Overallocation and Correction of Carbon Emissions in the Evaluation of Carbon Footprint

This paper points to several carbon footprint data distortions that overallocate carbon footprints to individual companies, and to several carbon data intricacies that lead to improved data integrity. Data distortion due to the same company being listed in multiple geographical jurisdictions or through different share classes overstates Emissions Scope 1 by 4.6%, Emissions Scope 2 by 5.5%, Emissions Scope 3 by 10.6% and Reserves by 6.0%. Data distortion due to index construction by having different market capitalization in representative indices overallocates Emissions Scope 1 by 33.9%, Emissions Scope 2 by 27.6%, Emissions Scope 3 by 21.3% and Reserves by 57.2%. A significant amount of carbon data is not precise but is estimated by third-party providers through proprietary techniques. The estimated data for Scope 1 Emissions is 46.4% for the companies in the index. In addition, carbon data is stale, resulting in 94.5% of data being two years old or more. Usage of carbon data in a present format may incorrectly remove some companies from portfolios (negative screen, complete removal) or incorrectly reduce some companies’ weight in a portfolio (partial screen, fractional removal).

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Carbon Footprint Analysis of Bamboo Scrimber Flooring—Implications for Carbon Sequestration of Bamboo Forests and Its Products

Forests ◽

10.3390/f10010051 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 51 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Lei Gu ◽

Yufeng Zhou ◽

Tingting Mei ◽

Guomo Zhou ◽

Lin Xu

Keyword(s):

Carbon Sequestration ◽

Carbon Cycling ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Carbon Emissions ◽

Carbon Emission ◽

Carbon Stocks ◽

Bamboo Forest ◽

Carbon Footprints ◽

Production Processes ◽

Bamboo Scrimber

Bamboo forest is characterized by large carbon sequestration capability and it plays an important role in mitigating climate change and global carbon cycling. Previous studies have mostly focused on carbon cycling and carbon stocks in bamboo forest ecosystems, whereas the carbon footprints of bamboo products have not received attention. China is the largest exporting country of bamboo flooring in the world. Estimating the carbon footprint of bamboo flooring is of essential importance for the involved enterprises and consumers to evaluate their own carbon footprints. In this study, we investigated the production processes of bamboo scrimber flooring for outdoor use, a typical bamboo flooring in China. Based on business-to-business (B2B) evaluation method, we assessed CO2 emission and carbon transfer ratio in each step of the production process, including transporting bamboo culms and producing and packing the products. We found that to produce 1 m3 of bamboo scrimber flooring, direct carbon emissions from fossil fuels during transporting raw materials/semi-finished products, from power consumptions during production, and indirect emissions from applying additives were 30.94 kg CO2 eq, 143.37 kg CO2 eq, and 78.34 kg CO2 eq, respectively. After subtracting the 267.54 kg CO2 eq carbon stocks in the product from the 252.65 kg CO2 eq carbon emissions derived within the defined boundary, we found that the carbon footprint of 1 m3 bamboo scrimber flooring was −14.89 kg CO2 eq. Our results indicated that the bamboo scrimber flooring is a negative carbon-emission product. Finally, we discussed factors that influence the carbon footprint of the bamboo flooring and gave suggestions on carbon emission reduction during production processes. This study provided a scientific basis for estimating carbon stocks and carbon footprints of bamboo products and further expanded knowledge on carbon cycling and lifespan of carbon in the bamboo forest ecosystem.

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Carbon footprint reduction associated with a surgical outreach clinic

Journal of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery ◽

10.1186/s40463-021-00510-4 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 50 (1) ◽

Author(s):

David Forner ◽

Chad Purcell ◽

Victoria Taylor ◽

Christopher W. Noel ◽

Larry Pan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbon Footprint ◽

Carbon Emissions ◽

Surgical Care ◽

Neck Surgery ◽

Cross Sectional Survey ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Carbon Footprints ◽

Regional Centre ◽

Patient Travel ◽

Outreach Clinic

Abstract Background Healthcare systems generate substantial carbon footprints that may be targeted to decrease greenhouse gas emissions. Outreach clinics may represent tools to assist in this reduction by optimizing patient related travel. Therefore, we sought to estimate the carbon footprint savings associated with a head and neck surgery outreach clinic. Methods This study was a cross-sectional survey of patient travel patterns to a surgical outreach clinic compared to a regional cancer treatment centre from December 2019 to February 2020. Participants completed a self-administered survey of 12 items eliciting travel distance, vehicle details, and ability to combine medical appointments. Canadian datasets of manufacturer provided vehicular efficiency were used to estimate carbon emissions for each participant. Geographic information systems were used for analyses. Results One hundred thirteen patients were included for analysis. The majority of patients (85.8%) used their own personal vehicle to travel to the outreach clinic. The median distance to the clinic and regional centre were 29.0 km (IQR 6.0–51.9) and 327.0 km (IQR 309.0–337.0) respectively. The mean carbon emission reduction per person was therefore 117,495.4 g (SD: 29,040.0) to 143,570.9 g (SD: 40,236.0). This represents up to 2.5% of an average individual’s yearly carbon footprint. Fewer than 10% of patients indicated they were able to carpool or group their appointments. Conclusion Surgical outreach clinics decrease carbon footprints associated with patient travel compared to continued care at a regional centre. Further research is needed to determine possible interventions to further reduce carbon emissions associated with the surgical care of patients. Graphical abstract

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Assessing Carbon Footprint and Inter-Regional Carbon Transfer in China Based on a Multi-Regional Input-Output Model

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su10124626 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (12) ◽

pp. 4626 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Min Huang ◽

Yimin Chen ◽

Yuanying Zhang

Keyword(s):

Economic Development ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Carbon Emissions ◽

Emission Reduction ◽

Central China ◽

Input Output ◽

Carbon Footprints ◽

Carbon Transfer ◽

Per Capita

China has been the largest carbon emitter in the world since 2007 and is thus confronted with huge emission reduction pressures. The regional differences in socio-economic development lead to complex inter-provincial carbon transfer in China, which hinders the determination of the emission reduction responsibilities for the various provinces. Based on the latest multi-regional input-output data, this study analyzes the carbon footprint, inter-provincial carbon transfer, and the corresponding variations of 30 provinces in China from 2007 to 2010. The results show that the domestic carbon footprint increased from 4578 Mt in 2007 to 6252 Mt in 2010. Provinces with high carbon footprints were mainly found in central China, such as Shandong, Jiangsu, and Henan. Carbon footprints of the developed coastal provinces were greater than those of less developed provinces in Northwestern China. Per capita GDP (Gross Domestic Product) was positively correlated to the per capita carbon footprint, indicating a positive relationship between the economic development level and corresponding carbon emissions. Provincial carbon inflows were found to have increased steadily (ranging between 32% and 41%) from 2007 to 2010. The increases in direct carbon emissions varied largely among different provinces, ranging from below 30% in the developed provinces to more than 60% in the moderately developed provinces (e.g., Sichuan and Chongqing). The embodied carbon transferred from moderately developed or remote provinces to those developed ones. In other words, the carbon emission pressures of the developed provinces were shifted to the less developed provinces. The major paths of carbon flow include the transfers from Hebei to Jiangsu (32.07 Mt), Hebei to Beijing (26.78 Mt), Hebei to Zhejiang (25.60 Mt), and Liaoning to Jilin (27.60 Mt).

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The Impact Of Carbon Footprinting In Romania

Balkan Region Conference on Engineering and Business Education ◽

10.2478/cplbu-2014-0068 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 1 (1) ◽

pp. 417-420

Author(s):

Lucian-Ionel Cioca ◽

Maria-Viorela Codoi

Keyword(s):

Global Warming ◽

Co2 Emissions ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Carbon Emissions ◽

Global Warming Potential ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Carbon Footprints ◽

Co2 Equivalent ◽

The Impact ◽

Potential Carbon

AbstractCarbon foot printing became an important term for surprisingly many people in the last years. It is very important that people learn what effects may have carbon foot printing on their lifes and how it’s produced. The term “carbon foot printing” is just a name which is the result of global warming potential. Carbon foot printing is considered a very popular buzzword in Romania in the last year. The carbon footprint measures total greenhouse gas emissions caused directly and indirectly, by a person, organization, event or product. In Romania the carbon emissions are the consequences of burning of fossil fuels and manufacturing of cement, and the value of CO2 emissions in 2008 was 94,660(kt). People can do training or courses to learn more about the meaning of carbon footprints, their impact on the environment and calculation of the carbon footprint by measuring the CO2 equivalent emissions.

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EXPRESS: Sustainable by Design: Choice Architecture and the Carbon Footprint of Grocery Shopping

Journal of Public Policy & Marketing ◽

10.1177/07439156211008898 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 074391562110088

Author(s):

Luca Panzone ◽

Alistair Ulph ◽

Denis Hilton ◽

Ilse Gortemaker ◽

Ibrahim Tajudeen

Keyword(s):

Carbon Footprint ◽

Carbon Tax ◽

Food Products ◽

Grocery Shopping ◽

Choice Architecture ◽

Low Carbon ◽

Policy Objective ◽

Carbon Footprints ◽

Design Choice ◽

Goal Priming

The increase in global temperatures requires substantial reductions in the greenhouse emissions from consumer choices. We use an experimental incentive-compatible online supermarket to analyse the effect of a carbon-based choice architecture, which presents commodities to customers in high, medium and low carbon footprint groups, in reducing the carbon footprints of grocery baskets. We relate this choice architecture to two other policy interventions: a bonus-malus carbon tax on all grocery products; and moral goal priming, using an online banner noting the moral importance of reducing one’s carbon footprint. Participants shopped from their home in an online store containing 612 existing food products and 39 existing non-food products for which we had data on carbon footprint, over three successive weeks, with the interventions occurring in the second and third weeks. Choice architecture reduced carbon footprint significantly in the third week by reducing the proportion of choices made in the high-carbon aisle. The carbon tax reduced carbon footprint in both weeks, primarily by reducing overall spend. The goal priming banner led to a small reduction in carbon footprint in the second week only. Thus, the design of the marketplace plays an important role in achieving the policy objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

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Translating a Global Emission-Reduction Framework for Subnational Climate Action: A Case Study from the State of Georgia

Environmental Management ◽

10.1007/s00267-020-01406-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 67 (2) ◽

pp. 205-227

Author(s):

Marilyn A. Brown ◽

Blair Beasley ◽

Fikret Atalay ◽

Kim M. Cobb ◽

Puneet Dwiveldi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbon Footprint ◽

Global Solutions ◽

High Impact ◽

Environmental Benefits ◽

Future Research ◽

Carbon Footprints ◽

Carbon Reduction ◽

Global Emission ◽

Greenhouse Gas Reduction ◽

Climate Action

AbstractSubnational entities are recognizing the need to systematically examine options for reducing their carbon footprints. However, few robust and comprehensive analyses are available that lay out how US states and regions can most effectively contribute. This paper describes an approach developed for Georgia—a state in the southeastern United States called “Drawdown Georgia”, our research involves (1) understanding Georgia’s baseline carbon footprint and trends, (2) identifying the universe of Georgia-specific carbon-reduction solutions that could be impactful by 2030, (3) estimating the greenhouse gas reduction potential of these high-impact 2030 solutions for Georgia, and (4) estimating associated costs and benefits while also considering how the solutions might impact societal priorities, such as economic development opportunities, public health, environmental benefits, and equity. We began by examining the global solutions identified by Project Drawdown. The resulting 20 high-impact 2030 solutions provide a strategy for reducing Georgia’s carbon footprint in the next decade using market-ready technologies and practices and including negative emission solutions. This paper describes our systematic and replicable process and ends with a discussion of its strengths, weaknesses, and planned future research.

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The Carbon Footprint of Energy Consumption in Pastoral and Barn Dairy Farming Systems: A Case Study from Canterbury, New Zealand

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su11174809 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (17) ◽

pp. 4809 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Hafiz Muhammad Abrar Ilyas ◽

Majeed Safa ◽

Alison Bailey ◽

Sara Rauf ◽

Marvin Pangborn

Keyword(s):

New Zealand ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Dairy Farming ◽

Carbon Footprints ◽

Energy Inputs ◽

Study Results ◽

Feed Supplements ◽

Dairy Systems ◽

Milk Solids ◽

On Farm

Dairy farming is constantly evolving to more intensive systems of management, which involve more consumption of energy inputs. The consumption of these energy inputs in dairy farming contributes to climate change both with on-farm emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels, and by off-farm emissions due to production of farm inputs (such as fertilizer, feed supplements). The main purpose of this research study was to evaluate energy-related carbon dioxide emissions, the carbon footprint, of pastoral and barn dairy systems located in Canterbury, New Zealand. The carbon footprints were estimated based on direct and indirect energy sources. The study results showed that, on average, the carbon footprints of pastoral and barn dairy systems were 2857 kgCO2 ha−1 and 3379 kgCO2 ha−1, respectively. For the production of one tonne of milk solids, the carbon footprint was 1920 kgCO2 tMS−1 and 2129 kgCO2 tMS−1, respectively. The carbon emission difference between the two systems indicates that the barn system has 18% and 11% higher carbon footprint than the pastoral system, both per hectare of farm area and per tonne of milk solids, respectively. The greater carbon footprint of the barn system was due to more use of imported feed supplements, machinery usage and fossil fuel (diesel and petrol) consumption for on-farm activities.

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Comparable Encryption Scheme over Encrypted Cloud Data in Internet of Everything

Security and Communication Networks ◽

10.1155/2017/6430850 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 2017 ◽

pp. 1-11

Author(s):

Qian Meng ◽

Jianfeng Ma ◽

Kefei Chen ◽

Yinbin Miao ◽

Tengfei Yang

Keyword(s):

Model Performance ◽

Data Integrity ◽

Cloud Service ◽

Third Party ◽

Encryption Scheme ◽

Cloud Data ◽

Practical Applications ◽

Internet Of Everything ◽

Window Method ◽

Comparable Encryption

User authentication has been widely deployed to prevent unauthorized access in the new era of Internet of Everything (IOE). When user passes the legal authentication, he/she can do series of operations in database. We mainly concern issues of data security and comparable queries over ciphertexts in IOE. In traditional database, a Short Comparable Encryption (SCE) scheme has been widely used by authorized users to conduct comparable queries over ciphertexts, but existing SCE schemes still incur high storage and computational overhead as well as economic burden. In this paper, we first propose a basic Short Comparable Encryption scheme based on sliding window method (SCESW), which can significantly reduce computational and storage burden as well as enhance work efficiency. Unfortunately, as the cloud service provider is a semitrusted third party, public auditing mechanism needs to be furnished to protect data integrity. To further protect data integrity and reduce management overhead, we present an enhanced SCESW scheme based on position-aware Merkle tree, namely, PT-SCESW. Security analysis proves that PT-SCESW and SCESW schemes can guarantee completeness and weak indistinguishability in standard model. Performance evaluation indicates that PT-SCESW scheme is efficient and feasible in practical applications, especially for smarter and smaller computing devices in IOE.

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The carbon footprint of dietary guidelines around the world: a seven country modeling study

Nutrition Journal ◽

10.1186/s12937-021-00669-6 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Brittany Kovacs ◽

Lindsey Miller ◽

Martin C. Heller ◽

Donald Rose

Keyword(s):

The Netherlands ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

The United States ◽

Dietary Guidelines ◽

Consumption Patterns ◽

Consumption Pattern ◽

Carbon Footprints ◽

Country Level ◽

The Us ◽

The World

Abstract Background Do the environmental impacts inherent in national food-based dietary guidelines (FBDG) vary around the world, and, if so, how? Most previous studies that consider this question focus on a single country or compare countries’ guidelines without controlling for differences in country-level consumption patterns. To address this gap, we model the carbon footprint of the dietary guidelines from seven different countries, examine the key contributors to this, and control for consumption differences between countries. Methods In this purposive sample, we obtained FBDG from national sources for Germany, India, the Netherlands, Oman, Thailand, Uruguay, and the United States. These were used to structure recommended diets using 6 food groups: protein foods, dairy, grains, fruits, vegetables, and oils/fats. To determine specific quantities of individual foods within these groups, we used data on food supplies available for human consumption for each country from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s food balance sheets. The greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) used to produce the foods in these consumption patterns were linked from our own database, constructed from an exhaustive review of the life cycle assessment literature. All guidelines were scaled to a 2000-kcal diet. Results Daily recommended amounts of dairy foods ranged from a low of 118 ml/d for Oman to a high of 710 ml/d for the US. The GHGE associated with these two recommendations were 0.17 and 1.10 kg CO2-eq/d, respectively. The GHGE associated with the protein food recommendations ranged from 0.03 kg CO2-eq/d in India to 1.84 kg CO2-eq/d in the US, for recommended amounts of 75 g/d and 156 g/d, respectively. Overall, US recommendations had the highest carbon footprint at 3.83 kg CO2-eq/d, 4.5 times that of the recommended diet for India, which had the smallest footprint. After controlling for country-level consumption patterns by applying the US consumption pattern to all countries, US recommendations were still the highest, 19% and 47% higher than those of the Netherlands and Germany, respectively. Conclusions Despite our common human biology, FBDG vary tremendously from one country to the next, as do the associated carbon footprints of these guidelines. Understanding the carbon footprints of different recommendations can assist in future decision-making to incorporate environmental sustainability in dietary guidance.

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The Impact of Climate Change on the Value of Growing Maize as a Biofuel

The Central European Review of Economics and Management ◽

10.29015/cerem.838 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

pp. 13-26

Author(s):

Sally Olasogba ◽

Les DUCKERS

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Carbon Footprint ◽

Carbon Emissions ◽

Energy Use ◽

Farm Management ◽

Energy Output ◽

Net Energy ◽

Primary Concern ◽

Impact Of Climate Change ◽

The Impact

Abstract: Aim: According to COP23, Climate Change threatens the stability of the planet’s ecosystems, with a tipping point believed to be at only +2°C. With the burning of fossil fuels, held responsible for the release of much of the greenhouse gases, a sensible world- wide strategy is to replace fossil fuel energy sources with renewable ones. The renewable resources such as wind, hydro, geothermal, wave and tidal energies are found in particular geographical locations whereas almost every country is potentially able to exploit PV and biomass. This paper examines the role that changing climate could have on the growing and processing of biomass. The primary concern is that future climates could adversely affect the yield of crops, and hence the potential contribution of biomass to the strategy to combat climate change. Maize, a C4 crop, was selected for the study because it can be processed into biogas or other biofuels. Four different Nigerian agricultural zones growing maize were chosen for the study. Long-term weather data was available for the four sites and this permitted the modelling of future climates. Design / Research methods: The results of this study come from modelling future climates and applying this to crop models. This unique work, which has integrated climate change and crop modelling to forecast yield and carbon emissions, reveals how maize responds to the predicted increased temperature, change in rainfall, and the variation in weather patterns. In order to fully assess a biomass crop, the full energy cycle and carbon emissions were estimated based on energy and materials inputs involved in farm management: fertilizer application, and tillage type. For maize to support the replacement strategy mentioned above it is essential that the ratio of energy output to energy input exceeds 1, but of course it should be as large as possible. Conclusions / findings: Results demonstrate that the influence of climate change is important and in many scenarios, acts to reduce yield, but that the negative effects can be partially mitigated by careful selection of farm management practices. Yield and carbon footprint is particularly sensitive to the application rate of fertilizer across all locations whilst climate change is the causal driver for the increase in net energy and carbon footprint at most locations. Nonetheless, in order to ensure a successful strategic move towards a low carbon future, and sustainable implementation of biofuel policies, this study provides valuable information for the Nigerian government and policy makers on potential AEZs to cultivate maize under climate change. Further research on the carbon footprint of alternative bioenergy feedstock to assess their environmental carbon footprint and net energy is strongly suggested. Originality / value of the article: This paper extends the review on the impact of climate change on maize production to include future impacts on net energy use and carbon footprint using a fully integrated assessment framework. Most studies focus only on current farm energy use and historical climate change impact on farm GHG emissions.

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