scholarly journals Complementary Building Concept: Wooden Apartment Building: The Noppa toward Zero Energy Building Approach

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Markku Karjalainen ◽  
Hüseyin Emre Ilgın ◽  
Marie Yli-Äyhö ◽  
Anu Soikkeli
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Architectural Design ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Apartment Building ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Apartment Buildings ◽  
Construction Methods ◽  
Zero Energy Building ◽  
Research Findings

Increasing the construction of wooden apartment buildings has its place as part of preventing climate change. This chapter aims to explore the possibilities of expanding the construction of wooden apartment buildings on plots owned by the City of Helsinki in the Mellunkylä area by developing a series-produced wooden apartment building concept suitable for complementary construction—The Noppa concept. The sustainability of this approach is considered from the perspective of materials, construction methods, adaptability of the designed spaces, and housing design flexibility. In this study, the Noppa wooden apartment building concept with cross-laminated timber (CLT) elements has been developed varying in its facilities and architectural design features through architectural modeling programs to be used for complementary construction. The research findings are based on a theoretical approach that has not yet been practically tested but is proposed considering existing construction practices that need further investigation. It is believed that this chapter will contribute to the spread of wooden apartments to achieve a low-carbon economy as one of the key tools in tackling climate change problems. Particularly, proposed architectural design solutions will contribute to decarbonization of buildings as well as zero energy building (nZEB) approach.

Alternative scenarios for the future of the Canadian boreal zone1

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 185-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
James W.N. Steenberg ◽  
Peter N. Duinker ◽  
Irena F. Creed ◽  
Jacqueline N. Serran ◽  
Camille Ouellet Dallaire
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Adaptive Capacity ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Boreal Zone ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Carbon Economy

In response to global climate change, Canada is transitioning towards a low-carbon economy and the need for policy approaches that are effective, equitable, coordinated, and both administratively and politically feasible is high. One point is clear; the transition is intimately tied to the vast supply of ecosystem services in the boreal zone of Canada. This paper describes four contrasting futures for the boreal zone using scenario analysis, which is a transdisciplinary, participatory approach that considers alternative futures and policy implications under conditions of high uncertainty and complexity. The two critical forces shaping the four scenarios are the global economy’s energy and society’s capacity to adapt. The six drivers of change are atmospheric change, the demand for provisioning ecosystem services, the demand for nonprovisioning ecosystem services, demographics, and social values, governance and geopolitics, and industrial innovation and infrastructure. The four scenarios include: (i) the Green Path, where a low-carbon economy is coupled with high adaptive capacity; (ii) the Uphill Climb, where a low-carbon economy is instead coupled with low adaptive capacity; (iii) the Carpool Lane, where society has a strong capacity to adapt but a reliance on fossil fuels; and (iv) the Slippery Slope, where there is both a high-carbon economy and a society with low adaptive capacity. The scenarios illustrate the importance of transitioning to a low-carbon economy and the role of society’s adaptive capacity in doing so. However, they also emphasize themes like social inequality and adverse environmental outcomes arising from the push towards climate change mitigation.

scholarly journals Tackling the Risk of Stranded Electricity Assets with Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Nyangon
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Machine Learning ◽  
Carbon Budget ◽  
Energy Sector ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Legal Challenges ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
Implementation Level

The Paris Agreement on climate change requires nations to keep the global temperature within the 2°C carbon budget. Achieving this temperature target means stranding more than 80% of all proven fossil energy reserves as well as resulting in investments in such resources becoming stranded assets. At the implementation level, governments are experiencing technical, economic, and legal challenges in transitioning their economies to meet the 2°C temperature commitment through the nationally determined contributions (NDCs), let alone striving for the 1.5°C carbon budget, which translates into greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) gap. This chapter focuses on tackling the risks of stranded electricity assets using machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies. Stranded assets are not new in the energy sector; the physical impacts of climate change and the transition to a low-carbon economy have generally rendered redundant or obsolete electricity generation and storage assets. Low-carbon electricity systems, which come in variable and controllable forms, are essential to mitigating climate change. These systems present distinct opportunities for machine learning and artificial intelligence-powered techniques. This chapter considers the background to these issues. It discusses the asset stranding discourse and its implications to the energy sector and related infrastructure. The chapter concludes by outlining an interdisciplinary research agenda for mitigating the risks of stranded assets in electricity investments.

scholarly journals IMPLEMENTING THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS IN UKRAINE: FINANCING FRAMEWORK

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (40) ◽  
pp. 399-409
Author(s):  
I. Alieksieiev ◽  
A. Mazur ◽  
О. Storozhenko
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Kyoto Protocol ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Emissions ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Jel Classification ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Development Framework ◽  
Development Processes

Abstract. The article examines the features of sustainable development processes in Ukraine. In particular, the works of scientists on the issues of sustainable transformations of the economy, the problems of establishing a mechanism for the transition to the use of renewable energy sources and reducing carbon dioxide emissions are analyzed. The basic principles of legislative regulation of the processes of sustainable transformation in the context of Ukraine’s integration into the international model of sustainable development according to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change are studied. The research objective is to study the mechanism of implementation of sustainable transformations in the economy of Ukraine, identification of the main problems of low-carbon strategy establishment in the context of harmonization of international and state legislation and identification of effective mechanisms for financing sustainable development processes. During the research, methods were used, such as: the dialectical method and methods of analysis and synthesis — to carry out a comparative analysis of legislation that regulates the processes of sustainable development, ways to implement a low-carbon strategy, study trends in carbon emissions in Ukraine; statistical method — to analyse the targets for changing the greenhouse gas emissions of Ukraine in 2020—2030 and the proposed target for 2050; structural and logical analysis — to study effective mechanisms of financing the processes of sustainable development in Ukraine, identify the ways of sustainable development projects funding. In general, the article reveals a number of problems that Ukraine faces as a signatory to the Kyoto Protocol. The main tools of the country’s transition to a low-carbon strategy have been identified. The economic mechanisms to ensure the fulfillment of the country’s obligations under the Kyoto Protocol have been studied. Possible ways of financing the processes of sustainable transformation are considered, among which, in particular, we can highlight the scheme of «green» investments. Keywords: sustainable economic development, Framework Convention on Climate Change, Kyoto Protocol, low carbon economy, mechanism for financing sustainable development. JEL Classification Q01, Q4, Q5 Formulas: 0; fig.: 1; tabl.: 0; bibl.: 36.

Building a low-carbon economy: The inaugural report of the UK Committee on Climate Change

2009 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 201-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Fankhauser ◽  
David Kennedy ◽  
Jim Skea
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Carbon Economy

China’s energy policies and strategies for climate change and energy security

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haifeng Deng ◽  
Paolo Davide Farah
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Energy Security ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Chinese Government ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Energy Economy ◽  
International Data ◽  
National Energy Security ◽  
Definition Of

Abstract National energy security, parallel with the ultimate goal of emissions reductions, is of utmost priority for the Chinese government. In order to comply with the requirements set by the Kyoto Protocol, the Chinese government announced, on 25 November 2009, that 2020’s CO2 emissions would be reduced by 40–45 per cent in accordance with the data collected from 2005. Said goal was met three years ahead of schedule. Even in light of such an accomplishment, however, commentators suggest that the overall nationally determined contributions (NDCs) made by the Parties belonging to the Paris agreement are not enough to reduce global warming by even 2°C. This article focuses on the concept of energy security in assessing whether, and how, the priorities related to climate change are gradually changing. After analysing climate change’s impact on China, conducted via an analysis of the study’s available literature and through the support of international data, this article mainly focuses on the concept of energy security, itself. Under the second section, based on the examination of China’s efforts to transition towards a low-carbon economy, the authors provide a holistic definition of energy security through the lens of three dimensions: energy supply security, energy economy and energy ecological security. The third section, in turn, addresses the relationship between energy security and climate change. The results presented in the conclusion insist that, in order to strengthen environmental protection in China, it is crucial to reform the highly inefficient and strictly regulated national energy market. In doing so, China’s transition to a low-carbon society and economy could prove less painful, as China’s available resources offer the potential for a strengthened ecological dimension and sustained socio-economic development.

Study on Low-Carbon Economy Model and Method of Chinese Tourism Industry

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 69-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhang Mu ◽  
Luo Jing ◽  
Zhang Xiaohong ◽  
Tang Lei ◽  
Feng Xiao-na ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Global Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Economy Model ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Framework System ◽  
Carbon Economy

Recent years saw the global wave of new low-carbon economy which is a strategic measure to cope with global warming, and it has gained concerns from many governments. As the representatives of developing countries, China is responsible for “common but distinguishing duty for global climate change.” Many policies have been made to develop low-carbon economy with the hope to advocate and innovate low-carbon economy in some industries and cities during these years. Therefore, it is a theoretical and innovative project to find a low-carbon economical model for various industries and carry out the experiments of low-carbon economy in some cities. Hence, guided by low-carbon economy theory, choosing booming Chinese tourism industry as the object, this paper constructs an operation framework system of low-carbon tourism development from the advantage of low-carbon tourism to the proposal of low-carbon tourism definition so as to conclude an execution scheme of “six elements” of low-carbon tourism with selecting OCT East (Chinese national ecotourism demonstration district) and Mt. Danxia (World Geo-park) as demonstration districts to discuss about models and methods of low-carbon economy in tourism.

scholarly journals Climate change impact on energy balance of net-zero energy buildings in typical climate regions of China

2019 ◽  
Vol 111 ◽  
pp. 04004
Author(s):  
Jiale Chai ◽  
Pei Huang ◽  
Yongjun Sun
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Weather Data ◽  
Zero Energy ◽  
Zero Energy Building ◽  
Net Zero Energy ◽  
Net Zero Energy Building ◽  
Net Zero ◽  
Study Results

Net-zero energy building (NZEB) is widely considered as a promising solution to the current energy and environmental problems. The existing NZEBs are designed using the historical weather data (e.g. typical meteorological year-TMY). Nevertheless, due to climate change, the actual weather data during a NZEB’s lifecycle may differ considerably from the historical weather data. Consequently, the designed NZEBs using the historical weather data may not achieve the desired performance in their lifecycles. Therefore, this study investigates the climate change impacts on NZEB’s energy balance in different climate regions, and also evaluates different measures’ effectiveness in mitigating the associated impacts of climate change. In the study, the multi-year future weather data in different climate regions are firstly generated using the morphing method. Then, using the generated future weather data, the energy balance of the NZEBs, designed using the TMY data, are assessed. Next, to mitigate the climate change impacts, different measures are adopted and their effectiveness is evaluated. The study results can improve the understanding of climate change impacts on NZEB’s energy balance in different climate regions. They can also help select proper measures to mitigate the climate change impacts in the associated climate regions.

scholarly journals Energy Efficiency and GHG Emissions Mapping of Buildings for Decision-Making Processes against Climate Change at the Local Level

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (7) ◽  
pp. 2982 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edgar Lorenzo-Sáez ◽  
José-Vicente Oliver-Villanueva ◽  
Eloina Coll-Aliaga ◽  
Lenin-Guillermo Lemus-Zúñiga ◽  
Victoria Lerma-Arce ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Energy Efficiency ◽  
Spatial Resolution ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Primary Energy ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Low Carbon Economy

Buildings have become a key source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions due to the consumption of primary energy, especially when used to achieve thermal comfort conditions. In addition, buildings play a key role for adapting societies to climate change by achieving more energy efficiency. Therefore, buildings have become a key sector to tackle climate change at the local level. However, public decision-makers do not have tools with enough spatial resolution to prioritise and focus the available resources and efforts in an efficient manner. The objective of the research is to develop an innovative methodology based on a geographic information system (GIS) for mapping primary energy consumption and GHG emissions in buildings in cities according to energy efficiency certificates. The developed methodology has been tested in a representative medium-sized city in Spain, obtaining an accurate analysis that shows 32,000 t of CO2 emissions due to primary energy consumption of 140 GWh in residential buildings with high spatial resolution at single building level. The obtained results demonstrate that the majority of residential buildings have low levels of energy efficiency and emit an average of 45 kg CO2/m2. Compared to the national average in Spain, this obtained value is on the average, while it is slightly better at the regional level. Furthermore, the results obtained demonstrate that the developed methodology is able to directly identify city districts with highest potential for improving energy efficiency and reducing GHG emissions. Additionally, a data model adapted to the INSPIRE regulation has been developed in order to ensure interoperability and European-wide application. All these results have allowed the local authorities to better define local strategies towards a low-carbon economy and energy transition. In conclusion, public decision-makers will be supported with an innovative and user-friendly GIS-based methodology to better define local strategies towards a low-carbon economy and energy transition in a more efficient and transparent way based on metrics of high spatial resolution and accuracy.

scholarly journals China’s pathway to a low carbon economy

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenjuan Yang ◽  
Rongqin Zhao ◽  
Xiaowei Chuai ◽  
Liangang Xiao ◽  
Lianhai Cao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Carbon Emission ◽  
Carbon Sink ◽  
Policy Recommendations ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Low Carbon Economy ◽  
Trading Market ◽  
Carbon Economy

AbstractClimate change has emerged as one of the most important environmental issues worldwide. As the world’s biggest developing country, China is participating in combating climate change by promoting a low carbon economy within the context of global warming. This paper summarizes the pathways of China’s low carbon economy including the aspects of energy, industry, low carbon cities, circular economy and low carbon technology, afforestation and carbon sink, the carbon emission trading market and carbon emission reduction targets. There are many achievements in the implementation of low carbon policies. For example, carbon emission intensity has been reduced drastically along with the optimizing of energy and industry structure and a nationwide carbon trading market for electricity industry has been established. However, some problems remain, such as the weakness of public participation, the ineffectiveness of unified policies for certain regions and the absence of long-term planning for low carbon cities development. Therefore, we propose some policy recommendations for the future low carbon economy development in China. Firstly, comprehensive and long-term planning should be involved in all the low carbon economy pathways. Secondly, to coordinate the relationship between central and local governments and narrow the gap between poor and rich regions, different strategies of carbon emission performance assessment should be applied for different regions. Thirdly, enterprises should cooperate with scientific research institutions to explored low carbon technologies. Finally, relevant institutions should be regulated to realize comprehensive low carbon transition through reasonable and feasible low carbon pathways in China. These policy recommendations will provide new perspectives for China’s future low carbon economy development and guide practices for combating climate change.

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