. A three-dimensional transient computational fluid dynamics (CFD) model was developed to analyze the airflow pattern and dynamic distribution of temperature and humidity inside the greenhouse. Validation of the numerical model showed a satisfactory agreement between measured and simulated values of air velocity, temperature, and absolute humidity, with mean hourly air temperature mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE) values of 7.7% and 7.9%, respectively, and mean hourly air humidity MAE and RMSE values of 16.18% and 16.42%, respectively. Simulation results demonstrated that the airflow pattern shaped the distribution of temperature and absolute humidity, and homogeneity of both variables was prevalent inside the greenhouse. These results could be adopted by growers and designers in the Yangtze River Delta region and other sub-tropical climatic regions to improve crop production and optimize climate control systems. Full article
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