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Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society

A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Science and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 April 2019) | Viewed by 107159

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Yuhong Wang

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Guest Editor
School of Business, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Kedong Yin

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Guest Editor
School of Economics, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Zaiwu Gong

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Guest Editor
Institute of management science and technology, College of economics and management, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, China
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Kevin W. Li

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Guest Editor
Odette School of Business, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, Canada
Interests: logistics and supply chain management; conflict resolution; sustainable operations management; environmental management
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Our society has been increasingly plagued by a wide variety of issues, ranging from environmental pollution, ecological degradation, water resources shortage, global warming, and climate change. These challenges are caused by unsustainable and uncoordinated development activities and pose immediate and significant public health and other threat to human beings. As such, it is critical for us to reflect on the current economic and societal development modes and introduce proper mechanisms for promoting more environmentally friendly development for current and future generations. Contributed research should aim to examine how human intervention can contribute to a more sustainable and coordinated development of environment, economy, and society from a decision modeling angle. We welcome theoretical and practical contributions to the understanding of the decision-making process in sustainable and coordinated development of environment, economy, and society from different perspectives. Specific topics include, but are not limited to, the following: Ecological and environmental development, carbon emissions, water footprints, water rights, marine economic security, integrated flood control and risk management, disaster prevention and mitigation, environmental impact assessment and ecological compensation, green product design and remanufacturing, intelligent manufacturing, innovation management, sustainable and coordinated development, sustainable operations and green supply chain management.

Prof. Dr. Yuhong Wang
Prof. Dr. Kedong Yin
Prof. Dr. Zaiwu Gong
Prof. Dr. Kevin W. Li
Guest Editors

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. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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 2500 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

  • Environmental management
  • Decision models
  • Sustainable development
  • Coordinated development
  • Water footprint
  • Water rights
  • Water security
  • Marine economic security
  • Disaster prevention and mitigation
  • Green product design
  • Intelligent manufacturing
  • Innovation management
  • Sustainable operations
  • Supply chain management

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (28 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 901 KiB  
Article
Identification of Key Success Factors for Private Science Parks Established from Brownfield Regeneration: A Case Study from China
by Xiao-Hai Weng, Yu-Ming Zhu, Xiao-Yu Song and Naveed Ahmad
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(7), 1295; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16071295 - 11 Apr 2019
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 4110
Abstract
Private science parks (PSPs) are infrastructure elements of national high technology industrial development zones. Increasing private capital is being invested in this field to transform abandoned factories into science parks through brownfield regeneration, which not only effectively utilizes urban space, but also greatly [...] Read more.
Private science parks (PSPs) are infrastructure elements of national high technology industrial development zones. Increasing private capital is being invested in this field to transform abandoned factories into science parks through brownfield regeneration, which not only effectively utilizes urban space, but also greatly strengthens the power of scientific and technological innovation. The evolution of these PSPs, however, is not satisfactory, and some operation and innovation-related problems often lead to their failures. Therefore, identifying key success factors is crucial for the sustainable growth of PSPs. This study employs Fuzzy Analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) and Fuzzy-DEMATEL (Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory) methods to construct an identification model for key success factors of PSPs established from brownfield regeneration. Associated influencing factors were collected through literature analysis, on-site interviews, and questionnaire, based on which key success factors were identified. The results of the study showed that five factors—resources sharing capacity of the park, park scale, financing and financial services, legal policy services and administrative capability, and construction level of facilities in the park—are the key success factors for such PSPs. The results also provide a theoretical basis for the development of PSPs established from brownfield regeneration, and support the formulation of PSP-related policies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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21 pages, 3438 KiB  
Article
PM2.5 Pollution and Inhibitory Effects on Industry Development: A Bidirectional Correlation Effect Mechanism
by Jibo Chen, Keyao Chen, Guizhi Wang, Lingyan Wu, Xiaodong Liu and Guo Wei
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(7), 1159; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16071159 - 31 Mar 2019
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2747
Abstract
In this paper, a vector autoregression (VAR) model has been constructed in order to analyze a two-way mechanism between PM2.5 pollution and industry development in Beijing via the combination of an impulse response function and variance decomposition. According to the results, long-term [...] Read more.
In this paper, a vector autoregression (VAR) model has been constructed in order to analyze a two-way mechanism between PM2.5 pollution and industry development in Beijing via the combination of an impulse response function and variance decomposition. According to the results, long-term equilibrium interconnection was found between PM2.5 pollution and the development of primary, secondary, and tertiary industries. One-way Granger causalities were found in the three types of industries shown to contribute to PM2.5 pollution, though the three industries showed different scales of influences on the PM2.5 pollution that varied for about 1–2 years. The development of the primary and secondary industries increased the emission of PM2.5, but the tertiary industry had an inhibitory effect. In addition, PM2.5 pollution had a certain inhibitory effect on the development of the primary and secondary industries, but the inhibition of the tertiary industry was not significant. Therefore, the development of the tertiary industry can contribute the most to the reduction of PM2.5 pollution. Based on these findings, policy-making recommendations can be proposed regarding upcoming pollution prevention strategies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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14 pages, 2362 KiB  
Article
Responses of Ecosystem Services to Urbanization-Induced Land Use Changes in Ecologically Sensitive Suburban Areas in Hangzhou, China
by Shaofeng Yuan, Congmou Zhu, Lixia Yang and Fenghua Xie
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(7), 1124; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16071124 - 28 Mar 2019
Cited by 27 | Viewed by 3747
Abstract
Ecologically sensitive suburban areas provide important ecosystem services and protect urban ecological security because of their multiple functions in natural and human systems. The research on the ecological environment effects of land use activities in ecologically sensitive suburban areas is important in guiding [...] Read more.
Ecologically sensitive suburban areas provide important ecosystem services and protect urban ecological security because of their multiple functions in natural and human systems. The research on the ecological environment effects of land use activities in ecologically sensitive suburban areas is important in guiding the healthy and sustainable development of cities. Taking the west suburbs of Hangzhou in China as a case study, we quantified land use changes from Landsat satellite imagery and calculated the value of ecosystem services using the well-established equivalent factor table for land use/cover change (LUCC) and ecosystem services value (ESV). The impacts of LUCC on the ecological environment were analyzed using the transfer matrix of land use and coefficient of elasticity. Results revealed the following. (1) The total ESV in the western suburban area of Hangzhou decreased from $109.95 million in 2000 to $87.09 million in 2016. Moreover, the ESV of gas regulation, climate regulation, soil formation and protection, as well as biodiversity conservation presented a large decrease of more than 25%, especially between 2010 and 2016. (2) The spatial distribution of ESV was high in the west and low in the east. The regions with a significant reduction in ESV were mainly distributed in the eastern town of Wuchang and in Jincheng Town located in the midwest valley. (3) Industrial agglomeration activities in the ecologically sensitive suburban area emerged as the primary factor influencing ESV for various land uses. The elasticity indicator for assessing the responses to ESV changes relative to LUCC showed that 1% of the land conversion in this area resulted in average changes in ESV of 4.1% after the establishment of the industrial agglomeration area. (4) The increase in construction land was associated with a significant decrease in forest area because of the policy of cultivated land requisition–compensation balance and development strategies for low-slope hilly lands. Consequently, the ESV in the ecologically sensitive suburban areas rapidly declined. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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19 pages, 3761 KiB  
Article
A Two-Stage Decision Framework for Resolving Brownfield Conflicts
by Qingye Han, Yuming Zhu, Ginger Y. Ke and Hongli Lin
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(6), 1039; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16061039 - 22 Mar 2019
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2814
Abstract
Based on the Graph Model of Conflict Resolution (GMCR), a two-stage decision framework is developed to reveal the essence of brownfield incidents and facilitate the resolution of brownfield conflicts caused by the incidents. More particularly, the forward GMCR is utilized in Stage I, [...] Read more.
Based on the Graph Model of Conflict Resolution (GMCR), a two-stage decision framework is developed to reveal the essence of brownfield incidents and facilitate the resolution of brownfield conflicts caused by the incidents. More particularly, the forward GMCR is utilized in Stage I, the negotiation stage, to simulate the evolution of a Brownfield Conflict (BC) and predict its potential resolution via stability analysis. If no acceptable equilibrium can be obtained, the BC progresses into Stage II, the third-party-intervention stage, where the inverse GMCR is used to assist a third party in intervening the conflict to achieve a desirable outcome. To illustrate the practicality of this framework, a recent BC that occurred in Changzhou, China, is taken as a case study. Invaluable insights are provided through the computation and investigation of the corresponding preference relationships. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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18 pages, 459 KiB  
Article
Information Sharing and Investment Performance in the Venture Capital Network Community: An Empirical Study of Environmental-Social-Governance Start-Ups
by Chaokai Xue, Xinghua Dang, Beibei Shi and Jing Gu
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(6), 1023; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16061023 - 20 Mar 2019
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 4399
Abstract
Information sharing plays a significant role in improving investment performance in the venture capital network community, which serves as an important requirement for the venture capital network to expand to the meso-level and promote its healthy development. Given the important role of Environmental-Social-Governance [...] Read more.
Information sharing plays a significant role in improving investment performance in the venture capital network community, which serves as an important requirement for the venture capital network to expand to the meso-level and promote its healthy development. Given the important role of Environmental-Social-Governance (ESG) start-ups in promoting sustainable development, this paper selects a sample of ESG start-ups in China to explore the relationship between venture capital network community information sharing and investment performance. We also examine the intermediary role of investment capability in this relationship. Empirical results show that venture capital network community information sharing, from both the prospective of breadth and depth, has a significant positive impact on investment performance of ESG start-ups. We also find that the investment capability, such as scouting and coaching, plays a partial intermediary role in affecting investment performance by community information sharing. This research helps to reveal the relationship between venture capital network community information sharing and investment performance. The results provide a theoretical basis and managerial insights for improving investment performance of ESG start-ups. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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23 pages, 3736 KiB  
Article
Assessing Regional Differences in Green Innovation Efficiency of Industrial Enterprises in China
by Jun-liang Du, Yong Liu and Wei-xue Diao
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(6), 940; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16060940 - 15 Mar 2019
Cited by 117 | Viewed by 6182
Abstract
Green technology innovation is an important means to break out of the constraints of resources and the environment, enhance the competitiveness of enterprises, and achieve the upgrading of industrial structures, and promote high-quality economic growth. In order to realize the overall improvement of [...] Read more.
Green technology innovation is an important means to break out of the constraints of resources and the environment, enhance the competitiveness of enterprises, and achieve the upgrading of industrial structures, and promote high-quality economic growth. In order to realize the overall improvement of the green technology innovation capability of Chinese enterprises, it is necessary to measure the efficiency of industrial enterprises’ green technology innovation and explore their regional differences. In this paper, from the perspective of a two-stage innovation value chain, by introducing the industrial carbon emissions per unit of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and the “three wastes” pollutants into the research framework of green technology innovation efficiency, we established a novel green innovation efficiency evaluation indicator system for industrial enterprises. Furthermore, we used a two-stage network DEA with shared input to measure the efficiency of regional enterprises’ green technology innovation and explored the regional differences in industrial enterprises’ green technology R&D and the efficiency of green technology achievement transformation. Finally, we provide some suggestions for improving China’s industrial enterprises’ green innovation efficiency, so that they can ameliorate the significant regional imbalances and differences and realize high-quality economic growth. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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16 pages, 2203 KiB  
Article
Haze Influencing Factors: A Data Envelopment Analysis Approach
by Yi Zhou, Lianshui Li, Ruiling Sun, Zaiwu Gong, Mingguo Bai and Guo Wei
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(6), 914; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16060914 - 14 Mar 2019
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2381
Abstract
This paper investigates the meteorological factors and human activities that influence PM2.5 pollution by employing the data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach to a chance constrained stochastic optimization problem. This approach has the two advantages of admitting random input and output, and allowing [...] Read more.
This paper investigates the meteorological factors and human activities that influence PM2.5 pollution by employing the data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach to a chance constrained stochastic optimization problem. This approach has the two advantages of admitting random input and output, and allowing the evaluation unit to exceed the front edge under the given probability constraint. Furthermore, by utilizing the meteorological observation data incorporated with the economic and social data for Jiangsu Province, the chance constrained stochastic DEA model was solved to explore the relationship between the meteorological elements and human activities and PM2.5 pollution. The results are summarized by the following: (1) Among all five primary indexes, social progress, energy use and transportation are the most significant for PM2.5 pollution. (2) Among our selected 14 secondary indexes, coal consumption, population density and civil car ownership account for a major portion of PM2.5 pollution. (3) Human activities are the main factor producing PM2.5 pollution. While some meteorological elements generate PM2.5 pollution, some act as influencing factors on the migration of PM2.5 pollution. These findings can provide a reference for the government to formulate appropriate policies to reduce PM2.5 emissions and for the communities to develop effective strategies to eliminate PM2.5 pollution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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24 pages, 2469 KiB  
Article
Water Footprint Allocation under Equity and Efficiency Considerations: A Case Study of the Yangtze River Economic Belt in China
by Gang Liu, Weiqian Wang and Kevin W. Li
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(5), 743; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16050743 - 01 Mar 2019
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2443
Abstract
From a water footprint perspective, this paper adopts Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as the influencing factor to construct a lexicographical optimization framework for optimizing water resources allocation under equity and efficiency considerations. This approach consists of a lexicographic allocation of water footprints (LAWF) [...] Read more.
From a water footprint perspective, this paper adopts Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as the influencing factor to construct a lexicographical optimization framework for optimizing water resources allocation under equity and efficiency considerations. This approach consists of a lexicographic allocation of water footprints (LAWF) model and an input-output capacity of water footprints (IOWF) model. The proposed methodology is then applied to allocate water resources in the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) by employing the 2013 cross-sectional data in the area. The results show that: (1) The LAWF scheme signifies reductions in water footprints in each of the YREB administrative units, thereby significantly strengthening their IOWFs. (2) IOWFs are affected by industrial attributes and natural endowments, and the impact tends to vary across different industries and regions. (3) Policy suggestions are proposed to effectively enhance the IOWFs of the weakest industries across the three YREB regions to exploit their natural endowments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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21 pages, 3421 KiB  
Article
Assessment of Lexicographic Minimax Allocations of Blue and Green Water Footprints in the Yangtze River Economic Belt Based on Land, Population, and Economy
by Gang Liu, Fan Hu, Yixin Wang and Huimin Wang
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(4), 643; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16040643 - 21 Feb 2019
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2924
Abstract
To assess different impacts of land, population and economy factors on the lexicographic minimax optimal allocation of blue and green water footprints, a comprehensive discriminant rule is constructed in this paper based on the Gini coefficient and Theil entropy index. The proposed rule [...] Read more.
To assess different impacts of land, population and economy factors on the lexicographic minimax optimal allocation of blue and green water footprints, a comprehensive discriminant rule is constructed in this paper based on the Gini coefficient and Theil entropy index. The proposed rule is employed to estimate the influence of the aforesaid factors (land, population and economy) on the corresponding allocation schemes from a fairness perspective. To demonstrate its applicability, the proposed approach is applied to a water resources allocation study for 11 provinces in the Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB). The results indicate that: (1) the economy-based lexicographic allocation of water footprints (LAWF) is more equalitarian for the provinces with high water footprint quotas. The land area-based LAWF is more equalitarian for the provinces with low water footprint quotas. The population-based LAWF is more equalitarian for the provinces with medium water footprint quotas. (2) The contribution of intra-regional variation in the population-based LAWF scheme is the largest of the three schemes. The inter-regional variation contributed the largest in the land area-based LAWF scheme. (3) Two synthetic schemes which integrate multiple factors among land area, economy and population are more equalitarian than the three single-factor schemes. Compared with the original situation which is an equalitarian but ineffective allocation, the two synthetic schemes have greater effect on the improvement of the supply-demand balance of water resources carrying capacity. Therefore, the defect of the population, economy and land area factors acting alone should be resolved by designing a weighting system, in order to optimize the allocation of water resources. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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26 pages, 1791 KiB  
Article
Managing Supplier-Manufacturer Closed-Loop Supply Chain Considering Product Design and Take-Back Legislation
by Yue Wang, Baoying Xin, Zhe Wang and Bangyi Li
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(4), 623; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16040623 - 20 Feb 2019
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 3009
Abstract
Facing a growing amount of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), a recent recast of the WEEE directive has put a specific reuse target for manufacturers, aiming to reduce environmental pollution and incentivize a green product design. In this paper, in order to [...] Read more.
Facing a growing amount of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), a recent recast of the WEEE directive has put a specific reuse target for manufacturers, aiming to reduce environmental pollution and incentivize a green product design. In this paper, in order to examine whether the above two goals can be achieved by setting a specific reuse target, we have modelled a closed-loop supply chain consisting of a supplier (the leader) and a manufacturer (the follower) with the constraint of a mandated remanufacturing target. In this model, the supplier determines the level of interchangeability in product design and the wholesale price of the key component. The manufacturer buys the key components from the supplier and makes production and remanufacturing decisions under the requirement of a mandated remanufacturing target. We have investigated the supply chain’s members’ optimal decisions and analyzed the impact of the mandated remanufacturing target on the optimal profits of the supply chain’s members and consumer surplus, and finally, we have explored the environmental implications of the mandated remanufacturing target. We found that the supply chain’s members’ optimal decisions are affected by the mandated remanufacturing target and the cost of the new component. In terms of the economic implications of the mandated remanufacturing target, we have demonstrated that the increase in the mandated remanufacturing target has negative effects on the profits of the supply chain’s members and consumer surplus. Regarding the goal of incentivizing green product design, we found that the mandated remanufacturing target cannot always incentivize the supplier to implement product design that is beneficial to remanufacturing. From the perspective of the environment, we further indicate that more stringent mandated remanufacturing targets may bring an undesirable environmental outcome. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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15 pages, 795 KiB  
Article
A Group Decision Making Approach Considering Self-Confidence Behaviors and Its Application in Environmental Pollution Emergency Management
by Xia Liu, Yejun Xu, Yao Ge, Weike Zhang and Francisco Herrera
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(3), 385; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16030385 - 29 Jan 2019
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 3553
Abstract
Self-confidence as one of the human psychological behaviors has important influence on emergency management decision making, which has been ignored in existing methods. To fill this gap, we dedicate to design a group decision making approach considering self-confidence behaviors and apply it to [...] Read more.
Self-confidence as one of the human psychological behaviors has important influence on emergency management decision making, which has been ignored in existing methods. To fill this gap, we dedicate to design a group decision making approach considering self-confidence behaviors and apply it to the environmental pollution emergency management. In the proposed method, the self-confident fuzzy preference relations are utilized to express experts’ evaluations. This new type of preference relations allow experts to express multiple self-confidence levels when providing their evaluations, which can deal with the self-confidence of them well. To apply the proposed group decision making method to environmental pollution emergency management, a novel determination of the decision weights of experts is given combining the subjective and objective weights. The subjective weight can be directly assigned by organizer, while the objective weight is determined by the self-confidence degree of experts on their evaluations. Afterwards, by utilizing the weighted averaging operator, the individuals’ evaluations can be aggregated into a collective one. To do that, some operational laws for self-confident fuzzy preference relations are introduced. And then, a self-confidence score function is designed to get the best solution for environmental pollution emergency management. Finally, some analyses and discussions show that the proposed method is feasible and effective. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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21 pages, 1913 KiB  
Article
Urban Sustainability Evaluation under the Modified TOPSIS Based on Grey Relational Analysis
by Juan Tang, Hong-lin Zhu, Zhi Liu, Fu Jia and Xiao-xue Zheng
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(2), 256; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16020256 - 17 Jan 2019
Cited by 68 | Viewed by 4502
Abstract
The evaluation of urban sustainability plays a crucial role in the process of the sustainable development of cities. To decrease subjectivity and attain a comprehensive evaluation, this paper develops an evaluation method using the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution [...] Read more.
The evaluation of urban sustainability plays a crucial role in the process of the sustainable development of cities. To decrease subjectivity and attain a comprehensive evaluation, this paper develops an evaluation method using the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS). First, an evaluation index system including 39 indices and three categories (economic, social, and ecological development) is established; second, based on the index system, a modified TOPSIS, in which the entropy method is used to assign weights to each index according to its evaluation score and grey relation analysis is used to reduce the uncertainty existing in the process of evaluation, is presented to rank the sustainability level of cities. Finally, an example with the sustainability evaluation of 16 cities in the Anhui province of China is introduced to verify the effectiveness of the model. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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29 pages, 3347 KiB  
Article
Leasing or Selling? Durable Goods Manufacturer Marketing Model Selection under a Mixed Carbon Trading-and-Tax Policy Scenario
by Yuxiang Zhang, Deqing Tan and Zhi Liu
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(2), 251; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16020251 - 16 Jan 2019
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3394
Abstract
Many carbon reduction policies have been implemented to reduce carbon dioxide in the manufacturing process of products. However, many products emit more carbon dioxide in the consumption process. From the consumer’s utility perspective, this paper firstly analyses the manufacturing and marketing model selection [...] Read more.
Many carbon reduction policies have been implemented to reduce carbon dioxide in the manufacturing process of products. However, many products emit more carbon dioxide in the consumption process. From the consumer’s utility perspective, this paper firstly analyses the manufacturing and marketing model selection decisions of a monopoly manufacturer under the mixed carbon policy, and then a win-win result that can encourage the manufacturer to choose the marketing model with lower carbon emissions while at the same time obtaining the optimal profit is discussed. The results show that the production activity will proceed only when the carbon trading price is lower than a certain threshold. When the carbon trading price is lower than a certain threshold, leasing represents the manufacturer’s optimal marketing model. When the carbon trading price is higher than the threshold, selling represents the manufacturer’s optimal marketing model. For the carbon cap Q, there are equilibrium intervals in which the government can achieve the aim of controlling carbon emissions, while not overly affecting the manufacturer’s enthusiasm for production. For the carbon trading price and the carbon tax rate, there are two different intervals in which leasing gains more profit for the manufacturer while emitting lower carbon emissions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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12 pages, 1164 KiB  
Article
A Non-Liner Decision Model for Green Crowdfunding Project Success: Evidence from China
by Jinbi Yang, Libo Liu and Chunxiao Yin
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(2), 187; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16020187 - 10 Jan 2019
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3829
Abstract
Green growth and environmental sustainability have become a significant focus in today’s living. We believe that green crowdfunding project can make an important contribution to the creation and evaluation of environmental systems. This study aims to investigate the determinants of green crowdfunding project [...] Read more.
Green growth and environmental sustainability have become a significant focus in today’s living. We believe that green crowdfunding project can make an important contribution to the creation and evaluation of environmental systems. This study aims to investigate the determinants of green crowdfunding project success. Contrary to the linear relationship in previous literature, we propose a non-liner decision model that includes three determinants, funds pledge, goal setting, and project duration to predict project success. The quantitative approach method was employed. We crawl data on 1389 green crowdfunding projects from Tencent Lejuan, a crowdfunding platform in China. By using ordinary least square method to conduct data analysis, we find that the effect of goal setting on project success is non-linear as low and moderate levels of goal setting are not always likely to have a significant impact on project success, but the presence of a higher goal is likely to exert a positive effect on project success. Moreover, results show that the effect of project duration on project success is non-linear as short and moderate levels of duration is not always certain to have significant impact on project success, but the presence of a long duration is likely to exert a positive effect on project success. This study has implications for fund-seekers for green crowdfunding projects and managers of crowdfunding platforms. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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16 pages, 1727 KiB  
Article
A New Grey Relational Analysis Model Based on the Characteristic of Inscribed Core (IC-GRA) and Its Application on Seven-Pilot Carbon Trading Markets of China
by Lihong Wang, Kedong Yin, Yun Cao and Xuemei Li
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(1), 99; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16010099 - 31 Dec 2018
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 4723
Abstract
In recent years, the study of the factors affecting the carbon trading price plays an important role in promoting the carbon trading markets and the sustainable development of green economy. However, due to the short establishment time of China’s carbon trading market, the [...] Read more.
In recent years, the study of the factors affecting the carbon trading price plays an important role in promoting the carbon trading markets and the sustainable development of green economy. However, due to the short establishment time of China’s carbon trading market, the carbon trading price data of the pilot markets were not complete and have the typical characteristics of poor information. The traditional grey correlation model cannot effectively identify the volatility and the grey correlation coefficient of trading data. In this paper, an inscribed cored grey relational analysis model (IC-GRA) is constructed by extracting the values of the triangle inscribed center of the time series sample. Through numerical examples and empirical analysis, it is verified that IC-GRA not only satisfies the four axioms of traditional grey correlation but also avoids the influence of outliers of time series fluctuation and improves the discriminability of the grey correlation coefficient. The empirical results of the IC-GRA model in China’s seven pilot carbon trading markets show that: 1. among international carbon trade factor, the biggest influence factor carbon trade price is different in pilot markets. The price of natural gas has a greater correlation with the carbon price of carbon trading markets in Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Chongqing. The futures price of Certified Emission Reduction (CER) has a strong correlation with the carbon price of Shanghai and Beijing carbon trading markets; the price of Hubei carbon trading market is the largest related to crude oil future price in the New York Mercantile Exchange ( NYMEX). 2. Air Quality Index (AQI) is most relevant to the market carbon price of carbon trading, followed by the trading turnover and trading volume of the carbon trading market. Therefore, studying the carbon trading price of the carbon trading market plays a positive role in improving the sustainable development in those areas. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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31 pages, 3296 KiB  
Article
Greenness and Pricing Decisions of Cooperative Supply Chains Considering Altruistic Preferences
by Hui Huang, Juan Zhang, Xuan Ren and Xiang Zhou
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(1), 51; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16010051 - 26 Dec 2018
Cited by 36 | Viewed by 3880
Abstract
With the development of the economy and science technology, global resource shortages and environmental pressures have become the focus of attention. More and more consumers tend to buy non-polluting and environmentally friendly green products, and many manufacturers and retailers are beginning to produce [...] Read more.
With the development of the economy and science technology, global resource shortages and environmental pressures have become the focus of attention. More and more consumers tend to buy non-polluting and environmentally friendly green products, and many manufacturers and retailers are beginning to produce or sell green products to enhance their competitive advantage in the market. Considering the green preference attributes of consumers, the altruistic preference is introduced into the supply chain, and we establish four models: two cooperative manufacturers and one retailer are completely self-interested, one retailer has altruistic preference, two cooperative manufacturers have altruistic preferences, and two cooperative manufacturers and one retailer have altruistic preferences. We address the optimal greenness and pricing decisions of supply chain members, and analyze the impact of altruistic preferences on supply chain decision-making and profits. The results show that the altruistic preference coefficient can significantly affect the decision-making and the profits of supply chain members, and when two manufacturers and one retailer consider altruistic preferences, the altruistic preference coefficients adopted by the three parties are in the certain ranges, the supply chain members’ altruistic preference coefficients can increase the whole supply chain profit. Through analysis, in the three cases where the retailer has altruistic preferences, two manufacturers have altruistic preferences, and two manufacturers and one retailer have altruistic preferences, two manufacturers should adopt higher altruistic preference coefficients, and the retailer should adopt a lower altruistic preference coefficient, and the product greenness under the three altruistic preferences is higher than the product greenness when there is no altruistic preference. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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15 pages, 1815 KiB  
Article
Evaluating the Efficacy of Government Spending on Air Pollution Control: A Case Study from Beijing
by Xiaoyao Xie and Yuhong Wang
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2019, 16(1), 45; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16010045 - 25 Dec 2018
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 3841
Abstract
The reform and opening up of the Chinese economy over the last 40 years has led to rapid economic development. However, with the rapid expansion of the economy, increasingly serious air pollution is apparent. In order to control urban air pollution effectively, Chinese [...] Read more.
The reform and opening up of the Chinese economy over the last 40 years has led to rapid economic development. However, with the rapid expansion of the economy, increasingly serious air pollution is apparent. In order to control urban air pollution effectively, Chinese governments at all levels have invested large sums every year. However, it has become a difficult issue which influences public government decisions with respect to how and according to what standard to distribute financial funds so as to improve air quality while saving money at the same time. Taking Beijing as an example, this paper investigates the ten-year change in the annual daily mean of inhalable particulate matter (PM10), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) from the year of 2006 to 2015, researches the invested funds in environmental protection in Beijing, and establishes a relationship between the atmospheric indexes of the above three parameters and government-invested funds in environmental protection. According to model analysis, government financial input has an obvious influence on the improvement of air quality. However, during the long period of financial input, the degree of air quality improvement will reduce gradually as time goes by. There exists a direct link between the effectiveness of government financial input to promote air quality and the air quality index, which means when the pollutant standards index is poor (i.e., the corresponding pollutant concentration is higher), the effectiveness will be more apparent. On the contrary, when the index is at a good level, the effectiveness of government financial input is very small. To achieve the best air quality conditions, the government should set the detailed financial input at or over the first-grade standard according to urban air quality standards. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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24 pages, 578 KiB  
Article
A Comparative Study of the Role of Australia and New Zealand in Sustainable Dairy Competition in the Chinese Market after the Dairy Safety Scandals
by Junqian Xu and Yuanyuan Wu
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(12), 2880; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15122880 - 15 Dec 2018
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4788
Abstract
After the melamine milk scandal in 2008, China’s global imports of dairy products soared, especially after FTAs had been established with Australia and New Zealand. The dairy products of the two countries have a unique competitive trading advantage in the Chinese market. However, [...] Read more.
After the melamine milk scandal in 2008, China’s global imports of dairy products soared, especially after FTAs had been established with Australia and New Zealand. The dairy products of the two countries have a unique competitive trading advantage in the Chinese market. However, at a time when Chinese consumers are increasingly dependent on imported dairy products, a succession of whey protein scandals affecting New Zealand’s dairy products in 2013 had a negative psychological impact on Chinese importers and consumers, and this even affected the import status of New Zealand dairy imports to the Chinese market. The present paper, based on the United Nations Comtrade Harmonized System, studies the role of Australia and New Zealand in China’s dairy market. It calculates the trade competitiveness index, revealing the relative competitive advantages of Australia and New Zealand, and investigates the impact of the dairy products from these countries on China’s imports from the rest of the world across six dairy sectors in the period 1992–2017. We find that, under the food safety laws, the relative dairy import prices, milk scandals, and Free Trade Agreements, together with the competitive advantages of Australia and New Zealand, had a varied impact on the corresponding Chinese dairy imports across the relevant sectors in the context of China food safety laws after the melamine milk scandal. These findings acknowledge Australia and New Zealand’s competitiveness in the international dairy trade, and also lead to suggestions regarding their competitiveness and sustainable development in the Chinese market. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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15 pages, 1700 KiB  
Article
Network Design for Municipal Solid Waste Collection: A Case Study of the Nanjing Jiangbei New Area
by Jing Liang and Ming Liu
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(12), 2812; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15122812 - 10 Dec 2018
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3750
Abstract
Garbage collection is an important part of municipal engineering. An effective service network design can help to reduce the municipal operation cost and improve its service level. In this paper, we propose an optimization model for the network design of municipal solid waste [...] Read more.
Garbage collection is an important part of municipal engineering. An effective service network design can help to reduce the municipal operation cost and improve its service level. In this paper, we propose an optimization model for the network design of municipal solid waste (MSW) collection in the Nanjing Jiangbei new area. The problem was formulated as a mixed integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) model with an emphasis on minimizing the annual operation cost. The model simultaneously decides on the optimal number of refuse transfer stations (RTSs), determines the relative size and location for each RTS, allocates each community to a specific RTS, and finally identifies the annual operation cost and service level for the optimal scenario as well as other scenarios. A custom solution procedure which hybrids an enumeration rule and a genetic algorithm was designed to solve the proposed model. A sensitivity analysis was also conducted to illustrate the impact of changes in parameters on the optimality of the proposed model. Test results revealed that our model could provide tangible policy recommendations for managing the MSW collection. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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13 pages, 935 KiB  
Article
A Quantitative Assessment of Sustainable Development Based on Relative Resource Carrying Capacity in Jiangsu Province of China
by Jinbi Yang and Hao Ding
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(12), 2786; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15122786 - 09 Dec 2018
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 3628
Abstract
Unbalanced development is an urgent issue that needs to be resolved in the sustainable development strategy of Jiangsu Province, which inhibits Jiangsu’s industrial transformation and upgrading. A relative resource carrying capacity model is extended based on resource carrying capacity to analyze the resource [...] Read more.
Unbalanced development is an urgent issue that needs to be resolved in the sustainable development strategy of Jiangsu Province, which inhibits Jiangsu’s industrial transformation and upgrading. A relative resource carrying capacity model is extended based on resource carrying capacity to analyze the resource carrying capacity of the different regions of Jiangsu Province. Three indicators of water resources, land resources, and energy resources are included in the natural resources. In social resources, factors of population quality are included in the analysis scope. Based on the improved model, this paper analyzes the relative resource carrying capacity of Jiangsu Province. The results show that: (1) under both traditional resource carrying capacity model and the improved model, Jiangsu Province has a surplus population; however, there is a certain difference between the result from two modules; (2) contributions of environmental resources, economic resources, and social resources to the comprehensive carrying capacity of resources is obviously higher than the contributions of natural resources; and (3) significant regional differences exist in relative resource carrying capacity within Jiangsu Province between the southern region and the middle region, in which the capacity is surplus to the population demand, and the northern region, in which the capacity is overloaded. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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23 pages, 5342 KiB  
Article
Decomposition Analysis of Factors Affecting Changes in Industrial Wastewater Emission Intensity in China: Based on a SSBM-GMI Approach
by Yongyi Cheng, Liheng Lu, Tianyuan Shao, Manhong Shen and Laiqun Jin
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(12), 2779; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15122779 - 07 Dec 2018
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2830
Abstract
This paper investigated the factors driving the changes in industrial wastewater emission intensity (IWEI) across provinces in China. To do this, we proposed a Super-efficiency Slacks-based Measure-Global Malmquist Index (SSBM-GMI) to decompose the change in IWEI into the effects from efficiency change (ECE), [...] Read more.
This paper investigated the factors driving the changes in industrial wastewater emission intensity (IWEI) across provinces in China. To do this, we proposed a Super-efficiency Slacks-based Measure-Global Malmquist Index (SSBM-GMI) to decompose the change in IWEI into the effects from efficiency change (ECE), technological change (TCE), capital–wastewater substitution (KWE) and labor–wastewater substitution (LWE). The method was applied to conduct an empirical study using Chinese provincial data from 2003–2015. The main findings include the following: firstly, TCE was the dominant driving force behind the reduction in IWEI with an average annual contribution of −6.4% at the national level, followed by KWE (−5.3%), LWE (−1.8%) and ECE (1.2%). Secondly, significant differences exist in the driving factors behind the reduction in IWEI across regions. The reduction in IWEIs in the Northeast area and the Great Northwest area was mainly driven by productivity growth, while the reduction in IWEIs in the other areas was mainly driven by factor substitution. Thirdly, the shortage of KWE and LWE has impeded IWEI reduction in the Great Northwest area, the Middle Reaches of the Yellow River, the Northeast area and the North area. Finally, some particular policy implications were also recommended for reducing industrial wastewater emission in China. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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23 pages, 1426 KiB  
Article
The Optimal Carbon Emission Reduction and Prices with Cap and Trade Mechanism and Competition
by Linghong Zhang, Hao Zhou, Yanyan Liu and Rui Lu
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(11), 2570; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112570 - 16 Nov 2018
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 3589
Abstract
More and more countries employ the Carbon Cap and Trade mechanism (CCT-mechanism) to stimulate the manufacturer to produce much more eco-friendly products. In this paper, we study how the CCT-mechanism affects competitive manufacturers’ product design and pricing strategies. Assume that there are two [...] Read more.
More and more countries employ the Carbon Cap and Trade mechanism (CCT-mechanism) to stimulate the manufacturer to produce much more eco-friendly products. In this paper, we study how the CCT-mechanism affects competitive manufacturers’ product design and pricing strategies. Assume that there are two competitive manufacturers; we give the optimal closed form solutions of the carbon emission reduction rates and retail prices in the Nash game model and the Stackelberg game model with CCT-mechanism, respectively. Additionally, we also discuss the impacts of CCT-mechanism, consumer environmental awareness (CEA), and the sensitivity of switchovers toward price on the optimal carbon emission reduction rates, retail prices, and manufacturers’ profits. We find that (i) when the carbon quota is not enough, there is a trade off between investing in producing much greener product and purchasing carbon quota; when the carbon price is not high, the manufacturer tends to purchase the carbon quota; and when the carbon price is much higher, the manufacturer is more willing to increase the environmental quality of the product; (ii) manufacturer’s size affects product’s emission reduction rate and manufacturer’s optimal profit; larger manufacturer tends to produce much greener product, but it does not mean that he could obtain much more money than the small manufacturer; and (iii) the decision sequence changes manufacturer’s strategies; the optimal emission reduction rate in Nash and Stackelberg game models are almost the same, but the differences of prices and profits between Nash and Stackelberg model’s are much bigger. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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15 pages, 1445 KiB  
Article
Empirical Analysis of Carbon Emission Accounting and Influencing Factors of Energy Consumption in China
by Zhaosu Meng, Huan Wang and Baona Wang
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(11), 2467; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112467 - 05 Nov 2018
Cited by 43 | Viewed by 4009
Abstract
China is confronting great pressure to reduce carbon emissions. This study focuses on the driving factors of carbon emissions in China using the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) method. Seven economic factors, including gross domestic product (GDP), investment intensity, research and development (R&D) [...] Read more.
China is confronting great pressure to reduce carbon emissions. This study focuses on the driving factors of carbon emissions in China using the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) method. Seven economic factors, including gross domestic product (GDP), investment intensity, research and development (R&D) intensity, energy intensity, research and development (R&D) efficiency, energy structure and province structure are selected and the decomposition model of influencing factors of carbon emissions in China is constructed from a sectoral perspective. The influence of various economic factors on carbon emissions is analyzed quantitatively. Results show that the R&D intensity and energy intensity are the main factors inhibiting the growth of carbon emissions. GDP and investment intensity are the major factors promoting the growth of carbon emissions. The contribution of R&D efficiency to carbon emissions is decreasing. The impacts of energy structure and province structure on carbon emissions are ambiguous through time. Finally, some policy suggestions for strengthening the management of carbon emissions and carbon emission reduction are proposed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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27 pages, 4226 KiB  
Article
Evolutionary Game Theoretic Analysis of Low Carbon Investment in Supply Chains under Governmental Subsidies
by Guang Zhu, Gaozhi Pan and Weiwei Zhang
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(11), 2465; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112465 - 05 Nov 2018
Cited by 33 | Viewed by 3782
Abstract
With the rapid development of global industry and economy, excessive carbon dioxide emission has emerged as a critical issue in both developed and developing countries. Using an evolutionary game framework in which game players can adjust their strategies constantly, this paper investigates how [...] Read more.
With the rapid development of global industry and economy, excessive carbon dioxide emission has emerged as a critical issue in both developed and developing countries. Using an evolutionary game framework in which game players can adjust their strategies constantly, this paper investigates how to optimize the strategy of low carbon investment for suppliers and manufacturers in supply chains, and discuss the impacts of various factors on evolutionarily stable strategies. Additionally, we examine an incentive mechanism based on governmental subsidies to eliminate free riding and motivate co-investment. Furthermore, a case study and numerical examples are provided for illustration and simulation purposes, leading to several countermeasures and suggestions. Our analytical results show that the strategic choice of low carbon investment is correlated with profit growth coefficients, investment costs and profits from free riding. Investment costs have more significant impacts than other factors on evolutionarily stable strategies, while profit growth coefficients are more important at initial stages in the evolutionary process. The incentive mechanism based on governmental subsidies is an effective solution to motivate co-investment, and governments should take some measures to improve the assess accuracy and supervisory efficiency of investment strategy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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20 pages, 780 KiB  
Article
An Evaluation of Environmental Governance in Urban China Based on a Hesitant Fuzzy Linguistic Analytic Network Process
by Xing Gao, Cheng Shi and Keyu Zhai
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(11), 2456; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112456 - 04 Nov 2018
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3114
Abstract
The aim of this study is to evaluate the performance of urban environmental governance by developing hesitant fuzzy linguistic analytic network process (HFL-ANP). The study bridges the gaps in current knowledge in the following ways: the study methodically develops the HFL-ANP method to [...] Read more.
The aim of this study is to evaluate the performance of urban environmental governance by developing hesitant fuzzy linguistic analytic network process (HFL-ANP). The study bridges the gaps in current knowledge in the following ways: the study methodically develops the HFL-ANP method to evaluate and pick the optimal environmental governance strategy from alternatives; theoretically, network structure of evaluation indicators system on environmental governance is constructed, and the objective and subjective information in the evaluation process of environmental governance is combined. In detail, based on the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) and the pollution haven hypothesis, the paper constructs the evaluation indexes system of environmental governance and takes observation time length into consideration. Then, we choose three urban cases of environmental governance by exploring the existing literature. Furthermore, we develop the HFL-ANP method and apply it to the cases. The study calculates the initial weights of all indexes by using multiplicative consistency of the HFL preference relation, and derives the decision matrix through combining objective information with subjective information of environmental governance. Finally, we come to the following conclusions: ANP network stricture is close to real-world practical problems and provides the basis for HFL-ANP method; HFL-ANP is a very suitable method of assessing environmental governance; and based on the urban cases of environmental governance, Shanghai is the optimal alternative. In addition, this indicator system can only be applied to cities in China, and the administrative hierarchy of policies has not been considered by this method. Thus, future studies should expand this method and indicator network to contain different countries and different administrative hierarchy. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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17 pages, 2625 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Environmental Impacts Due to Blue Water Consumption in China from Production and Consumption Perspectives
by Jing Liu, Mengyang Wu and Zhongbo Yu
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(11), 2445; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112445 - 02 Nov 2018
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3146
Abstract
Current environmental impact analyses are mainly focused on land, soil, energy, and material consumption, while studies regarding blue water consumption are scarce. Based on the water footprint concept, this study evaluates the impacts of blue water consumption on human health, ecosystem quality, and [...] Read more.
Current environmental impact analyses are mainly focused on land, soil, energy, and material consumption, while studies regarding blue water consumption are scarce. Based on the water footprint concept, this study evaluates the impacts of blue water consumption on human health, ecosystem quality, and water resources in China from the production and consumption perspective, respectively. The results indicate that environmental impacts due to blue water consumption in China were 15.82 × 106 DALY (disability-adjusted life years), 96.54 × 109 m2∙year, and 175.20 × 109 MJ, and provinces such as Xinjiang, Shandong, and Hebei could be targets for achieving smaller environmental impacts in the future. More than 80% of environmental impacts were related to the agricultural sector. In terms of agricultural production, about 70% of the environmental impacts were related to product export. Measures such as the shift of the agricultural production pattern from water-intensive crops and animal products toward less water-intensive ones, the increase of agricultural water use efficiency, and the adoption of water-saving technologies could contribute to smaller environmental impacts. In terms of agricultural consumption, more than 95% of the environmental impacts were related to agricultural products produced locally. The focus was on increasing awareness of the importance of saving water and whether products were imported from regions with relatively small environmental impacts. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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19 pages, 1172 KiB  
Article
Evolution Decision, Drivers and Green Innovation Performance for Collaborative Innovation Center of Ecological Building Materials and Environmental Protection Equipment in Jiangsu Province of China
by Wei Fang, Lulu Tang, Pengxiao Cheng and Naveed Ahmad
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(11), 2365; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15112365 - 25 Oct 2018
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 4362
Abstract
Faced with the bottlenecks and shortcomings brought about by the resource and environmental issues regarding the sustainable development of the economy and society, green innovation has become an important symbol to measure the sustainable competitive advantage of a country and a region. As [...] Read more.
Faced with the bottlenecks and shortcomings brought about by the resource and environmental issues regarding the sustainable development of the economy and society, green innovation has become an important symbol to measure the sustainable competitive advantage of a country and a region. As an important carrier of green innovation, the evolution process of the collaborative innovation network and its green innovation performance are affected by many factors. Therefore, this paper refines the influencing factors of the formation and evolution of collaborative innovation networks and the evaluation indicators of the green innovation performance by literature analysis. According to the characteristics of each evolutionary influence factor, the relationship governance mechanism, relationship strength, and dominant role are defined as decision factors. The rest are defined as drivers. Then, the Analytic Network Process (ANP) is used to empirically analyze the interaction between network evolution decision, driving factors, and green innovation performance, and the interaction relationship model of decision factors, driving factors, and green innovation performance is obtained. The qualitative simulation algorithm based on qualitative simulation (QSIM) basic theory is used to simulate the evolution of a collaborative innovation network, and find the optimal decision to make the green innovation performance reach its relatively high point. Finally, this paper considers the Collaborative Innovation Center of Ecological Building Materials and Environmental Protection Equipment in Jiangsu Province of China as the research object, focusing on its initial stage of growth and maturity. Combining the theory of QSIM with the actual simulation, according to the different development stages of the Collaborative Innovation Center, this paper provides decisions that can promote the rapid improvement of green innovation performance in three aspects: relationship governance mechanism, relationship strength, and core leadership. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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22 pages, 520 KiB  
Article
Environmental Regulation, Two-Way Foreign Direct Investment, and Green Innovation Efficiency in China’s Manufacturing Industry
by Zhijun Feng, Bo Zeng and Qian Ming
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2018, 15(10), 2292; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15102292 - 19 Oct 2018
Cited by 87 | Viewed by 6775
Abstract
This paper adopts 2009 to 2015 panel data from 27 manufacturing industries in China. A Super-SBM model is used to measure the green innovation efficiency (GIE) of China’s manufacturing industry. A panel data model is then built to systematically examine the impact of [...] Read more.
This paper adopts 2009 to 2015 panel data from 27 manufacturing industries in China. A Super-SBM model is used to measure the green innovation efficiency (GIE) of China’s manufacturing industry. A panel data model is then built to systematically examine the impact of environmental regulation (ER) and two-way foreign direct investment (FDI) on the GIE of China’s manufacturing industry under a unified analysis framework. The results are as follows: (1) the overall level of the green innovation efficiency in China’s manufacturing is low, and there is still great potential for improvement. Considering industry heterogeneity, the green innovation efficiency of patent-intensive manufacturing is significantly higher than that of non-patent-intensive manufacturing; (2) in terms of the whole manufacturing industry, ER and the interaction between ER and outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) have significantly negative effects on GIE, OFDI has significantly positive effects on GIE. (3) when considering industry heterogeneity, for patent-intensive manufacturing, ER and the interaction between ER and inward foreign direct investment (IFDI) have significantly negative effects on GIE, while IFDI has significantly positive effect on GIE. For non-patent-intensive manufacturing, ER and the interaction between ER and OFDI have significantly negative effects on GIE, while IFDI and the interaction between ER and IFDI have significantly positive effects on GIE. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Decision Models for Sustainable and Coordinated Development of Environment, Economy, and Society)
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