Search Results (625)

As a critical tool for low-carbon urban transportation, improper disposal of waste batteries from electric bicycles could significantly hinder sustainable development progress. To enhance resource cycling efficiency, this study constructs a sustainable supply chain model involving battery owners, recyclers, and the government, comparing equilibrium outcomes under two subsidy schemes: subsidizing battery owners versus directly subsidizing recyclers. Key findings reveal that when environmental governance costs exceed a critical threshold, subsidies significantly increase recycling volumes while reducing government expenditure. Direct subsidies to recyclers generate stronger price signals, more effectively incentivizing battery owners’ participation and achieving superior policy outcomes. This research provides a quantitative foundation for optimizing environmental governance efficiency and circular economy policies in e-bike battery recycling, demonstrating that targeted subsidies can simultaneously promote ecological sustainability and fiscal effectiveness. Full article

This article presents the design and optimization of the mooring system for a floating wind platform inspired by W2Power, which incorporates two wind turbines on a semi-submersible structure that weathervanes using a single-point mooring (SPM) system. Although several industrial concepts have adopted SPM configurations, research on their performance remains limited. This work addresses that gap by developing and applying a set of optimization strategies for the mooring system of such a platform using OrcaFlex, with the objective of minimizing the capital expenditure while satisfying Ultimate Limit State (ULS) and Fatigue Limit State (FLS) cases. The methodology was tested across two distinct marine environments: the Atlantic (Gran Canaria, GC-1) and the Mediterranean (Catalonia, LEBA-1), both characterized by their irregular bathymetry. In Catalonia, the environmental conditions are almost omnidirectional, while the platform in Gran Canaria is exposed to highly unidirectional loads. The article presents the most cost-effective solution for single-point moorings with three, four, and five lines in each case. Results demonstrate the viability of SPM-based floating wind systems with twin-turbines under diverse site conditions. Full article

Recreation, aesthetic appreciation, identity, and spiritual values are among the cultural ecosystem services (CES) produced by long-distance historic and pilgrimage trails. However, it is still difficult to convert these experiential benefits into quantifiable economic flows. This study collected 560 valid responses from an in-field survey conducted along the Via degli Dei (Bologna–Florence). Robust visitor clusters were created using Gower dissimilarities, Partitioning Around Medoids (PAM), silhouette diagnostics, and Factor Analysis for Mixed Data (FAMD). Each cluster was then profiled according to seasonal patterns, information channels, individual-level, per-category expenditures (accommodation, food, transport, services, and equipment), as well as motivations. Four segments are identified—Student Campers (low-budget, peak-summer), Working-Age Male B&B Hikers (short stays, B&B), Young Women on Mixed Lodging (mixed accommodation), and Midlife Comfort-Seekers (higher spend, shoulder-season)—underpinning our spending, seasonality, and managerial implications. Student Campers had the lowest absolute expenditures, while Midlife Comfort-Seekers had the highest (median lodging €180; food €175). The study offers practical levers for route governance (targeted communications, low-impact lodging strategies, shoulder-season promotion) to improve local value capture while reducing environmental pressure by connecting typologies to monetary CES flows. The findings provide a reproducible model for implementing recreational CES on historical-cultural tours. Full article

Tourism is a fast-growing sector that generates a significant greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint, yet subnational data needed to measure the sector remain scarce. Quantifying tourism-related emissions is essential for effective climate policy and alignment with international targets. This study contributes to quantifying tourism sector GHG emissions using the 2023 Korean National Travel Survey data and a spend-based environmentally extended input–output (EEIO) model. Expenditure data were mapped onto the 33-sector multiregional EEIO framework, estimating a total of 2623 tCO_2eq emissions by region, expenditure type, and industry sector in 2023, where about 73% of the total was attributed to tourism-related sectors with the sample data, 24,282. The results illustrate how tourism emissions are shaped especially by transportation systems and regional context. Provinces that surround metropolitan cities in the mainland, for example, Gyeonggi and Gangwon Provinces near Seoul and Incheon, and Gyeongnam Province neighboring Busan and Ulsan, record higher emissions due to large travel volumes from these metropolitan cities and energy-intensive transportation services. Jeju Island stands out as an outlier, with disproportionately high emissions relative to its size, driven by reliance on aviation, which significantly raises its per-visitor footprint. Sectoral analysis identified transportation services, agriculture, electricity, and gas as key sectors. By providing detailed provincial-level data, this study offers a first empirical foundation to corporate Category 6 of Scope 3 reporting and supports central and local governments in designing region-specific climate strategies associated with tourism-related sectors. Full article

By 2050, global population growth will lead to a significant increase in demand for animal-based products, including seafood. Aquaculture is a key solution to meet these needs while reducing pressure on wild aquatic stocks. However, its environmental footprint and energy demand remain open concerns. This study explores the co-location of offshore aquaculture with a wave energy converter—WaveRoller—as a renewable power source. Using a 44-year dataset from the Portuguese coast near Peniche, the analysis evaluates the survivability and operation of the WaveRoller, long-term percentile trends, seasonal energy production, extrapolated extreme events using probabilistic modeling, and confidence intervals for energy costs. A scenario-based range of energy demand is constructed from a baseline blue mussel production of over 400 tons/yr. The K-Means clustering method is applied to reduce data size while maintaining its representativeness. Results show that a 600 kW WaveRoller is similarly suited to operational wave conditions compared to a 1000 kW device, though it excels when aquaculture energy demand peaks in Summertime. The probability that a single WaveRoller fails to meet annual aquaculture energy needs is nearly zero, though, during Summer, it can become statistically significant. The opposite is verified on survivability during Winter, under harsher wave conditions. The Levelized Cost of Energy is calculated for different expenditure scenarios, with minimum values slightly under 200 EUR/MWh being reported only under ideal conditions. Future work should include climate change scenarios and life cycle assessments to better evaluate environmental impacts and techno-economic viability. Full article

In arid and water-stressed regions, groundwater desalination plants are critical for ensuring reliable potable water supplies, making improvements in their operational efficiency and cost effectiveness a priority for utilities. In many such facilities, lime and soda ash softening remain common pretreatment practices, which increase chemical consumption and sludge generation, prompting the need for alternative low-chemical strategies. This study evaluates the technical, operational, and economic implications of transitioning a full-scale brackish groundwater desalination plant, from lime–soda ash softening (old plan) to a low-chemical pretreatment strategy based on antiscalant dosing (new plan) upstream of reverse osmosis (RO). Key parameters, including pH, total hardness, calcium and magnesium hardness, silica, iron, alkalinity, and total dissolved solids (TDS), were measured and compared at multiple locations within the treatment plant under both the old and new plans. Removing lime and soda ash caused higher levels of hardness, alkalinity, and silica in the water before RO treatment, increasing the risk of scaling. Operationally, the feed pressure increased from 11.43 ± 0.16 bar (old plan) to a peak of 25.50 ± 0.10 bar in the new plan, accompanied by a decline in water production. Chemical cleaning effectively restored performance, reducing feed pressure to 13.13 ± 0.05 bar, confirming that fouling and scaling were the primary, reversible causes. Despite these challenges, the plant consistently produced water that complied with Saudi Standards for Unbottled Drinking Water (e.g., pH = 7.18 ± 0.09, TDS = 978.27 ± 9.26 mg/L). Economically, the new strategy reduced operating expenditure by approximately 54% (0.295 → 0.135 $/m³), largely due to substantial reductions in chemical and sludge handling costs, although these savings were partially offset by higher energy consumption and more frequent membrane maintenance. Overall, the findings emphasize the importance of systematic performance evaluation during operational transitions, providing guidance for utilities seeking to optimize pretreatment design while maintaining compliance, long-term membrane protection, and environmental sustainability. Full article

Environmental Protection Plans (EPPs) are vital for mitigating the socio-ecological impacts of quarry operations, especially in emerging economies like Thailand, where rapid industrialization often intensifies air, water, noise, and land degradation. This study applies the social return on investment (SROI) framework to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of multi-domain EPPs implemented in a quarry. By applying compliance-based assessment and monetization of environmental and health co-benefits, annual economic outcomes were quantified for particulate matter (PM₁₀), total dissolved solids (TDS), noise reduction, and carbon sequestration. The analysis revealed a high SROI ratio of 59.55:1, primarily driven by substantial health benefits from PM₁₀ and noise abatement. This ratio also reflects consideration of investment from an annual operational cost, with a sensitivity analysis of incorporating an estimated capital expenditure, reducing the ratio to moderate value ranges of 5–10:1. A number of limitations, such as exclusion of capital costs, reliance on fixed proxies, and single-year scope, may overstate short-term returns, suggesting the application of stochastic methods for enhanced robustness. Overall, the findings demonstrate that EPPs deliver substantial economic and public health benefits, supporting their role in fostering community resilience and advancing sustainable operations in quarry sectors. Full article

The growing prominence of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations has introduced new challenges for firms worldwide. While ESG practices are often framed as long-term drivers of competitiveness, uncertainty surrounding their regulatory requirements has created significant operational risks. The primary objective of this study is to examine how ESG uncertainty (ESG) affects inventory management in listed firms. The study analyzed data from Chinese A-share listed companies over the period 2010 to 2024. A series of econometric estimations, including fixed effect models, two-stage least squares (2SLS), and system GMM, were employed to ensure the robustness of the results and to address issues of heteroscedasticity, endogeneity, and dynamic effects. The empirical results consistently revealed that ESG uncertainty exerted a significant negative effect on inventory management. Firms facing greater unpredictability in ESG-related requirements experienced disruptions in supply chain coordination, difficulties in demand forecasting, and inefficiencies in inventory turnover. Beyond this, larger firms and those with higher environmental expenditures exhibited weaker inventory efficiency, while debt ratio, cost of capital, and firm performance were positively associated with improved inventory outcomes. For corporate managers, the study highlighted the importance of embedding sustainability considerations into inventory strategies and adopting flexible procurement systems, predictive analytics, and stronger governance mechanisms. The findings underscored the broader societal need for clarity and stability in ESG regulations. For this, reducing policy unpredictability could enable firms to align sustainability commitments with operational efficiency, thereby improving competitiveness while minimizing waste and resource misallocation. This study was among the first to empirically establish the link between ESG uncertainty and inventory management, bridging the gap between sustainability research and operational efficiency. Full article

Seawater desalination has emerged as a crucial solution for addressing global freshwater scarcity. However, it generates significant volumes of concentrated brine waste. This brine is rich in dissolved salts and minerals, primarily, chloride (55%), sodium (30%), sulfate (8%), magnesium (4%), calcium (1%), potassium (1%), bicarbonate (0.4%), and bromide (0.2%), which are often discharged into marine environments, posing ecological challenges. This study presents a comprehensive global review of innovative technologies for recovering these constituents as valuable products, thereby enhancing the sustainability and economic viability of desalination. The paper evaluates a range of proven and emerging recovery methods, including membrane separation, nanofiltration, electrodialysis, thermal crystallization, solar evaporation, chemical precipitation, and electrochemical extraction. Each technique is analyzed for its effectiveness in isolating salts (NaCl, KCl, and CaSO₄) and minerals (Mg(OH)₂ and Br₂), with a discussion of process-specific constraints, recovery efficiencies, and product purities. Furthermore, the study incorporates a detailed techno-economic assessment, highlighting revenue potential, capital and operational expenditures, and breakeven timelines. Simulated case studies of a 100,000 m³/day seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) facility demonstrates that a sequential brine recovery process and associated energy balances, supported by pilot-scale data from ongoing global initiatives, can achieve over 90% total salt recovery while producing marketable products such as NaCl, Mg(OH)₂, and Br₂. The estimated revenue from recovered materials ranges between USD 4.5 and 6.8 million per year, offsetting 65–90% of annual desalination operating costs. The analysis indicates a payback period of 3–5 years, depending on recovery efficiency and product pricing, underscoring the economic viability of large-scale brine valorization alongside its environmental benefits. By transforming waste brine into a source of commercial commodities, desalination facilities can move toward circular economy models and achieve greater sustainability. A practical integration framework is proposed for both new and existing SWRO plants, with a focus on aligning with the principles of a circular economy. By transforming waste brine into a resource stream for commercial products, desalination facilities can reduce environmental discharge and generate additional revenue. The study concludes with actionable recommendations and insights to guide policymakers, engineers, and investors in advancing brine mining toward full-scale implementation. Full article

Blue hydrogen technology, generated from natural gas through carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology, is a promising solution to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and meet the growing demand for clean energy. To improve the sustainability of blue hydrogen, it is crucial to explore alternative feedstocks, production methods, and improve the efficiency and economics of carbon capture, storage, and utilization strategies. Two established technologies for hydrogen synthesis are Steam Methane Reforming (SMR) and Autothermal Reforming (ATR). The choice between SMR and ATR depends on project specifics, including the infrastructure, energy availability, environmental goals, and economic considerations. ATR-based facilities typically generate hydrogen at a lower cost than SMR-based facilities, except in cases where electricity prices are elevated or the facility has reduced capacity. Both SMR and ATR are methods used for hydrogen production from methane, but ATR offers an advantage in minimizing CO₂ emissions per unit of hydrogen generated due to its enhanced energy efficiency and unique process characteristics. ATR provides enhanced utility and flexibility regarding energy sources due to its autothermal characteristics, potentially facilitating integration with renewable energy sources. However, SMR is easier to run but may lack flexibility compared to ATR, necessitating meticulous management. Capital expenditures for SMR and ATR hydrogen reactors are similar at the lower end of the capacity spectrum, but when plant capacity exceeds this threshold, the capital costs of SMR-based hydrogen production surpass those of ATR-based facilities. The less profitably scaled-up SMR relative to the ATR reactor contributes to the cost disparity. Additionally, individual train capacity constraints for SMR, CO₂ removal units, and PSA units increase the expenses of the SMR-based hydrogen facility significantly. Full article

With a growing demand for renewable resources in high-performance materials, sustainable methods are preferred for their lower environmental impact and alignment with circular economy principles. Among these, enzymatic hydrolysis remains relatively underexplored yet shows strong potential for cellulose fibrillation, offering a promising route that may lower energy requirements by minimizing the need for extensive refining compared to conventional mechanical or chemical approaches. In this study, enzyme cocktails rich in cellulase and xylanase were applied to three industrial pulps, sulphite, bleached Kraft eucalyptus and thermomechanical pine, to produce high-performance cellulose pulps. Treatments were carried out using varying enzyme loads (5–40 filter paper units per gram of dry pulp, FPU/gdp) and reaction times (1–16 h). The resulting chemical composition, structural morphology, and physical–mechanical properties were systematically evaluated. The findings revealed that pulp composition strongly influenced enzymatic treatment, affecting surface fibrillation, fibre aggregation, swelling, and fibre shortening. Under optimized conditions, enzymatic pretreatment significantly enhanced paper performance, with improvements in tensile strength, air permeability, hydrophobicity, and internal bonding. Overall, enzymatic hydrolysis represents a sustainable solution and a strategy which could reduce energy expenditures to high-performance cellulose pulps, suitable as reinforcing fibres in packaging applications. Full article

This research contributes to the continuing discussion on the causes of environmental degradation by investigating the impact of fiscal decentralization on environmental sustainability utilizing four measures of environmental sustainability and three measures of fiscal decentralization. The annual data from WDI, OECD, and Global Footprint Network from 1990 to 2023 is analyzed, and the auto regression distributive lag (ARDL) model is employed to calculate long-run estimates. The findings show that fiscal decentralization, technological innovation, population, and other control variables, such as foreign direct investment and trade openness, play important roles in determining environmental sustainability. Composite fiscal decentralization, expenditure, and revenue decentralization lead to decreased environmental sustainability while technological innovation improves environmental sustainability. Furthermore, population, foreign direct investment, and trade openness also negatively affect environmental sustainability. The findings suggest that more resources should be allocated for research and development to save the environment. Full article

The living environment of birds exhibits seasonal variations, and winter cold and food shortages are key limiting factors influencing the survival rate of many bird species. However, most previous studies have focused on dynamic habitat changes, with relatively few investigating how changes in birds’ behavioral rhythms and ecological adaptability respond to seasonal fluctuations in the environment. The Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon) is an endangered species, with winter food shortage being a critical factor constraining its population growth. Through 211 days of monitoring on the communal roosting behavior and GPS tracking of 19 individuals, this study aimed to clarify seasonal variations in their time allocation and activity levels, and reveal how Crested Ibises respond to environmental changes. During the wintering period, Crested Ibises departed nocturnal roosts earlier relative to sunrise and returned later relative to sunset, thereby utilizing more dawn and dusk time for foraging and increasing daylight utilization. GPS tracking data showed that both daily movement distance and activity levels of Crested Ibises during the wintering period were significantly lower than in other seasons—a pattern likely representing an adaptive strategy to cope with limited food resources, as it serves to minimize energy expenditure and enhance survival rates. Thus, these findings indicate that Crested Ibises adapt to wintering environmental changes through three seasonal behaviors: extending the dawn and dusk activity window, increasing daylight utilization, and reducing daily movement distance and activity levels. Full article

The growing importance of environmental technologies in a circular economy requires the use of tools that allow a realistic assessment of their economic efficiency. Classical investment indicators, such as NPV or IRR, are proving inadequate in the case of installations whose main objective is not to maximise profit but to reduce waste and emissions. There is a lack of tools in the literature that would allow for an unambiguous assessment of the unit cost of waste treatment, taking into account the life cycle of the installation and market conditions. This study aims to assess the feasibility of using the Levelised Cost of Waste (LCOW) indicator, modelled on the Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) from the energy sector, as a planning and decision-making tool in the waste management sector. In this study, an LCOW calculation model was developed and applied to analyse textile waste pyrolysis technology. Simulations were conducted for three plant scales (1000, 5000, and 10,000 Mg/year), and a sensitivity analysis was performed to examine the relationship between the LCOW and by-product prices, energy costs, capital expenditures, and CO₂ emissions. The results confirm that the LCOW is a helpful tool for determining tariffs, identifying subsidy thresholds and comparing technology options. Its application is particularly well suited to small-scale environmental investments where classical approaches fail. Full article

The accelerating demand for climate action has underscored the need to link financial innovation with clean energy adoption. This study examines the interplay between green finance, renewable energy consumption, and CO₂ emissions across 15 countries from 2013 to 2022. Green finance is proxied by green bond issuances and environmental protection expenditures, capturing both market-based and fiscal flows. Using panel econometric methods, including fixed effects with Driscoll–Kraay corrections, Prais–Winsten regressions with PCSE, and Feasible Generalized Least Squares (FGLS), the analysis accounts for heteroscedasticity, autocorrelation, and cross-sectional dependence. Results show how green finance significantly reduces emissions, both directly and indirectly, through its positive influence on renewable energy deployment. Renewable energy consumption shows a robust negative association with CO₂ emissions, confirming its pivotal role in energy transition. A mediation analysis further demonstrates that renewable energy partially transmits the effect of green finance on environmental performance. The findings highlight the dual function of green finance in mobilizing investment and accelerating decarbonization, offering timely insights for policymakers seeking effective pathways toward sustainable, low-carbon economies. Full article